TEFL Fort Knox

  The next item that we're going to consider is the use of resource books. There are many different types of resource books available and within those books there tends to be a general pattern and typically the resource book pack will come in a three book series and typically that three book series will be in the form of the student book, a workbook and a teacher's resource book. So for example here are those three books for this particular series called ?Total English? and in the student book the type of information that we can gain from here is the actual background to the teaching points themselves plus some additional information in terms of short worksheets and so on and so forth and tape transcripts at the end for listening activities, which these days often come on a CD...  [Read more]

  And so on to the final phase of the ESA lesson, which is called the activate phase. What we have done so far, if you remember, is to engage the students, to get them talking and thinking in English, where possible we've elicited the teaching point from the students and covered any gaps in knowledge to make sure that the teaching point has been fully covered and then we've checked understanding of that teaching point by asking targeted and specific questions. Usually the types of activities that we've done for the study phase will involve using a single word in order to answer those questions correctly this, however, is not how language is actually used. When we use language, we always use it in some form of context. So the purpose of the activate activity is to put that teaching...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences After dedicating more than 3 years of my life to travel and seeing 60 beautiful countries across 6 continents around the world, I have come to realize that the English language is the missing link in what would bring people and nations together. It was at a hostel in Bosnia and Herzegovina sometime last year when I decided I wanted to teach English to people from different parts of the world. I was speaking to an American volunteer at the hostel and she had been teaching English for more than 2 years already. The first thing that attracted me about the profession was the fact that it was a great way to earn money remotely while traveling around the world. But what I later came to realize was that teaching...  [Read more]

  The 'going to' future tense is used to indicate future plans with intentions and predictions based on evidence. It is a very common future tense used in both spoken and written English. 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. Again, this unit is an upgrade from the previous ones. English is more complicated than I realized. There are so many rules and exceptions, unlike other languages. English is so very precise. I know English and I'm a little...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT TEFL Information Whether you want to teach as a volunteer in the depths of the jungle on the Thai-Myanmar border or as a business English instructor to corporate high-flyers in São Paulo, Brazil, you will need most likely need to meet some form of minimum requirement to get the dream job you are looking for. A TEFL qualification of at least 120 hours is becoming a minimum requirement for many teaching positions around the world. Even those places that do not require teachers to be certified at present will likely do so in the future. The best option is an in-class TEFL course with a practical teaching component. However, a quality online TEFL course will provided a solid grounding in language concepts and teaching theory. Also read: 10...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Games and fun activities are a vital part of teaching English as a foreign language. Whether you’re teaching adults or children, games will liven up your lesson and ensure that your students will leave the classroom wanting more. Games can be used to warm up the class before your lesson begins, during the lesson to give students a break when you’re tackling a tough subject, or at the end of class when you have a few minutes left to kill. There are literally hundreds, probably thousands, of games that you can play with your students. EFL games are used to test vocabulary, practice conversing, learn tenses - the list is endless. Also read: The 5 Best TEFL Games For Adult...  [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 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]

  In this TEFL review video Claire from Taiwan talks about her experiences completing ITTT's 120 hour TEFL/TESOL online course. She successfully completed the course with the tutor support option. 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. This unit was about past tenses. It was kind of confusing because some of the questions seemed to be complicated to know which group it should go into; past simple, past perfect, past continuous, or past perfect...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word variety. This word is used as a noun and describes a state of being different or diverse. The words diversity and variation can be used as synonyms for variety. The word comes from the Latin word varietas. 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. I have learned the different types of tests to know the level of their students. The progress tests is given to in four types of tests like...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word mugwump. This word is a noun and refers to a person who remains independent, especially from politc parties. This word comes from the Algonquian native peoples in Canada. It has been used in English since the 19th century. 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. In this unit I was able to see some dos and don'ts. The lesson was pretty straight forward. I was able to see what some acronyms stand...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word nepotism. This word refers to people in power favoring and giving powerful positions to friends or family. Some synonyms of the word include favoritism, bias, partiality, or partisanship. 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. this unit is basically about productive skills which are Speaking and writing, and the purpose of speaking and writing which is for communication. learnt the guideline...  [Read more]

  Did you know that you can complete an ITTT online course in the comfort of your own home and at your own pace? In this TEFL review video George talks about his experiences as an ITTT online student. ITTT offers a variety of TEFL/TESOL online courses. For example, for teachers who are considering working with younger students, ITTT offers the Certificate in Teaching English to Young Learners. Young learners can be one of the most rewarding of all groups to teach and ITTT's course will provide you with the tools to be an effective classroom teacher. To find out more about this course and other TEFL courses ITTT offers simply follow the links above. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences Throughout my ITTT TEFL course a specific teaching concept persisted, entitled “ESA”. This methodology has been proven over several years to be effective in teaching English to students in the classroom. A precursor to this concept was “PPP” (Presentation, Practice, Production) which has been used by many teachers, though it lacks in engaging the students resulting in a less successful environment. Jeremy Harmer noticed this and in turn put forth a new and improved model, labeled “ESA”, consisting of three steps; Engage, Study, and Activate. This methodology has continued to remain relevant to this day through its flexible and fluid approach to teaching English. This post was written by our TEFL...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The Cambridge English Dictionary defines the word “hindsight” as “the ability to understand an event or situation only after it has happened.” That is why people tell you that “hindsight is a perfect science.” So with the benefit of hindsight and looking back after completing some 220 hours of TEFL training, I see that there are, indeed, several things that I wish that I had known before starting the course, both on the positive and the negative sides. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Desmond V. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Let me start with the positives. First and foremost, I wish that I had come across...  [Read more]

  The purpose of grammar translation then is to basically translate between L1 and L2 and vice versa. So, we could take a simple example. Let's imagine that our native language was English and our target language was French and let's assume that we want to translate a document from French into English. Let's take a simple sentence. Here's a sentence in French "Ouvre la fenêtre" and we'll add "s'il vous plaît" at the end. What we want to do is to take this L2 and translate it back into English. Now, if we have a reasonable knowledge of French then we may well know that this particular verb "ouvre" "to open" translates directly and this female form of the and finally the fenêtre "Open the window" and this polite form of "please". This is all very well if the two structures that...  [Read more]

  In this TEFL review video another TEFL/TESOL student shares some of her experiences as a student with ITTT completing the four week in-class course. Gaining a TEFL certification from ITTT is the first step towards an exciting and rewarding experience teaching English overseas. During your training course you will have the opportunity to meet and study with people from all over the world. Our trainees come from a variety of backgrounds and age groups. 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...  [Read more]

  Tori is an American living in Japan. Tori took the 120-hour online TEFL course and in this TEFL review, she discusses her experience of teaching English in Japan and studying with ITTT. Teaching English in Japan has challenged Tori to think about the English language in ways she may not have previously considered and by taking the course with ITTT she has been able to better understand ways of explaining things to students in a clear and simple manner. 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...  [Read more]

  The two most common usages for the present continuous tense as it relates to speaking about things in the present. We have actions in progress at the time of speaking, specifically right when it's being said. So I can say ?I am teaching right now.? However, we also have actions in progress around the time of speaking. ?I'm reading a good book.? Now, of course I'm not reading a book just now but I started reading a book in the past I am reading it perhaps today sometime and I'll finish reading the book at some point in the future. Again, I'm not doing it just now but around the time of speaking. 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...  [Read more]

