Teaching, and long-term -or life- teaching English is as good a job as any other... and even better... like the author says... it's a job that gives you a well paid job abroad... and there's always work... even if you don't speak the language to begin with -although I believe once there you should learn it... learning the language is respect for the local and the best way to understand them and the challenges they're facing learning English-...
We all, at one time or another, go through a mid-life crisis... and there's nothing wrong with changing jobs or life altogether... so long as it is a MATURED and CHOSEN decision... not a choice you make out of no choice... a desperate escape... and, with teaching English, you can always chose to go and teach somewhere else...
I made a different choice... a choice based on a philosophy I call the Snail Syndrome... leave everything behind while take everything along... I decided to top my teaching...
All my life I have been a compulsive learner and I like to tell my students and whoever wants to hear it that I loved school so much that I did everything to stay there... and so became a teacher... and so I learnt all my life with a view to furthering and bettering my teaching... I became another English teacher... I learnt other complementary skills to supplement my teaching... and renewed my teaching every time... and enjoyed teaching with a new approach... I learnt communication, Communication, NLP, Personal Branding, how the brain works and how we memorise, other languages, music therapy, sophrology and hypnotism, and became a coach in languages and communication... enjoying myself all the while...
Lately, and also because of major health problems, I had to take another turn... another direction, another road... and developed my writing and started writing for English teachers and English students while producing audiobooks... and when I look back I realise I owe it all to teaching English... and the funny thing is I never wanted to be a teacher to begin with... can you believe that ?
There's not only room at the top with Teaching English... there's also room for maneuver... disillusioned me ? Never !
Daft Punk (Beg – PI) – Around The World One More Time
First given the brush off by a British journalist –who did not know he was to give them their new name- the French post-funk duo has become famous for their disco beat songs centered around the techno world…
Daft Punk were selected to write the musical score of the sequel to the legendary Disney blockbuster TRON and their song Thechnologic is the music to the Birtish Tech Show programme.
Their songs are based on a basic beat and vocabulary ideal from the beginner up.
They sing in a clear articulate fashion easy to understand and follow.
My track selection includes
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On / Off from Human After All
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WDPK 83. 7 FM from Homework
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The Brainwasher from Human After All
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Make Love from Human After All
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Around the World from Discovery
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Ten A Penny is a collection of some of my shortest and dearest terms of endearment… as well as a collection of my shortest stories… to sample my writing or slip into a bag for short trips and commuting…
Excerpts from stories and poems to set the tone of my works and likes…
Ten A Penny is an introduction to my other books… at a very low introductory price...
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English is a language to be reckoned with in today’s -and tomorrow’s- business world.
English is THE language of international communication.
Whether for business or pleasure you’ll need English one day and sooner than later…
The market of English is beyond a writer’s wildest dreams !
English teaching material and course books come by the score and yet are just missing that point that teaching material cannot reach…
Something had to be done about it and here is a successful way to take the pain out of the gain.
Millions of people all over the world learn English every year.
Books and teaching material abound and most of them are good too yet they miss the element of pleasure essential to any learning… Every week I meet people who arrive beaten and leave with a smile on their face… There is a capital niche that no one has ever tackled seriously !
English is the key to a better job… a better salary… a better life !
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Comparatives - Does George CLOONEY speak English ?
In his latest Nespresso ad
where he and a lady mistake their suitcases at the airport
and then meet to exchange them...
And that's when she realises he's not the man she expected him to be...
'I always expected you to be more...
-taller ?' answers George... and he stands corrected.
Wrong answer George !
One syllable adjectives do not use MORE in the comparative forms...
Investing in English...
Having taught English and coached in English for over 35 years I still fail to understand how so many teachers get through their teaching career with one or two books... or even none at all...
I have always said and practiced that a good teacher should be a good learner and ring the changes... and what about those people ?
I have invested and collected hundred of books as teaching material and more collateral material and written more than 15 myself... I have spent thousands of hours listening to podcasts while commuting... and collecting and saving them so as to include them in my lessons...
I have furthered my teaching with a number of training courses... all of this amounts to a library that overloads one of the rooms at home from floor to ceiling... and I am the only one I know in thousands of teachers who goes round towing a case with computer and books... so as to have a maximum options and audio and visual support in my classes...
I can put anything out of my stock at any time... at the drop of a hat... on any subject ranging from medical to architectural and engineering or even cooking and art...
I have never seen a hundredth of what I have at home even in the bigger and best equipped language schools... that says a lot for their teaching...
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Singin' To English
ABBA (Elem – PI) – Thank You For The Music !
ABBA’s success makes all comments both irrelevant and redundant…
The foursome not only topped the charts of the world (and still somehow!) and were covered, adapted and sampled by dozen of acts who again in turn topped –and top still- the charts and show sales all over the world in various languages !
After a small success with the first musical Chess ABBA produced a second musical that was to take the world by storm : Mamma Mia.
Beat that for commanding respect if you can !
Their songs are mostly romantic and some are stories in their own right… ABBA’s lyrics are interesting in that they are not written in a typical pop style. They can even be more ‘intellectual’ at times… which is another reason why they make excellent study material.
ABBA sing in a very articulate fashion and although Swedish were long thought to be Brits by the Brits…
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They are in there, often unnoticed. Words that have become part of everyday English. Loot, nirvana, pyjamas, shampoo and shawl, bungalow, jungle, pundit and thug.
What are the roots, and routes, of these Indian words? How and when did they travel and what do their journeys into British vernacular – and then the Oxford English Dictionary – tell us about the relationship between Britain and India?
Long before the British Raj – before the East India Company acquired its first territory in the Indian subcontinent in 1615 – South Asian words from languages such as Hindi, Urdu, Malayalam and Tamil had crept onto foreign tongues.
http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20150619-how-india-changed-english?ocid=ww.social.link.facebook
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How to choose your Business English Teacher in 5 easy steps
Step #1. Choose the best teacher, not the best company. Many business professionals and businesses hire a Language School or company without even asking about the teachers or their qualifications. This is a big mistake. The teacher should be purposefully matched to the student(s). Meet the teacher before you say "Yes".
Step #2. Choose a teacher who pushes you to become an Independent Learner and will throw away the textbook when needed. A good teacher will not rely on a textbook to guide your learning. They should allow you to direct your own learning based on your needs. A good teacher will create a syllabus designed specifically for your needs to help you achieve your goals. They will not follow a cookie cutter method that does not interest you. What method does your teacher use?
Step #3. Choose a Teacher with a solid BUSINESS background. Example - If you are a business professional, and you need help with your conversation skills, conference calls, your phone etiquette, your business writing, and giving presentations. It would be a good idea to choose a teacher who has experience teaching in these areas.
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EFL Magazine the place to go if you’re an English Language teacher. We plan to get the best information to you in the form of articles, audio and video. We aim to make your life better as a teacher and we want you to access the best people possible from the field of language learning.
We recognise that you are a native English teacher, a non-native teacher, a director of studies, a publishing professional, a recruiter,a university lecturer, a small/large business owner, a student, a traveller to name but a few. Our aim is to address you, your problems,frustrations and hopes.
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