EDU220-CM-Module-1 PDF - English Language Teaching Methods

MODULE 1: MAJOR APPROACHES AND METHODS OF TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE: TEACHING THE FOUR LANGUAGE SKILLS Unit 1: The Grammar-Translation Method and the Direct Method Unit 2: The Audio-lingual Method, the Situational Method and the Communicative Method Unit 3 : Teaching English Sounds Unit 4: Teaching Listening Skills. Unit 5: Teaching Speaking Skills. Unit 6: Teaching Reading Skills. Unit 7: Teaching Writing Skills UNIT 1: THE GRAMMAR-TRANSLATION METHOD AND THE DIRECT METHOD CONTENTS 1. 0 Introduction 2. 0 Learning Outcomes 3. 0 Main Content 3.1. Status of English Language in Nigeria 3.1.1 Major Approaches and Methods of Teaching English as a Second Language 3.1.1 The Grammar-Translation Method 3.1.2 The Direct Method 4. 0 Conclusion 5. 0 Summary 6. 0 Tutor-Marked Assignment 7. 0 References/Further Readings 1.0 INTRODUCTION Teaching English as a second language is very demanding especially if the teacher is not a native speaker of the language. This task can however be made a pleasurable experience for the teacher if she is exposed to the concepts associated with its teaching. In order to equip you for this task therefore, this unit sets out to give you a brief on the status of English language in Nigeria as well as teach you important concepts and terms used in the field of language teaching and how you can apply these in teaching English as a second language. Concepts we will be discussing here include theories, approaches, methods and techniques as used in the field of 1 EDU 220 English Methods language teaching. We will also be discussing two of the major language teaching methods, namely, the Grammar-Translation and Direct methods. 1. 0 Learning Outcomes At the end of this unit, learners should be able to:  discuss the status and hegemony of the English language in Nigeria.  explain the full meanings and relevance of– L1, L2, FL,ESL, in language teaching and acquisition.  explain the features of various language approaches and methods in teaching and learning.  apply the various language approaches in classroom situation.  determine adequate language approaches and methods suitable for various aspects of language study.  differentiate between the Grammar-translation Method and the Direct Method.  employ Grammar-translation Method and Direct Method in language teaching. 2.0 MAIN CONTENT 3.1 Status of English Language in Nigeria Since the introduction of English in Nigeria by the British Colonial Government, the use of this language has spread beyond the conduct of government and commerce purposes to include social, educational, personal and interpersonal affairs. Two reasons account for this spread. First, was the global significance of English as an international language and the second was the multilingual situation in Nigeria where there are about 400 linguistically distinct Nigerian languages. Not even the so called three main Nigerian languages, Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba, can play the roles that the English language is playing in Nigeria. Because of its roles in the various facets of communication in Nigeria, English is considered a second language (ESL) in Nigeria as against French which is considered a foreign language (FL). Given the significant position of English in Nigeria and its impact on the lives of Nigerians nationally and internationally, its teaching and learning must be conducted with utmost diligence. EDU 220: English Methods, is one of the courses designed to teach you how to teach the English language to your students to enable them use it for various communicative purposes. Below are some purposes that English serves in Nigeria and some important factors you must bear in mind to effectively teach it to Nigerian students. 2 EDU 220 English Methods 1. Political/Government Purposes English is Nigeria’s official language, that is, the lingua franca. This is because it is the language used by the Government in conducting its affairs, whether at federal, state and even at the local government levels. It is the language of administration, the judiciary and politics. It isthe language that unites and integrates the various ethnic groups into the entity called Nigeria. 2. Economic Purposes The English language is used for economic purposes, for instance, for business negotiations, for buying and selling, within and outside Nigeria. 3. Educational Purposes English is the medium of instruction in most Nigerian schools even at the primary school level. Teachers teach through English and learners learn through English. Tests and examinations whether in elementary, secondary schools or university are conducted in English. Examinations by public examining bodies such as WAEC, NECO and JAMB are conducted in English. 4. Social Purposes Social communication and interaction, at personal and interpersonal bases are largely done through English. This is especially the case in most urban cities in Nigeria. Entertainment, information dissemination by the mass media, such as radio, television and newspapers, are through English. 5. Intra-tribal and Inter-ethnic Communications As already explained, not even the so-called three main Nigerian languages, Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba, can play the roles that the English language is playing in Nigeria. English language is the major language of communication among users who do not understand or speak their local languages. Also, it is grossly used by people from different ethnic groups for communicative purposes. In summary, we can definitely say that the English language is the lingua franca of Nigeria considering the above purposes that itserves. Given this situation therefore, you as a teacher of English, must endeavor to teach your students well enough for them to be able to use English for the various purposes it serves. 4 SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 1 1. Does English really serve the above purposes in Nigeria? Support your answer with live examples of instances and situations where this is evidenced. 2. What other purpose(s) do English serve in Nigeria as a country? First language (L1) and Second language (L2) In the introductory part of this sub-section, we noted that English is a second language in Nigeria. What then is a first language and how does it differ from a second language? A person’s first language or L1, also called her mother tongue, is the language she acquires form infancy, while her second language or L2 is the language she learns after acquiring her L1. Note that, while L1 is acquired L2 is learnt. It is pertinent at this juncture to differentiate between language acquisition and language learning. Language acquisition (L1) is informal way of understanding a language and similar to the way people acquire the first language, usually the mother tongue. It is unconscious effort. The acquirer is not aware of the rules of the language but has a feel for correctness. It does not require formal teaching. The acquired system initiates utterances when we communicate. However, language learning (L2) involves formal knowledge of a language. It involves knowing about the language. It is deliberate. There is explicit knowledge of the rules. Formal teaching is required. Learners have certain innate characteristics that predispose them to learn language. These characteristics, however, do not predispose children to learn only one particular language. Children acquire whatever language is spoken around them, even if their parents speak a different language (Brown, 2014). Acquisition refers to an unconscious process that involves the naturalistic development of language proficiency through understanding a language and through using a language for meaningful communication. Learning by contrast refers to a process in which conscious rules about a language are developed. Formal teaching is necessary for learning to occur, and conscious correction of errors leads to the development of learned rules. (Krashen and Terrell, 1983) For most Nigerians, their native language is their mother tongue and their L1 while English is their L2. As we noted above, the process of learning each of these differs. We need to discuss this difference more in order to better equip you for your job as a teacher of English. 5 Distinction between First Language Acquisition Process and Second language Learning Process As we mentioned earlier on, a first language is acquired from infancy. This means that the language is not learnt by the individual in a teaching / learning situation. Rather, the person from infancy picks up the language orally as she listens and speaks with members of her family and community. There is no systematically planned effort by her to learn it or by members of her family and community to teach her the language. She simply naturally assimilates the language just as she assimilates other aspects of her community or ethnic culture. Words/vocabulary, phrases and sentences are effortlessly learnt by the child while interacting with members of her community. On the other hand, a second language, in most cases is learnt in a structured formal school setting. For more on first language acquisition and second language learning, read Krashen(1981). As a prospective teacher of English in Nigeria, you must be familiar with the differences between the processes of acquiring first language and learning a second language. Your B.A. Ed. Programme is preparing you to teach at the Junior Secondary School ( JSS ) and Senior Secondary School (SSS).Students at these two levels have already acquired their L1 at infancy with all the linguistic habits formed. In order to successfully teach these students English, you need to learn the following basic factors that affect L2learning. - Socio linguistic Factor Your students are no longer infants but grown boys and girls. As infants, most of them, acquired their first languages effortlessly. Their languages were spoken all around them in meaningful real life situations. As they listened to others speak, they responded by speaking to others. It is not going to be exactly the same in a L2 situation where students are from varied cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Each already has set ways of speaking his/her first language. This situation places some demand on you requiring your creating enabling learning environments where your students will have ample opportunities to listen to others speak English as well as speak English to others. You will learn in this course how you are going to create such enabling learning environment. - Psycholinguistic Factors Students at JSS and SSS levels have developed attitudes, beliefs and ways of saying and doing things in their first languages that may interfere with their learning English, a L2. You should as a teacher find ways of helping these students develop positive attitudes and interest in English language. You should motivate them to learn. English by teaching them using interesting learning materials, strategies and activities SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2 6 1. Distinguish between L1 and L2 acquisition process with appropriate illustrations 2. Differentiate between language acquisition and language learning. 