One thing you will hear people say about online ESL classes is that the teachers do not give the student sufficient time to talk. I have heard this criticism, and so has every other online teacher. This comes from both students and supervisors, but the trick is for you to work towards changing it.
The thing is, you will hear this a lot when you are just starting to teach, and the most important thing is to adapt. If you are teaching a quiet class, the chances are that you will be inclined to do much of the talking yourself. However, it is a requirement from both students and administrators that the teacher reduces the talking time.
So, how do we change the habit of talking a lot in class?
First, it is important to understand the concept of teacher talking time (TTT) – the amount of time a teacher speaks in class – either as part of a discussion or lecture. When it comes to ESL classes, one of the things we must bear in mind is that the students need to be more engaged in class. This is the way they are going to improve – practice makes perfect tremendously!
Well, I am not saying that TTT is a bad idea altogether. One thing that is important to bear in mind is that students need to hear you pronounce words correctly, explain concepts well, and get the ball rolling. The main goal is for you not to take up more than 50% of the class talking.
Realize that if you talk too much, then you risk making the class boring. By reducing the amount of talking you do in class, you stand a chance to give the students a fair share to engage and make the class interesting – especially when the students bring along their opinions, insights, and thoughts.
You may be wondering, so how will less talking time improve the class?
Well, the truth is that the more your ESL students talk and get engaged in the classroom, the higher their chances of learning more. In other words, when you speak less, you allow them the chance to fill in the blanks. While teaching adolescent students is challenging, doing too much talking only makes things worse – because they often feel more complacent when it comes to them taking the back seat just to listen.
What most teachers fail to realize is that when they spend less time talking, the students will be more engaged, and that offers you a chance to make more corrections – that help them learn more. Students will be more used to making mistakes and feel okay with that. This way, they become more receptive to taking corrections from you and applying them to their conversations in the future.
The ability of the students to freely express their opinions, thoughts, and insights in class helps them to be more satisfied with the results. While they may not learn lots of vocabulary and grammar, the truth is that they are advancing their speaking skills. Your role as a teacher is to ensure that the students balance their academic achievements with their satisfaction.
Some of the techniques that will help you have an excellent online ESL class include;
Instead of waiting for the criticism that you talk too much in class, if you are a first-time online ESL teacher, then the secret is for you to find a way to time yourself. If you are a continuing teacher and have heard this comment, they plan to improve your classroom time so that you can make the most of your class experience.
The secret is for you to time yourself!
Based on how well you can keep track of time, you must estimate the length of time you spend talking in class. If you are not good at telling the length of time spent, then come to class with a stopwatch. When you have a stopwatch to time yourself, you have a better chance of ensuring that the lesson runs according to your schedule. If you are giving instructions on the lecture, try as much as you can to time that using a stopwatch.
Once you complete the class, calculate the amount of time you spent talking. If you spent most of the class time talking, then you need to start making changes. Take some time to reflect on your class – what are some of the points you spent lots of time discussing? Did you repeat yourself? Did you ask students questions? How much time did you spend responding to their questions?
When you have all these figured out, then start finding ways to cut back on parts where you did much of the talking. Replace those areas with activities that are more centered on the students.
Take some time to review your lesson plan – is it more detailed? Do you prefer a rougher outline? If your outline is rougher, then it is time for you to change your approach and plan effectively. Ensure that every point you intend to make in class should have an estimated amount of time – to better keep track of your TTT.
Add more details into your lesson plan; this way, you are in a better position to tell what points make you more inclined to talk too much. Realize that, when you fill your lesson plan with activities that require more verbal instructions, you will be inclined to talk more – and that needs to change. Split them into several lessons and have them replaced with activities that are centered around the student.
When you make these changes, you must assess how effective they are every day. There are times when you cut down on TTT and risk making the lessons less clear. When you reduce your talking time, you must observe the reactions you get from the students to see whether they get more receptive.
An example of an activity you can bring on board include FluentU.
You must encourage your students to talk more – especially when you get to the heart of the lesson. Instead of spending too much time asking questions, try to replace them with leading questions.
Take a look at the following examples and identify which one a student would be likely to respond to;
What is present progressive tense? How can we refer to an activity that is happening now?
Well, if you evaluate the questions above, you will notice that the first one implies that the students have read their books and know the different tenses. The second question, on the other hand, describes what present progressive tense is without necessarily stating what it is.
What you will notice is that the students will be more inclined to respond to the second question. They will even try to use these, for example, sentences, and that will go a long way in helping trigger their memories better. In other words, they will be more at liberty of responding to the second question; however way they see fit.
The truth is, it does not matter how the student responds to the second question. Either way, they will consider it more engaging and will find different ways to respond without fear of being incorrect. This way, you are in a better position to lead the class to discuss the concept in more detail – hence, offering them a deeper insight into the use of grammar overall.
One of the other techniques you can use to have an excellent ESL class online is to incorporate the use of group discussions and activities. What you must understand is that students often feel free speaking with their peers.
You can have your class practice small dialogues, write short essays, or introductory paragraphs. Whatever it is, pairing them up in groups is a great way for them to learn freely. The thing with group work is that students are better placed to enjoy more time and learn from each other. You also reduce the chance of them falling asleep in the middle of the lesson.
Group work goes a long way in allowing you to listen to the students – so that you can respond to their individual questions and offer them guidance to help them understand concepts more fully.
If you carefully reflect on your lesson, you will realize that there are certain words that you keep repeating over and over in class. Trust me; if you are tired of saying them, then the chances are that your students are tired of hearing them too.
Instead of using them, you must replace them with non-verbal cues.
What you need to note is that not everyone will understand the non-verbal cues. Therefore, the very first time you use them, it is important that you tell them what you mean. After that, they will begin to connect what you mean whenever you use them.
For instance, one of your non-verbal cues might be tapping on the board or pointing at a specific student to read. If one of your students is reading what is on the board and you tap on one word, they will understand that you want them to repeat it because it was not clear or something is wrong with their pronunciation.
There are several gestures you can use. The trick is for you to find the ones that work well with your lessons. Whether you are teaching online or in a foreign country, you must do a little research to find the ones that are appropriate for their culture.
Once you have assessed your lesson plans and made changes to how you manage your class, you should be better placed to lower your Teacher Talk Time (TTT). However, if you are experiencing difficulties cutting your TTT down, seek feedback from colleagues. You can also go to the extent of asking your students their thoughts and opinions about the lesson. Take time to consider their advice and evaluate whether you can use it.
Seeking feedback from the class is one of the best ways you can improve your talking time. This is also a great way to help them improve their English – by expressing themselves.
Once you cut down the TTT, the chances are that you will start to notice improvements in the class – students becoming more engaged and the lesson running smoothly. Your students will be more receptive to your lesson when you revert to old ways of teaching – because they will understand that it is a necessary evil. With time, you start gaining a balance between students and teacher talking times.