Teaching Grammar in the Primary ESL classroom

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TSL3108 TEACHING OF GRAMMAR IN THE PRIMARY CLASSROOM 1 TOPIC 1 INTRODUCTION TO GRAMMAR 1.0 SYNOPSIS Topic 1 provides input on the teaching of grammar in the Primary School. It also discusses the different meanings and definitions of grammar. In addition, it willo compare and contrast between fluency and accuracy, grammar for young learners and the place of grammar in the primary classroom. 1.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES By the end of Topic 1, you will be able to: Demonstrate an understanding of the meanings and definition of grammar. Demonstrate an understanding of an overview of Teaching of Grammar in the Primary School 1.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

description

the module

Transcript of Teaching Grammar in the Primary ESL classroom

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TOPIC 1 INTRODUCTION TO GRAMMAR

1.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 1 provides input on the teaching of grammar in the Primary School. It also

discusses the different meanings and definitions of grammar. In addition, it willo

compare and contrast between fluency and accuracy, grammar for young

learners and the place of grammar in the primary classroom.

1.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of Topic 1, you will be able to:

Demonstrate an understanding of the meanings and definition of grammar.

Demonstrate an understanding of an overview of Teaching of Grammar in the

Primary School

1.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

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CONTENT

SESSION ONE (3 Hours)

1.3 Introduction to grammar Grammar is central to the teaching and learning of languages. It is also one of the

more difficult aspects of language to teach as well. Grammar is partly the study of

what forms (or structures) are possible in a language, All language in use can be

analysed at each of the four levels; sound, word, sentence and text. These rules tell

the speakers

how to pronounce syllables (phonology),

how to form words (morphology),

how to structure sentences (syntax) and

what style of language to use in a given context (pragmatics).

These are the forms that language takes. The study of grammar consists, in part, of

looking at the way these forms are arranged and patterned. Thus a grammar is a

description of the rules that govern how a language’s sentences are formed.

1.3.1 Meanings and definition of grammar Grammar according to Rutheford (1987) is “a necessary component of any language

teaching programme” (p.9), and thus plays an important role in language teaching.

However, the focus on grammar in language teaching was challenged with the

emergence of teaching methodologies based on different learning theories, Such a

challenge influenced not only the content and the curriculum in language teaching,

but also the implication for teaching grammar. Thus, a fresh look at grammar was

necessary causing linguists and language educators to rethink the status of grammar

in language teaching and learning. This led to a constant debate among language

educators and linguists regarding the nature and type of grammar instruction, which

affected the understanding of how second languages should be taught or learned.

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There are various definitions of grammar. Among them are;

Grammar can be defined as a description of the structure of a language and the ways in which units such as words and phrases are combined to produce sentences in the language

(Dictionary of Applied Linguistics)

Grammar is roughly defined as the way a language manipulates and

combines words (or bits of words) in order to form longer units of meaning.

( Ur, 1994)

Grammar is generally thought to be a set of rules specifying the correct

ordering of words at the sentence level.

(Nunan, 2003)

Grammar is the system of rules governing the conventional arrangement and

relationship of words in a sentence.

(Brown, 2007)

Grammar is a description of the rules that govern how a language’s sentences

are formed.

(Thornbury, 2008)

From the various definitions of grammar we can deduce that grammar is partly the

study of what ‘forms’ are possible. Basically, a language consists words and sounds

(when spoken). This can be analyzed at each of the four levels; text, sentence, word

and sound. These are the forms that they take. A study of grammar looks at the

way these forms are arranged and patterned. Look at the following example:

This is 0153456789. We are not at home right now. Please leave

a message after the beep.

If you change the order of the sentences you no longer have a well-formed answer

phone message. For example:

Please leave a message after the beep. This is 0153456789.

We are not home right now.

Likewise at the sentence level, there is a fairly fixed order of words that form a

sentence.

Beep after a leave the please message.

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At the word level;

beep

Grammar explains why the following sentences are acceptable:

We are not at home right now.

Right now we are not at home.

The system of rules that cover the order of words in a sentence is called syntax.

Syntax rules disallow;

Not we at right home now are.

The system of rules that cover the formation of words is called morphology.

Morphology rules disallow;

We is not at home right now.

(Adapted from Thornbury, 2012)

Grammar is conventionally seen as the study of the syntax and morphology of

sentences. The ability to recognize and produce well-formed sentences is an

essential part of learning a second language.

However, in certain situation a sentence may not make sense if only the form

is correct, but it does not convey meaning. Take the following example;

This is 0153456789. We are at home right now. Please leave a message after the beep Grammar communicates meanings – meanings of a very precise kind. Principally,

grammar convey two kinds of meanings:

representation – that is, grammar enables us to use language to describe the

world in terms of how, when and where things happen, and

interpersonal – that is, grammar facilitates the way we interact with other

people when, for example, we need to get things done using language.

1.3.2 Fluency versus Accuracy

The aim of the communicative approach is to get students to use language to

communicate efficiently and to seek information, give information, solve a problem

etc. A classroom activity may aim either at accuracy or fluency, a distinction first

made by Brumfit (1984).

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An accuracy-oriented activity such as pattern drills is usually used in the teaching

of a new target item; A fluency-oriented activity such as extensive reading and

information gap aims to develop the students' spontaneous communications skills in

using what they have already learned.

Accuracy activities:

● Purpose: the primary purpose is to help students achieve accurate perception

and production of a target item which can be a sound, a word, or a sentence

structure.

● Material: the texts are usually composed of separate items; the target items

are usually practised out of context or situation;

● Activities: students' attention is focused on a particular target item; their

output is usually predictable; their performance is assessed on how few

language mistakes are made; students' errors are corrected; tasks do not

usually simulate real-life situations.

ISSUE: do you teach accuracy or fluency first?

Accuracy

To achieve accuracy

Advantage: produce students who can reproduce accurately sentences learnt

Disadvantage: May not be effective in communicating the language in real life

situations.

● Purpose: the primary purpose is to help students practice language in

Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing activities to so develop fluency in

using the language in spontaneous communication.

● Material: the texts are usually whole pieces of discourses: conversation,

stories, etc.; texts are usually authentic and used as they would be in real life.

● Activities: students' attention is focused on communicating information and

expressing ideas; their output may not always be predictable; their

performance is assessed on how well ideas are expressed or understood;

students' errors are not corrected unless it interferes with communication;

tasks often simulate real-life situations.

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1.3.3 Grammar for Young Learners The age of our students is a major factor in our decisions about how and what to

teach. People of different ages have different needs, competences and cognitive

skills (Harmer, 2005). Harmer (2005) further explains that young learners learn

differently from older children, adolescents and adults among others in the following

ways;

They respond to meaning even if they do not understand individual words.

They often learn indirectly rather than directly – taking every information

around them rather than focusing on the precise topic being taught

Their understanding comes from explanation as well as from what they see

and hear and interact with.

They find abstract concepts such as grammar rules difficult to grasp

They have a limited attention span; unless activities are extremely engaging,

they can get easily bored, losing interest after ten minutes or so.

In relation to the teaching of grammar for young learners, explicit grammar teaching

is more effective at the intermediate to advanced levels than beginning levels

(Brown, 2007). This is because incidental focus on form is valuable as it treats

errors that occur while learners are engaged in meaningful communication. This

corrective feedback can facilitate acquisition if it involves a mixture of implicit and

explicit feedback.

1.3.4 The place of grammar in the Primary classroom

(a) The KBSR syllabus As stipulated in the curriculum specifications for the primary school, the English

Language lesson aims to equip pupils with skills and provide a basic understanding

of the English language so that they are able to communicate, both orally and in

writing, in and out of school.

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Objectives of the KBSR Syllabus

i) listen to and understand simple spoken English to be able to function in

common everyday situations;

ii) speak and respond clearly and appropriately in common everyday

situations using simple language;

iii) to read and understand different kinds of texts (from print and

electronic sources) for enjoyment and information;

iv) write (including e-mail) for different purposes using simple language;

and

v) show an awareness and appreciation of moral values and love towards

the nation.

(b) The KSSR Syllabus

Under the KSSR syllabus, primary education is divided into two stages, Stage One

referring to Years 1, 2 and 3 and Stage Two, Year 4, 5 and 6. In Year 1 and 2, the

English language curriculum emphasises on the pupils’ development of basic

language skills in building the proficiency in the language. Grammar is only

introduced from Year 3 onwards.

KSSR ENGLISH

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KSSR States that:

“By the end of Year 6, pupils should be able to:

… use correct and appropriate rules of grammar in speech and writing.”

The following diagram shows the conceptual framework of the curriculum model.

THE MODULAR CONFIGURATION

Objectives Of the KSSR By the end of Year 6, pupils should be able to:

i) communicate with peers and adults confidently and appropriately in formal

and informal situations;

ii) read and comprehend a range of English texts for information and

enjoyment;

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iii) write a range of texts using appropriate language, style and

form through a variety of media;

iv) appreciate and demonstrate understanding of English language

literary or creative works for enjoyment; and

v) use correct and appropriate rules of grammar in speech and

writing

CURRICULUM ORGANISATION

The Standard-Based English Language Curriculum for Malaysian National Primary

Schools (SK) is designed to provide pupils with a strong foundation in the English

language. It is stipulated in the KSSR syllabus that teachers should use Standard

British English as a reference and model for teaching the language. It should be

used as a reference for spelling and grammar as well as pronunciation for

standardisation.

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TOPIC 2 APPROACHES IN THE TEACHING OF GRAMMAR

2.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 2 highlights some of the approaches in the teaching of grammar. Some of the

approaches discussed are descriptive and prescriptive grammar, covert and overt approaches,

teaching of grammar in isolation and in context, Meaning, Use, Form (MUF) framework and the

integration of grammar with the other language skills, i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing.

In addition, issues pertaining to the teaching of grammer are also discussed.

2.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this Topic, you will be able to:

demonstrate an understanding of the approaches in the teaching of grammar

discuss issues in the teaching of grammar

2.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

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CONTENT SESSION TWO (3 Hours) 2.3 Descriptive and Prescriptive Grammar 2.3.1 Descriptive grammar

Descriptive grammar refers to the structure of a language as it is actually used by

speakers and writers. Descriptive grammars describe how people use spoken and

written language, and the knowledge that they use to decide whether something is

grammatically correct.

2.3.2 Prescriptive grammar

Prescriptive grammar is a set of rules and examples dealing with the syntax and

word structures of a language, usually intended as an aid to the learning of that

language. It refers to the structure of a language as certain people think it should be

used. Prescriptive grammars prescribe the rules of a language.

Both kinds of grammar are concerned with rules--but in different ways.

Specialists in descriptive grammar (called linguists) study the rules or patterns that

underlie our use of words, phrases, clauses, and sentences.

On the other hand, prescriptive grammarians (such as most editors and teachers)

layout rules about what they believe to be the “correct” or “incorrect” use of

language.

Exercise 1

What do you think of prescriptive and descriptive grammar? Give your

comments.

2.4 Covert and Overt Approaches

Harmer (1988) puts forward two approaches to the teaching of grammar; covert and

overt grammar teaching.

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2.4.1 Covert Approach

In this approach, the teacher uses the structure without drawing attention to

grammatical rules. The focus is on the activity and not the grammar rules. Errors

should be tolerated during the course of the activity but should be noted and dealt

with at a later session.

2.4.2 Overt Approach

In the overt approach, teacher explicitly explains the rules when presenting the new

language. There are two options available to the teacher; the deductive approach

and the inductive approach.

Deductive approach – the teacher presents the rules/patterns/generalizations

and then goes on to provide practice in the application of these rules.

Inductive approach - also known as discovery method. The students are first

given a number of sample sentences containing the target forms and then the

teacher guides the students into deriving the rule for themselves.

The two approaches should not be seen as separate but rather as complementary.

A grammar rule presented covertly via communicative activity can be supported by

an explicit explanation so that students understand the rules. A grammar rule

presented overtly or explicitly should be supported by activities which encourage

students to use the structures for communicative purposes.

2.5 Grammar in Isolation vs Grammar in Context

2.5.1 Grammar in Isolation

Teaching of grammar in isolation involves learning grammar which is presented out

of context. In this approach of teaching grammar, learners are given isolated

sentences, which they are expected to internalize through exercises involving

repetition, manipulation, and grammatical transformation. These exercises are

designed to provide learners with formal, declarative mastery of the language in

which they are able to explain rules of using the form of the language.

