Archive for October, 2007
Large Class Sizes & Low-Tech Classrooms
What’s the magic formula I wonder? You are given a mixed-ability class of ca 20 students, whose average level is pre-intermediate, and an upper-intermediate level multi-page coursebook to cover in ca. 50 90-minute lectures. How on earth is it possible to cover everything and to ensure that all the students have achieved the desired level […]
In: ESL Facts & Figures, Teacher Skills · Tagged with: class size, constraints, low-tech, mixed-ability
Lexis & Writing: Graph Descriptions & Headline English
I wonder whether it is really that necessary to be able to read and describe graphs in a foreign language. I have been teaching this skill for several years now, always going into minute detail, and can say that very few people actually need it in their jobs. They usually spend a few weeks learning […]
In: Learning Language Teaching, Observations · Tagged with: mind-boggling thoughts
E-Moderating vs E-Learning Management by Objectives
I am gripped by the book I am reading now – it is unbelievable how much more advanced DL & VLE use is in some countries. They have been doing what I am just considering trying since the ’90s! The more I learn about TESOL & CMI, the more I tend to believe in the managerial […]
In: Instructional Design, Teacher Skills · Tagged with: e-moderating
What a mix!
I am teaching elementaries this year – this is very unlike me for I find this level somewhat tedious to teach. To make matters worse, instead of two nationalities, I’ve got four – it is a real challenge, for I do understand what sort of problems Russians and Estonians might encounter in terms vocabulary, grammar or pronunciation, […]
In: Accents, Learning Language Teaching, Observations · Tagged with: beginners, elementary, group dynamics, intonation, mixed-ability, pronunciation