TESOL Made Practical For All Situations, 5th Edition

TESOL Made Practical For All Situations is an educational textbook written for people from a diverse range of backgrounds, who are entering or participating in the profession of Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). The companion volume, TESOL Made Practical For All Situations: The Workbook provides a step by step guide to applying the concepts presented in the textbook.

The textbook content is intended to equip people for teaching English as a second language (ESL) or as a foreign language (EFL) in a variety of settings, ranging from situations in which there is a high degree of support (e.g. prescribed syllabus or course materials), to the opposite extreme where there is very little or no support. The textbook, as the name states, is intentionally practical in its goals, with both the language learner and the teacher in mind.

TESOL Made Practical For All Situations focuses on the practical or task-based learning needs that motivate language learning. People choose to learn English because there are practical tasks, requiring the use of English, that they need to complete. These practical tasks are the starting point for determining the process and content of language learning.

The approach to language teaching and learning presented in this textbook is based on systemic functional linguistics theory. Readers will develop skills in analysing tasks and texts to identify the kind of language used to achieve specific social purposes. Drawing on genre theory, this approach increases awareness of the choices being made in every communicative transaction. The Workbook is packed with learning activities to assist in developing these foundational teaching skills.

The textbook is directed towards the practical goal of equipping teachers for the whole spectrum of teaching duties, from planning through to delivery and assessment. This textbook outlines how to identify learners’ needs and formulate them into learning goals, which in turn become the basis for a syllabus or training program. With this preparation, ESL/EFL teachers will be able to design training programs, and original materials, for any particular group of learners. In situations where the only directive given is as vague as, "Please, teach them English," teachers will now have the skills to plan a purposeful and meaningful learning program with interesting and engaging activities.

TESOL Made Practical For All Situations also guides readers to recognise and exploit everyday texts for their potential use in language learning activities, thus reducing dependence on published materials that may not be easily accessed in remote teaching situations, or which may even prove to be culturally irrelevant or inappropriate. This practical training means teachers no longer have to be tied to a course book; they will be ready to enrich and expand, or diverge altogether.