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2.5.2 Grammar in Context

Teaching of grammar in context involves teaching grammar in relations to the

context of the situation the utterances are usually used. When learners are given the

opportunities to explore grammar in context, it will make it easy for them to see how

and why alternative forms exist to express different communicative meanings. For

instance, getting learners to read a set of sentences in the active voice, and then

transform these into passives following a model, is a standard way of introducing the

passive voice. Nevertheless, this needs to be supplemented by tasks which give

learners opportunities to explore when it is communicatively appropriate to use the

passive rather that the active voice (Nunan, 2000). Grammar is therefore

contextualized in meaningful language use.

There are many views on the benefits of teaching grammar in context. As

teachers, we need to help learners see that effective communication involves

achieving harmony between functional interpretation and formal appropriacy

(Halliday 1985) by giving them tasks that shows the relationship between

grammatical items and the context in which they occur. This is because in genuine

communication beyond the classroom, grammar and context are often closely

related that appropriate grammatical choices can only be made with reference to the

context and the purpose of the communication. Furthermore, Celce-Murcia and

Olshtain (1998) stressed that only a handful of grammatical rules are free from

discoursal constraints.

According to Weaver (1996), grammar need not be taught, since it is acquired

sub-consciously when the students learn the other language skills. Weaver further

postulates that students can learn and apply many grammatical concepts without

learning to analyse and label the parts of speech and various other grammatical

constructions. For example, we come to understand that acquiring the terminology

that a ‘have’ auxilliary is always followed by a past participle (“They have taken the

chair”) and a ‘be’ auxilliary is always followed by a present participle (“They will be

taking the chair”).

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2.6 Meaning, Use, Form (MUF) framework

2.6.1 MEANING:

What meaning does the vocabulary, functional expression or grammar structure

have in the (specific) context? In other words what does the unit of language mean?

There are two aspects of meaning.

First, what is literal or ‘essential’ meaning of the word, phrase,

functional expression or grammar structure?

Second, what does it mean in the context it’s being used in?

For example: She’s wearing a red skirt. The literal or essential meaning of the word

has to do with naming a particular colour.

She’s red from sitting in the sun. Her skin has turned a particular shade of pink

indicating sunburn.

He was a well-known red. Red indicates the person’s political beliefs and affiliation.

2.6.2 FORM:

How is the vocabulary unit, functional expression, or grammar structure formed?

Form refers to the visible and audible parts of vocabulary, functional expressions

and grammar units: the spelling, phonemes, syllable stress, words in a phrase,

prefixes or suffixes, syntax (word order), choice of noun or verb, etc for a particular

place in a sentence, and/or punctuation. For example: the present perfect is formed

with have been plus the past participle of the main verb; tired of is followed by

Ving/gerund not an to V/infinitive, in my opinion and not on my opinion; the word is

spelled c-o-n-t-e-n-t and the second syllable is stressed

2.6.3 USE:

When or why is the vocabulary, functional expression or grammar structure used?

The words, functional expressions, grammar structures we choose to use are

determined by the situation we are in and/or what we want to communicate to our

listener(s). Use is interconnected with meaning.

For example: Please note: Mail will not be delivered on Thursdays until further

notice. The passive voice is used appropriately here because it is more formal and

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objective; because listeners know generally that postmen deliver the mail and that

this decision was made by a nameless government or postal official; and because

the what is crucial to communicate is the fact that there will be no postal delivery on

the specified day for the foreseeable future.

For example: Good morning! is a greeting we use with friends, family, our boss, etc.

when we see them before noon. If we say Good morning! to a family as s/he gets up

in the afternoon (because they were out late the night before), we are being ironic

and perhaps indicating disapproval. We would probably not say this to our boss

when s/he came in late.

Figure 1: Celce-Murcia & Larsen-Freeman’s Form/Meaning/Use

2.7 Integration with the teaching of Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing

skills.

Grammar is the basis of all written and verbal communication. We cannot listen,

speak, read or write without grammar. It is always present in any form of

communication. This is how grammar is acquired in the L1 situation without being

taught. This is because they are totally immersed in the L1 environment.

However, the situation is different in the ESL and EFL context. In the ESL

and EFL context, learning of grammar does not occur by pure chance.

In the Malaysian ESL context, the KBSR states that;

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“The principle of integration requires that the four language skills, grammar items/sentence patterns, the sound system and vocabulary be integrated and taught as a whole, wherever possible”

There are at least three ways in which grammar can be integrated with the other

language skills like, listening, speaking, reading and writing;

i. by a systematized mapping of the grammar syllabus within a thematically

conceived series of units. How this is done is explained in detail below.

ii. by a unit-by-unit mapping of grammar. In this system, mapping of grammar

that comes after the texts and situations for the four language skills have been

determined. The grammar element is then built in to support the skills-based

activities. The activities in turn, provide the grammar lesson with models from

which to derive grammar rules. This way of working out the grammar makes

grammar-learning appear more interesting to the students as the need for

grammar arises out of the immediate context.

iii. through the specific ways in which grammar supports and is supported by

each language skill.

(Source: Chitravelu et al., 2005)

For more detailed description on the integration of grammar with each of the language skills, refer to Chitravelu et al. 2005. ELT Methodology Principles and Practice. Kuala Lumpur. Oxford Fajar Sdn. Bhd.

2.8 Issues in grammar teaching

There are several issues pertaining to the teaching of grammar in the primary

classroom. Among them are:

2.8.1 To teach of not to teach grammar

There is an issue on whether to teach or not to teach grammar and if so, how to

teach it. The issue on whether to teach or not to teach grammar depends on

various variables (Brown, 2007) such as:

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age

proficiency level

educational background

language skills

style (register)

need and goals

2.8.2 Should grammar be presented inductively or deductively

The issue here is whether learners benefit from an inductive approach where

various language forms are practiced but in which the learners are left to discover or

induce rules and generalizations on their own? Or is it better if rule/generalization

are given by the teacher or textbook and then allowed to practice arious instances

of language to which the rule applies?

Sometimes a deductive approach, an inductive approach or even a blend

between the two is effective. In practice, the distinction is not always apparent.

2.8.3 Should grammar be taught in context or in isolation

Research on the effectiveness of grammatical instruction indicates the advisability

of embedding grammatical techniques into general language courses, rather than

teaching it in isolation, and treating it in a separate course.

Grammar, whether learned consciously or subconciously is regarded as an

enabling system that helps students to pursue relevant language goals. In other

words, grammar serves as a contributor towards achieving such goals.

In some curricula, certain class hours are set aside for grammar instruction.

Under certain conditions, however, they can provide a useful function, especially

for the high intermediate to advanced learners (Ellis 2006).

2.8.4 Should teachers correct grammatical errors

Many of the students’ errors in speech and writing performance are grammatical.

Research evidence shows that overt grammatical correction by teachers in the

classroom is seldom seen of any consequence in improving learners’ language.

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However, there are evidence showing that various other forms of attention to and

treatment of grammatical errors have an impact on learners.

In speaking we have to adhere to the principles of maintaining communicative

flow, of maximizing student self-correction and of sensitively considering the

affective and linguistic place the learner is in. However, in the process writing

approach, overt attention to local grammatical and rhetorical errors is normally

delayed until learners have completed one or two drafts of a paper. Nevertheless,

global errors has to be treated earlier in the process. Studies have shown that

certain attention to errors make a difference in final written products ( Brown, 2007).

Find other issues related to the teaching of grammar in the Primary

ESL classroom and write a critical review on the issues stated. .

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TOPIC 3 GRAMMAR IN THE MALAYSIAN PRIMARY SCHOOL

ENGLISH LANGUAGE CURRICULUM

3.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 3 provides input on grammar in the Malaysian Primary School English

language Curriculum. It looks at the KBSR/KSSR syllabus and the language content

therein. We will also look at developing relevant activities to teach selected grammar

items.

3.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. demonstrate an understanding of the KBSR/KSSR Curriculum Specifications

2. explain the role of grammar in the KBSR/KSSR

3. identify grammar items and develop relevant activities

3.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

Curriculum Specifications

Objectives Activities

From discourse

to grammar

Guided noticing activities

Structuring activities

Proceduralising activities

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CONTENT

SESSION THREE (3 Hours)

3.0 The Ministry of Education has set out the Curriculum Specifications (Huraian

Sukatan Pelajaran) for each year of KSSR/KBSR. The document specifies what is

to be taught from Year 1 to Year 6. It comprises the four language skills of listening,

speaking, reading and writing as well as the language contents. The language

contents are the sound system, grammar and vocabulary.

3.1 CURRICULUM SPECIFICATIONS

Curriculum specifications for the English language syllabus have been prepared as

separate documents for each year of the primary school and these are known as

‘Huraian Sukatan Pelajaran’. Each document serves as a guide to teachers with

regard to the skills to be acquired by learners, the content or topic that is to be dealt

with, and the vocabulary and grammar items that pupils must know in order for them

to use the language.

Grammar forms part of the language contents in the Curriculum Specifications

for Malaysian Primary Schools. Grammar items and sentence patterns have been

selected from the list provided in the English Language syllabus to help pupils

master the structures of English. Two sections of the KBSR English Syllabus deal

with grammar. One section categorizes grammar under specific grammar labels and

provides sentence patterns to be covered under each label. In the other section,

sentence patterns are placed under functions and topics.

Grammar is taught every year under the KBSR syllabus. However, with the

KSSR syllabus, it is only introduced from Year 3 onwards.

3.2 OBJECTIVES

The syllabus sets out the objectives to be met in the teaching of grammar.

The KBSR syllabus sets out its objectives as:

By the end of Year 6, pupils should be able to:

- use correct and appropriate rules of grammar in speech and writing.

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3.3 LANGUAGE CONTENT

Two sections have been listed to assist teachers. For example, the Curriculum

Specifications document for Year 5 has been divided into section 5.0 (a) and 5.0 (b).

In section (a), grammar items to be taught have been specified under the

different grammar categories. To illustrate what is meant by each category and at the

same time to specify the scope and depth of the items to be taught examples are

given. Words underlined highlight significant points of grammar.

In section (b), suggested sentence patterns for teaching are given. These

sentence patterns are set out under some functions and/or areas of interest. In

teaching these patterns, it is important that teachers teach them in context and in a

meaningful way.

Teachers are advised to limit the number of structures used in any one lesson to

ensure that learners master the structures well. Teaching too many structures may

not be advisable for weak learners as these may only serve to confuse them.

3.3.1 KSSR

Primary (exit after Year 6)

The English Language Curriculum for Primary Schools aims to equip pupils with

basic language skills to enable them to communicate effectively in a variety of

contexts that’s appropriate to the pupils level of development.

3.3.2 KBSR

Primary (exit after Year 6)

The English language syllabus for primary school aims to equip pupils with skills and

provide a basic understanding of the English language so that they are able to

communicate, both orally and in writing, in and out of school.

Reflection

Compare and contrast the KBSR Curriculum Specifications and the KSSR Standard Document for Year 3.

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3.4 ACTIVITIES

In this section, we move to practicalities and consider how teachers may

actually go about helping young learners develop their grammatical knowledge in the

foreign language. We begin with seeing how common activities in the young learner

classroom can offer opportunities for grammar learning. We will also look at take

noticing, structuring and proceduralising, and some examples of activities.

Keep in mind that grammar items taught and learnt must be applied both to oral work

and writing exercises.

3.4.1 Working from discourse to grammar

Many types of discourse that occur in young learner classrooms have

grammatical patterns that occur naturally, but that can be exploited for

grammar learning.

It requires teachers to think about their language use from a

grammatical perspective, so that they become aware of opportunities

for grammar that arise every day.

Classroom discourse contexts and routines can serve to introduce new

grammar, with access to meaning supported by action and objects, or

to give further practice in language that has already been introduced in

other ways.

Routines are an ideal context in which chunks can be expanded.

(Cameron 2010:111)

a. The language of classroom management

When children begin learning English, some very simple phrases for classroom

management can be introduced, and as time goes by, these can be expanded.

Some of the phrases originally used by the teacher can be used by pupils when they

in pairs or groups. The language of classroom management can thus act as a

meaningful discourse context within which certain patterns arise regularly and help

with building the internal grammar.

When organizing practical activities, for example, the teacher may ask pupils to:

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give out

the scissors

the books

the paper

The range of verbs to use with the nouns can be gradually increased:

give out

collect

tidy

the scissors

the books

the paper

The noun phrases can be expanded to match or to extend grammar development:

give out

collect

tidy

the small scissors

the green writing books

the paper from the cupboard

b. Talking with children

Conversations with individual children can be very powerful for language

development, because they can pick up on exactly what an individual child needs to

know next to talk about what interests him or her. If a child volunteers something, in

the first language or in what they can manage of the foreign language, the teacher

can respond in the foreign language, offering a more correct way of saying it:

Child: my mummy hospital

Teacher: oh! your mummy’s in hospital. Why?

