The Good Language Teacher Luke Prodromou British Council, Thessaloniki English Teaching Forum More work has been done on the language learner recently than on the Sood language texcher. This reflets the ‘current learner-centred orthodoxy many teachers subscribe to: autonomy of the learner, self-access work, guessing strategies, a more systematic approach to grammar, and the importance of ‘using the language for communication, attitudes to the target culture, and so ‘on. The profile of the good learner is beginning to emerge. This is all well and good, but the demands on the teacher in a learner- centred methodology are greater. para. doxically, not less than in conventional “teacher-centred” approaches. We need to know more about what skills are required of a teacher who wishes to encourage good language learning. This article reports the results of a Survey designed to discover students’ views of good and bad language teach- ing. Although students’ opinions and expectations are not sacred, they are a good starting point for beginning to understand and meet students’ needs, On the basis of what the students said in the survey, I define some of the roles Fequired of the teacher and look more closely at one particularly important role, that of manager. There were over 40 students i volved in the survey, of intermediate to advanced level. The context in which the survey was conducted was the large mixed-ability class, where there is little access to expensive equipment and examination fever is predominant, and consequently testing, overt and covert, takes over from teaching. The survey took the form of (1) in- terviews and (2) written assignments in Which the students were asked to recall their favourite and least favourite teach- er and to say why they thought some tcchers were mon sncesl San ets. Below is a summary of what they said about the good—and bad—lan- Buage teacher. (I have copied exactly what the students said, correcting only those language errors that obscured the intended meaning.) ‘The Good Language Teacher friendly explained things gave good notes knew how to treat someone who site at a desk for sic houre let the students do It by themselvee— arcup work We did the leoson together ‘took out (elicited?) things we know talked about her life talked about problems of the school talked about other subjects Played eames ‘old jokes she was one of us didn't push weak learners asked students’ opinions, there was a dialogue fhe was like an actress: pretended a lot ‘she was forceful, but not strict ‘he was educated she knew paychology sed movement to make meaning clear ‘he made eure everyone understood he was funny read ina tone that made meaning clear ohe got close to students ‘he believed in me, made me believe in myselt wanted him to be proud of me he had a personality of hie own was very experienced ‘he made grammar clear ‘they tried to communicate she gave advice he talked about personal problems ‘he gave me a lot oF books to read ‘he used questions alot she asked all studente questions social work—Ht was their job We cut up animals (=did experimenta, prac- tical work) talked about the lesson she knew mathematics (Le, her subject matter) he was more ike @ comedian ‘This list of qualities is long, and the individual items are in no particular order of priority. This has its advan- tages: it highlights the fact that there are many different and contradictory qualities that contribute to effective teaching, and it is encouraging that students do not come up with a single, consistent picture of the \deal teaches, ‘To be prescriptive about what makes a 800d teacher would assume we know ‘more about the subject than we do, and it would limit the options available to us. (See Harmer 1983, for the results of another survey on what makes a good language teacher) April 1991‘The Bad Language Teacher very strict idr't let us speak {gave Us a text to lear and checked it {gave marks all the time she was fixed in a chair always above our heads (dominates?) shouted (For no reason) gave 2 lot of tests forced us to do things didn't discuss other problems starved the lesson immediately dide't ome ‘she stared at you and you couldn't say a word even if you wanted to his teste were too difficult we were not prepared for the test he Just showed us a grammar rule and we forgot it shouted when we made mistakes very nervous (=bad tempered?) talked and talked she spoke flat ‘he just said the lesson and nothing elec ‘there was a distance from us beloved the students were all the same ne dide't do experiments believed students all knew the came things like a machine rot prepared ‘treated kids lke objects he was rigid ‘sarcastic and ironic only leasons—didi't discuss arything else avoided answering questions {you couldr't laugh, you couldnt apeak he wae the teacher, | was the student he had a biackist and ssid “you, you, you" ‘he had a lttie book with the marks in ro communication, nothing she made me feel anxious he 9aid we weren't well prepared It would be not only difficult but counterproductive to generalise from the diverse and often contradictory comments made by students about good and bad teachers. In fact, the diversity of opinions as to what consti- tutes effective teaching confirms an assumption made in this article: that there is no formula for good teaching, that very different people make good teachers for very different reasons. My own experience of observing teachers at work for many years suggests that both introverts and extroverts, soft- spoken and outspoken people, theatri- English Teaching Forum cal and non-theatrical types can all hold the attention of a class and make learning enjoyable and effective. It would, however, be