Second Language Practice

Multilingual Matters

The Age Factor in Second Language Acquistion

D. SINGLETON and Z. LENGYEL (eds)
Approaches to Second Language Acquisition
R. TOWELL and R. HAWKINS
Culture and Language Learning in Higher Education
MICHAEL BYRAM (ed.)
Distance Education for Language Teachers
RON HOWARD and IAN McGRATH (eds)
French for Communication 1979-1990
ROY DUNNING
Inspiring Innovations in Language Teaching
JUDITH HAMILTON
Le ou La? The Gender of French Nouns
MARIE SURRIDGE
Quantifying Language
PHIL SCHOLFIELD
Reflections on Language Learning
L. BARBARA and M. SCOTT (eds)
Tasks and Language Learning
GRAHAM CROOKES and SUSAN M. G A S S (eds)
Tasks in a Pedagogical Context
GRAHAM CROOKES and SUSAN M. G A S S (eds)
Teaching-and-Leaming Language-and-Culture
MICHAEL BYRAM, CAROL MORGAN and Colleagues
Teaching Science to Language Minority Students
JUDITH W. ROSENTHAL
Validation in Language Testing
A. CUMMING and R. BERWICK (eds)

Please contact us for the latest book Information:

Multilingual Matters Ltd, Frankfurt Lodge, Clevedon Hall,
Victoria Road, Clevedon, Avon, England, BS21 7SJ.
Second Language Practice
Classroom Strategies for Developing
Communicative Competence

Edited by
Georges Duquette

MULTILINGUAL MATTERS LTD

Clevedon • Philadelphia • Adelaide
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Second Language Practice: Classroom Strategies for Developing Communicative

Competences/Edited by Georges Duquette.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Language and languages-Study and teaching. 2. Communicative competence.
I. Duquette, Georges
P53.S3918 1995
418'.007-dc20 95-30458

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 1-85359-306-0 (hbk)

ISBN 1-85359-305-2 (pbk)

Multilingual Matters Ltd

UK: Frankfurt Lodge, Qevedon Hall, Victoria Road, Clevedon BS21 7HH.
USA: UTP, 2250 Military Road, Tonawanda, NY 14150, USA.
Canada: UTP, 5201 Dufferin Street, North York, Ontario M3H 5T8, Canada.
Australia: P.O. Box 586, Artarmon, NSW, Australia.

Copyright © 1995 Georges Duquette and the authors of individual articles.

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any
means without permission in writing from the publisher.

Typeset by Archetype-IT Ltd (http:// www.archetype-it.com).

Printed and bound in Great Britain by the Cromwell Press Ltd.
Contents
Introduction vii
Performance Goals x
Acknowledgements xi
Biographical Notes on the Contributing Authors xii

LEVEL 1: EARLY STUDENT COMPREHENSION AND RESPONSE

1 Strategies for Beginning Listening Comprehension
Glenwood Irons 1
2 Increasing Comprehension Skills Through Listening and
Asking Questions
Anne Bourque and Sylvain Jacques 14
3 Teaching the Receptive Skills at the Basic Level
Gisèle Painchaud and Raymond Leblanc 24

LEVEL 2: CONTEXT-BASED COMPREHENSION AND INTERACTION

4 Developing Comprehension and Interaction Skills with
Idiomatic Expressions
Georges Duquette 35
5 Strategies for Developing Communicative Competence with
Emphasis on Comprehensible Input
Joan Netten and Janette Planchat-Ferguson 43

LEVEL 3: MEANING-BASED COMMUNICATION AND

PROBLEM-SOLVING
6 Integrating Communication and Social Skills Using
Ensemble Techniques
Hana Svab and Ted Miltenberger 55
7 Communicative Strategies for Intermediate Level Second
Language Classes
Suzanne Majhanovich and Jumin Hu 67
v
vi SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

LEVEL 4: GROUP WORK AND THE COOPERATIVE APPROACH

8 Magic or Chaos: Task-based Group Work
Christina Bratt Paulston and Gail Britanik 79
9 One Peer Response Group in an ESL Writing Class:
A Case Study
Mary Calder 98

LEVEL 5: REFINING LITERACY SKILLS

10 Correction of Speech Errors: Some Suggestions
Pierre Demers and Guylaine Bérubé 108
11 Collaborative Strategies for Narrative Structure
William T. Pagan 115
12 Writing a Short Story Through Sharing and Reflecting
Michelle Clément and Diane Lataiïle-Démoré 125

EVALUATION
Oral Communication Assessment and the Portfolio Concept
Joseph E. Dicks and Sally Rehorick 134

Index 149
Introduction
Over the past 25 years, many theorists specialising in second language
acquisition have promoted the communicative approach. Their arguments
have been very convincing, but many school boards and teachers remain
unsure as to how to implement this approach in the classroom; they do not
know which specific skills should be developed, at which levels, or what
strategies should be used. They need to see more continuity in their
programmes, to relate strategies to outcome expectations, to observe and
verify from time to time an increase in competence in their students, to
understand how one element of a programme relates to another.

Because teachers are practical people, they need a publication which

offers them ideas on how to develop second language skills in their
students at various levels of competence development. Second and foreign
language programmes at the university level designed to develop target
language skills are generally distributed along a five level span, from the
L2 learner who has no or few skills (level 1) to the learner who has
sufficiently mastered the target language to successfully follow university
courses in that language (level 5). For this reason, the chapters in this book
are targeted to those levels. Any adjustment can then be made by school
boards or universities to meet the needs of other students, keeping in mind
their age, background and social status, LI and L2 comprehension, and
proficiency skills. Here's how the levels break down.

Basic (levels 1 and 2)

Intermediate (levels 3 and 4)
Advanced (level 5)

As pointed out by Baker (1993), there is more than one way to get
students to develop communicative competence. There is no single or
simple recipe or programme which will do the job entirely, but we do need
to get started. We now know enough about the acquisition process that we
can provide clear theoretical directions and practical examples of strategies
consistent with second and foreign language theory for classroom imple-
mentation. Innovative teachers and administrators can then continue the
vii
viii SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

process, add or substract to the repertoire of strategies, in accordance with

their student needs.
For clarification purposes, communicative competence in this book
means having the necessary 'know how' to understand and respond to
different situations which arise.
This definition is based in large part on Krashen and Terrell's natural
hypothesis theory (1983), the emphasis being on acquisition rather than
learning, as well as Krashen's updated comprehensible input theory (1994).
This is indeed an important notion. After all, how can there by student
output if comprehensible input is kept to a minimum? How can there be
real world knowledge and pragmatic competence if school knowledge and
academic performance are emphasised? As a result, these publications
have provided the guiding principles for this volume.
The book is also inspired by Seliger's notion of strategy as 'superordi-
nate, abstract, constant and long-term processes' (1991:37). It attempts to
offer teachers and students a number of strategies which are transferable
from one situation to another and may prove helpful in the real world.
Finally, it is recognised that after the input, there are real context and
culture-based expectations with regard to the output as suggested by
Majhanovich in her chapter (in this book). These expectations are real and
students will encounter them naturally. Correcting errors is not an easy task
and it requires some teach preparation. Over-correction slows down and
can even stifle communication altogether; no correction at all may lead to
some fossilisation of errors. Calvé (1992) addresses this problem and
provides strategies to deal with it, as pointed out by Demers and Bérubé in
their chapter (also in this book).
This publication should interest elementary and secondary level class-
room teachers and administrators, professors of modern languages and
second language educators, professors and students in faculties of educa-
tion, specialists in English as a second language, French as a second
language, modern languages, heritage and multicultural education, etc.
A second language class should be both fun and worthwhile, leading to
communication experiences both in and outside of class which are
personally rewarding for students.

References
Baker, C. (1993) Foundations of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. Clevedon,
England: Multilingual Matters.
Calvé, P. (1992) Corriger ou ne pas corriger, la n'est pas la question. The Canadian
Modern Language Review/La Revue canadienne des langues vivantes 48, (3), 458-71.
INTRODUCTION ix

Krashen, S.D. (1994) The case for free voluntary reading. The Canadian Modern
Language Review, 50 (1), 72-82.
Krashen, S.D. and Terrell, T. (1983) The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in the
Classroom. Oxford: Pergamon.
Seliger, H. (1991) Strategy and tactics in second language acquisition. In L. Malave
and G. Duquette (eds) Language, Culture, and Cognition: A Collection of Studies in
First and Second Language Acquisition. Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.
Performance Goals
To increase communicative competence in students, this book has set a
number of goals. Classroom students should be able to use:
(1) Comprehension skills through listening and viewing.
(2) Oral communication skills in context for problem-solving purposes.
(3) Reading comprehension skills for both necessity and pleasure.
(4) Skills in determining level, variety, appropriateness, and register of
language according to group norms and social expectations.
(5) Skills in communicating thoughts and feelings in writing.
(6) Skills in improving the structure of the written form.

x
Acknowledgements
I would like to acknowledge the help, support and cooperation I have
received from the team at Multilingual Matters. I have always appreciated
their competence, high level of professionalism, as well as their personal
openness and understanding. Please do continue the good work.
I also wish to thank Diana Luerle-Collili and Léanne Génier for their
assistance in reviewing and commenting upon the articles received for
publication.
Finally, my sincere thanks to all the authors who have submitted articles
for this book. Their contribution has been appreciated.

G.D.

xi
Biographical Notes on the
Contributing Authors
GUYLAINE BÉRUBÉ is currently teaching at Peace Arch Elementary
School (Surrey District School Board) in White Rock, British Columbia,
Canada. She has taught language skills to students of various levels
(elementary to university).
ANNE BOURQUE taught FSL and French immersion with the Haldimand
and Halton Boards of Education and spent five years teaching in Baden-
Sollingen, Germany, for the Canadian Department of National Defense
before moving to British Columbia in 1989. She is currently on secondment
to Simon Fraser University from the Langley School District with the
Department of Education and Undergraduate Programs where she is
teaching a methodology course in Social studies for Immersion teachers.
GAIL C. BRITANIK teaches English to Speakers of Other Languages at the
Highbridge Community Life Center in Bronx, NY. She has a Master's
degree and TESOL certification from the University of Pittsburg where she
taught courses in the English Language Institute. Ms Britanik has also
taught survival and workplace ESL courses for refugees. Her major interest
is applying the thought of Paulo Freire and Myles Horton to ESL teaching
and learning.
MARY CALDER teaches in the English Language Programme at the
University of Alberta in Edmonton. She has taught ESL for the North York
Board of Education and the University of Regina. While teaching classes in
all areas of ESL, she developed a particular interest in writing. Recently she
became involved as a teacher-researcher looking into the writing develop-
ment of ESL students in her own classes. She is a facilitator with the South
Saskatchewan Writing Project.
MICHELLE CLÉMENT is a teacher of French as a first language to
intermediate and senior high school students. She holds BA and BEd
Degrees, an Ontario Teacher's Certificate, as well as an additional
qualification to teach French as a first language to senior-level students.
xii
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES xiii

After modifying the teaching unit on the short story for her classroom
needs, she adapted it to share it further with second language teachers.
PIERRE DEMERS has been involved in L2 teaching for over 20 years, as a
teacher, a consultant, a researcher and an administrator. He is now
Assistant Professor in the Department of French of the University of New
Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.
JOSEPH E. DICKS is Assistant Professor at Université Sainte-Anne, Novia
Scotia. He was previously Project Officer at the French Second Language
Teacher Education Centre of the University of New Brunswick where he
worked on the development of the Maritime Oral Communication
Assessment Portfolio. Professor Dicks has conducted research in the area
of experiential and analytical features of second lanaguage classrooms. He
has extensive teaching experience in French as a second language.
GEORGES DUQUETTE (PhD, State University of New York at Buffalo) was
born in Canada and received his early education in Northern Ontario. He
taught English and French both as a first and second language at the
elementary and secondary (11 years) school levels. Later, he taught
classroom methodology and second language university courses at the
graduate and undergraduate levels (10 years). His publications on bilingual
and minority language education have appeared in refereed and non-refe-
reed journals in Canada, the US and Europe. He is, with Lilliam Malavé,
co-editor of (1991) Language, Culture and Cognition (Multilingual Matters)
and author of (1992) Stratégies et méthodes pour l'enseignement au secondaire
(Les éditions Soleil Publications). He is currently Associate Professor at the
School of Education, Laurentian University.
WILLIAM T. FAGAN, Professor at the University of Alberta, Edmonton,
Alberta, has a PhD from the University of Alberta and also studied at the
University of Toronto and the University of Michigan. He has been a
teacher of all grade levels, and the recipient of the International Reading
Association Outstanding Dissertation of the year, the National Council of
Teachers of English Promising Research Award, and the Alberta McCalla
Research Professorship. His present research interests include literacy
development, adult literacy, and second language learning.
GLENWOOD IRONS is the Associate Professor in the Department of
Applied Language Studies and Program in Communication Studies at
Brock University. He is also founder and past director of the Department.
His publications include Second Language Acquisition: Selected Readings in
Theory and Practice; Make Changes Make a Difference (with Sima Paribakht);
Gender, Language, and Myth: Essays on Popular Narrative, Feminism in
xiv SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Women's Detective Fiction; and La phonétique comparée dufrançais et de l'anglais

nord américains: tome 1; Les sons (with lue Ostiguy and Robert Sarrasin).

SYLVAIN JACQUES arrived in British Columbia in 1985 and has taught

for the Surrey School District since then. He also worked as a Language
Consultant for the district from 1990 to 1992. From 1992 to 1994 he was on
secondment to Simon Fraser University as a Faculty Associate with the
Professional Development Program in the Faculty of Education. For the
past eight summers, he has been working with the University of British
Columbia's bursary program in Québec City. He continues to facilitate
workshops in second language acquisition all over British Columbia and
in other parts of Canada and continues to teach methodology courses in
second language instruction in Simon Fraser University. Currently he is
teaching a grade 4 / 5 Immersion class in Surrey BC.

JUMIN HU holds an MEd Degree from the University of Western Ontario.

Born in China, he received his BEd Degree in English language and
literature from Anhui University and an MA Degree in English linguistics
from Xiamen University. Before coming to Canada, he taught English as a
foreign language at Hefei University of technology for a total of five years.
He has contributed a number of articles to journals and conferences,
including the Western Journal of Graduate Reseach and the Comparative and
International Education Society Newsletter. Hu is now a PhD candidate in
Teaching English as a Second Language at the University of British
Columbia.

DIANE LATAILLE-DÉMORÉ is a professor at the School of Education,

Laurentian University, in Sudbury, Ontario. Diane has taught Second
Language classes at all levels and Second Language pedagogy at the
pre-service level. She is presently teaching general methodology, again at
the pre-service level.

RAYMOND LEBLANC holds a Doctorat de 3e cycle (Linguistique) from

the Université d'Aix-Marseille. He is currently employed by the University
of Ottawa where he is a Professor at the Second Language Institute of that
university. He is also currently Director of the SLI. A teacher of both French
and English as second languages during his career, he is involved in the
MEd and the BA programmes in Second Language Teaching at the
University of Ottawa. Author of a number of titles in language teaching
materials, he has also published and edited a number of articles and books
on various aspects of language teaching and testing. He was the Director
of the National Core French Study.
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES xv

SUZANNE MAJHANOVICH (PhD, University of Colorado) is an associate

professor and Chair of the Curriculum Division at the Faculty of Education,
the University of Western Ontario. She has taught second language
methodology in both the pre-service and graduate programmes and is the
author of a series of intermediate and senior level French as a second
language texts, as well as a number of articles on second language
acquisition, language policy, and teacher education for second language
teachers. She is also active in the Comparative and International Education
Society of Canada.
TED MILTENBERGER is a professor of theatre arts at the American
University of Paris and an active member of the International Theatre
Schools' Association.

JOAN NETTEN is a Professor in the Faculty of Education at Memorial

University of Newfoundland where she has been responsible for the
development and coordination of the French second language teacher
education programme at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. She
has also been responsible for the evaluation of the French immersion
programmes in the province from their inception until recently. She served
as Consultant, French Programmes, Evaluation and Research, and as
Assistant Director, Language Programmes, in the Newfoundland Depart-
ment of Education, has been a member of several ministerial committees
established to study French first and second language education in the
province, and represented the government in negotiations for French first
language schooling in St John's. Currently, she teaches courses, both
graduate and undergraduate, related to second language acquisition and
the curriculum and methodology of French second language programmes.
Her research interests include French immersion pedagody and classroom
processes and their relationship to second language development, in which
areas she has published a number of articles.

GISÈLE PAINCHAUD holds a PhD (Adult Education) from the Université

de Montréal. She is a Professor in the Department of Learning and
Instruction and is currently Dean of the Faculty of Education of the
Université de Montréal. She has taught French as a second language to
adults and has been involved with the training of language teachers for a
number of years. She has published extensively on language teaching,
language testing and literacy in Canada and abroad and she was responsi-
ble for the Language Syllabus in the National Core French Study.
CHRISTINA BRATT PAULSTON is Professor in the Department of
Linguistics at the University of Pittsburgh and also Director of the English
xvi SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Language Institute at the University. She received a doctorate from

Columbia University in 1966. Prior to working at the University of
Pittsburgh, Professor Paulston has taught English as a second language in
Morocco, Sweden, India and Peru, from seventh grade to University level
as well as in high school English and French in Minnesota. She has
published in the fields of language teaching, teacher training, language
planning, bilingual education, and socio-linguistics. She was president of
TESOL in 1976 and trustee of the Center for Applied Linguistics from
1976-81. In 1980 she received the Research Review Award from the
American Educational Research Association.
Some major publications include (1994) Linguistic Minorities in Multilin-
gual Settings: Implications for Language Policy (Benjamins); (1992) Linguistic
and Communicative Competence: Topics in ESL (Multilingual Matters); (1992)
Sociolinguistic Perspectives on Bilingual Education (Multilingual Matters);
(1988) International Handbook on Bilingualism and Bilingual Education (Green-
wood Press); (1983) Swedish Research and Debate about Bilingualism (National
Swedish Board of Education); (1980) Trends in Language Teaching and
Bilingual Education (SEAMEO Regional Language Centre); (1980) English as
a Second Language (US National Education Association); (1980) Bilingual
Education: Issues and Theories (Newbury House); (1980) Teaching English to
Speakers of Other Languages in the US, 1976: A Dipstick Paper (Center for
Applied Linguistics); with Bruder, M.N. (1976) Procedures and Techniques in
Teaching English as a Second Language (Winthrop).

JANETTE PLANCHAT-FERGUSON has taught French as a second lan-

guage in both core French and early immersion programmes for a number
of years. She has also taught French as a second language to adult learners
with the Division of Continuing Studies at Memorial University. She has
been a member of several curriculum working groups developing teaching
guides for the FSL programmes in the Province of Newfoundland, and has
served as an Educational Consultant for the early French immersion
programmes with the Newfoundland Department of Education. She has
presented workshops on the use of improvisational drama in enhancing
second language production at conferences of both the Canadian Associa-
tion of Second Language Teachers and l'Association canadienne des
professeurs d'immersion.

SALLY REHORICK is Senior Research Associate in the French Second

Language Teacher Education Centre at the University of New Brunswick.
She was Project Director for the development of the Maritime Oral
Communication Assessment Portfolio. Professor Rehorick conducts re-
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES xvii

search in second language assessment and teacher effectiveness and is

Co-editor of the Canadian Modern Language Review.
HANA SVAB is a graduate of the Faculty of Education of Laurentian
University and The School of Translators and Interpreters of the University
of Ottawa. She speaks and writes half a dozen languages and has taught
English and French as foreign languages in Italy, Switzerland, the Czech
Republic and Ethiopia. She is completing a Master's Degree in Curriculum
and Teaching in Europe with Michigan State University and has recently
accepted an ESL coordinator's position for Hong Kong.
1 Strategies for Beginning
Listening Comprehension
GLENWOOD IRONS

This chapter outlines the importance of listening comprehension over

the other skills, particularly at the early levels of second language
learning. Using, among others, Asher's early 1970's project which
resulted in the well-known Learning Another Language Through
Actions, Pierre Capretz's French in Action series, and Anderson and
Lynch's Listening, this author examines the essential features used in
a 'listening approach' to teaching a second language. Winitz's early
1980's findings, published as the Comprehension Approach to Foreign
Language Teaching, and University of Ottawa's 'subject matter
language teaching' project, with Stephen Krashen, are also briefly
assessed. Finally, using language courses at the author's university,
some classroom strategies for incorporating a listening-based syllabus
are proposed.

Introduction
Listening comprehension has finally come into its own as a recognised
and separate skill to be taught as such in the language teaching environ-
ment. No longer is listening comprehension relegated to the drudgery of
cassette tapes in the language lab, or dictées in the classroom: it is now clearly
recognised as a skill which should be accomplished along with speaking,
writing and reading. There is little doubt that this has been brought about
by psycholinguists, applied linguists and language teachers alike. But the
main thrust in this direction has been provided by early researchers and
teachers of the comprehension approach to second language learning.
Pioneers of comprehension-based instruction like James Asher (1977),
Harris Winitz (1981), Tracy Terrell (1983), and Anderson and Lynch (1988)
have altered forever the have-not status of listening comprehension. Asher,
Terrell, Winitz and others have even argued for the priority of listening
comprehension over all other language skills. Listening, they say, is the key
to progress and success in speaking, reading and writing. And while most
1
2 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

of the work done by Asher, Winitz and Terrell focuses on improvements

in comprehension-based language teaching at the primary and secondary
levels, Courchene et ah, (1992), as well as Irons and Paribakht (1992), for
example, examine recent strategies for teaching comprehension to univer-
sity students.
As it turns out, one of the strongest arguments in favour of teaching
language skills through listening comprehension is the famous Canadian
experiment known as French Immersion. Supported by researchers,
students, teachers, parents and even administrators, French Immersion in
its essence teaches the language via comprehension of subject matter. And
while there is a growing body of criticism against immersion as a method
(see for example Hammerly, 1989), it continues to entice more parents and
students than there are places available. In fact, its success at bilingual
institutions like Canada's University of Ottawa has recently been recorded
for posterity in Courchene et al.'s Comprehension Based Second Language
Teaching.

Nevertheless, the apparent 'coming of age' which the teaching of

listening comprehension as a skill has enjoyed has not made the techniques
as readily available as one might assume. In the first place, immersion
methods are not available to all language learners, nor are they necessarily
desirable, not least because of the expense, but also because of the age at
which students normally begin, and because of the time required to
progress through immersion. The same problem obtains for the Content-
based and Sheltered language programmes at the University of Ottawa, the
only institution in Canada where comprehension-based techniques are
employed on a regular basis. In the second place, it is not always easy to
commute the requirements of a listening comprehension text into class-
room practice in a specific circumstance. Teachers may not be sold on the
ideas presented in a given text on listening comprehension simply because
they have not been schooled in the idea that listening is an identifiable
language skill which can be taught as such. Finally, even when an educator
is relatively interested in teaching comprehension as a skill, s/he often has
difficulty convincing parents and students of its efficacity. As we all know,
listening is not a skill whose mastery is easy to evaluate. Speaking, writing,
and even reading are readily evaluated using the actual skill; a successful
speaker speaks, writer writes, and reader reads in a relatively observable
fashion. It is all too easy to take listening as a skill for granted because
problematic and even successful listening is not all that easily observable.

These problems often limit the amount of time to which a language

teacher is willing to commit to the teaching of comprehension. This was
BEGINNING LISTENING COMPREHENSION 3

observed in the early 1970s by James Asher, a Professor of Psychology at

San Jose State University, and the well-known 'originator' of the Total
Physical Response (TPR) method for teaching languages (primarily at the
secondary school level). Asher reasoned that only actual classroom success
in language learning through comprehension-based techniques would
enhance teacher interest. He set about devising a method which would
employ listening comprehension skills at the same time that it would
improve success rates among adolescent learners of the various languages
available in the secondary school curriculum.
Documented in Learning Another Language Through Actions, a listening
comprehension textbook published by Asher's own publishing house
through eight printings and four editions, the TPR method requires that
students begin their study of language through movement in response to
commands given in the target language. In that way, obviously enough,
the teacher is able to observe whether or not the students' comprehension
is successful. This obviates the problem of evaluation through other
language skills - for example, it avoids the usual requirement of having
students respond in writing to oral language - and connects listening
comprehension learning to movement, just as many other kinds of skill
learning - swimming or bicycle riding, for example - are connected to
'doing'.
According to Asher, who supports his claims with an almost evangelical
fervour, TPR increases the speed and accuracy with which students
'internalise' and ultimately use the language which they are learning. While
academics are generally sceptical of Asher's claims, some high profile
applied linguists, led by Stephen Krashen in the 1980s, have supported him.
Although Krashen's own work has been subject to some rather severe
critiques in the world of academic publishing (see for example Gregg, 1984),
Asher's TPR seems to have fought the academic 'razor', rising time and
again above the academic fray. For that reason, and simply because of the
wide range of Asher's influence, Learning Another Language Through Actions
is the first of three language programmes based on listening comprehen-
sion which we will briefly outline before suggesting an actual 14-week, one
hour per day syllabus for teaching listening comprehension as part of a
four-skill language programme.

Methods for Teaching Listening Comprehension

Learning Another Language Through Actions (James Asher)
One cannot help but be intrigued by this book and its author. Along with
a 52-week (at approximately three hours per week) syllabus, we are given
4 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

a lengthy discussion of Asher's personal reasons for writing the book, his
perception of the problems faced in 'normal' language classes (which don't
use his approach!), and a brief outline of his answers to questions most often
posed by teachers who employ the text. Then comes the real cruncher: a
plethora of neon-coloured flyers stuffed into the text and hawking the
various products and books related to the Total Physical Response.
Even for those who are suspicious of the relatively non-acedemic,
hard-sell approach taken by Asher's publishing house, Sky Oaks Produc-
tions, the text is considered by many to be a highly useful and effective
preparation for focusing on listening comprehension as a method which
eventually opens the student to success in all four language skills. Teachers
are given a step-by-step introduction to TPR, then led quickly down the
road to success in language teaching with specific classroom directions on
a class-by-class basis, assuming that each class lasts for approximately three
hours. Given a certain amount of ingenuity, most teachers will find enough
material here to help them operate under the auspices of TPR for one
full academic year in secondary school, or for an academic term in
college/university. This kind of "by the hand' approach should not be
underestimated. It is successful because it gives us a great many ideas for
day-to-day employment, something which most language texts only
hint at.

The book is divided into four sections, the first of which gives some
insight into the personality behind the creator. The second section includes
useful theoretical background to the TPR method. This is particularly
necessary for parents (and teachers!) who might be sceptical of basing a
language programme on listening comprehension and delayed oral
production. Of specific interest are the 10 or so pages which Asher devotes
to describing 'why it works'. Part three predicts and then answers many of
the questions which will be asked of instructors who opt for TPR. Beginning
with questions which deal with summarising TPR, with the amount of
research behind it, and with what work still needs to be done on the
method, Asher answers a number of possible questions which have come
out of the various uses to which his text has been put. The final and most
important section of the book sets out 53 weeks of classroom lessons,
beginning with 'how to orient and motivate the students', a highly relevant
first lesson given the likelihood of resistance by both teachers and students
in the early stages.

Along with the well-laid-out textbook for teachers, Asher's publishing

house also produces a number of relevant games, student/teacher kits,
slides and video pieces which may be used to accompany the text. This, in
BEGINNING LISTENING COMPREHENSION 5

effect, sets out a complete teaching system which just about any language
teacher can incorporate into or use as an entire syllabus. And it is worth
repeating that the text and all the materials which Asher recommends for
TPR are based on putting comprehension ahead of all other language skills
in order to use that skill as an inroad to the others.
The main criticism that has been levelled at Asher (and followers such
as Harris Winitz) is that TPR has rather limited application, specifically that
it is only useful for short periods of time, and for relatively simple
structures. It could be argued that certain complicated or abstract con-
cepts - love and hate for example - cannot be learned by reacting to
commands from an instructor. It might also be suggested that, while the
method has undeniable uses in primary and secondary level language
comprehension, it would face considerable resistance by adults, many of
whom would find the requirements of movement on response to be
childish. Further, it is well known that many students feel uncomfortable
with delayed oral production since they see language production as an
essential component of success.

Asher generally brushes such criticism aside. In fact, many of his

followers (see, most recently, Glissan, 1993) make a strong case for using
TPR at upper levels of language instruction, particularly to review
grammatical functions and to strengthen certain facets of listening compre-
hension simply by increasing the semantic and grammatical complexity of
the commands. Notwithstanding the controversy over TPR, it is generally
admitted that a component of this method at the beginner level of language
learning is certainly worth considering given the lack of success 'enjoyed'
by most methods to date.

French in Action (Pierre Capretz)

While French in Action is, obviously enough, concerned with the teaching
of only one language, the technique is of some interest to us here as it
employs a comprehension centred approach. In fact, French in Action draws
on what it calls a 'total immersion approach', and, as noted above,
immersion as it was developed in Canada employs comprehension-based
techniques on a large scale. Clearly, most language teachers would find
such an idea intriguing since we are well aware that immersion usually
implies an acquisition-like environment where motivation is very high
because it is linked to some degree with survival in the target language
classroom. It is also well known that the immersion teaching experience in
Canadian primary and secondary schools employs a comprehension-based
6 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

approach in the early stages wherein students are not required to produce
the target language until they feel comfortable in doing so.
This 52-week programme for learning French is the highly successful
version produced by Wellesley College, Harvard University and WGBH
Boston, a subsidiary of American Public Television. The driving force
behind the all-encompassing programme is Pierre Capretz, whose ap-
proach to language instruction is clearly comprehension based. Unlike the
hard sell approach which Asher takes, Capretz uses a much more
low-keyed come-on. Successful graduates of the series are interviewed and
give their testaments on the first video-taped lesson. We hear how students
have improved their French in ways only dreamed of in introductory
language courses. Students claim to be able to carry on conversations
beyond elementary naming of objects; they claim to be able to write letters
to friends in French-speaking countries such as Switzerland; most impor-
tantly, they claim to be able to understand French as it is spoken by native
speakers. But the most important feature of each testament is the enjoyment
which students experienced, particularly compared to other programmes
they have taken. Indeed, an eminent Harvard University anthropologist (of
French culture) is interviewed, and claims that his own background was
considerably less informed than that of students who follow the Capretz
course. An added incentive for students (and teachers alike!) is the
availability of the video sections of the course on public television in
Australia, Canada, the UK and the United States.

The proponents of French in Action claim that this method gives us 'the
advantages of immersion without the chaos' (FIA: 2). In other words,
through video and audio tapes we are given native speakers, using
authentic speech in authentic situations. Indeed, the first few lessons, which
are given almost entirely in French, 'plunge' the student into far more
French than she can hope to understand. The student will then, 'little by
little', develop enough knowledge of the language to the point where she
expands upon that knowledge 'exponentially'. The programme can be
self-taught, or can quite comfortably be used in adult introductory
French courses, suggesting that the student who follows the programme
to the end (through 52 lessons) will be at approximately intermediate level
French.

The most portable aspect of this programme is the framework in which

the lessons operate. Like TV Ontario's popular series for ESL, How Do You
Do?, each French In Action lesson concentrates on a specific, functional
theme. Such universal second language subjects as families, vacations,
food, transportation and living space are the subjects of the first 25 lessons.
BEGINNING LISTENING COMPREHENSION 7

The lessons themselves include a tapescript (in the accompanying

textbook), with photographs, jokes and line drawings drawn directly from
the accompanying audio/video tape. In fact, listening as well as 'visual'
comprehension are required from the earliest lessons. Obviously enough,
the lessons increase in difficulty as the student advances through them. The
essence of this, for our purposes, is that students who have little or no ability
in the target language are taken through the beginner level into intermedi-
ate skills through listening. And though production of spoken language is
not a requirement, most students begin to produce in the early lessons.
They feel that the early listening period has allowed them to 'internalise'
the important suprasegmental features of stress and intonation to the point
where they feel comfortable producing the language.
One obvious criticism of this programme is the cost. Students are
required to shell out approximately $100.00 Cdn for the textbook, study
guide and audio tapes. The video tapes are available for approximately
$300.00 Cdn. (They are, of course, free on public television, or through
many public and university libraries.) Also, there seems to be less emphasis
on the teacher in the teacher-learner equation. But, while many of us in the
profession would see both the cost and the self-directed nature of the
programme as drawbacks, students often see those features as highly
positive. The cost is approximately the same as a teacher-directed course
in adult education programmes; the self-directed experience is often sought
out by certain kinds of students.
These drawbacks should not deter instructors from having a serious look
at the techniques employed by French in Action. Moreover, teachers can take
heart in the fact that most students view the programme as limited to the
earliest stages in their language learning experience, one that implies the
eventual - if not early - intervention of a bona fide instructor in the
equation. In fact, Capretz himself sees his method as something which
should be used to augment the introductory language course.

Listening (Anne Anderson & Tony Lynch)

So far, we have seen that there are two features which are essential to a
listening approach to teaching a second language - commands or the right
to operate on aural information through movement; and the importance of
an early silent period. But what if, for various reasons, a group of students
refuses to accept the idea of moving around in reaction to spoken material,
an idea which seems to many to be puerile, but which is essential to the
success of Asher's method; or what if students rebel against the idea of a
'silent period', a reaction not uncommon when students are pressed for
8 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

time, or when they have paid considerable fees for their instruction. Finally,
what if a teacher simply doesn't have the technical equipment available
required by the Capretz method, which is certainly a problem in most
language teaching environments outside of the college or university level.
In the cases cited above, instructors might wish to consider a book
published in the Oxford University Press Language Teaching series, Anne
Anderson and Tony Lynch's Listening. This textbook is set up specifically
to involve language teachers in what the authors call a 'task based'
approach to understanding the importance of listening comprehension in
the overall process of language learning. This comprehensive and useful -
though somewhat short - textbook gives a highly practical outline of
listening comprehension. It begins with a research-based perspective
which leads into practical suggestions for classroom procedures. Like all
other textbooks in OUP's Scheme for Teacher Education series, edited by
Chris Candlin and Henry Widdowson, this text includes a section on 'small
scale research' projects which teachers might undertake. Although the book
does not actually set out a day-to-day syllabus per se, it offers the teacher
more than a hundred 'tasks' to be employed in various situations in the
language class devoted primarily to listening comprehension. As well,
language teachers will enjoy the highly readable and, for the most part,
non-technical approach taken by Anderson and Lynch.

As noted, slightly over one-third of the book is devoted to research into

listening. Teachers are given a working definition of listening comprehen-
sion, after which there is extensive discussion of the connection between
listening and speaking, and listening and reading. This is followed by a
discussion of research into first and second language comprehension. This
section of the text is completed by an examination of input, though not,
specifically speaking, focusing on Krashen's (1985) model.

