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                                        ELT NEWSLETTERS FROM TEACHERS COLLEGE


                                                                     APRIL/MAY 2011

SEVEN MISTAKES ENGLISH TEACHERS MAKE AND HOW TO AVOID THEM

1.    TEACHERS TRANSLATE FOR THEIR STUDENTS. IF YOU TRANSLATE FOR YOUR STUDENTS, THEY WILL NOT HAVE TO MAKE ANY EFFORT TO UNDERSTAND AND TO SPEAK ENGLISH. YOU ARE DOING
EVERYTHING FOR THEM. IN SPANISH WE SAY “CAEN EN BLANDITO.” WE SPOON FEED THEM. SPEAK ONLY ENGLISH.

2. TEACHERS SPELL WORDS OUT LOUD DURING A LESSON. UNLESS YOU ARE PREPARING STUDENTS FOR A SPELLING MATCH, YOU DO NOT SPELL WORDS OUT LOUD. FIRST MODEL THE CORRECT
PRONUNCIATION AND HAVE YOUR STUDENTS REPEAT THE WORDS AND USE THE WORDS WITHIN CONTEXT, IN SITUATIONS THAT MAKE SENSE. THEN LATER DURING THE LESSON OR EVEN THE WEEK,
YOU PROCEED TO WRITE THE WORDS ON THE BOARD. THAT IS THE SPELLING OF THE WORD.

3. TEACHERS GO DIRECTLY TO THE BOARD. THERE ARE LESSONS IN WHICH THE BOARD IS TOTALLY UNNECESSARY AND ITS USE EVEN INTERFERES WITH CORRECT PRONUNCIATION. IF YOU SHOW
YOUR STUDENT THE WORD “WOULD” BEFORE YOU HAVE MODELED IT AND MADE YOUR STUDENT REPEAT IT SEVERAL TIMES AND USED IT WITHIN MEANINGFUL CONTEXT, THEY WILL ALWAYS
PRONOUNCE THE LETTER “L”. THEY SEE IT ON THE BOARD AND OF COURSE WILL PRONOUNCE THE “L” AS IN THEIR LANGUAGE—SPANISH. MANY TEACHERS BELIEVE THAT IF THEY DO NOT WRITE ON
THE BOARD, PEOPLE WILL THINK THAT THEY DO NOT KNOW AND THAT IS WHY THEY DO NOT WRITE ON THE BOARD. WRITING IS ONE OF THE FOUR LINGUISTIC SKILLS AND SHOULD BE TAUGHT FOR
FULL MASTERY OF THE LANGUAGE; HOWEVER, YOU DO NOT TEACH WRITING BEFORE TEACHING THE OTHER THREE SKILLS FIRST AND IN THIS PRECISE ORDER: LISTENING, SPEAKING, AND READING.
WRITING IS DONE AT THE VERY END.

4. TEACHERS DO NOT USE RECORDED MATERIAL. RECORDED MATERIAL IS AN ESSENTIAL TOOL WHEN DOING LISTENING EXERCISES. TEACHERS SHOULD NOT THINK THAT THEY SHOULD USE
RECORDED MATERIAL BECAUSE THEIR OWN PRONUNCIATION IS NOT GOOD. USING RECORDED MATERIAL HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE TEACHER´S OWN PRONUNCIATION. IT HAS TO DO WITH
MAKING YOUR STUDENTS LISTEN TO SOMEONE ELSE WITHOUT LOOKING AT THAT SOMEONE—LOOKING AT THE ARTICULATION WHICH FACILITATES COMPREHENSION. THE PURPOSE OF A LISTENING
EXERCISE IS TO HAVE THE SS MAKE AN EFFORT TO TRY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY ARE HEARING.

