| How: | | | | their worksheets, read the instructions, |
| | | | listen to the teacher presenting grammar |
| 1. Put the students into pairs or small | | | | points or whatever, do a listening exercise |
| groups (See TT1 for further explanation). | | | | or a roleplay, go through homework together, |
| | | | receive more homework, get ready to leave |
| Why: | | | | etc. 5 minutes would be more realistic. So |
| | | | there you have it, pay for 60 minutes and get |
| 1. Making students speak to each other | | | | 5. Where's the logic? If that doesn't work I |
| instead of the teacher maximises STT (Student | | | | do this: Let the student have his/her way. |
| Talking Time) and minimises TTT (Teacher | | | | Yup! Smile and listen very attentively. Make |
| Talking Time). This is a good thing because | | | | sure that everyone else is listening too. Let |
| the students are the ones who need to | | | | him/her start rambling, taking up everyone's |
| practise their English - you, hopefully, | | | | valuable time and then just pick him/her up |
| don't! | | | | on every grammar mistake and correct his/her |
| | | | pronunciation every second word. I find that |
| 2. A lot of students will be using their | | | | the student in question usually enjoys this |
| English to speak to non-mother tongue | | | | to start with, getting so much attention - |
| speakers anyway so they might as well start | | | | having a one-to-one lesson in front of |
| getting used to it. For example, my students | | | | everybody - but the novelty soon wears off. I |
| are Italian and they often need English to | | | | either correct the student aloud, frequently, |
| speak to other European clients and | | | | or write his/her errors up on the board as s |
| colleagues. Some of them never use English to | | | | he goes along ("don't mind me, do keep going, |
| speak to mother-tongue English speakers at | | | | we can all learn so much from your |
| all! | | | | mistakes"). |
| | | | |
| Extra Info: | | | | Generally speaking, correcting a student |
| | | | every few seconds destroys the impact of |
| Students like talking to the teacher because | | | | whatever s/he was saying and makes them (and |
| it makes them feel important and that they | | | | everyone else) lose the thread. Writing their |
| are getting value for money. While this is | | | | mistakes up publicly on the board tends to |
| fine in a one-to-one lesson it is no good in | | | | make students shrivel up and die (See TT11 |
| a group because while one student is | | | | for an explanation about how to do error |
| monopolising the teacher/conversation | | | | correction nicely). After this, in my |
| everyone else is losing out. | | | | experience, the student is generally quite |
| | | | happy to get on with pairwork. And so are all |
| When I encounter students who want to talk to | | | | the other students! Sometimes I have students |
| me all the time in a lesson (flattering | | | | who don't want to speak much until they can |
| though it is) I advise them (politely) to | | | | be sure of getting it right and not making |
| consider having individual lessons if they | | | | mistakes because mistakes are bad things, |
| want the teacher's full attention all the | | | | right? (Wrong! See TT11 for further |
| time. If that doesn't work I explain like | | | | explanation). These students tell me that |
| this: 60 minutes divided by 6 students = 10 | | | | they want me to talk to them (individually) |
| minutes each; so they can each talk to me for | | | | because they will learn correct English |
| 10 minutes and I will listen to each of them | | | | through listening to me. (By osmosis, |
| for 10 minutes which is sad really when | | | | presumably!) They can't see the benefit of |
| they've paid for a 60 minute lesson. And, | | | | talking to each other because if they make a |
| let's face it, it wouldn't really be 10 | | | | mistake the other student won't be able to |
| minutes because you have to take time off for | | | | correct them. (Actually, the other student |
| taking the register at the beginning of the | | | | often can correct them, and does correct them |
| lesson, giving everyone time to hang their | | | | and that's what they don't like!). |
| coats up, sit down, get settled, receive | | | | |