26 Part I: Getting Started in TEFL
Focusing on the most useful words
In theory you can spend your whole life learning a new language, especially a
global language such as English to which new words are added or borrowed
from other languages all the time.
Most people, however, make do with a few thousand words and leave the rest
to those who particularly need them. So the question is, if English has around
half a million words in its vocabulary, which ones do you teach? Obviously,
you can’t teach them all.
The idea is to focus on teaching the words that allow the students to function
competently in the language.
You only have 90 minutes or so per lesson, and perhaps 60 hours or so to
complete a course, whether it’s a beginner, elementary or intermediate
course. With that in mind, you can’t afford to be sidetracked by talking about
words that particularly interest you but are seldom used.
Your students need to know all the words typically associated with a given
level of English so that they can measure their progress and move on. The
best way to become familiar with what students need to learn within each
level is to refer to the syllabus at the beginning of an EFL course book.
Usually the syllabus sets out the vocabulary areas and grammar chapter by
chapter. In most cases the language school has approved a course book or
set of materials, which you should use as your guide.
Giving students room to talk
Learning a new language is a great deal harder if you feel stressed. You’re
likely to feel embarrassed about pronouncing the words and discouraged
by grammar rules and differences from your mother tongue. This is why an
important aspect of TEFL work is to present lessons in an enjoyable and
engaging way.
In the TEFL industry, you challenge the stereotype of teachers as boring,
sour-faced characters who spend most of their time writing on the board
with their backs to the students. Neither do you lecture the students, forcing
them to simply listen and take notes.
Actually, the students should be doing the talking for most of the lesson.
They need to try out what they’ve learned, get to know their classmates
better so they work as a team, and feel relaxed enough to laugh at their own