3. What are some of the factors you must consider in order to make learning English easy for your students? a. Major Approaches and Methods of Teaching English as a Second Language Language teaching has witnessed the development of an array of teaching methods. However, for the purpose of this course, we are going to focus on five major ones, namely, the Grammar-translation method, the Direct method the Situational method, the Audio-lingual method and the Communicative method. In formal school settings, languages like every other subject such as Mathematics, Social Studies etc are taught using one method or another or a combination of methods. Language teaching methods are developed based on theories of learning from the field of Psychology and theories of the nature of language from the field of linguistics. These theories determine the direction or approach a language teacher adopts in preparing and presenting what language content to teach students and how to test what has been taught. A given approach for instance will direct the teacher on the elements of language to select to teach, the strategies and techniques to employ for teaching and testing what has been selected. In this sub- section of this unit, we are going to discuss the major language teaching approaches and methods, their theoretical bases, and the techniques and strategies associated with them. But before we go into this, we will briefly define the key terms mentioned above Theory is a formulation of basic principles about something, e.g. the nature of language learning, supported by empirical evidence and open to confirmation or refutation by evidence yet to be discovered. b. The Cognitive Theory of Language Learning This theory places acquisition of language within the context of a child’s mental or cognitive development. This school of thought was championed by Jean Piaget, Jerome Brunner and David Ausubel. In Piaget’s view, early cognitive language development involves processes based upon actions and later progresses to changes in mental operation. The cognitive theory draws attention to the large increase in children’s vocabulary, suggesting a link between object permanence and the learning of labels for objects. This theory emphasizes the interaction between children and their care-givers. It predisposes that the more interaction a learner of a language is exposed to, the more proficient the learner becomes in the language (Felder, 2016). As learners interact with the world around them, they continually add new linguistic knowledge, build upon existing knowledge, and adapt previously held Ideas to accommodate new information EDU 220 English Methods 7  Approach is a set of assumptions about the nature of language and the nature of language teaching and learning; a philosophy or point of view. An approach can be defined as a theoretical view of instruction which is focused on the nature of the subject to be taught. It is a hypothetical concept underlying a particular way of teaching. It can also be seen as a set of correlative assumptions dealing with the nature of language teaching and learning. An approach is axiomatic. 1t describes the nature of the subject matter to be taught.  Method (of teaching) is the overall plan for the selection, grading and presentation of material to be taught, based on an approach. A method refers to the way a teacher organizes and conducts a lesson. It can be described as the pattern of interaction between the teacher and the learners, the learners and instructional materials or among the learners themselves for the purpose of achieving learning objectives. Method derived from approach and it determines the role of the teacher and the students. Thus, method is an overall plan for the orderly presentation of language material, no part of which contradicts, and all of which is based upon, the selected approach. An approach is axiomatic, a method is procedural. Within one approach, there can be many methods.  Strategy is a particular way of approaching or solving a problem or task at hand; a mode of operation for achieving a particular goal or objective  Technique is a particular device, strategy, activity used to accomplish a goal or objective. (Adapted from Savignon, 1981). A technique is derived from a method. It is a particular trick, device or contrivance used to accomplish an immediate objective. It can also be described as a set of unique activities that a teacher uses to implement a particular method. It involves selection of activities verbal and material devices. It focuses on the way method handles the introduction, presentation, practice and feedback phases of the lesson. 3.2.1 The Grammar-Translation Method Grammar Translation Method was used in the early years of learning foreign languages such as Latin and Greek. The method involved studying a second language called the target language, for example, Latin, through a detailed analysis of its grammar rules, followed by application of this knowledge to the task of translating sentences and texts into and out of the language. The learner’s first language for example, English, is used as the means of translating the target language. 8  Main Features  Emphasis is on the grammar of the target language.  Translation is the principal practice technique.  Major focus is on reading and writing skills  Little or no attention is paid to speaking and listening.  Students’ native language is the medium of instruction.  Sentence is the basic unit of language teaching and learning.  Techniques  Reading  Translation  Deductive teaching of grammar  Memorization  Writing Despite its antiquity, the grammar-translation method is still alive and well in use in language classrooms throughout Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas. It is easy to apply as it makes few demands on teachers.  Advantages  Translation from one language to another is very vital because comparison between two languages presents a better understanding of the meaning of abstract words and complicated sentences.  The systematic study of grammatical rules helps in fostering students’ ability of reading comprehension and producing grammatically correct sentences.  The focus on the use of literary texts provides the situation in which reading and writing abilities are developed.  Disadvantages  Overemphasis on translation can never totally free the learners from dependence on the first language.  Knowing a large number of grammatical rules cannot ensure that students can use them in real communicative situations.  Too much emphasis is placed on reading and writing while listening and speaking are neglected. In language communication, all the four skills are needed.  The texts are mostly taken from literary works, which most often don’t meet the practical every day needs of the learners. 9 SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3 1. What the merits and demerits of Grammar -translation method. 2. Discuss the central idea(s) of each of learning theories discussed above. 3.2 The Direct Method Towards the end of the late 1800s, a revolution in language teaching philosophy took place resulting in the birth of the Direct method. This period was referred to as the ‘dawn’ of modern foreign language teaching. Second language theorists maintain that the first real method of language teaching was the Direct Method. It was developed as a reaction against the monotony and ineffectiveness of grammar-translation classes. The Direct Method was the brainchild of Charles Berlitz, a nineteenth century linguist whose schools of language learning were famous throughout the world. The Direct Method is based on the notion that people could learn a L2 easily if it was taught without using the L1. Essentially, the processes of learning the new language should mimic the processes of a child learning his/her first language. Specifically, the method promotes the learning of vocabulary and phrases of the second language without recourse to translating using the learner’s first language. The ultimate aim is to get the learners to ‘think’ in the second/foreign language.  Main Features of a Typical Direct Method Classroom  There are few students in the class.  Students take turn reading aloud (mostly dialogues and anecdotal passages).  Teacher asks questions in the target language to test students’ understanding.  Students respond appropriately in the target language.  The question – response session is followed by a dictation of the dialogues or passage by the teacher while the students write down what theyheard.  Students would then read aloud the dictation they havewritten. 10 EDU 220 Technique  Direct use of the target language  Use of small class size  Oral reading of dialogues  Choral[/group reading  Use of dictation  Shortcomings  Its very intensity and small class size make it impossible in public schools.  For the method to be effective the teacher must have an excellent command of the target language, or better still a native speaker of the target language.  It is teacher- centered or teacher dependent. By the late 1920s, the method started to decline and there was even a return to the grammar-translation method. However, the Direct Method continues to enjoy a popular following in private language schools. It was one of the foundations upon which the well-known Audio-lingual Method took off from, starting half way through the 20th century. 4. 0 CONCLUSION To prepare you to face the enormous task of teaching English as a second language, it is important that you learn the concepts and terminologies associated with second language methodologies as presented in this unit. 5. 0 SUMMARY In this unit, you learnt some important issues about the status of English language in Nigeria and the relevance of this knowledge to your teaching English to Nigerian students. You also learnt some terms associated with second language teaching such as theory, approach, method and techniques. Two language teaching methods namely; Grammar-translation Method and the Direct Method were also discussed. 11 ANSWER TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 1. Does English really serve the above purposes in Nigeria? Support your answer with live examples of instances and situations where this is evidenced. English is the language of administration, the judiciary and politics. It is the language that unites and integrates the various ethnic groups into the entity called Nigeria. Also, the English language is used for economic purposes, for instance, for business negotiations, for buying and selling, within and outside Nigeria. Moreover, English is the medium of instruction in Nigerian schools even at the primary school level. Furthermore, social communication and interaction are largely done through English. 