Few of us would argue that correction is one of the most important things we can provide as language teachers. Taking someone’s own, often carefully crafted response or utterance and helping them to perfect it is something that students often only receive in the classroom. This makes it valuable, desired and ultimately expected by your students.
Let’s face it, things change.
Even as a (relatively) young teacher I often find myself feeling out of touch with how fast things have moved on since I was a teenager. Just the other week, I presented a computer keyboard to one of my younger students in order to type her name and she explained that she didn’t really know how to use one. She’d only ever used tablets and phones.
Jesus, I felt old.
Yet when it comes to smartphones I’m not intimidated by them. For many teachers they are a scourge amongst teenage classes. They’re an obsession and a distraction, and they have no place in the classroom.
I disagree. Not only should you allow mobile phones in class, but you should integrate them into your activities from time to time.
Hear me out!
Patrice Palmer!
Thanks to the hundreds of you that entered the giveaway.
“Patrice Palmer, M.Ed., M.A., TESL has 20 years’ experience as an ESL Teacher, TESL Trainer, and Curriculum Writer in Canada including 7 years in Hong Kong. Patrice has taught students from 8 to 80 years in a variety of programs such as ESP, EAP, Business English, and language programs for new immigrants in Canada. Patrice now works as a teacherpreneur (www.teacherpreneur.ca) doing the things that she loves such as writing courses, sharing teaching materials, instructional coaching and travelling at any time of the year to conduct short-term training around the world. Please visit (www.patricepalmer.ca) for free ESL teaching resources.”
Congratulations Patrice! We hope you enjoy the subscription.
Everyone else, stay tuned for future competitions and teaching-related giveaways!
Have a great week!
Anthony
I wrote an article a while ago about the difficulties that language teachers often face in the classroom with regards to ‘preconceptions of teaching’, which related to the expectations we have when entering a new classroom and how that shapes our engagement in a course.
For many of us familiar with CELTA or other TEFL courses, the acronym MFP will have come to be regarded as one of the most important of the many acronyms we come across for teaching a second language. Used for both lexis and grammar, these three simple and easy-to-remember little letters were branded into our teaching methodology from day one as essential steps to follow when introducing any new piece of vocabulary or grammar with your students.
Free One Stop English subscription for one DimmiDeck subscriber!
It’s Christmas! And to get you in the spirit of giving, DimmiDeck are giving away a 1 year subscription to the internets largest and most popular database of teaching materials. You’ll need to move fast though, the competition runs only until Friday 23rd December 2016.
How much do you know about L1 interference? Try our fun quiz and learn a little about interference in different languages!
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