The TEFL Horizons Podcast
Welcome to the TEFL Horizons podcast. Join your host, Shannon Felt, for a deep dive into all things related to online English language teaching. We’ll cover everything from how to make your lessons more fun and more effective, how to cut down on planning and preparation, and even how to market your teaching skills to find more success as a freelance online teacher. You’ll also get to listen in on interviews with ELT experts and “teflpreneurs” all over the world who are making big moves in our industry. Whether you’re looking to sharpen your teaching skills, start your own online business, or just explore whether the world of online teaching is for you, you’ve come to the right place.
Episodes
49 episodes
Ep 48: Are You a "TEFLpreneur?"
Let's talk about my new favorite word: "TEFLpreneur." By now, you've probably pieced together that it's a fun combination of "TEFL" and "entrepreneur." But what does it really MEAN to be an entrepreneur in the ELT industry? Wha...
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Season 2
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Episode 48
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20:52
Ep 47: Karen Taylor on Teaching Pronunciation and the Color Vowel Chart
In this week’s episode, I’m thrilled to welcome Karen Taylor as my guest. In 1999, Karen created an amazing teaching tool called the Color Vowel Chart when she realized there had to be a better way to help students with pronunciatio...
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Season 2
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Episode 47
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1:06:55
Ep 46: Five Ways to Present New Vocabulary Words
In this episode, I'll walk you through engaging, student-centered ideas for presenting new vocabulary words in your lessons, including: #1: How to use a picture or realia#2: How to use a matching task
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Season 2
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Episode 46
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16:45
Ep 45: Brock Brady on TESOL Organizations and Adapting to an Online Format
In this episode, I'm happy to welcome Brock Brady as my guest. Brock began his career in the ELT industry somewhat spontaneously, as you'll hear from our conversation. He started as a Peace Corps volunteer in Togo, West Africa and from there we...
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Season 2
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Episode 45
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45:53
Ep 44: Avoid These 5 Mistakes When Teaching Vocabulary
In this episode, let's talk about what NOT to do when teaching a vocabulary lesson. I'll go through five of the most common mistakes I see teachers make when planning and teaching vocabulary lessons, including: Mistake #1: Not presen...
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Season 2
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Episode 44
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36:43
Ep 43: Practice Activities
Tune in to this week's episode to learn more about practice activities for your ESL lessons. We'll start with a quick refresher of the difference between controlled and freer practice as well as which types of lessons require "practice" to begi...
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Season 2
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Episode 43
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24:48
Ep 42: Lorenzo Sclocco on Course Planning and Curriculum Design
This week's guest, Lorenzo Sclocco, is an ESL teacher and education specialist based in Toronto, Canada. He's been teaching General English, EAP, Business English and Exam Classes at language schools, universities, and colleges since 2009. He a...
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Season 2
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Episode 42
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1:01:36
Ep 41: Tips for Teaching Listening Lessons Online
Last week, I shared my top tips for teaching reading lessons online. This week, tune in for my favorite tips on teaching online listening lessons. You'll learn: #1: How to embed the audio into your slide #2: How to br...
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Season 2
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Episode 41
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16:28
Ep 40: Tips for Teaching Reading Lessons Online
In this episode, I'm sharing my top 5 tips for teaching reading lessons online, including: #1: How to give students access to the text and materials#2: How to best format and adapt texts for online lessons#3: Whether studen...
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19:02
Ep 39: Jackie Bolen on Making Lessons Student-Centered
This is the second time Jackie has joined me as a guest on Expand Your Horizons, and I'm very happy to welcome her back.In this episode, we're talking about strategies for maximizing student talk time, minimizing teacher talk time, and ...
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38:46
Ep 38: Troubleshooting in Online Lessons
If you're an online English teacher, you've probably experienced some common issues: tech trouble, breakout room snafus, or even lack of student motivation (how do you get them to participate through the screen??). In this episode,...