2. What other purpose(s) do English serve in Nigeria as a country? English Language is used by people from different ethnic groups for communicative purposes in Nigeria. English language is the major language of communication among users who do not understand or speak their local languages. Within each of the ethnic groups, English language is used, and majorly outside each of the ethnic groups, the English language is used. ANSWER TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2 1.Differentiate between language acquisition and language learning. LANGUAGE ACQUISISITION - It is informal and similar to the way people acquire the first language, usually the mother tongue. - It is unconscious effort. - The acquirer is not aware of the rules of the language but has a feel for correctness. - It does not require formal teaching. - The acquired system initiates utterances when we communicate. LANGUAGE LEARNING - It involves formal knowledge of a language. - It involves knowing about the language. - It is deliberate. - There is explicit knowledge of the rules. - Formal teaching is required. - The learned system serves as editor or monitor to check mistakes. 12 ANSWER TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3 1. What are the merits and demerits of Grammar -translation method? The merits of Grammar-Translation Method are listed below:  Translation from one language to another is very vital because comparison between two languages presents a better understanding of the meaning of abstract words and complicated sentences.  The systematic study of grammatical rules helps in fostering students’ ability of reading comprehension and producing grammatically correct sentences.  The focus on the use of literary texts provides the situation in which reading and writing abilities are developed. The demerits of Grammar-Translation Method are listed below:  No matter how, learners can never be freed from dependence on the first language  Learners may not use the learned grammatical rules in real communicative situations.  Too much emphasis is placed on reading and writing as against all the four skills.  Texts are mostly taken from literary works. 2. Discuss the central idea(s) of each of learning theories discussed above. The central idea of Direct Method is based on the notion that people could learn the target language easily if teaching is directed towards the target language and not through any previously learnt language. The Grammar-Translation Method involved studying a second language called the target language, for example, Latin, through a detailed analysis of its grammar rules, followed by application of this knowledge to the task of translating sentences and texts into and out of the language. 13 EDU 220 English Methods 6. 0 TUTOR-MARKED ASSIGNMENT 1. Compare Grammar-Translation Method with Direct Method 2. Which of them would you choose to teach English JSS 1 students? Give a reason for your choice 3. Define each of the following as used in second language teaching and learning: Theory, approach, method, strategy and technique 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHERREADINGS Brown, H. D (2000).Principles of language learning and teaching.(4thed) New York: Longman Felder, R., & Henriques, E. (2016). Learning and teaching styles in foreign and second language education. Foreign Language Annals 28(1), 21-31. Howatt, A. P &Widdowson, H. G (1985).A history of ELT – 1400 to the present. (2nded). London: Oxford University Press Krashen, S. (1981) ,Second language Acquisition and Second Language Learning. Oxford: Pergamon Press Krashen , S., and T. Terrell ( 1983) The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in the Classroom. Oxford: Pergamon Press Richards, J. C.& Rodgers, T. S. (2000).Approaches and methods in language teaching.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Rogers, T. S. (2001).Language teaching methodology. ERIC Digest September 2001 Issue Paper Savignon, S. J. (1981) Communicative Competence: Theory and Classroom Practice. Reading-Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. 14 EDU 220 English Methods UNIT 2THEAUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD, SITUATIONAL METHOD AND COMMUNICATIVEMETHOD CONTENTS 1. 0 Introduction 2. 0 Learning Outcomes 3. 0 Main Content 3.1 The Theoretical – Basis of Audio –Lingual Method 3.1.1 The Audio –Lingual Approach to Language Teaching 3.2 The Situational Method 3.3 The Theoretical Basis of Communicative Method 3.3.1 The Communicative Approach to Language Teaching 3.3.2 Other Useful Methods 3. 0 Conclusion 4. 0 Summary 5. 0 Tutor-Marked Assignment 6. 0 References/Further Readings 1. 0 INTRODUCTION In the previous unit, you were introduced to the concepts and terminologies associated with second language learning. Two language teaching methods were also discussed. This unit is a continuation of the discussion of language teaching methods. The unit will introduce you to three other language- teaching methods: the Audio-lingual, Situational and Communicative methods. 2. 0 LEARNING OUTCOMES At the end of this unit, learners should be able to:  clarify the features or peculiarities of audio-lingual, situational, and communicative teaching approaches.  detail the merits of audio-lingual, situational, and communicative teaching approaches.  list and explain the limitations of each of the teaching and learning approaches.  identify the differences among audio-lingual, situational, and communicative teaching approaches.  utilize these methods in planning, teaching and language evaluation. 3. 0 MAINCONTENT 12 3.1 The Theoretical Basis of the Audio-Lingual Method The Audio-lingual method dominated language teaching in the 50s and 60s. It was originally labeled the aural-oral method because of its emphasis on listening (aural) and speaking (oral) skills. It was based on the theories of structural linguists and behaviorist psychologists. The structural linguists consider language learning as a process of someone learning the structural patterns that make up the language such as the sound patterns, the syntactic patterns, the vocabulary and the grammatical patterns. They advocate therefore that the language to be learnt should be studied and broken down into the above patterns for purposes of teaching and learning. The behaviourist psychologists on the other hand theorised that human beings learnt by habit formation through the process of stimulus-response- reinforcement. You may have observed that the Audio-lingual method shares the idea of breaking down the target language into its components parts for purposes of studying it with the proponents of Grammar-Translation method. The two however differ in their notion of what the target language should be used for. While the proponents of the Audio-lingual method taught the target language for the purpose of using it to communicate, through listening and speaking, the other group taught language for the purpose of using it to translate texts from the foreign language to the first language and vice versa. 3.1.1. The Audio-Lingual Approach to Language Teaching The Audio-lingual Method of teaching derived from the above two theories, adopted a teaching approach that consisted of an analysis and selection of structural patterns of the target language, commonly used in everyday situations. These are embedded in dialogues as pattern or 13 EDU 220 English Methods structural drills and presented to the learners by the teacher first orally and much later in written form. The vocabulary content is kept to a minimum so as to allow the learners concentrate on acquiring the sound, syntactical or grammatical patterns being taught. The dialogues are learnt by a process termed mimicry – memorization whereby the students learn the sentences in the dialogues by heart. The teaching procedure consists of the following steps: - Teacher presents the dialogues orally by himself / herself or by using a tape recorder or a language laboratory - Students listen to the teacher’s voice or to the recorded voice to identify the sounds e.g. phonemic distinctions, stress and intonation patterns, to recognize the grammatical structures and new vocabulary in the dialogues. - Students repeat the dialogues after the teacher as many times as possible until they can do so accurately and fluently. The repetition is at first instance by the entire class. Thereafter repetition is in smaller groups and finally by individual students, until the target sounds and structural patterns are memorized and repeated correctly. Correctness is emphasized. If a group falters, the teacher returns to class choral response. If an individual falters the teacher returns to small group choral response. The goal is to get every learner to commit to memory the structural patterns contained in the dialogue. Whether a student or a group of students repeats the dialogue well, he/she or the group is reinforced or rewarded by some form of approval by the teacher e.g. praise. Whenever possible, the dialogues are presented with relevant pictures or drawings to further enhance students’ learning. After a particular dialogue has been learnt by the class, students are guided by the teacher to adapt the learnt phrase or grammatical structure, in other relevant situations. This calls for pattern drills using techniques such as substitution, transformation / conversion, expansion and combination procedures. Here is an example: 14 EDU 220 English Methods Dialogue: Teaching the expression – let’s have Ike: I am thirsty. Are you thirsty, too? Eze: Yes, I am. Let’s have a drink Adaptation by substitution: Binta: It is a hot and busy day Ejiro: Yes, It is. Let’s have a shower The Audio lingual method of teaching gave rise to the massive inclusion of structural or pattern drills in language text books. After a particular dialogue has been learnt orally and adaptations of the dialogue made, the students are led by the teacher to read and write what they have learnt. The Audio lingual method encourages a teaching learning procedure where the teacher is the active initiator and controller of learning and the students are the passive listeners and respondents. The teacher determines the what and how tolearn. The audio lingual method therefore is teacher centred and not learner centered. The main aim of the audio-lingual method is that students should be able to comprehend (through listening and reading) and produce (through speaking and writing) the target language correctly without mistakes or errors. An advantage of this method according to Rivers (1981) is that students could attain comprehension and fluency in the target language within a limited amount of language material very early in their learning experience. Another advantage of the teaching approach based on this method is that it encourages the participation of all students through choral repetition of pattern drills. This is especially useful in motivating the shy or less gifted students who may learn more easily in a group setting. The approach may also be appropriate for young children who naturally love to mimic and act 14 EDU 220 English Methods