A study on the techniques for the improvement to the teaching of oral skills in light of communicative english language teaching for junior high school teachers in quang ngai province part 1

A study on the techniques for the improvement to the teaching of oral skills in light of communicative english language teaching for junior high school teachers in quang ngai province

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PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale of the Study

For the past few years, with the introduction of the new Tieng Anh 6-9 textbook seriesbased on Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) in junior high schools, languageteaching in Quang Ngai has experienced the shift from grammatical form tocommunicative function In order to prepare for this shift, short training courses (usuallyfrom 3 - 5 days in length) have been organized for junior high school (JHS) teachers inQuang Ngai province on how to use these textbooks However, these short courses cannotsatisfy teachers' needs in communicative language teaching because these courses largelydeal with the introduction of the textbooks with little methodology component Besides,teachers in Quang Ngai province, most of whom graduated from 1979 to 1999, had tolearn English under difficult conditions without any opportunity to meet native Englishspeakers, and did not have access to up to date materials As a result, they have met a lotof difficulties in English language teaching, especially techniques for teaching oral skills Being teachers at Quang Ngai Teachers' Training College, we have met many junior highschool teachers, observed junior high school lessons and have been involved in thetraining courses on how to use the new Tieng Anh textbook series for JHS teachers.Through this process, we have begun to identify the particular problems that manyteachers of English deal with in Quang Ngai province With this in mind, I decided to

conduct the research named "A Study on Techniques for the Improvement to theTeaching of Oral Skills in Light of Communicative English Language Teaching forJunior High School Teachers in Quang Ngai Province".

The aim of the study is to give teachers a greater understanding of the communicativeapproach and to introduce practical techniques for the teaching of oral skills that can beused with the new Tieng Anh textbooks Many of these techniques are a change fromwhat teachers normally do We know that teachers in Quang Ngai province deal with suchparticular problems as large classes, limited resources which make their languageteaching difficult However, by making some small changes and trying out newtechniques, teachers can help the English language come alive for the students and slowlymove away from the teacher-centered approach I hope the study will encourage theprocess of change in language teaching.

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2 Aims of the Study

The purpose of this study is to examine the areas of difficulties in language teaching thatjunior high school teachers deal with in Quang Ngai province so that techniques can begiven to help them improve their teaching of oral skills

The specific aims are:

- To investigate the current performance of English teaching and learning in JHSs inQuang Ngai province.

- To find out the difficulties that JHS teachers deal with in Quang Ngai province - To suggest techniques to help JHS teachers improve their teaching of oral skills.

3 Methods of the Study

To achieve the above - mentioned aims, both quantitative and qualitative methods areused and the following tasks are involved:

- Collecting data for the analysis from 100 junior high school teachers of English and25 hours of class observations in junior high schools in Quang Ngai province.

- Assessing particular problems.

- Evaluating which oral techniques are applicable.

4 Scope of the Study

The study is intended to focus on practical techniques After having investigated thecurrent performance of English teaching and learning in JHSs in Quang Ngai province bymeans of a survey questionnaire and class observations, we suggest techniques to helpJHS teachers improve their teaching of oral skills

5 Design of the Study

The study is divided into three parts:

Part 1 (Introduction) describes the impetus from which we decided to conduct this studyas well as the boundary within which the study is realized This part presents feasiblemethods for the fulfillment of research objective.

Part 2 (Development) consists of three chapters:

Chapter 1 presents various linguistics concepts relevant to the research topic such asdefinition of techniques, methods and approaches, communicative language teaching andpractical techniques for language teaching.

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Chapter 2 deals with the analysis on the current performance of English teaching andlearning in junior high schools in Quang Ngai province, teaching requirements, teachersand teaching methods, materials as well as material assessment This chapter also focuseson data collections, findings and discussion.

Chapter 3 emphasizes the implication of the study in which practical techniques forimproving the teaching of oral skills for junior high school teachers in Quang Ngaiprovince are suggested.

Part 3 (Conclusion) summarizes what is addressed in the study, points out the limitationsand provides some suggestions for further study.

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PART TWO: DEVELOPMENTCHAPTER ONE: LITERATURE REVIEW

1.1 Introduction

To provide a theoretical background to the study, this chapter is devoted to thereexamination of the concepts most relevant to the thesis’s topic They are definitions oftechniques, methods, approaches and a brief history of methods/approaches In addition,the definition, principles and techniques of the communicative approach will also bediscussed.

