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1) Learning a first language: explain the behaviourist position, the innatist position and
the interactionist position.
Behaviourist Position: behaviourists believed that language learning is a matter of imitation and habit
formation. Children imitate the sounds and patterns which they hear around them and receive positive
reinforcement for doing so. As they are encouraged by their environment, they continue imitation and
practicing these sounds and patterns until they form “habits of correct language use.” Imitation and
practice are the primary processes.
Imitation: word for word repetition of all or part of someone else’s utterance.
Practice: repetitive manipulation of form.
Innatist Position: Chomsky claims that children are biologically programmed for language and that
language develops in the child in just the same way that other biological functions develop (walking).
The environment makes a basic contribution, the ability of people who speak to the child, and the
child’s biological endowment (a quality or ability you’re born with) will do the rest. Chomsky claims
that children are born with a special ability to discover for themselves the underlying rules of a
language and that their minds aren’t blank slates (pizarra) to be filled by imitating the language.
Interactionist Position: language develops as a result of the complex interplay between the uniquely
human characteristics of the child and the environment in which the child develops. Language that is
modified to suit the capability of the learners is a crucial element in the language acquisition process.
2) Explain the concept of Universal Grammar (UG) (Chomsky).
UG or LAD (Language Acquisition Device) is a set of principles which are common to all languages.
If children are pre-equipped with UG, then what they have to learn is the ways in which their own
language makes use of these principles and the variations on those principles which may exist in the
particular language they are learning.
3) Explain the “critical period hypothesis (Lennenberg).
Lennenberg argued that there is a specific and limited period for language acquisition, the Critical
Period Hypothesis. The strong version is that children must acquire their first language by puberty or
they will never be able to learn from subsequent exposure.
4) Explain the concept of “motherese” or care-taker talk.
It is the speech directed to children. It involves a slower rate of speech, higher pitch, more varied
intonation, shorter, simple sentence patterns, frequent repetition, and paraphrase. Topics of
conversation are limited to the child’s immediate environment, the “here and now”.
5) Theories of second language learning: describe each of the following theories and
say what they have in common: Behaviourist, Cognitive, Creative Constructive and
Interactionist theory.
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Behaviourist Theory: all learning, whether verbal or non-verbal, takes place through the same
underlying process, habit formation. Learners receive linguistic input from speakers in their
environment, and positive reinforcement for their correct repetitions and imitations. As a result, habits
are formed. It’s assumed that a person learning a second language starts off with the habits associated
with the first language. These habits interfere with those needed for second language speech, and new
habits must be formed. Errors are seen as first language habits interfering with the acquisition of
second language habits.
Cognitive Theory: they see second language acquisition as the building up of knowledge systems that
can eventually be called on automatically for speaking and understanding. At first, learners have to pay
attention to any aspect of the language which they are trying to understand or produce. Gradually,
through experience and practice, learners become able to use certain parts of their knowledge so
quickly and automatically that they aren’t even aware they are doing so. This frees them to focus on
other aspects of the language, in turn, gradually become automatic.
Creative Constructive Theory: learners are thought to “construct” internal representations as “mental
pictures” of the target language. The internal representations are thought to develop, in predictable
stages, in the direction of the full second language system. This theory proposes that internal strategies
operate on language input without any direct dependence on the learner actually producing the
language. Learners’ oral and written production is useful only in so far as it allows the learner to
participate in communicative situations.
Interactionist Theory: Learning occurs through interaction with other people. Interactionists are
concerned with the question of how input is made comprehensible. They claim that a crucial element
in the language acquisition process is the modified input that learners are exposed to and the way in
which native speakers interact in conversations with learners. Interactional modifications that take
place in conversations between native speakers and non-native speakers are the necessary mechanism
for this to take place.
These theories are based on the assumption that first language and second language learning are
similar.
6) Which are Krashen’s five central hypotheses? Expand upon each of them.
The acquisition-learning hypothesis: there are two ways for adult second language learners to approach
learning language: they may “acquire” it or they may “learn” it.
We acquire as we engage in meaningful interaction in the second language, with no attention to form.
We learn via conscious process of study and attention to form and error correction. Acquisition is the
more important process. It’s only acquired language which is readily available for natural, fluent
communication.
The monitor hypothesis: the acquired system acts to initiate the speaker’s utterances and is responsible
for fluency and intuitive judgements about corrections. The learnt system acts as an editor or
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“monitor”, making minor changes and polishing what the acquired system has produced. There are 3
conditions necessary for monitor use: sufficient time, focus on form, and knowing the rules. The last
helps the speaker to polish what has been acquired via real communication. The focus of language
teaching should be communication and not rule-learning. Form: the structures, the rules. Meaning:
when do I use the form?

The natural order hypothesis: we acquired the rules of a language in a predictable sequence. The rules
which are easiest to state to learn aren’t necessarily the first to be acquired.
The input hypothesis: we acquired language in only one way: by receiving comprehensible input,
that’s to say, by understanding messages. If the input contains forms and structures just beyond the
learner’s current level of competence, comprehension and acquisition will occur. Comprehensible
input is necessary but no a sufficient condition for acquisition. The other condition is the affective
filter hypothesis.
The affective filter hypothesis: the “affective filter” is an imaginary barrier which prevents learners
from using input available in the environment. “Affect” refers to such things as motives, needs,
attitudes, and emotional states. If the filter is “up”, when the learner is stressed, self-conscious or
unmotivated, he won’t use the input available in the environment. If the filter is “down”, when the
learner is relaxed and motivated, he will use the input available in the environment.
7) Provide a complete overview on Piaget’s stages of cognitive development.
His theory is one which is “action based”, more concerned with the process of learning than what is
learned. It suggests that we “come to know” things are a direct result of our personal experiences, but
that we make sense of those experiences at different stages of our lives.
For the young infant, the most important way of exploring the environment is through the basic senses.
This Piaget calls the SENSORI-MOTOR STAGE of learning. Gradually through the development of
organised actions and thoughts, the child comes to perceive and deal with the world in more
sophisticated ways: is the PRE-OPERATIONAL STAGE, which is considered to last between the ages
of two and seven. This is when the child’s thoughts become more flexible and when memory and
imagination begin to play a part. After the age of seven, the child is seen entering the CONCRETE
OPERATIONAL STAGE when realisation begins to dawn that operations can be reversed. This
enables children to go beyond the information given, but is still dependent upon concrete (rather than
abstract) examples. Finally, there’s a move into FORMAL OPERATIONAL STAGE when abstract
reasoning becomes increasingly possible. Piaget considered this shouldn’t happen before the
adolescent years and will tend to vary across subject areas, e.g. I’m able to think at a high level of
abstraction mathematically, but this won’t necessarily reflect my ability to think scientifically.
