Common Challenges in Teaching English Subject

During the early days of education, most often than not teachers find it challenging to teach English subject to students. The perception of English as a boring subject often comes from students who find it challenging or tedious, especially if they feel disconnected from the material.

If the curriculum focuses heavily on grammar rules or classic literature without engaging discussions, students might lose interest. Repetitive memorization of the rules in grammar might take away students interest especially if it’s not engaging. Making it enjoyable such as thru games or using technology in the presentation can make it more interactive. Classic literature is another lesson that students find it boring to study about. Connecting the classics to the context of modern literature or stories and deriving their similarities or differences can close the gap of classical and present day stories.

When students don’t see the connection between what they’re learning and their lives or interests, they can feel disengaged. Lack of relevance of the topics that have been discussed in the day to day lives of the students can let the students feel disconnected. Making examples or generating ideas that students can relate from will incite students belongingness and help them reconnect to the lesson. Their motivation to learn and their participation in the discussion will also be tapped.

High-stakes testing and a focus on grades can make the subject feel more about performance than enjoyment or creativity. Hitting two birds in one stone in this situation may be hard but with constant effort to target learning while making the lesson enjoyable could yield a fruitful result. More than the grades, teachers have to make sure that students have a meaningful experience learning in the subject area.

Traditional teaching methods may not appeal to all learning styles, making the subject feel less dynamic. One size fits all doesn’t apply to learning, especially that students have different styles in learning. Differentiated instruction is a key element to catering students individual needs and learning styles. Tapping students full potentials and knowing your students way of understanding the lesson will save you time and energy in the classroom teaching-learning process.

Engaging teaching methods, relevant content, and creative projects can help shift this perception. After all, students learn best when they know that they are learning.

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Lewis Endong Templado

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