Teach English in TiAnshui Zhen - Tianshui Shi

Content:Planning Lessons. I have learnt how to plan lessons and what should be included in the lesson.It was nice to have a general picture in mind how a classroom filled with equipments will look like.Content:The system and structure of past tenses I mastered the basic grammer skills of past tenses.It was a good summary of the present tenses and it helped me understand the logic behind it.Relearning the grammar and speech helped me remember how to simplify teaching grammer.It was really helpful to see real life mistakes which can be avoided in the future.TYPES of CLASSES: TEACHING BEGINNERS: Absolute Beginner ? Students who have no English at all. The false beginner - Students may have studies/been exposed to English previously but not retained much language. They might be able to produce a few simple structures. The Adult Beginner ? Will have made own decisions to learn English therefore may be highly motivated. The young Beginner ? Often lack motivation as haven?t made choice to study & cannot see benefit of learning language, but they tend to pick language up easier than adults. The beginner without Roman alphabet ? Will need lot of initial work on basic literacy skills. A lot of reading & writing practice necessary. TIPS FOR TEACHING BEGINNERS: Methodology and Techniques: ?Teaching beginners requires skill & psychology ?Beware student?s needs ?Have clear/realistic aims ? don?t try to do too much too quickly ?Adapt to suit situation ?Arrange classroom ?Be visual ?Take care with board work ?Control language ?Pace lessons ?Give clear/simple instructions ?Use choral repetition ?Use pair work/group work ?Ask lots of questions ?Encourage students to speak English in class as much as possible ?Don?t use student?s mother tongue ?Revise constantly ?Homework important Possible problems: ?What if have real & false beginners? Well both have similar needs ? most false beginners will ask to start from scratch. ?How to help weaker students? Pair with stronger students ? give them extra work to allow to catch up ?If cannot get through all planned work for lesson don?t rush through it. Save it for next time or revision purposes. Common mistake of teachers is going too quickly ?If run out of material for lesson ? simple revision, review activities & games can be used as fillers ?If students don?t understand tape play it again. Listening skills take time to develop & students must gain as much exposure to different accents & speech patterns as possible. If they still don?t understand after numerous listening?s teacher can give out tape script-found on back of course books - or read out loud more slowly. This must be final option only. Motivation: ?Do not over correct ?Do not have book open all the time ?Be sensitive to students ?Respond to students as individuals ?Create relaxed & supportive atmosphere ?Praise & encourage ?Focus on what is easy, not what is difficult ?Explain your methods TEACHING INDIVIDUAL STUDENTS: EFL industry has seen demand for one-to-one lessons, mostly in business world. Students feel the course can be specifically geared toward own needs & wants than a group course. Individual lessons have advantages for teacher: ?No mixed levels ?Highly motivated students ?Needs are clearly defined ?Developing close relationship with students etc. But there are also drawbacks & almost all teachers comment upon loss of classroom dynamics & tiredness. Also as there I only one student some activities are impossible to do 1-1 lessons usually less formal & teacher often partner of student ? helping/prompting/working with him/her. Suggestions: ?Many activities from course books! ?At initial meeting complete needs analysis form ? see pg. 11-13 ?Find out students specific language problems ?Exchange telephone numbers ? 1-1 lessons notorious for cancelations ?Maximise on student?s interests & experience ?Use variety of activities & techniques ?Find out about any practical problems that could interfere with lessons ? workload, location etc. ?Sometimes students say only want conversation. Free conversation fine for portion of lesson but not all of it. Guided conversation, vocabulary building based on a topic/theme or material based on grammatical problems experienced by student should constitute the rest of lesson. Even if little or no reading/writing involved there is still objective of lesson & student gets practice in conversation, goes over old material & learns new things as well ?Try & arrange a combination of what student wants & what you think he/she needs. Suitable 1-1 activities: ?Short stories ?Articles from newspapers/magazines etc. ?Quizzes i.e. are you in the right job? ?Idioms ?Taboo words ? see Michael Swans Practical English Usage. This often requested by many students ? when they travel abroad they want to know if people being polite or swearing them. ?Discuss relevant topical news items ?Personal history i.e. their family, education etc. ?Listening i.e. telephoning, different accents ? especially foreigners speaking English ?Various relevant topics i.e. age differences, cultural differences, women?s equality ?Goal ? orientated activities ?Pronunciation ? record the student & replay & concentrate on most obvious mistakes. Listen & take notes on any mistakes made & highlight & correct later. Also work on intonation. ?Postcards ? about a topic i.e. art, architecture ? ask student to bring his/her favourite postcard or discuss ones you have at lesson ?Conduct individual lesson like group lessons, with grammar points, vocabulary & some conversation. ?Videos ?Music i.e. a pop quiz ?Phrasal verbs ?Photographs i.e. family & friends ? students & yours ?Recipes i.e. ask student to tell how to make your/their favourite local dish & practice vocabulary for food & using imperatives Homework: Some teachers give homework every lesson & some students cannot cope with homework because of pressure of work/other studies. Some teachers give students newspaper article to read before next lesson. Students enjoy reading English books & swap books with teacher & then discuss the plot, style etc. Some teachers ask students to prepare a short oral presentation on topic of student?s choice or one that has arisen during other work in the course. Checking: ?If you