While many teachers immediately rebel at the idea of a lengthy

research-based discussion in a textbook which is for use in the classroom,
the research background in Listening is essential. In the first instance,
teachers need to understand that listening has normally been relegated to
an unimportant place in second language curricula simply because it has
not normally been seen as a separate skill which can be taught as such.
Secondly, instructors must be made aware, from the beginning, that a great
deal of practical information can be gleaned from work and observations
done in first language listening, practical information which many of us
have access to simply because we have often observed children using
language. Listening makes a strong case for understanding the research
which informs task-based teaching of comprehension by setting out more
BEGINNING LISTENING COMPREHENSION 9

than 50 'tasks' which, on the one hand illustrate important practical uses of
the research, and on the other hand, offer a framework into which the
classroom practitioner can plug her syllabus.
The second and by far the largest section of Listening is devoted to the
creation and use of listening materials for the classroom teacher. As well,
there are substantial sections on grading, complexity and general evalu-
ation of listening materials. In fact, this section ends with a number of
samples from a listening programme, suggesting precisely how the teacher
can set up a syllabus for listening using materials which are graded for their
complexity from simple to abstract.
The likeliest criticism which teachers might make of this text is that,
unlike Asher's and Capretz' methods, this doesn't set out a day-to-day
syllabus which the teacher simply needs to follow. However, many would
argue that, for listening comprehension in particular, teacher developed
materials are essential in second language classrooms because of the need
to use as wide a variety of informants as possible. In fact, as we shall see
below, it is often unwise to incorporate too many 'canned' listening
commprehension materials into the syllabus because they often lack
authenticity, an essential element in developing 'native-like' listening
comprehension.
The goal in the final section of this chapter is to put the various textbook
methods into the light of an actual ESL programme. We shall observe that
the relatively stable environment of theories and textbook methods often
become the strangest bedfellows when placed into the high relief of daily
language classrooms.

Classroom Strategies
Each of (what must loosely be called) the methods noted above is
available to the classroom teacher for, in the first and third instances, the
normal cost of a textbook, and in the second instance, the cost of study
materials and audio tapes. To varying degrees, each requires the
intervention of a well-trained classroom teacher of second language, but
each has certain problems in its actual 'real world' language teaching
implementation.
In this section, I wish to concentrate on classroom strategies for listening
comprehension which are employed at the beginner level of a typical
second language programme for adolescent and adult learners. From an
introductory intensive ESL syllabus, we will observe the objectives, the
evaluation techniques for listening comprehension, and the overall ap-
proach of second language teachers who have been trained to teach
10 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

listening comprehension in a teacher-training programme which is based,

to a certain extent, on the three methods discussed above.

Level 1 Intensive English for ESL

Textbook: Speak Up (Cheryl Pavlik); Video Series: How Do You

Do? (Part 1)

Objectives: To introduce stress and intonation patterns, and

pronunciation of basic English structures, through the the use of
elementary vocabulary, audio-visual materials, oral and (occasion-
ally) written exercises. Most material will involve static input with
a high degree of explicitness and redundancy, thus ensuring that
students are exposed to quasi-authentic listening situations. The
goal is to increase confidence while offering considerable advance-
ment to the student's listening skills.

Grading: Progress, 10%; Tests, 15%: Comprehension Exercises,

25%; Pronunciation Exercises, 15%; Listening Comprehension
Exams, 35%

Weekly Plan:

Mondays: Listening exercises involving suprasegmental

(prosodic) features of sound in English. Frequent
use of music.

Tuesdays: First part of How Do You Do tape, with emphasis

on listening comprehension.

Wednesdays: Approximately three units from Speak Up,

listening comprehension exercises which in-
volve segmental sound discrimination.

Thursdays: Second part of How Do You Do tape, with

emphasis on listening comprehension.

Fridays: Evaluation of various structures covered in the

three different kinds of listening exercises per-
formed from Monday to Thursday. Tests, Exams
and or spontaneous evaluations where possible
or necessary.
(After DALS, IELPI Syllabus)
Figure 1.1 Example Syllabus
BEGINNING LISTENING COMPREHENSION 11

Figure 1.1 is the overview of a one-page course outline usually given out
to teachers in the Intensive ESL programme at Brock University's Depart-
ment of Applied Language Studies. From this, we gain insight into the
processes normally followed by teachers of second language comprehen-
sion. This is the typical shell syllabus given to teachers of a 'false beginners'
course in second language comprehension for intensive ESL. The teacher
is then expected to submit, on a weekly basis, a class activity sheet for the
five one-hour classes to take place during the week. The one-hour class for
listening is one of five hours of study during each day. The duration of the
course is approximately 14 weeks, or the approximate equivalent of one
academic term. There is a certain amount of coordination between the
listening comprehension and speaking courses at this level, but the teacher
is expected to concentrate on listening for at least the one hour devoted to
that particular skill.

Through a cursory examination of the syllabus, it should be immediately

evident that the laudable goals of developing listening comprehension
through movement, the right to delayed oral production, and even the
task-based orientation to listening comprehension, are not always easy to
introduce and employ, even in what must certainly be considered an
optimum environment. In fact, it is clear to applied linguists and
practitioners alike that methods employed successfully in the laboratory
environment of teacher training - through peer teaching, observation and
actual in-class practice - are hard-won at best, or simply impractical at
worst in the 'real-world' second language classroom. Though this is
sometimes discouraging to the applied linguist, the inventiveness and
practicality of teachers in adapting themselves to the world beyond the
teacher training environment ought to be heartening to the seasoned
teacher.

As we can see, a great deal of the course is devoted to listening

comprehension. However, a specific feature of this course is the emphasis
on prosodic as well as segmental features of sound. In fact, students in this
course frequently begin work on prosodic features without recourse to
segmental sound. In other words, they focus on the stress and intonation
patterns of English without the interference of segments (i.e. the phonemes
that make up words, etc.) in order to concentrate on the difficult problem
of 'accent'.
With the use of audio tapes that accompany Speak Up, and video tapes
for the How Do You Do? series, the beginning student is also exposed to a
great many speakers of English, something which is afforded in this
programme because students focus on the reading, writing and speaking
12 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

skills in three other hours of study throughout the school day. As well,
students are not required to produce oral responses to the listening
comprehension material until they feel comfortable doing so. This would
certainly fit well within the purposes outlined above in the discussion of
Asher and Capretz: however, we at Brock's Intensive ESL Program have
discovered that most students are keen to produce English and seem
generally unwilling to 'delay' their production very long.
The question of evaluation poses the most serious difficulties at this
stage in listening comprehension. If we were to follow Asher's lead, we
would employ commands and movement as such an approach to
evaluation would certainly take the stress out of the equation for the
student. But we have discovered its impracticalities, one of which is that
movement in response to commands is virtually impossible to standardise
for evaluation purposes, and students do require some form of stand-
ardised evaluation. For that reason, we tend to combine a limited amount
of the movement and command style evaluation with the more traditional
'dictation' or 'circling the correct response' test. We also employ cloze
exercises, along with the others. While we have found such forms of
evaluation to be acceptable to the students, we are troubled enough by the
'skill gap' between listening comprehension and these 'writing-based'
evaluation techniques that we are working on methods that employ
speaking and even gestural and other paralinguistic responses.

All of which of course brings us almost back to where we started -

listening as a skill-based part of the second language curriculum. As is
obvious from the example syllabus above, listening has come into its own
as a recognised and separate skill to be taught as such in the language
teaching environment. And though listening comprehension is no longer
relegated to the drudgery of cassette tapes in the language lab, or dictées in
the classroom, its successful evaluation seems doomed to employ, to at least
some extent, the skill of writing, while its successful implementation
requires access to some form of audio or audiovisual reproduction. Perhaps
we should be pleased with the developments thus far. But we should also
be determined to eventually employ, almost uniquely, an extensive range
of listening oriented techniques and methods in this, the first language skill.

References
Anderson, A. and Lynch, T. (1988) Listening. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Asher, J. (1977) Learning Another Language Through Actions: The Complete Teacher's
Guidebook. Los Gatos: Sky Oaks Productions.
Capretz, P. (1987) French In Action. New Haven: Yale University Press.
BEGINNING LISTENING COMPREHENSION 13

Courchene, R.J., Glidden, J.I., St John, J. and Therien, C. (eds) (1992) Comprehension
Based Second Language Teaching. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press.
Glissan, E. (1993) Total physical response: A technique for teaching all skills in
Spanish. In J. Oiler (ed.) Methods that Work: Ideas for Literacy and Language Teachers
(pp. 30-39). Boston: Heinle and Heinle.
Gregg, K. (1984) Krashen's monitor and Occam's razor. Applied Linguistics 5 (2).
Hammerly, H. (1989) French immersion: Does it work? CMLR 45 (3).
Irons, G. and Paribakht, S. (1992) Make Changes Make a Difference. Welland, Ontario:
Editions Soleil.
Krashen, S. (1985) The Input Hypothesis. Oxford: Pergamon.
Krashen, S. and Terrell, T. (1983) The Natural Approach. Oxford: Pergamon.
Pavlik, C. (1985) Speak Up: Beginning Pronunciation and Task Listening. New York:
Newbury House
Terrell, T. and Krashen, S. (1983) The Natural Approach. Oxford: Pergamon.
Gladstone, J. How Do You Do? Viewer's Guide A and B. Toronto: Fitzhenry and
Whiteside (in association with TV Ontario).
Winitz, H. (1981) The Comprehension Approach to Foreign Language Instruction.
Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
2 Increasing
Comprehension Skills
Through Listening and
Asking Questions
ANNE BOURQUE and SYLVAIN JACQUES

The use of a variety of questioning techniques by both teachers and

students will be examined, with suggested strategies to promote
increased oral communication, develop better listening skills and a
higher level of critical thinking and comprehension through self-dis-
covery and teacher-directed strategies. Making communication in a
second language more accessible to second language learners is the
focus of an interactive communicative language environment where
the stimuli are using the new language in a meaningful context, as a
realistic tool, in an effort to motivate students to broaden their
vocabulary and comprehension skills.

Introduction
Language instruction which is grounded in derivation and communica-
tion of meaning is a holistic and high level concept. In order for students to
learn language, they must, from the beginning, be engaged in making sense
of the language and in composing and communicating meaning. When
language learning shifts from a focus on structures to a focus on meaning,
a paradox occurs. The derivation, composition and communication of
meaning become simultaneously the goals of second language learning and
the strategies which enable students to achieve that learning.
The choice of appropriate contexts for learning and the attention to the
quality of student engagement are the new basics. Meaning can only be
explored in a context which is meaningful to the learner and it is only in
such a context that the reason to know and the need to communicate will
be perceived as genuine. The making of meaning will only occur to the
14
INCREASING COMPREHENSION SKILLS 15

extent to which learners are actively engaged. Especially in a second

language arena, with its direct focus on meaning, students must be
involved in their own learning. They must not only investigate, explore and
complete projects, but also discover meaning, process information and
experiences, solve problems and integrate knowledge in a way that makes
sense to them.

Performance Objectives
Students will be able to:
(1) Actively use questioning techniques to stimulate learning and mean-
ing in a second language.
(2) Orally use and reinforce new vocabulary and structures in a context of
questions and answers.
(3) Listen to key words as clues to an overall meaning.
(4) Actively participate in short, contextualised conversations that will
promote self-discovery and feelings of adequacy towards a new
language.
Language teachers who deal with learners being exposed to a second
language for the first time understand the importance of developing
comprehension skills through listening and asking questions. Questioning,
a process of guided learning, is one of the most important teaching
strategies we employ. Skilful questioning can:
• Establish and maintain student listening skills
• Help build a positive learning tone in the classroom
• Extend creative thinking
• Improve problem solving processing
• Build students self-concept
• Increase social learning
• Improve academic results
The following implementation strategies must be seen in the context of
a total, holistic, integrated and communicative language programme. The
key to student engagement lies in providing students with materials which
are authentic, contexts which are relevant, and learning experiences which
are appropriate to their age, intellectual and interest levels. In doing so, we
provide the learner with the optimum environment in which to experience
real meaning in all its complexity and to participate actively and creatively
in the language learning process; for the making of meaning is the result of
the dynamic interplay of a large number of factors, some which can be
directly taught, and some which rely on the individual's unique and
personal insights and interpretations.
16 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Learning and Teaching Strategies

The strategies suggested here are designed to help create an environ-
ment in which language is experienced holistically and personally respects
the integrity of the language as well as that of the learner.

Listening to the music

WHY? To promote listening skills with authentic musical representation.
HOW? (1) Teacher selects a piece of music related to a theme/unit
(based on the age level, interests, and comprehension level of
students).
(2) While listening to the selected piece of music, students
complete the following questionnaire.
(3) Once completed, students can share their answers, percep-
tions, and preferences with the group as a whole or within
small groups. (Refer to Appendix 2.1.)

Likes and dislikes

WHY? To provide the opportunity for students to exchange personal
information with brief and simple oral messages, sharing likes/
dislikes, interests, and using phrases and expressions which are
useful in many different situations.
To allow students to experiment with questioning in one-on-one
interactions.
HOW? (1) Students complete a chart individually (Refer to Appendix
2.2.)
(2) Students are then paired so that they can find out about their
partner through the use of various types of questions.
Example: Tu aimes écouter la musique classique?
(You like to listen to classical music?)
Est-ce que tu aimes regarder le hockey?
(Are you a hockey fan?)
Qu'est-ce que tu aimes faire?
(What do you like to do?)
Aimes-tu manger le sushi?
(Do you like to eat sushi?)
This activity would require, as a prerequisite, an introduction to the ways
of asking questions (inversion, est-ce que... and intonation). The vocabu-
lary building potential of this activity is limitless and would allow students
INCREASING COMPREHENSION SKILLS 17

to discover new vocabulary on their own. More personalised and perhaps

better retention would be the reward.

Split images
WHY? To help students evoke mental images.

HOW? Students, working with partners, are named partner A and partner
B. 'A' looks at a picture being held up by the teacher and describes
what they see to partner 'B'. On a signal, Bs look up as the teacher
holds a second picture and they describe what they see to partner
A. This continues until all illustrations for an unfamiliar story have
been shown. After seeing the illustrations, partners predict what
the story is going to be about. Predictions are presented to the class
by partners, the story could be told as a prediction circle story, or
a variety of activities could take place. Then the partners are given
the story as the author wrote it to read together.

Example of stories:

The teacher could start with a familiar story (e.g. a fairytale (Cinderella), a
legend, (Big Foot) and could gradually move to a story the students are not
familiar with, therefore using base knowledge to extend their use of
questioning and descriptive language. In this activity, students would have
the opportunity to ask questions or describe events simply by using a
picture as a reference. Piecing together orally given information will
stimulate a higher level of thinking, sequencing, the use of specific clues,
and promote good listening skills.

My secret identity
WHY? To practise the interrogative form of 'Am I... ?'. To promote the
development of deductive reasoning/ thinking.

HOW? (1) Prepare adhesive labels (file folder labels) with the names of
famous people from different backgrounds (authors, musi-
cians, politicians, actors, singers, athletes, etc.).
(2) Each student has an adhesive label attached to his back so as
not to see who h e / s h e is representing.
(3) Form groups of four to six students.
(4) In each group, each student has the chance to ask questions
(to discover his identity) after having identified himself to the
rest of the group. The student then asks questions to that end.
18 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Example: Est-ce que je suis un homme? (Am I a man?)

Est-ce que je suis une femme? (Am I a woman?)
Est-ce que je suis canadien? (Am I a Canadian?)
Est-ce que je suis vivant... mort... jeune... vieux, etc.
(Am I living?... dead?... young?... old?... etc.).

(5) This process continues until all the members of the group
have discovered their secret identity.

Crystal ball

WHY? To predict the outcome of a story before reading it.

To expand upon students vocabulary through the use of key

words.

To allow students to make inferences.

HOW? (1) Choose 20 words found in a story to be read later.

(2) Divide students into groups of four.
(3) Each group receives the list of 20 words and must create a
story incorporating the selected words along with additional
words.
(4) Each team then shares their version of the story to the class.
(5) Read the actual story and see what group came closest to
predicting the true outcome of the story.

The teacher could begin this activity with a story that is familiar to the
students (as a practice exercise) and then move on to an unfamiliar story as
the students better understand the activity.

For example:
slipper mice dress lose
god-mother poor a ball run
step-mother beautiful midnight love
prince sisters work handsone
chariot girl evil

Answer: Cinderella
(Brownlie et al, 1992).
INCREASING COMPREHENSION SKILLS 19

Brainstorm and classification

WHY? To increase students' vocabulary in certain theme areas (e.g. sports,
clothing, food, transportation, etc.).
To promote cooperative learning groups and decision-making.

HOW? (1) Brainstorm with the whole class to bring out vocabulary from
the specific theme (example: name all the sports you can think
of in the target language).
(2) List all student responses on the blackboard.
(3) Students are then paired and receive a chart on which they
must classify the vocabulary in specific categories (example:
team sports, individual sports, winter sports, indoor sports,
etc.).
(4) At the end of the exercise, each pair must invent two new
categories that have not been included on the original chart
(example: sports played with a ball, sports using rackets,
violent sports, sports requiring special equipment, etc.).

Story pyramid
WHY? To provide students with a framework in order to identify
principal characters, situations, problems, main events and solu-
tions to a story.

To help students better express their ideas using a limited number

of words.
To improve listening skills using the key elements of a story.

HOW? (1) After reading a story to the students, they summarise the
events of the story using the following clues.
1st line: the name of the main character.
2nd line: two words that describe the main character.
3rd line: three words that describe the location of the story.
4th line: four words that explain the problem.
5th line: five words that describe the first important event in
the story.
6th line: six words that describe a second important event.
7th line: seven words that describe a third important event.
8th line: eight words that describe the solution or the outcome
of the story.
20 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Example:

3.

4.

6.

7.
8.

Guided visualisation
WHY? To stimulate students' imagination prior to completing a writing
activity.
To exercise students' listening skills.

HOW? (1) Students close their eyes and concentrate.

(2) The teacher reads a text or asks questions that will permit
students to visualise images (special places, people, things,
etc).
(3) The students note what they see as the teacher reads the text
or asks the questions after setting the stage for the visualisa-
tion. For example, Que vois-tu? Qui est la? Que font-ils? Que
fais-tu?
(4) Students could also illustrate what they imagined and then,
depending on language ability, they could share the images
they saw during the visualisation exercise within small
groups or with the class as a whole.
The chosen text in this case would have to reflect the knowledge
(i.e. vocabulary, structures, etc.) already introduced to the stu-
dents. It would act as a reinforcement of new material and would
also help students to piece together the newly acquired vocabulary
in a new setting and under new circumstances, thus having them
discover meaning.
INCREASING COMPREHENSION SKILLS 21

The overall goal has been and continues to be that of helping students
learn how to ask questions, seek answers or solutions to satisfy their
curiosity, and to build their own theories and ideas about the world.
Getting students to think, solve problems, and discover things for
themselves are not new goals in education. However, we have to emphasise
the importance of discovery learning and how teachers can help learners
become 'constructionists' or builders of their own knowledge.

Appendix 2.1

Écoutez la musique...
(1) Est-ce que c'est de la musique?
(Is this music?)

rap

FOLKLORIQUE rock'n roll

Instrumentale
classique

(2) Est-ce que la personne qui chante est un7e...

(Is the person who is singing a...)

français (French person)

Québécois (Québecker)

homme (man) anglophone

femme (woman)
22 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(3) Je comprends ces mots...

(I understand these words... )

(4) Il s'agit de...

(This is... )

Appendix 2.2

LKS GHOSHS Q U E J ' A I M E ET Q U E JE N ' A I M E PAS

J'aime écouter... Je n'aime pas écouter...

(I like to listen to... ) (I do not like to listen to... )

J'aime faire... Je n'aime pas faire...

(I like to d o . . . ) (I do not like to do... )

J'aime manger... Je n'aime pas m a n g e r . . .

(Iliketoeat... ) (I do not like to eat... )

J'aime regarder... Je n'aime pas regarder...

(I like to watch..) (I do not like to watch... )

J'aime sentir... Je n'aime pas sentir...

(I like to smell... ) (I do not like to smell... )

References
Bellanca, J. and Fogarty, R. (1986) Catch them Thinking. Illinois: Skylight.
— (1990) Blueprints for Thinking in the Cooperative Classroom. Illinois: Skylight.
Bellavance, R. (1991) L'enseignant face à l'erreur. Le journal de l'immersion, 15 (1),
29-33.
Besse, H. (1987) Enseigner la compétence de communication? In P. Calvé and A.
Mollica (eds) Le Français langue seconde: des principes à la pratique (pp. 173-82).
Welland: La Revue canadienne des langues vivantes.
Brownlie, F., Close, S. and Wingren, L. (1988) Reaching for Higher Thought: Reading,
Writing, Thinking Strategies. Edmonton, Alberta: Arnold Publishing.
— (1989) Tomorrow's Classroom Today: Strategies for Creating Active Readers, Writers
and Thinkers. Markham, Ontario: Pembroke Publishers.
INCREASING COMPREHENSION SKILLS 23

— (1992) Beyond Chalk and Talk: Collaborative Strategies for the Middle to High School
Years. Markham, Ontario: Pembroke Publishers.
Calve, P. (1987) Les programmes de base: des principes à la réalité. In P. Calvé and
A. Mollica (eds) Le Français langue seconde: des principes à la pratique (pp. 16-32).
Weiland, Ontario: La Revue canadienne des langues vivantes.
Holdaway, D. (1984) Stability and Change in Literacy Learning. Portsmouth, NH:
Heinemann.
Johnson, D.W. (1990) Cooperation in the Classroom. Edina, MN: Interaction Book
Company.
Ministry of Education (Curriculum Development Branch) (1991) Decision-making in
Literature: Enhancing and Evaluating Oral Communication in the Primary Grades.
Victoria, BC.
— (Curriculum Development Branch) (1991) Learning Through Reading: Teaching
Strategies Resource Book. Victoria, BC.
— (Curriculum Development Branch) (1991) Programme du primaire: document de
base. Victoria, BC.
Rowe, M.B. (1986) Wait time: Slowing down may be a way of speeding up. Journal
of Teacher Education 37,43-50.
Stern, H.H. (1987) Les programmes de français de base au Canada: comment les
améliorer? In P. Calvé and A. Mollica (eds) Le Français langue seconde: des principes
la pratique (pp. 1-15). Welland, Ontario: La Revue canadienne des langues
vivantes.
Stevens, R. (1912) The question as a measure of efficiency in instruction: A critical
study of classroom practice. In Teachers College Contributions to Education 48. NY:
Teachers College Press.
Stipek, D.J. (1988) Motivation to Learn: From Theory to Practice. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice-Hall.
Tompkins, G.E. and Hoskisson, K. (1991) Language Arts: Content and Teaching
Strategies. NY: Merrill.
Tremblay, R., Painchaud, G., Leblanc, R. and Comeau, M. (1989) Se lancer en affaires
avec un jeu. Winnipeg, Manitoba: Association canadienne des professeurs de
langue seconde.
Weiss, F. (1987) Types de communication et activités communicatives en classe. In
P. Calvé and A. Mollica (eds). Le Français langue seconde: des principes à la pratique
(pp. 190-7). Welland, Ontario: La Revue canadienne des langues vivantes.
Widdowson, H.G. (1978) Teaching Language as Communication. London: Oxford
University Press.
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (1991) Strategic Learning in the Content
Areas. Wisconsin.
3 Teaching the Receptive
Skills at the Basic Level
GISÈLE PAINCHAUD and RAYMOND LEBLANC

Receptive skills, long thought to be an offshoot of production, are now

being recognised as an integral part of any language te aching/learning
approach. But while this long-overdue recognition is happening, a
number of questions remain as to the teachability of these skills. This
chapter first examines the theoretical foundations of receptive skills
teaching/learning. Then, drawing on seven years of receptive skills
teaching at the University of Ottawa, the authors show how, given a
definite set of performance objectives, these can be attained in the
classroom through the proper teaching strategy.
Communication through language implies the successful transmission of
a spoken or written message. For this transmission to occur, a minimum of
two basic conditions must be met: (1) senders must be able to encode their
message in such a way that it says what they want it to say; and (2) receivers
must be able to decode it. There are thus two obvious sets of skills needed
for communication to be successful: the productive skills (encoding) and
the receptive skills (decoding). The complementarity of these two skills is
but common sense and is accepted by all. However, when it comes to
teaching them, things do not seem to be so clear.
In fact, second language teaching lore says that the receptive skills, while
essential to communication, can be acquired through the teaching of the
productive skills. This is certainly true in the writings of highly celebrated
authors:
It seems important to recognize the fact that one's mastery of any
language - even of one's own native language - is always on two major
levels, production and recognition. [... ] This recognition of the difference
between the production and the receptive controls of language does
not imply a mechanical separation of the materials into 'practices' for
producing for the sake of production only and 'practices' in recognition
for the sake of receiving only. As a matter of fact practice in production
is one of the best means of developing recognition. (Fries, 1945:8 - our italics)
24
RECEPTIVE SKILLS TEACHING 25

It is also true in the practice of language teaching as illustrated by

materials in use in the second or foreign language classrooms to this day
where the accent is squarely put on production from the very start and
where only lip service (pardon the pun!) is paid to the receptive skills.
But with the emphasis now put on communication (as opposed to form),
the shortcomings of the traditional production-based approach are becom-
ing more and more apparent and the need for a broader approach to
language teaching that will take into account at least the main components
of communication is obvious. An important aspect of this broader
approach must be the development of the learner's receptive skills. In the
following pages, we would first like to discuss the basis for the inclusion
of the receptive skills in the curriculum, then, after presenting the types of
performance objectives that can be reached by learners at the basic level,
show how these can be achieved through the use of ad hoc strategies.

The Receptive Skills in the Curriculum

Although language teaching through some form of comprehension-
based approach is very recent in terms of the history of language teaching,
it has already produced a significant number of movements. These include,
among others, the Total Physical Response approach, the immersion
programmes, the Natural Approach and the content-based courses.
During the 1960s, two highly significant receptive-skill oriented ap-
proaches were introduced. In the early part of the decade, a systematic
comprehension-based approach was first advocated by Asher (1965,1969,
1977). He named his approach the Total Physical Response (TPR). In this
approach, students are asked to show their understanding of sets of
directions by actually performing them. In other words, students listen and
react, as would happen in the normal use of the language. These directions
can range from simple orders in the imperative to much more complex
directions, involving conditions, for instance. Although limited in scope to
concrete language, TPR has had and continues to have a large following,
especially for beginner level language teaching.
At about the same time, in 1965, the first immersion programme was
being set up in St. Lambert, in the Province of Quebec (Lambert & Tucker,
1972). Stern (1984) describes immersion as a programme of studies where
subject matters (mathematics, history, arts, physical education, etc.) are
taught in the second language. The objective is to promote the acquisition
of the target language through other disciplines as opposed to the regular
second language course. It is then a situation where students are asked to
listen (and read, later on) and are expected to perform on that basis.
26 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Immersion programmes, for all their flaws, have been an enormous success
and have clearly shown that learning of both subject matter content and of
the target language does occur through such an approach (LeBlanc, 1992).
In the 1970s, Postovsky (1972,1974), Winitz and Reeds (1973), and Nord
(1978) showed by their research results that significant gains could be made
in the actual learning of a second or foreign language by delaying the
introduction of the production component of that language.
It is, however, from the 1980s on that research and practice in the
teaching of the receptive skills came to the fore. The impulse given by
Krashen's (1982, 1985) Input Hypothesis, Long's (1983, 1985) Interactional
Hypothesis as well as Smith's (1982) work on reading, led to a number of
significant contributions to this new field. Byrnes (1984), Faerch and Kasper
(1986), and Morley (1984) on the role of listening comprehension in second
language learning; Oxford (1985, 1990) and O'Malley et al. (1989) on the
place of strategies; Brown (1977,1986) and Kramsch (1992) on the influence
of context; Carrell (1983,1984) on schema, together with other contributions
such as Chaudron (1985), Ellis (1985,1992), Richards (1983) and Courchene
et al. (1992), to name but a few, gave this aspect of second language teaching
the needed foundations on which to build.
As is normal, the practice of receptive skills teaching took some time to
catch on. Of note, however, are the early contributions of Krashen and
Terrell (1983), The Natural Approach, developed taking into account
Krashen's views on language acquisition noted earlier, as well as the
Content-Based Approach where students are taught the target subject
matter in their second language and receive coaching from a language
teacher to help them with whatever difficulties they might encounter
(Edwards et al, 1984, Hauptman et al, 1989).
One of the most extensive applications of the receptive skills approach
is that currently in use at the University of Ottawa. Because this university
is bilingual, all its students must meet some form of second language
requirement before graduation. In 1986, it was decided that the L2
requirements for the students of its two largest faculties would be defined
in terms of receptive skills only. This translates into some 1,500 students
taking comprehension-based courses from the beginning to the intermedi-
ate level. For details on this and the early approach used, see LeBlanc (1986).
Of course, this situation created conditions where expertise was needed at
both the conceptual and the application levels. Progressively, materials
were designed, classroom practices were tested and evaluation procedures
were developed, with the result that in 1990, an international symposium
was organised by the Second Language Institute of the University of
RECEPTIVE SKILLS TEACHING 27

Ottawa which brought together a number of specialists from Canada and

abroad and culminated with the publication of a major work on the topic
(Courchene et al, 1992). The next two sections of this chapter will draw
mostly from the experience in comprehension-based language teaching at
the University of Ottawa.

The Performance Objectives

Contrary to speaking, for instance, where the satisfactory production of
a target sound, word, sentence, or exchange will demonstrate some level
of learning and prove to the students' satisfaction that they are making
progress, the acquisition of the receptive skills is much less obvious and
clear performance objectives must be defined if students (and teacher) are
to be aware that they are indeed improving their second language ability.
The question then becomes: Can listening and reading be broken down into
teachable and learnable units or are these two skills essentially global in
nature? To answer, one must examine some of the characteristics of these
skills.

Four categories of objectives

Understanding a spoken or a written message first requires a certain
level of linguistic ability. In fact, the more sophisticated the intended level
of understanding, the better the knowledge of the linguistic code must
become (Painchaud, 1990). This implies, not surprisingly, language objec-
tives. It must be remembered, however, that the basic unit of communica-
tion goes well beyond the sentence level and that language objectives must
include some level of mastery of discourse as well as the more traditional
sound, grammar and vocabulary.
But the ability to understand a spoken or a written text implies more
than some level of linguistic competence. In any communication attempt,
the speaker/writer and the listener/reader are deemed to share a certain
level of common knowledge, practices, beliefs, values, and so on, which
underlie the message and are essential to its correct interpretation. The
speaker/writer obviously shares part of the responsibility for this but a
similar contribution is expected from the listener/reader. This implies
some level of cultural knowledge and experience (LeBlanc et al, 1990) and
must also be part of the objectives of any comprehension-based course.
Research on the competent listener/reader has also shown the impor-
tance of being able to use general knowledge on language and culture as
well as appropriate strategies when trying to understand a text. It stands
to reason that students lacking in communicative competence and attempt-
28 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

ing to deal with complex situations will gain by using everything at their
disposal to help them perform the task at hand. This is what Hébert (1990)
calls 'general language education' and it should be part of any set of
objectives in comprehension.
It must be remembered, though, that these three sets of objectives
(language, culture, and general language education), important as they are,
will not by themselves be sufficient to render language learners able to use
their receptive skills communicatively. Learning to communicate requires
both the relevant knowledge and practice in communication. It is thus
fundamental that the language curriculum contain objectives of a commu-
nicative nature. Tremblay et al. (1990) and LeBlanc (1990) believe that these
objectives should be experiential in nature, that is, they should make use
of students' life experiences as the contexts in which to set meaningful
communicative efforts.

Some performance objectives

A general objective for a basic level comprehension-based course could be

as follows:

Students will be able to understand relevant spoken and written texts

at the level of the identification of the topic and of factual contents and
to formulate simple hypotheses based on these contents.

The level of comprehension chosen for these students is in line with the
mental processes progression as established by Courchene (1992) where he
shows it to increase in complexity as follows: Recognition and recall —»
Inferring equivalences —» Evaluative synthetic reasoning —> Judgemental,
critical thinking (p. 106).

To demonstrate that they have reached this general objective, students

must show an acceptable level of ability in a set of 'performance objectives'.
Because this is written without a specific curriculum in mind, a large
number of performance objectives could be relevant for students working
on their receptive skills at the basic level; but choices have to be made for
this text to remain within the predetermined length parameters. The first
of such choices is to deal with reading, more specifically with under-
standing written instructions.

In accordance with our earlier discussion, reading performance objec-

tives must fall under four categories.
RECEPTIVE SKILLS TEACHING 29

(1) Communicative/experiential objectives

(a) Students will be able to act upon a set of instructions with precision.
(b) Students will be able to compare their new knowledge with their
previous experience in the area of the chosen text.
(2) Language objectives
(c) Students will be able to identify the markers of instructions written
in the imperative.
(d) Students will be able to identify temporal and conditional circum-
stances signalled by 'quand' (when) and 'si' (if).
(3) Culture objectives
(e) Students will be able to draw conclusions from a comparison of
instructions in L2 with instructions in LI in a similar context.
(f) Students will show they have learned cultural facts by using them
correctly in the chosen context.
(4) General language education objectives
(g) Students will use their LI knowledge in understanding an L2 text.
(h) Students will use their CI (cultural) knowledge in understanding
an L2 text.
(i) Students will use inference as a means to understanding an L2 text.

As should be obvious, other and more numerous performance objectives

could have been selected. These should prove useful, however, to illustrate
what can actually be done in the comprehension-based classroom.

Teaching the Receptive Skills

According to Tremblay et al. (1990), a communicative/experiential
activity should lead to a concrete observable end-product. For this
presentation, we have chosen to illustrate a situation where our university
students have heard about a new game on the market (for instance Le docte
rat) and are interested in playing it. The written text to be understood (to
which the teaching approach will be applied) is that of the rules of the game
and the observable end-product is being able to play the game according
to the rules (obj. a). And since, in this case, being able to play correctly
implies knowledge of culture related facts, these will be deemed known
when the end-product is reached (obj. f).
Authors agree that in oral or written text presentations, a three-step
sequence (Pre-activity, Activity, Post-activity) should be followed (Duplan-
tie and Massey 1984; LeBlanc 1986; Tremblay et al. 1990, among others). Let
us illustrate how this could be applied to our chosen situation.
30 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Pre-activity
Teachers should always prepare their students to hear or read a text. This
is because the comprehension of a text is strongly linked to the hypotheses
the listener/reader makes about it. It should be obvious that to understand
a text, one must have some relevant knowledge about its content. This
knowledge is presumed by the speaker/writer in the case of LI. Such
cannot be the case where the L2 students are concerned. The pre-activity
step is aimed at closing the gaps that might exist among students and at
establishing the context of the text.
The pre-activity should include the contextualisation of the text. In our
example, this could lead to questions such as: Are you familiar with games?
Have you played any? Which ones have you heard about? What is your
favourite game? Why? Beginning students will obviously have to answer
such questions in their LI. This is totally acceptable since the aim of the
exercise is to establish context. It also shows students the relevance of the
topic for them (general obj.).
The second phase of the pre-activity should be the anticipation of content
and form (obj. i). Again LI will be used and again this is correct. For the
students' contribution to be built upon later on, the teacher should note
them on the board using only the target language. This ensures input from
students and a first contact with the possible lexicon and phrases of the
day's topic.

