Just a quick release of emotions after administering the midterms for my grade 5 and 6 students:

The midterm luckily had an oral portion to help the students earn some points because the English curriculum emphasizes spoken English and not so much on written English, which is why I'm very excited to start a writing program for my sixth graders soon.  But anyways, back to my story.  One question on the oral portion required the student to tell me his or her phone number.  And honestly, the student could've just given me random digits, as long as there were seven digits.  They can even count up until seven for all I care.  But so many were struggling with that question because: a) they don't know their phone number and were stumped, or b) there was a zero in their phone number and didn't know how to say zero and subsequently lost confidence.  What upsets me is that these two possibilities always happened for the students who were already struggling with the language.  From their facial expressions, I see their confidence dwindling, which eventually causes them to simply give up for the rest of the oral portion.  Administering the oral portion of the test was almost like watching a plane crash; you see their confidence level tipping over, more over, and then burn.... 

The same situation happens in English Village, where students practice buying things in a simulated shopping mall environment.  Why do the students who go to cram school and speak pretty good English always get to buy a "hat" or a "blue shirt," but the students who already have an inferiority complex when it comes to learning English get "blue sneakers" or "black sandals"?

So, I ask: why must the students who are struggling to learn English always have it much harder?