This article provides tips for a language educator to increase productivity in lesson planning. Read on to find out more.
Table of Contents
- Action Area 1: Reframing Mindsets
- Tip 1: Be willing to exercise the power of Flexibility - lesson plans are not legal binding contracts.
- Tip 2: Take pleasure in Experimentation and stay away from Perfectionism.
- Tip 3: Adopt a Growth Mindset because Practice makes Proficiency.
- Tip 4: Take the shortest path to attain your intended learning outcomes, and not strive for fireworks at every lesson.
- Tip 5: Stay Committed to reframing our mindsets and adopting effective practices.
- Action Area 2: Adopting Effective Practices
- Tip 6: Establish a routine and stay organised.
- Tip 7: Break up a complicated task using Chunking.
- Tip 8: Have a Masterplan, such as the Curriculum, and move towards Inter-lesson planning.
- Tip 9: Start with the end in mind (backward planning).
- Tip 10: Set specific goals to stay focused at every milestone.
- Tip 11: Switch between the Focused and Diffuse mode of thinking in an extended lesson planning session.
- Tip 12: Consolidate your repertoire of good ideas and practices.
- Action Area 3: Leveraging Tools and Networks
- Tip 13: Consolidate your repository of potential resources.
- Tip 14: Review shared ready resources when you consolidate your repository.
- Tip 15: Anchor on your networks – Collaborate.
- Tip 16: Involve your students and let their feedback direct the lesson plan.
- Tip 17: Utilise Technology.
- Tip 18: Use podcasts, course guides, books, and templates.
- Conclusion
This article is not intended to provide an overview of all aspects of lesson planning, nor is it meant to be an exhaustive how-to guide. Rather, it focuses on providing tips to make lesson planning more productive and efficient. Well, exactly as the title suggests: “21 Awesome Tips to Boost Your Productivity in Lesson Planning”.
Depending on how you are trained as a teacher, the natural evolution of lesson planning practices seems to take a predictable journey illustrated as follows:
1. The novice teacher aims to be very thorough, and deliberates on all the theories and recommended practices informed by learning sciences and language acquisition before mapping out every single detail on a structured lesson plan (probably based on a template given by the institution which trained the teacher). After penning down the lesson plan, the teacher reviews the plan and edits every single detail meticulously, such as every single question to be asked and the expected response from the learners, before putting the plan away. This process may be repeated until the lesson is implemented, particularly if the novice teacher has new ideas or receives input from colleagues.
2. Time moves on. The novice teacher has undergone the purification rituals of harsh realities in real language classrooms and has gained enough experience to be more accurate in predicting what is to happen within his/her classroom – the novice has evolved into an experienced practitioner. Lesson planning becomes more efficient as it can now be done in as little as half an hour or ten minutes right before the actual class! On days when the teacher wishes to plan more thoroughly, it usually requires no more than two hours. The teacher does not write detailed lesson plans anymore but may jot down a few key points on a crumpled piece of paper to map out the thinking process and sequence of activities.
Does this sound all too familiar? I might be just illustrating stereotypical examples, with some bits that we identify with, if not all. These examples are coined based on my interactions with teachers at different phases of their careers. I have to confess too: they also mirror my practices in different phases of my career until I realise that, unsurprisingly, the sweet spot usually lies in the middle ground according to the Goldilocks Principle.
So here I am, ready to share tips on lesson planning based on what I have uncovered over the years as well as taking reference from good practices adopted by fellow educators and recommendations from research. I hope these tips can help aspiring and beginning language educators manage the challenges of the profession, and inspire our seasoned language educators to also come forward to share your tips!
Action Area 1: Reframing Mindsets
Our mindsets frame our outlook and understanding of the world, which in turn have an impact on our approach to many things. Even in the context of lesson planning, our mindsets can expedite the process and make it more productive or hold up progress with hiccups at every juncture. This section of tips thus seeks to help us reframe our mindsets, if not already so, to allow productivity to come naturally in the context of lesson planning.
Tip 1: Be willing to exercise the power of Flexibility – lesson plans are not legal binding contracts.
As language educators, we are aware of how crucial lesson planning is to provide the best possible language learning experience for our students. However, sometimes we fall into the trap of viewing our lesson plans as legal binding contracts, rather than adaptable tools to guide our teaching. We tend to overlook the fact that we possess a powerful tool in our arsenal as adaptable humans: the capacity to flexibly change the lesson plans we design. By exercising the power of flexibility, we can create a more engaging, interactive, and effective language learning experience for our students.