Activity
With students now at ease with the topic, it is time to go to the activity
proper. There are many different ways to do this. One of them could be as
follows. At first reading, students are asked to underline the words they
think they recognise. At first, students are not very good at this but once
they understand that what is expected of them is that they use their LI
knowledge, they become very good at using this strategy (obj. g). Of course
this will lead to some errors (the French preposition 'car' mistaken for the
English noun 'car') but these mistakes can be used to do some remedial
work if warranted and, by and large, the strategy is much more often useful
than harmful. Once the underlined words have been shared, students can
be asked to try to guess the meaning of the word next to the underlined
one. Because words tend to appear in pre-set clusters in all languages, this
can lead to the discovery of some of the L2 phrases on the topic (obj. g).
Students can then be asked to read the text a second time, paying
attention to its structure (general aim of the game, what is needed to play,
RECEPTIVE SKILLS TEACHING 31

how to begin, what happens if... , what happens when... , how to keep
score, how to determine a winner, etc.). These are facts that can be found
in the text (general obj.) and, in this instance, students are likely to find that
their knowledge about LI games of the same type is proving very useful in
their understanding of the L2 text (obj. h).
Armed with their new lexical and organisational knowledge and with
the realisation that their LI knowledge can be most useful, students should
be ready for a last pass at the text. This time, they will be asked to make
educated guesses at those passages that remain obscure (What would be
the logical thing to appear now? What would you have written now?)
(obj. i).

Post-activity
The post-activity phase is where teacher and students reflect on what
has been happening so far and where students are given the opportunity
to hone the abilities put to the fore through the text. First, the teacher should
make use of the hypotheses on content and form made by students in the
pre-activity phase. This will add value to the pre-activity as students will
have an opportunity to compare their expectations with the actual text
content. It will also allow them to see what part of their previous
experiences helped them and what new knowledge on game rules they
have acquired through working on this text (obj. b).
The teacher could then lead a discussion where the rules of the L2 game
are compared with those of a selection of LI games. Is the format the same?
Are rules couched in the same terms? If there are significant differences,
why is it so? It may happen that there is no difference in the way things are
organised in both cultures; the opposite will also happen. In either case,
however, the objective of reflecting on the ways of the other culture remains
a valid one (obj. e).
The post-activity phase is also the one where linguistic knowledge and
ability are most likely to be featured. For instance, in the rules of the game,
students will have come across directions given in the imperative.
Assuming that this is part of the programme, it would be a most opportune
time to show students how this type of instruction is constructed (no
subject, imperative morphemes) and to have exercises on this aspect of the
language (obj. c). Same thing, mutatis mutandis, for the conditional and the
temporal circumstances (obj. d). Of course, a number of other linguistic
aspects might have been chosen. There should be one guiding principle in
that respect: the quantity of linguistic content that can be isolated from a
text for systematic study must be directly proportional to the importance
32 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

of this content for the proper understanding of the text. The only
communicatively motivated grammar is the one that is essential (or very
useful) to the understanding of the text. The rest becomes grammar for
grammar's sake and we should know by now that this is not the approach
to use in a communicative setting.
The last step of the post-activity will be the observable output: in our
case, actually playing the game. This will allow teachers and students alike
to see what was clearly, less clearly and not at all understood (obj. a; obj. f)
and can serve as a last chance to formulate hypotheses as to the functioning
of the game, a portion of the general objective.

Conclusion
Throughout the chapter, we have tried to show that receptive skills
constitute a valid object of instruction and that they can be taught. Because
of space limitations, a context had to be created and performance objectives
adjusted to it to illustrate how objectives can be transformed into classroom
activities. This situation is not altogether so different from the real one in
the classroom where students are asked to vote on a selection of texts that
will constitute the course content. The teacher then decides what parts of
the programme will be covered with each text, making sure that all
decisions are communication-based. This is the only way to communicative
language teaching.

References
Asher, J.J. (1965) The strategy of the total physical response: An application to
learning Russian. The Modern Language Journal 3, 44.
— (1969). The total physical response approach to second language learning. The
Modern Language Journal 53.
— (1977) Learning Another Language Through Actions. Los Gatos, CA: Sky Oaks
Productions.
Brown, G. (1977) Listening to Spoken English. London: Longman.
— (1986) Investigating listening comprehension in context. Applied Linguistics
7,3.
Byrnes, H. (1984) The role of listening comprehension: A theoretical basis. Foreign
Language Annals 1 7 , 4 .
Carrell, P.L. (1983) Three components of background knowledge in reading
comprehension. Language Learning 33.
— (1984) Evidence of a formal schema in second language comprehension. Language
Learning 34.
Chaudron, C. (1985) Comprehension, comprehensibility, and learning in the second
language classroom. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 7.
Courchene, R. (1992) A comprehension-based approach to curriculum design. In R.
Courchene, J.I. Glidden, J. St John and C. Therien Comprehension-based Second
RECEPTIVE SKILLS TEACHING 33

Language Teaching/L'enseignement des langues secondes axé sur la compréhension.

Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press.
Courchêne, R., Glidden, J.I., St. John, J. and Thérien, C. (1992) Comprehension-based
Second Language Teaching/L'enseignement des langues secondes axé sur la compréhen-
sion. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press.
Duplantie, M. and Massey, M. (1984) Proposition pour une pédagogie de l'écoute
des documents authentiques oraux en classe de langue seconde. Études de
linguistique appliquée 56.
Edwards, H., Wesche, M., Krashen, S., Clément, R. and Krudenier, B. (1984) Second
language acquisition through subject-matter learning: A study of sheltered
psychology classes at the University of Ottawa. Canadian Modern Language
Review 41.
Ellis, R. (1985) Understanding Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford Univer-
sity Press.
— (1992) Comprehension and the acquisition of grammatical knowledge in a
second language. In R. Courchêne, J.I. Glidden, J. St. John and C. Thérien (eds)
Comprehension-based Second Language Teaching/L'enseignement des langues secondes
axé sur la compréhension. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press.
Faerch, C. and Kasper, G. (1986) The role of comprehension in second language
learning. Applied Linguistics 7.
Fries, C. C. (1945) Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language. Ann Arbor:
University of Michigan Press.
Hauptman, P., Wesche, M. and Ready, D. (1989) Second language acquisition
through subject-matter learning: A follow-up study at the University of Ottawa.
Language Learning 38.
Hébert, Y. (1990) Étude nationale sur les programmes de français de base: Le syllabus
formation langagière générale. Winnipeg: CASLT & M Éditeur.
Kramsch, C. (1992) Contextes de compréhension. In R. Courchêne, J.I. Glidden, J.
St John and C. Thérien (eds) Comprehension-based Second Language Teaching/L'en-
seignement des langues secondes axé sur la compréhension. Ottawa: University of
Ottawa Press.
Krashen, S.D. (1982) Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. New York:
Prentice-Hall.
— (1985) The Input Hypothesis. New York: Longman.
Krashen, S. and Terrell, T. (1983) The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in the
Classroom. Hayward, CA: Alemany Press.
Lambert, W. and Tucker, R. (1972) Bilingual Education of Children: The St Lambert
Experiment. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
LeBlanc, C., Courtel, C. and Trescases, P. (1990) Étude nationale sur les programmes
de français de base: Le syllabus Culture. Winnipeg: CASLT & M Éditeur.
LeBlanc, R. (1986) L'Écoute dans l'enseignement des langues à des débutants. La
Revue canadienne des langues vivantes 42,3.
— (1990) Étude nationale sur les programmes de français de base - Rapport synthèse.
Winnipeg: ACPLS et M Éditeur.
— (1992) Les programmes d'immersion et l'habileté à communiquer. Études de
linguistique appliquée 88.
Long, M. (1983) Native speaker/non-native speaker conversation and the negotia-
tion of comprehensible input. Applied Linguistics 4.
34 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

—(1985) Input and second language acquisition theory. In S. Gass and C. Madden (eds)
Input in Second Language Acquisition. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Morley, J. (1984) Listening and Language Learning in ESL. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice-Hall.
Nord, J. (1978) Listening fluency before speaking: An alternative paradigm. Paper
presented at the 1978 World Congress of AILA, Montreal.
O'Malley, J.M., Chamot, A.U. and Kupper, L. (1989) Listening comprehension
strategies in second language acquisition. Applied Linguistics 10,4.
Oxford, R.L. (1985) A New Taxonomy of Second Language Learning Strategies.
Washington, DC: ERIC Clearinghouse.
— (1990) Language Learning Strategies. Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle Publishers.
Painchaud, G. (1990) Étude nationale sur les programmes de français de base: Le syllabus
Langue. Winnipeg: CASLT & M Éditeur.
Postovsky, V. (1972) The effects of teaching the receptive skills at the beginning of
second language learning. Paper presented at the 1972 World Congress of AILA,
Copenhagen.
— (1974) Effects of delay in oral practice at the beginning of second language
learning. Modern Language Journal 56.
Richards, J. (1983) Listening comprehension: Approach, design, procedure. TESOL
Quarterly 17,2.
Smith, F. (1982) Understanding Reading. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Stern, H.H. (1984) L'immersion: Une expérience singulière. Langue et Société 12.
Tremblay, R., Duplantie, M. and Huot, D. (1990) National Core French study - The
Communicative-experiential Syllabus. Winnipeg: ACPLS and M Éditeur.
Winitz, H. and Reeds, J.A. (1973) Rapid acquisition of foreign language (German)
by the avoidance of speaking. IRAL 11,4.
4 Developing
Comprehension and
Interaction Skills with
Idiomatic Expressions
GEORGES DUQUETTE

This chapter proposes that idioms, culturally rooted and chunked as

they are into units of speech, are useful in developing communicative
competence. It proposes that communicative competence requires
background context and cultural information so that skills are
properly used. It also shows that idiomatic expressions are more likely
to help students integrate functional speech because it taps more into
that information than randomly selected words. The author presents
a number of idioms which are grouped according to 10 different
contexts in which the expressions may be used.

Introduction
Developing oral proficiency and literacy skills requires more than
simply being able to speak and write. According to Edwards (1991), literacy
means to understand the context and culture of the target language and to
respond appropriately to its expectations.
This involves a lot of comprehensible input because comprehension
precedes production and performance output is not greater than the input
comprehension skills developed (Krashen and Terrell, 1983). A language
needs to be first understood in the target context and culture in which it
will be used. Without these context cues and cultural norms, sensory input
for acquisition purposes may be insufficient.
Just as sensory input is necessary to cognition (Solso, 1988), contact with
the real world is essential to the acquisition of socio-cultural skills
(Fishman, 1989). Schools should focus more upon skills which are
experienced in context and acquired in the real world, making sure also
35
36 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

that any skill acquired in school is also transferable and transferred to the
real world (Steinacker & Bell, 1979). Some studies have shown that
communicative strategies which take into account background information
(advanced organisers) are helpful to the acquisition of skills (Herron, 1994).
The purpose of this chapter is to help students recognise real situations
where they will be called upon to use idiomatic expressions and to use these
expressions appropriately. This will involve taking into account back-
ground information which may be relevant in defining a strategy.
Since experiences may vary from one student to another, the emphasis
will be on student strategies, not specific tactics (Seliger, 1991). As a teacher,
you may later wish to get students to add to their experiences by trying out
their strategies in different situations. The following are only model
expressions intended to 'jumpstart' your activities.

Theoretical Framework
How useful is the acquisition of idioms in helping students develop
communicative competence? Some studies reported that idioms are helpful
in developing communicative competence because:
(a) a positive relationship exists between idioms processed into long-term
memory and success on communicative tasks (Schuster-Webb, 1980);
(b) idioms have regularity, are functional, and they present a stratifica-
tional view of language (Strassler, 1982);
(c) idioms are more likely to be used with peers (Dickson, 1981).
The acquisition of idioms and other commonly used expressions give
self-confidence to the L2 student by letting them successfully use these
expressions with the target language group. Because cultural meaning may
vary from one group to another (Hall, 1973) and that meaning is already
built-into these expressions (Schuster-Webb, 1980), the L2 student gets the
impression of using a phase that has already been 'well-coined' (so to
speak) so as to enable him or her to be well understood.
Like a child acquiring a first language and who, at first, produces
expressions whose mean length of utterance may be of one or two words,
a L2 learner may use idioms by themselves to convey their affective,
semantic, and linguistic meanings in a way that is easy for them to master
and comprehensible to the target language group.
Afterwards, students may build upon or around idiomatic expressions.
For example, results of an experiment (Ervin-Tripp, 1974) showed that an
expression such as 'Get out of here' may, three months later, be integrated
IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS 37

into a series of expressions such as 'Let's go! Get out of here! Let's get out
of here'.
This paper rests on three principles of language acquisition which, in
turn, are supported by a number of studies.
(a) Fishman (1989) has shown that language comprehension and language
performance, to be meaningful, require context-defined cues and a
socio-cultural framework in which communication can take place.
(b) Krashen (1993) demonstrates the importance of providing 'compre-
hensible input' to increase comprehension and facilitate the acquisition
process.
(c) Giles and Coupland (1991) refer to integrative motivation or the
identification process with the outgroup (target language group) and
the ingroup (the student's home language group). Certain studies on
group identity suggest that target group integration, acceptance and
identification are important factors in developing communicative
competence (Duquette & Cleroux, 1993; Erikson, 1980; Trueba, 1991).

Ongoing exposure and practice in using idioms with members of the

target language group should help students increase their communicative
competence in the target language. Since a second language learner has
limited experience with the proposed new culture and language, he or she
is at a disadvantage in at least three respects:

(a) The target culture and language may be quite different from one's
previously acquired behaviour and language.
(b) Cultural experiences may be different in terms of perception, encoding,
storage, retrieval and production (Solso, 1989).
(c) Cognitive development usually parallels the development of the first
or most dominant language (Vygotsky, 1962).
In a sense, idioms seem to bridge this barrier because they are simple to
grasp, frequently used, semantically and culturally-loaded, and target-cul-
ture rooted. In fact, 'one way to discover the attitudes of a people is to
examine their idioms' (Chaika, 1982: 200).
Because a second language learner will tend to follow an ecclectic path
between the cognitive, cultural, or linguistic expectations of both groups
(Fantini, 1985) and to transfer language skills (Cummins, 1979) or develop
interlanguage skills (Selinker, 1991), he or she is more likely to synchronise
with the target group culture by using already well-defined expressions.
38 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Classroom Strategies
At the outset, directions and explanations may be given in the students'
first language in order to ensure that they understand well how the
activities will develop. It is important always to remember that compre-
hensible input precedes production (Krashen, 1993) and that student
comprehension must always be ensured.
However, once the students have acquired experience with these
activities, the basic directions should, individually, when the need occurs
and once comprehension has been ensured, be reiterated in the target
language.
In order to help students acquire frequently used idioms, it is necessary
first to identify the current habits of students, so an initial discussion on
their habits is encouraged. Then, the target culture contexts in which these
idioms many be used need to be presented. The best way is for teachers to
present a short film (preferably in the target language) on the target culture
group's habits. This sets the stage for possible behaviour adaptation or
modification which may be needed by the students in using the target
language.

The Activities
Teachers may divide the class into groups of two to four students and
have them prepare and act out simulations. Smaller groups are recom-
mended at first in order to keep the activity as simple as possible. Groups
may gradually be enlarged as students successfully interact and act out
these simulations.
Students should work with friends or someone with whom they feel
comfortable. Together, they are asked to prepare a simulation in which they
ask for something and are given a reply. The simulations should initially
be kept very simple to maintain a comfortable classroom atmosphere and
encourage student success. The length of the activity should be decided by
the group so that the rhythm is natural and their progress gradual to the
group. During this phase, the teacher acts as a resource person, helping
students along as required.
Below is a list of English idioms under selected situations. However, as
idioms are for the most part culturally defined and limited to the language
in which they are used, these specific examples will no doubt be helpful
only to teachers of English as a second language. Other second language
teachers should select their own idioms in terms of their appropriateness
in meeting student needs and potential for frequency of use, inviting
IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS 39

students to use them as tools of communication, alternating between

simulated classroom situations and real-life experiences.
Before introducing situations in which these idioms are used, teachers
are urged to do the following:
• Since we learn through our senses and comprehensible input begins
with sensory knowledge, expose your students to real-life experi-
ences. Present some form of sensory input to the class in the form of
a video, a guest speaker, a class visit to a supermarket or even a
reading selection (with pictures) to provide students with concrete
background world knowledge. This information will ensure that the
discussion about communication is not done only in a vacuum (or
abstract).
• Clarify with each group the objective of the exercise. For instance, are
students to obtain directions, purchase stamps at the post office, ask
a waitress for a cup of coffee, etc.?
• Elicit student strategies so they can decide how they will communi-
cate in order to reach their objectives.

List of Idioms
(1) mealtime
eat out, give a raincheck, go dutch, go to waste, have done with, head
out, highway robbery, hit the spot, on the town, paint the town red,
pick up the tab, throw a party, wet one's whistle.

(2) purchases and sales

buy out, cash in, double check, figure out, flat broke, for a song, get by,
in return, in the bag, in the black, in the red, on the sly, pay off, pick
out, run up a bill, sacred cow, save for a rainy day, save up, scrape and
save, set aside, under the counter.

(3) relationships
beat around the bush, blow one's own horn, butt in, bring up, flip flop,
forgive and forget, for the best, get across, get along, get a word in
edgewise, give the benefit of the doubt, in private, last word, give a
hard time, give ground, give in, lend an ear to, listen in, misty eyed, on
one's behalf, once over, out in left field, out in the cold, out of touch,
part company, pass over, pass the buck, patch up, pat on the back, perk
up, play down, slip of the tongue, shoot the breeze, spitting image, take
leave, take the cake, take the words out of one's mouth, take to heart,
talk turkey, twist one's arm.
40 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(4) dating
butt in or cut in, call up, carry a torch for, fall for, fond of, fooling
around, get the brushoff, give and take, good side of, go steady, go to
one's head, have an eye on, hit it off, let go, look for, looking forward
to, make up, miss out, on cloud nine, on the fence, on the rocks, one's
eye on, out of line, over with, play the field, put on hold, promise the
moon, sell short, skin deep, sleep on, slow down, spring chicken, spruce
up, sweep off one's feet, turn down, walk out.

(5) opposition or conflict

blow off steam, bone to pick, breathe down one's neck, bury the
hatchet, clear the air, face to face, face up to, flare up, forgive and forget,
frightened to death, get the jump on, get the last laugh, give a wide
berth, hang up, have had it, have the last word, in hot water, in one's
way, iron out, mean business, part company, pipe down, rock the boat,
sick and tired, smooth over, square off, stand up to, steer clear, stick to
one's guns, stir up a hornet's nest, strike out, stuck up, swinging one's
weight, take to task, take sides, talk back, through hell or high water,
throw one's weight around, throw up one's hands, up in arms, walk
out.

(6) facing and resolving difficulties

break through, bring to light, check it out, come to grips with, cry over
spilled milk, find out, get to the bottom of, get to the heart of, go to the
dogs, go to pieces, go through hell or high water, go off the deep end,
goose bumps or goose pimples, make head or tail, nothing to sneeze
at, on second thought, play it safe, rule out, seat of one's pants, skin of
one's teeth, soul searching, stick it out, take a turn for the worst, take
the wind out of one's sails, takes the cake, out on a limb, walk the floor.

(7) bedtime
bundle up, dead tired, forty winks, out like a light, shut eye, turn in.
(8) getting around
call upon, come over, dash off, drop in, get a move on, get around, get
hold of, get off, get to, go on, go over, in time, on time, know one's way
around, make it snappy, on the go, pick up, take leave, take time, travel
light.

(9) employment
at one's fingertips, bread and butter, brush up, by trial and error, call
down, call it a day, call it quits, catch up, come to grips with, fill out,
get ahead, get behind, get off the ground, get the jump on, have one's
hands full, hit the road, know one's way around, lead the way, nose to
IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS 41

the grindstone, on hand, on record, on the job, on track, out of order,

over one's head, pitch in, pound the pavement, start from scratch, steal
the show, stick it out, sweat of one's brow, take charge, take stock, to
the bone, walking papers, wear one's self out, with heart and soul,
working against the clock.

(10) the outdoors, sports and hobbies

bring up the rear, by a hair, by a long shot, by a mile, by inches, by leaps
and bounds, camp out, cut across, goof off, in shape, in season, jump
in, keep time, keep up, out of breath, out of shape, rough it, second
breath, shape up, sign up, take turns, take it easy, warm up, work off,
work out.

(11) others
come to light, down the drain, for crying out loud, get the picture, ghost
of a chance, in the clear, in the dark, lose sight of, neither hide nor hair,
no laughing matter, not at liberty to tell, on the cuff, on the other hand,
on the spur of the moment, on the whole, on top of the world, once in
a blue moon, play it by ear, safe and sound, scratch the surface, snap
out of, so and so, song and dance, straight from the horse's mouth, time
and again.

Follow up activities

While the following strategies may be practised in a classroom environ-

ment, the ultimate purpose is to have students try them out in 'real life'
context situations. A teacher is encouraged to have students do 'real life'
activities such as 'take the bus', 'make a shopping list and go shopping',
'call for directions', etc.
For writing purposes, teachers may also develop cloze tests or exercises.
This involves a list of sentences and each sentence contains a blank space.
The teacher lists the idioms at the bottom and the student chooses the idiom
that belongs in each sentence.

References
Boatner, M.T. (1966) A Dictionary of Idioms for the Deaf (1st edn). Washington:
Connecticut Printers.
Chaika, E. (1982) Language: The Social Mirror. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Cummins, J. (1979) Linguistic interdependence and the educational development
of bilingual children. Review of Educational Research 4 9 , 2 2 2 - 5 1 .
Dickson, W.P. (1981) Children's Oral Communication Skills. New York: Academic
Press.
42 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Duquette, G and Cléroux, C. (1993) Vivre en milieu minoritaire. In G. Duquette (ed.)

Méthodes et strategies pour l'enseignement au secondaire. Welland: Éditions Soleil.
Edwards, J. (1991) Literacy and education in contexts of cultural and linguistic
heterogeneity. The Canadian Modern Language Review/La Revue canadienne des
langues vivantes 47 (5), 933-49.
Erikson, E. (1980) Identity and the Life Cycle. New York: Norton.
Ervin-Tripp, (1974) Is second language learning like the first? TESOL Quarterly 8
(2), 111-28.
Fantini, A. (1985) Language Acquisition of a Bilingual Child: A Sociolinguistic
Perspective. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Fishman, J. (1989) Language and Ethnicity in Minority Sociolinguistic Perspectives.
Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Giles, H. and Coupland, N. (1991) Language, Contexts, and Consequences. Milton
Keynes: Open University Press.
Hall, E.T. (1973) The Silent Language. New York: Anchor Books.
Herron, C. (1994) An investigation of the effectiveness of using an advance
organiser to introduce video in the foreign English classroom. The Modern
Language Journal 78 (2), 190-8.
Krashen, S.D. (1993) The case for free voluntary reading. The Canadian Modern
Language Review 50 (1), 72-82.
Krashen, S.D. and Terrell, T. (1983) The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in the
Classroom. Oxford: Pergamon.
Seliger, H. (1991) Strategy and tactics in second language acquisition. In L. Malavé
and G. Duquette (eds) Language, Culture and Cognition: A Collection of Studies in
First and Second Language Acquisition. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Selinker, L. (1991) Along the way: Interlanguage systems in second language
acquisition. In L. Malavé and G. Duquette (eds) Language, Culture, and Cognition:
A Collection of Studies in First and Second Language Acquisition. Clevedon:
Multilingual Matters.
Schuster-Webb, K. (1980) A Study of Cognitive Processing Strategies for the Encoding
of English Idioms into Long-term Memory. Ann Arbor, MI: University Microfilms
International.
Solso, R.I. (1988) Cognitive Psychology. Toronto: Allyn & Bacon.
Steinacker, N.W. and Bell, M.R. (1979) The Experimental Taxonomy. New York:
Academic Press.
Strassler, J. (1982) Idioms in English. Germany: Gunter Narr Verlag Tubingen.
Trueba, H. (1991) Learning needs of minority children: Contributions of ethnogra-
phy to educational research. In L. Malavé and G. Duquette (eds) Language,
Culture, and Cognition: A Collection of Studies in First and Second Language
Acquisition. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Vygotsky, L.S. (1962) Thought and Language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
5 Strategies for Developing
Communicative
Competence with
Emphasis on
Comprehensible Input
JOAN NETTEN and JANETTE PLANCHAT-FERGUSON

This chapter addresses the problem of using a communicative approach

with beginning second language learners. Four major requirements for
successful instruction are discussed: the need to teach language form
in a functional context; the need to provide L2 input that is compre-
hensible to the student; the need to develop interaction in the classroom
which is as authentic as possible; and the need to engage students in
production of the target language. The importance of teaching strate-
gies which permit the negotiation of both meaning and form, and the
use of reference questions to make communication more realistic is
emphasised. The use of learning tasks which involve the student
intellectually as well as linguistically is recommended and examples
are given.

The objective of this chapter is primarily to assist teachers of students at the

early levels of second language instruction to conceptualise more clearly
their role as facilitators of communication. In particular, this chapter has as
its specific objectives to demonstrate the need of providing beginning
students with:
• comprehensible input in the form of short sentences, phrases, and
relatively simple language segments which are integrated into
activities of purposeful communication;
• situations/exchanges which are as authentic as possible, bringing
about a maximum of personal involvement in the communication
despite limited language resources; and
43
44 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

• opportunities to use the target language in social interactions which

allow the student choice in using a variety of simple linguistic forms
to convey a message in a particular situational context.
Second language acquisition theory gives support to the view that the
target language is best learned for communicative purposes by using it.
Research studies have indicated that learning a second or a foreign
language occurs in a remarkably similar fashion to that of first language
learning (Hawkins & Towell, 1992). The brain appears to be, to a certain
extent, 'programmed' to learn language. Linguistic features peculiar to the
way a language works are extrapolated while the learner is attending to the
message being conveyed. It must surely be obvious to any teacher that a
language is far too complex for all its aspects to be taught item by item. In
teaching a second or a foreign language, hereafter referred to as L2, we must
rely, at least in part, on the capacity of the mind to learn a certain amount
of what is called the grammar of the language while the learner is
intellectually involved in deciphering a message.
There is, however, a need to add to this process by assisting the learner
to observe characteristic features of the L2 more effectively, and to
recognise and correct errors. Such instruction makes the language
learning process more efficient, particularly for older learners (Doughty,
1991).
Based on these considerations, a distinction has been made between
language acquisition and language learning: acquisition tending to refer to
the learning of the language through use, which focuses on meaning; and
learning referring to the effects of instruction which focuses on the
linguistic code or form of L2 (Krashen & Terrell, 1983). Neither process on
its own, however, appears to be sufficient if the end result is to be the
development of both fluency and accuracy in the use of the L2. Indeed, in
natural language learning situations both learning and acquisition regu-
larly occur simultaneously (Germain, 1991: 50). To attempt to distinguish
between the two, particularly at the early stages of L2 instruction, may
create an artificial separation that impedes understanding the L2 acquisi-
tion process.

L2 Learning Tasks
Even at the very early stages of the development of target language
competence, it is necessary for students to participate in short conversa-
tional exchanges that are somewhat free in nature. At this stage, students
should be able to:
DEVELOPING COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE 45

• understand a brief message of no more than one or two short

sentences in length;
• reply to a question or a comment with a short sentence, phrase, or
appropriate word;
• request information by using a short question, comment, phrase, or
appropriate word;
• use appropriate socio-linguistic forms; and
• use appropriate idiomatic expressions, particularly those which are a
part of ordinary/regular oral exchanges.
The achievement of these goals demands the utilisation of short
messages and question/answer sequences which require a limited target
language repertoire, yet which can be used in a variety of communicative
activities. However, the learning tasks must leave the student with the
initiative to choose appropriate L2 items to reach a communication goal.
Choice of the language items to be used by the speaker is an essential
characteristic of real communication.

Principle 1: Situational Context

The situational context in which the L2 instruction occurs is important
for three reasons. It provides the communicative goals without which L2
learning is less likely to take place. Secondly, it provides the motivational
incentive within which the language acquisition process operates more
effectively. Thirdly, it provides a framework which aids the student's
comprehension of the message. Thus it provides the means by which the
student deciphers, consciously and unconsciously, how the language
works.
The teaching of grammar rules for L2, particularly when expressed in
the somewhat abstruse language of the linguist, has been shown to be of
limited usefulness to the student (Hagen & Dewitt, 1993). In the communi-
cative approach, the amount of formal grammar instruction is considerably
reduced. Language instruction focusing on form does not need to precede
communicative language use, but appears to be most effective if it occurs
within a functional/situational context (Day & Shapson, 1991) and is
integrated into interactive exchanges with the student which focus on
meaning (Lyster, 1994). In this view, formal language instruction encom-
passes any activity/interchange which has as its goal to heighten the
student's awareness of the phonological, morphological syntactic, and
lexical features of L2.
46 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Situation 1: Introduction/Name
Content organisation: Situational context - learning names.
Major strategies: Integration of formal language instruction in functional
context.
• Variety of simple comprehensible input.
Example: Language forms: Je m'appelle... (My name is... )
Tu t'appelles... (your name is... )
Il s'appelle... (his name is... )
Elle s'appelle... (her name is... )
Presentation
(1) Teacher introduces self: Je m'appelle Janette (My name is Janette).
(2) Teacher elicits other examples:
(a) Et toi? Quel est ton nom? (And you, what is your name?)
(b) Comment t'appelles-tu? (What do you call yourself?)
(c) Tu t'appelles? (You are called?)
(d) Veux-tu te présenter à la classe? (Would you present yourself to
the class?)
(3) Teacher extends examples by asking some students to identify other
students in the class.
(a) Et lui? Sais-tu comment il s'appelle? (And him, do you know what
he calls himself?)
(b) Tu la connais? Comment s'appelle-t-elle? (And her, do you know
what she calls herself?)

Principle 2: Comprehensible Input

The student should be provided with as much comprehensible input as
possible. Language is so intricate that it would be impossible to teach
formally, or analytically, all the knowledge necessary to use it fluently and
accurately. Therefore, it is necessary to expose the students to as much
target language as possible, thus permitting them to process language data
unconsciously, and consequently learn, so to speak, much more than can
be taught. Furthermore, the learner must be provided with authentic
language from which good data about L2 morphology and syntax can be
acquired.
While the link between comprehension and acquisition has not yet been
proven by research (Lightbown & Spada, 1993:28), the degree to which the
student can comprehend the message appears to affect the amount of
linguistic data which can be interpreted from the message at the same time.
This relationship creates a need for somewhat simplified messages, if the
DEVELOPING COMMUNICATIVE COMPETFNCE 47

process is to work effectively at the beginning stage of L2 instruction, since

each message contains large amounts of linguistic data for the student to
process while absorbing the message. The use of this strategy, sometimes
called 'caretaker language', is reported in the early stages of all language
learning. Research in French immersion classrooms has shown that L2
achievement is higher in classrooms where teachers acknowledged some
simplification of the L2 forms used (Netten, 1991). However, it has also been
established that simplification of the message is less important than
establishing comprehension through interaction with the learner. This
process, referred to as negotiating meaning, appears to be particularly
beneficial to the development of competence in L2 (Ellis, 1986).

Situation 2: Directions
Content organisation: Language function: Giving directions.
Major strategies: Comprehensible input and negotiation of meaning.
Example: Lexical item - tout droit.

(A) Preparation for activity

(1) Prepare a simplified map. Have an enlarged copy which may be

used for whole class activities, or a transparency. Have individual
copies available for small group activities.
(2) Have several items located on the maps; e.g. bank, drugstore, post
office, park, school, church, cinema.
(3) A list of phrases with arrows indicating the meaning can also be
distributed.
(4) Teacher uses these materials to locate items on the map, and have
students locate items.

(B) Presentation

T: Pour te rendre/aller à l'école, en quelle direction faut-il aller? À

droite ou à gauche?
S: Tout droit.
T: Tout droit? Si je marche tout droit, je me trouve à l'église.
Si: Droit?
s 2: A droite?
T: Il faut marcher à droite. Et pour aller de l'école au bureau de poste?
Si: A droite.
T: Cependant, pour aller de l'école à la banque?
Si&2: Tout droit.
48 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

The negotiation process can also be extended to L2 form as well as meaning

(See examples in Lyster, 1994). This strategy aids both comprehension and
the development of accuracy in L2.

Principle 3: Authentic Communication

Communication theorists have indicated that real communication
requires both choice of language on the part of the speaker and an
information gap. There must be some knowledge in the exchange that is
not already known to one of the participants. This means that there must
be real communicative intent for the interchange to be valuable as a L2
learning tool. Studies have shown how unauthentic L2 classroom language
tends to be (White & Lightbown, 1984). The use of questions by the teacher
to which the answer is not already known are helpful in creating authentic
communication in the classroom (Long & Sato, 1983). Germain et al. (1991)
provide many useful suggestions for making classroom communication
more authentic.

Situation 3: Personal likes/dislikes

Content organization: Thematic.
Major strategies: Use of referential questions, i.e. answer not known.
Conversational interaction.
Example: Qu'est-ce que tu aimes/détestes?
Presentation
T: Moi, j'aime le chocolat, mais je déteste les chien-chauds/hot dogs.
Et toi, Lucille? Qu'est-ce que tu aimes?
S: Le coke.
T: Moi aussi, mais je préfère le pepsi.
Henri, qu'aimes-tu?/qu'est-ce que tu aimes?
S: J'aime les hamburgers.
T: Et toi, Jean? Tu les aimes, aussi?
S: Non, Je les déteste.
In order for the language acquisition process, as it may be called, to
operate effectively, the student must be intellectually involved in the
communicative interchange. Marginal involvement appears to reduce
linguistic data processing. Intellectual involvement and participation with
communicative intent can probably best be achieved through the use of
content-oriented instruction. Thus, the solving of a mathematical problem,
participation in a simple scientific experiment, or determining a means of
caring for the environment are types of activities which enhance the
DEVELOPING COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE 49

development of L2. At the early stages of instruction, where these types of

activities are more difficult to implement because of the paucity of the L2
language repertoire, learning tasks with specific communicative goals,
such as the resolution of a problem rather than a general discussion (Duff,
1986) and those which provide each student with a specific task, particu-
larly that of providing information not available to others (Pica & Doughty,
1988) tend to contribute most effectively to the development of L2.

Situation 4: Introduction of students in class

Content organisation: Situational context - introductions; exchange of

personal information.
Major strategies: Language choice within limited resources.
Specific task assignment for each student.
Intellectual and personal involvement of students.

(A) Preparation for activity

(1) Teacher has used/taught the questions such as:

(a) Comment t'appelles-tu? / Quel est ton nom? / Et toi?
(b) Que comptes-tu faire comme carrière/profession/métier?
(c) Qu'est-ce que tu aimes/détestes?

(B) Presentation of activity

(1) Teacher introduces self: Je m'appelle Janette.

