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Recommended books for the CELTA
These books are on our recommended reading list to help with CELTA applications, during the course and as part of a core reference library for English language teachers.
Learning Teaching
Jim Scrivener – Read an interview with the author
“Learning Teaching” has been one of the most successful guides to English since it was first published in 1994. Its no-nonsense approach has made it a superb teaching textbook for initial training courses, and also an essential handbook for practising ELT teachers. The third edition has been extensively revised and restructured to take recent developments in ELT into account and now includes a DVD featuring a full lesson being taught as well as demonstrations of practical teaching techniques.
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A Concise Grammar for English Teachers
Tony Penston – Read an Interview with the Author
I used Tony Penston’s book when I was learning how to teach English as a Foreign Language. I found it really useful then and I still carry it with me for all teaching assignments – and I regularly refer to it for some grammatical point or other. It’s easy to find what you want and nice and concise! It gets straight to the point. Apparently he’s even got a sense of humour too, rarely seen in a grammarian, and a relief to this user. This really good book is useful for all teaching levels. Great value too. I do not hesitate to recommend it to all English language teachers. – John Osman 5/5
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Practical English Usage
Michael Swan – Read an Interview with the Author
As I was preparing to take the TEFL course to teach abroad and inquiring about the different books that the school was suggesting, I was told simply by my son who is also a teacher and the statement was confirmed by both my instructors, “just buy Swan, it’s the bible and it’s all you need”. Practical English Usage is just that. For whatever reason Michael Swan decided to write this book, we are forever grateful. – Margaret M. Frye 5/5
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The Practice of English Language Teaching
Jeremy Harmer- Read an Interview with the Author
The highly acclaimed Practice of English Language Teaching is the essential guide for teachers of English in a wide range of contexts. The fifth edition has been revised to reflect new developments in language teaching. It explains current pedagogy to teachers who want to access the most relevant ELT practices and incorporate them into their lessons.
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How to Teach Grammar
Scott Thornbury- Read an Interview with the Author
I think this book is a must-have. It is systematic and at the end of each section there is a conclusion, like a wrap-up. As much information as you can get on the internet there is nothing like having a book of this kind in your hands as a ready-reckoner. I use this book in my own home school; its a good book.
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Grammar for English Teachers
Martin Parrott
An invaluable resource helping teachers at all levels of experience to develop their understanding of English grammar. Grammar for English Language Teachers is designed to help practising and trainee teachers to develop their knowledge of English grammar systems. It encourages teachers to appreciate factors that affect grammatical choices, and evaluates the ‘rules of thumb’ presented to learners in course materials. Consolidation exercises provide an opportunity for teachers to test these rules against real language use and to evaluate classroom and reference materials.
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Teaching Tenses
Rosemary Aitken
Teaching Tenses is a teacher’s resource book with ideas for presenting tenses and verb patterns clearly and in a meaningful context. It is an ideal resource for new teachers who need to build their language awareness and practical guidance in how to teach grammar. Each section of Teaching Tenses consists of a comprehensive analysis of form and function, suggestions for presentation and practice of structures in context and a review of common learner errors. Teaching Tenses also contains a resource bank of photocopiable material for practicing structures in the classroom.
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How English Works
Michael Swan and Catherine Walter
English grammar books can sometimes be a little difficult going, but when expertly broken down as in this book, grammar become more enjoyable and easy to understand. Before going through grammar lessons you can test your grammar through questions and identify any weak points. It can be used both as a starter book for English grammar and as a reference. It has the benefit of being clear, simple, readable and containing memorable cartoons. Each topic contains tasks and exercises and it is highly recommendable for candidates wishing to brush up grammatically ahead of the CELTA.
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Essential Phonetics for English Language Teachers
Tony Penston – Read an Interview with the Author
Essential Phonetics is a great book. It is very comprehensive and concise at the same time. It deals with pronunciation problems we always face in multicultural classes, and gives us teachers easy, straightforward phonetic input, enabling us to help our students. The illustrations are very helpful, showing how to produce particularly difficult sounds. Essential Phonetics is a short guide that even busy teachers can manage to read. I strongly recommend this book for both experienced teachers and trainees. Every English language teacher should have it. – Rafaela Bepe 5/5
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Your DELTA tutor will give you their reading list, but here are some recommended books for DELTA courses to get you started:
Beyond the Sentence
Scott Thornbury- Read an Interview with the Author
How do we design sentences to fit their purposes and how do we combine them to communicate complex, contextualized meanings?
This work takes discourse apart to show how it is organized and how it aids communication.
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Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching
Richards, Jack C., Rodgers, and Theodore S
This second edition is an extensive revision of this successful text. Like the first edition, it surveys the major approaches and methods in language teaching, such as grammar translation, audiolingualism, communicative language teaching, and the natural approach. The text examines each approach and method in terms of its theory of language and language learning, goals, syllabus, teaching activities, teacher and learner roles, materials, and classroom techniques.
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About Language
Scott Thornbury – Read an Interview with the Author
This review sums it up: “I would have given my right arm for this book when I first entered the world of EFL. There are plenty of books that discuss what and how we should teach, and we seem to be swimming in books on grammar . What we don’t have, however, are books designed to ease the novice teacher into the intimidating world of EFL ‘grammarese’. About Language fill this gap. It is about the tools of our job: syllabuses, rules, functions, notions texts, phonology, morphology, sentences, grammar, cohesion, conversation and more.”
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How Languages are Learned
Patsy M Lightbrown and Nina Spada
This thoroughly updated third edition presents the main theories of language acquisition, considering their bearing on language teaching. It discusses the effects of factors such as intelligence, personality, and age. It helps teachers assess the merits of different methods and textbooks. Valuable reading as you break down how languages are learned.
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Learning Languages Strategies
Rebecca L.Oxford
Based on current research, this text provides ESL/EFL and foreign language teachers with practical recommendations for developing their students’ second language learning strategies. Detailed suggestions for strategy use in each of the four language skills are included as well as case studies and models for setting up similar programs.
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Recommended Books for Young Learners Courses
Teaching Languages to Young Learners
Lynne Cameron
Recent years have seen rapid growth in the numbers of children being taught foreign languages at younger ages. While course books aimed at young learners are appearing on the market, there is scant theoretical reference in the teacher education literature. Teaching Languages to Young Learners is one of the few to develop readers’ understanding of what happens in classrooms where children are being taught a foreign language. It will offer teachers and trainers a coherent theoretical framework to structure thinking about children’s language learning
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Teaching Children English
David Vale with Anne Feunteun
Teaching Children English focuses on an activity-based approach to teaching young learners aged seven years and over. It examines the educational and linguistic needs of children and provides an overview of appropriate classroom techniques. It highlights the importance of effective classroom management and organisation and supports teachers in the management of classroom resources. It provides extensive practice in lesson planning in terms of language aims
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Young Learners
Sarah Phillips
‘A necessary addition to the library of every teacher of young learners.’ – IATEFL Young Learners SIG Newsletter
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