MASARYK UNIVERSITY BRNO

F A C U L T Y OF EDUCATION
Department of English Language and Literature

Overcoming Difficulties in Teaching English as a Second

Language to Adults

Diploma Thesis

Brno 2013

Supervisor: Written by:

Ailsa Randall, M . A . Be. Mariana Stichova

Declaration:

I declare that I worked on my thesis on my own and that I used only the sources
listed in the bibliography.

I agree with storing of this work in the library of the Faculty of Education at the Masaryk
University Brno and making it accessible for study purposes.

Brno, 20th April 2013

Acknowledgement:

I would like to thank Mrs. Ailsa Randall, M . A . for her kind guidance of my
thesis, helpful advice and insightful comments.
 Table of contents

1. Introduction 6

2. Theoretical Part 7

2.1 Andragogy versus Pedagogy 8

2.2 Learning versus Acquisition 9

2.3 Specifics of teaching languages to groups of adults

and individual (one-to-one) lessons 10

2.4 Frequent mistakes on the side of the teachers and

how to avoid making them 12

2.4.1 Lesson plan 13

2.4.2 No (or improper) correction, overcorrection 15

2.4.3 TTT (Teacher Talking Time) 17

2.4.4 Echo (Parroting) 18

2.4.5 Insufficient and unclear instructions 19

2.4.6 Uninteresting lessons 19

2.4.7 Supplementary materials 20

2.4.8 Excessive quantity of details 21

2.5 Frequent misunderstanding on the side of the students 23

2.5.1 Understanding the role of the teacher 24

2.5.2 Underestimating home preparation 27

2.5.3 Overestimating the significance of the first

partial failure 28

2.5.4 Necessity to agree on the outcome of the course /

student's evaluation 29

2.5.5 Wrong choice of the course/ teacher/ method 31

2.6 Methods of teaching languages 32

2.6.1 Direct Method 32

 2.6.2 Grammar-translation Method 32

2.6.3 Audio-lingual Method 33

2.6.4 Structural Approach 33

2.6.5 Suggestopedia 33

2.6.6 Total Physical Response (TPR) 34

2.6.7 Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) 34

2.6.8 Silent Way 35

2.6.9 Immersion 35

2.6.10 Task Based Language Learning 35

2.6.11 Natural Approach 35

2.7 Motivation and learning styles 38

2.7.1 Visual learners 40

2.7.2 Auditory learners 40

2.7.3 Kinesthetic learners 40

2.8 Possible reasons of the student's feelings of failure 41

3 Practical Part 43

3.1 Method 43

3.1.1 Questionnaire n. 1 45

3.2 Students involved in the experiment 48

3.3 Changes in lesson plans 55

3.4 Sample lessons descriptions 56

3.4.1 Lesson n.l 56

3.4.2 Lesson n.2 59

3.5 Self evaluation of described lessons 61

3.5.1 Self evaluation of lesson n.l 61

3.5.2 Self evaluation of lesson n.2 62

3.6 Questionnaire n. 2 - End of Survey 63

 3.7 Outcome of the survey 66

3.8 Summary of Practical Part 67

4 Conclusion 68

Resume 69

Bibliography 71

Appendices 72

Appendix 1 73

Appendix 2 76
1. Introduction

I chose this topic because I have been teaching English to adults for almost fifteen
years. Most of the classes I teach are individual one-to-one lessons or very small groups
(of three students maximum). Throughout my teaching practice I have been fighting with
the fact that most of the teaching materials I found or I had at my disposal, were either
designed for groups of young adults or were rather boring book-based business textbooks,
which did not really reflect possible individual styles of prospective learners. This resulted
in the fact that I was forced into creating most of the materials myself individually.
Although the situation is improving these days as many various high-quality textbooks
appeared, I think there is not enough attention paid to individual one-to-one classes of
adult students and that even the pedagogical schools do not really prepare future teachers
for such a way of teaching. This is a pity, because most freelance teachers after leaving
their school teach in such individual classes.
I try very hard to have funny and relaxed classes (probably as every freelance teacher
does) and at the same time I must ensure my students do learn something at the lessons; a
good lesson plan is a must, especially in individual lessons. I describe several of these
tailored lessons in this thesis.
Throughout my teaching career I have made many mistakes and I think many of them
could have been avoided if I had had more materials concerning teaching one-to-one
classes of adults at my disposal. In my thesis I would like to focus on these lessons, on the
way the course and particular lessons should be prepared, on possible problems and how
to prevent them. The aim of this thesis is to provide help to the teachers who intend to
teach English to adults in language schools or as freelance teachers of English.
Theoretical part of this thesis consists of description of basic phenomena concerning
teaching languages and its methods, teaching adults or common mistakes made by the
teachers.
In the practical part of this thesis I described a qualitative survey conducted between
my students. I wanted to demonstrate how individual attitude is necessary in one-to-one
classes; that the students perceive such tailored lessons positively and really appreciate it.
At the beginning of the survey the students were asked to fill in Questionnaire n. 1.
This concerned their expectations, motivation for learning the language, major problems

6
they face, materials they would like to use in the classes, how they would possibly try to
change/adjust the lessons. Then the lessons were changed and organised according to their
wish and at the same time I attempted not to resign on my idea of the lesson and prepared
lesson plans. There were 3 months of classes (which was 24/48 ninety-minute classes, the
number depends on whether the student has his/her lesson once or twice a week). At the
end of the experiment the students were asked to fill in another form, Questionnaire n.2,
the feedback form.
A key word connected with any learning process is motivation. In this thesis I attempt
to explain, how motivation, actually the lack of motivation (or the decrease of it
throughout the course) influences the process of language learning. The survey shows how
tailored lessons motivate students to further studies and completion of tasks they were
rather reluctant to do in classic book-based lessons.
In case of adult students there is often a problem of no (or very insufficient) home
preparation, the question is how the teacher can influence it. Modern technologies are a
great help so it is possible to be in the contact with the students via e-mail and help them
use various materials available on the internet, which in my opinion boost their motivation
and interest in studying the language. If the teacher is able to find the right way how to
motivate the students, he/she is already partly successful.
I would like to show that especially individual one-to-one classes need a very
individual attitude and lessons tailored for each particular student. And that although such
lessons are difficult and time consuming to prepare, the result (i.e. contended and
motivated students) is early rewarding ad is worth the hard work.

7
2. Theoretical part

2.1. Andragogy versus Pedagogy

Although learning as a process of gaining new pieces of information should be more

or less the same for everybody, teaching adults has its specifics and is very different from
teaching children.
Rogers mentions two main characteristics common to all forms of teaching adults,
firstly "the participants are voluntary learners " and secondly the process of learning in
their case is "intentional", which means they have some goal they plan to reach (Rogers,
1996).
This might look rather obvious, but many people do not realise to what extent the
learning process of the children is actually forced, as most of them do not even participate
in the choice of the school they go to or the subjects they study. The adult students
intentionally choose to study some subject (a foreign language in this case) for some
particular reason, which can also be a motivation for the studies. The other important
matter is, that unlike children, who do not have any other think to do except for their
school studies (and very often all their life and their family lives too turns around the
school and its matters), the adults have their professional careers and families to run, they
are then (usually - most of them) rather limited in their possibility to choose the time of
the course or the frequency of the meetings. They have to take many things into
consideration - such as location of the school, financial matters or timing.
The process of teaching has its specifics too. No teacher of children assumes these
days that the children when coming to his/ her class would be the so called tabula rasa as 1

it was assumed in the past. However, the children still have limited knowledge and
experience, of course, compared to the adult learners and thus the teacher has and must
have more roles than the one of the language teacher, as he or she (the teacher)
participates on overall education and formation of the young human being.

1
Tabula rasa, meaning blank slate in Latin, is the theory that individuals are born without built-in mental
content and that their knowledge comes from experience and perception. (Wikipedia)

8
 The adults, on the other hand, have very often successful careers and have already
seen and done many things, they are "completed" people and the process of teaching must
be than different (see chapter 2.5.1 of this thesis which deals with the role of the teacher).
Knowles (1990) states that for children the experience is something that occurs to
them without their own intention or plan, however, for the adults it is the experience that
determines who they are and values they believe in, the experience makes their own
personality. In this case he understands that if the teacher ignores this experience the adult
student has had, he also rejects him/her as a personality.

O'Connor, Bronner, and Delaney (2002) also comment on adult learning and the life
experience of adult students:

Individual adults learn differently, depending upon their experience, aptitude, and
attitude. When you learn best in a classroom environment, by reading a book, or
through Web-based training, depends on a number of elements. These include your
individual characteristics, the perceived value of the learning task to you, and how
much experience you have had with the topic in the past.

(O'Connor, Bronner, and Delaney, 127-128)

2.2. Learning versus acquisition

Modern trends of teaching are much more than in the past interested in the process of
learning itself, and what to do to make the process easier and less "painful" for the
student. Current trends realise that it is much more effective for the children and the adult
learners too if they learn without knowing they learn, this is the acquisition.
According to Rogers (1996), learning is active receipt of knowledge and skills, it is
personal and individual (although the students learn with others, finally it is always up to
him) and thirdly it is not compulsory (one can intentionally decide whether or not to
learn).
Learning is of course not connected only with schools and courses, it does not
necessarily and always happen in the classrooms and also the teacher does not have to be
involved; it is part of the life of every person. Today more than in the past we can hear of
lifelong learning. It is expected we will continue in learning even after leaving schools and
finishing formal education.
9
 Rogers (2001) describes learning as:

.. .those more ore less permanent changes brought about voluntarily in one's
patterns of acting, thinking and/or feeling. It is the receipt of knowledge and
skills from outside. Recent work on learning indicate that
• Learning is active, not passive receipt of knowledge and skills
• Learning is personal, individual: we can learn from and in
association with others, but in the end, all learning changes are
made individually;
• Learning is voluntary , we do it ourselves; it is not compulsory.

Rogers (77)

Acquisition, on contrary, is unintentional learning. It is any process which occurs

when the person comes across a new piece of information which he/she remembers and is
able to use later. This can be any activity, such as watching television or listening to the
radio, reading a book or speaking to a friend. In language learning we may speak of
acquisition for example in case of immigrants, who very often acquire the language
without any form of formal teaching (school or course), they simply start working and
meeting new people using the second language as means of communication in everyday
situations. They actually learn without knowing they do learn or without realising the
progress, they learn unintentionally.
Modern teaching methods work with unintentional learning and try to embody it into
classic school education, project education is an example. In case of adult teaching - in
language courses, the teachers often try to make students learn/ remember/acquire the new
pieces of information while having a conversation, playing a game or a role play etc.

2.3. Specifics of teaching languages to groups of adults and individual

(one-to-one) lessons

Although this sub chapter deals with teaching adults, a distinct line must be drawn
between these two dramatically different concepts. There is not a big difference between
teaching young adults (or older teenagers) and adults, this difference is mostly in the
choice of teaching materials and topics for conversation, the teacher teaches both
mentioned groups rather similarly and the main difference lies in the fact whether or not

10
 the lessons take place at a school (and thus it is more or less compulsory) or are in the
students' free time (and thus are voluntary).
What is different is the concept of group and individual classes, which poses very
different demands on the teacher and his/her preparation for particular lessons and their
management. I am not stating one is more (or less) complicated than the other. It is only
very different.
When teaching children at school, many teachers legitimately complain about the
excessive school educational plan, which puts too much pressure on the students and does
not provide enough time for proper practice of the given language problem. There is not
enough time for individual attitude or longer explanations. Dornyei (2001) comments on it
in his book when quoting Jeff Passe.

Teachers are under enormous pressure to "cover" the curriculum. State mandates,
district policies, and especially standardized tests have forced many teachers to rush
through the required content, despite substantial evidence that doing so results in a
lack of student motivation, interest, and long-term learning. Clearly, there is not
enough time in the school day or year to adequately address all the while student time
in class is steadily being reduced.

(Jeff Passe qtd. in Dornyei, 64)

Unlike school lessons, the situation of the teachers of adults may seem much
easier, concerning the curriculum, the time pressure or the independence of the methods
and ways of teaching. However, the lack of these "boundaries" may result in the right
opposite and instead of freedom it may lead to unbalanced lessons without a clear
structure.

Individual one-to-one lessons are very specific. In the class teaching the teacher
has to follow a wider concept and (although he/she tries) very individual attitude is not
often possible, especially when the group is rather numerous. One-to-one lessons, on the
other hand, must be perfectly prepared, the T T T may be to some extent higher than in
2

the case of group courses, because he/she is the partner in conversation. Some activities,
so effective in the group courses, such as role plays, short theatre, mini-dialogues, peer
correction and many others, are not possible.