Je suis professeur.
J'aime le chocolat.
(2) Teacher elicits other examples by asking some students to intro-
duce selves. 'Veux-tu te présenter à la classe?' 'Et toi?'

(C) Activity

(1) Students choose a partner.

(2) Student A elicits profile of student B; Student B elicits profile of
Student A. (Notes may be taken. Guidelines may be placed on
board.)
(3) Students return to whole class situation. (Can sit in circle.)
(4) Student A introduces Student B and makes an incorrect statement.
Class must determine which statement is incorrect.
50 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(D) Teaching strategies

(1) Students are placed in a situation which is of some personal
interest, and in which each must use the L2 for a specific task.
(2) Some degree of intellectual involvement is required to listen to and
remember information about their partner or other classmates.
(3) Choice of questions and responses becomes available to the
students within a very limited language repertoire.

Principle 4: L2 Practice
Practice in L2 production is most effective if organised into small group
or other types of cooperative learning activities (Long & Porter, 1985; Wells,
1981,1985). Cognitive psychology suggests that social interaction acts as a
stimulant to learning. In addition, the use of these organisational forms
enhances the number of opportunities each student has to communicate
(Netten & Spain, 1989) and increases the possibilities for the negotiation of
meaning (Duff, 1986), therefore contributing substantially to L2 develop-
ment. The use of role-play and other forms of improvisational educational
drama can also be useful. Well-structured role-plays and dramatisations
enable students to participate in an imagined situation and use language
creatively.
At the beginning level, simple activities with a communicative intent
must be sufficiently structured to enable the student to convey a message
with an economy of words, since the vocabulary and other linguistic
resources of the student are limited at this point. Accordingly, learning
tasks need to be carefully planned in order to ensure that the students
possess all the linguistic data necessary to enable them to proceed
independently and effectively. However, the L2 learning tasks in which the
students participate should be so constructed as to leave the students choice
in the manner in which they respond to and reach the communicative goal.
In this way the students practise drawing on their language competencies
in order to communicate a message and, as a result are involved in learning
experiences which have some of the characteristics of authentic communi-
cation. The teacher should ensure that students learn more than one
appropriate form for the language functions being explored, giving
attention to socio-linguistic considerations whenever warranted. The
reliance on short, simple language forms also contributes to L2 accuracy,
and the comprehensibility of the output.

This early stage of L2 learning is the time to encourage students to draw

on all their resources, to take risks in the language, and to use communica-
tive strategies in order to bring the interchange to a satisfactory communi-
DEVELOPING COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE 51

cative end. As the student matures in language competence, communica-

tion strategies which reduce accuracy can gradually be refined (Lyster,
1994).

Situation 5: Où se trouve la banque?

Content organisation: Situational context/Language function - asking for
and giving directions.
Major strategies: Intellectual involvement of students in problem
solving.
Information gap - one student possesses
information needed by another student.
Negotiation of meaning between students.

(A) Activity

(1) Students are divided into pairs or small groups. Only half of the
students have maps.
(2) Student A asks directions to a particular place. Student B, who
possesses a map, provides a reply.
(3) Student A goes to another Student B and asks directions.
(4) The activity is repeated until each Student A has had several
occasions to request directions.
(5) Maps and roles are reversed, and the activity continues.

(B) Possible exchanges

La banque Royale, s.v.p. Tout droit, madame / à droite/à

(The Royal Bank, please.) gauche.
(Straight ahead, madam/to the
right/to the left.)
Où est la pharmacie? Là-bas, monsieur. Juste en face.
(Where is the drug store?) (Over there, sir. Straight ahead.)
Je cherche l'église. Je ne sais pas.
(I'm looking for the church.) (I don't know.)
Où se trouve l'école secon- Je m'excuse, mais je ne sais pas.
daire? (I'm sorry, but I don't know.)
(Where is the high school?)
52 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Est-ce qu'il y a un bureau de Je ne peux pas te le dire.

poste près d'ici? (I'm unable to tell you.)
(Is there a post office near
here?)

Je ne suis pas d'ici.

(I am not from here.)

(C) Extension of activity

(1) Students select a partner. One student possesses a list of places; the
other student possesses a copy of the map where the places are
located.

(2) Student A asks directions to various places. Student B replies.

(3) Students reverse roles and the activity continues.

(4) Students switch partners and continue the activity.

Note: A map of the local area, or a city the students might visit (e.g. Montreal) is
used.

Language production is also useful in developing the learners' aware-

ness of the language repertoire available to them, thus personalising the L2
learning process. Through involvement in interactive activities, the student
realises what s/he does not know and needs to know in order to cope in a
particular situation, contributing to motivating subsequent learning. In
addition, the use of the L2 in communicative situations demonstrates to the
students the adequacy of their knowledge of the linguistic code, enabling
them to benefit considerably more from formal language instruction.
Learning can thus become more self-directed and focused, and is, as a
consequence, more effective.

The learning of a language centres around the use of the language for
communicative purposes, and the gradual refinement of the communica-
tive tool to express in a more and more educated fashion concepts of
increasing intellectual sophistication. At the beginning, only the germ of
this ultimate goal is present, but the communicative intent of language
learning must be nurtured as it assists the student to understand both the
purpose and the means of L2 acquisition.
DEVELOPING COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE 53

References
Day, E. and Shapson, S. (1991) Integrating formal and functional approaches in
language teaching in French immersion: An experimental study. Language
Learning 41 (1), 25-58.
Doughty, C. (1991) Second language instruction does make a difference. Studies in
Second Language Acquisition 13,431-69.
Duff, P.A. (1986) Another look at interlanguage talk: Talking task to task. In R.R.
Day (ed.) Talking to Learn: Conversation in Second Language Acquisition. Rowley,
MA: Newbury House.
— (1988) Teaching English. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ellis, R. (1986) Understanding Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford Univer-
sity Press.
Germain, C. (1991) Le point sur l'approche communicative en didactique des langues.
Anjou (Québec): Centre éducatif et culturel, inc.
Germain, C., Hardy, M. and Pambianchi, G. (1991) Interaction enseignant(e)/élèves.
Anjou (Québec): Centre éducatif et culturel, inc.
Hagen, L.K. and Dewitt, J. (1993) Teaching French cleft constructions to English
speakers: What syntactic theory has to say. Canadian Modern Language Review 49
(3), 550-66.
Hawkins, R. and Towell, R. (1992) Second language acquisition research and the
second language acquisition of French. French Language Studies 2,97-121.
Krashen, S.D. and Terrell, T.D. (1983) The Natural Approach: Language Acquisition in
the Classroom. New York: Pergamon Press.
Lightbown, P.M. and Spada, N. (1993) How Languages are Learned. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Long, M.H. and Porter, P.A. (1985) Group work, interlanguage talk and second
language acquisition. TESOL Quarterly 19,207-28.
Long, M.H. and Sato, C.J. (1983) Classroom foreign talk discourse: Forms and
functions of teacher questions. In H.W. Seliger and M.H. Long (eds) Classroom
Oriented Research in Second Language Acquisition. Rowley, MA: Newbury
House.
Lyster, R. (1994) La negotiation de la forme: Stratégie analytique en classe
d'immersion. La Revue Canadiane des langues vivantes 50 (3), 1-20.
— (1990) The role of analytic language teaching in French immersion programs.
The Canadian Modern Language Review 47 (1), 101-17.
Netten, J. (1991) Towards a more language oriented second language classroom. In
L.M. Malavé and G. Duquette (eds) Language, Culture and Cognition (pp.
284-304). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Netten, J. and Spain, W.H. (1989) Student/teacher interaction patterns in the French
immersion classroom: Implications for levels of achievement in French language
proficiency. The Canadian Modern Language Review 45 (3), 485-501.
Pica, T. and Doughty, C. (1988) Variations in classroom interaction as a function of
participation pattern and task. In J. Fine (ed.) Second Language Discourse: A
Textbook of Current Research. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing. Cited in Germain
(1991).
Wells, G. (1981) Language as interaction: The study of language development. In
G. Wells (ed.) Learning through Interaction (pp. 22-72). Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
54 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

— (1985) Language and learning: An interactional perspective. In G. Wells and J.

Nicholls (eds) Language and Learning: An Interactional Perspective (pp. 21-39).
London: The Falmer Press.
White, J. and Lightbown, P.M. (1984) Asking and answering in ESL classes. The
Canadian Modern Language Review 40 (2), 228-44.
6 Integrating
Communication and
Social Skills Using
Ensemble Techniques
HANA SVAB and TED MILTENBERGER

During my early university years I decided to study Spanish and

Russian. Because I already had a solid background in both Romance
and Slavic languages, neither of these two languages seemed difficult
to me, and three years later I could be considered quite proficient at
communicating in both. When I entered the working world, my career
took me to such places as Switzerland and Morocco, where I 'picked
up' conversational Italian and broken Arabic respectively. Today,
however, I can no longer converse in either of the two languages I
learned at university, yet I can still function effectively in Italian and
easily recall key phrases in Arabic.
Hana Svab

Krashen (1982) would undoubtedly say that learning Spanish and Russian
in an artificial setting is quite different from acquiring Italian and Arabic in
its own environment. Though Krashen's Monitor Theory has come
under fire more than once, 'there is something important behind it'
(Spolsky, 1989: 47).
Clyne (1985) studied two groups of German-speaking students learning
English in a secondary school. Both groups were taught by the same
teacher. In programme A, the teacher used the communicative approach to
promote subconscious acquisition, and in programme B she used a more
traditional approach to promote conscious learning. Though Clyne's
findings may hardly come as a surprise to those who have successfully
implemented communicative strategies in their own classrooms, it is
nevertheless astonishing to see the extent to which the two groups differ in
their performance.
55
56 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

In terms of numerical results, students in programme A performed

better in every test (sound discrimination, listening comprehension,
speaking, cloze, dictation and grammar), and significantly better overall in
practically every skill (Clyne, 1985: 201).
A necessary ingredient in communicative teaching is the importance of
helping students to make connections between what they are asked to do
in class and what they already know. In his article, Nunan (1987) clearly
demonstrates the results of his study on this topic. He provides us with
actual transcripts that show different methods the language teacher used
to elicit responses from her students. In the first case, the questions required
a basic yes/no answer; in the second case, the questions were referential,
requiring the students to draw upon previously acquired knowledge, past
experience and cultural background. As could be expected, the students
that put forth the greatest effort and, therefore, met with the greatest
success, were those in the latter group, where communication held real
meaning for them.
Second language acquisition implies the use of the target language as a
medium and not as an object of instruction. In the interest of producing
students who command excellent communication skills, we must also
produce students who are competent in their social skills - one cannot
comfortably exist without the other. Furthermore, if we consider the fact
that the classroom is an apprenticeship for later authentic communication
(Breen, 1985:152), then we must ensure that all classroom communication
be as genuine as possible. Students must be given the opportunity to react
in the target language to situations that they would realistically encounter
in various social settings; the sole use of the target language is a crucial
factor, as research has proven over and over again that the process of
translation acts as an intervening variable in intercultural [and interper-
sonal] interaction (Banks & Banks, 1991:182).

The Ensemble Technique

The ensemble technique, adapted from the International Schools Theatre
Association's approach to building Theatre Ensembles, emphasises devel-
oping a group 'synergy' which creates work results stronger than those of
each member working at her or his best.
Because of their nature, ensemble techniques lend themselves perfectly
to the integration of communication and social skills, simply because that
is precisely what they are all about. Contrary to cooperative learning, there
are no individual winners and no concrete rewards; however, the group's
accomplishments, brought about through the students' combined efforts,
COMMUNICATION AND SOCIAL SKILLS 57

will most certainly make the experience worthwhile. As in the educational

theatre approach, ensemble work focuses on the student and on the
learning process rather than on the end product. Students are taught to
focus on themselves as they interact with and contribute to the group, to
learn to function in a given society by assessing and modifying their own
behaviour, and to take pride in the community they help to create. Also
fostered is an acute awareness of the environment and of others around
them. In a culturally diverse group of learners, ensemble techniques are
particularly useful, as they capitalise on the strengths of a rich assortment
of knowledge. Zich (1986: 2) explains the process:
A strong Ensemble is created by establishing an atmosphere in which
each individual is appreciated for her own merits. She is encouraged
to share creatively with others. She is both supported by, and supports,
others... [she] is an essential part of the production... there is
commitment on the part of all performers... the teacher role becomes
that of collaborator, not superior.
The remainder of this chapter will describe specific ensemble techniques
(which have been especially well received in L2 courses at the intermediate
level) and which teachers may like to try with their students. These
techniques are not necessarily meant to be followed to the letter, nor must
they always take place in the classroom. Any adaptations that individual
teachers choose to make for the activity to work for a particular need should
be tried.
The proposed activities generally increase in both length and complex-
ity, with the initial ones building social skills and the latter ones using them.
The order of activities can be shifted around to suit particular situations,
though teachers with a beginning group of students may find it more useful
to start with the simpler or shorter ones. No time limits are prescribed, as
the outcome of each activity depends completely on the number of students
participating, and on the particular characteristics of the group itself. The
teacher should try to offer a wide array of activities that emphasise several
different communication skills during each learning session.
Please note that the hints and activities which follow have been
borrowed in part from Zich (1986).

A few hints before we begin

(1) Do encourage students to try, but never force them to do anything they
do not want to do. Use students who sit out of exercises as those who
can offer input to others by observing what is being done.
58 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(2) Ensemble should be a positive learning experience - refrain from using

negative words such as 'but' or 'no'. Come with the belief that everyone
has something to offer to the group.
(3) Let mistakes happen. Students will not only learn from them but also
demonstrate to others the importance of doing or not doing something.
(4) Consider having students keep Dialogue Journals. These are similar to
diaries in that they are used by the students to record their feelings and
reactions to their experiences in the classroom. The teacher then collects
them at certain intervals, and offers the students informal, written
comments on their content.
(5) Consider asking the students to write a personal letter to you at the end
of the semester, in which they explain what they have learned from the
ensemble and how they have grown as a result.
(6) Consider negotiating with your administration to have the course
graded on a Pass/Fail basis with comments. This will help to alleviate
tension that could be detrimental to the success of your endeavours.
(7) Do warmup and warmdown exercises to excite or relax students as
needed.
(8) Provide a feeling of freedom and space, but always stay in control. Be
prepared but flexible. If an activity needs to be stopped, stop it. If a
student needs to calm down, allow him to step outside until he is ready
to continue.
(9) If you have an odd number of students for an exercise, do not just ask
someone to sit out and watch - ask him to be your helper or an observer,
and find something meaningful for him to do. Try to offer this
alternative to students who feel uncomfortable participating in certain
exercises, too.
(10) Be especially aware of peer pressure, and of cultural and religious
differences among students. Initially, it may be a wise tactic to have
students of the same culture or religion work together.
(11) Do allow students to offer suggestions during the activities.
(12) Do explain to students why they are doing something, but be careful
not to overkill.
(13) Feel free to use your own preferred follow-up methods (for example,
supplementary reading, creative writing, class discussion, etc.) to
provide definite closure at the end of each class.
(14) Do not underestimate the importance of silence and body language -
they are often more powerful than the spoken word.
COMMUNICATION AND SOCIAL SKILLS 59

Activities
(1) Introduction interviews
Each student pairs up with another student he does not know. The
students interview each other not only to ask about names, ages and
addresses, but also to leam about interests, favourite foods, interesting
experiences, etc. Each student then introduces his partner to the class,
including as much information about him as he can remember.
(2) Customised alphabet
The students sit in a circle on the floor. One student starts by naming
something that is important to him or his culture that begins with that
letter (for example, Arabic, acting, affection, etc.). The second person
must repeat what the first person said, and add on what is important
to him or his culture that begins with the letter B.
The activity continues as above, with each student repeating what the
others have already said. After four words, the activity must start
again.
(3) Something in common
The students sit on chairs in a circle, with one student standing in the
middle without a chair.
The student in the centre names something that some of the other
students may have in common (for example, your name begins with a
vowel, you are wearing red socks, you like bananas, etc.).
Those students that have that particular item in common must get up
and change seats, while the student in the centre also looks for a seat.
The student that is left without a seat is the next one in the centre.
(4) Ping-Pong
The students stand in pairs.
The teacher names a category that is rich in vocabulary (for example,
objects associated with Christmas, polite refusals, directions, etc.), and
the students in each group exchange words or phrases back and forth
that fit the given category.
When the pair can no longer continue, the students remain silent until
everyone else is also silent. The teacher suggests new categories as each
one is exhausted.
(5) Body language
The teacher prepares a box full of slips of paper with simple
instructions on them.
Each student draws a piece of paper from the box, and attemps to get
the other students to do what is written on it. The student must not
60 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

speak, nor may he explicitly exemplify the action himself. The students
then sit down and explain what they had been asked to do.
Examples
The students must take off their shoes and line them up in the hallway.
The students must pretend they are riding horses on a racetrack.
The students must recite three nursery rhymes as a chorus.

(6) Family photos

Groups of six to eight students stand up in front of the rest of the class
to pose for family photos.
The teacher chooses themes for the group to enact (for example, The
Loving Family, The Skinny Family, The Canadian Family, etc.). A
discussion regarding stereotyping is a good way to end this exercise.

(7) Group problem-solving

The students are asked to perform a series of actions that will require
the assistance of at least one other person in the group. Each student
must find a way to accomplish each task by eliciting help from the
others.
All of this is to be done with imaginary objects, and it is important
for the teacher or facilitator to see what is being mimed. The idea is to
build the exercise to the point of requiring the group to work together
in order to be successful.

Examples
Sew a button on an imaginary shirt, paying as much attention to detail
as possible.
Wrap up a large package without using tape or glue.
Hang clothes on a clothesline that does not string up across the whole
room.
Tie up a piano and attach it to a hook to transport it.
Move the rope to tie up an ocean liner from one corner of the room to
the dock at the other corner of the room.

To develop communicative competence once an activity has been

mimed, students develop conversations to accompany the activities.

(8) Add-ons
The students initially all sit as the audience.
One person stands up and begins to set a theme, either through mime
or conversation (for example, he may pretend to be at the circus, in a
supermarket, on an airplane, etc.).
As each of the other students comes to understand where the scene
COMMUNICATION AND SOCIAL SKILLS 61

is taking place, he joins in by interacting in some way with the other

student or students that are already on the scene. Each scene builds
until all students are included in some way in the action.

(9) Theme machine

All students are initially sitting down as part of the audience.
The teacher names a theme (for example, tourists, sports, Africa, etc.)
that the students must portray in the form of a machine. One person
begins a movement and sound (may be a word or phrase) that seems
typical to him of that particular theme. The next student finds some
way to link on to the first student with a complementary movement
and sound to further develop the given theme.
One by one, other students join in, to produce a machine of
continuous movement and sound.

(10) Gibberish commercials

The students work in groups of three to five.
Each group prepares a commercial for a new product, which is to be
presented to the class using gestures, gibberish and sounds only.
The rest of the students must then try to explain what the product is
and what its benefits are. To develop communicative competence, this
commercial is then re-enacted using words.

(11) Story board

Groups of five or six students get together to plan a story that could be
told in seven or eight still film frames.
One person in the group asks the other students in the class, the
audience, to close their eyes. While the audience's eyes are closed, the
story group gets into a still position for the viewing of its first frame.
The other students are then told to open their eyes to take in the
picture. When they are again told to close their eyes, the story group
moves into another still position for the viewing of its second frame.
The steps continue as above until the students in the audience have
viewed all the frames. The class is then asked to recount the story
verbally.

(12) Chairs
The students are all sitting down, facing a chair that is at the front of
the class.
The teacher calls out a character and a situation, and a student must
then walk up to and sit down on that chair in the role of that character
in that situation.
62 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Examples
You are an elderly person. That is your favourite rocking chair.
You are a member of the royal family. That is your throne.
You are an unruly child in a museum. That is a priceless antique.

(13) Facial expressions

The students take turns expressing various emotions through their
facial movements. The audience must try to describe how the perform-
ing student is feeling, and suggest a situation that may have caused
him to feel this way.

(14) Public/private face

Half of the class stands up to perform while the other half of the class
acts as the audience. The students standing up must turn their backs to
the audience.
The teacher gives the students emotionally charged situations they
must react to. The students turn around a first time to show how they
would react in public, then turn around a second time to show how
they would react in private.

Examples
You are at an important function and discover a terribly obvious stain
on the front of your outfit.
You called in sick to work to go out with someone you have been
wanting to date for a long time, and you unexpectedly meet your boss
at the theatre.
You are at the hospital and happen to run into a person you do not like
very much. She is in a wheelchair because she has broken her leg.

(15) Persuasion
The students pair up. The teacher gives the students directions as to
what each student must try to convince the other student to do (for
example, to give him a piece of gum, lend him some money, allow him
to smoke in a non-smoking area, etc.), and the students take turns
trying to coax each other into doing it. A variation is to give each
student a conflicting goal without telling the other student.

(16) Complaints and praise

The students stand in front of the class, one by one.
Each student must take his turn at complaining about something, and
then at talking very favourably about something. The complaints must
all be completely negative, and the comments completely positive.
COMMUNICATION AND SOCIAL SKILLS 63

(17) Find your partners

The teacher prepares a box full of pairs of descriptions of situations,
each written on a separate slip of paper.
Each student draws a slip of paper from the box and enacts the
described situation. The students continue to follow these instructions
as they try to find the person who seems to have the same instructions.
Once the students have found each other, they sit down and wait for
the others to finish.

Examples
You cannot hear well, but you do not want anyone to know.
You have just won a fortune in a lottery, but you are trying to keep it
a secret.
You have lost a very valuable necklace, so you do not want anyone to
notice that you are looking for it.

(18) Doors
Two or more students at a time are chosen or volunteer to perform for
the rest of the class. One student must be behind the classroom door
while the other student must open it each time the first person knocks.
Each time the student behind the door knocks and the door is opened
for him, he must pretend to be a different character. In response, the
second student takes on the role of another character that could
respond to the first.

Examples
A door-to-door salesman and a housewife.
A policeman and a teenager guilty of speeding.
Your neighbour, who needs to borrow something.

The audience must then try to guess who the performing students were
portraying, and what the nature of their relationship is.

(19) Language change

The students sit together in pairs or groups, and begin conversing using
any style of language they wish (for example, formal or informal). The
teacher then asks the students to switch the language style to suit
varying situations, and the students respond accordingly.

Examples
Your grandmother just walked into the room.
You are on stage in front of the whole class.
You are with your girlfriend or boyfriend.
64 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(20) Limited space improvisation

Four students at a time are asked to come into a small square (about
1.5 x 1.5 m) taped off on the floor. The teacher gives the students a
situation on which they must then immediately build an improvised
scene.

Examples
You are stuck in an elevator. One of you is a pregnant woman, one is
a model on her way to an important interview, another is a small boy
going to the dentist, and the last is the building's cleaning lady.
You are quadruplets in a crib with only one toy to play with.
You are astronauts in a space capsule that is lost.

(21) Experts
Two students are initially chosen or volunteer to sit on a panel of
experts on a silly subject (for example, invisible office buildings). These
experts sit on chairs beside each other, facing the rest of the class, their
audience.
The audience asks the experts questions on the topic at hand, and the
experts answer them. The experts must always disagree with each
other, but must also remain polite.

(22) Conversations about nothing

The students sit on the floor, in pairs, facing one another.
The teacher gives the students a tantalising starter sentence, which
one of the partners in each group repeats to the other. The second
partner responds, and a conversation between the two follows. The
students must avoid mentioning anything specific that they may
actually be talking about.

Examples
She told me not to tell anyone.
I can't believe he said that to you.
It's all your fault.

References
Banks, A. and Banks, S.P. (1991) Translation in interpersonal communication.
International and Intercultural Communication Annual XV, 1 7 1 - 8 5 .
Breen, M.P. (1985) The social context for language learning: A neglected situation?
Studies in Second Language Acquisition 7 (2), 1 3 5 - 5 8 .
COMMUNICATION AND SOCIAL SKILLS 65

Celce-Murcia, M. and Larsen-Freeman, D. (1983) The Grammar Book: An ESL/EFL

Teacher's Course. Boston, MA: Heinle and Heinle.
Cherryholmes, C.H. (1988) Power and Criticism: Poststructural Investigations in
Education. New York: Teachers College Press
Clyne, M.G. (1985) Medium or object: Different contexts of (school-based) language
acquisition. In K. Hytenstam and M. Pienemann (eds) Modelling and Assessing
Second Language Acquisition. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Cross, D. (1991) A Practical Handbook of Language Teaching. London: Cassell.
Ellis, R. and Whittington, D. (1981) A Guide to Social Skill Training. London: Croom
Helm.
Gardner, P.C. (1985) Social Psychology and Second Language Learning: The Role of
Attitudes and Motivation. London: Edward Arnold.
Harbord, J. (1992) The use of the mother tongue in the classroom. English Language
Teaching Journal 46 (4), 352-5.
Heltai, P. (1989) Teaching vocabulary by oral translation. English Language Teaching
Journal 43 (4), 288-93.
Horwitz, E.K. and Young, D.J. (1991) Language Anxiety: From Theory and Research to
Classroom Implications. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Johnston, P.H. (1992) Constructive Evaluation of Literate Activity. White Plains, NY:
Longman.
Kim, J.H. (1991) Intercultural communication competence. International and Inter-
cultural Communication Annual XV, 259-75.
— (1991) Influence of language and similarity on initial intercultural interaction.
International and Intercultural Communication Annual XV, 213-29.
Krashen, S.D. (1982) Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. Oxford:
Pergamon Institute of English.
Laufer, B. and Eliasson, S. (1993) What causes avoidance in L2 learning. Studies in
Second Language Acquisition 15 (1), 35-48.
McDonough, S.H. (1981) Psychology in Foreign Language Teaching. London: George
Allen & Unwin.
Nunan, D. (1987) Communicative language teaching: Making it work. English
Language Teaching Journal 41 (2), 136-45.
Oser, F.K., Dick, A. and Patty, J.-L. (eds) (1992) Effective and Responsible Teaching:
The New Synthesis. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Pavakanun, U. and D'Ydewalle, G. (1992) Watching foreign television programs
and language learning. In F.L. Engel, D.G. Bouwhuis, T. Bosser, and D'Ydewalle,
G. (eds) Cognitive Modelling and Interactive Environments In Language Learning.
Heidelberg: Verlag Berlin.
Rivers, W.M. and Temperley, M.S. (1978) A Practical Guide to the Teachings of English.
New York: Oxford University Press.
Scarcella, R.C. and Oxford, R.L. (1992) The Tapestry of Language Learning: The
Individual in the Communicative Classroom. Boston, MA: Heinle and Heinle.
Spolsky, B. (1989) Conditions for Second Language Learning: Introduction to a General
Theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Stephens, T.M. (1992) Social Skill in the Classroom (second edition). Odessa, FL:
Psychological Assessment Resources.
Wallerstein, N. (1983) Language and Culture in Conflict: Problem-posing in the ESL
Classroom. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
66 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Weltens, B., Van, E., Theo J.M. and Schils, E. (1989) The long-term retention of
French by Dutch students. Studies in Second Language Acquisition 11 (2), 205-16.
Zich, P. (1986) Teaching Ensemble Technique in Theatre. London: International Schools
Theatre Association.
7 Communicative
Strategies for
Intermediate Level
Second Language Classes
SUZANNE MAJHANOVICH and JUMIN HU

Most recent language programmes claim to promote the communica-

tive approach, and indeed many second language teachers also purport
to teach communicatively. But what exactly is meant by communica-
tive language teaching? fudging from programmes on the market,
communicative language teaching can mean anything from modified
audiolingualism to cognitive code teaching with an emphasis on
context, to holistic language teaching through themes, an approach
that seems to avoid the explicit presentation of language structures if
at all possible.
The authors of this article are committed to second language practice
that employs meaningful language used in context. They champion
approaches that will develop communication strategies among stu-
dents. At the same time, they also maintain with T. Higgs (1985) and
Omaggio-Hadley (1993) that teaching communication strategies must
always be balanced by attention to accuracy; indeed, one could argue
that a message that is linguistically faulty may not, in fact, commu-
nicate the intended meaning.

Introduction
The notion of communicative competence as a goal of second or foreign
language teaching has been around for over 20 years and has obviously had
much influence on teaching approaches. Most recent language pro-
grammes claim to promote communicative language teaching, and indeed,
many second language teachers purport to teach communicatively. The
degree to which communicative activities actually drive second language
instruction and the extent to which they can contribute to second language
proficiency is less clear. There seems to be no doubt however, that
67
68 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

communicative teaching when used judiciously and appropriately has

made a major contribution to language teaching. To that end, this paper
will review briefly some key studies in which communicative teaching was
used, noting advantages and disadvantages. Then, a number of strategies
are included which should promote communicative competence without
neglecting attention to accuracy. The strategies, geared mainly to interme-
diate level students, entail to various extents the four language skills, and
include as objectives the performance of typical communicative functions
such as the development of:
• interpersonal skills through oral interviews;
• negotiation with an interlocutor to solve a problem and come to an
agreement on an issue;
• expressive writing skills through personal and dialogue journals;
• the ability to converse logically and critically and defend a point of
view in a debate.
We are committed to second language practice that employs meaningful
language in context, and hence champion approaches that will develop
communication strategies among students. At the same time, w e believe,
with Higgs & Clifford (1982), T.V. Higgs (1985) and A. Omaggio-Hadley
(1993), that teaching communicative strategies must always be balanced by
attention to accuracy. Indeed, one could argue that a message that is
linguistically faulty may not, in fact, communicate the intended message.
With that in mind, w e will turn to a review of some studies which employed
elements of communicative teaching and the conclusions drawn from those
studies.

Development of the Concept and some Key Studies

In the early 1970s, Campbell and Wales (1970), commenting on
Chomsky's competence-performance dichotomy, noted that Chomsky had
omitted to include context in which language production occurs as a
significant factor, and posited the idea that appropriateness of utterances
within a situation was perhaps more indicative of a communication act than
gramaticality per se. D. Hymes (1972) also theorised about a concept he
called 'communicative competence' which incorporated not only gram-
matical competence but an awareness of appropriate socio-linguistic and
contextual factors (See Omaggio-Hadley, 1993). Hence, the term 'commu-
nicative competence' came into the literature.
However, it was probably the work of Sandra Savignon, begun at the
University of Illinois in the 1970s and described in Communicative Compe-
tence: Theory and Classroom Practice (1983) that really laid the groundwork
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL CLASSES 69

for texts oriented toward communicative language teaching. Standard

language classes never seemed to be able to deliver all they promised:
depending on the approach used, students would learn grammar rules, or
certain habits but could not use their language to communicate with others.
Savignon theorised that students could be trained how to perform certain
communicative acts. In the Illinois experiment, beginning college French
classes were divided into three groups. For four of five scheduled classes
per week, all three groups followed the regular programme using the
assigned text. On the fifth day, however, the groups had different activities:
one group went to the language laboratory for the usual drill and practice;
a second group experienced a series of cultural sessions conducted in
English including among others discussions about social, political and
economic conditions in France, slides of French art and architecture, and
informal meetings with French exchange students and Americans who had
studied in France. The third group received instructions on how to perform
a number of communicative functions in French such as greetings and leave
taking, information getting and giving, providing description, and so on.
Their sessions were made as relaxed and non-threatening as possible and
students were encouraged to communicate their message any way they
could. At the end of the 18-week session when all groups were tested, it
was found that the linguistic competence among the three groups was
roughly equal; however, the group that had practised communicative
functions clearly surpassed the other two groups in communicative
competence. Obviously, as with other skills, one learns to communicate by
communicating. Savignon concluded that expressly communicative activi-
ties should become a part of second language classes if we want students
to be able to communicate in their second language.

Despite the fact that the communicative aspect of the experiment

comprised only 20% of the programme, the rest being devoted to the usual
attention to form, nevertheless, the idea of communicative competence
somehow became associated with getting meaning across without concern
for grammatical accuracy. Savignon's definition of communicative compe-
tence stresses 'negotiation of meaning' however that may occur. Obviously,
the ability to use circumlocution, mime or diagrams might be part of the
negotiation. The problem, as pointed out by Higgs and Clifford (1982),
Higgs (1985) is that Savignon's definition fails to take into account exactly
what the student can communicate and how well. In other words, it is one
thing to be able to communicate basic survival needs and quite another to
negotiate, for example, an economic treaty.
Higgs and Clifford are concerned that when communicative competence
comes to mean that one is to communicate the message in any possible way
70 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

even in spite of language, then grammatical accuracy is overlooked. They

prefer to view proficiency as the organising principle as evidenced in the
Foreign Service Institute's proficiency ratings. These ratings include
functions, content, and accuracy as components which are taken into
consideration when evaluating competence in a foreign language on a scale
from 0 to 5, where level 0 represents no functional ability to communicate
while level 5 would equate with the ability of an educated native speaker.
They profile the case of 'terminal 2/2+ students who seem to plateau at this
level (apparently an all-too-common occurrence). Terminal 2/2+ students
are understandable to most native speakers of the target language but lack
the linguistic skills necessary to qualify them for most employment in
which fluency in the target language is required. What seems to charac-
terise a terminal 2 student is high vocabulary and fluency of a glib nature
but fossilised grammatical patterns that are totally resistant to remediation.
Such people have either acquired their language in an unstructured
environment, on the streets as it were, in which case they might even be a
terminal 1/1+, or if they have learned the language in an academic setting,
it was either from a teacher who lacked competence in the language or in
a programme which stressed communication by focusing on the message
and not the form, and where errors were not corrected. Higgs and Clifford
are adamant that their findings do not suggest a return to grammar-trans-
lation or audiolingual methodologies. They applaud techniques which
encourage communication; they simply caution that if the communication
demands placed on students greatly surpass the actual proficiency, they
will be forced to resort to strategies which may lead to fossilisation. They
conclude:
... it is meaningless to declare a student communicatively competent
without specifying the language functions that he or she is competent
to communicate [and] it is meaningless to declare any situation a
communicative setting. A situation is a useful communicative setting
only when the language functions it elicits are appropriate to the
performance levels of the students (Higgs and Clifford, 1982: 78).
By suggesting that communicative competence included grammatical,
discourse and sociolinguistic components, Canale (1983) made a valuable
contribution to the definition of the concept. As a result, some important
studies which measured the extent to which students could communicate
effectively incorporating the three elements, as reported in Cummins and
Swain (1986) and Allen, Swain et al. (1990) were carried out. In one study,
Swain (Cummins & Swain, 1986) compared Grade 6 early immersion
students to francophone counterparts and found that whereas there were
minimal differences between the two groups with regard to discourse tasks,
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL CLASSES 71

the native speakers performed significantly better on grammar tasks. Their

advantage in grammatical competence also led them to outperform
immersion students on sociological tasks where grammar was a factor as
in cases which would require the use of the conditional. Otherwise, with
regard to socio-linguistic tasks, immersion students tended to perform as
well as the native speakers. These results led Swain to theorise on the
importance of comprehensible input (see Krashen, 1981) for immersion
students' acquisition of the language. While the input students had
received in the programme led them to a high level of comprehension, it
was insufficient to aid them in all communicative tasks. The massive input
allowed students to comprehend by focusing on meaning without attend-
ing overtly to form. In order to enable students to better language
production, Swain suggests that more comprehensible output be incorpo-
rated into the programme. Observations have convinced her that:

students are not given... adequate opportunities to use the target

language in the classroom context. Secondly, they are not 'pushed' in
their output....There is no push for them to analyze further the
grammar of the target language because their current output appears
to succeed in conveying their intended message (Cummins & Swain,
1986:133).

