Teached Meaning

According to Webster's Dictionary an idiom is 'an expression whose meaning cannot be predicted from the usual meaning of its constituent elements.' I also like the definition of T.C. Cooper's that 'An idiom can have a literal meaning, but its alternate, figurative meaning must be understood metaphorically.' In the last week, since choosing 'idioms' as a subject for this paper, I have been particularly aware of how many of these phrases are used in everyday speech -' 'It's a piece of cake,' 'I'm fed up!' 'It's raining cats and dogs,' 'Let sleeping dogs lie.' These are enough to make a student who has consulted an English dictionary shake his head and say, 'I can't make heads or tails of what these phrases mean,' which, of course, he cannot do until he has been taught the ...  [Read more]

It is common knowledge that learning grammar can be a complex process. However, learning vocabulary is not as simple as many assume it to be. And retaining it for a lifetime is not simple at all. One model for learning new vocabulary consists of five stages. Having sources for encountering new words, receiving a visual and auditory image of the word, learning meaning, making memory connections to strengthen recollection and finally, using the words. In many instances, the teacher is given mandatory books and lesson materials to use as resources. Since the final stage of using the words is the result of the middle three stages, those are precisely the stages the teacher should focus on. The author recommends synonym usage to assist in the learning of new ...  [Read more]

  There are certain instances where we tend to use the passive voice instead of the active voice. This is true when the agent is unknown or unimportant. We also use the passive voice to change focus or to conceal the agent. Find out more about this topic in this video. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit covered the idea of how to arrange a study phase, and the key things students need to be able to do with the language. They must be able...  [Read more]

There are many different methods to teach grammar, but this essay will present the three that might be the most effective in retaining student interest. 1.Situational Presentations2.Text and Recordings3.Test Teach Test 1.Teaching grammar via Situational Presentation In order for grammar to have meaning, it needs to be placed within a context. For instance the preposition 'beside' has no meaning to a student unless it's placed within a context. Using a model sentence such as the 'The bread is beside the toaster' gives the word a basic context. Situational presentation refines the context and thus the meaning by building a 'situation' around the model sentence. It can be presented in three stages with the following example of teaching prepositions based on an airplane ride.Stage...  [Read more]

Here I was, waiting to teach a 'Lets Learn English' session with the Pacific and Asian newcomers to Australia. I was to continue the conversational English lessons with them. The attendees were looking forward to the class. I could tell this by the enthusiasm in their greeting as they arrived and by their hunger to learn in previous sessions. What's more we were having fun as we journeyed into the English language together. What's the biggest problem these students have I thought' The simple answer is 'the peculiarities of the English language, or more specifically'words. So what are words anyway' They're just sounds or noises that we utter after all. Unlike lower animals we may not bark neigh, moo, roar, purr or growl, but we do react instinctively to what's happening around...  [Read more]

Navigating Through a Foreign-Language-Classroom: Non-Verbal Vocalics Teaching in a foreign country and to students that do not understand English poses as a tedious endeavor. Innately we as humans tend to gravitate towards people like ourselves, thus when a TEFL teacher enters a classroom full of students from a different culture the work that is entailed to teach is abundant. Not only must the teacher propose a lesson, they must also embark on communicating with their students. Nevertheless that communication is of utmost difficulty; not only are the students from a different culture, they also speak a different language. Therefore, a sense of understanding must arise between the student and the teacher? lack of language. Consequently the communication that goes on...  [Read more]

Navigating Through a Foreign-Language-Classroom:Non-Verbal VocalicsTeaching in a foreign country and to students that do not understand English poses as a tedious endeavor. Innately we as humans tend to gravitate towards people like ourselves, thus when a TEFL teacher enters a classroom full of students from a different culture the work that is entailed to teach is abundant. Not only must the teacher propose a lesson, they must also embark on communicating with their students. Nevertheless that communication is of utmost difficulty; not only are the students from a different culture, they also speak a different language. Therefore, a sense of understanding must arise between the student and the teacher' lack of language. Consequently the communication that goes on between the two...  [Read more]

