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Communication The Exchange of Information

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MINISTRY OF HIGHER AND SECONDARY SPECIAL EDUCATION

OF THE REPUBLIC OF UZBEKISTAN

GULISTAN STATE UNIVERSITY

The English and Literature Department

Qualification work on speciality English philology

on the theme:

“Communication. The Exchange of Information”

Supervisor: ___________

Gulistan 2008

CONTENTS:

I. Introduction

Message oriented communication.

II. The Main Body

Language Learning Principles

The nature of speaking and oral interaction

Communicative approach and language teaching.

Chapter I.

Types of communicative exercises and approaches.

Warming up exercises

Interiews

Jigsaw tasks

Chapter II.

Questioning activities

Values clarification techniques

Thinking strategies

Interactive problem solving

Chapter III.

Stories and poetry – painting that speaks

Games as a way at breaking the routine of classroom drill

Project work as a natural extension of content based instruction (CIB)

III. Conclusion

Some Practical Techniques for Language Teaching

Bibliography

Introduction

Message oriented communication

I want you to communicate. This means that I want you to understand
others and to make yourself understandable to them. These sound like the
obvious goals of every language learner., but I think these simple goals
need to be emphasized, because learners too often get diverted from them
and fall into more of a struggle with the mechanics of grammar and
pronunciation that they should. Learners can become timid about using
what they know for fear of making horrible mistakes with what they don’t
know. All the attention paid to the mechanics of communication sometimes
gets in the way of communication itself.

In the early lessons of many language courses, students are encouraged
to concentrate heavily upon pronunciation and grammar, while vocabulary
is introduced only very slowly. The idea seems to be that even if one
has very little to say, that little bit should be said correctly.
Students can worry a great deal about the machinery of language, but
they worry rather little about real communicating much of anything.
Under such circumstances, learners have to think about an awful lot of
things in order to construct even a simple sentence. They are supposed
to force their mouths to produce sounds that seem ridiculous. They have
to grope desperately for words that they barely know. They have to
perform mental gymnastic trying to remember bizarre grammatical rules.
All these challenges are a fatal distraction from what skillful speakers
worry about – the message that they want to convey. If early learners
have to worry about getting everything correct, they cannot hope to day
anything very interesting. They simply cannot do everything at once and
emerge with any real sense of success.

In the German original ‘mttteilungsbezogene Kommunikation was coined by
Black and Butzkamm (1977) Black C, and W. Butzkumm (1977) Praxis des
neusprachlichen Unterrichts Vol. 24, #2, pp. 115-124. They use it to
refer to those rare and precious moments in foreign language teaching
when the target language is actually used to arrange communication. A
prime instance of this use is classroom discourse, i.e. getting things
done in the lesson. Sometimes real communicative situations develop
spontaneously, as in exchanging comments on last night’ s TV programme
or introduction someone’ s new haircut. The majority of ordinary
language teaching situations before reaching an advanced level, however,
are geared towards language-oriented communication or what Rivers calls
‘skill-getting’: they make use of the foreign language mainly in
structural exercises and predetermined responses by the learners. Since
foreign language teaching should help students achieve some kind of
communicative skill in the foreign language, all situations in which
real communication occurs naturally have to be taken advantage of and
many more suitable ones have to be created.

Two devices help the teacher in making up communicative activities:
information gap and opinion gap. Information-gap exercises force the
participants to exchange information in order to find a solution (e.g.
reconstitute a text, solve a puzzle, write a summary). Problem-solving
activities. Opinion gaps are created by exercise or program
controversial texts or ideas, which require the participants to describe
and perhaps defend their views on these ideas. Another type of opinion-
gap activity can be organised by letting the participants share their
feelings about an experience they have in common. Furthermore, learning
a foreign language is not just a matter of memorising a simple set of
names for the things around us; it is also an educational experience.
Since our language is closely linked with our personality and culture,
why not use the process of acquiring a new language to gain further
insights into our personality and culture? This does not mean that
students of a foreign language should submit to psychological exercises
or probing interviews, but simply that, for example, learning to talk
about their likes and dislikes and bring about a greater awareness of
their values and aims in life. Many of the activities are concerned with
the learners themselves. For learners who are studying English in a
non-English-speaking setting it is very important to experience real
communicative situation in which they learn to express their own views
and attitudes, and in which they are taken seriously as people.

As applying the principles of information gap and opinion gap to
suitable traditional exercises the teacher can change them into more
challenging communicative situations. Thus the well-known procedure at
beginner’s level of having students describe each other’s appearance is
transformed into a communicative activity as soon as an element of
guessing (information gap) is introduced. However, not all exercises can
be spruced up like this. Manipulative drills that have no real topic
have to remain as they are. Information and opinion-gap exercises have
to hav some content worth talking about. Students do not want to discuss
trivia; the interest which is aroused by the structure of the activity
may be reduced or increased by the topic.

Many of the activities are concerned with the learners themselves. Their
feelings and ideas are the focal point of these exercises, around which
a lot of their foreign language activity revolves. For learners who are
studying English in a non-English-speaking setting it is very important
to experience real communicative situation in which they learn to
express their own views and attitudes, and in which they are taken
seriously as people. Traditional textbook exercises — however necessary
and useful they may be for all- communicative grammar practice — do not
as a rule forge a link between the learners and the foreign language in
such a way that the learners identify with it. Meaningful activities on
a personal level can be a step towards this identification, which
improves performance and generates interest. And, of course, talking
about something which affects them personally is eminently motivating
for students.

Furthermore, learning a foreign language is not just a matter of
memorising a simple set of names for the things around us; it is also an
educational experience. Since our language is closely linked with our
personality and culture, why not use the process of acquiring a new
language to gain further insights into our personality and culture? This
does not mean that students of a foreign language should submit to
psychological exercises or probing interviews, but simply that, for
example, learning to talk about their likes and dislikes and bring about
a greater awareness of their values and aims in life. A number of
activities. adapted from ‘values clarification’ theory have been
included with this purpose in mind.

Learning is very effective if the learners are actively involved in the
process. The degree of learner activity depends, among other things, on
the type of material they are working on. The students’ curiosity can be
aroused by texts or pictures containing discrepancies or mistakes, or by
missing or muddled information, and this curiosity leads to the wish to
find out, to put right or to complete. Learner activity in a more
literal sense of the word can also imply doing and making things; for
example, producing a radio programme forces the students to read, write
and talk in the foreign language as well as letting them learn with tape
recorders, sound effects and music. Setting up an opinion poll in the
classroom is a second, less ambitious vehicle for active learner
participation; it makes students interview each other, it literally gets
them out of their seats and — this is very important — it culminates in
a final product which everybody has helped to produce.

Activities for practising a foreign language have left the narrow path
of purely structural and lexical training and have expanded into the
fields of values education and personality building. The impact of
foreign language learning on the shaping of the learner’ s personality
is slowly being recognised. That is why foreign language teaching — just
like many other subjects — plays an important part in education towards
cooperation and empathy. As teachers we would like our students to be
sensitive towards the feelings of others and share their worries and
joys. A lot of teaching/learning situations, however, never get beyond a
rational and fact-oriented stage. That is why it seems important to
provide at least a few instances focusing on the sharing ideas. igsaw
tasks, in particular, demonstrate to the learners that cooperation is
necessary. Many of the activities included in this book focus on the
participants’ personalities and help build an atmosphere of mutual
understanding.

Quite an important factor in education towards cooperation is the
teacher’s attitude. If she favours a cooperative style of teaching
generally and does not shy away from the greater workload connected with
group work or projects, then the conditions for learning to teachers are
good. The atmosphere within a class or group can largely be determined
by the teacher, who- quite often without being aware of it — sets the
tone by choosing certain types of exercises and topics.

This section deals with the importance of the atmosphere within the
class or group, the teacher’s role, and ways of organising discussions,
as well as giving hints on the selection and use of the activities in
class.

А lot of the activities will run themselves as soon as they get under
way. The teacher then has tо decide whether to join in the activity as
an equal member (this may sometimes be unavoidable for pair work in
classes with an odd number of students) or remain in the background to
help and observe. The first alternative has а number of advantages: for
example the psychological distance between teacher and students may bе
reduced when students get tо know their teacher better. Of course, the
teacher has to refrain from continually correcting the students or using
her greater skill in the foreign language tо her advantage. If the
teacher joins in the activity, she will then nо longer be able to judge
independently and give advice and help to other groups, which is the
teacher’s major role if she does not participate directly. А further
advantage of non-participation is that the teacher may unobtrusively
observe the performance of several students in the foreign language and
note common mistakes for revision at а later stage. А few activities,
mainly jigsaw tasks, require the teacher to withdraw completely from the
scene.

Whatever method is chosen, the teacher should be careful not to correct
students’ errors too frequently. Being interrupted and corrected makes
the students hesitant and insecure in their speech when they should
really be practising communication. It seems far better for the teacher
to use the activities for observation and со help only when help is
demanded bу the students themselves; even then they should be encouraged
to overcome their difficulties by finding alternative ways of expressing
what they want tо say. There is а list of speech acts which may bе
needed for the activities and the relevant section may be duplicated and
given as handouts to help the students.

Many of the activities are focused on the individual learner. Students
are asked to tell the others about their feelings, likes or dislikes.
They are also asked to judge their own feelings and let themselves bе
interviewed by others. Speaking about oneself is not something that
everyone does with ease. It becomes impossible, even for the most
extrovert person, if the atmosphere in the group is hostile and the
learner concerned is afraid of being ridiculed or mocked. The first
essential requirement for the use of learner-centred activities (they
are marked pers. in all the tables) is а relaxed and friendly atmosphere
in the group. Only then can the aims of these activities be achieved:
cooperation and the growth of understanding.

Groups or classes that have just been formed or are being taught by а
new teacher may not develop this pleasant kind of group feeling
immediately. In that case activities dealing with very personal topics
should be avoided. The teacher may stimulate а good atmosphere by
introducing both warming-up exercises and jigsaw tasks. Even in а class
where the students know each other well, certain activities may take on
threatening features for individual students. In order tо avoid any kind
of embarrassment or ill feeling, the teacher should say that anyone may
refuse to answer а personal question without having to give any reason
or explanation. The class have со accept this refusal without discussion
or comment. Although I have tried to steer clear of I threatening
activities, there may still be а few which fall into this category for
very shy students. In any case teachers should be able to select
activities which their students will feel at ease with. As а rough
guideline teachers шght ask themselves whether they would be prepared to
participate fully in the activity themselves.

А number of different ways of setting up the communicative activities in
this book are explained in the description of the activities themselves.
For teachers who would like to change their procedures for handling
classroom discussions (е.g. in connection with topical texts) а few
major types are described below:

Buzz groups Cole, P. (1970) “An adaption of group dynamic techniques to
foreign language teaching” TESOL. Quality. Vol. 4. # 4, pp. 353 – 360. А
problem is discussed in small groups for а few minutes before views or
solutions are reported to the whole class.

Hearing. ‘Experts’ discuss а topical question and mау be interviewed by
а panel of students who then have to make а decision about that
question.

Fishbowl. All the members of the class sit in а big circle. In the
middle of the circle there are five chairs. Three are occupied by
students whose views (preferably controversial) on the topic or question
are known beforehand. These three start the discussion. They mау be
joined by one or two students presenting yet another view. Students from
the outer circle mау also replace speakers in the inner circle by
tapping them on the shoulder if they feel confident that they can
present the case better.

Network The class is divided into groups which should not have mоrе
than 10 students each. Each group receives а ball of string. Whoever is
speaking on the topic chosen holds the ball of string. When the speaker
has finished he gives the ball of string to the next speaker, but holds
on to the string. In this way а web of string develops, showing who
talked the most and who the least.

Onion. The class is divided into two equal groups. As many chairs as
there are students are arranged in а double circle, with the chairs in
the outer circle facing inwards and those of the inner circle facing
outwards. Thus each member of the inner circle sits facing а student in
the outer circle. After а few minutes of discussion all the students in
the outer circle move on one chair and now have а new partner rо
continue with.

Star. Four to six small groups try and find а common view or solution.
Each group elects а speaker who remains in the group but enters into
discussion with the speakers of the other groups.

Market. All the students walk about the rооm; each talks to several
others.

The Main Body

Language Learning Principles

Language learning principles for mainstream classes. Hutchinson and
Waters Hutchinson, I., and A. Waters. 1987. English for specific
purposes: a learning – centered approach. Hasgow^ Cambrige University
Press (1997:128) present eight language learning principles in relation
to a learner-centered methodology. A learner-centered methodology need
not exist only in a language classroom, and much language learning takes
place outside of the language classroom. Hutchinson and Waters relate
the learning principles to the ESP classroom, but often these EAL
(English as an Additional Language) learners are in classes that are not
taught by language experts, and therefore the classes are not remembered
as a rich resource for language input.

The discussion on teaching techniques is not meant for language experts
only. I have used the principles as a point of departure for discussions
on language across the curriculum seminars. These seminars often concern
department or campus-wide staff who are not well informed on language
issues. Perhaps teachers are intimidated by the thought of fostering
language development in the classroom because they equate the notion
with grammar rules. The eight (language) learning principles are
outlined below along with a discussion of their teaching implications
and how they are to be applied to teaching beyond the language
classroom.

1. Second language learning is a developmental process. In other words,
learners use existing knowledge to make the incoming information
comprehensible. Gagne and Bridges (1988) Gagne . R. and L.J. Briggs.1988
Principles of Instructional design New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
discuss “external” and “internal” conditions of learning in much the
same way. The example they use is understanding when the U.S.
presidential elections take place: the first Tuesday after the first
Monday in November, every four years. In order to truly grasp this
“external” knowledge (when the elections take place), they explain that
a learner must have certain “internal” conditions in place, i.e., the
knowledge of the days of the week, and the months in the year, etc. This
example may seem too simple to be applicable at the tertiary level, but
one can easily imagine how concepts and ideas in a field are made
understandable by building on some existing knowledge.

