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PittsburghSound
Joined: 27 Aug 2014
Posts: 103
Location: Colombia
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 Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 3:57 pm Post subject: Books and General Approaches on ESL |
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Hi all.
I'm looking to start a TEFL career in the near future. Does anyone know of any books that can provide a good introduction on how to teach ESL?
I'm interested in both general approaches/mindsets and also lesson plans. Stuff that is easy for both teachers and students to follow.
When a student inevitably asks "Why do you say it this way?" I don't want to answer "Because we just do. That's the way our language is."
Any books/online sources related to these ideas would be helpful.
Thanks! |
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currentaffairs
Joined: 22 Aug 2012
Posts: 828
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| Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 4:58 pm Post subject: |
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| Buy a good grammar book like Raymond Murphy's 'English Grammar in Use'. Familiarise yourself with one of the standard course books like Interchange, Headway or whatever. A book on phonics might also be useful; I think others may have concrete suggestions on some good options. Finally, investing in an ESL activity and games book might be worthwhile - there are many on Amazon/online. |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 5:15 pm Post subject: |
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| Also consider volunteering as a classroom tutor/assistant at one of your local nonprofit refugee/ESL literacy programs. It will give you a taste of what it's like to teach. Plus you'd get to observe experienced teachers. |
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esl_prof
Joined: 30 Nov 2013
Posts: 2006
Location: peyi kote solèy frèt
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| Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 6:16 pm Post subject: |
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| nomad soul wrote: |
| Also consider volunteering as a classroom tutor/assistant at one of your local nonprofit refugee/ESL literacy programs. It will give you a taste of what it's like to teach. Plus you'd get to observe experienced teachers. |
This.
That's how I got started. The nice thing about these types of programs is they often offer a free 12-18 hour volunteer training which will get you acquainted with the basics of ESL teaching. Alternatively, check into tutoring international students at your local university or community college.
My suggestions for self-study:
1. Any good university level textbook on methods of teaching ESL, such as:
http://www.amazon.com/Teaching-English-Second-Foreign-Language/dp/1111351694/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1435859354&sr=8-4&keywords=teaching+english+as+a+second+language
and
2. Any of Betty Azar's grammar texts and workbooks:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=betty+azar
Just commit to working through all of the exercises at a pace that fits your schedule. By the time you finish the first set of books, you should be able to answer most of the common grammar questions that you'll be asked as a teacher.
Good luck, and please keep us posted on how things go!  |
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Sashadroogie
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise
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AGoodStory
Joined: 26 Feb 2010
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santi84
Joined: 14 Mar 2008
Posts: 1317
Location: under da sea
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| Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 7:59 pm Post subject: |
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| I have read many general TESL texts but I keep going back to H. Douglas Brown's Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy (3rd Ed). I would say it is very concise and practical for a newbie. It's almost 500 pages, but very readable. It assumes you will study certain aspects on your own (such as specific grammar concepts), but will give you an overview of the profession of language teaching. |
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PittsburghSound
Joined: 27 Aug 2014
Posts: 103
Location: Colombia
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| Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 11:40 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks for all the replies. I've been able to look over the reviews of some of these books. There are definitely plenty of options out there. Right now I'm thinking of getting the Murphy book, the Swan book, "How To Teach English" by Jeremy Harmer, and a game/activities book.
But I'm going to think on it for a few days and read some more reviews. |
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santi84
Joined: 14 Mar 2008
Posts: 1317
Location: under da sea
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| Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2015 11:49 pm Post subject: |
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| PittsburghSound wrote: |
Thanks for all the replies. I've been able to look over the reviews of some of these books. There are definitely plenty of options out there. Right now I'm thinking of getting the Murphy book, the Swan book, "How To Teach English" by Jeremy Harmer, and a game/activities book.
But I'm going to think on it for a few days and read some more reviews. |
Might I ask what sort of TEFL course you tend to take? |
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AGoodStory
Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738
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| Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2015 1:27 am Post subject: |
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| santi84 wrote: |
| I have read many general TESL texts but I keep going back to H. Douglas Brown's Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy (3rd Ed). I would say it is very concise and practical for a newbie. It's almost 500 pages, but very readable. It assumes you will study certain aspects on your own (such as specific grammar concepts), but will give you an overview of the profession of language teaching. |
Given your strong recommendation, I'm going to take a look at this book. Any book that you "keep going back to" is worth the shelf space!
