Language Competences

Reading

Speaking　

Writing 　

Listening　

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Suggestions for Communicative Activities

An authentic activity is one which 'brings the language to life' by providing a real context of language usage through e.g. a newspaper article, a radio broadcast, a dictionary, a story, a letter, a recorded conversation between two people, a diary entry, an advertisement, a menu, a travel brochure etc.

A communicative activity is one, which 'brings the language to life' by providing a real basis for speaking, and the interactive exchange of ideas, opinions, and feelings with another person.

It is important to stress the aspect of exchange when teaching the four aspects of communication: Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking.

1. READING

In Japan, a great deal of emphasis is placed on improving students' reading ability because this is the focus of the entrance exams.　Students need to be able to read long passages of English and find the important bits of information.

There are two types of English reading in Japan:

1. Reading for Practice

2. Reading for Comprehension

Reading for Practice (e.g. Chorus Reading)

Chorus reading is the most common form of reading in Japan.　It is a form of practice reading which focuses on correct pronunciation and recognition of words.　However it is quite common, and in fact normal, for students to read a whole page of English and not even consider its meaning.　Though chorus reading is widely used, please consider the following points:

· Not all students actively participate

· Students mimic rather than understand

· The speed is not suitable for all students: some are slower, while others are faster

· The focus is on pronunciation, not on comprehension of the meaning

· Students ignore the expression and intonation of the model reader and sound like robots

· Chorus reading does not help comprehension, which is the focus of the exams

Many teachers think chorus reading is speaking English.　In fact, however, there are no communicative aspects to this type of activity.　While chorus reading can　be used to practice pronunciation, it should not be the main activity of any lesson.

Individual Reading for Comprehension

Individual reading can overcome many of the problems of chorus reading and is a more useful activity.　Some advantages are:

· Students read at their own speed so they can think of the meaning of the passage

· Students can go back and try again if they have a problem or don't understand

· Teachers can listen and point out common mistakes and problem areas

· Students will worry less about mistakes

· Reading for comprehension is directly-related to exam practice

Problems with Students' Reading Strategies

Many students believe that they need to understand every word in order to understand the content.　(They also feel the same about listening.)　If you give your students some new material to read, they will typically act like this:

· They will read the text very slowly, thinking about each word.

· They will translate each word as they go, and write the translation above the English

· Coming across a word they don't recognize, they will either look in the dictionary or stop because they don't think they can understand the sentence.

Students need to be taught that it is more effective to look for (or listen for) phrases or word groups rather than individual words.　Take, for example, the sentence: "The ball hit her on the noggin."　The word "noggin" should be unfamiliar.　But even without understanding it, you should know that the girl was hit with a ball.　You can guess that "the noggin" is some part of the body.

Students should adopt a positive approach towards comprehension.　They should focus on what they can understand instead of worrying about what they can't recognize.　They need to feel free to guess the meaning of things based on the information they already have.

The Importance of Guessing

When your students take high school exams or entrance exams, they will come across words they don't recognize.　It is, therefore, important for them to realize the following things:

· The study of a foreign language is never-ending.　They will never know every word, but neither will native speakers.　They should not set impossible aims for themselves

· They don't need to understand every word.　They should look for parts that they do understand and guess the meaning of the rest.

· Students should try to recognize word clusters rather than individual words.　Look at the words in context.

· Understanding the theme of the material will help them guess the meaning of other words.

Task Reading

Many times the only material students read is in their textbooks.　As a result they become accustomed to reading short stories and dialogues, which enable students to pay close attention to all the words.　They should read to catch the overall theme or topic of the passage.　In reality, however, we do not often read such things.　Most people read things to gain information.　With this type of reading we skim over the page, paying attention to the most important pieces of information.　Most students have little experience when it comes to this type of reading, but it is this skill which is tested in the reading comprehension section of entrance examinations.

The benefits of task reading activities are:

· Students learn to read quickly (very important for exams AND real life!)

· They concentrate on the essential information

· They skip over bits they don't understand without worrying

· They can understand English used in real life

· It's easy to find interesting topics

There are lots of materials you can us in class:

Timetables, TV Schedules

Sports Results, Movie Reviews

Guidebooks, Travel Pamphlets

Advertisements, Postcards

Letters, Shopping Catalogues

Menus, Weather Forecasts

Magazine Articles, News Items

You can get lots of material from newspapers like The Daily Yomiuri or Japan Times.　Ask the ALT for help finding such material.　They should be enthusiastic and can even help make easier articles.　By doing these types of activities, you are showing how English is really used.　Your students will enjoy access to realistic English materials.　

Reading Activities in Class

In addition to task reading, as mentioned above, Dramatic Reading can be employed in the classroom in order to make reading more interesting.　Dramatic reading is an interesting form of reading aloud.　Reading aloud is important however simple chorus reading quickly becomes monotonous.　Dramatic reading provides all the benefits of reading aloud while avoiding the negative aspects of chorus reading.　