out roles because being young they are not restricted by shyness or the fear of making mistakes. In spite of the above advantages, the audio lingual method does have its limitations. For instance, its emphasis on repetition and correctness may take a lot of class time which may result in the students learning very little in a class period. Secondly, the teaching approach tends to be mechanical resulting in students learning like well-trained parrots able to repeat sentences (learnt in dialogues) perfectly when given a certain stimulus but usually uncertain of the meaning of what they are saying. Additionally, because the language material to be learnt is strictly selected for a given context or situation, students often are unable to use memorized materials in contexts other than those in which that they have learned them. The teacher therefore has the additional work of ensuring that students begin early to apply what they have learnt from dialogues to various communication situations within the class and outside the class. Another limitation of the audio lingual method is that it may not be suitable for adult learners and very bright or gifted students who may find the repetition of pattern drills boring, uninteresting and unchallenging. Such people usually prefer learning by analysis and logical explanation of rules and principles underlying the target language as done using the grammar-Translation method. A major criticism of the Audio lingual method is that it restricts the learners by not encouraging them to learn the language through the process of trial and error. By insisting on correctness, the method kills the natural tendency of human beings to learn through making mistakes. Additionally, the method does not present language elements in the manner by which language is naturally used. In real life, language is used for purposes of communication. That someone knows some vocabulary and grammar of a 15 EDU 220 English Methods given language will not readily equip that person to use the language in different communicative settings. In spite of the limitations, associated with the Audio lingual method, it has continued to be used in language classrooms. It is especially useful when the teacher wants to ensure that the students are well grounded in the vocabulary (lexical), grammatical and phonological systems of the target language. For instance, it could be useful in teaching and testing different tenses as well as differences between sounds e.g. “hit and heat”, “lick and leak”, “fan and van”, “sit and seat”. Stress and intonation patterns of the target language could also be taught. For instance, the differences between sentences that are statements, questions and exclamations could be taught effectively using the Audio lingual method. Here is an illustration: - She is beautiful. (statement) - Is she beautiful?(question) - She is beautiful!(exclamation) Main Features o Separation of the basic language skills into listening, speaking, reading and writing with emphasis on the teaching of listening and speaking before reading and writing. o Use of Mother Tongue highly discouraged in the classroom. o The development of language skills is a matter of habit formulation. o Use of structured dialogues and drills in practicing particular language patterns until response is automatic. o Only everyday vocabulary and sentences are taught. Concrete vocabulary is taught through demonstration, use of objects and pictures. Abstract vocabulary is taught through the association of ideas. o Use of language laboratory. Techniques o Exercises/activities in form of pattern drills using mimicry, memorization for teaching vocabulary and grammatical structures 16 EDU 220 English Methods o Stresses the use of drills to help learners gain control over grammatical structure. o Uses simple varied and graded language activities for intensive practice of specific features of the language. - Shortcomings o Learners are seen as organisms that can be manipulated by skilled training techniques to produce responses. o Method is teacher dominated, as materials are primarily teacher-centered. Doesn’t give room for learner creativity. o The printed material must be kept away from the second language learner as long as possible. Despite these shortcomings, the Audio-lingual method is easy to implement and cheap to maintain. You can adopt most of its techniques in teaching grammar. These techniques or strategies will be discussed in detail in Module 2, Unit 2. NOTE: For examples of language exercises based on the Audio-lingual method, see Intensive English for Junior Secondary School by Oluikpe et al (1997) SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 1 1. What is the theoretical basis of the Audio lingual method? 2. What does the Audio-lingual method share with the Grammar- translation method and the Direct method? 3. Briefly describe the teaching procedure of the Audio lingual methodologists. 3. 2 The Situational Method The Situational Method evolved in the United Kingdom as a parallel method to the Audio-lingual Method. The key difference from the Audio- lingual method was that the language presentation and practice was situationalised and so was always given social meaning. Speaking and listening skills were given prominence in this method. This approach is based on the belief that if you want to teach the language of a situation you have to make up the situation in the classroom through the process of role- playing. One would 17 say that the situational method is a bridge between Audio-Lingual Method and the Communicative Method. From the start of the Reform Movement, practitioners made use of conversation readers in teaching language. This was further expanded in the 1960s and 1970s when several language course books were written grouping language teaching units around situational themes such as “At the Hairdresser’s”, “The Post Office”, “ At the Market Place “ and so on. The dialogues and narratives in these texts centred on the situational themes. Teachers were expected to produce appropriate teaching materials to support action-based language used in the defined situations.  Main Features  Use of the three Ps- PPP: Present, Practice, and Produce  Use of role play  Use of mimes, pictures etc.  Use of contextualized situations  Shortcomings  The major disadvantage of the method is that it is not easy to describe most situations; in fact some situations cannot be adequately described. SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2 1. Compare the situational method with the Audio-lingual method. 2. 3 The Theoretical Basis of the Communicative Method The theory of behaviorist psychologists which viewed learning as a process of habit formation through imitation and memorization was challenged by another theory: the cognitive code theory. This theory propounded by Cognitive psychologists viewed learning as involving 18 EDU 220 English Methods one’s use of his innate mental abilities. This theory appealed to linguists such as Chomsky (1966) and Lenneberg (1957) who applied the theory to language learning. These linguists noted that these innate abilities explained why a child could learn his first or even his second language just by interacting with people in his environment. It is these innate abilities that enable the child to acquire unconsciously the vocabulary, the grammar of his language as well as the psychological, cultural and social rules that regulate the use of the language. Both Chomsky and Lenneberg argued that because of these innate abilities, normal children are able to identify and acquire (without being taught formally), the basic lexical and syntactic systems of their language. It is from this identification that mastery of the language develops and not through the process of repetition and reinforcement as advocated by the Audio- linguists. As Lenneberg puts it, “Obviously, children are not given rules which they can apply. They are merely exposed to a great number of examples of how the syntax works and from these examples they completely automatically acquire principles with which new sentences can be formed that will conform to the universally recognized rules of language learning.(Lenneberg, 1960 quoted in Rivers 1981, pg. 76) The views of these linguists and others, who supported their views, gave birth to another approach to teaching languages. This is the communicative approach. EDU 220Englis h Methods SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3 1. Which of the two approaches to learning a language would you say was the process by which your child or any child you know learnt his/ her first language? 2. Highlight some features of Community Language Learning Method 19 3.3.1 The Communicative Approach to Language Teaching The communicative view of language learning changed the approach to language teaching from teacher-centred to learner-centred. This approach emphasizes language teaching that is built around communicative situations involving topics and persons /participants performing different roles similar to those that learners may likely encounter in real life. Thus, instead of repetition and memorization of dialogues, learning situations requiring students to act or play roles while using the language are set up by the teacher. Consideration of what and how to teach the language is made on the basis of the language needs and interests of the learners. Topics and contexts therefore must be of the interest of the particular group of learners. This ensures that the learners get meaningfully involved in learning. The teacher’s role is that of a facilitator of learning. He/she guides the learners to use whatever knowledge and skills they have in the target language to express themselves. The communicative teaching method aims to make communicative competence the goal of language teaching, and develops procedures for teaching the four skills that acknowledge the interdependence of language and communication. It encourages activities that involve real communication and carry out meaningful tasks. It believes that language is meaningful to the learner supports the learning process. Language learners are expected to be negotiators, teachers to be an organizer, a guide, an analyst, a counselor, or a group process manager. It is no doubt that the communicative method developed quite fast, it dominates language teaching in many countries because it not only makes language learning more interesting, but helps learners develop linguistic competence as well as communicative competence. The Communicative approach has the following as its tenets: - There is no insistence on linguistic accuracy in terms of pronunciation, grammar or vocabulary in the beginning stages of learning. 