Developing Speaking Skills with Low Level Adult Students

Olha Madylus

Aims of sessionIdentify problemsConsider solutions

ScaffoldingGeneric / high frequency phrasesFocus on registerRehearsalPronunciationExample Activities

What problems do your low level students have when speaking English?What speaking activities do you do regularly?What speaking activities do they like?How much speaking do you plan per lesson?How could you use this type of task in class?

What problems do low-level adults have when speaking?

Lack of vocabularyWorry about producing grammatically correct EnglishGet stuck thinking about what they want to sayPoor pronunciationLack of confidenceNo ideas

FruitVegetableNumber between 1 and 100Favourite film starHow many shoes do you have?What’s the first thing you do every morning?

Fruit = first nameVegetable = family nameNumber between 1 and 100 = ageFavourite film star = spouseHow many shoes do you have? = kidsWhat’s the first thing you do every morning? = job

Fruit & vegetable –What’s your name?

Number –How old are you?

Film star –Who are you married to?

Shoes –How many children do you have?

First thing every morning –What’s your job?

How achievable is the task?

Students have the answersQuestions are elicited and written upand can be drilledResponses can be minimal or extendedNo stressLots of practice

-SA

scaffolding

What problems do low-level adults have when speaking?

Lack of vocabularyWorry about producing grammatically correct EnglishGet stuck thinking about what they want to sayPoor pronunciationLack of confidenceNo ideas

Is it communication or communication-like?Real communication is about asking questions you (a) want to have answered and (b) don’t know the answers to yet.Spontaneity only comes after lots of varied practice.Practice has to include ‘noticing’.Practice should be varied and meaningful.

How do students get to speaking freely?

developing speaking

context

lexis

grammar

phonology

scaffolded tasks

freer speaking

Quick quiz

How many words does an educated person know in L1?60 -75,000

How many different words does a person use per day?500 – 700

High frequency words and expressions

This and that?

That’s interestingThat’s ridiculous.That’s wrong.

Practice

That’s interestingCongratulations.That’s ridiculous.I’m sorry to hear that.That’s not true.

developing speaking

context

lexical phrases

phonology

scaffolded tasks

freer speaking

When abroad what do you want to be able to say and how do you want to come across?

Generic high frequency expressions

Empower A2

focus on register

Support and Preparation

Empower A2

focus on form

prepare

personalise

Guided conversations

Empower A2

eslflow.com

The early bird catches the worm.ði ˌɜ:li bɜ:d kætʃɪz ðə wɜ:m

Modals of probability

CanCould MayMight

+Maybe..Perhaps…Possibly…

Role Play

Role Plays

Teacher can ensure particular language structures are practisedA dress rehearsal for real lifeStudents practise phatic language not just transfer of informationProvide a ‘mask’Variety of situations

How can we exploit dvd for speaking?

What can we do with the DVD to develop speaking?

It’s a templateListen and repeatFocus on phonologyFocus on body language Write and act out similar dialoguesRead between the lines and say what is unsaid

What do students need?

Give students preparation / rehearsal time = they are more likely to use a wider range of language in a spoken task

Lots of short speaking tasks to build up confidence and skills

A focus on phonology

What do students need? An awareness of formal / informal language and practice choosing appropriate language for different situations

To be competent at both 'message-oriented' or transactional language and interactional language, language for maintaining social relationships

To be taught patterns of real interaction

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