Getting creative in EFL

To the English, English language means so much more than just a method of communication. This is reflected in the numerous literary academics turned out year on year. You only have to flick through any of the national papers or TV channels to experience the UK's love for language; there are quick witted captions, crossword puzzles and language themed game shows. On a global scale, reality TV, social networking and blogging positively encourage the use of language to express who we are, and more importantly, to share our literary feelings with with the rest of world. I am no exception to this and I adore creative writing and have used it at the most intense moments of my life to make sense of the world around me.

Some ESL students can find learning and practising English a lonely road to tread. Many feel unhappy and isolated in British society, and the inaccurate reporting by the media regarding immigration and asylum does not help this situation. I have found that students often use English in a way they think is acceptable to English speakers rather than 'owning' it for themsleves. It can be a matter of confidence with some students; they may have a wide and varied vocabulary but do not put it into practice as much as they could for fear of "getting it wrong". This not a revelation - I know a decent amount of Spanish and yet have found myself utterly tongue-tied when attempting a simple conversation with a native Spanish speaker! It seems to me that even if I learnt Spanish to a high level, being able to use it confidently and creatively for my own self-expression, is the fundamental key to success.

In my opinion, the EFL sector lacks opportunities for students to develop creatively when learning English. The modern curriculum's tend to dictate, and/or predict, the way in which the student will go on to use English in the future and it will usually be assumed that it is for social or employment purposes only. While this is fine for the majority and will tick the boxes for Government targets, I believe it can be too restrictive. Maybe it's time that ESOL students were introduced to a side of the English language they can enjoy.

With that in mind I began to collate some materials and plan ESOL activities that I felt would concentrate on three main things; inclusion, engagement and self expression. I ran these classes for one afternoon a week along side the ESOL SFL core curriculum. The lesson became more about the students ideas, feelings and participation and less about the target language... not "getting it right" but "getting it out". In this way the target language digested iimplicitly rather than explicitly. I am not suggesting that EFL can be taught without explicit instruction but I believe that creating opportunities for incidental learning is just as important. I planned my creative lessons around role-play, poetry, lyrics, music, films and diary writing, and I found that the students became less conscious about finding the right words and engaged in my lessons in such a way that I began to see their confidence grow and their personalities emerge - in fact they opened up like flowers!