English Teaching and Learning

We are now used to a web experience in which we can integrate images, user-generated and personalised content, as well as the freedom to browse and search for precisely what we want. It is easy to see that this pattern of activity has not yet become part of our approach to language learning, especially if we think about the traditional school setting. Although many schools  are  now moving towards incorporating contemporary learning styles into their architecture, it is often not so evident in the syllabus which can remain prescriptive.  There is a challenge to create an environment in which learners can determine what, how, and when they learn.  From our involvement with the world-wide web we have developed critical thinking skills and we are now more used to the ideas of lifelong and independent learning. The near future should allow learners to create their own learning paths, as well as interacting easily across existing boundaries of space and ti...

I read a lot on the native v non-native argument. If you are not familiar with it, it is the argument that non-native English teachers are discriminated against in favour of native speaker teachers. I personally am against this discrimination inasmuch as I think that a native-speaker teacher is not a better teacher than a non-native speaker teacher simply by means of being a ‘native’ speaker. Although I am in principle against this discrimination, I am also against much of what I read on the argument in defense and promotion of non-native speakers. There are several reasons why I think we need a change in strategy in this argument, irrespective of our individual view on it. Native and non-native don’t exist. To lose this distinction we need to stop using these terms, not use them more. Once we try to define what a ‘native’ speaker is and what a ‘non-native’ speaker is we can’t reach a firm idea which encompasses all the messy realities of our lives today. They are helpf...

This week the president of the European Commission,  Jean-Claude Juncker, declared that  “Slowly but surely English is losing importance in Europe”. Despite Brexit, the statistics tell us that more and more people in Europe and worldwide are studying English. Regardless of your standpoint on the UK's exit from the European Union, Brexit is not going to affect the trajectory of English-language learning.  In a couple of years people who travel to and from the UK and Europe, or do any sort of business between the two may or may not be speaking in English to each other. Regardless of this English will still be the dominant worldwide language because it is the language of business, science, all aviation and the de facto language of the Internet, which I hear is getting quite popular nowadays.  This is not, however, a defense of English as a lingua franca. But it does remind me that English does not belong to the people of English-speaking countries b...

I just read a blog post about how 'native' speakers are better teachers than 'non-native' teachers. It seems to be a hot topic at the moment, and understandably divisive. Jobs and opportunities depend on the distinction. But, as a supposed 'native' myself, I'd like to do away with these ridiculous terms. Firstly, and plainly, these terms are useless when applied to English language teaching: A native English speaker, by definition, could have been born in any country on Earth. It is dependent simply of the speaker's first language, which in itself is dependent (usually) on the speaker's parents. According to Wikipedia in 2015 there were 54 official states in which English is the official language. 'Native speaker' is often used as shorthand for 'person from an Anglosphere country' (Australia, UK, US, Ireland, New Zealand, and Canada). In reality, millions of 'native' speakers from countries outside these regions a...

Technology; cold, relentless, and idolised by much of humanity, is here and doesn't look like it will lose its momentum any time soon. English-language teachers, on the other hand, are often light, whimsical, caring entities, prone to having a fondness for people over machines, and a tendency towards the 'real' over the 'virtual'. With this hyperbolic introduction, I wanted to set up a dichotomy, which in reality perhaps doesn't exist. Many teachers nowadays do indeed use technology to educate, many in fact rely upon it completely as they teach through Skype to learners the world over. Others though, we must have seen, are well, not too keen to move with the times and much prefer a handout to an attachment. Let's think briefly (technology has apparently rotted my ability to think about anything more than briefly) on the implications of technology in education in general, and then its affect on English-language teaching.  The O mnipresence of Technolo...

There are lots of blog posts, academic articles, and ongoing heated discussions in the actual and virtual ELT staff rooms all over the world about whether we should teach grammar at all. Those who argue for the teaching of grammar say that we need to know the rules of a language to be able to use it properly. They say grammar gives us the skeleton from which to hang the flesh.  Those against it argue that English in particular is not a grammar-based language and in fact, all a language-learner needs is access to level-appropriate, authentic 'input' and a thirst for learning. Having listened to both sides of this argument, and having applied both of them to my own teaching, I can make a couple of tentative observations: 1. Sometimes students want grammar like children want candy. But just because they want it, should we give it to them? Well, if the child is paying your wages, then yes, maybe you should. But is it good for them? It is not a meal in itself but will do no...