1.2 An Overview on Techniques, Methods and Approaches 1.2.1 Definitions

According to Hubbard, P et al (1983) when we use the word technique, we mean aprocedure used in the classroom When we talk about method, we mean a set of

procedures or a number of techniques arranged in a specific order which will result in

efficient learning The word approach has the implication that whatever method or

techniques the teacher uses, he does not feel bound by these, but only by the theory inwhich he believes.

According to Anthony, E (1963) a technique is a particular trick, stratagem, orcontrivance used to accomplish an immediate objective in a classroom A method is anoverall plan for the orderly presentation of language material An approach is a set of

correlative assumptions dealing with the nature of language teaching and learning.

1.2.2 A Brief History of Language Teaching

 The Grammar -Translation Method

It is the oldest method and many teachers still use this method today It took grammar thestarting point for instruction Grammar-Translation courses followed a grammar syllabusand lessons typically began with an explicit statement of the rule, followed by exercisesinvolving translation into and out of the mother tongue Oral fluency is generally ignoredand pronunciation is sometimes taught through reading aloud.

 The Audio-Lingual Method

The Audio-Lingual Method was a largely American invention in the 1960s It was basedon the idea of Behaviorism, which considered language as simply as a form of behavior,to be learned through the formation of correct habits Habit formation was a process inwhich the application of rules played no part The audio-lingual syllabus consisted of a

graded list of sentence patterns which formed the basis of pattern-practice drills, the

distinguished feature of Audio-lingual classroom practice Often these drills were on

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audio cassette tapes and it was because of this method that the language laboratory

became so popular.

 The Functional-Notional Approach

In the 1970s teachers of the Functional-Notional Approach stopped teaching grammar andstarted teaching more practical phrases and vocabulary for everyday life and socialsituations Students learnt spoken functions such as asking the way, talking aboutthemselves, making future plans, etc or written functions such as writing a letter, fillingout a form etc A lot of role play was used in this type of teaching to make the classroomlike the outside world.

 The Communicative Approach

The Communicative Approach became popular in the 1970s The features of theCommunicative Approach are as follows:

- Language learning should be meaningful and realistic.- Students should learn English to communicate something.

- All four skills should be practiced as well as grammar, functions and vocabulary.- Learning is more important than teaching.

The Communicative Approach uses many different techniques such as pair work, groupwork, gap fill, role play, etc.

1.3 Communicative Language Teaching1.3.1 Definition

According to American and British proponents, Communicative Language Teaching is anapproach that aims to (a) make communicative competence the goal of language teachingand (b) develop procedures for the teaching of the four language skills that acknowledgethe interdependence of language and communication.

1.3.2 Principles

According to Richard, J C and Rodgers, T S., Communicative Language Teachingfollows these principles:

- Learners learn a language through using it to communicate.

- Authentic and meaningful communication should be the goal of classroom activities.- Fluency is an important dimension of communication.

- Learning is a process of creative construction and involves trial and error.

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1.3.3 Techniques for Communicative Language Teaching

There are plenty of techniques for CLT Here are some of them:

 Pair-work Independent work by pairs of students working simultaneously on a

task or practice activity Often an extension of ordinary controlled practice ordrilling, with more opportunity for students to talk, hence higher student talkingtime.

 Group-work Independent work carried out simultaneously by groups of three or

more students on a task or tasks.

 Information gap The principle that two or more students engaged in a practice

activity do not share exactly the same information If the task is correctly set, thestudents must pool their information and are thus forced to communicate through

English The information gap is therefore an important element in many

communicative practice tasks.

 Role-play A communicative activity in which students talk to each other in

different character roles.

1.4 Summary

In short, this chapter focuses on the concepts useful for the accomplishment of the study.First are the definitions of techniques, methods and approaches Then, a brief history ofmethods/approaches is presented Actually, each method/approach has its own strongpoints and drawbacks, so what should be done is to combine these methods/approaches tomake full use of the advantages offered and to minimize the shortcomings revealed Alsoin the first chapter are the definition and principles of the communicative approach Lastin the first chapter are the techniques of the communicative approach.

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2.2 The Junior High School Community in Quang Ngai Province

Quang Ngai province has a city and 13 districts A commune/ ward has at least a juniorhigh school In the 2006-2007 academic year there are 146 junior high schools and 2.832JHS classes of 114.068 JHS students JHS students are required to study 11 subjects andEnglish is one of them There are 594 JHS teachers.

