Student Centered Teaching

I have always viewed education as an experience that is required. Society has implemented education as one of the key factors for individual development, and evolution as a whole, a necessity. It is an exchange of information that takes place on a greater scale, and generates development that allows humankind to move forward. This is further demonstrated by our need to create a system that understands our psychology as a whole. Our ability to understand the learning process and teaching methodologies have allowed people to try to ameliorate the system of education and maximise its potential. Without education, we would be unable to move forward, and I feel it is crucial to realize this importance of communication involved in the learning process . An...  [Read more]

Just as students may vary from class to class, so are teachers and their teaching style. This paper focuses on the four basic teaching styles which are formal authority, demonstrator or personal model, facilitator and delegator. Which style is more effective' Do you want the students to focus on you or do you want to focus on the students' Which is your style'Lessons taught using the formal authority teaching style tends to be teacher centered. The most obvious example of this style is when a teacher is lecturing. In the class when the teacher is using the formal authority teaching style, the teacher is in control of the lesson and all of the attention and energy of the student is focused on the teacher. The formal authority teaching style is effective because it is...  [Read more]

Teaching grammar can be one of the most frustrating aspects of an English teacher?s job description. Teaching grammar can be divided into two categories, declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge. Declarative knowledge can be summed up as knowledge about a thing such as the rules of grammar whereas procedural knowledge is being able to apply the knowledge to communicate effectively. To illustrate the difference declarative knowledge would be being able to understand the instruction manual on how to assemble a bicycle where as procedural knowledge would be what you demonstrate when you actually put the bicycle together. Being good at one does not necessarily make one good at the other. Many of us native English speakers can use our native tongue correctly but...  [Read more]

Teaching grammar can be one of the most frustrating aspects of an English teacher’s job description. Teaching grammar can be divided into two categories, declarative knowledge and procedural knowledge. Declarative knowledge can be summed up as knowledge about a thing such as the rules of grammar whereas procedural knowledge is being able to apply the knowledge to communicate effectively. To illustrate the difference declarative knowledge would be being able to understand the instruction manual on how to assemble a bicycle where as procedural knowledge would be what you demonstrate when you actually put the bicycle together. Being good at one does not necessarily make one good at the other. Many of us native English speakers can use our native tongue correctly but...  [Read more]

Inspiring a high level of motivation among students of all ages and maintaining it, is an ongoing challenge for even the most experienced and skilled teachers. One thing is certain, the motivation of a student has no connection to the matter being taught, but can instead always be reliably linked to the reasons why the student is learning the matter and how (Barrakeet, 2005, p 73- 74). Knowledge of human learning, and the factors influencing human learning, has increased dramatically over the past 100 years. From early thoughts by Psychiatrists Sigmund Freud and Carl Gustav Jung between 1900 and 1920, arguing that we are born with a wealth of knowledge through a connection to a collective unconscious (Jung,1962), and that our motivation is based entirely around ...  [Read more]

Inspiring a high level of motivation among students of all ages and maintaining it, is an ongoing challenge for even the most experienced and skilled teachers. One thing is certain, the motivation of a student has no connection to the matter being taught, but can instead always be reliably linked to the reasons why the student is learning the matter and how (Barrakeet, 2005, p 73- 74).Knowledge of human learning, and the factors influencing human learning, has increased dramatically over the past 100 years. From early thoughts by Psychiatrists Sigmund Freud and Carl Gustav Jung between 1900 and 1920, arguing that we are born with a wealth of knowledge through a connection to a collective unconscious (Jung,1962), and that our motivation is based entirely around instincts (Freud,...  [Read more]

  This video covers the differences teachers encounter when teaching monolingual and multilingual classes. Monolingual students all have the same native language. Multilingual students have different first languages. Watch this video to find out how to deal with these types of classes as a teacher. 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 Unit 5 'Managing Classes', we dealt with topics related to the balancing act of organizing the classroom. This...  [Read more]

  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. This unit projects two videos recorded during a lesson being taught twice ,In the first video the teacher made a huge number of errors as the lesson was completely teacher centered, his attitude towards students wasn’t nice at all which actually left students frustrated and consequently hampered their interest in the lessons .In the second video the teachers approach was indeed nice, he made the lesson...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word dross. This word describes something that is seen as junk or rubbish. Some synonyms for dross are trash or garbage. This word comes from the Old English 'dr?s' and is also related to Dutch droesem and German Drusen meaning dregs. 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. This unit is centered around Teaching Receptive Skills. There are different basic skills in language, that is reading, listening...  [Read more]

  "They're", "their" and "there" are three words that are often used incorrectly. "They're" is simply the contracted form of "they are". "Their" is a possessive and indicates ownership of something. "There" indicates a place. Due to the Internet and instant messaging, the three words have been icreasingly used incorrectly. However, if you'd like to use them correctly, you should keep their meanings in mind. When trying to decide which word to use remember that "they're" = they are, "their" = ownership and "there" = place. 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...  [Read more]

