Assume you have 2 classes, one group of 30 adolescents in a day-school, and one group of 15 adults who are learning English for business reasons. How do you think these two classes would differ?

It should be understood from the outset that the three guiding considerations in any classroom context are the teacher, the student and the learning environment. These close and sometimes complex inter-relationships need to be taken into account when discussing the differences between a class of 30 adolescents in a day school (C1) and one of 15 adults learning English for business reasons (C2).

The most central element in the classroom is motivation: what motivates the teacher, what motivates the student and to what extent do the two coincide in reflection of the learning environment? We know “it’s motivation that is the key, not the emphasis on innate ability or personality … it’s finding a way to engage every[one] in meaningful activities and helping them to enjoy learning” (Groundwater-Smith, Cusworth et al, 1998). With this in mind, the teacher is undoubtedly the primary motivational influence within the learning environment. However, to foster this in functional and f...