MY OWN APPROACH TO TEACHING
As a qualified TEFL teacher and a native English speaker, I make learning fun and inspire my students to find love for reading. To achieve my goals as an ESL teacher, I firstly identify the needs and motivations of my students as to the main purpose why they want to learn the English language. For example, someone may decide to learn English due to his/her work to be able to hold business negotiations with foreign clients, other needs may be for travelling purposes, to pass an English exam in college or perhaps learning languages as a hobby. It’s extremely important for me to know the main needs of my student so that I can structure the course lessons to meet their needs and help them achieve their learning goals within the blink of an eye and I also achieve my teaching objective along the line.
The main methods I use for teaching is the Direct Method and Communicative approach which involves using the target language in class all the time to communicate and interact with my students to help them practice and improve upon their English speaking. I influence my students to learn by using some affective factors such as pictures and video playback for students who pick up learning fast through Visuals and audio playbacks for Auditory learners; those are students who learn through listening. If my students are young children, I would use more of the Total Physical Response method of teaching because kids love to play and have fun, the TPR method of teaching is fun and creates more engagement in class since it involves actions and physical movements. It’s the great way to get children to learn in class without any dull moment.
The syllabus is an essential part of the course because it contains the learning activities and topics that I will be elaborating during every class session throughout the duration of the course. The syllabus is basically structured according to the level the student has in English and designed to help the student attain his/her learning objective so I always follow the syllabus to teach my students effectively. In this case, I always know all the topics covered and it makes it easy to make an assessment of my students through class test, asking questions, oral and comprehension activities to check their performance and progress.
I ensure my students acquire all the four language skills needed to excel in learning a language. Those are listening, speaking, reading and writing. Since my classes are always communicative, I make sure they listen and repeat after me so they learn how the English words sound and how to pronounce them correctly, I also encourage them to read more so they see the new words and how they’re spelt so when I give them tests to write an essay, they then learn how to write well in English. Also I teach them the language areas like Grammar for them to know how to use clauses and phrases to form sentences, Vocabulary so that they get to know new words to be able to express themselves and sharpen their communication skills, I also make sure I enhance their pronunciation so that they can be understood when speaking English and also help them spell words correctly because in English there are several words that sound the same when pronounced but have different spelling.
I always use the target language to teach in class if my students have a prior knowledge or a certain level in English to help my students gain language proficiency and it also motivates them to communicate in the target language. If the student has a low level, I can also adapt to the use of graded language that is basic words they will understand, speak slowly and use lots of hand gestures.
If the student is a beginner, I still use the target language but I do incorporate a little bit of the mother tongue so that the class won’t be frustrating for my student.
As a teacher, I always make sure I am well prepared for a class by planning my lessons according to the duration of the class so that I can use time effectively. Also, I guide my students to learn and communicate effectively in the English language. I know how to strike a conversation among my students using the topic at hand and getting each and every one of them to participate, hence making my class engaging and motivating my students to learn. Furthermore, I study my students to know their shortcomings so that I can create a lesson plan that will help them achieve their individual learning goals.
I expect my students to learn and make their own research, read more to widen their knowledge, practice the target language by communicating more in class and with native speakers outside class, I also expect them to ask questions in class and accept to be corrected if they make a mistake. I prefer correcting my students right on the spot in an appropriate and positive manner so that they can correct the mistake instantly rather than waiting till later when they might not even remember the said mistake. I wouldn’t encourage my student to rely on Interlanguage because preserving some features of their mother tongue, which is the First language (L1) can affect the Second language (L2) writing and speaking rules.
I always make sure my class is fun and engaging because that motivates my students to learn and also makes them eager to attend the next class. I build a good relationship with my students and show genuine interests in whatever they tell me. I praise my students when they are doing well in class. I am very passionate about teaching so I am very patient with my students. Sometimes learning a language can be a slow process but I always motivate and assure my students that, through constant effort they can achieve their language goals!
If you have read my Teaching approach to this point, it means I kept you engaged so just imagine how entertaining my class is going to be as you learn English with me as your teacher. Get in touch with me now as I take you on the ride of learning to speak and write English within the shortest possible time.
PEDRO JOHNSON