Quang Ngai is a poor province in central Viet Nam Farming or a state salary is the mainsource of income for families in the JHS community The average monthly income of themajority of those families is estimated at less than $70.

2.3 Students and Learning Requirements

The JHS student population ranges from 11 to 15 years old In the 2006-2007 academicyear there are 114.068 students, of which 58.008 are girl students.

JHS students are required to learn English in 35 weeks with 3 periods a week for grades6, 7 and 8 and 2 periods a week for grade 9 The aims and objectives are not defined foreach grade but for the whole JHS level as follows:

After finishing JHS students are able to:

- understand detail and gist at an elementary level in listening- respond to questions and interact in familiar situations in speaking- understand gist, detail and text structure in reading

- write non-specialized text types such as letters, reports and compositions for a givenpurpose in writing

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2.4 Teachers and Teaching Methods

There are totally 594 JHS teachers of English aged from 23 to 57 in Quang Ngaiprovince About two-thirds of them have a TJC BA degree (CDSP) and one-third have aTSC BA degree (DHSP) Slightly more than one quarter of them are teachers of Russianwho have been retrained to teach English since 1991.

In recent years, with the introduction of new TIENG ANH textbook series to junior highschools in Quang Ngai province the Communicative Approach has been introduced toJHS teachers of English However, a lot of teachers still attach themselves to thetraditional teaching method and they usually concentrate on only two of the skills, readingand writing This is mainly because the other two are not tested in examinations Inaddition, teachers find it difficult to apply the communicative approach to their teaching

because of large classes and poor school equipment As a result, teachers take the key rolein classroom activities and students remain passive learners.

2.5 Materials and Assessments

The TIENG ANH textbook series by Loi, N V et al (2002) for JHS students consists of 4textbooks for 4 grades: 6, 7, 8 and 9 Each textbook has 16 units with the exception ofTIENG ANH 9 of 10 units Each unit is based around a theme and contains 5 lessonswith the length of 5 periods:

Lesson 1: Getting startedLesson 2: Listen and readLesson 3: Listen and speakLesson 4: Write

Lesson 5: Language focus

The TIENG ANH textbook series is accompanied by the teacher’s guide, the student’sbook and the cassette-tapes.

Most of the JHS teachers believe that The TIENG ANH textbook series is better than theENGLISH textbook series They like the clear layout, the variety of exercise types andthe logical sequencing of the TIENG ANH textbook series However, they want to reducethe number of lessons in a textbook to 14 They still do not feel like technological topicsand they would like to have more language summaries.

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2.6 Data Collection, Findings and Discussion2.6.1 Data Collection

2.6.1.1 The Subjects

The study is carried out with the participation of 25 junior high school teachers of Englishwho represent urban, rural and remote areas A quarter of the teachers are men Thestudents under observation are in grades 6, 7, 8 and 9 in junior high schools in QuangNgai province.

2.6.1.2 Instruments for Data Collection

The data was collected by means of:

 Lesson observations in junior high schools (25 lesson observations) Survey questionnaire (answered by 100 junior high school teachers)

2.6.2 Findings and discussion 2.6.2.1 Teachers' Personal Information

The following graph shows the age of teachers:

12% below 29 years46% 30-39 years41% 40-49 years1% 50+ years

Figure 2.6.2.1.1 Age of teachers

Teaching experience and training

More than two- thirds of teachers have been teaching for 10 years or less and one- third ofteachers have been teaching for five years or less.

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3%2-years 16% 2-5 years18% 6-10 years27% 11-15years 33% 16-20years

3% 20+ years

Figure 2.6.2.1.2 No years of ELT experience

Approximately one third (31%) have received some form of in-service training, mostly inthe form of short summer workshops (usually from 3 to 5 days in length) which largelydeal with the introduction of the new TIENG ANH series with little methodologycomponent Two-thirds (69%) have received no in-service training.

Access to resources at school

Approximately 9 teachers out of 10 have access to a teacher’s book and a curriculumdocument and attend regular subject group meetings Approximately half the teacherssurveyed have access to a cassette player at school, one quarter to a DVD/CD player andone-fifth to a computer Access to materials for preparing visual aids (cards, papers, etc.)is reported by one in five teachers.

