English learning resources: variety and motivation

By Luke Holden

In this article in the guest author series, Luke Holden discusses the need for variety in language learning:

Variety is the key to success for those learning a new language or trying to build on their existing knowledge. Having interesting and appealing material to study from is essential to maintain motivation as a student, and this article will attempt to explain some of the more useful resources available.

It is worth noting that new learners of a language really do need to build a solid foundation of knowledge before attempting anything else, and it is most useful for them to use material intended for that purpose such as structured textbooks and some websites for beginners. Both of these types offer constructive examples with relative variety. The good news is that for English learners with at least a basic level of ability, there is an abundance of material available as learning resources. In order to create some order of what exactly is available, the following three categories have been constructed;

'Authentic material' is material which has not been created for the classroom. It can be thought of as original and unedited, and covers areas like newspapers and magazines, business reports, leaflets and brochures, novels, and more. The advantage to using authentic material as a study aid is that you can get a first hand idea of how to apply your English knowledge to real, everyday situations. The problem for many learners is that they don't feel that they can use their knowledge, but authentic material crosses that bridge and is an endless source of interesting and varied information. For example, in a newspaper alone you can learn about world events, improve your general knowledge with related reports, or simply find out what is on television in another country. Authentic material has such huge diversity that a learner can always find something relevant to their needs or interests, and new authentic material is being created everyday.

'Non-authentic material' is material which has been designed for the classroom, and is usually edited to make it appropriate to a particular level of English. This kind of resource is best found in the classroom from certified esl and tefl teachers, or in the school itself. It's a very effective form of learning and covers categories like word searches, dialogues and worksheets, amongst others. Correctly designed non-authentic material has been built with a teaching idea or topic in mind, and should focus on helping the learner to understand a specific point of knowledge relating to grammar or vocabulary. The English learner who wants to understand an exact concept can use non-authentic material as a strong and useful tool, and then move back into authentic material for the application.

'Online material' is technically both authentic and non-authentic, but has been put into its own category because it is such a unique phenomenon. The growth of the internet over the last twenty years has helped numerous groups of people, with language learners at the forefront. A massive number of websites to help English learners has emerged, as Google proves with 85 million results for the phrase 'learn English.' Without a doubt, the internet connects the world and does so by uniting people from different countries and backgrounds, and who speak different languages. For English learners, the internet offers educational websites, but is not limited to that alone. It also has a huge selection of free authentic and non-authentic resources to cater for every need, and will continue to do so for years to come.

As has been shown, the availability of English learning resources is seemingly endless and ever-increasing. Knowing which type of material is most useful for which lesson is a matter of experience and unique to the individual, but by combining authentic, non-authentic and the internet together, any English student can succeed in their search for English learning resources.


About the Author

Luke Holden is an experienced English teacher, living and working in Beijing. He is the proud owner of http://www.aenglish.net, a collection of learning resources and advice run exclusively by English native speakers

Advice for a New ESL Teacher?

'When you first arrive in your assigned country, the first few minutes can be shocking. The air smells different, the people surging around you are likely different, the looks of buildings and storefronts and wares for sale may all be different' notes Douglas Anderson in his article 'Advice for a New ESL Teacher' over on the ELT Times online TEFL newspaper. Read on...

TEFL International discussed on the Forums

The issue of TEFL International has reared its head again over on the forums and is bringing about some heated debate. Check out the latest news over on the general discussion forum now!

TEFL courses in Argentina & TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina: PART 2

Some coıncern has been expressed over on the ELT World forums about the recent post from Luke Fisher on the subject of teaching in Argentina. While I've left the post intact, I don't wish any of you to think that I've received any money from the organisation that Mr. Fisher represents, nor do I condone their policies with regards to the way they choose to run their business.

By way of providing a balanced perspective, I strongly recommend anyone who read that article to also read this.

TEFL courses in Argentina & TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina

By Luke Fisher

In this article from our guest authors series, Luke Fisher discusses the life of the TEFL teacher in the South American nation of Argentina:

There are a wide variety of TEFL courses in Argentina offered in cities throughout the country. Completing a TEFL course in Argentina leads to TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina. This is a truly wonderful and unique country which offers great opportunities for travel and teaching. In terms of initial costs for TEFL certification, Argentina is one of the best deals going in South America due to the financial crash of 2003.

