ÃÛÌÒapp

What do we, as teachers, need to teach effectively in these times? Well, as a teacher – but also as an ESL learnerÌý–ÌýI’ve always believed that English is not something to be studied, it’s something to be lived: it's my mantra.Ìý

Based on that idea, throughout my career, I’ve been seeking not only academic tools that support my teaching, but also resources that turn teaching into an experience, not just a class. That’s what I found when I first discovered the GSE, and what has drawn me so closely to ÃÛÌÒapp – not just the textbooks, but the initiatives, research, projects, tools and more.

Adapting to technological change

Now, artificial intelligence was introduced into our lives not long ago, and it seems like it’s here to stay. Whether you’re a fan of it or not, we must accept that it’s part of our present – and our future. We need to learn how to use it wisely.ÌýLiving the language means understanding that the world changes – and we must change with it. Technology is essential (and I love it), but there are things it simply cannot replace: creativity, communication and leadership. These are deeply human traits and, as teachers, we must not only teach them but also create environments where students connect with others and grow as people through language.

Then, both students and teachers will be able to use their language, collaborative, leadership and empathethic skills in English-speaking environments – and these skills are crucial for thriving in the fast-paced world of technological progress.

The power of soft skills and confidence

There’s one experience that changed my mindset years ago – and it’s directly connected to the title of this text. The moment my English fluency truly improved was the moment I began to believe in myself. It was when I projected the version of myself I wanted to become. It was when I realized I wanted to speak to the world, and my confidence extended far beyond the classroom.

Long story short, my perspective as a student shifted dramatically when I got my first job. That’s when I realized the value of understanding the world, being able to communicate effectively, and developing essential soft skills – skills I didn’t even realize I was learning at the time, but which have been crucial to my personal and professional growth. Today, I’m glad that education is starting to include these elements in the classroom.

ÃÛÌÒapp’s support for educators and students

I’m excited about ÃÛÌÒapp's latest research into GSE Soft Skills (report coming soon). The GSE provides a methodological framework and resources to enhance my teaching. It also offers answers to my long-standing questions, including tools to prepare my classes more effectively and support my colleagues in helping students master both language and professional skills.

We must prepare our students for life beyond the classroom. By offering clear goals, role models, opportunities to practice and consistent feedback, ÃÛÌÒapp helps us spend less time planning and more time engaging with our learners.

The world is moving fast – and sometimes faster than we can keep up with. By integrating creativity, communication and leadership into our lessons, we give our students the skills that employers value most and that technology can’t replace. These are the same skills that, without a doubt, helped me reach my goals.

In my case, I didn’t learn these soft skills at a very young age – but the sooner our students do, the better. The earlier they connect with their purpose, the deeper the impact.

When I think about myself as a teacher, I always try to remember what it was like to be a student. These tools remind me of the things I learned in my younger years – and that I now want my students to experience too. Embracing these global changes and resources allows me to better reflect who I am – not only as a teacher, but as a person.Ìý

As a proofreader and editor, I'm often asked to explain the rules of grammar. I answered three of the most common questions in the first post of this series, and now it's time to look at another frequent query: how to use apostrophes.ÌýWhere do they go? When are they needed? And when should they be left out entirely?

Apostrophes might be small but they can cause big confusion because they are used both to indicate posession and to contract words. But the good news is that there are clear, simple patterns to follow, which we'll explore, along with exceptions to watch out for.ÌýWhether you’re writing a report or just a text message, these tips will help you use apostrophes correctly and confidently.

Startups are generally considered to be new, technology-focused companies that are less than five years old. For the most part, they aim to disrupt industry with innovations, grow in terms of users and revenues and provide value to customers and shareholders.

It may not appear that startups have much in common with English Language Teaching (ELT), but there is, in fact, plenty to learn from startups and the way they work.

By understanding how startups think and looking at their best attributes, we can bring more creativity to our classrooms. Not only can we find new ways for our students to learn, collaborate and grow together, but we can also help our students develop much-needed leadership and critical thinking skills.

What is startup thinking?

At its core, startup thinking is about problem-solving and growth. User-focused and data-driven, startup teams theorize, research, plan and test their products on new markets. Their strength is in their agility, being able to "pivot" quickly: change products, services and technology based on feedback from their customers.

They also operate on a number of key principles, all of which can be applied in the classroom:

1. Be entrepreneurial

Startups are entrepreneurial by definition. Their staff work in teams, but also have no problem going it alone, finding solutions and taking responsibility for new projects and initiatives. These are all excellent traits to encourage in the classroom as they will not only help your learners in an educational context, but in their professional lives too.

By learning to be accountable to themselves, measuring their own progress and seeing their achievements, autonomous learners develop self-confidence and progress faster as a result.

It’s therefore important to encourage students to take responsibility for their own learning. Rather than being solely reliant on their teacher, autonomous learners seek out ways to practice and improve their language skills in ways that appeal to them.

To do this, brainstorm strategies with your students to help them find ways to use English outside the classroom. They could, for example, keep a journal in English, watch English language films and take notes, read short stories or news articles, or even set their technology and social media language settings to English.

2. Collaborate and learn from each other

Startups have a common goal: to establish a business model and achieve a product-market fit. This goal focuses people’s attention and develops rapport among team members. As an additional benefit of working together, startuppers learn their own strengths and weaknesses and begin to collaborate with team members with complementary skills.

By learning about your students’ interests, objectives and needs, you can find inspiration to design relevant class projects. These give your students a common goal and the chance to collaborate effectively. What’s more, project work is rich in language learning opportunities and makes students accountable to one another. This in turn increases motivation and provides a genuine context for language learning.

3. Reward effort

Startups are not afraid to get things wrong. In fact, all entrepreneurs embrace mistakes, as they are part of coming to the right solution. As Thomas Edison once said "I have not failed 10,000 times – I’ve successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work." ÌýSome startups go as far as to reward and celebrate failure – saying that it’s a sign that a person is trying to succeed.

Encourage students to see mistakes as learning opportunities. Creating a safe space in the classroom where everyone is treated with respect and mistakes are viewed as natural learning experiences. This will help your students learn the language at their own pace, without fear of ridicule.

4. Foster a growth mindset

Startups are famous for focusing on growth and believing in improving their products. They see both negative and positive feedback as opportunities to grow. By always seeking to optimize their products and services, they improve the user experience and earn loyalty.

Similarly, it’s key to foster a growth mindset in your learners. ÌýA growth mindset perceives intelligence and ability as attributes to be developed, whereas a fixed mindset sees intelligence and ability as innate and unchanging.

Students with a growth mindset will therefore believe they can improve, be more motivated and see more progress as a result.

5. Mentor and support

Startup founders mentor and support their team members when they face challenges, when they need to grow and when they are not reaching their potential. This increases the value of the workforce and enables them to be more productive.

Teachers are often already naturals at this. We know how important it is to offer support to our students, especially when they are feeling frustrated or disappointed with their progress. With our encouragement and support, our students can achieve things they never thought possible. So perhaps, in this final point, startup leaders could learn a thing or two from us.