The temperature isn’t all that’s soaring as we race into the hot, late months of summer. July and August usher in peek enrollments periods at English schools across the country. This is an exciting and novel experience for many students, whose busy school schedules typically allow only a few weeks to study abroad, but it can be frustrating for longer-terms students, who suddenly find their classrooms filled to capacity with new, frequently rambunctious students, and who may now find themselves having to compete for their teachers’ personal attention.
So how do you ensure that you don’t get lost in the muddle? Here are 4 tips to make sure you stay at the top of your class.
Speak Up!
As a long-term student, your behavior indicates to new students the dynamics previously at place in the classroom. Speak often and speak loudly, engage the topics being discussed in the classroom and initiate conversation with your classmates, and new students will be more likely to participate instead of dominate.
Sit Near The Teacher
By this we’re not suggesting that you should become a teacher’s pet. But with so many students speaking so many languages and requiring so much of the teacher’s attention to manage, it is possible that you will not get the personal attention that you used to, sitting at your normal spot in the back. Consider moving close enough to the teacher that you can carry on easy conversation without having to raise your voice.
Find A Study Buddy
As your class is flooded with short-term students, it is possible that your teacher will no longer be able to steer the class toward your personal academic objectives. Take responsibility for your own education. Ask your teacher for additional resources and find a study buddy who shares your goals. At the end of the summer, your teachers (and you, yourself) will be delighted by how much you’ve learned.
Embrace Change (or; If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Join ‘Em)
For all the craziness of summer, it can also be a whole lot of fun. Try things differently. Regardless of their wildness, short term students are also here to learn. So who knows? Relax and go with the flow. Maybe you’ll learn something you never expected to.