Teacher Discussion Forums

This is the main reason why Spaniards don't learn to speak English well. The English class is conducted in Spanish. All the important instructions, from greeting the students and telling them to sit down etc. to the grammar explanations, are given in Spanish which teaches the children that they will...

Today’s volatile job market and the increase in the need for language skills have heightened the debate over whether companies should hire skilled workers or train the workers they hire. Some believe that it’s not what you know but what you can learn that’s the key to success in today’s workplace. S...

Before the invention of video players, computers and the internet, ESL teachers had to rely on their own imagination and ingenuity to make their classes entertaining. Nowadays, with information technologies giving us the tools to bring the English speaking world into the classroom, it would seem tha...

When I taught in language schools it was not uncommon to hear teachers say they dreaded teaching a certain group or particular level or grammatical point. But, strangely enough, there was always someone in the school who found that same group, structure or level to be the most enjoyable to teach. Ev...

International trade, communication and tourism have increased the need to break down language barriers. The common language is no excuse in today’s competitive, global marketplace for a US company to cut production costs by building a plant in Ireland instead of setting up shop in Eastern Europe whe...

Whether you believe that the education our children receive in today’s schools should include a wide range of subjects or whether they should be allowed to specialize early on in a specific field, you can’t deny the importance of second language skills. The failure of the government and the educatio...

Everything I know about teaching English as a second language in Spain I’ve learned from experience - trial and error. I used to feel insecure about not having any formal training or not following a specific method but not anymore. I’ve learned what works and doesn’t work from my students. Teaching ...

You wouldn't say "The focus of this course is...."? Yes, I would say that but I wouldn't say this course has a focus of ... As for your comments, I don't really know what a regular English class is. Of course you are right when you say that Business people need to work on specific skills. I just ha...

English classes have a focus of speaking the language... Business English classes have more a focus of getting information across. I've never heard the expression "to have a focus of". Sounds really strange to me. I'm a native American, Boston area, and you? :wink: Gordon www.myprofe.com www.myprof...

If you were to set up a classroom equipped with computers, how would you do it? That's a very difficult question. The computer and the internet are fantastic tools but you have to know when and how to use them. It's like music and films. They're great for learning a language but using them in class...

Years ago I worked in a language school and I was chosen to run the computer lab. The students could visit whenever they wanted and I would set them up on a computer so that they could do exercises. It was basically self-study although, as a teacher, I could help them with the exercises if necessary...

Are you spending too much time correcting your students’ compositions? Send them over to the Tandem Learning Forum and let the native English speakers who have registered in the forum to learn Spanish correct your students’ English. It’s one big happy family. Everybody’s sharing the work. This is wh...

Hi, On July 15, 2004 I created a new language exchange forum where you can practice your Spanish and help a Spanish speaker with his or her English. Here we take turns being teachers and students. http://www.myprofe.com/tandem Hola: El 15 de Julio de 2004 he creado un nuevo foro de intercambio de id...

Hi, I’ve just taken the plunge and created a Spanish-English/English-Spanish language exchange forum where native speakers of each language help each other. You write something in the language that you want to learn in exchange for correcting what someone else has written in your language. It’s tota...

I've spent the last 25 years of my life learning English by teaching it and I don't pretend to ever become an expert but I strive every day to be a better teacher. Although this use of the future perfect tense will be of no use to my students I'm glad that I have stumbled upon it in this forum. Just...