Do not underestimate this mindset. With flexibility, we are more ready to let go of uncertainty and be open to making changes as necessary. We can ensure that our lesson plans remain effective and responsive to our students’ needs. Additionally, being open to making changes can help us incorporate new ideas and approaches as they arise. What it also implies is that we do not need to be imprisoned to a single period of planning until it is perfect – at the cost of many other more meaningful things that can be done.
Tip 2: Take pleasure in Experimentation and stay away from Perfectionism.
There is a belief that Virgos tend to be obsessed with achieving perfection. I am unsure how truthful that belief is, but I am pretty sure that it applied to my case for many years. Well, so much so that I wrote an article to redeem myself, hoping to help language educators with such tendencies to manage it well too.
I cannot over-emphasise that Perfectionism is the recipe for frustration and burnout. Ultimately, it is one of the greatest hindrances to productivity – on any front. I know, Hercule Poirot is a perfectionist and he is definitely an admirable character, but I am not so sure that we can all be like him. Anyway, he is fictional, ain’t he?
It is important to recognise that there is no such thing as a perfect lesson plan. Every language lesson presents its own set of challenges and opportunities. We can hardly predict if we will fall sick tomorrow, and how can we expect that our class – usually more than a dozen of lively individuals – will behave and respond just like we know them? As such, it’s essential to approach lesson planning with a mindset of experimentation. Rather than striving for perfection, we should view each lesson plan as an opportunity to try out new ideas and approaches.
Taking pleasure in experimentation can potentially lead to fresh perspectives that keep us feeling invigorated. Breakthroughs are only possible if we are willing to take risks with experimentation. For instance, the willingness to give Translanguaging a try can have the potential to empower learners engaged in linguistic experimentation, and cement Translanguaging as a signature pedagogy in your classrooms.
Of course, with experimentation comes risks. Not every experiment will be successful, and that’s okay. In fact, some of the most valuable lessons can come from those that don’t go according to plan. By embracing the potential for productive failure and learning from it, we will be better equipped to create more effective lesson plans in the future.
With these in mind, we will be more receptive to taking bold steps and not indulging in covering all grounds within a lesson. Research has also found that staying from perfectionism is one way of mitigating procrastination – which is of course a barrier to productivity,
Tip 3: Adopt a Growth Mindset because Practice makes Proficiency.
Somewhat related to the previous tip is the strength of adopting a growth mindset towards lesson planning. At its core, a growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and ability can be developed through hard work, perseverance, and dedication. By adopting a growth mindset in your language teaching practice, you’ll be able to see mistakes and challenges as opportunities for growth and improvement rather than as roadblocks.
Openness to experimentation is one benefit of a growth mindset, as that involves risk-taking but may yield meaningful productive failures that bring insights for growth. At the heart of a lesson plan for a language educator, we are hoping to synthesise all that we know about language learning, education, and human learning sciences into a single lesson so that the lesson is sound, enriching, and effective in attaining our intended learning outcomes.
Yet, how skilful are we in planning for such a lesson? We need time to let our knowledge sink in and experiment with our approaches within every lesson. We need to reflect upon previous lessons that we have enacted to sharpen our approach in future lessons.
Instead of spending time to hit a perfect lesson on day one, we should reframe with a growth mindset to become more proficient over time. One important recommendation that usually accompanies a growth mindset is to prioritise deliberate practice. Deliberate practice involves setting specific, measurable goals and focusing on areas where improvement is needed. By factoring deliberate practice into our lesson planning – that is to see lesson planning as an essential skill of an educator – we will then be able to become more productive over time.
If you have noticed, I deliberately nuanced it as “Practice makes Proficiency”. This is somewhat aligned with language learning, but it also reinstates my important point that deliberate practice is not meant to push us to perfection. Instead, it is meant to equip us to become more proficient over time, so much so that lesson planning becomes a breeze. So remember, practice makes proficiency, and a growth mindset is the key to unlocking that potential.
Tip 4: Take the shortest path to attain your intended learning outcomes, and not strive for fireworks at every lesson.
