This is the second article I’m re-posted from my former-former blog. This one’s dated December 14, 2006, and in it I talk about one of my favourite passages of Scripture and what it meant to me at the time. It still means a lot to me now, and is a good truth to reflect on as I think about what God might have for me next year and in the years to come.

Last time I talked about the Problem With Being Creative. Now let me talk about my other problem: I’m a dreamer. The following is one of my favourite passages in all of Scripture. It encourages me to dream big dreams…

(3) Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

(4) Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

(5) Commit your way to the LORD;
trust in him and he will do this:

(6) He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

– Psalm 37:3-6 (NIV)

I believe God wants to make our dreams come true. The problem is that it can be hard to see that sometimes. We get used to being disappointed. So we stop trying. We stop dreaming.

But I think God wants to give us our dreams. And Psalm 37 tells us how… “Delight” in the Lord (v.4). Worship Him, enjoy Him, make Him Your center of attention and reason for being. “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” — He’ll make Your dreams come true! This is true because as we delight in Him, we change. As we change, our priorities, our desires, our dreams change. We trust Him with our dreams. We commit those dreams to Him. We begin to pray, like Jesus did, “Your will, Father, not mine be done.”

I think our dreams can and will come true as we truly trust God, delight in Him and commit our dreams into His hands.

Before I started to sense God calling me into ministry, I had other dreams; stuff like being a rock star or a cartoonist. Obviously being a rock star was probably a pipe dream, but being a cartoonist seemed a little more likely at the time. So I was working as a graphic designer, but dreaming of “bigger things”…

When I went off to Bible college, I basically gave my own dreams to God and said “Your will, not mine, Lord.” Little did I know what that would mean. Sheesh, I never wanted to be a missionary, even after Bible college. But that’s another story. This story is about how I gave those dreams of creative occupations, and God gave them back to me; only, when I got them back, they suddenly looked a whole lot different.

I never got to be a rock star, but during and after Bible college I got to develop my musical side a lot, and had many good experiences playing and singing. Only now I was a worship leader instead of a grunge puppy rock star wannabe. I even recorded a CD. And I haven’t gotten to be a full-time, paid cartoonist, but I have been doing a webcomic for almost three years now, and finally have published my first book collecting those strips. And have I ever mentioned that I created SkitZo MaN about 13 years ago? Sometimes dreams just take longer than we’d like… That doesn’t mean we should give up on them!

And, as I briefly mentioned in my previous post, I’ve got this ongoing, evolving dream of bringing my creative side and my ministry side together into one “big thing”. What form this beast will take remains to be seen, but I’m continuing to work towards that every time I exercise my creative muscles (including writing this blog). And, as I’m preparing for ministry in Japan, I’m beginning to see how being a big comic geek (like me) could actually be an advantage!

All that to say keep dreaming…

As I said, these are good things for me to reflect on as I near another time of transition. In a future post I hope to share some more recent thoughts on knowing and doing God’s will, along with some quotes I’ve found encouraging along the way. Hopefully you can find some encouragement here as well.

I did an “archive dive” of my old blog (not this one, but this one) tonight, looking for something I wrote way back when. I found two things I wrote back in 2006 (when I was still in Canada preparing to come to Japan as a missionary). I thought these were worth re-visiting because they seem to have fresh relevance as I end my first 2-year term with GP and dream about the future.

Here’s the first one, dated December 9, 2006, and titled The Problem With Being Creative:

Some of you may be wondering how a guy like me — working in retail as well as being busy doing the missionary support raising thing — has time for stuff like blogging, web design and particularly SkitZo MaN. The answer is a three-parter:

One, I think too many people kill themselves doing “good things” and then end up being no good to anyone. I don’t want to be one of those guys. And there are a lot of those guys in ministry, since it’s so easy to justify doing too much “for the Lord”. So, I may be busy, but I refuse to burn myself by not taking time out to just “be”. This includes time with God, resting, friends and of course being creative.

Secondly, I have this dream that my ministry side and my creative side will someday come together into one “big picture”. In the meantime I want to continue developing my talents. More on this in another post…

Thirdly, I can’t not be creative. If it wasn’t SkitZo MaN, it would be something else. Unless you’re some kind of artistic type yourself you’ll probably not understand. Creative people create. We must. It’s who we are.

Take tonight for example: I was trying to read but I couldn’t. My mind kept wandering. I’ve been dreaming up some new ideas and sometimes they come to the surface at the most inconvenient times. I’ve got more ideas than I know what to do with.