20 - Emphasis is on the speaker or writer communicating a message which is understood. The belief is that with time the leaner will achieve the desired correctness. - The four language skills could be taught at the same time, that is integratively depending on the skills needed in the particular learning situation, the topic, the roles of the participants and the purposes of the communicative interaction. This integrative approach enables learners see the interrelatedness of the four language skills. - The basic unit of learning is a meaningful text or discourse e.g. a paragraph for listening comprehension and a topic to speak on or write about or a text passage to summarise. - The text for teaching must be based on situations, topics, and activities of interest and needs of the learners. Advantages Communicative language teaching approach has made very useful contributions to language teaching and learning. One could easily say that it has the following advantages:  Helps learners communicate in the language since focus is not on grammatical or pronunciation correctness but how to understand and convey meaning in the language.  By not insisting on accuracy, learners are encouraged to speak, read or write the language without fear of making mistakes.  By basing the what and how to learn on learners’ needs and interests, learning is meaningful and purposeful. This makes for possible transfer of what is learnt to similar situations outside the classroom.  By not teaching the four language skills individually but integratively, learners are made to use the language in the natural way.  Uses realistic, motivating and meaningful language activities. 21 Disadvantages  Where learners do not have many real life opportunities to practice what they learnt, errors not corrected at the beginning stages may persist.  Learners who are teacher dependent and shy may be inhibited in learning by this method. Main Features  Emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language.  Use of authentic texts into the learning situation.  Learners focus not only on language but also on the learning process itself.  Learner’s own personal experiences are enhanced as important contributing elements to classroom learning.  Attempts linking classroom language learning with language activation outside the classroom.  Focus on all the components of communicative competence, not only grammatical or linguistic competence. Engages learners in the pragmatic and functional use of language. Techniques Use of real life/ authentic texts for reading Contextualized situations of the real world involving learners to play roles Discussions, debates Reporting of events 3.2.3 Community Language Learning Method This method is not based on the usual methods by which languages are taught. Rather, the approach is patterned upon counselling techniques and adapted to the peculiar anxiety and threat as well as the personal and language problems a person encounters in the learning of foreign languages. Consequently, the learner is not thought of as a student but as a client. The instructors of the language are not considered teachers but, rather are trained in counselling skills adapted to their roles as language counsellors. The language-counselling relationship begins with the client's linguistic confusion and conflict. The aim of the language counsellor's skill is first to communicate empathy for the client's threatened inadequate state and 22 to aid him linguistically. Then slowly the teacher-counsellor strives to enable him to arrive at his own increasingly independent language adequacy. This process is furthered by the language counsellor's ability to establish a warm, understanding, and accepting relationship, thus becoming an "other-language self" for the client. Some of the features of Community Language Approach as seen by Richards and Rodgers (2001) include: -Students are considered as learner-clients and the teacher as a teacher- counsellor. -A relationship of mutual trust and support is considered essential to the learning process. -Students are permitted to use their native language and are provided with translations from the teacher which they then attempt to apply. -Grammar and vocabulary are taught inductively. Chunks of target language produced by the students are recorded and later listened to. They are also transcribed with native language equivalents to become texts the students work with. - Students apply the target language independently and without translation when they are confident enough to do so. -Students are encouraged to express not only how they feel about the language but how they feel about the learning process, to which the teacher expresses empathy and understanding. -A variety of activities can be included, for example, focusing on a particular grammar or pronunciation point, or creating new sentences based on the recordings/transcripts. -Tape recording student condensation - Students choose what they want to say, and their target language production is recorded for later listening/dissemination. Teacher and learners activities include the following: -Teacher produces a transcription of the tape-recorded conversation with translations in the mother language – this is then used for follow up activities or analysis. 23 -Teacher takes time during or after various activities to allow students to express how they feel about the language and the learning experience, and the teacher indicates empathy/understanding. -Students listen to their own voices on the tape in a relaxed and reflective environment. -Students work in small groups to create how sentences using the transcripts, afterwards sharing them with the rest of the class. Conclusion All the methods discussed so far are symbolic of the progress second language teaching methodologies have undergone over the years. As you will notice most of the methods get recycled in different forms, but each time a “new” approach develops, it either adds or removes a slightly different perspective. All of these methods were seen to work at some point and so none can be discounted. By the mid-1980s there was a gradual move towards the concept of a broad “approach” to encompass various methods. It would be fair to say that if there is any one “umbrella” approach to language teaching that has become the accepted “norm” in this field, it would have to be the Communicative Language Teaching. Communicative Language Teaching does not teach about language, rather, it teaches language. 5.0 SUMMARY In this unit, we discussed three additional second language-teaching methods: Audio-lingual method, Situational method, and the Communicative Method. With this background knowledge, you are now better equipped to teach the language skills, which will be discussed in subsequent units of this course. ANSWER TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISES 1 1. What is the theoretical basis of the Audio lingual method? The theoretical basis of Audio-lingual Approach is that language learning is considered as a process of someone learning the structural patterns that make up the language such as the sound patterns, the syntactic patterns, the vocabulary and the grammatical patterns. Also, the approach stipulates that human beings learnt by habit formation through the process of stimulus-response-reinforcement. 24 2. What does the Audio-lingual method share with the Grammar- translation method and the Direct method? The three teaching Approaches lay emphasis on the learning the grammar of the target language. Moreover, the major focus of the three approaches is on reading and writing skills. Generally, the three teaching approaches are geared towards the acquisition of the target language. 3. Briefly describe the teaching procedure of the Audio lingual methodologists. The teaching procedure of the Audio lingual methodologists is structured towards encouraging the participation of all students through choral repetition of pattern drills. This teaching procedure isuseful because it motivating the shy or less gifted students who may learn more easily in a group setting ANSWER TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 2 Compare the Situational method with the Audio-lingual method The Audio-Lingua Method The main aim of the audio-lingual method is that students should be able to comprehend and produce the target language correctly without mistakes or errors. It encourages the participation of all students through choral repetition of pattern drills. It is especially useful when the teacher wants to ensure that the students are well grounded in the vocabulary, grammatical and phonological systems of the target language. The Situational Method The method involves the use of contextualized situations. The language presentation and practice are situationalised in a way as to be given social meaning. This approach is based on the belief that if you want to teach the language of a situation you have to make up the situation in the classroom through the process of role- playing. ANSWER TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISES 3 1. Which of the two approaches to learning a language by which your child or any child you know learnt his/ her first language? Most children learned their second language through Grammar- Translation Method due to the fact that their parents communicated with them through the medium of their mother-tongue. 25 2. Highlight some features of Community Language Learning Method. -Students are considered as ‘learner-clients’ and the teacher as a ‘teacher- counsellor’. -A relationship of mutual trust and support is considered essential to the learning process. -Students are permitted to use their native language and are provided with translations from the teacher which they then attempt to apply. -Grammar and vocabulary are taught inductively. -Chunks of target language produced by the students are recorded and later listened to. -Students apply the target language independently and without translation when they are confident enough to do so. -Students are encouraged to express not only how they feel about the language but how they feel about the learning process. -Students choose what they want to say, and their target language production is recorded for later listening/dissemination. 5. 0 TUTOR-MARKEDASSIGNMENT 1. a) State three principles on which the Audio-lingual method is based. b) List and describe three differences between the Audio-language method and the Communicative Method? 6. 0 REFERENCES/FURTHERREADINGS Brown, H. D (2000).Principles of language learning and teaching.(4thed) New York: Longman Howatt, A. P &Widdowson, H. G (1985).A history of ELT – 1400 to the present.(2nded). London: Oxford University Press Richards, J. C & Rodgers, T. S (2000).Approaches and methods in language teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Rivers , W. M. ( 1981 ) Teaching Foreign Language Skills. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press Rogers, T. S (2001).Language teaching methodology. ERIC Digest 26 EDU 220 UNIT3 TEACHING ENGLISH SOUNDS CONTENTS 1. 0 Introduction 2. 0 Learning Outcomes 3. 0 Main Content 3.1 Teaching Vowel and Consonant Sounds 3.1.1 Teaching Vowel Sounds 3.1.2 Teaching Consonant Sounds 3.1.3 Teaching Stress 3.1.4 Teaching Intonation 3. 0 Conclusion 4. 0 Summary 5. 0 Tutor-Marked Assignment 6. 