Information Technology in Language Learning - Research Paper Example

Unit of work for listening and speaking skills for ESL primary English room. Part I Introduction The English language skills have become quite important for almost every person in the world. English is considered most widely understood and spoken second language in the world. Various methodologies are being used for teaching English as a second language. The use of computer and Internet has expanded for language learning and practice. But while using these modern means of learning, little attention has been given to the quality of interaction among English L2 speakers in conversational text or voice chat rooms. It has been pointed out in various studies that method of using conversational text instead of voice chats is more useful and effective. Not all aspects of the text chat and face-to-face environments are similar. In text chat, it is possible for several participants to participate simultaneously. A unit from primary level textbook with conversational text has been chosen for writing this paper. Copies of relevant pages are attached as appendices. The level of pupils This unit is designed for the pupils of primary level around the age of 10 years. This unit contains some dialogues, narratives and some interesting and absorbing exercises for enhancing listening and speaking capabilities of pupils. The topic / theme of the unit The topic of unit is quite interesting. The unit revolves round the unlucky Friday 13th. It focuses on the superstitious aspect of western culture. The topic of unit not teaches language skills but it also introduces non-native pupils to the culture of the western society. The unit theme is quite absorbing and motivating. Pupils would automatically try to speak about the unfortunate incidents took place in the life Emily on that unlucky Friday. Lesson Plan I A lesson plan is a comprehensive and predetermined schedule of every activity of teacher in classroom for achieving optimal results. A lesson plan can be of many forms and types. It usually depends on time span, style of educator and type of subject to be taught. But the basic and main objective of any type of lesson plan is to provide teacher a pre-planned line of action for presenting materials and interacting with learners. The lesson plan should not be merely a action plan but it should provide a useful link between objectives of curriculum and material to be taught. Learning objectives for this lesson are: To develop listening and understanding ability in students. To develop students listening and subsequently speaking skills by giving them simple drills and by providing listening opportunities with simple and interesting text. Instructional Aims Review and practice of listening, understanding and speaking with correct pronunciation. Understanding language varieties, identity, and culture. - Practicing reading methods with correct pronunciation. The teaching aids (Materials) Textbooks or photocopies of the unit for each student. Guidelines for listening and understanding the text. Audio or if possible Audio-visual equipment for narrating the text and dialogues in clear and audible sound. Charts or pictures showing a particular position of Emily as shown in the book. Background Knowledge (Motivation) Motivate students by telling them about the poor Emily who faced lot of hardships on unlucky Friday. Tell the students background of Friday 13th that is considered unlucky. Tell them how much hardships she faced on that particular day but how boldly she faced them. Encourage students to be bold if such situation may arise in their daily routine. It will create intimacy with the character. Vocabulary Tell students about the new words or difficult words used in the unit. Introduce all the words in interesting and attractive way. If possible use some objects for introducing new words. It will be enhance vocabulary of students. The lesson procedures Listening drills Use audio equipment if available or read out the narratives and dialogues with a slow and understandable pace. Pause whenever required. Use specific techniques to involve the whole class in the process of listening and understanding. Tell the students the how important is listening for correct speaking. Tell them that only a good listener can become good reader or speaker. Do not make students just passive listeners also encourage them to ask questions when teacher finished reading the chapter. If necessary ask them to read specific portion individually. Then the group can read with the teacher followed by having the students read individually. Description of the main learning task(s) The main learning task of the lesson is to learn how to listen carefully to understand the second language like English. Assessment tools Oral Reading In traditional classrooms: Oral reading is usually limited to round-robin reading in ability groups. Teachers who integrate speaking and listening practice into the curriculum encourage their students to read aloud to share interesting ideas or to stimulate others to read something they have enjoyed. With this purpose in mind, students are encouraged to practice reading aloud as often as possible. Most children also enjoy reading into a tape recorder and monitoring their progress. This is a good method of assessing the outcome of lesson. Lesson Plan II As discussed earlier lesson plan is a comprehensive and predetermined schedule of every activity of teacher in classroom for achieving optimal