Are you making these common TEFL drilling mistakes?
Some say that teaching well is as complicated, if not more complicated, than doing surgery in an emergency room. There’s so much going on, so much to consider – ideas, techniques, your students, and more – that it’s easy to make mistakes. Even seemingly simple steps like presenting and drilling new vocabulary can trip up new English teachers. Here are 6 common TEFL drilling mistakes that I’ve seen over and over in observations. Are you making any of them?
In this video, I’ll share with you mistakes that teachers make with presenting new vocabulary. They often accidentally don’t establish the meaning for all of their students before they get them to drill. I see this a lot in large classes with students spread around the teacher.
I’ll also share what happens when teachers drill for too long and why its usefulness drops off quickly. I observe this mistake a lot with new teachers looking to fill class time.
In addition, I’ll cover drilling mistakes TEFL teachers make by breaking their pronunciation while drilling. I see these mistakes a lot with teachers who are new to a country and starting to absorb the local accent. I also see these mistakes in large classes with children all repeating at the same time.
I’ll also discuss a couple common mistakes teachers make not just with whole class (choral) drilling, but also individual drilling. These include calling on students to drill on their own too early, and trying to give everyone a chance to drill individually – even in a large class.
Finally, I’ll cover a mistake that happens when teachers focus on getting perfection from their students. This is especially tricky when it comes to our youngest learners who are still learning how to speak in their first language.
If you’re interested in improving your TEFL drilling techniques, check out these easy & fun ways to engage your students.
