MidReal Story
Certified Success: An English Learning Journey
Scenario: Öğrenme Garantisi ve İngiltere’den SertifikaEğitim programlarımız Ortak Avrupa Dil Referans Çerçevesi (CERF) programına 0 uyumludur ve tüm İngilizce seviyelerini kapsamaktadır. Komple İngilizce Eğitim Setimiz ve Online İngilizce Kursumuz ile hem fiziki hem de dijital materyallerin bir arada sunulduğu benzersiz bir eğitim programına sahip olacaksınız. Setlerimizin tüm avantajlarına ilaveten öğrencilerimiz, İngilizce Eğitim Setlerimiz Online İngilizce Kursumuz ile çalışmalarında başarılı olamazlarsa, öğrenimlerine 6 ay ücretsiz olarak devam hakkına sahiptirler. Böylece öğrencilerimizin başarılı olması ve İngiltere’den sertifika alması garanti altına alınmaktadır.
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I am an English teacher.
Unlike the typical English teachers, I’m not teaching the kids in China.
I’m teaching the Chinese adults who are working on their English certification so they can go study or work in an English-speaking country.
And today, I’m about to start my new chapter.
“Alex, don’t you think our students will like our new program?”
I asked as I arranged the textbooks on the desk.
“Of course they will, Em.” Alex, my colleague, answered matter-of-factly.
Though his gaze stayed on the computer screen while he typed something.
We were partners in a new English program where we offered all levels of English class from A1 to C1 which aligned with the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages).
The program was unique because we provided both physical and digital learning materials that no one else provided.
“Just in case they don’t pass their UK certification exams, I guarantee them six months of free education,” I said, still arranging the desks and chairs in a horseshoe shape.
It was going to be a lot more interactive this way.
We’d have a lot more discussions and presentations.
And this was one way for students to see each other’s faces clearly.
Though most of the time they’d use their computers for online learning anyway.
Alex chuckled, shaking his head without looking at me.
“Why are you laughing?”
I asked with my hands on my hips as I stared at him.
He looked up at me with his tall figure and glasses, grinning wickedly.
“You’re so enthusiastic and optimistic as always,” he said, typing something before he continued.
“The students will work their asses off to pass their exams so they won’t have to pay for extra months of education.”
I grinned back at him, knowing that was true.
But it wasn’t just that—most Chinese people didn’t believe in themselves that they could pass their exams.
And I did believe in them.
It was my responsibility to make sure that they believed too.
And I spent most of my time accompanying them in their learning process.
Even when they didn’t have classes.
I spent hours behind my desk, arranging the desks and chairs until the way I wanted them.
The whiteboard was on my left side so I could easily write necessary things on it while we were having discussions.
I had the students’ computer in front of me because I would frequently check their progress to discuss what to do next.
The next hour and a half I spent arranging the textbooks on the desk.
I put some sticky notes on a few pages and also put some books on the desk.
They were for our mock exams.
After I was done with that, I arranged the chairs around each desk and placed a pencil case on top of each desk, which consisted of two pens in different colors and an eraser.
I knew that one of my students liked to use a red pen to write notes on her book while another student loved to use a blue pen because he thought it was easier to read.
On top of all those things, I also put a USB stick on top of each computer.
I checked the time and found that I had another hour before the class started.
I could get a cup of coffee in the cafeteria while waiting for the students.
As I was about to leave the room, I realized that the projector wasn’t there yet.
My heart skipped a beat.
“Did Alex forget about it?”
I mumbled under my breath.
We had to set up the projector for the first day of class.
It was essential because we needed to show some of the videos and PowerPoints for better learning.
But since it was a new program, we needed a little time to install it.
I turned around and went straight to the faculty office where Alex was supposed to be.
I saw him behind his desk, typing busily on his computer again.
His right hand held a pen while his left hand supported his chin.
He was wearing a light blue shirt and dark blue trousers that made him look tall and thinner than he actually was.
His black hair was styled neatly with some gel so it was a bit pointed at the top.