I know the satisfaction of a fulfilling lesson. We talked about experimentation and that sounds mellow. Some prefer the term “innovation”, as that seems to suggest ground-breaking discoveries and the creation of hallmarked approaches. A lesson that leads to such outcomes is probably also decorated with fireworks (e.g. active discussions among learners, phenomenal improvements in the targeted language skill). Who will not want to replicate such experiences over and over again?
But the reality is always a bit more toned down. Not every lesson is packed with fireworks. Even with the master teachers among us, every lesson they teach is very much characterised by different focuses and some lessons can appear as simple and generic – not too different from a novice teacher. Even if the fireworks occur more frequently in their lessons, it will not be a daily affair.
Acknowledging that is important. Fireworks are sometimes also not planned, though I must concede that they have a higher probability of happening with good planning. However, deliberately planning for them may not actually make them happen.
Furthermore, before we become master teachers ourselves, our conception of “innovative lessons” may sometimes be misguided. We may be inclined to perceive it to be packed with complex design, and require very novel approaches with complicated sequencing or a myriad of activities. In that sense, we end up spending a lot of time designing such experiences which become fruitless.
“Don’t waste time designing overly complex learning experiences. Instead, keep it simple, stupid. Select the activity which gets your students to the end point as directly as possible.”
McCrea, 2015
Think of the bigger picture and the long-term vision. Let every lesson be simple, with the shortest path from where the learners are to the learning outcomes that are to be attained. If the learning outcome is inherently complex, then break it up into smaller pieces (I’d be exploring this in a later tip). In all good faith, we will not be expecting a beginning learner of the language to be able to write a 2000-word composition on day one.
So, do think again about the shortest path to success within a single lesson with no frills. That may save you tons of time from overthinking about unnecessary complex experiences. Even so, you may be surprised that organic fireworks may just fly in such lessons.
Tip 5: Stay Committed to reframing our mindsets and adopting effective practices.
Have you heard about the immunity to change? One of the largest barriers to any change is the commitment to change itself. This is not necessarily because the parties involved are actively resisting change, but immunity can arise when the agents involved only focused on behaviours and not mindsets and commitment.
That is why I coined this as one of the tips. To actually improve our productivity in lesson planning, or anything in particular, we must first be committed to doing so. There may be many changes that we need to introduce in our usual routines. Without explicit commitment, we may easily slip into our old habits and be misguided by our previous biases that the change is ineffective itself.
I will not be naïve to assume that all the tips I share here will be a good fit for every language educator out there. All of us have our individual circumstances and some tips work better for some than others. Thus, I have tried to be as comprehensive as possible in this article, so that if you do come across it, you can rigorously examine and experiment with them yourself.
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Action Area 2: Adopting Effective Practices
Having espoused the right mindsets does not necessarily lead to improvements in productivity. A vision remains words on the wall if it is not translated into action plans. In this section, I aim to provide tips on actionable practices that can be adopted to spur productivity in lesson planning. Do remember, these practices get better when they become habitual – Practice makes proficiency.
Tip 6: Establish a routine and stay organised.
Routines provide structure and organisation, which can help to streamline the planning process and increase productivity. By establishing a regular routine, language teachers develop the discipline and attention they need to stay on task and accomplish their objectives. This is particularly important in the recurring tasks of our professional and mundane lives – and lesson planning happens to be one of them.
In addition to providing structure and focus, routines can also help to reduce stress and anxiety. When we plan lessons at the same time and in the same place, we can get into a rhythm that allows us to plan more quickly and effectively. We are less likely to feel overburdened or unsure of what we need to do when we have a clear plan and a regular schedule. This can have an effect on confidence and motivation, which can transform lesson planning into an assuring stroll rather than an arduous journey.
Specifically, in setting up a routine, we can try to set the same lesson planning schedule each week. One way to start is to make a list of all the tasks we generally need to complete as part of lesson planning (e.g. reference to prior learning, identification of lesson objectives, ideation by looking at authentic texts, curation of lesson materials). Then, we break these down into smaller, more manageable chunks and assign each chunk a specific time that fits our schedule. By setting aside specific times for each chunk, we can ensure that we are able to complete everything that needs to be done while also avoiding burnout.
