This week at Inkreadable, dear reader, was probably the slowest week I’ve had in a year and a half. Which doesn’t mean that it was actually slow. I was, in fact quite busy trying to connect with various students to whom I owe time or have said that they want to start a package completely. One of those was my Dutch pronunciation student to whom I still owe an hour and a half and his girlfriend who would like a 12-hour package. They have been very quiet and I have tried not to impose on their time but I would like to get these clients on the books so that I can schedule their lessons. I did have my Polish client last week and Shinwei and I did our very successful furniture lesson Friday. Over at the English Center, teaching has been a bit scarce as my two students are a little bit too busy. I did pin down my Slovak pronunciation client for a lesson on 5 August and 2 September and that will complete her six-hour package. She’s not particularly committed it seems. Over the weekend, I got a call from someone who found me online and would also like pronunciation classes. They are also Slavic though I don’t think they are from Slovakia. Because I couldn’t quite pinpoint where they were from, I asked them to have a trial lesson of half an hour which I will not charge for. It’ll be online so it’s no skin off my back and will happen later today. But I’m quite amused by people’s motivations to learn English on any level. It’s why the title of the post is in part pronunciation pragmatism. When students want a lesson once a month because of commitments, it’s best to start when you have ample time to commit. An accent doesn’t reduce without significant practice. And you just have to do it. I’m very conscious that on the other hand, I sometimes refuse to speak Dutch for that very reason. It is a contradiction I know.
Yesterday was Imres’ penultimate class. It was the first of the presentation classes as one of the students is not going to be there next week. We had four students present this week and will have the remaining five next week. It was a very good experience for me as a teacher because, if I doubted my ability to teach in-company courses, I don’t anymore. I am proud of all my students but one in particular was exceptional in the progress that he made. He also has autism so the fact that he was as open as he was throughout the class was amazing. He gave his presentation on gambling addiction and though he could not externalize the words, his writing was clear and well thought out. He got emotional in class, and I had a hard time not crying with him. The other three presentations were two immigrant stories and to lighten the mood we even had an analysis of the band One Direction. At the end of the class, the students presented me with a box of chocolates, a gift card, and a card signed by all the students. I was extremely touched.
The fluctuations in my schedule have been good for my writing. This has especially been true over the last couple of weeks because George and Jerry keep canceling because of various and sundry issues with their schedules. But that is okay because what that allowed me to do was go to a bookstore and write with a friend, although I still struggled to maintain focus. I’ve been able to do quite a bit of plotting and planning and it’s just a matter now of seeing if everything works. I’m hoping to maintain the momentum amidst lots of new members and being away in the US for a week starting next week. But still, I’m pleased overall. It’s just in time as well as I don’t think I’ll be able to do any writing while I’m in the US. I have lots of people that I want to see and lots of people who want to see me. There will also be a lot of work to accomplish so that will dominate my stress levels. The best way out is always through is once again becoming a mantra.
That’s all she wrote for this Inkreadable installment. But stay tuned. As always, there’s more to come.