36% TSC 64% TJC

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45% referencebooks

53% cassetteplayer

26% DVD/CDplayer

19% computer19% card,paper,etc

Figure 2.6.2.1.4 Access to resources at school

Conditions that facilitate teaching

The teachers surveyed listed the following favorable conditions for teaching:Access to DVD/CD players and cassette players 12%Access to course books and cassette players 11%

Conditions that impede teaching

The teachers surveyed listed the following unfavorable conditions for teaching:Shortage of reference books and materials 58%

2.6.2.3 Students' Attitude

Students' needs for English

Teachers believe that their students learn English to go on to further study (63%) or find abetter job (28%) 18% believe that their students will not use English after school.

Students’ strengths and weaknesses

Teachers believe that students have difficulties with: Listening 86% Speaking 64% Writing 47% Reading 46%

2.6.2.4 Teachers' Performance and Perception

Teachers’ workload

The average teacher has 44 students in a class and teaches 16 lessons a week S/heprepares his/her lessons at home because it is more convenient and quieter than at schooland s/he has access to the required books there S/he does not specialize in any one levelbut may be called on to teach any level in the JHS system, probably teaching two or morelevels in one academic year.

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The average teacher tests her/his students regularly with self-written weekly, monthly andend-of-term tests End-of-year tests are usually written by DES specialists.

Professional support

Half the teachers surveyed report that their source of support comes from their colleagues.One in three feel that they receive no support.

Teachers’ responses to new TIENG ANH 6-9 textbook series

Likes: Clear layout 82% Dislikes: Long textbooks 25% Variety of exercise types 80% Technology topics 19% Logical sequencing 61% Few language summaries 16%Teachers’ perception of their own teaching skills

Teachers feel confident about teaching grammar, vocabulary and reading Teachers do notfeel confident about teaching oral skills.

The teachers feel that they have a good The teachers would like to find out more knowledge of the following topics and about the following topics for their use them regularly in their teaching: teaching:

Using dialogues for practice 58 Using dialogues for practice 31Practicing new vocabulary 55 Giving instructions for activities 30

Organizing pair and group work 54 Using dialogues for presentation 27Using dialogues for presentation 52 Presenting new vocabulary 26

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Teaching speaking 37 Testing vocabulary 21

2.6.2.5 Remarks about Class Observations

Class observations show the methods and techniques used by the observed teachers. Methods

It is not easy to say which method/approach teachers observed take in their teaching Ofall 25 teachers observed, only three teachers know how to apply the communicativeapproach to their teaching The rest still reveal their limitations in language knowledgeand are not used to applying the communicative approach to their teaching They oftenattach themselves to the traditional teaching method.

 Techniques

The teachers observed regularly use language games, gap-fill, role play in their teaching.

The most preferable techniques are slap the board, noughts and crosses and pair work.Teachers often begin a lesson with a game and finish it with a song

Teachers have difficulty in using group work and free practice activities.

2.7 Summary

This chapter focuses on the current performance of English teaching and learning injunior high schools in Quang Ngai province Although JHS teachers are of various ages,they always try their best to meet the surging needs of their students However, teachersstill reveal some shortcomings in the way they deliver their lessons because of their lackof experience (in case of young teachers), their persistence in using traditional teachingmethod (old teachers), or their limitations in language knowledge (in-service trainedteachers).

Also in this chapter, findings from the survey show that most of the teachers want toreduce the number of units in TIENG ANH from 16 to14 so that they can slow down theirteaching pace and have time for revision.

From the class observations we know that it is not an easy task for teachers to apply thecommunicative approach to their teaching in large classes with poor equipment.

In addition, statistics gained from the survey indicate that JHS teachers believe 86% ofthe students have difficulties with listening and 64% with speaking Therefore, teachersshould know how to teach the oral skills and how to improve their own speakingability since they are as important as a model for those they teach.

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CHAPTER THREE:

SUGGESTED TECHNIQUES TO IMPROVE THE TEACHING OF ORAL SKILLS FOR JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS

IN QUANG NGAI PROVINCE

3.1 TECHNIQUES FOR TEACHING SPEAKING3.1.1 Introduction

In junior high schools, one of the main ways speaking is taught is through dialogues In

this procedure students repeat each line of the dialogue after the teacher many times.Instead of asking students to repeat long dialogues, teachers follow these steps:

1 Choose useful structures from the dialogue and do meaningful drills 2 Put prompts on the board and get students to ask and answer questions.

3 Set up communication pair work activities to practice useful language.

However, speaking practice in the classroom does not come from dialogues only Good

speaking activities can be integrated into lessons with a grammar, reading, listening, or

writing focus.