both defeatist and counterintuitive not to observe certain general principles that many ‘good teachers have in common. These ‘general principles may act as a starting Point for the teacher who has lost con- fidence in her ability to fulfil her own potential. The diagram below sum- ‘marises some of the salient patterns that one can observe in the comments made by the students in my survey. ‘The diagram shows the teacher trapped within certain constraints (the inner circle), which, when overcome, activate a wider range of teacher-roles (outer circle). Figure The sorceror’s apprentice and theory in ELT Widdowson (1984) has this to say about the “incentive value” of theory in teacher education: No matter how concerned teachers may be with the immediate practicalities of the classroom, their techniques are based on some principle or otier which ‘is accountable ta theory... We have the responsiblity of representing teaching asa challenging intelectual enterprise if adherence to formulae is rai ral, stultfying and an enemy of incen- tive in teaching as in anyother human sci then a overamaon ee nigue in teacher training: without in Cating ts ink with they, wl be et mately self-defeating Teachers who feel insecure and under pressure often look to the experts to provide solutions; the expert ‘becomes a guru or magician who can solve our problems for us with a magic formula—if only we could learn their secret, all our problems would disap- pear and the students, like obedient broomsticks in the hands of the sor- ceror's apprentice, would do exactly as ‘we told them I said earlier that there are no recipes for success, and equally there are no secret formulae. If there is some ‘magic involved in successful teaching, Wwe should set about learning the prac- ‘ical principles behind the magic, like a child with a box of tricks and a set of instructions, but above all we must Jeam to create our own personal magic, 2 magic of a more ordinary kind. A trick is special; it works on one occa- sion—you cannot go on repeating the same trick indefinitely with the same audience. One recipe (another metaphor) works for one particular dish; it doesn’t tell you how to make a differ ent dish. Theory is like the general Principles of good cooking: it helps you know what you're doing and why, and it allows you to generate new ‘ideas, new techniques in a principled fashion, rather than in an ad hoc way. Experience and practice are of course indispensable, but they make more sense in the light of research and what little) we know about how people Jearn languages. Teacher development Ways of improving one’s knowledge of ELT and thereby increasing one’s con- fidence asa teacher include the 1. Subscribing to ELT magazines and journals. 2. Joining professional organisations such as IATEFL and TESOL and attend- ing their conferences whenever possible. 3. Forming local teachers’ groups and holding regular meetings to dis. cuss common problems. 4. Inviting fellow teachers/teacher trainers and guest speakers to con- tribute lectures and workshops. 5. Publishing an ELT newsletter on a local or national scale 6. Arranging ELT book exhibitions with the help of ELT publishers, organ isations such as the British Council, or the relevant ministry. 7. Joining a special-interest group in IATERL, such as the one on Teacher Development TF wap fi ofthe con- senna nk ate a Sg Fs bbe ean, Cambri Uv Pre, 986 April 19918. Reading teachers’ handbooks published by most ELT publishers. Authority, erormania, and testomania The diverse roles a successful teach- cris called upon to perform are often collapsed by the besieged teacher of large mixed-ablity lasses into just one ‘or fwo: tester and judge. Teacher authority is often asserted over a difficult class by adopting a test- ing rather than a teaching approach to language learning. Power lies in the teacher's dispensing of marks and in the detection and penalisation of error. This privilege of power may lessen the symptoms of insecurity in the teacher, but it raises anxiety levels in the class in direct proportion to its use by the teacher The failure to distinguish between testing and teaching is a major obstacle to the development of a wider range of teacher roles. Both testing and teaching are, of course, essential in language learning, but itis vital to distinguish between them, and to use testing, for ‘mal and informal, judiciously. Figure 2 is a summary of the main differences ‘between testing and teaching Testing Teachin, ‘emphasizes: emphi follure success correctness appropriscy Impersonality personalisation anxiety easure marks results boring content interesting content| judgement suppor textrinsie motivation intrinsic motivation competition cooperation teacher control student control ‘solemnity humour {fragmentation integration crime and punishment give and take stick and carrot Fipeness is all product process Figure? It will be seen that many of the points raised by students in the survey described in this article come up in the two columns above. The features in the testing column cannot be transformed from one day to the next into those in the teaching column, but the teacher ‘could begin by moving away from an approach that can be summarised in the formula “teaching = text + ques- tions.” It is asking for trouble to have English Teaching Forum aan ee ACTIVITY ROLE ‘The teacher gives instructions for students to manager, ‘et into groups. ‘The teacher asks students to repest a sentence model after her for pronunciation practice. ‘The teacher goes round listening to pairs monitor practising dialogue. The teacher advises students how best to counsellor 1ethe present informant perfect for recently completed