TEFL Certification Course Notes

Module 1
English is one of the simplest and easiest natural languages in the world

True
The English language uses the Greek alphabet.

False
Inflection is the name for the extra letter or letters added to nouns, verbs and adjectives
in their different grammatical forms.

True
Most English sentences (clauses) conform to the Subject, then Verb, then Object word
order.

True
All languages have a continuous tense form.

False
English is a tonal language.

False
L2 is the label given to a person’s first language (the student’s native language).

False
The L1 can be viewed by some teachers as another classroom resource.

True
An L1 learner is generally immersed in the English language at all times from birth.

True
If the teaching is not carried out in line with the student’s preferred learning style,
learning may very well be curtailed.

True
A learner who is proficient in her L1 language (grammar, structure, mood etc.) and
understands all of this, does not have a great start on others.

False
Communication styles are the same in all cultures.

False
All schools you teach in will have a Code of Practice for Teachers.

False
‘Valuing the learning needs, effort, and potential, and acknowledging the uniqueness, of
each student’ is part of the Dignity and Diversity section in YOUR Code of Practice.

True

Rapport exists when people develop a feeling of harmony, well-being and security.

True
A classroom community is one where students know they can depend only on the
teacher.

False
If you set low achievement expectations, then it’s likely you’ll get low achievement
levels.

True
Increase your teacher talking time (TTT) and minimise student talking time (STT).

False
Communication styles are the same in all cultures.

False
When doing an A/B roleplay activity, students should be placed:

B. facing each other

Once you have decided on a seating plan you should stick to it for the remainder of the
course.

False
A good way to deal with latecomers is to:

C. ask other students to explain the activity and what they’ve done so far
When giving instructions it is important to: (Tick all that apply)
A: 'Grade' your language

B: Repeat each instruction

C: Use visuals

D: Set time limits

Ice breakers are useful for... (tick all that apply)

A. making the students feel at ease

B. allowing you to relax and let the students take charge

C. building a rapport with the class

D. encouraging interaction
In the ‘Introduce Your Partner’ ice breaker, what grammar point do students practice?

A. question formation

B. third person verb forms

What follow-up would be appropriate to this ‘Find Someone Who…’ question? ‘Find
someone who has been to China’:

A. find out if they like travelling

B. find out when they went and who with

C. find out if they have been on another holiday this year

D. find out if they speak an Asian language

The 'Teacher Tic Tac Toe' game should include answers to questions about the teacher.
T/F?

True

Oral: “I’m not sure all of you have fully understood today’s grammar point, let’s go over it
again together on the board.”
Written: “Well done, excellent use of prepositions in your work, now just focus on using the
past simple and past perfect correctly. Have another look at the last chapter in the textbook and
make sure you know when to use each.”

1. The feedback here focuses on…?

A. Progress

B. Achievement

C. Language

Oral: “You’ve understood that exercise really well, the pairwork was much better than last
time.”
Written: “81%! Excellent that’s a whole grade higher than your last story, I can see you’ve
really taken on board the comments I gave you last time.”

1. The feedback here focuses on…?

A. Behavior

B. Effort
C. Achievement

Oral: “Some great ideas came out of your brainstorming session but quite a few people weren’t
speaking English at times! Remember to try and express your thoughts in English as much as
possible, even if it takes that bit longer.”
Written: “What you’ve done so far is good but the work is incomplete: make sure that you’re
focusing on the task during the lesson rather than chatting to your partner and if you’re
struggling to get the activity done in the set time then don’t be afraid to ask for clarification.”

1. Mrs Smith, who is very nosy, lives in the house with the blue door.

A. Behaviour

B. Effort

C. Achievement

Feedback should always be...

A. focused, critical and peer given

B. fair, focused and constructive

C. written, constructive and highlight the areas for improvement

Peer feedback allows students to ridicule their classmates so that they feel better about
their work. T/F?

False
Feedback should always be...

A. Content
B. Language

C. Structure

D. Progress
Feedback should always be given at the end of the lesson. T/F

False
The sole purpose of feedback is to motivate learners.

False
Constructive feedback does not mean only giving positive feedback (praise). Negative
or critical feedback given constructively and skilfully can be very important and useful.

True
 When offering feedback, it can really help the students to hear first what they have
done poorly.

False
It is not likely to be helpful to give students feedback about something over which they
have no choice or control.

True

Oral: “Some great ideas came out of your brainstorming session but quite a few people weren’t
speaking English at times! Remember to try and express your thoughts in English as much as
possible, even if it takes that bit longer.”
Written: “What you’ve done so far is good but the work is incomplete: make sure that you’re
focusing on the task during the lesson rather than chatting to your partner and if you’re
struggling to get the activity done in the set time then don’t be afraid to ask for clarification.”