Dramatic reading works best with materials outside of the text.　Whenever you come across an interesting extract from a novel, television show, or movie, use it in the classroom!　For example, read an extract from a teenage magazine, a play, or film script.　The students should read the text, using gestures and intonation, so that they can best convey the feelings as well as the meanings.　They have to understand the passage well in order to convey the meanings to others.　Such an activity allows students to practice intonation and pitch, as well.　It also allows teachers to check the students' comprehension and memorization of words and phrases.

2. WRITING

Free and creative writing is a highly beneficial skill.　Its impact is highly useful for both the students and the teacher:

· Students are not limited by shyness (as when speaking).

· Students need to use vocabulary, correct spelling, grammar patterns, punctuation, and structure.

· It is easy for the teacher to evaluate the English proficiency of the writer.

· Students get an indication of their own ability.

· They can use dictionaries to learn extra expressions.

· Students gain practice expressing themselves and their ideas.

· It encourages use of their imagination.

· If students can write effective English, then they can speak English.　Both skills are 'output' functions.

To encourage creative writing, choose topics that are interesting (e.g. "My Favorite Singer", or "If I had One Million Dollars").　Of course, write encouraging comments so that students will be proud of their work.　By giving your class regular writing tasks, their ability will gradually improve.　

Here are some suggested writing activities:

A. Diaries or journals collected regularly

B. Compositions (suggest a new topic every 2 weeks)

C. Write an English newsletter.

D. Class or sports reports in English.

E. Essay contests with prizes.

F. Make books or comics in pairs or groups.

A Note on Translation

Changing Japanese into English is not writing.　It's merely translation.　Answering a question by rewriting the passage onto the answer sheet is not writing, either.　That's only copying.

Most students have few chances to write freely in English.　Even SHS composition classes are often devoted to translation.　Without free or creative writing practice, students cannot gain competence at written expression!

3. SPEAKING

A. Pitfalls

Although many Japanese people study English for at least six years, it may be difficult for them to produce even a simple conversational sentence.　This is because in the past, the emphasis had been mainly on memorizing vocabulary and grammar.　Students had very little opportunity to use the English they had studied in a communicative context.

Fortunately the situation has changed.　In most JHS classes, students regularly speak English and do communicative activities.　Classes at SHS have been slow to change, but gradually teachers are beginning to adopt communication-based lessons.　The introduction of AETs has created a real need for students to learn how to converse in English.　The AET is proof that English is a 'living language' to be used, not just studied academically.　

Repetition and drills typically make up a large part of the speaking activities in the classroom.　These types of activities can be useful for learning some skills (such as pronunciation), but should not be considered communicative activities.

Students need to practice using the English they have learned.　For this, they need situations that provide a real need to use English.　Producing original thoughts in English is a much better test of competence than simply reciting a memorized phrase.

Students should aim towards being able to have a simple conversation with a native speaker of English.　To achieve this, they need regular practice at exchanging ideas and information with each other in a relaxed classroom environment.　Communication activities should be a regular feature of your classes.　As students improve, make the activities more challenging.

B. Pronunciation

Attaining good pronunciation in English is not easy.　In Japanese, there is a standard alphabet where pronunciation is always the same.　The difficulty with English is that pronunciation does not always follow a set pattern.　Also, English uses many sounds that do not exist in Japanese; however, it is important to remember that it is quite possible for Japanese speakers of English to achieve good pronunciation.

These days, there are a lot of audio-tapes and CD's available that give model pronunciation of teaching materials.　By listening to the correct sound and mimicking what is heard, students can quickly improve the way they speak.　This should in no way be the only form of pronunciation practice a student gets, but it can help.　Please keep in mind that English is not Japanese, so it follows that Katakana pronunciation of English is not helpful.　It should be the main goal of your English classroom to eliminate the use of 'Katakana English'!

Problems with Using Katakana

a) It gives students the wrong pronunciation of English

b) It is Japanese, not English

c) Not all English sounds are available in Katakana

d) Students will rely on Katakana and not be able to recognize even easy

words.

e) Students won't get used to reading real English.

f) Students won't be able to properly 'sound out' unfamiliar words.

Katakana is not English.　Many native speakers would not understand Katakana pronunciation.

e.g. COMPARE: a) My name is Clare. I am from England.

b)　マイ　ネム　イズ　クレア。アイ　アム　フロム　イングランド

　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Mai  nemu  izu  kurea. Ai   amu  furomu  Ingurando.