And that’s the problem with being creative: In a way, it’s something that can’t be controlled. And yet, you know, sometimes we actually don’t have time.

But we have to make time. God’s given all of us (not just us “artsy fartsy” types, but all of us) talents and gift. We honour Him when we use them and enjoy them and bless other people with them. We dishonour Him — and ourselves — when we waste them.

Next time: The Problem With Being a Dreamer

I still agree with most of what I said, if not how I said it. And I’m still dreaming about that “big picture” I mentioned. Not only that, but I feel as if I’m getting closer to actually getting there. And that’s encouraging.

“They stoned Paul and dragged him out of town, thinking he was dead. But as the believers gathered around him, he got up and went back into the town.”
- Acts 14:19-20 (NLT)

These words really stuck out to me the other day as I was reading the passage. Paul is out sharing the Gospel, runs into opposition, has the stuffing beat out of him, and is dragged out of town and left for dead. And then what? He gets up and goes right back into town. Wow. He doesn’t run away. He doesn’t back down. He goes right back into the city he was just thrown out of. Back into the fray.

I’ve never been beat up for my faith. I’ve never faced anything remotely close to that kind of persecution, and I assume most of the people reading this haven’t either. But I have failed. I’ve been hurt. I’ve been disappointed by others. I’ve disappointed myself. I’ve sinned when I knew better and felt rotten for it.

But when I read this passage, I remembered that whatever failure I’ve had, whatever hurt I’ve experienced, it doesn’t have to have the last word. With God’s help, I can get up and go back. And so can you.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
- John 1:1 (NIV)

Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about what the Bible means when it refers to Jesus as “the Word”. I’m sure there’s more depth to it than I’ve yet discovered, but here’s what I’ve got so far:

Jesus is God’s way of revealing Himself to us. He could have sent another prophet to tell us about Him. He could have shown us some sort of miraculous sign in the sky. Instead, He came to us in a form we could understand: He became one of us. Jesus is God’s most clear revelation of His own character. If you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus.

This has a huge affect on how we see God. And it should have a huge affect on how we view Scripture too. Jesus is the center-piece of the Bible. Everything in the Old Testament leads up to Him; everything in the New Testament is directly influenced by His life and teachings.

Beyond that, Jesus Himself teaches us how we should interpret Scripture: Himself (a pretty bold assertion to make, but if He’s really God, then He can do that). He tells us He’s the fulfillment of the Law. He replaces the sacrificial system with His own sacrifice. And He radically re-interprets a lot of Old Testament teachings by showing us God’s heart behind them (the letter versus the spirit of the Law).

I think a lot of the Church’s history of legalism, abuses of power and misuse of the Bible to justify political and personal agendas is rooted in a failure to interpret the written Word through the life and teachings of the Living Word, Jesus.

Christians often talk about “getting back to the Bible”. I say we get back to Jesus.

I recently started previewing my new webcomic project, Doodze, over on Facebook. It’s been a while since I’ve had an ongoing comic or cartoon on the web, and this is my most ambitious attempt to date. As I’ve thought and learned about the artistic process, I’ve developed an artistic philosophy, which has influenced which project I’ve chosen to pursue and my decision to launch it now rather than later, when I’ve got more time or feel more ready. I’m still learning, but here’s my artistic philosophy as I understand my chosen art form and my own strengths and weaknesses as an artist…

1. Perfectionism kills inspiration. It’s better to create imperfect art than to not create at all.

2. Don’t wait until you’re “good enough” to launch into an artistic endeavor. If you wait, you never will be.

3. Creating comics should be fun. I need to want to draw this thing to keep on doing it.

4. Planning ahead is good, but I need the freedom to improvise, change my mind… or even make it up as I go.

5. Inspiration is not enough. Discipline is needed in order to take an idea and see it through. People who only create when they feel like it usually never improve or reach their artistic goals. This is the difference between an artistic person and an artist — not just talent, but also time and effort.

6. Specific goals and deadlines are necessary. Especially if you’re a disorganized procrastinator like me. Stuff you learn about being a better organized student or employee or whatever can help you be a more productive and fulfilled artist.

7. Artists are notoriously disorganized and tend to be good at creating clutter. I definitely fit in that category. But being organized doesn’t stunt creativity, contrary to some people’s thinking. In fact, it aids creativity because it allows you to focus on the thing you’re creating, not your piles of junk.