2
TTT- Teacher Talking Time

11
Wilberg (1987) summarises the difference between group and one-to-one teaching.

One essential difference, however, from classroom teaching is that it is no longer the
teacher who initiates all the role changes. The one-to-one teacher's task is much more
to respond to changes of mood and demands imposed by the student, rather than to act
as manager and controller of the classroom.

Just as the classroom teacher needs to be aware of why each activity is being
conducted in the way it is, so the one-to-one teacher needs to be explicitly aware of the
personal role (s)he is fulfilling in relation to the student at any time. (Wilberg, 6)

The other drawback I regard is the lack of high quality textbooks. However
strange this statement may look, in my opinion the problem is not non-existence of good
textbooks on the Czech market, but non-existence of good textbooks focusing on one-
to-one language courses. Those few available seem too obsolete and rather
uninteresting.

The teacher of such courses is then expected to co-create his/ her own textbook,
thus the demands on his/her preparation of the lessons are much higher.

2.4. Frequent mistakes on the side of the teachers and how to avoid making

them

One of the most important aspects of teaching is self-reflection. A teacher (and it is not
important whether a novice teacher or an experienced one) should analyse his/ her work,
why he/she does it and why this particular way, whether it could have been better. He/she
should never stop asking and looking for interesting methods both existing and new ones.
Feedback of the lesson is very important for everybody, it is very good to record oneself
from time to time, so one can notice the mistakes he/she makes. Scrivener (2007)
comments on the most common and frequent mistakes the teachers of languages tend to
make. They vary according to the subject taught and even the region and/or nationality of
the teacher.

12
2.4.1. Lesson plan

Every good teacher is aware of the fact, that a good plan for "every" lesson is
essential. One should have at least brief idea what he/she wants to do in the lesson,
what the lesson is going to be focused on and why, what he/she expects the students to
know/understand/get acquainted with at the end of the lesson. It does not matter
whether it is a group or individual lesson, in my opinion a good plan is a must. Most
young and novice teachers do plan every single lesson and they have various means of
help at their disposal. A l l modern textbooks have further materials and teachers books
with perfectly planned lessons and although it is not always possible to use all the
materials or use them in detail, it is still a very good help to a novice teacher.
Rogers (2001) reminds the form of the course is not completely up to the teacher
and thus the teacher must incorporate these set requirements to his/her lesson plan and
adjust the lessons accordingly.

We are not completely free in drawing up our proposals.... Many

aspects may already have been fixed for us when planning our course:
• The timing of the course
• Its frequency
• The duration of the class
• Location
(Rogers, 17)

However, especially individual face-to-face lessons tend to be very different

from a group lesson because it is possible (and also expected) to tailor the lesson to the
needs of the student, which means spending more time on interesting and/or difficult
topics or passing quickly or avoiding those which are not of his/her interest. Many
freelance teachers of individual classes would agree with me that these lessons must
be planned in a much more detailed way, that one will do much more work and
progress in the class with one student than with a group of people, that what would
suffice for a group for one school lesson is hardly sufficient for about a half. This is
obvious, less people means more time for them and their questions, more possibilities
to explain things individually. And actually - this is the reason why the individual

13
 students pay many times more per one single lesson than they would pay for an
average language school course).

In my opinion every teacher should have a detailed lesson plan in writing, this
lesson plan should contain not only the pages of student book and workbook and the
exercises, but additional examples, possible questions and also time estimation, so the
exercises have some beginning and some end. It seems there is enough time for the
student to ask questions, revise in his/her own words what he/she learned in the lesson.
Many schools use simplified Bloom's taxonomy and Critical Thinking to help
3

their teachers in planning their lessons. I started using the " E - R - R " framework within
4

my lessons. This I find very useful for proper lesson planning and also my students
seemed to benefit much more from lessons structured this way. To describe this
framework in a simple way, every lesson is divided into three phases - these are
Evocation, Realization of Meaning, and Reflection. The Evocation phase comes at the
beginning of the lesson, when the teacher tries to make the student invent the topic of
the lesson him/herself, to make the student summarise what he/she already knows
about the topic, very often by means of games, short conversation, short videos or
stories. Then there is the second part of the lesson called "Realization of Meaning",
when the new things are done, whiteboard used, grammar and exercises, in the
language lesson it is the part of the lesson when the actual hard work comes into
account. The third part "reflection" is very often neglected. However, it is crucial and
very important even in the individual classes. It is the time at the end of the lesson
when the student should be able to explain in his/her own words what he/she has just
learned, it is the time for the teacher to find out whether it has been explained
properly, time for further questions, this is what helps the teacher to plan another
lesson properly, using good pace and tempo of the lesson. A teacher should make sure
that he/she has a few minutes at the end of every lesson to summarize the new things
with the student and also to pinpoint difficulties and outline the next lesson.

3
Benjamin Bloom (1913-1999) - American educational psychologist; created the taxonomy of educational
objectives (for more information see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin Bloom)

4
E-R-R: Evocation, Reflection, Realisation of the Meaning

14
 A Lesson plan - actually having some - is a very sensitive thing for teachers. I
have heard many times from experienced teachers that a good and experienced teacher
does not need a lesson plan, especially not a written one. I strongly disagree with this
opinion. I cannot say if Maths or History teachers can teach without them but I am
rather convinced that teachers of languages cannot. A good plan is important, although
it is almost never completed without a change, one hardly ever teaches strictly
according to it. Every lesson is about the people involved so smaller or even bigger
adjustments to the plan are more than all right; it was Scrivener who said that the
teacher does not teach the plan but the students (Scrivener, 2007).

Prepare thoroughly. But in class, teach the learners, not the plan.
Scrivener (109)

Teaching is about reaction to the atmosphere of the class, climate of the school/
institution, the instant mood of the student(s), and it does not matter whom we (the
teachers) actually teach, it is about mutual cooperation and interaction.

2.4.2. No (or improper) correction, overcorrection

Teachers worldwide dispute whether or not and when to correct a student, when
he/she makes a mistake. There are problems especially in the "reading exercises"
(when correcting too often and aloud may be problematic, the student may lose
confidence, may feel humiliated in front of the rest of the group or the teacher), and in
the "speaking". Written assignments are usually not a problem because it is easy to
analyse the mistakes and write notes and it is understandable for the student (and
tactful).
Scrivener (2007) reflects on the subject of error correction:

An important consideration her is the aim of the activity. Is it to improve

learners' accurate use of English? If this is the case, then correction may be
helpful. However, if the activity is aiming to encourage fluency, interruptions
and corrections might get in the way of the work.

Scrivener (299)

15
 It is obvious that overcorrection of a student may do more harm than help, it is
up to every teacher to decide which mistake is so serious that needs to be corrected
and which the teacher will ignore because it is either too difficult to explain to the
student at his/her current level or it would be rather ineffective (and wasting of time)
or both.

Scrivener (2007) advises what to take into consideration prior the correction takes
place:
There are other factors to take into account when deciding if a correction
should be made: W i l l it help or hinder learning? A m I correcting something
they don't know? (If so, there doesn't seem much point.) How will the student
take the correction? What is my intention in correcting?

Scrivener (299)

Finally, it is necessary to mention that proper correction (even speaking or

reading exercises) is crucial; many native teachers especially fail to correct their
students and seem to be happy when they are able to express themselves. Many
mistakes may become deep-rooted and are very difficult to avoid by the student. It is
useful to use other means of communication - body language, work with voice and its
melody, have signals which the students are acquainted with, use white board and lot
of colours in individual one-to-one lessons, in the group lessons (or at least two
students) a teacher may use the others to help with correction. However - this must be
done very carefully and tactfully, because not all the students may accept the peer
correction (especially older beginners can find this problematic). The method is
always up to the teacher and his/ her knowledge of the students as individuals.
A very similar case is overcorrection. This is very often a mistake of a careful
young enthusiastic teacher who does not realise, that correcting a student too much
and too often firstly reduces the teacher talking time, that the student cannot remember
all the rules and correct versions immediately and that especially older students may
lose their confidence and even craving for studying a language (proving themselves
that they are too old or incompetent to learn at their age or situation).

16
 2.4.3. T T T (Teacher Talking Time)

Every teacher has to keep in his/her mind the balance between "Teacher Talking
Time" (TTT) and "Students Talking Time" (STT). Although it is necessary for
students to hear correct grammar with proper pronunciation, every time the teacher
speaks the students misses his/her opportunity to express himself/herself. Many
teachers feel it is their responsibility, their job, the reason why they are there, to speak.
However, I am convinced it is only partly true. It is not easy to find the right
proportion of the TTT and STT , it depends on many things (such as the age of
5

students and size of the group). Experienced teachers recommend 70-80% for the
STT, the rest to the TTT, which is the ratio I rather identify with. The question is
whether this percentage is feasible in the case of individual one-to-one classes,
especially if the student is a real beginner the TTT must then be longer.
There exist many varied methods and ways to start lessons with such students,
every teacher defending his/ her way, some totally disagreeing with using any other
language except for English (from the very beginning), some starting with the help of
the first language and slowly reducing the ratio of the first language and increasing the
use of the second language. I as a teacher prefer the second way, I use Czech language
in the classes with beginners, although I try to speak English as soon as possible.
Especially older students do not feel very comfortable when English is used from the
very beginning of the lessons. What is find more important then restricting occasional
use of mother tongue for explanations is how much space the student really gets in the
lesson, how much it is him/her who "produces" something in the language lesson, not
the teacher him/her self.

Scrivener (2007) recommends teachers on TTT:

The more you talk, the less opportunity there is for the learners. They need time
to think, to prepare what they are going to say and how they are going to say it.
Allow them the time and quiet they need. Don't feel the need to fill every gap in
a lesson. Explore the possibilities of silence.
Scrivener (105)

5
TTT - Teacher Talking Time, STT - Student's Talking Time

17
 However - even in the individual lessons with a total beginner the teacher has to
"count", give as much space and time to the student as possible - the TTT must be
considered at all situations.

"The biggest enemy to learning is the talking teacher. " (John Holt ) 6

2.4.4. Echo (Parroting)

This is one of the most common mistakes. Many teachers in their desire to help
their students parrot the students' good answers or even finish them. There exist many
ways how to avoid it. Many teachers explain that they have to do so because otherwise
the students would not hear/understand it or in case of individual lessons they want to
make sure the student said it correctly. This is one of the ways how the time of the
lesson is wasted, parroting is not an effective way how to make the student remember
the thing (word, sentence, collocation). In the class with more students it is not a
problem to let the other student repeat the sentence in case the teacher hesitates if
everybody understood or heard it. In case of individual lessons this may be a problem,
because the student might hesitate to repeat it (and the teacher cannot ask all the time).
However, even in one-to-one lessons there are other ways how to make the
student say it again (we may ask him/her to write it, to put it to a different person or
grammatical tense). Sometimes it is not possible to avoid parroting the studenf s
words, but it should be really rare.

Scrivener (2007) comments on echoing in his book:

When you echo, they soon learn that they don't need to listen to anyone except
you, because they know that you will repeat everything! That has a
dramatically negative effect on interaction patterns within the classroom.

Scrivener (105)

6
John Holt (1923-1985) - American teacher and educator, author of many books on learning

18
2.4.5. Insufficient and unclear instructions

To reduce using the mother tongue the student should acquire the so called
classroom language. This enables and helps him/her to understand not only the teacher
in the class (when the lesson is not interrupted by continual translations), it will also
enable the student to understand most of the instructions in the text books and ease
his/her studies at home when doing her/his homework.
Every exercise should be provided with an explanation, the student must know
why he/she is doing it. After reading the instruction it is good not to only ask whether
the student understands but in the case of more difficult (longer or unusual)
instructions it is very useful to let the student explain in own words what to do or
provide an example, so the teacher is really sure the student knows what to do and
how to do so.
Although the teacher may think the instructions were clear and understandable,
Scrivener (2007) also advises to ensure about it.

Even the clearest instructions may be hard to grasp so, after you have given
them, it is worth checking that they have been understood.

