TTELT: Teaching Tips for English Language Teachers

Do you find it challenging to conduct effective assessments, especially online? Listen to Jhon Carvajal’s tips for understanding your students’ needs, customizing assessments accordingly, and creating ‘calls to action,’ focusing on demonstrating knowledge. Jhon joins us from Colombia, where he works as a manager of the English Language Academy of Platzi.com For more tips about how to assess Englis...

Have you found it challenging to get to know your students? Would you like to tailor your lessons to their needs and expectations for the course? We invite you to listen to this episode of TTELT as Dr. Andre Boyer shares his top tips for establishing and maintaining relationships with students. Dr. Boyer will share his insights from his expansive career teaching English around the globe. For more...

Are you looking for ideas to increase student talk time at the beginning of class? We invite you to listen to this episode of TTELT as Courtney Miles shares her top tips for maximizing the first several minutes of every class meeting. You will learn how creatively using this time creates a safe space for students to share and learn. To hear more great teaching tips from Courtney and other educator...

Looking for some new ideas for how to engage students in their grammar study? Beth has found success by getting students to notice grammar instead of only presenting it to them. She highlights several examples of getting students to learn from their own curiosity. Need more great teaching tips that you can use in your classroom today? Visit our podcast website at TTELT.com to learn from and connec...

Are you seeking tips on how to engage your students and boost participation? We invite you to listen to this episode of TTELT as Hansley Cazeau shares his top 3 tips for boosting classroom engagement. You will learn how getting to know your students directly impacts engagement. Find more episodes on student engagement and teaching tips from Hansley Cazeau at TTELT.org . 

Do you find online teaching challenging? In this episode of TTELT, Dr. Kirsten Dyck joins us to share her top 3 tips for online teaching. You will learn practical approaches to improve your online teaching practice and increase student engagement. For more great strategies to support online and virtual teaching, visit TTELT.org

Are you in need of some fresh homework ideas? Join us to learn how Courtney Miles has reframed homework as fun-work. She highlights how she has increased student engagement through giving options and providing real-world practice. For more great tips from Courtney Miles, check out her other episodes at TTELT.org on Leadership and Learning through project-based classroom activities. 

In the early days of our organization, Beth Trudell sat down for a conversation on student motivation with our founder. In this episode, we revisit Beth's original work to focus on quick teaching tips and strategies that you can use in your teaching practice today to motivate your learners.    Visit TTELT.org to watch the full episode with supporting visuals and  more strategies for...

Join Peter Edwards as he scrolls back through previous TTELT podcasts to help him refresh his thoughts on an upcoming project. Peter is working on an article for TESOL Arabia and a forthcoming workshop in TTELT on motivating students to read through visual literacy techniques. With that in mind, he follows a specific process to gather insights from the previous guests, Matthew Jellick, Jesus Ville...

Find your professional development path with Brooke Leach Grable. She shares the importance of making and building connections to learn as much as we can from each other. Learn how to find your professional development purpose and grow your professional practice through local, international, and virtual PD.  Visit TTELT.org for more professional development opportunities.

Attending workshops and plenaries are great, yet networking can shape your career. Professional conferences offer so many opportunities beyond the session options. In this episode, Peter Edwards discusses the importance of networking as part of participating in PD conferences. Learn to find your singularity and make meaningful professional connections. Want more professional development opportunit...

Ever feel overwhelmed by all of the choices at professional conferences? Learn tips for making the conference experience, whether online or in-person, more meaningful with Luciana's tips. She shares how to pre-plan your experience for the greatest impact. Find more free professional development opportunities at TTELT.org

Learn how to take control of your professional development. Join Dr. Aileen Hale, Beth Trudell, and Dr. Peter Edwards for a discussion about creating a personal, professional development practice that is enjoyable and applicable. They provide simple strategies to stay professionally connected and inspired. Visit TTELT.org to find more professional development topics to inspire your teaching practi...

Discover the connections between Service-Learning (SL) and Project-Based Learning with Dr. Aileen Hale. She shares ways to take projects out of the classroom and into the community to meet community needs. She gives lots of examples of SL projects for all age levels. Visit TTELT.org for more show notes and links. 

Do you ever feel like the language you are learning isn't the language you need? This week Anesh Daya the founder of On the Spot Learning shares his tips for using task-based learning in the community to give purpose to language learning. Anesh explains how daily language tasks can align with specific language goals like learning new vocabulary. Learn how building a community network can support y...

Learn ways to engage your students in leading their project-based learning. Courtney Miles shares with listeners creative ideas for helping students develop language and leadership skills through student-led projects. She explains ways to discover their expertise, follow their lead, create safe spaces, change roles, and give students a platform.  Let us know how you are using these teaching t...

Project-based learning is an instructional approach that gives meaning to the languages our students are learning. Project-based learning is adaptable to meet your needs, from large projects like building a gate for a school and creating language materials for local taxi drivers to helping kids learn through their passions. Join Dr. Aileen Hale, Jennifer Gonzales, and Kyra Sage for their tips on i...

Want to know a helpful strategy for making assessments fairer? Rubrics are the answer. Rubrics are tools used by both teachers and students to make clear the assessment criteria and expectations. Join Beth Trudell as she explains what rubrics are, how to create them, use them with your students, and resources to support their use. Listen as she gives an excellent example for creating a rubric to a...

Need an assessment that integrates language skills and requires students to think critically? Try hexagonal thinking. This strategy has students working together to create connections of words, phrases, and ideas. It easily incorporates reading, writing, speaking, and listening as students have to explain their thinking for the connections they make. 

Formative assessments can be easily integrated into your classroom teaching practice daily. In this discussion with Renuka Karunaratne, you will learn quick formative assessment strategies that become part of your daily teaching routine. Check for understanding with Bellwork, Turn and Talk, and One-Minute Summaries throughout your lessons. For complete show notes, visit TTELT.org

Have questions about assessment for English Language Learners? This episode features experts in the field discussing what assessment is, the components of quality assessments, how to assess large classes, and how to use assessment data. It is full of great assessment tips and strategies that you can begin to implement in your class today. Visit TTELT.org to view the episode, sign-up for upcoming e...

Have you heard of Minecraft? It is a great tool to teach vocabulary, verb tenses and use visuals to showcase sentence structures. It works well with all ages and students love using it because they’re having fun while learning. Listen for creative ways that Ryan integrates Minecraft into his teaching.

Need new game ideas to keep learning interesting? Listen as Christian Kallio shares grammar, vocabulary, and reading review games. He includes online and low-tech game options. Visit the episode page on TTELT for a complete list of resources mentioned. 

Join us to learn how Improv Games can engage students while creating a safe space for practicing their language skills. Build student confidence while bringing down their affective filter. Listen to examples of games and learn about websites for more improv games. Adapt games to your particular learners and context.

Learn about review games such as syllabus search, vocabulary wheel,  relay race, and more! These are all great in-class and online review games to quickly implement in your class.