I
’ve written on my Facebook page
before about the Daily Quipple subscriber’s list- reading the inspirational quotes and messages they
design can be an uplifting start to the day. When this one found its way into my inbox sometime in the new year, I liked it so much I set it as my
screensaver.
Although it’s something I know
that I personally should pay heed to, I also believe that it’s a mantra that
could be adhered to by many EFL teachers. We all try our best to create and use
new materials and teaching approaches to keep our students motivated and
interested, but sometimes it seems like it just isn’t working. Students get
tongue-tied, stuck on a grammar point or lost in a vocabulary maze and end up
feeling like they're smacking into a brick wall, no matter your efforts to help
them climb over it. So many of my students have complained to me that they feel
like they’ve been learning English for years and still haven’t got anywhere,
which is why I like to stop every so often and ask them “how’s your English”? It’s
difficult, and sometimes uncomfortable, to self-evaluate your performance in
any aspect of life, whether it’s English language skills or other, however I’ve
found that it really helps students to have a clearer idea of what progress
they’ve made and where they want to go.
- Using a metaphorical ‘English pyramid’, students
identify where they were on the pyramid (their self-perceived level of English)
when they started the course/semester/level, etc., where they are now and where
they want to be in the future.
- If they
were climbing a real pyramid, then there are certain elements that might help
or hinder them, so in the next stage students discuss together what things help
them learn English (i.e. watching films) and what delays their learning
progress (i.e. lack of time).
- Finally,
students decide three English learning goals and put together an action plan. I
usually use this with my business English students, therefore I’ve put together
a plan similar to one used in project management, which incorporates possible
risks and back-up plans. The familiarity of such a document is reassuring and
can help students address their goals with more focus and clarity. If you aren’t
working with business English students, here are a few other ideas for the
final stage:
1. The Rule
of 2: Students identify English goals for the next 2 weeks, 2 months and 2
years. I usually give them my own example, such as in 2 weeks I want to know all my new students’ names by heart, in 2
months I want to have marked all the intermediate level projects and in 2 years
I want to have published my own materials.
2. By the
end of the semester, I…: Students write down a goal for the semester on a
piece of paper. Try to make it as specific as possible, so instead of I want to
speak English better encourage students to write I want to complete a phone
call in English. For lower levels you may prefer to do this in L1. Collect all
the strips of paper and set a date later in the semester to review all the
goals. Tell students not to write their name on the paper. When you review the
goals, have each student select a strip of paper and read it out to see if
students can remember which goal was theirs and evaluate whether they have
achieved it (or not).
It’s the fork in the road that
all teachers face when they have to take the ‘writing route’ – should I
incorporate into class time or set it for homework? Exit A means that I’ll be
able to guide students through writing structures, register and provide instant
feedback yet the result will also be, if popular opinion is to be believed, the
persona non grata of the ELT
classroom: silence. If you opt for Exit B then you can squeeze every possible
opportunity of class time to practise speaking skills, which many students
aren’t able to do outside of class, but you're denying students support that many of them may need. Once you’ve decided which way to go,
there’s yet another obstacle to overcome – what type of writing should I do?
Surely it would be better to focus on “useful” formats, such as formal e-mails
and report? Am I doing my students a disservice I set them a silly or frivolous
writing exercise, rather than one that may help them out in their professional
sphere? Argh, so many questions! These are all ones that I’ve, and no doubt
countless other teachers, have considered. If only our students knew… 