Another important aspect of staying organised is to formulate a personal system in keeping track of deadlines and assignments (e.g. using a planner or digital calendar). Every individual has his/her personal preferences and I do not like imposing my approaches on others for that. Notwithstanding such, the system must be reliable and accessible, so that we can always be confident that we are very clear where we are at any point in time and make informed decisions on what to do next. This can help us stay on top of our responsibilities and avoid last-minute scrambles to finish tasks.
Tip 7: Break up a complicated task using Chunking.
This comes in two layers: one specifically on the process of language teaching and learning, and the other on lesson planning itself. Before diving in, let’s reflect on our learning processes in other areas. When learning mathematics, do we start doing differentiation and integration from day 1? When learning to cycle, do we just hope on the bike and off we go? Unless you are a prodigy who has the innate ability to just do that thing you do, most of the average others like me will have to undergo the learning by grasping the basics in simplified steps before further synthesising them into a complete experience.
Let’s contextualise it again for language teaching and learning. Taking writing a composition as an example, a more structured approach is to break up this highly complicated task (even for seasoned writers!) into smaller chunks (e.g. brainstorming, outline, topic writing, paragraph writing, etc). These small chunks have individual names of their own and can get bigger and longer over time. In fact, when the learners have experienced the processes a bit longer, they can be integrated into one whole chunk called “composition writing”.
Language teachers must consider the individual chunks of content, actions, activities, and materials prior to dealing with the more comprehensive level. Lesson planning for the smaller chunks is definitely simpler than planning for a complicated integrated large chunk that combines them in one shot. That is a supercharge to productivity in lesson planning, after breaking the complicated task of language learning itself.
In a sense, the individual chunks can also become single lessons to aid learners in constructing the targeted integrated experience. Over time, we can combine the small chunks over time to build the ultimate integrated chunk, which is essentially the development of entire lessons and courses without burning evenings and weekends at one shot.
Let’s further unpack the notion of chunking for lesson planning itself specifically. In itself, lesson planning is a complicated task. We need to first identify the lesson objectives based on a usually prescribed curriculum and reference to prior learning of our students. We then also need to identify and reference research relevant to what we are doing in making decisions on the best approach to that lesson, and we also need to look for creative ways (i.e. pedagogical considerations) to best implement the lesson. We then need to look for or curate the best-fitting lesson materials to achieve all these.
These tasks are not trivial – they really do consume lots of time. Yet, that is the case if we do it in one shot. Firstly, the different steps involved can be iterative and not necessarily sequential. Secondly, they can be logically divided into chunks just as we have experienced for language learning – breaking up the complicated task into simpler manageable components. This approach of divide and conquer can then elevate our productivity in lesson planning at every chunk in particular.
Tip 8: Have a Masterplan, such as the Curriculum, and move towards Inter-lesson planning.
Dear language educators, language learning is an ongoing process that takes place gradually. When we break them down into discrete segments, we need to remember to connect them eventually over time. Some of us may unwittingly focus on creating individual lesson plans without considering how they fit into the broader scheme of things. Fundamentally, this means that we need to have a perspective of curriculum.
Not every teacher is blessed with guidance from an authority or establishment on the curriculum and its design (ok some might see this as a curse more than a blessing?). But, in general, a Masterplan such as the curriculum provides us the oversight of how the target language should be taught in the system with clear indication of the learning milestones.
One major advantage of a Masterplan is that we can frontload some of such planning even before the teaching semester starts. Planning in this manner is a great exercise to really go deep about thinking about how we approach language learning and how we unpack the curriculum into individual lesson units spread out across the teaching semester or academic year. When the madness of chaos comes during the actual semester, we can just focus on the individual chunks and tweak our plans at ease, or only make necessary modifications when required, instead of working with uncertainty of what comes next and getting stressed with not able to keep up.
The process of inter-lesson planning also allows us to design the coherence of our lessons from one to another. Such coherence can be super helpful in increasing productivity, as resources and efforts dedicated to the planning of one single lesson can actually be transferred to a few other lessons in connection. It also makes better sense for the learners.
Tip 9: Start with the end in mind (backward planning).
You may have heard the saying, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” With a Masterplan, you have the roadmap that helps in delineating how the journey should look. But the Masterplan will always remain broad, so we need to connect the dots on our own to the targeted milestone.
With this in mind, backward planning can be a more intuitive design approach. In fact, backward planning is one route to chunking which allows us to construct the necessary chunks to reach a milestone which is usually an integrated experience. When we plan forward, we try to make predictions of what comes next and that can be very divergent. It can be very exciting, but the propensity to diverge will also take us through a very long journey before any convergence takes place.
