English V American

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences For a student learning English as a second language, one thing they may notice is the difference in the accents between British English and American English, the difference is rather pronounced considering it has been less than two hundred and fifty years since the American Revolution. The American accent is likely to be more familiar to many students, thanks to many American movies from Hollywood. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Anthony B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Unfortunately for students, the accents are not the only differences in the language but where did these differences come from? In England, in 1755,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences From the time of the American revolution and onward, there has been a distinctive trend for American English and British English dialects to move away from each other. Whether taught in American English or British English, most people of either type will have little trouble understanding each other. Unlike the many dialects of China, English is a pretty ubiquitous language across the board, with a spattering of unique regional words. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Jeffrey G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The 2 most prominent English dialects were intertwined throughout their collective histories because the British...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas British English versus American English always sparks a lively discussion. I have read some articles so far as to compare these 2 languages and gather the information from the online resources. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Zahra J. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I am Iranian and have many American and British friends and I have been living abroad for about 6 years. As an English speaker as a second language, it took me a while to learn what is British and what is American English. As I have done some friendly interviews, the English spoken in the USA is different from the English spoken in the UK not only in pronunciation...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences British English versus American English are often discussed during the class, students frequently ask which one is the standard English to learn and would it cause any difficulties in communication. Both of them have differences and similarities, but individuals from the UK and the US can communicate without too much difficulty. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate JIN G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Besides, there is no right or wrong when the differences appear, the British may consider American do not speak proper English and American might think British people are too formal and serious. However, from my perspective,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The United States and the United Kingdom's imperial histories and modern influences have had a significant effect on the English wording. Since English was exported to different countries across the world, the language has undergone different variations, the most common one being the British English vs. American English. The British introduced the language to Americans in the 17th century. At that time, the spelling had not been standardized. Given the number of regions where English is used, differences are bound to arise. Even though British and American English may seem similar, there are disparities in vocabulary, spelling, and grammar. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Fahimeh T....  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences When it comes to learning English, non-native speakers can feel quite torn on whether they should learn British English or American English. They have their similarities, but can contrast each other strongly. The differences can be confusing for English speakers as well. The diversity in spelling, pronunciation, and vocabulary can really throw you off. In this article, I will be focusing on these three topics. Let’s explore spelling, shall we? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Tabitha C. Growing up in the USA, I learned to spell in a simplified form. American English focuses on how the words are pronounced, therefore the words are spelled according to their sounds. Kələr in the British...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences As more and more countries place a growing importance on its people to learn English as a secondary language, for work purposes or for general use, there is a growing debate about which is the better English to learn - British English or American English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Max E. The argument stems from the growing influence of America in the modern world. British English has a longer standing history, but in today's modern society, it is almost impossible to go through the day without hearing American English in use. We hear it in television programs and films, more businesses from the US are branching out to foreign soil, and many countries feel that American English may be the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The differences between many Asiatic languages' pronunciation and that of English form the basis for a multitude of miscommunications between international interlocutors. My experience living in Japan provides plentiful evidence to support this assertion. When my Japanese associates and I communicate in English, I notice three significant pronunciation struggles for my conversation partners. For the Japanese who are learning English, the clear enunciation of the /th/ sound, the fricative quality of the /v/ consonant, and the distinction of /l/ versus /r/ formation of the tongue. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Brandon F. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Why are British and American versions of English so different? British and American English, while, broadly speaking, are mutually intelligible (each party can understand and communicate with each other), there are notable differences that make one wonder why there is a difference at all? In this essay, I’ll briefly discuss some key differences in these two dialects, and further, provide reasons and evidence explaining said differences. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Betsy W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. If you were to ask someone in America to say something in a British accent, you would likely get a response of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas There is currently a need for more people willing to teach English as a Second Language (ESL) across America. Several small communities have accepted immigrants from other countries. Although children of school age will learn English in school, the parents and grandparents struggle to learn English as they continue their daily lives and earn a living. This is a challenge as most Americans do not know any other languages as they do in Europe, so the immigrant needs to communicate in English to accomplish anything. This leaves the older generation feeling isolated and causes problems in everyday life, such as going to the bank. In most large...  [Read more]