The teaching implications of this principle are that lecturers should
reconsider what, if anything, they have been taking for granted
concerning their students’ knowledge base. The knowledge that each
student brings to the classroom is likely to be just as diverse. Do the
lecturers adapt the presentation to the “internal” knowledge of the
student? In other words, is there ample opportunity given in class to
discover what learners understand about the concept being taught? As an
example, how is the idea of “perfectly competitive market” explained in
an economics class filled with EAL learners? Do learners know what
“competitive” means? If they have indeed heard the words, what types of
understanding do they have? It is quite possible that “market” for some
of the students here in South Africa simply means a fruit and vegetable
stand or maybe even what is commonly known in the U.S. as a “flea
market” (a number of stalls selling various items ranging from food to
crafts). The definition of perfect competition, “a large number of
relatively small price-taking firms that produce a homogenous product
and for whom entry and exit are relatively costless” (Dillingham et al
1992:250) Dillingham, A.ME., N.T. Skaggs, and J.L. Carlson. 1992.
Economics: Individual choice and its consequences. Boston: Allyn and
Bacon. means nothing for the students if they are unaware of the more
basic components of the concept. The components which comprise a concept
should be carefully elicited from the students and addressed if
necessary.

Students should be given prompts as much as possible. These could take
the form of visual aids, handouts, or even words and concepts written on
the board. By hearing and seeing the language, the students are better
able to match the concepts and terminology to their internal knowledge,
and thus be better equipped to add the external information if possible.
This suggestion may sound painfully easy or remedial, but many learners,
especially language learners, need to see the information as it is being
discussed.

2. Language learning is an active process. The learners must actively
use the new information. This is easier said than done. In terms of
language learning, this means practising the vocabulary and grammar with
great frequency for it to be internalized. With this principle in mind,
many language classes at the tertiary level in the U.S. are time-tabled
for maximum contact time (five hours a week), whereas the “content”
subjects average three hours a week. The thinking behind this imbalance
is related to the unlikelihood that the learner will have contact with
the language outside the classroom.

What can a mainstream lecturer do with a majority of students for whom
English is not their mother tongue? The principle of frequency, however,
is the same: Revise the information. According to Hamilton and Ghatala
(1994:118) Hamilton, R., and E. Ghatala. 1994. Learning and instruction.
New York: Mc. Graw – Hill, elaboration is the key to getting information
into long-term memory. By elaboration, the authors mean working with the
same information in different but related ways. Examples of elaboration
techniques are: summarizing, outlining, mind-mapping, drawing pictures,
using metaphors, eliciting examples for learners, etc. In ESP, the
terms, concepts, and definitions are new and unfamiliar to students.
According to Gagne and Briggs (1988). repetition is the key to
retention.

Students often struggle with the information conveyed orally, and
perhaps the fact that they are struggling is partly due to the way the
information is conveyed and partly due to their level of language
proficiency and cognitive ability. Written material is another obstacle,
but at least one can take ones time with the reading and consult a
dictionary or peers to make some sense of it.

3. Language learning is a decision-making process. Typically, teachers
do all the talking and making of decisions in the classroom. The teacher
is the knower of the information, so it is considered more efficient for
him/her to present the material. But efficient in what way? For the
lecturer, no doubt, it is easy to walk into class, deliver the
information, and leave. What about the students? Hutchin-son and Waters
(1987:129) argue that in order to develop, learners must use existing
knowledge, make decisions based on that knowledge, and see results.

This means that learners need to go through a processing step, both
internally and externally: internally to formulate decisions, and
externally to test those decisions. Externally, the learner would
express his/her ideas and receive feedback

External processing implies a move away from summative evaluation to
formative evaluation. Learners should demonstrate their knowledge often
and if possible be credited for it. To wait until the end of term not
only puts more pressure on the students in terms of the “all or nothing”
mark, it also leaves the facilitator to estimate what percentage of the
lecture material is being internalized during the term. Summative
evaluation for first year students might also promote a culture of
passiveness or idleness. Checking understanding frequently with
mini-tasks, quizzes, or worksheets is beneficial in a number of ways: It
gives the facilitator an idea of what is being internalized by the
students, and it gives the students reinforcement of the material as
well as motivation to attend class (accountability).

4. Language learning is not just a matter of linguistic knowledge. The
premise here is that there is more to comprehension, production, and
learning in general than the words themselves. A learner may be
cognizant of each individual word due to a good vocabulary base, but not
understand the ideas expressed in them because of a lack of cognitive
development. The reverse could also be true with a student having the
cognitive capacity or background to understand the concepts, but not the
linguistic ability to respond successfully. As a result, language
learners are often inaccurately perceived as being cognitively and
conceptually slow, when in fact it might well be their linguistic
ability that is lagging.

In the end, many lecturers of these typical second language learners
base their judgment of students solely on their surface ability to
communicate orally and in writing. If the student is poor in
communication due to grammatical errors, that is often where the line is
drawn and the mark given. Conversely, a lecturer is often lenient in
marking because s/he understands more or less what the learner is
getting at even if the message is not clearly conveyed.

5. Language learning is not the learner’s first experience (with
language). The students are generally competent in another language, and
in terms of subject-specific information, they might have some knowledge
of the concepts or terminology. A classroom should tap into these
competencies and help the learners transfer them from one language (or
experience) to another, or activate the existing knowledge to aid in the
understanding of the new information.

Hutchinson at all (1987:140) suggests getting the students to predict
before reading or listening. Having students predict is advantageous for
two reasons: It sets the students’ schema (or road map) of the subject,
i.e., the internal knowledge, thereby getting it ready to attach to
external knowledge, as discussed in connection with principle three
above, and it informs the lecturer as to what knowledge the students
already possess. A lecturer then will be able to target the session
accordingly, spending time on concepts that are not clearly known, and
only reviewing those that are.

In terms of teaching, schema-setting can take the form of a brief review
of the day’s class lesson, pre-reading, pictures, drawing, diagrams,
charts, discussions, anecdotes, etc. The function of assigning readings
before a lecture serves the schema-setting purpose. However, one needs
to bear in mind the level of language used throughout the passage as
well as the length of the passage.

6. Language learning is an emotional experience. This principle concerns
the affective filter of the student, or variables related to motivation,
attitude, anxiety, and self-confidence. The condition of these
variables, according to Dulay and Burt (in Oller 1993:32) Oller, J.W.
1993. Methods that work. Boston, M.A: Heinle and Heinle, determines what
information is internalised. Students can be fragile entities. They can
easily be intimidated, resulting in debilitating effects. The key then
is to create a relaxed and non-threatening atmosphere in the classroom
for optimal learning. To make the learning more positive, Hutchinson and
Waters (1987:129) suggest a number of ways of being sensitive to
affective filters:

• Use pair work or group work to build social relationships;

• Give students time to think, and generally avoid undue pressure;

• Put less emphasis on the product (the right answer) and more on the
process of getting an answer;

• Value attitude as much as aptitude and ability;

• Make “interest,” “fun,” and “variety” primary considerations in
materials and methodology, rather than just added extras.

Fun and games should not be excluded from study. Fun and games do not
preclude learning. Activities can still be fun and challenging and
thereby cater to those students for whom pressure is a stimulant. Using
pair and group work in the class has numerous advantages; it provides
the following opportunities:

• Students get to know other students;

• Students form study groups or join with partners;

• Instructors see progress in class and “test” student knowledge and
input;

• Variety is brought into the classroom;

• Pressure for individuals is reduced;

• Students work with the concepts and terminology actively rather than
being passive-listeners;

In addition, using pair and group work takes some of the pressure off
the instructor in terms of constant “performance,” gives the students
some independent learning skills practice, and at the same time allows
the instructor to observe the “intake” of learners. Following this
observation, instructors can provide specific input where necessary.

7. Language learning is to a large extent incidental. One does not need
to be actively studying language to learn language. English (or
Afrikaans) is the medium through which students learn the content, but
the language itself does not need to be the focus. The content subject
lecturers would not suddenly be required to explain grammatical rules to
the class, but writing down vocabulary and terminology would be
appropriate for a class with a majority of second language speakers. The
focus would not be taken off the content, but the lecturer should be
sensitive to the medium of instruction, should slow down the
presentation, should provide visual aids, and should repeat and revise
often. These are not radical measures to adapt teaching to a varied
student population, but they are helpful.

8. Language learning is not systematic. Although information is stored
systematically, the process by which it is assimilated is not
necessarily systematic. Each learner has a preferred method of learning,
and within a classroom, any combination of learning styles could be
represented: visual, auditory, tactile, and kinesthetic. Davis and Nur
(1994) Davis, E. , and H. Nur. 1994 Helping teachers and students
understand learning styles. English Teaching Forum, 32, 3, pp. 12-19
discuss various learning style inventories used to determine a student’s
preferred style of learning: cognitive, affective, and psy-chomotor.
Briefly, cognitive inventories determine how a person takes in
information: what problem-solving strategies are used and how they
classify and sequence information. Affective inventories determine a
student’s motivation for learning and what factors influence this
motivation. Finally, psychomotor inventories show learner preferences
for subject matter and mode of presentation. The point of conducting
such inventories is to discover the students’ preferred learning styles
and to match the teaching style to achieve optimal learning in the
classroom.

Maybe not so surprising is the idea that listening passively to a
lecture is not the most successful mode for learning, but it remains the
most common in terms of transmission. Simply adding visuals to a lecture
will benefit both the visual and auditory learners. Adding an activity
that uses some type of handout will address the tactile learner. Having
the students get up and change seats for group work or a jigsaw activity
will give the kinesthetic learners some stimulation.

Clearly it is not possible to match all learners’ needs to one
instructional style. However, alternating the mode of “transmission”
will provide an opportunity for all styles of learning to be modeled,
give students a chance to become familiar with different strategies, and
allow for a varied classroom.

These principles outlined from Hutchinson and Waters all focus on the
learner. Although the principles are from a language book, they can be
used easily in any subject to address learning in general and learning
in a language other than one’s home language.

The language teaching principles discussed and the implications drawn
from them are meant to suggest ways in which instructors can integrate
language in their classroom to reinforce anything from vocabulary to
thinking and social skills in the form of group and pair work.

The approach based on the principles outlined above might be very new to
both learners and instructors. Fortunately, one does not need to employ
them all at once to reap the benefits. A learner-centered approach
promotes a culture of active learning and, hopefully, leads to greater
confidence and empowerment of the student.

The nature of speaking and oral interaction

Brown and Yule (1983) Brown G. and G Yule. 1983. Teaching the Spoken
Language. Cambridge University press. begin their discussion on the
nature of spoken language by distinguishing between spoken and written
language. They point out that for most of its history, language teaching
has been concerned with the teaching of written language. This language
is characterised by well-formed sentences which are integrated into
highly structured paragraphs. Spoken language, on the other hand,
consists of short, often fragmentary utterances, in a range of
pronunciations. There is often a great deal of repetition and overlap
between one speaker and another, and speakers frequently use
non-specific references (they tend to say ‘thing’, ‘it’ and ‘this’
rather than ‘the left-handed monkey wrench’, or ‘the highly perfumed
French poodle on the sofa’). Brown and Yule point out that the loosely
organised syntax, the use of non-specific words and phrases and the use
of fillers such as ‘well’, ‘oh’ and ‘uhuh’ make spoken language feel
less conceptually dense than other types of language such as expository
prose. They suggest that, in contrast with the teaching of written
language, teachers concerned with teaching the spoken language must
confront the following types of questions:

What is the appropriate form of spoken language to teach?

— From the point of view of pronunciation, what is a reasonable model?

— How important is pronunciation?

— Is it any more important than teaching appropriate handwriting in the
foreign language?

— If so, why?

— From the point of view of the structures taught, is it all right to
teach the spoken language as if it were exactly like the written
language, but with a few ‘spoken expressions’ thrown in?

— Is it appropriate to teach the same structures to all foreign language
students, no matter what their age is or their intentions in learning
the spoken language?

— Are those structures which are described in standard grammars the
structures which our students should be expected to produce when they
speak English?

— How is it possible to give students any sort of meaningful practice in
producing spoken English?

Brown and Yule also draw a useful distinction between two basic language
functions. These are the transactional function, which is primarily
concerned with the transfer of information, and the interactional
function, in which the primary purpose of speech is the maintenance of
social relationships.

Another basic distinction we can make when considering the development
of speaking skills is between monologue and dialogue. The ability to
give an uninterrupted oral presentation is quite distinct from
interacting with one or more other speakers for transactional and
interactional purposes. While all native speakers can and do use
language interactionally, not all native speakers have the ability to
extemporise on a given subject to a group of listeners. This is a skill
which generally has to be learned and practised. Brown and Yule suggest
that most language teaching is concerned with developing skills in
short, interactional exchanges in which the learner is only required to
make one or two utterances at a time. They go on to state that: .. . the
teacher should realise that simply training the student to produce short
turns will not automatically yield a student who can perform
satisfactorily in long turns. It is currently fashionable in language
teaching to pay particular attention to the forms and functions of short
turns. … It must surely be clear that students who are only capable of
producing short turns are going to experience a lot of frustration when
they try to speak the foreign language.

