Top Tips for STAR English Conversation Club Volunteers
By supporting refugees and asylum seekers to learn and practise spoken English
you can make a huge difference. For those who are new to the UK there is a
pressing need to learn basic English so that they can get to grips with everyday life
and feel at home. In the longer term, the better the level of English people have, the
easier it is for them to get settled, find a job and move on with their lives.
You don’t have to have loads of experience just a good grasp of the English
language. To get you started here are some top tips…
Getting started
 You are not an English Teacher! (unless you are actually qualified and
experienced of course) What you are doing is helping people get better at
conversational English. You will not be able to “teach” English so don’t try,
instead focus on improving their fluency and getting to grips with practical
English.
 Don’t go straight into the worksheet or activity. Start the session off by having
a general chat. This is natural conversation which is what people have come to
practice. It also creates a nice friendly atmosphere, makes everyone more
comfortable and eases learners into speaking English.
 Think about how you are talking - speak slowly, don’t use slang expressions,
and limit how much you say. Give very simple, clear instructions so learners do
not have to deal with too much information and give them time to process it
before moving on. Otherwise you are going to get lots of blank looks!
 This is a chance for them to talk not you so slow down and talk less! They
should be doing most of the talking not you. Leave lots of space for the learner to
respond to what you are saying and asking them about. It is normal to want to
leap in and try to explain things a different way, but this can get very confusing
and you end up doing most of the talking, which is not really the point. Say what
you want to say simply and wait for them to respond, don’t be tempted to finish
off their sentence and don’t worry if they are struggling as this is how they will
learn. This might be the only chance in the week they have to have a proper
conversation in English in a friendly and sympathetic environment, so don’t hurry
them too much and let them speak as much as possible!
 Show them you understand what they are saying through encouraging noises
(uh huh, ok etc.) and facial expressions (lots of smiling and nodding). If they are
getting their message across and know it, this is very motivating and helps
people feel more confident.
 Do the first example yourself – if you are trying to explain an activity, it is
usually easier to do an example yourself first (or with another volunteer). This
makes it much clearer for the learner. Watching how something is done is much
easier than listening to and following instructions.
 Repeat, repeat, repeat. When learning a new language repetition is the key,
people need to hear and use the new words/phrases lots of times before they
remember them. This might feel a bit awkward and unnatural to start with but
you’ll get used to it and it will make a big difference to the learners. The simplest
way is to keep swapping partners so that the same phrases get used again and
again but talking to different people so it doesn’t get boring.
 Don’t panic about grammar! Focus on speaking and fluency and simply getting
them talking.
 Don’t try and cover too much as learners can only learn a limited number of
new phrases or words at a time e.g. around 10 new words or phrases is plenty.
Any more than this and they won’t remember.
 Personalise topics by talking about yourself e.g. if you are talking about
leisure activities talk about what you like to do. Learners will want to know about
you and it will be more like real conversation. Of course, only share what you are
comfortable sharing and what is appropriate.
 Don’t understand what to do with a worksheet or activity? Or not sure how
you can get a conversation out of it? Make your life easier and ask the person in
charge.
 If you don’t know something, say so – don’t make it up. This can cause a lot of
confusion. You are not an English teacher so you can’t expect to know
everything.
 Have a pen and paper handy at all times so that you and the learner can draw
pictures or diagrams and write down vocabulary. You don’t have to be an artist
and makes explanations so much easier, just think about the difference between
trying to explain the concept of an apple and drawing a quick picture of one!
 Stuck for something to talk about? Leaflets, magazines and newspapers are a
great way to start a conversation with any level of learner, so make sure you
always have a few to hand. You can also use a simple framework to get the
conversation going (see framework handout).
 Struggling with translation? You can access bilingual dictionaries online if you
have wi-fi or a dongle to help translate problem vocabulary.
English teaching tips
 Use pictures and mime with beginners to teach vocabulary and build up
simple sentences. The pictures don’t have to be specially created they can just
be photos or pictures in a magazine or leaflet for example.
 When you are explaining the meaning of a word keep it simple. Many words
can be used in different contexts to mean different things and it is very tempting
to start explaining all of them. This can get very confusing for learners! Stick to
the meaning and context in the original sentence and the learner has a much
better chance of remembering it.
 Demonstrate how words are pronounced by saying them very clearly a few
times. Ask learners to repeat them a few times. This will help them remember.
 Don’t write it down first. In English, the way words are written can be very
confusing when you are trying to learn how to pronounce them e.g. cough,
although etc. Let them get the pronunciation right first.
 When demonstrating to learners how phrases are pronounced make it
sound natural – they are going to have to understand what people are saying in
the real world. The better they understand fluently spoken English the easier life
will be for them e.g. if you say “I’m going to the cinema” you don’t pronounce
every word clearly do you? Think about how the sounds run together and how
some letters don’t get pronounced at all. This is what learners need to know to
understand what people are saying and to be fluent.
 Tell them that they don’t need to understand every word to get the
meaning. In English we stress the meaning words (nouns and verbs).
 Correct language and pronunciation errors, so learners can improve their
ability to communicate effectively. BUT use your common sense and don’t correct
every tiny mistake people make, as they will get too self-conscious to speak in
English at all! The most important thing is that the message they want to get
across is understood, so focus on correcting the mistakes that will make what
they say confusing or difficult to understand. You could also wait until they have
finished talking about that particular topic before you correct them e.g. by jotting
down the mistakes that you hear. This way they can concentrate on how to say
what they want to say and later on how to improve what they are saying. (See
correction tips sheet for in depth examples)
 Try to let them work it out for themselves, this is how people learn. Don’t
jump in and finish their sentences or give them the right word straight away. This
is easier said than done but very important!
Volunteering with refugees
 In activities give learners a choice to talk about family member or a friend
as some refugees might find it difficult to talk about their family.
 Use your common sense. Many refugees have experienced traumatic things
and may have lost friends or family. All will have had to leave family and friends
behind. Keep this in mind when chatting, as some topics may be difficult or
upsetting for some people. Don’t let this scare you off talking about certain topics
or asking people about themselves, just use your common sense and if you think
the person you are talking to is uncomfortable change the subject. People
generally love talking about where they have come from and how things are
different so don’t be scared to ask.
 Don’t expect people to want to talk about why they have come to the UK. If
someone wants to tell you they will do this in their own time. Talking about
immigration status can also be a sensitive topic.
 Politics and religion can be thorny subjects, especially in mixed cultural
groups. They might also be the reasons people have had to seek asylum in the
first place so it’s worth keeping this in mind. Like before, it doesn’t mean you can’t
talk about them but make sure it doesn’t make people feel uncomfortable, get out
of hand or too heated. It’s also fine to talk about your own opinions but this isn’t a
space for trying to convert anyone to your point of view!