Teach English in Gang'erkou Zhen - Changde Shi

"A man doesn't learn to understand anything, unless he loves it" Goethe The Role of the Teacher The role of the teacher is very important in our lives. A good teacher provides us with knowledge, motivation, and encouragement while creating interest in his subject. He cares about his students and demonstrates patience. An experienced teacher knows what role or roles to take during his lesson. The most important role is the role of an organizer. The teacher instructs the class through daily activities. He may also split students into pairs for role-play or encourage mill drill exercise, where students come to each other, ask questions, and receive answers. As an accessor, a teacher must be fair and consistent, especially when providing feedback or correcting his students. Young learners are especially sensitive to this teacher's role. At times students get stuck and do not know how to proceed, and in this case, an effective teacher acts as a prompter. Simultaneously, he also needs to manage the class. Students work more productively in classrooms with good management. At times, a teacher may position himself in front of the class for more structure. A teacher should closely observe classroom activities. This is important because it provides the teacher with information about how long activities should last, as well as how effective or successful they are. At times, lower level English learners may need more time on the task. A teacher may also act as a model for students. Students may practice proper pronunciation and speech modeled in the classroom to engage their learning experience. An ESL teacher should always speak English with students, even if he knows their native language as this may be a crucial teaching tool. The teacher should also answer questions in English to provide an opportunity for the learners to listen and repeat key phrases. In this process, students try to absorb the information their teacher provides. Oftentimes, the students are eager to continually expand their vocabulary and improve their language acquisition. When students need more guidance, they can rely on their teacher. In this case, the teacher becomes a tutor. The educator should give students appropriate time to study the class material. He guides them only in cases when they absolutely need the teacher's added help. The teacher should not interrupt students, only assist when they need support. Sometimes, when the number of students in class is uneven, the teacher may step up and participate in the planned activity. It is helpful to encourage students' talk time. This may provide the opportunity for students who are more reserved in the classroom to fully take part in the activity within this pair with their teacher. The teacher assists students and motivates them to explore the new language on their own. A good teacher should give the students the possibility to study without interruption, while keeping in mind the need to be available as a resource when learners need one. An experienced teacher uses his voice, gesture and mime to better interact and involve the students. The teacher should know the student's names, while also speaking in a loud enough voice to fill the space of the room. Vocal tone may become especially important in larger settings, so all students may be able to hear the lecture. An ESL teacher may at times speak slowly as well, so students can be more attentive and follow the lesson at an appropriate pace. When the teacher smiles, it helps to build good rapport with students. A teacher's smile and praise may further help in encouraging students to try their best. A positive attitude in the classroom is significant toward the overall learning environment. This may also spark more interest in the subject and make it easier to learn. In conclusion, I would like to mention what Leo Tolstoy said about the good teacher: "If a teacher combines his love to his subject and love to his students, he is a perfect teacher."