5. TEACHERS LOSE CONTROL OF THE CLASS. STUDENTS CAN ASK MANY QUESTIONS THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LESSON. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO KEEP THINGS ON TRACK. SOME
TEACHERS THINK THAT IF THEY DO NOT ADDRESS THE STUDENT´S QUESTION, THE STUDENT IS GOING TO THINK THAT SHE DOES NOT KNOW—THAT SHE MAY NOT EVEN BE A TEACHER. THAT SHE
MIGHT HAVE GONE OFF TO SUMMER CAMP IN THE STATES AND CAME BACK CLAIMING TO BE A TEACHER. FORGET ABOUT ALL THAT. LET´S SAY, FOR EXAMPLE, THAT YOUR STUDENT WANTS TO
KNOW WHY YOU PRONOUNCE THE –ED IN REGULAR PAST TENSE VERBS IN DIFFERENT WAYS. YOU DO NOT STOP AND EXPLAIN AT THAT VERY MOMENT. YOU SCHEDULE A SPECIAL LESSON OR A PART
OF A FUTURE LESSON AND EXPLAIN TO THE STUDENTS THE DIFFERENT PRONUNCIATION FOR –ED. YOU ARE IN CHARGE, WHETHER YOU WANT TO BE CALLED A FACILITATOR, A RESOURCE PERSON, A
TEACHER, ETC. YOU ARE IN CHARGE—NOT YOUR STUDENTS.

6. TEACHERS DO NOT PREPARE LESSONS. OUR STUDENTS HAVE HAD MANY TEACHERS AND THEY CAN TELL WHETHER YOU PLANNED SOMETHING AHEAD OF TIME OR WHETHER YOU ARE
IMPROVISING. THIS DISCOVERY ON THEIR PART IS A FIRST REASON FOR LACK OF RESPECT TOWARDS THE TEACHER. “I´LL JUST TAKE SOMETHING TO ENTERTAIN THEM TODAY—A SONG OR
SOMETHING.”   PREPARE YOUR LESSON. IF EVERYONE CAN HAVE FUN WHILE LEARNING, THAT IS WONDERFUL; BUT YOUR MAIN OBJECTIVE IS TO TEACH. YOUR SS MAIN OBJECTIVE IS TO LEARN.

7. TEACHERS SPEAK ENGLISH ONLY IN CLASS.   SPEAK ENGLISH WITH AND TO YOUR SS EVERY TIME YOU MEET THEM WHETHER IT IS DURING RECESS, BEFORE AND AFTER CLASS. AFTER ALL, THESE
ARE GREAT OPPORTUNITIES TO PRACTICE AND PRACTICING IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF LEARNING A LANGUAGE. I HAVE HEARD TEACHERS TELL THEIR STUDENTS: “PABLITO, TE QUIERO VER
DESPUÉS DE LA CLASE. TE ME QUEDAS ALLÍ SENTADO, EH?”   THE HIDDEN BUT OBVIOUS MESSAGE IS “I AM TELLING YOU IN SPANISH BECAUSE I KNOW IN MY HEART THAT YOU WILL NOT
UNDERSTAND ME IF I TELL YOU IN ENGLISH.” WHAT A MESSAGE. WHAT A FAILURE. TALK TO YOUR SS IN ENGLISH ALL THE TIME ANYWHERE ANYTIME.

                                                                    MARCH 2011

THERE ARE, AMONG OTHERS, TWO WAYS OF TEACHING AND LEARNING--EITHER THROUGH A DEDUCTIVE OR AN INDUCTIVE METHOD.   HOW CAN WE DISTINGUISH THE TWO? HERE ARE SOME
PRACTICAL EXAMPLES THAT MAY HELP US DIFFERENTIATE THE TWO.

