r/ESL_Teachers

On July 1, a new law took effect in Virginia that requires theaters with five or more locations in Virginia (AMC, Regal, Cinemark, and Alamo Drafthouse) to offer limited regular open caption screenings. In addition, theaters in Virginia that do not have five or more locations are required to offer an open caption screening within eight days of receiving a request. Many studies have been done demonstrating the benefits of captions for people learning English as a second language.

(Virginia is the fourth state to have such a law passed. The other states/cities with open caption laws are Hawaii, NYC, DC, MD, and WA)

https://preview.redd.it/u00dbesu57bh1.png?width=895&format=png&auto=webp&s=a1245e17f1deda8989282ef6ababf285d4e85fb0

Does anyone have any recommendations for resources that focus on teaching English to adult professionals in the engineering field?

I’ve found the following:

1. Technical English by Pearson
   This is more centered around different trades. Some lessons are applicable, such as electrical circuit work. However, most of the other lessons wouldn’t be relevant enough.

2. Business Result by Oxford University Press
   This is classic business English. Relatively recent, but not targeted towards technical work.

3. English for Technical Professionals by IEEE
   This one might be applicable but I can’t seem to find reviews or a sample to evaluate for myself. It is also a bonus because it is an online course.

Anyways, I want to make sure I’m not missing any great resources before I recommend them.

Hey everyone,

I've mostly been teaching adults and older teens (16+), but a parent recently reached out to ask if I could tutor their 13-year-old son and help him prepare for high school in the US. His English level is around B1.

Does anyone have any recommendations for teaching students this age? Maybe resources? TIA!!!

I’m looking for advice on how to work with a young ESL student who seems resistant to almost every method I try.

She is around 10 years old, and her parents describe her as upper-intermediate to advanced. I do think she has competent English, and there are definitely areas where she does well. The issue is that she is extremely slow to respond in class, even to questions that should be within her ability level. When I ask her something, she often takes 20–30 seconds to answer, and sometimes she does not answer at all.

I have been told repeatedly that my teaching style is not working for her, so I have tried changing things up. Her parents have also said they do not want her doing textbook work, so I have tried to move away from textbook-based lessons and use more conversational activities, open-ended questions, simplified tasks, and other formats based on feedback from my supervisor. The problem is that she seems resistant to most formats.

Today, for example, I tried to have a more casual conversation with her because my supervisor suggested that this might work better. After a while, she seemed mentally checked out. I had also prepared a very short reading, only about two paragraphs, which probably would have taken three minutes to read. The goal was not to make the class text-heavy but to give us a shared topic that could spark conversation. She immediately said she did not want to read it.

The hardest part is that she does not really ask questions, offer opinions, or give me much to build on. The pattern is usually that I ask a question, she gives a short answer after a long pause, then there is silence until I ask another question. I try to avoid yes/no questions, but when I ask open-ended questions, she often does not answer. Then I simplify the question, and if that still does not work, I reduce it to a binary choice. At that point, she may answer with “yes,” “no,” or a few words.

For example, part of our conversation wandered into favourite foods. I asked her what her favourite food was, and she said she did not know the English name for it. I said that was fine and asked her to describe it. She said there was meat inside, so I asked what kind of meat it was, such as chicken, beef, or pork. She said, “I don’t know.”

This has become a recurring pattern. Even though her parents describe her as being at a fairly high level, I am often met with “I don’t know,” even when I try to scaffold the question. I rephrase, give examples, offer choices, and try to elicit more information, but she does not seem to enjoy that process. Instead, it often seems to make the conversation feel even more stuck.

Another example is when I ask why she likes music. She might say, “Because it’s fun.” If I ask why she finds it fun, she might say, “Because it is.” There is not much for me to continue with from there, which is why I tried creating a short reading. I wanted to give her content to react to instead of putting all the pressure on her to generate conversation from nothing.

She has repeatedly told her parents that she does not find the class engaging. Her mother has complained, and my manager/supervisor has also told me that she does not like the class and that I need to change things up. I understand that feedback, and I have been trying to adapt, but it feels like her lack of participation keeps being interpreted as proof that I am teaching badly.