Argentina is a country of stunning natural beauty. Due to the waves of immigration throughout the 20th Century, Argentina is truly cosmopolitan. It has beautiful big cities and huge expanses of untamed wilderness. It is a place where the visitor, particularly if they have a lively interest in soccer, can blend seamlessly with the surroundings and friendly people. The local language is of course Spanish, but there are some native South American dialects still in use. The population of this vast country is thirty-seven million, and the religion is predominately Roman Catholic. In a country where US television and baseball is enormously popular, there is considerable enthusiasm for learning English and as a result a plethora of TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina are available. Those actively looking for TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina will find a good variety of opportunities throughout the country, and be rewarded by the experience of teaching some of the most enthusiastic and fun-loving students in the world.

Completing a TEFL course in Argentina with TEFL certification is sufficient to teach in state and private schools. Generally, employers for TEFL jobs do not require a degree, PGCE or previous teaching experience. Within language institutes you can expect to find yourself teaching those who work in tourism or business. Also businesses and companies provide TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina for English language training purposes for their employees. A good TEFL course in Argentina will provide components within the course for teaching business English and in some cases specialized courses dealing only with business English teaching leading to CTBE: Certificate in Teaching Business English.

Argentina has a needs driven market when it comes to English language learning and as a result you will find highly motivated students. TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina have to be paid for and this is generally at a cost to the student of English. Students, school managers, companies and businesses will expect a respectable, well-turned out, professional teacher. An important thing to note is that Latin languages are inflected and students will naturally have a high awareness of grammar. Teachers teaching English in Argentina will need to prepare well for their classes in order to provide rich and structured lessons and a solid learning environment. Argentinean students are amongst the most warmly spoken of by experienced TEFL teachers. Expect fun, great enthusiasm, but do not be too surprised if class sizes are low should there be a major sporting event being broadcast.

Buenos Aires is a great location for TEFL courses in Argentina and TEFL jobs leading to teaching English in Argentina. The capital city boasts cafe lined grand avenues and cobbled back-streets in a style as that of Europe, a buzzing night life and many places of interest. It is not too difficult to escape the somewhat unusually easy paced life of the city for the quieter suburbs and natural expanses that surround Buenos Aires. Cordoba is the education centre of the country with seven universities in total. As an academic town it is alive with interesting people and events and there is plenty to do on a budget. Mendoza in contrast, with giant sycamore lined streets, feels like a desert - as you will notice from the high temperatures - but it is a desert made green by the work of plantation owners.

A little preparation prior to setting off for your TEFL course in Argentina or TEFL job teaching English in Argentina will pay dividends. Think of not just of Argentina, but the whole continent of South America, as you may well end up traveling around quite a bit once you hit this part of the world. It is a good idea to contact Latin American embassies in your country of origin for the locations that interest you. Enquire about TEFL courses, TEFL jobs teaching English and visas, and see what you get back. You will find that you will have compiled a useful set of information which will help in the long run. Information will vary from country of origin to country of origin, Latin American embassy to Latin American embassy.

In many cases TEFL jobs teaching English in Argentina are acquired on-the-spot. Hence you will need a letter of introduction, in Spanish, your resume or CV translated accordingly, plus a translation of your transcripts and certificates. The best option is to use Castillian Spanish as spoken in Spain. This is seen as the mother tongue, universally comprehended, and carries style, weight and considerable currency throughout Argentina and Latin America.

There are a number of options that can be utilized to gain a placement prior to teaching English in Argentina. Many US TEFL schools have close ties with Argentina and other South American countries. The Buenos Aires Herald carries TEFL job advertisements for English Teachers and sometimes information about TEFL courses in Argentina. The Net has many forums and dedicated websites for TEFL jobs and teaching English in Argentina.

The local yellow pages detail schools, language institutes and universities which are often only too willing to interview candidates. Well presented, organized and enthusiastic TEFL teachers are in short supply. It is quite likely that if an employer likes you they will most certainly find some teaching for you!

TEFL job opportunities for teaching English in Argentina are in plentiful supply. There is a wide and varied market for those having completed a TEFL course in Argentina or at another location. Argentina offers great travel options and the opportunity to become part of the local culture through teaching English. When choosing a location for a TEFL course and teaching English overseas, Argentina and South America should be given some serious consideration.


