How to teach English

Learners:
Reasons: Moving to a Target Language Community, ESP, EAP, general English,
part of curriculum.)
Context: EFL + ESL = ESOL, (Language) Schools, 1-on-1, in-Company, virtual
environment.
Differences: Age, Level, Gender/Cultural Background, Style
Age:
Children learn easily by exposure and games
Adolescents(+) Capable of Abstract thought, can handle more (-) but reasons
for learning must be explained
Adults (+) Wide range of experience to draw from, more disciplined and know
why they are studying.(-) Strong beliefs and previous negative experience might
hamper progress.
Levels:
(False)Beginner: False Beginners know some language, Beginners nothing.
Easily notice progress with this group.
Intermediate: Plateau Effect progress is made, but difficult to point out.
Advanced: Focus lies on :
Appropriancy (right word, right time)
Connotation (neg/pos of a word)
Inference (meaning behind writing).
Styles:
NLP: 3 learner styles: Visual (seeing), Auditory (hearing) and kinesthetic (learn
by physical activity)
MI: Everyone develops different intelligences at different rates in different ways.
Motivation:
intrinsic: (from yourself (Harper: within classroom))
extrinsic: (from external factors (Harper: from outside the classroom)).
Teachers:
Rapport: relationship between the students and teacher and vice versa. Good
teachers want GOOD Rapport.
Maintained by: Personality, Recognizing, Listening to and Respecting students
and being even-handed!
Roles:
Controller: standing in front of the class, dictating what happens and being the
center of attention.
Prompter: encouraging student participation by eliciting.
Assessor: grades students on their performance.
Feedback provider: provides feedback for students and helps them better their
English
Resource: presents himself as an information center for students to access.
Tutor: presents himself as an assistant to students and guides the progress.

STT: Student Talking Time (promote as much as possible)

TTT: Teacher Talking Time (as little as possible)
TTQ: Teacher Talking Quality (as high as possible)
USE of L1 in class:
L1 use mustnt be banned, rather discouraged. Promote an English Speaking
Environment as much as possible. Use different methods to enforce the English
speaking environment such as: Class work, Group and Pair work, Solo work and
Class-to-Class work(rare)!
Acquire vs Learning Language, methods, ESA
Acquiring Language: Subconscious and anxiety free, through exposure to the
language, not bound to a specific space, limited till a certain age.
Learning Language: Conscious and anxious process, taught, no age limit,
elements of language learnt next to totality.
Methods:
Lexical approach: Language in chunks
Silent Way: TTT to a minimum, STT to a maximum
Community Language learning: Bilingual staff help out with translating
L1L2.
Grammar-translation method: present students with short grammar rules and
word lists and then translation exercises in which they make use of the rules. It
teaches people about language but doesnt really help them to communicate
effectively with it.
Audio-lingualism: describe the grammatical patterns of English to students,
have them repeat and learn them. Habit-forming behaviourist approach
perform the correct response to a stimulus so that a reward is given. Drilling
(choral and individual repetition and cue-response drilling) is still considered
useful especially with low-level students.
PPP = Presentation, Practice and Production: the teacher presents the
context and situation for the language (describe someones holiday plans) and
both explains and demonstrates the meaning and form of the new language (eg.
Going to . Hes going to visit the Hermitage Museum.) Students then practice
sentences with going to this is called controlled practice. Teachers can use
drilling, teach pronunciation and allow students to speak more freely about
themselves next week I am going to .
CLT = Communicative Language Teaching: involves language functions such
as inviting, agreeing, disagreeing, suggesting, etc. Teaches appropriacy when
talking and writing to people (formal, informal, tentative, technical, etc.) This
method assumes that if students get enough exposure to language and
opportunities for language use and if they are motivated then language learning
will happen! Focus on allowing students to communicate real message and
engage in communicative activities where they use all and any language they
know to communicate.
TBL = Task-Based Learning: emphasizes tasks rather than the language.
Students perform real-life tasks such as timetables, schedules, presentations.
Students are given a pre-task (introduced to the topic), which is followed by a

