Tefl Certification Grade Levels

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas There are many things I have learned over my thirty-plus years teaching students full time in classrooms, ranging from primary grades 2-5 and in junior high and high school. However, one of the most crucial things a teacher needs in the face of young and older learners is confidence! If the students suspect that the teacher has no idea what they are doing, it can be detrimental to the lesson and the teacher's ability to control the classroom situation. Having a confident teacher brings positivity to the classroom and comfort among the students that they are going to learn something valuable. Throughout my career, I wore many hats to grow...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences Teaching classes containing a wide variety of ages can be a great challenge. I have recently experienced such challenge. Below I am going to share my teaching experience and how I managed to overcome the difficulties. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Yan Z. In Spring this year, I was asked to teach an English Drama class in a children’s training center. Before the class started, the students were recruited and assigned by the center, which was not in my control. There were 12 elementary-school students in the class. Students were age-mixed, ranging from 7 years to 12 years old. Two thirds of the students were from Grades 1-3 and one third were from Grade 4-6. In order for the younger students...  [Read more]

Prachi and Morgan from AlienEating Destinations Alumni Experiences Teaching. It's frustrating, exhausting, and a whole lot of kid wrangling. It's also rewarding, eye-opening and will give you more patience than you ever thought possible. I had no idea how much went into this job. One day when I'm in Forbes 30 Under 30, I'm going to personally send a tower of Ferrero Rocher to every teacher in the world. This job is a huge responsibility and it's more difficult than I ever imagined. I urge everyone to dip a toe into the teaching world at least once. I've taught English in South Korea for two years now in both the open countryside and bustling city. It may not seem like there's too much of a difference, but there are a few things...  [Read more]

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Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching does not begin or end in the classroom. Because of that, teachers admittedly need help in developing a child’s level of knowledge. The biggest ally or obstacle to an instructor is a child’s parents. While a supportive parent can help reinforce the work that a teacher is doing, negative influence by a parent, and hinder a child’s learning just as much. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Derek G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. According to PBS (2012), there are several ways that parents can contribute to their child’s learning experience. One possibility is to lead by example. A parent can play a helpful role in...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The popular saying which states: never judge a book by the cover has once again reminded me to always be optimistic about a new experience. Before I entered the school I had already concluded what a bad experience it would be in this new environment which I would pass on numerous occasions and hear different external noises coming from inside of the school, I imagined how hard the job of a teacher could be. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Chantal S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. On Monday, September 3, 2018, the first day upon entering the second gate I was led by the security to a teacher namely Ms. Hamilton. She was...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Most lucky people have had one or two teachers who inspired them to be better in both their educational careers and in their personal lives. Depending on the number of students a school has any teacher has the opportunity to be that “special teacher” for a student because every student is different, so teachers should always be looking for new ways to motivate their students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sean M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Motivation in the classroom is integral to a student’s success in their educational career. If a student is not motivated to achieve their goals then they will not apply...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In Japan, elementary schools typically employ an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) to provide support to homeroom teachers during English classes. I have been working in such a capacity for the past two and a half years, first through an international program and currently as a direct-hire via my local city hall. Until recently, mandatory English classes at the elementary school level have been limited to the fifth and sixth grades, but new national requirements are being rolled out that will require mandatory English classes as early as third grade while doubling English classroom hours for the fifth and sixth grades. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Rodica C. Please note that this blog...  [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 I have been teaching English in Taiwan at a local elementary school, grades 1-6 with three different co-teachers since the end of August 2018. One of the biggest challenges I have faced so far is the fact that each student is very different, and all have different learning abilities and struggles with learning English. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Aria T. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. There are many different reasons why students may be reluctant to learn English or why they are struggling as a few units explained. Often, students are fearful of making mistakes and lack confidence in the classroom. This is something I...  [Read more]

