Advanced Students

Classes of Mixed Ability You walk into your first class in a new school. You begin with introductions and to your dismay you find a great disparity in the students’ English skills. There are students who have spent time abroad and others who are struggling with Basic English sentence structure. The focus of this article will be to weigh the advantages of 2 teaching strategies for classes of mixed ability introduced in the International TESOL Teacher Training (ITTT) course: grouping similar ability levels and pairing strong with weak students. The first strategy is to separate students within the class so that they have similar levels as the students they do activities with. The main advantages of this strategy are the ability to separate material and to focus on needs separately. When...  [Read more]

Though diminutive in size, with most maps of Europe not even fitting the name in the space, The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg has plenty to offer in terms of outstanding natural beauty, green landscapes, rivers, and charming, fairytale villages. In a central position in Europe it is handy for France, Germany, the UK and the Netherlands. The language is Luxembourgish, which is a close relative of German; however, English is fairly widely spoken - particularly amongst young people. With a population under half a million, you shouldn’t find yourself crowded out. There isn’t necessarily a wealth of teaching opportunities, and there is only a handful of language institutes. Telephone tuition exists, but it is run through an office in Brussels. Anyone wishing to teach in a state or private...  [Read more]

Computer Aided Language Learning With the advent of the internet and its increasing importance in the classroom, Computer Aided Language Learning, or CALL, has become a viable and useful source for both teachers and students. CALL first became prevalent in US classrooms in the late 1070’s. Since its introduction it has gone from a primitive, structured Q&A program, to full-fledged language programs such as Rosetta stone. Although programs like Rosetta Stone have experienced success, many experts believe that CALL should be used to augment rather than replace face-to-face learning environments. This was one of the big questions facing ESL teachers in the late 90s, how to integrate CALL and its resulting technological concerns successfully into the classroom. Such things as whether an...  [Read more]

Centrally located in Europe, Austria is a year-round magnet for tourists, and boasts spectacular alpine scenery, matched by the wonderfully overblown, baroque architecture of many of its cities. Culture is a keynote, and music, art, and architecture reach their apogee in cities such as Salzburg and Vienna, the capital. Here, in the land of Mozart, there are plenty of large cities with strong cultural traditions, and Austria is a highly desirable location for anyone who seeks to combine a love of the arts and a passion for skiing, snowboarding, climbing or hiking. The first language is German, though many young people are fluent in English. Minority languages in common use include Croatian and Turkish. It is a predominantly Roman Catholic country, and the currency in use is the euro. Most...  [Read more]

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If ostentation wasn’t regarded by the Dutch as undignified, the Netherlands would loudly boast a strong liberal culture, combined with a great art history. It is a small, flat country, and bike is the only way to travel. For some a strong draw will be the museums and art galleries. For others the flower-filled fields, windmills and canals paint a pretty enough picture all by themselves. The principal language is Dutch, with Frisian also spoken in some areas. The population is a little over 16 million and the climate is temperate. There is a high degree of English competence in the cities. So much so that it was once mooted that English become the official language of Dutch universities. This proved a bridge too far for Dutch liberalism, and the idea was thrown out. With such a high...  [Read more]

The smallest of the Scandinavian countries, Denmark sees itself as setting a world benchmark for liberal society and freedom of speech. Vibrant cities and towns are offset by breathtaking, unspoilt countryside. One of the most striking facets of Denmark is that it is a clean place where everything, such as public transport, seems to work well. With a population under 5.5 million you are unlikely to feel crowded out. The official language is Danish, but a good standard of English is widely spoken. Thanks to the widely held desire for self-improvement English studies are pursued as a hobby by a large portion of the population. Hence there are considerable opportunities for even inexperienced teachers to get a start. However, as with many countries the mainstay, and what really pays, is...  [Read more]

Sweden offers a combination of big city sophistication and unspoilt Nordic wilderness. Since the devaluation of the Swedish crown this now comes with a considerably reduced price tag. Haunting islands and endless tracts of forest abound, and it’s the perfect place for hiking and getting back to nature. In this predominantly Lutheran country the official language is Swedish, though Finish and Sami are supported as minority languages. English is widely spoken, and so you can expect a helping hand on the ground. With a population of just over ten million you won’t feel crowded out. Prospects for teachers are good, however, the traditional private language institutes do not feature as strongly as in other European countries. This is because of the well-established network of Folk...  [Read more]

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On account of its central-alpine location Switzerland is a fascinating synergy of French, German and Italian culture. It is also the worlds most prima face democratic nation, a land where the population regularly participate in referenda deciding matters of state. General tidiness and seamless efficiency abound in the operation of services and the maintenance of public spaces. For those who enjoy alpine pursuits Switzerland obviously offers amongst the best skiing in the world, not to mention hiking, Hang gliding and all the rest. If this doesn’t grab you, then you are at least guaranteed breathtaking scenery at almost every turn. German is the principal official language spoken by about 66 percent of the population. Next up is French spoken by 19 percent of the population....  [Read more]

