English Teaching ABC: Always Be Customising

Have you ever found yourself teaching a class with students at various CEFR levels, from A1 to C2? It may seem far-fetched, but teaching new grammar or vocabulary to lower CEFR bands and refreshing the same for higher English proficiency levels is quite common in my practice. So, how do you choose reading or listening materials that cater to everyone's needs without causing a riot? Fear not, dear teacher, for I have some tips for you.

Let's start with reading or listening materials for A1 students. These beginners are just dipping their toes into the vast ocean of English. For them, simple and straightforward is the name of the game. Think short sentences, basic vocabulary, and lots of pictures or gestures to help them along. A1 students are like little linguistic sponges, so make sure to choose topics that are relevant and engaging to keep their interest piqued.

Moving up to A2 and B1 students, who are starting to get the hang of things, you can up the ante a bit. Introduce longer texts or audio clips with more complex sentences, but keep the vocabulary relatively simple and easy to understand. Throw in some comprehension questions to check if they are following the gist. It also helps keep them on their toes and ensures they're paying attention. You can easily pause an audio to check if everyone is on the same page, so to speak.

Now, B2 and C1 students are starting to feel pretty cocky, I mean, confident in their English skills, so it's time to challenge them a bit. Choose texts, audio clips, or podcasts that are longer and more in-depth, with a wider range of vocabulary and more complex grammar structures. Throw in some more challenging topics to really get them thinking.

Finally, we have our C2 superstars. These students are practically native speakers, so you can throw just about anything at them, and they'll handle it with flying colours. Choose texts that are authentic and engaging, with complex language and thought-provoking topics. Encourage them to read books, articles, and other materials outside of class to further enhance their skills.

This is where you might think, "Well, duh, that's just common sense!" But let's picture a different scenario. Imagine you've come across a captivating text, or perhaps you've fancied yourself a bit of a Shakespeare, dipped your quill into an ink pot and penned what you believe to be the epitome of "the best words" to teach some new grammar or vocabulary. You're buzzing with excitement to share your divine prose with your class. But wait! Before you unveil your literary masterpiece, there's a little something you have to do.

You have to make sure your text isn't going to send your students into a language-induced panic attack. One tool I use a lot to make sure the difficulty level is just right for my students is dictionaries like the Cambridge English Dictionary or Oxford Learner's Dictionaries. They list all the words at CEFR levels A1–C2 in the English Vocabulary Profile, showing the proficiency level expected for each word. You can use these resources online, type in, say ‘engage’, and see it marked as ‘C1’. Quite handy, don’t you think?

If you have a B1 class and you notice that your text, sourced from a Guardian morning news article, is peppered with words like ‘engage’, ‘drastic’, ‘stumble’, etc., which are above your students' current proficiency level, don't fret! Just find simpler synonyms or restructure your sentences to maintain the essence of your text while ensuring it's accessible to your class. This approach allows you to confidently bring your well-crafted or found text into the classroom, knowing it's tailored perfectly to your students' abilities.

It's totally fine to sprinkle in a few more sophisticated words or some challenging grammar, even if it's a bit above your students' current level. Think of it like tossing in some unexpected toppings on a pizza—it adds excitement and keeps everyone curious. So, spice things up a bit. Your students will thank you for it. Just don’t overdo it. I'd suggest sticking to a maximum of 3-4 new words or phrases for students to sink their teeth into, so they can walk away with some fresh additions to their vocabulary.

This approach actually serves a few other purposes. It introduces more advanced language without overwhelming your students and encourages them to explore on their own. You know that feeling when you come across a new word, feel discombobulated, and just have to find out what ‘discombobulated’ means? That sense of discovery boosts students’ confidence and helps the learning stick. And let's be honest, it keeps everyone humble too. We don't want our students' heads getting too big, do we?

Now, I’d like to show you a few examples of tailoring a text to teach, or revise, ‘should/shouldn’t’ plus the bare perfect infinitive with my B2 and C1 students. My C1 text opens like this: ‘How many times has your partner said, "You shouldn't've left the dishes in the sink overnight. It attracts pests"? Criticising past actions in relationships can be like walking a tightrope. It seems like a good idea to address issues and improve behaviour, but it can also backfire if not done with a touch of finesse. Let's have a look at criticism in relationships and see how it plays out, shall we?’

There's nothing tricky about the direct speech where I've dropped in my first example of a modal verb phrase to criticise someone’s past actions. But, if you’ve taught a B2 class, you know your students would probably scratch their heads at common collocations like ‘walking a tightrope’, ‘touch of finesse’, ‘plays out’. Plus, there are a few other random metaphors, like ‘backfire’, that your students may have never seen or heard before. And some won’t keep reading unless you spell out exactly what that means.

So, to make things simpler for lower proficiency levels, you have to ditch the fancy language. What I did was tweak the text a bit, checking with those dictionaries I mentioned earlier to make sure my B2 version is more digestible. The final product went like this, ‘How often has your partner said, "You shouldn't've left the dishes in the sink overnight. It attracts pests"? Criticising past actions in relationships can be tricky. It might seem like a good way to address issues and improve behaviour, but it can also cause problems if not done carefully. Let's take a closer look at criticism in relationships and how it can affect us.’

Some of you might be thinking, “Well, ‘tricky’ might be a bit tricky for my B2 students; there are simpler ways to say it.” And that's a fair point. Even though ‘tricky’ gets a B2 rating from the Cambridge English Dictionary, I could’ve easily swapped out ‘walking a tightrope’ with basic words like ‘difficult’ or ‘hard’ to ease my students into this reading. But I figured, hey, why not throw in a colloquialism? Because let’s face it, ‘tricky’ is pretty straightforward in this context.

That was just the opening paragraph, though. After going through my whole text with a fine-tooth comb, breaking down lengthy sentences into shorter ones, swapping out complex words and phrases for simpler alternatives, getting rid of advanced metaphors and figurative language that might throw off my B2 students, and throwing in some level-appropriate analogies, I was pretty pleased with how it turned out. It laid out the main points in simpler language, making everything easier to wrap your head around.

"This can lead to defensiveness and resentment, making it harder to resolve conflicts or move forward positively" was rephrased as "This can make people feel bitter and want to protect themselves or make excuses when they feel criticised. Such feelings make it tough to solve problems or move ahead.” "What I mean is, every time you give your friend a lift, and your partner says something like, 'You shouldn’t've taken the right, I told you it's a one-way street,' this turn of phrase makes you want to take that turn again and again" was simplified as "For example, when you're driving with a friend and your partner says, 'You shouldn’t've taken the right, I told you it's a one-way street,' it can be annoying.” And so on, and so forth. You get the idea. You can view all the revisions below.

Using more advanced language doesn't always mean the text or audio clip is longer and more confusing. Oftentimes, phrasal verbs and metaphors are a quicker way to get your point across. So, instead of bloating your word count by explaining these fancy language bits, try switching up your examples or context. It might take some time, but tailoring your material to your students' needs beats sticking with boring old course book stuff that might not interest them at all.

Wrapping up, teaching a class with students at various CEFR levels is no easy feat, but with the right approach, it can be incredibly rewarding. By tailoring your reading and listening materials to suit the needs of each proficiency level, you can create a learning environment that is engaging, challenging, and accessible to all. So, next time you're planning your lesson, keep in mind the ABC of English teaching: Always Be Customising.

We'd love to hear about the strategies you've found most effective for keeping things relevant, engaging, and appropriately challenging for different CEFR levels. Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.

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