Eureka, Texas TESOL Online & Teaching English Jobs

Learners of English who have the opportunity to live in an English speaking environment while studying have a huge advantage. They are surrounded by the language continuously and are able to put acquired language into practice in everyday, realistic situations. However, the majority of English learners are living in their native countries, where English is not the first language and as a result do not have these benefits. Many of these students may have the opportunity to use English at work, with their friends or in some other practical way where they are able to use their English on a fairly regular basis. Many other learners of English are not so fortunate and their only contact with the language may be daily, twice weekly or weekly English classes at school or at a private language institute. As a result these students do not get the same exposure to the language and opportunity to put it into practice. As children we all learnt our native language (commonly referred to as 'L1', or first language) without the aid of language teachers and course books. We simply absorbed the language around us, processed it and through trial and error formulated internal ideas and rules to allow us to be able to use the language fluently and accurately. This 'natural language acquisition' is impossible to replicate in the classroom (when learning a second or foreign language, often referred to as 'L2'), but many of the most popular methodologies in EFL teaching today do try to imitate it as far as is practical.