Communicative Approach and LanguageTeacing

All the “methods” described so far are symbolic of the progress foreign
language teaching ideology underwent in the last century. These were
methods that came and went, influenced or gave birth to new methods – in
a cycle that could only be described as “competition between rival
methods” or “passing fads” in the methodological theory underlying
foreign language teaching. Finally, by the mid-eighties or so, the
industry was maturing in its growth and moving towards the concept of a
broad “approach” to language teaching that encompassed various methods,
motivations for learning English, types of teachers and the needs of
individual classrooms and students themselves. It would be fair to say
that if there is any one “umbrella” approach to language teaching that
has become the accepted “norm” in this field, it would have to be the
Communicative Language Teaching Approach. This is also known as CLT.

The Communicative approach does a lot to expand on the goal of creating
“communicative competence” compared to earlier methods that professed
the same objective. Teaching students how to use the language is
considered to be at least as important as learning the language itself.
Brown (1994) aptly describes the “march” towards CLT:

“Beyond grammatical discourse elements in communication, we are probing
the nature of social, cultural, and pragmatic features of language. We
are exploring pedagogical means for ‘real-life’ communication in the
classroom. We are trying to get our learners to develop linguistic
fluency, not just the accuracy that has so consumed our historical
journey. We are equipping our students with tools for generating
unrehearsed language performance ‘out there’ when they leave the womb of
our classrooms. We are concerned with how to facilitate lifelong
language learning among our students, not just with the immediate
classroom task. We are looking at learners as partners in a cooperative
venture. And our classroom practices seek to draw on whatever
intrinsically sparks learners to reach their fullest potential.”

CLT is a generic approach, and can seem non-specific at times in terms
of how to actually go about using practices in the classroom in any sort
of systematic way. There are many interpretations of what CLT actually
means and involves. See Types of Learning and The PPP Approach to see
how CLT can be applied in a variety of ‘more specific’ methods.

From the remarks already made, it should be obvious that the current
interest in tasks stems largely from what has been termed ‘the
communicative approach’ to language teaching. In this section I should
like to briefly sketch out some of the more important principles
underpinning communicative language teaching.

Although it is not always immediately apparent, everything we do in the
classroom is underpinned by beliefs about the nature of language and
about language learning. In recent years there have been some dramatic
shifts in attitude towards both language and learning. This has
sometimes resulted in contradictory messages to the teaching profession
which, in turn, has led to confusion.

Among other things, it has been accepted that language is more than
simply a system of rules. Language is now generally seen as a dynamic
resource for the creation of meaning. In terms of learning, it is
generally accepted that we need to distinguish between ‘learning that’
and ‘knowing how’. In other words, we need to distinguish between
knowing various grammatical rules and being able to use the rules
effectively and appropriately when communicating.

This view has underpinned communicative language teaching (CLT). A great
deal has been written and said about CLT, and it is something of a
misnomer to talk about ‘the communicative approach’ as there is a family
of approaches, each member of which claims to be ‘communicative’ (in
fact, it is difficult to find approaches which claim not to be
communicative!). There is also frequent disagreement between different
members of the communicative family.

During the seventies, the insight that communication was an integrated
process rather than a set of discrete learning outcomes created a
dilemma for syllabus designers, whose task has traditionally been to
produce ordered lists of structural, functional or notional items graded
according to difficulty, frequency or pedagogic convenience. Processes
belong to the domain of methodology. They are somebody else’s business.
They cannot be reduced to lists of items. For a time, it seems, the
syllabus designer was to be out of business.

One of the clearest presentations of a syllabus proposal based on
processes rather than products has come from Breen. He suggests that an
alternative to the listing of linguistic content (the end point, as it
were, in the learner’s journey) would be to prioritize the route itself;
a focusing upon the means towards the learning of a new language. Here
the designer would give priority to the changing process of learning and
the potential of the classroom — to the psychological and social
resources applied to a new language by learners in the classroom
context. … a greater concern with capacity for communication rather
than repertoire of communication, with the activity of learning a
language viewed as important as the language itself, and with a focus
upon means rather than predetermined objectives, all indicate priority
of process over content.

(Breen 1984: 52-3) Bereen, M. 1984 Processes in syllabus design, General
English Sillabus Design. Oxford: Pergamon Press

What Breen is suggesting is that, with communication at the centre of
the curriculum, the goal of that curriculum (individuals who are capable
of using the target language to communicate with others) and the means
(classroom activities which develop this capability) begin to merge; the
syllabus must take account of both the ends and the means.

What then do we do with our more formal approaches to the specification
of structures and skills? Can they be found a place in CLT? We can focus
on this issue by considering the place of grammar.

For some time after the rise of CLT, the status of grammar in the
curriculum was rather uncertain. Some linguists maintained that it was
not necessary to teach grammar, that the ability to use a second
language (knowing ‘how’) would develop automatically if the learner were
required to focus on meaning in the process of using the language to
communicate. In recent years, this view has come under serious
challenge, and it now seems to be widely accepted that there is value in
classroom tasks which require learners to focus on form. It is also
accepted that grammar is an essential resource in using language
communicatively.

This is certainly Littlewood’s view. In his introduction to
communicative language teaching, he suggests that the following skills
need to be taken into consideration:

— The learner must attain as high a degree as possible of
linguisticcompetence. That is, he must develop skill in manipulating
thelinguistic system, to the point where he can use it spontaneouslyand
flexibly in order to express his intended message.

— The learner must distinguish between the forms he has masteredas part
of his linguistic competence, and the communicativefunctions which they
perform. In other words, items mastered aspart of a linguistic system
must also be understood as part of acommunicative system.

— The learner must develop skills and strategies for using languageto
communicate meanings as effectively as possible in concretesituations.
He must learn to use feedback to judge his success,and if necessary,
remedy failure by using different language.

— The learner must become aware of the social meaning oflanguage forms.
For many learners, this may not entail theability to vary their own
speech to suit different social circumstances, but rather the ability to
use generally acceptable forms and avoid potentially offensive ones.

(Littlewood 1981: 6) Littlewood W. 1981 communicative Language Teaching
– an Introduction cambridge University Press

At this point, you might like to consider your own position on this
matter. Do you think that considerations of content selection and
grading (i.e. selecting and grading grammar, functions, notions, topics,
pronunciation, vocabulary etc.) should be kept separate from the
selection and grading of tasks, or not? As we have already pointed out,
we take the view that any comprehensive curriculum needs to take account
of both means and ends and must address both content and process. In the
final analysis, it does not really matter whether those responsible for
specifying learning tasks are called ‘syllabus designers’ or
‘methodologists’. What matters is that both processes and outcomes are
taken care of and that there is a compatible and creative relationship
between the two.

Whatever the position taken, there is no doubt that the development of
communicative language teaching has had a profound effect on both
methodology and syllabus design, and has greatly enhanced the status of
the learning ‘task’ within the curriculum.

Students need to be understood and to be able to say what they want to
say. Their pronunciation should be at least adequate for that purpose.
They need to know the various sounds that occur in the language and
differentiate between them. They should be able to apply certain rules,
eg. past tense endings, t, d or id. Likewise, a knowledge of correct
rhythm and stress and appropriate intonation is essential.

In Extract 1, the teacher plays the part of ringmaster. He asks the
questions (most of which are ‘display’ questions which require the
learners to provide answers which the teacher already knows). The only
student-initiated interaction is on a point of vocabulary.

• In the second extract, the learners have a much more active role. They
communicate directly with each other, rather than exclusively with the
teacher as is the case in Extract 1, and one student is allowed to take
on the role of provider of content. During the interaction it is the
learner who is the ‘expert’ and the teacher who is the ‘learner’ or
follower.

From time to time, it is a good idea to record and analyse interactions
in your own classroom. These interactions can either be between you and
your students, or between students as they interact in small-group work.
If you do, you may be surprised at the disparity between what you
thought at the time was happening, and what actually took place as
recorded on the tape. You should not be disconcerted if you do find such
a disparity. In my experience, virtually all teachers, even the most
experienced, discover dimensions to the lesson which they were unaware
of at the time the lesson took place. (These will not all be negative,
of course.)

The raw data of interaction, as above, are often illuminating. The
following reactions were provided by a group of language teachers at an
inservice workshop. The teachers had recorded, transcribed and analysed
a lesson which they had recently given and were asked (among other
things) to report back on what they had discovered about their own
teaching, and about the insights they had gained into aspects of
classroom management and interaction. Most of the comments referred,
either explicitly or implicitly, to teacher/learner roles:

‘As teachers we share an anxiety about “dominating” and so a common
assumption that we are too intrusive, directive etc.’ ‘I need to develop
skills for responding to the unexpected and exploit this to realise the
full potential of the lesson.’ ‘There are umpteen aspects which need
improving. There is also the effort of trying to respond to
contradictory notions about teaching (e.g. intervention versus
non-intervention).’ ‘I had been making a conscious effort to be
non-directive, but was far more directive than I had thought.’

‘Using small groups and changing groups can be perplexing and
counterproductive, or helpful and stimulating. There is a need to plan
carefully to make sure such changes are positive.’ ‘I have come to a
better realisation of how much listening the teacher needs to do.’ ‘The
teacher’s role in facilitating interaction is extremely important for
all types of classes. How do you teach teachers this?’ ‘I need to be
more aware of the assumptions underlying my practice.’ ‘I discovered
that I was over-directive and dominant.’ ‘Not to worry about periods of
silence in the classroom.’ ‘I have a dreadful tendency to overload.’ ‘I
praise students, but it is rather automatic. There is also a lot of
teacher talk in my lessons.’ ‘I give too many instructions.’ ‘I
discovered that, while my own style is valuable, it leads me to view
issues in a “blinkered” way. I need to analyse my own and others’ styles
and ask why do I do it that way?’

Chapter I

Types of communicative exercises

Warming-up exercises

When people have to work together in а group it is advisable that they
get to know each other а little at the beginning. Оncе they have talked
tо each other in an introductory exercise they will be less reluctant to
cooperate in further activities. One of the pre-requisites of
cooperation is knowing the other people’s names. А second one is having
some idea of what individual members of the group are interested in. One
important use of warming-up exercises is with new classes at the
beginning of а course or the school year. If уои join in the activities
and let the class know something about yourself, the students are mоrе
likely to accept you as а person and not just as а teacher. А second use
of warming-up activities lies in getting students into the right mood
before starting on some new project or task.

However, even warming-up activities mау seem threatening to very shy
students. In particular, exercises in which one person has to speak
about himself in front of the whole class belong in this category. You
can reduce the strain by reorganising the activity in such а way that
the student concerned is questioned by the class, thus avoiding а
monologue where the pressure is on one person only. Students often find
pair work the least threatening because everybody is talking at the same
time and they have only got one listener. Depending on the atmosphere in
your classes, you mау wish tо modify whole-class exercises to include
pair or group work.

А number of warming-up exercises, are also suitable for light relief
between periods of hard work. Grouping contains а lot of ideas for
dividing students into groups and can precede all types of group work.

Most of the warming-up exercises are suitable for beginners because they
do not demand more than simple questions and answers. But the language
content of the exercises can easily be adapted to а higher level of
proficiency.

Names

Aims: Skills — speaking

Language — questions

Other — getting tо know each other’ s names

Level: Beginners

Organisation: Class

Preparation : As many small slips of paper as there are students

Time : 5-10 minutes

Procedure : Step 1: Each student writes his full name on а piece of
paper. All the papers are collected and redistributed sо that everyone
receives the name of а person he does not know.

Step 2: Everyone walks around the room and tries to find the person
whose name he holds. Simple questions can bе asked, е.g. ‘Is your
name…?’ ‘Are you…?’

Step 3: When everyone has found his partner, he introduces him tо the
group http://www.htt.com/gamesin teaching.

Interviews

We watch, read and listen to interviews every day. In the media the
famous and not sо famous are interviewed on important issues and trivial
subjects. For the advertising industry and market research institutes,
interviews are а necessity. The success of an interview depends both on
the skill of the interviewer, on her ability to ask the right kinds of
questions, to insist and interpret, and on the willingness to talk on
the part of the person being interviewed. Both partners in an interview
should be good at listening so that а question-and-answer sequence
develops into а conversation.

In the foreign language classroom interviews are useful not only because
they force students rо listen carefully but also because they are sо
versatile in their subject matter. Dubin, F and M. Margol (1977). It’s
Time To Talk: Communication activities for learning English as a new
language. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice – Hall. As soon as
beginners know the first structures for questions (е.g. Can you sing an
English song? Have you got а car?) interviewing can begin. If everyone
interviews his neighbour all students are practising the foreign
language at the same time. When the learners have acquired а basic set
of structures and vocabulary the interviews mentioned in this section
can be used. А list of possible topics for further interviews is given
at the end of the section. Of course, you may choose any topic you wish,
taking them from recent news stories or texts read in class. In the
warming-up phase of а course interviews could concentrate on more
personal questions.

Before you use an interview in your class make sure that the students
can use the necessary question-and-answer structures. А few sample
sentences on the board may be а help for the less able. With advanced
learners language functions like insisting and asking for confirmation
(Did you mean that…? Do you really think that…? Did you say… ? But
you said earlier that…), hesitating (Well, let me see…),
contradicting and interrupting (Hold on а minute…, Can I just butt in
here?) can be practised during interviews. When students report back on
interviews they have done, they have to use reported speech.

Since the students’ chances of asking а lot of questions are not very
good in ‘language-oriented’ lessons, interviews are а good compensation.
If you divide your class up into groups of three and let two students
interview the third, then the time spent on practisinig questions is
increased. As а rule students should make some notes on the questions
they are going to ask and of the answers they get.