1. Mrs Smith, who is very nosy, lives in the house with the blue door.


A. Behaviour


B. Effort


C. Achievement
Check answer

Honesty and Integrity

 creating and maintaining appropriate professional relationships in the classroom,

school and in public
 acting with impartiality, truthfulness and honesty
 displaying consistently high standards of personal and professional behaviour
 refraining from disclosing information about colleagues in the course of
professional service unless disclosure serves a compelling professional purpose
or is required by law
 refraining from any abuse of a position of authority or relationships with
students, parents, carers or colleagues for financial, political or personal gain
 acting according to the law

Dignity and Diversity

 valuing diversity and treating students, parents, carers and colleagues equitably
and fairly and with care and compassion while respecting the uniqueness of
family and socio-economic backgrounds, cultures, races, religions and beliefs
  valuing the learning needs, effort, and potential, and acknowledging the
uniqueness, of each student
 improving the wellbeing and progress of those students with special needs
 fostering the valuing of diversity and encouraging the development of
international, multicultural, gender, and indigenous and other perspectives
 allowing, reasonably, the students’ access to varying points of view

Respect and Trust

 acknowledging that relationships with students and their families must be based
on mutual respect, trust and confidentiality of personal information, unless
disclosure of any information serves a compelling professional purpose or is
required by law
 acknowledging the contribution that mutual respect, trust and confidentiality
make to students’ wellbeing and learning
 acknowledging the desires and hopes of the students’ families and carers
 acting with educational colleagues and the wider community in ways which
enhance the profession
 acknowledging the status, responsibilities and authority of colleagues
 remaining open to constructive criticism from peers and showing respect and
consideration for different viewpoints

Responsibility and Accountability

 giving priority to the education and welfare of all students in our care
 guiding and encouraging students to achieve their potential, ensuring all
students have an equal opportunity to achieve their potential
 creating interactive learning environments, rather than environments in which
the students are merely passive recipients of information
 regarding themselves as learners and engaging in continuous professional
development, and improving teaching and learning strategies for themselves and
colleagues
 working collaboratively, co-operatively and enthusiastically with colleagues and
other educational bodies in the best interests of the education and welfare of the
students
 taking precautions to distinguish between their personal views and those of the
local school district or governing body
 promoting the ongoing development of teaching as a profession
 upholding school policies, procedures and practices
 modelling the behaviour, attitudes and positive values which are widely accepted
in society and encouraging students to apply them and critically appreciate their
significance

Care and Protection

 having empathy and respect for, and rapport with, students and their families
and carers, colleagues and communities
 committing to students’ wellbeing and learning through the practice of positive
influence, professional judgment and empathy in practice
 adhering to the school’s student protection policies and procedures
  making reasonable effort to protect the student from conditions harmful to
learning or to health and safety
 refraining from any racial, gender, political, verbal, physical or emotional abuse,
embarrassment or harassment
 being generous with praise and giving positive inputs and feedback

Fairness and Justice

 being fair and reasonable at all times

 being committed to the wellbeing of individuals and the community and to the
common good
 resolving competing claims or problems arising from different ethical principles
and different interest groups through reflective professional discussion
Ice Breakers

Introduce your partner

Where are you from?
Who is your best friend?
Are you married?
Do you have children?
Why are you on this course?
What's your favorite type of food?
What do you love and hate about learning?

Teacher Tic Tac Toe

In this game the teacher draws a noughts and crosses board and writes a word or
number in each.

The information in each square is an answer to a particular question, for example you
could write ‘3’ in one of the squares as the answer to the question ‘how many brothers
do you have?’

Students work in two teams, choose a square and try to guess the question it
corresponds to. Whichever team gets three in a row wins.

This is a great activity for the first day when the students already know each other but
you are teaching them for the first time as it allows them to relax and get to know you
in a fun and interesting way.

All the information should answer questions about you so you can make it as personal
as you like and level appropriate.
For higher levels it’s good to throw in some ‘trick’ answers if possible, I knew an English
teacher who used to always write ‘gin’ in one of the squares and everyone would
assume the question was ‘What’s your favourite drink?’ The real question was actually
‘What’s the name of your first pet?’

As well as being a fun game which can induce some friendly rivalry between
teams, this game is also great for practising word order in questions and for
higher levels you can decide to only give the teams a point if they ask the
correct, and grammatically correct, question.

Mingle / Find someone who...