TEFL Moriarty New Mexico

young learners in china have problems with their learning of english which are specific to their country. These needs should absolutely be addressed by the teacher, so that the teacher can be as effective as possible, and enable his or her chinese students to learn. Ignoring their cultural specificities could be detrimental to these students. First, for these young learners their first language does not use the Roman alphabet, and had a completely different pronunciation system using tones. When they start to learn english, they must learn the alphabet and how to write it, and how the letters are pronounced. To help these students, the teacher should always have a visual of new words. If the students' level is high enough, the teacher can ask the students to spell the words or to write them on the board. The students should have plenty of writing and speaking practice. For writing, both in-class and homework practice is ideal. For speaking, the teacher should incorporate choral repetition in the class, and also have individual students attempt words. At a beginner level, the students need a high level of exposure to the new language to be successful. Second, learners in china typically learn Oxford english. One problem is that this vocabulary may be different from their teachers', if their teacher comes from a different Anglophone country. For example, the students may learn British spelling and idioms which their teacher disagrees with, does not understand, or is unfamiliar with. I think that the best way for a teacher to contend with this issue is to expand upon the base which the children have already learned. The teacher could periodically provide equivalents to the vocabulary which the students know. For example, if the students have learned “biscuit” in British english, the teacher can let them know that “cookie” is another word which means the same thing. Biscuit=cookie. To really understand what the students know, the teacher should review what they have learned in past years, and become familiar with their course book. It will be very intimidating to students if a teacher comes in with a completely different vocabulary from what they have learned. Third, class management is culturally specific. In china, schools value testing and rank their students. Every class is divided into four, and the four teams compete against each other for points. The chinese teachers will often give awards or small prizes to the team which earns the most point over the class. Students might have a difficult time understanding the teacher if the teacher uses a different system of awards. In my opinion, it is best to adopt the award system of the local teachers, and adapt of alter it as time goes on. The students already have a lot to contend with in understanding a new teacher, so it is best at the beginning to minimize these differences. For a teacher to be very successful in china, it would be ideal if they have an understanding of how chinese school systems work. That way, they can use the systems already in place (which are quite effective, and are understood by the students) to their advantage. Not understanding or acknowledging the specificities of chinese culture would mean that the teacher must work harder to build a structure for the class. The teacher would be missing out on opportunities to connect more easily with the students. These observations are all from my own experience.