Esl Teaching Methods And Techniques

  Before looking at the methods or approaches themselves, there are some terms that we need to define. These are the approach, the method or the technique. Basically, these are hierarchical. The approach is an overriding set of principles that a method can actually make use of, whereas the technique are the things that we actually do in the classroom to approach that method. So, these three words are going to appear during the presentation. Again, for each of either the approaches all the methodologies we're going to ask four questions. So be it an approach or a method for each of those things: Where did it come from? What's its background? What does it involve when we're talking about actually in the classroom, in other words techniques? What is positive about it? What appears to...  [Read more]

  "In terms of the things that are negative about it, we've already said that it doesn't develop speaking but perhaps the biggest negative point about this particular methodology is that it's very unnatural. Ok, so despite the criticisms of this particular method, and particularly the fact that is unnatural, this particular methodology was in use all the way through the 17th, 18th and 19th century and indeed it's still in use today. However, Gouin in the 1880s and Berlitz in the early 1900s decided that this particular methodology was so unnatural that they wanted to come up with something new. The method that they came up with, they called the direct method. You will also sometimes see it as the natural method. What these two people were saying is that if we wish to learn a language...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Teaching Ideas ESA is a three-stage methodology where each of the letters represents a particular phase of the lesson. The first one being called the Engage phase, the second the Study phase and the final one the Activate phase. Watch the video about this topic What are the positive factors in the use of the ESA methodology? Are you ready to teach English as a foreign language? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! In 1998 Jeremy Harmer published a book called, How to teach English and basically what Harmer did as a background to his book was to look through all of the different methodologies that have come about over the last 300 or so years. He highlighted for each of those methodologies, what was good...  [Read more]

  Also in the 1970s la señal came up with a new methodology called "Suggestopedia". As psychological theory was developing, one of the ideas that came up was something called ?the effective filter?. Basically, the effective filter is a barrier to learning. It's the reasons why we inhibit our learning of a particular language. There are two main elements to the effective filter, two sets of factors, if you like, those are known as internal and external factors. The external factors to learning, the reasons why we have barriers to learning, may be just simple things such as external noise. So, people talking to us while we're trying to learn and so on and so forth. Perhaps more important are these internal factors and the internal factors one of the main things here is our previous...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Teaching Ideas It has been noted that the function of the brain is separated into two sides (hemispheres) commonly known as the left and right brain. What specific functions are included in the two sides of the brain and how did this information become incorporated into a mainstream ESL teaching methodology. Watch the video about this topic Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! This particular methodology is accredited to James Asher around 1965 and is called Total Physical Response (TPR). Asher looked at the way in which we learn our native language and he saw that most children, before they even went to school, have picked up a very large percentage of both the grammar and the vocabulary that they would use in their native...  [Read more]

  So what we're going to do is to run through a series of methodologies that were created mainly in the 1900s that adopted the idea that language learning should be much more communicative, much more natural. The first one is called audiolingualism and it's also called the army method because of where it was developed. Basically, psychology, during the 1950s and 60s, was building up new theories about behaviorism. Perhaps the most famous experiments that were done in this particular area were by Pavlov, where he was showing that most animals undergo a stimulus response mechanism and he had a series of famous experiments, where by ringing a bell, he could cause a dog to salivate, that would be his response, in the expectation of getting some food. This behaviorist idea of stimulus...  [Read more]

  Before we move on to the final methodology for today, let's just recap and see where we are at this point in time. We're looking at different learning methodologies. Each of those methodologies takes its premise from being somewhere on this particular spectrum of ?nature versus nurture? and where we are on this spectrum gives us a starting point for the background or theory to that particular methodology. So, we?ve had a look starting in the 17th century and the classical method and moving on as the ideas of psychology developed to various methods, such as audiolingualism, the silent way, Suggestopedia and TPR. Each of these showing a development as knowledge about learning increased and each of these takes a different starting point on our English spectrum. Below you can read...  [Read more]

