How to Choose an English Teacher in 2023
Right, time to dust off the English textbooks and get studying again. But choosing the right English teacher for you isn’t easy. Should you choose a native or non-native speaker? Does it matter if it’s a man or a woman? What if they’re older or younger than you?
These are all valid questions, but they’re far from the most important ones. Here are three insights to help you choose an English teacher in 2023.
1) Lessons Should Be Entirely in English
Back in secondary school, my French teacher forbade us from speaking English inside the classroom. Every lesson I thought, Here we go again. Boring! Only all these years later do I appreciate her genius.
Speaking exclusively in the target language forced us to:
quit messing around.
focus on her.
train our ears and understanding.
and most of all have an immersive experience.
The immersion method of language learning is popular among linguists and teachers today—and it’s certainly more enjoyable than rote learning grammar. This way, we acquire language through authentic experiences that are immersive. We don’t force it with ‘learning’. You could learn/acquire English through music, your favourite TV series or, good God, even through Minecraft!
Whether you decide on a native or non-native English teacher—and there are pros and cons to both—I strongly believe lessons should be conducted entirely in English. Otherwise, I feel the student is being cheated of their time and money somehow. Okay, it might benefit a non-native teacher and their student to use their mutual L1 from time to time, but I think this should be avoided outside of emergencies. There are plenty of ways to explain something through imagery or description. It makes me think of this famous quote:
“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
2) You Are Not Your Teacher’s Therapist
“Why are we here again, in this classroom?” you ask. Well, you’re here to learn how to read, write and speak in English. And yes, that includes listening to others and your English teacher. However, particularly in one-to-one lessons, some teachers have issues with teacher talking time.
There can be a few reasons for this. Perhaps the teacher is used to teaching group classes and has a more presentational style. It could be your teacher forgets the correct student-teacher dynamic, once you’ve become close, and starts treating you like a friend. While that’s great, we must remember that your relationship is transactional: you pay hard-earned cash to learn English. You can be friends, but both parties have to remember the goal. You’re here to learn, and the teacher is here to help you with that.
The teacher should maximize student speaking time as much as possible. Depending on your communication skills, you should be encouraged to speak for at the very least 60% of the lesson. Lastly, if your teacher starts burdening you with personal problems, it’s a major red flag. You are not your teacher’s therapist and nor should you try to be. Leave it to the professionals. If your teacher takes more than gives, no matter how well meaning they are, it might be time for a polite breakup.
3) Constructive Criticism Is Key
Something almost all successful language learners have in common is a love of the language they are learning. If you love what you’re doing, motivation isn’t this fleeting and unknowable force that vanishes on a whim. If you love something, you just do it. Love, however, can be crushed.
I can’t count the amount of times I’ve started something new and exciting only to have my passion stamped out by unsolicited criticism. Years ago when learning Chinese, a ‘friend’ of mine taught me and another British friend a new word. He had zero knowledge of Chinese; I had been studying for two months—a fact my ‘friend’ took great delight in reminding me when she said his tones were much better than mine. She did so quite rudely, and I never fully recovered.
But I digress. You’re not here to be my therapist (see point 2).
My main point is this: your English teacher should never unduly criticise you. They should guide and encourage you in all cases. Under no circumstances should your education make you feel ashamed. Nor should anyone brashly correct you the moment something has left your lips.
At Discourse Hub, it’s our humble view that correction should be encouraging and tactile. If the student is telling a story, you best listen. Corrections can be done during a pause or at the end of a lesson. Furthermore, they are a learning opportunity. Don’t just say, “Hey, you did this wrong.” The issue under investigation should be highlighted, and the student should be given an opportunity to correct it themselves, all with support from their teacher. Judgement has no place in the TEFL classroom.
So, there you have it. These are my insights on what to look for in an English teacher in 2023 (and beyond). Don’t forget to visit our blog for more tips, opinions and opportunities to read in English. You can find more information about English lessons with us here.
