A reflection on how the ALTTO community inspired More Than an Assistant—a book about ALTs, inclusion, and the evolving story of English education in Japan.
I was positively giddy on the first day of my TESOL certificate's Teaching English Grammar class. Although we were all there to learn how to be good language teachers, I was probably the only one who was that thrilled to get into the nitty gritty of English grammar. Most people probably…
One of the most rewarding parts of being an ALT is being able to build relationships with your students. But more than that, developing relationships with your students can lead to better classroom performance and greater motivation for them. Here are a few tips I have picked up over the years.…
I used to hate planning lessons. It was my least favorite part of my TESL certification program. My instructors wanted so much detail. Every single moment of the lesson had to be accounted for and justified. Why are you doing this? Why at this point in the lesson? What is this…
You may not have a lot of control over the physical structures in your classroom - the desks, the whiteboard, the tech (or lack thereof!). You may not be able to have your students sit in groups and do group projects due to Covid-19 precautions. You may not be able to…
I remember getting the impression that one of my elementary school teachers hated children. I think I was about 11 or 12 years old when it happened. I was paired with a younger student for a reading buddy program, and I saw the difference in how this teacher treated their own…
This week we are going to take a look at a very interesting paper written by Zoltán Dörnyei and Kata Csizér. It’s called “Ten Commandments for motivating Language Learners” and while we will be focusing on the contents published on page 215, do take a look at the abstract: The question…
School-based Teacher Education Model in Professional Graduate School For the past 13 years, the M.Ed program at the Graduate School of Professional Development of Teachers at the University of Fukui has been working on cultivating an organizational learning community of teachers. Our aims are clear: to enhance the professional development of…
by Mikayla GovernBio: Mikayla Govern is from Midwest America. She completed her bachelor's degree in International Studies and has been working in the international sector ever since. She worked at one of the largest banking corporations in the world before finding her passion for teaching. Now, she works in the Saitama and Tokyo area…
by Lina GordyshevskayaBio: Lina Gordyshevskaya graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 2015 earning an MA with honors in Scandinavian Studies. She obtained a TEFL certificate in 2015 and a CELTA in 2016. Throughout her career, she has taught YL (young learners), teenagers, and adults of various levels in different contexts. Currently,…