List Of Most Difficult Languages To Learn

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas I think of myself as having been fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to learn other languages at a young age. I was taught French in primary school and at home, I learned or acquired Spanish. At school, I remember my language teacher being very textbook-oriented and she focused and followed the book to the “T”. I picked up easily on the grammar because I had already learned Spanish at home and I was also very keen to learn foreign languages, especially French. The grammar didn’t seem difficult or boring to me at all because I had already been exposed to the language at a very early age. However, many students didn’t feel the same way I did and had difficulty with the subject and therefore,...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences For the native English speaker, English is easy. It is only when learning another language do L1 English speakers begin to see peculiarities in their own language. It is then compounded when beginning to teach English as a foreign language. Although the English language has commonalities with other languages, especially since English is derived from other languages, there are plenty of unusual aspects of English that can cause difficulties when learning and teaching the language. For example, English spelling, grammar, and pronunciation all contain such peculiarities. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Tanya L. Learning to read and write English is no easy task since English is one of the least...  [Read more]

Hadassah Roberts Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Learning a second language is something many English teachers need to undertake. Having good strategies to use is key to learning successfully. The need to learn a second language is a growing need as international travel and living increases. This is especially true for English teachers. An estimated 250,000 native English speakers work as English teachers abroad. Many English teachers find themselves in an environment where learning a second language is necessary. Having good strategies to assist them in learning can greatly improve their learning speed and efficiency. When I first started to learn a second language, I really had no idea of where to even begin. Years later,...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Destinations While many people wanting to teach English abroad move to countries in Asia or Latin America, Europe is also a popular destination that cannot be ignored. Despite stricter visa regulations and tougher job markets for teachers, there are still many places in all parts of Europe that have a need for foreign teachers. Here are the top 10 cities in Europe with the highest demand for English language teachers. Spain is one of the most attractive countries for teaching English abroad in Europe. The country’s capital Madrid has the largest job market for EFL teachers in Spain. While citizens from non-EU countries may find it difficult to secure a work visa in Spain, many teachers are able to obtain a student visa which...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Learners, whether children or adults, tend to lack attention in the classroom at some point. Certainly, this problem varies from one type of age-range to the other. Indeed, this issue may be due to different reasons: mature students may be tired from work, whereas youngsters may struggle to keep up with the content. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Debora M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Moreover, additional factors may come to decrease motivation in the classroom. For instance, some learners find the topic being at hand particularly difficult; others may just be bored or going through tough problems at home, and the list...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching is not an easy profession, to begin with. Furthermore, teaching English as a foreign language adds even more complications and considerations. Many different qualities contribute to the aptitude of an English teacher. For starters, one must have the aptitude for the language itself. English, like all other languages, is a difficult and complex language. To teach a language properly, the teacher must have a certain level of fluency in that language. Although this may seem obvious, it is an important requirement because teaching a student incorrectly is almost worse than not teaching them anything at all. Therefore, fluency in English is an important enough characteristic that I feel it deserves a mention....  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Destinations France is one of the most popular destinations for teaching English in Europe. While a lot of people settle in Paris to enjoy the Parisian lifestyle, there are a lot of other exciting cities in all parts of the country. Here are the top 8 places to teach English in France. Due to local laws and regulations, it can often be difficult for non-EU citizens to secure a visa and work legally in France. However, if you are dreaming of living and working in France, don’t despair. We have a thorough guide to legally teaching English for people outside of the EU. Be sure to check it out here for all the details on how to move to France and teach English. A wine lover’s paradise, Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne in...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences English as a spoken language has become the international standard for people as a first or second language, whether it be for business, science, or just recreationally. This, of course, means that a lot of people are learning the language as a second language. For anyone who knows English as a native language, you know that it has many difficult learning curves along the way to the true understanding that make for many difficulties in how new learners communicate. This essay will touch on a few examples that people undoubtedly run into when learning English, and why it's so difficult to master. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Kelson l. Please note that this blog post might not...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching English as a foreign language with little to no experience is a daunting task and one that should be seriously considered. There are many aspects to teaching that I was expected to know and implement while teaching English in another country. I had to learn how to teach in about two weeks and although I learned many techniques and strategies, one of the most important tools and one of the most effective was including games in the classroom. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Patricia C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I was slightly skeptical at first because, even though games are fun, I hadn’t personally experienced...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Today, Vietnam is entering the world stage as a united and independent country, eager to learn English, but unable to meet its standards for EFL education. Vietnamese students are a victim of several unfortunate coincidences in pronunciation, and often complain that reading and writing are easy to learn but speaking and listening simply impossible. Two huge differences in the way these languages differentiate words have made English communication into a “black box” for the Vietnamese, more difficult for them to penetrate than for other Asian peoples. Among these differences are the very small number of shared sounds, as well as tonogenesis, a pitch-based method of differentiating Vietnamese syllables that...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Hey guys, nice to see you again. It's Liza here, I'm glad to welcome you to the weekly live session. If you can hear me and see me please let me know that everything is working smoothly, because just three minutes before the live session my home wi-fi connection cut off and I had to switch on the mobile internet. I'm scared that something might not work that well, so please let me know that it works. I really hope that this internet connection problem won't cause any troubles. Hello Rosie, thank you so much for letting me know. Hello guys, I can see that there are some people from Pakistan. I can also see some regulars, thanks for coming. Let's move on to the first part of the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Walking into a brand-new class, especially as a new teacher, can be very intimidating. Being prepared with the proper principles, tools, and attitude goes a long way when dealing with the first-class up through to the final exam. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mark R. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Relationships matter. Building a relationship with your students is the basic foundation of teaching. If a teacher does not have a relationship with their students, then having students succeed in learning will be infinitely more difficult. The best way to communicate anything is through the basis of the relationship. If you...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences We live in the age of technical progress and globalization. Both these trends require people to get together, unite, share ideas to come up with new inventions, discover other cultures. This is why thousands of people all over the world take up studying English every day. They turn to language schools, private teachers, speaking clubs or any other resources they can find, excited to start and be able to speak fluently in a year or so. However, reality shows that only half of those students get the result they wanted. So, possible obstacles and complications which face Ukrainian adult students while learning English will be discussed in this essay, possible solutions will be suggested. This post was written by...  [Read more]

