In today’s blog post, James from The TEFL Academy shares some great tips for teaching English as a foreign language. This handy teaching advice will work well whether you teach English online in a virtual classroom or within a real one!
Please note that this blog post most likely contains affiliate links to products or services I use and love! If you click on the links, it means I get a little extra pocket money at no additional cost to you.
This is what keeps my website ticking over – thank you!
Did you know that before I began travelling, I got my own TEFL certificate through The TEFL Academy?! It’s true, and teaching English online is one of the ways I’ve managed to sustain myself as a long-term traveller.
Although I was very nervous, I felt prepared to log into the virtual classroom after taking their course. Their TEFL course is designed to help you feel comfortable teaching from the offset! From in-person weekend classes to a thorough online course I could do in my own time, I went from clueless to confident about what (and how!) to teach.
Although, of course, it’s normal to feel anxious about what to expect! That’s why these teaching English tips will undoubtedly help.
5 Great TEFL Teaching Tips To Take Into The Classroom:
Picture the scene: you’re suited and booted with your TEFL certificate, having landed the job of your dreams: teaching English to a group of excited students. You stand in front of them and… freeze.
For many, actually stepping in front of a classroom can make everything seem so much more daunting and leave them feeling entirely unprepared for the experience. Fret not; from classroom management and lesson planning to avoiding teacher burnout, check out 5 great TEFL teaching tips to take into the classroom right here!
Our Top TEFL Teaching Tips:
Build A Connection From The Off
You and your class will spend a lot of time together, so having a good rapport with your students is essential. Stepping into a classroom in a foreign country is undoubtedly a big, sometimes nerving moment, but introducing yourself as a genuine, interested, and positive person can make you and your students a world of good.
Here are some great tips on how to kickstart your teaching on the right foot:
- Smile, smile, smile!
- Ask about other interests outside of school.
- Find ways of incorporating teaching strategies to fit your student’s interests.
- Ice breakers can be a great way to remove any tension hanging in the air.
Fail To Prepare, Prepare To Fail
Whether you’re super organized or a last-minute planner, being prepared for your first few lessons in the classroom is still one of the most important tips we can recommend.
Whether in-person teaching in the classroom or virtually online, having a lesson plan is a great way to steady the nerves, keep things structured and ensure lesson time is spent as productively as possible. Here are some things to keep in mind when it comes to lesson planning:
- Organise your exercises, tests and other resources ahead of time.
- Give yourself a few minutes before each lesson to make sure you have all your resources on hand.
- Keep key pages, documents and websites bookmarked on a PC so loading them up takes no time out of a lesson.
Why not try out this handy 10-hour teaching practice course for an extra confidence boost? As of October 2022, they are currently offering up to 60% cost of TEFL courses, so this is the best time to sign up!
Use Variety
It’s worth remembering that you’re always on stage when it comes to teaching. Being extroverted, entertaining and engaging is the secret to success for any teacher hoping to help their students succeed, especially when your students are younger and less patient.
One term TEFL teachers sometimes refer to when it comes to classroom activities is ‘light and shade’, which is a term used to describe following a quiet and focused task with something more action-packed and high-energy.
Another one of the best terms you will find in helping to keep students engaged is ‘elicit’. Eliciting is the process of getting students to tell a teacher things, rather than the more archaic approach of doing it the other way round. Instead of explaining things with a ‘this is’ approach, try a ‘what is this?’ question. Not only will this help keep students engaged, but it will also encourage them to dictate the class and establish a far more friendly-feeling environment.
Correct Your Students
Research has shown that classroom students aren’t corrected enough and actually enjoy the process more than most might think. For something like teaching English to foreign speakers, especially, knowing that a word, phrase, piece of grammar or pronunciation is wrong is the way in which these students learn.
Of course, there are helpful ways to correct your students and others that aren’t so helpful! Be supportive and understanding, make sure you’re not coming across as telling them off, and be sure to sprinkle in a bit of praise for how they might have reached a particular answer, i.e. something along the lines of: ‘that’s a good answer, I can see why you would say that.”
Take A Break
Look, any teacher will tell you the profession has its moments where you will feel DEAD on your feet. That doesn’t make the experience any less magical, but all the walking, talking, and writing will often leave you feeling utterly exhausted at the end of the day.
That isn’t even going into the mental drains all the prep, classroom management, and other parts of school life can bring with it.
Because of this, one of the best pieces of advice we can give you is to make sure you always leave sometime in your schedule to rest and recuperate, both physically and mentally. As you get more into the swing of things, you’ll start to develop a healthy routine and get a better understanding of what you need to do and when.
Teaching should always be a fun experience for both yourself and your students, but rocking up with fatigue, burnout, or a general disdain for what you’re doing is a surefire way of making sure neither of you is enjoying things.
Want to top up your TEFL expertise to feel more confident in the classroom?
If you’ve been teaching English as a foreign language for some time but are still feeling nervous, The TEFL Academy has various top-up courses that will help you feel confident again.
Or maybe you’re great with kids in the classroom but want to switch to a specialisation such as teaching business English or teaching English one-on-one online?
You can choose various TEFL courses to help you improve and feel more confident in your teaching skills, alongside keeping up-to-date with the best TEFL advice.
Still need to take your TEFL certificate?
Whether you want a full TEFL diploma or an initial TEFL certificate to get started, The TEFL Academy offers fully accredited and recognised courses. This means you’ll be able to teach anywhere in the world or online! Most importantly, their in-depth studies don’t skip out on the essential rules of Teaching English as a Foreign Language.
See the complete list of their TEFL courses here:
FREE TEFL GIFTS! Get 90hrs of extra online learning content, exclusive live access to weekly one-hour webinars and two free ebooks (The TEFL Handbook and TEFL Resource Pack) when you enrol on any TEFL course with The TEFL Academy.