This type of ‘corrective feedback’ can be used for expanding the talk. If a child offers

a comment about a picture, for example, the teacher can respond with fuller

sentences that pick up the child’s interest:

Child: bird tree

Teacher: Yes. The bird’s in the tree. He’s sitting on the

branch. He’s singing.

By becoming ‘grammar aware’, it is possible to incorporate a lot of grammar teaching

through this kind of incidental focusing on form that seizes on opportunities and

operates in a child’s space for growth.

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Can you think of other classroom routines which can allow

opportunities for practicing grammar items?

3.4.2 Guided noticing activities

Activities in the previous section are those likely to lead to noticing of grammatical

patterns in the language. It is possible to construct activities that make noticing even

more probable, and which fit all or most of the criteria for good noticing activities.

a. Listen and notice

Pupils listen to sentences or to a connected piece of talk, e.g. a story or phone call,

and complete a table or grid using what they hear. In order to complete the grid, they

need to pay attention to the grammar aspect being taught.

b. Presentation of new language with puppets

When introducing a new pattern, the teacher can construct a dialogue with a story-

line, that uses a ‘repetition plus contrast’ pattern, to be played out by puppets. For

example, a story where a crocodile and a squirrel discuss going swimming; with

dramatic irony added because the children know that the crocodile wants to eat the

squirrel. The pupils listen several times to the story-dialogue:

S: I wish I could swim like you, Croc.

C: I’ll teach you to swim.

S: Oh, will you?

C: Let’s start next week. Shall we go swimming on Monday?

S: No, sorry. On Mondays, I clean my house.

C: Shall we go swimming on Tuesday?

S: No, sorry. On Tuesdays, I visit my grandmother.

Similar pattern for Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays.

C: ((wearily)) What about Sunday?

S: Yes! On Sundays, I’m free.

C: ((more excited; licking his lips)) OK. On Sunday we’ll have our first

swimming lesson!

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The teacher can then recap the routine events by pointing to the calendar and saying

the key pattern phrases on their own: ‘On Tuesdays, I visit my grandmother’ etc. To

help input processing, pupils may be given a blank calendar and be asked to

complete Croc’s regular routine from listening, making a distinction between routine

events, ‘On Mondays, I catch fish’ and, non-routine events ‘On Sunday, I’m going to

teach Squirrel to swim’.

Reflection

Think of other examples of guided noticing activities.

3.4.3 Language practice activities that offer structuring opportunities

In structuring activities the goal is to help learners internalize the grammatical pattern

so that it becomes part of their internal grammar. The focus is on internal work that

happens as a result of activities that demand accuracy, rather than on fluency in

production.

a. Questionnaires, surveys and quizzes

These are commonly found in young learner course books; after input on favourite

foods, for example, children are asked to interview their friends to find out their

favourite foods. Preparation and rehearsal of the questions is necessary to ensure

accuracy, and the activity must be managed so that the questions are asked in full

each time. Once the information from several people has been collected, group work

on compiling results can offer further opportunities for internalizing or structuring the

grammar patterns. Such structuring requires learners to manipulate the language so

that they produce the form with attention and accurately.

b. Information gap activities

Activities with information gaps are often found in course books to practise oral skills.

Again, with just small adjustments, they can be used with grammar goals rather than

oral fluency goals. For example, children work in pairs; each has a calendar covering

the same month, but with different entries (this is the ‘gap’). Without looking, again

perhaps pretending to talk by phone, the children are to find a time when they are

both free, and can then decide what they want to do, e.g. go swimming, go to the

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cinema, go shopping. In finding out when they are both free, they should be

encouraged to use the language form being practiced, e.g. Shall we meet on Friday?

No, sorry. On Fridays, I go to the library.

c. Drills and chants

Drills offer language and involvement support to children when used to practise new

language, because the child can listen to others to pick up bits that she or he is

unsure about, and drills can be lively and fun if the pace is kept up.

Repetition drills,in which the children repeat what the teacher says, can help in

familiarising a new form, but substitution drills are the ones that offer more for

grammar structuring. In a substitution drill, the learners may transform the teacher’s

line, as here from you want to to let’s:

T: You want to play football.

PS: Let’s play football.

T: You want to go swimming.

PS: Let’s go swimming.

(Doff 1988)

Alternatively, the teacher may use single words or pictures as prompts for pupils to

produce a sentence:

T: Cinema.

PS: Let’s go to the cinema.

T: Football.

PS: Let’s play football.

(Doff 1988)

In each case, the pupils are doing grammatical work in their minds to produce their

line in the drill, and this may help structuring.

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Reflection

Design an information gap activity to practise the patterns ‘who is

he?/where does he live?/what does he do?/what’s he doing right

now?

3.4.4 Proceduralising activities

At this point, we want learners to automatise their use of the grammatical form so

that it is available quickly and effectively for use in communication. Task design must

ensure that grammar is essential for achieving task goals and that some attention to

accuracy is required, but the idea is that attention to accuracy can gradually be

relaxed as it becomes automatic.

a. Dictogloss

The basic idea of dictogloss is that the teacher reads out a text several times, the

pupils listen and make notes between readings, and then reconstruct the text in pairs

or small groups, aiming to be as close as possible to the original and as accurate as

possible. During the collaborative reconstruction, learners will talk to each other

about the language, as well as the content, drawing on making their internal

grammatical knowledge. Through this talk, a pupil may learn from another about

some aspect of grammar.

Summary

The teacher can probably best help to develop children’s grammar in the foreign

language, not by teaching grammar directly, but by being sensitive to opportunities

for grammar learning that arise in the classroom. A grammar-sensitive teacher will

see that language patterns that occur in tasks, stories, songs, rhymes and classroom

talk, and will have a range of techniques to bring these patterns to the children’s

notice, and to organise meaningful practice. To do this well requires considerable

knowledge and teaching skills.

The End …good luck with your activities!

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TOPIC 4 TECHNIQUES FOR TEACHING GRAMMAR

4.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 4 provides you with some techniques for teaching grammar and discusses how the different teaching techniques can be used to encourage the teaching of grammar.

4.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

list features of activities that support grammar learning

demonstrate an understanding of the techniques in the teaching of grammar

create an activity based on one of the techniques.

present and justify your choice.

4.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

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CONTENT SESSION FOUR (3 Hours) 4.3 INTRODUCTION For a good grammar teaching, teachers have to make the lesson meaningful and

interesting in which pupils need to be surrounded by and participate in meaningful

discourse in their ESL classroom. Teachers should take the language learning

forwards and bring in grammatical features of stories, dialogues, songs, etc. to the

attention of their pupils in order to attract the pupils’ attention.

On the other hand, the teacher’s lack of ability to apply the appropriate

techniques and plan suitable activities for the pupils can often destroy the pupils’

motivation in learning grammar. Thus, according to Chitravelu (2005), there are

several features that a teacher has to consider when planning suitable techniques in

his/her grammar classes.

a) Be meaningful : relate to students’ own needs, interests, likes and dislikes.

b) Be purposeful : provide challenge, get them involve and utilize the new

language.

c) Have a social function : provide opportunities for interaction.

d) Provide plenty of practice : using similar language in different ways.

e) Use a multimedia approach : use of all the five senses

f) Provide variety : practise new structures using all four skills

g) Encourage active participation

Reflection

Do you agree with the above features of activities that support grammar learning? Consider your own grammar lessons in justifying your reasons.

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4.4 TECHNIQUES FOR TEACHING GRAMMAR In this section, we move to practicalities and consider six techniques how teachers

may actually go about helping pupils develop their grammatical knowledge.

4.4.1 SONGS AND CHANTS (a) Songs

Songs is a very good tool to motivate the pupils' learning process, it works

also as a break for the routine.

Songs could be an essential part of English teaching. It makes the pupils

more sensitive to the sounds and the classes becomes more interesting and

powerful. Be careful with your students’ level.

You should choose a song according to their level and try to see if the song is

suitable for them. There are lots of songs which are unsuitable for the

language teaching, these songs have a bad pronunciation or better the words

are pronounced wrongly.

There are many reasons to use songs in the classroom :

Songs are authentic texts

Songs can be linked to societal issues which might be interesting to students

Songs provide good context for grammar.

Songs can trigger emotional and affective connections to the target language

and culture.

Learning through songs involve different skills.

Songs are a good way to teach in an "Edutainment" way because they

incorporate all the language skills:

(1) Listening (to the song) - Following the song to determine words.

(2) Reading (following the lyrics to determine the words)

(3) Writing (filling in the blanks)

(4) Speaking (singing the song)

Kind of songs:

- Special songs

- Children's songs

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- Action songs

- Teaching structure songs

- Telling stories songs

- Pop Songs

How to use songs? (i) Classic gap-fill:

Pupils listen to a song and as they listen they have the lyrics with gaps in for

them to fill in as they listen. This activity is not as simple as it sounds and

before making one yourself think about why you are taking out certain words.

It may be better to take out all the words in one group, such as prepositions or

verbs, and tell the pupils what they should be listening out for.

Another option is to take out rhyming words. Don’t be tempted to take out too

many words, eight or ten is normally enough. To make the task easier you

could provide the missing words in a box at the side for the pupils to select, or

you could number the gaps and provide clues for each number.

(ii) Spot the mistakes:

Change some of the words in the lyrics and as pupils listen, they have to spot

and correct the mistakes. As with the gap-fill limit the mistakes to a maximum

of eight or ten and if possible choose a word set.

Another example of this for higher levels is to show the students the real

lyrics and you correct the English and make it proper! E.g. ‘gonna’ change to

‘going to’ ‘we was’ change to ‘we were’ etc. This is a good way to focus on

song language.

(iii) Comic strip:

Songs that tell stories are great for pupils to make comic strips out of. You

have to choose your song carefully and spend time looking at the lyrics with

the pupils and making sure they have understood the main ideas.

Lower levels may need guidance as to how to divide up the song into suitable

chucks that can be represented pictorially.

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(iv) Order the verses:

With low levels this is a very simple activity. Chop up the lyrics of the song by

verse and give a small group of pupils the jumbled verses. As they listen they

put them in order.

(v) Discussion:

Certain songs lend themselves to discussions and you can use the song as a

nice lead in to the topic and a way to pre-teach some of the vocabulary. For

example: ‘Where is the love?’ by the Black Eyed Peas to lead in to a

discussion about war.

(vi) Translation:

Although some teachers oppose all use of the mother tongue in the language

classroom, some pupils really enjoy translating lyrics into their own language.

If you do ask your pupils to do this ensure the lyrics are worth translating!

(b) Chants

Grammar chants can be a lot of fun to use in classes. They are especially

effective when used to help pupils learn problematic forms. Grammar chants

use repetition to engage the right side of the brain's 'musical' intelligence. The

use of multiple intelligences can go a long way to helping pupils speak English

'automatically'.

Using a chant is pretty straight-forward. The teacher (or leader) stands up in

front of the class and 'chants' the lines. It's important to be as rhythmical as

possible because these rhythms help the brain during its learning process.

Remember that through the use of repetition and having fun together (be as

crazy as you like) pupils will improve their 'automatic' use of the language.

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Example of a chant on prepositions. Let’s practice.

Teacher/Leader: At, on Class/Group: At, on

Teacher/Leader: at - with time Class/Group: at - with time

Teacher/Leader: on - with days Class/Group: on - with days

Teacher/Leader: We eat at eight. Class/Group: We eat at eight.

Teacher/Leader: We meet on Mondays. Class/Group: We meet on Mondays.

Teacher/Leader: She leaves at five. Class/Group: She leaves at five.

Teacher/Leader: They play on Saturdays. Class/Group: They play on Saturdays.

Teacher/Leader: At, on Class/Group: At, on

Teacher/Leader: at - with time Class/Group: at - with time

Teacher/Leader: on - with days Class/Group: on - with days

(Source: www.chants.net.com )

Reflection

What do you think are the challenges of using songs and chants in

classroom?

4.4.2 STORIES

Using ESL stories for teaching English is a very good way of helping students

learn language more deeply and naturally. Just as salespeople and politicians

attract people to their products and ideas using stories - if they are wise - so too,

can English teachers attract students, particularly young learners, by using

stories.

Stories are motivating and fun; they create a deep interest and a desire to

continue learning. Listening to stories is a shared social experience; it provokes a

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shared response of laughter, sadness, excitement and anticipation. Stories

exercise the imagination; children can become personally involved in a story as

they identify with the characters and try to interpret the narrative and illustrations.

