Elicit Meaning

The term TEFL is one that is often used in a general sense, although it does have a specific meaning. Generally the meaning of TEFL is some form of ‘the Teaching of English to people whose first language is not English’ and is often used interchangeably with terms such as TESOL, TEAL, TESL and many others. It is also generally used as the name of a qualification, such as a TEFL certificate, which relates to the result of a TEFL training course. Here we will look at the meaning of TEFL in these broad terms and also give its specific meaning, along with many other common acronyms used throughout the industry. The general acronym for the field of teaching English is ELT: English Language Teaching. This term applies across the board to teaching English, be it to American high school...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Teaching skills do not only refer to lesson handouts and specific classroom ideas/techniques—although both are part of, and important to teach— but also cover qualities teachers should possess, and the various roles the instructor will (at some point) need to fill. What makes a good instructor? Motivation strategies Roles of a teacher Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Carly G. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. The first unit of the course began by identifying qualities that make for a good instructor. These qualities are as follows: teachers must be kind, patient, lively and...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! What does e.g. mean? Let's take a look at the definition and usage of this expression with this ESL infographic. Learn how and when to use this abbreviation to enlarge your vocabulary word and improve your English conversations.   The term ‘for example’ gets abbreviated as ‘e.g.’ in the English language. It is only used in written language, such as in magazines, newspapers, essays or texting.   The abbreviation ‘e.g.’ is from the Latin expression ‘exempli gratia’ and means ‘for the sake of an example’ or more commonly ‘for example’.   Let's take a look at some examples of ‘e.g.’ being used in a conversation:   Person 1: Hey do you like desserts? Person 2: Yeah. Person 1: I...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Here's a list of commonly used animal idioms in English. They are incredibly fun to teach to your ESL learners.   Register now & get certified to teach english abroad!  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Here's a list of commonly used fruit idioms in English. They are incredibly fun to teach to your ESL learners.   Register now & get certified to teach english abroad!  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Here's a list of commonly used time idioms in English. They are incredibly fun to teach to your ESL learners.   Register now & get certified to teach english abroad!  [Read more]

  In this lesson Iban teaches the meanings and differences of 'I wish' and 'if only'. He starts the lesson with a warm up activity before covering the lesson point. He ends the lesson with activities to give the students practice using the language point he has taught. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! This unit contained information about the qualities of a good teacher and good student.It discussed...  [Read more]

  "In this video, our OTP trainee Richard elicits the topic of his class by asking his students what they would buy if they won the lottery. He then puts the information up on the board and does a quick gap-fill exercise to further elicit the second conditional. ITTT's Observed Teaching Practice courses (OTP) are ideal for teachers wanting to improve their teaching skills remotely from anywhere in the world." Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. Register now...  [Read more]

  In this lesson Iban teaches the meanings and differences of ‘I wish’ and ‘if only’. He starts the lesson with a warm up activity before covering the lesson point. He ends the lesson with activities to give the students practice using the language point he has taught. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! I learnt the importance of selecting the correct vocabulary to teach and...  [Read more]

  "In this video, our OTP trainee Richard elicits the topic of his class by asking his students what they would buy if they won the lottery. ITTT's Observed Teaching Practice courses (OTP) are ideal for teachers wanting to improve their teaching skills remotely from anywhere in the world." Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! I was disappointed with my result for Unit 5 and the confusion around the word...  [Read more]

The English language contains many set phrases whose meanings cannot be discerned by looking at the individual words that make up the phrase. These phrases are called ‘idioms’ and they are used widely by native English speakers around the world; they are also a common cause of confusion for English language learners and as such many EFL students ask their teachers to teach them English idioms. Teachers used to think that there was no point in teaching idioms to students out of fear that they would use them incorrectly; however, as they are such a widely used part of the language it is now considered a good idea to teach them. There are many books available for both teachers and learners that provide explanations of different idioms and exercises to help students practice. In these...  [Read more]

  Even though many people use "may" and "might" interchangeably, they actually have slightly different meanings. The word "may", for example refers to a possibility, while "might" conveys slightly more uncertainty. In the example "There are dark clouds in the sky. It may rain later", we use "may" because the dark clouds suggest the possibility of rain. The sentence "I'm sick but I might come to the party" uses "might" because it is not certain the person will go to the party. This means, you should use 'may' when there is some kind of a sign that predicts or indicates future happenings. You should use 'might' when expressing something a little more unlikely or uncertain. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course....  [Read more]

