optimizing oral skills
DESCRIPTION
Slides Presentation prepared for the 8-hour mini-course delivered by Ronaldo Lima Jr and Erika Cruvinel at the Binational Center Casa Thomas Jefferson, in Brasília, in February/2011.TRANSCRIPT
Optimizing Oral Skills
Day 1: Speaking Tasks
Day 2: Speaking Tasks (hands-on)
Day 3: Teaching Pronunciation
Day 4: Error Feedback
The Importance of Speaking Activities
“Do you ________ German?”
Languages are primarily oral
2 CTJ students
Pair Work• No preparation• timing (st A vs. st B) & quantity• two monologs (no PW)
–Not necessarily interactive• May be interactive because of the ss (motivated, extroverted, etc), not because of task design
– role of the listener
• no monitoring• no debriefing
Preparation
Think about your vacation:• What did you do?• Where did you go?• Who did you meet?• What was the best/worst part?• What would you do again?• What didn’t you have time to do?
Reaction Expressions
Really?Me too!I can’t believe it!Are you serious?You’ve got to be kidding!No way!That’s awesome!Sounds great!
Follow-up QsHow come?Did you like it?When was that?And how did you feel?etc...
Pair Work (making it better)• Preparation (pre-speaking)• time management (so both ss get to talk)• give the listener a role / create a need for
interaction– Force information gap (listener has to find out
sth)– Force a certain number of turns (reaction
expressions and follow-up questions) – especially for very controlled activities.
• Monitoring (listen to the pair ahead)• debriefing (post-speaking) – volunteering
vs. calling on ss
Concept of communicative tasks
• direct vs. indirect approach (children, teens and adults)
• Importance of knowing the purpose of the speaking activities
• Importance of knowing why they should work in pairs, groups, with different students
GW (trio)• Same steps as PW: pre-speaking,
speaking, post-speaking• Easier for shy/weaker ss to hide
– strive for even/balanced participation– Monitoring– Giving clear roles
• Timing (what if one group finishes before the other?)
Discussions
What expressions do we teach our students for discussion activities?
Softeners IntensifiersA little (bit) tiredKind of unpleasantSort of inspiringNot really* interestingNot that crazy about itI kind of like itI sort of like it
Really enjoyReally don’t* appreciateSo quicklyToo tiredSo much funSuch pleasureSuch an enjoyable experienceSo much better
Negative questions (don’t you…? / Why didn’t you…?
RJPeople forced to leave their homes: 13,830Deaths: 803Missing: 324
AustraliaPeople affected by the flood: 200,000Cities and towns affected by the flood: 22Deaths: 20
• Trios/groups (superteachertools)
• (A) Whose fault is it?• (B) What should be done now to rebuild
the cities?• (C) What should be done now to avoid
more disasters like these?
• Online stopwatch (6 min, 2 for each question)
titSIN prnnsieISn
• Communication (vid)• Language ego• Brazilian Portuguese vs. English
Why teach pronunciation?
Teaching pronunciation(vid)
Letter-Sound Correspondence
PROCRACIDADE FLABELAÇÃOFUMIGAÇÃO TARTAREAR INDENIDADE
DOMICILE PREFACE ADMINISTRATIVE DISTRIBUTE CANBERRA IRON
STEAK GAUGE HAPHAZARDMISCHIEVOUS SEW UTENSIL
Homographs
Bough GoThrough OffAlthough CowEnough CuffCough True
Homophones
(vid)
Tea Meet Key
Believe Receive Me
Ski People phoenix
Silent Letters
Psychology Amoeba Phlegm
Singer Bomb Honest
CONSONANTS
Initial [p] [t] [k] in stressed syllables sound
[pH] [tH] [kH]
‘pay’ [pHeI] – [peI] = [beI]‘tie’ [tHaI] – [taI] = [daI]
‘cap’ [kHQp] – [kQp] = [gQp]
Hold a sheet of paper in front of the mouth while saying the words. The
paper should move to plosive sounds.
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked.If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper
picked?