In an ESL lesson, the materials chosen to present the new grammar and vocabulary are a very important part of the teacher’s preparation and largely determine how well the lesson will be understood and enjoyed by the students. The options of materials are many but all have their own appropriate uses. It is a good idea for ESL teachers to build up a collection of teaching materials and ideas that span from fun games to worksheets to short, easy novels. Often, a course book is the main guideline but other materials should be used to complement and diversify the lessons. Choosing the correct materials depend on many different areas such as class size, language level, personal interests of the students, student ages, etc. But the teacher should view this part of planning...  [Read more]

Teaching is not merely sharing of information or knowledge, but also an expression of values and attitudes. What teachers usually get back from their students is what they themselves have brought to the teaching-learning process. The role of the teacher is multi-faceted and diverse. Just some of the roles that a teacher must take on are that of motivator, mentor, decision maker, coach, facilitator, psychologist, parent, speaker, actor/actress, assessor, organizer, model, observer and disciplinarian amongst others. Ultimately in the world of TEFL, the teacher teaches language, reading, writing, speaking and listening. To be able to do this, the teacher must take on many other roles which make it one of the most challenging professions. To put it mildly, teaching is not for...  [Read more]

Reading is a process by which a reader gives meaning to text. The reader relies on a series of skills which they, depending on the age of the English language learner, may already possess in their native tongue. An older child or adult reader will read text knowing its purpose and meaning i.e. to give or request information, persuade, criticise, to give pleasure to or entertain. Further, they can make logical predictions as they read because of pre-existing experience or knowledge. All these skills are used by fluent readers, and as such, will be second nature to an older child or adult. A young English language learner may not have these skills or are developing them at the same time as learning a new language. This will necessitate the adoption of differing texts for reading....  [Read more]

In consideration of whether or not teachers of English as a second language should teach slang or idioms in class, or rather, why English teachers should teach idioms or slang, I did some research on the internet regarding this particular topic. For the most part, I found one David Burke's article on the subject to be most informative (Burke, 1). I have formed my own opinion on the matter, which I will discuss at length later in this essay.First, it is constructive to define exactly what slang words and idioms are, to differentiate between the two as well as to be completely precise in this pursuit. Dictionary.com defines an idiom as 'an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the usual meanings of its constituent elements' (dictionary.com, 1). In contrast, slang is...  [Read more]

A. Why choosing this topic''Studying the peculiarities of English unlocks a wealth of interesting aspects about the language. 'Full command of the English language is not possible without mastering the difficulties of these peculiarities. 'To get students thinking about the way in which the language is used correctly.B. OriginsToday, English is the 'lingua franca' of the world ' a legacy of the former British Empire's political, economic, and maritime superiority. English dialects are spoken in many former British colonies such as India, the Philippines, and Australia. English is also studied as a second language by millions of people worldwide.Why the peculiarities' Just like many other world languages it is a mixture of several languages, starting with words of the Anglo-Saxon...  [Read more]

It is common knowledge that learning grammar can be a complex process. However, learning vocabulary is not as simple as many assume it to be. And retaining it for a lifetime is not simple at all. One model for learning new vocabulary consists of five stages. Having sources for encountering new words, receiving a visual and auditory image of the word, learning meaning, making memory connections to strengthen recollection and finally, using the words.In many instances, the teacher is given mandatory books and lesson materials to use as resources. Since the final stage of using the words is the result of the middle three stages, those are precisely the stages the teacher should focus on.The author recommends synonym usage to assist in the learning of new vocabulary. So a...  [Read more]

I am a ?Purist? at heart. For me the only acceptable, the only correct, the only ?propah? way to speak (and spell) English is as illustrated in the Encyclopedia Britannica ? the British English, so to speak. I have always been a staunch champion of Dr. Doolittle and all the other guardians of the English language. However, being a teacher of the English language, I can no longer turn a blind eye to the ?globalization? of English, which is - ?now a mish-mash of words incorporated from over 350 languages, and is still undergoing constant change, with hundreds of words/phrases coming into existence every year, some fading away, but many finding their way into dictionaries and thesauruses! One can pronounce words in many different ways and still be understood!! The...  [Read more]

