Beyond the Screen: Building Real-Time Speaking

Does this sound familiar? Your adult ESL students deliver polished presentations with ease, but the moment you ask an unscripted question, the room goes silent.

• How do you move learners past the fear of making mistakes?
• What does it take to get them thinking—and talking—in English without relying on screens, scripts, or translation apps?

It is common for adult ESL students to freeze up during spontaneous speaking tasks. This session offers practical, quick-to-implement classroom activities that get learners talking in real time. You will walk away with adaptable strategies to build your students’ confidence and help them communicate naturally without a screen.

Key points to be covered:

• Implement practical classroom activities that promote spontaneous speaking and interaction.
• Teach important conversational elements such as eye contact, vocal tone, active listening, and non-verbal communication.
• Foster a supportive, speaker-centered classroom culture that encourages learner participation.

Webinar Type: Teaching Best Practices

Categories: Blended Teaching/Learning, Classroom Management, Lesson Planning/Ideas

Teaching Sectors: Adult ESL (credit), Continuing Education/Adult ESL (non-credit)

Participant Level: Moderate level

About the Presenter

Abheepsa Vyas (she/her) is an experienced educator in English language instruction and communication skills with more than eight years of teaching experience at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Her work focuses on conversational fluency, professional communication, multilingual classrooms, and learner confidence. Her academic interests include identity, dialogue, communication pedagogy, and the impact of digital technologies on language learning and interaction. She has also developed instructional materials related to employability skills, student engagement, and communication development.

* Members must be a member of the TESL Ontario group on Tutela.

Please note: TESL Canada and TESL Ontario are separate entities. Your TESL Canada membership does not include free access to TESL Ontario webinars. To learn more about TESL Ontario Standard Membership, please click HERE.