Scrivener (106)

2.4.6. Uninteresting lessons

I am aware of the fact that all of the teachers (or at least most of them) do their
best in order to have as funny, amusing and unforgettable lessons as possible. We all
try to have funny and witty classes with a lot of laughter and many up to date materials
interesting for us as well as for our students. Everybody knows that the less the
language lesson resembles the school the better, that playing games, doing role-plays
and small projects is very often much more beneficial for the students and they learn
more than doing boring and dull drill exercises.
It is true that funny lessons do not usually appear from nowhere and usually
those perfect, witty and amusing lessons cost the teacher a lot of time of preparation,
that a very good plan and often pre-prepared questions and topics for conversation are

19
sometimes crucial, as well as improvisation and acting on the side of the teacher. A l l
of us know the feeling that we (the teachers) prepare an activity which looks stunning
and great at home and then in the class it does not work the expected way. This is the
time for a good plan - no hesitation, finish it quickly and proceed to another activity.

Scrivener (2007) comes with another possible reason of a boring lesson.

A common cause of boredom in the classroom is when the material used is too
difficult or too easy. The former is not hard to recognize - the learners cannot do
the work. A more difficult problem is when work is simply not challenging
enough. Teachers often have rather limited expectations about what people can
do and keep their classes on a rather predictable straight line through activities
that are safe and routine. Try to keep the level of challenge high.

Scrivener (107)

2.4.7. Supplementary materials

At present there are many high quality books which also contain supplementary
materials on the given level and topic. It is very easy for the teacher to use them
because he/she can be sure the student of given level will understand all the grammar,
vocabulary and collocations used in the supplementary exercises and games.
Especially at schools the teachers complain that with about twenty students in the class
and a very "full" school educational plan, they have hardly enough time for the book
based activities and that there is very little or no time for any extra additional activity,
game or exercise.
This is a problem the teacher in individual courses does not need to solve. There
are fewer students (very often only one) in the class and thus the teacher may afford to
spend more time on such activities, looking up for something new, interesting or well
fitting for the group/ student. Everything, however, has its pros and cons. I realised it
at the beginning of my teaching career of a one-to-one teacher. The problem is that
many games are designed (planed) for more than two or three people (even bigger
groups), that the activities which are very amusing and at the same time educational
for the group may seem boring for the individual client. It is true that the teacher must
substitute the partner in the game; but still some of the activities (such as peer

20
correction, peer collaboration) are impossible. The choice of supplementary materials
for individual classes is rather limited, somehow the authors of the books do not count
with lessons of this type.
Probably the best advice for a novice teacher is to create a portfolio of workable,
enjoyable and tried activities; this should be divided according to the levels, number of
students in the group or it is necessary to do the given activity and also according to
their interests. It may be practical to distinguish whether the activity is more
interesting for a woman or for a man.

2.4.8. Excessive quantity of details

For a new teacher it can be very difficult to assess how much and in what details
he/she should mention a given question, and it does not matter whether we focus on
reading, listening, pronunciation or grammar. It is probably one of the most difficult
tasks for the teacher to consider, what is just enough for the students to know, to get
acquainted with. The problem is that the lesson should not be too easy. Although at the
beginning it may give the student a false feeling he/she is progressing really well in
their language studies; finally when there is no particular progress within weeks or
months of studies, the effect might be the opposite, it may lead the student to the
feeling he/she will not learn the language anyway, that it is wasted time, money and
energy. However, very similar is the opposite problem, when the teacher in his/her
desire to do the best, provides the student with all the possible information, feedback
and answers connected with the given problem. This undoubtedly leads to total chaos
and the effect will be less than zero. The student is lost in all given rules, exceptions
and explanations. And surprisingly the final effect can be the same as in the previous
case, losing the student, because he/she might think that the language is so
complicated that it is impossible for him/her to learn it anyway.
Rogers (2001) cites Sir Richard Livingstone who appositely described such
teachers providing their students with too many details that:

21
 .... (they) behave like people who would try to give their children in a
week all the food they require for a year: a method which might seem to
save time and trouble but would not improve digestion, efficiency or
health.

(Rogers. 37)

It is very difficult to balance the lesson properly - in terms of provided

information and details. The lesson cannot be too easy, but it cannot be too difficult
either.

2.4.9. Unclear structure of the course

There exist many possible reasons of the above problem. One of them can be
caused by insufficient communication with the student about his/her needs and
expectations.
One of the crucial things a teacher must do before the course is to think rationally
what he/she expects from the course, from the student. It is easier for those teaching
bigger groups because such an individual attitude is not possible and thus the course is
designed the way to correspond with the needs of most of the students. Especially if
the teacher is employed with a language school (or cooperates with one), the school
usually has its own methodology, its head teacher responsible for the courses, rules
and procedures which make (or should make) it easier for the teacher to lead the
course.
However, self-employed teachers do not have this sort of help. They are totally
dependent on their judgement concerning the selection of teaching materials and the
methods they are going to use in their lessons. The teacher must analyse the needs of
the student, know exactly what the student requires and why, whether it is feasible,
whether he/she can meet the expectations of the student. The teacher should be aware
of the fact that the student started studying for some reason but this may not be enough
to keep him/ her continue in his/her studies. Throughout the course, the evaluation of
the lessons and course and outcome of the studies should take place. There must be
ongoing communication with the student, changes of styles and techniques if
necessary. Questions as "Is everything ok?" say nothing to the teacher about how the
student really feels and the student will probably not start explaining that something

22
 goes wrong, mostly because he/she is not a professional teacher and thus it is very
difficult for him/her to discover so until it is too late (which may result in two possible
ways - either changing the teacher and the style of teaching or quitting the language
studies in general for all).
At the beginning of the course, before the real studying takes place, a technical
lesson should be made, when the student must be asked about why he/she studies,
what he/she needs the language for, about the motivation, homework, previous studies,
likes and dislikes, his/her learning styles and preferences, what he/she expects from
the teacher, how he/she imagines the course and the individual lessons.
The problem is that very often the students do not know themselves or they
know it very vaguely. And this is when the professional and experienced teacher must
help to choose the proper way for the particular student.

Awareness of the above mentioned mistakes which are frequently made by teachers
might be very useful. There are many tips for teachers of adults to improve their teaching
styles, methods and techniques available on internet and many books concerning this
problem (Rogers, 1996; Ur, 1996). However, it is necessary to realise that what is good
for one student does not have to be good for the other and that teaching (and particular
lessons) may not be copied one from another and at least minor adjustments must be done
prior and/or in course of every lesson taught, that every student and every teacher is
different and it is very difficult to generalize.

2.5. Frequent misunderstandings on the side of the students

People very often overestimate the role of the teacher (and/or a language school) and
his/her absolute influence on the positive outcome at the end of the course. Of course, a
good teacher and a selection of a proper language course are important. However, it is the
client (prospective student) who often neglects to ask him/herself fundamental questions
on the basis of which his/her selection of the course and the teaching method might be
more successful and thus the client might benefit from the studies more.

The above mentioned questions include:

What do I need the foreign language for?
23
 Why do I want to learn?
Do I have time/money/energy/babysitting (etc) for studying? If yes - How
much?
How often can I go to the course?
Do I want to have an individual or a group language course?
Do I prefer study at home or somewhere else?
Do I want to study with a native speaker or a Czech teacher of the foreign
language?
What is my aim in the language?
Will I have time to prepare at home?
Will I have support of my family members?
What do I expect from the teacher, from myself?

It is very much up to the teacher (in the case of one-to-one courses) or a language
school manager of studies, to consult the above mentioned questions (and many more)
with the student, to ensure the student and the teacher understand each other. The
biggest mistake usually is to start the course without prior discussion and sufficient
information.

2.5.1. Understanding the role of the teacher

It is not difficult to understand the role of a teacher from the point of view of a
young learner or a school pupil. Apart from an educator, the person who leads the
lessons and gives marks, a good teacher leads the children in their exploration of the
given subject, in foreign languages it is not only about the acquisition of the given
language, but also meeting new cultures, learning about people from all over the world
and their habits. The teacher of children is expected to help form the personality of the
pupil, to be the formative participant on their overall education. And although the role
of the teacher has been changing currently, from the strict "controller" of homework to
almost a colleague, at school still certain rules must be followed.
It is true it may be more difficult to understand the position of a teacher in the
courses for adults.

24
 Harmer comments on teaching adults:

As teachers of adults we should recognize the need to minimize the bad effects
of past learning experiences. We can diminish the fear of failure by offering
activities which are achievable, paying special attention to the level of
challenge presented by exercises. We need to listen to students' concerns too
and, in many cases, modify what we do to suit their learning tastes.

(Harmer, 41).

A language teacher in a language school (or private language courses) is in a

totally different situation. It is not rare that in his/her teaching career he/she will meet
people of one or two generations older, very often well educated with a successful
professional career.
The problem is that novice teachers are not taught how to deal with such a
situation. It may not be as easy as it looks and it could be unpleasant for both sides,
too. The language teacher is in these situations an equal colleague providing new
pieces of information (and very often getting many back, in return).
Rogers (2001) mentions other roles of the teacher of adults, these are in his
opinion:
• Leader of the group (whose purpose is to keep the group
together, to keep things going)
• As teacher, an agent of change
• As member of the group, subject to the pressures it exerts
• As audience, outside of the group, the person before whom the
group members will perform their newly acquired learning in
search of evaluation and reinforcement

(Rogers, 161)

Although pleasant and relaxed atmosphere is more than desirable, I am

convinced that it is not profitable for either side if the student-teacher relationship is
too close and becomes too friendly. On a very personal level it is very difficult to set
to the given pace, lesson plan and professional level, to stick to the topic and theme
and proceed to the given goal. Nobody probably ever counted the maximal time, when
it is possible to lead one-to-one course. It is pleasant to know the person, his/her
hobbies and interests, his/her preferences as well as his/her expectations. On the other

25
hand, it rather limits the topics for conversation, when both sides know everything
about each other. It is also more difficult for the other side (the student) to solve
potential problems or misunderstanding concerning the teacher, his/her style and
methods or the lessons in general, if he/she is too close to the teacher. Psychologists
call this "burning-out" syndrome. This comment does not relate to stress free and
friendly atmosphere in the class, which is desired and needed for a successful lesson.

Penny Ur (284) comments on the best teachers remembered by their ex-

students. These were not, surprisingly, the greatest entertainers or closest friends but
on contrary people who made the person move forward.

'It is, for example, apparently by no means necessarily true that

motivating behaviour on the part of the teacher implies increasing
pleasure or enjoyment. People who chose to recall teachers at
secondary-school level tended to describe their good teachers as
demanding consistently high standards, giving frequent, possibly
stressful, tests, punishing slackness and so on. These teachers did,
however, in spite of (or because of?) strictness and uncompromising
demands, apparently succeed in conveying to their students a faith
in their ability to teach the desired standards, and respect for them
as individuals and scholars.'

(Ur, 284)

Although this comment by Ur concerns school education, I - as a teacher of

adults - very much agree with it. I can see a very close parallel with adult teaching. In
my opinion a very close friend (or even a family member) can rarely push anybody to
work harder and/or quicker.
However, I am aware of the fact that it is the teacher (next to the well motivated
student, of course) who is the key factor in the way to successful acquisition of a
foreign language. I am not stating that one can never learn a language without a good
teacher, but the way with the good teacher is shorter, easier and less painful. There are
many good text books and exercise books and other supplementary materials, but it is
the human factor, which is (still) essential. A teacher may fill his/ her students with
enthusiasm and teach them to learn as well as discourage them from any further
studying for all.

26
 Teachers who share warm, personal interactions with their students, who
respond to their concerns in an empathic manner and who succeed in
establishing relationships of mutual trust and respect with the learners,
are more likely to inspire them in academic matters that those who have
no personal ties with the learners.

(Dornyei, 36)

2.5.2. Underestimating home preparation

Homework or actually the question whether or not to give homework to the

students is a topic for a chapter of its own. The teachers as well as other professionals
have not yet come to a final conclusion. At school I consider home preparation
essential (although in the Czech Republic several elementary schools last year started
a no-homework experiment). The language courses in language schools or individual
lessons present a totally different problem. Many teachers consider home preparation
crucial and especially for beginners or elementary students it is more then wise to
teach them to learn at home regularly prior the lessons. In individual lessons, though,
where there is often only one student and his/ her teacher, the situation is totally
different. Surely it is much wiser on the part of the teacher (when he/she sees the
student fails to prepare any homework in general) to find a different activity or agree
on a different style of home revision (such as reading, browsing internet, listening to
the radio or watching films in the target language). There is no reason in forcing the
student to do his/her homework when the only time he/she does the second language is
in the language lesson itself, it is stressful for the student and discouraging for the
teacher.
It is useful to agree with the student on the system in advance, whether or not the
homework will be required and whether it is actually feasible for the student to do it.
However, home preparation changed more than anything else. Many students
who had problems with book based homework find it easier via internet. In this
respect modern technologies are miraculous. A teacher can be in touch with his/ her
student from the comfort of his/her home, possible problems may be solved, answered
via interned or Skype, a great plus is in the individual attitude to the student, which is
necessary and required especially in the case of small groups or individual lessons.