8. Good ideas need time to brew in private before you go public with them. But don’t sit on a good idea forever. Face the fear, get it done, and put it out there for the world to enjoy.

Here in Japan one of the traditions at the beginning of a new year is to do a thorough housecleaning.  I guess it’s kind of an “in with the new, out with the old” kind of thing.  Seems like a good way to start the year, so this year I decided I should do that.

In addition to my semi-regular vacuuming, dusting and such,  I cleaned out my closets, sorted through papers, books and other clutter; sorted, filed and threw a lot of stuff out.  It’s amazing how much junk one can accumulate over the course of one  year.  I still had boxes from when I moved here that hadn’t been thrown out.  With only a year till I move again, it almost seems silly to throw them out, but they’ve been sitting out on  my balcony in the weather, so they were getting to be in pretty rough shape.

Have you ever noticed (or is it just me?) that when you do a good housecleaning, you’re extra careful to keep things neat and clean?  You notice every speck of dust or lint, you don’t let stuff pile up on your desk, and you’re careful not to make a mess when you’re cooking… At least, for the first few days.  But it doesn’t take long before you start to slack off (or, again, is it just me?).  The dishes and papers pile up, there’s a layer of dust collecting, and before you know there are a tumbleweed-sized dust bunnies rolling through the room.

I think we’re the same with New Year’s resolutions, too, aren’t we?  We vow that this year will be different, we make pledges to ourselves to do things differently, and we start off on the right foot… but before long, we lose our footing and fall right back into the same old ruts.  We do this not just at New Year’s time, but any time we try to make a fresh start… in our own strength.

I’m feeling pretty good about how this year is starting off.  There are definitely some things I’m planning to do differently.  I think I’m off on the right foot, too.  And I’m praying for grace to follow through.

I was reading through Philippians, one of my favourite parts of the Bible, this morning. A couple of things stood out to me I thought I’d share.

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus… (Phil. 1:3-6)

I can’t read these verses anymore without thinking about all the churches, individuals and family members who are supporting my ministry in Japan through their praying, giving and encouraging words. So if I haven’t said it enough, THANK YOU! I pray God will bless you all for your part in my ministry and His kingdom.

… I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. (Phil. 4:11-13)

This is a lesson I’m still learning to live out. For me the issue is not money or things. I really do have everything I need. And then some. But when I think about the future, with all the stuff I could be doing, the ministries I could be a part of, the opportunities I could have, sometimes it’s hard to be content now.

I’m a dreamer. I’m always looking ahead. I’m always looking for what’s next. It’s good to dream, it’s good to have goals and plans, but sometimes we can get so focused on the future that we fail to enjoy the present. Sometimes the work we have to do now to reach the goals and dreams we have don’t seem worth all the hassle in the present. We wish we could skip ahead.

I love Japan. I’m happy to be here. I even love learning the language. But it’s hard work. For me, the thing I have to remember is that this of focused language study is a step towards those goals and dreams for the future. It’s not a waste of time. In fact, it’s a necessity. But beyond seeing its value for the future, I need to learn to see the present as good in and of itself, and learn to take joy in the here and now.

There will always be a tension between being content and dreaming of a better future. But the present isn’t so bad. In fact I’m blessed.

Lord, help us to see Your blessings in the here and now!

I just realized how these two points tie together. One of the great blessings I have in the present is the many supporters standing behind me as I travel this journey. So again, thanks.

This is the third in a 3-part series. If you haven’t read them yet, you may want to check out Part One and Part Two first. Again, if you’ve experienced — or are experiencing — culture shock yourself, feel free to leave a comment with your two cents. Here are some thoughts on my experiences…

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Everybody goes through culture shock when they move to a foreign place. But not everyone goes through the same kind of culture shock.

My experience with culture shock has been mild compared to what a lot of people might go through. Living among and working with fellow-Believers has helped. But in Osaka, there wasn’t as much adapting to do as there in now in Nagoya. There were moments of stress like catching the wrong train and ending up who-knows-where. There was trouble shopping, and other language-related difficulties. And there were times when I just got tired of being a “novelty” or standing out. But in my day-to-day life I could survive without learning Japanese, because my job was English teaching and my friends and co-workers were mostly fellow-expats.

