Experiencing the Four Strands: My participation in an English Proficiency ProgrammeAnik Nunuk WulyaniState University of MalangVictoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

The outline of my presentation•What the Four Strands are• English Proficiency Programme (EPP)• EPP and the Four Strands•What I experienced•What I learned

A. What the Four Strands are

Nation (2007) defines the Four Strands as 1. meaning-focused input, 2. meaning-focused output, 3. language-focused learning, and 4. fluency development

1. Meaning-focused input• Learning through listening and reading—using language

receptively• Extensive reading, shared reading, listening to stories,

watching TV or films, being a listener to a conversation• Conditions:

a. What is learned is mostly familiarb. Learners are interested and want to understand c. Learners learn from context clues and background

knowledged. Large quantities of input are present

2. Meaning-focused output• Learning through speaking and writing—productive skills• Talking in conversations, giving a speech or lecture, writing a

letter, writing a note to someone, keeping a diary, telling a story and telling someone how to do something

• Conditions:a. What is learned is mostly familiarb. Learners convey their message to someone elsec. Learners learn from communication strategies,

dictionaries or previous input d. Plenty of opportunities to speak and write are

available.

3. Language-focused learning• Or language-focused learning, focus on form, form-focused

instruction, deliberate learning • Pronunciation practice, using substitution tables and drills,

learning vocabulary from word cars, intensive reading, translation, memorising dialogues and getting feedback about writing

• Conditions:a. Focus on formb. Opportunities to give spaced, repeated attention c. Simple and not dependent on developmental

knowledge that the learners do not haved. Occur often in the other three strands of the course.

4. Fluency development• Covers all the four language skills: listening, reading, speaking

and writing• Speed reading, repeated retelling, ten-minute writing and

listening to easy stories• Conditions:

a. What is learned is mostly familiar b. Learners’ focus is on receiving or conveying meaningc. Some pressure or encouragement to perform at a faster than usual speedd. A large amount of input or output

B. English Proficiency Programme (EPP)• Language Institute (see

http://www.victoria.ac.nz/international/study-options/esl.aspx).

• improving learners’ performance in: a. reading and listening to complex informationb. taking an active part in discussionsc. expressing complex ideas and facts through speech

and writingd. becoming an independent learner of English

• full-time programme

• 20 - 25 hours per week of class work & independent study• Class work :

a. practice listening to talks and lectures, taking part in discussions, reading effectively, writing essays or reports

b. listening and speaking practice in audio-visual classrooms; vocabulary and grammar study

c. media studies in which learners read, listen to and discuss information from the radio, television and

newspapersd. regular tests to give learners feedback on their

progress • Independent study: independent learning materials in the

Language Learning Centre & the University Library

C. EPP and the Four Strands

• The activities in EPP are designed to fulfill the criteria of a balance of meaning-focused input, meaning-focused output, language-focused learning and fluency development

D. What I experienced

Examples of:•meaning-focused input •meaning-focused output •language-focused learning•fluency developmentin day to day activities

a. Meaning-focused input Wednesday Lecture•Theme book: Learning a Foreign Language•A lecture by a Linguist on NZE (pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar)•Pronunciation: fish and chips, seven ten (NZ$7.10)•Vocabulary:

barbie: barbecue chips: French fries candyfloss: cottoncandy chilly bin: cooler capsicum: bell pepperMaori words: pohutukawa, rimu, manuka, paua,

tarakihi, kiwi, pukeko, tui, etc.•Grammar:

(find different examples from Laurie’s paper)

Listening Materials:

• Radio New Zealand news• BBC Learning English: 6 Minute English• Engineering works! http:engineeringworks.tamu.edu

b. Meaning-focused output

• Thank you letters• Semantic webs• Weekly test on Thursday afternoon

http://www.themezoom.com/natural-language-processing/semantic-web.html

C. Language-focused learning• List of vocabulary• Pronounce• Write family words, part of speech, collocation• Write sentences

d. Fluency development• Reading—speed reading• Listening—dictation • Speaking—2-minute talk with a topic• Writing—10-minute writing session

E. What I learned

1. Required conditions 2. Balance of time3. The Indonesian teaching and learning context—applying

four strands in language courses is likely but with some careful considerations: curriculum and resources (teachers and facilities)

Bibliography• Boers, F. (2013). Some tricks and rechniques for remembering vocabulary. Presented at the

WATESOL Expo, Wellington, New Zealand.• Cahyono, B. Y. (2010). Options for professional development in English language teaching

in Indonesia. In Selected papers in English language teaching (pp. 1–19). Jakarta Indonesia: US Embassy Jakarta.

• Ellis, R. (2005). Principles of instructed language learning. System, 33(2), 209–224.• Korompot, C. A. (2012). Giving teachers their voices: Indonesia EFL teachers’ prespectives

on professional teaching standadrds in the context of teacher certification programs in Indonesia. The University of New England, UK.

• Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. Oxford Pergamon. Retrieved from http://aces.ir/attachments/22d1286622494-communicative-approach-stephen-crashen.pdf

• Nation, P. (2007). The four strands. International Journal of Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 1(1), 2–13.

• Waring, R., & Nation, I. S. P. (2004). Second language reading and incidental vocabulary learning. Angles on the English speaking world, 4, 97–110.

• Webb, S. (2005). Receptive and productive vocabulary learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 27, 33–52.

• Yuwono, G. I. (2005). English language teaching in decentralized Indonesia: Voices from the less priviledged schools. Presented at the International Education Research Conference, Parramatta, Australia: The University of Western Sydney.

• Yuwono, G. I., & Harbon, L. (2010). English teacher professionalism and professional development: Some common Issues in Indonesia. ASIAN EFL Journal, 12(3), 145–163.

Tēnā koutouThank you

Terima kasih

Language Centre VUW