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How does ESA work for new teachers? Before taking this course, I used to think teaching is only preparing a lot of materials and passing on to students as much as possible. The monologue style is very different from the interactive that I have learned in this course. Presentation, practice and pronunciation “(PPP)” is an old method in teaching. The ESA structure is a modified version and an alternative of PPP methodology. ESA stands for Engage, Study and Activate. This is the most common methodology of teaching the English language today. The purpose of using this ESA method is to stimulate the students’ interest in learning English using an interactive fashion. A key element in ESA methodology is repetitiveness at each stage. The first stage of Engage is to warm up and relax the students. Common tools used are magazines, newspapers, pictures, drawings and even real objects to elicit interest from the students. Then the second stage of Study is for the students to learn the techniques of pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar through drilling, gap-filling exercises, word order, example sentences, etc. In the last stage of Activate, teachers should use some activities like role playing, debating, story building and open class, group or pair discussions to activate of what the student has learned. There are three ESA structures: straight arrow (ESA), boomerang (EASA) and patchwork (E……A). Straight arrow ESA is using all stages orderly as this is the most direct and straight forward method. Boomerang is a method that move immediately to the Activation stage after engaging with students. While students in the Activate stage, the teacher would work around and help students correct any mistakes or errors. Then in the Study stage, teacher would put some examples on the board in particular usage and grammar. That would be helpful to show what students have learned or lacked from the Activation stage. Thus, always ending with the Activation stage. Patchwork is starting with Engage using the variation of Engage, Study and Activate in between as much as needed to teach students the language, then always finishing with activation stage. This method of teaching would give more opportunity for students to use what they have learned to interact with classmates in order to finish their task. All and all, the ultimate goal of ESA lesson is for students to be able to talk, write and apply at the end. To illustrate in an imaginary class of learning prepositions, I will use the straight arrow ESA structure to teach students the preposition of movement vocabulary. Engage In the beginning I will put up a picture on the board (Exhibit A) and pass a red ball and a box to each student. Then I will ask students to follow the picture on the board play with the red ball and the box freely. Meanwhile, I will ask students to talk and describe where they can place the ball around the box. The purpose of this stage is to let students have fun and talk about how they played with the tools. (Exhibit A) Study I will teach the pronunciation of the preposition words shown on the board. I will use the 3x3 drilling exercise and choral drilling to pronounce the preposition words. I will write a sample sentence on the board starting with “The red ball is __ the box” by pointing out the first preposition shown on the picture. Once the students get the idea of how to use the prepositions to make a sentence, I will let students work in pairs and hand out the gap filling worksheet (Exhibit B). This will allow students to discuss together to find the answers. Afterwards, I will show students a few more examples and elicit sentences from the students by asking “where is the red ball?” Students should respond with example sentences such as “The red ball is in/on/near/at/under/over/behind the box.” etc. Also asking students to give feedback for their answers. Activate I will divide the class into two teams, namely black and white. The black and white teams are kicking the red tennis ball and aiming to shoot to the blue cages. I will then let the students play for two minutes and then stop. The students will describe their position and where they are in relation to the ball, the cage and their teammates, etc. This will allow students to use a preposition to make a sentence. Moreover, it will show how much the students have learned and comprehended. In the future I plan to teach English language in China. Culturally, Chinese students are a little shy and passive. Engage is a good way to help students relax and participate. Activate is a good way to let students show what they have learned and applied during the game play. The ESA methodology is a way to break through the tension of learning English gradually. To becoming an English teacher and teaching abroad will not be easy. There is still a lot of knowledge for me to learn along the way. Learning is a continuous process because knowledge is unlimited. I would like to show my gratitude to the TESOL course for the wonderful materials and helpful tutors. Exhibit B Where is the red ball? Use the following preposition word to fill out the blank: at, near, on, over, onto, above, into, off, under, behind, in front of, in/inside 1. The red ball is _________the box. 2. The red ball is _________the box. 3. The red ball is _________the box. 4. The red ball is _________the box. 5. The red ball is _________the box. 6. The red ball is _________the box. 7. The red ball is _________the box. 8. The red ball is _________the box. 9. The red ball is _________the box. 10. The red ball is _________the box. 11. The red ball is _________the box. 12. The red ball is _________ the box.