results. A lesson plan can be of many forms and types. It usually depends on time span, style of educator and type of subject to be taught. But the basic and main objective of any type of lesson plan is to provide teacher a pre-planned line of action for presenting materials and interacting with learners. The lesson plan should not be merely a action plan but it should provide a useful link between objectives of curriculum and material to be taught. Speaking objectives for this lesson are To develop speaking and conversation ability in students. To develop students speaking skills by giving them simple. Instructional Aims Review and practice of speaking and conversation correct pronunciation. Understanding language varieties, identity, and culture. - Practicing speaking with correct pronunciation. The teaching aids (Materials) Textbooks or photocopies of the unit for each student. Guidelines for speaking and conversation. Audio or if possible Audio-visual equipment for speaking on microphone or recording the dialogues of pupils for assessment. Charts or pictures showing a particular positions of Emily as shown in the book and also charts and pictures of different activities. Background Knowledge (Motivation) Motivate students by continuing the method of Lesson I on this unit. Tell them about the poor Emily who faced lot of hardships on unlucky Friday. Tell the students background of Friday 13th that is considered unlucky. Tell them how many hardships she faced on that particular day but how boldly she faced them. Encourage students to be bold if such situation may arise in their daily routine. It will create intimacy with the character. In addition tell them in an exciting way that today they will have to play the role of Emily, her father and her friend. Tell them speaking dialogues before their classmates and teacher is a great fun. Encourage them to enjoy it. Vocabulary Tell students about the new words or difficult words used in the unit. Introduce all the words in interesting and attractive way. If possible use some objects for introducing new words. It will be enhance vocabulary of students. The lesson procedures Speaking drills Use audio equipment if available or read out the narratives and dialogues just as reminder of previous lesson. Pause whenever required. Use specific techniques to involve the whole class in the process of listening and understanding. Use page # 21 and 22 to get the students involved in active writing and speaking. Tell the students the how important is speaking for learning a language comprehensively. Tell them that only a good speaker command respect. Good listener can become good reader or speaker. Do not make students just passive participants also encourage them to ask questions after speaking drills. If necessary ask them to read specific portion individually. Then the group can read with the teacher followed by having the students read individually. Description of the main learning task(s) The main learning task of the lesson is to speak the short dialogues and sentences correctly. Assessment tools Ask the students to make groups and play the roles of Emily, her father and friend. Leave them to do that independently just supervise them. It will clearly indicate that how effective the learning was. An essay stating the rationale, theoretical principles, reflection for above unit of work Part II A brief description of the main language feature(s) of the unit For meeting the educational requirements of increasing numbers of ESL students has become an increasingly important and complex concern for educators. It is important that, the educators closely examine the theoretical backgrounds of beliefs of learners to determine how mainstream values affect educational opportunities for the linguistically and culturally diverse students. The optimal learning environments for these students should be provided. Before starting teaching English as second language the initial knowledge of learners may be examined. There are many methods to address linguistically and culturally diverse student populations. In this unit the learners are learning English as a second language (ESL). There are a variety of reading aims specified in the new syllabus in terms of language competence, text types, reading purposes, fluency and personal responses. The general aims are that pupils should be: able to understand the different types of reading material which they are likely to meet both inside and outside school i.e. texts and passages in the Pupils Books. provided a reading vocabulary of numerous words, including a basic sight vocabulary of names, signs and labels needed by the learner to operate in a modern society and be able to read with understanding a wide variety of narrative, functional and instructional materials. provided opportunity to read for pleasure and for specific information. provided opportunity to read at a speed that suits them allowed to begin to read critically and make judgements on the materials they read. Keeping in view these achievable objectives this unit is designed. It is important to incorporate the lesson effectively to have their full impact. For making this unit more effective fewer "known-answer" questions are included. These questions can help students to speak confidently in the classroom as they are almost certain about the answer. . The teacher should remain responsive to students statements and the opportunities they provide during the initial phase of lesson plan and he/she