Backward planning, in contrast, generally helps us land more specifically on the steps required to achieve a desired outcome. Just a disclaimer: expert planners do well both ways, but beginning ones may find backward planning more palatable.
Contextualising for lesson planning for the language classroom, backward planning starts with the question “What do I want my students to know, understand, and be able to do by the end of this lesson/unit/term/semester?”. From that milestone, we then work backwards to the possible concrete steps that we can reference from our experience or from case studies published in research. Once we have landed on the concrete steps (basically, the chunks), we will be more efficient in working with a manageable subset.
Tip 10: Set specific goals to stay focused at every milestone.
Ok, we talked about Masterplan, inter-lesson planning and chunks. Will that not further complicate the lesson planning process? Will that thus make us overthink and jump from one chunk to another?
Yes, the previous tips are important to bring into perspective how our time can be allocated at different segments to focus on a specific objective. However, if we are not able to focus ourselves at any juncture, the knowledge of interconnection between things can sometimes be more of a hassle than helping us become more productive.
This is why we need to set specific goals for ourselves during lesson planning. If we have diligently set aside a time slot to engage in lesson planning, what exactly are our targeted outcomes at the end of the time slot? The confirmation of ideas? The sequencing of activities? The actual curation of materials?
When we set specific goals, we have a clear target to work towards. This helps us stay focused and motivated. Assuming that we do have luxury to set aside an extended period of time for this (e.g. 4 hours), we should also remember to break up the tasks (chunking again!) with specific deadlines for each task (e.g. 25 – 30 mins). This helps us prioritise and allocate our time effectively, ensuring that we make the most of each planning time block.
Moreover, setting specific goals also facilitates the measurement of progress where plans can be adjusted accordingly. By setting clear milestones, we can easily track our progress and identify areas where we need to make changes. This ensures that we stay on track and can make necessary adjustments along the way. If we do complete the tasks as planned, this also provides a sense of accomplishment and we can be very motivated to maintain your focus and drive through the lesson planning process.
Tip 11: Switch between the Focused and Diffuse mode of thinking in an extended lesson planning session.
Other than setting specific goals to guide and motivate yourself, it is also important to switch between the diffuse and focused mode of thinking when you do have luxury of an extended lesson planning session.
Research in neuroscience has shown that our brains function in two modes – the focused and the diffuse mode. In the focused mode, we are in a relatively concentrated state of mind where we are paying directed attention to the task at hand (e.g. solving problems, reading for specific details). The focused mode activate the parts of the brain that helps us harness the resources to learn explicitly and attend to challenging tasks.
In the diffuse mode, however, our brains are in a more relaxed and reflective state, where we could be daydreaming or doodling (yeah I know some of our students seem to operate in this mode most of the time). In the diffuse mode, we are using the parts of our brain that are different from those that we use in the focused mode. Accordingly, this allows us to make creative connections and associations.
Neuroscientists found that constant toggling between the focused and diffuse modes is vital in order for us to learn effectively. This is also applicable to professional work, such as lesson planning. Switching between the focused and diffuse mode during lesson planning sessions can help us stay productive and efficient.
We probably have no lack of experience operating in the focused mode, especially if we happen to be on a nightmarish timetable where classes are packed and empty slots get filled up quickly with meetings or ad-hoc parent engagement sessions. In the lesson planning session, we might also be very focused on wanting to get things done. That was the tip I gave earlier, didn’t I? We even went to the extent of setting specific goals to make sure we land where we want at the end of the session.
But the concept of the diffuse mode is important, especially when you are talking about an extended lesson planning session. It is hardly possible for one to stay focused throughout a 4-hour session. We have no lack of experience zoning out during long meetings. Even if we make conscious effort to stay focused, it happens.
Furthermore, our minds do need to rest in the diffuse mode to become more productive in the focused mode. We should not be too surprised if we find mental blocks frequent, if we hardly gave ourselves opportunities of been in the diffuse mode. By spending some time in the diffuse mode, we allow our minds to rest and make new connections. That can lead to more creative and innovative ideas, which are the breakthroughs we sometimes seek.