Children's Books in the English Classroom What native speaker didn’t have the chance to learn to read with bright colorful pictures and fonts larger than your chubby fingers? You felt like the smartest child in the world when you finished that big 50-page book. You were a super sleuth detective because if you didn’t know what a word meant you could figure it out through the illustrations. You were the fastest reader in the world because you turned the pages so quickly you didn’t even notice there wasn’t that much written on each page. I think our English students should also have this great opportunity to have the same self-esteem building experience. Children’s literature is great pedagogically because it uses a vocabulary appropriate for beginning English learners. Sentence...  [Read more]

Belgium has plenty to offer in terms of food, art, architecture and history. It goes without saying that it is home to first-class chocolate, excellent beer, and many fine cheeses! It’s handy for France, Germany, Holland and the UK, and has a number of big cities and pleasant costal areas. In addition this it is, of course, home to the European Parliament. So don’t be surprised if you bump into a Euro MP. Dutch is the official language, but in practice this spoken in the north, with French being in common usage in the south. Brussels, situated in the middle is one of the world’s truly bilingual capitals. The population is made up of two parts Germanic Flemings to one part Celtic-Latin Walloons. English is widely spoken - particularly amongst younger people who often have a high...  [Read more]

Large Class Size Findings in many of the past studies do indeed suggest that small-sized classes are indeed more effective that larger classes. The benefits of smaller classes are endless, but what about those instructors that have no choice in the matter? Many scholars have come up with strategies in order to help those that are presented with the larger class and want to make it a success. Along these lines, many feel that it isn’t always the size of the class, it is the quality. Students at the University of California, Santa Barbara, have expressed their opinion that the instructor has more of an impact on the quality of the class than the size itself (oic.id.ucsb.edu/). And in order to make the classroom a quality learning environment, many individuals, including those at Penn...  [Read more]

The Role of the Teacher If only the role of a teacher was as easy as being a ‘medium through which students learn’. In today’s day and age, no matter what country the role takes place in, a teacher is so much more than a resource for information. When I was young, I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up, simply because I wanted to write on the chalkboard! My teachers seemed to be the greatest printers, curving their letters just so, and I wanted to do it also! Now, after ‘higher education’, and three different career paths, I have come back to wanting to be a teacher, but my reasons have changed. I was fortunate in my years of high school, to have teachers that really cared about me as an individual, and I want to give this back. This is where the difference between...  [Read more]

  There's another activity for comparing and contrasting the tenses focusing here in this activity on the present perfect and the present perfect continuous. So in the activity, students will start at the start and roll a die. Perhaps they can roll a 5. They will read 'something you've been learning for a long time'. The appropriate sentence may be 'I've been learning English for a long time.' The next student may go and roll 4. They read 'a beautiful place you've visited.' Then, rather than the present perfect continuous, they would use the present perfect tense: 'I visited Paris.' You can encourage students to even ask follow-up questions, which would also include other tenses: 'What was so beautiful about Paris?' Now, this activity will be particularly good for your more...  [Read more]

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  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word "phreaker". This word is a noun and refers to someone who one who gains illegal access to the telephone system. The word become widely popular in the mid-1980s and is likely a combination of the words "phone" and "freak". Modern phreakers are very specialized hackers breaking into the phone system of large companies and corporations. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. In this lesson I...  [Read more]

  http://www.teflonline.net The teaching idea covered here is one that would be particularly appropriate for more advanced English language learners, those who can use different tenses accurately. The activity is a board game that focuses on comparing and contrasting the tenses, focusing on the Present Perfect and the Present Perfect Continuous. Each student takes a turn at rolling the dice and moving around the board. For example a student could land on a square that says "Something you have been learning for a long time." An appropriate answer for the student could be "I have been learning English for a long time." The next student takes a turn and could land on a square that says "A beautiful place you have visited." This time the student could use the Present Perfect rather...  [Read more]

  This TESOL review is from Aleksandr. He recently took our TEFL/TESOL course as he wants to take advantage of the high demand in qualified English language teachers all over the world. He chose our online course option and he greatly enjoyed the flexibility of it as it allowed him to work from anywhere in the world and at his own pace. He especially enjoyed the units on teaching methodologies as he now improved his own teaching style and is following a more interactive way of teaching. He recommends this course to anyone who wants to travel the world teaching English. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English...  [Read more]

  Being interviewed for a TEFL related position is much like any other interview situation; it can be an intimidating prospect. However, if you do your homework and prepare for some general questions in advance, you can remove a great deal of worry from the whole process. Unfortunately you cannot predict exactly how any interview will unfold but most will include a similar range of questions that are aimed at assessing your suitability for joining the existing workforce. So what questions should you expect to be asked? The employer will certainly want to form an impression of who you are as a person, so expect questions such as: What do you like to do in your spare time? What are your strengths and weaknesses? Where do you see yourself in five years? If the job is outside of your...  [Read more]