  In this TESOL review video Tivity talks about how she benefitted from taking one of ITTT's online TESOL courses with tutor support. For Tivity the most useful parts of the course were the sections on English grammar and classroom management. 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 grips with each section before moving onto the next. We learnd about different ways of evaluating students' levels and progress,as well as some of the common external exams that we may need to prepare our students...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences What do you think of when I say the word “teacher”? When I think of this word, I think of the “teacher when I was a child. The person who talked and I listened. The person who gave me instructions and I followed. I think in today’s environment this word has changed. What does the word “teacher” mean today? We’ll look at what the roles of a teacher are in today’s ESL world in Japan, where I’ve taught for over 14 years. We use many synonyms for the term “teacher”. In elementary schools, junior high schools, and high schools in Japan we use the term “ALT” (assistant language teacher) or “AET” (assistant English teacher). In business courses, we use the word “instructor”. In...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Phonemics according to the Merriam Webster dictionary is a branch of linguistic analysis that consists of the study of phonemes. In other words, it could be explained as the study of the sound system of a given language and the analysis and classification of its phonemes. Phonemics awareness, on the other hand, is the ability to examine language independently to its meaning and to manipulate its component sound[1]. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Lystra H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. It could also mean the ability to notice, think about and work with the individual sounds in spoken words and further manipulate the...  [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]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas As someone who has been to school in the USA and China, I’ve experienced the difference between student motivation in both countries. From this experience, I’ve concluded how to better motivate students in the classroom. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate JongMay U. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. In the U.S. students are quite vocal about their thoughts and ideas at a young age, teachers encourage classroom discussions, and in higher grade levels teachers often encourage students to “prove them wrong”. If a student has a thought or idea that differs from the teachers, they are mostly encouraged to seek the truth and...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Twenty years ago as an elementary school principal in a large inner-city school district, the staff and I took great pride in creating what we considered to be an exemplary high-technology school. We believed that technology could serve as an excellent tool for children to develop critical thinking and deductive reasoning skills, deeper conceptual understanding, and the ability to communicate their understanding to others. This new paradigm was called inquiry-based information shifting teaching from a teacher-directed approach to a student-centered approach where the students acquired the skills necessary to access and use information. Of the many new initiatives, we started at this elementary school was a...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas No enterprise or activity can be said to be successful or to have failed in life without some forms of standards against which the goals and objectives of the activity are measured and assessed. This also applies to the activity of teaching and learning in the classroom, where the learning goals are assessed and evaluated during and after the activity and at the end of a specific period. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Fidelis O. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Tests are a measure of the level of skill and knowledge that has been acquired in the course of a teaching and learning exercise. Quizzes, multiple-choice questions...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Change is coming to the way that English is taught in Japanese public schools. The changes to the curriculum by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT) increase the teaching of English at all levels of schooling. The goal of this change is, in the words of Ikuko Tsuboya-Newel, founder and chair of Tokyo International School, “The government has decided that beginning in 2020 all high school graduates must achieve a level of English equivalent to B1” (“Why do Japanese have trouble learning English?”, The Japan Times, October 29, 2017). To achieve that goal, high school entrance exams are expected to include more testing of productive skills in English. Therefore, junior...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences When I hear the term role, I often think of a theatrical production. Which role is so and so playing? “What has to do they wear?” is another question for what the teacher does in and out of the classroom. Regardless of the term, I believe the answers are numerous. The teacher must fill many functions. Most of these roles will stay the same regardless of the age of the students, whether they are clients in a mandatory English class paid for by their company or a classroom full of elementary students in a US public school setting. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Bill C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. To convey...  [Read more]

  http://www.teflonline.net The teaching ideas in these ITTT videos are intended to be used in the Activate stage of a lesson. During this stage students are encouraged to use the language as freely and communicatively as possible. The focus is more on the fluency than on the accuracy of the language. When selecting any activity it is important to ensure that the timing is appropriate and that the activity is appropriate for the students' age, language levels, class size, interests and culture. The video looks at one of three teaching ideas for Present Simple. The activity is called "Find someone who...." Each student will be given a sheet with a number of facts/habits/routines. For example ...plays a musical instrument,.....does a lot of sport, ....has a brother and a sister. ...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Testing and evaluating a class is an extremely important aspect of teaching. It allows the teacher to examine each student’s progress and decide how to best help them to continue to move forward. In addition to this, it allows students to receive feedback on their progress, which can boost student’s self-confidence and motivation. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Daniel D. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. This paper will firstly examine the different methods a teacher can use to effectively evaluate the class’s progress and levels of understanding, as well as provide constructive feedback to the class so that students can...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences French are bad at speaking English, it’s a fact, proven by many studies but also by the shameful spectacle of our politician trying to say things in Shakespeare’s language. The Elite not having a decent level it is hard to blame the population for not trying very hard. International studies are all putting French students at the last position in Europe for mastering English skills. Even more alarming in 2008 the TOEFL results were putting France at the 69th rank on 109 countries. In 9th Grade, only 14% of the students have an “independent level” according to a 2011 study of the European Commission (we also note that only 9% of English 9 graders are “independent” in French). This post was written by...  [Read more]

