Interaction in the english language classroom

 Most of my interactions in the English classroom have been as a student. and thanks to that, I could observe how a lot of teachers explained and taught. I don´t want to brag, but I have been taught English by more than 20 teachers throughout my life as a student (is that a good or a bad thing? LOL). From what I could observe, I can draw the following conclusions:

Teaching models

Most of the teachers with whom I have the fortune of interacting tend to have a mixed teaching model; however, they tend to use a mix of direct instruction and lecture, while occasionally using communicative language teaching and cooperative learning to complement some of their lessons. This shows that teaching requires a certain flexibility and the ability to change and alter the way you teach depending on the students' needs.

Sometimes a lesson could have more than one teaching model, and depending on the complexity of the topic, it could have more than three throughout the lesson. Depending on how much experience a teacher has, he can interchange models mid-session or even use them at the same time! Obviously, they have a lesson plan that aids them, but I consider that teaching is something that requires lots of dedication.

Education materials

There are thousands of educational materials, and with the use of the internet, you can find more. Most of the time, my teachers used the books that the school provided. And that's fine! Books have been a central part of the educational system for a long time, so obviously teachers make extensive use of them.

Most of the time, and if the lesson allows it, teachers can use games to enhance the students´ ability to learn through fun activities. This could range from childish games like memoranda or hot potato to complex ones like scribble or scattegories. Videos and audios are other educational materials that I've seen used. Depending on the teacher's creativity and resourcefulness, the use of auxiliary materials could be endless.

Interactions between teacher and students

I think this is one of the most important aspects a teacher should focus on. The way a teacher presents a lesson is of the utmost importance; for example, it is not the same if a teacher teaches a lesson with a negative or neutral attitude as one who does it with a positive attitude. The mood of the teacher can affect the way students perceive their lesson and enhance or decrease how much they understand.

Created by: Alexis Ricardo Alejandre Carrilo