27
2.5.3. Overestimating the significance of the first partial failure

Every student of any subject and of any age wants to feel successful in what
he/she is doing. The part of the teacher's work is this magical "pat on shoulder", this
individually targeted praise. It does not really matter if the student is nine or ninety,
everybody likes to feel that what he/she is doing has sense and it is not wasted time
and energy. However, not everything can be easy in the lessons and in every course
there are moments, when the student needs to be encouraged (but not everybody says
so). Sometimes it may be difficult for the teacher to find out what the problem is,
because in his/her opinion everything is ok, the student does the required and expected
progress (and at the same time the same and expected mistakes as many students
before him), but the student does not feel comfortable. He/she might think too high of
him/herself, want too much in too short time period...
The process of learning resembles doing physical exercises; at the beginning
everybody is ready and perfectly prepared, with new trainers and gym outfit, but after
a week or so the enthusiasm disappears and the gaps between the visits of the gym are
bigger. However, when the person overcomes the reluctance and pain, soon regular
visits to the gym become a habit. The reason why I dare to compare language learning
with going to the gym is that in my teaching practice I have seen the parallel many
times. At the beginning of the courses the students are ready, eager to learn and devote
their free time and energy to the studies, have new textbooks and notebooks, but as the
time passed, some students give up, which is normal, of course, but the teacher always
asks (or should ask) about the reason, whether he/she could have prevented it.
Probably every teacher, who has ever had a class full of beginners in September,
would agree that the number of students ending the course was sometimes much
lower. I am convinced this might be prevented. A n experienced teacher feels the
atmosphere in the class, the mood of the individual student. It is up to the teacher to
make the student feel successful, although it might mean to slow down the pace of
lessons, not to finish the chapter or unit in time. The success may be reading an easy
English book or its part, having a conversation with a native speaker or watching a
film with subtitles in the target language. Especially older students are often
professionals (successful ones) in other fields, having a successful career, a good job,
28
a family. They often fail to set realistic goals at their language studies. When they fail
to fulfil what they had planned, they may finish the course for all.
For the teacher there is a big task to teach such older students to learn again, to
set realistic goals, to help with home preparation. Human brain is like any other
muscle in human body. The more it practices the better it is (or gets) and the less time
it needs to make progress.

2.5.4. Necessity to agree on the outcome of the course/ student's evaluation

At schools the teachers have ideal and desired outcomes of the students set by the
curricular documents which are binding for them. These documents set explicitly what
the pupils must achieve (should know) at a certain level of the studies, at given age/
year. Although the teacher may - to certain limit- adjust his/her work, pace of the
lessons and demands and difficulty to the pupils and the class, he/she is still very
much bound by the above curricular documents.
In contrast to school education, individual lessons and courses are not bound by
any document like this. This has its pros as well as cons. Many teachers make the
mistake of planning just one or two lessons ahead without having a real structure of
the course, at least a quarterly plan.
In individual courses there is a high risk of slowing down the tempo and
decreasing difficulty, the lessons may become a comfortable, easy meeting with
relaxed atmosphere giving nothing new to the student. A good course plan (at least for
half a year, preferably all school year) is very important in these cases. It is good to sit
at the beginning of the course and speak to the student about his/her expectations,
what the outcomes of the lessons should be, whether he/she would like to try to sit an
international language exam. Apart from this long term goal, the teacher and his/her
student should have some continuous goals, the student should at any moment of the
lesson know where they are aiming, that the particular lessons are logically following
one another.
The other thing which is different from schools is the evaluation - actually very
often the lack of evaluation procedures. Although it might seem improper or
inadequate, to mark adults in their free time, some form of evaluation (not necessarily
marks like at schools) is necessary, useful and highly motivating for the students. It is
29
very practical, if the teacher agrees with his adult student on the system he/she is
going to use; it does not matter if the tests or essays will be just corrected with marked
percentage on them. It is a very good motivation for them, if the teacher keeps the
portfolio of previous tests or works and comes back to it from time to time, to check
the progress; the student sees the works and mistakes he made and does not make
anymore. Marks at school may not be a perfect system, but it is the only one we have
in the Czech Republic and the students are acquainted with it very well. After the test
(which is corrected but not evaluated) students often ask a question: " I see - 60 %-
and what mark would it be at school? " If the Czech scale of 1-5 marks seemed too
discouraging, the English A to F may be used instead.
It is good if the student has an understandable system in his/her lessons; e.g. a
small test after every finished unit, bigger after every two etc. Many private teachers
do not write tests or evaluate their private students. However, I may be conservative
but I still find it the best and most effective tool in the learning process, to learn from
own mistakes.
However, the teacher should not forget that it is not only grammar and listening,
which is to be evaluated, even in the case of one-to-one lessons, the teacher should
regularly evaluate all the skills (i.e. listening, writing, reading and speaking).

Scrivener (2007) comments on a good test:

A good test will seem fair and appropriate to the students (and anyone who needs
to know the results...), it will not be too troublesome to mark. It will provide
clear results that serve the purpose for which it was set.

Scrivener (303)

The important part of evaluation is error correction throughout the lessons. In the
classes with adult students it may be rather sensitive and many especially novice
teachers tend to avoid it if it is possible. The teacher must perceive the error as an
important step in students learning (and the students must be aware of it too). As a
teacher I fully identify with Scrivener's opinion concerning errors:

In most things, humans largely learn by trial and error, experimenting to see
what works and what does not. It is the same with language learning.

30
 Student errors are the evidence that progress is being made. Errors often show
us that a student is experimenting with the language, trying out ideas, taking
risks Analysing what errors have been made clarifies exactly which level
the student has reached and helps set the syllabus for future language work.

Scrivener (298)

2.5.5. Wrong choice of the course/teacher/method

Every student is an individuality requiring a different style and methods. What is

good for one does not necessarily have to be good for the other. Many of the so called
"false beginners" claim: "I have not got the chance to leave and live abroad for a year
this is why I can never learn the language well... ". I strongly disagree with this
opinion; a similar method may be very useful but again not for everyone in every
situation. For some people this literal "throwing in the water" may be the impetus to
start learning the language deeply and acquire it on a very high level, for others the
stress might be so discouraging and the effect very poor. Often the fluency of speaking
may be accompanied with so many mistakes when speaking, that it is hard to
understand. In my opinion these people made a mistake in the selection of a teacher
and/or a language school and its method. It is true that as non professionals they might
not have known about the existence of more methods of language teaching and it
should be up to the language school's manager of studies to inform the candidates on
the method(s) the school uses, however - today in the age of the internet it is not a
problem to browse the net and think about which possibility and method of teaching
would suit each student best.
The following section covers the best known methods of language teaching
depicted by Rodgers and Richards in their book on language teaching methods and
approaches (Rodgers and Richards, 2001).

31
 2.6. Methods of teaching languages

There exist many methods of teaching languages; these very often are a matter of
fashion and with a new invention there have been a tendency to quit all the old and
obsolete (which does not have to be only positive because very often these were also
well-tried and tested).

2.6.1. Direct Method

This method uses only the target language as the only communication
language both in the class and among the students. Grammar rules are not
considered so important, the method focuses on quick and fluent speaking and
good pronunciation. The teacher uses pantomime, real objects, pictures,
demonstrates situations and uses phrases from every day life. The T T T is 7

reduced and the focus is on studenťs production, his/her correct use of

grammar and pronunciation.

2.6.2. Grammar-translation Method

This method is the exact opposite of the previous one. It is a traditional

method of teaching languages based on reading texts and translating them to
the mother tongue of the student. The books are bilingual. It requires a non-
native teacher or a teacher who understands the language of the student at a
very good level. It focuses on understanding grammatical form of the foreign
language and its comparison with the mother tongue of the student, complete
understanding of the grammatical rules and vocabulary is expected via the
process of learning. Although it was the major method used in the past, it has
now been left by most teachers, mainly because the lessons led only this way
fail to prepare the students for reality in the language, to talk in the language
because speaking is not emphasised. Some critics among linguists, however,

7
TTT - Teacher Talking Time

32
 state that the Grammar Translation Method was mainly abandoned for
commercial reasons.
According to Scrivener (2007) this method, although it focuses very little
on speaking and listening, is still being used predominantly in many countries.

2.6.3. Audio-lingual Method

This method is similar to the above Direct Method, it focuses on practicing

dialogues of every day life and situations. The students drill and learn the new
language and its oral form prior to reading and writing in it. Only the target
language is used in the classes. However, unlike the Direct Method, the Audio-
Lingual Method does not focus on teaching vocabulary, it focuses much more
on drilling grammatical rules.

2.6.4. Structural Approach

Teaching according to this method consists of focusing on grammatical

rules and how these appear in the logical sequences of the language, i.e. from
the easiest to the more difficult aspects of grammatical rules.

2.6.5. Suggestopedia

This method is a teacher-controlled one, so the teacher trained in this

method is necessary. It works with the idea that a student may learn only when
he/she is completely relaxed and without stress or mental blocks. It is based on
listening with background music (classical) playing. The teacher reads an
unabridged text in the foreign language and the students listen and then read
and repeat it. They can accompany it with pantomime. Another important
factor is the environment, which should be bright colours and nice grammar
posters on the walls. Suggestopedia believes that the students also learn
peripherally without conscious learning. This method should activate the right
brain hemisphere, where the centre of languages is believed to be situated.

33
2.6.6. Total Physical Response (TPR)

This method combines understanding the foreign language with physical

activities. It is based on an order-answer basis. This is believed to be an
identical way how very small children acquire their mother tongue. It starts
with commands, which are at the beginning very simple (such as "Open your
books" or "Come in"), when the students listen to the teacher and do what they
are asked. Although it was not designed only for young learners, these days the
method or parts of it are notably used in the courses for very young learners.
The learners are not expected or forced to speak immediately, but only when
they feel ready to do so. A very important factor is the elimination of stress
factors. The teacher talking time thus may be (especially in the groups of
beginners) rather big in comparison with other language teaching methods.

2.6.7. Communicative language teaching (CLT)

This method focuses on communication effectively and appropriately

depending on the situation the speaker appears in, so it is not only the student-
teacher communication, but also student-student communication. Minor
mistakes are tolerated (if they do not impede understanding).
The teacher uses work in groups and moves from group to group and is more a
observer than an authority to the students.
Textbooks are not used, only authentic materials (such as encyclopaedias,
leaflets and brochures, maps or newspapers, T V news etc). Students are
supposed to be active participants of the lessons.
Scrivener (2007) distinguishes two types of CLT, strong and weak.
Strong C L T consists of "doing communication tasks with a limited role to
explicit teaching and traditional practice exercise" (38). Weak C L T is based on
"wide variety of teaching, exercises, activities and study with a bias towards
speaking and listening..." (38). He mentions that most current textbooks are
based on weak CLT.

34
2.6.8. Silent Way

In this method the TTT (Teacher's talking time) is reduced as much as

possible so the student can fully concentrate on what he/ she is saying. This
method does not allow using the mother tongue.

2.6.9. Immersion

This is a typical method that for example immigrants face and learn the
second target language through. The student is suddenly immersed in the
foreign language, culture and environment all day, which leads them into using
the language naturally (including collocations) and thinking in the language.

2.6.10. Task-based Language Learning

Task-based language learning is a method which tries to make students

so interested and involved that they forget they are learning the language when
completing the task. This is very much used at schools in project education.
The pupils have a task to fulfil (usually not connected so closely or obviously
with language learning) and when working on the project, they have to use the
target language to fulfil a non-language subject/project.

2.6.11. Natural Approach

This approach does not differentiate between the acquisition of the first
language and the second language. According to this principle the students learn
the language in an identical way and thus no correction or grammar drills are
needed. The language is adjusted to the level of the speakers and it is made more
difficult according to their progress.

