Teaching Young Learners Online
Discover how to plan, create, and facilitate inclusive online learning that engages and inspires young people aged 5 to 17.
Duration
3 weeksWeekly study
3 hours
Teaching Young Learners Online
Explore online language teaching with young learners
Have you recently had to adapt to online teaching in response to the COVID-19 pandemic?
This 3-week course from the British Council will help you explore the practice and theory of online teaching.
While this course is mostly aimed at English language teachers, all teachers can benefit from learning about accessibility, online safety, and how to engage young learners online.
Create the best conditions for online learning
The course will begin with an exploration of how to ensure learners interact together meaningfully. You’ll learn about the principles of language learning and teaching, and gain insight into how to connect with learners and their parents.
Building a community and developing rapport with your students will help them have a positive online learning experience, so you’ll plan and share a meaningful activity that’ll help you get to know your learners.
Develop inclusive teaching methods
It’s important to tailor your online teaching to your learners’ needs so that each class is inclusive and fun, so you’ll learn how to provide extra support for those who need it.
You’ll help expose your learners to language through reading and listening activities, and develop strategies to engage learners in different online learning environments.
Learn strategies for teaching English online
In the final week, you’ll be helping your learners to develop their speaking and writing skills. We’ll discuss assessments for learning, including how to set expectations and motivate your students.
What topics will you cover?
-
Week 1: Meaningful interaction
Creating the best conditions for your learners to interact meaningfully and learn together online -
Week 2: Engagement, content and differentiation
Tailoring your online teaching to your learners’ needs, to ensure your classes are inclusive and enjoyable -
Week 3: Practice, assessment and progress
Helping learners develop their speaking and writing skills, and using assessment for learning to make learners and their parents aware of their progress
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and learn at your own pace. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
Available now
Learning on this course
You can take this self-guided course and learn at your own pace. On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Identify how to build relationships with learners, between learners and with parents, and be present and supportive when teaching online
- Know how to include and engage learners online both in synchronous and asynchronous environments
- Understand privacy and safety issues online and how to help learners and parents think critically about online risks and behaviour
- Evaluate the opportunities and challenges associated with different tools and modes of online teaching and learning
- Apply principles of English language lesson planning to online teaching
- Develop and share techniques for language and skills teaching and assessment online
- Apply and practise how to manage online interactions effectively
Who is the course for?
This course is for English language teachers, teaching young learners (5-17) in an online environment. Experience of teaching in online contexts is not essential and both experienced and novice online teachers will benefit.
While most of the context is based around English language learning, teachers of other subjects will also find the course valuable, as the principles of English language lesson planning apply to online teaching in general.
Who will you learn with?
I’m an English teacher and teacher trainer. I’m interested in online learning/teaching and pluralistic approaches to languages and cultures particularly in refugee/immigrant contexts
I’m a futurelearn educator & co-designer of Teaching Young Learners Online https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/teaching-young-learners-online
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=X5IlrVEAAAAJ&hl
Who developed the course?
British Council
The British Council is on the ground in six continents and over 100 countries connecting the best of UK culture with a global audience and providing high-quality English language courses.
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps, but you can complete them as quickly or slowly as you like
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn
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Join this course
Free
Join free and you will get:
- Access to this course for 5 weeks
Upgrade
Upgrade this course and you will get:
- Access to this course for as long as it’s on FutureLearn
- A print and digital Certificate of Achievement once you’re eligible
Unlimited
Buy Unlimited and you will get:
- Access to this course, and hundreds of other FutureLearn short courses and tests for a year
- A printable digital Certificate of Achievement on all short courses once you’re eligible
- The freedom to keep access to any course you've achieved a digital Certificate of Achievement on, for as long as the course exists on FutureLearn
- The flexibility to complete your choice of short courses in your own time within the year
Find out more about upgrades or Unlimited.
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