Thought-provoking articles and classroom ideas for English teachers who never stop learning.
When the school year draws to a close, marks frequently take center stage. Students, especially older ones, sit quietly bent over their final papers, projects are hastily wrapped up, and the countdown begins. But what if, instead of rushing toward the end, we paused to truly honour the journey we’ve taken with our learners?
Read this postFirstly, just what is Task Based Learning?
In traditional approaches to teaching, lessons are designed with the language as the primary focus. Teachers follow a syllabus that lists the grammar and vocabulary to be taught and they use materials that are designed specifically with this language in mind.
Read this postLanguage teaching is wonderful. We get to make an impact on our students’ lives, spark their curiosity, and celebrate success with them. But there are also frustrating moments, moments when our motivation dips and it’s just at this point when we need to shift our focus back on ourselves. With this in very much in mind, we thought we’d share five super easy CPD tips which may just give you the boost you need.
Read this postThe imminent introduction of the LOMLOE has us all wondering what effects the new law will have on our English teaching. In this post we help you to make sense of the terminology used in the LOMLOE, attempt to estimate the impact the new law will actually have on your day-to-day teaching practice, despite the new curricula still being unavailable, and discover that one thing will never change: the need for great, innovative, and effective English Language Teachers.
Read this postThe effect listening to music has on the brain, and the problem-solving methods often used in studying music, both stimulate neuronal areas that generate deep, divergent, lateral thinking. In this post, we’ll clarify the nature of music as a learning tool, explore the different ways music converts us into expansive (as opposed to vertical) thinkers, and present techniques you can use to generate flexible thinking in your students.
Read this postIBL (Inquiry-based learning) has existed in different forms for centuries. In IBL, the teacher places much of the responsibility for the learning on the learners themselves, inviting them to ask questions, guiding them to find out the answers and encouraging them to delve deeper and find out more. Many teachers use an inquiry-based learning approach to boost student engagement.
Read this postThe effects of multiculturalism are both overt and hidden and sometimes even difficult to cope with. To help our students to be able to function effectively in this globalised environment, as educators we need to encourage our students to expand their tolerance for diversity, to think critically about basic and more sophisticated political issues, and to dare to explore human rights that surpass borders. But how?
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