The role of the teacher has significantly changed for past few years due to advent of new technology. Although the same qualities of a good teacher are still required from the educators, the style of teaching has fundamentally changed and transformed from teacher- centered method of teaching into student-centered teaching pattern. Nowadays teacher’s personality is still considered an important factor in a process of teaching. Thomas Peacock in his article “Native Students Speak What makes a good teacher'” states that a teacher should possess two kinds of characteristics: teaching and personal. As Peacock indicates “teaching characteristics include having cultural knowledge, being interested in students, listening and understanding to their problems...  [Read more]

The role of the teacher has significantly changed for past few years due to advent of new technology. Although the same qualities of a good teacher are still required from the educators, the style of teaching has fundamentally changed and transformed from teacher- centered method of teaching into student-centered teaching pattern. Nowadays teacher?s personality is still considered an important factor in a process of teaching. Thomas Peacock in his article ?Native Students Speak What makes a good teacher?? states that a teacher should possess two kinds of characteristics: teaching and personal. As Peacock indicates ?teaching characteristics include having cultural knowledge, being interested in students, listening and understanding to their problems and using...  [Read more]

'Motivation can be induced artificially, but its effects then are temporary' (2). It is important for teachers to learn skills to motivate their class in ways that will move away from a 'temporary', to a lifelong or long term 'want' to learn. The International TEFL course as well as several others, suggest different ideas and methods of how best to use motivation in the classroom. Though there are different methods, the goal remains the same.The International TEFL course teaches using the ESA method, (Engage, Study and Activate). This teaching method allows the students to quickly become accustomed to the teaching structure. Students know that out of each lesson they should expect a well organized, clear teaching point with plenty of engagement and activation with their peers....  [Read more]

Motivation can be induced artificially, but its effects then are temporary? (2). It is important for teachers to learn skills to motivate their class in ways that will move away from a ?temporary?, to a lifelong or long term ?want? to learn. The International TEFL course as well as several others, suggest different ideas and methods of how best to use motivation in the classroom. Though there are different methods, the goal remains the same. The International TEFL course teaches using the ESA method, (Engage, Study and Activate). This teaching method allows the students to quickly become accustomed to the teaching structure. Students know that out of each lesson they should expect a well organized, clear teaching point with plenty of engagement and activation with...  [Read more]

There are many different practices that could be used for good classroom management and as with all techniques these need to be adapted to your own classroom, taking into account the age, culture, and personality of the class as a whole, and of you as a teacher.'Maintaining good order in classrooms is one of the most difficult tasks facing young inexperienced teachers. The task has become more difficult over the past few decades as young people´s attitudes to people in authority have changed dramatically. Some of the changes have led to greater self-confidence in students. Others, such as the acceptance of violence to achieve ends, attitudes to substance abuse and an increasing lack of respect for authority have made classroom management and life in school generally more...  [Read more]

There are many different teaching methods that teachers all over the world use everyday. The type you use depends on the kind of person you are, what style fits you best, and what kind of students you are teaching. I am going to cover a few teaching styles ranging from very young learners to older learners, sharing the many methods that are in use today. The AudioLingualism method, is a style of teaching used in language instruction. It is based on behaviorist ideas, which states that certain living things, in this case humans, could be trained through a system of reinforcement. Correct use of a trait would receive positive feedback while incorrect use of that trait would receive negative feedback. Its exactly like Pavlov's study using dogs, every time the dogs would get...  [Read more]

There are many different practices that could be used for good classroom management and as with all techniques these need to be adapted to your own classroom, taking into account the age, culture, and personality of the class as a whole, and of you as a teacher. ?Maintaining good order in classrooms is one of the most difficult tasks facing young inexperienced teachers. The task has become more difficult over the past few decades as young people´s attitudes to people in authority have changed dramatically. Some of the changes have led to greater self-confidence in students. Others, such as the acceptance of violence to achieve ends, attitudes to substance abuse and an increasing lack of respect for authority have made classroom management and life in...  [Read more]

When I decided to get TEFL Certified, through ITTT, I did not think, that as a person who holds a Bachelor of Arts in English, completing the course work would be very challenging. After all, I studied wrote about and debated complex aspects of the language and literature all through out college. How could it not be easy' I really believed that I would breeze through the course work and it would take the minimal amount of time to be completed. I had finished the first three units quite quickly, in my arrogance I really did believe they all would be finished just as fast.Then I began Unit 4 (Present Tenses) and had a very rude awakening. It was with this unit, I realized that all my college training had not prepared me in any way shape or form for what lie ahead in future grammar...  [Read more]

