ESOL Queen

My Journey of Teaching Illiterate and Low Literacy Adult ESOL Pre-Entry Learners: I have been teaching Pre-Entry (Absolute Beginner) adult learners for the last 3 years and have to say it is one of my favourite ESOL levels  [1] . This is because you see students make an incredible amount of progress in a short time, and because you are helping students to make their first steps in understanding English. This year, in my low Pre-Entry class I was presented with a new challenge of teaching students with zero or very low literacy in their first languages as well as in English. These students had never been to school before or had little or no access to education in their home countries. Some of them could read a little Arabic or Farsi, but really struggled understanding the English alphabet, as it is in a completely different script. I also taught a student from Guinea whose first language had no written form and was only spoken. This wasn't on my Cert-TESOL course...

  TEFL vs ESOL Teaching: I’m often asked what are the main differences between teaching TEFL and ESOL in the UK? After all teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) sounds pretty similar to teaching English as a second language (ESOL), doesn’t it? I’ve spent several years working for both the TEFL and ESOL sectors in Plymouth, UK. I’ve taught in two private TEFL language schools and also at an ESOL school. Nowadays, I tend to teach ESOL students from September to June and then in private TEFL school in July and August  [1] .   Generally, I would describe the main difference between TEFL and ESOL in the UK, is that students in private TEFL language schools come to learn English for a short period of time (either for a holiday or course) with the intention of returning to their home country afterwards or going on to study at a university in the UK. The ESOL sector, on the other hand is for students who have moved to the UK permanently. This could be because they...

Check out my new Entry 1 Grammar worksheets: Be with I and You in + - and ? https://drive.google.com/file/d/15KuOryO4Hud5XzON25exm5Sfk3-pVKpQ/view?usp=sharing Be with He, She and It in + - and ? https://drive.google.com/file/d/1clFwyph3GgdHxavi53n1jhfh2DZQyHiC/view?usp=sharing Be with We and They in + - and ? https://drive.google.com/file/d/1n6-xfCa3B7gzIyfXW7CXj7iDsMhZI5JV/view?usp=sharing Wh- Questions: https://drive.google.com/file/d/11c8o8jvF4xcLGmyfNTNwNZw3vAo6Fwm5/view?usp=sharing Wh- Questions and answers using be : https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CWNOpGW35nNI021_i6lVUO3YDH8DdTlI/view?usp=sharing Present Simple Verb Examples and Activities: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jOMMbGew0iMmnXdESquw1JJdefq6w_PM/view?usp=sharing Be and Present Simple Word Order: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PSN0qkocrsMPULq63V4MY5-plk2Kf08K/view?usp=sharing

I'm often asked how ESOL class levels compare to general teaching levels in TEFL. This is a very "rough" guide based on the classes I teach and my experience of teaching ESOL learners... Please note that other language schools and organisations may use slightly different terms and their interpretation of levels may vary. [1] [2] A student’s level ESOL Level CEFR Level What this means: (in an ESOL context). Pre-beginner/ Zero beginner       Pre-Entry A1 (very low) These students are absolute beginners.  They may be completely illiterate in their L1 or use a language with a different alphabet like Arabic or Farsi. Equally, they may have some literacy, but do not know a lot of vocabulary or be able to communicate in English.   Beginner Entry 1 A1 These students have some basic understanding/ experience of Englis...