actior The teacher provides material and guidance _ facilitator fe students to work on their own. ‘The teacher stays behind after class and social worker discusses one ofthe students personal problems whichis affecting his/her work ‘The teacher chats with students over coffee friend or arranges 9 cinema visit with the class. Figures the class listen to or read a text (a bor- ing one at that) and then plod through the comprehension questions, which often do not do what they are sup- posed to do anyway, i.e, test compre- hension. ‘The outer circle: The roles of the teacher Having broken out of the inner cir- cle of professional and pedagogic con- straints, the teacher finds herself with many parts to play: friend, manager, ‘monitor, counsellor, facilitator of learn- ing, reliable informant on the language, social worker, model for the students, land so on. Figure 3 describes some of the activities teachers engage in, and the roles they are required to play. ‘There are many more roles for the teacher than those listed here, and there is much more to these roles than the hints I have given in Figure 3 (see Harmer 1983; Nolasco and Arthur 1988). My main purpose so far has been to emphasise the importance of the teacher adopting a variety of roles and not the same two or three found in the traditional classroom (usually those of controller of activities, presenter of information, and assessor of correct- ‘ness oF error) [will now go on to look more closely at one role of the teacher, that of manager of classroom activities. Classroom management, or how to make a lesson fall apart There are many things we do in class that are difficult to describe and yet are crucial to the dynamics of the lesson. They are usually described under the general heading of “class- room management.” These qualities may be elusive, but we certainly notice something seriously wrong when they are missing from a lesson: the lesson seems to fall apart at the seams. Here is a diagram of some ways of making a lesson fall apart: Figure In this section I would like to put some detail on the diagram above by focussing on aspects of classroom man agement that are particularly impor- tant in the large mixed-ability class, ‘which is by definition composed of dif- ferences: the use of space and time, the tse of students’ names, eye contact, the use of the blackboard, and the way checking is conducted all contribute to the cohesion of a lesson or the “togeth- cemess’ of a clas, ‘Space. Because of the diversity of learners and learning styles, a mixed- ability class easily falls apart; a large April 1991mixed-ability class falls apart even more easily; and a badly managed large mixed-ability class not only falls apart very easily but will probably find itdifficult to come together again. Because of the different levels in the class itis dificult to keep the attention of students: what's interesting and challenging for one learner is boring and too easy for another. So, while the teacher's attention is fixed on one side of the class, the other side begins to slip away, switches off, gets increasing ly noisy, and before long the class is in fragments. (The story of the sorceror’s apprentice is again instructive here: the more a teacher looks for a magic for- mula to solve all problems the worse the situation becomes.) Here are things the teacher can do to ‘make it more difficult for a class to fall apart: 1. Open space, A lot of classrooms traditionally look something like this: jut ry A O 4 a Figure6 Use a circular formation for general discussion, with the teacher either join- ing the circle as an equal in the discus- sion or sitting just outside the circle to monitor the discussion or whisper use- ful language to students trying to express themselves but at a loss for words: 2. The teacher's position. If the desks are immovable objects, the same can- not be said for the teacher; the way a teacher moves around the room at dif- ferent points in the lesson can have a significant effect on students’ concen- tration. A golden rule is to vary your posi- tion in the classroom onthe activity: to barricade the teacher behind a desk for most of the lesson and for most lessons not only ignores the dynamics of the open space but is asking for apathy and lack of involve- ‘ment in the learners, too. Teachers often go up close to the student speaking, but this actually excludes the rest of the class from what's going on, particularly when the teacher also tums her back to the rest of the class: C] oO) i [a] oO Os a |\mOg 7 Figures Figure 5 is militaristic, fine for drilling and testing, but t00 rigid and fragmen- tary for the mixed-abilty clas with its need for flexibility and variety. In ‘many classes there is little the teacher can do by way of rearranging the desks, either because there are too many of them or because they are immovable. The suggestions that fol low are for situations where there is some flexibility in the way the furni- ture can be arranged. So, if the desks are not screwed to the ground, use the space in a way that ‘encourages students to listen to each other and to enable the maximum number of students to see the board and any visual material the teacher may be holding up. For general class- work a semicircular formation is best for this: English Teaching Forum Figure In a large class with desks fixed to the floor, encourage students to work with students behind or in front of them or across a gangway to form Figures In addition, if a student's voice is not audible from the other end of the room, those students who can’t hear will get irritated o just stop listening; in figure 10 below, the teacher's position encourages a student with a soft voice to