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Linda Dunsmore Destinations It’s not hard to see why Spain is one of the most attractive countries in Europe for teaching English as a foreign language. Most teachers head straight to Madrid or Barcelona but there are many more stunning cities in Spain for teaching English abroad. While it’s true that it can be a little difficult for non-EU citizens to secure a work permit in Spain, there is a legal way to still be able to live and teach in this European paradise. Check out our detailed guide on how to legally teach English in Spain to find out how to go about it. The capital of Spain’s Catalonia region, Barcelona is among the top destinations for English teachers in Spain. The city is known for the arts and architecture, including the...  [Read more]

Mary Blancaflor Alumni Experiences I have been teaching English to local and foreign students and for the most part, I noticed that no matter how much the learners would like to polish their English, some things hinder them to accomplish their goal in speaking the language. Studying a foreign language in a non-native speaking country requires more discipline and motivation. Learning a foreign language is not acquired overnight. It has to undergo a specific type of training and the amount of time to learn. For this reason, I came up with a list of why students find it hard to learn a foreign language and what they must do. Students who feel afraid to commit a mistake never learn. It's easy to understand the fear that might envelop the learner...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences Many texts on this subject begin primarily by defining the term 'classroom management'. I equally think it is not out of place to begin a discussion on classroom management from the same perspective. Classroom management refers to the variety of skills employed by which teachers and schools to curtail disruptive behavior of learners so as to create a congenial environment for teaching and learning. It is the case from the definition that the classroom setting may not always be as well-ordered and peaceful for teaching and learning as it should be and may require certain organizational skills and the ability to create of a friendly and disciplined atmosphere in order for teaching and learning to be effective. In...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences For people who are learning a foreign language, their lives might change a lot. They have the chance to talk to more people, get more information, and their brains get trained. As we all know, it’s much easier for a child to learn a new language than an adult. Why? What are the essential differences between adults and young learners? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate LU C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Usually, there is a goal that motivates an adult to learn something new, whereas children are acquiring knowledge from what they are experiencing. In other words, children are learning what is provided. Unconscious...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Like many other subjects, learning a foreign language is a cumulative process. What you learn during one lesson or study session will build upon what you learned previously. Learning a new language especially English is not easy. A lot of students struggle to face the confusion and difficulty of English. English being particularly popular can be hard at times for several reasons. This essay discusses the way teachers should do to help their students get rid of the pressure of learning English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Yen D. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The first method we can do is making students enthusiastic by...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas For the summative task for this course, I decided to research the use of songs in the classroom. The use of songs interests me because it seems that this is a good medium to provide some variety in the classroom and develop interest. Songs and music can also be used with all age groups, although of course whereas singalongs may be more appropriate with very young learners, other activities such as lyric breakdown are still very useful for older learners. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate David B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. For example, Lynch (2019) states that “Many teachers think that using songs in the classroom is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas I’m writing this essay from the perspective of young learners (4-10years of age) and the role their parents play on their English learning journey. I have been an ESL teacher for nearly 10 years and I’ve been teaching my private students in my private classroom for about 8 years. It has been an incredible journey. During this time that I’ve been teaching, I’ve learned many wonderful things about teaching ESL and I have spent much time analyzing and contemplating, trying to puzzle together a clear picture which aspects of the learning process breeds the most conclusive success. I’ve come to realize that this jigsaw is extremely complex and many little pieces don’t always fit neatly together to form a...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Learning a new skill can be difficult, and applying that skill can be even harder. Now teach that skill to someone else so they can adeptly apply it, and there might be people who become intimidated by such a task. However, teaching is a rewarding skill and there are several ways to improve a teacher’s confidence in the classroom. Although not an all-encompassing list, a few ways teachers can improve their confidence is through proper preparation, building rapport with students and self-reflection. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Courtney N. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. If a teacher is prepared to teach the lesson then...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Confidence - how many times we’ve heard about it. That it’s important, that we should have it, that we should build it, that we should help students or any other people develop it. But what does it mean? This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Iuliia S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. It’s been always difficult to explain what is it, as it’s something that comes from feelings of well-being, acceptance of yourself, belief in your abilities, skills, your own experience. I would say it’s a ‘self-power’, that lets you move through any difficulties, helps you to grow and become a ‘someone’. The Merriam-Webster dictionary...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Although students may be in the same class, they may not necessarily have the same ability level. This can be seen in all classes; however, this can become very noticeable in a class designed to teach a language to someone who is not a native speaker. It is up to the teacher to notice these differences in ability levels and restructure their lessons accordingly. There are a few different strategies that will help with gaps in ability levels, which consist of the use of different materials, providing the same materials with a different task, paring weak and strong students together, and even doing nothing. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Brook S. Please note that this blog post might not...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas According to David Crystal (1941), ‘Vocabulary is a matter of word-building as well as word-using.’ While this may be true and speaks to the fundamental usage of vocabulary in any language, vocabulary can also be seen as world-building. Vocabulary is ‘the body of words used in a particular language’ (Google, 2019). While the aforementioned clearly identify why it is important to teach vocabulary, this essay will try to explore it a bit further. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Rayon B. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Firstly, as stated in the introductory paragraph of this essay, vocabulary is the main aspect of any...  [Read more]