Games are an integral part of the learning process. So what is the definition of 'games'' Games are rule-based, and have variable, quantifiable outcomes. Different potential outcomes of a game are assigned different values, some positive and some negative. The player is emotionally attached to the outcome of the game in the sense that the player will be a winner and 'happy' in case of positive outcome, but a loser and 'unhappy' in case of the negative outcome. 'Play' is a free form activity that is often not rule based . Often there are some rules and fixed goals, and time frame, but mostly marked by fluidity of rules and goals.So games are distinguished from play by:- Play is a free ' form activity - Games are rule based, the rules structure the activity and make it...  [Read more]

Today, all teachers are faced with the ongoing challenge of working to make their teaching more effective. Whether they teach traditional students or EFL students, teachers must develop their skills to best meet students´ educational needs. We have a fairly clear idea today of the skills teachers should seek to develop. According to Robert Slavin, "research on teaching has made significant strides in identifying teaching behaviors associated with high student achievement" (Slavin, n.d.). These teaching behaviors include "essential teaching skills," which are "basic abilities that all teachers, including those in their first year, should have to promote order and learning" (Eggen & Kauchak, 2004, p. 579). The Key Teacher Skills include Preparation, Attention, Clarity,...  [Read more]

Motivation is a paramount factor in determining the success or failure of learning. Very often, students drag themselves to school and find it a chore to study, worse still take on a second language ?C English. As a non native speaker myself, switching from characters into roman letters was an uphill battle. However, ?? want to dispel the myth that learning English is easy and fun for non-native speakers and the secret to it is pure motivation. According to the dictionary, motivation is defined as a reason or cause of action. It can be categorized into extrinsic and intrinsic factors. Extrinsic factors such as rewards and punishment are the common methods in motivating students. If a student does well, the individual is rewarded positively with gifts, money and...  [Read more]

Teaching English for a Specific Purpose (ESP) or Why not just teach?em Shakespeare? TEFL Teaching in the classroom has maninly been focused on leaning General English skills with more specific English, needed for a specific profession for example, being taught only as and when it is needed. Some people argue that specific English should be introduced earlier and this will help motivate pupils and also keep the English taught within a professional and cultural environment that is relevant to the people learning it. English for a specific purpose was developed to meet the needs of individual learners and their specific needs, and is designed for specific disciplines. It makes some, but not exclusive use of the underlying methodology and activities of the discipline it...  [Read more]

Teaching English for a Specific Purpose (ESP) or Why not just teach'em Shakespeare' TEFL teaching in the classroom has maninly been focused on leaning General English skills with more specific English, needed for a specific profession for example, being taught only as and when it is needed. Some people argue that specific English should be introduced earlier and this will help motivate pupils and also keep the English taught within a professional and cultural environment that is relevant to the people learning it.English for a specific purpose was developed to meet the needs of individual learners and their specific needs, and is designed for specific disciplines. It makes some, but not exclusive use of the underlying methodology and activities of the discipline it serves, ...  [Read more]

Over the past four decades it appears that the advanced development of computers and the ready availability of this technology have led to an interest in a lexical approach to second language learning versus the more traditional grammar based approach. The Oxford dictionary defines lexical as 'connected with the words of a language', and grammar as 'the rules in a language for changing the form of words and joining them into sentences'. Two additional terms that are relevant to understanding this new approach is concordances, 'a list produced by a computer that shows all the examples of an individual word in a book', and collocations, 'a combination of words in a language that happens very often and more frequently than would happen by chance'.One article researched suggest...  [Read more]

'Diversity is the one true thing we all have in common.'Diversity plays an important role in the classroom just as it does in an ecosystem. A healthy ecosystem is made up of many parts with subtle or obvious differences, whose interactions strengthen the whole. The classroom is also a diverse environment, where students differ in many aspects but can work together towards a common goal: learning. Students may vary in the manner in which they learn, but a good teacher integrates a variety of appropriate activities to accommodate these differences in learning so that the class as a whole is strengthened. Learning modalities can be categorized by the different ways an individual can intake and understand new material (Kang 2005) and should be taken into account when a teacher...  [Read more]

Diversity is the one true thing we all have in common.? Diversity plays an important role in the classroom just as it does in an ecosystem. A healthy ecosystem is made up of many parts with subtle or obvious differences, whose interactions strengthen the whole. The classroom is also a diverse environment, where students differ in many aspects but can work together towards a common goal: learning. Students may vary in the manner in which they learn, but a good teacher integrates a variety of appropriate activities to accommodate these differences in learning so that the class as a whole is strengthened. Learning modalities can be categorized by the different ways an individual can intake and understand new material (Kang 2005) and should be taken into account when...  [Read more]

Over the past four decades it appears that the advanced development of computers and the ready availability of this technology have led to an interest in a lexical approach to second language learning versus the more traditional grammar based approach. The Oxford dictionary defines lexical as ?connected with the words of a language?, and grammar as ?the rules in a language for changing the form of words and joining them into sentences?. Two additional terms that are relevant to understanding this new approach is concordances, ?a list produced by a computer that shows all the examples of an individual word in a book?, and collocations, ?a combination of words in a language that happens very often and more frequently than would happen by chance?. One article researched...  [Read more]