task cycles (students plan the task, gather language and information) and
produce an outcome (writing, oral performance, etc)
ESA: Engage (grab their attention), Study (Focus on language construction
(students learn the tools)) and Activate (Students produce using learnt
constructions (using the tools to make something))
Deductive Approach: students are given an explanation or grammar rule and
must produce.
Inductive Approach: students are given a chunk of language and must work
out which grammar rule/language construction was used.
Controlled Practice: 1st stage: (choral) repetition, followed by 2 nd stage:
individual repetition by nominating.(Beginner based)
Freer Practice: Elicit more personalized responses from the students, making it
a transition between the S and the A. Attention is paid to the correct construction
of language (S) and the language use (A).
Mistakes:
Slips: mistakes made by students which they can correct themselves.
Errors: mistakes made by students which they cannot correct themselves.
Attempts: mistakes made by students for trying to say something but not
knowing how to. Examples of Attempts include: False Friends (words that sound
the same but have different meanings embarrassed vs embarazada) and
Developmental Errors which are mistaken assumptions made about the way
language works.
TEACHING READING
Extensive: reading for pleasure, refers to reading which students do often, away
from the classroom
Intensive: reading texts, study activities, look for meaning, grammar,
vocabulary. What is done within the classroom!
READING PRINCIPLES:
1.
Encourage students to read as often and as much as possible.
2.
Students need to be engaged with what they are reading.
3.
Encourage students to respond to the content of a text (and explore their
feelings about it), not just concentrate on its construction.
4.
Prediction is a major factor in reading
5.
Match the task to the topic when using intensive reading texts.
6.
Exploit reading texts to the fullest extent.

READING ACTIVITIES (Few examples)

1.
Guided reading teacher supports students to become better readers.
The teacher provides support for small groups of readers as they learn to use
various reading strategies (context clues, letter and sound relationships, word
structure, and so forth).
How?
a)
Students should be divided into small groups (4-6 students). The younger
the student, the smaller the group.
b)
Guided reading lessons are to be about 15-20 minutes in duration.
c)
Appropriately leveled reading materials must be selected for the group and
each student should have his/her own copy of the literature.
d)
Pre-Reading: The teacher establishes a purpose for reading through
making predictions, vocabulary introduction, or discussing ideas that will provide
the readers with the background knowledge required for the text.
e)
Reading: The teacher observes the students as they read the text softly or
silently to themselves, provides guidance and coaching to individuals based on
her/his observations by providing prompts, asking questions, and encouraging
attempts at reading strategy application.
f)
Post Reading: The teacher asks questions to ensure that the text has been
comprehended by the readers and praises their efforts. Further, the teacher may
observe gaps in strategy application and address these gaps following the
reading in a mini-lesson format.
2.
Jigsaw reading students read different texts and share what they have
found out
3.
Reading puzzles reassembling text, out of sequence stories or dialogs,
mix up two stories
4.
Newspapers match articles with headlines or pictures, reading for
opinion, read ads, reply to the letters written to the editor
5.
Fishbowl fun students write questions about a story theyve read on a
small slip of paper, drop it in a bowl, let students fish for questions from the bowl
and attempt to answer them
6.
Following instructions put instructions in the right order, follow recipes
7.
Poetry reassemble poems, find similarities and differences in poems,
leave blanks in poems for students to fill in
8.
Play extracts read and act thinking about how lines are said,
concentrating on stress, intonation, speed
9.
Predicting from words and pictures given a number of words,
students predict what the story tells then compare with the original text or given
phrases write the story or given pictures do the same.
10.
Different responses answer comprehension questions, T/F, find words,
put information into graphs, tables, diagrams, describe the people in the text,
guess the endings of stories