  The purpose of grammar translation then is to basically translate between L1 and L2 and vice versa. So, we could take a simple example. Let's imagine that our native language was English and our target language was French and let's assume that we want to translate a document from French into English. Let's take a simple sentence. Here's a sentence in French "Ouvre la fenêtre" and we'll add "s'il vous plaît" at the end. What we want to do is to take this L2 and translate it back into English. Now, if we have a reasonable knowledge of French then we may well know that this particular verb "ouvre" "to open" translates directly and this female form of the and finally the fenêtre "Open the window" and this polite form of "please". This is all very well if the two structures that...  [Read more]

  Our final methodology is accredited to Jeremy Harmer and it's known by the letters ESA. Around 1998, Jeremy Harmer produced a book called "How to teach English" and basically what Harmer did, is a background to this book is to do what we have done today and to work through all of the different methodologies that have come about over the last 300 years. He highlighted for each of those methodologies what was good about it, what was positive and what didn't appear to work and then put all of the positive things into a melting pot and came out with this methodology, which he called ESA. It's a three-stage methodology, where each of the letters represents a particular phase of the lesson. The first one being called the engage phase, the second the study phase and the final one the...  [Read more]

1. Overview of ESL Teaching 2. Traditional ESL Teaching Methods 3. Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) 4. Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) requires a deep understanding of language acquisition, cultural sensitivity, and effective teaching methods. ESL teachers play a crucial role in helping non-native English speakers develop their language skills for academic, professional, and social purposes. With the increasing demand for English proficiency globally, ESL teaching has become a dynamic and rewarding career choice. Traditional ESL teaching methods focus on grammar rules, vocabulary drills, and rote memorization. These methods are often teacher-centered, with an emphasis on accuracy and correctness. While traditional approaches have been...  [Read more]

1. Communicative Language Teaching 2. Task-Based Learning 3. Content-Based Instruction 4. Total Physical Response One of the most widely used methods in ESL teaching is Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). This approach emphasizes the importance of communication and interaction in the language learning process. In CLT, students are encouraged to engage in real-life communication activities that focus on developing their speaking and listening skills. Teachers act as facilitators, guiding students to communicate meaningfully rather than focusing solely on grammatical accuracy. This method helps students to acquire language naturally through context and practice, leading to more effective and enjoyable language learning experiences. Task-Based Learning (TBL) is another popular approach in...  [Read more]

  This presentation is going to focus on the theories, methods and techniques of teaching and we're going to start with a quote. This is an interesting quotation because it contains within it a philosophical argument and it's a philosophical argument in the way in which we learn. Basically, this one is saying that the intelligence of their own children comes about due to a natural process. So this one could be said to be due to nature. This is exactly the opposite of this one, which is saying that they're teaching the environment that we create, creates that intelligence. So this one can be said to be due to nurture and this argument 'nature versus nurture' has been going on for thousands of years. These two viewpoints are two ends of a scale, or a continuum if you like, and every...  [Read more]

  So let's take an example of what those drills might involve. So here is an example of a repetition drill. I will model the language and then my class will repeat after me. So "This is a cup." "Spoon" ? "This is a spoon." "Knife" - "his is a knife." Thank you. The reason that it's called or also called the army method is that it was the method adopted by the United States military who had personnel stationed around the world at the end of Second World War and they realized that they needed those personnel to pick up the language very quickly and one of the positive things about this particular methodology is that you do very quickly learn vocabulary. Another positive thing about it is that you quickly learn the correct pronunciation of that vocabulary. However, there are some...  [Read more]

  Our next methodology is called the silent way and it's accredited to Caleb Gattegno and was developed in or around the 1970s. This particular methodology moved on from the behaviorist stimulus response to what's called a theory of constructivism and this constructivist approach was very very different, very radical to anything that had been tried before. The background to this particular methodology was that there was a French mathematics teacher who found that his students were finding it very difficult to understand particular concepts. What he realized was that what they needed was a more visual representation of the information. So he came up with a series of colored rods to help with those concepts in mathematics. He gave his name to those rods and they're called Cuisenaire...  [Read more]

