Children learn to speak in the playground, not the classroom

I have been teaching English for 7 years now. I came to the profession purely by accident at the age of 55. I studied in Ho Chi Minh City for a TEFL certificate and learned many things that I've not needed since. Until now. The course instructed us on how to craft lessons from scratch with nothing more than pen, paper and good intentions. I remain a fan of this minimalist approach, although most of the schools where I've taught have had audio/visual gear and internet access. Irrespective, course material is just something to talk about. The trick, of course, is getting students to talk at all.

Most students already know English. The have a large vocabulary and their knowledge of grammar far exceeds most native English speakers. If you were to ask any of them though, they would say that they can't speak English. The problem is lack of opportunity. Most Vietnamese kids just never get to talk with a native English speaker. That goes for their teachers as well. A recent survey found that 97% of Vietnamese English teachers couldn't pass a basic speaking test. Given this difficulty, they do an incredible job.

So, how do you get students speaking? Speaking is something you do. It's an active skill that you perform in the immediacy of the present moment. Like swimming. To learn to swim you go to a swimming pool. To learn to speak you go to the playground. Children learn to speak in the playground, not the classroom. My rooms are playgrounds, but I am also very strict, like a swimming coach who doesn't want to see his students drown. "Playground" is a metaphor for a space where talking naturally happens. I will expand on this in future posts, but for now let it suffice to say that a classroom is not a space where talking naturally happens. The rows of desks mean that most students are talking to their classmates backs, and even the front row have to turn in their seats to communicate. This is why I have launched the appeal through Givealittle for a dedicated English language Center.