Teaching teenagers can be quite a challenge. I remember how difficult I found it when, as a new teacher, I was faced with a class of sixty first-year undergraduates whose compulsory English classes really weren’t the highlight of their week. In 2014 we ran a competition for teachers to share their best tips for motivating teenage learners. First prize was a two-week teacher development course in Cambridge (with flights and accommodation included); other prizes included iPad Minis, and subscriptions to our Cambridge English Teacher professional development community.
“Inspire your students to aspire, and show them that it can be done.”
One of the strongest themes to have emerged initially is the importance of the teacher, particularly as an inspiration for teenage learners. Many of our entrants suggest that teachers can motivate their students better by acting as less of a traditional authority figure, and more of an example.
What do you think?
As Krysta mentions, teenagers are at a difficult period in their lives. As teachers, we can help by showing that we’ve been through the same experiences, that we too made mistakes, and got frustrated, but, importantly, we persevered – and they can too. Krysta says, “Inspire your students to aspire, and show them that it can be done.” Similarly, Sanooch in Thailand encourages her students not to be afraid of making mistakes, by pointing out the mistakes she makes as a teacher too. Zaruhi in Armenia suggests that the teacher can demonstrate through their own example the positive effects of a good, continuing education.
Building a connection with your students is vital; a number of our teachers – including Emanuelle and Luciana, both from Brazil – suggest taking a keen interest in students’ culture: particularly music, TV, films, and games. As Gloria from Colombia puts it, you need to be able to speak the same language as them! And Elena in Russia puts an interesting twist on personalised learning; she recommends that teachers take into account not only students’ interests, but also their own. By sharing your own talents and interests, you can help motivate and encourage learners – and when students are competing with each other on an activity, you can engage them even more by getting them to compete with you too.