TSU English 9 SBP

ENGLISH

TEACHER SUPPORT UNIT 9

Anxieties and Fears

English Teacher Support Unit 9

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ANXIETIES AND FEARS

Before we start………….. The Ninth TSU This TSU deals with a theme that the students may not exactly ‘like’, but it concerns them intensely – Anxieties and Fears.

Teenagers face an increasing number of anxieties and fears in the course of growing up. Many of them have to deal with situations like, a lack of friends, fear of being bullied, fear of the teacher, a quarrel with a ‘best’ friend, anxieties about academic performance, etc. At this stage, they begin to get anxious about their future. Problems such as, leaving school, going to work, need to support their family, going to college, career, relocation to another town or city for higher studies, lack of money for funding education, etc. are now becoming more real. The fact that they have to become more responsible for their actions will also start sinking in. Some anxieties may be reasonable and others, not so. As a teacher, if you can understand and empathize with what is happening in your student’s life – for e.g., if her father, the lone bread-winner for the family, suffers from a major illness – you may be able to appreciate the student’s conduct and academic performance from a different perspective and help her deal with her fears and anxieties better. In this process, you would help her learn better too. What’s more, anxieties and fears have the potential to bring out deeper expressions from the students than ‘feel good’ themes. All it requires is an empathetic listener – you! The starting point If you have completed the eighth TSU, we can assume that our students are now able to:

• Listen to and understand talks, speeches, views and commentary on TV

• Read the newspaper and understand basic information from reports

• Take part in conversations, discussions and debates

• Express views and opinions, in oral and written forms

• Convert one language form into another, e.g. converting information from tables to text

• Predict outcomes (i.e. ‘if’ questions)

• Read aloud fluently – with attention to punctuation, period, comma

• Read a text carefully – identifying meanings of words from their context

• Select better ones from given summaries

• Organize ideas


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Do you agree with the statements given above? Are your students able to do much more than this? Or less than this? How will you align the suggestions here with the level at which your students are?

At the end of the ninth TSU, your students would be able to:

• Read interesting reading material like stories and novels with eagerness

• Take notes on books and articles, and summarize information

• Refer to materials and collect useful information

• Read written instructions

• Discuss the actions of the characters, developing and expressing opinions on the appropriateness of their actions

• Appreciate prose and poetry, being able to say whether a piece was liked or not, and why

• Write down their thoughts and feelings

So do go through the ninth TSU and let us know how well your students responded.

At many place, we’ve asked you to speak in English or give instructions in English. At such times, do speak slowly and clearly, and use your voice, expressions and gestures/actions to help students understand better.

Anxiety about exams is universal for students in the age group of 15 – 18. How can we help students express their thoughts and fears about this in English?

Activity 1: Why fear exams?

Begin with a personal anecdote of how you feared exams when you were a student. Make up a story on how you got rid of the fear (you were persuaded to write a test by your teacher, you were very reluctant, but you did appear for the test and came out with flying colours. Your fear of exams vanished). Ask students to raise their hands if they are anxious about exams. If there are a few who don’t, appreciate them.

Ask those who raised their hands why they fear exams. They may come up with several reasons. After listening to a few, write down these reasons on the board. (Write in English as well as Odia alongside)

1. Consequences of poor performance in exams, punishment

2. Lack of help at home while preparing for exams

3. Lack of clarity in understanding texts

4. Inability to remember

5. Lack of interest in the subject


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Ask the students to list these reasons from the most important to the least important – in their opinion. They could just mention the numbers. After all the students have made lists, ask them to form groups of 3-4. Members of each group should then discuss it among themselves and prepare a list that reflects the group’s thinking. They don’t have to confine themselves to just these reasons. They may include any reason they see fit but the total number of reasons from a group should not exceed five. Ask each group to read out their lists.

Now, ask each group to come up with at least one solution for each of the problems they have mentioned. For example, 'Fear of forgetting' can be tackled through removing major distractions (TV, radio, etc) while studying for exams, following a different method to study, beginning preparation a few days in earlier so they don’t need to cram just before the exam, etc.

After the groups have made their lists, can the entire class select the five best solutions for getting rid of the fear of exams? Write them on the board – as usual in Odia as well as in English.

If the students find it a bit difficult to come up with responses, help them by providing a few responses yourself.

Did it work?

interesting difficult boring

This activity might help the students think about their fears of exams in a rational way. In the process, they may overcome the fear to a certain extent.

We will now move to an activity that deals with fears in a lighter vein – the unusual fears or phobias.

Activity 2: Unusual Fears

This activity may motivate students to use their imagination and express their thoughts.

Ask the students what they are afraid of – rats, lizards, darkness, water, heights. They may come up with many responses. Morbid fear of anything is called a ‘phobia’.

