Salahaddin University
College of Languages
Applied Linguistics Center
Communicative Methods of TEFL
Chapter Summary (Chs. 4 and 17)
by
Ferhad Mehmud As’ad (MA Student)
in
Learning Teaching by Jim Scrivener
Supervised by
Asst. Prof. Dr. Fatimah Rashid Hasan
April 2011
Jim Scrivener, who has an MA in Creative Writing, is the author
of teacher’s books and resource materials for the Straight Forward
course book series. He writes a monthly ‘Teaching Tips’ column for the
Guardian Weekly and onestopenglish.com.
Who are the learners?
1. Individuals and Groups
When you enter a classroom for the first time:
•What can you learn about a class at first glance?
•How can you learn more about them and what they
might be thinking about you?
•What kind of relationship do you hope to achieve
with them?
‘I wanted them to love me’
According to an experienced teacher,Yvette, when she
first met a class, she learnt to worry about the lessons
and the students and what they are learning – more
than worrying too much about her own feelings.
The character of groups
The character of the groups are distinguished form
that of the individuals. Sometimes there are groups who
are lovely, open … etc. and sometimes there are groups
who are very negative. And also there are groups who are
affected by a teacher rather than other teachers. At that
time this kind of groups will be active and motivated, but
while replacing the teacher with others, the groups will be
visa versa. This is a kind of change in class mood.
Changes in class mood
There are some factors that might explain a change in
class mood from one teacher to another. In general
students respond to the way you respond to them.You
should, as teachers, remember always that whatever you
find when you enter the class, and what you see and
understand is related to what you yourselves bring in to
the room, i.e. you often find what you expect to find.
Similarities of people in a group
Students or individuals in a class may have a number of
things that are similar or common with each other; some
may be friends, some may come from the same
geographical districts or work in the same place. But the
most similar thing is that they are in a language – learning
class.
But beyond the mentioned similarities, there will be
significant differences amongst the people. They may
have:
- Individual differences. (Skills, beliefs, personalities,
home lives, intelligence … etc.)
- Motivation. (Why they want to study?)
- Multiple Intelligences. (According to Howard
Gardener, people could have seven intelligences:
1. Linguistic 2. Visual 3. Musical 4. Logical (mathematical)
5. Bodily (feeling) 6. Interpersonal (contact with other
people) 7. Intrapersonal (understanding oneself).
All of us have these seven intelligences, but traditional
education system focuses on Language and Logical
Intelligences more than the others.
- Sensory Preferences. (Visual, auditory and kina
esthetic learners should be taken in to consideration).
Working with individual differences
The teacher should focus on the three implications that the
individual differences have and should try to find out which
one the teacher sees in common:
•Teaching the class is important.
•Having individual tasks.
•Responding individual needs and differences within the
group.
2. What level are my students?
Many schools organize the class level according
to the course books levels as followed:
Advanced
Post-Intermediate
Upper Intermediate
Intermediate
Pre-Intermediate
Elementary
Beginner
And there are other level systems, like Council of Europe
categories:
C2 Mastery
C1 Operational Proficiency
B2 Vantage
B1 Threshold
A2 Waystage
A1 Breakthrough
(= Nearly native – speaker level)
(= Advanced)
(= Upper-Intermediate/Post-Intermediate)
(= Intermediate)
(= Pre-Intermediate)
(= Beginner – Elementary)
Also there are other educational institutions that may
structure class levels according to the exams they do,
like; Cambridge ESOL exam suite of KET, PET, FCE,
CAE, CPE … etc.
Mixed – Level Classes
•Grouping by age: In secondary schools learners are
grouped by age.
•Keeping groups together: Keeping learners together as
a class course after course.
•Placement testing: Giving priority to friendships or
personal requirements rather than level when creating
classes.
•Insufficient levels: Having sufficient levels to fine-tune
the classes more.
What level is the class?
Asking about level of a class is like asking about the length of the
coastline of Britain. It depends on the length of your ruler. The
more closely and carefully you measure, the more complex the
answer becomes. Whenever you come closer to a learner, you
might discover that the person has a range of levels over the
different language systems and skills; i.e. the learner’s knowledge in
grammar is good, in vocabulary is weaker and in speaking and
listening is poorer.
1. Every learner has an individual range of levels.
2. Every class is a mixed – level class.
3. Learners and their needs:
The various tools, procedures and materials used for
finding out about learner needs is called “Needs Analysis”.
Some key tools would be:
(Writing comments, information … etc. by the learner)
(Speaking with teacher or other students)
(observing the learners at work in class)
If the learners’ language level is low, many of the needs
analysis ideas could be used in their mother tongue.
If you like to know more about learners’ needs, you may
do a questionnaire or using cards (pictures on why they need
English in the future?).
Using Data from a Needs Analysis
Why do you think Needs Analysis is important?
It is important because it allows learners to discover that
other people in the room have different views,
expectations and needs them themselves and it is a vital
awareness – raising activity.
One of the other problems is that the learners themselves
have not chosen the course. It is much better to find out
rather than to pretend that the differences do not exist.
Making use of the data
Balancing course plans and needs
How could you let the data obtained from a Needs
analysis influence or change that plan?
Least
-Take no amount of the data. Continue with the course according to your
plan.
-Review the data and continue using the original plan.
-Continue with the course, and allow the data influence some parts of your
plan.
-Continue with the course and add some activities, lessons or variations to
satisfy some stated needs.
-Re-plan the course and substitute elements from the plan with the ones in the
needs.
Most
-Basing a new course plan entirely on the stated needs.
4. Getting Feedback from Learners
The more you are able to understand the group, the more
successful the lesson is likely to be.