EXPLOITING DIALOGUES

Unlike ordinary texts, dialogues are intended to be spoken aloud A good dialogue tries to

present natural speech It is like a short theoretical play It should be acted out in classrather than read aloud If the dialogue has some really useful structures and vocabulary,then it is worth teaching This can be practiced in a drill and then lead on to a role play or

pair work.

THE PRINCIPLES OF A GOOD DRILL

1 The students must know what they are saying This means there must be somepresentation before asking students to repeat sentences The teacher should predict

beforehand what pronunciation problems the students will have and pay attention to theirown pronunciation during presentation.

2 Let students hear the drill about three or four times before asking them to repeat it.

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3 If there is a very long sentence, break it down into shorter parts and start from the

end of the sentence This is because the parts will always make sense and the intonationstays the same (Back chaining)

Example: Would you like to come to my house for lunch? (Tiếng Anh 7, Unit 6, pg 66)The teacher would start by saying:

Teacher: for lunch? Students: Repeat.

Teacher: to my house for lunch?Students: Repeat.

Teacher: to come to my house for lunch?Students: Repeat.

Teacher: Would you like to come to my house for lunch?Students: Repeat.

4 Do not ask individuals to repeat the sentences until the whole class has had achance to repeat and build their confidence.

5 Keep the drill moving quickly and try to keep it short About one minute is rightfor each drill.

6 When the teacher wants half the class, small groups or individuals to repeat, usehand gestures instead of names.

3.1.2 Controlled Speaking Activities 3.1.2.1 The Repetition Drill

PRESENT THE DRILL

(These drills have been chosen from TIẾNG ANH 6, unit 12, pg 129- 131) BARE INF NOUN

Student 1: How often | do you | go | to the zoo?Student 2: Once or twice a week.

/s/ /s/ /k/

STEP 1: GETTING STUDENTS’ ATTENTION

Gesture for silence and get students to listen by pointing to the teacher's ear.

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Repeat the model again This time make gestures for them to repeat Ask for three or fourrepetitions until the students are confident.

STEP 4: HALF CLASS REPETITIONS

Get half the class to repeat by gestures Do not give verbal orders This slows down thedrill.

STEP 5: SMALL GROUP REPETITIONS

Get small groups to repeat Make a circular direction with the teacher's hand in thedirection of the group Remember to smile if they do it well The teacher remodels onceor twice if the students have difficulties.

STEP 6: INDIVIDUAL REPETITIONS

Ask individuals to repeat Point clearly and avoid using names It does not matter if adifferent student responds, or two students instead of one Using names slows down thedrill At this stage the teacher will hear mistakes clearly Remodel if necessary and smileencouragingly

STEP 7: COMPLETION

Finally, get a few more class repetitions Each drill should only take about a minute.Remember to keep it flowing.

Note : When they can say all the lines well, the teacher could ask one half of the class to

be Student 1 and the other half Student 2 Drill a few times then swap roles.

3.1.2.2 The Substitution Drill

Remember that the original sentence structure from a drill can generate manyother useful sentences This usually goes easily and quickly once the main structure has

been drilled The substitutions can be prompted by pictures or mine.

Example 1:

ORIGINAL STUCTURE: How often do you | go | to the zoo?

Introduce pictures of the park, the sports center, the mountain, the river, thekitchen and the school Check if the students know the vocabulary Set up a substitutiondrill.

Teacher: (Show a picture of a park Students should make a question.)Students: How often do you go to the park?

Teacher: (continues with all the pictures)

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 Now introduce some different responses Model the pronunciation and practicewith the students.

 Write these prompts on the board as a support for the students:

twice | a weekthree times | a monthfour times | a year every day

Repeat the same drill again This time ask for a response by pointing to theresponse on the board After they have enough practice, rub out the table and make asimpler one so that they have to think more.

Example: 1 |

2 | week3 | month 4 | year

Note: The students should now be ready for a pair work activity.PAIR WORK ACTIVITY

(Tell the students they are now going to do some pair work.)

1 The teacher has already presented the language he wants the students to use.2 TEACHER-STUDENT MODEL:

Ask a student to stand.

Teacher: How often do you go to the park?Student: Once a week.

Teacher: How often do you play sports?Student: Twice a week.

3 OPEN PAIRS

Choose two students who are sitting far away from each other Ask them to stand Getone to ask and one to answer Use either pictures or prompts on the board to guidestudents to ask different questions The answers should be realistic.

