Post on 16-Oct-2019
Developing Speaking Skills with Low Level Adult Students
Olha Madylus
Aims of sessionIdentify problemsConsider solutions
ScaffoldingGeneric / high frequency phrasesFocus on registerRehearsalPronunciationExample Activities
What problems do your low level students have when speaking English?What speaking activities do you do regularly?What speaking activities do they like?How much speaking do you plan per lesson?How could you use this type of task in class?
What problems do low-level adults have when speaking?
Lack of vocabularyWorry about producing grammatically correct EnglishGet stuck thinking about what they want to sayPoor pronunciationLack of confidenceNo ideas
FruitVegetableNumber between 1 and 100Favourite film starHow many shoes do you have?What’s the first thing you do every morning?
Fruit = first nameVegetable = family nameNumber between 1 and 100 = ageFavourite film star = spouseHow many shoes do you have? = kidsWhat’s the first thing you do every morning? = job
Fruit & vegetable –What’s your name?
Number –How old are you?
Film star –Who are you married to?
Shoes –How many children do you have?
First thing every morning –What’s your job?
How achievable is the task?
Students have the answersQuestions are elicited and written upand can be drilledResponses can be minimal or extendedNo stressLots of practice
What problems do low-level adults have when speaking?
Lack of vocabularyWorry about producing grammatically correct EnglishGet stuck thinking about what they want to sayPoor pronunciationLack of confidenceNo ideas
Is it communication or communication-like?Real communication is about asking questions you (a) want to have answered and (b) don’t know the answers to yet.Spontaneity only comes after lots of varied practice.Practice has to include ‘noticing’.Practice should be varied and meaningful.
How do students get to speaking freely?
developing speaking
context
lexis
grammar
phonology
scaffolded tasks
freer speaking
Quick quiz
How many words does an educated person know in L1?60 -75,000
How many different words does a person use per day?500 – 700
High frequency words and expressions
This and that?
That’s interestingThat’s ridiculous.That’s wrong.
Practice
That’s interestingCongratulations.That’s ridiculous.I’m sorry to hear that.That’s not true.
developing speaking
context
lexical phrases
phonology
scaffolded tasks
freer speaking
When abroad what do you want to be able to say and how do you want to come across?
Generic high frequency expressions
Empower A2
focus on register
Support and Preparation
Empower A2
focus on form
prepare
personalise
Guided conversations
Empower A2
eslflow.com
The early bird catches the worm.ði ˌɜ:li bɜ:d kætʃɪz ðə wɜ:m
Modals of probability
CanCould MayMight
+Maybe..Perhaps…Possibly…
Role Play
Role Plays
Teacher can ensure particular language structures are practisedA dress rehearsal for real lifeStudents practise phatic language not just transfer of informationProvide a ‘mask’Variety of situations
How can we exploit dvd for speaking?
What can we do with the DVD to develop speaking?
It’s a templateListen and repeatFocus on phonologyFocus on body language Write and act out similar dialoguesRead between the lines and say what is unsaid
What do students need?
Give students preparation / rehearsal time = they are more likely to use a wider range of language in a spoken task
Lots of short speaking tasks to build up confidence and skills
A focus on phonology
What do students need? An awareness of formal / informal language and practice choosing appropriate language for different situations
To be competent at both 'message-oriented' or transactional language and interactional language, language for maintaining social relationships
To be taught patterns of real interaction
www.olhamadylusblog.com