Teacher Discussion Forums

Excellent question and vivid warning about teaching in Quito. From my perspective, safety matters most. As a result, teaching in many American inner cities, parts of Mexico and Central America remains problematic. Likewise, I would think twice before working in any area with armed rebels, terrorists...

Well said! We have to help students become who they already are - in English. By focusing on students desires, needs, and concerns, we create a more effective, humane and interesting classroom. Far too many adult education programs remain impersonal, bureaucratic, and test-driven. Teachers have to l...

Nice discussion, including those great detailed responses. In the United States, this sort of problem remains more common than one would suspect. Sometimes adult students can not read and write in their own language, complicating matters. Sometimes students can speak fine, but can not write at all. ...

"All's well that ends well," claimed William Shakespeare.

Was that fun?

I'd just note that prepositions differ across the globe, some distinctions matter more than others, and skip the personal attacks.

Become who you are - in English! I always suggest that students focus on what they want to learn and enjoy. If you like fashion, read fashion magazines in English. Watch the movies you like in English. Listen to your favorite books - in English - on audiotapes. Be true to yourself while studying thi...

Teaching true illiterates is a difficult, but noble assignment. Teaching adult education in Los Angeles at the beginning levels was never my favorite gig, but I had some satisfying experiences working with immigrants with almost zero reading ability or formal schooling. The best resources that I use...

Thank you for sharing your experiences, insights, and classroom techniques. One clarification. You can be a confident source of information and lecturer and still run a democratic classroom. Democratic doesn't mean anarchy; it means encouraging learner participation. I still set the tone, raise the ...

Thanks for those timely, topical suggestions!

As the economic woes grow, our classroom conversations will begin - I suspect - to lose some of the naive corporatist flavor that often dominates in Business English classrooms.

Here is a quick list of quality ESL books for different audiences/levels. Academic ESL/intensive English programs Cambridge Vocabulary in Use series - An excellent supplemental text, especially for the more academically inclined. The self-contained two page format allows students, teachers, and tuto...

May I be a heretic? Immigrants need to learn the language of their new homeland. Business professionals selling, buying, and working with international audiences often need English. Artists and intellectuals find joy, possibility, and new concepts in English - and can reach a global audience in Engl...

Context, as ever, matters. I teach undergraduate and graduate international students in Los Angeles at an elite private university. Yet I've also used several techniques with adult education students, IEP students, and community college students. Assigning a topic (housing, tourist sights, elections...

Good questions and interesting discussion. Encouraging students to find and create their own vocabulary logs is another useful technique. My standard homework assignment remains having students find, summarize, and present newspaper articles on a topic (elections, housing, job interviews). The works...

Alex's collection of video resources is excellent, and includes one for using "Life of Brian" - the Monty Python classic. Has anybody else used "Life of Brian" in classes? Isn't the material a tad too controversial - at least for the more religious Christians? I don't think that I could show it in e...

Who gets to speak in class? Whose ideas count? Who chooses the assignments? How do students receive feedback? Do students have a chance to conference with their instructors? Can YouTube be a valuable source for homework assignment? Do you want your students to become self-directed - or autotelic - i...

Do your students get a chance to participate, speak, and even co-create their classroom content? I hope so, but often - especially in larger classes - many ESL students listen and read far more than they speak or write. Here is a survey from a conference presentation that I recently gave at LA Regio...