This time is different. I’m definitely more immersed this time, but now I have the advantage of having lived in Japan previously. The main thing that causes culture shock for me is the language barrier: It’s a bit frustrating, even overwhelming, to be surrounded by Japanese and not able to join the conversation. And it feels like in order for the others to include me I have to suddenly become the center of the conversation, which I don’t want; but often it’s either that or feeling left out. Japan is also a more group-oriented society, a place where there’s a right and wrong way to do everything, and a culture where communication is less direct — all of which add to the learning curve.

But when I do face stresses relating to these cultural differences, it’s always an opportunity to learn. Language barriers give me incentive to study Japanese. Doing things the wrong way helps me remember the right way. Dealing with and working through culture shock helps one to understand and relate to the new culture — to acculturate.

And, little by little, God is helping me to do just that.

This is the second in a three-part series of writings that are adapted from stuff I did for the internship program I’m in. Click HERE for part one, where I give an overview of culture shock, at least as I define it.

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Whatever form culture shock takes, it is natural for us to experience it when we are in the process of acculturation. In fact, if we aren’t experiencing any culture shock at all, we’re probably not experience the new culture itself, either. A friend told me about someone he met here in Japan who basically goes home after work and stays there, watching American TV and American movies, in English. Actually I would guess that this person was experiencing culture shock, but instead of facing it and working through it, he was choosing to ignore it by isolating himself from the strange world around him.

While I would agree that “disconnecting” for a while can be healthy, why bother moving to a country on the other side of the world if all you’re going to do is stay in your room and never go out and experience the culture? I myself enjoy reading or watching something English-language and familiar as an “escape” sometimes. One thing about living in a foreign, non-English-speaking culture is that ordinary, every day, easy tasks feel like work; so it’s nice to get away from that from time to time and enjoy doing something that doesn’t require as much thought or that exercises a different part of the brain. But part of the joy of living in another country is what we can learn and experience that people at home only dream about.

Not only is there a lot to enjoy, but if you’re going to live in a foreign country long-term, acculturation is essential. And, like it or not, culture shock is a part of the acculturation process. It’s not just an unfortunate side-effect, though; it can actually aid the process if we let it. As I said, not experiencing any culture shock shows we’re not experiencing the culture, and as such not acculturating. On the other hand, going through culture shock helps us learn the new frames of reference, meanings, and assumptions that are necessary to adopt in order to enjoy living on foreign soil on a long-term basis.

And that — living in a foreign place long-term — is exactly what I’m working towards…

This is the first in a 3-part (for now) series on, as you’ve no doubt guessed from the title, culture shock. It’s taken from some assignments I did for HQ a while back as part of the internship program I’m in. Here in part one, I’ll give an overview of what I think culture shock is, in part two delve a little deeper, and in part three talk about my personal experiences. Feel free to comment if you’ve dealt with culture shock yourself before.

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I remember coming to Japan the first time and people asking me if I was experiencing any culture shock. Honestly, I didn’t think I was, but on the other hand, though I’d heard the term thrown around, I never really knew what it meant.

So what exactly is culture shock anyway? I would define culture shock as any stress, discomfort or agitation caused by cultural differences when living or visiting a place that is culturally different from your home. This could happen after moving across the country or around the world, and could range in severity from mild irritation to emotional breakdown. It’s the tension that happens when different cultures come in contact with each other.

Culture shock, then, as broadly defined above, is something that we all experience when moving into another culture. The specific form it takes will differ from person to person. The severity of our culture shock will depend on our individual personalities, weaknesses and strengths. It will also depend on just how different our new host culture is from our home culture and on how immersed we are in the host culture.

Whatever form or severity it takes, culture shock is pretty much inevitable when you make your home on foreign soil.

I didn’t begin pursuing a life of ministry in Japan because I thought I would fit in here. I fell in love with Japan because of having lived here. I also didn’t have a great sense that my personality or talents would lend themselves to ministry in Japan specifically. But, having already decided to follow God’s leading back to Japan, I had a lot of time to think about the future and where I might fit. And though I’m still figuring out the specifics, there are some things I’ve realized about myself that lend themselves to ministry in Japan.

In some ways, my personality lends itself to acculturation in Japan: I think I’m pretty flexible and willing to change, as would be needed if I moved to any foreign culture. But I also share some personality traits with what’s considered the “norm” here in Japan, such as my dislike of confrontation, or my friendly but generally-quiet and not-pushy personality.

