Practical 3 - Parts 2 and 3
- 1. PART 2 After Reading the theory in Harmer (2016), chapter 2, read the materials from “Made in Corrientes” and “Project 1”, Oxford, choose a unit and answer: ● How are grammar, lexis, functions and pronunciation presented in each of them? ● Which presentation seems to be more adequate to teach English in state schools/ at private institute level? Which variables would you consider for each of these contexts? MADE IN CORRIENTES 1: http://www.mec.gob.ar/documentos/MIC-Level1-Digital.pdf TOPIC GRAMMAR LEXIS PRONUNCIATION FUNCTIONS CONTENT CONNECTIONS AND VALUES At School (Pages 1 to 21) * Verb to Be. * Present Simple. * Personal Information * Feelings * School Objects /æ/: Andy, sAd, hAppy, exAm, schoolbAg, mAtch Interpersonal functions: * Introducing ourselves. * Ask and answer about personal information * Show how we feel * This unit teaches children to socialize and makes them achieve an intercultural awareness * Music: chant
- 2. At School (Pages 1 to 21) Verb to be Has got/ have got. * School Objects * Family * Numbers from 1- 20 * Colours School Objects and plosives: Book, Pencil, Pen, ruBBer, schoolBag, Pencil Case * Describe their classroom context and family * Talk about their possessions * Count their objects * It teaches values such as tidiness in the classroom, solidarity and companionship PROJECT ENGLISH 1: TOPIC GRAMMAR LEXIS PRONUNCIATION FUNCTIONS CONTENT CONNECTIONS AND VALUES Animals (Pages 61 to 72) Animals *Revision: have/has got. Adjectives of dimension (short, long, etc.) *Adverbs of manner. some/any How many? *Revision: present simple. *Animals. *Animal’s features. *Feelings (Fear, interested in, etc.) *Food.(More specifically animal’s food) / :ɑ /: Arm, lArge, fAst, girAffe, shArk, banAna, dArk, shArp. Animals and affricates/fricatives: *Describing physical characteristics. *Describing the manner of an activity. Expressing fears and reasons for them. *Expressing *This unit teaches students to describe an animal. *It teaches fears and how to make a classroom survey on what animals people are afraid of and why.
- 3. (Pages 61 to 72) *Object pronouns. CHeetah, ostriCH, Giraffe,Shark, Snake, Spider, Vampire quantity. *Describing habits and lifestyle. *Asking What’s the matter with...? *It teaches how to retell a story from another character’s point of view. *This unit teaches how to make a story of an animal you are interested in. 1) M.I.C ● Grammar: no grammatical charts used. Students learn about grammar without knowing the grammatical labels used in an ordinary book of English. They make sentences respecting the proper structures but they do not learn by heart the names of the grammatical tenses they are using, for example. ● Lexis is carefully selected so that the vocabulary is not far from students reality, but rather words they need to know to communicate in their own language, i.e, the vocabulary is not only meaningful to them but also useful. ● Functions: In the unit we chose from this book, the function taught is mainly intra/ interpersonal communication. The contents aim to let students express their feelings, and they can do it through different structures such as: How are you today? Today I feel… What about you? Santi is sad - Malena is happy My friend makes me feel…
- 4. ● Pronunciation: Even though pronunciation is not explicitly taught, we consider that through the combination of Spanish and English words students are unconsciously aware of the differences regarding sounds in each language. For example, in a sentence like: Tincho drinks Tea, the students probably notice the difference between both t sounds and, as they are young learners, they may be able to separate them into two different systems. This means that pupils do not learn about phonetics by the use of detailed description or theoretical material, but they acquire the “pronunciation model” naturally, by listening to the language, making their own inferences, and finally applying it. Project English 1: ● Grammar: Project English is a traditional book that teaches grammar as if it were maths or an area to be learnt by heart. This kind of activities conditions the students’ ways of thinking, and make them learn the language in an unreal way. Languages are significantly acquired through use, not through the memorizing of theoretical frameworks. ● Although students may know about the lexis taught in the unit we chose (animals), they are not connected to their reality. If books do not bridge their contents with students’ realities and needs, they end up not being successful, significant and useful. ● Functions: Mainly making statements and questions. ● Pronunciation: This textbook teaches only one variety of English, which is the standard. It projects a stereotype about how the language should be and disregards speakers who are not natives. 2) It would be very innovative and important for both kinds of educational entities (state school/private institute) if they based their teaching system on presentations such as the one shown in Made In Corrientes book. Considering that M.I.C. uses a multicultural way of teaching, learners of English as a foreign language find it helpful for their learning to have the possibility of associating the foreign language with different aspects of their everyday (real) life, because it also provides them with the opportunity of choosing the model they find more suitable for their own learning, different from Project 1 which only follows the hegemonic model imposed
- 5. by the United Kingdom. Anyway, it is more likely to find activities such as the ones we observe in Project 1 in private institutes, taking into account that they have as a priority to teach features of the language more than aspects applicable to our reality; and the ones in Made In Corrientes in state schools syllabuses which tend to prepare students to apply the language to their “normal” lives. We believe that the most important variables to consider are that usually in state schools there is a higher number of students per teacher (normally between 25 and 30) than in a private institute (6-10); and not only the number but we also need to know that students who attend private institutes go specifically to learn English, while in state schools students have to learn the language plus other subjects, what results in fewer hours of English lessons (compared to those at institutes) and pupils are tired when the English lessons start. Finally, teachers of private institutes have more economic support than those who work in state schools due to the fact that institutes normally earn money from the fees student’s parents have to pay. PART 3 ● What can we do to enhance motivation in young learners studying English at primary school level? As we have discussed in class young learners (more specifically children attending primary school) are enthusiastic about learning specially through playing and other enjoyable and interactive activities that don’t require long periods of concentration on the same topic. We suggest different creative tasks such as singing songs, doing arts and craft works, reading stories, playing games, etc., which we consider as very enjoyable activities for young students. Also we need to take into account that learners at this age use language skills without analysing why or how they use them and are very good at imitating people. Any teacher can take advantage of young students’ attitude, and trigger their curiosity and engage them in the class with new tasks and body language.
- 6. by the United Kingdom. Anyway, it is more likely to find activities such as the ones we observe in Project 1 in private institutes, taking into account that they have as a priority to teach features of the language more than aspects applicable to our reality; and the ones in Made In Corrientes in state schools syllabuses which tend to prepare students to apply the language to their “normal” lives. We believe that the most important variables to consider are that usually in state schools there is a higher number of students per teacher (normally between 25 and 30) than in a private institute (6-10); and not only the number but we also need to know that students who attend private institutes go specifically to learn English, while in state schools students have to learn the language plus other subjects, what results in fewer hours of English lessons (compared to those at institutes) and pupils are tired when the English lessons start. Finally, teachers of private institutes have more economic support than those who work in state schools due to the fact that institutes normally earn money from the fees student’s parents have to pay. PART 3 ● What can we do to enhance motivation in young learners studying English at primary school level? As we have discussed in class young learners (more specifically children attending primary school) are enthusiastic about learning specially through playing and other enjoyable and interactive activities that don’t require long periods of concentration on the same topic. We suggest different creative tasks such as singing songs, doing arts and craft works, reading stories, playing games, etc., which we consider as very enjoyable activities for young students. Also we need to take into account that learners at this age use language skills without analysing why or how they use them and are very good at imitating people. Any teacher can take advantage of young students’ attitude, and trigger their curiosity and engage them in the class with new tasks and body language.