2017م - 1444هـ
Pair work

Why do teachers use pair work?

Asking children to work in pairs has many advantages:

•It’s good for the children to speak to each other in English. This maximizes their talking time and minimizes the teacher’s talking. The main aim is that the children can practice the language.

•It’s good for the children to work with another child rather than alone. They can brainstorm more ideas and help each other. In fact, they focus more and the stronger child can help the weaker.

•It’s good for the children to know that language is not an interaction between them and the teacher, it is between them and others: natives or non natives. The way they work together in pairs helps them not only to learn the language but to build up their rapport and independence.

•It allows you to step back and monitor the performance of individual children.

•It also allows children to personalize the lesson, by sharing their own experiences and opinions.

•Some children are shy and will never participate in whole class discussions. In pairs, children can feel safer and are more likely to take risks and experiment with the language.

•Introducing a pair work activity can give the lesson a change of pace.