According to Chitravelu (2005), stories are excellent resources for grammar

teaching for several reasons:

1. Children, adolescent and adults all love stories & this generate positive

attitude

2. to the lesson for which the story acts as a framework.

2. Stories provide a context for several grammatical structures.

3. A story can provide contexts for ‘real’ use of English (variety of emotions

and

issues).

Below are some activities and approaches to using ESL stories in the classroom.

(Source: http://www.tesolzone.com/esl-stories.html)

(i) Circle Story

A very simple technique which focuses on accuracy of language. The class create

stories word by word. You can begin by saying: "One Monday morning I was" or

whatever beginning you like. Then go round the class in a circle [not randomly]. The

first pupil must repeat "One Monday morning I was" and then add a single word that

makes sense and fits in grammatically. The second pupil repeats all the first pupil

has said, adding one more word. The third pupil repeats all and adds a word, and so

on, until a story develops around the class.

This technique can be fun, requires no preparation and focuses on the

accurate use of language. It can make a good warmer. With a small class it's

possible to go round the class twice. The teacher can choose whether the

story is to be told in present tense [if they are beginners] or used to practice

the simple past tense, or with no restrictions on the language used.

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(ii) Question Story Write 4 or 5 questions on the board. For a very low level class these might be:

"What's his/her name?" "Where is he/she?" "What's he/she doing?" "What

does he/she say?" Run through a few possible answers orally with the class.

Then give a piece of paper to every pupil. Tell them you want them to write an

answer to the first question only. Encourage them to be creative.

They then fold back their paper, so the answer they have written is folded

away from the page and not visible when the paper is flat on the desk. All

pupils then pass their paper to the pupil on the left. They all then write the

answer to the second question, fold the paper again, then pass to the next

pupil on the left, and so on, until all the questions have been answered. The

pupils can then unfold the papers, correct where possible, and then read

aloud the slightly crazy stories to the class.

(iii) Retelling Stories

a) Another way of using stories which requires minimal preparation, yet is a

very powerful learning tool, is to have the pupils retell stories. The best

stories to begin with are interesting anecdotes from your life, or interesting

or unusual news stories. Once this activity is familiar, the pupils can then

contribute with their own stories. This activity works well as a warmer and

as practice or review of the simple past tense.

b) Choose a short story that can be told in several sentences. Write a title on

the board as an introduction. Then write the appropriate verb (in the

present tense) for each sentence of the story. Do not write out the story.

Adding pictures helps, as long as the pictures can be drawn in a few

seconds. Then tell the story, sentence by sentence, pointing to the verbs

and eliciting the correct past tense from the students. The pupils then retell

the story. This can be done by asking individual pupils to retell separate

parts. The pupils can also retell the story to each other in pairs. When the

pupils are familiar with this method of using stories, have some of them

prepare a short story for homework. They can retell it to the other pupils

the following class.

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4.4.3 NURSERY RHYMES AND POEMS Nursery Rhymes and poems like songs, contextualize a grammar lesson

effectively. Since poetry is often spoken, repeated, dealt with, and considered, it acts

as an effective tool for practicing a specific grammatical structure. Through repeating

and considering the poem, the grammatical structures become more deeply

internalized. Thus, poetry not only provides a rewarding resource for structured

practice of grammar, but also a proper basis for review.

In the selection of a poem, the teacher should first consider the grammatical

structure to be presented, practiced, or reviewed, then the level and the age of the

students, next the theme and the length of the poem and its appropriateness to the

classroom objectives. Poems, which reflect cultural themes, universal features,

humanistic values, or emotional aspects, will be more relevant to the foreign

language learners. Finally, through taking the classroom objectives into

consideration, a teacher should effectively benefit from poems as teaching aids.

If a poem that exemplifies a particular structure is also a good poem, it engages the

eye, the ear and the tongue simultaneously while also stimulating and moving us;

this polymorphic effect makes poetry easier to memorize than other things for many

students. Some of its potential is illustrated as the followings:

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Example 1: To practice adjectives

The following poem is about hippos. Use the structure of this poem and

write a poem of your own about anything, e.g. people, trees, shoes.

Hippos

Hippos swim.

Hippos snort.

Hippo legs

are rather short.

Hippos ears

are pink and tiny.

Hippo hide

is very shiny.

Hippo tails

are stout and stubby.

Hippo hips

are kind of chubby.

Hippos stay

rather quiet.

Hippos never

like to diet.

(Source: http://www.charlesghigna.com/poems.html)

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Example 2: To teach the imperative

Chivvy

Grown-ups say things like:

Speak up

Don't talk with your mouth full

Don't stare

Don't point

Don't pick your nose

Sit up

Say please

Less noise

Shut the door behind you

Don't drag your feet

Haven't you got a hankie?

Take your hands out of your pockets

Pull your socks up

Stand up straight

Say thank you

Don't interrupt

No one thinks you're funny

Take your elbows off the table

Can't you make up your own mind about anything?

By Michael Rosen

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Example 3: To practice verbs

Take a grape and eat it slowly. Then read this poem. Then eat a mango and write a poem like this about it.

How to eat a grape

squash, squish crunch

chew, chew trickle

twang, bang spit

swallow choose

squash, squish crunch

chew, chew trickle

twang, bang spit

swallow choke

cough, cough

Anonymous

4.4.4 GAMES

Teaching Grammar through games is another way to help pupils not only

gain knowledge but be able to apply and use that learning in an interesting

way.

According to Arif Saricoban and Esen Metin, authors of "Songs, Verse and

Games for Teaching Grammar" , they say that

1. “Games and problem-solving activities...have a purpose beyond the

production of correct speech, and are examples of the most preferable

communicative activities.“

2. Grammar games help children not only gain knowledge but be able to

apply and use that learning.

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3. Games allow the students to "practice and internalize vocabulary,

grammar and structures extensively." How?

i) They can do this through repeated exposure to the target grammar and

because students are often more motivated to play games than they are to

do deskwork.

ii) Plus, during the game, the students are focused on the activity and end

up absorbing the grammar subconsciously.

Similarly, Aydan Ersoz, author of "Six Games for the ESL/EFL Classroom"

also explained more reasons why games do work for teaching grammar.

Learning a language requires constant effort and that can be tiring, but Ersoz

outlines two good reasons why games should be included in the classroom:

- Games that are amusing and challenging are highly motivating.

- Games allow meaningful use of the language in context.

(Source:http://www.teachingenglishgames.com/Articles/Teaching_Grammar_with_Games_in_the_ESL_Classroom.htm)

In short, we can conclude that there are many advantages of using games in

the classroom (Lee, 1995):

1. Games are a welcome break from the usual routine of the language class.

2. They are motivating and challenging.

3. Learning a language requires a great deal of effort. Games help students to

make and sustain the effort of learning.

4. Games provide language practice in the various skills- speaking, writing,

listening and reading.

5. They encourage students to interact and communicate.

6. They create a meaningful context for language use.'

What kinds of games work best?

When you are looking for games to use in your classroom, don't just pick

something to be a "time filler" that does not have any linguistic purpose.

Lin Hong, author of "Using Games in Teaching English to Young Learners",

explains that not all games are going to work to teach the students language

skills.

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You should consider these questions posed by Hong:

- Which skills do the games practice?

- What type of game is it and what is its purpose?

- Does the difficulty level of the game match with the students' ability level?

- Does the game require maximum involvement by the students?

- Do the students like it? Do you like it?

- What specific vocabulary or grammar are you introducing or practising with

this game?

- Can you keep control of your class and play this game?

- What materials do you need for the game and can you obtain these

easily?

- What controls, if any are needed, will you have in place to ensure the

children are on track?

When to Use Games?

'Games are often used as short warm-up activities or when there is some time

left at the end of a lesson.

However, a game "should not be regarded as a marginal activity filling in odd

moments when the teacher and class have nothing better to do" Lee (1979:3).

Games ought to be at the heart of teaching foreign languages. Rixon

suggests that games be used at all stages of the lesson, provided that they

are suitable and carefully chosen.‘

'Games also lend themselves well to revision exercises helping learners recall

material in a pleasant, entertaining way.

Therefore, it is agreed that even if games resulted only in noise and entertained

students, they are still worth paying attention to and implementing in the classroom

since they motivate learners, promote communicative competence, and generate

fluency.'

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Tips for Using Grammar Games in Class Successfully (Adapted from http://www.english-grammar-revolution.com/grammar-games.html)

1. ORGANIZATION

Figure out how to organize your class i.e. the time spent.

For the younger students you'll want to change your activities every five to ten

minutes because they have shorter attention spans. If you don't change your

activities, they'll soon start losing interest.

As you get towards the higher elementary grades, you can expand the time

you spend per activity.

Additionally, try to have everything ready to go before the students enter the

classroom. That way you can go from activity to activity with minimal

downtime. This is essential as you can lose control of the class if you do not

keep them occupied.

2. EXPECTATIONS

If you notice that your class is getting noisy or rambunctious, it's time to

change activities. Pupils of this age like to be active; in order to balance out

the energy levels in the classroom, alternate between active activities and

quiet activities.

3. VARIATION

You want to make sure your activities appeal to all sorts learning styles, so

even when you are using games to teach grammar you'll want to vary the

types of things you expect your students to do.

For Level One pupils, stick to games that use talking, listening, looking and

moving. For Level Two pupils, you can continue to use games that use

talking, listening, looking and moving and add in some games that use writing

and reading.

4. RESPECT

To make games work for you and your class, be sure to operate your class

with the utmost respect - both to and from students. This includes teaching

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your students from the very start that you expect respect at all times. This

includes giving encouragement and following the rules.

5. ROUTINE

Establishing a routine will help the class go smoothly. If pupils know what to

expect next, they will be more able to participate in what's going on now.

Set up a schedule for the type of activities you'll be doing at any given time

throughout the class whether it is a game, story or song or whatever you want

to do. Then, when you are planning your class, plug in the appropriate

activities to each section of time.

You should also leave a little time at the end of the class period to allow the

pupils to clean up and gather their things as well as time for you to recap the

class, praise the pupils and tell them good-bye.

EXAMPLES OF GAMES By incorporating games into your lesson plan, your students will not only stop

dreading grammar lessons, but they’ll actually look forward to them.

Board games, such as Go to Press! A Grammar Game, are sure to be a big

hit with young students, and will have them giggling too. In this unique game,

pupils try to create a complete newspaper by moving from department to

department (such as entertainment, sports, weather, etc.) finding and

correcting errors in the headlines. The goal is to be the first player to return to

the boss’s office and say, “Go to press!”

If you don’t have access to board games, there are still a number of activities

you can have pupils participate in. Create a crossword puzzle and use the

clues to get pupils to practice critical thinking skills about the grammar lesson

of your choice.

Or, try playing a game of hangman to get pupils focused on adjectives.

CONCLUSION Using games to teach grammar can be both fun and rewarding for you and your

pupils. Just remember to keep them engaged and make sure that your games are

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truly teaching the skill at hand and you'll soon have a class full of pupils who get

excited about learning grammar!

4.4.5 PUPPETS What is a puppet?

- A puppet is an inanimate figure moved by a puppeteer to convey emotion,

character and story.

Some examples of puppets:

1. shadow puppets

2. hand puppets

3. marionette puppets

4. water puppets

5. finger puppets

6. stick puppets

7. robotic puppets

Main types of Puppets

Hand or glove puppet: these are puppets controlled by one hand which

occupies the interior of the puppet.

Sock puppet: they are particularly simple type of hand puppet made from a

sock and they operated by inserting ones hand inside the sock. One then

moves his hand up and down to give the impersonation of speaking.

Rod puppet: it is constructed around a central rod secured to the head. A

large glove covers the rod and is attached to the neck of the puppet. A rod

puppet is controlled by the puppeteer moving the metal rods attached to the

hands of the puppet and by turning the central rod secured to the head.

Human-arm puppet: it is also called a “two-man puppet” or a “Live-hand

puppet”; it is similar to a hand puppet but is larger and requires two

puppeteers. One puppeteer places a hand inside the puppet’s head and

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operates its head and mouth, while the other puppeteer wears gloves and

special sleeves attached to the puppet in order to become the puppet’s arms,

so that the puppet can perform arbitrary hand gestures. This is a form of glove

or hand puppetry and rod puppetry.

The marionette is a particular type of puppet. It is suspended and controlled

by a number of strings, plus sometimes a central rod attached to a control bar

held from above by the puppeteer. The control bar can be either a horizontal

or vertical one.

This form of puppetry is complex and sophisticated to operate, requiring

greater manipulative control than a finger, glove or rod puppet.