  http://www.tesolcourse.com There are a variety of acronyms used in the English language teaching industry. Two of the most common are TEFL and TESOL. TEFL stands for Teaching English as a Foreign Language. TESOL stands for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. These terms are interchangeable and effectively mean the same thing. Historically within the industry TEFL was a British based term and TESOL a North American based term. -~-~~-~~~-~~-~- Are you ready to Teach English Abroad? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pcXD_GNR04 -~-~~-~~~-~~-~- Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences It is not a secret for anyone that native speakers of any language always easily identify “non-native” when they hear at least a few words spoken by them. Often native speakers are able to fairly accurately determine the country from which the person came, based on his pronunciation. This happens due to the fact that it is common for all of us to use the sounds of our native language in the pronunciation of words of a foreign language, as well as to use articulation models we know from childhood the position of the organs of speech (lips, tongue, etc.). This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mariia L. We pronounce words with stress characteristic of the native language and speak with intonations...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences If you ever find yourself driving in French Canada, you will be stopped by stop signs that say ‘arrêt’, which is stopped in French. Almost all drivers in North America would know that this means stop because it’s the same octagon red stop sign. In Japan it’s very different, stop signs are triangular with Japanese script on them but, beneath the Japanese, you can find English subtitles which read ‘stop’. In fact, if you travel anywhere in Japan, the majority of signs and announcements related to travel are offered in Japanese and English. English has been taught in Japanese schools since the American occupation after World War Two. However, according to an EF English Proficiency Index in 2017,...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences My biggest takeaway from my TEFL certification course with ITTT is the topic of learning techniques. Learning techniques vary depending on race, gender, age, cultural background , past experiences and several other variables of the students involved. I will describe my personal past experiences in regards to the subject at hand. I would like to take a moment to thank the ITTT staff for putting together this highly informative and enlightening TEFL program. It is well written, easy to understand and well organized for new and experienced ESL teachers alike. This post was written by our ITTT graduate Svetlana V. One of the first things I learned during my 60-hour TEFL course was that children are divided into two...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In this essay, we are going to talk about two different versions of English which are American and British English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate ANDRII D. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The English were introduced to America through British colonization in the early 17th century. It also spread to many other parts of the world due to the power of the British empire. Over many years American and British spoken English started diverging from each other in different aspects. This led to new dialects in the form of American English. Also Read: Teaching Roles and Functions in ESL The Americans and British both speak...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences When I started my ITTT classes, I wasn't totally sure of the difference between British English and American English. I knew there were accents and pronunciation differences, but it seemed like no big deal. Then I learned more about grammar, vocabulary, idioms, and spelling. When you speak to someone who has never spoken or has very little knowledge of the two, I can see how things get really confusing. British English is a bit more formal and follows the Kings English, where American English is a little bit more laid back. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Brian F. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Kings English (noun) is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Some people think that correct English grammar matters only to teachers and is of no real importance in daily life. This is certainly not true. Grammar, regardless of the country or the language, is the foundation for communication. When a message is relayed with the correct grammar, it is easier to understand the purpose and meaning of that message. To communicate, a learner should know the grammar of the language. It is important to be able to express yourself, but this should be done in a way that people find easy to understand. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ha V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Writing that is poorly...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences I work in two schools. I am an assistant language teacher at one commercial (low-level English) high school, and an integrated (high-level English) academic junior high and high school. I have had experiences with different kinds of students, Japanese-English teachers, and classroom atmospheres. In Japan, students take an entrance exam to get into high school. If they scored low on the entrance exam, then they are placed in the lowest ranking class. Each school has a certain number of classrooms for each grade. Both of my high schools have six classes total for each grade. There are usually around forty to forty-two students in each class as well. Teaching forty plus students in a crowded classroom is...  [Read more]

