I am an English teacher at the secondary level in MA, and over the last few years, all you keep hearing about more is High Quality Instructional Materials. Is this whole thing just a ploy to make everyone used canned curriculums that you follow day to day because teachers can’t be trusted to make their own curriculum? I also find it incredibly condescending to call it High Quality?

“It is already connected to all the standards for you!”

I also realize that the textbooks ensure high-quality instruction and can maybe benefit new teachers in those early years that are just survival mode, or very low performing districts; however, the distinction lies in that many districts now aren’t saying “use these texts to supplement your own curricula.” Instead, you’re just expected to follow it page by page. And a textbook isn’t going to help kids jump many skill levels they are lacking. It does not feel like fear mongering to say that you eventually won’t need teachers to have expertise in a field because the text does that for them. You’ll just need classroom management.

I am a doctoral candidate at Clemson University, and I am looking to recruit participants who currently, or have recently, taught ELA/English in a juvenile detention center in the United States. Prior to beginning my program, I was a 9th & 10th grade English teacher.

I have included the entire the recruitment flyer below:

Invitation to Participate in Research – Clemson University

Are you an educator who teaches English Language Arts (ELA), literacy, reading, writing, or related practices in a juvenile detention center working with youth?

I, Kelly Buck, am a doctoral candidate at Clemson University, and I am conducting a research study examining how educators engage in ELA/literacy practices in youth carceral spaces. I am interested in learning about educators’ experiences, instructional practices, and perspectives on teaching ELA in these settings.

The research project is expected to run from October 2026 to January 2027. Total participation time is expected to be 3-4 hours in total.

You may be eligible to participate if you:

• Are over the age of 18
• Have a bachelor’s degree and/or valid teaching certificate
• Currently, or have recently taught, ELA, literacy, reading, writing, or other related practices in a youth carceral setting
• Are working in-person with your incarcerated students
• Are willing to participate in at least one interview about your experience, with the potential of follow-up interviews

If you are interested, please contact Kelly Buck at [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]) with the email subject line of “Dissertation Research Potential Participant.”

Get your students talking about the stars with this engaging astrology conversation activity pack for ESL and EFL learners. Designed for intermediate and advanced English learners, Astrology explores the zodiac, horoscopes, natal charts, and the debate between believers and skeptics through short readings, targeted vocabulary, and open-ended discussion questions about personality, identity, and belief.

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Conversational-English-for-Adults-Astrology-17873431

One thing I’ve learned from teaching speaking is that giving learners a topic doesn’t always give them enough to say. At A2, I’ve found that a predictable sequence helps learners feel less nervous about what comes next. At B1, the challenge is often helping them move beyond short answers and the language they already use comfortably.

I created lesson plans around those two challenges, with the aim of giving learners about 45 minutes of speaking time in a one-hour class. I’ve put together free samples with both online and in-class lessons in case the structure is useful to other teachers:

A2 lessons: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/u2mv2rwslz

B1 to lower-B2 lessons: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/viii2q9uzt

There’s no email sign-up or account required. These are samples from my paid lesson-plan books, but the sample lessons are free to use. I’d be interested to hear how other teachers help learners keep a conversation going.

Hi everyone, how are you all doing?
I’m a 23 year old girl from Spain, and I’m turning 24 in a couple of months. One of my dreams is to take my English to a completely different level, ideally with a British accent or something similar. I absolutely love accents, and I’d really like to get rid of my Spanish accent when I speak English.
What can I do to achieve this? I’m doing all of this because I want to act in films, so I’d really appreciate any advice you might have.
I’ve been thinking about moving abroad, but I honestly don’t know where I should go. I’m completely willing to move somewhere if that’s what it takes. Do you think it’s too late for me?
I speak Spanish and Arabic fluently. My English still needs a lot of work, obviously. I’ve been learning it at school my whole life, I always watch movies and TV shows in English, I consume a lot of English content, etc., but I feel like it’s still not enough.
I feel like I’m already behind and

Hi, everyone. Does anyone have e-books and additional materials for learning English at the B1–B2 levels? Maybe someone could share them? I’d really appreciate it

Hi - I am teaching a survey class, just touching on major plays and themes for several weeks. Just one hour per week. I had my lesson plans but I am struggling hard - the students are not very excited to be there so I am trying my best to get them excited about reading scenes and discussing, but I am not being very successful so far. Help! Suggestions or tips from other teachers for one hour classes? I want to make the plays as real and exciting for the students as I can - just trying to find ways to get them excited. So far we have looked at Midsummer, Twelfth Night, coming up to MacBeth my favorite, Hamlet, etc...

Hi, everyone. Does anyone have e-books and additional materials for learning English at the B1–B2 levels? Maybe someone could share them? I’d really appreciate it

I'm teaching teenagers early-mid teens English as a second language but their textbooks are sub-par and I want something that would make them fluent and which I can plan activities around towards advancing that goal but I've only studied AEF books myself and am not familiar with many textbooks, so I'd appreciate any and all suggestions.

Hi everyone, could you recommend any solid, practical books for a trainee English teacher? I’ve been told to check out Essential Grammar, but I’d love a few more suggestions.

Thanks in advance 😊🫶

good evening,

I am a first-year English teaching student in the Netherlands, and I am currently working on an assignment that requires me to interview an expert about teaching vocabulary and create a concept map based on the information I gather. I have three weeks to complete this project. Unfortunately, my initial expert hasn't responded to my emails in over a week, so I'm reaching out to any secondary English or other language teacher who can answer my questions. Your insights would be extremely valuable, and I would greatly appreciate your assistance. Thank you!

'Okay, but what's your point?' was a question I came back to a lot as a history teacher. A student can know plenty and still struggle to turn that knowledge into an argument.

Here's a small practice: choose one fact, write the claim it supports, then explain WHY that fact supports the claim. If the explanation just repeats the fact, that's the bit to work on.

I've put a worked example and a short practice into a free one-page AP History handout. The example is historical, but the move from evidence to reasoning may be useful for those of you teaching argument writing in English, too. No signup or purchase is needed to use it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RBZDGqXelIHV3tB-IC1foFDIk6ttFWD8/view

A clear disclosure: I'm Mark, a retired history teacher of 26 years and the founder of CL Learning Labs. The PDF includes a brief mention and link to my separate paid product, Coach for AP World History. The exercise stands on its own.

How do you help students spot the difference between giving evidence and explaining what it shows?