General English Meaning

  Dima from Ukraine is planning to use his 120-hour certificate from ITTT to teach English to children in China. In this TEFL review, Dima recommends the course for those who want to learn how to teach English professionally around the world. ITTT’s online TEFL and TESOL courses will give you the skills you need to teach English successfully. Our certificates are internationally recognised and enable you to find work as an English teacher almost anywhere in the world. 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 teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lewis (1993) claims that “Lexis is the core or heart of language” (p 89). Indeed, it is one of the basic steps of mastering a foreign language. Vocabulary knowledge is what makes verbal communication between people possible. Most teachers face problems when teaching new items. They feel the need to use techniques to have an effective lesson. Over the years, teachers have tried to find the most effective and practical strategies to teach vocabulary. They have been applying several methods like fill in the blank definitions, pre-teaching unfamiliar words and stressing high-frequency words. This essay will just focus on three strategies that can help teach vocabularies such as using visual aids, highlighting...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lewis (1993) claims that “Lexis is the core or heart of language” (p 89). Indeed, it is one of the basic steps of mastering a foreign language. Vocabulary knowledge is what makes verbal communication between people possible. Most teachers face problems when teaching new items. They feel the need to use techniques to have an effective lesson. Over the years, teachers have tried to find the most effective and practical strategies to teach vocabulary. They have been applying several methods like fill in the blank definitions, pre-teaching unfamiliar words and stressing high-frequency words. This essay will just focus on three strategies that can help teach vocabularies such as using visual aids, highlighting...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Vocabulary has always been one language area about which students usually complain and claim that it impedes language learning. The main purpose of this study is to investigate whether using the context for guessing the meaning of new vocabulary can solve this problem. The learning of vocabulary is an important part of foreign language learning. The meaning of new words is very frequently emphasized, whether in books or verbal communication. And also, English teachers have an important role in teaching new vocabularies. In this research, we will study different kinds of teaching vocabulary by using a dictionary or guessing on the context. Further, the study also attempted to reveal what kind of factors hinder or...  [Read more]

  "Your" and "you're" often get confused, not only by English learners around the world but also by many native English speakers. Let's break it down. "Your" is a possessive adjective that indicates ownership, while "you're" is simply the contraction of "you are". Let's take a look at this example sentence: Your grades are great this semester. In this case, we use 'your' as we use it to indicate ownership. You're the best student in the entire school! This example require us to use 'you're' because it is the short form for 'you are'. Should you not be sure which one to use, think about if you want to express ownership or of you want to say "you are". Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Teaching may be one of the most ancient practices in human relations as parents teach their children how to develop skills to survive and thrive in the world, and then the social interactions naturally provoke more of it. Although daily life provides endless situations of teaching and learning through sharing experiences, the schools are the center for so, and the teacher is the one who plays the leading role in this process. The present essay will discuss how to describe the teacher's part based on three brief points of view: the etymological reference, historical context, followed by the ESL ITT standpoint. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Talita P....  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences In my personal opinion, vocabulary learning is the basic and most substantial part in any language learning. It’s like the bricks for building a house. Moreover, the process of vocabulary learning is the most difficult and time-consuming. It requires not only memorizing skills but also a good understanding of the word, and constant practice. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Dan W. For most English learners in China, they often encounter the same problem when learning vocabulary, which is that they keep forgetting the meaning they've learned. One of the major reasons for this problem is that they only memorize the Chinese meaning for each word. They pay no attention to the word class and skip...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences ESL students will receive many formal grammar lessons that will give them a good grounding in proper English sentence structures, when to use who and whom, various verb tenses, the importance of noun-verb agreement and proper punctuation—and much more. Proper grammar will give them a thorough understanding of the elements of grammar and equip them to navigate through formal English-language communication, such as business letters and reports, meetings, emails to clients, and formal assignments in English classes. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Brenda Q. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. But I believe we have a...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas To begin with, receptive skills that are, reading and listening are important points in any language. Teachers need to be able to use them in their lessons to have a balanced approach when teaching. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate NCHANJI N. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. We read to achieve a purpose that is, to gain knowledge, and attain our aspirations and ambitions. For example, reading instructions for our new smart TV and following instructions. More often than not, we listen to or read the information because we find it pleasurable or enjoyable in some way. For example, reading a novel or listening to music. We may...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences "Our lives gain meaning only when we tell our story". -David Steindl-Rast. In our case, stories not only add meaning to our lives in general but are very important in rendering language learning interesting and creative as our specific subject essay will demonstrate. Stories are an effective model for learning the English language through which we can develop the four language skills writing, speaking, listening, and reading. So why and how stories can enable us to effectively learn the English language? First of all, the fact that we have nowadays a vast ocean of stories that tackle a variety of subjects and issues, makes it quite impossible for someone not to find a story that would captivate their passion...  [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 Teaching Ideas I chose this topic for my essay because it is not something I had ever given much thought to. As a native speaker, I don’t recall studying correct pronunciation in school along with other aspects of language learning such as grammar and vocabulary. Correct, or at least acceptable and understandable, the pronunciation was something that just happened. I was initially somewhat surprised when I saw that an entire online module had been devoted to the topic, but as I read the module, I realized that it is a rich and complex component of language learning, to which serious students of English as a second language should be exposed. And the sample lesson video demonstrated to me that teaching phonetics could also be...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences Language is everywhere. It plays an essential role in our life. We use it as a tool to communicate with the people around us. But do we understand how the brain processes the language and the many factors that influence language learning? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Juri N. According to common theory, L1 (first language) acquisition happens in a natural setting and the linguistic knowledge is developed subconsciously. In contrast, L2 (second language) learning is generally more formal because the learning process happens in school with limited hours of instruction. Also, in L2 learning, the knowledge is developed consciously. Also read: Top 5 Tips: How to Learn a New Language When...  [Read more]

  There is often much confusion surrounding these acronyms but essentially they mean the same thing. TEFL = Teaching English as a Foreign Language TESOL = Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages The above are generally used interchangeably, however, TEFL is most commonly used within the UK and TESOL is usually preferred in Australia and the USA. Although some countries may favor one acronym over the other, it is important to remember that a TEFL certification and a Tesol Certification are exactly the same thing as the training involved is identical. Although TEFL and TESOL training courses are identical and the acronyms are generally used interchangeably, there is a technical difference between the two. The general perception is that speakers of English as a foreign...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas English is a language that has a variety of dialects: particularly, there are three different major English segments. English (American ), English (Australian), and English (British or Uk). The three segments have differences in the way they are written and spoken. In this article, I will compare American English versus British English and my own experience with these two. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate maria c. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. British English is a very formal form of the English language. The Uk practices formal speaking and dictation while the United States of America uses slang and informal English. The...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The simplest definition of "business English" is English as it is used in the business world, e.g, in trade, commerce, and finance. It is a branch of ESP (English for Specific Purposes) because the combination of certain words, phrases, and politeness present in business English is specific to conducting business meetings, giving presentations, performing negotiations, and handling business correspondence and reports. Due in part to the dominance of the economy of the English speaking world (e.g., America and Europe) in the global marketplace, English came to be regarded as the international language of business. With the growth of global economic interdependence, learning business English has become necessary for...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The four basic language skills are divided into two categories; the receptive (“passive”) skills — reading and listening, and the productive (“active”) skills — speaking and writing. All are invaluable skills to learn when becoming proficient in a new foreign language and teachers should try to incorporate them into their lessons whenever possible. However, this summative task will be solely focused on receptive skills and how to teach them in the classroom. Students may need to read/listen for a purpose — for example, reading an extract of a book as part of their homework assignment, or they may want to read/listen for entertainment — for example, listening to their favorite audiobook. These...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In the wake of the upcoming 2020 Olympics in Japan, there has been an increase in elementary school level English classes. As an assistant language teacher half into my fourth year, I have had the rare chance to work the entirety of my time in one elementary school where I have had many great memories. However, being present every day I began to notice that some students were struggling or in some cases, not even trying when it came to English class. Talking with my peers and colleagues from other elementary schools as well as my own, there are some common problems that many students seem to experience in an English class. These problems include learning in a counter-productive environment, inconsistent...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When we talk about teaching language, we always think about speaking, listening, writing and reading; but now, let’s just focus on reading and listening, in other words, the receptive skills. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mirazo L. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The answers are: we do read or listen in teaching receptive skills because we need to know some instructions as how to control a video recorder which is not an usual task for a normal people so our a motivation must be higher than other in rather understand the difference between reading with passion and read a favorites book and listen to somebody who is not...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Today there is an increasing diversity not only in schools but also in other business aspects due to the result of globalization which in general dictates that we must develop more understanding of culture in order to exert true understanding among diverse populations which I believe is the base for maintaining a cultural sensitive class. But before I go in details, it vital to understand the true meaning of Culture, Sensitivity, and Culture sensitivity combined. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ntegyereize C. Culture can be defined as the social behavior and norms found in human societies. It is more considered a central concept in anthropology which includes a range of phenomena that...