English Is Easy And Fun!

I recently started teaching English to a young Korean girl who is currently spending a year in the UK. Her mother is a Visiting Professor at the local university and is keen for her daughter to make the most of her time here to develop her English language skills. She attends the local primary school and visits me three times a week for additional tutoring.

The Korean approach to learning is very different from the UK's. Since the beginning of its rapid economic growth, South Korea has invested heavily in the area of education, transforming the country from one of widespread illiteracy to an economic superpower in just two generations. However, there still seems to be a preoccupation with studying as opposed to actual learning. This is especially true of EFL teaching.

They rely on memorisation and repetition to learn grammar and vocabulary, and the only purpose of learning is to achieve excellent test results and the grades needed to get into a reputable university. Creativity is suppressed and communication skills are not regarded as a priority. As a consequence, many Koreans struggle to communicate effectively and fluently in English.

I have found my student to be enthusiastic and conscientious. She is comfortable practising grammar and learning new vocabulary, but my goal is to get her speaking English, rather than merely studying the language.

Initially, she brought along her English homework for us to tackle together at lessons. This consisted largely of lists of increasingly difficult and obscure words to learn for weekly spelling tests, as well as unimaginative grammar exercises. My approach, however, is to introduce fun to make my lessons enjoyable as well as informative. I want her to enjoy learning the language for its own sake, rather than simply a means of gaining university entrance.

I use flashcards to introduce new vocabulary, with a focus on learning words that are relevant in everyday life, and supplement these with fun worksheets, games and mime to practise new words and grammatical structures. She is beginning to speak freely and without embarrassment. We warm up with a conversation about what she has done at school that day, and follow that up with revision of our previous lesson, before moving on to new vocabulary and grammar. Finally, we often end up with a guided role play. She is less comfortable with this - especially when we ditch the scri pt, swap roles and attempt it on our own!

I generally give her some homework and find that crosswords and word searches go down particularly well. She normally scores a perfect ten!

I highly recommend http://www.mes-english.com/ as a useful resource for EFL materials including flashcards, worksheets and online learning tools.

To date, we have made excellent progress. We've developed a good relationship and I know my pupil looks forward to her lessons as much as I do. She is visibly gaining in confidence week to week, and I'm confident she will look back at her time in the UK as a rewarding, enriching and enjoyable experience.