Give them the following examples of phobias:

Nomophobia – fear of being without mobile phone coverage

What is the focus of this activity?.....................................................................

Did you make any modifications or try out variations?......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................


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Triskaidekaphobia – fear of number 13 (in many countries, 13 is not an auspicious number)

Somniphobia – fear of falling asleep

Ablutophobia- fear of washing or bathing!

Selenophobia – fear of the moon

Now, ask them to form groups and discuss unusual fears. Each group should come up with at least 4 ‘unusual’ fears. You could get the rest of the class to decide if the fear mentioned by a group is really ‘unusual’. (If required, you could talk about fears of cats, buses, trains, cycles, snakes, milk, colours, darkness, wind, rain, etc). Make sure the students write their responses in their notebooks.

Did it work?


The students may have a number of home-based anxieties and worries. These may pertain to parents’ income, illnesses of family members, lack of facilities at home, etc. The next activity is related to fears of this nature. Activity 3: Home

Ask the students what kinds of worries and anxieties related to home and family they really have. These could be like:

• Of being scolded / beaten for not doing something – ask them for examples

• Of being scolded / beaten for doing something – ask then for examples

• Of being alone at home

• Of strangers entering the house

• Of there not being enough food to eat, for all

• Of father / mother / sister / brother falling ill

• Of an elder sister getting married and leaving home

• Of being pushed to do odd-jobs to help parents

• Of breaking an expensive object

• Of fire




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• Of elder brother / sister doing very well in academics, thus increasing pressure to perform on the student

• Of relocation to another city

You might want to write down what the students say on the board. If there are not enough responses, prompt them, based on the suggestions given above.

Now, ask each student to write down the top most anxiety that he or she has, among all those listed, providing details in two or three sentences. If there is a reason for the anxiety – based on some incident, perhaps – they should be encouraged to narrate it in a few sentences.

Ask a few students to share what they have written with the class. If they speak in Odia , don’t forget to translate what they said into English.

Did it work?


All of us have anxieties and fears. However, there is a fine difference between the two.

Anxiety is a rather vague sense of apprehension. It is often a response to an unknown threat. For example, if you are walking in a street in complete darkness, you may feel a little uneasy. The sensation is related to the possibility that a stranger may jump out from behind, or approach you in some other way, and harm you.

Fear is an emotional response to a known threat. Using the scenario above, let’s say you’re walking down a dark street and someone points a knife at you and says, 'Give me your purse,' The danger is real, definite and immediate. This is fear. Extreme fear is called panic.

Activity 4: Is this anxiety or fear ?

Once you explain the difference between anxiety and fear, you could take them through these sentences and ask them to say if it is anxiety or fear that is involved. Read the sentences slowly, clearly. (Repeat in English first and then say it in Odia , if necessary).




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• Looking at the clouds, Ram thought it might rain and he would get wet.

• Ahmed shrieked when he saw a scorpion on the bench.

• Raju saw the bull running towards him.

• Sohail put the glass on the table carefully.

• Manav waited for the bus and kept looking at his watch.

• Nirupama was sitting on the tree branch. When she looked down, she saw a tiger.

• The manager asked Bahadur to come for an interview next Monday morning at 10’o clock.

Now, ask them to form groups and ask each group to create at least two situations to reflect anxiety and two to reflect fear. You may ask the students to prepare a chart of the list given above and display it in a prominent place in the school. At the beginning of the chart, explain anxiety and fear briefly in 2-3 sentences. Then ask anyone who attempts to answer and wants to know if he/she is right, to contact a student of your class.

Did it work?


Everyone has his or her own share of fears and anxieties. However, if you are in a certain profession, you should not have certain anxieties or fears. For example, a mountain climber should not have fear of heights. Shall we map particular fears and anxieties to specific professions?

Activity 5:

Ask your students what fears one should not have if one were a pilot? Give them a few seconds to think and appreciate the ones who answer. If there is no response, ask a question like, 'What fears should a pilot

Now that we know the difference between anxiety and fear, would you like to revisit the earlier activities to check if we used the right term - fear or anxiety – at the right place?




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of an airplane definitely not have? (Fear of height, fear of flying, fear of clouds, fear of taking off from the ground, fear of landing…)

Now, what kinds of fears should people entering the following professions not have?

Doctor (surgeon in particular)

Car driver

Sailor (ship captain)

Fisherman

Fireman

Policeman / Policewoman

Lawyer

Farmer

School teacher

Plumber

Carpenter

Cook

You could organize this into a group activity. Form groups with 3-4 members each and ask them to consult one another and draw up the list of fears that a person entering any profession listed above should not have. The groups may then read out their lists in the class and come up with a master-list of fears that people entering specific professions should not have. You may convert these into a few charts and hang them in a prominent place in the school.

