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1. Student-Centered Classroom Management: Addressing Classroom Issues with 5 Adaptable Forms

   In: American English Webinars Format(s): Text, Video

   This webinar examines classroom management and student-centered classrooms before discussing five adaptable forms participants can use to manage activities in their own classrooms. The presenter will explain how and why to use each form and additional classroom management resources will be shared.

2. 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.

3. Student-Produced Video: Two Approaches

   In: English Teaching Forum 2008, Volume 46, Number 2 Format(s): Text

   This article introduces the idea of using video production to engage second language learners in learner-centered, project-based learning activities to motivate them to learn and participate through writing, directing, acting in, and editing a movie. The authors describe two projects. In the first project, four pairs of students each created a three-minute film. In the second project, all eight students worked together to create one long movie. The advantages and disadvantages of both approaches were discussed.

4. Reciprocal Teaching: A Useful Tool in Increasing Student-Talking Time

   In: English Teaching Forum 2004, Volume 42, Issue 2 Format(s): Text

   Reciprocal Teaching (RT) can be used to increase student talk time and improve communicative competence. This strategy uses paraphrasing, reported speech, question formation and concept-checking to promote dialogue. As students move from short responses toward longer conversations (or language for transactional purposes), their fluency and retention increase. These “long turns” provide important practice. The author also emphasizes the importance of prompts for lower-level students. The article includes examples of each strategy as well as several axioms of reciprocal teaching.

5. Determining Students' Language Needs in a Tertiary Setting

   In: English Teaching Forum 2001, Volume 39, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article discusses students' perceptions of their language learning needs. It describes a survey conducted among university students and professors to find out how students rated their competence in particular skills and compares the results to those of their English teachers. Researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with the students, English teachers, and program directors. This needs analysis project helped to update the university English department curriculum and course offerings.

6. Raising Students' Awareness of the Varieties of English

   In: English Teaching Forum 2005, Volume 43, Number 2 Format(s): Image / Poster / Maps

   This article argues that EFL students need to be familiar with different varieties of English. If EFL students hope to enter a global job market, knowledge of English around the world is essential. The author, an English teacher in Japan, proposes doing classroom workshops on language variation and English as a world language to broaden students’ views of language.

7. No Books and 150 Students?

   In: English Teaching Forum 2006, Volume 44, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article describes the author’s experiences coping with the challenges of teaching English in an Indonesian university, such as classroom conditions and large numbers of students at different proficiency levels. The author suggests five activities that are designed to involve students in learning with little dependence on materials and little movement. The author also describes three out-of-class activities. Appendices include materials for the activities and additional references.

8. Clause Relationships and Macro Patterns: Coherence, Cohesion, and the Writing of Advanced ESOL Students

   In: English Teaching Forum 2002 (Volume 40, Number 1) Format(s): Text

   This article discusses problems that non-native speakers of English may have in making their written texts cohesive and coherent. The author provides cohesive devices that can aid students in their writing and emphasizes the organization of ideas in order to build coherence. Included are activities designed to raise students' awareness of various patterns, help reformulate sentences, aid students in creating their own texts, and increase their ability to edit their own work.

9. Helping Students Develop Coherence in Writing

   In: English Teaching Forum 2002, Volume 40, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article discusses the need to bring coherence in writing from an abstract level to a concrete concept that can be described and taught. Teachers need to teach coherence by sharing its metalanguage with students. This can be done for example by using more specific comments such as “unclear reference” or “inappropriate conjunction” instead of vague ones such as “the essay lacks unity.” The article offers a coherence checklist for students to self-edit and to review their peers’ writing.

10. From Passive Learners to Critical Thinkers: Preparing EFL Students for University Success

    In: English Teaching Forum 2010, Volume 48, Number 3 Format(s): Text

    This article explains how the Bangladesh Rehabilitation Assistance Committee (BRAC) revised their curriculum to best prepare EFL students for English-speaking universities. After completing a needs analysis on how to best serve their students, the committee decided to make a more interactive classroom environment in which teachers integrated the four skills, used critical thinking activities, taught grammar in context, and used various methods of assessment. Feedback showed that both the students and the teachers responded positively to the changes.

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