English Teaching TodayGeoff Barton

Headteacher, King Edward VI School, Suffolk, UK, and English teacher

Download this presentation at www.geoffbarton.co.uk/teacher-resources (Presentation number 93)

Hello.

1. A brief history of English teaching

1. The key ingredients in successfully teaching speaking & listening, reading and writing

1. A demonstration

TALKTALK REFLECTREFLECT

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What How

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1: Model the way we teach English today

2: Be lexically redundant

Do you want to leave now?

A brief history of English teaching

This is what classrooms used to look like …

1870s

Elementary Education Act1870:

National education for children aged 5-12

Beginning of national literacy

ReadingSpeaking & listening Writing

NOW:

Reading Writing

THEN:

ExercisesRepetitionCopying

✗

English as a subject✔

Edmund CooteHeadmaster

King Edward VI Grammar School

1596

… for nine months

Edmund CooteHeadmaster

King Edward VI Grammar School

1596

LatinGreek

HebrewNOT English

LatinGreek

HebrewNOT English

1870

Grammar

Parse the italicised words:“The lady protests too much, methinks”“Sit thee down”“I saw him taken”

Rewrite these sentences correctly:“Louis was in some respects a good man, but being a bad ruler his subjects rebelled”“Vainly endeavouring to suppress his emotion, the service was abruptly brought to an end”

Alfred S West, The Elements of English Grammar

George Sampson ‘English for the English’

1921

LiteratureSpeaking & listening

FR Leavis & Denys Thompson1950s

CultureMorality

Personal growthDiscrimination

English becomes the most important subject.

Therefore …

The English teacher becomes the most important teacher

Freedom and autonomy

5 years

✔✗

1960s

Move away from grammar

1989First National Curriculum

Today:New National

Curriculum based on international comparisons

Social mobility

The Matthew Effect(Robert K Merton)

The rich shall get richer and the poor shall get poorer

Matthew 13:12

“the word-rich get richer while the word-poor get poorer” in their reading skills

(CASL)

“Good readers may choose friends who also read avidly while poor readers seek friends with whom they share other enjoyments”

The Matthew EffectDaniel Rigney

Stricht’s Law: “reading ability in children cannot exceed their listening ability …”

E.D. HirschThe Schools We Need

“Spoken language forms a constraint, a ceiling not only on the ability to comprehend but also on the ability to write, beyond which literacy cannot progress”

Myhill and Fisher

The Matthew Effect:The rich will get richer &the poor will get poorer

REFLECTIONREFLECTION

1. What do you agree or disagree with?2. What surprises you?3. What would you like to learn more about?

Break tyranny of questions and answers

Alternatives to ‘hands-up’

Vary student groupings: remember ‘the Matthew effect’

Emphasise exploratory talk

Thinking time & oral rehearsal

(‘how’ and ‘why’ questions)

REFLECTIONREFLECTION

1. What do you agree or disagree with?2. What surprises you?3. What are the implications for your teaching?

Encourage reading for pleasure: a social act

Teach specific skills: skimming, scanning, analysis, research

Read aloud

Demystify spelling

Avoid ‘death-by-comprehension question’

SKIMMING

The climate of the Earth is always changing. In the past it has altered as a result of natural causes. Nowadays, however, the term climate change is generally used when referring to changes in our climate which have been identified since the early part of the 1900's . The changes we've seen over recent years and those which are predicted over the next 80 years are thought to be mainly as a result of human behaviour rather than due to natural changes in the atmosphere.  

The best treatment for mouth ulcers. Gargle with salt water. You should find that it works a treat. Salt is cheap and easy to get hold of and we all have it at home, so no need to splash out and spend lots of money on expensive mouth ulcer creams. 

Lexical v Grammatical Words

Urquhart castle is probably one of the most picturesquely situated castles in the Scottish Highlands. Located 16 miles south-west of Inverness, the castle, one of the largest in Scotland, overlooks much of Loch Ness. Visitors come to stroll through the ruins of the 13th-century castle because Urquhart has earned the reputation of being one of the best spots for sighting Loch Ness’s most famous inhabitant.

Urquhart castle is probably one of the most picturesquely situated castles in the Scottish Highlands. Located 16 miles south-west of Inverness, the castle, one of the largest in Scotland, overlooks much of Loch Ness. Visitors come to stroll through the ruins of the 13th-century castle because Urquhart has earned the reputation of being one of the best spots for sighting Loch Ness’s most famous inhabitant.

Urquhart castle is probably one of the most picturesquely situated castles in the Scottish Highlands. Located 16 miles south-west of Inverness, the castle, one of the largest in Scotland, overlooks much of Loch Ness. Visitors come to stroll through the ruins of the 13th-century castle because Urquhart has earned the reputation of being one of the best spots for sighting Loch Ness’s most famous inhabitant.