In order to create a successful classroom, successful teachers are
needed. And successful teachers are those who:
•Don’t work ‘at right – angles’ to the class. (Working not to their own
priorities and choice of ways).
•Don’t create a physical and psychological distance between learners
and teacher.
•Picking up signals from learners about what they think and want.
•Elicit feedback about opinions on course, content, methods … etc.
•Deviate from their own plan/ agenda.
•Do not keep up their own ‘radio babble’.
•Do not find time – filling activities.
Avoiding Feedback
Teachers may avoid feedback, because they fear hearing
comments about their work. If they avoid it, it would
become dangerous, because it piles up like floodwater
behind a dam. And the feedbacks become useful when
the channels are open all the time.
Doing any kind of feedback at first may be difficult, but
the end result will have a great benefit.
5. Learner Training
•Work on study skills (using dictionaries, reference materials …)
•Student examination (Teaching strategies you use)
As a conclusion, there are three ideas:
1. Integrate study – skill work. (Working on vocabulary and
using dictionary)
2. Let them into the secret. (Why do they do an activity?)
3. Discuss process as well as content and procedure.
(Content is English Language, procedure is your methodology and
process is the lesson)
Learning Teaching
1. What is Learning Teaching?
Though we are still teaching, we should always be
learners also. Any teacher who has stopped learning
themselves has probably also stopped being useful as a
teacher.
A step towards being a “Learning Teacher”
Be uncertain!
After finishing the course, it doesn’t mean that your learning about teaching stopped.
But your development as teachers really begins here. That’s why you could:
1. Read (magazines, …)
2. Write (articles, books …etc) for websites … etc.
3. Starting a local newspaper.
4. Try a bold parabola.
5. Attend conferences and seminars.
6. Learn about different approaches.
7. Discuss what you are doing with other teachers.
8. Observe each other’s lessons.
9. Involve some teacher trainings.
10. Do a seminar for your colleagues.
11. Be a director or a head teacher.
12. Start your own school.
13. Give private lessons.
14. Specialize (in computers, business … etc)
15. Read Learning Teaching again. (by Jim Scrivener)
Parabola
Teacher Development Groups and Associations
Try to join TD (Teacher Development) group, because it has tremendous
benefits.
Local TD Groups
(It is just like what I suggested previously with MA students; holding meetings
every week about our developments … etc.) Alas !!!
Regional, National and International Teachers’
Associations
It is a kind of association, like (IATEFL) (International Association of Teachers
of EFL). You can join them and do a networking with them and attend the
conferences, courses and newsletters.
How can I change?
There are two interesting views on change suggest that a keener awareness
of the present is the key to changing. One of them is Tao (an ancient Chinese
philosophy) and the other is Krishnamurti (An Indian thinker 1895 – 1986).
Both of them believe that we should be aware of the world around us and our
place in it and the present and what actually ‘is’ and to live with it. This
awareness will produce change itself. We should remain open to the natural flow
of change and move with it.
2. Observed Lessons
‘I’m going to observe you …’
Observation is a common feature of teacher – training courses and is a part
of in-service teacher support in many schools.
There are five types of observation:
1. Training: It would make train your skills and needs.
2. Developmental: It would make you develop yourself.
3. Assessment: To assess you and your teaching by criteria of grades, levels.
4. Data Collection: It provides the school or the teachers with data based
questionnaire studies.
5. Peer Observation: It provides your colleague with some exciting exchange
of ideas, discussion about different ways of working.
Formal Observation:
All kinds of observations can lead to useful learning. It is formal observation
when some extra person is sitting in your classroom. And if it happened, both
sides need to know and agree on the following:
1. The logistical details (when, where, how long)
2. Information about the class.
3. Information about the lesson.
4. The type of observation.
5. Who sets the agenda (the observer, the teacher or the school)
6. Specific aims of the observation.
7. How would you like the observer to be (invisible, videoing … etc)
3. Studying your own teaching: feedback, reflection
and action research
Learning teaching is an aware and active use of the experiential learning cycle
in one’s own life and work. It is a belief of that creativity, understanding,
experience and character continue growing throughout one’s life.
Do
Prepare
Conclude
Recall
Reflect
Getting feedback on Teaching
- Feedback from colleague
Ask other teachers to come in and observe your lessons, and do exchange
observations with each other to learn from each other not to judge each
other.
- Feedback from you
Try to: recall what happened, reflect on that and look for what was successful
and what could be improved. Think in this way and you will get suitable results
for your duties in the class.
By this you may do hot feedbacks (directly after teaching) or cold feedback
(may be hours or a day after teaching).
And try to write them down on a sheet. This feedback sheet will be
compared that which one of them is the most objective, realistic and supportive
to yourself may improve your ability to analyze your own lessons in the future
and thus help your development as a teacher.
4. A closing Comment: Language and People
As a teacher you are also a learner – learning about language, methodology,
people, yourself, life … etc.
The moment you stop learning, you also stop being involved in education..
So
Rather than being a teacher…..
Be a learner.
Conclusion:
While reading the two chapters carefully, we come to a conclusion
that the writer has written the book academically in a modern style
for those teachers who are the beginners in teaching language;
especially the first or two years of their work. It teaches the
teachers how to know and understand their learners; their levels,
their level of understanding, their problems, their working
individually or in group works, which style to use … etc., and how
to deal with the students psychologically, and finally how to manage
the classroom. It also encourages the teachers how to use modern
technology in facilitating their process of teaching engaging them
with new and best methodology of language teaching in the
classroom. The book teaches the teachers how to learn teaching,
how to develop themselves, observe themselves and even how can
they change themselves if it is needed.
Thanks a lot for your attention