TEACHING WRITING
allows students time to process language
process: plan, draft, review, edit
WRITING ACTIVITIES
1.
postcards - (leave out words), imagine a holiday and write a postcard
(where, what, wish you were here)
2.
journals or diaries daily thoughts / feelings, select journal topics given
by teacher (topics: my favourite subject, the worst day, I cant face it, a secret, a
special person, first meeting, gone but not forgotten, dream holiday, swimming
upstream, an important lesson, lost in a blizzard, rainy days, the afterlife,
surprise!, going home, guilt, my grandparents, temptations, a lottery win, etc.
3.
interview - (begin with a short biography), What is your idea of perfect
happiness, greatest fear, trait you most deplore in yourself, makes you
depressed, most embarrassing moment, greatest extravagance, most treasured
possession, favourite smell, favourite book, costume of choice, guiltiest pleasure,
greatest regret, single thing that would improve the quality of your life, your
greatest achievement, keeps you awake at night?
4.
instant writing dictate half sentences for students to complete, write
two sentences about a topic right now, give 3 words and have students put them
into a sentence as quickly as possible
5.
use music and pictures play music and have students write out a film
scene, dictate the first line of a story and have students complete the story based
on the music they are listening to, look at pictures and write about what they see,
the characters within the picture
6.
newspapers and magazines analyze headlines, analyze how an article
is written, write a news article
7.
brochures and guides look at a variety of brochures health clubs,
entertainment centers, answer questions
8.
poetry acrostic (letters start each line, read downwards to form a
word), poetry alphabet (a line for each letter), sentence frames I like because
x3, But I dislike , Write about this person as if they were a kind of weather,
study real poems, imitate given poems
9.
collaborative writing have students construct texts together write a
story as a class, sentence by sentence or story circle - write one line of a story
and when time is up, pass the paper to the next person or dictogloss have
students try to recreate what they have heard
Correcting writing:
Avoid overcorrecting by checking one aspect of writing and telling which one it is
you are checking. You relieve pressure off students and they can develop better!

TEACHING SPEAKING
speaking activities provide rehearsal opportunities make them real life
situations.
use gentle correction, reformulation (teacher repeats correctly).
do it often!
SPEAKING ACTIVITIES
1.
role-play set up a dramatic situation and assign roles for students to
play (crime suspect, police officer, lawyer, concerned parent)
2.
portrait interview show a portrait Arnolfini Marriage by Jan van Eyck
place students in groups and have them compile a list of questions to ask the
others in the portrait . Jigsaw and have people answer these questions in their
new group
3.
discussion give discussion topics ahead of time, place students in small
buzz groups to explore and gather ideas, give statements for students to
complete Boys dont like shopping.
4.
information-gap activities two speakers have different bits of
information and they can only complete the whole picture by sharing that
information because there is a gap between them eg. Describe and Draw sit
back to back, one person describes the other draws (and is not allowed to ask
questions) . Progress to asking of questions! Compare results.
5.
telling stories story reconstruction (show pictures out of order and have
students reconstruct in order), place objects on a table and have students invent
a story, retell a story they read in a newspaper, tell a story about their family
vacation, a scar, a goal
6.
favourite objects students bring in an object and talk about its
importance
7.
meeting and greeting role-play an occasion where they must meet
people and introduce themselves
8.
surveys design a questionnaire and interview one another (sleeping
habits, # siblings, climbed a mountain) good for get-to-know you activity
9.
famous people decide on which famous person, alive or dead, that they
would like to invite for dinner, what they would talk about and what food they
would give to them
10.
student presentations oral presentations