The above mentioned methods are not the only ones in existence or being used.
As it has been already mentioned in this thesis, not every method is suitable for every
student. This is the reason why I included the description of the best known methods
in this thesis. Young learners and pre-schoolers do benefit greatly from TPR or the

35
direct method, nevertheless they can hardly benefit from a grammar translation one.
Although this example is an extreme one, I wanted to refer to the fact that none of
these methods are the only good or the best and that every teacher should adjust
his/her attitude and teaching methodology to the particular student(s) or group(s), and
that what works very well in one class may be a complete disaster in the other.
Especially older students may be reluctant to try any new methods or styles and
subconsciously insist on the very same method they had been taught at school many
years ago.
Harmer (2007) also comments on the problems of adult learners and their
attitude to teaching methods. He states that the feeling of stress and under-confidence
may be caused by their failure and criticism they had been exposed to in the past (in
their school years). This, in his opinion, influences their attitudes to language learning
in general.
Today's trend, however, tries to combine the best of all the methods, to make
the language teaching process as effective as possible.
Hanušova comments in her text on how quickly and sometimes without proper
consideration old and well-tested methods were abandoned including those parts of
them, which were definitely beneficial for the learners. Today's balanced activities
approach tries to include beneficial parts of all methods. She also points out that recent
reluctance to use mother tongue in the language classes has now been reviewed.
Rogers (2001) poses a question whether there exists a way (method) common
for all adults which could form the general basis for all adult teaching; he answers that
probably not. He states that:

It is necessary to adapt our methods of teaching adults to the range of

educational skills they possess.

(Rogers, 76)

Apart from the proper method, a student very often does not consider carefully
the form of his/ her future language lessons. Some people are more competitive and
thus benefit more from a more competitive environment of a language class and
learning with a group of other students, others may be too shy or stressed due to
possible failure, that faster and better results come with studying in one-to-one course,
where the teacher is more a colleague than an authority. It is evident that many of
36
those decisions are conditioned by other factors than the wish of the student (e.g.
financial aspect), because the one-to-one lessons tend to be more expensive than the
group courses in language schools (although it does not necessarily have to be always
true).
For the language student it may be, though, very difficult, to choose a private
teacher. The situation is (or should be) easier in the case of language schools, which
are the guarantors of quality of the provided services (i.e. language teaching of high
quality, in this case). Bigger schools have their methodologists and/or directors of
studies, who are (or should be) qualified and competent to provide advice on the
method, books or teaching style, very often they also recommend a particular teacher
to the particular student. The student has a possibility to change the teacher in case of
some dissatisfaction with his work or way of teaching.
In case of one-to-one courses the situation may be more complicated. For a non
professional it is usually very difficult to know what to focus on when choosing the
teacher. The certificates may be helpful but definitely do not suffice. It may be wise to
agree on several lessons before the long-term contract is signed, so both sides know
what to expect from the other part.
Some schools base their teaching on one particular method, many others leave
the method and attitude up to the particular teacher. In my opinion teachers in general
tend to create their own personal method, their "know-how". Scrivener (2007) in his
book states the same:

Many teachers nowadays would say that they do not follow a single method.
Teachers do not generally want to take someone else's prescriptions into the
class and apply them. Rather they work out for themselves what is effective in
their classroom.
Scrivener (40)

37
 2.7. Motivation and learning styles

Lack or decrease of motivation throughout the course is a matter of interest of all

practicing teachers. One of the key questions is: "Why do many beginning students never
continue in their studies (thus become the so-called "false" beginners)?

Harmer (51) states that "At its most basic level, motivation is some kind of internal
drive which pushes someone to do things in order to achieve something".

The question of motivation (or much more often the lack of it throughout the duration
of the language course) is a complex and wide topic. Moreover, it is different when we
examine the motivational processes and what motivates pupils at elementary school, and it is
different when we explore the reasons of the adults attending some language courses in their
free time.

At first sight it might be an obvious answer. Children, who very often do not have a
choice but to study the language, it is - then - not their own decision, are forced to do so by
the environment, family or the educational system. It may seem that taking into account the
question of motivation, the school teachers are in a more difficult situation, because most of
their pupils (students) are somehow forced into studying the subject. It may also seem that the
private teachers of adult students do have much easier work, because their students are self-
motivated, they voluntarily chose to study the subject, to attend the language course, they pay
for the course and thus they evidently must be motivated.

Harmer appositely summarises difference between the attitudes of adult and children.

"Adults can engage with abstract thought. They have a whole range of life
experiences to draw on which allow teachers to use a wide range of activities
with them. They have expectations about the learning process, and may already
have their own set patterns of learning. Adult tend, on the whole, to be more
disciplined than some teenagers and crucially, they are often prepared to
struggle on despite boredom. And lastly, they unlike young children and
teenagers often have a clear understanding of why they are learning and what
they want to get out of it"
(Harmer, 40)

38
 However, many teachers of adults do complain about the unvarying situation in public
language courses, when at the beginning of the school year (or the course) there is a class full
of self-motivated professionals eager to learn something new. As the time passes, maybe
within several lessons, within a few months, sometimes there is about half of the class still
attending the course. It is not, actually, the problem and question of only those so called "false
beginners", when the students give up in the moment of first difficulties. It probably concerns
all groups and levels.
There are many aspects the teacher of adults should take into consideration. Harmer
(2007) mentions that apart from long term goals, i.e. the wish to master the language on "a
very good communicative" level (because of which the student might get a better job or be
promoted in the current one; or because of which he/she will become an independent traveller
and communicator abroad -reasons for studies differ depending on each person, of course),
the teacher should help to set the student short term goals. This can be much more difficult in
case of adult students than in case of school pupils (where this might be a test the following
week). The teacher of adults must think carefully and try to motivate the student on a short-
time basis too. These short term goals can be for example a meeting with a native speaker,
reading an unabridged book (or a part of it), watching a favourite film without subtitles etc.
So the student clearly sees his/her progress even in the short-term horizon.

Sometimes the problem of adult students with learning the second language can be in
the ignorance of the existence of various learning styles. Many adult students already forgot
how to learn (or - it is also possible that they never knew it - how to learn at home, how to
prepare for the lessons).
The fact that the student knows his /her individual learning style may help him overcome
difficulties on his/her way to master the language and reach his/her long term goals.

According to Spolsky (1989:109) the learning styles are "identifiable individual

approaches to learning situations... " . H e believes that knowing the particular learning style
of the student (or the prevailing one of the class) the teacher should adapt his/ her lessons and
attitude in the class and all the design of the course to the particular learning style as the final
outcome of the student/group will be better.

39
 Learners vary both individually and according to such characteristics as age,
level, and cultural origin) in their preference for learning style (visual,
auditory, kinaesthetic, and tactile) and mode (group or individual); as a
result, learning is best when the learning opportunity matches the learner's
preference.

(Spolsky 1989: 110)

There has been much research and many opinions on the learning styles (Sprenger, 2003;
Stahl, 2002) and a wide range of them have been described in detail. There are many more
learning style theories and described models of learning. However, for the purpose of this
thesis I mention only three main learning styles, actually three types of learners. These are
specified according to the senses the learners predominantly use: visual learners, auditory
learners, kinaesthetic learners.

2.7.1. Visual learners

Visual learners benefit the most from using their visual memory. They prefer
colours, big letters and clear organisation in their notebooks or on the white board.
When the teacher knows he has a visual learner in the class, he should use as many
aids, colours and graphs as possible so the student can learn more easily than via other
means. These students like clear graphic organisation; for example when teaching new
vocabulary - the teacher uses pictures and groups them systematically.

2.7.2. Auditory learners

Auditory learners benefit the most from listening. For these learners the teacher
should use various listening exercises, read texts aloud and connects as many activities
as possible with spoken word, some students prefer even some background music for
better concentration. These students are usually good at oral exams, have no problems
volunteering in various class activities, such as drama or poetry recitation or even
singing.

40
 2.7.3. Kinaesthetic (tactile) learners:

These students are also called "doers" as they learn by doing the orders. In
their case the learning process should be connected with some physical activity or
moving, not still sitting at their desks. Young learners are taught according to the
principles for the kinaesthetic learners, the activities and games vary and include
projects, hands-on activities or role plays.

Some scientists (e.g. Marilee Sprenger, 2003) strongly believe that when the teacher
adjusts his lessons and teaching methods to the learning styles of the student or the class, their
results will be dramatically better. Others (Stahl, 2002) express their reservedness stating that
there has been an "utter failure to find that assessing children's learning styles and matching
to instructional methods has any effect on their learning" (Stahl, 2002).
Stahlef s opinion is more appealing to me and as a teacher I prefer a balanced attitude
using all the teaching methods equally depending on the situation and the student(s).

Nevertheless I tend to believe that for the student himself/herself the fact that he/ she is
aware of his/her learning style may sometimes be helpful and he/she may benefit from
knowing so.

2.8. Possible reasons of the students' feelings of failure

There may be many reasons why the students fail to acquire the language. Sometimes
he/ she progresses rather well and still feels unsuccessful and gives it up.
If I look into the problems concerning the teacher and wrong class/ course management,
than one of the first problems might be the ignorance of work with the adults, its specifics.
One of the reasons can be insufficient preparation of prospective teachers at
universities, which very often does not count with the possibility that the future teacher
will not teach on a classic elementary or secondary school but will become a
self-employed teacher of adult students; thus the lessons will be dramatically different
from those designed for the schools (not only from the point of view of the number of
people in the class or the textbooks used in the lessons). The other problem might be

41
insufficient home preparation or lack of understanding in the class, which should be
reflected by the teacher and taken into consideration when planning the following lessons.
One of the most important aspects is feedback. The teacher and the student must
communicate at all times - throughout the course. The teacher should encourage the
student to comment on his/her methods, lessons and how he/she (the student) feels about
them. However, the same feedback should be given by the teacher. Not only to inform
student on the progress expected and really reached but also to keep "in touch" with the
student.

42
3. Practical Part

In the practical part of my thesis I decided to focus on a qualitative survey which followed
and was based on an experiment I did with my individual adult students.
As a teacher of adults I strongly believe it is necessary to take into account particular
needs of particular clients. However, I had never done any sort of survey between my students
and the question, whether they feel the same about their own course was really interesting.
The questions for the survey were very simple: "Do the students recognize the difference
between a classic language lesson and an individually tailored one? Do they like the tailored
lessons more? Do they find them effective?". The idea of survey seemed appealing to me.
On the results of the conducted survey I would like to show how important the mutual
cooperation and communication between the teacher and his/her adult student is. Adequate
communication leads to the teacher's better understanding of the students' needs and
expectations, it reduces the incomprehension. In the case of one-to-one classes the student is
more than anywhere else in the role of the client, the contract owner who co-creates the
lessons. In my opinion this is very important to remember when teaching such lessons.
Especially novice teachers (of individual adult students) with no or minimal
experience may prevent many inconveniences (or factual loss of the client) if they focus on
tailoring their lessons according to the needs of their clients.

3.1. Method

The survey took place after the three-month lasting experiment. In this experiment the
lessons were designed (tailored) and taught according to the needs of particular students.
The students were asked to fill in two questionnaires, one at the beginning of the
experiment and the second at the end. The experiment lasted from October to December 2012.
Ten my individual adult students (all having one-to-one classes) agreed to participate in this
experiment and the following survey. Eight of them have a ninety-minute lesson once per
week, two of them have a ninety-minute lesson twice per week.
In the first questionnaire (Questionnaire n . l , Appendix 1) I attempted to find out what
their needs and expectations were, including their preferences concerning the teaching
process, materials and topics to be used in the lessons.

43
 The following step was to change my lesson plans according to the information I
gained from the questionnaires and adjust the particular lessons to the particular students. The
changes were based on their needs and interests. The aim was not only to have lessons the
students would benefit from but also those which would be more enjoyable for them. For the
following three months the lessons were managed the above way. After the end of the
experiment the students were asked to fill in another questionnaire (Questionnaire n.2,
Appendix 2)
The aim of this second questionnaire was to find out, whether the adapted lessons
were considered by the students to be more interesting, motivating and beneficial. Whether
they could feel they learned more; that the lessons were worth the time, money and energy
they had invested.
The questionnaires are in Czech, for the purpose of this thesis I translated them to
English.
For better illustration of the problem and the measures I took I provide a brief
description of the students and major adjustments which were made in their lessons. I also
include a description of two lessons as an example.

One of the major points I would like to point out is the fact that adult students in one-
to-one courses very often require rather specific lessons and characteristic attitude. These are
sometimes not typical language lessons (such as a mock job interview) and the teacher should
be prepared even for these non-standard lessons.

44
 3.1.1. Questionnaire n.l

The students obtained the questionnaire in Czech, for the purpose of this thesis I translated
it to English. For the original version please see Appendix 1 of this thesis.

