METHODOLOGY IV

Primer o Segundo

ENGLISH SCHOOL

Mgs. Gina Camacho Minuche

ABRIL – AGOSTO 2011cuela a la que pertenece

CONTENTS

Techniques in Using Pictures

Techniques in Using Readings

Chapter One

INTRODUCTION:

TEACHING IN ESL CLASSES.

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Production of a piece of Writing

Approaches to Teaching Writing In ESL Classes

All the mentioned approaches overlap.

There are many ways to teach writing.

Basic assumptions are that writing means: writing a connected text and not single sentences, writers write for a purpose and a reader, the process of writing is a valuable learning tool for all our Ss.

Ts need to combine different approaches.

Approaches

Controlled-to-Free Approach Sequential: sentence exercises, paragraphs,

grammatical changes.

Ss work on strictly prescribed operations.

Ss have a limited opportunity to make mistakes which facilitates the teacher’s marking job, making it quick and easy.

Stresses: grammar, syntax and mechanics.

Approaches

The Free-Writing Approach

Minimal correction of error.

Content and fluency are first, not worry about form.

Ss write ideas on paper without worrying about grammar or spelling.

Ts do not correct these pieces of writing, they simply read and comment on ideas.

Approaches

The Paragraph-Pattern Approach

Stresses on organization.

Ss copy paragraphs, analyze their form and imitate these model passages.

Ss order sentences, identify general and specific statements, choose or invent topic sentences, insert or delete sentences.

Ts give students specific paragraphs.

Approaches

The Grammar-Syntax-Organization Approach

It is seen as integrated skills.

Ts give tasks that lead studentsd to focus on organization and at the same time on grammar and syntax.

Connection between the purpose of the piece of writing and the forms needed to convey the message.

Approaches

The Communicative Approach Stresses the purpose of a piece of

writing and the audience for it. Writer has to write for a real reader. Ts ask ss to be the readers who respond

to the piece of writing, rewrite it, summarize or make comments but not correct, for example:

Ss role play, exchange letters and write back to each other, ask questions, etc.

Approaches

The Process Approach

Emphasis on the process of writing.

Ss explore the topic, show T and other students their drafts and use this to think about new ideas.

Ts give time for students to try out new ideas and feedback on content of their drafts.

Chapter Two

Techniques in Planning the Class:

Seven Basic Questions

Question 1:

Question 1

Question 2:

Question 2

Question 3:

Question 3

Question 4:

Question 4

Question 5:

Question 5

Question 6:

Question 6

Question 7:

Question 7

Chapter Three

TECHNIQUES IN USING PICTURES

Pictures:

• Provide a shared experience for Ss in class.

• Provide for the use of a common vocabulary and language forms.

• Are the basis for many tasks.• Generate whole series of connected

activities.• Are stimulating focus for Ss’

attention.

The use of pictures in the classroom

• Whole class discussion, which leads to writing, can be generated by posters, textbook pictures, magazine pictures, etc.

• Provide a student audience for Ss writers, give half the class a picture, the other half another.

• Ss work in pairs or small groups, give each ss of the pair or give each group a different picture to work with, for Ss it is a real communicative task.

The use of pictures in the classroom.

Ss’ pictures brought to class, relieve Ts for finding them and Ss have something that has personal meaning for them to answer question and write about it.

Ask Ss to work by making inferences, predictions and suppositions about the pictures, not just focus on what they see, ask Ss to imagine what happened before, what will happen, etc.

One picture– many different techniques

A sketch of a bedroom as an example.

1. Description: T draws the diagram on the board, Ss write words to label the items, Ss discuss in small groups what other words Ss need to describe the room, T erases the diagram of the board and Ss write a description from their memory.

One picture – many different techniques

2. Description, comparison and contrast: T gives a picture to S 1 who writes a description for S 2 who, from the written description, tries to draw a sketch of the room. While S 1 writes about the picture, S 2 writes a description of a room he knows well, then he gives it to S 2 who tries to draw a labeled sketch of the room. Both Ss look at the 2 pictures, compare them and write.

One picture – many different techniques

3. Paragraph assembly: T prepares index cards with one sentence on each, which together form a paragraph about the picture, T gives one card to each pair or small group of Ss then the task for the whole class is to put the sentences on the cards in order so that they form a paragraph.

One picture – many different techniques

4. Sentence combining: T writes index cards, on each he puts half of a sentence, which combined with another, form a new sentence, each Ss finds a partner whose sentence will combine with the one he has then with the new sentences they can discuss how to organize them to make a paragraph.

One picture – many different techniques

5. Paragraph completion: Teacher prepares a paragraph about a picture and writes it on the board but omits the ending. Ss discuss how to end the paragraph, then they compare their versions with each other and the one provided by the teacher at the end of the task.

One picture – many different techniques

6. Role-play: Teacher asks pairs or small groups to imagine that the diagram shows a room at a summer sports camp, Ss work for a camp’s advertising agency, Ss have to prepare a brochure, Ss have a meeting to discuss details to include, then Ss write a paragraph, then read their own aloud to each other and see which one is best and why.

One picture – many different techniques

7. Beyond the picture: Ss look at a plan of a room and discuss what the other rooms in the house might look like. Each group produces a plan and description of a different room in the house, then they put the plans and descriptions together to make up a description of a whole house.

One picture – a sequence of tasks

One picture can be used to create a sequence of tasks.

It can be used as a reference point for ss to discuss a cultural phenomenon and their own experience related to it.

Example: a wedding ceremony.

Teacher reads the necessary vocabulary on the board and some questions related to the picture and students write a description of it.

Picture Sets

Pair of pictures or pictures in sequence provide for a variety of guided and free writing exercises. Ex. Comic strips

Teacher gives ss a set of pictures, they order them and write the story of the pictures.