Federico Riva Teaching Ideas Learning foreign languages is a very exciting and very responsible deal. A significant role in teaching foreign languages, in particular, English, belongs to games in the classroom. Games enhance students' mental activity, helps them consolidate material of the lesson, therefore it’s a very important activity. The developing value of the game we can find in itself, because where is a game - there is emotion. Where is emotion, there are attention improvisation and imagination. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ivan S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. There can be different usage of the game - it can be entertaining, training aims...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Any action performed by living beings is supported by a motive. In humans, we are driven by motivators unique to each one of us; without this motivation, our goals and desires remain unaccomplished. There are different types of motivators both internal and external that of which directly impact second language acquisition in the classroom. In this setting both parents and teachers alike play a pivotal role in motivating students, thus enabling their success in second language learning. This essay will outline how motivation, both intrinsic and extrinsic, affects students in the language learning classroom and how a teacher may establish motivation in students. This post was written by our TEFL certification...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas When a new teacher goes into a classroom for the first time they are confronted with the reality of human students, rather than what they have learned about teaching from a book. Often what they find is that much of what goes on does not necessarily follow their carefully planned lesson, as real life and the unpredictability of human nature can get in the way. Perhaps only after a couple semesters of experience can a teacher really figure out what to do with all levels of students to help build self-confidence in a skillful manner. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Anita B. One thing that a seasoned professional often discovers early on in their career is...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The teaching of business English by definition means that your students/clients will be adults. English is the modern language of business. As markets have become global, businesses at all levels have had to adapt and train their staff in English usage, both written and spoken. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Jessica H. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. When teaching Business English, you do not need to be a specialist in any particular business field to be able to teach, though a working knowledge of general business terminology will be very beneficial and may assist in many ways for both the student and teacher. Most of the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas When teaching Business English, it is important to tailor lessons to the maturity and ability of the class. Essential to any lesson is the course materials to be used by both the teacher and the students. By tailoring these course materials to be more relevant to the Business English students, the teacher will hopefully gain a greater level of interest and create a better learning environment. To assist with a teacher with the style and type of course materials to be used with a specific Business English class there are several things the teacher could do. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Peter O. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate BUSAYO J. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Planning our teaching “backward” from desired performances on rich, authentic tasks helps teachers focus on what matters most. With this performance orientation, teachers are less likely to simply march through lists of content objectives or pages in a textbook, or to have their students complete worksheets on discrete skills. When genuine performance is the goal, we can emulate the practices of effective coaches and sponsors of extra-curricular activities by following a general instructional process like the following: * Once the performance task...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Formal English education first took root in Japan with the creation of the first English schools in 1865 and has since steamrolled into an aggressive effort by the government to produce an English-proficient population. The Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (JET) was established to introduce native speakers into English classrooms, and English instruction continues to become mandatory for increasingly younger students in primary schools. Despite these efforts, an English Proficiency Index conducted by the organization English First gave Japan a “low proficiency” score, with the island country lagging not just the multicultural countries of Singapore and Malaysia but also its East Asian neighbors China...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Nothing ever comes to be without being created first. The same can be said for any lesson, without creating the materials to be used in the lesson it would be difficult for any teacher to deliver their intended lesson to students. Then one would ask the question of why is it important to create and adapt teaching materials if some already exist.in as much as using already available materials saves time and expense, it is not always effective because the materials not be intended for that specific target group and would not deliver the intended impact if not hinder it all together. Therefore materials need adjusting or adapting them to suit the requirements of the students. This post was written by our TEFL...  [Read more]