One of the problems with teaching EFL or ESL students listening skills is that many of the listening files available (online or on CD) are boring. So, to make my listening skills EFL and ESL classes more interesting I began to use TV shows and, CSI: Las Vegas in particular. My EFL/ESL students loved…
For many EFL/ESL students, particularly those who don’t live in western countries, learning how to tell the time in English can be difficult. In Thailand, for instance, the daily time is split up into four segments, unlike two like in the west (am and pm) so trying to figure out what time it is…
I’ve used dictation in every EFL/ESL class I’ve ever taught, from beginner level and little kids right up to high-level adult EFL/ESL students. Dictation is a wonderful tool to use to improve your students’ listening, spelling and grammar skills and a dictation lesson plan is easy to prepare and easy to use. This free…
I used to teach EFL/ESL and Business Skills to corporate students in Thailand. Much of the time, I had to create my own lesson plans as I discovered what problems each group of students had. Creating a lesson plan on Giving Good Business Presentations was very important, as most of my corporate students weren’t very…
Even the highest level Thai employees often find it difficult to know how to make good business decisions. Thais are not taught basic ‘common sense’ like westerners are, as much of their education relies on rote learning, so what westerners think is common sense in business just doesn’t often happen in Thailand. Realizing this, I…
EFL and ESL students all over the world sign up for English conversation classes. The problem is, like many EFL teachers will tell you, once they arrive many of them are too shy to speak. That’s why, when you begin to teach a new EFL/ESL conversation class, it’s important to get all your students…
One of the first classes of EFL students I taught in Thailand was a class of six year olds. In childrens’ beginner EFL/ESL classes, learning food vocabulary is one of the first sets of words they learn. It’s easy, it’s useful and uses items they often already know. This EFL/ESL lesson plan was one all…
EFL/ESL corporate students often struggle when it comes to providing good customer service skills in English. Speaking English is already difficult for them, then, when it comes to an irate customer yelling at them, they get even more confused. This quick, free corporate English lesson plan I put together though will help your EFL/ESL…
As an EFL/ESL teacher in Thailand, one of the things I always found difficult was teaching English spelling. English, unfortunately, is not a language that has logical spelling. Even with grammar rules, there are so many exceptions spelling can be difficult for even the smartest student. In EFL classes where I taught children, I eventually…
The most difficult grammar point for every level of student from Asia to understand is often ‘question tags’. Many Asian languages don’t have question tags, so Asian EFL/ESL students find them incredibly confusing. In fact, EFL/ESL students the world over find learning question tags confusing, which is why I created this free lesson plan…
When I began teaching English in Thailand, one of my frustrations was getting my students to remember the difference between countries, languages and nationalities. Students would often tell me, “He is Germany” or “I go to American for my holidays” and, no matter what I tried, they couldn’t seem to remember the difference….
Thailand is known as having some of the world’s best diving and scuba divers come from all over the world to enjoy it. Others arrive first in Bangkok and while on vacation or living here, take scuba diving lessons so they’ll be ready for their Thailand beach vacation. Bangkok has a number of excellent…
When it comes to teaching English in Thailand, many westerners arrive in the country with little or no training, look for a job and begin to teach. While you could be a good teacher if you worked hard and put your mind to it, without much training or even direction when it comes to how…
Education in Thailand is in serious trouble I taught in the Thai education system for more than 10 years and, during this time, learned quickly how bad the education system in Thailand really has become. Plagued by inadequate funding, huge class sizes (more than 55 students to a class is normal), terrible teacher training, students…
One of the things most EFL teachers in Thailand notice almost immediately after starting to teach English to Thai students is that successfully giving instructions can be difficult. Either the teacher themselves is not doing it in a way Thais can understand, or their Thai students are not paying attention. As giving instructions to an…
When you decide you want to teach English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and live in another country to do so, one of the things you need to take is TEFL certification. TEFL stands for Teaching English as a Foreign Language and courses are offered all over the world. Full TEFL qualification is a 120…
Corporations All Over Thailand Hire Teachers to Teach Corporate English (EFL) Classes In many countries in the world, teaching EFL (English as a Foreign Language) in a corporation is becoming popular. Here in Thailand, corporations now know, in order to compete in business, their employees have to be able to speak English. A few years…
Can You Teach English in Thailand and Elsewhere Without Certification? If you’d love to teach English in Thailand or elsewhere overseas but don’t have basic teaching certification, can you? When you consider hundreds of thousands of native English speakers currently teach English in Thailand and in other countries and a large number not only don’t…
As a former English teacher in Thailand, before I even contemplated moving here to teach English, I researched the country’s education system thoroughly so I had an idea of which skills I would need to have to be able to not only get a job in Thailand but to be able to do that job…
Which Teaching Materials Are Needed in Every EFL Classroom? In order to help EFL students learn English faster and to cover every learning style, a variety of learning materials should be available in every EFL classroom. When I was teaching in my EFL classrooms in Thailand, no matter what level my students were categorized as,…
How to Teach Critical Thinking to EFL Students in Asia The first thing most new EFL teachers in Thailand discover when they begin to teach English is the lack of critical thinking skills of most Thai students. Thailand, like many other countries in Asia, has a history of teaching students by rote. The teacher writes…
What Does a Bilingual Education Curriculum in Bangkok, Thailand Include? A few years ago on a TV show in Thailand, it was suggested the best education a Thai child could get in Bangkok, Thailand was in a bilingual school. Studies had shown children who went to Thai government schools received a good education in Thai…
How to Get English (EFL) Teaching Experience Before Moving Abroad to Teach As a former EFL teacher in Thailand, I had two years teaching experience with young children before I even moved to Bangkok to teach. Tens of thousands of people who decide to teach overseas every year, however, don’t have that kind of experience,…