Questionnaire n. 1 ( Survey) Student:

Tick the point you most agree with.

1. Why did you start to learn English?

Work/ fun/ travel/ other (please specify)

2. How long have you been learning English?

0 years/ up to 1 year/1-3 years/ more than 3 years

3. Is the number of years in correspondence with the progress you have made so
far?
Yes/ more likely yes/ more likely no/ definitely no

4. If no-why?
Lack of time / un-motivated/ wrong course (teacher)

5. What is the advantage of an individual one-to-one course in your opinion?

Faster progress/ more individual attitude/1 dislike the groups

6. What do you expect from this course?

Overall improvement in English/ test preparation / it is a hobby

7. What do you consider the biggest problem in the lessons?

Unbalanced lessons (not enough speaking, reading etc.)/ lessons are not interesting/
the teacher does not suit me/ no problem

8. What textbooks have you used so far?

No/ Czech-English/ English-English

9. Have you been satisfied with the textbooks?

Yes / No (if no - please state why)

10. In your opinion -what is the role of the teacher in your lesson?
45
He/she leads the lesson - 1 trust him/her and do not interfere

He/she leads the lesson - 1 cooperate with him on the form of the lesson

He/she fully adjust the lesson to my requirements - he/she designs the lesson
according to my wish

11. What are your proposals to enhance the quality of your course/ lessons?
To increase the proportion of a particular activity (such as reading, speaking, writing,
listening etc.)

To focus the lesson more practically (more actual topics or more "everyday and
practical" English)

More formal and/ or business English

I do not know

12.1 like when we do:

Warm up activities (games)/ reading/ listening/ writing/ conversations/ role plays

Other:

13.1 do not like when we do:

Warm up activities (such as games)/ reading/ listening/ writing/ conversations/ role

plays
Other:

14. Materials I like to use:

Authentic (maps, books, newspapers etc.)/ textbook/ no - just conversation

15. Materials I do not like to use:

Authentic (maps, books, newspapers etc.)/ textbook/ other:

16.1 need to improve:

vocabulary/ reading/ writing/ listening/ speaking/ formal/business English/ other:

17. Homework:
I agree/1 disagree/1 agree but do not promise

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 18. E-mail contact:
Yes / No

19. Topics I am interested in (I like to talk about):

20. Topics I am not interested in:

21. tests in the lessons:

Yes / No

22. Evaluation of the tests:

oral / percentage/ mark (I am used to it from the school)

23. Other evaluation (reading, writing etc.):

Every lesson/ from time to time/ informal - just error correction and explanation

24. Preparation for Cambridge (and other) tests:

Yes / No

In the first part of the questionnaire (Questionnaire n.l) the students were asked
questions concerning their motivation and history of their language studies. In the second part
of this questionnaire they were asked about their preferences and ideas concerning their
current language lessons.

Although this procedure is done by every more or less experienced teacher of

individual students intuitively, the reason why I found it very useful to have it in writing is
that the teacher has a possibility to come back to the particular person and his/her
questionnaire and thus has a chance of more professional attitude (e.g. does not have to ask
the student repeatedly the same questions). I am actually thinking of using a similar
questionnaire with all my students in the future too.

The second part of the questionnaire revealed the students' attitude to learning,
homework, testing or evaluation. The students gave me answers which they might not have
been willing to provide if they had been asked face to face.

47
 3.2. Students involved in the experiment

In this part I would like to write something about the students who agreed to take part in
the experiment.

There were ten students involved in the experiment and the following survey. They all
have a 90-minute lesson once per week, except for two students who have 90-minute lesson
twice per week.

Student A:

A 60-year-old housewife who has been studying English for half a year,
she started learning with me. She feels she has a big problem with listening and
thus is rather reluctant to do listening exercises. This is, however, only her
subjective feeling because she has only been studying for a short time and the
progress she has made is rather surprising. From my point of view the real
problem is speaking, because she does not actually use English when
communicating in the lesson, she uses Czech almost all the time. She started
studying English because she was bored at home. The problem for me as a
teacher is non existence of any goal in her case so it is sometimes difficult to
motivate her. In the lesson we mainly focus on conversation (this was her
wish).

In the experiment I tried to move from sole classic book based lessons
(which she actually preferred) to training the other skills without her noticing
so. Especially listening she finds very difficult - even stressful, as she
commented it. I tried to combine such materials and work with such sources
she would find easy to understand (so the stress would be removed) and I also
followed her ideas she suggested in the first questionnaire. These topics
included films, gossips from the world of celebrities, cooking and travelling.
As the student is really interested in the topics, when she was doing a listening
based exercise on it, she did not give up listening in the first moment. As she
commented it later - she was listening without realising she was doing a
"listening based exercise", she said she had not noticed the lesson had already
begun. Although we did not give up using the text book as main teaching

48
 material, I changed the listening parts as much as possible to her liking. I
mainly used interned sources for both reading and listening.

Student B:

This is a 29-year-old man, who has been studying English for more than
ten years. This is the second year he has been studying with me. He would like
to try to sit the PET exam next year. He is really motivated to work hard
because he has just been offered a very good post with a foreign company. One
of the things he repeatedly complained about was the lack of communication
with his previous teacher of English which led in his leaving the course. In the
lessons he prefers conversation and games, he dislikes listening especially. He
prefers to use authentic materials (magazines and newspapers).

As I know about his interest in fantasy literature, science fiction and

scientific development, I focused on using authentic materials and web in
combination with listening. The book used in the lesson (New English File pre-
intermediate) was not thrown away. However, some of the texts and listening
exercises were exchanged for those he was more interested in. The main source
of materials and listening exercises was the internet. The student himself
started to be an active participant of the course bringing his own materials he
was interested in (such as magazines about science fiction literature and
fantasy); he virtually started to co-create the lesson.

Student C:

This student is a 55-year-old man, who has been studying English for 6
years, last three with me (without making actually a big progress, I am afraid).
He admits he does not have time and he says the only time he does English is
in our lessons but promised to change it now.

49
 When I was focusing on this student, the main problem I found was that
he really liked the old textbook of English (Angličtina pro jazykové školy ) 8

which is mainly based on grammar translation method. Other problem was that
he would like to use more Czech in the lessons, which I am rather reluctant to
do. We finally agreed on a compromise of drill exercises from these books for
homework (which he had not been doing before but promised to start to do
now) and checking these via e-mail. We also focused a little more on Business
English, which meant combination of his current textbook of English (New
English file pre-intermediate) with two business textbooks ("New Market
Leader" and "New International Express", both pre-intermediate level). I also
started using "youtube videos" in the lessons much more often, especially
authentic interviews with world's business celebrities and their advice on
business and marketing (which this student is interested in). This turned out to
be a very successful activity and we used it almost every lesson. Because he
felt comfortable with the drill exercises of grammar translation methods, I
recommended him to do exercises on internet for homework (these are
corrected immediately on some web pages) and to write down only the
mistakes or problems he came across to analyse it with me the following
lesson. These became the introduction parts of our "new" lessons (instead of
classic warm-up activities).

Cooperation with this client became one of the most successful

moments in my experiment. In case of this student I may sincerely state that he
lost his reluctance and stress from doing listening exercises and he became
more interested in the language (and thus more exposed to it even at home
when preparing for the lessons). The fact that he was listening to something he
was really interested in (such as the interview with Steve Jobs on People'
Management etc.) meant that he totally changed his attitude to the listening
exercises in general and also to homework. The progress was noticeable for
both of us and gave him a very important "drive" to continue in studying.

Peprník, Zábojová, Nangonová - Angličtina pro jazykové školy

50
Student D:

This student is a 25-year old woman who has been studying English for
one year. She is highly motivated because her fiance is American and they are
planning to move abroad soon. The problem is that he speaks Czech fluently
and thus she does not practice English very much at home.

She said she did not like reading and writing (she commented it she was
not going to need it anyway). Because she preferred to use authentic materials
(and is a very good cook), we had several really successful lessons using
English cookery books practically (e.g. we made a true cheese cake or
American brownies). The other lesson we watched a video of Jamie Oliver
making the identical recipe and discussed the differences.

However, this was only possible because the lessons occur in her place.

Student E :

This student is 30-year-old woman who speaks English rather well

(upper-intermediate level) and this, as she admits, is also a de-motivating factor
on her way to master the language. She does the course because she uses
English in her job. She has been studying with me for two years.

She does not like role plays and games. However, she admits that what
she needs most at work is "everyday practical English". Because she really
disliked role plays and mock interviews in the books, we decided to change it a
little. I asked her to use the phrases from every day (practical) English at work
on purpose and mark it, when they are used successfully I though that if she
saw how often and at what occasions she was using them, it would motivate
her to do these activities (which I consider rather important). We also started
using more of the authentic materials such as magazines and abridged books
(she is a fan of the Twilight saga so it was not a problem to find enough
materials). The other change was the structure of the lesson. Instead of warm
up activities and revision games I used to do before the experiment, I started
with free conversation (usually about the book or magazine article she had read
at home), so she could practice her newly learnt vocabulary.

51
Student F:

This student is a 40-year-old eternal student of English, a very busy

businessman. He has been studying with me for more than 4 years, progressing
very slowly due to frequent cancellation of lessons and no studying at home.
According to his words the only time he does English is in our lessons. There
was no chance he would start doing homework but I still wanted him to at least
"think" in and about English more than once a week. In his case I decided to
use e-mail a lot and communicate in English only. The main benefit I saw in
the fact that unlike in speaking (when the use of mother tongue in his case is
rather frequent), the writing gave him more time and thus the e-mails were in
English only.

Nevertheless, I must admit preparation for the lessons of this student

was the most difficult one for me and the final progress of his was the worst of
all the students involved in the experiment. The main problem I regard is the
close relationship of ours. Throughout the time he became my and my family's
friend, our children play together, I go shopping with his wife etc. This moved
the lessons to a different level and the student tends to approach it as to a
"friendly chat over the cup of coffee" (as it often is because the lessons take
place in his home). I have to admit that it was this experiment which made me
fully realise that these lessons are no longer beneficial neither for the student
nor for me as a teacher (on the contrary they are extremely discouraging for me
professionally). By the end of this school year I will have to help him find
another teacher.

Student G:

This 40-year-old woman has been studying with me for more than two
years with wonderful results. She started English when her older son studied in
the U S A (so she could visit him there) and fell in love with it (her own words).
Her lessons were changed the least of all the students, because she has never
been reluctant to do any of the activities of exercise I would come with and
thus I had always tried to balance the lessons carefully.

52
 In case of her lessons I focused on systematic and purposeful control of
my TTT so I could give her as much of her talking time as possible. Another
new thing in her lesson was "mock PET tests" once a month, which was
usually homework (only the listening done in the lesson).

Student H:

A 45-year-old woman who has been studying English for less than a
year, she did some course very long time ago and did not finish it at that time.
The reason to start studying now is the situation in her company (where more
and more people are being made redundant these days) and she understands the
ability to speak English might be her competitive advantage. Because she
works in a call centre, she mainly needs to focus on speaking and listening
activities.

This was the reason why I decided to change proportion of the four
skills in the lesson and we focused more on the spoken form of English,
especially the language of telephone calls. We worked with the textbook she
had had from previous course and she had insisted on (New Headway
elementary). However, from this book I only used grammar and exercises and
had to use other more practical materials (such as "Basic Survival" and
"Survival English" textbooks, "practical English" parts from International
Express Elementary and we also watched short videos on youtube.com). She
greatly benefited from learning some parts of the conversations by heart so she
could instantly use them at work. A very important part of the training was the
fact that at the role plays I would sit backwards so she could not see my face
when I would answer her.

Student I:

This student is 58 years old. He is a total beginner and the reason which
he mentioned for starting to learn the language was:" Not to look stupid". He
does not really need English, neither for his work nor for travelling. One of my
goals is to find a reason for him to continue otherwise I think he might give up
at the very first feeling of failure, I am afraid.

53
 In the lessons with this student I focused on two things. The first was
rather obvious, because as a total beginner (started in September 2012), he uses
rather high proportion of mother language even in such situations he does not
really need to do so (i.e. he is very nervous of making a mistake). The second
task was connected with the previous one, as a typical Czech middle-aged man,
he cannot get rid of translating, which limits him to a great extent both in
talking and listening. I wanted to help him realise that he does not have to
understand every single word to understand the text (or the listening activity).
For this we used sports and news, which he is rather interested in; it was very
simple tasks - to catch in the listening what the winning team was or what the
score was and not to get stressed because of the fact he did not understand
every single word or utterance.