About the Author

TEFL International offers TEFL courses in Argentina and TEFL jobs leading to teaching English in Argentina. Teach, travel, live and work in Argentina.

IATEFL 2009: Cardiff

IATEFL holds its International Annual Conference & Exhibition every spring, which is attended by around 1500 ELT professionals from 70+ countries. It involves a 3.5 -4-day programme of over 300 talks, workshops and symposiums and, in addition to giving delegates a chance to meet leading theorists and writers, and exchange ideas with fellow professionals from all sectors of ELT, it enables them to see the latest ELT publications and services in a large resources exhibition involving around 70 ELT-related exhibitors.

The 43rd IATEFL Annual International Conference and Exhibition will be in Cardiff 31st March - 4th April, at the City Hall and Museum. Plenary Speakers to be confirmed. Click here for more details Cardiff 2009. The closing date for speaker proposals is 22nd September 2008.

Following their very successful conference in Cardiff in 2005, the organizers are sure that delegates will be pleased that they are returning to Cardiff for the conference in 2009. The beautiful city with its many attractions are a delight.

Advice For A New ESL Teacher

Douglas Anderson shares his knowledge with those just starting out in the profession:

When you first arrive in your assigned country, the first few minutes can be shocking. The air smells different, the people surging around you are likely different, the looks of buildings and storefronts and wares for sale may all be different.

If you are in modern country, such as Japan, you will likely feel only slightly uncomfortable, as the airport will be clean and streamlined, although perhaps twice as busy as you expected. But signs will be in English, and you will have no problem navigating through the airport to the outside world.

If you are in a third-world country, the airport could be a far cry from anything remotely comfortable, with military soldiers everywhere, a crush of people, strange maybe even repulsive smells in the air, total chaos. If you are alone, this can be especially intimidating.

When I arrive in a new country, I am always surprised at the first few moments outside the airport. The sky looks different, the air smells different, the chaos of people coming and going is different. Finding a bus or taxi or jeepney can be a fun experience but it is more likely to be a trying experience, so it is best if someone can meet you and help you get oriented for the first trip from the airport to your place of residence.

Depending on your guest country, and the resources available, you may get a private room with a private bathroom, or a shared room and a public bathroom.

The school may look a wee bit different from the brochures, which tend to highlight greenery and other colourful aspects. Brochures also don't tell you about oppressive tropical heat, or cold winds from the mountains.

Before starting your trip, you should read up on the culture of the country. For example, in Thailand, people would be shocked if you touched a child's head, or if you washed your underwear and hung it outside to dry.

During my stay in Thailand, I managed a software development project and hired a couple of university-educated Thai women to help. We worked out of my two-bedroom apartment. One moved into the spare bedroom in the apartment, and the other slept on the sofa five nights a week. The one in the bedroom said she lived a long way away and the daily commute was aggravating. Fair enough. But the second one lived 20 minutes away by elevated electric train. I never really understood why she wanted to live with me. Perhaps I was a father-figure for her.

One day, I rounded up all the towels to put in the washing machine. The women had their own bathroom, and the towels were provided by me. The apartment was modern and fully equipped.

One of the women said, "Doug, what are you doing?"

I said, "I'm going to wash all the towels in the machine."

She said, "But you took the white one."

The white one was a cotton bathmat that had been on the floor in front of the shower.

"Yes, I will wash it with the others."

"Doug, you can't do that."

"Why not?"

"It's for the feet."

Apparently in Thai culture, you don't sully your body towels with foot towels.

I said, "Sorry, this is a machine, very hot water, with detergent and fabric softener. I am going to wash all the towels and bath mats together."

She was unhappy with this, had a strange look on her face, like I had said something totally disgusting.

After the towels had been washed and dried, I took one of the bath towels and held it under her nose, and said, "Smell this."

She took a whiff and said, "Oh, Doug, smell very good."

I said, "That's the fabric softener, it has perfume to make the towels smell good."

Then I held the white bath mat under her nose. She didn't move away, although I expected her to. "Smell this one."

"Doug, same same."