8) Which central aspects of Piaget’s theory are of particular significance to the
language teacher?
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When teaching young learners, we shouldn’t expect them to have reached the stage of abstract
reasoning, therefore, shouldn’t expect them to apply this to sorting out the rules of the language. At
this stage we have to provide experiences in the target language which are related to aspects of the
child’s own world.
Piaget saw cognitive development as a process of maduration, within which genetics and experience
interact. The developing mind is seeing as constantly seeking equilibration via two processes
Assimilation and Accommodation. The first is the process by which incoming information is changed
or modified to fit in what we already know. Accommodation is the process by which we modify what
we already know to take into account new information. Piaget’s theory is important; firstly, because
we can see how important is to take into account the learner as an individual and actively involved in
constructing meaning. For this reason, teacher should help and encourage them in this process.
Secondly, the development of thinking and its relationship to language and experience become a
central focus of learning. Thirdly, care should be taken to match the requirements of any task to the
cognitive level of which the learner is capable. And fourthly, we can see the application of the notions
of assimilation and accommodation to learning a new language.
9) Explain the concept of interlanguage. How can you relate interlanguage theory and
Piaget’s theory?
When we receive new input of the language, we need to modify what we already know about the
language (Accommodation) so as to “fit” the new information into our existing knowledge
(Assimilation). In this way, our knowledge of how the system of the new language operates gradually
develops. This can be related to interlanguage theory which holds that a learner’s knowledge of the
language is gradually re-shaped as it is more closely to the target language.
10) Mention significant aspects of Bruner’s ideas. Expand upon the notion of the spiral
curriculum.
Scaffolding: talk that supports a child in carrying out an activity. The way in which adults use
language to mediate the world for children and help them to solve problems.
The notions of formats and routines are features of events that allow scaffolding to take place, and
combine the security of the familiar with the excitement of the new. Routines provide opportunities for
meaningful language development, they allow the child to actively make sense of new language from
familiar experience and provide a space for language growth.
Learning to learn: to Bruner, we need to educate the whole person. One of the central elements of this
is the need to learn how to learn, which can be considered to be the key to transferring what was
learned from one situation to another. Learning in schools must have a purpose, it should serve us in
the future.
Spiral curriculum: teachers should first introduce the basic ideas that give life and form to any topic or
subject area, and then revisit and build upon these repeatedly.
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Modes of thinking: at the ENACTIVE LEVEL, learning takes place by means of direct manipulation
of objects and materials. In this level it’s important the use of drama, play, total physical response and
the handling of real objects. At the ICONIC LEVEL, objects are represented by visual images one step
removed from the real thing. Illustrations are recognised for what they represent, but can also be
created independently. Here it’s important the use of pictures, or words in colours. At the SYMBOLIC
LEVEL, symbols can be manipulated in place of objects or mental images (when they read a word
they can image the word they read). In this level, it’s important to include paralanguage (gestures) to
express ideas in context.
11) Humanistic approaches: what are the educational implications of humanism?
Humanistic approaches emphasise the importance of the inner world of the learner and place the
individual’s thoughts, feelings and emotions at the forefront of all human development.

12) Mention the key humanistic maxims of a communicative classroom.

 Create a sense of belonging.
 Make the subject relevant to the learner.
 Involve the whole person.
 Encourage a knowledge of self.
 Develop personal identity.
 Encourage self-esteem.
 Involve the feelings and emotions.
 Minimise criticism.
 Encourage creativity.
 Develop a knowledge of the process of learning.
 Encourage self-initiation.
 Allow for choice.
 Encourage self-evaluation.
13) Social interactionism: explain Vygotsky´s concept of the zone of proximal
development.
ZPD refers to the layer of skill or knowledge which is just beyond that with which the learner is
currently capable of coping.
Mediation refers to the use of tools (everything that is used in order to help solve a problem or
achieve a goal). Mediation helps learners move into their ZPD.
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Mediation theory tells us that it’s the role of the teacher to help learners to find ways of moving
into their next level of understanding of the language.
14) Explain Feuerstein’s theory of mediation.
He suggests that from birth a child’s learning is shaped by the intervention of significant adults. These
adults act as Mediators whose role is to select and organise stimuli that they consider most appropriate
for the child, shape them and present them in the ways they considered most suitable to promote
learning. They also intervene in shaping the child’s early attempts at responding to stimuli, directing
and encouraging more appropriate responses while explaining why one response is more useful or
appropriate than another. Cognitive, social and emotional development are seen as inextricably linked,
and the establishment of an appropriate climate is as important as the content of what is conveyed. We
see the child as an active participant in the mediation process, whose actions affect those of parents or
teachers as well as the other way around. There is a difference between teacher as a mediator and as an
instructor. The first gives the tools to students and guides them. The second gives information,
instruction, doesn’t get the student involved. Students are seen as “tabula rasa”

15) Mention the key features of mediation, expanding upon each of them.
Significance: to make learners aware of the significance of the learning task, so that they can
see the value of it personally.
Purpose beyond the here and now: to make learners aware of the relevance to them beyond the
immediate place and time.
Shared intention: the intention of the teacher must be understood and reciprocated by learners.
A sense of competence: learners feel that they are capable of coping successfully with any task.
Control of own behaviour: the ability to control and regulate their own learning, thinking and
actions.
Goal-setting: the ability to set realistic goals and achieve them.
Challenge: to respond to challenges, and to search for new ones.
Awareness of change: to understand that human beings are constantly changing to recognize
their own changes.
A belief of positive outcome: to believe that there’s always the possibility of finding a solution.
Sharing: co-operation among learners to solve problems.
Individuality: a recognition of their own individuality and uniqueness.
A sense of belonging: a feeling of belonging to a community and a culture.
16) According to the social constructivist model, which are the four key sets of factors
that influence the learning process? Explain how they all interact.
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Social interactionism emphasises the dynamic nature of the interplay between teachers, learners and
tasks. Since learning never takes place in isolation, we recognize the importance of the learning
environment or context within which the learning takes place. These four elements interact as part of a
dynamic, ongoing process. Teachers select tasks which reflect their beliefs about teaching and
learning. Learners interpret the tasks in ways that are meaningful and personal to them as individuals.
The task is therefore the interface between the teacher and learners. Teachers and learners also interact
with each other; the way that teachers behave in classrooms reflects their values and beliefs, and the
way in which learners react to teachers will be affected by the individual characteristics of the learners
and the feelings that the teacher conveys to them. The context in which the learning takes place will
play an important part in shaping what happens within it. This includes the emotional environment
(trust and belonging), the physical environment, the whole school ethos (the moral ideas and attitudes
that belong to a particular group), the wider social environment, the political environment and the
cultural setting.