She concludes that immersion classes should provide more opportunities

for comprehensible output where meaning is negotiated since within the
contextualised meaningful exchanges, students, in order to negotiate
meaning would be forced to test hypotheses about language and move
beyond semantic analysis to syntactic analysis. This, she contends, would
push students to acquire the grammatical competence they now lack.

In an expanded study on the development of bilingual proficiency

reported in Harley, Allen et al. (1990), Swain and her researchers devised a
scheme to measure what they called COLT (Communicative Orientation of
Language Teaching). In that study, the researchers looked at core, extended
and immersion as well as ESL classes. They predicted that the core French
programmes because of their nature and time restraints would be more
form-focused and teacher-centred (analytical or formal) than either the
extended or immersion classes which would be less structured and more
meaning-focused (experiential and functional). ESL classes, they thought,
would incorporate authentic communicative materials from the surround-
ing milieu while focusing at the same time on certain aspects of the
language code. Their expectations about the respective programmes were
largely borne out; that is, the core French programmes were the most
analytical and the immersion classes the most experiential, with the ESL
72 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

classes falling somewhere between the others. This was an interesting case
since it was ESL students who potentially had the greatest opportunity to
profit from the environment outside the classroom to aid in language
acquisition.
Swain concludes that analytical and experiential teaching can be
complementary to SL programmes. Whereas core French programmes
could benefit from more experiential teaching, immersion classes should
definitely incorporate more chances for 'comprehensible output'. As she
states: 'students need to be motivated to use language accurately, appro-
priately, and coherently' (Harley, Allenet al, 1990:77). Moreover, SL classes
should provide situations where form and function would be closely linked
instructionally. We take this to be in keeping with the caveats about
communicative teaching as expressed by Higgs, Clifford and Omaggio.
We will now turn to some practical suggestions for communicative
activities. They are geared mainly for students at the intermediate level or
thereabouts. We believe that they all provide opportunities for 'compre-
hensible output', but they are devised in such a way as not to put excessive
communicative demands on the students' language competence.

Strategies for a Communicative Classroom

Classroom Strategy 1
Title: Peer Interview. (Questionnaire)
Objective: To develop interpersonal oral communication skills
Context: Personal life, experiences, opinions, etc.
Procedure: Design a questionnaire that contains a number of simple
questions likely to be relevant to the students. Distribute copies of the
questionnaire to each member of the class (or two groups if the class is
large). Go over all the unfamiliar words in the questionnaire. Then have
students interview one another within the class/group in a courteous
manner. The interviewer jots down the appropriate answer from the
interviewee as well as the answer to at least one follow-up question related
to the first answer. The student who first solicits appropriate answers to all
or the largest number of the questions in a given time wins first place.
Students gather in small groups to share their answers.

Example: Interview your peers and find one answer to each of the following
questions. Ask an additional question to obtain further information.

(1) Who was born in December?

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL CLASSES 73

(2) Who plays a musical instrument?

(3) Who had a nightmare last night?
(4) Who walks to school every day?
(5) Who usually gets up at 6.30 in the morning?
(6) Who lives in a townhouse?
(7) Whose father is a doctor?
(8) Who knows someone from Montreal?
(9) Who has been to the United States?/to Europe/Asia, etc.
(10) Who does not have a driving licence?
(11) Who is particularly fond of Italian food?
(12) Who likes to work on computers?

Comments: The questions should be so designed that students may find

answers to most or all of them. For advanced students, questions that
require more elaborate answers can be substituted. The questions in the
format above can be answered as the students supply factual information
about themselves and therefore can be called an 'uncontrolled peer
interview'. This interview works well with students who are still in the
process of getting to know one another. However, for students already well
acquainted with each other, the teacher may wish to use prepared cards
and have students answer the questions according to the information
shown on his/her card given by the teacher. This format may be called a
'controlled peer interview'. Alternatively, students could list questions
they would like to ask of their classmates. To attend to accuracy, when
students share their answers in small groups, they should be encouraged
to ask for clarification if the answer is not clear or incorrect (peer correction).

Classroom Strategy 2
Title: Problem-Solving Conversation.
Objective: To negotiate with the interlocutor in order to work out a solution
to or agreement on a problem.
Context: Everyday social situations
Procedure: Create a problem and present it on cards A and B to be solved
through conversation between two students, who may need to play certain
social roles. In order to reach a solution or agreement, the two interlocutors
have to exchange information supplied on their separate cards and
negotiate toward various possibilities of settlement. After the first round
of conversation, the two students exchange their cards and switch roles for
a second round.
74 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Example:
A. Prospective Tenant B. Landlord

Call to inquire if B has a room Answer the call; say you have one for
for rent. rent.

Ask about location, room size, Give details of location, room size and
facilities. facilities.

Ask about rent and terms of Quote a price e.g. $350./mo., 12-month
lease. lease

Tell B you have your own Agree to A's offer on condition that A
furniture. pays for utilities/Disagree; make a
counter offer.

Make an offer to pay a lower

amount/ mo.

Accept B's conditions/Bargain further.

Comments: The problem topics should be relevant to the students' concerns

or within the students' scope of interest. In all cases, the difficulty and
complexity level of the conversation should be adjusted to suit the specific
groups of students. Difficult key words can be glossed at the bottom of the
cards. The teacher circulates among the groups, offering help to needy
students. Once a pair is done with a problem, they pass it to the next pair
while another problem is passed to them. The teacher controls the flow of
problems according to the time planned for the activity. This strategy is
somewhat similar to the role play element of the ACTFL Proficiency
Interview (ACTFL, 1989). Near the end of the interview, when the
interviewer has established what appears to be the proficiency level of the
interviewee (intermediate, advanced or superior) he/she hands the inter-
viewee a card which gives a situation to be acted out. The intermediate level
cards include features which will check the interviewee's ability to create
with language, ask and answer simple questions and handle a simple
situation or transaction. Advanced level role plays include opportunities
to narrate, describe and handle a complicated situation or transaction,
while superior role plays push the interviewee to support opinions,
hypothesise, discuss abstract topics and handle linguistically unfamiliar
situations. Performance is judged on content, accuracy, and functions
including discourse, sociolinguistic and pragmatic competence. An excel-
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL CLASSES 75

lent source of role play situations can also be found in Stephen Sadow's
book, Idea Bank: Creative Activities for the Language Class (1982).

Classroom Strategy 3

Title: Journal Dialogue.

Objective: To develop expressive writing skills in meaningful ways.
Context: Areas of interest or concern to individual students.
Procedure: Ask students to write a journal once or twice a week as part of
their homework. To make the experience personally meaningful, students
are free to write on/about anything that is interesting, relevant, and/or
significant to them, from personal emotions and concerns to political issues
to intellectual explorations. Some journal writing may involve pre-reading
of publications and references. Although in principle no limit should be set
for how long a journal should be, one page can be a realistic goal for
intermediate students to start with. Students are encouraged to express
their thoughts as freely as they wish. The teacher collects the journals, reads
them, and responds with an entry of comments and/or questions. The
students may or may not choose to respond to the teacher's entry. If he/she
does (as often happens), a second response follows (then a third, etc.), thus
creating a journal dialogue between teacher and student.

Example: No examples are provided for this strategy, since journals are
typically personal.

Comments. The Journal Dialogue can provide not only for linguistic but also
emotional or intellectual development. In order to direct students toward
high language proficiency, the teacher should encourage students to aim
at accuracy as well as expressiveness. In addition to commenting on the
content, the teacher should correct grammar, rhetorical and typographical
errors. But if the journal contains too many such errors, the teacher may
correct the most serious mistakes only in the initial stage and gradually take
care of the others. Students at basic levels may write about their family,
everyday life, and the like. The journal can be as long as a few sentences.
However, for advanced students, more complicated topics, greater journal
length, and more accuracy can be expected.

Classroom Strategy 4

Title: Debate.
Objective: To train students to think logically and critically.
Context: Topics/situations of common concern
76 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Procedure: Divide students into groups of three to five. Assign a pro-posi-

tion on a common question/topic/issue to Group A and a counter-position
to Group B. After a brief intra-group discussion which involves brainstorm-
ing to generate key arguments, the two groups debate the issue. Group A
presents its position and arguments; Group B attacks Group A, supplying
its own arguments and position. Group A fires back, and so on. A
conclusion may or may not be reached. Each group can be represented by
one or more spokespersons.

Example: The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Group

A—Supporters; Group B—Critics.
A: NAFTA gives Canadian companies a bigger market. They can sell
their products in Mexico. This means more jobs in Canada.
B: Canada will lose jobs. Wages are very low in Mexico. Industries
that need a lot of labour will move south. Some examples are auto
parts and furniture.
A: Companies will stay here. Canada has advantages such as good
technology and skilled workers.
B: Companies will also move because Mexico does not have strong
environmental, health and safety laws. Production costs are
lower.
A: The North American Free Trade Agreement is building for the
future. We might lose some jobs as Canada adjusts to free trade,
but our economy will benefit in the long term.
B: We are trading away our future. Canada is losing its competitive
advantage and control over its economy. There will be more
advantages for companies to invest in the United States or
Mexico.
Source: Adapted from 'North American Free Trade: Opinion
divided, The Ontario Times (October 1992), p. 2.
Comments: Alternatively, students could read a short passage on a
provocative topic as, for example, progress in medicine or advantages and
disadvantages of various media. In whole class discussion, they enlarge on
the topic and then in groups prepare a list of pros and cons on the issue and
finally debate it. As a follow-up activity, they might be asked to prepare a
written composition on the topic. See Majhanovich and Willis (1984) Ça y
est Question à débattre in each unit. To prepare students for the discourse
elements required to support and refute arguments, teachers could provide
the necessary vocabulary beforehand including words and expressions
such as: 'on the one hand', 'on the other hand', 'however', 'nevertheless',
'despite all', 'let's admit that...', 'after all', and so on if students are not
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL CLASSES 77

familiar with these words. Discourse competence often lies not merely in a
sense of how to discuss something cohesively, or in an appropriate order:
most SL learners can transfer this from their first language experiences.
What they lack is the vocabulary necessary to link their statements. It would
seem appropriate for teachers to spend some time providing the necessary
linking words and encouraging students to pay attention to them and use
them appropriately in oral and written communication. Regarding topics,
generally, intermediate students would feel comfortable with survival
topics related to everyday life such as living, recreation and health matters;
whereas advanced students would find it interesting to challenge topics
concerning education, politics, economics, culture, moral issues and so on.
But some questions of the latter category can be discussed by intermediate
university students, given limited complexity and duration of the
debate. If necessary, extra information on content, sentence structure and
vocabulary can be provided by the teacher beforehand. The same ques-
tions/topics/issues can be circulated to different groups at varying times.
All students speak in the target language. While the debates go on, the
teacher moves around participating or helping students with difficult
expressions. Each session takes 20-30 minutes.

Summary
This chapter has discussed the development of the concept of commu-
nicative competence and reviewed a number of key studies in which
communicative activities or teaching played a role. We repeat that we
believe that strategies which will promote communicative competence
should be promoted in second language classes. We also are aware of the
inherent dangers of encouraging communication for its own sake without
attention to accuracy and the proficiency level of the students. Hence, the
strategies we have suggested, while communicative, are controlled to a
certain extent so that the SL learners while experimenting with and testing
their hypotheses about language will not be forced into communicative
situations too far removed form their actual level.

Students almost always underestimate the time and commitment

needed to acquire a second language; teachers are perhaps too optimistic
in their expectation for their students as well. Nevertheless, with a
well-rounded programme that pays attention to content, functions and
accuracy, a bank of activities that will address the students' needs at every
level of proficiency, and sufficient time to achieve the objectives, the goal
of competent communicators in the SL should be realisable.
78 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

References
Allen, J.P.B., Swain, M., Harley, B. and Cummins, J. (1990) Aspects of classroom
treatment: Toward a more comprehensive view of second language education.
In B. Harley, P. Allen, J. Cummins and M. Swain (eds) The Development of Second
Language Proficiency. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Buck, K., Byrnes, H. and Thompson, I. (eds) (1989) The ACTFL Oral Proficiency
Interview. Yonkers, NY: American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Lan-
guages.
Campbell, R. and Wales, R. (1970) The study of language acquisition. In J. Lyons
(ed.) New Horizons in Linguistics. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Books.
Canale, M. (1983) From communicative competence to communicative language
pedagogy. In J. Richards and R. Schmidt (eds) Language and Communication.
London: Longman Group.
Cummins, J. and Swain, M. (1986) Communicative competence: Some roles of
comprehensible input and comprehensible output in its development. In J.
Cummins and M. Swain (eds) Bilingual Education. New York: Longman Group
Ltd.
Higgs, T.V. (ed.) (1985) Teaching for Proficiency, the Organizing Principle. The ACTFL
Foreign Language Education Series, Vol 15. Lincolnwood, IL: National Textbook
Co.
Higgs, T.V. and Clifford, R. (1982) The push toward communication. In T.V. Higgs
(ed.) Curriculum Competence and the Foreign Language Teacher. The ACTFL Foreign
Language Education Series, Vol. 13, Lincolnwood, IL: National Textbook Co.
Hymes, D. (1972) On communicative competence. In J.B. Pride and J. Holmes (eds)
Sociolinguistics. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Books.
Krashen, S. (1981) Second Language Acquisition and Second Language Learning. Oxford:
Pergamon.
Majhanovich, S. and Willis, P. Wahl. (1984) Qa y est! Toronto: Copp Clark Pitman.
Omaggio-Hadley, A. (1993) Teaching Language in Context (2nd edition). Boston, MA:
Heinle & Heinle.
Sadow, S.A. (1982) Idea Bank: Creative Activities for the Language Class. Rowley, MA:
Newbury House.
Savignon, S.J. (1983) Communicative Competence: Theory and Classroom Practice.
Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
8 Magic or Chaos:
Task-based Group Work
CHRISTINA BRATT PAULSTON and GAIL BRITANIK

This chapter discusses taskbasedgroup workfrom a practical, classroom-

oriented perspective. After a brief consideration of the pedagogical
reasons and theoretical psycholinguistic rationales for group work, we
consider basic procedures and strategies for conducting group work.
The chapter closes with five classroom activities in which basic
procedures discussed earlier are specified for each activity as exem-
plars of what to consider in creating and conducting group work.

Educational practice shows a continual tendency to oscillate between

two extremes with respect to two overt and executive activities. One
extreme is to neglect them always entirely, on the grounds that they
are chaotic and fluctuating, mere diversions... The other extreme is an
enthusiastic belief in the almost magical educative efficacy of any
activity... (John Dewey (1910), cited in Bygate, 1992).
While ESL teachers seem to be imbued with the magical view of the efficacy
of group work, 'the most serious of all problems is ignored: that of
discovering and arranging the forms of activity... which are most congen-
ial, best adapted to the... stage of development' (Dewey, 1910). That, quite
simply, is what this chapter is about.
Kenneth Pike is reported to have said that classroom teachers know what
it will take linguists decades to discover. A good example of that is group
work. Second language acquisition (SLA) linguists are now discovering
theoretical, i.e. psycholinguistic, rationales for doing group work. We have
long known the pedagogical reasons for doing group work. Long and
Porter (1985) list: (1) increasing the quantity of language practice opportu-
nity; (2) improving the quality of student talk; (3) creating a positive
affective climate in the classroom; (4) individualising instruction; and (5)
increasing student motivation. Porter and Danielson (1991) say almost the
same thing: (1) students get more practice; (2) students use a wider range
of language; (3) more individualized instruction is possible; (4) it promotes
79
80 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

a positive affective climate; (5) it motivates learners and (6) it provides

variety in the classroom. They add that students say that (1) they like
sharing and exchanging ideas; (2) it leads to more learning, understanding,
and practice; and (3) it motivates them.
Mary McGroarty suggests an unusual benefit, namely that cooperative
learning provides an opportunity for use of the first language in ways that
support cognitive development as well as increased second language skills.
She cites a study on elementary school children (Neves, 1983) and
speculates that:

academic use of the primary language helps students master English,

perhaps by consolidating their conceptual knowledge in settings that
allow them to use the first language while being exposed to appropriate
second language labels naturally during groupwork (McGroarty, 1989:
133).

Teacher criticism of group work, the chaos view, centres on waste of

time, too time consuming, general confusion and only a few of the students
doing the work. While there is often justification for these criticisms, in view
of the importance of the theoretical claims made for the crucial necessity of
group work, those problems can be dealt with procedurally, as we shall
discuss. To claim as a teacher did, recently observed, that he had to cover
nine (new) tenses in ESL in a one-hour class and so had no time for
communicative activities is not teaching ESL; at best it is a linguistic lecture,
hardly conducive to learning a second language.

The psycholinguistic claims for taskbased group work are basically

three. They provide: (1) for comprehensible input (Krashen, 1980, Gass &
Varonis, 1985); (2) for extended negotiation of meaning (Long, 1989); and
(3) maybe most important, for comprehensible output (Swain, 1985).
Classroom based SLA research over the last 15 years, such as that done by
Pica and Doughty (1985), Doughty and Pica (1986), and Pica et al, (1987)
point to the value of two-way over one-way tasks in generating negotiation
of meaning, with an increase of almost 10 times the amount of interaction
in group work over teacher-fronted class situations when interaction was
required, rather than optional. This chapter is not the place for psycholin-
guistic speculations, but let us point out that these three types of language
processing listed above are today held crucial for effective adult second
language acquisition and it is simply false economy to talk about too
time-consuming activities if without them the students won't learn as well.
Instead we should worry about how group work can be 'most congenial,
best adapted'.
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 81

What follows is a brief discussion of basic procedures and strategies for

conducting group work. We acknowledge that teachers have different (and
sometimes strong) opinions about some of these guidelines, and it is
perfectly true that what works well for one class may not work in another.
Underlying these guidelines is the need to keep an open mind and to use a
principled trial-and-error approach. Such an approach includes constant
objective evaluation of all activities in terms of their contribution to
students' learning and a willingness to see occasional failures as a normal
part of doing group work.

Pre-class Preparation
The first step is to decide on performance objectives. Using an activity
without a specific pedagogical aim is most often a waste of time. The
objectives may vary from form-focused practice, such as questions on likes
and dislikes (see Activity 1 'Find someone who... '), to general language
use in the production of some tasks like the class booklet (see Activity 4);
but in both activities the teacher knows what s / h e wants to achieve. This
really is a crucial step.
If you are lucky, your textbook will include group activities. If not, get
your institution to invest in a collection of texts aimed at group work, like
Using English, Your Second Language or Strategic Interaction from which you
can collect and adapt activities. What is important is that the task is at the
right level of students' proficiency. Classroom pre-activities can do much
to help, especially with vocabulary and content knowledge for context.
Some general recommendations for task structure are (Long, 1989; Porter
and Danielson, 1991): (i) include a brief (2-3 minutes) planning time before
the activity during which students individually can consider their plan of
attack; (ii) tasks which have two-way structure produce more negotiation,
i.e. tasks where both/all students in a group must exchange information
such as in Activity 3 'Travellers' advice' where each student is an 'expert'
and has information unknown to the others, and in Activity 4 'Creating a
Class Booklet' where there is some shared information but also information
exclusive to each role. One-way information gap activities in which one
partner has all the information while the other takes directions in order to
draw a picture or plot a route on a map, etc. generate less negotiation since
the exchange of information is optional; (iii) closed tasks (Long's terminol-
ogy) also produce more negotiation; i.e. a task which has only one or two
correct solutions. Keep in mind the point Pica and Doughty make:
However, group work alone does not appear to be an affective aid to
classroom learning. Rather, what seems essential is the combination of
82 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

group interaction and a task requiring the exchange of information

among group participants (1988:54).

In Class Pre-activity
Divide the class quickly into groups and establish procedures for doing
so which are always followed, such as students wait to move until the
teacher gives the sign, they leave their books on their desks or bring them
along, etc. What you want to vary is the composition of the groups, which
should be kept small. You will want to consider such factors as level of
proficiency, talkativeness, shyness, language background, age, etc. There
are different opinions on pairing all of these, so our suggestion is that you
try different combinations to see what works best in your classroom. But
here are a few suggestions: keep the groups small with no more than three
or four students in a group; don't have a group of all the same language
background (with adult students, it does not contradict McGroarty) if
possible, and make sure there is at least one strong student in each group.
You may want some preparation time for the students, to work on
vocabulary, grammar patterns, or culture specific ways with language
according to the performance objectives. Knowing a task is coming up,
students are always highly motivated to work hard in this situation.

Activity
Set time limitations and don't give them too much time; it is not always
necessary to have all groups finish a task. Make sure the early finishers have
something to do and don't just sit there. The teacher should circulate
around the room, checking that the students are on track, be willing to
answer questions, and helping out in general. Provide for some sort of
closure to the activity, like having one group report back to the class, but
keep this brief; the students have already done the activity and reports
easily become boring. Another type of closure is to have groups with
different solutions to the same task argue their point. Teacher ingenuity
will think up other possibilities, but however brief, psychologically there
is a need for closure so don't just finish with 'Time's up, goodbye'.

Feedback and/or Evaluation

It is a good idea to have each group turn in something tangible to the
teacher after the activity. It keeps the students task-oriented, gives
information to the teacher about how well the activity worked, and is
something to base feedback on. It is also a good idea to have the students
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 83

rate the activity. If they find all activities boring, something is wrong. And
they can have quite insightful remarks about procedures as well.
And as a final evaluation ask yourself: 'Could the students just as well
have done this group work in McDonald's?' If an honest answer is in the
affirmative (and sometimes it is), we suggest you rethink the magic of
taskbased group work in terms of 'educative efficacy'.
What follows are five activities which exemplify the principles and
procedures we have been discussing. They are designed to give you
maximum guidance as you introduce your class to group work.

Activity 1 Signature activity: 'Find someone who...'

Proficiency Level: Intermediate.
Performance Objectives: Asking questions, giving answers, and stating
preferences (This may be altered to meet other objectives. See below.)
Teacher Preparation: Prepare an activity sheet, listing possible favorite
activities or interests. (See below.) To personalise the activity you might
include the items students had mentioned on a registration form or during
an interview in response to a question about their interests or hobbies.
Include these written directions:
Read the list of 15 items below. Think of the question you will need to
ask to find someone who agrees with the item. For example, to find
someone who likes cooking, you would ask, 'Do you like to cook?'
When you find that person ask her/him to sign her/his name on the
line after that item. Try to find a different person for each item.
Prepare enough copies for the entire class.
Pre-activity: Review verbs used to express preference. Give an example: ('I
enjoy taking long walks.') Write on the chalkboard or overhead projector:
prefer, like, enjoy, dislike, detest, hate. Offer another example ('I dislike cold
weather.') Explain or review degrees of intensity expressed by dislike,
detest, hate. Ask a student to state a preference. Ask another to use dislike
in a sentence.
Distribute copies of activity sheet to each student. Ask students to read
the directions silently. When they have finished, use the first item to model
the procedure. Ask a student, 'Do you enjoy cooking?' If the student
responds: 'Yes, I enjoy cooking', ask him to write his signature in the
appropriate space on your paper. If he says: 'No', move on to another
student. Ask students if they understand what to do. Say: 'You will have
about 10 minutes to find all the signatures you need.' Try to get a different
84 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

person's signature for each item. Call for an end to the activity when several
students have acquired signatures for most of the items on the list. If the
class seems to need more time, adjust the time allotment.
Activity: Students move around the room asking questions of one another
and giving answers.
Signature activity

Find someone who: Signature

(1) enjoys mystery films
(2) dislikes eating ice cream
(3) likes loud music
(4) enjoys swimming or playing tennis
(5) detests cigarette smoke
(6) prefers reading to watching television
(7) likes to eat pizza
(8) dislikes shopping malls
(9) likes to play the guitar or piano
(10) prefers Rock music to Bach
(11) enjoys eating in a restaurant
(12) hates cold weather
(13) prefers cats to dogs
(14) likes to fly in an airplane
(15) prefers climbing mountains to watching
television

Post Activity: After seven minutes check to see how many have finished.
Tell students they have a few minutes to finish. Then ask a student: 'Who
did you find who likes to play the guitar or piano?' Did anyone else find a
musician? Ask: 'Which was the most difficult to find? Which was the
easiest? For homework, think of the verbs we've used (prefer, like, enjoy,
dislike, detest, hate) and use those verbs to make up five interesting questions
you would like to ask. You will have the opportunity to use those questions
during our next class.'

Adaptation: This activity could be used early in the semester to help students
get to know each other as well as to give practice in asking questions and
giving answers. For example: 'Find someone who knows three others in the
class, who has travelled to New York (Tokyo, Toronto, Paris, etc.)', etc.
Other possible adaptations: *Review of a thematic unit, for example, on
food. Questions could include: 'Find someone who doesn't like to eat meat;
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 85

enjoys growing her own vegetables; prefers fruit to pastries, etc.' *A fact
check on a content based unit, e.g. a international trade unit which could
include items such as: Find someone who knows what the main exports of
are; which areas of the world are famous for , etc.' *Practice
of Verb tenses e.g.; 'Find someone who worked as a teacher in her native
country; someone who built houses; etc.

Activity 2 Dining guide: Making choices

Proficiency Level: Intermediate.
Performance Objectives: Listening to the preferences of others, negotiating to
arrive at a consensus; and practising skimming and scanning.
Teacher Preparation: Use this activity as a follow-up to a unit on food, meals,
dining at home or in a restaurant. Select the 'Dining Guide' from a local
newspaper or clip restaurant advertisements from newspapers and assem-
ble a dining guide offering a diversity of cuisine, price, location and
entertainment options, etc. Make copies for each student. Prepare a graphic
organiser for use on the overhead projector to record class brainstorming
results. Prepare cards or sheets of paper posing three problems/activities
for group decision. (See directions below.)
Pre-Activity: To the whole group pose the question: 'Do you ever go out to
eat in a restaurant? How do you decide which restaurant to choose? Use an
overhead projection, 'Choosing a restaurant: Things to consider'). Elicit the
following information from students:
What things do you consider when choosing a place to eat?
Type of food: Italian, Chinese, Mid-Eastern, Mexican, American, etc. Kind
of restaurant: fast food, diner, cafe, formal, deli, bar, etc. Price range:
expensive, moderate, inexpensive. Atmosphere: quiet, noisy, hurried,
friendly, relaxed, smoke filled, etc. Location: in walking distance from
home, on a busline, near the university, etc.
Ask about additional considerations, e.g.: Is there entertainment in the
evenings? Is the restaurant open seven days a week? Are any of these
restaurants 'handicapped accessible?' (Clarify the meaning. Explain, if
necessary, that more places are offering elevators or ramps for access to
those who have difficulty walking stairs.) Discuss other considerations.

' A d a p t e d from Keep Talking by Friederike Klippel, Cambridge University Press (1984) and
observation of a class taught by Dr Richard Dona to, January 1993 at the University of
Pittsburgh.
86 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Activity. Distribute copies of the 'Dining Guide'. Ask students to skim the
listings and think about which places seem most attractive to them. Ask
students to check off three places where they might like to eat. Ask: 'Where
can you find Italian food? Which restaurant is most expensive? How do
you know?' (Make sure students understand the code: $$$, $$, $ and
indications of which, if any, credit cards are acceptable.). Ask students to
form groups of three and to discuss the restaurants they are interested in
for a few minutes. As students are forming groups distribute cards with the
following problems for solution:

(1) Agree on one restaurant where you three will eat tonight.

(2) Select a restaurant where you will celebrate a friend's birthday.

Remember, this friend detests smoking. You have a limited amount of
money to spend.

(3) Find a restaurant that would be a good place to go with a friend for a
quiet conversation. The friend does not eat meat.

Circulate among groups, reminding students that everyone in each

group must be satisfied with the choices made. (Limit the discussion and
choice-making to 10-12 minutes.) Ask groups to end their discussion and
ask one group to report on their selection for (1). Ask another group to
explain their choice for (2); another group for (3). Elicit students' response
to the question, 'Which is easie— to make your own choice independently
or to find agreement among the three of you?' 'Why?'

For homework ask students to create an original (imaginary) restaurant

advertisement to bring to class the following day. Use five minutes of the
following class to have them exchange the ad with one other student and
offer feedback to each other on the ad. Post the student-made ads on the
class bulletin board.

Adaptations: Rather than the teacher preparing a dining guide, ask students
to bring examples of restaurant ads from home, or have newspapers or the
telephone book available for their use. Have students find a restaurant they
would recommend to the class and explain why. Use a newspaper
entertainment page to choose a film or musical or sports event that will
meet the needs of everyone in the small group.

Source: Lesson plan designed for use with Adult ESL class by Gail Britank at the University of
Pittsburgh, October 1992.
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 87

Activity 3 Travellers' advice

Proficiency Level: Intermediate/Advanced.

Performance Objectives: Making recommendations with supporting reasons

and offering advice.
Teacher Preparation: Bring a world map to class. Prepare a student activity
sheet (below): 'Travellers' Advice' which includes two sections:
(1) If you visit my country, I recommend that you go to because:
(List three reasons.) .
(2) Before I travelled to another country, I wish someone h a d told me:
(List several things you wish you had known before travelling.)

(You may want to pre-determine the grouping to assure an interna-

tional diversity.)
Pre-Activity: Display the world map. Invite students to locate their country
for the class. Write 'TRAVEL' on the board and elicit vocabulary connected
with the theme. (Means of transportation, visas, currency exchange,
insurance, reservations, health concerns, etc.) Ask students to think about
a special place in their countries which they have visited and would
recommend to visitors. Distribute activity sheets and ask students to write
the name of the place and think of two or three reasons why they would
recommend this place.

Activity: Pair work: Assign students to work in pairs. Tell them that they
will be listening to each other's recommendations. Later they will be
responsible to tell others about their partners' favourite place. Students
share in pairs, (five minutes) Then two pairs form a group of four and take
turns reporting to the other pair what they learned from their partner,
checking to make sure they've included all important information (eight
minutes).
Group work: Ask students to think of advice that would be important
to potential travellers. Ask them: 'What do you wish someone had told you
before you travelled to another country?' Have students take a few minutes
to make their own lists, then take turns sharing with the others. Encourage
students to ask for clarification as others speak. The group will complete
the activity sheet, listing five or six things they would tell travelers prior to
international travel. Tell students that these will be reported to the whole
class during the next class period. (These results could be gathered into a
booklet with their recommendations about favourite places in each of their
countries with photos or illustrations later in the semester.)
88 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Adaptations: (1) Change this to an interview activity during which students

would work in pairs and then introduce their partners to the class telling
about two or three things they learned during the exchange.
(2) Use this activity as a preparation for a visit from a travel agent who
would give a brief presentation to the class and answer questions which
students would prepare as a final part of this activity. "Think of three
questions you would like to ask a travel agent in this country before you
travel again.'

Student activity sheet

PART I.

Directions: Think about a special place in your country that you have visited.
You are going to tell your partner about that place and describe it as well
as you can. Think of three reasons why you would recommend that place
to someone who is planning to visit your country.

When you visit my country I recommend that you visit ,

located in the region.
Here are three reason why I'm recommending that you visit this place:

(1)
(2)
(3)

PART II.

After you listen to your partner give her/his recommendation about a

special place, you will be responsible for telling two other people about
your partner's recommendation. You can use this space to make notes to
help you remember.

(1)

(2)
(3)

Source: Designed by Gail Britanik for use with adult ESL students, February 1993 at the
University of Pittsburgh.
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 89

PART I I I .

Think about some problems you have had when you travelled to the United
States or to other places.
Have you wished that someone had told you before you travelled what
to expect or how to avoid problems?
Think of a few things that you wish someone had told you before you
began a trip.
I wish that someone had told me:
(1)
(2)
(3)

Activity 4 Creating a class booklet

Level: Intermediate/Advanced.
Performance Objectives: Contributing efficiently at each phase of the group
work process:
• Cooperative planning and design
• Peer interviews
• Writing and revising
Teacher Preparation: This task is an integrative one to be used toward the
end of a semester. All preceding activities serve as preparation. As
immediate preparation the teacher could bring booklets produced by other
groups or simply make a mock-up of what such a booklet might look like.
The booklet will include: a cover designed by the students; interviews of
each member of the class written by students; some aspect of students'
cultural heritage (a brief description of a holiday, a recipe, a poem or song,
etc.) contributed by each student; and a photograph of each student. The
role of the teacher is to present the project idea, elicit students' ideas,
facilitate the process by organising students into working groups offering
suggestions and asking clarifying questions as needed and assisting in final
production (printing, etc.). Make arrangements for use of typewriters or
computers for student use in production of booklets. Plan on four or five
class periods to accomplish the project.
Pre-activity: Day One. Introduce the idea of a class booklet as a way to
summarise the work of the semester, and to work together on a product
they can keep to remember the class. Show students samples of booklets
produced by other groups or a mock-up of what a booklet might look like.
Ask students for ideas about what they want to put in their booklet. Offer
90 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

suggestions if students need help to get started, writing all ideas on the
chalkboard. If there are many ideas, you will probably need to ask students
to select four or five categories of entries: interviews, photos, customs,
recipes, etc. to make the project realisable.
Designing a work plan: Ask students to think about the jobs that need
to be done to produce the booklet, eliciting responses, asking for clarifica-
tion, and writing a list of 'jobs' on the chalkboard. If small (8-12 students),
the class could be divided into two groups: Writing - those who will do
interviews of all class members and coordinate proofreading and editing;
and Design - those who will choose a title for the booklet, design the cover,
collect photos, recipes a n d / o r custom descriptions from each student, and
do the layout for the booklet. (Larger classes could have tasks further
divided: two writing groups, etc.)
Homework: Ask students in the writing group to make a list of possible
interview questions they will ask their peers. They should be ready to share
those questions in their group at the beginning of the following class. Ask
those in the Design group to make a list of possible titles for the booklet
and think about possible layout plans and graphics they might like to use.
Ask them to look at magazines and newspapers to find possible pictures
and graphics and bring these to class.
Activity: Day Two. Ask students to meet in work groups and share ideas
they have and come to a consensus. The Design group will need to select a
title from among the ideas they bring to class, possibly combining ideas.
This process will generate conversation, negotiation and sometimes a bit
of controversy. (The teacher would do well to allow students to deal with
the problem, perhaps intervening with a clarifying question or a reminder
that this must be a group decision and that there is a time limit.) The group
should also decide on graphics and a general layout plan by the end of the
period. They will need to talk with the writing group to request necessary
materials (photos, a recipe, etc.) and ask that all materials be brought to the
next class.
The Writing group will come to agreement on the questions to be used
in the interview process and decide which two students each one will
interview. They should begin by interviewing one another (in pairs) and
making arrangements with students in the design group for interviews
before the next class if possible. The teacher will need to remind students
of the three or four paragraph length for interviews.
Before the end of the class period, ask students to report on their progress
to the whole group. Ask them what work will be done outside of class and
write those tasks on the chalkboard. Remind students about the time
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 91

limitation and encourage them to complete the work before the next class.
Check to see which students are able to help with data entry or typing. Offer
assistance if any is needed.
Day Three. Ask students to get into work groups and share what they
have accomplished. Design group asks Writing group for photos and
recipes, etc. and begins to work on layout plan, allotting one or one-and-a-
half pages for each student feature.

