We have all been there. In the classroom, focusing on a language practice activity for the umpteenth time. If our students need to take a language test such as IELTS or its equivalent at the end of the course, we enthusiastically go over each component's assessment criteria and do our best to help our learners meet the standards. In the process, however; we sometimes end up using the same course books and tasks over again since they have proven effective in the past. We might even find ourselves making almost identical teacher comments on student writing output, which seems to turn teaching into a never ending loop that does away with the need to innovate or improve on tried-and-tested materials.
And yet, there are ways to breathe life into IEL classes – hopefully the following suggestions will be of assistance.
Use class time for group activities
Where possible, classroom time could be wisely spent on the types of practice students cannot do on their own. For instance, anyone can attempt an IELTS Reading Paper by themselves. However, the experience often leaves students with questions regarding text comprehension. The following classroom activity can prove useful here:
1. Raise interest in the topic of a reading text, for example, via a set of questions students can answer in pairs. Provide some interesting pictures they can comment on.
2. Pre-teach some useful vocabulary.
3. Give the students the text and set a reasonable time limit (5 minutes) for reading, but no task.
4. Hand out a set of cards containing the reading task to each pair: a set of True / False / Not given statements; questions that need to be matched with a certain paragraph. Students select one card at a time and work together to find the section of the text containing the answer and discuss any differences of opinion they might have.
Open class feedback is then in order. Oftentimes stronger learners will willingly help to clarify words and sentences for their classmates. Less confident students can gain confidence by discussing dilemmas with their peers, and the activity has the added benefit of turning a task that normally keeps learners silently poring over a text into a more interesting, interactive experience.
English Classes
Liven Up!
Rebeca Duriga from ICRGU shows us how to bring interest and engagement to intensive language lessons
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