teaching one to-one: advantages, expectations and challenges
DESCRIPTION
One-to-one classes have become a growing trend. There are a lot of advantages to this kind of instruction, such as more flexibility and customization, among others. However, there are challenges to be met: the student is often required to participate, which might be stressful; there is no comparison of progress with other students; and less variety of interaction, to name but a few. As a result, it might be more difficult to teach a dynamic and varied class, and to keep students motivated. In this workshop, we aim at discussing teaching tools, environment, the roles of the teacher and how to design and plan the course in a way it meets the expectations and needs of the students and is aligned with the best teaching practices.TRANSCRIPT
Teaching one-to-one: advantages, expectations
and challenges
Bruna CaltabianoDisal – São Paulo, BrazilJuly 18, 2014.
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What are the advantages of one-to-one for the student?And for the teacher?
- Natural flow of communication
- Getting to know the students better and understand their language needs
- Monitoring students more closely
- Personalizing materials
- Tailoring lessons
- Relaxed and informal environment
- Positive personal relationship with the teacher
- Immediate feedback- Relevant topics and
materials- Studying at own level
and pace
(Wisniewska, 2010)
What are the challengesfor the student?
And for the teacher?
- Constant participation- Less variety of interaction- Self-consciousness of his/her own mistakes- Different expectations- Irregular intervals- Impossibility to compare the progress with other students
- Materials can be covered more quickly- Difficulty in providing variety- Pressure to teach according to student’s expectations- Cancellations at short notice- No access to the materials you need- ‘Solitary’ job- Interactivity with the same person for
some time (Wisniewska, 2010)
UNDER PRESSURE
HIGHLY MOTIVATED
‘LEARNING PROBLEMS’
INTROVERT
DEMANDINGANXIOUS
(Wilberg, 1987)
The environment
Think of your last experience teaching one-to-one. Visualize the setting:
• The room• The furniture• The light• The background• Where you are sitting
Seating ArrangementsAdvantages & Disadvantages
Picture 1
Picture 2
Picture 3
Picture 4
Teacher’s Roles
teacher friend conversation partner
observer and listener feedback provider
mentor and guide learner
(Wisniewska, 2010)
Conversation PartnerActivity: Getting to know you
(Adapted fromWisniewska, 2012)
08/23
(Adapted from Rinvolucri, 1984)
Observer and ListenerActivity: Grammar Auction
(Adapted fromWisniewska, 2012)
Mentor and guideActivity: Independent Learning Checklist
Speaking- Speak with customers from other countries- Speak with my American friends- Phone my teacher- Join an online learning community
Listening- Listen to the
BBC news on the radio
- Listen to songs in English
- Watch movies in English
Reading- Read online
news- Read a novel
Writing- Write emails to
my teacher- Write a learning
diary/blog- Write new words
in my vocabulary notebook
LearnerActivity : Famous entrepreneurs
(Adapted fromWisniewska, 2012)
Like me!My God,
not another workaholic!
Shall we get down to some
real work now?
You know I’m being extremely patient..
Now let me seduce you with my charm and personality..
You’re messing up my lesson
plan!
What a relief that’s
over!
Teacher’s Messages
(Wilberg, 1987)
Teacher’s concerns
oWhy isn’t he more responsive?oWhy doesn’t she make more of an attempt?oWhy just sit there waiting for me to perform?oWhy can’t he show me more charm?oWhy doesn’t she show a bit more enthusiasm?
Why doesn’t the student live up to my demands and
expectations?
Aligning Expectations
• Main reasons for learning English• Necessity X Desire• Examples of materials• Topics • Importance of skills, grammar, functions
• Why should I use this material?• Is it relevant to my student’s goal?• Is it culturally appropriate?• What problems might come up?• Does the material provide opportunities for
supplementing and extending?
Choosing and Adapting Materials
• Planning• Personalization• Role reversal
• Modeling• Recycling• Supplementin
g
Adapting
From: In Company – Upper Intermediate, Macmillan
Feedback
• How often do you ask for feedback on your lessons? How?
• How often do you give feedback? How?
Bibliography
• Wisniewska, Ingrid. Learning one-to-one. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 2010.
• Rinvolucri, Mario. Grammar Games. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1984.
• Wilberg, Peter. One to one: a teacher’s handbook. Language Teaching Publications: London, 1987
Websites
• http://eltnotebook.blogspot.com.br/2007/02/one-to-one-content-and-methodology.html
• http://busyteacher.org/3424-teaching-english-one-on-one-tips-and-tricks-for-a.html
• http://www.onestopenglish.com/business/teaching-approaches/teaching-one-to-one
• http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/teaching-one-one
caltabiano.idiomas
@caltabianoidio1
www.caltabianoidiomas.com.br