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Courses and Teachers : English
Q:
What do you like about teaching English?
A:

My favourite thing about teaching English Language Learners is being part of another person's personal and professional growth. I have worked with many students who are confident in their first language, but are held back from their goals and ambitions due to these involving a second language. It feels good to support another person as they develop their skills, build confidence and achieve something that they set out to accomplish.


 
Q:
When did you decide to become an English teacher?
A:

This is a long story, but the abridged version (summary) starts with knowing at a young age that I wanted to be a teacher. While other children were playing with Barbies or trucks, I was running pretend classes on reading and writing with stuffed animals. However, it was in university that I found my interest in working with English Language Learners. I saw the inequalities and extra hurdles friends who were international students went through because of language barriers. I volunteered and found I was drawn into continuing this as a lifelong career.


 
Q:
In your experience, what are the most common reasons for wanting to learn English?
A:

Most students start with the view that learning English is the goal and that once that is achieved, they will be better able to go for a work-related, daily needs related (e.g. communicating in an English-dominate community) or academic-related goal. However, students who have the most success see learning English as a tool to achieve an essential and motivating goal. This is a foundation on how I plan lessons; work towards the bigger goal while merging in language development.


 
Q:
How difficult is it to learn English, compared to other languages?
A:

This depends on your first language and your previous experience with English. Every language has habits that appear when making the transition into English. For example, Mandarin speakers tend to drop plurals, while French speakers switch the adjective-noun order. A big part of learning English is to re-build your gut instinct, that feeling that tells you if something is accurate or not. That comes is practice, a sense of humour and self-reflection.


 
Q:
How is Canadian English different from that of other countries?
A:

Even across Canada, there are differences in pronunciation, grammar structure and vocabulary. I speak with the vernacular of Southern Ontario and write with university-level grammar. It is similar to what you hear on national news stations, tv shows and movies. However, I make a point of telling students variations that they may come across when interacting with other dialects of English as they arise. A few examples, differences in vocabulary with England (e.g. lift - elevator) or variations in spelling with The United States (e.g. colour - color).


 
Q:
What aspects of English Canadian culture are your students usually interested in?
A:

It depends on how long the student has been living in Canada. Those who have recently arrived often request lessons on vocabulary and phrases for basic needs such as food, money and transportation. Those who have been living in Canada for a long time are often interested in the history, government structure or other topics that effect their jobs and/or they hear about on the news. While working with students overseas, information about Canadian culture tends to pop up as a comparison to their own country and current events.


 
Q:
What's the hardest part of teaching English?
A:

I have had a few students who had lost confidence and self-esteem from previous attempts to develop their English skills. It breaks my heart when I meet a student who judges themselves harshly. In some cases, they have been criticized by family, teachers or peers for making mistakes and now struggle to take risks when speaking in a second language. In other situations, they only had access to materials or lessons that were too advanced for their present skill and became frustrated when they were unable to be successful. A part of my job as an educator and a big part of who I am as a person is to understand students' pasts and help them develop their confidence and self esteem. I do this by frequently encouraging, providing personalized lessons with reasonable challenges and breaking skills into smaller achievable tasks. Success over challenges builds confidence, confidence encourages trying difficult challenges and these result in improvement of language skills.


 

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