How to deal with rude student?

[Teacher7676]

I chose to teach adults as I struggle with behaviour management of children, and now I just have small classes and very few issues.
I teach English as a foreign language and have one young woman (around early 20s) who is just quite rude.
Luckily I have only taught her once, but may have to teach her again in the future and plus it's a very small school.
In the lesson I had her she was whispering to another student (a male student she was flirting with). I think whispering is incredibly rude, and I'm pretty sure it was something about me.
They were also not listening to what I was saying.
She seems quite arrogant. I told her a rule in English, something about using the definite article, and she replied, "Sorry but you're incorrect." Even though I'm the native speaker.
When you walk past she doesn't smile or say hi, just has a look on her face as if she's better than you.
The male student she had been flirting with was in my class, he came into my lesson late and she walked past and let out a massive snigger, and he said "Why are you laughing?"
Just get a rude and bitchy vibe from her, but I don't feel in a position to "tell off" adults.
Nobody else is rude like that, we have some who are lazy and turn up 1 hour late etc. But they aren't sly.
Just feel uncomfortable about her and dreading having to teach her again, what would you do?

It may be a cultural difference. My ds was in college in France..from lreland and he said students chatted all the time in lectures. One lecturer even complimented the Irish for not speaking while he was speaking as he was so taken with their manners.

What sort of teacher are you that you would avoid any grammar just because it was your first class with a group?

It sounds like it's a school where students attend classes with multiple different teachers. They could have a new teacher several times a week and if the first lesson every time was introductions and 'getting to know you' games, they'd never get anything done.

You seem as over sensitive as the OP. Teachers need balls. I know. I used to be one.

I think going over and standing in front of the desk, and putting your hand on the desk,is a really good idea. Also think of some difficult questions to put her on the spot.

we had a lecturer at college and if anybody spoke she'd embarrass them asd ask 'sorry have you got a question, I see you whispering''

This was at university and lecturers often asked people to please be quiet or leave the hall. It's no problem.

Not accepting rude, pig ignorant behaviour doesn't make you oversensitive.

ah, I was taught something different...can you explain why I was taught X and you're saying Y?'

If her English were this good, she wouldn't need the classes.

This is my point. She doesn't sound rude to me.

Because since at least the early 90s, the preferred (and proven to be best) didactic methodology for 2LT is inductive not deductive.
In many 2LT contexts (materials, courses, etc, and absolutely in teacher training) grammar taught as grammar is being removed as research has shown that students will absorb the grammar of the 2L far faster, and far better, using inductive practice.
That's the sort of teacher I am. Among other things.
If you'd like to get your methodology up to scratch, I can give you some links?

"'could you stop whispering please, it is disruptive and rude'. And if she carried on, I'd tell her to get out. "

You think classes are only for beginner/elementary students?

Most students with a level above A1 would be able to formulate some version of that, even if it had mistakes. You wouldn't tell the teacher they were wrong unless you were arrogant and believed you knew better.

Was it you posting yesterday about not being sure if your students liked your lessons? You sound quite inexperienced-do you have a mentor you can chat to for support? Are you a qualified teacher?

I think you can ask her to leave the class if she is being disruptive, especially if it is often. When i went to college to do my access course to get into uni, i had to do Sociology as one of the subjects, the teacher there did not feel no 2 ways about sending anyone out if they did things that caused disruption of any kind, we were all adults, i did get sent out once and i took it on the chin, i was talking to my friend when i shouldn't have been. It is your class and they are there to learn, if they cant be decent and at least not disrupting the class then they can be sent outside. It makes you feel stupid standing outside in the hall, but i have to say most people didn't do it twice. Adults should at least be respectful of the space they want to learn in, they are choosing to be there rather than when young and you have no choice..

Tbf we don't know who was right. Despite being asked on more than one occasion OP is not forthcoming about definitearticlegate.

I'd tell a teacher they were wrong if they were wrong. Kids used to tell me. 'Sorry miss but that's rubbish!' was said to me on more than one occasion. The joys of a big secondary. Bigger fish to fry than having the vapours at a clever kid who thinks they know it all. Sometimes they're actually right.