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Teaching slang and idioms is essential for ESL students and should be an integral part of any ESL curriculum. Learning slang and expressions can help an ESL student understand better native speakers who will almost universally use some slang and some idioms in their natural speech. Studying slang and idioms can also help an ESL student speak more naturally, either compensating for a weaker English grasp or adding to a вstrong English base. The application of studying slang and idioms that have perhaps the most relevance in a classroom and to a teacher is that it can help to elucidate complicated grammar by showcasing how slang twists the...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences In this blog post, I plan to examine why English may be such a challenging language for Chinese speakers to master, namely in comparison to their European peers. For the purpose of this examination, I will focus on four main aspects, from quite glaring differences to other aspects that some may not initially consider: written language, grammar, vocabulary, and language exposure. These points are drawn from my own experience of living and teaching English in China, from learning Chinese myself and from conversations with my students. I will be focusing on those who have not had experience in learning other languages before English, as I feel this constitutes the largest proportion of Chinese learners. This by no...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Most people who backpack the world will mostly find themselves on a budget once that budget has been reached they have a few options one is to return home or the other is to find work. Asia, in general, is a very easy continent to find a job teaching English. English teachers are high demand in Asia and it has an attractive salary thus why many western travelers decide to relocate to a country of choice for a maximum of 6 to 12 months. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Georgina C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Teaching abroad is not only for broke backpackers but for people who would like a change of scene and are generally...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Child development may be defined as a gradual sequence of physical, language, thought and emotional changes that occur from birth to the beginning of adulthood. In this process, there is a progression in a child from being sorely dependent on the parent/guardian to be self-dependent. Such development is strongly influenced by the genetic factors emanating from the parents and similar events during prenatal life. According to Maria Montessori Theory, such a journey from childhood to adulthood the key principles to be borne in mind are independence, observation, following the child, correcting, need for prepared environment and an absorbent mind. In all of these, the aspect of speech and language are paramount. This...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Grammar is the rules governing the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in a natural language. Simply put, grammar is the general rule of a language. Language is logical; grammar tells us in which order we say words. It’s about how words become phrases; how words and phrases become sentences and how sentences become language. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Yang S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Some of these rules are acquired naturally in childhood while others are acquired in the learning process under the guidance of a teacher. While most of the time, people don’t know which grammatical rule they are following...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas While learning the second language, we all want to speak fluently as much as we can. What do we need to speak fluently; grammar, vocabulary, structure or other knowledge of language? Let’s think that we know all the grammar rules and structures. How can we speak without a lack of knowledge of vocabulary? The most difficult part of learning a second language is to learn vocabulary because words are easy to forget and are confusable. As a teacher, our role in teaching vocabulary is vital. Teaching vocabulary is the most important part of teaching the second language so we need to use a mix of teaching methods and techniques. In this article, we see how we can use some of the methodologies and techniques...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Stories... we live in a world of stories. Every single day we have a story to tell. A funny story, a serious story, a scary story or even an upsetting story. These are the pictures we keep in our minds, like our own little movie playing in our heads. Attached to every story, is language. Language completes our story, it gives our story meaning. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Lindie N. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Teaching language is giving someone the power to add another voice to their pictures, thus enabling the person to share their story with someone in that specific language. in this case - English. For me, stories...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas It’s Black History Month! Now, Black History often falls short in EFL classrooms but if you are able to include it into your EFL curriculum abroad (and you should!) here is an important reason to do so: You get to focus on the amazing culture, history, and contributions of Black people, something a lot of EFL students would never otherwise learn. Hold a class meeting to introduce the topic and explain why a month of Black History is needed and brainstorm some famous Black people the students know. This is also a great time to read aloud “Our People” by Angela Shelf Medearis. In this book, a father is telling his daughter about the history of their people - how they were kings and queens and invented amazing...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Learning a second language can prove to have a variety of obstacles. Between age, time available for study, access to resources, and more, the desire to master another language must be given a strong priority to succeed. Just as individual learners will face their issues in the learning process, there are often similarities between language learners from a specific country or region. For English language learners from South Korea, where the standard college entrance exam contains sufficient English components (Kim, 2012), the necessity to learn is as high as the obstacles. Based on grammar differences, pronunciation, and a general fear of speaking English, English language learners in South Korea face issues...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Classroom Management is a crucial skill to ensure friendly, fun, well organized, disciplined classes be carried out in a relaxed atmosphere. When done correctly the teacher can then continue to inspire confidence in the students, creating a platform to ensure effective learning. Teachers need to know when to be firm and when to leave students alone. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Craig W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Establishing a good rapport with the students is crucial to ensuring a successful and enjoyable class. The general approach and attitude of the Teacher towards the class and its students will determine...  [Read more]