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Tom Garside
Nov 23, 20193 min read
How to teach pronunciation Part 1: Phonics vs phonology
Pronunciation is an aspect of ESOL teaching which is often misunderstood. Clearly, pronunciation is an essential feature of students’ langua
Tom Garside
Nov 10, 20195 min read
Teaching Language Skills Pt 5: Writing skills and sub-skills
As a productive language skill, writing is much more than simply putting words on paper. A complex set of linguistic and cognitive processin
Tom Garside
Oct 7, 20197 min read
Teaching language skills Part 4: Listening skills and subskills
So much of what we mean is unspoken. The way we use cultural phrases, idioms and metaphor, the tone of voice, facial expression and emotion
Tom Garside
Sep 30, 20197 min read
Teaching language skills Part 3: Reading skills and subskills
Any written text is by definition intended for someone to read. The purpose of written language is to communicate ideas between people
Tom Garside
Sep 23, 20198 min read
Teaching language skills Part 2: Are your students speaking with their mouths or with their minds?
Speaking is central to use of language. Of all the skills we use when we learn, most describe proficiency in another language as speaking it
Tom Garside
Sep 16, 20196 min read
Teaching language skills Pt 1: Are you really teaching language skills in your lessons?
When we think about teaching the four language skills - reading, writing, speaking and listening, we are really thinking about developing...
Tom Garside
Sep 9, 201912 min read
How do you deal with pronunciation in class? Moving from sounds to systems
Pronunciation is one of the fundamentals of language learning. It is the primary factor in spoken language when it comes to understanding
Tom Garside
Aug 26, 20196 min read
5 questions every teacher should be prepared to answer at a job interview
Any job interview can be a stressful experience, and school interviews are no exception. Here are some of the most common questions asked...
Tom Garside
Aug 19, 20195 min read
Why does(n’t) accent matter in TESOL
This article focuses on the positive aspects of the different sounds that Englishes use: accents, and benefit to ESL language learners
Tom Garside
Aug 5, 20198 min read
Ways of increasing student focus through tasks and activities
No matter what you teach, student engagement is a major challenge in every classroom. Learning increases when students are engaged
Tom Garside
Jul 22, 201910 min read
5 Misconceptions about English Tenses
This article aims to clarify five common examples which come up for students and teachers, to help us understand the connected relationships
Tom Garside
Jul 15, 20198 min read
What Language Centres look for in new Teachers
How can a Language centre be sure that it is getting a teacher that can get results from the students? There is a set of core skills!
Tom Garside
Jul 8, 20198 min read
Can teacher talk affect how students think? Harnessing classroom discourse to increase cognition
Cognitive approaches to language learning work under the assumption that the more deeply learners think about what they are learning
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