ALTE is the Association of Language Testers in Europe. It has developed a set of descriptors for language exams which say what a language learner at a particular level is able to achieve (i.e. understand or produce, etc). ALTE was founded by the Universities of Cambridge and Salamanca for the […]
Continue ReadingCambridge Young Learners English Tests
Cambridge Young Learners English Tests is touted as a series of fun, motivating English language tests, aimed at children in primary and lower-secondary education (age 7 – 12). They are run by UCLES. The examination has three different levels: Starters Exam (typically for age 7, or Year 1 to 2 […]
Continue ReadingWriting in TEFL
Writing is often the last of the four major language skills to be learned after listening, speaking and reading. Subject Matter The first question to ask is what kind of writing will your students be doing? Like all language learning, practice needs to be relevant to the students. This means […]
Continue ReadingTongue Twisters in English
Tongue Twisters are useful ways to practice pronunciation with your class, especially if the sound you are practicing does not exist in the students’ mother tongue. For example, the /ʃ/ sound does not exist in Greek and is often pronounced /s/ by Greek students. This means students there will often […]
Continue ReadingTeaching the /r/ and /l/ Sounds
Quite a number of Asian students have problems distinguishing between the /r/ sound and the /l/ sound. Essentially this is because the difference in these sounds does not exist in their mother tongues and so they are unable to “hear” the difference. Thus some students will say led – /led/ […]
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