So far we have a student who sniggered, looks 'snooty' and pointed out the OP was wrong (she might well have been).

If you can't handle those heinous crimes, teaching is not for you.

i did get sent out once and i took it on the chin, i was talking to my friend when i shouldn't have been. It is your class and they are there to learn, if they cant be decent and at least not disrupting the class then they can be sent outside

If it was after she'd asked you I'd be like fair enough but seems extreme to be out for 1st offense.

Point out that their flirting in class and their behaviour can make others feel uncomfortable so you have no problem with what goes on outside class but in class please can they be attentive on what you're teaching and not chat or flirt with each other

I'd avoid the use 'flirt' and just say chatting, you leave yourself quite open to allsorts saying 'flirt'. Keep it neutral.

With the whispering, just stop talking and wait for silence. She’ll get embarrassed when she realizes that her whispering can be heard by half the class including you. You can explain that you teach all day and if you talk over students you lose your voice by the end of the day.

If she tells you you’re wrong, get her to explain why. Either you’ll spot your mistake or you’ll spot hers.

I once had a student who in a presentation spoke about how she felt “ coming to terms with the phlegmatic nature of the British character” . Some students are more interesting, and advanced , than other students!

You sound very prickly and paranoid op! People in classes whisper - people are social. If I was teaching someone and they said I was wrong, I would kindly go through it with them.

It sounds like she makes you feel a bit insecure and that's making you more touchy towards her.

She sounds like the kind of rude, bitchy young women who takes a dislike to young, attractive female teachers. It's Mean Girl, Queen Bee type behaviour, trying to assert her dominance and undermine OP, while making herself look cool in front of the guy she fancies.

I have had many ELT classes and quite a few rude students.

for a start, split these two up with one of those class mixing activities where people end up sitting next to new neighbours. eg cutting postcards into four and distributing them and have people mill about describing their pix to each other without showing them...then they sit with the people who have the matching pieces to their pic.

Is she really at the right level? Is there a higher class she could join? this would flatter her ego and get her out of your hair. talk to your director of studies about her but frame it that perhaps she is bored...

She might just need some extra attention or recognition of her skills....

try to be less of a teacher and more someone who runs the class. Was she right? could you have engaged her in a discussion?

I'm not at work now, and as I said, no teacher is infallible and we all make mistakes.

Your anger and abusive language (not just on this thread, but on almost every thread you post on- you're becoming quite notorious) is, frankly, weird.

You don't know, any more than the OP does, if the "cunty twat" (or "twatty cunt", whichever it was) was whispering anything about her. Yet you dive in shooting your mouth off like some pissed yob at chucking out time. Have you considered anger management?

I'm glad you aren't still a teacher. As, I'm sure, are your ex students.

@PAFMO Predictable. You can't refute any of my points, so you resort to personal attacks. The old 'nobody likes you', the favourite phrase of manipulative bullies.

I don't think you can really be that patronising to me, insinuating I don't know what I'm talking about re grammar, and then be all 'well, we all make mistakes' when it comes to your own written English. It's hypocritical.

Pretty weird and creepy that you feel the need to attempt to silence a woman by describing her as 'angry' for using a tongue-in-cheek phrase about OP's problem student. I've heard teachers use far worse language in the teachers' room about students they actually taught. How do you cope at work being so precious?

I have no idea what the girl was whispering. I didn't comment on that. I said it was rude to tell the teacher she was wrong. It is rude. I would never have accepted that from a student. It's arrogant, obnoxious and undermining. Even when I've been in situations where I was sure the teacher was wrong (and believe me, there have been many - I was an avid reader as a child, with an excellent memory), I'd never have been that blunt.

I actually still teach many of my ex-students privately when I have time. I met up with dozens of them for a coffee/drink/meal during my time travelling the world, in all sorts of countries from Bulgaria to Japan. I've got an invitation to a wedding of an ex-student from 2011 I've kept in touch with. Sorry to burst your bubble.

Have you considered some kind of therapy?