The Writing group confers with one another in pairs reading the text of
the interviews and asking for clarification, checking for accuracy and
making suggestions. The teacher is available to answer questions, and help
with editing.

After 20 minutes members of the Writing group meet with those they
interviewed from the Design group to check for accuracy, etc. The teacher
uses the last 10-15 minutes of the period to coordinate final layout and
make arrangements for typing or computer entry of final draft, making
copies. Tell students that the following class period will be used to collate
the booklets and to read and discuss it.

Day Four. Help students set up a system to collate the pages to assemble
the booklet. (This can be done in 15 minutes.) Use the remaining time to
allow students to read the booklet and make comments. Ask students:
'What was good about the class booklet project? What did you learn? What
was most difficult? What could have been done better?'

Adaptation: The booklet could be planned over a longer period of time,

perhaps beginning half way through the semester and developed over a
course of four to six weeks, using one class period each week to work
toward the final product. The interviews could be done as part of a
re-writing project based on earlier class interviews and increased in length
and improved grammar usage. The inclusion of cultural heritage could
grow out of a unit on international diversity. A page on 'Highlights' of the
semester could be added as the result of a class brainstorming session about
world and local events, films and music they know and enjoy and class
activities and progress. Booklets could be produced on a variety of topics
that reflect content based instruction.

Source: This project plan is based on my observation of an Adult ESL class taught by Janis
Scalone, November 1992, and was expanded upon during work with a group of high
intermediate students whom I taught in the spring of 1993 at the University of Pittsburgh.
(G.B.)
92 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Activity 5 Community problems and solutions: Interactive field trip

Requires three class periods.

Performance Objectives: Interacting with persons beyond the classroom,

asking for information, listening and checking for comprehension.

Proficiency Level: Intermediate/Advanced.

Teacher Preparation: This activity requires long-range planning by the

teaching staff. However, once the outreach into the community has been
accomplished, the structure will be in place for future classes on an annual
basis. The activity expands the classroom walls outward into the local
community and puts students in touch with community services - bank,
food cooperative or buying club, hospital or health clinic, the local police
or public safety centre, newspaper, library or museum.
Choose a site of interest to students. (This can be done by having students
indicate their interests on a simple questionnaire that lists agencies,
businesses and community organisations. Have students work in pairs,
then groups of four to prioritise their interests). (1) Call or write a letter to
the public service or community outreach personnel, inquiring about the
possibility of a field trip to their agency. Explain the goals of the ESL project,
the time that the class meets, the number of students, the student
proficiency level and suggest a format for the visit. If appropriate, ask for
an appointment for further discussion and to make specific arrangements.
Ask that an agency representative meet with the students to explain the
purpose and work of the agency, give a tour of the facility, if possible, and
then answer questions which students will have prepared prior to the visit.
Explain that the field trip is part of a unit dealing with community services
and that students will be studying vocabulary, preparing questions and
will be accompanied by the instructor. If the public service representative
agrees to host the class, schedule the visit a month in advance, ask for
informational brochures that could be used as part of the preparation and
arrange to call the representative a week prior to the field trip to confirm
plans. (If you plan to videotape or audiotape the session, ask permission in
advance. The taped portion of the visit will focus on students' interaction
with the personnel and be used for evaluation and future planning by
students and teachers.) If the community relations director seems inter-
ested but is unable to have the class visit the facility, ask if s/he or a
representative would be available to visit the class to explain services.
Collect posters and pictures, brochures, magazine ads and articles related
to the topic you have chosen for a classroom display. For example, if the
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 93

topic is health care, collect posters advertising health services, immunisa-

tion campaigns, health education programmes, nutrition and vitamins, etc.
(You m a y want to ask students to keep a special section of their
notebooks for this community field trip unit. Students can record n e w
vocabulary, questions they have about the topic and reflections and
evaluation after the field trip.)

Pre-activity: D a y One. Introduce the topic; explain that the class will be
investigating some services in the community. List : health care, safe
neighbourhoods, fresh food markets, banking, newspaper, museum, etc.
on the chalkboard. Explain that arrangements have been made for the class
to visit some of these facilities during the semester and that w e will begin
with a visit to a nearby hospital at the end of the week.
Distribute pictures and posters depicting health care needs/provisions/
concerns/vitamin advertisements, pictures of children being immunised,
nutritional posters, pictures of nurses, doctors, patients, healthy looking
people walking, playing ball, etc. A s k students to examine the pictures.
Include brochures from the local hospital.

Write the word, ' H E A L T H ' on an overhead projector. A s k students to

think of words that come to mind w h e n they hear this word. Write
responses on the chart. A s k what is the opposite of health? Record
responses on the overhead. A s k students to think of a time w h e n someone
in their family w a s ill. What happened? H o w was the family member cared
for? Did a doctor care for the person? If students have not had such an
experience, ask them to think about what they w o u l d d o if a family member
got sick while they were living here in the US. A s students are considering
these points direct them to find a partner to work with. Begin with
brainstorming. (As students are brainstorming, the teacher walks among
the group listening, offering help as needed, taking note of vocabulary that
is being used or is needed. Write the vocabulary list on the board for
follow-up after the discussion session.)

The brainstorming session is goal oriented. Students know that they are
preparing for a meeting with community representatives regarding health
careers and community safety. Brainstorming is done first in pairs. A s k
students to think of two or three questions they have about procuring
health care services in this city. Encourage them to think of additional
questions they w o u l d like to ask w h e n they visit the local hospital.
After five minutes, ask students to end their discussion and call attention
to the vocabulary list the teacher has put on the board during their
discussion. A s k if there are any unfamiliar terms. Give any needed
94 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

explanation if the class is unable to offer it. Such words might include:
emergency room ambulance health insurance prenatal care postnatal
care immunization AIDS.
Direct students to group in fours and share their list of questions. Each
group of four will come up with a single list of questions. Move among the
groups checking to keep students on task and to offer help if needed.
Encourage students to check for any duplications. Allow 7-10 minutes for
the group of four to come to agreement on which questions to select.
With the whole class, ask each group to submit their questions. Remind
them that if the question has already been raised they need not repeat it.
Direct four students (one from each group) to record all the questions so
that copies can be made and distributed before the end of the session. These
questions will be taken home so that students can decide if the questions
should be asked during the hospital visit at the end of the week. If
videotaping will be done during the question-and-answer period, tell
students in advance and explain that the class will view the tape at a
following class to see how well they did and think of ways to improve for
the next field trip.
Explain that the students will be doing most of the talking during the
visit to the hospital. The teacher will be there, but won't be in charge. 'We
need to choose some class leaders for this trip.' Remind students that there
will be three other field trips and that others will have a chance to lead when
the time comes.
Ask for volunteers or choose two students who will coordinate the visit
to the hospital. One student will introduce the class to the Community
Relations Director and will call on those who ask questions during the
session. The second student will watch the time and after 35 minutes end
the questioning period and thank the hospital personnel on behalf of the
class. The second student will also ask the hospital personnel if they have
any questions for the students. The two student leaders meet with the
teacher after class for any clarification. Remind students about the
departure time for the field trip.

Activity: Day Two. Students will meet for a half-hour prior to leaving for
the hospital. Review areas of responsibility. Ask for two volunteers to take
notes to prepare a short report for the class newspaper. Find out if anyone
has thought of additional questions to ask at the hospital. What about

The idea for this lesson is taken from 'Real reality revisited: An experimental communicative
course in ESL' by Carol Montgomery and Miriam Eisenstein, TESOL Quarterly Vol. 19, June
1985. The lesson plan was designed by Gail Britanik.
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 95

employment opportunities at the hospital? Volunteer opportunities? Free

community health examinations, etc. Encourage students to ask these
questions at the appropriate time.
Students travel in the community van or cars to the hospitals and are
met by the Community Relations Director. There is a brief meeting to
welcome students, then a short tour of the facility is given. The group
returns to the meeting room. The student leader introduces the class to the
director and thanks her/him for welcoming the class. The director presents
a 10-minute overview and invites students' questions. (This is according to
an agreed-upon format between teacher and hospital personnel.) The
instructor or an assistant videotapes the session. The second student leader,
who is timing the session, intervenes to call time and to thank the director,
inviting any questions from her/him. Students are reminded to write any
thoughts about their visit in their notebooks before the next class session.

Post Activity: Day Three. Students are asked to gather in groups of three
and to list five things they learned from the field trip. Then in the large
group, the teacher asks if they found out the things they had hoped to learn?
What things were unexpected? List these on the board. Ask students if they
are ready to view the videotaped segment. Remind them that they will be
watching and listening to see how well things went and to see how we
might improve our questions when we visit the community bank or credit
union. Following the video viewing, elicit feedback, asking students to list
strengths and weaknesses. Record these on the chalkboard. Ask students
who volunteered to write for the class newspaper to work on their
two-paragraph reports. Ask for two student volunteers to write a note of
thanks to the hospital personnel. The letter will be signed by the whole class
during the next class session. Ask students to write in their notebooks: (1)
'The best things about our hospital trip were... '; and (2) 'I think we could
improve b y . . . '

Adaptation: If students are unable to visit a facility, community resource

personnel can be invited to visit the class. Institutional brochures, video
programmes, etc. can be used to supplement a guest speaker's presentation.

References
Bygate, M. (1988) Linguistic and strategic features of the language of learners in
oral communication exercises. Unpublished PhD thesis. Institute of Education,
University of London.
— (1988) Units of oral expression and language learning in small group interaction.
Applied Linguistics 9,59-82.
96 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

— (1992) Neither chaos nor magic: On the systematic influence of oral communi-
cation tasks on the language of learners. In Working Papers, Department of
Linguistics, University of Reading.
Cohen, E.G. (1986) Designing Groupwork. New York: Teachers College Press.
Danielson, D., Porter, P. and Hayden, R. (1990) Using English, Your Second Language
(second edition). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
— (1990) Using English, Your Second Language: Instructor's Manual (second edition).
Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Day, R. (ed.) (1986) Talking to Learn: Conversation in Second Language Acquisition.
Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Dewey, J. (1910) How We Think. London: Heath & Co.
DiPietro, R. (1987) Strategic Interaction. New York: Cambridge University Press.
— (1990) Helping people do things with English. English Teaching Forum July, 35-38.
Doughty, C. and Pica, T. (1986) 'Information gap' tasks: Do they facilitate second
language acquisition? TESOL Quarterly 20 (2), 305-25.
Gaies, S.J. (1985) Peer Involvement in Language Learning. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice-Hall.
Gass, S. and Marios Varonis, E. (1985) Negotiation of meaning in non-native
speaker, non-native speaker conversation. In S. Gass and C. Madden (eds) Input
and Second Language acquisition. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Hendrickson, J.M. (1987) Error correction in foreign language teaching: Recent
theory, research, and practice. In M.H. Long and J.C. Richards (eds) Methodology
in TESOL: A Book of Readings. New York: Newbury House.
Klippel, F. (1984) Keep Talking. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Krashen, S.D. (1980) The input hypothesis. In J.E. Alatis (ed.) Georgetown University
Roundtable on Language and Linguistics (pp. 168-80). Washington, DC: George-
town University Press.
Long, M.H. (1977) Group work in the teaching and learning of English as a foreign
language: Problems and potential English Language Teaching Journal 31 (4),
285-92.
— (1985) Input and second language acquisition theory. In S. Gass and C. Madden
(eds) Input and Second Language Acquisition (pp. 207-25). Washington, DC:
Georgetown University Press.
— (1989) Task, group, and task-group interactions, University of Hawais Working
Papers in ESL 8 (2), 1-26.
Long, M.H. and Crookes, G. (1992) Three approaches to task-based syllabus design.
TESOL Quarterly 26, 27-56.
Long, M.H. and Porter, P. (1985) Group work, interlanguage talk, and second
language acquisition. TESOL Quarterly 19 (2), 207-28.
McGroarty, M. (1989) The benefits of cooperative learning arrangements in second
language instruction. NABE Journal 13 (2), 127-43.
— (1991) What can peers provide? In J.E. Alatis (ed.) Georgetown University
Roundtable on Language and Linguistics (pp. 41-55). Washington, DC: Georgetown
University Press.
Neves, A.*(1983) The effect of various input on the second language acquisition of
Mexican American children in nine elementary school classrooms. Doctoral
dissertation, Stanford University.
Nunan, D. (1989) Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
TASKBASED GROUP WORK 97

Pica, T. and Doughty, C. (1985). Input and interaction in the communicative

language classroom: A comparison of teacher-fronted and group activities. In S.
Gass and C. Madden (eds) Input and Second Language Acquisition. Rowley, MA:
Newbury House.
— (1988) Variations in classroom interaction as a function of participation pattern
and task. In Jonathan Fine (ed.) Second Language Discourse (pp. 41-55). Norwood,
NJ: Ablex Publishing.
Pica, T., Young, R. and Doughty, C. (1987) The impact of interaction on
comprehension. TESOL Quarterly 4 (21), 737-58.
Pica, T., Holliday, L., Lewis, N. and Morgenthaler, L. (1989) Comprehensible output
as an outcome of linguistic demands on the learner. Studies in Second Language
Acquisition 11,63-90.
Porter, P. and Danielson, D. (1991) Handout from talk 'Addressing some criticisms
of group work' at the Annual TESOL Convention, New York City.
Porter, P., Grant, M. and Draper, M. (1985) Communicating effectively in English: Oral
Communication for Non-native speakers (second edition in press). Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth.
Swain, M. (1985) Communicative competence: Some roles of comprehensible input
and comprehensible output in its development. In S. Gass and C. Madden (eds)
Input and Second Language Acquisition. Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Tarvin, W.L. and Al-Arishi, A.Y. (1991) Rethinking communicative language
teaching: Reflection and the EFL classroom. TESOL Quarterly 25 (1), 9-27.
Ur, P. (1981) Discussions That Work: Task-centered Fluency Practice. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Yule, G., Powers, M. and MacDonald, D. (1992) The variable effects of some
task-based learning procedures on L 2 communicative effectiveness. Language
Learning 42 (2), 249-77.
9 One Peer Response
Group in an ESL Writing
Class: A Case Study
MARY CALDER

Because Zamel (1987) is concerned that research fails to inform

pedagogy, she challenges ESL teachers to conduct their own research
and to investigate the relationship between practice and writing
development in the classroom. In response to Zamel's challenge, I
undertook a study of one peer response group in a process-oriented
writing class I taught at the University ofRegina. The purpose of the
study was to learn more about what actually happens in peer group
conferences and how students help one another to improve in-progress
writing drafts. To do this, a group of three intermediate level ESL
students were audiotaped during two peer writing conferences. Tran-
scripts were analysed and writing drafts written before and after
conferences were compared to determine if and where revisions were
made and to attempt to connect these changes to comments made
during the conferences. The results of the study indicate that the group
responses of the three participants serve to inform, direct, and elicit.
As well, the writers appear to have developed three areas of writing
skills: sense of audience, sense of voice, and sense of power in language.

Introduction
One classroom practice used extensively in m y ESL writing classes is the
peer response group. While I felt intuitively that this practice was successful
for developing communicative competence, I wanted to learn more about
what actually happens in peer groups. In order to investigate the
relationship between this teaching practice and the writing development
of m y students, I conducted a naturalistic case study of one group in an
intermediate ESL writing class I was teaching at the University of Regina.
98
AN ESL WRITING CLASS 99

Theoretical Framework
Based on the theoretical frameworks of communicative language
teaching and collaborative learning, the instructional focus in process
oriented writing classes is extended beyond the finished text to include text
production and audience comprehension. According to DiPardo and
Freedman (1987: 3), the following are key features of process instruction:
It focuses on writing as a process, with instruction aimed at intervening
in that process; it teaches strategies for invention and discovery; it
emphasizes rhetorical principles of audience, purpose, and occasion,
with evaluation based on how well a given piece meets its audiences
needs; it treats the activities of pre-writing, writing and revision as
intertwining, recursive processes; and it is holistic, involving nonra-
tional intuitive faculties as well as reason.
Using peer groups in second language classes can be an effective practice
to support the process paradigm. According to Long and Porter (1985),
group work can increase the number of language practice opportunities,
improve the quality of student talk, individualise instruction, create a
positive affective environment, and increase student motivation. Groups
provide opportunities for comprehensible input and interlanguage talk. By
negotiating for meaning, students can offer each other genuine communi-
cative practice. Mangelsdorf and Schlumberger (1992) suggest peer groups
ensure students become actively involved in making meaning, not only
receiving meaning.
Freedman (1992) concludes that peer groups are well suited to class-
rooms that de-emphasize the whole class, teacher dominated model. Group
work provides the time and opportunity needed for thinking and talking
about topics, as well as revising. Due to its interactive nature, collaboration
increases student awareness that successful communication requires
writers to develop a sense of audience because real people, classmates, read
and respond to their work (Urzua, 1987). Groups provide an opportunity
for writers to ask for help to solve problems and for readers to respond to
the content. Writers benefit from response to their ideas and their writing
throughout the writing process, not only when the final draft is evaluated
(DiPardo & Freedman, 1987).

The Writing Class

In the Regina study, participants were attending two, two and a half
hour writing classes for each of the semester's 12 weeks. Class activities
100 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

included responding to readings, language study, journal writing and

composition.
Students wrote in journals in class and outside of class to generate and
explore ideas, as well as to develop automaticity, confidence, and speed
(MacGowan-Gilhooly, 1991). They chose their own topics because when
they do, they write quantitatively more and qualitatively better (Zamel,
1982); however, they were encouraged to select topics relevant to the course
itself. For example, topics evolved during discussions of the text, Amazing!
Canadian Newspaper Stories, or of video presentations, such as Discuss It!.
Topics suggested in other discussions included the process of writing, the
ESL programme and activities, and responses to other students' ideas.
Discussion was intended to provide comprehensible input for writing.
Six journal entries were revised to become compositions written in an
academic style and submitted for evaluation. During the composition
activity, students read model paragraphs and learned what is expected in
academic writing. Peer groups were organised so that three students could
read and respond to each other's work in progress. Students made up their
own groups; membership changed when final drafts were completed in
order to provide writers with a wide audience of readers.
The conference procedure was based on the Bell model (1991). Writers
provided each reader with a photocopy of the text. Prior to reading, writers
identified a problem they had with their work and asked for help solving
it. Writers read their work aloud, not only to make reading more
comprehensible, but also to learn to recognise for themselves what kinds
of revision may be needed. The group discussed solutions to the writer's
problem and readers identified strengths and weaknesses of the piece.
Feedback was provided in oral and written form.
As the instructor, I participated in groups only when asked to clarify a
point or answer specific questions. This approach shifts responsibility for
and control of writing and learning from the teacher to the student (Zamel,
1987).

Data sources, data collection procedures and analysis procedures

Students Nie, Paula, and Yuki, the participants, moved to Regina

immediately prior to the semester to enrol in the ESL programme. Nie, a
graduate engineer from China, was 29 years old; Paula, from Malaysia, and
Yuki, from Japan, were both 19-year-old high school graduates. Although
this was the sixth and final set of peer group conferences, it was the first
time Nie, Paula and Yuki had worked together.
AN ESL WRITING CLASS 101

Data for analysis included: (a) audiotapes of two conferences; (b)

transcripts of audiotapes; (c) student journals; (d) first, second, and final
drafts of compositions; (e) photocopies used by readers; and (f) informal
student interviews.
Transcripts of six texts discussed during two conferences were com-
pared with findings of the 1985 Gere and Stevens study in which student
texts and transcripts were analysed to determine the apparent function of
responses. The 1985 study indicates group responses serve to inform, direct
and elicit.
According to Gere and Stevens (1985), the effectiveness of writing group
responses is demonstrated in changes made in subsequent drafts. To
analyse the changes, I compared the first and second drafts, as well as the
second and third drafts, of each participant's work. In addition, response
group discussions were compared with subsequent revisions. Results were
also compared to the findings of Urzua's 1987 study of four ESL Southeast
Asian children who appear to have developed three areas of writing skills:
sense of audience, sense of voice, and sense of power in language.

Results of the Study

Regina readers responded to the writing throughout both conferences.
For example, when Nie said: 'I think maybe my conclusion is very short,
but I can't find another,' Yuki suggested: 'Chinese tea is very good,' and
Paula added: 'Nothing can compare to Chinese tea'. Gere and Stevens
(1985: 97) define response as an answer or reply offered in reaction to a
specific stimulus. Their 1985 study found oral language in writing groups
to be responsive because it focuses on the text in such a way that both the
text and reader reaction to the text are acknowledged. The study identifies
three language functions: to inform, direct, and elicit. These functions are
found in this study as well. One example of each illustrates the findings.
Nie's topic sentence was: 'In China, many people like to drink tea and
there are many interesting story about rule and tea.' Readers expressed
concern about the discrepancy between the topic sentence and supporting
detail. The following comments serve to inform about the formal properties
of the text.
Paula: Why do the people like Chinese tea? Is it good for your health or
what?
Yuki: Why do people like to drink tea?
Nie: Many people like to drink tea but it's not my main idea.
Paula: Your problem is your topic.
Nie: Maybe yes, I have a problem. Yes.
102 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Although Nie referred to two kinds of tea, Dragon Well and Chief of
Monkey, he told only one story. Paula and Yuki were adamant he write
both stories because he referred to two types of tea. The following
conversation directs the writing process because it suggests content
changes.
Yuki: How about this Dragon Well tea?
Paula: You have two examples: Dragon Well and Chief of Monkey.
Yuki: I want to know about this story, Dragon Well.
Nie: Maybe next time.
Paula: No, no. Here you say two examples, but down here you just give
one example. It is not balanced, an error.
Nie: Do you know I just give one example. If I give more examples, I
think it is too long.
Paula: But I want to know the Dragon Well story.
Paula wrote about grandparents living with grandchildren. Nie drew
attention to a problem; he wanted to know when her story took place, "The
present or the past?' Yuki, too, requested more detail; she wanted to know
the number of adults who did not want to live with their own parents. Such
questions and comments draw the writer's attention to ambiguities and
discourse problems.
Yuki: I think some people?
Paula: Some, not all.
Nie: Just some people?
Yuki: You have to write some; some parents...
Nie: Yes, I just thought every. Some parents don't want their children
living with their grandfather.
Conversations cited above indicate Nie, Paula and Yuki developed a
collaborative relationship to assist one another with direct and specific
comments and questions. They demonstrate the group's attempts to
inform, direct and elicit, supporting the 1985 findings regarding language
function in peer groups.
Following group discussion, writers expected to revise the subsequent
draft. According to Urzua (1987), group responses that lead to and shape
revision help ESL writers develop a sense of audience. For example, in
response to questions about why dew on flowers makes the best tea, Nie
answered: 'It is very good for your skin; if you drink tea made with dew,
when you are 50 years old, you just look 20 years old.' Yuki suggested Nie
add: 'That is good for health and that can make girl keep beautiful forever.'
It appears Nie respected Yuki's advice enough to incorporate it. Urzua
AN ESL WRITING CLASS 103

concludes the immediacy of feedback appears to dramatically influence

writing development.
Urzua (1987) suggests deciding what to revise and what not to revise
may develop an emerging sense of voice. Voice, according to Graves (cited
in Urzua: 289), is the imprint of ourselves on our writing. Responding to a
Malay newspaper article about a man refusing to let his parents live with
his children, Paula stated defiantly: 'I can tell you my opinion. I hate this
guy because I love my grandparents very much.'
Nie and Yuki advised Paula, 'Add your opinion.' When Paula did this,
her sense of voice became more powerful. In the third draft, Paula
further personalised the text by including her own experience of living
with her grandmother. The additions made Paula's voice increasingly
clear.
Nie, on the other hand, did not feel obliged to follow the reader's advice.
Although discussion transcripts of Nie's two drafts are more than twice as
long as the others, he made fewer revisions. In fact, following a lengthy
discussion of the second draft, Nie merely recopied the second draft text
for the third draft, making additional mechanical errors. This is significant
for two reasons; both readers were adamant Nie add the Dragon Well story
and Nie, himself, asked for help to improve the conclusion.
According to Urzua (1987), it is largely through revision, where
language can be manipulated and rearranged, that students can better
appreciate a sense of the power of language. In the second draft, Yuki wrote:
'We have to keep the good balance.' Nie did not understand what she was
writing about so he suggested: 'You should explain balance'. In the second
draft, Yuki wrote: 'We have to keep the number of the wild animals.' In the
third draft, the idea was further refined: 'We have to protect the number of
wild animals'.
Confused by the conclusion: 'We have to keep the number of wild
animals and we have to keep the place where wild animals live', Nie asked
Yuki, 'Do you mean people should give the chance or the place to let
animals live?' When Yuki said: 'a place', Nie questioned: 'Such as a national
park?' Yuki answered: 'It's a place to protect wild animals like a national
park.' In the final draft, she added: 'We have to keep places where they live
like Banff National Park.' Yuki adopted Nie's idea to support her argument.
Discussion appears to have helped participants develop greater awareness
of the power of language.
The three participants did revise subsequent drafts based on informa-
tion, direction and questioning feedback from their peers. Changes reflect
apparent advances in the understanding and use of writing processes as
104 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

students interacted with the meaning and content of each text. For each
writer, changes resulted in the production of a more effective and more
meaningful piece (see Appendices). Writing appears to have become an act
of communication about content important to writer and reader (Zamel,
1987). Comparison of in-progress drafts and final drafts reveals that the
three Regina participants, like the four ESL students in Urzua's study,
appear to have developed a sense of audience, a sense of voice and a sense
of power in language.

Conclusion
Findings of this study indicate that in one peer response group in a
process-oriented writing class, students collaborated to provide effective
feedback for one another. Like the students in the Gere and Stevens (1985)
study, Regina students also addressed questions of meaning and content,
rather than editing concerns. Analysis of group discussion transcripts and
subsequent revisions reveals that writers developed skills of self-direction
and critical reflection to produce more fluent and proficient writing. In my
opinion, Nie, Paula and Yuki wrote better pieces and with more confidence
and enjoyment as a result of participating in a peer response group. Their
comments to me suggest they developed a more positive attitude toward
writing; writing became important for its own sake, not merely as an
evaluation tool for passing the course.
Zamel (1982) suggests syntax, vocabulary, and rhetorical form, impor-
tant features of writing, need to be taught not as ends in themselves but as
the means to express a message. In this group, students did attend to
semantics and syntax when revising. I believe one significant aspect of the
process paradigm is the emphasis on students identifying and confronting
their own problems. It appears that the ability to revise develops and
improves when writers confront problems in their own work.
Instructional classroom practice is most effective when based on sound
theoretical foundations. This study, developed from communicative lan-
guage teaching and collaborative learning frameworks, finds the process
approach to writing was successful for three ESL writers. By investigating
the interactions of one peer response group in my own classroom, I have
learned how the participants helped one another improve in-progress
writing drafts and, as a result, write better compositions. I conclude that
using the peer response group is a teaching practice that proved effective
for developing the communicative competence of the three participants of
this study.
AN ESL WRITING CLASS 105

Appendix 1

Nie's final draft: Tea in China

In China, many people like to drink tea and there are many interesting
story and rule about tea.
There are many kinds of famous tea in China. The famous tea such as
'Dragon Well' and 'Chief of Monkey' have some nice folklores. For
example, Why do people call the tea 'Chief of Monkey'? There is a story
about the tea. Long ago, there is a kind of tea plant on the mountains which
nobody can climb up. One day, a person found that some monkeies often
picked leafs of the tea plant and offered the tea leafs to the chief of their
groups. So the person tried to get some leafs of the tea plant and had a cup
of the tea, he found that the tea tasted very nice. Then, many people began
to plant a lot of the kind of tea plants and call the kind of tea 'Chief of
Monkey'.

In China, here are many rule about drinking tea. The different kinds of
tea should use different temperture water and different area's water.
People think that you could get very nice different taste of tea according to
the rule. It is said that the dew on flowers is the best water to drink tea, and
the drinking is good for health, and can make girl keep beatuful for ever,
but nobody has collected a cup of dew to drink tea.

I like to drink tea and the folklores about tea.

Appendix 2
Paula's final draft: Grandparents living with grandchildren

Some parents don't like their children to live with their grandparents.
There is a real story in Malay newspaper. I am surprised by that. Children
don't know why their parents act so, and they try to get answer from them.
The answer is that their grandparents are old fashion people and they don't
have good education background. Because of this reason, the parents are
scared that their children will be influenced by their grandparents, their
way of thinking, acting, etc. On the other hand, the grandparents are very
angry about this. They love and care for the grandchildren. Although they
don't have good education, they still can do their best to let their
grandchildren know what is right and what is wrong. When they are
growing up. Because in a way, knowledge is not the most important thing
in the world. Even if they have knowledge, they don't use them in the
106 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

people way, it's still useless. How to be a good person is more important.
So they don't think it's fair to separate them with their grandchildren.
In my opinion, I feel it is unfair for the grandparents too. Because my
grandparents lived with us. My grandfather passed away before I was born.
But my grandmother loved me very much. She liked to tell us stories about
herself, about the war, about something which can teach us what is right
and what is wrong in our daily life. And I learn a lot from her. So I think
those parents who don't allow their children to stay with their grandparents
are wrong. Old people have more experience. They can teach their
grandchildren a lot of good things. It will benefit the grandchildren in their
future.

Appendix 3

Yuki's final draft: Wild animals

Many wild animals are killed by human beings. We have to stop killing
them at random, and we have to protect them. Now some of wild animals
are almost dying out and many of them are decreasing every year. For
example, many African elephants are killed to get their ivory tusks, but
killing elephants is illegal. Much ivory is smuggled into Japan, and there,
the ivory is used to make impressions for family seals that are used for
signatures. But they can be made from plastics. As well, many baby seals
are killed in Canada to get their white fur, because human beings want their
fur. When they grow up, their fur will change to a dark colour. We must
not kill animals at random, and we must not destroy nature for our
convenient life. We have to protect the number of the wild animals, and we
have to keep places where they live like Banff National Park. It is a big
problem to protect wild animals, but we should be able to solve it.

References
Bates, S. (1991) Amazing! Canadian Newspaper Stories. Scarborough, Ontario:
Prentice-Hall Canada Inc.
Bell, J. (1991) Using peer response groups in ESL writing classes. TESL Canada
Journal 8 (20), 65-71.
DiPardo, A. and Freedman, S. (1987) Historical overview: Groups in the writing
classroom (Technical Report No. 4). Berkeley, CA: Center for the Study of
Writing.
Freedman, S. (1992) Outside-in and inside-out: Peer response groups in two
ninth-grade classes. Research in the Teaching of English 26 (1), 71-107.
Gere, A. and Stevens, R. (1985) The language of writing groups: How oral response
shapes revision. In S. Freedman (ed.) The Acquisition of Written Language: Response
and Revision (pp. 85-105). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
AN ESL WRITING CLASS 107

Long, M. and Porter, P. (1985) Group work, interlanguage talk, and second
language acquisition. TESOL Quarterly 19 (2), 207-228.
MacGowan-Gilhooly, A. (1991) Fluency before correctness: A whole language
experiment in college ESL. College ESL: A Journal of Theory and Practice in the
Teaching of English as a Second Language 1 (1), 37-47.
Mangelsdorf, K. and Schlumberger, A. (1992) ESL student response stances in a
peer-review task. Journal of Second Language Writing 1 (3), 235-54.
National Film Board of Canada (1992) Discuss It! Montreal: Author.
Urzua, C. (1987) 'You stopped too soon': Second language children composing and
revising. TESOL Quarterly 21 (2), 279-304.
Zamel, V. (1982) Writing: The process of discovering meaning. TESOL Quarterly 16
(2), 195-209.
— (1987) Recent research on writing pedagogy. TESOL Quarterly 21 (4), 697-715.
10 Correction of Speech
Errors: Some Suggestions
PIERRE DEMERS and GUYLAINE BÉRUBÉ

This chapter proposes three practical techniques to correct speech

errors of intermediate L2 learners: the gestural, peer, and echoing
correction techniques. The use of these techniques can facilitate the
development of strategies for self-correction, without interfering with
the development of communication skills.

Introduction
The growing importance L2 teachers give to the communicative
approach creates certain problems, one of the most important being how
the correction of errors is made.
Because emphasis is put on the message, very little attention is
sometimes given to the form and many teachers no longer correct the
learners' errors (Bess & Porquier, 1988).
Different researchers in the field (Obadia 1987; Narcy 1992) have
formulated strategies aimed at the correction of mistakes. Calvé, (1992:458)
writes: 'To correct or not to correct is not the question.' It is more important,
he says, not to interfere with the message. Any correction of errors must
respect this principle.
According to Calvé the four main correction techniques are (from the
most to the least effective) self-correction, peer correction, indirect correc-
tion and systematic correction by the teacher.
The idea of self-correction is not new, since it goes back at least to Sapir
(1970), and many teachers will have already used it either with the aid of a
video or a traditional language laboratory. However, the challenge is to
have the student self-correct (thus increasing his linguistic awareness)
without interfering with the communication process. In other words, how
is it possible to check upon the form when the goal of the course is to
concentrate on the message?
108
CORRECTION OF SPEECH ERRORS 109

The techniques presented in this chapter (gestural, peer and echoing)

have as their objective an increase in the learner's self-correction abilities.
The time required for students to develop this ability will vary depending
on the particular components of the situation.

Gestural Correction
In order to practise this technique, the teacher has to stick to precise
proxemics and help students recognise what errors they have made
without interfering with the communication process.

Proxemics
Each student must be able to see all the other students as well as the
teacher and be seen by all the other students. Therefore, the traditional circle
(closed or open) disposition of the classroom can be maintained as long as
the teacher is outside the circle, always moving and diagonally opposed to
the student who speaks. This way, the teacher can address a maximum of
students and be seen by the student whose speech is being corrected.
The role of the other students (the ones who are listening) is to focus their
attention upon the message while the role of the teacher is to focus upon
both the message and the form.

The gestures
The correcting gestures may vary from one teacher to another but it is
important that the students be aware that these gestures are used to correct
their errors. The following gestures work well in practice and are given as
examples (see illustrations in the Appendix):
(1) A pointed finger towards the student indicates that an error has been
made while the other hand indicates which type of error has been
committed.
(2) The hand movement that usually indicates to a car driver to move back
indicates to use the past tense.
(3) The hand movement that usually indicates to a car driver to move
forward indicates to use the future tense.
(4) The hand gesture used to indicate to speed up is used to tell the student
to increase speech delivery.
(5) By putting a hand to one's ear, one indicates to the student to speak
louder.
(6) The swaying of the hand indicates to change the order of words.
110 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(7) The flickering of a finger indicates to add a word (a conjunction or a

preposition for example).
(8) A circular gesture from left to right tells the student to continue with
the idea or to complete the sentence.
(9) A halting gesture of the index underlines the need to reformulate the
idea or rephrase the sentence.
(10) Finally, a gesture that expresses satisfaction (for example, the one used
by Italians to indicate that a dish is delicious) could underline the
student's good performance, especially if a commonly produced error
has been omitted.
The list of gestures proposed here is not exhaustive because each teacher
should adapt the gestures to students' needs and his or her personality.