Well, people do overcome their fears. Some deliberately face situations that make them afraid in order to overcome their fears. (For example, if you suffer from fear of heights, you could go to the terrace of a tall building or a hillock and looking down (carefully, of course!). Can we look at an activity that encourages students to overcome their fears?

Did it work?





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Activity 6:

How can anxieties and fears be overcome in the following contexts?

Fear of drowning (swimming in shallow waters, learning to swim really well in shallow waters, having company while swimming so that there is someone to take care of you in an emergency, etc.)

Fear of being alone at home

Fear of speaking in English

Fear of standing in front of the class and talking or fear of being on stage

Fear of making friends

Fear of asking strangers for help / direction

This too could be a group activity. After forming groups of 3-4 each, you could allocate one particular anxiety or fear to each group and ask the group to suggest ways to overcome the specific fear / anxiety. You may choose from the list above.

If the suggestions are good, they might be displayed on a chart with the title 'Conquer your fear of _____ in 5 easy steps!'

We now move to an activity that is closely connected to fears and anxieties – it is about three perceptions: Illusion, Delusion and Hallucination. What are these? Let’s take an example.

• Watching a TV show – strongly believing that a TV show is on – when the TV has been switched off – hallucination (seeing, smelling or hearing things that are not there)

• Watching a TV show believing that it is about YOU when it is not – delusion.

• Watching a TV show, mistaking an actor in it for your brother - illusion

Some knowledge of these terms will help them analyze their own anxieties better and with some efforts overcome them. This would also help to improve their self-awareness.


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Did it work?


Activity 7:

Ask your students if they have heard of these terms – illusion, delusion and hallucination. Then mention the example given above. Make sure they understand the terms. Now mention the following scenarios and ask them which of the three terms applies to each situation:

• Hearing a loud noise when there is only silence (hallucination)

• Complaining of a strong smell of fish in a vegetarian restaurant (hallucination)

• Hearing the wind blowing and thinking that birds are chirping (delusion)

• Thinking that an old man who is cycling behind you is a policeman spying on you (illusion)

• A man claiming that he went to the Sun and came back (delusion)

• Believing that a girl / or boy is in love with you, when that is not the case (delusion)

• In the movie 'Munabhai MBBS', the hero talks to Mahatma Gandhi (hallucination)

• From a distance, mistaking a woman who sells vegetables to be your aunt (illusion)

You could now ask the students to form groups of 3-4. Each group should come up with at least one example each for delusion, illusion and hallucination.

You could get your students to do this interesting activity to help them understand how the brain thinks. This is an example of illusion. It is called the Aristotle Illusion.

While the human brain is a marvel, even the most rational human brain can be cheated. Difficult to believe? Let’s check it out.




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Did it work?


Activity 8

I feel it in my fingers

Your fingertips are among the most sensitive parts of your body, and surprisingly, this makes them easy to fool. Take an ordinary comb and pencil and lay your index finger along the top of the comb, then run the pencil back and forth along the side of the teeth. Even though the teeth are moving from side to side in a wave-like motion, your finger will feel as if a raised dot is travelling up and down the comb.

This works because the unfamiliar motion of the teeth causes a similar skin deformation to the more usual action of running your finger over a raised bump, so your brain interprets it that way.

Making your brain believe that you have two noses

Cross your middle finger behind your index finger. The index finger is sometimes called the pointer finger - it's the finger right next to your thumb. The fingers should be touching near, but not at, the tips. It doesn't matter which hand you use.

Bring your crossed fingers to the tip of your nose. Place your fingers so that the tip of your nose is in the small space or gap between the two fingertips. If you're using your right hand, the right side of the tip of your middle finger and the left side of the tip of your index finger should be touching your nose; if you're using your left hand, this will be reversed. You will probably notice a strange sensation, as though you have two noses. (Don’t you?)

Run your crossed fingers slowly up and down the bridge of your nose. If you haven't already felt the two noses sensation, you probably will now, as your motor brain is tricked into thinking that each finger is focused on a separate nose.

Which is heavier ?




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Here's one to try out on your family and friends. Get hold of two cardboard / paper boxes of different sizes – one small and one at least twice as big - and put a 500 gm salt packet in each one. Check that they weigh the same, close the boxes so that no one knows what is inside and then bring them to the classroom. (Your students should NOT know what is inside. This is critical to the success of this experiment).

Get a student to lift the boxes and tell you which the heavier box is. Most students in your class will say that the smaller box is heavier, even though it isn't.

The exact reason for these illusions remains a mystery.

Now, after doing the experiments, following your ORAL INSTRUCTIONS, can they write down the steps for doing these experiments in their notebooks and show them to you?

Did it work?


In TSU 9

• Which activity did your students like the most?

• Can you think of other interesting activities related to the theme of fears and anxieties? Do write them down and share them with us.



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TSU English 9 SBP