6 Basic Goals to Have in Teaching the English Language
By Revel Arroway
Arroway opens with the statement that as teachers, “We’re not just preparing students for a class, we’re preparing them for life.” In order to give students the tools they need to keep up with the rapid changes in today’s world, teachers can inspire students to be life-long learners. The author expounds on six goals by giving the rationale and practical classroom lesson ideas for each one. These include ideas and topics for student participation.
- Be a Student Informant – Whatever is taught should be coupled with the need to know and the context of, for example, a lesson on grammar or vocabulary. With the latter, students could also be informants by sharing how the same ideas are expressed in their native languages.
- Put on the Coach Hat – Encourage students to excel. Arroway suggests surveys to help students discover their strengths and use these to cooperate and help each other as teammates.
- Be a Cultural Ambassador – Share your own experience with language learning and why you speak the way you do. In addition, let your students know why you have chosen teaching as a profession.
- Animate Students to Become Agents of Change – People who speak English, now a global language, can participate in the changes that are happening in the world. Besides this, the author demonstrates how language learning is an aspect of change, for instance, by comparing similar expressions in Spanish and English.
- Inspire Learning in Your Students – Students need a “Mission Statement” for both short and long term learning goals, to develop a “learning attitude”. They also need to know how to use the tools they have to continue learning and the benefits of doing so. Two of the suggested questions are “What do you plan to do with your English knowledge?” and “What will you have to do every day to make English useful to your long-term plan?”
- Choose Your “Niche” and Stick with It – Every teacher has their own strengths and expertise, and that can be the basis for their approach to language teaching.
Arroway closes with the hope that his suggestions help you as a teacher to become “… the inspiration, the agent of change, the vocational catalyst for yourself, your students and your corner of the world.”
See the article for a lot of practical ideas for you and your students.