I've seen many different teaching styles, some more effective than others. I have my own opinions about what the habits and practices of good English teachers: what they do, what they don't do; what they say, what they don't say. What they wear, what they eat... OK, the last two we can leave up to the employers.. but all-in-all, I felt sure I knew what was 'good', when I saw it. Recently someone who works for once of the main English test conductors told me that one of the questions she asked the candidates was 'What makes a good teacher'? The answers, she said, were often surprising. Does a student know what's best for them? Does it matter of the student doesn't like the teacher? I always thought of a teacher as being like a doctor. Someone who knew best for the 'patient'. The expert, with specialised knowledge that could be called upon to 'treat' the subject, and make him or her better. I usually felt that it didn't re...

In a speech in 1996 by Hargreaves, he claimed (more or less) that for whatever reason teachers were a passive, unambitious group, and made a comparison between teaching and medical professionals, in particular doctors. He stated that doctors are constantly informed about developments in medicine, aware of recent research findings, and intrigued by possible future directions. He contrasted this with teaching, which he said is 'not a research-based profession'. Does he have a point, and of so, does it matter? There were many fierce opponents to Hargreaves' claim that teaching would be 'more effective and more satisfying' if it looked more to research in its field. Many claimed that it was ridiculous to compare being a doctor to being a teacher. And there were many other credible reasons why what is right for a medical doctor is not necessarily right for a teacher. However, let's indulge the idea for a while. It is difficult to talk about teaching as if it wer...

Coursebooks are the standard in ESL and EFL classrooms across the world. As a teacher, do they light your fire, or do you think they should they be used to start one? The use of course books for teaching English is a rather divisive issue. Some school insist upon their use while other educational organisations insist that teachers utilise only their wits and the students in front of them as the means to teach. Dogme language teaching famously advocated for ' teaching without published textbooks and focusing instead on conversational communication among learners and teacher '.  And yet, for someone who is new to ELT, or simply for a school or teacher who want to work from a tried-and-tested text book, they can offer guidance, inspiration, and a ready-made solution to the problem of what and how to teach.  It is worth thinking about what the purpose of learning materials is in the classroom, or to the independent learner. It is important to consider that learning ma...

Pronunciation is often a neglected area for English-language learners, both seemingly by the teacher and the learner. A kind of complicity takes place that both parties strike a deal that the teacher won't get hung up on the different ways to pronounce 'th', as long as the learner doesn't mention it either. Teachers can find pronunciation to be a difficult aspect of the language to deal with and consequently can avoid it altogether. The difficulty perhaps stems from hearing an 'error' but not being able to immediately isolate exactly what is happening to cause the mispronunciation and being able to correct it. If you are not familiar with the phonemic alphabet then it is a useful tool for both the teacher and learner. There is an online one here from the British Council. A colleague recently gave a fascinating training session on pronunciation. She went through the anatomical aspects of it  -- what goes where when we make each sound, and the differenc...

A lot of people might wonder what the secret to learning is, and I learnt it today. You can just jump to the end if you don’t want to wade through the drivel between these opening remarks and the ‘secret’. The drivel: I am often asked by English-language learners how they can improve their English. I recommend ways, as anyone does whose occupation it is to help people improve their English-language skills. I analyse their needs by speaking with her or him for a few minutes. It might be that she pauses, seemingly searching for a word mid-flow, or that he can’t create a grammatical construction he needs to express himself more precisely, as he would in his own language. It might be that her speaking is staccato or that individual sounds are mispronounced, causing a breakdown in coherence. Based on what I see or I hear, I can recommend speaking with a friend or family member in English, reading a blog or listening to a podcast on a subject she is interested in. I might tell...