Teach English in Guocun Zhen - Heze Shi

Learning is something essential in anyone's life, not only as a human being but as species. However, as humans we start learning about everything in our environment the moment we come into this world, and this experience of learning proceeds with us through out our lives till the moment we leave this world, and the more we learn the more knowledge we accumulate, which will help us ,as individuals or societies, to improve our lives in every way possible, as long as we use this knowledge that we have learned and apply it correctly in our daily lives. And it is evident that Learning happens through communication and interaction between an individual and his/her environment. However, the main tool for interaction and communication for humans is language. Thus, language learning is very essential for self-development, and here comes the essential role of a language teacher in any society. Therefore, it is important for teachers to recognize the learning ability of the students, then plan the course which is intended to be taught to the students accordingly. In contrast, it is obvious that every individual has different motives, interests, and abilities when it comes to learning a new language. It can be generalized that young learners are less motivated, but tend to pick up new language faster than their adult counterparts. While adults are more motivated but tend to be slower learners than their young counterparts. Accordingly, the teacher's methods used when it comes to teaching young learners have to be different from those used for adults. When it comes to teaching young learners, teacher's creativity is a key to success in the teaching process, because the young mind of young learners tends to be more flexible, and more accepting to new ideas and approaches. Also the creativity of the teacher will be reflected on the students and encourage them to be more creative as well, which will be very beneficial for a young learner as an adult in the future. Fun is another key. Therefore, classes must be packed with fun, playful activities, experimenting new things, and games that will give young learners the motivation to learn. And it is very well known that playing is the best way for learning at a young age. However, this kind of learning has to be controlled by the teacher, without interfering too much during the class, which in turn can be difficult to achieve in the beginning, and needs time and experience to master. Accordingly, the teacher should include different activities in the lesson plan that would not take a long time, because this could be boring for young learners. Also, these activities should not be very repetitive, because that would discourage young students and leads to loss of interest in the process of learning. Thus, the teacher should not be teaching the book literary, rather than using it as a reference to guide the teaching process. When it comes to teaching adults students,unlike young learners, are usually highly motivated, and learning the language to achieve a certain goal such as,further progress in education, career, travelling, and so on. On the other hand, adults, compared to young learners, are not fast learners and have already established a certain mind set and values in their lives, and less accepting to new ideas. Therefore, it is essential for the teacher to identify the exact motivation behind English learning and help the learners achieve this goal in the most efficient way possible that suits the learners' mindset, values, and life style. Accordingly, the course planning can be more book oriented in order to achieve this certain goal, with less playing and more discussion and debating during the class. Which is an advantage for the teacher that would make lesson planning easier. Also, since the students are adults, this gives more room for discussion, conversation, and debating during the class. On the other hand, the lesson plan should include some fun activities, because everyone likes games, but learning should not be based on games and fun activities, rather than using these kind of activities to lighten up the energy of the classroom and keep a positive atmosphere. Conclusively, as a teacher it is very important to be well aware of the age, level, and learning abilities of the students. It is also important to be well aware of the motivation and the reason behind English learning. Thus, plan the courses after taking these factor into consideration in order to do the best job possible as a teacher.