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Innovative Methods of Teaching English Language

The document discusses several innovative methods for teaching English as a foreign language: 1) The interactive whiteboard allows teachers to display digital materials and internet resources, but risks encouraging passive learning if not used interactively. 2) Spaced learning spaces practice and review over time to optimize memory encoding rather than cramming. 3) Dogme focuses on learner interests and needs rather than a fixed syllabus, with discussion and scaffolding of emerging questions.

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111 views5 pages

Innovative Methods of Teaching English Language

The document discusses several innovative methods for teaching English as a foreign language: 1) The interactive whiteboard allows teachers to display digital materials and internet resources, but risks encouraging passive learning if not used interactively. 2) Spaced learning spaces practice and review over time to optimize memory encoding rather than cramming. 3) Dogme focuses on learner interests and needs rather than a fixed syllabus, with discussion and scaffolding of emerging questions.

Uploaded by

Gala
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Innovative Methods of Teaching English Language

With the advent of globalization and technological progress, English as a


language started to be widely learnt and taught.  English, the official language of
the entire world is a very tricky language to teach. It is certainly a challenging
and thoroughly rewarding experience, and one in which personal development
takes place inside and outside of the classroom. 
However, there are a number of reasons you may want to shake it up now and
again:
 Keep students on their toes:  Introducing new ways of learning will
prevent boredom and prepare students for real-world language use. If
students can predict what’ll happen day-in, day-out in the classroom,
they’ll go on autopilot and won’t be challenged. Then, when they actually
find themselves in a real foreign language situation, they’ll be surprised
when they can’t adapt as easily.
 Match students’ diverse learning styles: There may also be students in
your class who just don’t vibe with the way you usually teach. Some
students are visual learners, some learn by doing, etc. Of course, you’re
probably already trying to cater to all of your students, but most of us just
instinctively tend towards certain styles. Finding new teaching methods
will help you keep your whole classroom engaged.
 Keep yourself present: Don’t forget about yourself! If you get
complacent or locked in a routine, it’ll just signal students to tune out,
too. Updating activities and routines is a great way to keep yourself
motivated and present in the classroom.

Interactive Whiteboard

The interactive whiteboard (henceforth IWB) is a device that has been


introduced as a very useful and versatile tool for teaching that has been
introduced in classrooms as a replacement for the traditional blackboard. The
board is connected to a computer with a projector, allowing the teacher to show
computer-based materials on the board. This could for example be helpful for
working with electronic versions of textbooks and other internet-based
resources for language learning. Besides, among other benefits of the interactive
whiteboard are the enhancement of multimodality, pace, interaction and
learning environment.
Although IWBs have been praised by English language teachers and
researchers for their many benefits, there are also IWB sceptics. One of the
criticisms of the IWB is that it encourages a ‘transmission’ form of teaching,
meaning that the teacher is at the centre of the lesson. There is a risk that when
the lesson is centred round an IWB, it encourages a form of teaching where the
teacher is up front using the board and the learners in the classroom become a
passive audience. This would go against modern approaches to pedagogy,
which are interactive and collaborative rather than transmission-based.
One way to use the interactive whiteboard with students is by relying on
traditional-teacher-centered classes. Since the interactive whiteboard is usually
fixed in the center of the room, teachers have treated the interactive whiteboard
as an ordinary screen or whiteboard and presented the study information of the
lesson plan through the use of presentational software such as PowerPoint.
Teachers have also used the interactive whiteboard to teach with the grammar-
translation method (teaching of the foreign language grammar through the
presentation of rules together with some exceptions and lists of vocabulary
translated into the mother tongue) and drilling (listening to a model, provided
by the teacher, or a tape or another student, and repeating what is heard)
because they feared that students were not ready for interaction. Teaching a
teacher-centered class seemed to underutilize the features of the interactive
whiteboard.
Spaced Learning

It is a technique that was developed based on research about how memories


function by neuroscientist R. Douglas Fields. The idea is to spend short but
consistent periods learning and then reviewing new material to optimize the
brain’s natural memory encoding process. With the right formula, you can teach
a new vocabulary set or grammar concept over the course of an hour-long
lesson and know that it’ll be encoded into students’ long term memories. It may
be hard to imagine, but below we’ll provide a sample lesson to show that it’s
totally doable.

Example of spaced learning lesson:

Step 1 (15 minutes): Use the whiteboard to explain the official grammar rules.

Step 2 (5 minutes): Take a break to watch a video. (It might be any video you
like. Nothing to do with the grammar, just for fun.)

Step 3 (15 minutes): Review differences between the abovementioned rules


quickly. For instance, differences between would and could. Take a short fill-in-
the-blank quiz. You can use the innovative whiteboard or just hand out the
printed version of the exercise.

Step 4 (10 minutes): Play an easy game in English. (Also nothing to do with


the grammar.) It might be snowball (It’s just an effective icebreaker designed to
let students get to know each other or help you review a particular lesson or
specific content. This game works with a group of at least a dozen people. It can
also work well with a very large group, such as a lecture class or club meeting.
You can use the icebreaker with students individually or divide into them into
groups.

Step 5 (15 minutes): Do a real-life role play situation involving “would” and
“could.” You could choose a restaurant or work situation, depending on what
best serves your students.
Dogme approach
It is an approach to teaching – also considered a movement – that supports the
view that teaching and learning should be based on learners’ interests and
emergent needs, rather than a syllabus prescribed by a course or coursebook. It
is also characterized by a focus on interaction between learners and teachers and
the learners themselves. The interaction is mediated through talk and facilitated
through scaffolding. 

Examples

Students could come to class and discuss the news. The teacher would
encourage and facilitate discussion and provide answers to questions
about grammar and vocabulary as they arise.

Students could also bring to class items from "English literature" - poetry,
plays, novels, films, or even current television or radio programmes. Again, the
teacher will engage them in the process of understanding not only the grammar,
but also the idioms and cultural references used.

The biggest advantage of such method of teaching is that teachers should not
prepare for the lesson. Unless you count the five to ten years of preparation and
experience necessary to be able to use the technique well. However, students
who are unused to the method may feel uneasy about it or simply not
understand it. In addition, students should feel in control of their learning
process and consequently be more motivated, but it removes the teacher from a
position of power which may make some teachers uneasy.

After all, the languages play a very important role in our lives. They help us
express our emotions. They help us explain what we want. They help us to
communicate and hence are the prime tools to express who we are. Since
English is the official language of this world it is of utmost importance that this
language has to be taught in such a way that it will help us not just to speak and
write and listen but to communicate. That is the purpose of the language and
that is what it must be used for. Hence innovative methods help in bringing a
change and most of the times for the better. It helps the students learn faster and
in an efficient, interesting and an interactive manner and it is the teacher`s
responsibility to leave the traditional methods and make way for new and better
methods for the students benefit.

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