Introduction to the course and welcome to

week 1
5775 comments

Welcome to our Teaching English Online course. This course will help you transfer
your teaching skills from the face-to-face classroom to a digital environment so that you
can deliver effective lessons to your learners. If you already have experience of teaching
online, it will give you the opportunity to reflect on the ways you deliver different types
of lessons, and get ideas for new resources.

In the first week of the course, we’ll look at the online teaching context, examining who
learners might be, why you might want to become an online tutor, and the pros and cons of
working for an employer or working for yourself. We’ll also help you to understand what you
need to get started with technology, tools and resources, and key skills.

In week 2 of the course, we’ll focus on planning and delivering effective online receptive
skills lessons. We’ll give you practical ideas and suggestions for tools, resources and
activities that will help learners to develop reading and listening sub-skills.

In week 3 of the course, we’ll focus on planning and delivering productive skills lessons.
We’ll give you practical ideas and suggestions for adapting speaking and writing lessons for
an online context. We’ll also suggest ways to help learners with pronunciation and
recommend some useful resources for developing pronunciation.

In week 4 of the course, we’ll focus on planning and delivering language lessons online with
useful tools for setting context and practising using language. You’ll also have some practical
ideas and advice on how to set up and run your business. Finally, we’ll consider ways that an
online teacher can continue their professional development.

Outline of week 1

This week we’ll start with some introductions and then we’ll answer these questions:

 What do we mean by teaching English online?

 Who might the learners in an online lesson be?
 Why become an online teacher?
 Is it better to work for a company or for yourself?
 What equipment, tools and resources do you need to get started?
 What key skills do you need as an online teacher?
 How can we create a rapport in our lessons and maintain engagement?
 What do we have to think about when managing a class online?
The tasks this week will take you three to four hours to complete.

Before you continue

If this is your first FutureLearn course, you may find it helpful to browse the Using
FutureLearn and FAQ pages before moving on.

Get extra benefits, upgrade your course

You can now get extra benefits by upgrading this course, including:

Unlimited access to the course: Go at your own pace with unlimited access to the course for
as long as it exists on FutureLearn.

Access to tests: Ensure you’ve mastered the material with access to tests on the course.

A Certificate of Achievement: To help you demonstrate your learning we’ll send you a
Certificate of Achievement when you become eligible. Find out more.

Reflect and share

In the next step you’ll find out more about your lead tutors but, before you go there, take a
minute to introduce yourself to us and other course participants in the comments section
below. Tell us who you are, and where and who you currently teach. Read other participants’
introductions and respond to at least three of them.

When you’ve finished this step click on the pink button to mark this step as complete.

© UCLES 2018

Note: any external links in this course will take you to third-party websites, which may ask
for your personal details. Please read our privacy policy for more information.
Share this video:


5775 comments

Previous
Mark as complete
Next

Comments
?
We share all comments with the course team and their institution to help improve course
content and for research purposes.

By posting a comment, you agree to the Code of Conduct.

GS
Georgeta Carmen Spirescu
0/1200
Post
Show:
All commentsBookmarkedYour commentsFollowing
Sort by:
NewestOldestMost liked
RL

Pinned by Lead Educator

Roberto Lozada

Follow
10 FEB 2022
Hello everyone! My name is Roberto, I'm from Ecuador.

I've been teaching for more than 20 years, right now I am working for a University.

I am really glad to share this opportunity and I am sure it will be very useful.

Like200 Likes 200

Reply

Bookmark

Report
 o DA

Dinara Aristo

Follow
10 FEB 2022
Hello, Roberto! Nice to meet you. Wishing you all the best at this course and
I'm sure it's a great opportunity for all of us here to find out more.

Like41 Likes 41

Reply

Bookmark

Report

View 217 replies

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

CM

Catharine Melvin

Follow
4 hours
Hello, Kia Ora from New Zealand. I am Catharine and I have been teaching for 20
years. I am currently teaching children who have been exposed to violence. I would
like to learn more about teaching online and moving out of the classroom and into a
different area of learning.

