13 Rules on How to Be a Good and Effective ESL Teacher 1. Don’t Be a Dictator When Teaching ESL As a teacher, the classroom is never about you, but only the students. This is not to imply that you should let students walk over you or that they shouldn’t conduct themselves respectfully. What it means is that you should create a classroom environment where the students feel comfortable to speak, ask questions, be creative and engage not only with you but with their fellow classmates. It is not your job to get up there and lecture and talk down to the students. If you are a person with control issues, then you ought not to be teaching ESL or any subject for that matter. If you are teaching adults, remember that your students are adults and never treat them like children. Just because they speak English at a low-level doesn’t mean they aren’t well-educated and dignified in their own language. If you are teaching adults at a private language school, the reality is that if they can aff...
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