speak up, and it allows the teacher to keep an eye on a maximum number of learners at the same time and to eee focus their attention on the student speaking, the board, or visual aids, (1) = ] Ay oO IO - ooo oe [ fee). hoy Be 1 joo Qo jO Oy, Oo Bie, yells @ een Figures Figure10 5 April 1991‘Time: Friend or Enemy? If we remind ourselves of how important time is in ‘our everyday lives, we may be surprised at the way we ignore its presence in the classroom. Time is invisible but ubiqui- tous; it becomes conspicuous and often catastrophic when we ignore it. In a mixed-ability class time is par- ticularly significant because good learn- cers and weak learners sometimes differ not so much in knowledge but in the pace at which they like to apply that knowledge. Moreover, in a discussion of how to prevent a large mixed-ability class from falling apart time has an important cohesive role. ‘TeN WAYS OF TAKING TIME INTO ‘Account 1. Dor't plan to do too much in a lesson. (Have an “extra” such as an anecdote or joke in reserve rather than cramming the lesson with elaborate activities.) 2. Tall students at the start of the lesson roughly what you intend to do and how long it’s going to take 3. Tell students how long they have for a particular activity 4, Warn the class one or two min- utes before an activity is due to finish 5. Use the last few minutes to ‘check that learning has taken place and to summarise what the lesson has been all about. 6. Allow students time to copy important information from the board before you rub it all off, particularly at the end of the lesson. 7. Give “slower” stusients (for once the term is particularly appropriate) time to answer your questions or pre- sent the results ofa task before moving con—to the “weak” student's embar- rassment—to another student. 8. Don’t wait too long for a student to answer, as this slows the lesson down, and it may be difficult to pick Lup momentum again. 9. If you forget your watch, borrow ‘one from the students 10. Vary the timing of relaxed and intensive activity to build up a sense of rhythm in the lesson, to give it shape. Alternate light, quick interludes with longer phases of more intense activity. Cross-checking. Attention in a large -ixed-abilty class can be focussed and held if the teacher follows a simple routine for involving students in what English Teaching Forum their fellow students are saying: the technique is one of “cross-checking.” This involves checking a response given by one student with that of other students in a different part of the class- room. This is particularly useful where a “good” student stops listening when a “less able” student is speaking. ‘There are specific points in the lesson ‘when this is likely to happen. Imagine a phase of the lesson where the students are doing any of the following: ‘answering comprehension questions suggesting words to fill in blanks ina text sreporting the results of pair or group work ‘spresenting the results of pair/ group work in the form of a dia- logue asking the teacher to explain a point of grammar or vocabulary ‘asking the teacher to clarify instruc- tions for a task ‘discussing a topic arising from a reading text There is no formula for good teaching. Very different people make good teachers for very different reasons. Students are used to thinking that only the teacher is worth listening to in class, and that the only reason the teacher asks questions of a particular student is to check up on that student; as a result, they switch off unless the teacher asks them a question. This is ll the more true when the student speak- ing happens to have acquired a reputa- tion for contributing nothing but mis- takes to the lesson. Checking: The Power of the Written Word. Pairwork should involve written answers wherever appropriate, even if ‘only in note form. This has a number of advantages in the mixed-ability class: ‘lt encourages reluctant learners to complete the task (the end-product is a record of work done or not done) “It discourages them from using only the mother tongue, as they learn to expecta feedback phase (in English. sives better students more to di while you go round helping weak students, ‘lt gives the teacher something tt discuss with early finishers if thei answers have been written down, (When the task is purely oral, you set fast learners sitting back twid their thumbs claiming to have nothin, more todo.) *When answers are written, th checking and cross-checking proce has a greater chance of success than i students have got nothing to refer when they dry up. If techniques such, as these are to have an impact on cohesion of the mixed-ability class, the teacher will have to train the students) over a period of time to ask as wel as answer questions and to learn to inter act with each other, not only with the teacher. Paying attention to others and) interacting with them should become a) normal classroom routine rather than’ something saved up for a “communica- tive” or “speaking” phase ofa lesson. Nominating. Use students’ names (first names where appropriate) when eliciting and checking. Using names makes for better rapport with students, and involves them directly and rapidly when need be. (Although it is a good) idea to allow students time to think and volunteer an answer to questions especially in a mixed-ability class—if you wait too long the momentum is lost and boredom begins to set in.) An over-reliance on volunteers to speak will degenerate into a show dominated by the best or more extrovert students, ‘An equal distribution of questions is difficult without systematic—and encouraging—use of students’ names. Eye Contact or Star Gazing? Why is eye contact considered to be so