Like

Reply
 Bookmark

Report

 RA

Rangin Ahmed

Follow
13 hours
hello, i'm Rangin, recently i have been phd student in economics, wanna improve my
english till advance, thanks for this course.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

 CM

Carol Masters

Follow
13 SEP
Hi, I am Carol from Kingston, Jamaica. I am a senior who has mainly worked as an
Administrator for more than 40 years. I have also taught Photography, Video Editing
and general computer skills. I am now interested in Teaching English Online and I am
keen to learn the various components involved in this undertaking. I look forward to
sharing the course with you. Thanks to our Future Learn tutors for this valuable
experience.
(edited)

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o NG

Nicole Giovanna

Follow
16 SEP
Hello, Carol! Nice to meet you! I think you've got good skills! Teaching
others is a good experience. I wish you the best on this course.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

View 2 replies

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

RY

Ray Y
 Follow
17 SEP
Hello there!
This is Ray, I'm a learner
I want to improve my English in advance level for easy communication.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o [Learner left FutureLearn]

Follow
22 hours
This comment was automatically deleted because the learner left
FutureLearn.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

Tim Burrows
 Follow
22 hours
Hi everyone, I'm Tim from England. After running a local language exchange group
for 6 years on a voluntary basis, I fancied having a go at teaching English
professionally, and recently completed the CELTA course. My first prospective
student says he'd like to learn online with me. As all my experience is teaching in
person, I'm hoping to learn how to make teaching work well online.

(edited)

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

 KO

Kate Orson

Follow
30 SEP
Hi everyone, I'm Kate, I'm from the UK, but living in Italy. I'm getting back to
teaching English after a break of many years.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o [Learner left FutureLearn]

 Follow
22 hours
This comment was automatically deleted because the learner left
FutureLearn.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

Temitope Olusona

Follow
30 SEP
Hello!

I'm Temitope from Nigeria I have been teaching English Secondary levels for 10
years.

I have had few online language classes though with minimal resources. I would love
to be better equipped with more information I need for more opportunies.

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report
 o MR

Maria R.

Follow
03 OCT
Hello, Temitope! It's great to have you here. Your 10 years of experience in
teaching English are impressive. Online teaching can offer fantastic
opportunities and it's commendable that you're seeking to improve your skills,
the knowledge and resources you're looking for to excel in online language
teaching. Welcome and feel free to share your insights and experience with us!

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

Natasa Georgieva Ristova

Follow
01 OCT
Hello everyone! I'm Natasha from North Macedonia. I'm an English teacher in
primary school. I teach young learners from first to third grades and I'm glad to be
part of this course.

Like

Reply
 Bookmark

Report

o MR

Maria R.

Follow
03 OCT
Greetings, Natasa! Nice to meet you. It's great that you're an English teacher
for young learners, this must be very rewarding! As a fellow English teacher,
it's wonderful to meet colleagues who share the same passion for education.
We are all here to explore the art of teaching English online and build up a
learning experience together. So, welcome to this course!

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

MD

Matthew Downs

Follow
01 OCT
Hello, I'm from the United States and I'm taking this course before I take an actual
TEFL/TESOL course. I hope to start teaching English online in January 2024 and I
am planning on focusing on teaching English online to students in Japan.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o MR

Maria R.

Follow
03 OCT
Hello! it's great you're preparing for a career in teaching English online.
Focusing on students in Japan sounds like a smart plan given the demand for
English education there. Teaching online can indeed offer a fulfilling and
global experience. The TEFL/TESOL course you're going to take will provide
you with a strong foundation. I myself am planning to do a CELTA course to
further enhance my teaching skills.
Best of luck with your teaching journey!
Liv from Romania

(edited)

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report
 GS

Your reply. 0/1200

GA

Gulzar Alieva

Follow
03 OCT
Hi everyone! I am Gulzar Alieva and I'm from Azerbaijan.
I've been teaching English for 4 years and i want to improve myself and that's why I'm
here today. Good luck everyone

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

 SB

Shell Bee

Follow
02 OCT
Hi everyone!

I'm Michelle, and I'm from the UK. I've been teaching for over 20 years, but I'm
always looking for ways to widen my knowledge and experience.

I feel this course is the perfect opportunity for me to branch out into the field of online
teaching and learning.

Like

Reply

Bookmark
 Report

o KB

Khadija Basharat Javaid

Follow
02 OCT
Hi Michelle!

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

oe

online englishteacher2023

Follow
02 OCT
Hello everyone! I am a PhD candidate and a Teacher assistant at University. I am
interested in the field of education and I am currently running an online course on my
own. I am passionate about online teaching so hopefully this course will help me gain
a new set of skills.