Student J:

This student is a 35-year-old man. He has been studying English for

more than 10 years with many breaks; he calls himself "eternal pre-
intermediate". He does not really need English for his work or free time but
feels he should do something about the "handicap" of not being able to speak
fluently (his own words paraphrased now). He started with me in September.
He has problems with reading and writing especially, which he is rather
reluctant to do; the other problem is his poor vocabulary which limits him in
speaking.

I decided to change the lesson according to the questionnaire. There he

mentioned he liked sports and music and that he preferred using authentic
materials and textbook on his level. His main problem was to get oriented in
the text which is of a higher level than his (pre-intermediate). I tried to use
materials he was interested in (e.g. reading a longer and more complicated text
for homework), so he would get used to the fact he does not understand every
single word. I also wanted him to be able to recognize which words are the key
ones to look up in a dictionary and to be able to sum up the text in his own
words. One of the conditions was the lessons cannot be passive; so almost all
work with the texts was for homework. This finally was a problem, because the

54
 student failed to do it at home, and in the lessons it was impossible to give such
"space" only to the reading activities. However, I tried to incorporate reading at
least short text on his every lesson, often using materials from the B B C web
pages focusing on learning English.

3.3. Changes in lesson plans

As it was already stated at the beginning of this thesis, there is no general rule for a
perfect lesson or no ideal lesson plan useful and suitable for everybody. Individual one-to-
one lessons are very different not only from other ways of teaching languages, but they
are (and must be) also different one from another. It is not only because the particular
students differ; but each of them has different reasons for learning, needs something
different and of course expects something different from his/ her teacher. It is up to the
teacher to adjust and tailor these lessons according to the wish of the client. Sometimes it
is much more about the compromise, when both sides have to change their minds on the
way.

This also happened in my lessons with the above students. I cannot say I agreed with
all the ideas the students wanted (or their visions how they imagined their lessons). It was
not about being comfortable or lazy but often from the professional point of view I was
sometimes unsure about the "feasibility and benefit" of the given idea.

The changes of the lessons and plans included almost everything. Sometimes I
changed only topics of conversation, the other time I exchanged texts in the books to
make the lesson more appealing to the student or I used different (authentic) materials in
the lessons. Several times the lesson took place on a different place then in the office or
premises of the client, i.e. Irish pub/ café with native waiters, or Václavské náměstí (when
we were asking tourists), or the activity was rather unusual or disconnected with language
teaching for the first look (the cooking lesson). One of the main differences I also consider
more frequent use of internet.

Except for the experiment there was one individual task for me in all those above
mentioned cases. It was to decrease my TTT and to help students use the language
55
 independently. Although I never mentioned it in neither of the questionnaires, this was an
integral part of my experiment and it is the reason why it is mentioned on self evaluation
of the lesson. It was rather difficult to evaluate the lessons retrospectively, especially
when only self-evaluation may take place in this case, because I was not allowed to record
the lessons ( and I would certainly not be allowed to invite any other person to the lesson).
However, I am convinced I was successful in this particular personal task of mine and I
really decreased the TTT in the lessons.

3.4. Sample lessons description

For practical reasons I cannot include detailed description of all the lessons which took
place in the time of the experiment (it was more than 240 lessons).
However, for better understanding I include two of them. I also provide self-evaluation of
these described lessons.

3.4.1. Lesson n.l:

Student: G date: Mon 22/10/2012 time: 13-14,30

Location: Václavské náměstí

Aim: Lessening the stress from speaking English to the foreigners

Topic: A public inquiry

Reason for this lesson:

The student is able to communicate with me on the given level without any
problem. The progress she has done is really good (if we take into account she has
been studying English for less then two years and she is on a better pre-intermediate
level). However, she admitted she is really stressed when she is supposed to speak
English to anybody else than me. She does not speak English to anybody else except
me, her teacher.
56
This was the reason why I tried to design a lesson where she would be speaking
without my help and still I could observe the procedure.

The idea was to go to the Prague centre and speak to as many tourists as possible.

Task:

1.

The student had a list of questions, which she had prepared at home for one of the
previous lessons and which we had checked before the "real" inquiry lesson started.

2.

This was the list of questions:

1. Where are you from?

2. Are you here for business or pleasure?

3. How long are you here for?

4. Where are you staying?

5. How did you travel?

6. What have you seen/done so far?

7. What are your other plans?

8. Why did you choose to visit the CR?

9. Is there anything you were surprised about?

10. Do you think you will ever come here again?

3.

I met the student in the centre (on Pfikopy) and we started immediately. The student
was supposed to be able to address the people, apologize for bothering them and to say
good bye. She took notes when speaking to the people (their answers). Then for the
following lesson she had to prepare the report based on the inquiry activity.

57
She chose a tourist (a group), which was usually an older couple), excused herself for
bothering them and asked if she could speak to them. We were really lucky because all
the people whom she stopped were really nice and friendly. She spoke to several
people and took notes. When she finished with her form, she was supposed to thank
for the time and say goodbye. M y role was a role of a silent observer, so she was not
allowed to address me in the course of her inquiry. This was probably more difficult
for me than for her (the fact I could not "ease" the situation or help immediately).

The goal of this particular lesson I consider accomplished. We trained "real

life" conversations. The main focus was on reduction of stress from talking to
foreigners in English.

My feelings about the lesson:

I was a little nervous to have such an active lesson with an adult student. Firstly
I could not have predicted the reactions of the tourists and their answers, secondly I
am rather shy myself so the idea of stopping foreigners in the Prague centre does not
look too appealing and natural to me. I expected the student to disagree with the idea
of such a lesson, which did not happen, though. She was very pleased about an
unusual lesson and the practical aim.

What I learned from the lesson:

I realised again that even adult students like to have unusual lessons which
differ from regular language classes. When these (lessons) are planned properly they
can be both funny and beneficial at the same time.

58
3.4.2. Lesson n.2:

Student: A Date: Wed 31/11/2012 Time: 14,30-16,00

Location: Student's place

Aim: to do the activity interesting for the student, to lessen the amount of mother
tongue in the lesson, to prepare for the following lesson (which will be mainly a
listening based one)

Topic: Cooking

Reason for this lesson:

This lesson is rather unusual and realisation of such a lesson was possible only
because the English course takes place in the flat of the student. Because she really
likes cooking, I was thinking of how to incorporate the "cooking" topic to our lessons
differently than just reading recipes and talking about favourite food. I decided to
connect several our lessons by this topic using various attitudes and activities.

As I wrote in the students' description, this student is rather reluctant to do

listening exercise; she actually ignores them saying " I did not understand" or similar,
and when speaking she uses Czech language really frequently. I was afraid that if I
decided to do my planned "Jamie Oliver cooking lesson" without prior preparation, it
would not be successful. Firstly I did introduction, the other lesson was the cooking
and the third lesson was watching Jamie Oliver cooking the same recipe as we had
done in our "cooking lesson". The lesson went surprisingly well.

Description of the lesson:

The preparation phase of this lesson was talking about the food and writing a
vocabulary list in the lesson preceding this particular one (the previous lesson was
more or less a book-based one, topic was: cooking).

The list contained verbs and phrases concerning cooking.

Verbs: cook, bake, roast, grease, grind, slice, cut, mince, boil, stir, whip, melt, fry....

59
Nouns: flour, meat, beef, pork, veal, lamb, chicken, soup, pastry, cookies, pasta, rice,
dumplings, filling, icing, stirring spoon, spoon, spoonful, knife, fork ....

Because she knew many of these above words, I wanted her to revise them and
learn the few new ones.

We agreed that she would teach me how to prepare real American brownies.
She was banned from using Czech throughout the lesson (this was the only condition
of mine).

At the beginning the student described what ingredients and in what amount
she was going to need, and all the tools, equipment and procedures necessary. While
she was cooking, she was commenting what she was doing, so she not only revised the
vocabulary she had learned (prepared) the previous lesson, but also used present
continuous tense correctly and imperatives.

The outcome of the lesson:

Except for really good brownies, it was almost ninety minutes of her talking in
English, which I consider a real success. She also looked forward to the following
(listening) lesson so she could compare her recipe with the one of Jamie's. She
practiced the words learned on the previous lesson.

60
3.5. Self evaluation of described lessons

Self evaluation is one of the most important parts of a teacher's job. As a teacher, one
should never stop learning and resign on the fact that he/she does not know everything. A
teacher must be reconciled with never-ending and lifelong process of improving his/her
way of teaching. It should become a routine skill for a novice teacher to evaluate his/her
work after every lesson, to summarise the activities (and to consider whether and how
they were effective and beneficial for the student), what went well and what to do
differently the next time.
It would be a mistake to think that self evaluation is not necessary in case of
experienced teachers.

3.5.1. Self evaluation of lesson n.l:

The lesson was successful: Yes

Because: As a teacher I consider the goal accomplished.

The student learned what I expected (desired): Yes

What was it (the expected):

The aim was to help the student reduce stress from talking to foreigners in
English without prior detailed preparation. Although the questions were prepared
in advance, the answers could not have been predicted and thus improvisation
was necessary. It is difficult to state that the student "learnt" something in a 90-
minute lesson, but I am sure the lesson contributed to student's confidence when
using English in unplanned and unpredictable real-life situations.

The student learned something more - what?

As she said after the lesson she had noticed how important proper intonation and
pronunciation is and how different melody in English questions is.

61
 Proper choice of the activities (with regard to the student, his/her
personality and level of English): Yes

If no - the reason (too easy, difficult, other):

Timing:

The only problem - the activity would require a prolonged lesson (two 45-minute
lessons were not enough). We had to divide the activity into two and the report
was for homework, although I realise it would have been better to do it together
in the lesson just after the activity.

TTT:

Minimal. The student spoke all the time when asking the tourists, only in the
meantime we talked about the people and the mistakes which appeared in her
questions.

Active participation of the student: Yes

.2. Self Evaluation of Lesson n. 2

The lesson was successful: Yes (from my point of view and also positive
feedback from the student)

Because: the student really enjoyed the activity and used the target language
most of the time.

The student learned what I expected (desired): Yes.

Actually not really learned but practiced the thematic vocabulary in an activity
she found amusing and painless.

What was it (the expected):

My goal was to use English only (finally it was about 90 % of the time, which
was still very good) and to practice the thematic vocabulary in the real situation.
62
 The student learned something more - what?

Orders in English, e.g.: " Take it! Give it to me! Stir it!

Proper choice of the activities (with regard to the student, his/her

personality and level of English): Yes

Timing: O K

TTT: Minimal, although this student tends to use too much Czech in the
lesson.

Active participation of the student: Certainly yes.

3.6. Questionnaire n.2 - End of Survey

A l l the students were given a final questionnaire to evaluate the "changed, tailored"
lessons from their point of view. Because I teach the students separately at different times
and on different places, it was impossible to organise it anonymously. I am aware of the
fact that the number of ten participating students is too low to provide a serious unbiased
experiment. The other problem I actually noticed when distributing the questionnaires. M y
first idea was to give it to the students and ask them to throw it anonymously to my post
box. However - none of them actually agreed to do so, they all brought it to the last lesson
of the experiment filled in. Before I started working with the questionnaires I had known
that it would be (somehow) biased. The number of people taking part in the survey is
rather low and the fact they have known me for some time also hindered potential
criticism. Next time it would be more practical to find a different way of final
questionnaire delivery, maybe via anonymous web. The first questionnaire could not be
anonymous, because to be able to change the lessons individually, to make them really
tailored, I needed to know what topics, methods and approaches to choose for a particular
student.

63
 3.6.1. Questionnaire n. 2 including summary of answers:

Question n. 1: Have you noticed any difference in the lessons? Y/ N

Six students noticed some difference in the lessons (other four answered
no)

Question n.2: Do you consider it positive? Y/N

Six students find the new lessons positive, four crossed no (this was a
result of no third possibility, which they complained about).

Question n.3: Negative?

A l l the students crossed answer "no".

Question n.4: Has the attitude of the teacher changed? Y/N

Nine students answered "no", one student crossed "yes".

Question n. 5: Do you think the lessons were more beneficial for you? (e.g. I feel I
learned more) Y/N
Nine students considered the lessons beneficial, one did not.

Question n.6: Do you feel more motivated to further studying of the language?
Y/N
A l l students stated they feel more motivated now.

