NAME : Gweon Eunjeong(MEI)

Classroom Management-English only policy

Classroom management covers all environment of class, such as seating and grouping, timing, monitoring, motivation, rules and authority. A common and important rule is an English only policy. So, almost all English institutes have this policy. Why is an English only policy so important?

It is to make an English environment. If someone learn any kind of language, the best way is to stay in that environment. If someone want to learn English, the best way is be in America or Australia where the mother tongue is English. Therefore, many learners go abroad to learn an other country’s language.

Why do students enroll in English institutes? Obviously they want to speak or write English well. Yes! That is their goal! But many students have not gotten used to speaking English. It is a problem. So, how can we manage this problem?

First, as a teacher, I have to know what the goal is for students to learn English, for teacher to help he/she learning English. So teacher have to explain why “English only” policy is important at the first class.

Through speaking only English, students will get used to English. At the very first time student feel somewhat shy or fear. But speaking English help to remove that kind of feeling to give them chances to practice.

“Speaking” can be one way of learning. If I want to say what I think, I have to know some words and structure of sentence. So, students study more.

Self-correcting function of language. When we speak, our brain tries to make a accurate sentence. So, when we say a weird sentence, we can notice something is strange. Therefore, we can correct that sentence by ourselves or through classmates or teachers.

Second, I think giving a reward can be a good way to implement and enforce the strict “English only” policy. Rewards can be divided two ways. One thing is positive reward. If a student only speaks English in class, at the last class or every week, we can give some presents which students need or good stuffs to learn English. The other thing is negative reward. But I do not recommend this. If student have to do something it must be student’s work. So all students have to do the same thing.

As a teacher, making a good atmosphere is a really important thing. In “English only” policy, students can feel uncomfortable, but “English only” policy is truly important when they learn English. So, Let students know and understanding why “English only” policy is so important and lead them using English.