Dr Barbara Oakley shares in her book on the importance of switching between the focused and diffuse modes for learning. I thought her recommendation on the use of the Pomodoro method can be very effective too. Basically, the Pomodoro method is a way to break up an extended period (e.g. a working day) into 25-min focused period followed by 5-min breaks (e.g. diffuse period). You might want to try that out. And if you need a digital tool to help, here is one.
In the diffuse mode, we can go and grab a coffee, visit the bathroom, go for a walk, or engage in any activity that relaxes our minds. After this period of relaxation, we return to the task at hand with a fresh perspective, in the focused mode. This approach can help us avoid burnout and remain productive throughout the extended lesson planning session (or any other professional work activity).
Tip 12: Consolidate your repertoire of good ideas and practices.
Imagine that whenever we need an idea as we plan for our next lesson, and up comes the idea into salience for our use. Along it naturally comes all the activities that we already know and the materials that we know where to retrieve or amass. Is that not productivity at its optimum?
Think about the reverse. It can be overwhelming to always need to come up with new ideas and activities for each lesson, and it can be frustrating when the ideas do not come when we need them. That can happen even when we did our best to adopt the good brain-friendly practice in the previous tip. Creativity can be developed but cannot be taken for granted.
When it comes to lesson planning, the most productive teachers are often the ones who have a repertoire of good practices at their disposal. To help our future selves, we should nurture the habit of consolidating our repertoire of good practices so that we can more efficiently plan lessons and save time in the process.
Our repertoire need not be exclusively ideas originated by ourselves. Ideally, of course, we own enough good ideas with prior experience executing them. In reality, we usually do not have such a privilege and can benefit from the wonderful ideas of other colleagues (including me here at LEA!).
Keeping track of the ideas, activities, and methods that have worked well in the past can save us loads of time. By managing this repertoire, we can quickly reference or incorporate a previously used good idea into our lesson plan. This way, we can focus on refining and improving these activities, rather than constantly coming up with new ones.
Everyone has a unique way of keeping track. We can keep a log of previous successful lessons. Not all the details need to be included (we do not want to overload ourselves with the administrative work of recording). We record in a way that our future selves can connect with the experience when required. We can also organise the log according to common themes (e.g. narrative writing, transactional conversations) that are aligned with our Masterplan.
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Action Area 3: Leveraging Tools and Networks
If the empowering mindsets and good practices are essential ingredients to productivity in lesson planning, the ability to leverage tools and networks is like the master chef who adds the magic sauce to the ingredients to make them work together, providing the super charge to productivity. In this section, I will explore some tips on how to make the most of our networks and external tools to expedite our lesson planning and enhance the productivity outcomes.
Tip 13: Consolidate your repository of potential resources.
Related to the previous tip, if we find value in the consolidation of a repertoire of good practices to make ready a bag of magic tricks that can be used at our disposal, why not take a step further to also consolidate a repository of potential resources that can inspire our lesson planning or to be adapted for ready use in our actual lessons? By consolidating our repository of potential resources, we can save time and energy with ideation and sourcing without having to constantly search for new resources every time we plan a lesson.
One way to do this is to create a digital or physical “bank” of potential resources, such as articles, podcasts, videos, books, and activities, that we can draw from when planning our lessons. Depending on our operating context, these materials have to be made very accessible (e.g. physical resources in a cabinet which is easily reached, digital resources in a folder which is conveniently accessed online).
The other key is also to get organised. We need to work out a taxonomy (or a scheme of classification) to categorise the resources into topics or themes that are directly relevant to our Masterplan (e.g. functional vocabulary, narrative sentence starters, communicative tasks). With reference to the taxonomy, we can then decide how resources are collected and stored. This is essential to then help us easily locate and retrieve resources when we need them for a specific lesson or unit, and not experience counter-productivity by spending time to look for things.
Resource accumulation is not a one-time effort. As we create or come across new resources, we add them to our repository. If a resource outlives its relevance (e.g. news articles which are time-sensitive), remove it from the repository. With a little bit of maintenance, our repository will be an invaluable resource for future language lessons. Once our repository reaches a critical mass with enough content to be used for various lesson types, we can always come here as a first stop during lesson planning where we can quickly scan the repository to find something that fits our intended lesson objectives. This will make lesson planning more efficient, allowing us to focus on the creative and analytical components.
Tip 14: Review shared ready resources when you consolidate your repository.