Student 1: How often do you go camping?Student 2: Once a year.

4 SIMULTANEOUS PAIR WORK

Now tell the students to work in pairs and ask each other how often they do things Theyshould take it in turns to ask Go around and listen to them working The teacher can

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leave some prompts on the board if necessary, e.g zoo, park, sports, camping, fishing,mom

5 PUBLIC CHECK

Stop the activity and choose a random pair Ask them to repeat the activity Do the samewith two other pairs If the students know the teacher is going to check after the activity,they will work harder.

6 CORRECT ANY COMMON MISTAKES

If the teacher has noticed any common mistakes, bring them to the attention of thestudents.

 FURTHER PRACTICE

If the teacher has enough time and the students have mastered the structure, the teachercan give them some more practice Show some pictures of sport and leisure activities.Elicit the language from students.

How often do | you | VERB | NOUN?

Teacher: (Show a picture of someone watching TV.)Students: How often do you watch TV?

Teacher: (Show a picture of someone swimming.)Students: How often do you go swimming?

Teacher: (Show a picture of someone listening to the radio)Students: How often do you listen to the radio?

Elicit as many different actions as the teacher thinks the students will know, usingpictures Write prompts on the board.

TV, RADIO, SWIMMING, FOOTBALL, HIKING, BOOKS.

PAIR WORK: The teacher can ask the students to do the activity again This time theteacher asks questions using prompts on the board.

3.1.2.3 Drilling a Complete Dialogue

If the teacher feels that a complete dialogue is suitable for the students to practice (with aspeaking focus) then this is a good procedure to follow:

(UNIT 11, TIẾNG ANH 6, pg 116)Salesgirl: Can I help you?

Ba : Yes I’d like some beef, please.Salesgirl: How much do you want?

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Ba : Two hundred grams of beef, please.

Salesgirl: Two hundred grams of beef Is there anything else?Ba : Yes I need some eggs.

Salesgirl: How many do you want?Ba : A dozen, please.

STEP 1: PRESENTATION (Students should not open their books yet.)Students must understand what they are repeating.

PRESENT VOCABULARY: Show pictures of different foods (oil, tea, chocolate, rice,

beef, eggs, peas, soap, toothpaste) Present the words beef and egg Check if the students

understand the questions, “How much do you want?” and “How many do you want?”WRITE THEM ON THE BOARD Bring their attention to the structure PRESENTSIMPLE (used for shopping people do every day) Explain that people use either HOWMUCH or HOW MANY with this structure.

STEP 2: LISTENING ACTIVITY (Let the students listen to the dialogue first and focuson meaning.)

 Students must have their books closed.

 The teacher writes two guiding questions on the board.1 How much beef does Ba want?

2 How many eggs does Ba want? The teacher plays/reads the dialogue.

 The teacher plays /reads it again if they don’t know the answers.STEP 3: BEGIN THE REPETITION (Display the dialogue on a flipchart.)

 The teacher models the first sentence Students repeat.

 If students have PRONUNCIATION errors, focus their attention on the problemword and ask them to repeat just that word together as a class and individually. Continue through each line of the whole dialogue.

 Go through the whole dialogue with students repeating after the teacher. The teacher is the salesgirl Students are Ba Repeat the dialogue.

 Half the class is the salesgirl Half the class is Ba.

 Students work in pairs Each student should practice both parts. The teacher should go around and listen (MONITOR).

 Go over any common PRONUNCIATION mistakes.STEP 4: GAP-FILL EXERCISE (Listening)

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Ask the students to close their books and listen The teacher is going to ask them to fill inthe missing words Read/play the dialogue again and stop before a key word Makegestures for students to say the missing words.

Example: Write the following on the boardStudent 1: I / help / you?Student 2:

Student 1: much / you / want? Check that the studentsStudent 2: can make the completeStudent 1: half a kilo / pork / anything else? sentences from theseStudent 2: prompts.

Student 1: many / you / want?Student 2:

Before the teacher asks them to practice in pairs, do the dialogue with a few students andask a pair to demonstrate it in front of the class.

 When simultaneous pair work has finished, ask some pairs to demonstrate.SUMMARY OF IMPORTANT POINTS

 Always present vocabulary, topic, structures and pronunciation first.

 The drill moves from the WHOLE CLASS to SIMULTANEOUS PAIR WORK. CHANGING the role while drilling keeps it interesting.