Some Advice

a) Tell your students that they can say all the English sounds (all people have

the same mouths!)

b) Teach students to sound out a word they don't recognize.　This is the way

native speakers learn to read.

c) Don't add Katakana to handouts or textbooks (students won't read the

English)

d) Don't let students answer questions in Katakana, or use it in bingo games.

e) Teach new words in English, not Katakana.

f) Don't let students say English words that are used in Japanese with the

Japanese pronunciation (e.g., say "ice cream", not "aisukuriimu")

g) Show them the differences between Katakana English and real English

pronunciation.

C. Intonation

Intonation can only be learned my mimicking the sounds of others.　It is one of the most important parts of verbal communication, but students are given very little guidance about it.　In any language, the tone you use can change the whole meaning of a word or sentence.　Therefore, non-native speakers need to be careful.

By giving students lots of exposure to natural English, they too will learn natural intonation.　Textbooks provide little guidance as to correct intonation.　It is essential for students to listen to, and imitate, the voice of a native speaker.

Look at the following list of noun-verb pairs. When the stress is on the first syllable, the word is a noun; on the second syllable it is a verb.

PREsent  preSENT    COMpress   compress   REFuse   reFUSE

REcord   reCORD    COMpound   compound   PROject  proJECT

CONtract conTRACT  COMbine    comBINE    OBject    object

CONtest  conTEST   COMbat    comBAT     SUBject   subJECT

Increase  inCREASE  DEcrease   deCREASE   REject    reJECT

[Exceptions: There are some words similar to the above that have no stress shift, e.g. CONtact, DIScount, FInance, INterest; also conSENT, conTROL, disGUISE, diVORCE. Note that each word does, nonetheless, have stress.]

Look at how the meaning of the following sentence changes when different words are stressed:

"I　don't　like　James Bond."

a　 b　　 c　　　 d

a) The stress is on "I".　The meaning is that everyone else likes James Bond, but the speaker doesn't.

b) The stress is on "don't".　Everyone thinks that the speaker likes James bond, but that is not the case.　The feeling of dislike is very strong.

c) The stress is on "like".　The speaker implies that she doesn't merely like James Bond, but loves him, instead.　Her feelings are stronger.　Maybe she is answering, "I don't like James Bond, I love him!"

d) The stress is on "James Bond".　The speaker implies that she likes everyone except James Bond.

As you can see, by stressing different words, you can change the meaning of a sentence.　Many times students will not even try to express any kind of emotion or feeling when they speak English.　As a result, English often sounds dead and boring when they speak.　By using the teachers' manuals and native speakers to give you advice about the intonation of a passage, you can make English come alive for your students.

D. Encouraging Students to Speak More in Class

Most junior and senior high school students are not confident when speaking English.　Teachers often say that their students are "shy", but most often the reason is because students have little practice speaking communicative　 not memorized　 English.　With practice and a positive attitude, every student can improve their speaking ability.　The following are some suggestions for encouraging your students to speak:

1. Use English as often as possible and don't respond to their Japanese.

2. Prepare posters of key classroom expressions:

"Please Repeat that"

"What's the English word for . . ."

"I don't understand"

Put these posters at the front of the room.　Teach the students these expressions and make them use them rather than Japanese.　This is a very important first step that involves real communication.

3. Vary your classroom English and greetings.　Avoid chorus responses like "How's the weather today . . . fine."　Here are some ideas:

a) Ask several students, individually, how they feel. Teach them several

different ways of responding.　Every student, every day, is not "fine";

b) Ask students about their activities.　Find out what they did during their

vacation, free time, or weekends.

c) Give your students a minute or two at the beginning of the lesson in order to

have a conversation in pairs.　The topic can be anything.

4) In Team-Teaching classes, spend several minutes talking with the AET at the beginning of class.　After the conversation, ask students some questions about the contents.　Let students ask any questions they may have.　Encourage students to speak to the AET directly.　Don't translate for them, but give them some help.

5) Make interesting and fun communication activities that give students a reason for speaking English.　Make classes student-centered (students do the activities on their own) so that they are active.　Some ideas are:

a) Pair Work: dialogues with their partner, information gap activities, and

interviews.

b) Group Work: quizzes and contests, writing and performing skits, group

presentations, summarizing news articles into their own words, word

games, discussing their opinions about a topic.

c) Class Work: scramble activities, interviews and surveys, games,

question and answer.

6) Ask your students "Why" questions.　This makes them think more and form short sentences.　When a student struggles with an answer to a "why" question, never translate the question into Japanese, or they will never try to understand the English.　Just ask the question in a slightly easier way.

7) Make students answer multiple choice by reading the whole sentence (especially for Oral Communication at SHS).　Ask them a follow-up question to check their understanding.

8) Try to avoid correcting your students when they are speaking.　Natural communication is not possible if the speaker becomes self-conscious of making mistakes.　Correct students after they have finished speaking, or point out the common mistakes of several speakers.

