Teaching Language Skills

One of our students is preparing to spend the next five years studying in Canada. Teachers and students gathered in a famous restaurant in the embassy district of Beijing for a huge “good-bye feast” for him. On the menu were lots of roast meat, deep-fried veggies and other delights.  Photos were taken and hugs shared. It was a good time that ended too soon. Towards the end of the evening, as one American teacher left the party, the departing student said good-bye to him and added, “Go slowly”.

The American teacher left in a state of confusion. Why should he go slowly? Was there some danger to look out for? All the Chinese teachers in the restaurant burst out laughing. The student was now the confused one! The teachers laughed because they knew the student was translating the Chinese expression “man zou” directly into English. After things calmed down, they thanked the student for providing them with such a good example of why you should NOT translate directly from one language to another. Not only you, dear reader, but also every student in our school will be hearing about this funny mistake.  

Okay, I must be going now. See you later and go slowly take care!

Some teachers focus on teaching grammar or vocabulary. Some focus on “functions” such as how to make an apppointment or how to answer the telephone. Still other teachers use broader methods with cool sounding names like “The Silent Way”, “Total Physical Response” or “Task Based Learning”. I have studied a wide variety of approaches and I often use elements of those approaches in my teaching. However, in the end I seem to always fall back on the same basic approach - teaching langauge skills. In my study of French, Japanese, Spanish and Chinese, and in my teaching of English, I have always found that a focus on the skills of language makes the most sense for students and leads to steady improvement.

The skills I teach to beginners includes differentiating English sounds, using English rhythm, asking basic questions, asking follow-up questions, expanding on a response, reading for main ideas, understanding vocabulary in context, writing basic sentences, writing a coherent paragraph, starting a conversation, keeping a conversation going, giving an impromptu speech, giving a presentation, etc.

Perhaps it is because I like sports that I take an approach similar to a coach. Basketball players need to constantly practice skills. Shooting is not enough - they need to be able to dribble, pass, rebound, execute a 3 on 2 fastbreak, play man-to-man or zone defenses, etc.  When I teach, I look at my students as if I am a coach, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses, figuring out what they need the most, then coming up with lessons that will help them be stronger, more successful English speakers in their daily lives.

This blog, then, will be about the teaching and learning of language skills. Sometimes that will include grammar or vocabulary or functions, but those will never be the main focus. I do not know at this time exactly what direction “Language Learning Skills” will take or where it will lead. It will be a journey, hopefully with some discovery along the way. And I hope some readers will add their own ideas through the comments section. 

Okay, fasten your seatbelts ESL teachers and students, it’s time to take off…