should maintain the focus and coherence of the discussion. Self-repetition and short dialogue language features are used in this unit. The self-repetition is being used often in text chats. These brief chats between Emily, her fathers and her friend have been used in attractive and absorbing way to teach the basic skills of listening, speaking and conversation. Motivating the pupils Successful language learning depends upon student motivation. Motivation of learners can be defined as creating and maintaining learners engagement, interest. The motivation is the goal that should be achieved before starting the new lesson. There is a correlation between motivation and learning strategies. Proper motivation brings learners closer to target language learning process. A successful teacher is person who makes his lesson highly enjoyable and motivating. Research shows that learner attitudes to the materials being taught maintains learner’s interest and the method of teaching make them enjoy and learn the course material. A teacher creates a challenging, but non threatening atmosphere for conducive learning. The teacher plays the role of a collaborator not just evaluator and creates an atmosphere that challenges students and allows them to negotiate and construct the meaning of the text. Participation of every student is necessary. The teacher encourages general participation among students. The teacher should have the right to decide who can talk, and students are encouraged to volunteer or otherwise influence the selection of speaking turns. Presenting vocabulary and language forms Although it is important to know what information content is suited for learners but just the selection of content is not enough. The methodology of presenting that information is even more important. For achieving the desired goals the preparation of information content in the form of lesson plan is desirable. All the teaching resources like a computer screen, a cassette audio, a book, a piece of canvas, etc. are just tools that may help in making lesson interesting and effective. But the role teacher still remains very important. If a teacher does not play his role properly and if he is not fully prepared then teaching can not be effective. Presentation of vocabulary and language forms is very important in ESL class. The new language form or new words that are being presented are quite strange to pupils. It is the art of teacher that how effectively he presents those new concepts and information. Development in the field of science and technology has evolved very modern and sophisticated methods of teaching. It has become quite easy for teacher to impart knowledge easily and effectively. But these modern methods can become worthless if the teachers is not fully prepared or he/she does not know the proper techniques of utilizing these modern means. Developing the Listening and Speaking skills Listening is also an art. Listening capability or style varies among students in a class. Some listen very carefully and attentively whereas others do not pay attention and listen halfheartedly. It is the responsibility to identify such passive listener and day dreamers. Once they are identified teacher can employ various technique to make them attentive and careful. It is quite correct to say that a good listener can speak the language correctly whereas a passive listener may face difficulties in learning second language. Pedagogical conversations move beyond the required purposes and motivation for students; these social settings actually provide students with the means to provide and construct new knowledge. These conversation virtually force the pupils to express their ideas in a better way before other mates. So if a teacher creates an atmosphere of healthy and constructive competition then the desired objectives could be achieved very easily. It is also necessary that a teacher work from students strengths instead of viewing them in comparison with native English-speaking students. Balancing the needs of all students is very important for effective learning. Information Technology As discussed above information technology can play an important role in language learning. But a teacher must not completely depend upon information technology. Information technology can be used as tool of learning not the complete means of learning. Expectations and concerns when implementing the unit plan A good lesson plan should also contain the expectation regarding success and possible difficulties that a teacher may face while doing his job in classroom. A teacher should not expect unrealistic results keep himself prepared for possible failures. The teacher should also have some contingency plan if he faces some unexpected situation in the classroom. References Butin, D. W. (Ed.). (2005). Teaching Social Foundations of Education: Contexts, Theories, and Issues. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Ferris, D. R., & Hedgcock, J. S. (2004). Teaching ESL Composition: Purpose, Process, and Practice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Hebl, M. R., Brewer, C. L., & Benjamin, L. T. (Eds.). (1985). Handbook for Teaching Introductory Psychology (Vol. 2). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Hinkel, E. (2004). Teaching Academic ESL Writing: Practical Techniques in Vocabulary and Grammar. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Pachler, N. (Ed.). (1999). Teaching Modern Foreign Languages at Advanced Level. London: Routledge. Read More