Like

Reply
 Bookmark

Report

 NS

Nourhan Sayed

Follow
01 OCT
Hello everyone,
My name is Nour, I'm from Egypt.
I made a shift career to be an English teacher.
I've finished a 120-hours TEFL course.
I'm excited to learn more about how to teach online and I'm sure that this course
would be beneficial.
Thanks in advance!

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

Adriana Mendoza hurtado

Follow
29 SEP
Hello!
My name is Adriana. I'm from Argentina. I have been teaching English in Primary
and Secondary levels for more than 15 years.
 I would like to learn how to teach online. I really need techniques and guidance. I'm
sure it will be useful because there are many students who want to learn English on
line.

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

Andressa Rodrigues

Follow
29 SEP
Hello! I am Andressa from Brazil. I've been teaching English for about 10 years.
When I started, I worked for private schools. But since the pandemic, I've been
teaching as a private teacher (online and one to one). It is always a challenge for me
but I love it! And to feel more confident in my work, I always search courses, articles,
tips... everything that can help me to improve my teaching skills. I think we never can
stop learning. So I am looking forward to studying this course.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

 AO
Ashling Oliveira

Follow
29 SEP
Hello everyone my name is Ashling and this is my first time on future learn.

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o FY

Fatima Zahra Ykhlef

Follow
29 SEP
Best of luck Ashling.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

AM
Amel Mira

Follow
29 SEP
I am Amel, I am lawyer and I'm from Algeria

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o FY

Fatima Zahra Ykhlef

Follow
29 SEP
Good luck Amel, glad to see other Algerians in here.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

RA
Radia Ait hamou

Follow
29 SEP
Hello everyone mu name is radia frome Marocco.
Im so happy for learn more

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

o FY

Fatima Zahra Ykhlef

Follow
29 SEP
Nice to meet you Radia, wish you all the best.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

GS

Your reply. 0/1200

FY
 Fatima Zahra Ykhlef

Follow
29 SEP
I'm Fatima from Algeria, I'm currently teaching English part-time as a foreign
language, I'm looking forward to embark on this journey of teaching English online.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

Milcah M.

Follow
29 SEP
Hello, I'm Milcah, an EAL living and working in Italy. This is not the first time I try
to follow this course but this time I'm committed to finishing it and learning all I can!

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report

 AA
 Aya Aboelkhair

Follow
29 SEP
Hello everyone
My name is Aya. Iam from Egypt.
Iam so excited to learn more through this course and very glad to be here.

Like1 Like 1

Reply

Bookmark

Report

 MD

Mohsen Davarzani

Follow
28 SEP
Greetings everyone.
I am Mohsen, from Iran.
I have been teaching English for 11 years in universities, schools and language
institutes.
I have a language institute right now.
I've been teaching English online since the pandemic, and also before that.

Like

Reply

Bookmark

Report
 TE

The Cap English

Follow
28 SEP
Hello everyone,

My name is Cadrel. I'm from Congo Brazzaville and currently in Ghana. I have been
teaching English since 2017 and teaching has become my passion.

I will be really thrilled to learn new skills through this course.

Thanks

Report

 MR

Maria R.

Follow
28 SEP
hi everyone! I'm Maria from Romania.
I'm excited to join this course and reconnect with my passion for teaching English.
My journey has taken me from being an English teacher years ago to a career in
another field, where I've worked among others as a translator. Now, I am eager to
return to teaching, as it has always been my enduring passion and planning to pursue a
CELTA course for further growth and access to a world of possibilities.
I'm doing this course hoping to become tech-savvy in online English teaching by
getting the skills and methods and the necessary knowledge to effectively succeed in
the virtual classrooms, becoming more adaptable to changes in educational
environments and thus expanding my teaching opportunities.
I look forward to learning and sharing experiences with all of you as we explore the
world of online English teaching together.


kary cortes

Follow
28 SEP
Hello everyone!

My name is Karen Mancilla I'm from Colombia. I love learning English and I've been
teaching this language since 2021, I've been working with teenagers and adults. And I
would like to improve my skills to help my students. Due to, Many of them have
problems learning foreign languages. I consider that English teachers need to be
prepared to face these challenges and have these spaces to increase our knowledge
and offer a better education. As a result, I try to look for these courses to learn new
strategies and methodologies to create a positive impact on my learning English
teaching process. On top of that, I have the opportunity to interact with other cultures
and learn new perspectives about this beautiful job.

I'm looking forward to starting this course.

Have a wonderful day!

Like

Reply