Self-directed interviews

Aims: Skills — writing, speaking

Language – questions

Other — getting tо know each other or each other’ s points of view

Level : Intermediate

Organisation: Pairs

Preparation: None

Time: 10-30 minutes

Procedure:

Step 1: Each student writes down five to ten questions that he would
like tо be asked. The general context of these questions can be left
open, or the questions can be restricted to areas such as personal likes
and dislikes, opinions, information about one’ s personal life, еtс.

Step 2: The students choose partners, exchange question sheets and
interview one another using these questions.

Step 3: It might be quite interesting to find out in а discussion with
the whole class what kinds of questions we asked and why they were
chosen.

Variations Instead of fully written-up questions each student specifies
three to five topics he would like tо bе asked about, е.g. pop music,
food, friends.

Remarks: This activity helps to avoid embarrassment because nobody has
to reveal thoughts and feelings he does not want to talk about.

Jigsaw tasks

Jigsaw tasks use the same basic principle as jigsaw puzzles with one
exception. Whereas the player doing а jigsaw puzzle has all the pieces
he needs in front of him, the participants in а jigsaw task have only
one (or а few) piece(s) each. As in а puzzle the individual parts, which
may be sentences from а story or factual text, or parts of а picture or
comic strip, have tо be fitted together to find the solution. In jigsaw
tasks each participant is equally important, because each holds part of
the solution. That is why jigsaw tasks are said tо improve cooperation
and mutual acceptance within the group Aronson, E, N. Blaney, J. Sikes,
G. Stephan and M. Snapp (1975) “The jigasw route to learning and liking”
Pschology today Vol. 8 pp. 43 – 50 . Participants in jigsaw tasks have
to do а lot of talking before they are able to fit the pieces together
in the right way. It is obvious that this entails а large amount of
practice in the foreign language, especially in language functions like
suggesting, agreeing and disagreeing, determining sequence, etc. А
modified form of jigsaw tasks is found in communicative exercises for
pair work.

Jigsaw tasks practise two very different areas of skill in the foreign
language. Firstly, the students have tо understand the bits of
information they are given (i.е. listening and/or reading comprehension)
and describe them to the rest of the group. This makes them realise how
important pronunciation and intonation are in making yourself
understood. Secondly, the students have to organise the process of
finding the solution; а lot of interactional language is needed here.
Because the language elements required by jigsaw tasks are not available
at beginners’ level, this type of activity is best used with
intermediate and more advanced students. In а number of jigsaw tasks in
this section the participants have to give exact descriptions of scenes
or objects, so these exercises can be valuable for revising prepositions
and adjectives.

Pair or group work is necessary for а number of jigsaw tasks. If your
students have not yet been trained to use the foreign language amongst
themselves in situations like these, there may be а few difficulties
with monolingual groups when you start using jigsaw tasks. Some of these
difficulties may be overcome if exercises designed for pair work are
first done as team exercises so that necessary phrases can be practised.

The worksheets are also meant as stimuli for your own production of
worksheets. Suitable drawings can be found in magazines. If you have а
camera you can take photographs for jigsaw tasks, i.е. arrangements of а
few objects with the positions changed in each picture. Textual material
for strip stories can be taken from textbooks and text collections.

Some of the problem-solving activities are also а kind of jigsaw task.

The same or different?

Aims Skills — speaking, listening comprehension

Language — exact description

Other — cooperation

Level Intermediate

Organisation Class,Pairs

Preparation One copy each of handout А for half the students, and one
сору each of handout S for the other half (see Part 2)

Mimе 15-20

Procedure Step 1: The class is divided into two groups of equal size
and the chairs arranged in two circles, the inner circle facing
outwards, the outer circle facing inwards, so that two students from
opposite groups sit facing each other. All the students sitting in the
inner circle receive handout А. All the students in the outer circle
receive handout S. They must not show each other their handouts.

Step 2: Each handout contains 18 small drawings; some are the same in А
and S, and some are different. By describing the drawings to each other
and asking questions the two students in each pair have to decide
whether the drawing is the same or different, and mark it S or D. The
student who has а cross next to the number of the drawing begins by
describing it to his partner. After discussing three drawings all the
students in the outer circle move to the chair on their left and
continue with а new partner.

Step 3: When all the drawings have been discussed, the teacher tells the
class the answers.

Variations The material can be varied in many ways. Instead of
pictures, other things could be used, е.g. synonymous and non-
synonymous sentences, symbolic drawings, words and drawings.

Chapter II

Questioning activities

This last section in the chapter is something of а mixed bag, in so far
as it contains аll those activities which, although they centre around
questioning, do not fit into any of the previous sections. First of all
there are humanistic exercises that focus on the learners themselves,
their attitudes and values. Secondly there is а kind of exercise that
could be employed to teach learners about the cultural background of the
target country. Thirdly there is а board game. Last of all there are
three activities suitable either as warming-up exercises or as
strategies for tackling more factual topics. The worksheets belonging tо
these exercises can be modified accordingly. Many of these activities
are quite flexible, not only as regards their content but also in terms
of procedure. By simply introducing а few new rules, е.g. а limit on the
number of questions or a time-limit they are transformed into games.

As soon as students are able to produce yes/no and wh-questions most of
these activities can be used. You may, however, have со adapt the
worksheets as these are not always aimed at the earliest stage at which
an exercise can be used. For reasons of motivation similar activities,
like Gо and find out and Find someone who…, should not be done
directly one after the other Moskowitz, Y (1978) Caring and Sharing in
the Foreign Language Class. Rowley, Mass.: Newbury House..

For activities which question forms are practised. The book by Moskowitz
(1978) contains а great number of humanistic exercises.

What would happen if…? http:/www.htp.com/gamesinteaching

Aims Skills — speaking

Language — if-clauses, making conjectures, asking for confirmation

Other — imagination

Level Intermidiate

Organisation Class

Preparation About twice as many slips of paper with an event/situation
written on them as there are students

Time 10-15 minutes

Procedure Every student receives one or two slips of paper with
sentences like these on them: ‘What would happen if а shop gave away its
goods free every Wednesday?’ ‘What would you do if you won а trip for
two to а city of your choice?’ One student starts by reading out his
question and then asks another student to answer it. The second student
continues by answering or asking а third student tо answer the first
student’s question. If he has answered the question he may then read out
his own question for somebody else to answer. The activity is finished
when all the questions have been read out and answered.

Variations The students can prepare their own questions. Some more
suggestions:

What would happen

if everybody who told а lie turned green?

if people could get а driving licence at 14? if girls had to do military
service?

if men were not allowed to become doctors or pilots? if children over 10
were allowed to vote? i f gold was found in your area?

if а film was made in your school/place of work?

if headmasters had to be elected by teachers and pupils? if smoking was
forbidden in public places?

if the price of alcohol was raised by 300 per cent?

What would you do

if you were invited tо the Queen’ s garden party?

if а photograph of yours won first prize at an exhibition? if your
little sister aged 14 told you she was pregnant? if you saw your teacher
picking apples from her neighbour’ tree?

if а salesman called at your house and tried со sell you а sauna bath?

if your horoscope warned you against travelling when you want to go on
holiday?

if it rained every day of your holiday?

if you got а love letter from somebody you did not know? if you found а
snake under your bed?

if you got lost on а walk in the woods?

if you were not able to remember numbers?

if somebody hit а small child very hard in your presence? if you found а
120 note in а library book?

if your friend said she did not like the present you had given her?

if you suddenly found out that you could become invisible by eating
spinach?

if you broke an expensive vase while you were baby-sitting at а friend’
s house?

if you invited somebody to dinner at your house but they forgot to come?

if you forgot you had asked four people to lunch and didn’ t have any
food in the house when they arrived?

if а young man came up to you, gave you а red rose and said that you
were the loveliest person he had seen for а long time?

if you noticed that you hadn’ t got any money on you and you had
promised tо ring your mother from а call box at exactly this time?

if you could not sleep at night?

Values clarification techniques

The асtivitites in this section are based on the principle of the
‘values clarification approach’ which originated in the USA Howe, L. W.
and M.M Howe (1975) Personilizing Education. New York: Hart . It is one
of the assumptions of this approach that school must help young people
to become aware of their own values and to act according tо them. The
psychologist Louis Raths distinguishes between three main stages in this
process: ‘Prizing one’ s beliefs and behaviours,… choosing one’ s
beliefs and behaviours,… acting on one’ s beliefs’ Simon S.B., L.W.
Howe, and H. Krichenbaum (1972) Values Clarification. New York : Hart..
Personal values relate both to one’ s own personality and to the outside
world, including such areas as school, leisure activities or politics.
Adults as well as young people may not always be consciously aware of
their beliefs and so learners of all ages may find that the activities
in this section help them tо discover something about themselves.

The activities in this section mainly concern the prizing and choosing
of values; acting on one’s beliefs cannot be learnt sо easily in the
foreign language class. The individual tasks appeal directly tо the
learners, who have to be prepared tо talk about their feelings and
attitudes. On the one hand this may be а very motivating experience,
because the students feel that they are communicating about something
meaningful, as well as being taken seriously as people; on the other
hand а situation in which the participants have to reveal some of their
more ‘private’ thoughts mау appear threatening. Thus it is essential tо
do these exercises in а supportive and relaxed atmosphere. You mау help
create this atmosphere by joining in some of the exercises and sharing
your values with уоur students. You should also remind your students of
the guideline that nobody has tо answer embarrassing questions, and that
the right to refuse to answer is granted to everyone in these exercises.
The educational bias of values clarification techniques makes it easier
to integrate them into а democratic style of teaching than mоrе
traditional teacher- centred methods.

As regards the language items practised in these exercises, speech acts
like expressing likes and dislikes, stating one’ s opinions and
giving/asking for reasons occur throughout. Skills like note taking are
also practised, because students are often asked tо jot down their ideas
and feelings.

Values clarification techniques share some characteristics with ranking
exercises, but the latter are more structured and predictable.

Personalities

Aims Skills — speaking, writing

Language — descriptive sentences, past tense (reported speech)

Other — acknowledging the influence other people have on us, note taking

Level Intermdiate

Organisation Individuals, class

Preparation None

Time 10-30

Procedure Step 1: The students are asked tо think about their lives and
the people they know/have known. Each student should find at least two
people who have influenced him in his life. These mау be his parents,
other relations, friends, or personalities from history or literature.
Не should note down some points in order to be able tо tell the rest of
the class briefly how these people have influenced him.

Step 2: Each student in turn says а few sentences about these people. А
discussion and/or question may follow each speal

Remarks Emphasis should be given to positive influences.

Lifestyle

Aims Skills — speaking

Language — giving reasons, stating likes and dislikes

Other — thinking about one’ s priorities

Level Beginners/intermediate

Organisation Pairs

Preparation Students are asked а day or so beforehand со bring along
three objects which are important or significant for them.

Time 10 — 15 minutes

Procedure Step 1: Students work with а partner. Each of them explains
the use/purpose of the three objects he has brought with him and says
why they are important and significant for him.

Both partners then talk about similarities and differences between their
choice of objects.

Step 2: А few of the students present their partner’s objects and
explain their significance to the rest of the group.

Variations 1: Instead of real objects, drawings or photographs (cut
out-3 of magazines or catalogues) may be used.

2: Before the paired discussion starts, а kind of speculating or
guessing game can be conducted, where the three objects of а student
whose identity is not revealed are shown, and suggestions about their
significance are made.

Thinking strategies

In the last decade Edward de Bono has repeatedly demanded that thinking
should be taught in schools. His main intention is to change our rigid
way of thinking and make us learn to think creatively. Some of the
activities in this section are taken from his thinking course for
schools. Brainstorming, although also mentioned by de Bono, is а
technique that has been used widely in psychology and cannot be
attributed to him.

The thinking strategies resemble each other in that different ideas have
to be collected by the participants in the first stage. In the second
stage these ideas have tо be ordered and evaluated. It is obvious that
there is ample opportunity tо use the foreign language at both stages.
Apart from the speech acts of agreeing and disagreeing, suggesting, etc.
these exercises practise all forms of comparison and the conditional.

Brainstorming

Aims Skills — speaking, writing

Language — conditional, making suggestions

Other — imagination, practice of important thinking skills

Level Intermediate

Organisation Groups of four to seven students

Preparation None

Time 5 — 15 minutes

Procedure Step 1: The class is divided into groups. Each group receives
the same task. Possible tasks are:

(а) How many possible uses can you find for а paper clip (plastic
bag/wooden coat hanger/teacup/pencil/sheet of typing paper/matchbox,
etc.)?

(b) You have со make an important phone call but you have по change. How
many ways can you find of getting the money for the call?

(с) How many ways can you find of opening а wine bottle without а
corkscrew?

(d) How many ways can you find of having а cheap holiday? The groups
work on the task for а few minutes, collecting as many ideas as possible
without commenting on them or evaluating them. All the ideas are written
down by the group secretary.

Step 2: Each group reads out their list of ideas. The ideas are written
on the board.

Step 3: The groups choose five ideas from the complete list (either the
most original or the most practical ones) and rank them.

Variations 1: After Step 1 the groups exchange their lists of ideas.
Each group ranks the ideas on its new list according со а common
criterion, е.g. practicability, costs, simplicity, danger, etc.

2: Each group chooses an idea and discusses it according to the
procedure.

Remarks Brainstorming increases mental flexibility and encourages
original thinking. It is а useful strategy for а great number of
teaching situations.

Interactive problem solving

In this section, we shall look at two approaches in which communicative
tasks are sequenced around problem situations. The first is Scarcella’s
sociodrama, while the second is Di Pietro’s strategic interaction. Both
approaches allow the teacher to build in exercises which enable learners
to develop vocabulary, grammar and discourse as well as interactive
skills.

