📙 Part 2: Describe a time when you encouraged someone to do something that he or she didn't want to do.

This episode's vocabulary

Stands out (phrasal verb) – to be very noticeable or memorable. → Of all my teaching experiences, this one particularly stands out.

Chaotic (adjective) – in a state of complete confusion and disorder. → As a teenager, she had a very busy and chaotic life.

Inconsistent (adjective) – not staying the same in quality or behavior; not regular. → Good results cannot be achieved if we are inconsistent with our work.

Make progress (phrase) – to improve or develop. → She started using the notes from our lessons to make progress.

Put out (phrasal verb) – to be annoyed, upset, or offended. → When I gave her the feedback, she didn't seem particularly put out at all.

Poker face (noun) – an expression on someone's face that does not show what they are thinking or feeling. → She could have just had a good poker face and was secretly angry.

Raging (adjective) – feeling or expressing violent, uncontrollable anger. → She was maybe absolutely raging about it internally.

Ultimately (adverb) – finally; in the end. → It's ultimately a student's responsibility to do their homework.

Rational (adjective) – based on or in accordance with reason or logic. → It made sense to explain this in a calm, logical, and rational way.

Convince (verb) – to persuade someone to do something. → I had to convince my student to take her homework more seriously.

Get someone to do something (causative verb phrase) – to make or persuade someone to do something. → I had to get one of my students to start doing her homework properly.

Take something well (phrase) – to react to something, especially criticism, in a calm and positive way. → With regard to how she reacted, I think she took the feedback rather well.

Questions and Answers

Maria: Describe a time when you encouraged someone to do something that he or she didn't want to do. You should say who he or she is, what you encouraged them to do, how they reacted, and explain why you encouraged them to do something.

Rory: Well, I'm a teacher, so convincing people to change their behavior is sort of part of my job. But one time I did that, which particularly stands out, is when I had to get one of my students to start doing her homework properly. When it comes to who she is, I won't name names, because that's a bit rude, but she's one of the younger ones, just a teenager. So I imagine she's got a very busy and chaotic life, as is the case for most teens these days. And probably it always has been. Anyway, whatever the reasons, she wasn't doing homework properly, and while I don't mind that normally, it was important because she wanted to achieve a good result for her IELTS exam, and these things cannot be achieved if we are inconsistent.

So in terms of what I encouraged her to do, it was simply a case of making sure that she had enough time to do everything that was required. And not only with the grammar and vocabulary, but also using the notes from our lessons to make progress when organizing her writing and speaking answers.

And all I had to do was show her what was necessary to achieve the required results, and how it all related to the exam criteria. With regard to how she reacted, I think she took the feedback rather well. She didn't seem particularly put out at all. But then she could have just had a really good poker face, and was maybe absolutely raging about it internally. And if she was, I wouldn't blame her. It's not easy for someone to realize they need to do even more work than they already are, but I hope it was clear about how it might help in the future. If I could have changed things to be different and easier, I would have, but it just wasn't possible. Which brings me to why I encouraged her to do it. Well, it's ultimately a student's responsibility to do their homework or not. I really want her and others to do well in life and get the best result possible. So it made sense to take time to explain this in a calm, logical, and rational way. Hopefully, she saw the necessity of it all and didn't do it just because I asked, but you never can tell sometimes, can you?