I also have a desire to focus my ministry on youth and young adults — which, as it turns out, is a particular area of need in Japan. My talents and interests in comics are an asset, too — or could be in the future — because comics (manga) are such a big part of pop culture here (where the highest selling comic sells as many copies in a week as the highest-selling US comic does in a year). I also think the Japanese church is in need of some new ideas, and being a creative person in general could be useful.

On the other hand, there are sides of my personality that could be a problem (for me or others) sometimes. I’m a non-traditional, non-conformist person in a 4,000-year old, highly-conformist culture. I’m also working with a very traditional, conservative national church here in Japan. Will my new ideas be heard? Will I be able to use my talents and gifts to their fullest potential? Will I rub people the wrong way if I’m unwilling — or unable, or unsure of how to — adapt?

The potential is definitely there for me to feel squeezed into a mold that doesn’t fit me. The potential’s also there for me to offend or damage relationships if I don’t handle differences appropriately or adapt where I should.

But there is also a lot of positive potential if I’m willing to learn and adapt in the ways that I need to.

Today’s post is another paper from the correspondence TESL course I was taking back in the Fall. This assignment was on the question of whether or not grammar should be taught explicitly in the ESL classroom. Any thoughts? Feel free to comment, especially if you’re a language teacher — or student, for that matter.

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Grammar is an unavoidable part of teaching English as a second language. In any language, grammar is the “code” that helps us understand each other. It ties words together so that we can make sense of what someone is saying. If one is going to help another person learn English, grammar must be taught. The questions are, “How?” and “How much?”

Should ESL students be taught grammar explicitly? That is, do they need to know the names of all the different parts of the sentences and tenses? Do they need to learn all the rules of English grammar by heart? Or can grammar be picked up implicitly? Can students simply become aware of the patterns and rules of grammar through practice?

The answer, I think, lies somewhere in the middle. As Jim Scrivener points out in Learning Teaching, the kind of grammar an ESL teacher needs to teach is not the informational kind but the practical kind: “Scott Thornbury, in his book Uncovering Grammar, has suggested that we could open up our concept of ‘grammar’ if we start thinking of it as not just a noun (i.e. the information), but as a verb as well (i.e. the active skill of using language). It’s probably this ‘verby’ kind of grammar that we most need to help our learners work with in class.” (Scrivener, p. 253)

Our students don’t necessarily need to know all the names of the different tenses and sentence parts. If we are honest, most native English speakers – even ESL teachers — don’t know all of these aspects of grammar. For example, let’s look at this sentence: “Bob will already have taken the test when I arrive tomorrow.” Before I started taking this TESL class, I couldn’t have told you (without looking it up) that it is in the future perfect tense. However, I could have hold you what it means: Bob will take a test tomorrow. After that, I will arrive. Bob will be finished taking the test before I arrive.

That is the kind of practical grammar learning our ESL students need. They need to be able to hear or read a sentence and understand it. They need to be able to speak or write and be understood. How do we teach them this kind of “verby” grammar?

I would suggest what I would call “situational” grammar teaching. In other words, given a certain language context, certain grammar points naturally come up as teaching topics. For instance, a lesson in which you talk about “How I spent my summer vacation” would be used to talk about past tenses. Depending on the skill level of the class, you could talk about a number of different past tenses, in a situational, conversational context instead of a list of names and rules.

In part, what I’m talking about is teaching by example. Students learn a grammar point by seeing it “in action”. But it’s not enough to just hope that they pick up the pattern. There needs to be some explanation as well – but it needs to be practical and geared toward the skill level of the class. And it needs to be followed by a lot of practice.

In short, a brief explanation followed by plenty of practice would be preferable over a long, explicit explanation. Language is meant to be used.

This week and next I’m continuing my series of writings on Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL), using more material taken from assignments I did for my TESL course. Today’s post was written back in mid-December, and is about teacher vs. student talk time in the language classroom. I should add that there’s quite a bit of student talk time in the Japanese class I’m taking now. This is a good thing.

There is a big difference between accuracy and fluency. This is an idea I have thought about frequently during both my private Japanese-language studies and my teaching English course.

I have studied Japanese off and on for a few years now. If tested, I would probably discover that I have a fairly large vocabulary. I also know the basics of Japanese grammar and pronunciation fairly accurately. However, I am far from fluent. In fact, it is a struggle for me to carry on even the most basic of conversations in Japanese.

