Thinking of Teaching Bridge ?
| That's great news! The more people there are teaching bridge and bringing new people into the game, the more there will be enjoying the game, raising its profile and, eventually, providing you with new faces to play against! Go to our Teaching Calendar to find out more about the Workshops that we offer to get you going ! | |
Do I need to be an expert player? |
How good a teacher do I need to be? |
| Definitely
not. An average club player with a sound understanding
of the basics is quite good enough. In some ways being
a less experienced player is an advantage, since you
are more likely to recognise the difficulties which the
beginner faces. Whatever you play yourself, you should always teach beginners a simple, natural system as widely played in this country. EBU has defined Foundation level Standard English as the ideal teaching system for you and your students. Typically, it takes two years of classes at, say, two hours a week for 24 weeks to get beginners comfortable with bridge at this level and able to play in newcomers' duplicates. This is much slower than many of those coming into teaching would expect, but for most people learning bridge it is quite a slow process. The most common remark of bridge teachers who have taught for a few years is that each year they find themselves slowing down the pace at which they try to cover the ground! t/td> | This
is much more important than being a good player. It is
the teacher who creates a friendly learning environment
to encourage beginners; who has the range of methods
to make learning fun; who can understand the problems
encountered by beginners and can address them sensitively;
and who makes the whole of the teaching work. Teaching adults is different from teaching children, and teaching bridge is different from teaching other subjects. There is a common need for a warm, patient and friendly approach and lots of enthusiasm, but that is all you need to bring to the task — we can help you with the rest. The EBU Teachers' Association has distilled the wisdom and experience of many teachers over many years and can introduce you to techniques that really work for helping people to learn bridge. There is a strong emphasis on practical and participative methods — your students should be able to get their hands on the cards at the start of their very first lesson and leave it able to play a real bridge-like game. They should be able to progress to gaining a sound understanding of bridge through a process of 'discovery learning'. EBUTA can train you in how to use these methods and hold your hand as you begin to put them into practice. And if you join the Bridge for All scheme you will find it really easy to get going, since much of the hard work of lesson preparation is done for you. |
| So what should I do next? | |
| What does Bridge for All have to offer? | How do I become a Bridge for All Teacher ? |
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