LEARNING INDUCTIVELY

EXAMPLE: YOU HAVE A CD THAT A FRIEND RECORDED FOR YOU WITH 8 SONGS.   YOU ENJOY LISTENING TO THE CD OVER AND OVER. AFTER A WHILE YOU SENSE OR YOU FEEL WHAT SONG IS NEXT.
AND IT USUALLY IS. YOU LEARNED THIS INDUCTIVELY. AFTER LISTENING TO THE CD SEVERAL TIMES, YOU COULD PRACTICALLY KNOW THE EXACT ORDER OF MOST OF THE SONGS. AFTER A WHILE
YOU COULD GIVE THE CORRECT ORDER FOR ALL THE 8 SONGS.   YOU DID NOT STUDY A LIST WITH THE NAMES OF THE SONGS. IN FACT, YOU DID NOT SEE ANYTHING WRITTEN DOWN. YOU LISTENED
TO THE SONGS IN A NATURAL WAY AND DISCOVERED WHICH SONG WAS NEXT JUST BY LISTENING TO THEM.

LEARNING DEDUCTIVELY

EXAMPLE: INSTEAD OF GIVING YOU THE CD, YOUR FRIEND GAVE YOU A LIST OF THE 8 SONGS FOR YOU TO MEMORIZE.   IN OTHER WORDS YOU FIRST HAD TO LEARN (MEMORIZE) THE LIST OF THE 8
SONGS—NAMES AND THEIR PLACE ON THE LIST. THEN, AFTER HAVING LEARNED THE ORDER OF THE SONGS BY NUMBER, YOUR FRIEND WILL GIVE YOU THE TAPE AND YOU WILL KNOW WHAT YOU
ARE GOING TO HEAR FIRST, SECOND, THIRD AND SO FORTH. SINCE YOU KNOW (LEARNED/MEMORIZED) THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY ARE PLAYED YOU COULD VERY WELL SKIP TWO OR THREE SONGS
AND GO DIRECTLY TO NUMBER FOUR WHICH HAPPENS TO BE YOUR FAVORITE. FIRST, YOU STUDIED THE LIST AND THEN LISTENED TO THE SONGS. WHEN YOU WERE LISTENING TO THE CD, YOU
KNEW WHICH SONG WAS NEXT BECAUSE YOU MEMORIZED OR LEARNED THE LIST FIRST.

THINK HOW TEACHING CAN BE MORE SUCCESSFUL .   HOW CAN YOU APPLY THESE LEARNING METHODS TO YOUR ENGLISH CLASSES? DO YOU WANT YOUR STUDENTS TO MEMORIZE 10 VOCABULARY
WORDS? OR DO YOU WANT YOUR STUDENTS TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH THESE 10 WORDS BY UNDERSTANDING THEM, BY PRONOUNCING THEM AND ABOVE ALL BY USING THEM WITHIN A
MEANINGFUL CONTEXT?    YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOMED. WRITE TO:    aalcala@colegiodeprofesores.com

                                                             FEBRUARY 2011

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line—not a zig zag or a curved line. How can we apply this premise to our English lessons? Let´s take TOEFL Preparation
classes as an example. For the duration of a 48-hour preparation course you need to teach a number of skills.

One day you begin class with a great song from the 90´s. You begin a discussion about how popular the song was and the fact that it earned several music awards. Your students
enjoy the conversation and you even brought the lyrics. They all sing and have a great time.

What´s wrong with bringing song and lyrics to class? Nothing wrong if the class were a conversation class or a regular English level class. The problem is that this particular class is
a TOEFL Preparation Class and the only way to reach the goal of preparing the students for the TOEFL Exam is to work non-stop on the skills to be taught.

Improvisation has no place in a TOEFL Preparation Class nor in any kind of class for that matter. And you know something? Students can tell when a teacher improvises. We tend to
forget that our students have experience, they have had many, many English teachers before us. They have learned a lot about good teachers and not-so-good teachers. They can
tell when the teacher prepared the class and when she did not.

In other words, we must focus. Focus on the task at hand. If we do not focus, we begin to go around in circles and at the end of the day, we will not have met our objectives not only in
our English lessons but in every aspect of our lives.

A good way to avoid sidetracking is to remind your students and yourself as well,   “Class, we are looking at 5 skills per day. This way we will have seen all the 60 skills in twelve
weeks. Then we shall be ready to take a practice test.” You, too, will be more committed. It would be very difficult to show up with a seek-a-word exercise or a crossword puzzle after
reminding them that there´s a lot of work ahead and that test preparation is the ultimate goal. No curves, no zig zags. If you focus, your students will focus too. Mission accomplished!