Last sound of the base form is
Voiceless
Last sound of the base form is
Voiced
Last sound of the base form is[t] or [d]
[t] [d] [Id] [d]
wiped [pt]liked [kt]
laghed [ft]messed [st]crashed [St]
matched [tSt]
bribed [bd]jogged [gd]lived [vd]
named [md]opened [nd]
rolled /ld/appeared /rd/
raised [zd]breathed [Dd]
longed [Nd]merged [dZd]
cried – vowel + [d]
one syllable is added to the verb
lasted [tId] [td]accepted [tId] [td]added [dId] [dd]
founded [dId] [dd]
Vid
[T] [s]
Thank Sank
Think Sink
Thin Sin
Math Mass
Path Pass
Mouth Mouse
[T] [t]
Three Tree
Thick Tick
Through True
Tenth Tent
Math Matt
Booth Boot
[T] [f]
Thought Fought
Threat Fret
Three Free
Oath Oaf
Death Deaf
Myth Miff
[D] [d]
They Day
Though Dough
Those Doze
Then Den
There Dare
Vid
[s]
House, mouse, blouse
Base, case, basic
Basis, crisis, analysis
Useful
Fantasy
Famous, marvelous, various
Disorder, disappear, dishonest
Misuse, misinform, misinterpret
[z]
His, hers, theirs
Does, was, is
Resort, business, easy
Whose, praise, because
Dessert, scissors, possessive
[s] (noun / adjective) [z] (verb)
Abuse To abuse
Use To use
Excuse To excuse
House To house
Close To close
[s] [z]
Ice Eyes
Spice Spies
Loss Laws
Price Prize
Face Phase
Loose Lose
Once Ones
Race Raise
Advice Advise
Niece Knees
Vid
Last sound of the base form isVoiceless
Last sound of the base form is
Voiced
Last sound of the base form is
[s] [z] [S] [Z] [tS] [dZ]
[s] [z] [Iz] [z]cups /cps/takes/teIks/
student's/studnts/
boys /bIz/lives/lIvz/she's/Siz/
one syllable is added to the verbglasses /glQsIz/washes/wASIz/judge's
/dZdZIz/
[t] [tS]
Two Chew
Tease Cheese
Tip Chip
Tin Chin
Tear Cheer
Art Arch
Beat / Beet Beach
Cat Catch
Bent Bench
[S] [tS]
Share Chair
Shoe Chew
Shore Chore
Shin Chin
Ship Chip
Shop Chop
Wash Watch
Cash Catch
Wish Witch
“She sells sea shells by the seashore”
“She saw a fish on the seashore, and I’m sure the fish she saw on the
seashore was a sawfish”
[m] [n]
Cam Can
Them Then
Pam Pan
Rum Run
Seem Scene
Rom Ron
[n] [N] [Nk]
Son / Sun Sung Sunk
Ban Bang Bank
Ran Rang Rank
Thin Thing Think
Done Dung Dunk
Win Wing Wink
Identify the number of sounds in the words below:
Sing3 (CVC)father
5 (CVCVC)lamb
3 (CVC)stopped
5 (CCVCC)plumber
6 (CCVCVC)
LATERAL
[l] ‘live’ ‘pulling’ ‘no final position’
[] ‘no initial position’ ‘multi’ ‘pool’
Pronunciation Journey
[ow] [ow]
Sow / Sew / So Soul
Bow Bowl
Go Goal
Mow Mole
Row Role
Rode / Road Rolled
Code Cold
Coat Colt
Silent l
half calf talkchalk
would could should balm
palm calm salmonLincoln
[h] /r/
Home Rome
Hose Rose
Hat Rat
Hole Role
Hate Rate
Hear Rear
Hair Rare
Hide Ride
Hope Rope
• Raise your RIGHT hand / stand up if you hear a /r/ sound.
• Raise your LEFT hand / sit down if you hear a /h/ sound.
TAP / FLAP
[] ‘to’ ‘water’ ‘got’
Online recording :Vocaroo, photobabble, voicethread.Audacity, flipvideo, digital camera.
Betty bought a bit of better butter.
Vowels
[i] [I]
Leave Live
Scene Sin
Heat Hit
Seat Sit
Feet Fit
Leap Lip
Beach Bitch
Sheet Shit
Simple Sounds Maze
Odd one out
it – heat – scene – feet
think – thanks – this – thousand
pattern – post – penguin –
psychologist
worked – cleaned – stopped - laughed
Meaningful, communicativeMinimal Pairs
Did you feel/fill it?
Heat/Hit it now!
He will leave/live.
The children will sleep/slip.
[u] [U]
Fool Full
Luke Look
Pool Pull
Cooed Could
Unfair dictation
Only write down words that have a long vowel sound.
