Teach English in Zuolong Zhen - Ankang Shi

The great majority of TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) courses are designed towards teaching groups of students in a classroom setting. Even though most teachers have to teach one to one classes at some point in their career, the vast majority of their time will be spent involved in group instruction. Most of the teaching skills and techniques we use as TEFL teachers are focused on teaching groups of students, so most teachers find one to one teaching very unique and can present a different set of challenges. There are vast amounts of resources available for group teaching. However, one of the greatest differences between one to one teaching as opposed to group teaching is the lack of resources for one to one teaching. Often teachers teaching one to one classes have to develop their own materials, lesson plans, techniques, and approaches. There are many advantages of one to one classes. First, the student in a one to one class will receive undivided attention from the teacher compared with a group class, where the teacher’s attention is divided amongst all the students. This means the student in a one to one class will have more time to engage in real conversations and receive more personal feedback from the teacher. Also, one to one teaching will allow the teacher to have more time to get to know the specific needs and language level of the student. Therefore, lessons can be tailored towards the individual student. Also, there is less time constraint in a one to one class, so the student can learn at his/her own pace and not feel pressured by more advanced students in a group class. Finally, for one to one classes, the schedules and locations are more flexible for both the student and the teacher. Often busy working professionals prefer one to one classes because they can schedule the classes around work and life. Group classes also have many advantages as well. One of the greatest advantages of a group class setting is that it is highly motivating to the students. Several studies have shown interacting with your peers is highly effective in language learning as long as students are using only the target language to communicate. Students in group classes can do activities and play games with other students in the class. This is highly beneficial for increasing student participation and improving communicative skills. Another advantage of group classes is that some students might feel less embarrassed when making mistakes in a group class with their peers instead of in front of a teacher in a one to one class. Since there is more than one student, group classes can take the pressure of learning off of students. Lastly, students in a group class usually have mixed language levels and the advantage is that the more advanced students can help the less advanced students improve. The advanced level students can act as teaching assistants and help facilitate the learning process. This will also reduce teacher talk time and allow students more opportunity to practice the target language. It is important to note that the last advantage listed above for group classes can also be viewed as a disadvantage by some. With a mixed language level group class, the class sometimes have to move slowly when language points have to be explained to the less advanced students, so more advanced students can get bored and seem uninterested. Teachers often are faced with a dilemma of whether to address the lower level students and risk lower level of engagement from the more advanced students or risk isolating the lower level students by focusing on the more knowledgeable students. Several pieces of research online state most teachers conclude that the advantage of a mixed level class seems to out weight the disadvantage in learning. Teachers should view the higher level students as valuable resources in mixed ability group classes. As teachers, we often structure our lesson plans with group work and group activities. One of the main disadvantages of one to one teaching is that teachers are often left on their own. Many teachers express how difficult it is to find suitable materials, activities, and resources for one to one classes. Teachers often have to get creative and be the partner of the student for some activities in one to one class. Also, the one to one teaching material will have to be developed and tailored to individual students. There are many different advantages and disadvantages of group teaching as well as one to one teaching. Some students prefer to be in a group class while others learn better in a one to one class. It is important for teachers to remember with one to one classes, the better you know your students, the easier and more effective your lessons will be.