                                                               JANUARY 2011

t is often said that English Teachers in Mexico do not earn a lot money, that their earnings are very low, and that teaching is mostly about having or not having the vocation to teach.

Although having a vocation for teaching is an invaluable asset and will make the journey a very pleasant one, there is absolutely no reason why teachers should not earn lots and lots
of money. The key to earning lots of money as a teacher of English as a Second Language in Mexico is specialization. There are many different areas that require that teachers
specialize.

For example, take pronunciation and accent training. The amount of money you can earn by knowing how to improve your students´ pronunciation and how to polish their accents, is
limitless. You will never run out of students from beginners to advanced students—any student who does not pronounce correctly, who does not use stress and intonation patterns
adequately needs more self confidence, needs you badly. You can help.

Then there is the teaching of grammar. Although current methodology does not encourage the teaching of grammar per se, there is a need for grammar experts when it comes to
teaching Toefl, GMAT, and other test preparations for college entrance exams. Students who learned through the grammar-translation methods also demand grammar explanations
from their teacher. These students will also appreciate you dearly.

Needless to say, you can also prepare students for the Toefl or any other examination.

Let us not forget teaching business English. There is an overwhelming demand for teachers who know the vocabulary of the business world, who know about weekly reports and
meetings.

Of course, you might be thinking: And exactly HOW am I supposed to specialize if I work all day and come home to check assignments and exams?

The first step is to begin to see yourself as a life-long learner, a professional student.    Learn on your own, learn for the sake of learning, learn for the sheer enjoyment of learning.
Practice self-evaluation and self-praise. Visit bookstores with your children, purchase a book on pronunciation, or on test preparation, or on business English and read one of them in
your spare time. Read a page or two a day, summarize what you have read. Put it in your own words. Imagine that what you have just read and learned you will be teaching someone
else. This makes it even more challenging and consequently, you will feel more responsible for fully understanding the material.

Little by little, page by page, you will be learning something new, something that in a given moment might come in very handy, might be a life saver. You never know.

A second step to reinforce life-long learning by applying the new knowledge, to have at least one student or a small group of students once a week to practice with and to gain
experience doing so.

You really and truly do not have to pay large tuition fees at any university to LEARN. Become a life-long learner and SPECIALIZE. Sow today, reap
tomorrow.

                                                      NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2010

“SIT DOWN AND BE QUIET!”

No one likes to take orders. Adults do not like to take orders and neither do kids of all ages.

Students do not enjoy being told what to do. Students resist anything that sounds like an order.

Have you ever heard a teacher say things like:

“Take your grammar book out.
Put your bag away.
Throw that paper in the trash can.
Take out your workbook now.
Walk quietly.
Put your books away.
Stop talking.”

These are all orders and after a while of hearing so many orders, students (and husbands as well) shut down. They do not hear anymore. They stop listening.

There are other ways of telling your students what you want without actually giving them orders. The following are alternatives which you might find useful:

ALTERNATIVES: There are other ways of getting your students to do things without giving them direct orders. For example:

“Kids, you’re going to need the grammar book.
Let’s put the bags away.
The trash can’s over here.
Now, let’s go to the workbook.
The noise level is getting too high.
We don’t need the books anymore.
We need more silence in here.”

With older kids such as high school students, instead of saying:

Open your books to page 69.

SAY:

I’m on page 69 and ready to begin. Ready?

You have not given out orders, but your students know what to do. They will react positively to your statement because it does not sound like an order because it is not an order.
Try out these phrases and see if they work for you and your students. I wish you lots of happy and productive lessons in which your students do not feel they are being ordered
around and respond positively to your remarks.

COPYRIGHT 2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TEACHERS COLLEGE MEXICO CITY CAPULINES NO. 41 APARTADO POSTAL 92 NAUCALPAN, EDO. DE MÉXICO 53240