17) Teaching for understanding: define understanding from a performance perspective.
Understanding is a matter of being able to do a variety of thought-demanding things with a topic. It’s
being able to carry out a variety of “performances” (explaining, finding examples, applying,
generalizing, and representing the topic in a new way) that show one’s understanding of a topic
(understanding performances)
18) Define generative topics, understanding goals, understanding performances and
ongoing assessment.
Generative topics are issues, themes, concepts, and ideas that provide enough depth, significance,
connections, and variety of perspectives to support students’ development. We look for 3 features in a
generative topic: centrality to the discipline, accessibility to students, and connectability to diverse
topics inside and outside the discipline.
Understanding goals are the concepts, processes, and skills we most want our students to understand.
They help to create focus by stating where students are going.
Understanding performances are the learning activities that the teacher designs to give learners the
opportunity to go a step beyond. These activities must be thought-demanding.
Ongoing assessment is the process of providing students with clear responses to their performances of
understanding in a way that will help to improve next performances. Occasions of assessment might
involve feedback from the teacher, from peers, or from students’ self-evaluation.
19) The roles of a teacher: describe each of the following roles: controller, organiser,
assessor, prompter, participant, resource, tutor and observer. Illustrate.
Controller: teachers are in charge of the class and of the activity. The teacher tells the students things,
organises drills, reads aloud and exemplifies the qualities of a teacher-fronted classroom. Acting as a
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controller makes sense when announcements need to be made, when order has to be restored, when
explanations are given. It denies students access to their experimental learning by focusing everything
on the teacher.
Organiser: teachers organise students to do various activities. This involves giving the students
information, telling them how they are going to do the activity, putting them into pairs or groups,
closing things down when it’s time to stop.
Assessor: we act as an assessor when offering feedback and correction and grading students in various
ways. When playing this role, we should be sensitive to the students’ possible reactions.
Prompter: we “nudge” (to push somebody gently or gradually in a particular direction) students
forward a in a discreet and supportive way. We prompt our students when we want to help but we
don’t want to take charge because we’re keen to encourage students to think creatively rather than
have tem hang on our every word, thus it’s that we’ll occasionally offer words or phrases, suggest that
the students say something, or suggest what could come next.
Participant: sometimes we may want to join in an activity not as teachers but also as a participant in
our own right. When it goes well, students enjoy having the teacher with them, and for the teacher,
participating is often more instantly enjoyable than acting as a resource.
Resource: when students ask how to say or write something, or what a word or phrase means we act as
a resource. We can’t always give our students everything they need. We need to guide them to where
they can go to look for that information, because no teacher knows everything about the language.
Instead of answer every question, we can direct students to a dictionary, or any other resource. In this
way we are encouraging them to use resource material for themselves, and to become more
independent in their learning generally.
Tutor: when we act as a tutor, we point our students in direction they haven’t yet thought of taking. In
this role we combine the roles of prompter and resource.
Observer: we observe what students do so that we can give them useful group and individual feedback.
We act as observers especially in oral communicative activities.
20) Factors affecting second language learning: intelligence, aptitude, personality,
motivation, learning styles, and age of acquisition. Expand upon each concept.
Intelligence: intelligence refers to the mental abilities that are measured by an IQ test (intelligent
quotient). This test measures only two types of intelligence: verbal/linguistic and mathematical/logical
intelligence. But there’re other types of intelligence: spatial, musical, etc. Intelligence levels are a good
means of predicting how successful a learner would be at language learning. It’s said that intelligence
is more strongly related to certain kinds of second language abilities than others. It has been reported
that intelligence is related to performance on reading, dictation and writing tasks, but not on listening
comprehension and free oral production tasks. These suggests that intelligence is more related to those
second language skills used in the formal study of a language (reading, writing, language analysis,
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vocabulary, rule learning) but that intelligence is less likely to influence the way oral communication
skills are developed. Intelligence is a strong factor when it comes to learning second languages in
classrooms, particularly if the instruction is formal. When the classroom instruction is less formal
(when focuses on communication and interaction) intelligence plays a less important role. To
conclude, it’s important to keep in mind that “intelligence” is complex and that a person has many
kinds of abilities and strengths; and that an individual with strong academic performance doesn’t
necessarily mean that she/he is a successful second language learner.
Aptitude: it refers to potential for achievement. Some individuals have an exceptional “aptitude” for
language learning. Aptitude tests measure characteristics such as: the ability to identify and memorize
new sounds, the ability to understand how words function grammatically in sentences, the ability to
figure out grammatical rules from language samples, and memory for new words. If learners have
these characteristics are thought to be more successful second language learners.
Personality: there are lots of personality characteristics that affect second language acquisition. For
example, it’s argued that an extrovert, anxiety, risk-taking, self-esteem, empathy, dominance, talkative,
responsible person are characteristics needed for successful second language learning. But these
characteristics are a major factor in the acquisition of communicative competences. A person who is
introvert and inhibitive are thought of being negative for second language learning.
Motivation and attitudes: they are related to success in second language learning. Motivation can be
defined in terms of two factors: learners’ communicative needs, and their attitudes towards the second
language community. If learners need to speak the second language in a wide range of social situations
or to fulfil professional ambitions, they will perceive the communicative value of the second language
and will therefore be motivated to acquire proficiency in it. Depending on the learners’ attitudes,
learning a second language can be a source of enrichment or a source of resentment. If the speaker’s
only reason for learning the second language is external pressure, internal motivation may be minimal
and general attitudes towards learning may be negative. Another factor that affects motivation is the
social dynamic or power relationship between the languages. Minority group members learning the
language of a majority groups may have different attitudes and motivation from those of majority
group members learning a minority language.
Motivation is an essential factor affecting learning. In a mixed-ability class, the weaker learners
are often those with least motivation. For many children, the main reason for studying English is that
it’s part of the school syllabus. The teacher should show them that English isn’t “just another school
subject” and that English is interesting and relevant for them.
One of the most potent sources of anxiety in children is the fear of failure, particularly in
exams.
The extravert is an individual who enjoys change and variety and is orientated towards the
external world of people and experiences.
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The introvert is more concerned with stability and with inner world of thoughts and feelings.
Intrinsic forms of motivation come from the individual. It may be a natural curiosity.
Extrinsic forms of motivation are imposed upon the individual by the environment. It consists
of marks, grades, teacher approval, etc.
Achievement motivation consists of success at tests, examinations, school reports, and teacher
approval that helps build up children’s prestige in their own eyes and in the eyes of teachers, peers and
family. Children find success to be rewarding, and build up expectations which they have to work even
more purposefully to fulfil.
