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1. Student-Centered Teaching in Large Classes with Limited Resources

   In: English Teaching Forum 2007, Volume 45, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   The authors shares suggestions for instructors who teach large classes (from 50-80 students) with minimal resources. The challenges of managing the classroom, using pair and group work effectively, and working with limited resources are addressed. The authors suggests ways to take attendance quickly, to reduce written work to grade, to start and stop communicative activities, and to keep motivation high when students work at different speeds. Suggestions were tested by action research. Two classrooms are described.

2. Teacher Supervision: Moving Towards an Interactive Approach

   In: English Teaching Forum 2003, Volume 41, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   Supervision is a standard part of most language programs. However, teachers often respond negatively to supervision. Adopting a teacher-centered, democratic, clear, and systematic model for supervision will create a positive supervisory experience and result in vital professional development. One model that fits this description is clinical supervision. The author's detailed guidelines for implementation of this model are flexible enough to allow for local adaptation.

3. Building Consensus on Teacher Assessment

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 3 Format(s): Text

   This article proposes a collaborative workshop for teachers and teacher trainees to identify their preferred methods of Teacher Assessment (TA).TA refers to the evaluation of teachers. Some examples are observation by colleagues or supervisors, videotaping class, and feedback from students. The pros and cons of various TA instruments and formats are discussed, including how threatening they are perceived to be. Participants also consider what should be included in their professional portfolio. It can be rewarding to involve stakeholders in the process.

4. Teacher Resources

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 4 Format(s): Text

   “Teacher Resources” includes summaries of two publications. In “Beyond Methods: Macrostrategies for Language Teaching,” B. Kumaravadivelu suggests ten keys to successful practice, called macrostrategies, and describes how to implement them. This is a teacher-training tool and promotes reflective teaching. “Teaching Online” by Susan Ko and Steve Rossen is useful for instructors who have not had training in teaching online classes. It covers developing the course, adapting an existing course to an online course, methods for this new educational environment, and more.

5. Teaching the World's Children: ESL for Ages Three to Seven

   In: English Teaching Forum 2005, Volume 43, Number 1 Format(s): Text

   This article discusses teaching English as a second language to very young learners. The authors talks about how important it is for children to have a wide variety of experiences when building language and literacy. The authors explain how the use of various environments, including learning centers, block centers, art or sand tables, writing areas, science and technology centers, and even libraries, can help shape the way a child learns language as well as improve other skills.

6. Contextualizing Teacher Training through Needs Analysis and Reflexivity

   In: English Teaching Forum 2023, Volume 61, Number 2 Format(s): Text

   Experienced teacher trainers Jimalee Sowell and Kevin McCaughey offer “suggestions teacher trainers might implement to improve their understanding of the local teachers they work with as well as ways of knowing the self and how the self interfaces with local contexts.” The article describes methods of needs assessment and discusses techniques for examining and understanding the self, all in the context of enhancing teacher training and professional development.

7. Brain-Based Research & Language Teaching

   In: English Teaching Forum 2002, Volume 40, Number 2 Format(s): Text

   This article summarizes information on how the human brain works. It presents insights from research on the human brain that informs second and foreign language teachers. This article offers seven principles that can provide a general context for learning and teaching and lists some guidelines for selecting classroom materials, strategies, and methodologies.

8. Teaching Conversation with Trivia

   In: English Teaching Forum 2002, Volume 40, Number 2 Format(s): Text

   This article presents reasons for using trivia (a quizzing game) to teach conversation and provides tips on how trivia-based materials fit into communicative language teaching approaches. It also presents examples of trivia-based activities that can be used in the conversation classroom. The article suggests that using trivia-based materials makes the content more interesting, meaningful, and thus motivating for learners.

9. The Mediational Role of Language Teachers in Sociocultural Theory

   In: English Teaching Forum 2003, Volume 41, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article describes a sociocultural view of interaction, in which teachers construct knowledge with learners. Language is a mediating factor in cognitive development. The article discusses Vygotsky and the Zone of Proximal Development. According to Vygotsky, students are capable of doing more with guidance and support than they can alone. This principle leads instructors to scaffold material just beyond the leaner’s level. When teachers and students have meaningful interaction, learning is enhanced.

10. Teacher Resources

    In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 1 Format(s): Text

    In this special section of Forum, four commercial publications are presented. Topics include techniques to help middle school students with reading, student involvement and choice; an introduction to the concept of genre (of interest to ESL teachers, writing teachers, etc., including genre-based assessment and the importance of audience in writing); the use of literature circles with elementary learners to foster discussion and love of literature; and a book of EFL methodology.

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