"Yes," I said, "and now you know why I washed them together. In your culture, you wash them by hand, and would do the foot mats last. In my Western culture, with machines, we put them all in together and they come out the same."

She accepted that. In this case Western culture overruled Thai culture.

As I write this in November 2007, a British ESL teacher has been arrested in Sudan, which is a Muslim country, for letting her primary school students name a teddy bear "Muhammed". Although this is a very common name in Sudan and other Muslim countries, giving a toy bear this name is apparently insulting to Islam, according to the charges against her. One of the parents of the students complained to police and she was arrested. If found guilty, she could receive many years in prison, a hefty fine, and 40 lashes with a whip.

So learning something about the culture you will be living in is advice you should take seriously.

In Central and parts of South America, for instance, you might think the culture is Spanish, and that is certainly the dominant one, but the underlying Mayan culture is still there, especially amongst people whose primary language is Quechua or Aymara. Don't assume you understand their culture because you know about Mexican or Spanish culture. Do some research first, so as to help you understand where they are coming from, and try to structure your lessons to fit with their culture. This can be as simple as changing place names: don't talk about the Mississippi River, for example, use a local river instead. They will associate with that, but not associate with the Mississippi.

The beliefs and attitudes of your guest country will potentially be different from what you naively expected, so research! research! research!

As you become accustomed to your new daily routine, students, and fellow teachers, you will discover that some of the teachers have become cynical with time. They may have been there 20 years, and never say anything good about the place; they seem to live in a cloud of negativity. You will be eager and fired up and enjoying the challenge; they will talk about police purges, stupid management at the school, incompetent governments, corruption, and whatnot. The list is never-ending. Try to avoid these people. Live your own life, and be happy with the little differences and challenges that are thrown your way.

In Thailand, the vast majority of people are Buddhists. They are taught from an early age to meet adversity with a smile. One time, I was waiting under an awning for a tropical downpour to lessen. I watched a young lady attempt to cross the flooded street in front of me. She stepped in a hidden pothole, lost her balance, and fell face first into 6 inches of dirty water. She stood up, brushed the water off her face, and laughed. If that had been me, I would have been cursing. But she was a Buddhist. She laughed.

Meet adversity with a smile.

A good philosophy to live by.

If your assignment is in a third-world country, find out if the school and/or students have basic supplies. In rural Peru, for example, there might be one small chalkboard for a one-room school, no paper at all, and certainly no pens or pencils. While that kind of school is not going to have English classes, you can still help them enormously by traveling with two suitcases, one for your stuff, and the other filled with notebooks, pencils, chalk, small chalkboards, crayons, art paper, children's scissors, etc. Before you start your flight, contact the school and find out if they need these supplies, or if they can put you in touch with a rural school that does. Those $50 worth of supplies might be more than a rural school has ever seen and will make a big difference.

Another piece of advice: keep a journal of your experiences. If you have Internet access, create a blog and update it regularly. But in any case, be careful not to write anything in your journal or blog that is critical of the school management, the local religion, or the government. That journal will be a treasured keepsake in future years, and remain with you the rest of your life.

After you've been living and teaching for a while in the guest country, returning to your home town in your native country can be a jarring experience: culture shock in reverse. You became an ESL teacher for the fun of travel, the joy of discovering a new culture, and now you're back in Wal-Mart or Tesco standing in a queue behind an enormous fat lady with a shopping cart full of junk. Your mother is glad to see you, but you find your town boring, the food bland and voluminous.

If you are back for good, and have to get a job, you will probably find yourself bored out of your skull working in an office. Your co-workers will have no interest in your ESL experiences and couldn't care less about the things you did and the places you went.

Pretty soon you will be scouring the Internet looking for other ESL jobs; you've got to follow your dreams, wherever they take you...



About The Author

Doug Anderson has a web site with English grammar tips and ESL teacher tips at http://www.learn-faster.org/English

20 Great Links for the TOEFL Exam

How many of us haven't heard students say things such as "How can I increase my TOEFL score? What's the secret of the IELTS? I need a better TOEFL score! I need to improve on the IELTS exam!"? Like many other standardized tests, the TOEFL can be extremely important for non-native English speakers in getting into certain colleges and even obtaining jobs.