Learning styles: it’s an individual’s natural, habitual, and preferred way of absorbing, processing, and
retaining new information and skills. Different learners approach a task with a different set of skills
and preferred strategies. We should encourage our learners to use all means available to them as they
work to learn another language. We need to bear in mind: that there is no particular teaching or
learning method that can suit the needs of all learners, that learning styles are value-neutral ( that’s, no
one style is better than others), that we should encourage our students to “enlarge” their learning styles
so that they will be more empowered in a variety of learning situations. Learners’ preference for
learning will influence the kinds of strategies they choose to learn new material; teachers can use this
information to help learners expand their repertoire of learning strategies and thus develop greater
flexibility in their second language learning.
Age of acquisition: according to the Critical Period Hypothesis, there’s a time in human development
when the brain is predisposed for success in language learning. After the end of the Critical Period
Hypothesis language acquisition may not be based on the innate structures believed to contribute to
first or second language acquisition in early childhood. Rather, older learners depend on more general
learning abilities, the same ones they might use to learn other kinds of skills or information. It’s argued
that these general learning abilities aren’t as successful for language learning as the more specific,
innate capacities which are available to the young child. Furthermore, it’s said that the critical period
ends around puberty, and that adolescents and adults are no longer able to call upon the innate
language acquisition capacities which work so well for young children. There are a lot of factors that
make the comparison between young children and adults difficult; for example, young learners don’t
need to be praised or accepted, while, adults often feel embarrassed by their lack of master of the
language and they may develop a sense of inadequacy after experiences of frustration in trying to say
exactly what they mean. However, in the early stages of the second language development, older
learners (adolescents and adults) are more efficient than younger learners (children).
21) Explain the traditional concept of intelligence.
Intelligence is a single, static construct, an innate attribute that doesn’t change with age, training, or
experience. We’re born with a certain amount of intelligence that won’t change as a result of our life
experiences.
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22) Account for Gardner’s definition of intelligence.
Intelligence is the ability to solve problems or fashion products (new technology) that are of
consequence in a particular cultural setting or community. Intelligence is made up of component
pieces. He proposes different and autonomous intelligence capacities that result in different ways of
knowing, understanding, and learning about our world.
23) List the eight intelligences and explain how each one is used.
 Linguistic Intelligence: the ability to use words effectively both orally and in writing. It’s used
when students communicate their ideas in any form.
 Logical/Mathematical Intelligence: the ability to use numbers effectively and reason well. It’s
used when students work with numbers.
Visual/Spatial Intelligence: the ability to have sensitivity to form, space, colour, line, and
shape. It’s used when students read a map.
 Bodily/Kinesthetic Intelligence: the ability to use the body to express ideas and feelings, and to
solve problems. It’s used when students participate in a role-play.
 Interpersonal Intelligence: the ability to understand another person’s moods, feelings,
motivations, and intentions. It’s used when students work with others to solve problems and resolve
conflicts.
 Intrapersonal Intelligence: the ability to understand yourself, your strengths, weaknesses,
moods, desires, and intentions. It’s used when students have the opportunity to express their own
preferences.
 Musical Intelligence: the ability to have sensitivity to rhythm and pitch. It’s used when students
listen to a cd for a listening activity.
 Naturalist Intelligence: the ability to find patterns and recognize and classify plants, minerals,
and animals, including rocks and all varieties of flora and fauna. It’s used when students focus their
attention on the world outside the classroom.
24) What are Armstrong’s key points concerning MI theory for educators?
 Each person possesses all eight intelligences that function together in unique ways.
 Intelligences can be developed to a reasonably high level of performance with appropriate
encouragement, enrichment, and instruction.
 Intelligences work together in complex ways. No intelligence really exists by itself.
Intelligences are always interacting with each other.
 There are many different ways to be intelligent. There’s no set standard of attributes that one
must have in order to be considered intelligent.
25) Mention different types of learners according to which sense they seem to favour for
learning.
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 Visual Learners: they prefer reading instructions to listen to them because they understand and
remember them better.
 Auditory Learners: they prefer the teacher to give oral instructions and they remember easily
things they have listened.
 Kinesthetic learners: they prefer demonstration to written or verbal explanations. They learn
better if they are actively involved in a task.
26) Classify learning styles focusing on how students like to learn.
 Individual learners: they prefer to study alone because it helps them remember and they feel
they work more efficiently.
 Group learners: they remember more and work more efficiently when they work with other
people.
 Concrete learners: they like visual and verbal experiences and they dislike routine learning and
written work. They like to be entertained and physically involved. They want immediate, varied and
lively learning experiences.
 Analytical learners: they are independent learners who like problem solving and working things
out for themselves. They like new material to be presented systematically and logically and they like to
follow up on their own. They are badly affected by failure.
 Communicative learners: they like a social approach to learning. They learn well from
discussion and group activities, and need personal feedback and interaction. They get on best in a
democratically run class.
 Authority-Oriented learners: they relate well to a traditional classroom, preferring the teacher
as an authoritarian figure. They like clear instructions and they need structure and logical progression
in what they learn.

27) How can the teacher cater for different learning styles?
* Questionnaires: can be used to find out about students’ attitudes to different ways of learning. E.g.
how do you like to learn? Tick the statements that are true for you: A) I prefer working alone than in
group. B) I remember things better when I see them written down. C) I like the teacher to correct all
my mistakes.
* Student feedback: you can ask students what they thought of a particular activity after they have
done it.
* Formal and Informal testing: you will able to assess the effectiveness of the learning activity through
informal checking and formal tests.
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Different students may remember lesson in different ways, but if there are some lessons that no one
seems to remember well, this may indicate a general tendency in the class. It’s important to make a
conscious effort to vary the teaching approaches you use, so that you cater for as many types of learner
as possible.
A learning style is an individual predisposition to learn in a particular way.
Tolerance of ambiguity: they may be content to accept something which is partially
understood without needing to clarify it completely.
Intolerance of ambiguity: if they don’t understand something completely they will feel
frustrated.
Holistic: they learn through global exposure.
Serialist: they learn through analysing elements sequentially.
Field-dependent: they learn by perceiving only the general structure or systems (they
can’t see the whole forest, they see each tree by time).
Field-independent: they learn by perceiving systems in larger structures (they see the
whole forest).
Syllabus-free: they learn from elements in the general learning context and outside it.
Syllabus-bound: they require the “packaging” and presentation of data which the
teacher provides.
Introverts: they tend to learn analytically in a planned and organised way.
Extroverts: they are people-orientated, and their learning is believed to be more intuitive
and to depend more on interaction with others. They are also likely to be holistic and syllabus-
free.
