Life after the CELTA - 5 things I learned in my first year of teaching

January 2015 marks my first anniversary of teaching English in Cambodia, and I've learned a few things along the way. There have been moments of confusion, seas of blank faces, tedium and repetition, as well as (fortunately) nice surprises, unexpected insights into local life, and the satisfaction of developing a rapport with my students and getting better at my job (maybe). Looking back, here are a few things I've learned in the first year (as much for my own self-indulgence as anyone else's benefit).

1. You can't elicit what they don't know.
Sounds obvious now, but the focus during the CELTA was so much on eliciting that at first I stumbled when the students didn't know something that I was trying to elicit. I had put more effort into planning how to elicit something, than planning how to teach it. Lesson learned: your job is teacher, not eliciter!

2. You don't need to plan to the minute.
Start and finish at the right time, yes. Plan to spend 2 minutes explaining a task, allow 8 minutes for the students to complete the task, predict 5 minutes for answer-checking and feedback... no. In practice, you quickly learn that lessons don't work like that, in the same way that life doesn't work like that. An activity might take more or less time than you thought, depending on a multitude of factors: the mood of the students, the ability of the class, unexpected vocabulary questions, and so on. Students might not have a lot to say about the discussion questions you planned, or on the other hand they might take a topic and run with it. If an activity is taking longer than planned and the students are enjoying it and being productive, you can always cut something else and give it for homework or save it for the next lesson. But if the lesson is running too fast, then...

3. Always have something extra up your sleeve.

Or somewhere. Hee hee.

Maybe the students whip through an activity much more quickly than you thought. Maybe you planned 10 minutes of discussion, but they've finished after 5 and have nothing else to say. Maybe the unthinkable happens, technology fails or an activity falls flat and has to be abandoned. Always have an optional extra activity on standby. It could be extra exercises on a grammar point, extra discussion questions, a spelling race or vocabulary game, a mini quiz, or revision of something from a previous lesson. As you get more experienced, you build a bank of go-to fillers that can be adapted for any situation. It's better to have an extra activity and not use it, than run out of activities early. What you don't want is that awkward moment where you have 20 minutes left of the lesson, you've got no more material, and all you can think of on the spot is a Hangman tournament. Uh-oh.

4. Don't panic if it doesn't go right first time.
As a new teacher, it's easy to get distraught if an activity flops or if a student asks a question you just can't answer off the bat. But then you realise that it's not the end of the world. You can work out what went wrong, or check that weird grammar point so that you know it better for next time. You never know exactly how something's going to work until you try it, so don't be discouraged from trying new things. Over time you can refine techniques and tweak lesson plans so that activities run properly and you are prepared for the 'usual questions'.

"Teacher, have you got Facebook?"

5. Don't rush feedback sessions.
You've planned a fun and quick answer checking session and plan to whip through it in five minutes so that you can get on with the next activity. But then a student asks but why is that the answer? and it's a little bit tempting to answer because it just is, OK? However these are valuable opportunities for you to clarify a grammar point or explain an exception to a rule; and if one student asked the question, it means that several of them were probably wondering the same thing. If they don't understand the reasoning behind the answer, they risk making the same mistakes over and over again. Don't forget that feedback sessions are a great time to clear up confusion, and not just a hoop to jump through.