Teaching English as a Foreign Language for Dummies (4 page)

Listing pros and cons for the student ............................................. 276

Talking pros and cons for the teacher ............................................ 277

Planning and teaching a one-to-one lesson .................................... 279

Working at Teaching Business English ..................................................... 280

Chapter 20: Getting Youth on Your Side:

Coping with Younger Learners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283

Teaching Kids’ Classes – Dream or Nightmare? ...................................... 283

Looking at how little ones learn ....................................................... 284

Sorting out what young learners need ............................................ 284

Imagining Once Upon a Time ..................................................................... 285

Getting the grammar ......................................................................... 286

Expanding vocabulary ....................................................................... 287

TEFL Tiddlywinks: Using Games to Teach ............................................... 288

Adapting real games .......................................................................... 289

Using games from course books ...................................................... 290

Tuning-In to Songs and Nursery Rhymes ................................................. 292

Choosing the right song .................................................................... 292

Teaching your class to sing .............................................................. 292

Keeping Teenagers Interested ................................................................... 294

Intriguing students with international English............................... 295

Spelling out abbreviations ................................................................ 296

Playing Kim’s game ............................................................................ 297

Offering advice with problem pages ............................................... 297

Chapter 21: Making the Grade: Handling Exam Classes. . . . . . . . . . .299

Exploring University Entrance Exams ....................................................... 299

IELTS (International English Language Testing System) ............. 300

TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) ............................ 302

Table of Contents

xix

Going for More General English Exams .................................................... 304

Cambridge ESOL (English for Speakers

of Other Languages) exams .......................................................... 304

Other exams ...................................................................................... 305

Sharpening Study Skills and Exam Techniques ..................................... 307

Writing especially for exams ............................................................ 308

Reading for exams ............................................................................. 310

Speaking in exams ............................................................................. 311

Listening in exams ............................................................................ 312

Teaching Exam Classes ............................................................................... 313

Organising your course ..................................................................... 313

Using English exam papers: Teaching what sounds ‘English’ ...... 314

Chapter 22: Distinguishing Monolingual and

Multi-lingual Classes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .317

Speaking the Same: Monolingual Classes ................................................. 317

Predicting errors ................................................................................ 317

Using the students’ language .......................................................... 319

Pointing out the pitfalls of monolingual classes ........................... 320

Creating an ‘English’ environment .................................................. 320

Diversifying with Multi-lingual Classes ..................................................... 322

Building rapport ................................................................................. 322

Managing learning .............................................................................. 324

Going beyond language: Teaching culture ..................................... 326

Applying Case Studies ................................................................................. 327

The English class in Italy .................................................................. 329

The English class in London ............................................................. 330

Part VI: The Part of Tens ........................................... 333

Chapter 23: Ten Ways to Liven Up an English Lesson . . . . . . . . . . . . .335

Bring in Real-World Objects ....................................................................... 335

Step Outside the Classroom ....................................................................... 336

Browse the Net ............................................................................................. 336

Start a Project .............................................................................................. 337

Let the Students Teach ............................................................................... 337

Starting Out with ‘Once Upon a Time’ ...................................................... 338

Open Up Your Life ....................................................................................... 338

Move Around ................................................................................................ 339

Play a Game .................................................................................................. 339

Get Musical ................................................................................................... 340

Teaching English as a Foreign Language For Dummies

xx

Chapter 24: Ten Great Resources for TEFL Teachers. . . . . . . . . . . . . .341

Making the Most of EFL Reference Books ................................................ 341

A grammar reference to fall back on ............................................... 341

A book with grammar lessons to save the day .............................. 342

Looking It Up! Making Use of the Dictionary ............................................ 342

Browsing Websites ...................................................................................... 343

Finding work ...................................................................................... 343

Planning lessons ................................................................................ 344

Reading the English Language Gazette ..................................................... 344

Attending Professional Seminars ............................................................... 345

Getting Your Hands on Real Stuff- ............................................................. 345

Maps .................................................................................................... 345

Newspapers and magazines ............................................................. 346

Personal memorabilia ....................................................................... 346

Playing Board Games .................................................................................. 346

Roping in Friends and Family ..................................................................... 347

Pointing to Charts and Posters .................................................................. 348

Appendix A: Lesson Plan Templates ........................... 349

PPP Lessons ................................................................................................. 349

Skills Lessons ............................................................................................... 351

Needs Analysis ............................................................................................. 352

Observing Lessons ...................................................................................... 353

Appendix B: TEFL Locations around the World ............ 355

Brazil ............................................................................................................. 355

China ............................................................................................................. 356

Italy ................................................................................................................ 356

Japan ............................................................................................................. 357

Poland ........................................................................................................... 358

Russia ............................................................................................................ 358

Saudi Arabia ................................................................................................. 359

South Korea .................................................................................................. 360

Spain .............................................................................................................. 360

Turkey ........................................................................................................... 361

Vietnam ......................................................................................................... 362

Index ....................................................................... 363

Introduction

The English language is officially big business. There could be as many as a billion students learning English around the world at this time and that is reason enough to consider moving into Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). However, when you combine this with the freedom the job gives you to move around the world and earn your keep, the case for TEFL

gets even stronger. While English speakers move out to different lands, students of English migrate to other parts of the globe in search of a better life and new horizons.

Teaching English is something people do when they are ready to change their lives and this book gives you some of the basic tools you need to make that happen.

Most people who speak the language well can teach others to some degree.

We do it all the time with children and with foreign friends. We explain words and concepts to each other on a daily basis. TEFL is an extension of what we do naturally and this book helps you zoom in on your language skills and structure them. People often surprise themselves by discovering that even without attending months and years of language study, they can teach. You are probably no different.

About This Book

I have been teaching English for many years now and I have found it an entirely rewarding experience. I have met the most fascinating people and had a hand in helping others reach their goals. My goal in this book is to help you enjoy TEFL too by giving you the confidence and know-how to get a job and deliver effective, engaging lessons.

You could read the book from cover to cover before deciding whether TEFL

is for you. If you do, you will have a solid overview of the skills involved in teaching English well. On the other hand, you could use it as a resource that you dip into whenever you need some input because your lessons are falling a bit flat or you are short of ideas. The table of contents will point you to specific areas of concern or maybe even areas you have never thought about but should have.

A book of this size can’t cover all the different ways of planning and delivering a lesson. There are probably as many teaching techniques as there are 2

Teaching English as a Foreign Language For Dummies

TEFL teachers, so I have chosen to present the tried and tested path to solid courses. If you do come across other effective ways to help students don’t discard them because they are not included here. Use
TEFL for Dummies
as a starting point. Hopefully it will inspire some great ideas of your own.

I should also mention that this is not a photocopiable resource book with ready made lesson plans. The aim is to show the kinds of activities and techniques you can use with your classes, adapting them to your own situation.

This book is not strictly applicable to teaching in language schools which have their own trademark methodology and materials. In such cases the schools will expect you to teach in very defined ways with little room for other techniques.

Conventions Used in This Book

Throughout this book I use a few conventions which you need to know about up front:

✓

I use the words
student
and
learner
interchangeably.

✓

Presentation, Practice and Production written with capital Ps refer to specific stages of a lesson, not general concepts.

✓

English
refers to whatever is normal in most English speaking countries not just England. There are so many countries where English is an official language that I have chosen to keep it simple in this way.

✓

Web addresses appear in the book in monofont type, so they stand out.

✓

Sidebars – boxed text on a grey background – are chunks of material which you might find useful as background knowledge, or as enhance-ments to the techniques you read about in the main text. Fun and helpful, but not essential reading: skip them if you want.