0 References/Further Readings INTRODUCTION Being able to understand and speak any language begins with one’s ability to distinguish correctly the sounds s/he hears as well as pronounce correctly the sounds of that language so that s/he is understood. When this is not the case, meaningful communication is marred. You may have had the experience of having great difficulty understanding someone who is not of your linguistic group speaking your language. Your difficulty in understanding what s/he was saying might not have been because of the person’s lack of knowledge of the vocabulary and the structure of your language but because the sounds the person produced seemed peculiar and the person’s voice rose and fell in unexpected places. You might also have had the experience of speaking English to a native speaker of English, for example a Briton or an American and the response you got showed that s/he did not understand what you said. As with the example above, the person’s difficulty in understanding you might have been due to your inability to pronounce the words the way a native speaker of English would. As a teacher of English you must teach your students to listen and recognise English sounds in words and sentences so as to produce them correctly. This means, teaching them to listen and learn, to distinguish and pronounce correctly the vowel and consonant sounds in English words as well as acquire and use the correct articulation, intonation and stress patterns of English. To be able to speak and listen in a second language, it is clear that language learners need something other than just phonemic correctness. More important seems to be the ability to comprehend and produce in a near- native-like fashion aspects of pronunciation such as stress, intonation, rhythm, and pacing, and to use gestures and body language appropriately; in other words, to have both linguistic and sociolinguistic competence. In many cases, however, pronunciation teaching still focuses on discrete phonemic awareness and production. It should be noted that most language learners feel that pronunciation is a crucial part of language learning. Students believe 27 the best way to improve their pronunciation is to practise, and many pronunciation experts agree that pronunciation teaching and learning must be situated in communicative contexts and help students to use meta-cognitive strategies in broader communication A major objective of the pronunciation segment of the course will be to improve students’ communicative competence by working on troublesome sound segments and on the supra-segmental elements of pronunciation – stress, rhythm and intonation – that promote the ability to be understood in English discourse. The goal is not to help the students achieve native-like pronunciation, but rather to help them make their speech clearer and more comprehensible. In this Unit you will learn the techniques for imparting these in your students. 2.0 LEARNING OUTCOMES After reading this Unit, learners should be able to:  define the English vowel and consonant sounds.  explain how the English vowel and consonant sounds are produced.  discuss the place and manners of articulation of the English vowel and consonant sounds.  identify the English vowel and consonant sounds in words.  produce each of the English vowel and consonant sounds  recognize the differences between pairs of vowel and pairs of consonant sounds in words  pronounce English words and phrases/sentences with correct stress and intonation  recognize the function of stress and intonation in determining if a sentence is a statement, a question, a command, a request or an exclamation  recognize pronunciation changes brought about by changes in vowel or consonant positions.  produce natural English stress patterns, using loudness, length and vowel quality to differentiate between stressed and unstressed words and syllables.  use pauses, stress and linking of words to produce natural English rhythmic structures.  use appropriate intonation to convey meaning.  produce and comprehend reduced forms of words and phrases. 3. 0 MAINCONTENT 3.1 Teaching Vowel and Consonant Sounds The English Language has 20 vowel and 24 consonant sounds. This section will present to you the procedure for teaching samples of these sounds. The 28 procedure consists of the following steps: -the sound is presented first in the words it occurs -the sound is presented in short sentences containing words in which it occurs -the sound is contrasted with another sound using a technique called “minimal pairs”, first in isolated words and then in short sentences. The purpose here is to show the students the difference between the sounds contrasted. 3.1.1 Teaching Vowel sounds The long vowel sound / i: / Here are examples of words in which this sound occurs bee- pronounced / bi:/ key- /ki:/ we- /wi:/ meat /m:it/ seek /si:k/ field /fi:ld/ seize /si:z/ 29 NOTE: for many more examples of vowel and consonant sounds, consult your course materials on phonetics and phonology. Consult also the National English Curriculum for Junior and Senior Secondary Schools, Vols 4 & 2, Intensive English for Junior & Senior Secondary Schools by Oluikpe, et al (2000). Round Up English by Idowu, et al (2001), for examples of these sounds and how to select them and teach them. Sample Teaching Procedure Step1- Using a tape recorder or your voice, you inform the class of the sound to be taught. For instance, you say to the class-We are going to learn to pronounce the long vowel sound /i:/ Step 2- You pronounce the sound yourself explaining to the class the position of the lips, tongue etc. The students listen to you. Step 3- Students repeat after you while you listen to them and check for correctness of their pronunciation. Ensure that pronunciation is first by the entire class and then by individual students. Step 4- Pronounce some words containing the sound while the students repeat after you e.g. field, beans, Peter etc. Step 5-say short sentences in which this sound occurs while the students repeat after you. Examples - Musa eats meat every day. -We will clear the field tomorrow. Step 6- write words and sentences as in steps 4 and 5 on the chalk board. Read these to the students who in turn read after you while you listen and correct poor pronunciation. Step 7- let your students note the different ways the sound /i:/ is spelt in English. Examples: ee ea e i ie ei bee sea be police field seize tree meat Peter kerosine piece deceive Step 8-make your students read a short passage, for example, a dialogue in which some of the words containing the sound(s) taught are found. The essence is to make the students pronounce these sounds in a larger context than they would in single isolated words or sentences. (Consult text books in English language e.g. Intensive English for Junior/Senior Secondary Schools for samples of passages) 30 EDU 220 English Methods Step 9 -dictate words and sentences containing the sound to students to write in their exercise books. You go round the class checking students’ work. Note that you started teaching the sound/i:/by isolating it and then putting it in context, first in single words and sentences and then in dialogues. This technique is called situating or contextualizing. The technique enables you to teach your students that the ultimate use of any sound learnt is for the purpose of integrating it in words and sentences for meaningful communication. Note also that after the oral practice of the sound, you wrote words and sentences containing this sound on the chalk board and made the students read these. Finally, you dictated words and sentences containing the sound to the students to write in their exercise books. The whole essence is to enable your students recognize and pronounce the sound in oral and written forms. You were also able to make them use all the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing integratively thus showing that language skills are inter- related or linked. Recall that in Unit 1 of this course material we discussed the relationship and the inter-relatedness of language sub- systems and language skills. The short vowel sound /i/ Examples of words in which this sound occurs I y e ie Sit nymph pretty ladies village rhythm wicked cities fifth private Rich symbol houses parties You will teach this sound by contrasting it with the long i: sound. We will do this by following the teaching procedure a in 3.1 above Contrasting /i: / and /i/ sounds To teach your students the difference between these two sounds you use a technique called “aural/oral discrimination”, of pairs of words. This entails 31 EDU 220 English Methods the comparison of a set of words to bring out or show the difference or similarity in their pronunciation Procedure: Follow steps 4-6 as in 3.1 (a) Contrasting pairs of words /i/ /i:/ lick leak bit beat fill feel (b) Contrasting pairs of sentences with words that contain the two sounds (1) Hit the ball. Heat the soup (2) The dog bit the man. The man beat the dog. SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE1 1 Write 10 words which contain the sound /i/ 2 Write 10 words which contain the sound /i:/ NOTE: Consult a Standard English Dictionary to confirm the right pronunciation of the words you wrote. The short front vowel sounds /e/ and /ae/ i Examples of words in which /e/ occurs e ea a met bread any egg instead many Help weapon ii Examples of words in which /ae/occurs Man hand cap Cat sat map 28 EDU 220 English Methods Teaching procedure as in steps 1-8 in 3.1. Contrast between /e/ and /ae/ Word Contrast: /e//ae/ men man set sat lend land Sentence contrast The men are working. The man is working. Lending money is a risky business. The plane is landing. SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE2 i. Write 5 words which contain /e/ sound ii. Write 5 words which contain /ae/ sound Consult a standard Dictionary to check for correctness of what you wrote. The long back vowel /a: / in word and sentence contexts Examples of words in which /a: / occurs a ar ear er al au pass Part heart clerk half aunt father Star hearth sergeant calf laugh branch March calm Word contrast / a: / / a/ cart cat park pack aunt ant march match 29 EDU 220 English Methods Sentence contrast The motor park is full of travelers I packed the books inboxes 3.1.2 Teaching consonant sounds The teaching of consonant sounds follows the same procedure as in teaching vowel sounds. A few examples are given here for illustration. Contrasting the consonant sounds f and v. Examples of words in which these sounds occur /f/ sound / v /sound Fat physics laugh van Sofa alphabet rough leave Contrasting the two sounds in sentences 1. The van is full of books. The fan is full of cobwebs. 2. He has a fine house. He has a vine garden. Contrasting the consonant sounds /Ɵ/ and /t / /Ɵ/ /t / thought naught path part thin tin thank tank thigh tie both boat Contrasting the consonant sounds / ð / and / d / /ð/ / d/ though dough then den they day other order these Ds those dose 30 EDU 220 English Methods Contrasting the two sounds in sentences They traveled the day you returned. The few examples given above are to show you how to teach vowel and consonant sounds. You should be able to teach any English sound if you follow the procedure outlined in 3.1 above. SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3 Write four pairs of consonant sounds and contrast them in words. 