What is Formative Assessment? Formative assessment is a range of procedures conducted by teachers that monitor student learning during the learning process. These procedures have a dual purpose: To help teachers check student progress and recognise where their...

Let’s face it, having to write an essay for most people is a daunting prospect, even if it’s in your first language, let alone trying to write one in your second language. There are a number of barriers for ESL students to overcome that native speakers don’t have to...

Do you remember your high school years? For many of us, the events that stick out weren’t that important in the big scheme of things – just some kind of nonsense that went on every single day.  Even if you played no part in the drama, you wanted the inside scoop – who...

Anyone who gets into English Language Teaching doesn’t do it for the money. There are lots of jobs out there that pay a lot, lot more. So why do we do it? For a lot of instructors, teaching ESL students isn’t just a job, it’s a vocation, a calling. We’re not just...

In the vast majority of ESL/EFL schools you’ll teach at and classrooms you’ll teach in, there will be a syllabus or curriculum to follow with at least one key textbook. And this textbook will provide the bulk of the learning materials you’ll use to instruct your...

No English language teacher gets into this profession for the money. Every language teacher I’ve ever met gets job satisfaction from seeing their students succeed, rather than through fancy perks and golden parachutes. But even the most dedicated and empathetic...

In staffrooms all over the world, English language teachers debate how they can best help their students to acquire English proficiency. How can I create a great lesson plan? What’s the best way to motivate students? How much homework is the right amount and what kind...

With all of the different options available, it can be confusing for English language teachers to decide on which teaching methodology or approach to use in the classroom. It can even get even more confusing in trying to understand the difference between a method and...

Task-based Learning (TBL), or from the teaching perspective Task-based Teaching (TBT), is a methodology that rectifies a common, yet serious problem in today’s English language teaching classrooms.  Many English as a Second Language (ESL) and English as a Foreign...

Being a good English language teacher starts with passion – a passion for the importance of learning, and being enthusiastic about sharing that passion in the classroom. It’s about having a sense of achievement when you can help your students achieve their English...