Dear all,
my name is Anggun and surrently i am an in-company English trainer for a multinational company. I have no former experience in this field, though i had been teaching english for younger learners few years ago. I wonder if there is anyone can give me inputs and knowledge on how to make syllabus and present the material for my students who are much much older than me. I am afraid they underestimate because of my age. I want to present the material without making them bored.
There is a suggestion to make a needs analysis. But i am confused about the format, the parameter, and the measurement. Or on the other hand, i have to start it from the scratch. Can anyone please give me some information about this issue? Thank you.
Anggun
Comments
DIM
Dear Anggun,
Welcome to this site! You will find lots of marvellous things here, as I have done. I visit the site daily. Read my blog!! When setting up your in-house training, I would recommend the following:
Remember that the company is investing money (your fee) and the students' time in this project and they quite simply want a return on the investment. So the important thing is to be professional in how you work AND in how your students are made to work, too. Here are some points to help you here - and they will also give you more authority. Remember, you are the expert on English and your age is not relevant for this!
Start off with a placement test (There are lots of free ones on the Web) and divide the students into groups of not more that 15-20 according to ability. Decide on a time for the lessons for each group. Make sure you have a suitable room to teach in (provided by the company). Make sure your lessons will not be interrupted. Expect and enforce punctuality. Make the students sign an attendance sheet every time they come and pass the sheet on to the HR department of the firm every month or so. Those who do not come regularly can be told to leave the course. Insist on written apologies if a student cannot come. Give homework every time and mark it before the next lesson.
Use a Business English coursebook for the level your students are at and then you won't need a syllabus - unless they have to learn special vocabulary etc. Usually the things they will need (writing business letters, telephoning, conversation,etc. )will be covered in an interesting way in the book, so do not worry about motivation too much. Give the students tests to show them how they are improving. They could even take external exams like the Cambridge BEC ones if they are good enough.
You could make up a little questionnaire for your students to find out what their needs are, in what fields they will be using English etc. and hand it out in the first lesson.
These were just some tips to get you going. Let me know if you need more help.
Best wishes from Diana
P.S. Are you a lady or a gentleman?
Anggun
Hi again,
I am a female, Diana
There is a suggestion from a friend of mine saying that for in-company training, homework isn't recommendable because they have already been busy with their own job. How do you see this opinion?
And how long ideally each session should take place?
Since most of the students are way older than me, i am afraid that they take me for granted. They don't respect me as they're supposed to be. Do you have any tips on this issue?
Thank you so much for your suggestion.
DIM
Dear Anggun,
I hope that some other bloggers will also write to you as I haven't been teaching in companies for very long, so I'm really not the greatest of experts. But from my limited experience, the best (and only) way to earn respect from your students, who as you say are senior to you and possibly quite high up in the company heirarchy and perhaps also male - which does make a difference in your culture, I'm sure - , is to base your authority on what you can do and not so much on who you are. You are the expert on English, that is why you are being hired. You do not need to know anything about the company or about how to do business, but you must be good at English!
Is it possible for you to conduct your lessons entirely or almost so in English? Then it will be easy for you to keep the upper hand. If a senior member of staff says something in English and there is an error in it, then you MUST tell him, but tactfully, of course. You don't want him to lose face, but he needs to know where his English is in need of improvement. In this situation you are automatically in charge, even if your "student" happens to be the Managing Director of your firm. Teaching English is your task and you will be respected for carrying it out. You decide what materials to use and what is to happen each lesson. The only other thing that might help is to make sure you are correctly dressed (= in a serious, business-like way).
About the homework : Of course your students will moan if you give them extra tasks, but you must explain that it is the only way for them to get on. And from a psychological point of view, they will realise that you "mean business". One way to motivate them is to give them easy tasks, such as re-doing an exercise in writing that you have already done orally in class. Or you make it something "fun" such as asking them to send each other an email in English. Personally, I prefer everyone to do a short, easy piece of homework that takes, say, 30 minutes rather than only half the class to attempt a difficult one of 60 minutes.
About scheduling the sessions:
You seem to have quite a free hand on this. Here in Europe (Germany) the usual session is of two lessons one after the other, each taking 45 minutes. Perhaps this is because 45 minutes is the customary length of a lesson at school here. And we usually give one of these "double lessons" of 90 minutes per week to each group taking part in our in-house training. Of course, it all depends on whether your teaching is to be fitted into the working day or whether you do it in the employees' free time (such as after work or on Saturdays), and on how quickly they want results! A session once a week is relatively slow from the point of view of results, but can be quite demanding if the people concerned have a very heavy workload.
If you give us some more details, I'm sure I and other readers can help you some more.
Best wishes from Diana
hungarygirl
Dear Anggun
Following on from your dicussion with Diana about attendence and homework for Business English classes, I want to make a few points about motivation of these types of students.
Although this is certainly not always the case I am sure you and other teachers have come accross situations where students may not really want to attend English classes, and are only doing them because their company is making them! They may feel reluctant to try to learn a new language, because they are afraid that they won't be good at it, and that they will be shown up by their colleagues. Often, Business Engliash students have worked hard for their positions, been through several years of University and training, and are now faced with studying again, at something which may not be their forte!
I try to increase motivation, and therefore attendence, by making lessons as interesting and fun as possible, within a business context. My maxim is 'little and often', repeating key grammar and vocabulary over a number of lessons, so that students can become familiar with it and learn to use it, rather than be faced with a totally new concept every lesson, find it 'too difficult' and become de-motivated. Of course, these comments can apply to all teaching situations!
Attendence can be a problem. You need to be strict here, and at least make the company aware that students who don't attend are not going to progress. At the end of the day, the students are responsible for their own learning not you, and you need to make sure they know this. A positive way of doing this is constantly demonstrating to them what they *can* do rather than what they *can't*. When you see them say to themselves 'Oh yes, I remember this, I can do this' you know you have increased motivation.
I hope this helps
DIM
Dear Hungarygirl,
Welcome to you, too, for I see that you are a new member of this site. What is your Hungarian and what your Italian connection?
Well, anyway, I quite agree with what you say to Anggun about motivation. Before we can advise her in more detail, I think it is necessary to know what sort of students she has. So, Anggun, can you estimate for us what percentage of your students fall into each of the following categories:
Perhaps you can think up some more meaningful ones yourself !
Over to you, Anggun - Diana
grada
Dear Anggun
Do not get frustrated when you feel you are not making much progress.but if you're motivated you will do it better than anyone.
do this naturally and think yes ,i can do that.
with my regards