 After students have practiced the original dialogue in pairs, take it a step furtherby using prompts and if possible adapting the information to reflect THEIRLIVES (real information)

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 Always ask a pair to demonstrate the dialogue before doing simultaneous pairwork to make sure everyone knows what to do.

 If students know they MIGHT be chosen to DEMONSTRATE after pair work,they will work harder and not speak in Vietnamese.

3.1.3 Less Controlled Speaking Activities 3.1.3.1 Chain Game

This is suitable for small class In large classes, after demonstrating the game, let theclass play it in groups of around ten.

Start the game with a sentence like: (TIẾNG ANH 6, Unit 11, A 4) ‘I need some eggs.’

The first student repeats this sentence, adding an item of their own: ‘I need some eggs and some rice.’

The teacher does not repeat these sentences Each student adds something until no onecan add any more without a mistake For older students the items can be more complex: ‘I need some eggs, some rice, a bottle of cooking oil and half a kilo of beef.’

This activity tests both listening and memory In order to give an added incentive to thestudents to improve, the teacher can make a student who gets it wrong drop out for oneround and come in again later.

Adapt this activity for:

-Near future

-Conditionals 1, 2 and 3-Lexical sets

3.1.3.2 Dialogue Frame

The teacher puts a dialogue on the board in cues

The teacher models the dialogue, pointing to each cue in turn.

The teacher runs through the cues like a drill with the whole class to make sure they knowwhat to say at each cue.

The students practice the dialogue in pairs.

Example: You are a tourist to HCMC You want to visit a market This is theconversation between you and the tourist officer (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 11, SPEAK)

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You Tourist officerExcuse me!

I’d like to visit a market Would you mind suggesting me one?

That sounds interesting Thank you.

Yes?Not at all.

How about going to Ben Thanh Market?It opens from about 5am to 8pm You‘re welcome.

The teacher puts the dialogue chart on the board.

The teacher elicits the exchanges from students and asks them to repeat.The teacher asks a pair to demonstrate the dialogue (open pair)

The teacher asks students to work in pairs (closed pairs)The teacher monitors and corrects.

Offers and requests

3.1.3.3 Role Play

Role play is a communicative activity in which students talk to each other in differentroles Role play encourages the use of spoken English Students learn both by repeatingthe words given to them and by making up their own words to fit the situation.

Example: The teacher asks students to play the role of A and B, ask and answer abouttheir partner’s home village in pairs then swap roles (TIÊNG ANH 9, Unit 3, Speak) A: Where is your home village?

B: It’s to the west of the city.A: How far is it from the city?

B: It’s about 15 kilometers from the city.A: How can you get there?

B: We can get there by bus.

A: How long does it take to get there?B: It takes an hour.

A: What do people do for a living in your village?B: They plant rice and raise cattle.

A: Does your village have a river?

B: There aren’t any rivers, but there is a big lake.

3.1.3.4 Interview

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The teacher asks students to ask and answer about a certain topic in pairs One student is

the interviewer and the other is the interviewee and then they swap roles.

Example: Asking and answering about students’ wear (TIÊNG ANH 9, UNIT 2, SPEAK)S1: What do you usually wear on the weekend?

S2: S1: Why do you wear these clothes?

S2: S1: What is your favorite type of clothing? Why?

S2: S1: Is it comfortable to wear uniform?

S2: S1: What color is it?

S2: S1: What type of clothing do you usually wear on Tet holiday?S2: S1: What would you like to wear to a party?

S2:

- Daily activities- Holiday plan- Study plan- Future plan- Famous people

3.1.3.5 Discussion

The teacher organizes an informal discussion on a topic of interest to the students Theteacher can get students to propose a topic.

Example: The effects of the new mall (TIẾNG ANH 8, Unit 7, READ)

The teacher asks students to discuss the topic in groups of about 10 One member fromeach group writes down their friends’ ideas and opinions After discussion, onerepresentative from each group presents it in front of the class.

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Safety precautions in the streetCity life and country lifeThe Internet

How to minimize pollution

3.1.3.6 Story-telling

The teacher should encourage students to tell stories as soon as they have some ability tospeak English It will be difficult at first, but they will soon get used to it.

Example: The lost shoe (TIIẾNG ANH 8, Unit 8, READ)

The teacher asks students to retell the story in details in front of the class They can usethe statements in the gap-fill exercise and add some more.