Dan Sloat Destinations Alumni Experiences Volunteer teaching in Nepal is thoroughly rewarding! The need for engaging and enthusiastic teachers is so great and the positive impact you can make, even in a short period, is significant. Personally, I had a modest classroom of 16 students comprising a broad range of ages and competency. Those kiddos were quite a handful, but being their teacher was an incredible privilege. Their maturity was striking and yet, at the end of the day, they are still growing boys. They would get rowdy at times and often pulled pranks on each other. I loved their curiosity, their excitement for learning, and their playful spirits. Between lessons they would often draw pictures for me. I suppose I’m the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The ability to speak more than one language broadens a person’s worldview, from job opportunities to the ability to relate with people from different cultures. It is no secret that learning English as a foreign language has become popular across many non-English speaking countries and Russia is no different. The English language has slowly been incorporated into the Russian educational system and many English language learning centers have been established all over the country. As much as most Russians are motivated enough to learn English, it is not as easy as one would hope due to dissimilarities between the two language systems especially the lettering systems, cases, pronunciations, and other factors....  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences It's quite weird and confusing that English is different in different places. Many students are being taught in one way, while others in another way. Sooner or later they all face some problems in real-life communication. So, the question is, do they need to learn different versions of English or not? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Taylor K. A student from rural China grows up learning British English in his local language school. He applies to a university in the United States and gets accepted. When asking for directions to his classroom he is told to go to the second floor, but cannot find his class because he is searching one floor higher than he should. During his class, he...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Today, English has become a common language of people with different native languages in many fields such as science, aviation, communication, and commerce. For this reason, knowledge of English has become a necessity for those who want to pursue an academic career or who want to work in internationally recognized business sectors. This fact puts English in the first place among the officially taught foreign languages in most countries. But which English should be referenced in English education? British or American English? The answer to this question is not clear in Turkey yet. In seeking a heuristic explanation, one can dwell on which...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT TEFL Information Teaching Ideas As a newly qualified TEFL teacher the chances are you will be working for a school which supplies its teachers with all the resources needed to teach successful lessons based on a set course. This article shows a selection of the course books that are available for teaching general English course to adults from a number of publishers in the TEFL industry. There are several publishers involved in producing course books for the TEFL classroom. The main publishers are Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Pearson/Longman and Macmillan. These publishers produce course books across a range of EFL sectors including, young learners, adults, business English, and English for...  [Read more]

  The good news is there is no real age restrictions on who can take a TEFL course and then go on to teach English abroad. At ITTT we do require you to be at least 18 years old to enroll on our courses but there are certainly no upper age limits. Over the years we have successfully trained people of all ages, many of whom have gone on to have successful careers as English language teachers. As long as you are a native or near-native English speaker who is keen to learn new skills and is open to new ideas, then your age should be no barrier to your success. Although a large number of new TEFL graduates are in their 20s, it doesn't mean they are always the most sought after by employers. Yes, there are many employers around the world who are only interested in recruiting younger...  [Read more]

  As there is no standard content or fixed length required for a TEFL certification course, individual providers are free to design their own courses and set whatever fees they see fit. The best advice is not to choose a course simply because it is the cheapest one available. Yes, you can find TEFL courses on discount websites for as little US$ 49 but will they be accepted by employers in the region that you want to work in? And will they properly prepare you for life in a real classroom? If you want to ensure that the answer to these questions is YES then you should look a little deeper than just the price. In-class TEFL courses usually involve 4-weeks of intensive training that comprehensively covers the most important aspects of English language teaching. During the course you...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas English is one of the most dynamic languages on the planet, which develops every day. Therefore, there are a lot of variations of the English language. Which kind of English should we learn? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Olena K. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. We used to know that there are British, American, Australian, and even Scottish English. Moreover, this is not a full list. This diversity complicates the process of learning a language. After all, who will help you to choose which particular English variant you need? What's more important to know: American or British English? On the one hand, it seems easy. We...  [Read more]

  Once you have completed your chosen TEFL course and have that all important certificate in your hand, you can seriously start to plan the next stage of your adventure. Thanks to the sustained demand for English language teachers right across the world there are plenty of countries to choose from, each with its own unique set of attractions. But how long will you have to commit for when you sign the job contract? Europe The most common contract in European schools is for an academic year that generally runs from September to June. The great thing here is you will have a couple of months off during the summer break to travel or earn some extra cash working with private students or at a summer camp. Summer language camps are very popular across much of Europe and usually run for 4...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Typical English classes, apart from facing miscellaneous issues concerning management, motivation, dependence, and discipline, have to handle a particular set of complications in the language they are attempting to acquire. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ati V. Understandably, far from taking into account some language – impaired, or those with learning disabilities, attention deficits or other language disorders, not one single item lies behind the problem of a student being unable to acquire what they are taught, or go to schools for. Cultural barriers, on top of the list, cause widely various difficulties for English learners worldwide. Iranians are never an exception here. The...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Stefania F. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. English teachers from other countries may think that it is a topic to be skipped or only briefly introduced to students, but it is one of the most important subjects and it should be an integral part of an English course. As a matter of fact, the full understanding of a language and good communication actually depends, to a certain extent, on how correctly words are pronounced. Also, it is not only a matter of pronunciation but intonation. Every language has its own intonation and stress on words, so an English learner could find it difficult to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas A simple definition of motivation can be, the reason why someone is doing something, for example, the reason to be in the class. Why are they taking this class? An adult student can be taking the class because her or his job requires. A young student can be taking the class because their parents are asking for or because it is a subject in school. If this is the case the young student will be not motivated to be in there and learn, this is when the teachers will look for the best way to motivate the student to learn and be present. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Micaela V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Giving a specific...  [Read more]