The most famous marionette is Pinocchio, invented by Carlo Collodi.

Why and how should teachers use puppets in their class?

Teachers use puppets for the same reason a fisherman puts bait on his hook;

to catch the attention of children. Children love puppets. Puppets are much

more than a cute toy. Puppets are powerful communication tools. Puppets

are tools you should add to your tool box along with the paper and pencils.

use a puppet (or a set of puppets) to “act out” various grammar concepts. This

can be especially useful for learning verb tenses and prepositions for

instance.

4.4.6 DIALOGUES AND PLAYS

Dialogues are popular activities in ESL textbooks for a number of linguistic as

well as cultural reasons.

According to Rivers (1981), there are two broad categories of dialogues:

1. Conversation-facilitation

- Provide students with useful phrases with which they can begin to

communicate. These dialogues are often short and therefore students

are encouraged to memorize them.

2. Grammar-demonstration dialogues.

- The dialogues are longer and contain certain grammatical structures that

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are to be studied. They provide contextualized examples from which

students will deduce generalizations about a particular grammatical

structure.

Teachers can use or adapt dialogues to:

• demonstrate grammar in context

• facilitate conversation—This may parallel grammar instruction, but also gives

specific language practice

• provide recreation such as a skit—These dialogues are bridging activities

that provide spontaneous use of learner knowledge.

(b) Plays

Apart from memorization, widely used in the audio-lingual era, dialogues can

be exploited for plays through which students can practice language more

freely.

Larsen-Freeman (2000) has pointed out, plays give pupils the chance of

interacting and practicing communication acts in different contexts and

because of this, they are of primary importance in language teaching.

The play scripts encourage students to read aloud, swap roles, repeat and

understand grammar in context, and make the sentences come alive.

Pupils in pairs or small groups can also be given the task of writing a play

script.

After they have learned rules and done some practice, they can undertake the

work of creating a “play” using the newly learned structure.

Some points to keep in mind when writing or adapting dialogues for pupils to

practice

Use “natural” language as much as possible (include exclamations and

expressions where appropriate; avoid a strict question-answer-question

sequence).

Keep the dialogue short enough so that students can easily remember it.

Apply current sociolinguistic norms. For example, an informal introduction is

Hi, nice to meet you, rather than How do you do?

Depict situations in the dialogue that are relevant and useful to the learner.

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Retain truth value in the dialogue.

Create characters who “are realistic in that they have some personality and

relate to the learners’ experience in some way”.

(based on Slager 1976 cited in Omaggio 1984 and Graham 1992).

Refer to online websites. Compile articles related to the importance of using different techniques for teaching grammar.

The end of this session…good luck with your activities!

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TOPIC 5 DEVELOPING ACTIVITIES AND RESOURCES FOR THE TEACHING OF GRAMMAR

5.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 5 exposes you the various types of English Language Teaching (ELT)

activities and resources for the teaching of grammar. Activities and resources are

very important to English language teachers. If selected and used effectively, they

can help our pupils to understand what we are teaching them more easily. In this

topic, you will be exposed to the various types of activities and resources for

teaching grammar. Then we will look at how to select suitable activities and finally

how to exploit the resources so that teaching and learning will be more enjoyable

and effective.

5.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. identify principles of selecting activities and resources

2. identify types of ELT activities and resources

3. select appropriate activities and resources for use in the grammar classes

4. demonstrate an understanding of the activities and resources in the teaching

of grammar.

5.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

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SESSION FIVE (3 Hours) 5.3 ACTIVITIES

One of the goals of language teaching is to develop fluency in language use.

Compared to the traditional lesson formats where the focus was on mastery of

different items of grammar and practice through controlled activities such as

memorization of dialogues and drills, and the current trend has moved toward the

use of pair work activities, role plays, group work activities and project work.

5.3.1 ROLE OF ACTIVITIES

Good classroom activities will create fluency in which students can negotiate

meaning, use communication strategies, correct misunderstandings, and work to

avoid communication breakdowns. These activities can also organised to meet

accuracy which focuses on creating correct examples of language use. Differences

between activities that focus on fluency and those that focus on accuracy can be

summarized as follows:

Activities focusing on fluency

Reflect natural use of language

Focus on achieving communication

Require meaningful use of language

Require the use of communication strategies

Produce language that may not be predictable

Seek to link language use to context

Activities focusing on accuracy

Reflect classroom use of language

Focus on the formation of correct examples of language

Practice language out of context

Practice small samples of language

Do not require meaningful communication

Control choice of language

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5.3.2 PRINCIPLES OF SELECTION

The activities to support grammar teaching and learning should follow the features

below:

a) Be meaningful

The activities must relate to students’ own needs and therefore make them

involve. As a teacher, you should consider your pupils’ age, sex and

background. Preferably getting to know your pupils’ interests, likes and

dislikes will make the learning more meaningful. Primary school pupils

normally love stories, wild life, nature, songs and rhymes and popular

personalities.

b) Be purposeful

Good learning activities should make pupils utilize the language, provide them

challenge and grab their attention and interest. This is because the pupils

learn better if the lesson or activities require personal and emotional

involvement.

c) Have a social function

Good learning activities too have opportunities for interaction with other

people. By having social function, pupils can get a sense of the usefulness of

the language, check and test whether they have used the language correctly

and learn from their classmates in a less threatening way.

d) Provide plenty of practice

Provide sufficient opportunities for each pupil to use similar language in

different ways (listen, speak, read and write) and contexts (poems, stories,

songs, games, jokes) so that the target structures become part of the

automatic response.

e) Use multimedia approach

Language learning should be supported using all the five senses because the

variety of input is important as an aid to memory.

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f) Provide variety

To keep pupils’ attention, teachers need to have a variety of activity types in

the teaching of grammar. Children, especially the lower primary level, have

short attention span.

g) Encourage active participation

Teachers should ensure that activities design for grammar teaching should

encourage them move around and interact with each other. Pupils will enjoy

all these movement and hence enhance their learning process.

5.3.3 DEVELOPING GRAMMAR ACTIVITIES

Classroom activities need to reflect the grammar point that is being introduced or

reviewed. By contrast, when a course curriculum follows a topic sequence, grammar

points can be addressed as they come up. In both cases, teachers can use the

Larsen-Freeman pie chart (below) as a guide for developing activities.

Figure 1: Celce-Murcia & Larsen-Freeman’s Form/Meaning /Use pie chart

According to Diane Larsen Freeman (1997), to know a grammatical item, a student

needs to understand its form- how to make the structure, its meaning and its use.

Each segment is inter-related, so that altering one segment will automatically

produce change in other segments. Hence, language teachers must ensure that their

students master all three segments; how to construct the grammatical item (form),

what it means (meaning) and how to use it (use).

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TYPES OF ACTIVITIES

Activities that are commonly carried out in grammar lessons are:

a) Drills

A drill is a type of highly controlled oral practice in which the students respond

to a given cue. The response varies according to the type of drill.

Drills are used usually at the controlled practice stage of language learning so

that students have the opportunity to accurately try out what they have

learned.

Drills help students to develop quick, automatic responses using a specific

formulaic expression or structure, such as a tag ending, verb form, or

transformation.

There are six common forms of drills:

Type of Drill Example Cue words

1 Simple repetition T: Rizal calls Mat. S: Rizal calls Mat.

2 Simple substitution T: Rizal calls Mat. Govind S: Rizal calls Govind.

3 Multiple substitution T: Rizal calls Mat. George Uma S: George calls Uma..

4 Simple correlation T: Rizal calls Mat. Janet and Aini S: Janet and Aini call Mat.

5 Multiple correlations T: Rizal hurt himself. We S: We hurt ourselves.

6 Transformation T: Rizal calls Mat. Question S: Does Rizal call Mat?

Drills can be made interesting by changing the tone, loudness etc. with each

item is said.

Mode of drilling also can be changed from individual drill to chorus drill.

For more ideas on drills, see Stevick (1987).

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b) Substitution tables

Substitution tables are usually used by teachers to practise more than one

form. For example the table below is constructed to practise two question forms.

How do I go to

the post office?

the railway station?

the secondary school?

the supermarket?

Where is

c) Jazz Chants

Another way in which drills can be made more engaging is through jazz

chants. This technique involves using an element of rhythm. Jazz chants is simply a

way of learning to speak and understand with special attention to the sound system

of the language (Carolyn Graham, 1978). An example of a jazz chants:

I saw a lion

I saw a lion

What did you see?

I saw a lion

So did we

She saw a hippo

He saw an elephant

They saw a buffalo too

Nobody saw a rhino.

Nobody saw a rhino.

Where are all the rhinos?

Where did they go?

Where are all the rhinos?

I don’t know.

(Source: http://jazzchants.net/some-favorites/84-jazz-baby-in-africa)

For more examples and information on grammar activities see Chitravelu et al. pp213-228

Choose one activity for teaching grammar.

List down the strengths and weaknesses of the selected activity.

Share the findings during tutorial.

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5.4 MATERIALS AND RESOURCES

For English language teachers choosing resources for teaching is easy as we live in

a world of teaching resources. Resources can come from the internet, the

newspaper, the school itself, the environment and our own homes. These massive

choice of resources can be obtained and modified for classroom teaching. Although

getting resources seems easy, as English language teachers, we do need to get

some information about teaching resources because

it will help us make decisions about how many areas of content we can

realistically address within the time frame of our teaching.

It will help us make decisions about the kinds of materials we choose or

develop.

5.4.1 TYPES OF MATERIALS AND RESOURCES

Are these teaching aids familiar to you?

Well, can you think of some other materials or resources that you can use in

your grammar lessons?

Videos newspaper radio pictures puppets brochures games charts

computers Internet

LCD projectors CD-ROMs real objects

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Print, Non-Print and Electronic

ELT materials and resources can generally be grouped into three categories:

5.4.2 ROLE OF MATERIALS

Can you recall your own learning experience when you were in school? How did it

feel to attend a class which was carried out without any teaching aid? Of course, the

lesson would be dull and bored if you were asked to just sit and listen for a long

period of time. This is where the teaching aids play a role. They contribute to the

learning process in the following ways:

• source of motivation

• making learning interesting

• decrease the anxiety of learner

• concrete base for abstract learning

• develop confidence (individually, group work)

• develop creativity

• flexible and friendly environment

• provides students an approach towards learning

• capture the attention and involve the students in learning situation

5.4.3 PRINCIPLES OF MATERIAL SELECTION

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Materials development refers to anything which is done by writers, teachers or

learners to provide sources of language input and to exploit those sources in ways

which maximize the likelihood of intake: the supplying of information about and/or

experience of the language in ways designed to promote language learning.

However, in developing resources or materials for teaching, teachers should

consider the following criteria:

(a) Interest Value

Materials selected should contain some illustrations to attract the learners’

attention and avoid boredom. Teachers should bear in mind that boys and

girls have different interests.

(b) Learners’ Level of Proficiency

It is necessary to check the difficulty of language used in materials, especially

authentic ones such as newspaper articles, before deciding to use them in

your class.

(c) Learners’ Maturity

The content of the materials should be suited to the maturity level of the

learners. Young learners will comprehend something familiar to them such as

on family and favourite past times. Adolescent learners, on the other hand,

will appreciate current issues.

(d) Learners’ Prior Knowledge

Learners’ prior knowledge, in other words, should serve as a take-off point in

your teaching and also their learning. If the prior knowledge is not taken into

consideration, learners will feel frustrated and demotivated.

(e) Suitability of Cultural Content

Teachers need to be sensitive to the students’ cultural background and values

as this would arouse conflicts in them. This includes the assurance that

children and students will not be exposed to offensive materials. Although

teachers are not intentionally teaching the ‘wrong values’, sometimes good

intentions are misunderstood.

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(f) Practicality

The criterion of practicality should be very much the concern of the teachers

when selecting the materials. They need to consider whether the learners

have ample time to complete the materials.

(g) Availability and Cost

Some teaching aids such as software programmes and electronic aids can be

rather costly and not easily accessible. Thus, teachers should make the

necessary arrangements if they plan to use them. Electronic aids such as the

LCD projector, radio, television or charts need to be booked from the resource

room in school. to save cost. Besides that, there are a lot of materials

available on the internet in which teachers can search for when they have

free time, and store them for future classes.

5.4.4 DEVELOPING RESOURCES

Realia or real objects are not always suitable for our lessons. Sometimes teachers

have to make their own teaching aids to suit their activities. Therefore, in this section,

we will look at how to produce some simple teaching materials that are very useful to

the primary school teachers.

