Using your voice and presence in class

This post kicks off our Back-to-Basics series, focusing mainly on – you guessed it – basic classroom techniques! The idea for this series came to me as I frequently had to train pre-service teachers, who had a practical need for core techniques that would help them function in a classroom environment with some efficiency.

Most beginner training courses do not spend much time on these techniques, either for reasons of expediency or because they are taken for granted. Still, many trainees have never been in a classroom setting before, and the fact that many training courses involve online teaching (and a set of additional basic skills) does not make things any easier.

Establishing a teacher presence

Each individual trainee has their own teaching style, and this is based a lot on what kind of teacher presence they may project. Some teachers may be quiet and low-key, others may be louder and enthusiastic, or laid-back and subtle – the list can go on. It usually takes some time to decide what your teaching style is and what image you want to project to your learners, usually based on your personal traits and preferences. Many teachers harbour under the misconception that they should be a specific type of teacher in order to be effective, which can be quite an obstacle to development.

Nevertheless, there is one thing most teachers have in common: they have a selection of common basic tools at their disposal, and this is their starting point. The way each teacher decides to use these tools is what defines their teaching style.  Let’s have a look at these tools one by one.

Facial expressions

This includes eye-contact, smiling and using facial expressions to convey feelings and meaning. Some teachers are not very comfortable with facial expressions or are by nature shy and not very expressive: that’s OK. Teachers do not have to be performers! However, there are a couple of things that everyone can do and are usually quite helpful in creating a positive classroom atmosphere.

• Look at your learners – not at the floor, the ceiling, the wall, or the board the whole time. Try and establish eye-contact with them, especially the ones that are trying to say something or answer a question. This shows you’re actively paying attention to them, you acknowledge their presence and respect their efforts and contributions. This may also prove a bit more challenging for shy, introverted teachers, but it is definitely worth a try!!!
• Remember to smile a few times during the lesson, especially when you are making eye-contact. This immediately makes eye-contact more friendly, and less threatening or awkward – in most cultures at least. In general, smiling at learners can make you look more approachable, creating a less impersonal teaching atmosphere. It can work wonders for encouraging and engaging learners.
• Using facial expressions instead of words, when possible: this can be more helpful in clarifying meaning at times, which brings us to our next point.

Show, don’t tell!

Most people automatically resort to words when trying to communicate, give an example or explain. This is fine in everyday life, but you’ll need more than that, for example, in a multilingual classroom where English is the only language common to all. So, here’s what your options are:

• Using facial expressions, e.g., to show you don’t understand, to praise, to encourage a learner to continue, even to demonstrate meaning, like in adjectives describing feelings.
• Using gestures to do most of the above, plus to clarify instructions or to check understanding.
• Demonstrating how something is done rather than trying to explain it verbally.
• Miming an action or series of actions, to clarify meaning or give instructions.

Using your voice wisely and effectively

Obviously, your voice is one of your main tools and what you say in class (and what you don’t say!) is very important. Here, however, we are going to talk about how you can use your voice so that:

1. You do not find you’re losing your voice at the end of a long teaching day.
2. You do not feel like you’ve been talking a lot but what you say falls on deaf ears, which is extremely frustrating!
3. You can maximize learner attention and involvement.

The following tips are based on common sense and classroom experience.

• Find your teaching voice: avoid using a loud, high-pitched voice, in the hope of drawing attention. Instead, experiment until you find the right register for you: carrying, but comfortable to use over long periods of time without tiring your vocal cords.  A good rule of thumb is that your voice should easily carry to learners sitting at the back of the room, under normal circumstances.
• Regulate your speed of delivery: speaking too fast can create miscommunication, while speaking too slowly can have a hypnotic quality! Aim at speaking at a normal, average speed.
• Vary your intonation.   A monotonous voice, even if one is shouting, rarely holds attention. Using a friendly, conversational tone of voice, with all the natural ups and downs, can make a difference even during a long explanation slot. A low, monotonous, “lecture” voice on the other hand can ensure lapses of attention every time!
• Finally, for those fortunate enough to teach YL classes, try whispering instead of shouting: when you whisper, the automatic reaction is to quiet down in order to hear you! This can often work with rambunctious learners 😊

Please, leave your own tips in the comments below, as well as questions, suggestions, or a simple hello!

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