Twenty Tips To be a Successful Online English Teacher; a Student’s Opinion

English Language Articles

Not Very Good Teachers

Next, let’s take a look at the characteristics of the teachers who did not make a very good impression on me.

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1. No introduction

Most teachers try to introduce themselves in our first lesson, but there are some teachers who try to start a tutorial straight away. I feel like such a teacher is just processing the class as ‘work flow’, and the impression is not good. Of course, it depends on the students, but I would be happy if you could ask me whether I would like to have short introduction or not.

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2. No camera

Voice-only conversation is not an effective online lesson. One of the most important parts of English conversation is to see the face of your conversation partner and perhaps try to guess the other person’s thoughts while talking. If you can’t use the camera because of a typhoon or a malfunction in the internet connection, it is better to explain it at the beginning of the class.

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3. Getting emotional

I love cheerful and funny teachers, but I get tired when I talk to people who have a lot of emotional ups and downs in negative ways. People like that suddenly get angry or cry, so I don’t know how to deal with them.
It is natural for human beings to have feelings and emotions, but teachers need to contain themselves during the lessons. But please let your positive feelings out such as fun, happy, and funny.

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4. No chat at all

This depends on the students’ preferences, but even if we are following a textbook, I think there should be some chat in between; after all, this is online English “conversation”! Sometimes I meet teachers who act like a machine; I require more from a teacher than just reading from a textbook and answering questions. It doesn’t matter if it’s only for a minute or two, but having some ‘small talk’ makes me feel like I really have had an English conversation lesson.

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5. A lack of concentration

There are some teachers who attend to their own business during the class. They read or type something else while I’m reading an article, so they don’t even realize when I’ve finished it! They think it won’t be noticed, but I am very much aware of what they are doing

6. Muting the microphone frequently

Some teachers mute the microphones when I start reading English. I want to ask them “Are you doing anything that would be a problem if you were heard?” So it is better to stop doing it.

7. Being aggressive

It could be a sensitive topic, but talking about our differences, such as culture, family, country, and religion, can be good English practice. However, a very small number of teachers make sarcastic comments or try to talk down to me. Some might have got something to say about Japan or Japanese, but this is not an appropriate forum to criticize one another.

8. Being sleepy or tired

I had a teacher who fell asleep during our lesson. She could have been extremely tired because of her continuous working shifts, but please be conscious while you are teaching. This tends to happen in the early morning and the middle of the night. It might be just another lesson for you, but remember that the student has set aside this specific time to have a lesson with you. In addition, it’s better to refrain from yawning because that too gives a very bad impression.

9. No corrections or reactions

I question the professional competence of teachers who fail to make any corrections – even when I clearly made a mistake that I myself have noticed! Some teachers just keep saying “Next.” without any comments when I answer questions. It makes me uneasy because I am not sure my answers and pronunciation are correct. If you hear a mistake, please correct it – or reply with a short word such as “Good” or “Right” if the answer is accurate, because feedback is very important for learners. These are small things you can do right away, and they will make your tutorial much better.

10. Looking down on students, Making fun of them

This is definitely a matter that will lead to complaints. Please remember that students are in the process of learning English and can only speak with a limited vocabulary. They may sound like a small child to you, but most of your students are fully grown adults, which means we can discuss and express anything in Japanese.
I’ve met with some teachers who completely forget this fact. Therefore, please be careful not to hurt the pride of your students.

In conclusion

I’ve introduced twenty things you should know to be a successful online English teacher from a student’s point of view. As I said what is written here is my personal opinion and is not representative of all Japanese students.

These aspects also apply to students. I’m sure many of you have experienced a difficult time when you encountered problematic students. But when I get the teachers’ opinion on Japanese students, they always give me positive feedback. I really appreciate their patience and generosity.
Up to now, more than 90% of the teachers I’ve met online were no problem or quite skilled. I’m happy to say I have only encountered bad teachers very occasionally. So, I will continue to take online lessons and I would like to recommend this to any Japanese who aspire to learn English.

By the way, I also wrote an article recommending online English lessons to Japanese people. You can translate it into English by right-clicking, so please read this if you are interested in finding out more.

On the other hand, I tried to summarize the characteristics of particularly outstanding teachers and the lessons they provide, please check it out!

I hope that as many online English teachers as possible will read this article and that it will contribute to improving their teaching skills.

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