As mentioned in my previous post, South Korean elementary school students do not get enough reading in their English language curriculum. One class hour—a class hour actually being forty minutes—out of every six is dedicated to reading a short contrived passage of just a few sentences, all of them carefully formulated to fit with what […]
In South Korea, for every three hours of EFL speaking and listening instruction elementary school students receive, they get only one hour of reading and one hour of writing instruction. So what can be done to help address the lack of reading and writing instruction in the South Korean classroom, or at least to maximize […]
Curriculum classes in South Korea consist of approximately 20-30 students, and generally have the homeroom teacher as the NET’s co-teacher. These classes are all larger in size, limited in space (for movement), include a mix of students with varying proficiency and interest in English, and are relatively short (40 minutes). EPIK and Talk teachers in […]
Why teach English with songs? Songs are an excellent tool for learning English while having fun. They can be used to learn or practice the target language in a motivating and enjoyable way. Many teachers think that using songs in the classroom is only for young learners, or as a means for motivating teens. While […]
Authentic materials are just as useful in the production stage as they are in the presentation stage of an ESL lesson. Incorporating these materials into your lessons will not only generate interest in the material, but will also facilitate interaction between the textbook and real-life situations. This is important for learning, as it requires students […]
At the end of a lesson, not only is it important to review what’s been learned in the textbook, but it’s also important to check that students understand and can use the language that’s been taught. This year, with my Grade 6s, I looked for ways to encourage them to think on their own and […]
As a teacher, it can be hard to get your students excited to learn at the beginning of a new lesson. EPIK, the public school program in South Korea, uses a series of textbooks called Cheonjae, which typically fails to get my students engaged at the initial stages of a lesson. Instead, I have found […]
Children can often be fire balls of energy that are seemingly impossible to contain. They can also be the exact opposite. Managing behavior is quite possibly the most difficult task that a teacher faces. Add the element of only interacting with the child through a screen, with virtually zero back-up and support, and the idea […]
Congratulations! You got your TESOL certification and now you’re ready to apply for TESOL jobs. But what is the best way to organize your resume, cover letter and mock class preparation? As a job coach, recruiter and English teacher, I’ll tell you the best practices and examples you can follow to maximize your chances of […]
Most traditional schools around the world base their curriculum largely on standardized forms of testing. In the ESL classroom, this culture encourages students to merely memorize sequences of words and synonyms for vocabulary- not to mention, it can get pretty boring and soul-crushing for the youngsters. Utilizing classroom performance activities is a great way to […]