Question n. 7: Were the lessons more practical (can you use what you learned in
your everyday life/work?) Y/N
Seven students found the lessons more practical, three answered "no" to
the question. Because I had a chance to go through the questionnaire
with them and ask them in detail, I found out these answers were
distorted by an unclear question - or not enough possibilities in the
answer part).

64
Question n. 8: Do you consider the lessons more difficult? Y/N
Two students considered the experimental lessons more difficult, the
rest (eight) did no.

Question n.9: Was it more difficult for you at home (when preparing for the
lessons)? Y/N
For six out of ten students the home preparation was more difficult than
before.

Question n. 10: Would you like to continue this way in the future? Y/N
Six students stated they would like to continue this particular way.

Question n. 11: What do you consider the best (most effective, funniest, most
practical etc.) part of the lessons?
I intentionally chose this final question as an open question. I wanted to
know exactly what particular activities the students considered the most
effective (and at the same time the most amusing), which actually
worked. To my surprise sometimes these successful ones were the
activities I did not consider so effective, such as cooking at home with
one my student or going to a pub to order a beer in an Irish pub with the
other. They found it funny, amusing and educating meanwhile I
suspected myself of easing my work and wasting time which could
have been spent more effectively for the student.

65
For better illustration the answers from Questionnaire n.2 are depicted in the graph below.
The horizontal line shows the question numbers and the vertical one represents the
number of students.

1U
9-'
8
7
- r

6-7
5 "
4
3
L
-L.Lit
2
1 •
o-k- — I—— I I—•— I—'— I—'— I—•— I—'—
^—
I—'—
T
I—'—
-C

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

3.7. Outcome of the survey

As I have already mentioned I fully realize it is questionable how trustworthy the

survey really is. The final questionnaires were all positive and full of praise to me as a
teacher, which on one hand is good for me. Nevertheless, it also raises questions and
doubts. These were some of the questions which instantly came to my mind: Was it all
professional? Did I do my best? Would they have noticed if I had not? How would they let
me know? Did they really not see any shortcoming or they considered it minor that they
did not want to mention it?

I am convinced if there were any bigger problems in my teaching and the way I
manage the lessons the students would definitely not continue in their studies with me. It
is not only about the financial point of view (because most of them can actually afford to
pay any price), but it is more connected with the fact that they are (most of them)
professionals in what they do and expect the same from the others.

66
 Somebody might oppose that more practical and demonstrable would be, if there were
tests included in the experiment, one at the beginning and one at the end, so the progress
of the students could have been taken into consideration too. I finally decided not to test
them. It was because this thesis deals with a different problem concerning teaching, not
actually the progress (although the progress in the language is the real and desired
outcome of the teacher's work). M y real interest was in tailored lessons; how much
adjusting the lessons in one-to-one classes influence the quality of the lesson.

3.8. Summary of Practical Part

At the end of the practical part I would like to mention several points about the survey.

Although the tailored lessons and the survey following them (from my point of view) proved
the importance of individual attitude in one-to-one classes, I doubt it can be expected from
many self-employed teachers to start teaching this particular way.

One of the reasons would be the fact that it is extremely time-consuming, to prepare the
lessons this way. The problem is that a self-employed teacher very often teaches about thirty,
thirty five or even more lessons per week, each ninety minutes on a different place. Thus it is
inconceivable to spend so much time on planning the lessons.

67
4. Conclusion

This diploma thesis deals with the problem of teaching adults and how to overcome
potential difficulties when doing so. Having been a teacher for more than fifteen years
inspired me to try to change traditional and sometimes routine attitude to teaching and lessons
of mine and inquire whether this change will have a desired effect.

This thesis is divided into theoretical and practical part. The theoretical part deals with
general attitudes, methods and major difficulties concerning teaching adults, including the
most common mistakes made by language teachers and possible ways how to prevent these
mistakes. Another important part which is commented on is the adult learners' motivation and
how different it is in comparison with young learners. Specifics of teaching adults in class and
in one-to-one lessons are depicted as well as advice on how to avoid problems in particular
types of courses.

The main aim of this thesis is to provide help to novice teachers of languages as well as to
experienced language teachers who for any reason change class teaching for one-to-one adult
courses.

The practical part of this thesis is based on the three-month experiment and qualitative
survey following the experiment. These were focused on the problem how to make language
lessons more effective and enjoyable for adult students. The survey pointed out how
necessary it is to adjust particular lessons according to the needs of particular students; that
the students appreciate such lessons and find them more motivating and beneficial.

I wanted to prove that the effectiveness is not only in the good score in the tests. The adult
students need to use the language at various (and often very specific) situations and thus
tailored lessons are the proper way not only to motivate them but often to make them stay - at
the course, with the teacher. I wanted to show that this attitude gives the teacher a competitive
advantage; that it makes him/ her different from the other teachers and that the students not
only recognize the difference but also often change their attitude to the language teaching in
general. The lessons then become more beneficial for them and more rewarding for the
teacher. The outcome of the survey verifies it.

Finally I would like to mention that the experiment and its result gave me new
motivation and desire to improve my own teaching style and leave the safe (but often boring)
68
routine; it showed that the risk and hard work is worth it. It was not only the students enjoying
the new lessons but also me as a teacher feeling much more enthusiastic about my work. The
experiment with its tailored lessons gave me a unique opportunity to be in close contact with
my students and react promptly to their needs and expectations.

69
 Résumé

This diploma thesis deals with teaching languages to adults with emphasis on teaching
individuals. It consists of theoretical and practical part. The theoretical part is concerned with
the adult learning and teaching, the most frequent mistakes made by the teachers and the
students and possible measures how to prevent them. The most common and known methods
of language teaching are described. The practical part deals with the description of three-
month experiment including the survey following the given experiment and its results. In this
experiment the language lessons of selected students were adapted according to their wish and
needs to achieve the effectiveness and individual contribution for given student. The survey
than depicts the outcome of the lessons changed the above described way.

Key words:

Adult students, one-to-one classes, teaching adults, teachers, tailored lessons

Resumé

Tato diplomová práce se zabývá jazykovou výukou dospělých se zvláštním důrazem na

výuku jednotlivců. Je složena z teoretické a praktické části. Teoretická část se věnuje výuce a
vzdělávání dospělých, častým pochybením na straně učitelů i studentů a způsobům, jak jim
předcházet. Jsou popsány nejznámější metody výuky cizích jazyků. Praktická část obsahuje
popis tříměsíčního experimentu včetně dotazníkového šetření, které z daného experimentu
vychází a jeho výsledků. V tomto experimentu byly upraveny jazykové hodiny vybraných
studentů dle jejich přání a potřeb tak, aby byla docílena co nej větší efektivita a individuální
přínos pro daného studenta. Dotazníkové šetření poté znázorňuje výstup takto změněných
jazykových hodin.

70
Bibliography:

Dôrnyei, Zoltán. Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom. Cambridge University

Press: Cambridge, 2001. Print.

Hanušova, Světlana. Metody cizojazyčné výuky. Web. 15. March 2012.

< http ://s vp. muni.cz/ukazat.php ?docld=301 >.

Harmer, Jeremy. The Practice of English Language Teaching. 4th ed. Harlow: Pearson
Longman, 2007. Print.

Knowles, Malcolm. The Adult Learner: A Neglected Species. 4th ed. Huston: Gulf Publishing
Company, 1990. Print.

O'Connor, Bridget. Bronner, Michael & Delaney, Chester. Training for Organisation:
Delmar/South-Western Thomson. 2002. Print.

Rogers, Alan. Teaching adults. Open University Press: Philadelphia, 2001. Print.

Scrivener, Jim. Learning Teaching: A Guidebook for English Language Teachers. 2nd ed.
Oxford: MacMillan, 2007. Print.

Sprenger, Marilee. Differentiation Through Learning Styles and Memory. Thousand Oaks,
C A : Corwin Press, 2003. Print.

Spolsky, Bernard. Conditions for Second Language Learning: Introduction to a General

Theory. 2nd imp. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989. Print.

Ur, Penny. A Course in Language Teaching: Practice and Theory. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1991. Print.

Wilberg, Peter. One to One: A Teacher's Handbook. Hove: Language Teaching Publications,
1987. Print.

71
Appendices

Appendix 1..

Appendix 2..
Appendix 1

Dotazník č.l - Zahájení dotazníkového šetření Student:

Zaškrtněte bod, se kterým nejvíce souhlasíte

1. Proč jste se začal/a učit anglicky?

Práce/ zábava/ cestování/jiné důvody (uveďte jaké)

2. Jak dlouho se učíte anglicky?

0 let/ do 1 roku/ 1-3 roky/ více než 3 roky

3. Odpovídá dle vás počet let studia vaší jazykové úrovni?

Ano/ spíše ano/ spíše ne/ určitě ne

4. Pokud ne - proč?
Nedostatek času / málo motivovaný/á / špatný kurz(učitel)

5. V čem spatřujete výhodu individuálního kurzu?

Rychlejší postup/ individuálnější přístup/ skupiny mi nevyhovují

5. Co od kurzu očekáváte?
Celkové zlepšení v AJ/ přípravu na zkoušku/ smysluplné naplnění volného času (je to
koníček)

6. Co cítíte jako největší problém při výuce?

Nevyvážená výuka (málo mluvení, čtení apod.)/ hodiny jsou nezábavné/ učitel mi nevyhovuje/
není problém

7. Z jakých učebních materiálů jste se doposavad učil/a?

Žádných/ česko-anglické učebnice/ anglicko-anglické učebnice

73
8. Byl/a jste s těmito materiály spokojen/á?
Ano/ ne (výhrady uveďte)

9. Jaká je dle vás role učitele ve vaší hodině?

Vede hodinu - důvěřuji mu a nezasahuji (rozumí tomu lépe)

Vede hodinu - spolupracuji s ním na formě hodin(y)

Zcela se přizpůsobí mým požadavkům - hodinu tvoří dle mého přání

10. Jaké jsou vaše návrhy na zkvalitnění vašeho kurzu?

Zvýšení podílu určitých aktivit (mluvení, čtení, psaní atp).

Zaměřit hodinu praktičtěji (aktuální témata každodenní angličtiny)

Více Business English

Nevím

11. V hodině mě baví:

Warm up activities (jako jsou hry)/ čtení/ poslech/ psaní/ conversations/ role plays

Jiné:

12. V hodině mě nebaví:

Warm up activities (jako jsou hry)/ čtení/ poslech/ psaní/ conversations/ role plays

Jiné:

13. Materiály, se kterými rád/a pracuji:

autentické (mapy, knížky, noviny atp)/ učebnice/ žádné - volná konverzace

14. Materiály, se kterými rád nepracuji:

učebnice/ autentické materiály/jiné:

15. cítím, že potřebuji zlepšit:

slovní zásobu/ čtení/ psaní/ poslech/ mluvení/ formální obchodní jazyk/jiné:

74
16. Domácí úkoly:
souhlasím/ nesouhlasím/ souhlasím, ale neslibuji

17. E-mailový kontakt mimo vyučovací dny:

ano/ ne

18. Témata, která mě zajímají (o kterých rád hovořím):

19. Témata, která mě nezajímají:

20. Testy v hodině:

ano/ne

21. Hodnocení v testech:

slovní / procenta/ známka (jsem zvyklý ze školy)

22. hodnocení jiné (čtení, psaní atp):

každou hodinu/ jednou za čas/ neformální - stačí oprava chyb a vysvětlení

23. nácvik zkoušky z A J v hodinách:

ano/ ne

75
Appendix 2

D o t a z n í k č.2 - U k o n č e n í d o t a z n í k o v é h o š e t ř e n í

Zaškrtněte bod, se kterým nejvíce souhlasíte

1. Zaznamenal/a jste nějakou změnu? A/ N

2. Vnímáte ji pozitivně? A/N

3. Negativně? A/N

4. Změnil se přístup učitele? A/ N

5. Byly pro vás hodiny přínosnější (tj. mám pocit, že jsem se naučil/a více?) A/N

6. Cítíte se více motivován/a k dalšímu studiu? A/ N

7. Byly pro vás hodiny praktičtější (získané poznatky více využijete ve svém životě/práci)?
A/N

8. Byly pro vás hodiny náročnější při vlastní výuce? A/ N

9. Byly pro vás hodiny náročnější při domácí přípravě? A/N

76
10. Chtěl/a byste tímto způsobem pokračovat i nadále? A/ N

11. Co považujete za nejlepší (nejefektivnější, nejzábavnější) část výuky:

77