So what’s missing? It is true that I could (and should) spend a lot more time studying. But probably the thing I need the most is more practice actually using what I already know; I need more talk time. I heard someone point out recently that in real, every day conversations, it’s actually more important to be fluent than it is to be accurate. In other words, getting an idea or message across to the person we’re speaking to should be our concern, rather than making sure we get every word and grammar use exactly right. I think this is true. Of course we should always aim to improve, but real communication can still take place even while we’re still learning. And in the process of trying, failing and trying again, we learn more than we could have without trying at all.

If practice is so important in learning a second language, then in ESL conversation classes it is important that we as teachers give the students ample opportunities to put into practice what we have been teaching them. If we’re going to do this, we need to be willing to talk less. Teacher talk time is important, especially as we introduce new concepts. But without actually putting these new language items to work, students are less likely to remember them when the class is over. If the students do not get talk time in class, they will not improve in their ability to actually communicate in English. This is especially true if we are living in a non-English speaking country, where students don’t get many opportunities to use English in their lives outside the classroom.

For these reasons, I think it is important for teacher talk time to be limited so that student talk time takes up a large part of each lesson. As for an exact ratio, that it would depend on the size of the class. In smaller classes, there can be more teacher-to-student interaction without any students being left out. In larger classes, students will have to talk to each other more and to the teacher less. In either case, though, the teacher should err on the side of speaking less (20-40% of class time). Teacher talk time should always be less than half of the lesson, with that percentage being lower the more students there are.

With my move to Japan less than 3 weeks away (eek!) I’ve got lots of little things to do, as well as some not-so-little things. The visa application is out of my hands, the plane ticket is booked for the 28th, and just yesterday I shipped two boxes of stuff to Nagoya. The rest of the week my focus is on finishing my TESL course.

And on that subject, on to the real topic of today’s post: Teaching Methods. This article is a copy of one of my TESL course assignments, done several weeks back and posted here for you to read if you have any interest in teaching English. If you’re a teacher yourself, I’d love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to respond with a comment.

It is certainly possible to adhere to only one teaching method throughout an entire lesson. The examples Larsen-Freeman shows us in Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching, for instance, are all one-method lessons. All of these teaching methods have some value, but whether or not it is a good idea to use one method exclusively is another question. I think there is more value in using a variety of methods in the second language classroom.

Every learner is different, and comes to class with a unique mix of talents, weaknesses, and learning preferences. Each learner would best be served with a different teaching method. Some people learn best by hearing, some by seeing and some by doing – and for each of these learning styles there are a variety of possible methods to use in teaching. If all our classes were one-on-one, it might be possible to use one method for each student, with lessons targeted specifically for that one student and his/her learning needs. The reality is, though, that most English teachers need to teach a variety of personalities in the same class. It’s also probably true that each learner, while he/she might have a particular learning strength or preference, is actually mix of different strengths and learning styles. Therefore, a variety of methods would be a great asset in the ESL classroom.

Choosing the right method depends not only on the students, but on what aspect of the English language is being taught. Since language is meant to be used in the “real world”, it would be wise to give the students a lot of opportunities to practice. After all, this is how we learn our own language as children – by trying it out for ourselves, not by copying notes from a board or listening to a lecture. On the other hand, reading and writing, as well as listening and speaking, are important components in language learning. And some concepts do need some explaining before they can be practiced.

Before I became involved in ministry or considered living and teaching overseas, I was a graphic designer. When I was in community college learning graphic arts, there were a variety of classes and subject matter being taught. As such, there were a variety of teaching methods being used as well. For topics such as law and business, there was a lot of lecture and discussion. For software use and design techniques, there was more “hands on” learning.

Personally, I learn best by doing. In fact, there were many techniques and tricks I learned on the job, after finishing school, that I didn’t learn in the classroom. On the other hand, even in regard to the practical, on-the-job aspects of design, I needed both to be told what to do and to have the chance to do it for myself – to learn by trial and error. I might not have learned by doing without first having someone give me some direction. And it might not have “stuck” if I didn’t have the opportunity to put theory into practice.

I think language learning is much the same. For the sake of different learning styles, as well as the different parts of English to be taught, ESL teachers should use variety in the classroom. We need to remember, too, that not every method will work in every situation. So there is trial and error on the part of the teacher as well as the student. This will lead to even more variety, as we experiment to see what works in our own context. What is important is that the students are learning. It couldn’t hurt to keep things fun, either.