Diagrams, tables, graphs, and charts

Ss deal with given information presented visually, and they work on conveying the same information in writing, that is, in a letter, report, or composition.

Ss invent their sentences but do not have to invent the material.

Maps

Provide a visual framework for the use of language skills and real information about a country whose language the ss are studying.

Ss can practice giving directions and using the words and syntax that describe spatial relationship.

Chapter Four

TECHNIQUES IN USING READINGS

Readings

Can be used to create an information gap that leads to communicative activities.

The more Ss read, the more they become familiar with vocabulary, idiom, sentence patterns, organizational flow and cultural aspects of native English speakers.

Ss can do extensive or close reading.

Readings

Extensive: Ss read a whole story, book where they do not have time to look for every unfamiliar word or translate each sentence. Ss read for meaning.

Close: Ss read a short passage, give attention to the choices the writer has made in, such as content, vocabulary and organization.

Readings

Ss can work with the text when they copy and when they examine the writer’s choices of linguistic and logical features, punctuation, grammar, organization; or can work from the text when Ss use it to create a text of their own such as summarizing, completing speculating or reacting. Based on these two categories we have the following activities:

Copy

Frequently used with elementary-level Ss.

Gives practice on punctuation, spelling, capitalization and paragraph indentation.

T needs to make copying useful by asking Ss to copy down some info that they will then really use. For instance, Ss read a story at home and copy out the one sentence they like best, in class all the ss discuss the choice.

Examine cohesive linksSs need to learn about the devices that make a text cohesive, such as some ESL troublespots like personal pronouns and adjectives, demonstrative pronouns and adjectives, the definite article, and connecting words to show sequence, to add an idea, to show result or contrast, so ss need to be aware of how these connectors are used in a piece of writing.

Examine punctuation and grammar

Close reading allows Ss to be aware of the choices the writer has made and the rules he has followed. This can work at any level. It is helpful for ss to examine where and how writers use commas, semicolons, colons and exclamation marks and to derive rules from observing the punctuation on the printed page.

Examine sentence arrangement

Ss need to examine a text carefully to find out if the sentences hang together according to the basic principle that old info comes before new info in a sentence.

What Ss need here is a lot of practice in making choices within a text between sentences that convey the same meaning as individual sentences, but are arranged differently.

Summarize

Provides Ss practice in searching for meaning and communicating that meaning

Ss have not only to find out what the main ideas are with a reading passage but also to be able to express them in their own words. This ability of understanding concepts, processing them and restating them in their own words is a major goal of the language-learning process.

CompleteT can ask ss to read a passage that has missing parts and so they have to consider meaning and the grammatical and syntactic fit of the part they want to add. If ss put themselves in the position of the writer, then tone, style and organization become important. Asks Ss to discern the original writer’s purpose, audience and personal style and pay attention to those in the completed version.

Speculate

Involves thinking beyond the given text. Speculative questions open up opportunities for both discussion and writing.

Ss can be given tasks that encourage them to speculate about the text itself, about its content, context, organization, and the writer’s choices of words and syntax.

React

Reading expand the world of the classroom. Ss can react to a reading assignment by discussing it, writing about it or by doing something like following directions. Ts can provide readings that stimulate the need for written communication or can ask Ss to write opinions, instructions, etc. so that other Ss in the class have subject matter to react to.

Chapter Five

TECHNIQUES IN USING ALL

LANGUAGE SKILLS

All language skills

Ss need to speak (not repeat) not only to the T but to each other. So Ss will listen to each other, then with listening comes comprehending what the speaker is saying.

The listener can then react by writing down for a reader his version of the info he has just heard, so we can get chains of language activity in the classroom.

Brainstorming

Ss work in small groups to say as much as they can about a topic. T monitors but not grammar or punctuation just checking if a speaker cannot be understood to help with the right word. Whatever the writing activity is based on, ss produce vocabulary, make comments, ask quests and make associations as freely as they can in a short time, then Ss do the same on paper.

Guided Discussion

T provides guidelines for group or whole class discussion to focus on specific aspects

Ss’ ideas that come up are entirely their own even though they are the result of established guidelines.

T can help students beforehand with the vocabulary and sentence forms Ss might need in their discussion in order to write about it later on.

Interviews

It is useful to try with a new class so that Ss and T can get to know each other. When ss write the record of the interview, they convey to others genuine information transmitted to them by other Ss.

This technique can work with all levels, for example, T can provide a form on which to collect info and ss then can use it to make a description or a letter.

Skits

Ss act not as themselves but in an assigned role. It can be done as a whole-class or a small-group activity. Writing can then follow as an outside report or summary of what was said and done or it can be a continuation of the skit, with the writers assuming the voice of personalities in the skit.

Dictation

T reads a text through once, then reads it slowly, broken down into short, meaningful segments, which the ss write down and then T reads it through once more. Gives practice in listening carefully and paying attention to inflections and to the mechanics of spelling, punctuation and capitalization. Frequently the T can read in front of the class to reinforce vocabulary or grammar just taught.

Note-taking

It is important to pick out the important info of what has been heard. Radio or tape recorder are valuable to provide material for Ss to listen to dialogs, arguments, speeches to react to. It can be done with all levels by assigning tasks appropriate for them. T needs to alert ss to the signals speakers use, pauses, raising voice, using words to separate or link ideas.

Story-telling

Most people like to hear and often like to tell stories. When we hear or read a story, we can’t wait to find out what happens next. This natural curiosity to find out what happens in a story can be put to good use in a language classroom. Frequently ss are asked to finish the story or to continue the narration in small groups.

E-mail: gkcamacho@utpl.edu.ecPhone: 072570275 ext: 2403Tutorials: Monday and Wednesday from 08:00 to 10:00 A.M