Peer Correction
The goal of this technique is to have the students aware of the mistakes
of their peers and make their peers aware of their own particular mistakes.
In order to do this, the teacher first has to underscore the most common
mistakes: this could imply a short lesson on the particular forms to be
corrected. According to certain authors (Porquier & Frauenfelder, 1980), it
is important for students to understand not only their errors but why they
make them. For example, students learning an L2 make errors stemming
from their mother tongue and it would be important for teachers to make
students aware of this. This way, the student does not feel as uncomfortable
when an error is repeated over and over again.
Then, when a student speaks, the other students should relate form to
the message. For example, when a student makes a common mistake,
another student could make him aware of that mistake by formulating a
question with the same content in its proper form, thereby providing the
student with more than one teacher.
Of course, when this method is used, only certain mistakes are corrected:
the most important and frequent ones, the ones that interfere with
communication.
The result of this procedure is that the students gradually develop a
sense of grammaticality without being afraid to make mistakes. The
teacher's role is therefore to create a friendly and enjoyable atmosphere in
the classroom so that the students gradually feel comfortable correcting one
another, this atmosphere being recognised by many specialists as the
golden way to L2 acquisition (Krashen, 1981).
CORRECTION OF SPEECH ERRORS 111

The Echoing Correction Technique

The teacher first presents a mini lesson on the forms to be corrected.
Then, when the student makes one of the mistakes previously discussed,
the teacher echoes the student's mistake (thus making the student aware of
it). According to Hendrickson (1978:396), 'several language specialists
propose that once students are made aware of their errors, they may learn
more from correcting their own errors than by having their teachers correct
them'. It is important to say that the teacher needs to echo exactly what the
student has said, providing a cue for the student to correct the mistake but
not giving the correct form right away. If the student does not respond to
the cue, then the teacher should provide the student with the correct form.
This technique differs from classical echoing because it allows the
student to correct his own mistake before providing the correct form and
enough time for the student to develop a feeling of self-correction.

Conclusion
The three techniques presented in this chapter offer the learners different
strategies to help them correct their mistakes. The main objective is to
develop strategies for self-correction that will eventually be integrated by
the learners, giving them the chance not only to correct their mistakes but
also avoid them by using the proper forms in the first place.
For a very long time, L2 methods and techniques focused too much on
form. Now, with the communicative approach, not enough emphasis is placed
on error correction. As suggested by recent models of a multidimensional
curriculum developed in Canada for the teaching of French as a second
language (Flewelling, 1992, for example), L2 pedagogy of the 1990s should
try to integrate different (communicative and grammatical) approaches.

Appendix
(The drawings are by Ms. Hélène Tremblay)

1. A. Proxemics B. Gestures
112 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE
CORRECTION OF SPEECH ERRORS 113

References
Bess, H. and Porquier R. (1988) Grammaires et didactique des langues. Paris:
Hatier-Crédif.
Calvé, P. (1992) Corriger ou ne pas corriger, là n'est pas la question. La revue
canadienne des langues vivantes 3 (48), 458-71.
Flewelling, J. (1992) Implications of the national core French study for FSL teachers.
Contact 11 (3), 7-10.
Hendrickson, J. (1978) Error correction in foreign language teaching: Recent theory,
research and practice. The Modern Language Journal 8,387-98.
Krashen, S. (1981) Second Language Acquisition and Second Language Learning.
Pergamon: Oxford.
Narcy, J. (1992) La prise de conscience des problèmes linguistiques conduit-elle à
une réduction des erreurs commises en production libre. In Acquisition et
enseignement-apprentissage des langues (pp. 345-54). Grenoble: LIDELEM:
114 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Obadia, A. (1987) Procédés de prévention ou de correction des fautes orales en

immersion. In P. Calvé et A. Mollica (eds) Le français langue seconde: des principes
à la pratique. Welland: La revue canadienne des langues vivantes.
Porquier, R. and Frauenfelder U. (1980) Enseignants ou apprenants face à l'erreur:
ou de l'autre côté du miroir. Le Français dans le Monde 154,29-36.
Sapir, E. (1970) Le langage. Paris: Payot.
11 Collaborative Strategies
for Narrative Structure
WILLIAM T. FAGAN

Students learning a second language are often lacking in effective

strategies for reading, and writing. One such strategy identified by
research is that of understanding, recalling and writing narrative
structure. This chapter presents several activities for developing
effective strategies of this nature. These strategies are developed
through workingfrom the known to the unknown, through capitalising
on reader based knowledge and through collaborative effort.

Meeting the needs of second language learners is a multifaceted endeavour.

The learners must have exposure to the target language and must also
acquire strategy proficiency in completing various academic tasks. Infor-
mation must be presented in a format that is comprehensible and the
learners must have opportunity to collaborate with peers in various
learning situations. This paper focuses on the role of strategy teaching in a
collaborative setting in fostering second language learning.

Support for Collaborative Strategy Learning

Ineffective learning by students of a second language tends to result
more from a lack of learning strategies rather than from such factors as
inherent storage or capacity deficits (McLaughlin et al., 1983). Huestis'
(1991) research with 12- and 13-year-old ESL students also demonstrated
the need for strategy teaching. While Duran (1987) contended that second
language learners' comprehension may be explained in terms of the level
of comprehension tasks (from vocabulary to literal meaning to inference,
etc.) to which they were exposed and that there would be a progression of
learning from the lowest level to the highest, Huestis' data did not confirm
this. Rather, Huestis showed that the difficulty of a task was more
dependent on whether it involved a greater use of background knowledge
or text information, and particularly if the text information was influenced
by strategy use. The ESL students in his study scored particularly low on
115
116 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

the recognition of text structure/genre; they were more likely to try to

recognise similarity of structure on the basis of cues such as the common-
alty of vocabulary/content as opposed to organisational cues that reflected
the text structure. Without a strategy for analysing text structure, the
students' recognition of comparable structure reflected a superficial level
of comprehension (Duran, 1987). Huestis recommended that specific
strategies for recognising and understanding text structure be taught ESL
students at this level.
Strategy learning, to be most effective, should be developed so that it
supports and is supported by other aspects of learning. It has long been
argued, for example, that reading and writing strategies should be
developed conjointly since both are constructive processes with emphasis
on meaning making (Fagan, 1992; Rubin & Hansen, 1984; Tierney &
Pearson, 1983). Reading and writing are considered collaborative processes
with many similarities. Rather than viewing reading as receptive and
writing as expressive, these authors suggest viewing them as constructive
processes. That is, the main objective of both is to construct meaning.
Readers construct meaning from information presented in the text and
from their own goals and prior knowledge frameworks. Readers are both
receptive and expressive as part of this meaning construction process. By
interjecting and interrelating their own goals and prior knowledge they are
expressing new ideas while at the same time being recipients of this
information which is being stored in memory for future use. In a similar
manner, writers construct meaning by combining their goals and prior
knowledge frameworks with language structures. They express their
meaning via language and continually monitor or receive information as
they compose which then influences the continued construction of mean-
ing. When they have completed a piece of writing, they have expressed a
goal and particular meaning, while at the same time being recipients of
what they have constructed.
Furthermore, the use of oral language in collaborative settings should
allow for greater learner participation and for providing a context in which
learners are free to share their knowledge and construct meaning as they
learn from each other (Buchanan, 1992). Rogoff (1990) argues for the
importance of both peer and adult interaction. She maintains that adults
play a supporting, directing and modelling role. Adults can guide the
learners through various activities while modifying their language input
so that the second language learners are more easily able to comprehend.
Peer interaction while providing language input also provides emotional
support. Rogoff (1990:183) reminds us that 'children spend far more time
in direct interaction with one another than with adults'. The importance of
STRATEGIES FOR NARRATIVE STRUCTURE 117

emotional support is documented by Seliger (1988:30) who maintains that

such support will often 'determine the role and degree of second language
learning'.

Activity 1: Reading and Understanding Narrative Structure

Objectives
(i) Students will collaborate with peers and the teacher in learning.
(ii) Students and teacher will develop a set of rules for collaborative
learning.
(iii) Students will generate appropriate background knowledge.
(iv) Students will read a story and then go through each step of a narrative
plan.
(v) Students will be provided with a narrative plan for future use.

Comprehensible input
The focus is on modifying and supporting input so that it is comprehen-
sible. The teacher should integrate oral and written language, such as
writing a word on the board that is the focus of discussion, provide visual
information such as diagrams and charts, and allow for peer interaction so
that students with greater oral language proficiency can provide a model
and support for others. There should be time for discussion and clarifica-
tion to ensure a point is fully understood before moving on.
Step 1
Assign students to groups with not more that four or five to a group.
Indicate that learning is more effective when learners have an opportunity
to share knowledge, to question each other, clarify information and prepare
questions for the teacher. Provide a few brief rules for collaborating:
(a) Choose a leader who will raise questions/points with the teacher. (The
leader should change with each new activity so that all get an
opportunity to take this role.)
(b) The leader should describe/explain the assigned task and ensure that
all members of the group understand their goal.
(c) Each member of the group should get a chance to participate in the
discussion.
(d) The leader should ask if anyone has questions or is not clear about
something.
(e) The leader should summarise the results of the discussion and ask if
there are any additions/clarification.
118 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Step 2
Introduce the activity by developing an analogy to which the learners
can relate narrative structure. Set the following questions for each group:
(a) Think of all the parts of this school building (classrooms, offices, etc.).
List as many as you can.
(b) Why is it easy for you to find your way around the school building
now?
(c) Why was it difficult to find your way around on your first visit to the
school?
Allow each group leader to share the results of the discussion. If possible,
have a plan (rough sketch) of the school building and summarise the
discussion by indicating that all the students now have a 'plan of the school
in their heads' which they can use to better understand and find their way
around the school building.
Print the word 'narrative' on the board and emphasise the pronuncia-
tion. Point out that in today's lesson the class will be studying narrative text
and that they will develop a plan for narrative text which will help them
understand and use narrative.
Step 3
Assign a short story such as that given below.

A Trip to the Bank

Tom Ford was awake early. The sun was shining brightly and he could
hear the birds singing. It was still four hours before the bank opened.
He had seen the truck of his dreams and he wanted to get the money
for a downpayment as soon as possible. His old truck had just quit and
he needed a truck in order to do his work as a handyman.
Tom was too restless to do anything else so he took the bus
downtown. He had breakfast at a small diner and then walked over
towards the bank. It was still an hour before opening time.
Suddenly, Tom noticed there was something going on at the bank. A
man ran out the door. Tom could see a gun in his hand and he quickly
hid behind a parked car. Then another man ran from the bank. They
got into a van and sped off.
Tom rushed to the bank. The manager and staff were tied up but they
were not hurt. He untied them and they called the police. Tom was able
to remember the licence number of the van. He had to wait awhile but
finally he was able to get his money. He rushed out of the bank to catch
the bus for the used car and truck lot.
STRATEGIES FOR NARRATIVE STRUCTURE 119

Print the title on the board and draw on the students' background
knowledge to develop an appropriate schema. Tell the students that Tom
(write the name on the board) is the main character/person of the story and
when he went to withdraw money from his account at the bank, many
unexpected things happened.
Have each group read the story as a group - sharing information such
as word recognition, when necessary. Then read the story together with the
whole class.
Step 4
Begin to develop a plan for the narrative by drawing a line from the word
'Narrative' and printing 'Characters'.
Narrative

Ask if there were other characters besides Tom. Ask where the action
took place and the time when it occurred. Add these to the diagram and
provide the heading, 'Setting', indicating that characters, place, and time
provide the setting in a narrative.

Narrative

Setting

Characters Place Time

In a similar manner, talk about the action of the narrative in terms of

goal, actions, reactions/feelings and outcome. As each is discussed, include
the label in the diagram until the result looks like:

. Narrative
^ ^ Setting

Characters Place Time Goal Actions Reactions Outcome

Step 5
Have each group now reread the narrative and match information to the
parts of the diagram. As the leaders share the information, slot it into a
diagram on the board and enlist other groups to add omitted information.
120 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Step 6
Give the learners a copy of a narrative structure (Appendix - Form 1).
Have them realise that the same information from the diagram in step 4 is
included here. Have them pretend that they are entering a narrative
(building analogy) at the Title and let them think through the parts of a
narrative that they would expect to find in each segment of the diagram.

Note: The students will need practice with several narratives before moving
to the next activity.

Activity 2: Recalling Narrative Structure

Objectives

(i) Students complete a narrative plan after a brief story.

(ii) Students recall a story and tape it for analysis.
(iii) Students improvise on a story with the help of a narrative frame.

Comprehensible input

As indicated for Activity 1.

Step 1
Give each learner a narrative plan as a worksheet.
Step 2
Tell a brief story. After you finish, have the learners work as a group to
slot information into the different parts of the plan.
Step 3
Have your own plan prepared beforehand, if possible, on an overhead.
Show this and ask the groups how (if) their plans differ.
Step 4
Allow the learners to work in groups and assign them a story to read.
Step 5
Ask one group (different students might contribute different parts) to
recall the story and tape record it.
STRATEGIES FOR NARRATIVE STRUCTURE 121

Step 6
Play back the tape and ask the other groups to help slot this information
into the appropriate place in the narrative plan.
Step 7
Provide the groups with a story and a partially completed plan (for
example, you may write in the place, the goal, and one of the actions). Ask
the groups to read the story and complete the plan.
Step 8
At a greater level of independence, ask the learners to read a story and
then, without referring to the story, to write as much as they can remember.
Have them slot this information on a narrative plan worksheet and indicate
any omissions in their recall. This activity can also be grouped with
monitoring performance, as the learners may initially be asked to rate their
written recall on a scale of 1-10. After they match their recall with the
narrative plan, they may be asked to rate it again.

Activity 3: Writing Narrative Structure

Objectives

(i) Students complete a narrative frame based on a story they have just
read.
(ii) Students analyse a poorly written story and improve it.
(iii) Students write their own stories with teacher support.
(iv) Students share their stories with their peers.
(v) Peers develop modes of responding that are consistent with emphasis
on narrative structure.

Comprehensible input
As indicated in Activity 1.
Stepl
Introduce writing narrative by using a narrative frame (Armbruster,
1990) for a story that has been read. Ask the students to complete it either
singly or in groups. A narrative frame based on the story {A Trip to the Bank)
is as follows:
122 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

This story is about who wished to .

He felt when he noticed .
Then he

Finally, he was able to .

Step 2
Discuss the notion of reader as editor. To develop this concept, hand out
copies of a newspaper and talk about the role of reporters/writers and of
the editor.
Step 3
Provide a story that is poorly written. In groups, have the students
analyse it according to their narrative plan and note parts that could be
improved (for example, the goal may not be clear).
Step 4
Have each group rewrite the story and then share their rewriting with
the class.
Step 5
Ask students to write their own stories and conference with them as they
do so.
Step 6
Ask them to look at their plan while thinking through a story that they
want to write. As you move around the class, always direct your
questions/comments so that it is clear as to which part of the plan they
relate. For example, you might say, 'I'm curious about how your aunt felt
when she discovered that she had picked up the wrong purse', 'I like the
way you have developed information about your character, Elisa', 'I'm
interested in more action. Tell me more about what happened between the
time Tran took the train in Montreal and arrived in Winnipeg.'
Step 7
Help the learners develop the skill of asking questions/making com-
ments about parts of a narrative. Read a short narrative to the class. After
a particular segment has been read, have the students name the part of the
story (according to the plan) and raise any questions or comments.
Step 8
Have students read to the class, stories they have written. The remainder
of the class are asked to share in the reading by raising a question/comment
about a particular part of the story. For example, a student might say, 'I
STRATEGIES FOR NARRATIVE STRUCTURE 123

have a question about the setting. What time of day did Karl receive the
phone call?'
Note: Each of the above activities is best developed initially with short,
single-event narratives. Eventually, the learners may move to longer
narratives. This can be easily done through reading longer narratives, and
through writing by expanding a narrative that has been written. For
example, the narrative, A Trip to the Bank, could be expanded by having the
learners continue the story with two more events:
(a) Tom arrives at the car and truck lot to discover that he is missing some
money.
(b) Tom gets a reward.

Conclusion
Triangulation means to approach a task from a number of perspectives
(at least three) which allows for more effective learning (Tompkins &
Hoskisson, 1991). The activities described in this chapter highlight the
concept of triangulation. Learning a second language is not only supported
by oral language input, but by visual aids, strategy emphasis, and
collaborative support. The students are active participants rather than
passive recipients in these activities.
Comprehension, according to Pearson and Johnson (1978:24) consists of
'building bridges between the new and the known'. Pearson (1984) points
out that as readers make meaning they tend to range between text-based
processing and reader-based processing. The activities described above
allow readers to build bridges between what they know (using plans) and
the unknown (application of plans to understanding narrative structure).
The students are able to draw on familiar surroundings for which they are
more likely to have oral language labelling proficiency and use this
information in understanding a more abstract concept.
The activities include text-based processing in which the focus is on
intra-text structure, and reader-based processing which entails contribut-
ing, constructing, and sharing knowledge based on prior knowledge and
using oral language proficiency. Both the comprehensive and comprehen-
sible nature of the activities should enhance second language learning.

References
Armbruster, B. (March, 1990) Learning from reading: Using graphic organisers.
Paper presented at the Washington Organization Reading Development Con-
ference, Tacoma.
124 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Buchanan, R. (1992) Dr. Marion Crowhurst's workshop on promoting active

learning. Teaching and Learning Newsletter (Memorial University of Newfound-
land) 8,1-5.
Duran, R. (1987) Metacognition in second language. In J. Langer (ed.) Language,
Literacy and Culture: Issues of Society and Schooling (pp. 49-63). Norwood, NJ:
Ablex.
Fagan, W.T. (1992) A Framework for Literacy Development: Effective Program and
Instructional Strategies for Reading and Writing for Low-Achieving Adults and
Children. Montreal: Les Editions de la Cheneliere.
Huestis, D. (1991) Levels of comprehension and meta-monitoring of 12 and 13 year
old ESL and native English speaking readers. Unpublished doctoral dissertation.
Edmonton, AB: The University of Alberta.
McLaughlin, B., Rossman, T. and McLeod, B. (1983) Second language learning: An
information processing perspective. Language Learning 33,135-58.
Pearson, P.D. (1984) A context for instructional research on reading comprehension.
In J. Flood (ed.) Promoting reading comprehension (pp. 1-15). Newark, DL:
International Reading Association.
Pearson, P.D. and Johnson, D.D. (1978) Teaching Reading Comprehension. New York:
Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Rogoff, B. (1990) Apprenticeship in Thinking: Cognitive Development in Social Context.
Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Rubin, A. and Hansen, J. (1984) Reading and Writing: How Are the First Two R's
Related? (Reading Education Report 5). Champaign, IL: University of Illinois,
Center for the Study of Reading.
Seliger, H. (1988) Psycholinguistic issues in second language acquisition. In L.M.
Beebe (ed.) Issues in Second Language Acquisition. Rowley, MA: Newbury House
Publishing.
Tiemey, R.J. and Pearson, P.D. (1983) Toward a composing model of reading.
Reading Education Report 43. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois at Urbana-
Champaign.
Tompkins, G.E. and Hoskisson, K. (1991) Language Arts: Content and Teaching
Strategies. Toronto: Collier-Macmillan Canada, Inc.

Appendix Form 1: Narrative Structure

12 Writing a Short Story
Through Sharing and
Reflecting
MICHELLE CLÉMENT and DIANE LATAILLE-DÉMORÉ

In the context of a presentation to a target second language class,

students are asked to produce an anthology which includes short
stories. In so doing, they often experience difficulty identifying the
different elements which constitute the narrative outline of a short
story. Through sharing, and by reading and writing, students become
aware of these elements, come to recognise them and eventually use
them in their own writing.

Introduction
The activity described in this chapter is part of a process inspired by the
multidimensional approach to second language teaching expounded by
Stern (1983) and given concrete expression in the 'National Core French
Study' (1990). The approach consists of starting with a communication
situation which is meaningful to the student, and communicating this
information at an appropriate language level that is also accurate in
content. The student will achieve mastery of the task through an analysis
of relevant source materials, task-based reflection, and a gradual progres-
sion from guided practice to autonomous writing.
According to Stern, this approach contains the following components:
language (in this case, the short story); communication and experience as well
as culture (the development of an anthology in the context of a presentation
to a target language class); and general language education (knowledge
transfer of the short story from one's first language to the target language
and knowledge of short stories written by various authors in the student's
first and second or foreign language).
More precisely, the activity described here stems from the language
component, which aims at making learning more explicit (thus fostering
125
126 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

retention), and providing the opportunities for the application of such

knowledge. While purposely structured at the outset, these opportunities
become more and more open and gradually lead to more spontaneous use.
The oral presentations and questioning which ensue foster 'objectiva-
tion', that is, an analysis of the form of communication under study and a
reflection of one's own performance (Painchaud, 1991:85-86). This meth-
odology meets at least one of the conditions which facilitate the learning of
the writing process in one's first language, as identified by Graves (Graves,
1983).
Finally, team work provides an opportunity for negotiation among peers
and in itself constitutes a communication situation (Prabhu, 1987) and a
learning experience with peers (Graves, 1983).
The activity described here aims at achieving the following objectives:
As part of a team and given a specific context:
(1) The student shall identify the elements which constitute the narrative
outline of a short story.
(2) The student shall prepare the outline of a short story which incorpo-
rates these elements.
(3) The student shall present the outline to the class and improve it in
accordance with the feedback given by his/her peers.

An Overview of the Process

In their second language class, students have been involved for some
time in sharing their writing with a first language class. After being exposed
to the elements of a narrative outline of a short story and the interpretation
of various texts (Step 1), students are expected to draw up the outline of a
short story and then share and analyse it with the whole class (Hardy et ah,
1990). Only later will they be asked to create a short story on their own (Step
3). The present report deals only with Step 2 (See Table 12.1).

Table 12.1 Overview of the process leading to the production of a short story
Step 1 Step 2 Step 3
Interpretation of Application of Production of a short
several short stories. structural elements to story incorporating the
Identification of the the drawing up of an structural elements of
structural elements of outline for a short the short story.
a short story. story from a given
context.
SHORT STORY WRITING 127

The Process Within Step 2

(1) Preparation of an outline

(a) The class is divided into teams. Students may be allowed to form
their own groups or this may be done at the teacher's discretion.
Students' abilities are of utmost importance in the structuring of
these teams in order to achieve a sense of balance and effective
interaction among them (Johnson & Johnson, 1989).
(b) Each team is presented with a specific context and starting point.
For example, 'It was a beautiful winter day. Everything seemed
peaceful. They had come here on a holiday.'
This is an important step considering that the overall purpose is
to help students acquire certain basic notions rather than create a
story.
(c) Within a specific time established by the teacher, each team
prepares an outline of a short story. The purpose is to identify the
broader aspects and main elements which will constitute its
framework. The following may be some of these elements:

• initial situation (time, setting, main character, action);

• disruptive event;
• incidents;
• climax;
• values (moral and social);
• final outcome.
(See examples in Table 12.2.)

(d) After completing this task, each team decides the manner in which
it will present its outline.

(2) Oral presentations

(a) Oral presentations may be made in random order or on a volunteer
basis.
(b) Each team, in turn, delegates one or more spokespersons to present
the main ideas of the story outlined earlier. While this occurs, the
class attempts to identify, in writing, the elements of the proposed
narrative outline. Students note as well the characteristics or
aspects which may lead to questions, require explanations or
simply appear to be interesting. A grid is designed for this purpose
(See Table 12.3.).
128 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Table 12.2 Example of an outline of a short story

(a) Author: a level 5 student
Context:
'It was a beautiful winter day. Everything seemed peaceful. They
had come here on a holiday.'

(b) Outline:
Initial situation
Time: a holiday, winter, daytime, beautiful weather
Setting: a cottage, near a lake, in the wilderness,
Main characters: Mr Lachance, his sons Joël and Benoît, a friend,
Action: an ice-fishing trip.

Disruptive event
Mr Lachance, Joël and Benoît set their fishing lines to try their luck.
Everything seems peaceful, perhaps too much so.

Incidents
Once everything is set, Mr Lachance returns to the cottage for a
rest while his two sons decide to go for a ride on their skidoo.
Time goes by.
Mr Lachance, now well rested, returns to check the lines. They
are lying on the ice without bait. What has happened?
Joël and Benoît return from their skidoo ride. Mr Lachance,
obviously upset, starts questioning them.
Lines are set again and everyone heads for the cottage to warm
up.
Time goes by.
Everyone returns to check the lines and once again finds them
undone. What has happened?
This incident is repeated several times.
While Mr Lachance is still suspicious about the boys, a plan is
laid to find who is guilty.
A little later, an animal is spotted close to the lines. It is likely the
culprit! (CLIMAX)

Final Outcome
It is an otter, a clever animal, if any.
Mr Lachance, Joël and Benoît decide to stay close to their lines
from now on.
SHORT STORY WRITING 129

Table 12.3 Listening grid

1. Initial situation 1. Initial situation

(a) time (a)

(b) setting (b)
(c) main character(s) (c)
(d) action (d)

2. Disruptive event 2. Disruptive event

3. Development 3. Development

(a) two or three main incidents (a)

(b) climax (b)

4. Final outcome 4. Final outcome

5. Description of main character 5. Description of main charac

(a) physical traits (2): (a)

(b) psychological traits (2): (b)

6. Values 6. Values

(a) moral or social (a)

(b) example: (b)

7. Improvements to be made 7. Improvements to be made

(a) suggestions (a)

130 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

(c) Once the team has made its presentation, it questions the class on
its structured outline (Table 12.4). It is the responsibility of the
presenting team to assess the accuracy of the answers given and to
make corrections if necessary. Thus, each team fosters the partici-
pation of all students in the analysis of the outline structure
presented and helps the class integrate the basic notions presented
earlier.

Table 12.4 Possible questions to be asked to the class by the presenting team
Examples:
Identify the initial situation as presented in our text?

What are: the disruptive events;

the climax;
the final outcome?

Has the narrator of the story: taken part in the action (participant);
seen it happen (witness);
or not (absent)?

Identify and describe the main character.

(d) The class now questions the presenting team about the various
elements or aspects of the outline it presented. For example,
students may wish to ask questions about the story's main
character, setting, moral or social values, etc. The class is then
invited to make suggestions on how to improve the structure of
the short story. This must be done in a constructive way. Criticism
must be avoided and group learning facilitated. The teacher
ensures this through good classroom management, intervening
only at moments deemed appropriate to make the necessary
corrections, recommendations, or explanations.

(3) 'Objectifying' the activity

Once the oral presentations have been made, students return to

their respective team to assess, in an interactive way, the outline of
their short story. They are invited to modify and improve their joint
production, where necessary. The sample grid devised for this
purpose (Table 12.5) may be adapted to suit the teacher's needs.
SHORT STORY WRITING 131

Table 12.5 / Objectivation , grid

The outline of a short story Yes More or less No

1. The initial situation is specified:

(a) The main character's physical

and/or psychological traits are
revealed.

(b) The setting is well described.

(c) The time element (year, month,

daytime or night, season, etc.) is
identified.

(d) A hint of the action to come is

given.

2. The disruptive event is introduced.

3. A credible situation has been

established.

4. In the development:

(a) The chronology of events has

been respected.

(b) The various incidents lead to the

climax and final outcome.

(c) The main character is revealed

through his/her actions and
reactions.

5. The unexpected final outcome.

6. The story captures our interest.

7. Overall impression: On the reverse of this page, please note your

comments regarding this group activity and state whether you are
very satisfied, satisfied, or more or less satisfied with the result of your
outline.
Source: Adapted from Pierre Hardy et ai, Unité d'apprentissage pour l'enseignement du
français, Cochrane-Iroquois Falls, Black River-Matheson.
132 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Conclusion
Throughout this process, students have the opportunity of deepening
their notions regarding the structure of a short story and perfecting their
language skills. This step lies between the explanation and observation of
the elements of a short story (Step 1) and their writing of that short story
(Step 3). Students are provided with the opportunity to reflect on the
structural elements of the short story as well as on the production of their
own outline. By using this approach (based on a communication situation),
students produce quality work which they are proud to share.

Glossary
(a) Class: Group of students of a given level.
(b) Context: A theme, idea, topic, sentence or beginning of a
paragraph which serves as a starting point.
(c) Narrative outline: The structure of a literary text which includes the
following elements: initial situation, disruptive
event, incidents, climax and final outcome.
(d) 'Objectivation': The process by which one returns to analyse and
evaluate an accomplished task for the purpose of
improving it. (Ontario Ministry of Education,
1987)
(e) Short story: A prose story with a full plot, generally brief,
dramatic, and presenting a limited number of
characters in situations which are plausible. It
contains the following elements: setting, charac-
ters, values and narrative outline.

References
Graves, D.H. (1983) Writing: Teachers and Children at Work. Portsmouth: Heinemann.
Hardy, P., Levesque, M. and Chartrand, G. (1990) Unité d'apprentissage pour
l'enseignement du français, cycles intermédiaire, supérieur et CPO. Conseil des écoles
séparées du district de Cochrane-Iroquois Falls, Black River-Matheson.
Harley, B., D'Anglejan, A. and Shapson, S. (1990) National Core French Study - The
Evaluation Syllabus. Ottawa: Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers
(CASLT).
Hébert, Y. (1990). Étude nationale sur les programmes de français de base - le syllabus
formation langagière générale. Ottawa: Association canadienne des professeurs de
langues secondes.
Johnson, D.W. and Johnson, R. (1989) Cooperation and Competition: Theory and
Research. Edina, MN: Interaction Book Company.
SHORT STORY WRITING 133

LeBlanc, C , Courtel, C., Trescases, P. (1990) Étude nationale sur les programmes de
français de base - le syllabus culture. Ottawa: Association canadienne des pro-
fesseurs de langues secondes.
LeBlanc, Raymond (1990) National Core French Study - A Synthesis. Ottawa:
Canadian Association of Second Language Teachers (CASLT).
Ministère de l'Éducation et de la Formation de l'Ontario. (1987) Programme-cadre de
français: cycles intermédiaire et supérieur et cours préuniversitaire de l'Ontario.
Toronto: Auteur.
Painchaud, G. (1990) Étude nationale sur les programmes de français de base - le syllabus
langue. Ottawa: Association canadienne des professeurs de langues secondes.
Robert, P. (ed.) (1985) Petit Robert 1. Montréal: Editions Robert-Canada.
Prabhu, N.S. (1987) Second Language Pedagogy. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Stern, H.H. (1983). Toward a multidimensional foreign language curriculum. In R.G.
Mead (ed.) Foreign Languages: Key Links in the Chain of Learning. Middlebury, VT:
Northeast Conference.
Tremblay, R., Duplantie, M. and Huot-Tremblay, D. (1990) National Core French
Study - The Communicative/Experiential Syllabus. Ottawa: Canadian Association
of Second Language Teachers (CASLT).
Evaluation: Oral
Communication
Assessment and the
Portfolio Concept
JOSEPH E. DICKS and SALLY REHORICK

Portfolio assessment can be used to evaluate the oral communicative

abilities of students in a formative way. By using a variety of
evaluative techniques based on thematic units of a second language
curriculum, a teacher can assess the ongoing development of her/his
students and provide them with valuable diagnostic and global
feedback. The theoretical construct, objectives, development, format
and use of this kind of evaluation instrument are described.

Evaluation as Positive Experience: Portfolio Assessment

Portfolio assessment has become a very widely used and useful tool in
many subject areas (Belanoff & Dickson, 1991). English language arts
teachers, for example, have been employing portfolio assessment for many
years. In portfolio assessment, teachers and students select from among
different evaluation procedures at different times to provide a valid and
representative picture of a given student's performance. Research in the
area of evaluation clearly shows that certain students may perform poorly
on a specific task (this tends to be particularly true for weaker students),
while others may find the same task very easy. It is especially important
that weaker students not be unfairly penalised because of their difficulty
with a specific task which may result in a lower than normal representation
of their performance. On the other hand, a portfolio is also meant to show
progress and if only the best results are chosen, when initially the student
may have experienced some difficulty, this would result in an inaccurate
picture of the student's overall performance. The key to developing a
134
EVALUATION 135

meaningful portfolio is to choose those evaluations which provide a broad,

representative sample of performance over a period of time.
Portfolio assessment, by its very nature, is performance-based evalu-
ation: that is, an assessment of what students can do as opposed to what
they know. The assumption underlying performance-based assessment is
that by observing how well students perform specific tasks, one is able to
estimate how well they will perform in real-life situations. Portfolio
assessment is flexible and adaptable to specific situations. A valid
assessment process must evaluate language performance in a variety of
contexts which 'engages children in a wide range of language uses'
(Antonacci, 1993:118). Due to restrictions of time and other unpredictable
factors that enter into the day-to-day reality of the classroom, it may be that
all different types of tasks will not be administered to all students in the
process of evaluating a specific thematic unit. However, in the course of
evaluating a number of different themes throughout a school year, it is
possible to ensure that a given student would be evaluated using each type
of technique several times.
Portfolio assessment provides an opportunity for learners to reflect in a
meaningful way upon their language development. This reflection has
important implications for students to become effective language learners,
an ability which is receiving increasing attention in language syllabus
design (LeBlanc, 1990). The process of consultation between teacher and
students with respect to which techniques best reflect not only the students'
performance at a specific point, but also which allow one to see the progress
which has occurred over time, is extremely helpful in this respect.

A Case in Point: MOCAP

MOCAP is an acronym for a thematically based evaluation package
entitled Maritime Oral Communication Assessment Portfolio. This is an
evaluation package for French as a second language (FSL) which involves
an evaluation of students' oral abilities, particularly as these are reflected
in evaluative tasks which focus upon the communication of messages,
ideas, opinions and feelings. Although MOCAP was developed for French
as a second language, the principles and format of the evaluation
techniques can apply to any second/foreign language. This evaluation
package is intended to examine students' performance over an extended
period of time so as to produce a portfolio containing a record of each
student's progress on a variety of tasks over the course of a given unit of
study, as well as a diagnostic assessment of students' major strengths and
weaknesses.
136 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

MOCAP is composed of four evaluation modules, each representing

grade level and programme approach. Core French is the basic program in
which students study the language for approximately 30 - 45 minutes
every day. French immersion is a programme in which students spend at
least 50% of their time learning the second language through content
subjects such as science, mathematics and social studies. Each of these
modules contains a series of evaluation techniques that correspond to a
specific theme. Each module represents a prototype and similar modules
will be developed for use with other themes. As teachers become familiar
with the various techniques, they will be in a position to develop their own
variations according to the themes treated in class. In MOCAP, simulation
techniques such as role-plays and surveys have been developed to
represent key aspects of authentic communication within the context of a
specific theme. It is this sort of evaluation which best reflects the principles
of communicative competence and the thrust of the National Core French
Study (LeBlanc, 1990).
In keeping with the General Language Syllabus (LeBlanc, 1990), MOCAP
contains a self-assessment questionnaire which guides students in the
process of reflecting upon their own performance and assessing their own
strengths and weaknesses after participating in an evaluating activity. This
questionnaire (see Appendix B), which would require some practice and
guidance in the initial stages, could eventually provide extremely valuable
feedback to students and teachers and could have a profound impact on
students' own abilities to reflect on language use in a meaningful way.
Teachers adapt this questionnaire as they see appropriate for use in their
specific classroom situations.

