This is part of a long-neglected series that started here, but it could perhaps be seen as my reaction to the raging debate on Dogme ELT that seems to be going on in TEFLblogland.

I say perhaps, because in fact Dogme is just something that just doesn’t seem to interest me one way or the other, and so I know very little about it. I’m certainly not saying that should affect anyone else’s judgement, as about the only BBC Radio 4 programmes I don’t download are ones on the environment, but that doesn’t mean I recommend everyone else to avoid green issues. Still, the fact remains that discussions on teaching unplugged make me yawn more than staff training on equal opportunities- and that is saying something!

So, I’m sitting here and trying to twist my blog belly (like a beer belly, but caused by neglecting exercise to spend more time online) to see my navel and wondering why I feel that way.  The main reason is in the title of this post – worksheets are my thing. And what is the appeal?

– It’s the easiest way to share my ideas around the school and online

– It’s the easiest way to access those ideas next time I want to do something similar

– It feels good to come out of a class or planning session with a new or polished up physical product, just as it’s nice to actually come back with something from a shopping trip (rather than “eye shopping”, as the Koreans put it)

– If I forgot to do something or thought of a way after the lesson that it could have been improved (e.g. some language students could have used to interact during an activity), the easiest way to remember that for next time is to add it to a worksheet

– The rapidly filling folders, hard disk and/ or blog worksheets section makes it seem like some progress is being made, rather than the days just passing in a blur

– Students like to take away bits of paper

– Writing something up as a worksheet helps me plan it better

– Polishing up the worksheet after the lesson is a quick and easy kind of basic reflection on how it went

– Adding what students say and other improvements to the worksheet during the lesson keeps me focussed and less likely to clean the board yet again to appear busy while they are speaking

– I’m less likely to drift off during lesson planning if I have my fingers on a keyboard

– I’m happy to spend more time lesson planning if I get the satisfaction from all these things

– The “design worksheet – try worksheet – polish up worksheet – try again” process probably appeals to the Physics graduate part of my brain (although I thought I had got rid of that when I burned my notes after graduation…)

– The “suddenly thinking of a good idea for a worksheet and scribbling it down to type up later” thing appeals to the self-indulgent teenage scribbler in me (although I thought I’d got rid of that when I got rid of my beret)

– Having an arm full of worksheets makes me feel secure

– I hate trees and am happy to take their pulped up bodies into class

The last one is a joke (as is the beret), but I think most of the rest of them have at least some truth in them. Putting my previous students’ accumulated wisdom down on paper for my next class does help me teach better, I believe, even when I finally decide not to use it as a worksheet. You will have noticed, though, that a majority of the ones above are more to do with my own job satisfaction. That being the case, I can turn this mea culpa into a warning for any of you thinking of using my worksheets:

– I do love brainstorming (see these lists for a good example) and hate editing (ditto), so most of my worksheets have far too much vocabulary or far too many alternative functional phrases

– I also love the idea that I’ve had a flash of inspiration, such as a new game idea. Often, though, I wimp out in class and do it a more mature way, only to keep it on the worksheet in the hope that I’ll get my experimental urge back some day

So, the raw material might be somewhere in one of the 850 or so worksheets on TEFLtastic, but you really should edit it yourself!

Anyone else? Think I should follow up my navel gazing with some actual action? Guilty of the same crimes?  Don’t think they are crimes at all? Similarly selfish reasons for not using worksheets? Comments below please: