TEFL Wisdom

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Being a teacher is an art that should be learned with a lot of patience, devotion and a great wish. It should embrace many years of constant self – development, training, willingness for knowledge, stable mind and character. It is an interesting profession that takes time and experience to achieve and accomplish. It is not only about finishing a degree in teaching, but it is also a psychological lifetime training. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Tatiana P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. As a teacher, I can state that working with people is interesting and difficult at the same time, especially when it comes to teaching....  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Stories are universal. They have existed in every culture and every period is known to modern man. From Neolithic cave art to Homer and from Virgil to Dostoevsky, humanity has been enthralled with stories. The most successful speakers constantly engage in bard-like tale-bearing, and, oftentimes, the songs that most resonate with listeners follow a story arch—albeit loosely. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ryan S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Total enthrallment with television and movies proves this theory to be true beyond a shadow of a doubt. People like stories; mankind loves them. It is for these reasons that...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas A book is an important source of knowledge and “knowledge is power”. There is no doubt that reading is beneficial to everyone. Shakespeare said, “Book is the nourishment of the world, life without books, as if the earth without sunshine; wisdom without books, just as birds without winds”. Reading builds a good foundation to improve both speaking and writing skills since the more we read the more vocabulary we have available for us to use when we speak or write. This way we could better express our thoughts. Also, the more we read, the broader our knowledge base, and thus the more resources we have when we are dealing with problems. Francis Bacon said, “Reading gives a person with pleasure, give a person...  [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]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences English is learned and spoken by a large number of people worldwide. In Shakespeare's time, the number of English speakers in the world is thought to have been between five and seven million. According to linguist David Crystal, "Between the end of the reign of Elizabeth I (1603) and the beginning of the reign of Elizabeth II (1952), this figure increased almost fiftyfold, to around 250 million" (The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, 2003). It's a common language used in international business, which makes it a popular second language for many. English as a global language has made it impossible for cultural diversity to develop. English is easy to learn, has a high usage rate, is universal in...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences It has been the most extraordinary experience in developing my skills as a teacher. My own personal philosophy is that life has no finish line, it’s just a struggle uphill were you are continually overcoming adversity and constantly improving. This philosophy applies to many facets of life but few things better than the art of teaching. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Jack W. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I think of the great teachers that I have had. I think of their various breadths of experience. To be sure some are born with a natural talent, a knack as it were, to teach and connect with pupils, but some of the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas This course has introduced me to various aspects regarding the role of a teacher. I have learned so many new things and have been introduced to numerous new ideas which sparked my interest and gave me a newfound appreciation for what it is like to be a teacher. Even though the course is concise and simple, the information which it provided was really helpful and practical and it has given me a great set of tools which will be a great help for me as I embark on this career. It also serves as a good reference point whenever I feel the need for some guidance especially when I am just starting in my teaching journey. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Zaid A. Please note that this blog post might...  [Read more]

Catia Pereira dos Santos Teaching Ideas What kind of teacher do you want to become? Can you picture it in your mind? Well, I did it! When I first started my journey as a Portuguese and English online tutor, I asked myself this question and it landed me on a few ideas which are also present over some units of the ESL teachers course. I've been a student for a while, and I am still today. This year, I merged in the education field, taken this bright decision had brought me a lot of joy. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Catia P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. During my TEFL/TESOL teacher course lessons, I recognized some of the do's and don't's of my past...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Children are the future, our future, the generation that will take the world, and all it encompasses the next age of the world; whatever that may be. Children are the future. This phrase is repeated all around the world, in different countries, continents, and even across the vast array of cultures that exist on planet Earth. One would be hard-pressed to find any one person who would disagree with this statement. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Nisaa S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. What, then, do we do about this? We educate them, we teach them all we know, share all the knowledge and information that we have accumulated...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas After the completion of the online TEFL and TESOL, the summative task comes to support our score in one of the topics that the candidate has chosen among 149 topics. As a new teacher, we are more interested in the students’ reactions to our course to create a good and happy learning atmosphere as well as the good establishment of the relationship between the teacher and students. This approach also raises some important questions that one has to try to answer for a better understanding of teaching new languages to students. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Matty A. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. ‘The theory of multiple...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas It refers to the reasonable combination and application of skills and skills formed by a teacher in the long-term classroom teaching practice, reflecting the consistent and stable psychological quality of teaching. Each teacher has her or his unique style, that developed through time. Throughout teacher users' different teaching styles to make an expression on their students and hope for his or her students to learn the best of knowledge. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Ramy M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. This kind of style is mainly manifested in the following aspects: the teacher's lecture is simple, clear, analytical,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Pablo Picasso once said: “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” Teaching is so much different from many other professions that it would be difficult to define it in its entirety in a few pages of text. A surgeon is skillful in what he does and even though he or she may explain the procedure to a patient, the patient is only interested in one thing and that is to know that everything will be alright after the surgery. The patient may have some understanding of what the surgeon will do, but will never be able to use or repeat the procedure except to remember what had taken place. An experienced motor mechanic may be capable of resolving issues with a vehicle...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Reading is a skill that people should acquire from early childhood. A book is a treasure that produces inspiration, strong knowledge, morality, and pleasure. This activity stimulates people to shape their personality, nurture their character, and create a particular set of precious values and principles to guide them in life. Reading books continually determines people to discover themselves better, perceive the environment appropriately they live in, and understand the people and events around them. It makes people rich spiritually and contributes to the formation of a healthy and solid personality. Once they comprehend the circumstances of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Reading skills are something that people should acquire from early childhood. A book is a treasure that produces inspiration, strong knowledge, morality, and pleasure. This activity stimulates people to shape their personality, nurture their character, and create a particular set of precious values and principles to guide them in life. Reading books continually determines people to discover themselves better, perceive the environment appropriately they live in, and understand the people and events around them. It makes people rich spiritually and contributes to the formation of a healthy and stable personality. Once they comprehend the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Teachers create the basis of education, which is the key to a healthy and strong society. They are the people who cultivate and develop the most precious values in students such as generosity, courage, confidence, morality, wisdom, and gratitude. These virtues have to be constantly nurtured being perceived and acquired in time. A successful teacher inspires students to love learning and also to produce admirable things. To perform this mission, they have to possess a multitude of personal qualities to consolidate their personality as language teachers. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Eliza C. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences When I was younger, I had a dog that played fetch, walked to the park, and learned new tricks with me. Over time, we created a bond that was irreplaceable and unconditional. One day my dog passed away and three weeks later, my family and I decided to get a new dog. This new dog was friendly at first but hardly wanted to learn anything new. However, I was quite distant from the new dog, to begin with, because I always thought about the good times I had with my previous dog. Afterward, I realized that I needed to move on and create a new bond which I then remembered how my previous dog and I became best friends and how we both learned from each other. It was a high relaxed positive energy, spending a good amount...  [Read more]

Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences It was the last day of Japanese class and my teacher’s last day of teaching at our school. We were all standing up getting ready to bow him one last time. It was dead quiet but I could still hear sniffles around me and felt the sadness of the moment. I never thought I would care so much about a teacher leaving. To this day, the words and wisdom my Japanese teacher taught me still ring in my head. Flash forward to a few years ago, I went to Japan for the first time, after a hiatus of not studying Japanese, but amazingly I still had all the skills my teacher had taught me in high school. How did this person have such an impact on me? The answer I have come to realize is that because he truly cared about me becoming...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The teaching techniques and approaches, as well as activities that teachers employ in teaching in the classroom, is known as teaching style (Cooper, 2001). Grasha (2002) defines teaching style as the continuous and steady actions of teachers in their relationship with students in the course of teaching-and-learning. Jarvis (2004) considers teaching style as containing “evidence of beliefs about values related to and attitudes toward all the elements of the teaching-learning exchange" (p. 40). Teachers' styles of teaching represent their behavior in the classroom. These definitions indicate that teaching styles are the methods, activities, and approaches that are employed by a teacher in the classroom or “the...  [Read more]

Shirin Sophy TEFL Information Teaching Ideas The fact that nowadays, the ESA method is conventional wisdom among all the English teachers around the world highly simplifies and standardizes the process of preparation and lesson planning, specifically for those who are at the beginning of their career path as a teacher. This method simply suggests that every lesson needs to be started with an engagement stage in which the teacher aims to attract students' attention in order to encourage and enhance their active participation during the lesson. Furthermore, the recent textbooks' content is mostly designed based on the ESA method, and there are manifold attractive engagement ideas included in them that teachers can take advantage...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Second language acquisition depends on the interpersonal relationship) between teacher-student as well as student-student. These interpersonal relationships are based on rapport, which is defined as ”a mutual, respectful, enjoyable, and positive connection” (Frisby, 2018). There are two quotes that reflect this. First, Aristotle stated, “educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” Second, Confucius stated, “By three methods we may learn wisdom; First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is bitterest. These quotes highlight the need for rapport. This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate William...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Reading is a skill that people should acquire from early childhood. A book is a treasure that produces inspiration, strong knowledge, morality, and pleasure. This activity stimulates people to shape their personality, to nurture their character, and to create a particular set of precious values and principles that will guide them in life. Reading books continually determines people to discover themselves better, to perceive appropriately the environment they live in, and to understand the people, events that happen around them. It makes people rich spiritually and contributes to the formation of a healthy and solid personality. Once they comprehend the circumstances of their living medium, people can construct...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences A resource I found invaluable for this essay was the website Cyborlink (2019a), a reference provided in the TEFL Young Learners course (ITTT, 2019). The TEFL course (Unit 6) discusses how cultural considerations are important when teaching abroad. This includes cultural sensitivity when interacting with the young learners themselves, as well as in interacting with parents and school staff (administration/teachers). 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. Cyborlink is aimed at a more general audience of people doing business in other cultures, though of course has implications for TEFL...  [Read more]