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Brunouno
Joined: 18 Apr 2013
Posts: 129
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| Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2015 6:45 am Post subject: |
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| PittsburghSound wrote: |
Thanks for all the replies. I've been able to look over the reviews of some of these books. There are definitely plenty of options out there. Right now I'm thinking of getting the Murphy book, the Swan book, "How To Teach English" by Jeremy Harmer, and a game/activities book.
But I'm going to think on it for a few days and read some more reviews. |
Looks great, but I would also consider adding a couple (or few) GE coursebooks. I've found that studying grammar with the books the students use is often more helpful than texts that solely address grammar. Even today, when planning lessons I often complete the grammar exercises in the student's book and then ask myself why the answer is X and not Y for each answer. If the student's book doesn't explain why the answer is X, which happens often, then I study the grammar further online (Swan, if you're talking about Practical English Usage, will be very helpful in this area!). Not only does this improve my knowledge of the grammar, but it also helps prepare me for lessons and likely problems that will arise.
If I could go back and start all over again, I would've concentrated more on pedagogical practices rather than learning about grammar. You're going to learn a hell of a lot about grammar as you prepare for each lesson when you're teaching. This isn't to say, however, that grammar should be ignored. It's important to have some foundation of knowledge, but I just think more of an emphasis should be placed on pedagogy at the beginning, at least.
There are many coursebooks which can be downloaded for free if you decide to take this route. |
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PittsburghSound
Joined: 27 Aug 2014
Posts: 103
Location: Colombia
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| Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2015 2:14 pm Post subject: |
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@ santi84: I will probably take a CELTA course in the country I intend to teach. Right now I am leaning toward Ecuador.
@Bruno: When you say course books, are you also referring to books such as Interchange, like another poster mentioned in this thread? |
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fluffyhamster
Joined: 13 Mar 2005
Posts: 3292
Location: UK > China > Japan > UK again
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| Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2015 8:07 pm Post subject: |
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Yes, Brunouno is talking about General English coursebooks like Interchange, and like he says, (pedagogicially) contextualizing the grammar is as if not more important than the grammar alone or in the abstract. Mind you, it would be hard to study grammar without it being at least minimally contextualized, and if you get a decent descriptive grammar it will have plenty of authentic examples that will help your and hopefully your students' real-world understanding. Nowadays I go for the COBUILD Grammar the most when looking for reasonably functional explanations, but stuff like Murphy's Grammar in Use (I like the Elementary edition especially, US edition's title is Basic Grammar in Use) is usually sufficient and quick for getting an idea of basic contexts. I'd advise you steer clear of or at least supplement stuff like Azar as some of her examples seem quite inauthentic and thus ultimately quite useless (or if you prefer, less useful) IMHO. Lewis' books are well worth reading but perhaps get a bit of experience under your belt first (cos you'll then likely more appreciate what he has to say), though if you're interested you can get an idea by searching through my and possibly other's threads for 'Lewi*'.
Last edited by fluffyhamster on Tue Sep 01, 2015 11:36 am; edited 2 times in total |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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| Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2015 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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| santi84 wrote: |
| I have read many general TESL text but I keep going back to H. Douglas Brown's Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy (3rd Ed). I would say it is very concise and practical for a newbie. It's almost 500 pages, but very readable. It assumes you will study certain aspects on your own (such as specific grammar concepts), but will give you an overview of the profession of language teaching. |
Brown's books are good. His Principles of Language Learning and Teaching was required for my Second Language Acquisition class for my MAT.
PittsburghSound:
I know your focus is on books; however, don't rule out volunteering short term as a classroom tutor/assistant and observing others teaching. It will give you an authentic teaching experience that books can't. It's how some of us got our first taste of TESOL. |
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esl_prof
Joined: 30 Nov 2013
Posts: 2006
Location: peyi kote solèy frèt
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| Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2015 10:56 pm Post subject: |
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| fluffyhamster wrote: |
| Nowadays I go for the COBUILD Grammar the most when looking for reasonably functional explanations, but stuff like Murphy's Grammar in Use (I like the Elementary edition especially) is usually sufficient and quick for getting an idea of basic contexts. |
I just picked up a copy of Murphy's intermediate-level text this summer and, I agree, it offers some really good explanations where similar textbooks are wanting. I definitely need to get copies of the other levels for my reference shelf. |
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