HOW TO MOTIVATE STUDENTS WHEN THE CONTENT IS NOTHING NEW FOR THEM

03 de febrero de 2013

Monserrat Agulo Alejandro

one - in- ten students come to college saying they want to participate. What can I do for making them all take part in class?

Why do students feel discouraged?

1.- They do not understand anything you say. 2.- They are always being corrected when they try to say something in English. 3.- you are using material you like or you find easy to use. 4.- the class development and the material are very predictable. 5.- Instructions given are not clear and they have no time limit for doing an activity. 6.- you do not take into consideration all of the things done by the student during the course. Use various grading criteria. 7.- they have just seen or studied these topics too many times before.

What should I do for keeping my students participating?

1.-Speak more slowly and precisely; low the level as necessary. You are not paid to show your students how much English you know, but for teaching them the language. Put pictures up of what you are learning in the classroom to give ESL students a visual reference. Even if they do not understand what you are saying at a particular moment, their eyes may wander to a poster and learn something from it.

2.- Avoid over correcting. If you are an ESL teacher, correct students on work related to the lesson as much as possible. Students can feel discouraged and that they are not progressing if you correct every grammatical or pronunciation mistake they make in speaking and writing. Give the learner the opportunity to think and express his own ideas, do not put them in a rush by saying what you infer their answer would be.

3.- Even the objective of the course and the well programme design is necessary, you must focus on your students needs. I know you will argue they are all different and I agree with you. However, there are certain things they would have in common and could make them feel attracted to the same; such as: their age, social status, traditions, Do not forget we learn things easily when we want and enjoy at doing that.

4.- Do not make your english classroom a boring place where ideas are repeated, otherwise; it should be an environment of innovation and creation. Come and do the something different every single class!! Vary dynamics, didactic material and activities. Teaching materials are very important. Most students are dissatisfied with some course books and activities. It is essential that you choose activities which are truly communicative and meet the needs of your students. Use the element of surprise in your lessons to keep students alert.

5.- When you ask students to engage in activities, make sure the task and your purposes for it are clear. Let students know how long to spend on it and what you will expect them to do after the activity is finished. Timing students provide you many advantages. First, You will optimize the lesson time, students will not have the opportunity to fall asleep or chat, they will not have enough time for thinking in the mother language.

6.- .- Take into consideration all of the things your pupils did during the course. Use various grading criteria. Students may feel disappointed if you are not objective when grading him. Set grading criteria since the very beginning.

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Reduce the distance between instructor and student. Move around the room while teaching. Consider asking students to leave every third row empty so you can walk up and down to interact during group work.