  In this ITTT TESOL review video a group of students discuss their experiences during their TESOL/TEFL course in Corinth, Greece. They outline some of the components of the course including the teaching practice that the course provides. ITTT's Teaching English as a Foreign Language certification qualifies you to teach English overseas. Having your TEFL certification is a first step to exploring countries and new destinations around the world, experiencing new cultures and being paid for the experience. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Every language has its peculiarities, more so in the English language, which is spoken in the largest number of countries in the world. And thus has attained the status of a global language. Factors attributed to this phenomenon are many. One of the major reasons is that the Britishers had a large number of colonies which enabled them to come in contact with the inhabitants of different parts of the world. Vocabulary Pronunciation Spelling and Pronunciation Meaning Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Stone S. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Moreover, the colonies had the English language as the...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Lewis (1993) claims that "Lexis is the core or heart of language" (p 89). Indeed, it is one of the basic steps of mastering a foreign language. Vocabulary knowledge is what makes verbal communication between people possible. Most teachers face problems when teaching new items. They feel the need to use techniques to have an effective lesson. Over the years, teachers have tried to find the most effective and practical strategies to teach vocabulary. They have been applying several methods like fill in the blank definitions, pre-teaching unfamiliar words and stressing high-frequency words. This essay will just focus on three strategies that can help teach vocabularies such as using visual aids, highlighting vocabulary in context and vocabulary practice....  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences English as a spoken language has become the international standard for people as a first or second language, whether it be for business, science, or just recreationally. This, of course, means that a lot of people are learning the language as a second language. For anyone who knows English as a native language, you know that it has many difficult learning curves along the way to the true understanding that make for many difficulties in how new learners communicate. This essay will touch on a few examples that people undoubtedly run into when learning English, and why it's so difficult to master. Reasons to Confusion Spoken English Written English Cultural Issues Do you want to teach English abroad? Related Articles: Listen to this blog post: This...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences In my personal opinion, vocabulary learning is the basic and most substantial part in any language learning. It's like the bricks for building a house. Moreover, the process of vocabulary learning is the most difficult and time-consuming. It requires not only memorizing skills but also a good understanding of the word, and constant practice. Problems for Chinese English learners The importance of careful vocabulary selection Knowing what to teach Choosing an appropriate teaching method Learn how to teach vocabulary effectively with a TEFL course today! Listen to this blog post Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Dan W. For most English learners in China, they often encounter the same problem when learning vocabulary,...  [Read more]

Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Vocabulary is one of the most important skills required for teaching and learning a foreign language. It is vital for effective communication and understanding of written text. A rich vocabulary helps individuals express their feelings, ideas, and needs while also enhancing their overall understanding of others. Vocabulary develops with age and presents one of the biggest challenges when learning a second language. The Stages of Vocabulary Knowledge The Four Types of Vocabulary in Teaching Teaching Strategies for Vocabulary Acquisition Overcoming Challenges in Teaching Vocabulary Conclusion Are you ready to teach English as a foreign language? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video...  [Read more]

  In this episode, we cover the pronunciation of the word firebrand. This word has two different meanings. The first meaning is quite literal and describes burning wood. The second meaning is rather figurative as it refers to a person who is usually inflicting change as a result of being passionate about a certain topic or cause. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next. Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! I learnt about the three topics...  [Read more]

  ITTT's online TEFL/TESOL courses are designed to help anyone thinking of teaching English overseas. On them you will learn teaching methodologies, important parts of English grammar and ideas of how to teach this grammar to your students. This video looks at one idea for the future continuous tense. For this activity students are each given a planner filled with different activities on different dates. The planners are rigged so that there is only one day when the students are both free. They have to interview each other to find out which day they are both free. To find out more about how you can become qualified and suitably prepared for teaching English overseas click the link above. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL...  [Read more]

  The final stage of the lesson will be the activate and the activate phase is going to form the main speaking activity within the lesson. So, it's very very important that here, we do a good demonstration of what it is that we're expecting them to do, that we elicit the type of target language we're expecting them to produce from the activity. So, one way we could go around it is to, firstly, form pairs. Each pair is going to be given a card and onto that card they're going to write the country and a month. What the teacher can then do, just to add a little bit of spice to it, is to collect all of the cards and shuffle them around and then redistribute them to the pairs so that they get a card that doesn't have their country or their month on it. What they're then going to do is to...  [Read more]

