The Art of Effective English Teaching

Key words:Managing skills, language teachers, professional development, teacher education ABSTRACT Effective teaching can be defined in many ways including teacher behavior (warmth, civility, and clarity), teacher knowledge (of subject matter, of students), teacher's belief and so forth. Here we define effective teaching as the skills, strategies, and techniques language teachers should know and use to be highly effective. As noted this is but one way to define effectiveness. In order to plan for the professional development of English language teachers, we need to have a comprehensive understanding of what strategies and techniques language teachers should know and use. What essential skills, knowledge, values, attitudes and goals do language teachers need, and how can these be acquired? This paper seeks to explore these questions by discussing five core dimensions of strategies and techniques for language teachers. These are: managing skills, creative rapport and influential behaviors, organizing the classroom, making learning happen, and professionalism. Each construct will be explained; its contribution to effective teaching illustrated, and some potential implications discussed for the development of English language teachers, teacher education programs as well as suggestion for continued professional development for teachers related to teaching. It is hoped that language teachers and teacher educators will be able to adapt the ideas presented in this paper to enhance their teaching performance