(a) Flashcards

Flashcards are easy to make as all you need to do is to stick a picture

or word (or phrase), or both, on a piece of manila card.

Pictures can be drawn or taken from magazines or internet.

Can be used for revision or remedial work.

Make sure the cards are big enough to be seen by the whole class.

Sample of flashcards to teach prepositions:

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Content: above, across from, behind, below, between, in, in front of, into, near, next to, on, out of, over, under

(Source: http://www.eslflashcards.com)

(b) Exploiting materials from the newspapers

The newspaper is a wonderful resource for teaching. It contains a variety of

both pictorial and non-pictorial texts that teachers can use in lessons.

Teachers can utilise the pictures, articles, advertisements, comic strips, TV

programmes etc. These materials can be used to generate many classroom

activities for all levels of proficiency.

In addition, the newspaper is also cheap, easily available and it exposes

learners to real-life language.

Here are some examples of activities:

(i) Scavenger Hunt

Pupils work in groups and are given a list of items to look for in the

newspaper. They can either cut out whole pictures, words or phrases and

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paste them on a piece of paper. It is a lot of fun as students compete in

their groups and locate the items stated in the scavenger hunt list.

(ii) Guided Writing

Teacher can cut out an advertisement and pupils will complete blanks/

dialogues with information from the advertisement.

(iii) Shopping list

Pupils will be told that they are going shopping for birthday presents for

themselves and their family members. Look through the newspaper and

cut out the presents that they would buy if they have lots of money. Ask

them to explain their choices either in written or verbal form.

***For more ideas and hands-on experience on using newspaper in education (NIE), look out for the annual NIE workshops organised by The Star and News Straits Times in major cities in Malaysia.

(c) Internet resources

The internet is another good resource for teaching. There are many

educational websites, pictures, exercises, stories, poems, ideas an other

kinds of materials that you can use for your grammar lessons. Multimedia

presentations can also be downloaded and shown during lessons to make

learning and understanding easier. Besides, the animation, colour and hi-tech

presentations often motivate and capture students’ attention.

Teachers can either download the materials and print them for the students or

allow them to access the internet to do the exercises. However, the availability

of computer and internet facilities, the constraints of time and computer skills

of the students will play a very important role in ensuring the smooth flow of

the lesson.

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Here are some useful websites for teachers to obtain interesting materials for

lessons.

Website Description

http://www.eslcafe.com Ideas for teaching & learning ESL,

games, exercises

http://www.englishclub,com Games, quizzes, exercises, worksheet

generator

http://www.englishlearner.com Resources for teaching, interactive

tests & exercises

http://www.longman.com Resources for teaching English

http://www.english-to-go.com Lesson plans, interactive activities,

resources

Refer to internet sources and compile different samples of activities and resources for the teaching of grammar.

Summary and Conclusion

Activities and materials that are appropriate for a particular class need to have an

underlying instructional philosophy, approach, method and technique which suit the

students and their needs. They should have correct, natural, current and standard

English. Teachers need to choose appropriate activities and look for good materials,

both commercial and non-commercial, all the time to ensure teaching and learning

take place effectively.

The end of this session…good luck with your activities!

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TOPIC 6 ASSESSING GRAMMAR

6.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 6 provides input on how to assess grammar. We are going to look at how to

test the students’ knowledge of grammar. We will also look at a number of types of

test items.

6.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. demonstrate an understanding of types of tests

2. explain the rules for writing tests

3. design items to test students knowledge of grammar

6.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

Types of

Tests

Rules of

writing tests

Developing

test items

Multiple choice Fill-ins Sentence

completion

activities

Transformations

Sentence

writing

Sentence

reordering Parallel writing

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CONTENT

SESSION SIX (3 Hours)

3.0 You have taught the grammar. You have practised it. You have corrected it.

But how do you know if the process has worked? How do you test it?

3.1 TYPES OF TEST

We can test the students’ ability to speak or write. We can test students’

reading or listening comprehension skills. Many tests include all these elements,

especially public exams like SPM and MUET.

Public exams test how good a student’s overall command of English is. In this

chapter, however, we will look at tests which are given in schools and classes to find

out how well students have done. These are often called achievement tests and are

given after a semester or year’s work. The aim of such tests is to see if students

have learnt and acquired the language they have been studying or have been

exposed to.

3.1.1 WRITING ACHIEVEMENT TESTS

Writing a test is an important job that demands skill and patience. Good tests

show both teacher and students how well they are all doing. They do not fail

students unnecessarily and they give everyone a chance to show how much they

have learnt.

Tests can often go wrong, not just because of the students’ lack of

knowledge, but also because of problems in the writing of the tests themselves.

When writing tests teachers should bear in mind the following ‘rules’.

a. Don’t test what you haven’t taught.

The purpose of an achievement test is to find out how well students have achieved

what they have been studying. In such a test, then, it is not fair to test things that

they haven’t been exposed to.

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b. Don’t test general knowledge

Test writers should remember that they are testing the students’ knowledge of

English, not their knowledge of the world. For example, a test item like this would not

be acceptable.

Picasso was a famous _______________.

The problem is that if students get this item wrong, you don’t know if it is because

they don’t know about Picasso or because they don’t know the word painter (or

artist).

c. Don’t introduce new techniques in tests

One thing that confuses students in tests, is the presence of item types and

techniques that they have never seen before. In other words, if students are given a

set of jumbled words and asked to reorder them to make a sentence, we would

expect them to have seen this type of activity before in class. If the sentence-

ordering activity is completely new to them, they may have difficulties understanding

how to do the question which have nothing to do with their knowledge of English (or

lack of it).

d. Don’t forget to test the test.

It is extremely unwise to write a test and give it straight to the students. Often

unforseen problems arise. Perhaps you forgot to write clear instructions. Perhaps

there are some mistakes. Perhaps the test is far too difficult – or far too easy. But

especially if the test is important for students (and most tests are) you must try to

ensure that it works.

You should show it to your colleagues who can help to spot problems or misprints. If

possible try out the test with a class similar to your own. This is done to spot any

obvious mistakes or problems.

TEST ITEMS

Grammar is typically tested by means of what are called discrete-item tests. That

is, individual components of the learner’s knowledge (for example, irregular past

tense verb forms such as went, saw, did etc.) are tested using tasks such as gap-

fills:

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Let us now look at a number of items that test a student’s knowledge of grammar.

We will start by looking at more discrete items and end by looking at testing

techniques that are slightly more integrative.

(i) Multiple choice

In multiple choice items, students have to choose the correct answer from a

number of alternatives. At the most simple level, multiple choice can be used to test

the students’ grammatical knowledge, for example:

Choose the correct answer A, B, C or D.

1. Charles ____________ to work yesterday.

A. doesn’t go B. hasn’t gone C. didn’t go D. Isn’t going

Multiple choice items can be made a greater test of all-round comprehension

if they are part of a passage or dialogue, for example:

Hilary : Where are you (on, in, off, out) to?

Jane: I’m just going to the shops.

Hilary: Could you (post, take, bring, buy) this letter with you?

Jane: Yes, of course.

Hilary: And you’d better (take, to take, taking, took) an umbrella.

Jane: Why?

Hilary: Because it’s going to rain.

Multiple choice items like this have the great advantage of being easy to

mark. But it is difficult to write ‘distractors’ (the three wrong answers), which aren’t

either absurd – or possible – as well as the correct answer. Special care should be

taken to make sure that there is only one correct answer.

Multiple choice items like this test students’ recognition of grammatical items.

They are not tests of the students’ productive ability.

(ii) Fill-ins

Fill-ins are those items where students have to fill a blank with a word or

words. In the traditional fill-in, students often see five or more separate sentences

and have to fill in a word for each. However, a more meaningful test would be to give

the pupils a passage with some selected words removed. For example:

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Look at Jenny’s postcard to Joanne. There are some missing words. Write one word for each space. Dear Joanne,

Rome ____ a beautiful city! The people ____ very nice. Susan ______ not like the city very much, but ____ likes the meals. (She loves shaghetti!) Susan has two friends in Rome ____ Parlo and Kurt. ____ live ____ the north-west of Rome. Kurt is an artist. _____ pictures are very good. Parlo is Italian and Kurt is German. He is ____ Hamburg. I ____ speak Italian or German, but Parlo and Kurt can speak English very well.

See you soon, Love, Jenny In this example the students have to understand the whole text at the same time and

then write the words in the spaces. This is a good test of students’ comprehension

as well as of their knowledge of individual grammatical items (such as personal

pronouns, prepositions, and the verb to be, etc).

Fill-in items are easy to write, although it is sometimes difficult to ensure that

students can put in only one answer! It is possible for students to to come up with

more than one word to put in the blank which could be correct.

(iii) Sentence completion

Fill-in items usually ask for only one word. But they can be extended to test more of

the students’ knowledge and use of English. Students have to fill in a blank and/or

complete a sentence with more than one word. Test items like this are usually called

sentence completions. For example:

Complete the sentences below so that they make sense.

1. A: Are you sure you’ll be all right?

B: Don’t worry – I’m _________ looking after myself.

2. Both teams were exhausted. They __________ for three hours.

3. The old lady, who __________, suddenly sat up and asked for some tea.

4. He was born between 1940 and 1942, so he must be in ______________.

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Students who complete this task successfully show that they have a lot of

grammatical knowledge and that they are able to use the right vocabulary and

grammar to complete the task. Obviously the writers of this test do not have only one

correct answer in mind, but deciding what to accept makes the test marker’s task

quite complex.

(iv) Sentence reordering

If students are used to this activity, then part of a test might look like this:

Put the words in order to make correct sentences.

1. he lives / John is / and / in London. / a student

________________________________________________________

2. a housewife and / is / His sister / she is / secretary. / a

________________________________________________________

3. at home now, / isn’t / in Canada. / His sister / she is

_________________________________________________________

This type of test item explores the students’ knowledge of syntax and is a useful

addition to a test.

(v) Transformations

A test of the students’ knowledge of syntax and structure is sentence

transformation. Here students have to rewrite sentences so that they have the same

meaning but different grammatical structures. For example:

Complete the sentences so that they mean the same as the original sentence.

Start with the words given.

1. John is taller than Mary.

Mary isn’t ________________________________________________.

2. ‘I haven’t seen her for years’, he said.

He said that _____________________________________________.

3. I won’t come unless you ring.

I’ll come ________________________________________________.

Once again, students should have practised transforming sentences before they

come across this exercise. But the ability to transform sentences correctly certainly

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implies quite a lot grammatical knowledge – although it may take a certain kind of

‘intelligence’ to be very good at it.

(vi) Sentence writing

Students can practise their sentence writing by describing a picture.

This activity certainly tests the students’ ability to write correct sentences – and their

ability to use there with is and are correctly.

There

Is

Are

(vii) Parallel writing

One way of providing a fairly controlled integrative test type is through parallel

writing. Here you ask the students to use their knowledge of grammar and

vocabulary to imitate a piece they have read (and understood).

In order to complete this successfully, students need to understand a paragraph, its

form and its grammar. Once again, the teacher should be sure that pupils have

previously used this technique in class since it might otherwise cause confusion.

Summary

In this chapter we have looked at a number of exercises which test grammar,

together with some ‘rules’ or hints about test design. We have looked at the need for

test exercises which encourages the students’ written production as well as terms

which concentrate as accuracy.

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TASKS:

1. Write some multiple choice items to test the students’ knowledge of the

difference between simple and continuous verb.

2. Write a five item sentence-completion exercise for a final test at upper primary

level. Try to make all the items refer to the same context.

3. Choose a specific language point and write a fill-in exercise to practise it.

4. Write a short test for beginner students to use as a parallel writing activity.

5. Decide which type of written practice you prefer and say why.

The end of this session…good luck with your activities!

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TOPIC 7 ENRICHMENT AND REMEDIAL GRAMMAR ACTIVITIES

7.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 7 exposes you the various types of enrichment and remedial grammar

activities.

7.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this session, you will be able to:

5. differentiate between enrichment and remedial activities

6. select appropriate activities for use in the grammar classes

7.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPICS

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7.2.1 WHAT IS ENRICHMENT?

(Source:http://www.brookes.ac.uk/schools/education)

Enrichment has been defined in a number of ways. One such is that of Teare (1997),

who described it as

A higher quality of work than the norm for the age group

Work covered in more depth

A broadening of the learning experience

Promoting a higher level of thinking

The inclusion of additional subject areas and/or activities

The use of supplementary materials beyond the normal range of resources.’

Enrichment might be said to involve:

staying with a theme, subject or skill and developing it in depth

‘rounding out’ the basic curriculum subjects with a wider context;

relating learning to new areas;

and/or providing pupils with experiences outside the ‘regular’ curriculum

(breadth).

