Teaching English as a Foreign Language – TEFL in Buenos Aires

Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) in Buenos Aires refers to teaching the English language to students with different first languages, in the case of Buenos Aires, with native Spanish speakers. TEFL occurs more often privately, at a language school or with a tutor. TEFL can also take place in an English-speaking country for people who have immigrated there (either temporarily for school or work, or permanently) as in the United States or in the UK. TEFL teachers may be native or non-native speakers of English. You can take your TEFL course in Buenos Aires without being a native English speaker. The most important part of the TEFL class is Buenos Aires is connected to Lesson Planning.

Lesson Planning

When taking the TEFL class in Buenos Aires, Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), a teacher must create a lesson plan for every class/student they teach—this allows for organized and effective English lessons. A lesson plan also allows a teacher to create a personal teaching objective. Lesson plans can outline a day, a week, a month, or even a year.

When creating a lesson plan, a teacher must take into account:

• Who am I teaching?
• What are their needs?
• What are their interests?
• Am I teaching one-on-one or in a group?
• How much needs to be covered in the time given?
• What is the age/gender of my students?
• What has been covered so far?
• What objectives need to be met?

In the beginning, lesson planning takes a lot of preparation. However, once you get to know your students and the skill of lesson planning, the time needed to create an effective plan will dramatically decrease.

The first day of class is critical and should be handled differently depending on whether or not it is a group class or an individual class…

Group Classes:

Because you won’t know much about your students on the first day, it’s important to have an introduction planned, as well as a variety of “ice-breaker” activities. Be sure to take many notes on your first day in order to create student profiles. This will allow you to create more effective lesson plans for upcoming classes. Explain your objectives for the course so that your students know what to expect.

Individual Classes:

The first day of an individual class can be more stressful for the student than in a group class as the student will be the sole focus of the teacher’s attention. Like in a group lesson, be sure to include ice-breaking activities in order to help the student relax. Rapport is key. By the end of the class, the teacher should have an extensive student profile finished and ready to contribute to the creation of future lesson plans.

Lesson plans for group and individual classes will also differ…

Group Classes:

Group lessons will take more time to teach or practice as some students will work slower than others. Be sure to create lessons that will appeal to many different types of learners. Students will learn differently and it’s important to try and accommodate as many students as possible. Group work is recommended. With group lessons, you are more likely to stick to a long-term lesson plan or curriculum.

Individual Classes:

Always have extra material planned for an individual lesson as it is possible to move through the lesson plan much more quickly than originally thought. You don’t have to worry about using as many learning methods as possible, as all lesson plans can be tailored to the student. You can set higher objectives for an individual student than a group lesson. There is also more opportunity to try new things or change future lesson plans.

For both individual and group classed, create a routine so that your students know what to expect next.

When taking the TEFL class in Buenos Aires, Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) you should follow these Top 10 Teacher Golden Rules

1. Always be prepared
2. Use several approaches
3. Always encourage interaction
4. Build rapport
5. Use the whiteboard effectively
6. Use audio-visual aids effectively
7. Manage handouts
8. Constantly check for understanding
9. Give feedback to students
10. Ask for their feedback

Possible Icebreakers and Introductions

1. What’s the question?
2. Alliterative introductions
3. Name chain
4. Seating plan
5. Getting to know you questions

6 Tips for a Successful Lesson Plan

1. Be clear and concise
2. Organize your time well
3. Be ready
4. Be prepared
5. Be flexible
6. Be organized

3 Stages for every lesson plan

1. Introduction
2. Body
3. Wrap-up

Lesson Plan Guide

1. Heading

• • Write out what class you will be teaching, as well as the date, length of the class, level, and students

1. Topic and Content
2. Objectives and materials

• • Indicate what the students should achieve by the end of the lesson
  • Indicate how they will achieve the objective and with what materials

1. Process

• • Introduction
  • Content
  • Practice
  • Repeat
  • Close

1. Conclusion

• • Evaluation
  • Teacher comments

Before successfully teaching, one must evaluate the level student or class. To do this, a teacher may:

1. Observe the students during activities
2. Interview students
3. Evaluate performance tasks
4. Make student portfolios
5. Utilize investigative projects
6. Read written reports
7. Looks at multiple choice, short-answer and essay questions posed to the students