Urquhart castle is probably one of the most picturesquely situated castles in the Scottish Highlands. Located 16 miles south-west of Inverness, the castle, one of the largest in Scotland, overlooks much of Loch Ness. Visitors come to stroll through the ruins of the 13th-century castle because Urquhart has earned the reputation of being one of the best spots for sighting Loch Ness’s most famous inhabitant.

Urquhart castle is probably one of the most picturesquely situated castles in the Scottish Highlands. Located 16 miles south-west of Inverness, the castle, one of the largest in Scotland, overlooks much of Loch Ness. Visitors come to stroll through the ruins of the 13th-century castle because Urquhart has earned the reputation of being one of the best spots for sighting Loch Ness’s most famous inhabitant.

SCANNING

1. Where did the first cell phones begin?

2. Name 2 other features that started to be included in phones

3. Why are cell phones especially useful in some countries?

Cellular telephones

The first cellular telephone system began operation in Tokyo in 1979, and the first U.S. system began operation in 1983 in Chicago. A camera phone is a cellular phone that also has picture taking capabilities. Some camera phones have the capability to send these photos to another cellular phone or computer. Advances in digital technology and microelectronics has led to the inclusion of unrelated applications in cellular telephones, such as alarm clocks, calculators, Internet browsers, and voice memos for recording short verbal reminders, while at the same time making such telephones vulnerable to certain software viruses. In many countries with inadequate wire-based telephone networks, cellular telephone systems have provided a means of more quickly establishing a national telecommunications network.

Where begin? Two features?

Some countries?

DEMYSTIFYINGSPELLING

3

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

1 - SOUNDS

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

Government

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

Happened

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

February

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

2 -VISUALS

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

Se-para-teBe-lie-ve

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

3 - MNEMONICS

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

necessary

Mr B’s New Year Spelling Frolics

-our words -re endings -able / -ibleendings

-ous endings Single/doubleconsonants

colourhumourrumourarmourf lavour

humorous

centimetrecentretheatre

Availablelikeablesociableconsiderablelaughablesensibleincredibleterriblepossibleresponsible

t rem end ous

enor mouspoisonous

myst eri ous

cont inuousprec ious

f ero cious

del icious

ca ut ious

ambit ious

beginning

ups e t t ing

f org ot t en

commit t eepermittedoccurred

visit ed

reg r e t f ul

developing

accommodation

Encourage reading for pleasure: a social act

Teach specific skills: skimming, scanning, analysis

Read aloud

Demystify spelling

Avoid ‘death-by-comprehension’

REFLECTIONREFLECTION

1. What do you agree or disagree with?2. What surprises you?3. What are the implications for your teaching?

Link to speech

Teach sentence variety

Teach higher level connectives:

Feed with reading

Demonstrate the writing process

not just ‘and’ & ‘but’

Know your connectives

Adding: and, also, as well as, moreover, too

Cause & effect: because, so, therefore, thus, consequently

Sequencing: next, then, first, finally, meanwhile, before, after

Qualifying: however, although, unless, except, if, as long as, apart from, yet

Emphasising: above all, in particular, especially, significantly, indeed, notably

Illustrating: for example, such as, for instance, as revealed by, in the case of

Comparing: equally, in the same way, similarly, likewise, as with, like

Contrasting: whereas, instead of, alternatively, otherwise, unlike, on the other hand

Link to speech

Teach sentence variety

Teach higher level connectives:

Feed with reading

Demonstrate the writing process

not just ‘and’ & ‘but’

Demo

Learning objective:Explore two conventions

of narrative fiction

1: Point of view 2: Narrative disjuncture

Provide a model(Good or bad)

If you were the editor, what advice would you

give the writer to improve it?

If you were the editor, what advice would you

give the writer to improve it?Once upon a time there was a

little girl whose name was Little Red Riding Hood. She lived at the edge of a dark forest. Her grandmother lived at the other edge. The only way to Grandma’s house was through the forest. This scared Little Red Riding Hood.

One morning her mother told her to take some food to her grandmother …

Predict what happens nextPredict what happens next

How can you tell this text was written for children?

How can you tell this text was written for children?

How would you make it into a horror story?

How would you make it into a horror story?

Learning objective:Explore two conventions

of narrative fiction

1: Point of view 2: Narrative disjuncture

REFLECTIONREFLECTION

1. What do you agree or disagree with?2. What surprises you?3. What are the implications for your teaching?

1. Speaking & listening, reading and writing feed each other

2. Grammar should support learning rather than be terms and labels to be named

1. As teachers our role is to make the implicit explicit through questions, exploratory talk, exploring models and demonstration

3 MESSAGES:

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Published by Routledge

English Teaching TodayGeoff Barton

Headteacher, King Edward VI School, Suffolk, UK, and English teacher

Thank you for inviting me to Shanghai!