The focus of Scarcella’s sociodrama is on the development of skills in
social interaction. Unlike most role plays, sociodrama involves a series
of specific steps. It is student- rather than teacher-centred in that
students define their own roles and determine their own course of
action. The following set of steps provides an idea of how the approach
works.

1. Warm up

The topic is introduced by the teacher.

2. Presentation of new vocabulary

New words and expressions are introduced.

3. Presentation of dilemma

A story is introduced by the teacher who stops at the dilemma point.
Students focus on the conflict which occurs at the dilemma point.

4. Discussion of the situation and selection of roles

The problem and roles are discussed. Students who relate to the roles
and who have solutions to offer come to the front of the class to
participate in the enactment.

5. Audience preparation

Those who are not going to take part in the enactment are given specific
tasks to carry out during the enactment.

6. Enactment

Role-players act out the solution which has been suggested.

7. Discussion of the situation and selection of new
role-playersAlternative ways of solving the problem are explored and
newrole-players are selected.

8. Re-enactment

The problem situation is replayed with new strategies.

9. Summary

The teacher guides the students to summarise what was presented.

10. Follow-up

These may include a written exercise, extended discussion, aural
comprehension exercises or a reading exercise. (Scarcella 1978)
Scarcella, R.C. (1978). “Socio-drama for social interaction.” TESOL
Quarterly Vol.12 No. 1, pp. 41 – 46

Di Pietro’s approach, which he calls ‘strategic interaction’ is based on
improvisations or ‘scenarios’. Students act out scenarios, having first
memorised the situation and roles they are expected to play and having
carefully rehearsed the scenario. However, at certain points during the
acting out, additional information is injected into the situation,
requiring learners to modify their intended role, and to alter the
direction of the interaction.

With a little thought, problem situations and scenarios can be developed
which do allow learners to rehearse ‘real-world’ language i.e. language
they might potentially need to use in the real world. Whether or not a
given lesson appears to have a real-world rationale really depends on
the situation which the teacher has chosen. Scarcella obviously believes
that her approach has real-world applications as can be seen in the
following quote:

Socio-drama is an activity which obliges students to attend to the
verbal environment. First, it is relevant to the students’ interests,
utilizing both extrinsic motivation, which refers to the students’ daily
interests and cares, and intrinsic motivation, which refers to the
students’ internal feelings and attitudes. . . . Furthermore,
socio-drama is a problem-solving activity which stimulates real life
situations and requires active student involvement.

(Scarcella 1978: 46)

In the following activities the learners have to find solutions tо
various types of problem. In the case of puzzles there is just one
correct solution: however, most of the ехеrcises lead tо а discussion of
several ways of solving the problems. The problem tasks themselves range
from the imaginary to the more realistic. The latter provide situations
which the learners might conceivably have . to face outside the
classroom.

Apart from the activities focusing on the likes and dislikes of
individual learners, which therefore need an initial phase where each
student works on his own, most of the problem- ‘. solving tasks in this
section require pair or group work throughout. In some ways these
activities are similar to ranking exercises because, like them, they
generate discussions of the importance or relevance of statements, ideas
or procedures. But unlike ranking exercises, problem-solving activities
demand that the learners themselves decide upon the items to be ranked.
Thus there is more creative use of the foreign language. It is advisable
to use the less complex ranking exercises before any problem- solving
activities if the students have not done this kind of work before.

The language which is needed for problem-solving activities depends on
the topic of each exercise, but in general students will have tо make
suggestions, give reasons, and accept, modify or reject suggestions and
reasons given by others.

Desert island

Aims Skills — speaking, writing

Language — giving and asking for reasons, agreeing and disagreeing,
making suggestions

Other — imagination, common sense, fun

Level Intermediate

Organisation Individuals, pairs, groups.

Preparation None

Time 10-20

Procedure Step 1: The teacher describes the task tо the students: ‘You
are stranded on а desert island а long way from anywhere. There is а
fresh water spring on the island, and there are banana trees and coconut
palms. The climate is mild. Make а list of eight to twelve things which
you think are necessary for survival.’ Students work on their own.

Step 2: Students pair up and compare lists. They agree on а common list
of а maximum of ten items.

Step 3: The students discuss the new lists in groups of four tо six
students. They decide on а group list of а maximum of eight items and
rank these according to their importance.

Rescue

Aims Skills — speaking

Language – stating an opinion, giving and asking for reasons, agreeing
and disagreeing, comparisons

Other — thinking about one’ s values

Level Intermediate/advanced

Organisation Groups of five to eight students

Preparation None

Time 10-20

Procedure Step 1: The teacher explains the situation:

‘The Earth is doomed. All life is going tо perish in two due tо
radiation. А spaceship from another solar system lands and offers to
rescue twelve people, who could start а new world on an empty planet
very much like Earth. Imagine you are the selection committee and you
have to decide who mау be rescued. Think of а list of criteria which you
would use in your decision.’

Step 2: Each group discusses the problem and tries to work out а list.

Step 3: Each group presents its list of criteria to the class. The lists
are discussed.

Variations The task can be made mоrе specific, е.g. ‘Find ten criteria.
You can award up tо 100 points if а candidate gets full marks on all
counts, е.g. appearance 5, intelligence 30, fertility 15, physical
fitness 20, etc.

Remarks Although the basic problem is а rather depressing one, it helps
students to clarify their own values as regards judging others.

Chapter III

Stories & Poetry– painting that speaks
http://www.htt.com/poetry/in/teachingenglish

The aim of these activities is to get the students to produce longer
connected texts. For this they will need imagination as well as some
skill in the foreign language. Stimuli are given in the form of
individual words or pictures.

Story-telling activates more than а limited number of patterns and
structures and these activities are best used as general revision.

Chain story http://www.htt.com/fun/tasks/in/taching

Aims Skills — speaking

Language — simple past

Other — imagination, flexibility

Level Beginners/intermediate

Organisation Class

Preparation Small slips of paper with one noun/verb/adjective on each
of them, as many pieces of paper as there are students

Time 10 — 20 minutes

Procedure Step 1: Each student receives а word slip.

Step 2: The teacher starts the story by giving the first sentence, е.g.
‘It was а stormy night in November. А student (either а volunteer or the
person sitting nearest to the teacher) continues the story. Не mау say
up to three sentences and must include the word on his slip of paper.
The next student goes on.

Variations Each student is also given а number. The numbers determine
the sequence in which the students have to contribute tо the story.

Remarks One can direct the contents of the story to а certain degree by
the choice of words.

Newspaper report http://www.htt.com/gamesinteaching

Aims Skills — writing

Language — reporting events, past tenses, passive

Other — imagination

Level Intermediate

Organisation Groups

Preparation А large number of photographs taken from magazines and
newspapers

Time 20 — 30 minutes

Procedure Step 1: Each group is given five pictures of which they have
to use three. Their aim is tо write а newspaper rероrt linking these
three pictures.

Step 2: When each group has decided which pictures to use they write
their report.

Step 3: The reports are read out and the pictures shown to the class.

Variations 1: Each group chooses three pictures which another group has
tо write about.

2: After Step 2 all the pictures are displayed on the wall. When the
reports are read out the others have to guess which pictures fit which
report.

3: The reports are taken as starting points for interviews and role
plays.

Remarks If unusual and widely differing pictures are chosen the result
can be very funny.

This work is based on the assumption that the handing-down of
grammatical rules is made easier if students are told in the regular
beat of a verse scheme. The poems themselves are here to give the words
a special measured motion as they are spoken. The rhythmic movement is
sufficiently controlled to show some regularity. In some ways the poetic
lines are like careful conversation; each word is chosen to give the
fullest possible effect, and the rhythm of the lines ensures that
heaviness is avoided to some extent. However, poetry is essentially
spoken language, and so the lines are more memorable than prose. One
advantage of these poems is that the lines are easily remembered.

The general meaning of a poem is more important than the literal
meanings of the individual words. Thus, to read a poem effectively is to
read it wholly and appreciate its unity.

The following poem states that the passive voice is preferable in
scientific writing. It also shows how active voice can be changed into
passive voice. The last two lines explain that the subject of the active
voice is put at the end in the passive sentence and it is often omitted
as it is expressed through the word “dead.”

Active and Passive Forms:

Hi, Ahmad, come and see,

Two forms may a sentence be.

Active or passive voice, Each one a free choice,

Active in all speech, Passive for science teach.

Active form is formal, Passive also be normal.

To get passive as we know, After a verb should object go.

In the passive object needed, Being subject firstly seated.

Object comes to be first, As a subject not to hurt.

Subject goes to the end, Following “by” as a friend.

Abdul Hassan Sh. Qassim Ajdubia, Libya

Poetry is painting that speaks, according to Plutarch. It is the
artistic use of language which sums up its essence and unbounded
versatility. It requires, however, a degree of linguistic sophistication
for understanding and appreciation. Therefore, you should reserve
English poems for FFL/ESL students who are both proficient in English
and genuinely interested in poetry. Only with such groups can poems
become popular and productive items for conversation.

In choosing poems for your group, I suggest that you limit your choice
to nineteenth- and twentieth-century poetry. If you are considering
American poetry, for instance, poems by Emily Dickinson, Edna St.
Vincent Millay, Robert Frost, and other well-known poets should provide
excellent discussion material. Of course, you do not have to limit your
choice to great poets only. There are, for instance, collections of
poems by talented American high school and university
students-collections which often contain fine selections for use in
English conversation sessions.

A poem that is short, written in clear language, and universally
appealing is most likely to interest your students. As Jerome Gram said
in a recent seminar in Turkey, “Unlike a novel or a play or a story,
such a poem presents itself on the page in bite size-encouragingly
compact and accessible—a manifestly possible task. And at the same time,
the density of meaning and possibility in a word or a line of poetry
yields ample and varied material for study.”

Once you have collected poems that you consider suitable, you may want
to use the following procedures;

1. Read each poem two or three times to your students before they see it
in the written form. They should listen for meaning as well as for
rhythm in the individual words and lines.

2. Give everyone a copy of the poem. If there are no duplicating
facilities available, write the poem on the blackboard so that the
students can copy it.

3. Explain the meaning of words or expressions that students may not be
familiar with.

4. Read the poem again while the students follow the written form.

5. Discuss the message or messages in the poem. Ask: the students why
they agree or disagree with the poet’s views. Have students restate the
message(s) in prose.

6. Read the poem and have the students listen to it with their eyes
closed so that they can concentrate on the sound of the words.

7. Have the group go through the poem with a different student ding each
line, one student reading one verse and the entire group heading the
next, female students reading some lines and male students reading
others, or any other pattern that adds interest and pried vocal quality
during the reading of the poem.

8. Discuss the poet-his life, philosophy, other poems he has written,
and additional information that would interest your students.

9. Delineate the cultural elements appearing in the poem. Have the
students compare these with elements in their own culture.

10. Help the students memorize the poem if they are interested in doing
so. Poems learned by heart can be repeated by the group as a whole or by
individual students and are apt to be even more attractive with
familiarity. Besides, a poem which is memorized becomes the students’
actual “”possession,” a living part of his own linguistic and
intellectual heritage.

Professor Gram told his students, “There’s no better way to get familiar
and at home with English than to have a few English poems running
through your head.” You may make the same observation with your
students.

Games as a way at breaking the routine of classroom drill

Language games can add fun and variety to conversation sessions if the
participants are fond of games. I, myself, have always enjoyed games,
and students (most of them adults) seem to share my enthusiasm. Games
are especially refreshing after demanding conversational activities such
as debates or speeches. Here, the change of pace from the serious to the
lighthearted is particularly welcome, although language games can fit
into any directed conversation program quite well.

Socio-drama is an activity which obliges students to attend to the
verbal environment. First, it is relevant to the students’ interests,
utilizing both extrinsic motivation, which refers to the students’ daily
interests and cares, and intrinsic motivation, which refers to the
students’ internal feelings and attitudes. . . . Furthermore,
socio-drama is a problem-solving activity which stimulates real life
situations and requires active student involvement.

Some teachers feel that language games are more appropriate in the
manipulative phase than in the communicative phase of language learning.
Most teachers, however, find language games valuable in both phases. In
the manipulative phase, a game is a wonderful way to break the routine
of classroom drill by providing relaxation while’ remaining within the
framework of language learning. In the communicative phase, a game can
be stimulating and entertaining, and when the participants have stopped
playing the game you can use it as a stimulus for additional
conversation. For instance, if the group has just finished the game in
which players indicate whether a statement is true or false by running
to chairs labeled “True” and “False,” you may then ask questions about
what happened during the game. (“Who was the first player?”, “Who
knocked the chair over by accident?”, “What was the first true statement
in the game?”, “How many points did Team II score?” etc.)

Of course, for maximum benefit from a language game in either phase, the
teacher should select only the best from the hundreds of language games
available. Most people would agree that a good language game

(1) requires little or no advance preparation,

(2) is easy to play and yet provides the student with an intellectual
challenge,

(3;) is short enough to occupy a convenient space in the conversation
program,

(4) entertains the students but does not cause the group to get out of
control, and

(5) requires no time-consuming correction of written responses
afterward.

These games are for teen-agers and adults but often enjoyed by children
as well, are especially suitable for use in conversation sessions.
Before you read the instructions, you may wish to consider the following
suggestions—suggestions designed to insure the greatest success with any
of the games you select:

1. Make thorough preparations for the game. Read the rules to yourself
several times so that you have a good understanding of how it is played.
Gather materials for the games that require special equipment. Plan how
you will direct conversation during or following the game.

2. Before introducing a game to a class, ask the students if they think
they would enjoy this kind of activity. Occasionally an adult class
expresses in no uncertain terms its lack of interest in the prospect of
playing a game. When this happens, it is best to abandon the idea-at
least for the time being.

