Job Discussion Forums

golsa · Joined: 20 Nov 2011 Posts: 185

What is your favorite level to teach and why?

Yea, yea it's a common job interview question, but that's not why I'm asking it. I'd really like to hear what other EFL teachers have to say.

My personal favorite is pre-intermediate and that is partially due to the fact that my first full time gig was teaching this level, so it really shaped me as a teacher. Beside that, I really like this level because it's THE best level to see students making real progress towards becoming independent users of all skills and systems in English. IMO, no other level offers so much progress in so little time and it's amazing to watch them progress.

My second and third choices are elementary and beginner levels, but these are very difficult levels to teach.

Please vote for your favorite level to teach and leave a comment about your second and/or third favorite level to teach.

Sashadroogie · Posted: Thu May 15, 2014 7:09 pm Post subject:

All of them. Depends more on the learners and their aims than their level.

I wouldn't say that elementary or beginners are 'hard' levels as such. They aren't for me. It is just that there is less scope for incompetent teaching there, or for teacher grandstanding. (Not implying that this applies to anyone on the thread!) In fact, I find the most rapid progress, easily observed, is with elementaries.

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

I prefer advanced + to advanced +++. Possibly because that's where majority of my experience has been, but I admit to impatience at grading my language (and it's more fun when they get my attempts at humour:-)).

Kofola · Joined: 20 Feb 2009 Posts: 159 Location: Slovakia

If pushed I'd probably go for the advanced levels, which in my experience tend to involve more tailoring, but I generally enjoy all levels. So I'm with Sasha on this one. For me it's about the people and about enjoying the language. I have discovered that progress actually isn't that important. I have quite a few older students who make very little progress in all honesty (they make progress in some areas, only to backslip in others), but it's all about keeping them engaged and preventing them from forgetting everthing they've learnt.