I met with Mohammed, Naief, as well some other Kuwaiti CIES
students at Café Shisha. I’m no stranger to hookah myself, but I held off from
any since I wasn’t feeling so well. The seven of us sat in a circle on the
floor together and just chatted and talked, smoking, drinking coffee. It was a
very relaxed experience. I felt that there wasn’t so much social pressure;
there is a lot more to talk about in a group rather than when it’s just two of
us having a conversation. After showing off the few Arabic words that I know,
the group immediately taught me some swear words in their language, which they
found to be very entertaining.
Angel Rios was there as well, and because he was there, I
realized that this hookah session wasn’t just a hookah session at face-value;
it was very much an opportunity for these students to feel more relaxed to practice
English as a communication skill. Not only that, Angel is building relationships
and trust with his students, who will definitely learn more in the classroom
(not to mention what they learn outside the classroom) much more effectively. With
two native English speakers there, the vast majority of the conversation we all
shared was in English. From what I noticed, very little Arabic was spoken
between that group of friends that evening.
I would be very wise to take the same kind of opportunity
with my future students, to meet with a group of them outside the class for a
group activity that they all are comfortable with and enjoy, all while
practicing English conversation. Of course, I must learn and keep in mind the appropriate
ways of interacting with students inside and outside the classroom, depending
on which country I plan to teach in.
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