3. Choose a game that allows as many students as possible to
participate. If the class is large, a number of students will sit as the
audience during some games. But even there, members of the audience may
keep score and in other ways take part in the game. In small classes,
you should make sure that every student has an active role in every
game.

4. Be sure that the game you select is within the range of your
students’ ability. Remember that the students will be greatly challenged
by the fact that they are playing the game in a language other than
their own.

5. Do not play a game at the beginning of the conversation period. Save
the game for use in the middle or toward the end of the session, when
the students would welcome a change of pace.

6. Give the directions to the game very clearly; making sure that
everyone understands exactly how to play. You may want to play a few
“trial” games first, just to make sure that everyone knows his role.

7. Direct the game yourself. Always stand in front of the class, so that
all students can see you while you act as the leader or referee.

8. Be sure to follow the rules of the game exactly. If you do not “stick
to the rules” but permit even one student to break a rule, you will
establish a precedent that may lead to hostility among the students. It
is always best, therefore, to anticipate problems of this kind and to
play strictly according to the rules.

9. Keep the game well under control. Even though you want your students
to have a good time, you cannot allow class discipline to disintegrate.
Establish a pleasant but firm tone, and the students will be able to
enjoy the game and learn in the process.

10. Observe how the individual players react to the game. Students who
make an error in a game may feel a bit sensitive, so you should soften
any blows to pride. If you constantly encourage a good spirit of fun,
you will reduce the chances of unhappiness during the game.

11. In team games, try to have in each team an equal number of more
proficient students and less proficient students. This will balance the
teams and prevent embarrassment on the part of the weaker students. It
also makes the contest more exciting. Some methodologists recommend that
you set up permanent teams so that you do not have to name new teams
each time. This has its merits, but you may prefer to create new teams
each time you play a game, thus lending variety and interest to every
fresh contest.

12. If a game does not seem to be going well, try a different game.
Since some games appeal to one group of students but not to another, you
should be flexible in your use of games.

13. Always stop playing a game before the students are ready to quit. In
other words, never play a game so long that it begins to bore the
participants. Similarly, do not play one game too often, since this will
cause it to lose its novelty.

As you read the directions to the games that follow, do not be
discouraged by the length of some of the directions. Long directions
might make you think that the game is a complicated one, but all the
games are easy for the student to learn if they are geared to his
English proficiency level.

For this lively game you should set two chairs close to each other in
front of the class and label one chair “True” and the other chair
“False.” Then divide the students into two teams of equal size and have
members stand one behind the other on opposite sides of the room, with
everyone facing the two chairs.

Explain that you are going to make a statement which may or may not be
true, such as “John is absent today” (when he actually is absent) or “It
was cloudy this morning'” (when it was sunny) or “Mary is wearing a red
dress”‘ (when she is wearing a blue one) or “There are ten girls in this
room” (when there are only seven). You should say the statement fairly
rapidly, and only once.

As soon as you have completed the statement, a member of Team I and a
member of Team II standing at the head of their respective team lines
should quickly decide if the statement is true or false and run to the
appropriate chair. The first person who sits down squarely on the right
chair scores a point for his team. Both contestants then go to the end
of their team lines and you make another statement for the second set of
contestants. The game continues in this fashion until everyone has had a
chance to play or until the time limit, agreed upon in advance, has been
reached. Because the statements can be short and easy, or long and
difficult, the game is ideal for all language-learning levels.

Classroom twenty questions

This is an excellent guessing game in which one person chooses a visible
object in the room and the other students try to guess what it is by
asking questions.

Suppose that you, for instance, begin the game by mentally selecting a
pink scarf that one of the girl students is wearing. Tell the students
that you have chosen an object and that each student can ask one
question about it. You will give a complete answer to the question.

After several questions have been asked, the person whose turn is next
may think he knows what the object is, In this case, he can ask, “Is it
a (the). . . ? If he has guessed correctly, he wins the game and becomes
the person who chooses the object in the second game. You will need
someone to keep count of the number of questions asked. If no one has
guessed the object after twenty questions, the person who selected the
object wins the game and can choose another object for the second game.

The game might go something like this:

Student A: Is it as large as the map on the wall?

Answer: No, it isn’t as large as the map.

Student B: Is it made of metal оm cloth?

Answer: It’s made of cloth.

Student C: Does it belong to a student?

Answer: Yes, it belongs to a student.

Student D: Is it in front of me or behind me?

Answer: It’s in front of you.

Student E: Is it round?

Answer: No, it isn’t round.

Student F: Is it very expensive?

Answer: No, it isn’t very expensive.

Student G: What color is it?

Answer: It’s pink.

Student H: Is it Anna’s scarf?

Answer: Yes, it is. You’ve won the game!

At this point, Student H comes to the front of the room and mentally
selects a new visible object for the next game.

If your students are quite advanced, you may wish to play the original
game of ‘Twenty Questions.” In this form of the game, only questions
that take a Yes or No answer are permitted. Another variation of the
game is to select a famous person, living or dead, to be guessed,
instead of an object.

What would you do if…?

This is such an amusing game that your class will probably want to play
it often.

Begin the game by dividing the class into two teams of equal number.
Designate one as Team I and the other as Team II. Then, write the
following on the blackboard:

Team I Team II

What would you do if. . .? I would. . .

Now give everyone on Team I a slip of paper and explain that each person
on the team must write an imaginative question beginning with What would
you do if, . . . For example, someone might write: “What would you do if
you saw a tiger in the street?” Someone else might write: “What would
you do if you won a car in a lottery?”. Etc.

As Team I carries out these directions, give everyone on Team II a piece
of paper. Explain that each member of this team must write an
imaginative sentence beginning / would. , . , For instance, someone
could write “I would dance for hours.” Another person might write “I
would buy a wig.” etc.

When everyone has finished writing his assigned sentences, collect all
Team I’s questions in one box and all Team II’s answers in another. You
can now draw and read first a question and then an answer. This game is
sometimes called “Cross Questions and Crooked Answers”; the fun comes
from the fact that the questions and answers are so utterly and
ridiculously unrelated.

Projects

Projects involving hobbies, crafts, physical exercise, sports, and civic
services are extremely fruitful for English conversation groups,
provided that only English is spoken during a given activity. All you
need to do is to find a common denominator in your group’s interests and
your abilities to supervise plus adequate time, space, and equipment to
create projects successful in their own right as well as in conversation
practice. While possibilities for projects are almost limitless, here
are a few that you may wish to consider for teen-age and adult groups:

1. Playing card games such as bridge, or board games like chess or
Scrabble.

2. Engaging in carpentry.

3. Doing metal or leather work.

4. Making jewelry.

5. Exchanging recipes and demonstrating the preparation of certain
dishes.

6. Sewing.

7. Telephoning English-speaking convalescents or shut-ins to brighten
their day and to practice English over the telephone.

8. Participating in projects to improve the environment such as clearing
a stream of rubbish.

9. Drawing or painting pictures to be used as decorations in the
classroom or clubhouse.

10. Taking care of a bulletin board by bringing in and posting
appropriate items for display.

11. Playing team sports such as volleyball or basketball.

12. Learning songs and dances that are popular in English-speaking
countries.

13. Giving talent shows, plays, or concerts.

14. Participating in various audio-motor units. An audio-motor unit is a
language teaching device developed by Robert Elkins, Theodore Kalivoda,
and Genelle Morain in which the teacher records a sequence of ten to
twenty commands around a common theme on tape. When the teacher plays
the tape, he pantomimes responses to the commands while the students
watch. Next, the students join the teacher in pantomiming responses to
the tape. Eventually, the teacher can read off commands in a scrambled
fashion with the students performing the correct physical response to
each command. For example, if the teacher has recorded a series of
commands about unwrapping a birthday present, the following audio-motor
unit might result:

(1) Pick up the package.

(2) Shake it gently to see if it rattles.

(3) Put the box down.

(4) Remove the card.

(5) Read the card.

(6) Put the card down.

(7) Untie the ribbon.

(8) Remove the paper.

(9) Open the box.

(10) Look surprised as you see a sweater inside the box.

(11) Take the sweater out of the box.

(12) Try the sweater on.

(13) Look at yourself in the mirror.

(14) Take the sweater off.

(15) Lay the sweater on the table.

(16) Fold the paper up neatly.

(17) Put the paper and ribbon in a drawer.

(18) Hang the sweater in the closet.

Since this sequence represents a typical birthday ritual in an
English-speaking country, it contains elements that may contrast with
birthday customs in the students’ country. After the group has completed
the pantomime, the teacher might want to lead a discussion on such
matters as birthday cards, gift wrapping, and birthday celebrations in
general.

A project that provides abundant material for conversation is an
imaginary trip to a real town in an English-speaking country. You can
select from a map of the United States, for instance, a medium-sized
town in a section of the country that interests your class. Your
students may then write a letter to the Chamber of Commerce in the town,
explaining their interest in the community and asking for pertinent
information. This might include brochures describing the town,
postcards, a street map, telephone book, parking ticket, restaurant
menus, local newspapers, and the like. If the Chamber of Commerce cannot
answer the request directly, they may put your students in touch with
local schools or service clubs that might be willing to send these
items. When the material is received, you and your students can inspect
and discuss the various items at length.

A lasting relationship between citizens of the two towns may sometimes
result from such a project. In an article entitled “Teaching the
Telephone Book,” Clifford Harrington describes his Japanese students’
experience with a “city-to-city” project: “One unexpected benefit was
brought about by an article concerning our class that appeared in an
issue of the local newspaper we were studying. A young American who was
planning to vacation in Japan and whose family had lived in our’ town
since 1885 learned about us through this article. His visit to our class
when he arrived in Tokyo was one of the highlights of the course.
Perhaps the most rewarding result was the fact that one young Japanese
woman who was planning to take a trip to the United States after
completing her studies decided to visit the community we had studied.
She now knew so much about it that she wanted to see with her own eyes
the places she had visited in her imagination.”

Content-based instruction (CBI)

In recent years, increasing numbers of language educators have turned to
content-based instruction and project work to promote meaningful student
engagement with language and content learning. Through content-based
instruction, learners develop language skills while simultaneously
becoming more knowledgeable citizens of the world. By integrating
project work into content-based classrooms, educators create vibrant
learning environments that require active student involvement, stimulate
higher level thinking skills, and give students responsibility for their
own learning. When incorporating project work into content-based
classrooms, instructors distance themselves from teacher-dominated
instruction and move towards creating a student community of inquiry
involving authentic communication, cooperative learning, collaboration,
and problem-solving.

In this article, I shall provide a rationale for content-based
instruction and demonstrate how project work can be integrated into
content-based classrooms. I will then outline the primary
characteristics of project work, introduce project work in its various
configurations, and present practical guidelines for sequencing and
developing a project. It is my hope that language teachers and teacher
educators will be able to adapt the ideas presented here to enhance
their classroom instruction.

Content-based instruction (CBI) has been used in a variety of language
learning contexts for the last 25 years, though its popularity and wider
applicability have increased dramatically in the past 10 years. There
are numerous practical features of CBI which make it an appealing
approach to language instruction:

In a content-based approach, the activities of the language class are
specific to the subject matter being taught, and are geared to stimulate
students to think and learn through the use of the target language. Such
an approach lends itself quite naturally to the integrated teaching of
the four traditional language skills.

For example, it employs authentic reading materials which require
students not only to understand information but to interpret and
evaluate it as well. It provides a forum in which students can respond
orally to reading and lecture materials. It recognizes that academic
writing follows from listening and reading, and thus requires students
to synthesize facts and ideas from multiple sources as preparation for
writing. In this approach, students are exposed to study skills and
learn a variety of language skills which prepare them for the range of
academic tasks they will encounter (Brinton, Snow, and Wesche 1989:2)
Brinton D., M. Show and M. Welshe. 1989. Content based second language
instruction. New York: Heinle and Heinle.

This quotation reflects a consistent set of descriptions by CBI
practitioners who have come to appreciate the many ways that CBI offers
ideal conditions for language learning. Research in second language
acquisition offers additional support for CBI; yet some of the most
persuasive evidence stems from research in educational and cognitive
psychology, even though it is somewhat removed from language learning
contexts. Worth noting here are four findings from research in
educational and cognitive psychology that emphasize the benefits of
content-based instruction:

1. Thematically organized materials, typical of content-based
classrooms, are easier to remember and learn (Singer 1990) Singer, M.
(1990) Psychology of Language: An Introduction to Sentence and Discourse
Processing. Hillsdale, N.J.: L. Erlbaum..

2. The presentation of coherent and meaningful information,
characteristic of well-organized content-based curricula, leads to
deeper processing and better learning (Anderson 1990) Anderson, J. 1990
Cognitive psychology and its mplications. New York: W. H. Freeman.

3. There is a relationship between student motivation and student
interest—common outcomes of content-based classes—and a student’s
ability to process challenging materials, recall information, and
elaborate (Alexander, Kulikowich, and Jetton 1994) Alexander,P., J.
Kulikowich and T. Jetton (1994) The role of subject – matter knowledge
and interest in the processing of linear and non linear texts. Review of
educational Research, 64, 2, pp. 201-252.

4. Expertise in a topic develops when learners reinvest their knowledge
in a sequence of progressively more complex tasks (Bereiter and
Scardamalia 1993) Bereiter, C. and M. Scardamalia (1993) Surpassing
purselves. Chicago. Open Court Press., feasible in content-based
classrooms and usually absent from more traditional language classrooms
because of the narrow focus on language rules or limited time on
superficially developed and disparate topics (e.g., a curriculum based
on a short reading passage on the skyscrapers of New York, followed by a
passage on the history of bubble gum, later followed by an essay on the
volcanos of the American Northwest).

