Hey, it’s Mike from Smith School of English Tsuruhashi here offering a big “tip of the hat” and “thanks” to Gavin at head office. Over the past three weeks, we had Gavin come down to our school to put us through the SSE curriculum and school operation training. I personally hadn’t gone through any Smith training for about 7 years and haven’t taught much in my school since putting a manager/teacher in the school three years ago. I was pretty shocked at how much I had forgotten and perhaps neglected.
Although I still remember the routines and many of the one points, I was particularly impressed with the direction the presentation of the lesson has gone and how the school operation has been effectively streamlined. I have to admit that there was a time when I thought that I could put any guy/girl/rockstar with a great personality into the classroom and it would cruise smoothly. To some extent, it did sail somewhat smoothly on the surface. But, when we lost a long time teacher recently, several cracks and holes were exposed on “the ship”. To put it simply, the English school ship was taking on water and going down. Cue the “Sad” music….
Stop!!!! I saw a rescue boat. Mark Smith was at the helm. He said “Ahoy Matie” (just kidding). But, he threw us a life line in the form Gavin and the training. It wasn’t just a lifeline, but a chance to start fresh, with a new boat sporting a wicked engine(the curriculum and the ability to coach it). O.K, nuff cheesy references.
I learned a lot from my journey at sea, but probably the most important thing is this. You should never attempt to operate any vehicle without the proper equipment and training. And there are times when you may have to go back to school and get re-trained. You may even wish to advance and take the next step toward bigger and better things. In that case, get in touch with Captain Smith and I’m sure you’ll find what you’re looking for.
Cheers,
Mike out…
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