Job Discussion Forums

[sharter]

There are loads of methodologies and techniques out there. Who do you teach? Which methodolgy to you like? And which do you think is most effective with your students? What are the pros and cons of your favourite methodology/technique? Is it something you consciously think about or do you just trawl through the book?

[Monorail Cat]

Questions, questions. Why not tell us first what methods you prefer and then we can discuss it and offers views/opinions?

[sharter]

With Arab learners I like the kind of text based guided discovery methodology you find in a book like 'English File', which boasts the Communicative Approach. I like this because Arabs are relatively weak readers and they need as much exposure to the skill as possible. Texts give the structures and lexis context and the process of reading gives them time to digest new language more effectively than oral presentation.

With Polish university students I'm a big fan of TBL. I find it suits their study skills and I enjoy the variety of language that evolves from the tasks. The process itself reveals the language that needs introduction or revision and it's very flexible. Cutting Edge incorporates TBL and is a great old classic.

In the recent past I used a book which you could say incorporated CLIL. As a teacher I thoroughly enjoyed the content aspect of it and I really enjoyed the reaction off the students who were extremely motivated by the material.

Many moons ago I used an ALM book called Streamline Departures. The repetition was dull, the material dreadful and my students hated it.

[jpvanderwerf2001]

sharter,

I find it interesting that you've used a type of CLIL in English language courses. While I understand the CLIL methodology (and see the value in it), I wonder how it works with English language instruction. I look forward to reading your experiences.