We are hardly in an era where we are the sole content creators for lessons. There are vast amounts of resources available for language learning that we do not always need to reinvent the wheel at every lesson. If a fellow language educator has already created a podcast on verb tenses, why not use it in our lesson? Not only will this save us time in lesson planning and materials curation, it may also get our students excited when they experienced a different style of content from another teacher.
Even if the shared resource is eventually not the main resource of our lesson, it may still be a great supplement to our existing lesson where we can purposefully include in our plan. This will add a new dimension to our lesson and provide an additional learning opportunity for our learners. Such shared resources should be included in our repository that I recommended earlier.
To leverage shared resources, it is important to first identify reliable sources and communities of language educators who are open to sharing their resources. This could include online forums, professional networks, or local language teacher associations. Once we have identified these sources, we can regularly review and incorporate shared resources into our own repository.
Most ideally, of course, is to leverage on shared resources that have been produced by colleagues working with students in the same institution or students with similar learning profiles (e.g same neighbourhood, comparable socio-economic backgrounds). Such resources are potentially more relevant for our own language classrooms which we may need less time in re-adaptation – thus more efficient in getting the lesson plan and materials ready.
Reviewing updated shared resources on a frequent basis is also one strategy to expand our repertoire of good ideas and practices (our other archive). Depending on how sharing is done in communities, some come along with lesson plans that delineate how the resources can actually be used in the classrooms. And if your student profiles are similar, that might just be the shortcut you need. A word of caution though, that it is always important to make adaptations – albeit minor – to tailor the plan and materials for your specific audience.
Tip 15: Anchor on your networks – Collaborate.
Sharing of ready resources is only one example of how professional networks can be useful for many reasons beyond increasing productivity in lesson planning. With professional networks, we can continue to draw on the collective knowledge and experience of a wider community for our own professional learning and elevate the potential of our one or few language classrooms.
Depending on the stage in our career as a language educator, or the operating context we are as one (e.g. solo language tutor), we may lose oversight of the possible networks we can leverage for many different professional purposes. We may also not be very socialised into these networks. This tip is really a reminder that all the tips shared prior to this need not be exercised alone. When done collectively, the impact on productivity in lesson planning can be tremendous – and can extend to other areas of our profession.
Remember in the previous tip that I shared examples of possible professional networks: online forums, networked learning communities, or local language teacher associations. Not to forget, Language Educators Assemble is also one such network! But beyond all these, our most important network to start exploration is our immediate colleagues (I do hope we have already done so). Forming study groups among colleagues working with similar profiles of students dedicated to co-preparation of lessons can be highly productive – we can have many ready lesson plans and materials that need less adaptation.
In addition, with the pervasiveness of social media and internet access (if you can read this article I assume you do have this privilege), getting and maintaining connection in professional networks has become less of a hassle. Do not underestimate the power of this in addressing mental blocks that we sometimes have. Sometimes, by posting a question in a social network for language educators, we may receive an array of good ideas that other fellow language educators offer – sometimes along with lesson plans and ready resources.
If possible, why not extend our network to the scholarly experts in language education and language sciences? There are many of them who can provide valuable insights into the language learning process. We could reach out to experts in the field and collaborate with them on different topics. While making a contribution to the knowledge of the field, we can also gain theory-grounded and evidence-based expertise – that is the best guarantee of productivity in lesson planning.
Tip 16: Involve your students and let their feedback direct the lesson plan.
In my earlier days as a beginning teacher, I could be obsessed with demonstrating the ability to execute a plan as it is. I could be focused on getting through all the materials that I tended not to engage my students and understand their response to my plans. I failed to realise that when students are actively involved in their own education, it not only makes the lesson more interesting, but it also increases the chances of them retaining the learning points from the materials and process.
Sometimes, when we focus too much on the subject at hand, we can lose sight of the learners. If a lesson is designed to help the students learn, why not invite them to provide feedback and let that provide the direction of the lesson plan? By inviting students to provide feedback on the lesson plan, you’ll gain valuable insights into their learning interests and needs. For all you know, their suggestions can potentially map out a number of lesson plans in the pipeline, saving you the time from racking your brains on guessing on what is best for them.