Enrichment is sometimes seen in terms of the development of certain qualities of

mind. These include problem solving, creative thinking, initiative and self-direction,

discovery, higher order thinking skills, profound personal interests, self-acceptance,

and the courage to be different. Opportunities for these kinds of enrichment should

be created throughout the curriculum, as well as beyond lesson time – and both in

school and outside it. An important feature of enrichment is that it must enhance the

curriculum and the student’s general learning experience. This applies both to work

done in the classroom and to activities outside school.

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There is now a copious amount of material available in books and online to support

many kinds of enrichment activity, both in and out of the classroom. The common

ground will be that the activities should include:

Challenge

Enjoyment

exposure to new knowledge and ideas

thinking in different or unusual ways

risk taking.

7.2.2 EXAMPLES OF ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES

Examples of possible enrichment activities which have been suggested

include

the following:

In class

In the course of a literacy or an ICT lesson, where students are working on a

news story, the teacher can email certain students with a controversial

newsflash to which they have to respond quickly with an article, mimicking the

pressures of a busy newsroom.

Enrichment offers able pupils a chance to enhance their metacognitive skills,

i.e. to become aware of, and discuss, their own learning. They can, for

example, keep logs in which they reflect upon their learning, and create

questionnaires and surveys to evaluate the learning experiences of their

fellow students.

Able pupils can be helped to develop the ability to assess the complexity of a

task and complete it in a prescribed time. ‘Real time simulations’ offer an

enjoyable challenge and a sense of fulfilment.

‘Challenge Boxes’ containing enjoyable and demanding activities can be kept

in every classroom for students to use when they have finished their work.

The challenges can be developed for different subjects and topics and can be

exchanged between teachers to provide a continuing supply of activities.

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A regular feature of a lesson might be a ‘thinking slot’, or, in the words of

Coates and Wilson (2003), a ‘Bright ideas time’. Students are thus stimulated

to ‘think outside the box’, a process for which, in fact, there is a website:

http://www.thinkingoutofabox.co.uk, offering a thinking activity for each day of

the school year. Other examples are brainteasers, ‘cognitive cartoon’ activities

and PMI challenges (Plus, Minus, Interesting).

There are numerous ways in which enrichment activities can be evaluated,

including the following:

Feedback from students, and their engagement in evaluative research.

Training in research methods can itself form part of an enrichment activity.

Questionnaires to parents before and after the provision of enrichment.

This is time consuming but can reveal some interesting perspectives on

the way the students perceived the activity.

Questionnaires to teachers, to gauge the success of the enrichment and

suggest areas where further learning might take place, including in the

ordinary classroom.

Independent observations from those involved in devising or supervising

the activity, including professional providers, teachers, or educational

officers.

Whole school, department and/or auditors.

Let’s take a break and discuss these:

Define the terms ‘enrichment’ in the context of grammar

activities.

Discuss the purpose of using enrichment grammar activities

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7.3 WHAT IS REMEDIAL TEACHING?

If a student appears to be significantly behind the expected level for a class, a

teacher may require him or her to take a remedial class. These classes act as a

"safety valve" for struggling students, allowing them to work at a more appropriate

level, rather than failing because they are not at the same level as the rest of the

class. Remedial classes can be a positive environment for students suffering from

low self-esteem, as they encourage students to ask as many questions as necessary

to understand a subject, rather than feeling pressured to learn everything

immediately.

A remedial activity is one that is meant to improve a learning skill or rectify a

problem area. Remedial instruction involves using individualized teaching of students

who are experiencing difficulties in specific subject areas.

A. Identification:

a) Through academic achievement:

i) Class interaction: An under-achiever will give wrong answers frequently to

the questions asked. He will appear to be confused. He may probably not

respond to the questions asked in the class at all.

ii) Home assignment: An under-achiever will not do the homework. If

pressurised to complete the work, he may resort to copying, which may be

easily detected.

iii) Unit tests and term tests: He will show poor performance consistently in

tests. He will either not attempt the question(s) at all or, will do cuttings and

overwriting. He may even try to copy the solution to the problems from his

peers.

b) Through behavioural aspect:

i) Attitude towards academic activities: He will be disinterested in such

activities. He will try to refrain himself from such activities. He will try to avoid

discussion about academics with his peers or teachers.

ii) Class escapism: He will try to bunk classes for one reason or another. He

will give excuses for not attending classes.

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iii) Fiddle with notebooks instead of studying: He will be found to fiddle with

notebooks and books instead of studying.

Once the under-achiever has been identified, the next step is the diagnosis of

deficiencies.

B. Diagnosis of deficiencies:

a) Learning of concepts: His concept(s) related to a particular topic or formula is

not clear.

b) Application of knowledge: He may not be able to apply the learned knowledge

in different situations.

Once, the deficiency has been diagnosed, let us explore the possible causes for the

same.

C. Causes:

a) Memory: Individual capacity of memorising facts and figures.

b) Understanding: Lack of comprehension-he does not follow what he reads.

c) Presentation: Finds difficulty in expressing views-vocabulary is not sufficient.

d) Knowledge Gap: Incomplete coverage units in the previous class-long absence.

e) Parental background: Socio-economic status; education

f) Parental attitude: Indifference of parents towards studies; over-expectation.

g) School Based: Lack of suitable equipment and environment in school-

over-crowded class.

h) Medium of instruction: Language problem.

i) Physical factors: Poor eyesight; poor audibility; illness and other problems.

j) Individual factors: Good in oral tests but does not prepare notes and does not

do home work regularly; not sincere in studies; very anxious but is unable to

concentrate on studies; lacks self confidence; inferiority feeling; fear of failure;

wants company of students who avoid classes; emotional instability.

k) Teacher based: Lack of confidence in teacher; lack of time at teacher’s

disposal; faulty method of teaching; does not encourage student participation in

class; inadequate home assignments and problems for practice; improper way of

correction of homework and of guidance to students at appropriate time and

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stage.; knowledge of the subject is not thorough; unable to clarify difficult

concept; lacks in expression; unable to provide secure and affectionate climate

in classroom and lack of understanding and acceptance for each individual.

The causes having known let us now discuss about the possible cures and

remedies.

D. Cures and Remedies:

a) Category wise remedial-not more than 5 to 10 students in each class.

b) Personal and individual attention by teacher.

c) No humiliation.

Therefore, the primary responsibility of the teacher in remedial teaching involves:

i) Diagnosis of the specific difficulty of the student by conducting a

suitable diagnostic test.

ii) Providing suitable remedial measures

iii) Providing ways and means for preventing them from re-occurring in

future.

By reviewing and focusing on the basics, students become better prepared to keep

up with advanced classes. Remedial courses can also teach students better study

and learning habits, to help them succeed where they might have otherwise found

difficulty. Specifically for grammar teaching, most remedial classes stress basic

concepts that must be understood before complicated ideas can be applied. In

remedial language classes, for example, teachers might stress grammar, spelling,

and vocabulary.

Identify different definitions of the terms ‘enrichment’ and ‘remedial’.

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The followings are some examples of exercises or activities that teachers can use in their classrooms. Example 1 : Grammar Exercise Find the conjunction in the sentence. Circle the conjunction and underline the words that it joins.

(Source: http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/language_arts/creative/per1.html)

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Example 2: Writing activity

(Source: http://www.teach-nology.com/worksheets/language_arts/creative/per1.html)

Design grammar activity suitable for either enrichment or remedial

purposes. Present it to your peers.

The end of this session…good luck with your activities!

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TOPIC 8 LESSON PLANNING

8.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 8 provides you with some basic information on lesson planning It gives you

some practice in planning the lesson plan via some discussion with peers and

lecturer. It will enable you to focus on the factors to consider in lesson planning, to

analyze and comment on the different stages of a lesson, to select appropriate

activities and resources in line with the syllabus and with the correct objectives in

your lesson plan. In addition lesson planning will help you identify the strengths and

weakness of planning and enable you to improve on it before your micro-teaching

8.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this Session, you will be able to:

Prepare lesson plan and resources to teach grammar

8.2 FRAMEWORK FOR TOPIC

Checklist for lesson planning. Read through to get a better

understanding of what it takes to plan a good lesson.

LESSON PLANNING 1.IN CONTEXT

2. IN ISOLATION

PLANNING AND

DRAFTING

ACTIVITIES

RESOURCES

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8.3 PLANNING A LESSON

8.3.1 What is a lesson?

a. A learning event in which all the activities are pre-orchestrated to serve

one central pedagogic aim

a. Have a beginning, a middle and end, though these stages are called by

different names. (pre, while, post)

8.3.2 Why is Lesson planning important?

a. Requires the teacher to keep many things in mind simultaneously

b. Teacher has to do work that can be done before a learning –teaching

session begins and work that can be done in the classroom

c. Early planning enables the teacher to get the software and hardware

necessary for implementing his/her plan.

d. Lesson plan act as a record of work done.

8.3.3. Factors to bear in mind when planning a lesson

a. The general and specific objectives it sets out to achieve – decide on

what the general aim of the lesson is going to be.

b Student characteristics – take note of pupils’ interest

c Previous knowledge of the pupils

think specifically of concept of previous knowledge to be useful

in planning.

d. Tasks

Devise a task or a set of tasks

Choose a task that would allow students to get practice in all the

relevant skills.

e. Materials

Decide on the types of materials that will be used and how they will

be exploited.

f. Language requirements of task/ activity

Decisions on language need to be made at the stage when a task

is being selected.

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Decisions regarding language also need to be made after the

materials for the tasks have been assembled.

g. Time

When the lesson will take place

How much time is available

Timing of activities

h. Amount and type of pupil-teacher participation

i. Balance in allocation of time

j. Sequence and grading of activities

Find time to do some research on lesson planning.

8.3.4 Possible Procedure for Planning a lesson

a. Deciding on what to teach

Look at the scheme of work for the week and pick the syllabus item(s)

that can be done in the slot allocated for the day

b. Deciding on general aims of your lesson-

If you are taking a skill-based approach, you need to look through the

repertoire of skills specified in the syllabus.

If you are taking a task-based approach, you need to decide which

aims the task you have chosen can help to achieve.

c. Interpreting the chart

d. Deciding on specific aims or levels of achievement – teacher needs to

know what sub-skills are generally involved in achieving the broad aim

and then decide which of the several sub-skills should be the focus of his

lesson.

e. Taking stock of circumstances under which learning will take place.

f. Deciding on the staging of the lesson

g. Deciding on activities

h. Checking for balance and variety

i. Making a final copy of the lesson plan

j. Dealing with mixed- ability groups

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Search the Web for more information on lesson planning. Jot

down some notes to keep you refreshed.

8.4 LESSON PLAN

Format for Lesson Plan

Subject :………………………………….. Class:………………….. Level:…………………… Enrolment:……… Date:…………………… Time:……………………. Teaching Context:………………………. Topic:…………………………………….

Specifications: Decide the level at which your pupils are/ include integration of language skills

Vary the demands and support factor of the task.

Learning Outcomes: By the end of this lesson, pupils in their respective levels

should be able to:

Do what? What of What? How? How many?

Are they behavioural? Measurable ? Tangible ?

Thinking skills:

Previous knowledge: Pupils have learnt ………./ have been taught………../ are

familiar with…………..

Moral values : Teaching materials :

Steps /Phase time

Content Teaching learning activities

Remarks

Set induction Presentation: Step 1: (+/- mins)

Focus on what the Pupils will do

State where applicable

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Step 2: (+/- mins) Practice : (+/- mins) Production / Evaluation (+/- mins) Closure: (+/-mins)

advance/ intermediate / Elementary / Good / Average / weak / Mixed –ability Reflect on your mirco-teaching and focus on issues and actions carried out during the micro-teaching. Also focus on your strengths and weakness of your lesson.

Trainee’s reflection of the lesson: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lecturer’s comments: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Refer to the book stated below to enhance your understanding of planning and implementation of lesson plans and reflection of your micro-teaching.

Refer to Nesamalar Citravelu (2005) ELT Methodology –Principles and Practice.Pp 196 - 240 for more ideas on teaching grammar and grammar activities. Refer to Brown, H.D.(2007) Teaching by Principles : An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy, pp 179 – 186 for more information.

