โผ ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ข! ๐ ๐ฌ ๐๐๐๐ฆ๐ฆ ๐๐๐ฆ ๐ง๐จ๐ฅ๐ก๐๐ ๐๐ก๐ง๐ข ๐ ๐ข๐ก๐ ๐ ๐๐ก ๐ฆ๐๐ข๐ช!
๐ค Have you ever felt like your students donโt focus on the lessons as much as you expected? If the answer is yes, then this post is for you.
๐ฅฒ Your lesson plan is organized logically and the lesson should go off without a hitch, yet sometimes, students donโt respond to you as much as you want them to, and the whole class remains quiet most of the time. This could be daunting for teachers, and it goes against the goal of making students produce English as they donโt have the chance to practice.
โ What could have gone wrong?
โญ The problem is, you may be taking up most of the talking, your instructions are not clear enough due to complex wordings and a lack of demonstration. Letโs take a look at how we can solve these troublesome problems via these photos.
LESS IS MORE
In classrooms, Teacher Talking Time (TTT) is inversely proportional to Student Talking Time (STT), meaning that the more the teachers talk, the less likely the students raise their voices. Since the goal of English teaching is to make students produce the language, overusing TTT can place students into the respondent role and limit their English output. If you feel like your classes are being quieter than you expect and students do not have many chances to speak English, try asking yourself if you are taking the dominant proportion of speaking in classes and make some adjustments. Here are a few strategies you can make use of to minimize TTT:
๐ ๐๐น๐ถ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐๐: Instead of providing detailed explanations such as grammar rules, let your students look at the examples and discover the rules by themselves.
๐ ๐๐๐ธ ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ณ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐๐น๐: A simple question such as โDo you like going to the amusement park?โ sometimes can only get you a yes/no answer. Try asking open-ended questions like โWhat do you like about going to the amusement park?โ, this should keep your students engaged and allow them to answer in multiple ways based on their experience.
SIMPLIFY CLASSROOM LANGUAGE
Simplifying complicated words can help improve classroom efficiency by lowering the level of distraction among students. The attention spans of children are much shorter than those of adults, thatโs why they can easily lose focus and interest during classes once the teachersโ deliveries get too lengthy. In order to keep studentsโ minds on track, make your explanations and instructions simple using clear and minimal language. These tips may help you:
๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ธ ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ด๐๐ต๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ผ ๐๐บ๐ฎ๐น๐น ๐ฏ๐ถ๐๐: Pausing between segments of a sentence and removing any unnecessary details can help students have enough room to digest what you are saying. Using simple sentences is also an appropriate approach if you want your students to easily understand you.
๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ป ๐ถ๐บ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐: When giving instructions, put stress on words that you want students to focus on and understand. This can help them identify important information in your speech and fix their attention.
ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS
Visualization is key when organizing classroom activities. Demonstrating what students need to do using actions instead of spoken or written instructions proves to be much more effective. Seeing teachers demo the activities can help students reduce the time it takes to grasp whatโs about to occur as they donโt have to transfer words into actions inside their heads. Here are some example steps for a speaking activity:
๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐ผ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ so students can look at them and practice.
๐ ๐๐๐ธ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฐ๐ผ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐ ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐พ๐๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ to see if the students understand what to do.
๐ ๐ ๐ผ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐น ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ถ๐๐ถ๐๐ until itโs clear.
๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ฎ ๐๐ถ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ and let the students do the activity.
๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ด๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ณ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ฏ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ธ so students know where they can improve.
With nearly 30 years of experience in English education in Vietnam, VUS has grown its network to 73 campuses and more than 2,700 qualified teaching staff nationwide.
VUS is proud to be recognized with two awards at the Vietnam Technology Excellence Awards 2025, honored as an Inspirational Brand at APEA for two consecutive years, and acknowledged through various national and international awards.
When joining VUS, teachers and teaching assistants enjoy a wide range of practical benefits that support long-term growth and commitment:
- Stable income: Steady and fair rewards for your efforts, allowing you to focus on teaching and growth.
- Ongoing professional training: Structured onboarding with entrance workshops and continuous support via sharing sessions and the Training Hub, led by Teaching Quality Managers holding masterโs or doctoral degrees and extensive teaching experience.
- Modern, international-standard facilities: Diverse teaching tools, updated materials, and well equipped classrooms for a professional working environment.
- Engaging internal events: Activities that create opportunities to relax, connect with colleagues, and recharge your energy.
- Supportive colleagues: Work with a team that is always ready to share, support, and grow together.
- Clear career advancement: A transparent career path with many opportunities to challenge yourself and grow into higher roles.
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VUS offers a professional workplace where you can strengthen your skills, grow your career, and inspire young learners across Vietnam:
– Expatriate Teachers: Experience teaching in Vietnam with international standards, integration support, and career development opportunities.
– Vietnamese Teachers: Continuously sharpen your expertise while helping students reach out to the world.
– Teaching Assistants: The first step to explore the teaching profession and gain valuable real-life classroom experience.
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Start your teaching journey with VUS today!