These empirical research findings, when combined with the practical
advantages of integrating content and language learning, provide
persuasive arguments in favor of content-based instruction. Language
educators who adopt a content-based orientation will find that CBI also
allows for the incorporation of explicit language instruction (covering,
for example, grammar, conversational gambits, functions, notions, and
skills), thereby satisfying students’ language and content learning
needs in context (see Grabe and Stoller Grabe, W. and F. Stoller 1997.
Content-based instruction . New York: Addison Wesley London 1997 for a
more developed rationale for CBI.)

Content-based instruction allows for the natural integration of sound
language teaching practices such as alternative means of assessment,
apprenticeship learning, cooperative learning, integrated-skills
instruction, project work, scaffolding, strategy training, and the use
of graphic organizers. Although each of these teaching practices, is
worthy of extended discussion, wewill focus solely on project work and
its role in content-based instructional formats.

Some language professionals equate project work with in-class group
work, cooperative learning, or more elaborate task-based activities. The
purpose is to illustrate how project work represents much more than
group work per se. Project-based learning should be viewed as a
versatile vehicle for fully integrated language and content learning,-
making it a viable option for language educators working in a variety of
instructional settings including general English, English for academic
purposes (EAP), English for specific purposes (ESP), and English for
occupational/vocational/professional purposes, in addition to
pre-service and in-service teacher training. Project work is viewed by
most of its advocates “not as a replacement for other teaching methods”
but rather as “an approach to learning which complements mainstream
methods and which can be used with almost all levels, ages and abilities
of students” (Haines 1989:1).

In classrooms where a commitment has been made to content learning as
well as language learning (i.e., content-based classrooms), project work
is particularly effective because it represents a natural extension of
what is already taking place in class. So, for example, in an EAP class
structured around environmental topics, a project which involves the
development of poster displays suggesting ways in which the students’
school might engage in more environmentally sound practices would be a
natural outcome of the content and language learning activities taking
place in class. In a vocational English course focusing on tourism, the
development of a promotional brochure highlighting points of interest in
the students’ home town would be a natural outgrowth of the curriculum.
In a general English course focusing on cities in English-speaking
countries, students could create public bulletin board displays with
pictorial and written information on targeted cities. In an ESP course
on international law, a written report comparing and contrasting the
American legal system and the students’ home country legal system
represents a meaningful project that allows for the synthesis, analysis,
and evaluation of course content. Project work is equally effective in
teacher training courses. Thus, in a course on materials development, a
student-generated handbook comprising generic exercises for language
skills practice at different levels of English proficiency represents a
useful and practical project that can be used later as a
teacher-reference tool. The hands-on experience that the
teachers-in-training have with project-based learning could, in turn,
transfer to their own lesson planning in the future These examples
represent only some of the possibilities available to teachers and
students when incorporating project work into content-based curricula.

Project work has been described by a number of language educators,
including Carter and Thomas (1986), Ferragatti and Carminati (1984),
Fried-Booth (1982, 1986), Haines (1989), Legutke (1984, 1985), Legutke
and Thiel (1983), Papandreou (1994), Sheppard and Stoller (1995), and
Ward (1988). Although each of these educators has approached project
work from a different perspective, project work, in its various
configurations, shares these features:

1. Project work focuses on content learning rather than on specific
language targets. Real-world subject matter and topics of interest to
students can become central to projects.

2. Project work is student centered, though the teacher plays a major
role in offering support and guidance throughout the process.

3. Project work is cooperative rather than competitive. Students can
work on their own, in small groups, or as a class to complete a project,
sharing resources, ideas, and expertise along the way.

4. Project work leads to the authentic integration of skills and
processing of information from varied sources, mirroring real-life
tasks.

5. Project work culminates in an end product (e.g., an oral
presentation, a poster session, a bulletin board display, a report, or a
stage performance) that can be shared with others, giving the project a
real purpose. The value of the project, however, lies not just in the
final product but in the process of working towards the end point. Thus,
project work has both a process and product orientation, and provides
students with opportunities to focus on fluency and accuracy at
different project-work stages.

6. Project work is potentially motivating, stimulating, empowering, and
challenging. It usually results in building student confidence,
self-esteem, and autonomy as well as improving students’ language
skills, content learning, and cognitive abilities.

Though similar in many ways, project work can take on diverse
configurations. The most suitable format for a given context depends on
a variety of factors including curricular objectives, course
expectations, students’ proficiency levels, student interests, time
constraints, and availability of materials. A review of different types
of projects will demonstrate the scope, versatility, and adaptability of
project work.

Projects differ in the degree to which the teacher and students decide
on the nature and sequencing of project-related activities, as
demonstrated by three types of projects proposed by Henry Henry. J. 1994
Teaching thruogh projects. London. Kogan Page Limited. (1994):
Structured projects are determined, specified, and organized by the
teacher in terms of topic, materials, methodology, and presentation;
unstructured projects are defined largely by students themselves; and
semi-structured projects are defined and organized in part by the
teacher and in part by students.

Projects can be linked to real-world concerns (e.g., when Italian ESP
students designed a leaflet for foreign travel agencies outside of
Europe describing the advantages of the European Community’s
standardization of electrical systems as a step towards European unity.

This ESP project, titled “Connecting Europe with a New Plug,” was
designed by Italian instructors Laura Chiozzotto, Innocenza Giannasi,
Laura Paperini, and Antonio Ragosa for students of electrotechnics and
electronics.

Projects can also be linked to simulated real-world issues when EAP
students staged a debate on the pros and cons of censorship as part of a
content-based unit on censorship. Projects can also be tied to student
interests, with or without real-world significance when general English
students planned an elaborate field trip to an international airport
where they conducted extensive interviews and videotaping of
international travelers.

Projects can also differ in data collection techniques and sources of
information as demonstrated by these project types. Research projects
necessitate the gathering of information through library research.
Similarly, text projects involve encounters with “texts” (e.g.,
literature, reports, news media, video and audio material, or
computer-based information) rather than people. Correspondence projects
require communication with individuals (or businesses, governmental
agencies, schools, or chambers of commerce) to solicit information by
means of letters, faxes, phone calls, or electronic mail. Survey
projects entail creating a survey instrument and then collecting and
analyzing data from “informants.” Encounter projects result in
face-to-face contact with guest speakers or individuals outside the
classroom Projects may also differ in the ways that information is
“reported” as part of a culminating activity. Production projects
involve the creation of bulletin board displays, videos, radio programs,
poster sessions, written reports, photo essays, letters, handbooks,
brochures, banquet menus, travel itineraries, and so forth.

Whatever the configuration, projects can be carried out intensively over
a short period of time or extended over a few weeks, or a full semester;
they can be completed by students individually, in small groups, or as a
class; and they can take place entirely within the confines of the
classroom or can extend beyond the walls of the classroom into the
community or with others via different forms of correspondence.

Project work, whether it is integrated into a content-based thematic
unit or introduced as a special sequence of activities in a more
traditional classroom, requires multiple stages of development to
succeed. Fried-Booth (1986) Fried – Booth , D. 1982. Project work with
advanced classes. ELT journal, 36, 2, pp. 98 – 103 proposes an
easy-to-follow multiple-step process that can guide teachers in
developing and sequencing project work for their classrooms. Similarly,
Haines (1989) presents a straightforward and useful description of
project work and the steps needed for successful implementation. Both
the Fried-Booth and Haines volumes include detailed descriptions of
projects that can be adapted for many language classroom settings. They
also offer suggestions for introducing students to the idea of
student-centered activity through bridging strategies (Fried-Booth
1986)2 and lead-in activities (Haines 1989), particularly useful if
one’s students are unfamiliar with project work and its emphasis on
student initiative and autonomy.

The new 10-step sequence (see Figure 1) is described here in detail. The
revised model gives easy-to-man-age structure to project work and guides
teachers and students in developing meaningful projects that facilitate
content learning and provide opportunities for explicit language
instruction at critical moments in the project. These language
“intervention” lessons will help students complete their projects
successfully and will be appreciated by students because of their
immediate applicability and relevance. The language intervention steps
(IV, VI, and VIII) are optional in teacher education courses, depending
on the language proficiency and needs of the teachers-in-training.

Developing a Project in a Language Classroom

Step I: Agree on a theme for the project

Step II: Determine the final outcome

Step III: Structure the project

Step IV:

Prepare students for

the language demands

of Step V

Step V:

Gather information

Step VI:

Prepare students for

the language demands

of Step VII

Step VII:

Compile and analyze information

Step VIII:

Prepare students for

the language demands

of Step IX

Step IX: Present final product

Step X: Evaluate the prodject.

To understand the function of each proposed step, imagine a
content-based EAP classroom focusing on American elections.(A parallel
discussion could be developed for classrooms—general English, EAP, ESP,
vocational English, and so forth—focusing on American institutions,
demography, energy alternatives, farming safety, fashion design, health,
the ideal automobile, insects, Native Americans, pollution, rain
forests, the solar system, etc.). The thematic unit is structured so
that the instructor and students can explore various topics: the
branches of the U.S. government, the election process, political parties
with their corresponding ideologies and platforms, and voting behaviors.
Information on these topics is introduced by means of readings from
books, newspapers, and news magazines; graphs and charts; videos;
dicto-comps; teacher-generated lectures and note-taking activities;
formal and informal class discussions and group work; guest speakers;
and U.S. political party promotional materials. While exploring these
topics and developing some level of expertise about American elections,
students improve their listening and note-taking skills, reading
proficiency, accuracy and fluency in speaking, writing abilities, study
skills, and critical thinking skills. To frame this discussion, it
should be noted that the thematic unit is embedded into an
integrated-skills, content-based course with the following objectives:

1. To encourage students to use language to learn something new about
topics of interest

2. To prepare students to learn subject matter through English

3. To expose students to content from a variety of informational sources
to help stu dents improve their academic language and study skills

4. To provide students with contextualized resources for understanding
language and content

5. To simulate the rigors of academic courses in a sheltered environment

6. To promote students’ self-reliance and engagement with learning

After being introduced to the theme unit and its most fundamental
vocabulary and concepts, the instructor introduces a semi-structured
project to the class that will be woven into class lessons and that will
span the length of the thematic unit. The teacher has already made some
decisions about the project: Students will stage a simulated political
debate that addresses contemporary political and social issues. To
stimulate interest and a sense of ownership in the process, the
instructor will work with the students to decide on the issues to be
debated, the number and types of political parties represented in the
debate, the format of the debate, and a means for judging the debate. To
move from the initial conception of the project to the actual debate,
the instructor and students follow 10 steps.

Step I: Students and instructor agree on a theme for the project

To set the stage, the instructor gives students an opportunity to shape
the project and develop some sense of shared perspective and commitment.
Even if the teacher has decided to pursue a structured project, for
which most decisions are made by the instructor, students can be
encouraged to fine-tune the project theme. While shaping the project
together, students often find it useful to make reference to previous
readings, videos, discussions, and classroom activities. During the
initial stage of the American elections project, students brainstormed
issues that might be featured in an American political debate. Through
discussion and negotiation, students identified the following issues for
consideration: taxes, crime, welfare, gun control, abortion, family
leave, foreign policy, affirmative action, election reform, immigration,
censorship, the environment, and environmental legislation. By pooling
resources, information, ideas, and relevant experiences, students
narrowed the scope of the debate by choosing select issues from within
the larger set of brainstormed issues that were of special interest to
the class and that were “researchable,” meaning that resources were
available or accessible for student research.

Step II: Students and instructor determine the final outcome whereas the
first stage of project work involves establishing a starting point, the
second step entails defining an end point, or the final outcome.
Students and instructor consider the nature of the project, its
objectives, and the most appropriate means to culminate the project.
They can choose from a variety of options including a written report,
letter, poster or bulletin board display, debate, oral presentation,
information packet, handbook, scrapbook, brochure, newspaper, or video.
In the case of the American elections project, the teacher had already
decided that the final outcome would be a public debate between two
fictitious political parties. In this second stage of the project,
students took part in defining the nature and format of the debate and
designating the intended audience. With the help of the instructor, it
was decided that the class would divide itself into five topical teams,
each one responsible for debating one of the issues previously
identified; topical teams would generate debatable propositions on their
designated issue and then divide into two subgroups so that each side of
the issue could be represented in the debate. Students would also be
grouped into two political parties, which they would name themselves,
with one side of each issue represented in the political party; the
issues and corresponding perspectives would form the party platform.

The class decided to invite English-speaking friends and graduate
students enrolled in a TESL/TEFL program to serve as their audience and
judges. It was decided that the audience would vote on which team
presented the most persuasive arguments during the debate.

Step III: Students and instructor structure the project.

After students have determined the starting and end points of the
project, they need to structure the “body” of the project. Questions
that students should consider are as follows: What information is needed
to complete the project? How can that information be obtained (e.g., a
library search, interviews, letters, faxes, e-mail, the World Wide Web,
field trips, viewing of videos)? How will the information, once
gathered, be compiled and analyzed? What role does each student play in
the evolution of the project (i.e., Who does what?)? What time line will
students follow to get from the starting point to the end point? The
answers to many of these questions depend on the location of the
language program and the types of information that are within easy reach
(perhaps collected beforehand by the instructor) and those that must be
solicited by “snail” mail, electronic mail, fax, or phone call. In this
American elections project, it was decided that topical team members
would work together to gather information that could be used by
supporters and opponents of their proposition before actually taking
sides. In this way, topical team members would share all their
resources, later using it to take a stand and plan a rebuttal. Rather
than keeping information secret, as might be done in a real debate
setting, the idea was to establish a cooperative and collaborative
working atmosphere. Topical team members would work as a group to
compile gathered information (in the form of facts, opinions, and
statistics) and then analyze it to determine what was most suitable to
the sides supporting and opposing their proposition. At this point,
students would subdivide into groups of supporters and opponents and
then work separately (and with other party members) to prepare for the
debate. At that time, students would decide on different roles: the
spokespersons, the “artists” who would create visuals (charts and
graphs) to be used during the debate, and so forth.