28) What are learning strategies?
A learning strategy is the way in which learners attempt to work out the meanings and uses of words,
grammatical rules, and other aspects of the language they are learning. It’s concerned with the
processes of learning and aims to focus pupils’ attention on how they learn in addition to what they
learn. It’s a tactic that the learner actively employs (not necessarily consciously) to facilitate or
advance learning.
29) What do metacognitive strategies involve? Provide examples.
These relate to the planning and overall organisation of the language learning experience, and entail
making choices from a repertoire of options including choices about which other strategies to use in a
particular situation and for a particular purpose. For example, when students decide to use a dictionary
to research the language needed, problem-solving and hypothesizing (when pupils are encouraged to
work out the rules of grammar for themselves), reviewing ( pupils can be taught to review
systematically if they are asked at the beginning of each lesson: What did we do last class?), self-
correction, etc.
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30) What do cognitive strategies involve? Provide examples.
These involve the direct experience of learning. They involve pupils in doing things with the language
and their materials and relate to specific activities skills areas. For example, when students apply
“learned” rules in order to construct an utterance, comparing (students are encouraged to spot
differences and similarities between English and their mother tongue), classifying (students classify
items into different groups [hot/cold]), organizing work ( work related to the English lesson can be
organized and stored in different ways: in lists, personal picture dictionary), using reference materials
(pupils can learn how to use a dictionary effectively)
31) What do social and affective strategies involve? Provide examples.
These involve creating opportunities for using language and achieving communication when there’s a
need to use or understand language which is unknown. Opportunities for developing these are usually
set up through pair or group work activities and project work (working with each other in pairs or
groups provides pupils with the opportunity for taking on responsibility for their own learning by
working independently of the teacher).
32) Characteristics of the learner: children learning a foreign language.
Children are often more enthusiastic and lively as learners. They want to please the teacher rather than
their peer group. They’ll go on an activity even when they don’t understand why or how. However,
they lose interest quickly and are less able to keep themselves motivated on tasks they find difficult.
Children don’t find it easy to use language to talk about language. Children seem less embarrassed
than adults at talking in a new language, and their lack of inhibition seems to help them get a more
native-like accent.
33) Learning language through tasks and activities: classroom tasks for children
learning a foreign language: task demands and task support.
Task Demands: the analysis of the demands that a task places on pupils is a key way to assess its
suitability and its learning potential. It’s, however, only one side of the equation, we also need to look
at how the child is supported in achieving the goals of the task. COGNITIVE DEMANDS: are those
related to concepts and to understanding of the world and other people (recognise key words,
understand pictures to describe). Demands vary with the degree of contextualisation of language;
difficulty of concepts that are needed to do the task (use of graphics, colours, telling the time).
LANGUAGE DEMANDS: are those relate to using the foreign language and to uses the mother
tongue in connection with learning the foreign language (find the vocabulary to describe, find the past
ending for each verb, etc.). Demands vary with whether the language is spoken or written,
understanding or production, extended talk or conversation; with vocabulary and grammar needed;
with the genre; with the amount of First Language and Second Language. INTERACTIONAL
DEMANDS: demands vary with the type of interaction required (when students are required to do an
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activity in pairs, so they have to pay attention). For example, pair work, with the participants in talk-
adult/peers; with the nature of the interaction, e.g. question/answer. METALINGUISTIC DEMANDS:
demands may include the use of technical terms about the language in production or comprehension
e.g. in instructions, in feedback (when students are required to understand or use English to talk about
language). INVOLVEMENT DEMANDS: refers to the demand on the child to keep engaged with the
task for as long as it takes to complete it. They will vary with how interesting the task is to the child.
Demands vary with the ease or difficulty the learner has in engaging with the task, e.g. length of task
stages, links to child’s interest and concerns, humour. PHYSICAL DEMANDS: demands vary with
how long the child must sit still for to do the task or using the fine-motor skills required to manipulate
a pencil to write.
Task support: when we think in terms of support, we have try to use what the child can already do to
help them master new skills and knowledge, or we try to match tasks to children’s natural abilities and
inclinations. COGNITIVE: support can come from the contextualisation of language; from the use of
concepts already developed; from familiar formats of graphics or activity; from familiar topics and
content. LANGUAGE: support can come from re-use of language already mastered; from moving
from easier domain to more difficult; e.g. spoken to written, from using known vocabulary and
grammar to help with the new, from use of L1 to support L2 development. INTERACTIONAL:
support can come from the type of interaction, e.g. pair work, from helpful co-participants, from the
use of familiar routines. METALINGUISTIC: support can come from familiar technical terms to talk
about new language, clear explanations. INVOLVEMENT: support can come from content and
activity that is easy for the learner to engage with, e.g. links to child’s interest and concerns, from
mixing physical movement and calm, seated activities. PHYSICAL: variation in sitting and moving,
use of familiar actions, match to level of fine motor skills development, e.g. to write or draw.
A task is an activity which is designed to help achieve a particular learning goal.
34) Mention the major distinctive features of communicative language learning.
According to Finnochiario and Brumfit (1983:91-93)
 Meaning is the most important.
 Dialogs, if used, are the centre on communicative functions and aren’t normally memorized.
 Contextualization is a basic premise.
 Language learning is learning to communicate.
 Effective communication is sought (look for).
 Drilling (repeating practice) may occur but peripherally (not always)
 Comprehensible pronunciation is sought (look for)
 Any device which helps the learners is accepted.
 Attempts to communicate may be encouraged from the very beginning.
 Judicious(careful and sensible) use of native language is accepted where feasible (practicable)
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 Translation may be used where students need or benefit from it.
 Reading and writing can start from the first day.
 The target linguistic system will be learned best through the process of struggling (to try very
hard) to communicate.
 Communicative competence is the desired goal.
 Linguistic variation is a central concept in materials and methods.
 Sequencing is determined by any consideration of content function, or meaning which
maintains interest.
 Teachers help learners in any way that motivates them to work with the language.
 Language is created by the individual often through trial and error.
 Fluency and acceptable language is the primary goal: accuracy is judged not in the abstract but
in context.
 Students are expected to interact with other people, through pair and group work, or in their
writings.
 The teacher can’t know exactly what language the students will use.
 Intrinsic motivation will appear from an interest in what is being communicated by the
language.
35) Characterize communication (Breen and Candlin, Morrow and Widdowson).
Communications is the exchange and negotiation of information between at least two individuals
through the use of verbal and non-verbal symbols, oral and written, visual modes, and production and
comprehension processes.
Is a form of social interaction.
Involves a high degree of unpredictability and creativity.
Takes place in sociocultural contexts.
Is carried out under limiting psychological conditions.
