Giving a Demo Lesson for the Interview
Sometimes, as part of the interview process, you may be asked to perform a short demo lesson. Many first time English teachers have no idea on how to approachlesson plans these demo lessons.
Before going into your lesson, don't be afraid to ask:
- How many students will be in the demo lesson?
- What are the student's level?
- How long should the demo lesson be?
Even experienced teachers need to know this information so that lessons can be planned accordingly. Asking these questions will also show the employer that you are serious about teaching.
Keep the following points in mind when giving your demo lesson:
- Speak clearly and slowly.
- Avoid slang and difficult words.
Good: "How did you spend yesterday evening?"
Bad: "So, how did ya kill time when you knocked off work yesterday arvo?" - Make full use of body language. Even if students can't understand your words, you can relay quite a lot of information via good body language. Tone of voice and eye contact is also useful.
- Spend less time talking and more time listening. As a native English speaking teacher, it's not you but the students who need the speaking practice. Allow your students the opportunity to speak and practice their English.
- Avoid difficult grammar explanations. Save these explanations when you have a full-length class and have got the job.
- Participation: If there is more than 1 student in your demo class, try to do a pairwork exercise. Eg: Pair 2 students together to ask each other "What is your ideal holiday?"
- Ensure to use the whiteboard for illustrations and clarification.
- Don't sit. Best to stand near the whiteboard where you can quickly make notes on it and use body language to help your explanations.
Finally, it's always a good idea to
give a demo lesson to family or friends prior. Ask your family or friends to participate as real non-native English speaking students.
Good luck and we hope the above teaching pointers help.