In soliciting student feedback, we can do this through polls, surveys, group discussions, or one-on-one conversations. These instruments can be implemented face-to-face or online. We can also ask our students to suggest activities and topics that they are interested in. Not only will such a process give us a better idea of what our students want to learn and how they want to learn, the success probability of our lessons enacted based on these lesson plans can be potentially higher.
Tip 17: Utilise Technology.
This is probably a given. In this age and time, if we have yet to think of how to leverage the affordances of technology to increase our productivity in lesson planning – or many other things – we really ought to think harder. With the plethora of tools and resources available, incorporating technology into your lesson planning process can significantly increase productivity. This tip is like a booster to all the previous tips and can warrant another article on its own but let me just share briefly a few major points here.
Apps and digital tools (e.g. cloud storage) can help us track and organise our repertoire of good ideas and practices, and repository of potential resources while allowing them to be accessible around the clock. These are the same sources that we can go to look for shared resources.
Online collaborative tools (e.g. Google Slides, Google Docs) facilitate the asynchronous co-construction of lesson plans and materials, providing much flexibility and allowing us to engage in lesson planning only when we are the most productive – with collective effort (i.e. not alone). Assuming that we do want to work synchronously, we also need not necessarily be physically together by leveraging video-conferencing tools (e.g. Zoom) that we are already familiar with during the pandemic.
Of course, how is a tip on technology complete without talking about AI, especially generative AI such as ChatGPT? In my short musing published recently, I have also shared an invaluable resource (a webinar) which demonstrates how ChatGPT can be used to help the following tasks relevant in language lesson planning and preparation: generation of texts based on preferred parameters, modification of texts to design the type of language input intended for learners, creation of assessment rubrics and items, critique of existing lesson plans and materials, etc. There are many creative ways that we can use generative AI tools to support our lesson planning process – and they can save us loads of time.
Tip 18: Use podcasts, course guides, books, and templates.
After the previous empowering tip, this last tip may appear trivial on the surface. However, these 4 types of resources that I do wish to highlight that can potentially have a considerable impact on productivity in lesson planning, in unexpected ways.
PODCASTS. Not only are podcasts great as resources for language learning, they can be a great source of inspiration for lesson planning. We can get ideas for activities and exercises (e.g. hot topics discussed widely, interesting facts that can trigger discussions, interesting topics for languaging) even as we are commuting to and from work, making our meals, doing our dishes or engaged in our morning/evening runs. Furthermore, there are podcasts that are directly related to linguistics, language education and language learning, some of which can become direct resources that we can keep in our repertoire and repository.
COURSE GUIDES. Some of us, if not the majority, would have attended courses related to language education. Are you still keeping any of those course guides that might have been handed to you as part of the courses? We might have forgotten how useful they were in informing our initial conceptualisation of many of the things that are related to our work. Some of those guides document practical examples that can be part of our repertoire and repository. If we have not, we can revisit them and may just find renewed inspiration that can catalyse a number of lesson plans.
BOOKS. There are many books that are of titles that can directly be used for our lesson plans. They usually include elements like a large number (e.g. 100) and the type of resources that we can use – activity sheets, strategies, comprehension tips, etc. I own quite a number of these books which were acquired from online sources out of pure curiosity. Honestly, I was quite unimpressed when I browse through some of them initially. However, similar to course guides, I found renewed inspiration from these books when there are things that may just hit the right spot in a current state of lesson planning. You may not know when that may happen, and it may be worthwhile to just flip through and you may just land on many ideas without having to go through the same cycle of research later.
TEMPLATES. I know. We detest them sometimes because they seem to limit our creativity. Yet, templates are also attractive and can really help with productivity because they provide a frame in which we can dutifully fill up and have a sense of confidence that essential grounds are covered. The choice of templates – those based on sound theories – matters. A knowledgeable use of templates can be very useful for lesson planning as they expedite certain processes. As long as we maintain a clear mind that we do not be constrained by the boxes of a template, they are a very effective resource to improving productivity.
Conclusion
We have covered a lot of ground on how to increase productivity in lesson planning for language learning. From involving our students and using their feedback to anchoring on our networks and collaborate, to utilising technology and course guides, there are so many ways to make our lesson planning more efficient and effective.
But here’s the thing: we have to find what works for us. Not every tip will be a perfect fit for everyone, so we need to experiment and see what sticks. Lesson planning can sometimes be a real slog, but if we approach it with reframed mindsets and new effective practices, we might find that it’s not so bad after all.
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