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8.5 SAMPLE LESSON PLAN

LESSON PLAN FOR TEACHING GRAMMAR (IN CONTEXT) Subject: English Language- Grammar

Class: Year 5 Mawar

Level: Average

Enrolment: 25 students

Date:

Time:

Teaching Context : World of Knowledge

Topic: My big family

Learning Specifications:

5.3.1: Personal pronouns

Eg I, you, he, she, we, they

Learning outcomes: By the end of this lesson, pupils should be able to :

1.1 Describe about their family member by using suitable personal pronoun.

1.2 Answer correctly 15 questions on personal pronouns

1.3 Write a post card by using correct personal pronoun

Thinking skills:1. Identifying

2. Information processing

Previous Knowledge: Pupils have learnt the part of speech noun.

Moral Values: Love your family first

Teaching Materials: LCD projector, Laptop, Manila Card, Worksheet, A4 Papers,

Powerpoint presentation.

Stages/Phases contents Teaching learning Activities

Remarks

Set Induction (+/- 5 mins)

Introduction of the topic.

“My big family”

The teacher shows the students the “my family” Members video Questions:

Teacher introduces the topic that students will learn today (My Big Family) Teacher shows a video of “my family members” to the students by using the LCD projector

Predicting skills To capture attention

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1. What did you see in the video?

2. How many siblings do you have?

3. What are their names?

4. What are their hobbies?

Teacher asks some Wh--- questions based on the video shown

Presentation (10 mins)

Teacher centered Material Microsoft Powerpoint Presentation Slides on a text of ‘My family” Expected answers: Mama Syara Papa Izat Materials: Pw presentation Personal pronoun Material: Text of “My Family” on the Manila card

Teacher shows powerpoint Presentation slides of text “my family” Teacher reads the text once to the students Teacher draws the student’s attention to the words in bold Next , the teacher continues by showing PPT slides on personal pronouns Teachers introduces the definition of personal pronoun Teacher explains each pronoun with the help of pictures Teacher provides some pictures and grid tables/ make students understand Next , the teacher shows again ‘to the students written on manila card. Teacher asks students to replace all the nouns in the bracket by filling in the blanks with the personal pronouns

Recap previous knowledge Develop student’s understanding

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Practice (+/- 25 Mins)

Teacher and the pupils Pairwork

Activity 1: Teacher asks the students to find their own partner and sit in pairs Teacher asks the students to practice using the personal pronoun about their own big family verbally Teacher asks the students to correct their friends’ work During practice Activity 2: Teacher called the students randomly to come in front of the class and describe to the whole class about their big family by using the suitable personal pronoun

Teatheir big family using the suitabl

Co-operation Develop self-esteem

Production (+/- 10 Mins)

Student centered Material: Worksheets

Next, teacher distributes worksheet on personal pronouns. The students are required to answer all the questions given. Teacher discuss the answers with all the students

Thinking skill Assess student’s understanding and feedback

Closure (+/-10 Mins)

Groupwork Write a post card

Teacher distributes A4 paper to all groups Teacher asks students to write a post card to one of their siblings who studies overseas to tell about their family condition in the hometown. Teacher gives compliments to the students for their active involvement and achievement

Creative thinking

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8.6 LESSON PLAN (GRAMMAR IN ISOLATION)

Subject: English Language- Grammar

Class: Year 5 Mawar

Level: Average

Enrolment: 25 students

Date:

Time:

Teaching Context : World of knowledge

Topic: Mid-position adverbs in present tense

Learning Specifications:

Learning outcomes: By the end of this lesson, pupils should be able to :

1.1 Use mid-position adverbs in statements and questions

1.2 Ask and answer questions based on table/ chart

1.3 Plan a group Chart

Thinking skills:1. Identifying

2. Information processing

Previous Knowledge: Pupils have learnt regular and irregular verbs in present tense

Moral Values: Love your family first

Teaching Materials: charts, pictures, four advertisements

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Stages/Phases Contents Teaching learning Activities

Remarks

Induction (+/_ 5 mins)

Teacher puts up the table on the whiteboard

Name

Mon

Tues

Wed

Thur

Kris

mee

laksa

rice

fruits

And others Pupils are encouraged to ask and answer questions Eg of question: What does Kris buy every day? What does Jas buy on Mon? What does Neeta buy on Tues?

Grid table with all the names and the food that they eat in the canteen. Pupils are asked to enter their names and what they buy at the canteen each day of the week Q n A session

Presentation (+/- 20 mins) Practice (+/- 10 mins)

Teacher says these sentences and pupils listen Kris buys mee on Monday. Neeta always buys Mee Leon buys rice every Tuesday

Pairwork Pupils repeat after teacher and then work in pairs Groupwork Teacher uses sugarpaper with blu-tac.

a. Places figurine(cut-outs from newspaper) on the sugarpaper

For each person listed.eg coffee, cereals,tea, chocolates, milk etc

b. Pupils practise structures using the pictures and cut-outs

c. Pupils practise in groups then move to pairs

d. Class discussion

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Production (+/- 15mins) Closure (+/-10 mins)

Teacher puts up a chart giving information about Encik Razak (chart after the lesson plan) Making your own chart

Pupils encouraged to talk about Encik Razak, using the info in the table and using terms like usually, sometimes,never, always Pupils write sentences about En. Razak. Additional: teacher can also get students to write parallel paragraph about another person As homework Groupwork Get pupils to do a group chart on majong paper. (If not enough time , may continue the presentation of the chart the next lesson.)

Reflect on your teaching.

Trainees reflection of lesson:

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Lecturer’s comments:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Chart

En.Razak Mon Tues Wed Thurs Fri Sat Sun

buys cola milk tea tea coffee tea tea

plays tennis badminton tennis hockey tennis tennis golf

eats rice noodles rice rice noodles rice fish

Reread through the following points and apply it in your planning stage.

8.7 Stages of a Grammar Lesson

Presentation Focused practice Communicative practice

Purpose To illustrate how the

structure is formed and

what it means, as well

as how it is used

To lead students to use

the structure to talk

about themselves /

things which really

mean something to

them.

To check student’s

understandings

To build students’

confidence in using

the new language

To enable students’

to gain control of the

structure within

controlled framework

To give students

opportunities to use

the new language

in freer more

purposeful and

creative ways

Characteristics Clear, interesting,

relevant and appropriate

Includes an element of

personal involvement(on

the part of the students)

Grammatical

explanation if necessary

Controlled to

minimize scope for

errors

Clear, and precise

Student – talking

time maximized

Learner –

centered

Interaction

activities which

incorporate these

Features:

information gap,

choice and

feedback

Typical -Build up of *drills Communicative

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activities appropriate situational

and linguistic contexts

for new language

-listening to and initial

repetition of new

language

-using new language

to talk about

themselves

*dialogue

*text completion

*problem-solving

*Role-play

activities:

*games

*discussions

Role of teacher informant *conductor

*corrector

*monitor and

organizer

Types of instructions

*teacher –class

*tr individual

students

*tr class/group

Tr -individual

Stu class/gp

Stu----

student(pairs)

student

(groups)

student

Degree of control

*controlled

*semi-controlled

*very controlled,

Students have

limited choice

*some guidance

*free, students

have choice

Correction Necessary to correct

to ensure students

grasp the correct form

*immediate

correction by

teachers/ peers

* without

correction but

errors- noted

Length and place in lesson

*short

*usually at the

beginning

*depends on

students’ needs

and difficulty of the

structure

*immediately after

presentation

*depends on

proficiency of

students and

types of activity

*after

presentation and

practice

*within or across

lessons

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Some help for you to phrase your learning objectives.

8.8 List of Actions words that can used in constructing and generating SPECIFIC LEARNING OUTCOMES in the lesson plan.

Competence Action Verbs

Recall Define, describe, detail, specify, list, state, name, outline,

recognize, identify, catalogue …..

Understanding Explain, illustrate, account for, justify, distinguish, defend,

deduce, conclude, exemplify, interpret, infer, predict,

summarise…….

Application Apply, use, solve, relate, predict, calculate, produce,

show,estimate, ……..

Analysis Classify, categorise, compare, contrast, analyze, select,

distinguish, resolve, investigate…..

Evaluation Evaluate, judge, choose, justify, interpret, conclude,

compare, appraise……..

Synthesis Compose, create, plan, design,devise, organize, compile,

develop, formulate……

Practical Assemble, compose, construct, produce, generate, install,

perform, erect, manufacture, employ, operate, manipulate....

Behavioural Respond, collaborate, co-operate, participate, demonstrate,

relate, act, consider, encourage, promote, acknowledge,

react, perform, contribute......

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TOPIC 9 SIMULATED TEACHING

9.0 SYNOPSIS

Topic 9 provides you with some basic information on implementation of lesson

planned with feedback from peers and lecturers. In this topic you also receive

feedback and review of which your reflection will be based on.

9.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

By the end of this Session, you will be able to:

Assess and evaluate on teaching performance

9.2 FRAMEWORK OF TOPIC

9.3 SIMULATED TEACHING (Micro-teaching) Implementation:

9.3.1. Planning and discussion

Refer to session 8 on ‘factors to bear in mind when planning a lesson’.

Plan and discuss in pairs or small groups but write out your own lesson plan which

need to be handed in for grading. Consult your lecturer if you need help in planning.

9.3.2. Materials and aids

Materials and aids provide the context for presenting new language.They arouse

interest, stimulate interaction and help students see new places, people and events

and bring to life situations that is too abstract for understanding (Nesamalar, 2005)

IMPLEMENTATION

FEEDBACK

REVIEW

REFLECTION

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9.3.3. Drafting , feedback and redrafting

Trainees draft the lesson plan and get feedback from lecturer concerned on areas

that need improvement. Restrategise and redraft lesson plan and choose the lesson

plan that you want to implement in your micro-teaching.

9.3.4. Micro- teaching in either in pairs or in groups of three

Based on the individual lesson plans, trainees can select one lesson plan from within

the group members and do micro-teaching based on that particular improved lesson

plan. Decide who is going to take which stage of the lesson.

9.5 Feedback and review:

Comments from lecturer based on simulated teaching

- Strengths of the trainee / lesson / activities

- Weakness of the lesson / activities/ trainee

- Problem solving

- Suggestions for improvement

Note: Refer to appendix for Evaluation Form for Micro-teaching.

Plan well. Be well prepared and implement your plan into action.

Task for you to further understand.

Task / Groupwork:

Discuss the strengths and weakness of your group members with the

feedback given by the lecturer and ways to solve the problems or conflicts

faced in the class during the micro-teaching.

9.6 Reflection:

Writing of reflection based on: - Process

- Actual teaching

- Strengths

- Weakness

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- Learning points

Plan your visits to the library and do some research on the topics.

Further reading:

Harmer (4 th Edition) : The Practice of English Language Teaching

Pp 364 – 379.

Evaluation Form

Name marks

Criteria for evaluation:

1. Set Induction well managed, relevant , motivating and captivating

2. Lesson develops smoothly and presented systematically

3. Learner centered activities.

4. All activities are relevant, appropriate and effective.

5. Lesson is well wrapped up in an interesting and creative way.

6. Excellent time management

7. Demonstrates a range of deep understanding of the processes involved in a

teaching and learning situation

8. Able to analyze critically and identify clearly own strengths and weakness

BIBLIOGRAPHY Brown, H. D. (1994) Principles of Language Learning and Teaching

(3rd edn.) New Jersey: Prentice Hall

Byrne, D. (1986) Teaching Oral Skills. Essex: Pearson Edu. Inc.

Diaz-Rico, L.(2008). Strategies for Teaching English Learners, (2nd edn.)

Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

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Ellis, R. (1997) Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University

Press.

Harmer, J. (2007) The Practice of English language Teaching. (4th ed). Hallow: Longman Hedge, T. (2000) Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom. Oxford: Oxford University Press Johnson, K (1982) The deep-end strategy in communicative language teaching. In Communicative Syllabus Design and Methodology Pergamon Institute of English

Krashen, S. (1987) Principles and Practice in Second Language

Acquisition. London: Prentice Hall.

Lewis, M. (1993) The Lexical Approach Language Teaching Publication

Lewis, Michael (1997). Implementing the Lexical Approach: Putting Theory

Into Practice. Hove: Language Teaching Publications.

Lightbown, P.M. and Spada N. (1999) How Languages are Learned

(2nd edn.) Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Mitchell, R. and Myles, F. (1998) Second Language Learning Theories.

London: Arnold.

Littlewood, W. (1981). Communicative Language Teaching. Cambridge:

Cambridge Univeristy Press

Willis, J. (1996). A Framework for Task-Based Learning. London:

Longman

Yule, G. (2006). The Study of Language. 2nd Edition. Cambridge, CUP

Source: © Copyright Paul Shoebottom (1996-2011) The Good Language

Learner. Retrieved 8 December 2011, from http://esl.fis.edu

Factors affecting language learning