  Just to finish off this particular section on lesson planning, we're going to go through a couple of procedures that should take place during the study phase periods, particularly when we're doing the activities. It is quite important that before we actually go into a study activity that we go through a process of showing how that activity is going to work and one acronym that is often used for this is D-E-GO. The D part of this stands for a demonstration of the activity. Now, it's very important that you don't try to explain how the activity is going to work but rather you actually demonstrate the process. An example of the demonstration of the process of the activity could be something as simple as taking the first question and using it and writing it on the board. This will show...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Grammatical structures are the essential building blocks to any language, English is no exception. Without a frame, a painting will fall off the wall or lose its form. The meaning behind the words is very much the same as a painting in a frame. The ideas which are meant to be conveyed are like the characters of a painting, the grammatical tools are like the colors, the structure and order of the words are like the brushstrokes which add depth and tone to a work of art. English is art. Subjects, objects, and verbs are the colors, shapes, and tones of basic English. Why to teach grammar? Entertaining approach to teaching grammar Engage Elicitation and study Activate Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course today! Related Articles: This post...  [Read more]

  This video is part of our ESA Methodology series. The ESA methodology consists of three stages. In this series, we look at the individual purposes of each stage and typical activities for each stage. This second video introduces the study phase of ESA. The purpose of this phase is to cover the actual teaching of the lesson and to check the understanding of that material.The second stage or phase of the lesson is known as the study phase and really the purpose of this phase is to cover the actual teaching of the lesson and to check understanding of that material. Typically in an ESA lesson, the study phase will have two parts. The first phase of the study is to cover the actual teaching component in what's known as the board work and what we try to do in the board work phase is to...  [Read more]

  The first part of my study phase is going to be the board work and I'm going to use the information that I generated in the elicitation part of my engage phase to move on to the actual board work. What I'm going to do is to show the structure of this particular tense. So, the phase study I'm expecting to take about ten minutes on this particular part and, again, the interaction will mainly be the students talking to me. So, how am I going to achieve that with this information? Well, we could ask the students to have a look at the sentences themselves and to tell us what they can see. If we look at each of the first words in here, then at this level, I should hopefully be able to elicit from my students what each of these words have in common and they may well give an answer that...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas British English versus American English always sparks a lively discussion. I have read some articles so far as to compare these 2 languages and gather the information from the online resources. Personal experience The history of English Vocabulary challenge Teaching implications and classroom problems Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Zahra J. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. I am Iranian and have many American and British friends and I have been living abroad for about 6 years. As an English speaker as a second language, it took me a while to learn what is British and what is American English....  [Read more]

  This video covers the difference between 'aisle' and 'isle'. As these two words have a similar pronunciation and spelling, their usage is often confused. The word 'aisle' is a noun and describes a passage between rows of seats in a church, in a theater, an airplane or between shelves in a supermarket. A suitable example sentece for the word 'aisle' would be: The aisle was crowded with people looking for seats. The word 'isle' is also a noun but has a very different meaning. It usually refers to a small island, such as here: The pirates were in search of the lost isle for buried treasure. As you can see, once you know the meanings of the two words, you will not confuse them as their meanings are very different. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad!   A figure of speech refers to a word or phrase used in a non-literal sense for rhetorical or vivid effect. Below, we will take a look at the 10 most common figures of speech in English.   A figure of speech is used to make writing more interesting as it expresses something in another way than its literal meaning. Here are the 10 most common figures of speech in English. A methaphor is a comparison between two different things, which share something in common. For example: The world is your oyster.   This refers to a phrase that is replaced with another phrase with a similar meaning used to describe something in an indirect manner, such as: I remain loyal to the crown.   Onomatopoeia is a word...  [Read more]

Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences Upon completion of my TESOL course, the best thing I have learned is actually plural and not limited to one item. Most importantly a TESOL instructor needs to be able to reach all students with varying needs, styles and preferences of learning in order to ensure the highest degree of probability that his or her students learn English, while keeping all students in the class as engaged as possible at all times. Activities to use in the classroom Using technology in the classroom Learn strategies and techniques to improve your lesson with a course from ITTT! Related Articles: Listen to this blog post This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Dina P. For this reason, I have developed an ongoing list of strategies and techniques that I have...  [Read more]

Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas ESA is a common methodology that teachers use when teaching students another language. It is also a large part of your TEFL certification course. By using the layout of the ESA method to plan your lessons, they will be more structured, organized and effective. Listen to this blog post: What is ESA? The Engage Phase The Study Phase The Activate Phase Benefits of Using the ESA Method Are you ready to teach English abroad? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! This post was written by our ITTT graduate Casandra L. ESA stands for engage, study, and activate. By using ESA, it gives teacher's the flexibility to conduct a classroom in an organized and productive way. ESA is extremely important when it comes to...  [Read more]