  Our next consideration is going to be building and maintaining rapport. The importance of rapport is that within our communicative activities, we're asking the students to talk to each other. If they feel comfortable with each other and with us, then that interaction is much more likely to be useful. So how do we actually build and maintain rapport? Well, it's easiest if we consider two stages of the course itself. What we can do at the start of the course and what we can do throughout the course to help build and maintain that rapport. So at the start of the course, it's very useful if we ask the students to create a name card and to make that name card visible to everyone. Secondly we need to try to do some ice breaking activities that will allow the students to interact with...  [Read more]

Karah Musani Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas I started teaching online two years ago. With no training, it was a bumpy start. If there is one thing I want you to take away from this post, it’s this: relax. It gets better. Be ok with not being great when you start. Teaching is a craft. No amount of school can fully prepare you to teach. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t study before you start teaching. Studying can help you be better equipped when you do start. But there is an intuition you have to develop when you begin teaching. You will learn with practice how to connect with your students, how to identify what areas they are struggling with, and how to best teach different concepts. Odds are, your first classes...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas If you think of Chinese ESL students it is safe to assume that most teachers would immediately worry about how they should teach phonics to Mandarin speakers. It is also true that the media has portrayed the Chinese accent as one of the most challenging to understand or even get rid of. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Graciela G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Usually, the first thing you will notice as an ESL teacher, speaking from experience, is the difficulty Chinese ESL students face when it comes to the pronunciation of certain English sounds. In this essay, I will address not only the most common but some of the most...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The introverted Nathaniel struggled immensely through primary, high school, college, and music school. His first battle was learning how to read. At this point, no one knew he possessed a learning difficulty. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Nathaniel F. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Although he had an impressive spoken vocabulary for a boy, when he looked at words on a page he could not match them to their sounds, therefore pronunciation was not possible. This struggle with phonetic decoding was overcome over a few years by reading books borrowed from the library, tracing the words with a finger while listening to the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Jeremy Harmer, in his book How to Teach English, discusses different learning styles of students. He states that everyone responds to stimuli like photos, pictures, sounds, music, and movement, but that some things stimulate student learning more than other things do. Harmer cites Richard Bandler and John Grinder’s neuro-linguistic programming theory which states that everyone has a preferred stimulus (e.g. visual, auditory, or kinesthetic) which they respond to above all others. Students who have a visual preference will remember things better if they see them. Those with an auditory preference are more likely to recall things they hear. Kinesthetic learners are influenced by activity and learn best when...  [Read more]