I am a 'Purist' at heart. For me the only acceptable, the only correct, the only 'propah' way to speak (and spell) English is as illustrated in the Encyclopedia Britannica ' the British English, so to speak. I have always been a staunch champion of Dr. Doolittle and all the other guardians of the English language.However, being a teacher of the English language, I can no longer turn a blind eye to the 'globalization' of English, which is - 'now a mish-mash of words incorporated from over 350 languages, and is still undergoing constant change, with hundreds of words/phrases coming into existence every year, some fading away, but many finding their way into dictionaries and thesauruses! One can pronounce words in many different ways and still be understood!! The emergence of so ...  [Read more]

The Engage, Study & Activate framework (ESA) (Course Materials, unit 3) is an organizational framework that will create lesson plans that ensures students will “be motivated, be exposed to the language, and have the opportunity to use it.” The elements of the framework are: Engage: arouse the students’ interest and get them involved in the lesson.  Study: focus on the language (or information) and how it is constructed.  Activate: Students are encouraged to use any/all of the language they know (prior and new knowledge) focusing on fluency more than accuracy.   The Information Processing System model (IPS) of human learning (storing and retrieving information) developed by Atkinson and Shiffrin (Abbott, 2007) is one of the most widely used...  [Read more]

Over the past four decades it appears that the advanced development of computers and the ready availability of this technology have led to an interest in a lexical approach to second language learning versus the more traditional grammar based approach. The Oxford dictionary defines lexical as ?connected with the words of a language?, and grammar as ?the rules in a language for changing the form of words and joining them into sentences?. Two additional terms that are relevant to understanding this new approach is concordances, ?a list produced by a computer that shows all the examples of an individual word in a book?, and collocations, ?a combination of words in a language that happens very often and more frequently than would happen by chance?. One article researched...  [Read more]

Over the past four decades it appears that the advanced development of computers and the ready availability of this technology have led to an interest in a lexical approach to second language learning versus the more traditional grammar based approach. The Oxford dictionary defines lexical as 'connected with the words of a language', and grammar as 'the rules in a language for changing the form of words and joining them into sentences'. Two additional terms that are relevant to understanding this new approach is concordances, 'a list produced by a computer that shows all the examples of an individual word in a book', and collocations, 'a combination of words in a language that happens very often and more frequently than would happen by chance'.One article researched suggest...  [Read more]

Introduction:Listening is the ability to identify and understand spoken language. Listening is a receptive skill. The receptive skills used in language acquisition: listening and reading enable the productive skills: speaking and writing (Saricoban, 1999). Listening is the communication skill used most often in the assimilation of information and the most neglected in foreign language teaching (Norris, 1993). Effective listening is dependent upon the listener's decoding skills, i.e. the listener's ability to make sense of the message. For foreign language learners accurate and intelligent listening is a necessity. A good teacher will enable intelligent listening by enhancing her student's decoding skills.Unlike written and spoken evidence, successful listening is more ...  [Read more]

In an ESL lesson, the materials chosen to present the new grammar and vocabulary are a very important part of the teacher?s preparation and largely determine how well the lesson will be understood and enjoyed by the students. The options of materials are many but all have their own appropriate uses. It is a good idea for ESL teachers to build up a collection of teaching materials and ideas that span from fun games to worksheets to short, easy novels. Often, a course book is the main guideline but other materials should be used to complement and diversify the lessons. Choosing the correct materials depend on many different areas such as class size, language level, personal interests of the students, student ages, etc. But the teacher should view this part of...  [Read more]

If you have never taught English to complete novices before, the prospect of spending an entire lesson speaking with students who don't comprehend a single word you say may seem frightening. Teaching absolute beginners differs from teaching other courses, as any ESL teacher will tell you. It can be difficult, but it may also be one of the most enjoyable and gratifying language levels to teach. Every new word your students learn is important at this level, and the greatest approach to teaching it is to be as creative and funny as possible. Generally, teaching the letters and numbers should be one of your first priorities. You will lay a solid foundation for everything else your students will learn by teaching them the letters and numbers at the start of the course. Ascertain that your...  [Read more]

