How Effective Lesson Planning Educates Successful Learners

Lesson planning is an essential part of ensuring that lesson objectives are met and that lessons are successful. There are two extreme approaches one could take to planning but, usually, an approach somewhere between both is best. The lesson plan serves several important functions regardless of which approach is taken. Most of all, lesson planning seeks to ensure that all students are actually learning from the lesson and making continual progress toward their language goals.

This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sergio M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT.

Points to consider prior to lesson planning

Before writing down your lesson plan, there are some basic principles worth considering. Keep the plan simple and not too heavily scripted. Things don’t always go according to plan and you can’t script students’ questions or problems. If the plan is too heavily scripted, you won’t be able to address those issues. This keeps your lesson flexible and open to adaptation. Structure and timing are also important. Proper structuring and time management will help keep students engaged. These should incorporate a balance of skills and ensures adequate timing is devoted to all. With these guidelines in mind, teachers can deliver an effective lesson that improves upon all required skills and genuinely aids the students’ progress. They also ensure that all learning objectives are met and that time is effectively managed since student-teacher time is limited.

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Organizational skills

The next stage of lesson planning involves being well-organized before the actual lessons begin. Teachers should strive to be on-time or early to allow themselves to get organized for the lesson. This gives them time to ensure they have their lesson plan and all necessary relevant materials. They can further use this time to test any equipment required and ensure that everything works correctly as well as set up any other equipment required. The classroom itself may be organized before the students’ arrival, laying out any necessary materials or making seating arrangements.

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Lesson contents

The actual contents of the lesson plan may vary quite a bit depending on a variety of factors. Generally, the plan should include all of the following information: Learner objectives, personal aims, language point, teaching aids, anticipated problems, procedure, phase, timing, interaction, class level, number of students, date and the teacher’s name, as well as any observers’ names. The learner objectives and personal aims refer to your learning goals for the students and your own goals as a teacher respectively. The language point is the major point that the lesson is constructed around to teach. It’s the relationship to past and future lessons that should be considered. Teaching aids are somewhat self-explanatory. Anticipated problems for both students and teachers are included so the teacher can anticipate solutions. The procedure details the steps and activities used to achieve learning objectives. The phase of the act determines which types of activities should be conducted. The timing is important for lesson management so that there is time for all aspects of the lesson to be conducted and all skills worked on. Interaction refers to who will be interacting during any phase or point in the lesson. The class level lists the level of proficiency in which the class is at. Finally, the number of students, date/time and teacher/observer names are for proper record-keeping and maybe helpful for future teachers working with a class or for the teacher themselves, to review and learn from their own experiences.

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To create effective learners, we must first deliver effective lessons. Delivery of effective lessons is only possible with effective lesson planning. By considering the target audience for each lesson and the lesson objectives, as well as following certain basic guidelines, we can create engaging lessons that meet our students’ needs and help them to attain their goals of becoming English-speakers. An effective teacher is an organized teacher and an organized teacher, plans.

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