Always has a purpose.
Involves authentic language.
Is judged as successful or not on the bases of actual outcomes.
Focus on communication rather than structure.
Use of classroom activities that relate language forms with functions.
Focus on meaningful tasks.
Collaboration.
Purposeful interaction. For example, the questions “What’s your name?” has no communicative
value when the name of every student in the class is already known to every other student.
Focus on the whole learner.
Teacher is a guide, organizer, and facilitator.
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Provides learners with opportunities to share and explore their attitudes, feelings and opinions.
Use of authentic, from-life materials.
Creates a genuine, realistic learning situations.
Creates a secure, non-threatening learning atmosphere.
Uses a variety of materials, topics, activities and ways of interacting.
Emphasis on acquisition of cultural knowledge.
A tolerance of errors.
Goal of fluency.
Negotiation of meaning.
36) Define communicative competence/communicative language ability.
Chomsky’s definition of competence: the knowledge of the language.
Communicative competence: what one knows about the language with its rules of use without which
the rules of grammar would be useless.
Communicative language ability: means to know a language and to be able to put that knowledge to
use in communicating with people in a variety of settings and situations.
37) Which are the components of CLA? Expand upon each of them.
 Linguistic competence: it’s concerned with knowledge of the language itself, its form and
meaning. It involves a knowledge of spelling, vocabulary, word formation, pronunciation.
 Pragmatic competence: ILLOCUTIONARY COMPETENCE means knowing how to use
language in order to achieve certain communicative goals or intentions. SOCIOLINGUISTIC
COMPETENCE means knowing how to perform a particular function or express an intention clearly.
Social knowledge is necessary to select the language forms to use in different settings, with people in
different roles and status.
 Discourse competence: knowing how to use cohesive devices (punctuation marks,
conjunctions, connective phrases “That’s to say”) to create coherent written texts or conversation, and
to understand them.
 Strategic competence: how to cope in an authentic communicative situation and how to keep
the communicative channel open. ACHIEVEMENT STRATEGIES: the learner finds ways of
compensating his/her insecure or inadequate knowledge of English(e.g. by giving literal definitions,
paraphrasing). REDUCTION STRATEGIES: the learner avoids the forms of which she/he is uncertain
and selects structures she/he knows(e.g. the student uses “perhaps” instead of “she might have”).
 Fluency: it’s the ability to link units of speech together with facility and without strain or
inappropriate slowness, or undue hesitation. One way to help learners with their fluency is by teaching
them GAMBITS (fixed phrases)that are easy to memorize. For example, to interrupt “can I just come
in here?”
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38) Teaching pronunciation: when does attention to the teaching of pronunciation
become more appropriate? Justify your answer.
When students have gained confidence and comfort with the new language, and once the emphasis on
communication has been established.
TEACHING GRAMMAR
39) A learning-centred approach to teaching grammar: noticing, structuring and
proceduralizing.
Noticing: an active process in which learners become aware of the structure, notice connections
between form and meaning, but don’t manipulate language. It’s an inductive approach (students
discover the rules)
Structuring: it involves bringing the new grammar pattern into the learners’ internal grammar (what
they really know), and if necessary, reorganizing the internal grammar.
Proceduralizing: the stage of making the new grammar ready for instant and fluent use in
communication, and requires practice in choosing and using the form to express meaning (e.g. students
choose the present simple to talk about routines).
40) Teaching techniques for supporting grammar learning.
Working from discourse to grammar: classroom discourse contexts and routines can serve to
introduce new grammar, with access to meaning supported by action and objects. Routines are an ideal
context in which chunks (a phrase or group of words which can be learnt as a unit by somebody who is
learning a language. E.g. “can I have the bill, please?”, “Pleased to meet you” ) can be expanded.
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. The language of classroom management can act as a meaningful discourse context within
which certain patterns arise regularly and help with building the internal grammar.
Talking with children: conversations with individual children can be very purposeful for
language development because they can pick up on exactly what an individual child needs to know
next to talk about what interest him or her. If a child volunteers something in L1 or in what they can
manage of the second language, the teacher can respond in the foreign language, offering a fuller or
more correct way of saying it.
Noticing activities: repetition drills, introducing new words with puppets, listen and notice
(students listen sentences to complete a grid).
Structuring activities: chants (words or phrases to sing), quizzes, information gap activities,
questionnaires, surveys, drills.
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Proceduralizing activities: dictogloss (the teacher reads a text, then they have to reconstruct the
text in pairs or groups, aiming to be as close as possible to the original and as accurate as possible,
descriptions.
41) Why are stories so useful to introduce the teaching of grammar?
We should know that the method by which children are taught grammar must have some effect on
their motivation. If they find it boring they will become de-motivated whereas if they have confidence
in the method they’ll find it motivating. Children are curious, their attention is of a shorter duration,
they are differently motivated in and their interests are less specialized. They need activities which are
exciting and stimulating to their curiosity. They need to be involved in something active. Stories fulfil
children’s needs because, as children already love stories and are already motivated at the thought of
listening to one. In addition to that, when children listen to stories, they are able to internalise the
language structure.
DEDUCTIVE APPROACH TO GRAMMAR: it starts with the presentation of the grammatical rule
and it’s followed by examples. Then the learner applies the rule in similar exercises to the examples.
INDUCTIVE APPRACH TO GRAMMAR: it starts with some examples from which the rule is
inferred. Then the learner applies the rule.
The aim of grammar is to master structures to then use them productively when conveying a message.
TEACHING VOCABULARY
42) Introducing new vocabulary. Practising and checking vocabulary. Consolidating
vocabulary.
Introducing new vocabulary: using objects (as vocabulary consists of concrete nouns by introducing
them with the real objects will help pupils memorize the word through visualization), drawing (on the
board, on flashcards), using illustrations and pictures (from magazines, etc. visual support),
mime/expressions and gestures (adj. can be taught in this way), using opposites (allows pupils to
associate words with a concept they already understands and they learn two instead of one word),
guessing from context ( this help pupils build up their self-confidence so they can work out the
meaning of words when they are on their own), eliciting ( once a context is established, you can ask
pupils what words they expect to find. Even if they do so in their mother tongue, it shows that they are
thinking in the appropriate semantic area. This is an ideal opportunity to introduce the word in English
as the desire to know comes from the pupils themselves), translation (it saves a lot of time).