[E] [Q]
Bed Bad
Pet Pat
Men Man
Ken Can
Said Sad
Ten Tan
Send Sand
Vid
[i] [I] [E] [Q]
Beat Bit Bet Bat
Bead Bid Bed Bad
Meet Mitt Met Matt
Deed Did Dead Dad
Keen Kin Ken Can
visit feat cab pick canmen sick seek back led
[I] ‘sit’
[i] ‘seat’
[E] ‘set’
[Q] ‘sat’
[] Typical mistake
Correct Pronunciation
ous, as in various [ows] [s]
pro, as in production [pro] [prow]
[pr]
ion, as in illusion [on] [jon] [n]
[] or [U] [] or [I]
today, you (connected speech)
behind, prefer, delicate, chocolate,
wanted
[] [r] [rl]
won, one word world
trouble firm girl
love circle pearl
tongue work curl
culture murder twirl
cup search Earl
[] [U]
luck look
cud could
buck book
stud stood
tuck took
[] [A] []Nut not / knot
Cup cop
buddy body
color collar
duck dock
fund fond
bum bomb
wonder wander
[I] [aI]
sit site
bit bite
miss mice
spit spite
kit kite
Magical final -e
[Q] [eI]
fat fate
Matt mate
rat rate
pan pane
can cane
Magical final -e
[] [A] [oU]
cop cope
Ross rose
cock Coke
rot wrote
Spock spoke
Magical final -e
[] [ju]
Cut cute
Mull mule
hug huge
fuss fuse
us use
Magical final -e
Online Resources
http://phonphon.pbworks.com
The fact that the teacher gives feedback on student performance implies a power hierarchy: the teacher above, the student below.
Assessment is potentially humiliating to the assessed person.
Teachers should give only positive feedback, in order to encourage, raise confidence and promote feelings of success; negative feedback demoralizes.
Giving plenty of praise and encouragement is important for the fostering of good teacher-student relationships.
Very frequent approval and praise lose their encouraging effect; and lack of praise may then be interpreted as negative feedback.
Correcting each other can be harmful to student relationships.
Error vs. mistake (self-corrected if pointed out)
Intralingual vs. Interlingual
Local vs. global
When?
The correction-during-communication paradox
• If we correct during communicative work unobtrusively so as not to harm communication – the correction may be ineffective.
• If we correct more effectively using explicit feedback and ‘processing’ – we may damage the communicative value of the activity.
What’s the answer?Professional teaching judgment, taking into
account:• The goals of the course / lesson / task• How crucial/important/difficult the error is• Source of error (intra/interlingual)• Local or global• The frequency of the error / fossilization• The level of the student / ZPD• The personality of the student / affective
factors / language ego• The motivation of the class overall to learn• The excitement level of the activity
How?
Recast
Repetition
Elicitation
Clarification Request
Metalinguistic Feedback
Explicit Correction
Research
• Lyster, R. & Ranta, L., 1997• Lyster, R., 1998
Types of correction
Frequency of use
Uptake
Recast 55% 18%
Elicitation 14% 46%
Clarification request 11% 28%
Metalinguistic feedback
8% 45%
Explicit correction 7% 36%
Repetition 5% 31%
Conclusion (by Penny Ur)• For optimum effectiveness, corrective
feedback should:–be explicit – involve some measure of active
negotiation• It may or may not be effective to correct
during (oral) communication; this depends on a number of pedagogical considerations.
Individual or group feedback?
Oral Test Feedback
Making error correction visual
How much?
A questionnaire-based survey(by Penny Ur)
• Population: over 1,000 children learning English in State schools in Israel.
• Ages: 10 - 17
When I make a mistake in oral work I think it's very good / good / not very
good / bad if the teacher...
Very Good
Good Not Very Good
Bad
... doesn't correct me at all.
… tells me there's a mistake, but doesn't tell me what it is, so I have to correct myself.
..tells me a mistake and also tells me what the correct form should be.
…tells me there's a mistake, tells me the correct form, and makes me repeat it.
…tells me there's a mistake, and gets another student to correct me.
…corrects my mistake and also explains why it was wrong.
Oral mistakes
0100200300400500600700800900
.. doesn'tcorrect me at
all.
… tells methere's a
mistake, butdoesn't tell
me w hat it is,so I have to
correctmyself.
..tells me amistake andalso tells me
w hat thecorrect formshould be.
…tells methere's a
mistake, tellsme the
correct form,and makes
me repeat it.
…tells methere's a
mistake, andgets another
student tocorrect me.
…correctsmy mistakeand also
explains w hyit w asw rong.
yes
no
Conclusions (by Penny Ur)
• School-age learners want to be corrected.
• They feel corrective feedback is valuable
• They prefer explicit correction
• They understand the value of repeating the correct form.
• They do not, on the whole, like to be corrected by their peers.