My portfolio teaching practice 2 training | Page 19

Language in the appropriate style, good use of colloquial expressions in
conversation.
Good use of fluency strategies in conversation.
Handwriting, spelling and punctuation in written work.
Try to find areas of improvement in individual students’ work and also
comment on progress made by the class as a whole, work successfully
completed and achievements made. The ways you give positive feedback
can include the informal well done. You may even consider giving merit
marks or small rewards or prizes for good work, though this is more
appropriate with a group of children.
Correction techniques
How do you decide whether the student has made an error or
made a mistake?
In teaching EFL it is common practice to distinguish between mistakes
and errors. A mistake can be thought of as a slip of the tongue or the pen.
The student is able to correct it himself or herself, either completely
unprompted or with the guidance of the teacher or other students. Native
speakers make mistakes all the time, even though the corrector form is
usually known.
An error is much more deeply ingrained. The student might:
Believe what he or she is saying, or writing is correct.
Not know what the correct form should be.
Know what the correct form should be, but not be able to get it right.
Error are usually produced regularly and systematically, students can say
something incorrectly if they choose an inappropriate thing to say on a
particular occasion, or because they have misunderstood the meaning of
something when they listen to or read a text. You should consider an error
that shows the student doesn’t understand the meaning of the language
as more serious than one where the student is not able to produce the
correct form.
How do you correct?
The ability to correct sensitively, efficiently and effectively is a skill that
take time to perfect. You should aim to maintain a cooperative working
atmosphere. Don’t let students think they are being picked on correction
can seem threatening if done badly. Try not to echo the errors, even in a
mocking astonished way. Some teachers find this an easy way of
indicating an error, but although the humour can be beneficial it tends to
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