I genuinely do not know how to get her to engage when she gives so little back and seems unwilling to try the alternatives I prepare. I am not trying to blame the student, since she is young and there may be anxiety, boredom, pressure from her parents, or something else going on. But I also need practical strategies because right now the class feels like I am dragging every response out of her and then being judged for the fact that she does not enjoy it.

Has anyone worked with a student like this before? What kinds of activities, routines, or expectations helped? How do you handle a young learner who has decent English but gives very little verbal output?

Hi all,

I may be on-call for an Academic English / IELTS class, and am looking for some short activities or homework to fill in time gaps. The teacher and institute will be provide lesson materials but I want to make sure I’ve got some stuff in my back pockets just in case I have extra time, want some good warm-ups, or can give homework. The school said they’d like the class more test prep focused.

Ss are very mixed, CLB lvl 5-8 (IELTS 4-6.5) ish.

I’m used to teaching low level and worry my usual activities will be too rudimentary.

I also appreciate any suggestions for dealing with an advanced, multi-level class and scaling activities, or how I could prepare myself to better teach this class. I’m familiarizing myself with the ielts website, but am open to any other ideas.

After almost 3 months, I'm about 75% booked for slots I open. I really enjoy these classes, so I'd like to see them closer to 90%. Are all-nighters really worth it? Have you gotten new students from doing them? What if you're usually asleep by midnight? (How do you increase your wakefukness for these sessions​?)

Hi folks! I am hoping to pursue a TESOL certificate, and ASU's program looks great - especially financially and because my ability to go in-person is limited, online is preferred. I'm unclear, however, what the difference is between the Center for English as a Second Language's fully online 120-hour certificate (TEFL) and the 150-hour TESOL certification offered through Global Launch and Coursera. Does anyone get the difference?

Thanks!

Hello everyone! I have a student who, after a few months of preparatory classes for an international trip, wants to take Business English classes. She said she prefers to use a textbook.

Do you have any recommendations for good, up-to-date Business English textbooks for intermediate learners? 🙏 I’ve only found really old books, I’m looking for ones that cover current topics.

I started teaching 2 kids aged 5 and 6 years old. The parents suggested we invest in a book to make it easier (I was planning and printing the lessons myself). Does anyone have any suggestions for me?

I’m a secondary English/EFL teacher and have been creating some travel-themed materials recently.
I often find that students enjoy idioms, but too many at once can become overwhelming or difficult to remember.
How do you introduce idioms in your classroom?
Do you teach them through themes, stories, extensive reading, conversation activities, games, or something else?
I’d love to hear what’s worked well for your learners.

Hello, so I have tought English online for the last 3 years and have a 200 hour Tesol certification and would like to transition from Preply and Italki into an independant job that I can take anywhere. I'm aware it won't be easy, but I want to try.

What are some marketing strategies I can use to do this and find my audience?

I have thought about starting local by putting flyers around university notice boards and libraries. Even language exchange groups.

P.S. Don't bother answering if you're just going to be negative in your comments, thanks. I'm looking for genuine strategies and helpful people.

please, don't hate me for my dumb question😓 i'm an incoming graduate student who is looking for opportunies to be an ESL teacher overseas. one of the requirements is a TEFL certificate (or TESOL). we've been looking for a TEFL course online and so far all of them requires payment. is there no free TEFL course out there?

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thank you so much🥹

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My students will present their Oxford test of English in like a year but we’re already started working on preparation. TBH, I have never felt confident with this type of courses because I know preparation isn’t like a real class with presentation, practice, production. I have only taught it once before and I basically had a grammatical topic I focused on every week, and we did tasks from the evaluation, like speaking part 1 and 2, writing part 1 and 2 and so on. I tried to match the topics to the functions they need to dominate. Anyways, this is the first time I’m teaching an actually advanced group and today two students approached me to tell me we have been working on topics they already know. I was thinking about overhauling with the nitty gritty of writing like clauses, punctuation and all that stuff, but I’m not confident and there’s no program to follow. What do you usually do!

Hello everyone, I was just wondering if any IL teachers know if out-of-state ESL endorsements are reciprocal to IL? Let’s say I had the license in Utah, do I still have to do the clinical hours/coursework for it to be approved?