3 Steps to Improve your Confidence in Teaching English

“Am I good enough to be a teacher?” This is probably one of the most common questions new and inexperienced English teachers come across. 

Imagine this. You have just started teaching English as a second or foreign language. You’ve spent countless hours at home planning your lesson. You have detailed every possible scenario and ways to deal with each situation should it arise in class. You have written down exactly what you are going to say in class. After reviewing, practicing, and consulting your close friends and other colleagues, you finally feel confident. You are like yes, I got this, I will have a good class. However, once you step foot in the class, your students all stare at you. You begin teaching, but you notice that your students prefer their phones and are extremely disinterested in what you have to say. They are falling asleep in class. You suddenly forget everything you have prepared because nothing seems to be working. Your students don’t understand your activity, or they just simply don’t feel like participating. On top of that, a student asked you a question in class that you did not know the answer to, so you freeze. 

Does this seem like a situation that has happened to you before? Do you feel discouraged? Are you afraid your students will never listen to you or respect you? 

If so, do not worry. One big reminder: We are all human. Nobody is perfect, even the most experienced teachers face on-going challenges in the classroom. There could be so many reasons why your lessons or activities aren’t working. Remember, it is not always you, but it could just be your approach or your students. 

So, you might ask, what can I do to overcome this fear of making mistakes and not engaging students in the class? Based on my experience, the first and foremost important thing is to not fret about things not working out.  Your main goal is to communicate to your students and find ways to adapt. Make sure they are aware that you are also learning because everyone has different learning styles and needs! It could also be a difference of culture, so just keep trying. 

Here are 3 pieces of advice for you: 

1. Prepare some backup activities in case your lesson does not work out. 
2. Ask for feedback at the end of the class. 
3. Things don’t always go as planned, and you shouldn’t beat yourself up for the lesson to go ‘perfectly’. 

Now over to you, what do you do to improve your confidence in teaching? Please write in the comments section below.