‘Articles’ Archives
Teaching as a couple
Many schools prefer to hire teaching couples as they are seen as more stable, notes Sharon Couzens de Hinojosa in her latest monthly column. Sharon discusses here the advantages of trying to apply early on in the recruiting season, when more jobs are open... Towards the end of the recruiting season, there are less jobs available and less [...]
Teaching with kids in tow
There are lots of advantages of bringing your family with you to teach abroad, notes Sharon Couzens de Hinojosa in her latest monthly column. Sharon discusses here the advantages; your children will learn the language, culture and customs and broaden their perspectives. However, there are practical matters to take into consideration before [...]
Using connections to get a great job
In her second monthly column, Sharon Couzens de Hinojosa discusses the advantages of having strong connections when looking for teaching work. If you look through job boards, you probably won't fine the creme de la creme jobs. But they're out there. Everyone knows that the top notch cushy jobs aren’t advertised in the newspaper, but how can [...]
The Use of Audio Aids in the EFL Class at the Tertiary Level: a Plus or a Minus?
Introduction It is sometimes time-consuming and/or exhausting to make second/foreign language materials (either newly constructed or adapted) suitable and acceptable to the learner because he/she may feel uninterested in and even disappointed with them as he/she finds them unfamiliar, difficult, problematic, mechanical, unattractive and so [...]
Dealing with culture shock
In her first monthly column, Sharon Couzens de Hinojosa discusses an often overlooked aspect of living and teaching abroad. Culture Shock can be difficult to deal with, it can affect you at work and in your daily life. The best thing to do is to be aware of culture shock and how to deal with it. Try reading up on culture shock before leaving [...]
A Quantitative Study of the Interaction between the Learning Situation and the Proficiency of EFL Learners in their Productive Skills
An article by Dr. M. Maniruzzaman. Introduction The learning situation or the classroom essentially plays a momentous role in the learning of the foreign language since the learner has no access to the target language beyond the classroom door (Brown 2001). That is, it is the classroom where the foreign language (FL) learner receives the [...]
Avoidance Behaviour in EFL Learning: a Study of Undergraduates
Dr. M. Maniruzzaman looks into the fascinating concept of avoidance behaviour: Introduction When speaking or writing an L2, the learner is often found to try to avoid using difficult words or structures, and use some simpler words or structures instead. This phenomenon in L2 learning/acquisition is termed ‘avoidance behaviour’ first [...]
Developing flexible reading skills in the intermediate ESOL student
Sharon Turner discusses how to develop flexible reading skills in the intermediate ESOL student: Introduction ESOL students live in an environment where they are surrounded by the written word. They encounter it immediately at the home office and in their daily lives. However, for these learners, flexibility in reading is a skill that many [...]