He looked handsome and professional.
“Alex,” I called.
He turned around and blinked at me.
“Where’s the projector?
Aren’t you going to set it up?”
He blinked at me again before he said, “Oh. It’s right here.”
He pointed at the big box under his desk.
I frowned at it.
“Why is it still in the box?”
“Because it’s not mounted yet,” Alex answered.
“We need to mount it first before we set it up, right?”
I asked again just to make sure we were talking about the same thing.
He nodded and said, “I still have a class in an hour, Em.I’ll set it up after that.”
“Are you sure you can set it up?”
I asked again.
We bought this projector because it could be connected wirelessly so we could use it more easily.
But Alex wasn’t good with technology.
I was the one who connected the Wi-Fi in the faculty office and classrooms because he didn’t know how.
“I’m not stupid, Emma,” he said, giving me shoulder-length hair a small smile.
“You should get ready for class,” he added.
I stared at him for a few seconds before I said, “Fine.I’m going back first.”
He waved at me dismissively as I turned around and walked out of the office.
After that, I returned to our classroom and removed some trash from the desks.
I put a roll of tissues on the desk at the back because I knew one of my students would need it.
I also put some sticky notes on the whiteboard.
When I was done with everything, I glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that I still had half an hour before the class started.
I sat behind the desk and took out my notebook from my bag.
I opened the first page where I wrote down every important thing I needed for today’s class.
I smiled as I looked down at my handwriting.
I was always grateful that I’d given a chance to be an English teacher.
I didn’t expect that I would become one when I was in college.
I was a foreign student in Spain when I was in college.
I’d learned Spanish for two years there until I decided to go back home because of some personal issues.
Being a foreign student wasn’t easy for me because I had to learn a new language that I didn’t understand before.
That was why I knew what it felt like for our students who were learning a new language.
It was hard but not impossible.
“Emma, I finally did it!”
I heard Alex’s voice as I was writing.
I closed my notebook and walked out of our classroom.
When I reached the faculty office, I saw that the projector was already set up on the ceiling.
Alex was standing there, smiling at me.
“I did it!”
he said happily.
“About time,” I muttered under my breath.
He must have heard me because he rolled his eyes.
I laughed at him before I took a seat on a chair next to his desk.
“You should have done it earlier,” I said.
He patted the projector.
“The screws were too small.They kept falling off and I had a hard time screwing them.”
I shook my head at him.
“Do you want coffee?”
I asked as I stood up.
“I need coffee after dealing with this shit.”
“Okay.” I smiled at him before I left the office.
We were close since we started working together three years ago, so I knew what he liked and what he didn’t.
When I finished making coffee in the pantry, I went back to the office with two mugs in my hands.
Alex said as he looked up from his phone when I entered the office.
We drank coffee together as we waited for our class to start.
“It’s very important to leave a good impression when we meet the students for the first time,” I said after I took a sip of my coffee.
Alex gave me an incredulous look before he asked, “Is that why you changed your clothes three times this morning?”
I frowned at him as I answered, “No.” He raised an eyebrow at me and I glared at him.
“We need to welcome them warmly so they don’t think this will be another boring English class,” I explained.
“They’re studying English in this program because they want to go abroad or study in one of the best schools in the country.So they’re very motivated.”
Alex nodded thoughtfully.
“I didn’t think about it that way.”
“You never do,” I said playfully before I took another sip of coffee.
Half an hour later, Alex and I stood in front of our classroom.
I took a deep breath before I turned to look at Alex who was standing beside me.
I could see that he was also nervous because his hands were tucked in his pockets and his glasses were a little crooked on his nose.
But he still managed to give me a smile when our eyes met as we waited for the students together.
The school bell rang and I started to feel even more nervous because this was my first time teaching this program after we had changed everything about it.
We would also have new students and classes after we’d classified them by their levels properly for the first time.
I looked at Alex and saw that he was also looking at me before he smiled at me reassuringly.
“Let’s do this,” he whispered before he opened the door and let me walk in first.