Practising and checking vocabulary: what’s missing (some pictures a stuck in the board. After children
look at them, they close their eyes. Meantime the teacher removes an item. Then the pupils are asked
what’s missing), matching words to pictures, guessing games: hide and seek/mime (a pupil mimes an
animal or profession, and their mates guess what it’s/who it’s), giving instructions/picture dictation
(the teacher gives instructions: “show me a red square”), sequencing (the teacher jumbles pictures on
the board and then gives instructions: “put the chocolate cake first”), labelling (pupils label a picture,
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e.g. the different parts of the body), classifying/sorting ( pupils sort words into different categories),
dominoes (children practise reading and matching words which rhyme), crosswords, hangman.
Consolidating vocabulary: picture dictionary, vocabulary books, word families, vocabulary cards,
collages, researching (encourage pupils to look for similarities between English words and words in
their mother tongue or they can look for English words that are used in their country on food packets,
in the street).
RECEPTIVE SKILLS: they involve interpreting meaning of others by reading or listening.
PRODUCTIVE SKILLS: they involve communicating meaning (by constructing our own message,
which requires prior knowledge) by writing or speaking.
TEACHING LISTENING
43) Within the framework of communication, listening skills take on a very important
role. Provide possible reasons.
Within the framework of communication, listening skills take on a very important role. They are both
the basis for the development of all other skills and the main channel through which students make
initial contact with the target language and its culture. The time spent in listening-comprehension
activities has a direct and important relationship to the amount and quality of speaking skill that is later
acquired. Students will begin to make active use of the language because they have something to
communicate rather then because they are forced to imitate the sounds and structures they have heard.
One important step toward expanding listening opportunities is the establishment of a target-language
environment in the classroom. The predictable activities and verbal routines of the classroom provide
useful meaning clues to accelerate the comprehension of classroom-related vocabulary and structures,
and these then become the basis for most of the initial expressive language used by students. A target-
language environment communicates the message immediately that the new language is adequate and
appropriate for dealing with the ongoing communication needs of everyone in classroom.
44) Account for each of these specific strategies for helping students to develop skills in
listening: total physical response, the natural approach, gouin series, audio-motor unit,
descriptions, demonstrations, and storytelling.
Total Physical Response: teachers interact with students by delivering commands, and students
demonstrate comprehension through physical response. E.g. take the red circle and place it in the
wastebasket. When giving a command for the first time, the teacher models the desired behaviour,
removing the model after several repetitions. After students respond confidently to a single command,
the teacher begins to combine the commands, leading students to discover that they can understand and
respond to language expressed in ways that they have never heard before. Students aren’t expected to
respond orally until they feel ready, and early responses involve role reversal (a student takes the role
of the teacher and gives commands to the others), and some yes-no and one-word replies to the
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teacher’s questions. With TPR students discover that they can make the connections themselves
between new language and its meaning, without translation or explanation of the teacher.
The Natural Approach: teachers seek to help students “unite” new language by providing experiences
and associations with vocabulary in a meaningful context, thus making the language more meaningful
and memorable. Listening experiences are provided during Stage 1, drawing on TPR. Use vivid
pictures to illustrate concepts, and active involvement through physical contact with the pictures and
objects being discussed. In Stage 2 students are drawn into oral participation (yes-no questions, single-
two words answers). The Natural Approach outlines a useful sequencing of teacher questions to help
move students from a listening mode to a speaking mode. At Stage 3 is where communication really
begins to take place after language and meaning have been acquired (information/problem-solving
activities).
Gouin Series: the teacher prepares a series of short statements that describe a logical sequence of
actions that take place in a specific context (preparing a meal). These statements include concrete
action verbs and the use of the same tense and person. The teacher presents the statements orally,
accompanying them with pantomime of the actions involved. The class responds first through
pantomime, first as a group and later individually. As with TPR, it’s important that the teacher stop
modelling the actions as soon as students can be expected to respond to the language alone.
Audio-Motor Unit: it incorporates elements of TPR and the Gouin Series. The teacher creates a series
of commands that evoke a sequence of actions taking place in a specific context (a visit to a café).
When the commands are listened, the teacher pantomimes the actions in sequence as they are
commanded. The class then joins the teacher in the pantomime. Later the commands can be
recombined.
Descriptions: the teacher describes an object or picture, preferably one in colour that has high interest,
vivid action and/or cultural value, constantly using gestures and elements from the object or the picture
to make the meaning clear. Listening comprehension is checked through yes-no/short answers, or by
means of pointing or otherwise identifying information from the picture (point to the cap on John’s
mother).
Demonstrations: the teacher gives instructions on how to complete a task or recounts an experience,
making heavy use of pictures, pantomimes, and other visual aids to comprehension. There should be
frequent rephrasing during the presentation and regular comprehension checks throughout.
Storytelling: it’s a natural choice as a listening activity. Stories are the most effective tools for
communicating new information to young learners. Myths, folk tales, fairy tales, and legends of a
culture constitute a direct and pleasurable means of communicating cultural ideas and values, and in
the foreign language classroom these stories can give children a cultural experience in common with
children a cultural experience in common with children living in the target culture. There are many
reasons for telling stories, for example, the purpose is genuinely communicative, it’s real, and it
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provides listening experiences with reduced anxiety. Specific vocabulary or linguistic features can be
emphasised through repetition.
45) How can the teacher help learners to understand a listening text?
Choose a text which will interest the students and formulae aims that are suitable for the level
and needs.
Focus on general or global understanding before detailed understanding.
Encourage students to use what they already know to help them infer meaning.
Remind students of the listening strategies they employ in their own language.
Give plenty of support, especially with lower level students or those who aren’t confident about
listening.
Motivate your students by choosing texts what are interesting and that provide a real incentive
for the students to understand and to contribute their own ideas and opinions.
Choose tasks for the students to do before and while listening rather than afterwards. In that
way you’re focusing on understanding rather than just good memory.
At the end of the lesson, get feedback from the text, the tasks.

46) What are the main stages in a listening skills lesson?

1) Before Listening:
Arouse interest and set the scene: encourage students to think about and discuss what they are
going to hear. Activate any knowledge they have about the topic.
Teach key words/phrases before listening
2) First Listening:
Set a task to help focus on overall understanding (top-down/skimming)
Give the listening text for the first time.
Feedback: ask the students to discuss their answers and opinions in pairs or groups before you
elicit them.
3) Second Listening:
Set a task to focus on more detailed understanding (bottom-up/scanning)
Give the listening text for the second time.
Feedback.
Personal response (follow-up).
TEACHING SPEAKING
47) Explain the notions of accuracy and fluency.
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Accuracy: it involves the correct use of vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. Ongoing correction is
often appropriate during accuracy activities.
Fluency: the ability to keep going when speaking spontaneously. Students shouldn’t be corrected
during fluency activities. However, in feedback afterwards you can comment favourably on any
strategies the students used to increase their fluency (the use of common expressions “what’s the
matter?”, the use of “fillers” and hesitation devices “well, let me think”, paraphrasing.
