In this course I’d learned that an effective language lesson requires the following:

1)      Preparation.

Teacher should have a good knowledge of the language and model the usage appropriately. I must get familiar with the material to teach as much as possible. Nothing can be worse than teaching from something that I’m not familiar with.

2)      Interaction.

Learning a language in communicative way is the most natural. The interaction between teacher and Ss and that among Ss are essential for classroom teaching. If there is lack of interaction, i.e. Ss are not participating actively, the class becomes a lecture which is one-way communication and the lesson is not effective at all.

3)      Creativity.

Creative activities can brighten the whole class. Teaching or learning could be such a fun process. It’s a wise way to spend time in creative activities while teaching/learning a language.

4)      Awareness of Students’ needs.

This course made me rethink the ways of spotting the needs and wants of Ss. At the end of the day, it’s Ss who are learning the language and the result product of such learning is put into test in real life.

In my short period of time working as English teacher in year 2010, I worked with teenagers (intermediate) and working adults (beginners), helping them prepare for the TOEFL or IELTS exam. All lessons I taught in this case were very practical and focusing on specific purpose. By doing that, I gained some good experience in balancing the skills: Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. Although at that time I never thought of teaching English in term of linguistic study, I found the learner’s experience on 2^nd language very beneficial. Basically, I learned how to learn the language again from my Ss!

In years of volunteer work (kind of hobby for myself), I got involved in activities with children and quite often I worked with kids on English learning. They are special groups, such as after-school care group of primary school students in community centre; most of them are from problem families. My main task has been making the learning fun and rising the kids’ interest in learning English. The effort has been paid off! And during the TEFL training I discover more possibilities on working with young learners. To be frank, playing with kids, I feel most relaxing.

Assumption about teaching has never changed in my mind: I’m a helper to the learners. All I can do is to help the learners discover their own paths of progressing.