We’ve just started a new CELTA course in Munich so instruction-giving is very much on my mind! This is something trainees should try to get sorted out asap but do sometimes struggle with, especially when teaching lower levels. So here are my “golden rules”.
Continue reading “Giving Instructions: The Golden Rules for CELTA Trainees”
In order to teach a specific item of language, for example a tense or a lexical set, it is essential that you, as the teacher, “know” this item thoroughly which is why on a CELTA course you are asked to include a language analysis on the lesson plan. What does this include and what do you need to consider? Here, in this third post in the series on lesson planning, we have the answers to these and other questions all about language analysis. Continue reading “A Guide to Lesson Planning: Language Analysis”
In the second post in the series we look at the procedure which describes what you and the students will actually do in the lesson.
Continue reading “A Guide to Lesson Planning: The Procedure”
There are several different types of aims you should have on a lesson plan, typically the main aims of the lesson, the subsidiary aims of the lesson, your personal teaching development aims as well as an aim for each stage of the lesson. Confused as to what goes where? Read on for a succinct breakdown in the first of a series of blog posts on writing lesson plans.
Continue reading “A Guide to Lesson Planning: Aims”
When presenting new language we have to be able to check that the students have understood the meaning, one way of doing this is to ask CCQs.
Unfortunately our trainees often struggle with CCQs so I am going to attempt to simplify them here for you. Continue reading “Concept Checking Questions (CCQs)”
What was the last thing you wrote? A Whatsapp message? Shopping list? Maybe an email? So why are teachers still getting students to write descriptions of picture stories to practise writing skills? Let’s look at some ways of making our writing skills lessons more useful for real life. Continue reading “Developing Writing Skills in the EFL Classroom”
Posted on behalf of Cansu Akan
The amazing thing about the CELTA course is that it can be taken in different ways. The candidates are free to choose from three options offered by Cambridge English, which are differentiated according to the mode of delivery: full-time, part-time and online. Nowadays, the demand for online CELTA is on the rise as it offers a more flexible schedule and is more personalized. This is probably the most important reason why it is preferred by many. Still, even the candidates who apply for the online option don’t know what to expect in the online course. This post looks at the similarities and differences between face-to-face (F2F) and online CELTA with reference to my personal experience and observations as an OCT (Online Course Trainer) and the feedback I have gathered from my trainees so far. Continue reading “CELTA Online”
Error correction can be a tricky area in English language teaching- too much and students lose their confidence to speak, too little and they don’t feel that they are making progress. Read the situations and think about what you would do in each of the following cases before reading the solution … Continue reading “Error Correction: To Correct or not to Correct???”
It is very interesting when observing trainee teachers on a CELTA course, how many feel the need to “teach” in the old-fashioned sense of the word. Many trainees believe that if they haven’t stood at the front of the classroom talking at the students for a good chunk of the lesson that they haven’t actually taught anything.
In my opinion, teachers of EFL (though I am sure teachers of other subjects would benefit too) need to stop thinking that they have to teach but rather that they have to help students learn. After all, if you have discovered something for yourself, you are more likely to remember it.  Continue reading “Focusing on Language in the Classroom”
There are four possible grades you can be awarded at the end of your CELTA Course,
The fail grade is rarely awarded but that’s not because the course is easy, instead because the application process ensures candidates who are likely to struggle are not accepted on a course.
So what do the grades really mean? Continue reading “The CELTA Grading System Unravelled”
The Ultimate Guide to CELTA 