It was while attempting to wrap my brain around the meaning of the construction "must needs", which I had encountered so often in classical English Literature, that I was incidentally drawn to an inves-tigation of modals. Modals, I learned, are semantic expressions of modalities: which is to say that they are nuanced constructions designed to express the speakers point of view with regards to his subject: be it his degree of certainty regarding the truth of a proposition he is propounding, his expression of permission, obligation, or necessity implicated in a situation, or his opinion regarding someone's- or something's- ability or volition with respect to a potential.Said differently, a modality is merely a point of view, and a modal a linguistic vehicle for expressing that...  [Read more]

  In this TEFL video journal entry, Chantelle talks about unit 11 of her online course. Unit 11 deals with the two receptive skills reading and listening. The unit discusses the different reasons we have for reading or listening and outlines the different ways we do this such as skimming, scanning etc. The unit also outlines ways to overcome problems students may have with reading and listening and provides a sample receptive skills lesson plan. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word firebrand. This word has two different meanings. The first meaning is quite literal and describes burning wood. The second meaning is rather figurative as it refers to a person who is usually inflicting change as a result of being passionate about a certain topic or cause. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit has enlightened me about teaching special groups, which include...  [Read more]

  The idiom "itchy feet" refers to the need to leave or a feeling of a need to travel, for example: Watching an airplane pass by is giving me itchy feet. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit is about teaching receptive skills. The receptive skills are reading and listening. The productive skills are speaking and writing. All these skills are equally important and all of them should be incorporated into lessons. Students can read/listen...  [Read more]

  This TEFL review was recorded by Volodymyr from Kiev in Ukraine. He is currently working as an English teacher in the Ukrainian Dance Academy. Having completed his 120-hour online TEFL course with ITTT Volodymyr wants to move to China to teach English and is looking forward to learning more about China as he pursues his English teaching career. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. This unit covers the difficulties that learners can face when...  [Read more]

If some burly, impatient builder were to shout 'Slab!' at a construction site, and subsequently stare in my direction, what is my reaction to be' As his stare transforms to a glare, his eyes becoming more savage by the second, I begin to feel rather ill at ease. What meaning am I to extract from this single word statement' Am I to ponder the nature of the object just uttered' Am I to shout something equally arbitrary back in his direction' Or am I to fetch this object post-haste' As anyone familiar with the 'language-game' of a construction site might tell me: surely the latter, if I don't want to be thrown from the side of the scaffolding.The term 'language-game' was coined by the Austrian-born philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) to refer to the idioms adopted by and...  [Read more]

It was while attempting to wrap my brain around the meaning of the construction "must needs", which I had encountered so often in classical English Literature, that I was incidentally drawn to an inves-tigation of modals. Modals, I learned, are semantic expressions of modalities: which is to say that they are nuanced constructions designed to express the speakers point of view with regards to his subject: be it his degree of certainty regarding the truth of a proposition he is propounding, his expression of permission, obligation, or necessity implicated in a situation, or his opinion regarding someone?s- or something?s- ability or volition with respect to a potential. Said differently, a modality is merely a point of view, and a modal a linguistic...  [Read more]

  This TESOL review video was recorded by ITTT graduate Floyd. Floyd is from the USA but is currently living and working as an English teacher in Japan. Floyd took the 120-hour online course with tutor support as well as the teaching business English course and intends to take the Diploma course with ITTT in the future. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. Modals, phrasal verbs and passive voice are the main concerns of this unit. we learn here that...  [Read more]

  In this TEFL review video Ann Marie describes her TEFL experience with ITTT and what she achieved by completing the course. Each of ITTT's training courses will provide you with all you need to begin your career as an English language teacher abroad. After you complete your course ITTT will continue to provide you with any job support information that you may require. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. The four things needed for students to...  [Read more]