Fortunately, my experience in having to prepare students for this exam has been minimal. Love them or hate them though, standardized tests continue to be used by many institutions, and the TOEFL is used extensively. On this page, there are resources to help students practice for the TOEFL and TOEIC and also a few links for information related to language testing in general, International Second Language Proficiency Ratings, and other information that is of more interest to teachers than to students.

If you know of a great site related to the TOEFL, or any language testing and/or assessment sites, please feel free to getin touch at ethicalelt@gmail.com


Good Luck TOEFL

A complete, free, step-by-step guide to the TOEFL iBT. Includes tips and tutorials for each of the sections of the exam, as well as each of the skills you will need. Also has a forum where you can ask a TOEFL instructor any specific questions you might have.

TOEIC preparation

Online toeic preparation. the site covers both old and new test formats. performance monitor shows where to train. 100's exercises over 1500 hours study material. Free trial, no obligation.

Active IELTS

Free IELTS advice, guides to each test, worksheets, practice questions, information on word length, how writing is marked, preparing for the day of the exam. IELTS ENewsletter service. Paid services include correction of writing work and interview practice.

IELTS Worldwide

IELTS Worldwide provides free practice and information for the IELTS exam. It also provides free information on work and study in Australia, Canada and England.

TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) ETS Europe official website

Official TOEIC website Europe: The TOEIC test is the most widely used English language test for professional English. 

IELTS-Blog

Free help in preparation for IELTS exam: tips and strategies for studying, multiple links to free IELTS practice tests, example essays, letters and more

Take a Free TOEFL IBT Practice test

ETS, the creators of the TOEFL, provide "TOEFL Practice Online:" a free community where students can take free TOEFL practice tests, including free IBT practice tests featuring the Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking sections.

Exam English: TOEFL practice

Free TOEFL practice tests and information about other exams for learners of English as a foreign language

TOEFL.ez-guide.net

New resource with tips, guides and book reviews for TOEFL. Visit us, all content is free and there is no need to register.

TOEFL Prep Info

TOEFL information that will help you understand the TOEFL test.

Onlearn Academic English

Onlearn.biz provides academic English/university entrance examination practice materials with feedback. This interactive Flash-based site focuses on listening, writing, note-taking, vocabulary, timed reading and graphs for IELTS, TOEFL and TOEIC level students.

Beat the TOEFL Test Online

'Beat the CBT TOEFL Test Online' offers TOEFL writing courses and practice tests (plug-in free - no Flash required). Also provides free daily TOEFL practice and up-to-date testing information. Prepare for the TOEFL comfortably, speedily and effectivley.

TOEFL- Test Preparation Materials and Practice Questions

From ETS and TOEFL Online

English Tests

Including the TOEFL from Ohio University's CALL Lab

5000 SAT Vocabulary Words

5000 Vocabulary words for SAT preparation. Also useful for GRE and general vocabulary building. Download for free.

Testwise TOEFL

Testwise has a free on-line TOEFL test.

PhonePass - Testing English by Telephone

The PhonePass/Ordinate site describes the PhonePass test and Ordinate Corporation, offers readers a sample test to download, and provides immediate access of test results.

TOEFL Practice

Practice the structure and written expression section of the soon-to-be computerised TOEFL test. You need shockwave.

TOEFL DEN

TOEFL DEN offers an entire set of custom study programs for students and teachers interested in TOEFL. The site contains full length practice exams, over 7000 practice questions, tips for achieving higher scores and a fully automatic marking and scoring mechanism.

International Second Language Proficiency Ratings (ASLPR)

The International Second Language Proficiency Ratings (Formerly the Australian Second Language Proficiency Ratings or ASLPR) is a widely-used university entrance English proficiency test. Candidates have an interview with a qualified tester who tests the candidates speaking, listening and reading using authentic material. The writing part comprises a number of authentic tasks.

Thanks to Deniz for providing this list.

Latest Headlines from the ELT Times

Head over to the ELT Times and read what's happening in the world of ELT. Among recent articles, you can find a guide to the advantages of a TESOL Course by Manuel Kupka, Memoirs of a Teacher by Paul Selibio, Blindfold Activities in the TEFL classroom by William Sullivan and Teaching English in Japan by John Paxton.

The Times is looking for new columnists, so head over and start writing for the internet's only ELT newspaper.