Teach English in Jichang Zhen - Linfen Shi

It is increasingly common for people to participate in one-to-one EFL lessons. The type of student that enrolls in one-to-one lessons varies widely: the student may be a teenager coming for personal tutoring to improve their marks, they may be an adult learner who has moved to an English speaking country, or a business person who needs to learn English to progress their career. The variety of students and the ability to customize lessons are some of the benefits of one-to-one lessons. There are, however, many possible drawbacks to be aware of, as well. This essay will take a look at some of those drawbacks and benefits, and explore how to make the most of one-to-one EFL lessons. One more obvious challenge is the inability to perform some of the more familiar classroom activities. Activities that involve multiple people, such as a hot-potato or charades, are not much fun with only two people. Many activities for young learners are made to help increase their socialization, but for one-to-one lessons building rapport need not involve these games. Another challenge of one-to-one lessons is that there can be some burnout. When working one-to-one, the attention on the student can be intense, and similarly the teacher may feel like not much progress is being made in certain activities. These challenges can be easily remedied, however. Interspersing the lesson with quieter activities, such as filling in a worksheet or checking news headlines, can give some reprieve from an intense lesson. Similarly, if workbook activities are frustrating or boring the student, it can be time to slip into a conversation. Sometimes, students even tell the teacher they would prefer to just talk that day. Unstructured conversations are not inherently harmful, but they are often unproductive for the student’s education. It is important not to get too off-topic, so teachers should try to guide the conversation in a direction that will improve the student’s vocabulary and fluency. For instance, if the student wants to talk about movies, try to ask questions that lead away from simple “I like” statements. The teacher could ask the student to retell or reenact a scene from a movie in order to move into more complex vocabulary. Of course, other language skills like reading and writing will also need to be emphasized. Because reading and writing are silent, students may complain that these activities could be done at home. These are important skills, however, so one-to-one lessons should incorporate reading and writing to ensure good progress in the student. Working from a text book, writing down all new vocabulary, and checking news headlines are all activities that will not make the student feel like they are wasting their time. Additionally, these activities can spark the student’s interest for further conversation or activities. Another small but important problem that may arise is that one-to-one lessons are prone to cancellations. Many one-to-one EFL students are learning business English, and life can get in the way. Take it with a grain of salt, rather than as a behavioral problem, but be sure to exchange phone numbers with the student in case of cancellations. Aside from a few challenges, one-to-one lessons are a marvelous way to engage EFL students and can often improve learning outcomes. The most important part of one-to-one lessons is that it gives the teacher the ability to customize lessons for their students. At the very first session, the student’s English ability and desired learning outcomes should be evaluated. If the student is studying for one of the Cambridge Assessments or a TOEFL exam, the teacher can then make sure to include relevant material in further lessons. Similarly, teachers can capitalize on students’ interests in order to make sure the lesson is stimulating. With the internet at our hands these days, teachers can incorporate an increasingly large body of material into lessons in order to keep lessons from becoming boring. Podcasts, online articles, fill in the blank games, and videos are just some of the resources available; these give teachers an ability to find a wide variety of material to engage students’ particular interests. Incorporating digital media along with traditional media like books and newspapers can be an effective way to stimulate the student’s interest. No matter who is being taught, from young to old, nobody wants to sit through boring lessons. While there are challenges inherent to one-to-one EFL teaching, there are myriad rewards and opportunities that balance out the challenges. As one-to-one lessons become a larger opportunity for EFL teachers, it is important to understand how to accommodate these private lessons. Challenges might have to be overcome by slightly changing the teaching style, but the opportunities to customize lessons and give personal attention to students far outweigh those challenges.