59 – Microwave ready meals

The way we teach listening is not effective.

We have recipes and ingredients. But what we do in listening activities is akin to being at a cookery school where pupils are eager to learn how to cook exciting things.

But they are disappointed to find that the course consists only of smelling and tasting pre-cooked oven-ready or microwave meals.

They are dismayed that they cannot cook for themselves, and blame themselves for being poor students.

In class they are asked to guess what the ingredients are, who might eat this meal, at what time of day, and what those who eat it might think of it.

Nothing on the choice and shaping of ingredients, and how they interrelate. No teaching about the key components and how they might occur again in other dishes.

Yuk.

Image from here.