  Our next particular methodology is accredited to James Asher around 1965 and is called total physical response. Asher looked at the way in which we learn our native language and he saw that most children, before they even went to school, have picked up a very large percentage of both the grammar and the vocabulary that they would use in their native language before any type of formal schooling. So Asher started to have a look at ideas of how to use the whole of our brain in language learning in the way that we do when we're very young. It's accepted that within our brain there are two hemispheres, one is the left hemisphere the other is the right hemisphere, and one of the functions of the left hemisphere is language learning. One of the major functions of the right hemisphere is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching styles can vary drastically and no one style is king. Over time and in different parts of the world different styles have risen to prominence while others lose favor. The effectiveness of a teaching style depends on the students, their need, the language they are being taught, the language they are being taught in, and many other factors. Effective teachers will be familiar with different styles and the various methods introduced in each style. They will be capable of creating their own unique style based on what is most effective for their situation. The following methodologies of teaching all have their strengths and weaknesses, most are found to be outdated or overly flawed but we can still learn and adapt using elements of these styles....  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In the language classroom, there are many roles that a teacher should be able to play to be well-rounded. In different situations and problems, a teacher will need to change his/her roles to complement the matter or to solve the conflicts. I would like to discuss a few roles that a teacher would need to play in a classroom: Entertainer, motivator, and leader/manager. Attention-grabbing skills Confident work Management skills Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Po W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Holding a student's attention could be the most important element to have an effective lesson. One...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences Upon completion of my TESOL course, the best thing I have learned is actually plural and not limited to one item. Most importantly a TESOL instructor needs to be able to reach all students with varying needs, styles and preferences of learning in order to ensure the highest degree of probability that his or her students learn English, while keeping all students in the class as engaged as possible at all times. Activities to use in the classroom Using technology in the classroom Learn strategies and techniques to improve your lesson with a course from ITTT! Related Articles: Listen to this blog post This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Dina P. For this reason, I have developed an ongoing list of strategies and techniques that I have...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The instructional lesson which was observed for this assignment was English as a second language classroom listening lesson. There were four students in the room during this lesson. These four students ranged in age from grades ninth through twelfth. Two students were male and two students were female. There was one instructor in the room. The primary teaching methodology used by the instructor in this ESL course was The Task-based approach to language learning. This instructor did well in explaining details, breaking down complicated topics, and conveying her message. But, she hindered her lesson by maintaining too stern of a tone for the duration of the class and maintaining no form of visual aid. Review Approach Teaching Skills Problems Do you want to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Students in ESL classes, especially those newer to English, face what may seem to be a daunting set of tasks related to learning a new language. A teacher's encouragement will ease the students' stress, provide positive feedback and, gently, areas of improvement, and provide an amicable environment conducive to learning. The age and experience level of the students should be considered in what specific words of encouragement are given--too effusive and older, more experienced students may be turned off, while too complicated and the younger students may not appreciate the teacher's phrasing. Engage Phase Aims and Objectives Materials Lesson Planning Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In any language, there are four basic skills. They are equally important and teachers should try to include them in every lesson. Reading and listening are known as receptive skills while speaking and writing are known as productive skills. Teachers may focus more on one particular skill in each lesson while still integrating the others. Complexity of Skills Readers and listeners utilize, among others, the following skills: Problems in receptive skills and techniques to improve receptive skills Teachers could use several strategies to improve listening and reading skills. Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Milena S. Please note that this blog post might not...  [Read more]

  Communicative Language Teaching Approach Task-Based Language Teaching Content-Based Instruction Total Physical Response Method The Lexical Approach The Silent Way Community Language Learning Suggestopedia The Natural Approach Integrative Language Teaching The Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach focuses on real-life communication rather than rote memorization. Students engage in authentic tasks that require meaningful interaction. ITTT emphasizes the importance of this approach in preparing teachers for ESL classes worldwide. The Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach focuses on real-life communication rather than rote memorization. Students engage in authentic tasks that require meaningful interaction. ITTT emphasizes the importance of this approach in preparing...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching techniques are a crucial aspect within the classroom and encompass all the different ways to take important information that a learner requires in understanding a specific topic and projecting it across a classroom/skype in a way that all the learners will listen, comprehend and apply. Teaching techniques come in many different forms. They can be in the form of simplistic games or the form of choral repetition. Understanding your teaching target Choral repetition Games Environment Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Brendan S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Different teaching...  [Read more]