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Season 2
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Episode 38
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34:35
Ep 37: Error Correction
This week’s episode considers common questions around error correction:Should you correct every error your students make? If not, how do you know whether to correct an error? When is the best time to corr...
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30:33
Ep 36: Jessie Ebersole on How ELT Organizations are Adapting Online
I’m happy to welcome back a returning guest for this episode: Jessie Ebersole.Jessie joined me on the podcast in the fall of 2019, but in case you missed our previous conversation, let me briefly introduce her before we dive into today'...
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Season 2
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Episode 36
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27:30
Ep 35: Updates for the New Year and a Few Things I've Learned About Teaching Online
Welcome to the first episode of 2021! In this episode, I'm sharing a few personal and professional updates, as well as summarizing a few key lessons I learned about teaching English online in the last year.
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Season 2
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Episode 35
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42:11
Ep 34: Key Differences Between Teaching In Person and Online
By now, you may have tried your hand at teaching English online, or perhaps you’re just thinking about getting started. So what are the key factors to consider when you’re teaching through a screen as opposed to in the physical classroom? ...
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Season 2
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Episode 34
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24:17
Ep 33: Ricardo Fajardo on Teaching Exam Preparation Online
This episode's guest is Ricardo Fajardo, who joins me for a discussion on teaching English for a very specific purpose – exam preparation.Ricardo has been a teacher of English for 24 years and a teacher trainer for the last 12 years. He ...
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Season 2
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Episode 33
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34:01
Ep 32: André Alipio on Training Parents to Support Young Learners Online
This week's podcast guest is André Alipio. André has been the Director of Studies at GTP, Global Teaching Practice, for 10 years now. He has also been a teacher trainer since 1995, working for different institutes in Brazil, includ...
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Season 2
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Episode 32
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37:26
Ep 31: Eliberto Salinas on Teaching Mixed-Level Classes
In this episode, please welcome guest Eliberto Salinas.Eliberto has extensive experience as an English teacher and is also a CELTA trainer at International House Mexico, where he is based in Mexico City. Today, he’s joining...
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Season 2
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Episode 31
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31:00
Ep 30: Andrew Watson on Teaching Young Learners Online
In this episode, Andrew Watson joins me to share strategies for teaching young learners online. Andrew has gained great insight into working with young learners through his extensive experience in the ELT industry. Since land...
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Season 2
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Episode 30
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38:53
Ep 29: Orlando Delgado on Taking ELT Online in the Time of COVID
In this episode, I'm happy to welcome a returning guest: Orlando Delgado. Orlando is the Director of Teacher Training & Development Operations for IH Mexico and has been a teacher trainer and CELTA and DELTA assessor for over 10 yea...
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Season 2
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Episode 29
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56:01
Ep 28: How to Write Lesson Aims and Why They Matter
"By the end of the lesson, students will be able to..." Does that phrase look familiar? If you're a teacher, chances are you're aware of the practice of writing aims or objectives for your lessons. Maybe you learned ...
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Season 1
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Episode 28
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44:58
Ep 27: Teaching SKILLS Lessons - Why It's Not All About Grammar and Vocabulary
In this week's episode, we're doing an in-depth review of teaching SKILLS lessons, starting with how they differ from systems (grammar and vocabulary) lessons. It's tempting to think that every lesson should involve teaching studen...
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Season 1
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Episode 27
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34:21
Ep 26: How to Teach Writing
How do you approach teaching writing? Do you give your students writing exercises in class, or do you just assign writing tasks as homework? In this episode, we'll discuss the benefits of working on students' writing skills in the ...
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Season 1
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Episode 26
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1:00:03
Ep 25: Jackie Bolen on Teaching in South Korea and ESL Games
This week's episode features guest Jackie Bolen. Jackie taught English in South Korea at private institutes and universities for over ten years. She now lives in Vancouver, Canada where she does some teaching, writing, and various ...
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Season 1
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Episode 25
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51:38