Assessment Validity in a Communicative Context

MOCAP involves an evaluation of oral language performance. While
the evaluation of reading and writing is also extremely important in a
communicative approach, it is clear that the primary emphasis,in a great
many second language programmes, is placed upon the development of
functional communicative ability in oral language. MOCAP is designed for
use at Grade 6 and Grade 9 in both core French and French immersion
programmes. There are in effect four versions of MOCAP - one for each
grade level and programme. However, it is recognised that the abilities of
students vary from one situation to another and from year to year. If
teachers at a given level find that, in general, the suggested tasks are either
too easy or too difficult for their students, they are encouraged to explore
tasks designed for another level and to experiment with these in their own
EVALUATION 137

classes. Similarly, if within a given class there are subgroups of students

who may find tasks from another level more suited to their abilities,
teachers could borrow from another level.
The main organising principle for MOCAP is thematic content. The
various evaluation techniques developed for each level relate to a specific
theme which was identified as being interesting and appropriate for
students at that level. The evaluation is meant to be carried out in the
context of a larger thematic unit of study, not in isolation. This thematic
approach to evaluation was adopted to correspond with the recommenda-
tions of The Communicative/ Experiential Syllabus (Tremblay et al, 1990) of
the National Core French Study w h i c h maintains that fields of experience
should be the organising principle of language learning. The themes treated
in this assessment package (leisure, food, travel and environment) are related
to a number of the fields of experience identified in the communicative/ex-
periential (C/E) syllabus as being worthy of study for both their interest to
students and their educational value. The fields of experience which have
been treated in MOCAP and which are found in the C/E syllabus
(Tremblay et al., 1990:29-33) include: food-related experiences, physical
activity type experiences, clothing related experiences, school related
experiences, experiences with friends, experiences with conservation,
experiences with consumerism, experiences with outdoor living, experi-
ences with travel, and experiences with miscellaneous activities.

Evaluation of oral performance is in many ways the most difficult to

conduct. With respect to the distinction between aural comprehension
(listening) and oral production (speaking), MOCAP evaluates both ele-
ments simultaneously through a series of interactive situations. Indeed,
MOCAP recognises that aural comprehension is a critical element in the
process of interaction and negotiation (see for example Tremblay et al.,
1990). However, this is not to say that aural comprehension should not be
evaluated as a separate activity in other contexts (on the contrary, at lower
levels, in particular, students' listening abilities will be superior to their
speaking ability and this should be recognised and reinforced).
In the case of oral evaluation of French second language abilities there
are at least three major questions that must be answered before we can
determine what kind of evaluation format we will use. First of all, we must
know what will be the content of our test - what knowledge and skills do
we expect students to possess in order to communicate? Secondly, we must
know what we mean by the word communicate - what is the theory or
construct of communication to which we ascribe? Thirdly, since we are
talking about oral communication, we must know what we mean
138 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

specifically by that term - what are the components of successful oral

communication? Clearly, while these questions may be considered sepa-
rately they address in effect three interrelated issues.
In answering the first question (skills and knowledge), we define the
content of our evaluation instrument. If that content reflects the objectives
of curriculum guides written for that level, and if classroom teachers can
say that this content and these objectives reflect what is taught in their
classes, then we can say that our test possesses content validity. This content
and these objectives rarely exist in a vacuum. Usually they reflect a
particular philosophy or approach to language teaching. This leads us to
the second question (theory or construct). Since our evaluation instrument
addresses communication in French as a second language, it should reflect
the particular theory of communication that is found in the school systems
in which this instrument will be used. In effect, this evaluation package has
been elaborated according to the theoretical model of communicative
competence proposed by Canale and Swain (1980). This model was found
to be at the basis of all programmes in which this package is used. In brief,
this model of communicative competence posits four interrelated compe-
tencies which come into play in effective communication: linguistic
competence, discourse competence, socio-linguistic competence, and stra-
tegic competence. Each of these competencies has been considered in the
elaboration of the various techniques and in the development of the
evaluation scheme, including the global descriptions of performance levels
which accompany these evaluation schemes. In this way MOCAP has
respected the principle of construct validity.
The third and final point relates to the components of successful oral
communication. MOCAP respects the principles of the communicative/
experiential syllabus as put forward by Tremblay et al., (1990: 2,3) where
the aim is "to provide learners with a chance to communicate in authentic
communicative situations" where "all learning activities need to be
structured around communicative tasks." Whereas providing authentic
tasks within the confines of the second language classroom often involves
compromises, MOCAP contains evaluation techniques which give stu-
dents access to a wide range of communicative situations, provide for
authentic language use with a focus on meaning rather than the form of
language, involve students in the activities in a personal way, and provide
exposure to different speakers in more and less formal situations. These
techniques also take into account the varying degrees of difficulty found in
both non-interactive and interactive situations (Tremblay et al, 1990).
Students at lower levels are engaged in activities that involve shorter
messages, a focus on concrete topics, participation in social routines, and
EVALUATION 139

general sharing of information. At higher levels, students are involved in

situations which require lengthy productions, deal with controversial and
more wide-ranging topics, cause students to express a point of view and in
some cases defend that point of view.

Teacher Input in the Development Process: Building upon

a Solid Foundation
In the area of FSL education, department of education representatives
identified as a priority the need for an evaluation instrument which would
reflect a communicative/experiential approach to language teaching and
which would serve teachers in all three provinces. It was agreed that what
was needed most was an evaluation tool which could be put in the hands
of classroom teachers to use for formative evaluation purposes; that is, as
a means of assessing students' progress, diagnosing strengths and weak-
nesses in students' performance, and providing feedback to both students
and teachers on the effectiveness of their learning and teaching. It was also
recognised that this instrument should be adaptable to different situations,
and that the scoring of the various tasks should be straightforward.

MOCAP was developed for use by classroom teachers who were

involved in the writing of various evaluation tasks and in the piloting and
implementation processes. Thirty teachers spanning all three provinces
came together and worked in teams according to the level at which they taught.
In addition to agreeing on particular themes and identifying relevant fields
of experience, these teachers also spent considerable time reaching a
consensus on what was appropriate and realistic to expect of students at a
given level in terms of both language tasks and grammatical content. These
language tasks and grammatical content are criterion-referenced insofar as
they are based on lists taken from the curriculum guides for core French
and French immersion language arts at both Grade 6 and Grade 9 in the
Maritime provinces. The grammatical content was chosen in light of the
language tasks and the level of the students involved. The developers
recognised that various tasks could be accomplished with varying degrees
of accuracy and sophistication depending upon the linguistic abilities of
the students, and, therefore, it was not possible to indicate precisely what
the grammatical content would be for any given communicative situation.
However, the teachers felt that some indication of grammatical content that
would likely be required to carry out a series of language tasks would be
useful to MOCAP users. In this regard, both the specific language tasks and
probable grammatical content involved in each variation of each technique
are provided with the evaluation techniques.
140 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

The teacher resource team then created specific communicative situ-

ations which corresponded to the theme selected and which involved
specific language tasks. Instructions to students and any ideas for props
that may be required were also included. These formed the basis of the
entire MOCAP. Guided in their work by evaluation specialists, teachers
spent four complete days producing their draft versions. In addition to the
classroom teachers who attended this workshop and subsequently served
as a resource team, there was also a group of French second language
coordinators from various school boards and consultants from the depart-
ments of education who assisted with the workshop and the field-testing
process. This team approach to development of the instrument ensured
widespread commitment to this style of evaluation, which represented a
major departure from previous testing methods.

The tasks were revised, prepared for pilot testing, reanalysed in light of
teacher and student reactions, piloted a second time, and then revised in
their final format. Initial piloting involved all teachers who participated in
the workshop described above. Examples of all variations of all techniques
were sent to each teacher who experimented with these pilot items with a
minimum of three groups of students for each version. This process was
conducted over a period of 10 weeks. Teachers were also sent a survey
which they completed in order to indicate their degree of agreement or
disagreement with various aspects of the different techniques (appropriacy
of content, difficulty of language, ease of scoring, and so forth). Subsequent
to this first stage of piloting, changes were made to the various techniques
according to the reactions of teachers and students involved. Any tech-
niques which required major revision (i.e., not simply formatting or stylistic
changes) were repiloted with a smaller sample of teacher and the results
were integrated into the final version.

Portfolio Assessment in FSL: A Variety of Techniques

As noted above, there are in effect four versions of MOCAP - one version
for each grade and programme: 6 core, 9 core, 6 immersion, 9 immersion.
Three of the evaluation techniques are basically the same for all four levels -
role plays, information gaps, discussion. Two other techniques vary from
core to immersion with forms and describing pictures being used in core
French and questionnaires and oral summaries being used in French
immersion. The thematic content, language tasks, and linguistic content
vary from one version to another. The following is a listing and description
of the various evaluation techniques.
EVALUATION 141

Describing pictures
This technique is designed for core French at both Grades 6 and 9. It
consists of a series of illustrations that students are required to look at and
talk about. This may take the form of description or narration or some
combination of both. Essentially, students are instructed to look at a
sequence of illustrations and to describe and/or narrate the content of these
drawings. The teacher's involvement should be minimal in such situations.
The student is allowed two minutes to examine the illustrations before
beginning the activity. It should be recognised that pauses during the
activity could be meaningful and eventually lead to productive expression,
and teachers should only intervene where necessary to keep the activity
going. The extent to which the teacher has to provide clues, ask questions
and help the student will be reflected in the evaluation.

Oral summary
This technique is destined for use in French immersion classes at both
grade levels. Students are required to listen to an oral, tape-recorded
passage twice, and then, in their own words, give an account of the main
points of the passage. Before listening to the passage which is recorded on
audio-cassette (supplied in the assessment package), students are told that
the purpose of this activity is for them to understand the principal elements
of the oral passage and to reformulate these passages in their own words.
Students are also told that they are not expected to remember secondary
details. They are then reminded that the passage will be played twice.
Again in this situation the teacher's involvement should be minimal. A
question may be asked or a comment made to keep the activity going if the
student is obviously stuck on a point, but otherwise the teacher's role
should be passive.

Forms
This technique involves an interview between two students assisted by
a form that one of the students must complete. These forms, which are
supplied in the assessment package, may be applications for a summer
camp, customs forms, and so forth that generally require factual informa-
tion. The student who holds the form is the one who will be required to ask
the question. It should be made clear to this student that the questions are
not written in complete sentences, bur rather in point form. This student's
task is to formulate the required questions and to ask these in a manner that
the other student can understand. The second student must answer these
questions to the best of his or her ability. It is not necessary for the first
142 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

student to complete the form as it is only meant as a prop and an aid to the
student in formulating questions.

Questionnaire

Similar to the forms above, this technique designed for use in immersion
involves an interview between two students assisted by a form. In this case,
in addition to factual information, the questionnaire which is supplied in
the assessment package requires students to ask and respond to questions
involving opinions, attitudes, and so on. The student who holds the
questionnaire is the one who will be required to ask the questions. It should
be made clear to this student that the questions are not written in complete
sentences, but rather in point form. This student's task is to formulate the
required questions and to ask these in a manner that the other student can
understand. The second student must answer these questions to the best of
his or her ability. It is not necessary for the first student to complete the
questionnaire as it is only meant as a prop and an aid to the student in
formulating questions.

Information gap

This technique, which is used in both core and immersion, involves two
students working together in order to obtain the information required to
complete a specific task. One student possesses a document containing the
complete or accurate set of information that the other does not have. These
documents are supplied in the assessment package and are given to
students at the beginning of the evaluation session. In some cases, the actual
transfer of information is sufficient to complete the task while in other
situations students must use the new information to answer specific
questions related to it. It should be made clear to both students that their
general task is to work together to provide one another with any
information that may be missing from their respective documents.

Role plays

This technique involves two students in a face-to-face encounter. The

students are provided with the student documents before the role play
which provide them with background information and specific instruc-
tions as to the information they must request and provide. The students are
given two minutes to examine the document and to ensure they understand
the instructions completely. They may ask questions of clarification, but
should not be allowed to rehearse their part.
EVALUATION 143

Discussion
This technique involves four students in a round-table type exchange.
The students are provided with a document that provides background
information and specific instructions as to the language tasks that they are
expected to accomplish. Students are given two minutes to read the
document so they can understand the instructions and formulate their
ideas. They should not be allowed to rehearse, however. In core French the
exchange takes the form of a conversation or question-and-answer session,
whereas in immersion the event is much more debate-oriented. Students
should be told before beginning that in order for the teacher to evaluate
they all must participate in the discussion. With a group of four, the teacher
may have to intervene in order to give less vocal students an opportunity
to express themselves. It is also recommended that two teachers be
involved in the evaluation of the group discussion as it is very difficult for
one teacher to fairly evaluate four students simultaneously.
One of the distinguishing features of all the techniques (except describing
pictures and oral summaries) is that the teacher acts as an observer who
evaluates student-to-student interaction. The reason for this system is
two-fold. First, one of the goals of evaluation is to assess authentic,
meaningful communication; by removing herself/himself from the inter-
action, the teacher is much more likely to elicit authentic speech samples
from the students. Second, most teachers are using a variety of techniques
for interactive groupwork (for example, cooperative learning) during their
classes; by evaluating students in interactive situations, a teacher ensures
that the assessment methods match classroom practice.

Evaluating Student Performance: Diagnostic and Global

Assessment
It is extremely important that all students have the opportunity to
practise and be familiar with a particular evaluation technique before being
evaluated. If a student does not know what is generally expected in a role
play situation of this type, then one cannot evaluate that student's
performance in a valid way. It is also important for teachers to realise that
the evaluation scheme which accompanies each technique may require
some prior familiarisation. Teachers are encouraged to experiment with
this evaluation scheme at the same time as students are involved in practice
sessions in order to be familiar with its content and scoring format. It is also
very important to remember that this evaluation package allows the
student and the teacher to select from a variety of techniques in order to
create a composite profile of the student's performance over an extended
144 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

period of time. This aspect of portfolio assessment should not be over-

looked when the time comes to make an evaluative judgement regarding
a student's progress or achievement.
It was noted above that evaluation of communicative competence must
reflect the principles of that theoretical model. The evaluation scheme
developed for use with each of these techniques takes into account the
various principles outlined above. An example of this scheme is presented
and explained in detail below.

EVALUATION SHEET
ORAL SUMMARY (A)
GRADE 6 IMMERSION
THEME: FOOD
PUPIL DATE

I. COMMUNICATION OF THE MESSAGE

A = Message communicated effectively and appropriately.
B = Message communicated but effectiveness and/or accuracy must
be improved.
C = Message not communicated effectively.
Language tasks: A B C
1. Give information about location. • • •
2. Give numerical information. • • •
3. Give information about an event in the past. • • •
II. DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS
Articulation: pronunciation; intonation; fluency
Facility: vocabulary (precision and variety); communicative strategies
Grammaire: grammatical precision; discourse cohesion

III. GLOBAL EVALUATION A D BD CD

(See global descriptors in Appendix A)

Section I. With respect to language tasks, each task to be accomplished in

a given evaluation technique is listed on the evaluation scheme which
accompanies that technique. Teachers are asked to identify whether this
task has been accomplished completely (A), in part (B), or not at all (C).
EVALUATION 145

Section II. The scheme also allows for the measure of student progress and
a diagnostic assessment of strengths and weaknesses. A section is provided
for analysis of students' linguistic, socio-linguistic, discourse, and strategic
competence and space is provided for the writing of specific comments
with respect to student performance in these areas. In this section, teachers
are requested to identify major strengths and weaknesses. Since one cannot
evaluate everything nor can one diagnose each and every strength or
weakness, the aim is to provide students with valuable feedback with
respect to their progress (positive feedback), and one or two areas where
they need to improve (negative feedback).

Section III. The evaluation scheme also allows for a global, holistic
evaluation of student performance. This is arrived at by considering the
evaluation with respect to the language tasks and individual competencies
discussed above, and by comparing student performance to the descrip-
tions provided of differing levels of competence - A, B, or C. These
descriptions are located in Appendix A.
The evaluation scheme is designed to be "user-friendly" for classroom
teachers. In addition to the letter grade (A, B, or C) for students'
accomplishment of language tasks and their overall global performance,
space is provided for teachers to write diagnostic comments, but these
should be in point form and, as noted above, should be restricted to the
main areas of students' strengths and weaknesses.

Conclusion: The Teaching/Testing Dilemma

This classroom-based evaluation format, as is the case for any other, will
only be successful to the extent that it reflects the actual teaching practices
that occur in the classrooms in which it is used. Classroom teachers from
both core French and French immersion programmes have determined that
these techniques are valid ways to evaluate student performance. These
techniques reflect not only the content and objectives of curriculum guides
but also, in many cases, the reality of classroom practice. However, there is
the possibility that this evaluation format does not reflect the kind of
teaching that goes on in certain classrooms. It is extremely important for us
to respect the basic principle that evaluation and teaching are two
complementary elements in the process of classroom instruction. If we
consider this approach to assessment of students' performance to be
worthwhile, we must likewise insist upon teaching practices which are
consistent with this approach. It is clearly neither our intent nor our desire
146 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

that this evaluation model be imposed upon teachers who are not ready or
who have not been properly prepared to engage in such practices in their
classrooms. Rather, we would hope that this evaluation package be
presented as a model or as a goal for such teachers to work towards. In this
way, teachers may gradually but steadily integrate communicative oral
language activities in the daily teaching, and in the same way begin to use
these communicative assessment techniques to evaluate the effectiveness
of their teaching and their students' learning.

Appendix A

Global descriptors of levels of performance

Level A. The learner is almost always capable of using the language to carry
out the target language tasks and does so in an appropriate manner. He/she
almost always expresses him/herself with a superior level of grammatical
precision. Pronunciation, intonation and flow never interfere with commu-
nication. The learner almost always understands without the need for
repetition or reformulation. Communicative strategies such as gestures,
requests for repetition, circumlocutions are almost always understandable,
complete and naturally integrated into conversation. Discourse is logical
and coherent. Discourse connectors such as pronouns and transitional
words are used correctly and systematically.

Level B. The learner is often capable of using the language to carry out the
target language tasks and often does so in an appropriate manner. He/she
often expresses him/herself with an average level of grammatical preci-
sion. In general, pronunciation, intonation and flow never interfere with
communication. The learner often understands without the need for
repetition or reformulation. Communicative strategies such as gestures,
requests for repetition, circumlocutions are often understandable, com-
plete and naturally integrated into conversation. Discourse is often logical
and coherent. Discourse connectors such as pronouns and transitional
words are often used correctly and systematically.

Level C. The learner is often incapable of using the language to carry out
the target language tasks. He/she expresses him/herself with little
grammatical precision. Pronunciation, intonation and flow often interfere
with communication. The learner does not understand without repetition
or reformulation. Communicative strategies such as gestures, requests for
EVALUATION 147

repetition, circumlocutions are rarely used. Discourse is often illogical and

incoherent. Discourse connectors such as pronouns and transitional words
are rarely used correctly.

Appendix 8

Student self-assessment questionnaire

Part 1 - Language tasks

Was I able to communicate all the messages and ideas involved in this
activity?
YESD NOD
If not, which messages or ideas was I not able to get across?

Which messages or ideas did I find easiest to express?

What do I need to work on most?

In communicating these messages and ideas, was I able to use language

that was suited to the specific situation (for example, did I use tu and vous
appropriately; did I use slang expressions when it was not the right time
or place?)
YESD N O D

Part 2 - Specific strengths and areas needing work

Was I able to use the necessary vocabulary in order to participate in this
activity?
YESD N O D
If not, which words or expressions did I need to know that I was not able
to come up with?
If I was unable to come up with certain words or expressions, how did I get
around the problem (For example, did I use gestures, did I use English
words or expressions, did I try to describe the object or event, or did I just
try to avoid the topic?)
Was I able to say what I needed to say correctly (without making
grammatical mistakes)?
YESD NOD
If so, some examples of correct speech that I used are
148 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

If there were things that I said incorrectly, some examples of the kind of
mistakes that I made with language are:
Did the way I pronounced certain words or groups of words cause any
problems in getting m y message across?
YesD N o D
If yes, some examples of words or groups of words that I found hard to
pronounce are

Part 3 - Global evaluation

Overall, I feel that m y performance on this activity was (A) quite good • ,
(B) not bad • , (C) not up to par Q

References
Antonacci, P.A. (1993) Natural assessment in whole language classrooms. In A.
Carrasquillo and C. Hedley (eds) Whole Language and the Bilingual Learner (pp.
116-31). Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Company.
Belanoff, P. and Dickson, M. (1991) (eds) Portfolios, Process and Product. Portsmouth,
NH: Boynton/Cook Publishers Heinemann.
Canale, M. and Swain, M. (1980) Theoretical bases for communicative approaches
to second language teaching and testing. Applied Linguistics 1 (1), 1-47.
Leblanc, R. (1990) National Core French Study. A Synthesis. Ottawa: M Éditeur.
Tremblay, R., Duplantie, M. and Huot, D. (1990) National Core French Study. The
Communicative/Experiential Syllabus. Ottawa: M Éditeur.
Index
Authors

Al-Arishi, A.Y. 97 Chartrand, G. 132

Allen, J.P.B. 70,71,77 Chaudron, C. 26,32
Anderson, A. 1, 7, 8,12 Cherryholmes, C.H. 65
Antonacci, P.A. 135,148 Clément, M. 125
Armbruster, B. 117,123 Clément, R. 33
Asher, J. J. 1-7,9,12,25,32 Cléroux, C. 42
Clifford, R. 69-71,77
Baker, C. vii, viii Close, S. 22,23
Banks, A. 56,64 Clyne, M.G. 55,65
Bates, S. 106 Cohen, E.G. 96
Belanoff, P. 134,148 Comeau, M. 23
Bell, J. 100,106 Coupland, N. 37,42
Bell, M.R. 36,42 Courchêne, R. 2,13,26-28,32
Bellanca, J. 22 Courtel, C. 33,133
Bellavance, R. 22 Crookes, G. 96
Bérubé, G. viii, 108 Cross, D. 65
Besse, H. 22,108,113 Cummins, J. 37,41,70,77
Boatner, M.T. 41
Bourque, A. 14 D'Anglejan, A. 132
Breen, M.P. 56,64 D'Ydewalle, G. 65
Britanik, G. 79 Danielson, D. 79,81,96
Brown, G. 26, 32 Day, E. 45,53
Brownlie, F. 18,22,23 Day, R. 96
Buchanan, R. 116,124 Demers, P. viii, 108
Buck, K. 77 Dewey, J. 79,96
Bygate, M. 79,95,96 Dewitt, J. 45,53
Byrnes, H. 26,32,77 Dick, A. 65
Dicks, J. 134
Calder, M. 98 Dickson, M. 134,148
Calvé, P. viii, 23,108,113,114 Dickson, W.P. 36,41
Campbell, R. 68, 77 DiPardo, A. 99,106
Canale, M. 70, 77,138,148 DiPietro, R. 96
Capretz, P. 1,5-9,12 Doughty, C. 44,49,53,80,81,96,97
Carrell, P.L. 26,32 Draper, M. 97
Celce-Murcia, M. 65 Duff, P.A. 49,53
Chaika, E. 37,41 Duplantie, M. 29,32,34,133,148
Chamot, A.U. 34 Duquette, G. 35,37,42

149
150 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Duran, R. 115,116,124 Hoskisson, K. 124

Huestis, D. 115,116,124
Edwards, H. 26,33 Hu, J. 67
Edwards, J. 35,42 Huot (Huot-Tremblay), D. 34,133,148
Ellis, R. 26,33,47,53,65 Hymes, D. 68, 78
Erikson, E. 37,42
Ervin-Tripp, 36,42 Irons, G. 1,2,13

Faerch, C. 26,33 Jacques, S. 14

Fagan, W.T. 115,116,124 Johnson, D.D. 123
Fishman, J. 35,37,42 Johnson, D.W. 23,127,132
Flewelling,J. 111,113 Johnson, R. 127,132
Forgarty, R. 22
Frauenfelder, U. 110,114 Kasper, G. 26,33
Freedman, S. 99,106 Kim, J.H. 65
Fries, C.C. 24,33 Klippel, F. 85,96
Kramsch, C. 26,33
Gaies, S.J. 96 Krashen, S. D. viii, be, 1,3,8,13,26,33,
Gardner, P.C. 65 35,37,38,42,44,53,55, 70,78,80,
Gass, S. 80,96 96,110,113
Gere, A. 101,104,106 Krudenier, B. 33
Germain, C. 44,48,53 Kupper, L. 34
Giles, H. 37,42
Gladstone, J. 13 Lambert, W. 25,33
Glidden, J.I. 32 Larsen-Freeman, D. 65
Glissan, E. 5,13 Lataille-Demore, D. 125
Grant, M. 97 Laufer, B. 65
Graves, D.H. 126,132 LeBlanc, C. 24,27,33,133
Gregg,K.2,13 LeBlanc, R. 23,24,26,28,29,33,133,
135
Hagen, L.K. 45,53 Levesque, M. 132
Hall, E.T. 36,42 Lewis, N. 97
Hammerly, H. 2,13 Lightbown, P.M. 46,48,53
Hansen, J. 126,132 Long, M.H. 26,33,48,50,53,79,81,96,
Harbord, J. 65 99,107
Hardy, M. 53 Lynch, T. 1, 7, 8
Hardy, P. 126,132 Lyster, R. 45,48,51,53
Harley, B. 70,71,77,132
Hauptman, P. 26,33 MacDonald, D. 97
Hawkins, R. 44,53 MacGowan-Gilhooly, A. 100,107
Hayden, R. 96 Madden, C. 80
Hébert, Y. 28,33,132 Majhanovich, S. 67, 76, 78
Helrai, P. 65 Mangelsdorf, K. 99,107
Hendrickson, J.M. 96,111,113 Marios Varonis, E. 96
Herron, C. 36,42 Massey, M. 29,32
Higgs, T.V. 68-71,77 McDonough, S.H. 65
Holdaway, D. 23 McGroarty, M. 80,82,96
Holliday, L. 97 McLaughlin, B. 115,124
Horwitz, E.K. 65 McLeod, B. 115,124
INDEX 151

Miltenberger, T. 55 Schlumberger, A. 99,107

Morgenthaler, L. 97 Schuster-Webb, K. 36,42
Morley, J. 26,34 Seliger, H.W. viii, ix, 36,42,117,124
Selinker, L. 37,42
Narcy, J. 108,113 Shapson, S. 45,53,132
Netten, J. 43,47,50,53 Smith, F. 26, 34
Neves, A. 80,96 Solso, R.I. 35,42
Nord, J. 26, 34 Spada, N. 46,53
Nunan, D. 56,65,96 Spain, W.H. 50,53
Spolsky, B. 55
O'Malley, J. M.26,34 Steinaker, N.W. 36,42
Obadia, A. 68,69,108,114 Stephens, T.M. 65
Omaggio, A. 71,78 Stern, H.H. 23,25,34,125
Oser, F.K. 65 Stevens, R. 23,101,104,106
Oxford, R.L. 26,34 Stipek, D.J. 23
S trassier, J. 36,42
Painchaud, G. 23,24,34,126,133 Schils, E. 66
Pambianchi, G. 53 Svab, H. 55
Paribakht, S. 2,13 Swain, M. 70,71,77,80,97,138,148
Patry, J.-L. 65
Paulston, C.B. 79 Tarvin, W.L. 97
Pavakanun, V. 65 Temperley, M.S. 65
Pavlik, C. 10,13 Terrell, T. viii, 1,2,13,26,33,35,42,
Pearson, P.D. 116,123,124 44,53
Pica, T. 49,53,80,81,96,97 Theo, J.M. 66
Planchat-Ferguson, J. 43 Therien, C. 32
Porquier, R. 108,110,113,114 Thompson, I. 77
Porter, P.A. 50,53,79,81,99,107 Tiemey, R.J. 116,124
Postovsky, V. 26, 34 Tompkins, G.E. 23
Powers, M. 97 Towell, R. 44,53
Prabhu, N.S. 126,133 Tremblay, R. 23,28,29,34,133,137,
138,148
Ready, D. 33 Trescases, P. 33,133
Reeds, J.A. 26,34 Trueba, H. 37,42
Rehorick, S. 134 Tucker, R. 25,33
Richards, J.C. 26,34
Rivers, W.M. 65 Ur, P. 97
Robert, P. 133 Urzua, C. 99,101-104,107
Rogoff, B. 116,124
Rossman, T. 115,124 Van, E. 66
Rowe, M.B. 23
Rubin, A. 116,124 Wales, R. 68,77
Wallerstein, N. 65
Sadow, S.A. 74,78 Weiss, F. 23
St. John, J. 32 Wells, G. 50,53
Sapir, E. 108,114 Weltens, B. 66
Sato, C.J. 48,53 Wesche, M. 33
Savignon, S.J. 68,69,78 White, J. 48,53
Schils, E. 66 Widdowson, H.G. 23
152 SECOND LANGUAGE PRACTICE

Willis, P. 76,78 Young, R. 97

Wingren, L. 22,23 Yule, G. 97
Winitz, H. 1,2,5,13,26,34
Wittington, D. 65 Zamel, V. 98,100,104,106
Zich, P. 57,66
Young, D.J. 65

Subjects

acquisition vii, viii, 5,25-27,32-34,35- 45-48,56,70,92,97,99,115,116,

37,42,44-46,48,52,53,55,56,64- 123,137
66,70,71,77,78,79,80,96,97,106, conference 98,100,101,123,133
110,113,124 context 14-16,26,28-30,32,35, 37,38,
academic writing 3,70,80,100,115, 41 46,49,51,64,65, 67, 68, 71-75,
130,139,144 78,81,116,124-128,132,135-137
accuracy 3,44,48,67-69,73-75,77,91 context function 43,45,46,51,55,57
appropriateness 38,68
audience 60-64,98-102,104 echoing 108-114
authentic error-correction viii, 44, 70, 75,96,103,
— communication 48,56,136,138,143 108
— language 46 evaluation 9,10,12, 26, 65, 81-83, 92,
— materials 71 99,100,104,132,134-148
— situations 35,43,46,48,50,138
fossilization viii, 69,70
Bell model 100 fluency 33,44,69,97,107,144
foreign language 42,44,53,65,67,69,
caretaker language 47 70, 77,96,113,125,135
cooperative learning 19,22,50,56,80,
84,96,115-123,143 genre 116
communication/communicative gesture(s) 61,109,110,146,147
— activity 23,29,36,38,41,43,44,47- grammar See language structure
50,52,55,57-60,65, 74, 76,79,81-
95,100,117,118,120,121,123,125, idioms and idiomatic expressions 35-
126,130,131,136,137,141,147,148 42
— competence vii, viii, 22, 27, 35-37, improvisation 50, 64
43,44,47,51,60,61,65,67-72, 77, information gap 48, 51, 81, 96,140,142
78,97,98,106,136,138,144,145 interlanguage 37,42,53,96,99,107
— goal vii, 45,49,50,52,67,74,77,92,
93,116,117,119,121,122,143,146 language
— intent 48,50,52 — acquisition See acquisition
— objective 29,39,43, 72-75,77,109, — data 46-48,50,91
111, 116,117,120,121,126,138 — form 43-50, 53,81,100,101,102,
comprehensible input viii, 35,37-39, 104,108-111,126,138,140-142
43,46,47,70,77, 80,97,99,100,117, — function 5,35,47,50,51,53,97,136
120,121,124 — learning 1,3,5,7,8,14,15,24,26,
comprehension\comprehension skills 32-34,42,44,47, 52,64,65,96,97,
1-13,14-16,26-30,32-34, 35,37, 38, 113,115,117,123,124,137
INDEX 153

— practice 37,41,50,57,79,80,99, recall 28,55,115,120,121

109,113,120,125,136,143,145,146 receptive skills 24-29,32,116
— proficiency 35,53,67,69-71, 74,75, referential questions 48,56
77,78,117,123 repertoire 45,49,50,52
— skills vii, 1-5,35-37,41,55,57,80,
108,132,137,138 second language vii, 1,2,6-11,13,14,
— structure 5,10,14,15,21,27,30,32, 15,24-27,32-34,37,38,42-44,53,55,
44,45,56,65,66,68,70,71,75,82, 56,64,66,67-69,77, 78,79-81,96,
91,116 97,99,107, 111, 113,115-117,123-
— teaching 1,2,4,8,9,12,13,24-27, 126,132,140,148
32,33,53,56, 65,96,97,99,104,125, self-correction 108, 111
138,139,148 short story 118,125-132
linguistic situational context 44-46,49,51,61,64,
— code 24,27,44,52,71 71,124
— competence 27,68-72,138 social interaction, skills or competence
listening comprehension 35,37,38,45- 35,37,44,50,55-57,127,129,130
48,56, 92,97,99,137 speaking 1,2,8,11,12,14,23,27,34,
literacy 13,23,35,42,124 35,41,56,137
strategy\strategies
meaning 14,15,21,28,30,36,37,43- — classroom vii, viii, 1,9,24,30,36,
45,47,48,50,51,68,70, 71,74,80, 38,41,43,46-51,72-76,79,81,99,
85,96,99,104,107,115,116,123, 108, 111, 115,116,123,124
125,134,136,138,141,143 — language vii, viii, 34,36,38,39,42,
43,46-51,67,68,70,72-77,81,95,
narrative 115-123,125-132 96,99,115,116,123,144-146
naturalistic case study 98
negotiation of form 35,48 target
negotiation of meaning 35,47,48,50, — culture 35-38
51,56,69,80,81,96 — language 3,5,7,19,25,26,35-38,43-
46,56,69,71,76,115,125,146
peer involvement 11, 36, 58, 72, 73, 89- total physical response 3-5,12,13,25,
91,96,98-109,115,116,117,121,126 32
performance objectives 15,24, 25, 27-
29,32,81-83,85,89,92 variety 9,14,17,44,46,80,91,134,135,
pragmatic competence viii, 74 140,143,144
problem-solving 15,51,60,65,73 voice 98,101,103,104
proxemics 109
writingN writing process 1-3,11,12,20,
reading\reading comprehension 18, 22,24,41,58,74,89,90,91,98-107,
19,23,26-28, 30,32,34,39,42,58, 115-124,125-132,136,139
74,84,91, 96,100,115-117,121-124 world knowledge viii, 39,115