[mesmark]

In Japan, it's common place for Native English speakers to come and teach together with the Japanese English teacher. This happens at junior high school and high school. It's not until college that students might take a course with only a Native speaker as their teacher.

In this situation, the NS is an assistant teacher and travels from class to class, 'assisting' the Japanese teacher. Kind of like a special appearance by the NS teacher.

I'm just wondering if this is common practice in other countries. Do you have team teaching classes where you are?

[FionaVB]

The language school in Viet Nam where I am employed has a VNese national English teacher in every class up to high school level, and both a NS and the VNese teacher in half of those classes. (Each class has two sessions a week.) At high school level, the NS teachers are on their own for their class. In a co-teaching situation, the VNese co-teacher usually sits down the back and only says anything if called upon, for example if the meaning of a word is just not getting through with mime or examples, or if an activity needs a complicated explanation, or if two people are needed to model something. The co-teacher only gets paid half their normal rate for these classes, so I'm quite happy for them just to sit and do their marking or whatever. They do often like to get a copy of any crossword or wordsearch that I make for the class! I like this system very much, as you have a fallback if you're completely stumped.

[emile]

I don't think the exact system is common in other countries, but I do enjoy taking a group together with another trainer. There are definitely some advantages to this approach.

[clivehawkins]

I've just started a training course to do just that. I'll have to teach other subjects, such as maths, physical education etc, but in English. This will be done alongside the kids' usual teacher. Thankfully this means we do actually work together with equal responsibility rather than what normally happens, ie the English teacher comes and the regular teacher goes shopping / to the post office / prepares other lessons.
The methodology is called CLIL. (Content and Language Integrated Learning) I'll let you know how it goes. We've only done one lesson so far but it seems pretty interesting. Anyone out there familiar with it?

[EngliPatrick]

I've never heard of the language teacher teaching other subjects but sounds pretty cool!

[emile]

The methodology is called CLIL. (Content and Language Integrated Learning)

Anyone out there familiar with it?

Hi, I'm familiar with CLIL. Just to avoid confusion, CLIL isn't linked to team teaching in particular, but it means teaching a subject such as Science or Maths in English in order to kill two birds with one stone. I've been working on elearning materials to improve proficiency of English in Maths and Science teachers - here in Malaysia Maths and Science are now taught in English, but the teachers have a huge problem speaking it correctly.

Also, I know that Cambridge ESOL are busy developing exams and materials for the CLIL market; I did a trial test of their CLIL paper. Pleased to say that I passed with flying colours!

If anyone wants a look at English modules for Science teachers, by the way, PM me and I'll direct you to an online demo.

[HUE]

I used to team teach. When you have a partner in the classroom who takes equal responsibility for the lesson, the system works very well. It takes some time to reach that stage, though, particularly because respect and rapport must be developed. Both teachers must feel comfortable with one another to make mistakes and offer suggestions.

Here's an interesting article on team teaching that takes the discussion in a different direction. But the tips are applicable to all situations nonetheless.

English Teaching Forum Online – Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs

Good luck in the classroom!

[FionaVB]

I'm the one who wrote earlier about my classes in Viet Nam, and liking the system. Having just read the article Chris Cotter has linked in, the system in my school can hardly be called team teaching, but since writing earlier, I've had an experience I'd like to add. I've just had my second class with a co-teacher who is more of a distraction than a help. During my first lesson, I hung the poster supplied for the unit we were working on, and asked the students as a start-off, "What can you see?" Before anyone could answer the other teacher jumped up and started pointing and saying, "What's this?" She covered half the poster like this (before handing over for me to finish the other side) and explained to me that this would give them controlled vocab practice. Well, yes, but maybe I was going to give them free practice. Tonight she was wandering around the class, getting into discussions with the kids - presumably to do with the lesson; I don't know, it was all in Vietnamese, but then she would come and write an English word or phrase on the board - and I had to keep waiting for her conversations to die down a bit before calling for quiet to go onto the next thing. I have only been teaching 6 months, and I am not a trained teacher, having only studied a 150 hour TEFL course, so I know I'm inexperienced, but I don't think I've been doing too badly. As a young local, she may well be an educational studies student or graduate, so I feel confused as well as frustrated. Even if the way she's co-teaching is wrong (I'm sure it is), does she have a point? Am I teaching wrongly myself? (I went back and looked again at the teacher's book for the poster, and it definitely says, as the first poster activity: "Invite students to name all the ... words they can.")
Sorry, this may sound like a Dear Abby letter, but it feels good to write it down! I just wanted a bit of a moan, I guess.

[the Obscure]

I team teach in Japan, too. Luckily, all of my teachers are really cool and don't just use me as a tape recorder. The system has its pros and cons, but I've definitely learned a lot about teaching from my JTEs. I think I just got lucky though. Some of the people I know have pretty horrible situations.

A few years before I came to Japan, I taught for a year at a French high school. It was through a French program that is sort of similar to Japan's JET program in terms of contracts and stuff. I had just finished college, and hadn't taken a TOESL course yet, and I had no idea what I was doing. I taught the class completely alone and had nothing to guide me. I had to make my own lessons and deal with discipline issues. I couldn't test the kids though, and my class had no impact on their grades. It was pretty tough being thrown into class with no idea of what I was supposed to do or how I was supposed to do it. I made a lot of mistakes, and learned from them, but I think it would have been a better experience for all involved if I had either had some kind of ESL training, or at least had a teacher helping me out and giving me tips. Now that I have a TOESL certificate and some experience team teaching in Japan, I would kill to have that job in France. I wouldn't have to use a text book and I could teach whatever I wanted to.
The thing I dislike the most about team teaching is that I never have an opportunity to actually teach new material. The classes that I team teach in are usually (forced) elective English classes, so the grammar point has already been taught during their regular English class. I basically just come up with activities the practice the grammar and the vocab that they've already learned. It would be nice to have a chance to teach something from scratch.

[raft9]

I hate team teaching because it usually means the korean teacher sits and does nothing while I do all the work.

[emile]

Even if the way she's co-teaching is wrong (I'm sure it is), does she have a point? Am I teaching wrongly myself? (I went back and looked again at the teacher's book for the poster, and it definitely says, as the first poster activity: "Invite students to name all the ... words they can.")
Sorry, this may sound like a Dear Abby letter, but it feels good to write it down! I just wanted a bit of a moan, I guess.

If she's young, she's probably just overenthusiastic and she probably doesn't realise that you feel put out. Why don't you take her for a coffee (I luv Vietnamese coffee, by the way) and sit down and talk it over with her?

Abby

[rose_coloured]

The system for teaching Enlish in France is like that. In the french junior and senior high schools the native speakers are assistants who take conversation classes and do some culture stuff but they are working with a French English teacher. The funny thing is that I am teaching in primary schools and we are much more the sole teacher even though we are called assistants than the native speakers working with older students are.