Step IV: Instructor prepares students for the language demands of
information gathering

It is at this point that the instructor determines, perhaps in
consultation with the students, the language demands of the information
gathering stage (Step V). The instructor can then plan language
instruction activities to prepare students for information gathering
tasks. If, for example, students are going to collect information by
means of interviews, the instructor might plan exercises on question
formation, introduce conversational gambits, and set aside time for
role-plays to provide feedback on pronunciation and to allow students to
practice listening and note-taking or audio-taping. If, on the other
hand, students are going to use a library to gather materials, the
instructor might review steps for finding resources and practice
skimming and note-taking with sample texts. The teacher may also help
students devise a grid for organized data collection. If students will
be writing letters to solicit information for their project, the teacher
can introduce or review letter formatting conventions and audience
considerations, including levels of formality and word choice. If
students will be using the World Wide Web for information gathering, the
instructor can review the efficient use of this technology.

Step V: Students gather information

Students, having practiced the language, skills, and strategies needed
to gather information, are now ready to collect information and organize
it so that others on their team can make sense of it. In the project
highlighted here, students reread course readings in search for relevant
materials, used the library to look for new support, wrote letters to
political parties to determine their stand on the issue under
consideration, looked into finding organizations supporting or opposing
some aspect of their proposition (e.g., gun control groups) and
solicited information that could possibly be used in the debate. During
this data-gathering stage, the instructor, knowing the issues and
propositions being researched, also brought in information that was
potentially relevant, in the form of readings, videos, dicto-comps, and
teacher-generated lectures, for student consideration.

Step VI: Instructor prepares students for the language demands of
compiling and analyzing data

After successfully gathering information, students are then confronted
with the challenges of organizing and synthesizing information that may
have been collected from different sources and by different individuals.

The instructor can prepare students for the demands of the compilation
and analysis stage by setting up sessions in which students organize
sets of materials, and then evaluate, analyze, and interpret them with
an eye towards determining which are most appropriate for the supporters
and opponents of a given proposition. Introducing students to graphic
representations (e.g., grids and charts) that might highlight
relationships among ideas is particularly useful at this point.

Step VII: Students compile and analyze information

With the assistance of a variety of organizational techniques (including
graphic organizers), students compile and analyze information to
identify data that are particularly relevant to the project. Student
teams weigh the value of the collected data, discarding some, because of
their inappropriacy for the project, and keeping the rest. Students
determine which information represents primary “evidence” for the
supporters and opponents of their proposition. It is at this point that
topical teams divide themselves into two groups and begin to work
separately to build the strongest case for the debate.

Step VIII: Instructor prepares students for the language demands of the
culminating activity

At this point in the development of the project, instructors can bring
in language improvement activities to help students succeed with the
presentation of their final products. This might entail practicing oral
presentation skills and receiving feedback on voice projection,
pronunciation, organization of ideas, and eye contact. It may involve
editing and revising written reports, letters, or bulletin board display
text. In the case of the American elections debate project, the
instructor focused on conversational gambits to be used during the
debate to indicate polite disagreement and to offer divergent
perspectives (see Mach, Stoller, and Tardy 1997) Mach, T. , F. Stoller,
and C Tardy. 1997 A gambit – driven debate. In New Ways in Content-based
Instruction pp. 64-68. Alexandra, VA.: TESOL. . Students practiced their
oral presentations and tried to hypothesize the questions that they
would be asked by opponents. They timed each other and gave each other
feedback on content, word choice, persuasiveness, and intonation.
Students also worked with the “artists” in their groups to finalize
visual displays, to make sure they were grammatically correct and easily
interpretable by the audience. Students also created a flyer announcing
the debate (see appendix), which served as an invitation to and reminder
for audience members.

Step IX: Students present final product

Students are now ready to present the final outcome of their projects.
In the American elections project, students staged their debate in front
of an audience, following the format previously agreed upon. The
audience voted on the persuasiveness of each political party, and a
winner was declared. In the case described here, the debate was
videotaped so that students could later review their debate performances
and receive feedback from the instructor and their peers.

Step X: Students evaluate the project

Although students and instructors, alike, often view the presentation of
the final product as the very last stage in the project work process, it
is worthwhile to ask students to reflect on the experience as the last
and final step. Students can reflect on the language that they mastered
to complete the project, the content that they learned about the
targeted theme (in the case highlighted here that would be American
elections, party platforms, and the role of debate in the election
process), the steps that they followed to complete the project, and the
effectiveness of their final product. Students can be asked how they
might proceed differently the next time or what suggestions they have
for future project work endeavors. Through these reflective activities,
students realize how much they have learned and the teacher benefits
from students’ insights for future classroom projects.

Content-based instruction and project work provide two means for making
English language classrooms more vibrant environments for learning and
collaboration. Project work, however, need not be limited to
content-based language classes. Language teachers in more traditional
classrooms can diversify instruction with an occasional project.
Similarly, teacher educators can integrate projects into their courses
to reinforce important pedagogical issues and provide trainees with
hands-on experience, a process that may be integrated into future
classrooms of their own.

Whether a project centers around American elections, demography, peace
their high school results (matriculation).

Conclusion:

Some Practical Techniques for Language Teaching

The English Teacher Working with Groups Groups have to have adequate
time to prepare to succeed. This time includes time for all to study the
material and time for a modeling activity by the teacher. Then the
teacher should give a grade to the group and to the individual.
Otherwise the A’ students carry the work load to keep their semester
grades up and everyone gets an equal grade.

Groups are chosen by a variety of methods. The most common methods are
to either let students choose their own groups or to group them
according to ability. Allowing students to choose their own groups may
result in some people being left out and those who don’t relate well to
any group being left to work together. Grouping by ability so that there
are some capable students in each group usually works well. If you
choose the groups, you may unknowing place those students with past
relationship problems together. You may then expect them to learn to
work together, but be aware that you may not be able to leave the room
with such groupings, or even put your attention somewhere else. You may
also select the groups by drawing names, numbers, etc. Most students
accept the fairness of a random selection, especially if a student draws
the choices, but dysfunctional groups may result. In my experience, I
wait until I know the class and the individual students before I begin
group work and then I select the groups. And I keep a record of the
groups and which groupings were most successful. However groups are
chosen, don’t allow members of one group to talk to members of another
group or your group dynamics will be considerably less effective.

Groups where students each do work in their established skill areas may
accomplish a good project, may demonstrate good collaborative skills,
may gain recognition for the students, but may not accomplish much
growth in students’ abilities. A class which is totally project oriented
may result in a student spending a semester without broadening academic
or other desirable skills. An art student may only draw, a music student
may only supply the sound, etc.

If the entire class can not work profitably doing group work, then cease
that activity. If only one or two groups are not working profitably,
then decide whether the other groups are benefitting enough to have the
two unproductive groups continue in their actions.

The English Teacher Designing Lessons and Units In developing a class,
interlock lessons and units to build and develop skills and to maintain
skills and knowledge. Don’t teach something that you drop and never
teach any part of again…. or never use the knowledge of any part
again. If you do totally drop material, you are teaching the student to
forget and/or are confirming the concept that it is ok to forget
-and/or- that what you are teaching is not important enough to remember.

When you design a lesson, it usually takes two or three times presenting
it to a class to work out all the problems. [In my first Methods class
we were asked to design a poetry lesson for 11th graders without any
prior class instruction in how to accomplish this. Then all the faults
of our presentations were pointed out. It was a potentially discouraging
experience… leaving the class with the impression that new lessons had
to be perfect, without flaws. In the real world, a perfect first lesson
rarely happens.] Don’t give up the idea of creating some lessons of your
own and instead rely solely on ‘canned’ lessons because of one or two
imperfect first results.

It can take two or three years to develop a class. The first time you
give a test, if you designed the test, it is the test that is being
tested. If it is a test someone else designed, then the first time that
you give it, your teaching is being tested. The Teaching Literature page
has examples of some test designs as does Teaching Media.

The English Teacher Using Transition Time Activities Transition
activities are “halfway” activities to help students make the transition
from whatever is distracting them from learning at the beginning of
class to full attention on the day’s lesson. In our school 9th graders
do daily reading. 10th graders do basic writing forms and 11th graders
do advanced writing forms for the average 9th grade class it is easier
to start a lesson if the class has already made a partial transition.
For college preparation level classes this activity may not be as
productive, since they may be able to get to work right away, and are
already reading regularly. To begin daily reading, have a box that they
can put their reading books into so that when they come to class the
next day [or when you announce reading time] they can get their books.

When you begin this activity, have the first student in each row get a
book [from an assortment of paperbacks that you get from your librarian]
for each person in their row. The student lets the 2nd student in the
row have first choice; the third student has the next choice, and so
forth until all have chosen. The student who selected all the books for
the row gets the book that is left after the others have chosen. No one
complains, because the first student after all had the total choice and
the students in the row won’t complain about another student’s
selections, particularly if that student has the book remaining after
every one else has chosen. [NOTE: If you as a teacher tell the class to
“get a book” from the book rack, then you will have a lot of talking,
complaining about there being no interesting books, etc. Plus there will
be conversations around the books, and return trips for students that
may never be satisfied with their choices.] They have to read that book
until the end of the first reading time.

At the end of the first reading time, the student can either put the
book into the box to reserve books for that class, or they can return it
to the student who chose them. This procedure is repeated as many times
as necessary, usually less than four to five days. By that time most
will have books, or the few that don’t can make their own choices. For
the loud complainers over this system and the book choices available,
simply tell them that they can bring their own books the next day, and
then they can either bring them each day, or put them in that class’s
reading box with the others being read.

Later, when students get involved with their reading, they will read
after tests and other activities when they finish before others. Then
others follow their actions and you are not telling students to be quiet
until the others finish their tests, etc.. This involvement with reading
reduces your stress -and- the students’ stress.

Language teaching is teaching language

Language is a system which needs to be understood and internalized.
Language is a habit which requires repetition and intensive oral
practice. Language is a set of conventions, customs which the students
needs to learn as well as the structures. Language is a means of
communication which is used to accomplish different tasks and purposes.
Language is a means to an end and is not used for its own sake. Language
is a natural activity, not an academic exercise.

Language is what, how and why

Knowing a language is muvh more than knowing the structure. Vocabulary
and grammar is what is said. Prononciation, stress and intonation are
how it is said.

Knowing the language is not eonugh

Classroom activities should be planned so that they have a real, natural
communicative purpose. It is better to present the language in a text
which is studied for a purpose other than language itself (reading a bus
shedule to find out what a bus goes form one place to another). Students
need to use languge for a real purpose.

Interesting communicative tasks increase motivation

Teachers need to give students tasks which develop the skills necessary
to communicate in the new language. These tasks should be similar to
things that native speakersw do with the language. Some examples: a)
listening to public announcments (at an airport)

b) drawing a picture from spoken instructions;

c) describing what a person looks like

d) conducting interviews or questionaries

e) reading brochures, menus,or schedules

f) following written instructions;

g) writing a note to a classmate

Used literature:

1. Burt, M,K, and H. C. Dulay (eds.) (1975). New Directions in Second
Language Learning, Teaching and Bilingual Education. Washington: TESOL.

2. Chamberlin, A. And A. Wright (1974). What Do You Think? London:
Longman

3. Cole,P. (1970). “An adaption of group dynamic techniques to foreign
language teaching.”TESOL Quaterly Vol. 4 No. 4, pp. 353 – 360

4. Dobson, J.M. (1974). Effective Techniques for English Conversation
Groups. Rowley, Mass.: Newbury House.

5. Dubin, F and M. Margol (1977). It’s Time To Talk: Communication
activities for learning English as a new language. Englewood Cliffs, New
Jersey: Prentice – Hall.

6. Green K. (1975). “Values clarification theory in ESL and bilingual
education.” TESOL Quaterly Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 155 – 164.

7. Herbert, D. and G. Sturtridge (1979). Simulations. ELT Guide 2.
London: The British Council.

8. Heyworth, F. (1978). The Language of Discussion. Role-play exercises
for advanced students. London: Hodder & Stoughton.

9. Johnson, K. and K. Morrow (eds.) (1981). Communication in the
Classroom. London: Longman.

10. Jones, K. (1982). Simulations in Language Teaching. Cambridge
University Press.

11. Littlewood, W. (1981). Communicative Language Teaching. Cambridge
University Press.

12. Omaggio, A. (1976). “Real communication: Speaking a living
language.” Foreign Language Annals Vol.9. No. 2, pp. 131 – 133.

13. Revell, J. (1979). Teacing Techniques for Communicative English.
London: Macmillan.

14. Rogers, J. (1978). Group Activities for Language Learning. SEAMEO
Regional Language Centre Occasional Papers, No. 4. Singapore: SEAMEO
Regional Language Centre (MS)

15. Scarcella, R.C. (1978). “Socio-drama for social interaction.” TESOL
Quarterly Vol.12 No. 1, pp. 41 – 46

16. Thomas, I. (1978). Communication Activities for Language Learning.
Wellington: Victoria University, English Language Institute (MS).

17. Wright, A. D. Betteridge and M. Buckby (1979). Games for Language
Learning. Cambridge University Press (2nd ed. 1984).

18. Zelson, N.J. (1974). “Skill using activities in the foreign language
classroom.” Vol. 4 No. 3, pp. 33 – 35

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