One-to-one lessons or private lessons often occur outside the language classroom at, for example, the learner’s place of work or home. Such lessons have clear advantages both for the learner and the teacher – for the learner, lesson content can be tailored around his/her needs and learning style and perhaps more importantly, he/she has the undivided attention of the teacher. For the teacher, the lesson does not require the planning and preparation often associated with mixed ability groups nor are there the management or control problems associated with teaching larger groups of learners.
Advantages aside, one-to-one lessons or private lessons are often intensive and tiring experiences for both learners and teachers and restrictive with respect to the kind of activities that can be carried out. More importantly, however, the success of these lessons is very much dependent on the establishment of a good rapport between the teacher and the learner without which the lesson is not only tiring but very often painful!
Try using the following techniques to make the most of any one-to lesson:
- Carry out a thorough needs analysis (see n for needs analysis) and find out what the learner knows and what he/she hopes to achieve during the lessons. If you are about to teach a young learner, find out what the parents and the children expect from the lesson. If children expect fun and games and their parents lots of traditional practice, discuss and find a happy way forward.
- Establish routines and ensure that there is space and time free of distraction for the lesson to take place. One of the most difficult things to do is to teach anything to a child in his bedroom where he/she is surrounded by every kind of distraction. Equally, trying to hold a lesson in room with the TV on in the corner is pretty well pointless.
- Spend some time getting to know your learner better each lesson and letting your learner get to know you. Share your plans with the weekend with them and encourage them to do the same. The success of the lesson depends on establishing good rapport so 5 minutes “wasted” on small-talk may indeed mean 50 minutes well-spent on learning.
- Bring in materials from different sources and encourage the learner to do the same. Have an alternative activity up your sleeve just in case the going gets difficult and you both need a change.
- Don’t be afraid to stop the lesson when there is no longer any point in continuing (too many distractions, the learner is too tired). Arrange a convenient time to make-up any time lost.
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