are using newspaper article, pre-read & prepare any potentially difficult vocabulary & structures ?If passage is long, number either the lines or paragraphs for easy reference. ?Prepare a gap-fill or comprehension question about article ?Over prepare - always take too much material to lesson ? you can always use it in subsequent lessons. Individuals students tend to get through materials quicker than groups TEACHING CHILDREN: Fair to say teaching children most rewarding of all student classes to teach. Children possess innate curiosity ? motivating factor. From early age children used to parents & family repeating single words while child focuses on real objects, people or activities taking place. Daily routines & surroundings talked about repeatedly. Parents may chant, sing or play rhythmic language games as Patter Cake etc. Childs earlier efforts at speaking greeted with excitement while mistakes are overlooked & even imitated. Some features of parents/others speech may include: ?A slower more clearly pronounced delivery ?Use of a higher pitch & exaggerated intonation ?Lots of repetition ?Reference to child itself, its current activity or its subject of focus at the time of speaking ?Positive responses to child?s utterances irrespective of pronunciation detail By repetition, positive encouragement & frequent praise child develops sense of self-esteem & is less self-conscious about mistakes. This is an essential part of language growth process. Can move from early formative years to child in classroom. Teacher be aware of concepts mentioned some other aspects come into play in class environment. There is the ?curiosity? factor but also a child?s span of attention/concentration is much less than adults. Children seek teacher approval. Important for children that teacher notices then & show s sign of appreciation for what they are doing. Children need frequent changes of activities to stimulate their curiosity. They have short attention span & get bored easily if just have to sit & listen or if activities too long. Teacher?s role important because children look tom teacher for guidance. Keep it fun, varied & at good pace. In the Classroom: Classroom has its own dynamic irrespective of physical conditions in which teacher finds themselves. Always possible with imagination to make lesson &n classroom pleasant i.e. posters, cartoons, children?s artworks etc. Cold, grey environment has negative affect on motivation The lesson: ?Always use English as language of instruction ?Don?t cheat by using native language ? remove s motivation ?Speak slowly in short direct sentences ?Act out meaning using objects/pictures card or gestures. ?Give clear demonstrations of response required ?Don?t put individual child ?on the spot? to produce language/response. Increases child?s anxiety level & lessons learning capacity ?Make fun of yourself by mime, gestures etc. Children like seeing adults behave silly ?Come down to physical level i.e. height of child by squatting next to table/chair/sitting on floor. ?Get children to draw & colour. Get them to label in English ?Have plenty of paper, pencils, crayons, rubbers, rulers available. Avoid felt tip pens/ink pens/paints etc. ?Play simple games. Turn simple oral exercise i.e. naming objects, pictures, actions into individual team games. Children love competition & winning & rewards ?Keep sets of smiley or other reward stickers to give out as rewards for good work/behaviour Class Discipline/Management: Children have high energy levels so from time to time teacher may have to deal with disruptive behaviour. Mood of class & individuals determined external factors i.e. family life, peer group associations, individual personality etc. Take into account following comment: The behaviour & attitude/personality of teacher is single most important factor in a classroom & thus can have a major effect on discipline. Before disciplining consider the reasons why such problems arise. Some are: ?Problems at home/outside classroom ?Attention seeking ?Peer Pressure ?Boredom ?Lack of Consistency Easier to start of firmer & gradually relax than to regain control when it?s been lost. Some Don?ts to Bear in Mind: ?Don?t be inconsistent ?Don?t issue threats ?Don?t raise your voice ?Don?t have favourites in class ?Don?t break the code ?Never threaten or inflict physical violence ?Make yourself familiar with code of conduct/discipline of school you are teaching To Summarize: Teachers of children should be aware of the life-continuum. They are in position of ? In Loco Parentis? & should therefore be aware of all duties & responsibilities that entails Children like ?bath sponges? so can absorb language input quickly & when pressed lightly the input is reproduced without apparent relevance to lexical or grammatical rules. Never assume learning is a direct consequence of teaching. BUSINESS ENGLISG/ENGLISH for SPECIFIC PURPOSSE: Teaching can take place in number of ways: One-To ? One: Teaching one-to-one requires a different approach to working with a group In-Company Group: An in-company group may study before work stars, during the day or after work. In-School Group: A group of business people from the same company or from different companioes may come to a language school to study. ?For all above, ?clients? (a common term when referring to learners from accompany) may study intensively or over a longer period of time. Clients: Type of clients varies ? ages. Young pick things up more quickly but have learned English in school ? may have had English teaching in school. Often groups are small ? 