9) Make speeches by students a part of every class.　Draw up a schedule, and have one or two students each lesson give a presentation about an assigned topic.　Also, encourage your students to take part in speech contests.　Ask the AET for help.

10) Assign students to make vocabulary tests or quizzes.　Let them be the teacher.　Choose a student to ask the comprehension questions or read a listening exercise.　

11) Try discussion and debate.　Use controversial topics where each student will have an opinion.

4. LISTENING

Recently there has been an emphasis placed on listening skills, through the introduction of the new Course of Study and Oral & Aural Communication subjects at SHS.　When it comes to communication, listening and speaking abilities are of similar importance.　If you cannot understand what is being said, you cannot respond.　It is therefore impossible to participate in a conversation.

One AET had this experience.　Upon asking a Junior High School student an easy question like, "Do you like sports?" the response was "え、わからない".　Sometimes students don't listen to the question being asked by the AET.　They either worry about answering the question, or they expect not to understand the question.

As with reading, students need to learn to listen for the important information.　Exposing them to situations where there is a real need to listen (e.g. Classroom English) will help improve their ability.　Passive listening (where students don't respond or do a task) has little educational value because students will not try to understand what is being said.

All listening activities should have a purpose.　To only catch words is not a good reason to listen to something.　As with all activities, it is important to have suitable and interesting topics.　If the content is boring, people will not listen, even in their native language!

Attentive listening is essential for communication.　Your students need regular practice in order to improve their listening ability.　Through exposure to task listening activities and the English of a native speaker, it is easy to gain listening competence.　

Suggestions for Authentic Listening Activities

Listening is usually regarded as something passive.　But it is not always passive.　It can be, and should be, made active!　Listening to native speakers and authentic aural material and checking for comprehension is an effective means of employing active listening practice.

For example, record movie reviews, short interesting news items from CNN, BBC World, or NHK (the bilingual editions are useful so you can listen to both versions) or even record extracts from funny TV shows.　Ask your students to listen to the extract and answer some questions you have prepared.　

Even if they don't fully understand the English, pictures can help students understand the outline of the story or feature.　Extracts like these are very good for training the students to grasp the rough outline of a subject.　Students will become more familiar with the English sounds and words and their communicative ability will improve.

Competition among the students is also very positive.　It raises interest and encourages students to listen to the recorded English closely.　Re-play the tape or video a few times so that all the students have a chance to catch the words or gist of the text.　The AET's may be well-suited for locating materials for this activity.

Remember that the tape attached to the textbook is not always effective, because the students can easily see the text.　The tape is, however, effective to confirm the correct pronunciation.

Record the weather forecast from NHK, BBC, or CNN.　Ask your AET to record something easier if these broadcasts are too difficult.　Give the students a map with a lot of blanks.　Have them fill in the blanks while they are listening to the tape.

Most students are interested in cooking, especially foreign food.　Show them some recipes and terms for cooking.　Watch a TV cooking program in English and check how much the students can understand.　The students can make a recipe of a Japanese dish in English and then make a book of all their recipes.　Or, the AET could read the recipe aloud and the student could follow the instructions to cook a real dish.　Do they all make the same thing?!

Pictures and maps are always very helpful for student activities.　Give the students a map of a foreign town or city and ask them to find the right things in the right places.　After they get used to it, give them a similar picture or photograph and ask them to describe what is in the picture.

Suggestions for Communicative Activities (things to keep in mind)

Confidence-Building

One of the most difficult parts of learning a foreign language is practicing it.　In order to practice a foreign language, a person needs to have confidence.　As teachers, this is easily given to the students:

· Encourage the students to speak more

· When they do speak, compliment them.

· Allow them to use Japanese only on a limited basis (i.e. if there is no other means of getting their point across)

· Encourage the use of gestures and facial expressions.

· Use only constructive criticism.

· Utilize student-focused lesson plans.

· Limit Teacher Talking Time to an absolute minimum.

Memorization

Memorization has its good points when used properly.　Memorizing a greeting however is not one of them.　When a student hears, "How are you?" the automatic response is . . . You got it!　"Fine, thank you, and you?"　The most amusing aspect of this is that a student may obviously not be "fine".　There are many responses to the question such as: tired, hungry, hot, cold, or even bored.　Just saying the dreaded "Fine, thank you, and you?" response has nothing to do with communication.　It's like merely speaking to a tape recorder.　

Passive Eliciting

(a.k.a. Brainstorming/mind-mapping)

Ask the students to think about a topic; for example: visiting London.　Give them a few minutes to write down as many words as they can about the topic in their notebooks.　Then draw a Spider Diagram on the board and record all of their ideas.　From this, you can tell how much the students already know and use this to inform your teaching and planning.　In addition, this instills the students with confidence because they can look to the board and see all the information they were able to come up with on their own, without having been taught in class.

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