  Olga form Russia took the 120-hour online course with ITTT and is now teaching English in China. In this TEFL review video Olga gives us brief look at one of her classes. The students are studying animal vocabulary and are obviously enjoying themselves. 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. This unit seemed very logical, where all the questions seemed to follow logical thinking. That being said, I should keep looking into the unit to absorb all the...  [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 Alumni Experiences A lesson plan is a teacher working document which serves as a step by step guide that provides a detailed description of a course or what the students are supposed to learn and how effectively it can be done during lesson time. Over time there have been lots of description as to what a lesson plan should look like or how a lesson could be planed. It is very important to plan a lesson because it is very difficult for inexperienced teachers to be flexible in a lesson without a teaching guide. However, planning a lesson should be carefully done so as to avoid making the teacher less flexible to meet up with the needs of the students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Mireille L. N. We...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas There are many important things to remember as a TEFL teacher if you're going to have a successful class and satisfied students, but perhaps the most important thing that could determine whether or not your class will fail or succeed and that is, of course, establishing a good rapport between you and your students the minute they walk in that door for the first time. It's very important that students feel comfortable, safe, welcomed, appreciated, encouraged, excited, and that they're treated with the utmost respect as their desire to learn will be greatly increased as they become more inclined to stay in your class and learn. There are several ways of achieving this that every TEFL teacher should know how to...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. I love learning new things; my thirst for knowledge has always seemingly been unquenched and I have always been excited to share that passion with others. What's more, my love for world cultures and the history of diverse peoples drove me into a career in education. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Melissa T. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I have been teaching 10th grade World History now for seven years in a suburban high school in Fort Worth, Texas. I am truly passionate about education, and although I don't claim to be an expert, I have picked up some...  [Read more]

Shirin Sophy TEFL Information Teaching Ideas Second or foreign language learning, which appears to be an ever-present hurdle for many, has constantly been a topical issue with numerous Hypotheses centered around it, including language acquisition theory or monitor model with its sweeping effects on language learning in classrooms around the world. This well-known theory, first presented by Stephen Krashen in the 1970s, is initially based on six Hypotheses ( The Acquisition-Learning Hypothesis, the Natural Order Hypothesis, the Monitor Hypothesis, the Input Hypothesis, the Affective Filter Hypothesis, and the Reading Hypothesis) that will be discussed in this article. According to Krashen, in terms of foreign language...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Many people choose teaching as a profession but not all of them feel comfortable and confident in the classroom. Unfortunately, students notice this lack of confidence quickly and once they do, they lose their trust in the teacher. As teachers, we all want to have successful and engaging lessons which give us confidence. Thus we can say confidence and effective lessons are interrelated. Confidence breeds effective lessons and effective lessons boost our confidence. Anyhow, confidence is not gained immediately after a teacher enters a classroom. This may take time to build and for this one should be very hardworking and persistent, because if after several lessons you feel your...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Language is a medium of communication that helps to express our feelings, desires, and queries to the world around us. The ability to use language distinguishes humans from other animals and when we know a language, we can speak and be understood by others who know that language. Effective communication requires an understanding and recognition of the connection between a language and the people who use it. The ability to use a language requires profound knowledge that most speakers don't know that they know. Language is considered to be an infinite set of well-formulated sentences and it can be deduced by the grammar. Hence grammars are the theories of language composed of hypotheses of the structure of some part...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences In recent years, the most popular destination for EFL teachers all over the world has been China. China is the country welcoming many foreign teachers, native and non-native, and is probably the country with the most rapid development of the English teaching industry. Online teaching has become just as important as face to face teaching and has been a teacher for an online company for a long time, I have experienced a variety of students, levels, and groups. Therefore, in this essay, I will write about the most common problems Chinese students face and some ways of dealing with them. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Aleksandra Đ. If you are ever in China, you will notice that you will...  [Read more]

Kimberley Dale Visa and Legal TEFL Information Signing any contract can be daunting. However, if you know what to look out for as you go through the papers you have no need to be scared. We have compiled a checklist for you to keep with you as you read through your contract: Those are the most important things you will need to look out for. There are a few things you should also keep in mind when signing your contract: Even after going through the contract with the checklist above, get someone you trust to read through it before you sign it. You will sign two contracts: one before you leave for China and one when you arrive in China – please make sure that these two contracts are identical and that no facts have changed. If...  [Read more]

Joanna Dineva Teaching Ideas Like it or not, ready or not, English is the global language of business. Globalization in business is widespread both in market globalization and production globalization. More importantly, more and more multinational companies are mandating English as the common corporate language—Airbus, Daimler-Chrysler, Fast Retailing, Nokia, Renault, Samsung, SAP, Technicolor, and Microsoft in Beijing, to name a few. This corporate strategy of adopting a global language policy has also increased the demand for a specialized English teacher: The Business English Teacher. Believe it or not, a Business English teacher does not need to be an expert businessman or businesswoman. Most of the language needed for business...  [Read more]