English Teaching Materials

  Just to finish the sectional materials, we'll have a look the difference between what are called authentic and created materials. Authentic materials, as the name implies, are actual materials that are created for any reason outside of the classroom. So examples of authentic materials would be things like newspapers. Those are generated for the general public and they're certainly not generated for the use in the classroom. However, they can be used within the classroom other ideas would be things like songs and poems and even things such as brochures and magazines and indeed menus from restaurants. So these are materials that all can be used within the classroom but they have not been created for that purpose, whereas creative materials, as the name implies, have been produced...  [Read more]

  This presentation is going to focus on the use of course books, materials and teaching aids. There are many materials that we can bring to our classroom that will help with the teaching of our lessons and these include, though they're not limited to, things such as the wipe board, similar to the one that we're using here, various types of visual aids, created or bought worksheets, the use of cassettes CDs and DVDs and the use of video and in these classroom materials, we can also include things such as dictionaries and course books, various types of resource books that we'll have a look at and other materials such as photo copiers, computers, OHPs. So what we'd like to do is just to take a general look at some of the issues relating to each of these types of materials. Below you...  [Read more]

  The next item we're going to consider is the use of dictionaries and here perhaps the first thing we should do is to make a distinction between the two main types of dictionary and that distinction is between the monolingual and the bilingual dictionary. In a monolingual dictionary you have a word and its associated meaning and those two are both described for example in English so the word and the description of that word are both given in English. Whereas in a bilingual dictionary that word meaning could often be for example the word given in English and the explanation given in Thai and vice versa. So what can we use a dictionary for? Well, within the dictionary itself obviously we can get things like how words are spelled or the spelling of the word. We can also get the...  [Read more]

  So let's have a look at some of the more general issues when using the wipe board. Perhaps the most important thing to start with is that we should start with a clean board. Secondly it's always very useful to make a board plan so that you know where things are going to appear on the board by the end of your lesson. It?s very simple to do a board plan. Just take a sheet of paper, which is similar in shape to the board that you're going to use, and then onto that piece of paper decide where all the information that's going onto your board is going to be by the time that you've finished. So a very simple board plan just to show where the information is going to be. Also it's very useful if you make use of tables and columns to separate different areas of your work and in the same...  [Read more]

  Next, a couple of issues surrounding the use of worksheets and workcards. Firstly, these types of materials can either be bought or they could be made by yourself. Very often many of the book series that we use will have workcards in their teacher resource book. Worksheets and workcards are very useful because they can act as a prompt to introduce an activity or topic. They can also be used for role plays and one of the things you need to be aware of when making worksheets and workcards yourself is that you need to make them durable. So whenever you create a workcard, if you put it on some hard backing and then put it inside some cellophane or covered plastic just to make them durable then those types of workcards and worksheets can last for years. So examples of worksheets and...  [Read more]

  The next idea we're going to consider is the use of visual aids and visual aids can include some examples such as real, objects, which we call realia, the use of pictures and photographs and also the use of models. So let's consider some of the ideas surrounding the use of visual aids. Well, why are they useful? Well, first of all the use of a visual aid can reduce teacher talk time. It's very much more simple just to show a real object than to try to describe it so that we could just ask the students ?what is this,? and they would say ?this is a pen,? rather than trying to actually describe it. Again if we were trying to show examples of fruit and vegetables rather than to try and describe them why not use an actual model and this is going to be much more visually stimulating...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Certification Havana Cuba and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit I learnt about two of the four receptive skllls that are very important when teaching English. I learnt about the importance of carefully and correctly choosing material that exposes students to texts that will give them confidence in their skills. I also learnt how to make use of the ESA while teaching the receptive skills including some examples. This unit was well explained without any complications.Books and Materials such as course books I learnd they are motiative issue to...  [Read more]

  We now consider what we might call the technology that we could use within the classroom then that could include things such as cassettes, the use of CDs, the use of DVD and video. Some general issues surrounding the use of these types of material, make sure whenever you're using any of this type of technology though you know how it actually works when using it for a listening activity, for example. How long does it take for the whole tape to play through? How long does it take to rewind and so on. Other issues that you might need to think about is if you're using a cassette player or CD or something that you set the volume level before you actually start the lesson so that when you switch on you don't shock everyone with a very loud sound or that they can't actually hear it....  [Read more]

  So how do we actually make best use of the course book? Well, just a couple of factors that you need to keep into consideration when using these types of material, use the course book to help you create a balanced lesson in terms of the range of skills that are being taught and the actual types of material within that the grammar or vocabulary. Secondly, don't use it all the time, particularly with things like activities, we can create our own materials and we can tailor those materials much more specifically to the actual class that we're teaching. As very often the actual creations in the book are very general, we can make our own materials much more specific. The third thing you need to be aware of is that you can't always rely 100% on the information that's presented in those...  [Read more]