3.1.3 Teaching Stress You will begin by explaining to your students what stress is and its importance in the sound system of the English language. Words Your students need to know that words are stressed by syllables. You should tell them that the parts of a word formed by sound combinations are called syllables. Tell them too that there are words of one syllable and others of two or more syllables as shown below.  Words with one syllable: it, an, a, boye.t.c.  Words with two syllables: mo/ther, bro/ther, su/gar, con/duct e.t.c Teach them that syllables are generally produced with force but some are produced with more force than others and that such syllables are said to be stressed. Such syllables are said to have primary stress while those stressed with less force are said to have a secondary stress. Here are some words with syllables of primary stress underlined: reason, mother, three, thirteen. To teach words of different syllables make a table of these words beginning from those with fewer syllables to those with more syllables. Adapt the teaching procedure in 3.1.1 above ensuring that your students understand the difference in the syllabification of the words. Grammatical use of word stress Teach your students that stress is used to make a distinction between classes of words. A very good example is the distinction between words 31 EDU 220 English Methods which are spelt the same way but by pronunciation, one is a noun and the other is a verb. Here are some examples. The stressed syllables are indicated by capital letters. Noun Verb SUBject subJECT INsult inSULT PREsent preSENT EScort esCORT To teach the difference between the two sets of words adapt the procedure in 3.1.1 above using word and sentence contexts. Sentence stress You should teach your students that stress is often used to give emphasis on some words at the sentence level when such words are considered important to drive home the intended message of the speaker. Here are some examples: a. I need the money today not tomorrow. Here today is stressed to indicate when the speaker needs the money. b. John is expected home at 6o’clock. c. Musa did not go by air, he went by road. 3. 1.4 Teaching intonation Intonation is the rise or fall of the pitch of the voice when a person speaks. It is used to indicate what part of an utterance a speaker wishes to draw attention to. It is also used to distinguish between a statement made on a falling pitch and a question asked on a rising pitch. It is also used to signal exclamation with a rising pitch. 32 EDU 220 English Methods. Intonation types and uses 1. Statements  She is coming.  Olu likes ogbono soup 2. Questions  Is she coming?  Does Olu like ogbono? 3. Commands  Come here, John!  Will you stop making noise, Mary! 4. Expression of surprise, admiration or anger  You made it to our party!  What a beautiful baby!  You fool! To teach intonation types adapt the teaching procedure in 3.1.1 4.0 CONCLUSION To speak a language, one must first of all recognize and use the sound system. In learning the English language, this involves recognizing and using the vowels and consonant sounds and the stress and intonation patterns of the language. A mastery of the sound system of a language enables someone to comprehend and speak it well. 5.0 SUMMARY In this Unit you learnt the importance of someone mastering the sound system of a language in order to understand it and speak it well. You learnt the procedure for teaching vowel and consonant sounds as well as stress and intonation patterns of the English language. You learnt how to contrast vowel and consonant sounds first in single words and then in sentences. You also learnt how to teach stress and intonation patterns of English first in single words and then in sentences. 33 ANSWERS TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE1 1. /i/ 2. /i:/ bit beat fill feel kick wheat pick feat tick seat fit peak sit read kith eat pit meat dick neat ANSWERS TO SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE2 i Write 5 words which contain /e/ sound ii Write 5 words which contain /ae/ sound 1. /e/ 2 /ae/ let mat net pat leg rat wet fat pet lag. ANSWERS SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 3 Write four pairs of consonant sounds and contrast them in words /f/ sound / v /sound Fan valve Figure van Fell vault Fault voltage Fit ventilator 6.0 TUTOR –MARKEDASSIGNMENT 1. Which of the methods of teaching a language would use the teaching procedure described in this unit? Support your answer 34 with reasons 7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READING Rivers, W. M. (1981). Teaching Foreign Language Skills. Chicago : The University of Chicago Press Oluikpe, B. O., Obah, T. Y. and Okole, M. K (1994). Intensive English for Junior Secondary, Book 2 Ibadan: Africana-FEP Publishers 35 UNIT4 TEACHING LISTENING SKILLS CONTENTS 1.0 Introduction 2.0 Learning Outcomes 3.0 Main Content 3.1 What is listening? 3.1.1 Factors that Determine Comprehension 3.1.2 Types of Listening 3.1.3 Goals/Purposes of Listening 3.1.4 Listening Skills 3.2 Phases in the Listening Process 3.3 Strategies for Developing Listening Skills 3. 0 Conclusion 4. 0 Summary 5. 0 Tutor-Marked Assignment 6. 0 References/further Readings 1.0 INTRODUCTION In the previous unit, you learned the importance of the sounds, intonation and stress patterns of the English language and you were taught some procedures for teaching these. What you learned in that unit was to equip you to effectively teach the two skills used for oral communication, namely, listening and speaking. In this unit and the next, we are going to dwell on the teaching of speaking and listening. These skills are interrelated, because in a normal communication setting, one can hardly occur without the other. Speaking for instance does not of itself constitute communication unless there is a listener or there are listeners to what is being said. Neither is communication complete unless what is listened to is understood by the listener(s). Both skills are very essential for personal and social communication purposes. Enjoyment of and participation in community life and thought are possible only by one’s ability to understand other members of the community and for others to understand her/him. Teaching listening and speaking skills therefore, is of primary importance if learners are to attain the objectives of meaningful communication in schools and other settings in the larger society. Although listening and speaking skills are considered to be interrelated and therefore ought to be taught together, we have chosen to devote a unit to each of them to enable us focus attention on specific aspects of each skill. Bear in mind however, that while you are teaching one skill, you are also teaching the other. In this unit you will learn how to teach your students listening skills while in the next, you will learn how to teach them speaking skills. 36 EDU 220 English Methods 2.0 LEARNING OUTCOMES After studying this unit, learners will be able to  define the term ‘listening’  differentiate between ‘listening’ and ‘hearing’  describe factors that determine a listener’s comprehension of utterances  list and describe purposes for listening  mention and explain types of listening skills  describe phases or steps in the listening process  describe strategies/ activities for developing students’ listening skills  assess listening abilities/skills of your students  conduct a listening comprehension lesson for a given JSS or SSS class  engage learners in listening programmes 3.0 MAINCONTENT 3.1 What is listening? Listening is an active creative skill that enables someone to comprehend a speaker’s utterance. It is a process by which we receive, construct meaning from, and respond to spoken messages (Emmert, 1994) The act of listening involves hearing, thinking, as well as having a good deal of interest to what the speaker is saying. When we listen to someone speaking, we hear sounds. These sounds are a combination of several language components such as words (vocabulary), arrangement of words, (syntax), stress and intonation (the rise and fall of the speaker’s voice). Comprehending a speaker’s utterance requires our mentally processing these language components in order to create meaning or significance from 37 EDU 220 English Methods the speaker’s utterance. Listening entails three components: the speaker, the listener and the meaning being shared. How then do we ensure that our learners understand when they listen to? We present and discuss below some factors that determine a listener’s comprehension of utterances. 3.1.1 Factors that Determine a Listener’s Comprehension of Utterances Rivers (1981), states that the meaning or significance that a listener attaches to a speaker’s utterance is dependent on three factors namely, the linguistic information perceived by the listener, the situational context, and the listener’s comprehension of the speaker’s intentions. I will add two more factors. These are: the topic/subject of speech and the listener’s interest and attitude to the speaker.  The linguistic information emitted by the speaker. This is what the listener perceives aurally of the speaker’s utterance. Linguistic information is made up of sounds, words and their arrangements and the rise and fall of the speaker’s voice. Comprehension occurs as the listener creates meaning from what she hears. The implication of this is that when teaching listening skills, selected listening comprehension exercises must contain mostly vocabulary and grammatical structures your students are familiar with. Unknown words and grammatical structures must be very few and should appear in contexts where their meaning is easily understood. When this is not so, comprehension is impeded.  The situational context This is the setting in which the utterance was made and will determine the meaning the listener will attach to the utterance heard. The situational context will also determine the listener’s expectation of what the speaker would say next. A listener’s understanding of an utterance in any communicative setting will largely be affected by what the listener knows and understands of the setting. Examples of typical communicative settings are the market places/shops, classrooms, places of worship e.g. churches/mosques, political rallies, social gatherings e.g. naming ceremonies, weddings, birthday parties etc. The implication of this is that you must teach your students variety of vocabulary and registers of communicative situations they are likely to come across in their everyday lives. Equipping them thus will enable them learn and understand what vocabulary and registers speakers will likely use in a given communicative setting. 