12/Teaching of Language Activities

Teaching of Language Activities
Lecture Twelve
Teaching of Language Activities
2. Teaching Speaking:
Speaking is one of the main goals of teaching a foreign language
and it is regarded as a means of language learning and acquisition; the
output hypothesis claims that the act of producing language (speaking or
writing) constitutes part of the process of foreign language learning. So,
the teacher should bear in mind the following principles when teaching
speaking:
a. Teachers should help pupils overcome their initial reluctance to
speak. They should be encouraging to provide opportunity and
start from something simple.
b. Teachers should help pupils see the relevance of the speaking
task.
c. Teachers should provide appropriate feedback.
d. Teachers should combine speaking with listening and reading.
Teacher should follow these stages in teaching a speaking task:
- Pre-task:
The teacher introduces the topic and gives the pupils clear
instructions on what they will have at the task stage and might help the
pupils to recall some language that may be useful for the task.
- Task:
The pupils complete the task in pairs or in groups using the
language resources that they have as the teacher monitors and offers
encouragement.
- Planning:
Pupils prepare a short oral report to tell the class what happened
during their task. They then practice what they are going to say in
their groups. Meanwhile, the teacher is available for the pupils to ask
for advice to clear up any language questions they may have.- Reporting:
Pupils then report back to the class orally. The teacher chooses the
order in which pupils will present their reports and may give them
some quick feedback on the content. At the stage, the teacher may also
play a recording of others doing the same task for the pupils to
compare.
- Analysis:
The teacher then highlights relevant parts of the text of the
recording for the pupils to analyze. The teacher may ask the pupils to
notice interesting features of the text. The teacher can also highlight
the language that pupils used during the report phase.
- Practice:
Finally, the teacher selects language areas to practice based on the
needs of the pupils and what has emerged from the task and report
phases. The pupils then do practice activities to increase their
confidence and make a note of useful language.