TEACHING LISTENING
Extensive vs Intensive (see reading)
LISTENING PRINCIPLES:
1.
Encourage students to listen as often and as much as possible.
2.
Help Students prepare to listen.
3.
Once may not be enough.
4.
Encourage students to respond to the content of a listening, not just to the
language.
5.
Different listening stages demand different listening tasks.
6.
Good teachers exploit listening texts to the full
LISTENING ACTIVITIES
1.
live interview bring in a guest speaker, brainstorm questions ahead of
time, have students ask follow-up questions
2.
using pictures show pictures, have students listen to an oral discussion,
answer questions about what they heard
3.
prerecorded interview-narrative listen to prerecorded interviews
4.
message-taking students listen to a phone message, airport
announcement, etc. and answer questions about what they heard
5.
music and sound effects listen to songs for mood or message they
convey, isolate for grammar points or themes
6.
news and radio genres listen to a news broadcast, radio commercials
7.
poetry listen for words, mood, message, predict outcome, decide on
punctuation
8.
stories draw a picture about what they heard, graph the results, finish
the ending to a story
9.
monologues match the speakers with the opinion
10.
complete the picture give one student half of a completed picture,
partner has the whole picture and describes to the first student how to complete
the drawing
11.
idioms listening to idioms and guessing what they mean, placing them in
context

COURSEBOOK:
(+) present good teaching material which is often attractively presented.
(+) had been carefully researched and is provides a consistent availability of
elements to practice.
(+) lesson preparation time lessened
(+) includes a teacher guide to help teachers
(+) reassuring for students.
(-) too much use might harm the learning environment.
(-) they serve as proposals for action rather than instructions for action.

COURSEBOOK:
omit: Skipping parts in the book.
replace: Replacing exercises in the book.
add: Adding YOUR OWN chunk to the book
adapt: fine-tuning the exercises to match the level.a
PLANNING A LESSON:
ESA BASED! With a recognizable sequence!
Questions to be asked:
Who are the students?
What are our learning outcomes?
What do we want to do and why?
How long will it take?
How does it work?
What will be needed?
What might go wrong?
How will it fit in what comes before and after it?
Descriptions in your planning:
Description Students.
Aims and Objectives.
Procedures.
Anticipated problems.
Extra activities/materials (just in case)
Materials to be used in lesson.
Success indicators
TESTING
REASONS:
placement test
progress test
achievement test
proficiency test (usually public examinations)
continuous assessment/portfolio
GOOD TEST:
Valid: test does what is says it will.
Reliability: everyone should have an equal opportunity to answer the question
correctly the same way and the examiner must have one correct answer per
question!
marked Washback/Backwash effect: washback effect: teachers teach for the
test. NOT exactly negative. It has a negative effect when the test fails to mirror
our teaching and we adapt our teaching to that!
TYPES:
Discrete items: tests one thing at a time!
Integrative Language use: asking students to perform a variety of skills to

achieve the test.

Direct test item: Skill testing students must do something with language
(letter writing) Same as ILU!
Indirect test item: tests one thing at a time same as DI. Examples: Multiple
Choice, Fill-in, Gap, Cloze etc!

WHAT IF?
Students are all at different levels?
Use different materials / technology
material / technology

Do different tasks with the same

Use the students

Ignore the problem

The class is very big?

Use worksheets

Use pairwork and groupwork

Use chorus reaction

Use group leaders

Think about vision and acoustics

Use group to your advantage

Students keep using their own language?

Talk to them about the issues
appropriately

Encourage

them

to

use

Only respond to English use

Create an English environment

English

Keep reminding them

Students dont do homework?

Ask the Students

Make it fun

Respect homework

Make post-homework productive

Students are uncooperative?

Remember that its just a job
Be even handed

Deal with the behavior, not the student

Go forward

Use any means of communication

Enlist help

Prevention or cure?

Students dont want to talk?

Use pairwork
controlled way at first in stages

Allow them to speak in a

Use reading aloud and acting out

Use role-play

Use recording
Students dont understand the audio track?
Preview interview questions
One task only
Play the listening in chunks
Use vocab prediction
time
Students finish before everybody else?
USE COMMON SENSE HERE SRSLY!

Use jigsaw listening

Play a/the first segment only
Use the audioscript
Have students listen all the