48) Strategies for essential classroom language: define passwords and language
ladders. Provide examples.
Passwords are phrases such as “can you help me?”, which are taught directly and at a rate of one each
day.
Language ladders are similar to passwords in that they are also phrases taught one per day. They
represent a series of different ways to express a similar idea or a similar need often in different
registers, degrees of politeness, or social context. E.g. that’s a good idea! Good job! Good work!
That’s a good point!
49) What types of speaking activities can teachers use in the classroom?
Controlled activities: for example, repetition practice to improve the accurate use of words, structures
and pronunciation, and to foster confidence.
Guided activities: for example, model dialogues which the students can change to talk about them and
to communicate their own needs and ideas. These dialogues use language (structures and/or
vocabulary) which has been previously taught.
Creative or freer communication: these activities are designed to give either creative practice
opportunities for predicted language items, or general fluency practice, where the specific language is
less relevant. These activities both increase the students’ motivation, since the students talk for
themselves, and help bridge the gap between the rather artificial world of the classroom, with its
controlled language practice, and the real world outside.
50) Provide examples of guided and free speaking activities.
Interaction of information gap activities: these are carried out in pairs or groups and depend on one or
more students either having incomplete or no information at all, and the other(s) having the
information needed to complete the task. The aim is to communicate their information.
Roleplays: a roleplay is when students take part of a particular person. As this person they take part in
a situation, acting out a conversation.
Simulations: a simulation is slightly different from a roleplay in that the students aren’t playing roles
but being themselves. They are confronted by a task to do or a problem to be solved and they must do
what they would do in the circumstances.
Discussions.
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51) How can the teacher encourage students to speak?
* Encourage student interaction: create a comfortable atmosphere where students aren’t afraid to speak
and enjoy communicating with you and their fellow students.
* Give plenty of controlled and guided practice: the lower the level of the students the more controlled
and guided practice you will do.
* Make speaking activities communicative: the aim of communication activities is to encourage
purposeful and meaningful interaction between students.
* Plan speaking activities carefully: speaking activities need to be very carefully structured at first,
especially at lower levels, so that students have few demands on them. It’s difficult for students to
come with ideas at the same time as having to cope with the language so, as they become used to doing
controlled and guided activities, they will become more sure of themselves and more adventurous and
freer activities can then be attempted.
To make a speaking activity truly communicative, the students must have a reason for speaking.
TEACHING READING
Reading is understood as a complex process of meaning construction by the learner, who takes
information from the printed page and constructs meanings based on Schemata (previous knowledge
of ideas, concepts, and structures) already held in memory.
52) Mention the basic general principles of reading (Alma Flor Ada and María Pilar de
Olave)
 Learning to read and write should be an extension of the process of learning to speak.
 Children should be motivated. They will grasp more easily what has meaning and interest for
them.
 Reading to children and telling them stories will make them better readers.
 Reading materials should be written in the clear and simple language children are familiar with.
 Teaching of reading and writing should be done simultaneously.
 There’s a correlation between children’s oral language development and their reading ability.
 Children learn to read more quickly and easily when there’s a reason for doing so (exchanging
letter with a friend).
53) Describe the Language-Experience approach to reading.
It’s based on the idea that children will be able to read printed words if these words are part of their
everyday language and experience. When a visual symbol is connected to the spoken word and the
word is part of the child’s experience, the meaning is readily understood and has immediate relevance.
Students shouldn’t be asked to read material in texts for which they have no background knowledge.
The teacher elicits language from the students. The teacher speaks only in the target language, but the
students may volunteer some information in their native language. As the activity progresses, the
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teacher writes down the students’ words and ideas on the board. When the story has been written, the
teacher and students read the story aloud together. Then the story can be copied and illustrated by the
children and read and reread at school and at home.
54) Define top-down and bottom-up processing.
Top-down: the reader or listener gets a general view of the reading/listening passage (looking at the
forest)
Bottom-up: the reader or listener focuses on individual words and phrases and achieves understanding
by putting these detailed elements together to build up the whole (studying the individual trees within
the forest)
55) Define skimming, scanning, intensive reading and extensive reading.
Skimming: we read quickly for the general sense or the gist (key information) of the article. We read
through the article quickly, probably not reading every word, at a superficial level to find the main
idea.
Scanning: we read for details, for specific information.
Intensive reading: we read taking in the information and perhaps even making a mental note of some
of the details to tell someone about latter. We read for detail, vocabulary.
Extensive reading: we read for pleasure.
56) What are the stages in a reading skills lesson?
1) Before reading:
Arouse interest and help prediction: create a “need to know”
Teach any key words.
2) First reading:
Set a task to assist overall understanding.
The students read the text.
Feedback: ask the students to discuss their answers and opinions in pairs or groups before you
elicit them.
3) Second reading:
Set a task to focus on more detailed understanding.
The students read the text for the second time.
Feedback.
Follow-up: encourage a personal response to the text from your students.
TEACHING WRITING
57) What do we mean by writing skills? Mention different aspects involved in writing.
 Handwriting.
 Spelling.
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 Punctuation.
 Sentence construction.
 Organizing a text and paragraphing.
 Text cohesion (the correct use of linking words and phrases)
 Register/style.
58) What is the difference between writing as a means and writing as an end?
Writing as a means: writing is simply used wither as a means of getting the students to attend to and
practise a particular language point or, as a convenient method of testing language. For example, when
students copy out grammar rules, write down answers to a listening or reading comprehension
questions.
Writing as an end: writing activities that take as their main objective the writing itself. They are tasks
that invite learners to express themselves using their own words, having a purpose for writing, and
with an audience in mind.
59) Describe writing for personal expression and writing for publication.
Writing for personal expression: students focus on expressing personal messages, not engaging in
mechanical drill exercises. Error correction takes place only if there’s an error of meaning and
communication has been blocked.
Writing for publication: when students are engaged in writing that is intended for a wider and public
audience, there’s a reason to focus on grammatical accuracy.
60) What are dialogue journals?
A dialogue journal is a written conversation in which a students and teacher communicate regularly.
Students write about topics of their choice, and the teacher writes back with responses, advice,
comments, and observations, acting as a participant in an ongoing written conversation, rather than as
an evaluator. As a dialogue journal involves communicating genuine messages for real purposes to a
known and interested audience, it provides a valuable context for language and writing development.
61) Account for the writing process approach.
This approach encourages collaboration among writers and provides opportunities for the creation and
use of meaningful discourse in writing. Students give one another feedback and help discover and
repair errors of grammar and expression. Prewriting, Drafting, Sharing and responding to writing,
Revision, Editing, and Publishing.
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