Sumrall, Mississippi TESOL Online & Teaching English Jobs

Learners of English living in an English speaking environment have a huge advantage over those who don't. They are surrounded by the language continuously and practice every day so the language is acquired naturally. The most popular EFL teaching methodologies try to imitate this natural way of learning a language as much as possible. There are many different methods used and heated debate on which ones work best. All methods have their pros and cons. When choosing which methods to use it is important to consider these needs of the student: as much exposure to the language as possible, a certain amount of input from the teacher, a lot of communicative tasks, atmosphere of low anxiety and stress, and to be encouraged to learn the language for themselves. Engage, Study, and Activate (ESA) uses a blend of conditions to be applied to lessons and proven to be a very effective methodology, especially for new teachers. It is important to use elicitation techniques which are "strategies used by teachers to get learners to respond". Elicitation uses less "teacher telling" and more "student discovery". Some techniques include: using real objects, using flashcards/pictures, drawing, gap fill, meme, etc. Elicitation helps students to figure out answers for themselves so they can learn efficiently. The different activities used must be appropriate to the learning level of the students. All ESA lessons are comprised of engage, study, and activate stages. Engage is where the teacher tries to arouse the student's interest and get them involved in the lesson. Activities can include: games, music, pictures, stories, etc. If possible, the language used here should link with language to be taught later in the lesson. The engage stage is not meant to teach anything new, but to get all students speaking some English to get warmed up for the lesson. The study stage is comprised of activities where students focus on how the language is used and constructed. Teachers present a language point then follow it with exercises to reinforce the correct use and construction of the language points. Reading aloud, worksheets and correction are often used during the study stage. The activate stage is where students are encouraged to use any/all of the language they know to communicate creatively and freely. Correction should only be given where absolutely necessary so the communicative flow is not interrupted. Some activities used in the activate stage may include: role plays, dialogues, debates, story telling/writing, etc. All three ESA elements must be included in each lesson being taught. Lessons must always start with the engage stage and finish with the activate stage, but the order in between can be varied for teaching flexibility. A "straight arrow" ESA lesson follows the three parts in order: E-S-A. A "boomerang" ESA lesson can be: E-A-S-A. A "patchwork" ESA lesson may be E-A-A-S-A-E-S-A. Ongoing feedback should be provided by the teacher to help students evaluate their success and progress. Feedback can consist of: checking answers, giving praise, correcting, tests, group discussions, etc. It is important for teachers to be positive giving feedback and avoid negative comments. Teachers should know where and when to correct without over/under doing it. It is good for students to self correct, or correct each other, with teacher correcting being used as a last resort to ensure there is more "student discovery" instead of "teacher telling". I learned a lot about theories, methods, and techniques during this unit. I learned the importance of elicitation techniques and how it is effective to help students discover for themselves. I think it is very important for teachers to show the students how to teach themselves by keeping lessons more "student centered". It is important for teachers to plan lessons with interactive, fun activities to keep students interested and motivated. A teacher should be a good resource and model for helping students along and keep the lessons flowing smoothly. It is very important for teachers to give ongoing feedback, create a relaxed/low stress learning environment, and give much encouragement and praise as the students learn the new language. Learning should be a fun and positive experience for all students at all learning levels.