Teaching Beginner Students

Teaching Beginner Students

Although some ESL teachers find the thought of teaching beginners a bit frightening, they can be a very rewarding group to work with. With beginners it is very easy to see improvement. As a teacher, being able to see your work pay off so quickly can be very encouraging.

Of course not all beginners are the same. Beginners are usually split into two categories: complete beginners and false beginners.

Complete beginners are students who have had no exposure to English. Because they have often had very little formal education, they can be much more challenging to teach than false beginners.

Kenneth Beare, author of English as 2nd Language, defines false beginners as, ‘Beginners that have already studied some English at some point in their life.’ Most experts on the subject have a much broader view of what a false beginner is and I would agree with them. False beginners are students that have been exposed to English but do not really know how to use what they know. There are many ways in which they may have been exposed to the language besides formal study.

It is important to know which category your students fall into when planning your lessons.

When teaching complete beginners it is important to start out very simple. Use objects, pictures, gestures and expressions. Stick to learning styles your students are sure to understand and tackle one concept at a time.

With false beginners there are different factors that need to be taken into consideration. For starters, some students may know more than others. Giving a placement test at the start of term will help you see how much each student knows. Knowing the various levels within a class can help you when planning lessons. It is a good idea to have extra work ready to hand out should the more advanced students finish their tasks more quickly than the rest of the class. This will keep them from getting bored while they wait for the rest of the class to catch up. Also, when doing pair work you can pair the more advanced students with those that are behind so that they can help them along. As the term progresses things should even out some. Eventually those that were more advanced because of prior knowledge will get to a point where the material is new even to them.

Another factor to consider when teaching false beginners is that they will probably be more familiar with the various techniques used in teaching. Even at the start of term, lessons don’t have to be kept quite as simple as those you would plan for complete beginners.

Even with the differences between the two types of beginner, there are certain things that will be the same for both. 

Do not give them too much to do at once. If you want students to copy something you are writing on the board, don’t lecture on the topic at the same time. Allow them to finish writing before expecting them to listen.

Be flexible with your lessons. Incorporate class interruptions and real-life happenings in your students? lives into your lessons.

When teaching adults, avoid using materials that are too childish. They may find it demeaning. If you can’t find authentic adult materials at their level, create your own.

The one thing you can do that will really give your students encouragement is to show an interest in learning their language. If they see you struggling to learn a language they will feel better about their own struggles. Also, by allowing them to teach you things here and there it will make them feel important and more your equal.

Teaching Beginner Students

What are the challenges and rewards for teaching beginner students? 

The most difficult challenge is the keep them focused. Each student has different reasons, motivation, and goals when they start to take language lessons. It is very important for the teacher to learn and evaluate the students, so that, they will be placed in the right level of classes and attention that they require to stay focused to what they are learning.

Young students come to class because of their friend or parents’ choice. Also, their attention does not last for a long period of time. Hence, the teacher must make the lessons fun and interesting to make it effective. Adult students come to the class because they want to; possibly they may want to visit different countries, able to speak the language for business usage, or communication with foreign friends. These factors can play a big role in learning; therefore, they are more focused in learning. 

There are many ways to get them focused and interested in the subject during the class. The teacher must be creative and patient. Also, it is critical to create an environment where the students will feel comfortable to making mistakes without embarrassment. Teaching beginner students can be tough because of a lack of knowledge of the language. It is helpful when the teacher can also speak their native language to assist with the new language or instructions.

Usually, what I have seen so far in my experience, the beginner classes starts with vocabulary lessons and basic conversational lessons; such as, ‘Hello, how are you?’ aided by photos, pictures, and video clips. Initial classes can be very difficult; for that reason. The teacher must make it fun. 

Young beginner students will learn vocabulary and pronunciation quickly by use of songs and sentences without knowing the meaning of the language because they are flexible and sensitive to sounds. Also, their pronunciation and listening abilities will develop faster and more accurately than the adult students because they are open to a new language. It will be much more effective for the young students to playing a game, sing a song, or use activities to learn vocabulary and pronunciations.

Adult students, on the other hand, do focus better when they have some type of structure. They must set their own goals since each student has different motivations to learn the new language. They would normally enjoy developing basic communication skills, so that, they receive instant gratification. They would rather learn 2 basic conversational sentences than grammar structures.

In order to speed up the learning process, it is very important that the teacher gets to know the students, their interests, and build their confidence so that they will be able to learn effectively. Building teacher-student relationships and active listening will help develop great lessons for the beginner students.

Because of the numerous challenges, the end results for the teacher are very rewarding. You can show them the recorded first lesson to demonstrate how far they have improved which give them great confidence and incentive to learn more. As a teacher, you can also view the tape to improve teaching skills and lessons.

Teaching a new language is a great opportunity to bring the world closer.

I will always remember this as a teacher:

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today, will often forgotten. Do good anyway. Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway. In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

‘Do It Anyway’ by Mother Teresa