4 to 6 but might get groups of up to 12 & one-to-one. Problems teaching business people they are often tired. Work in day study in evening. You may have to compromise & make materials less challenging or cut down on input. In extreme cases may have to dispense with lesson plan altogether & turn into conversation class. Attendance can be sporadic if course at company ? chance client can be pulled out of class anytime. Homework may be difficult due to pressure of work/family. Another problem is diversity of levels within a group. Groups put together according to job type or economic purposes. You need to challenge the stronger learners so they don?t get bored & also try not to lose the weaker ones. Group dynamics are very important. Not all learners motivated to study English. Number of them will been ?required? to learn failure to do so could result in them losing their jobs/not getting promotion. Commonly lessons held outside of work hours. Motivation can be depend on the attitude & support of of company & enjoyment level of class. What They Will Need: Find out what need & want it varies from company to company &m country to country. Also balance client?s wants & needs with companies. A lot of clients need basic grounding in English. Will often know terminology & vocabulary directly related to their work but unable to put into proper sentence or do not know how to use it. You need to have general understanding of the client?s job to help understand areas of English that students require. Needs Analysis & Planning The Course: Needs negotiation session should include: ?Getting each participant to state: 1- Precisely what they use English for in their jobs 2 ? What they will need it for in the future ?A feedback session where everyone shares this information publicly ?Discussion of the findings & agreement on common needs ?Telling them you will give them a plan next lesson with as much attention to individual needs as possible but obviously focusing on overlaps. Following sample analysis form is intended for use with business English students. It can & probably should be adapted for use with students. Sample Analysis form pg. 12-13 Planning the program: After pre-course assessment of needs & ability from the questionnaire responses & negotiation with the group, begin listing suitable learning objectives, situations, language & published materials. Situation/Topic Language Material 1-Socializing with clients Offers, requests, small talk In at the Deep End-Unit 16 2-Presentations Introducing oneself, business objectives-Unit 1 dealing with questions Give your group draft timetable for next lessons, covering first 15-20 hours ? you need to demonstrate the relevance of each activity/topic. Stress the timetable is flexible & extra needs must be stated as course goes on. Those whose needs not satisfied within program can be catered for by encouraging extra self-study. Always recap on objectives, highlight the aims of each activity, evaluate progress & ask feedback. Mid-Course Evaluation: Halfway through course, set work that participants can do individually. Take each student out for 5 minutes to elicit reactions so far & their needs for remainder of course. This gives credibility to your claim to take individual needs seriously & gives you a double check on how learners feel about course. Materials: Abundance of material on market for teaching English ? varies from general business English to specific i.e. English for banking. Many of these accompany tapes. Videos also available but quite expensive. Note any material presented to students should be typed & professional looking. THINGS TO CONSIDER: Before you begin: Find out as much as possible about company. What do they do? Who are their competitors? If teaching at company find out how to get there, who you should meet, what facilities they have i.e. whiteboard, chalkboard, tape recorders etc. what the contact number & address is. Your Expertise: Remember you not expert in client?s field of activity/business but you are in English language & teaching of it. Let learners explain their work to you in English for your edification. This real communication! On Arrival: On first day take everything you need ? photocopies, boards, pens etc. rather over prepared than under1 allow plenty of time to find company, punctuality important. Don?t bank on there being a tape recorder. Dress the part If speak local language use formal form when greeting staff. Establish good relationship with reception & staff. During the Course: Keep record of attendance, material covered, details of lessons cancelled & any problems etc. Always tell employer if students want to re schedule lessons or change program in any way. Never gossip. Use opportunity to make course relevant by seeing the students at work & using examples of faxes/letters/telephone calls they send/receive. After the Course: You will be asked to write a post-report that should be done promptly. Will include details of course content, student evaluation, test/attendance percentages & suggestions for further study. Companies have high expectation levels & pay more than individuals for courses. The Monolingual and the Multilingual Class: In multilingual class students are from various different nationalities. Normally found in countries where English is the native language & students residing there or there specifically for purpose of learning English. Students in multilingual classes have no common language except English. Can be advantage as students forced to speak to each other using English. Also they bring greater variety of culture & ideas into class. Also get more exposure & opportunity to use language. Avoiding the Use of the Mother Tongue in the Classroom: Make it easier for students to use English by; ?Describing your rationale clearly & getting their support from beginning ?Deciding where you place yourself in classroom groups nearest to you more likely to use English than those further away. Take interest in what each group is doing & move around. ?Monitoring more overtly i.e. for example by having a pen & paper in hand. ?Make work task-orientated. If final product has to be in English i.e. story, film review/answering comprehension questions ? greater use of English is ensured. ?Keep speaking activities short until students have more confidence & increased fluency. Rather have shorter time than is necessary than having time to spare at end of group work. ?Make sure students have the English to do what you ask. Start of with structured activities after teaching some essential words & expressions. ?Starting with ?open? pair work ? a dialogue in front of the class ? as a model for the ?closed? pair work ? every pair working simultaneously. ?Assign roles. If students know what to do more likely do in English. Consider giving someone role of ?language monitor? to make sure English is used in the group or ?evaluator? who will report back on performance of group overall including use of English.