ESL Students: Ask for Directions
ESL teaching strategies should be geared toward getting ESL students to speak up and use the language by asking: asking questions, asking for directions, or just asking for help.
Asking for directions is one of many basic ESL teaching strategies designed to help your ESL students feel confident to ask questions in a variety of real-life settings.
With all the fantastic ESL teaching strategies that are available for helping students become engaged in using the English language, it might seem surprising how posting simple signs on classroom walls can make a difference: ESL Students Ask Questions; ESL Students Ask for Directions; ESL Students Ask for Help. These signs serve as reminders to both students and teachers.
Experienced ESL teachers easily recognize the doubtful looks on the faces of their ESL students who have questions or concerns; but all too often, though typically with the best of intentions, a teacher will try to predict the problems and "jump in" to resolve them. Sometimes a teacher makes the right assumption, sometimes not. In either case, the ESL students do not get the chance to ask the question, which is the necessary first step they need to take in order to feel empowered using the language. *See my previous article titled "Asking Questions in ESL Lessons" for additional background.
In any learning situation, knowing what questions to ask can be complicated. With beginning level ESL students, a good place to start is to practice asking for directions.
Begin by introducing some common terms for courteous interruption; for example, "Excuse me" or Pardon me." This shouldn't be taken for granted. Some ESL students will hesitate approaching someone to ask for directions for fear of being impolite. One of many useful ESL teaching strategies is to have your students practice these phrases with each other until the laughter begins. You will find that they will be much more comfortable taking part in exercises in which they actually ask for directions.
Now introduce some key phrases such as "Where is the ______?" or "Can you tell me where the _______ is?" Have the class practice these phrases by referring to items that are close at hand in the classroom. For example, "Can you tell me where the door is?" or "Where is the desk?" After that, suggest combinations of the phrases together for your ESL students like, "Pardon me, where is my ESL teacher?"
Next, bring your ESL students to a public place in order to ask for directions in a real-life context. Try a college campus, where your students can safely communicate with native English speakers by asking for directions to the library, cafeteria, student center, or gymnasium. Choose a small area to work with, and spend the necessary time to help your students get to know the area before they begin to ask for directions. This is important.
You want your students to know the answers to their questions before they ask so that they can focus on hearing a response. Keep an eye out for future articles about additional ESL teaching strategies to help your students listen for key words and phrases in response to their asking for directions. Join my blog to hear what others have to say.
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