Teaching English has become one of the more popular ways to earn extra income these days. With the demand of English tutors rising, many English speakers have considered using their extra time to teach their native language. But of course, it doesn’t necessarily follow that once you know a language, you can easily teach it -nope! Not even if it’s your native tongue.
So here are a few tips on how to make become a good English teacher:
1. Encourage the use of learning apps
Smartphones are almost capable of doing just about everything, and that includes teaching! Well, of course, a smartphone alone can’t totally teach a person a new language, but downloading the right apps can complement the efforts of the teacher and student. Encourage your student to use a language learning app such as Duolingo so the student can have a study aid on days that you’re not holding sessions.
2. Take it slow
Being a native speaker, you might now be aware that you are speaking fast! Take it easy and make a conscious effort to go slow so your student can keep up. It’s also a good step to tell your student not to hesitate to tell you when you’re speaking at a pace s/he can’t keep up with.
Also, be aware of the vocabulary you use and the sentence structure you use when you are speaking. You might be using idioms your student doesn’t know of and get him/her confused!
3. Use social media
People already spend a lot of time on social media, might as well use it for something productive! Encourage your student to join Facebook groups of English learners or English native speakers. Conversations in social media can further expose your student to the practical use of English in writing.
Allot some time to discuss some of the words or sentences that confuse your student those groups s/he joined. Acronyms are confusing- even for native speakers! - so it’s a good idea to start decoding them for your student.
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