  The next item that we're going to consider is the use of resource books. There are many different types of resource books available and within those books there tends to be a general pattern and typically the resource book pack will come in a three book series and typically that three book series will be in the form of the student book, a workbook and a teacher's resource book. So for example here are those three books for this particular series called ?Total English? and in the student book the type of information that we can gain from here is the actual background to the teaching points themselves plus some additional information in terms of short worksheets and so on and so forth and tape transcripts at the end for listening activities, which these days often come on a CD...  [Read more]

  Let's just consider next, when using these resource books, the student book, the workbook and the teachers resource book, what are some of the advantages and disadvantages of using those types of materials? Well, firstly, the main advantage perhaps of using these types of material is that it's quicker than actually creating your own. Secondly, the course books that you will get will be graded for a particular level. So there'll be a set of books for the starter level, a set of books for the elementary level and so on and so forth. So you know that the activities and materials in there will have been graded for level. The use of the book can also offer continuity so that the syllabuses have been covered in a particular way by the book itself and are presented in a logical order....  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Parkesburg Pennsylvania and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: Course material can be a very useful aid in teaching a class. Course material can consist of: authentic material, created material, and coursebooks. Authentic material can be described as anything a native speaker would hear or read. This will instill confidence in the learner. Created materials are designed by the teacher to supplement the coursebook. Created materials can consist of word games, pictures, etc, and they can be graded to the level of the student. A coursebook offers effective...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Jobs China Manzhouli and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This chapter focuses on resources and educational materials that can be used in the Business language classroom. It starts from dividing materials into authentic and non-authentic. We learn that the authentic material is any kind of material from the real world which is created for uses other than language teaching. This can be a magazine, newspaper, TV broadcast, company timetable, and etc. Whereas, non -authentic materials are being produced for pedagogic purposes as an aid to teaching process,...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Fincastle Kentucky and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit explains the use of course books and teaching materials. Some teachers like using course books and other teachers dislike using them. Whether or not to use them can be a complex issue. Many teachers will use them but supplement them with other teaching materials geared to their specific class and students. Supplementary material consists of authentic materials and created materials. Authentic materials could be newspapers, magazines, and menus. Created materials could be flash cards, word...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Jobs Russia Yakutsk and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit revolved around the benefits of materials and course books you use in your classroom. In this section, there was a large emphasis on both the pros and cons of using course books and the negative aspects on relying to harshly on a course book when teaching. For example, you want to make sure the material you are teaching are suited for your class and their needs, which isn't always accomplished by using a course book. This section also contained a brief discussion on the differences...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Jobs Brazil cotia and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit focused on the tools available for teaching lessons. It outlined the type of lesson materials that are utilized in the classroom. Materials can be divided into authentic and created materials. Authentic includes newspapers and letters written in the language being learned, and created material is typically created by the teacher and can be tailored to the student's level. Furthermore, course books have both advantages and disadvantages. These advantages include an easy way to track...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Jobs Basel Switzerland and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit compared authentic (newspapers, travel brochures) material with created material. Authentic material can be very useful and practical, but needs to be chosen carefully to ensure it is not too hard for students. Created material can be geared more to the level of students. Textbooks provide a good framework for language learning, but should be supplemented with created material to keep students interest and meet student language learning needs.Unit 14 deals with course books and...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Certification Sakata Japan and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit covered when to use different teaching structures, and things to remember when teaching grammar. One of the biggest takeaways from this unit was that students learning a new language should be exposed to it, understand its meaning, understand how its constructed, and be able to practice and produce it. This unit also included different activities to use in each teaching structure.In this Unit, I learnt that how to use the course books and materials in the class. The materials were...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Certification Thailand Hat Yai and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: This unit is focused on the books and materials needed in the course of teaching. The course books are very good for teaching because it gives a run down of the entire program that students are suppose to accimilate. These course materials can be divided in to two. Authentic material which is anything a native speaker could hear or read. The teacher must decide what the students must do with the material. Created material which is usually designed by the teacher to supplement the ...  [Read more]

Check out tefl tesol about TESOL Certification Camaragibe Brazil and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: said: In this unit I learned what type of different materials are good to use, and when and why you should use them. It is important to engrave authentic material for the students to make the language more approachable and real. It is also important to create your own material so that it fits the level of the students you are teaching. As usual a mixture is the best way to go. It is good to shift between course books and your own material.Unit 14 is about Course Books and Lesson Materials....  [Read more]