1. Understanding the Importance of Effective ESL Teaching Techniques 2. Incorporating Interactive Activities in ESL Lessons 3. Utilizing Technology in ESL Instruction 4. Implementing Differentiated Instruction Strategies Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) requires more than just language proficiency; it demands effective teaching techniques that cater to the diverse needs of learners. By understanding the importance of employing the right strategies, ESL teachers can create engaging and meaningful learning experiences for their students. Effective ESL teaching techniques not only facilitate language acquisition but also promote cultural understanding and communication skills. With the support and guidance provided by ITTT (International TEFL and TESOL Training), educators can...  [Read more]

When it comes to teaching English as a Second Language (ESL), having a solid foundation of knowledge and skills is essential. At ITTT (International TEFL and TESOL Training), we offer advanced ESL teaching techniques that are designed to help educators take their teaching to the next level. From innovative strategies to effective classroom management techniques, our courses provide educators with the tools they need to succeed in the field of ESL teaching. One of the key aspects of our advanced ESL teaching techniques is the focus on innovative teaching strategies. Our courses cover a wide range of teaching methods, including communicative language teaching, task-based learning, and content-based instruction. These strategies are designed to engage students and promote active learning,...  [Read more]

Unlock Your Potential with Our ESL Teaching Techniques Workshop Are you looking to enhance your teaching skills and make a real impact on your students' language learning journey? Look no further! Our ESL Teaching Techniques Workshop, provided by ITTT (International TEFL and TESOL Training), is designed to equip you with the knowledge and tools needed to become a confident and effective ESL teacher. With a focus on practical strategies and hands-on activities, this workshop will empower you to create engaging and dynamic lessons that cater to the diverse needs of your students. In this comprehensive workshop, you will explore a wide range of ESL teaching techniques that are grounded in the latest research and best practices in the field. From communicative language teaching and task-based...  [Read more]

1. Importance of Online ESL Teaching 2. Effective Techniques for Online ESL Teaching 3. Engaging Students in Online ESL Classes 4. Assessment and Feedback in Online ESL Teaching Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) has seen a significant shift towards online platforms in recent years. This shift has been accelerated by technological advancements, increased internet access, and the global demand for English proficiency. Online ESL teaching offers flexibility, accessibility, and the opportunity to reach a wider audience of learners. As a TEFL teacher, adapting to online teaching is crucial in meeting the needs of students in today's digital age. When teaching English online, it is essential to utilize a variety of techniques to engage students and enhance their learning experience....  [Read more]

1. Introduction to Engaging ESL Teaching Methods 2. Interactive Activities for ESL Learners 3. Incorporating Technology in ESL Lessons 4. Promoting Communication and Collaboration in ESL Classes Engaging ESL teaching methods involve the use of interactive activities that cater to different learning styles and keep students actively involved in the learning process. These activities can include role-plays, group discussions, games, and pair work exercises. By incorporating interactive activities, teachers can create a dynamic and stimulating learning environment that helps students improve their language skills while having fun. Technology can be a powerful tool for engaging ESL learners and enhancing their language acquisition process. Teachers can use various online resources, such as...  [Read more]

Unlock the potential of your ESL teaching with our advanced techniques workshop. Discover innovative strategies and methods to enhance your students' language learning experience. Our workshop is designed to equip you with the skills and knowledge needed to take your teaching to the next level. Join us and become a more effective and successful ESL educator. 1. The Importance of Advanced ESL Teaching Techniques 2. Key Strategies for Engaging ESL Learners 3. Utilizing Technology in ESL Education 4. Enhancing Cultural Sensitivity in the ESL Classroom Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) requires more than just basic language instruction. It demands a deep understanding of language acquisition, cultural sensitivity, and effective teaching methodologies. Advanced ESL teaching techniques...  [Read more]

1. The Importance of Advanced ESL Teaching Techniques 2. Strategies for Engaging ESL Learners 3. Incorporating Technology in ESL Teaching 4. Implementing Differentiated Instruction in ESL Classrooms Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) requires a unique set of skills and strategies to effectively engage students and help them achieve language proficiency. As an ESL teacher, mastering advanced teaching techniques is crucial for creating a dynamic and engaging learning environment that caters to the diverse needs of language learners. By incorporating innovative methods and approaches into your ESL lessons, you can enhance student engagement, promote language acquisition, and ultimately, foster a deeper understanding of the English language. Engaging ESL learners can be a challenging...  [Read more]