38 EDU 220 English Methods  The listener’s understanding of the speaker’s intentions Every speaker in any communicative setting has a reason(s) for speaking. These are her intentions or purposes for speaking. The goal of any speaker is that her listener/audience would understand her purpose for speaking. This should also be the listener’s purpose for listening. This however is not the case sometimes. There are instances for example when you listen to some one and you do not understand the speaker’s purpose. This may not be because you do not understand the linguistic information in the speaker’s utterance. Rather it may be due to a number of other factors. Such factors include, your lack of knowledge of the topic/subject the speaker is talking about, or your lack of interest in the topic or speaker or both. Understanding the speaker’s utterance means understanding her intentions. This understanding has to do with what we know about the topic and the speaker or persons like the speaker.( examples are: pastors/imams, teachers, parents, children, friends and political associates). Understanding also depends on the expectations the situation and previous utterances have aroused the tone and nonverbal behaviors (body language) of the speaker. All these constitute what Rivers (1981) terms interactional content.Research has shown that the more the interactional content the more the listener understands of the speaker’s utterance. This is because interactional content gives the listener more insight into the meaning the speaker intended toencode. What does this mean to you as a language teacher? This has implication for planning your listening comprehension lessons. The texts you use must be interesting and on topics/subjects familiar to your students. Additionally, the medium (e.g. video/audio cassette players, television or live voice) through which you deliver the listening comprehension passage must be appropriate.  The topic/subject of speech Comprehension requires a listener’s prior knowledge of the theme or topic of the speaker’s discourse. This knowledge enables the listener infer or guess the speaker’s meaning beyond what is contained in the linguistic information. Prior knowledge can be activated by the speaker through preparatory discussion of related topics and by ensuring that key words in the listening passage are known by the students or have been learnt by them in recent language lessons. If there are new words in the text you must ensure that they appear in context where their meanings are easily understood. 39 EDU 220 English Methods Students’ familiarity with the topic or subject of speech is very important. Understanding is often impeded when we listen to some one speak on an unfamiliar topic. If for example you select a text in the area of Law or Government or Economics or Education, you must make sure that your students are conversant with the vocabulary and registers and general notions about the particular field of profession. If that is not the case, your students will have a hard time understanding the text selected.  The listener’s attitude/interest to the speaker and topic Attitude and interest play a vital role in achieving our lives’ goals. Positive attitude and interest will yield positive results. The meaning a listener gets from a speaker depends on the listener’s interest and attitude to the speaker and what she is saying. When we do not show interest to a live lecture or television/radio programme for example, we will very likely miss a lot of what the speaker is saying. As a teacher, you must encourage your students to listen with interest and pay attention when someone is speaking to them. A useful way of kindling your students’ interest is by selecting texts they can connect with. Examples are texts on family, social, political economic issues at national and international levels. You must also ensure that the language of the text (vocabulary and registers) is at your students’ level of understanding. SELF-ASSESSMENTEXERCISE 1 1. List and describe three factors that determine a listener’s comprehension of utterances. 2. How important is it that a teacher considers these factors when planning a listening comprehension lesson? 3. 1. 2 Types of Listening There are five main types of listening:  Informational Listening: In this type of listening, we listen for the content of the message to get the gist of the message. For example, when we are listening to a lecture in a classroom, or being given instruction to carryout.  Critical /Evaluative Listening: Here, we judge/evaluate the message we received in terms of its worth or whether we agree with the speaker or not. For example, we do this at debates, discussion sessions etc 40 EDU 220 English Methods  Appreciative /Aesthetic Listening: This type entails listening for entertainment (enjoyment). For example, listening to music, drama, concerts, poems, entertaining radio and television programmes etc  Therapeutic/Empathetic Listening: Listening to support or encourage others, for example, a sick person, angry person, disturbed/ worried person  Inferential Listening: We do this when we interpret a speaker’s message beyond what s/he has said. If you look at all the above types of listening, you will find that they are for academic purposes as well as for personal and social purposes. You must teach your students to develop the ability to perform these types of listening. 3.1.3 Basic steps of Listening Real listening is an active process that has the following three basic steps: - Hearing: Hearing just means listening enough to catch what the speaker is saying. - Understanding: The next step of listening happens when you take what you have heard and understand it in your own way. -Judging: After you are sure that you understood what the speaker has said, think about what you have heard in order to ascertain whether it makes sense or not. Hearing refers to the sounds that enter your ears. It is a physical process that, provided you do not have any hearing problems, happens automatically. Listening, however, requires more than that: it requires focus and concentrated effort, both mental and sometimes physical as well. Listening means paying attention to the use of language and voice, and how the other person uses his or her body. In other words, it means being aware of both verbal and non-verbal messages. Your ability to listen effectively depends on the degree to which you perceive and understand these messages. Listening is not a passive process. In fact, the listener can, and should, be at least as engaged in the process as the speaker. The phrase ‘active listening’ is used to describe this process of being fully involved (Young, 2015). SELF-ASSESSMENTEXERCISE 2  List out types of listening. 41 3. 1. 3 Goals/Purposes of Listening Listening skills should be taught not as an end in themselves but as means for attaining specific communication purposes. Below are some purposes for listening. You can see that they are closely related to types of listening discussed above. In this section you will learn of different purposes of listening and the activities for teaching students the skills for attaining these purposes. The National Curriculum for Junior and Senior Secondary Schools (1985) has listed the following as goals for teaching listening.  Listening for main ideas  Listening to follow directions and to note details and sequence  Listening to understand a speaker’s purpose, tone and mood  Listening to the same ideas repeated in different words  Listening for verbatim recall  Listening for implied meaning  Listening for critical evaluation in order to express one’s opinion or to judge Other important purposes for listening are: o Listening in a conversational interchange o Listening during group discussions o Listening to identify another viewpoint o Listening to radio and television programmes o Listening to someone speak over the phone o Listening for a sequence of ideas or plot of a story o Listening to anticipate an outcome o Listening for exact statements of a speaker o Listening to identify lexical and grammatical errors o Listening to distinguish facts from fiction o Listening for appreciation and pleasure o Listening for new vocabulary/words o Listening to recognize relationships expressed or implied o Listening to learn various subject matter areas The above list of purposes may seem too many to you but these are essentially the purposes or reasons why anybody would want to listen. It takes some learning and practice to acquire skills for these purposes, whether in our mother-tongue or in another language. In the case of English as a second language, students at various school levels should be taught how to acquire and use these the skills needed to attain the above purposes. 42 SELF-ASSESSMENTEXERCISE 3 Describe three purposes for which you often listen. 3. 1. 4 Listening Skills Broadly speaking, listening skills can be classified into two, namely, bottom up and top down processing skills.  Bottom up Processing Skills These are basic fundamental listening abilities that a person must acquire in order to listen with understanding. The bottom-up processing skills are those used for decoding of language into meaningful units. Bottom up skills you will have to develop in your students include the abilityto:  discriminate between intonation contours  discriminate between phonemes  distinguish morphological endings  select details  recognize fast speech forms  recognize stressed syllables  recognize reduced forms  recognize words as they link together in connected streams  recognize sentence level features in speech/oral discourse.  recognize organizational clues.  Top Down Processing Skills These are higher levels of listening skills needed in order to succeed in the art of listening. Top down processing refers to the attribution of meaning drawn from one’s own personal experiences to language input. Top down processing skills include the ability to:  identify a speaker’s emotions  get the gist of the speaker’s message  recognize the topic of the speaker  use discourse structures to enhance listening strategies  identify the speaker’ stone  evaluate the speaker’s views  find the main detail(s)  make inferences  recognize organizing principles of extended discourse. SELF-ASSESSMENT EXERCISE 4 1. How can listening be improved? 43 3. 2 Phases in the Listening Process A way of helping your students develop effective listening ability is to teach them the phases in listening. Your students knowing these phases would make them consciously aware of their importance in listening. There are three phrases in the listening process.  Pre-Listening phase At this phase your students need your assistance in activating what they already know about the idea they are about to listen to. The effective listening habits you should aim at developing in your students include teaching them:  use their background knowledge on the subject to understand the message being transmitted.  have a sp

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