impor- tant in interaction between people? Motivating students involves many decisions regarding content, syllabus, and methods, but it can also be fur- thered or hindered by our managerial style. Eye contact is one such detail of teacher style that may have surprising ly significant effects, especially in com- bination with the other factors described in this section, Try looking at the class as you are speaking, allowing your gaze fo travel gently round the class, without staring inhibitingly at any one student. Look at the student who is spea April 1991CO SSNSSSSS'S ing casing your ee st or another silent (0 oe a ofthe ror fre oink Ti speaking student Bxpesinent rh ree proces and ec aly negates of ong She the cling ie for, rouge widow atthe wal ous oe ing reacts cig gusto Vote A sare way of easy a dents sith oft Spal ns Soe tone regen of change nop fom anf ging ornate es inotracne fo making on Sede Atthough voice talnig «oe retin ies exer ea Stain commonest panies te ail teachers may eat it nied ss Song pun ring flatts of ont tthe most vuaie oe men ina teacher Var the ies a eof your woe he tench ha yoee sing change rom ny own epee ence abner teaches fin a te leon whether esate voice changes (often set off from previ ous scouts by an incase nfo mas or phe own ‘beginning the lesson ‘stating the aims ofthe lesson ‘giving instructions ‘telling students to start a task ‘telling students how long they have to do a task ‘telling students how much time they have left to complete a task ‘interrupting students to point out something important *teling students that time is up sking the first and the last of a series of comprehension questions ‘telling the class to copy something from the board + explaining a homework task summarising what the lesson was all about The Magic Board. In an age when the microcomputer is presenting such an exciting challenge to teachers every- where, including the mixed-ability teacher, it may seem odd to sing the praises of the humble chalkboard. It ‘would, however, be a pity to neglect the power of the board to focus stu- dents’ attention and thus weaken the centrifugal forces in the large mixed- ability class. There are whole books written on the use of the board, so here English Teaching Forum 1 will Himit myself to the following Points, which are relevant to a Class together: femee Use the board to record grammar, vocabulary, and content and point stu. dents’ attention to this information when the lesson seems to be going off the rails. ‘Use the board as one way of ensur- ing that instructions are clear. ‘*Write example sentences of the tar- get structure on the board and remind students before the task and during it (if weaker students are having difficul- ty) that they should be using these structures *Use the board to jot down points made by all students (but particularly weak ones) as a discreet way of emphasising the value of their contri- bution and integrating this contribu- tion into the lesson, where appropriate. “At the end of the lesson, make sure students have copied into their note- books any useful information from the ‘board, and use what's on the board to remind them of the main points in the lesson. Implicit in the above points is that it would be wasteful to laboriously fill the board with useful information and almost immediately rub the board clean before the teacher has exploited the material in any way or before the students have had time to absorb any of it, Many of these points would strength- en the cohesion in a class with only mild mixed-ability problems, but for the weak student in a large mixed-abil- ity class they are important forms of guidance and support. Conclusion The most useful way to end this article on the role of the teacher is to offer the accompanying teacher obser- vation checklist as a practical instru- ment for helping the teacher become more aware of the elusive aspects of teaching we have been trying to describe. BIBLIOGRAPHY Harmer, J. 1983. The practice of English lan- te lching London: Longman "Nolasco, R.and L. Arthur. 1988, Large lasses, London: Longman, Widdowson, H. G. 1984. The incentive value of theory in teacher education, English Language Teaching Journal, 38, 2, pp. 865-90, 7 ‘THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER Observation Checklist Twenty questions 1. Was the lesson mostiy testing or ‘mostly teaching? 2 Did comprehension questions heck comprehension? 3. Dis the teacher give reason- ably sccurste answers to students! Questions? 4 Was the teachers reaction to ‘Student eros encouraging or Gscouageg? Was the teacher sarcastic? 7. Was the teacher friendly? 8. Wes there any humour in the lesson? 9. Were the students relaxed? 10, Did the teacher use the students’ names enough? 11, Did the teacher look at students as ‘he was speaking? 12, Did the teacher vary her positon in the room according to the activity? 13, Did the teacher indicate how much time students had to do an activity? 14, Did the teacher use the board to record useful information? 18. Did the teacher use checking (ques- tioning, lication) techniques to focus students’ attention? 16. Did the teacher give students individ- Lal attention? 17, Did the students get the opportunity {0 use English to talk about topics that interest them? 18. Did the teacher speak differently to "weak" and “good” students? 19, Did the teacher's voice vary suffi- ciently to make her meaning clear ‘and command students’ attention? 20. How many different roles did the teacher adopt during the lesson? Luke Prodromow i teacher trainer th the British Council in Gece He is euthor or ‘co-author of Medicine (SM, Bis and Piece, Onthe Move, Mixed- Ability Classes, and ‘Are You Ready? April 1991