Teaching Vocabulary: a seemingly never-ending task.

How many times have you wondered about the best ways of teaching vocabulary?

"I have to introduce these new words before dealing with this reading activity! How shall I do it?"

Well, in a desperate way of looking for some answers, or at least, for a sort of guide to resort to, we have collaboratively worked on a chart providing some procedures to teach, present and introduce new vocabulary in our lessons.

Please feel free to take a look at our work and leave any suggestions and comments you may think relevant to share with us (since it is a Wiki page and commenting is restricted to its users, you are invited to leave your comments on this blog entry).

I really hope you find it as useful as we meant it to be.

Different Techniques and Ideas to Teach Vocabulary

This project was adapted by Gladys Baya from a task originally taken from "Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom," Tricia Hedge, Chapter IV, OXFORD, 2000.

Are we prepared to have independent students?

There are lots of books, websites and experts talking about encouraging learner independence. It is undoubtedly true that, as teachers, we always want our students to learn (regardless of our teaching approaches), but what is not clearly defined is what we are ready to "sacrifice" to get at that goal.
Are we ready to foster an independent classroom in which students will no longer need to be taken under our wings? Are we ready to promote self-directed learning? Are we ready to admit that some students may no longer need us there all the time?

If we come to the conclusion that we are ready, one way in which we can promote greater learner independence is by helping students to become aware of language as a system so that they can understand many of the learning teachniques available and learn enough grammar to understand simple reference books. In this way, we are helping our students to profit from different learning techniques (to practise vocabulary, phonology and/or grammar) inasmuch as we start little by little showing them how to use those techniques and how to adapt them to match their own learning needs. It is essential for us not to give students the solution to a problem but to give them different tools so that, in the future, when encountered with such a situation, they can use them on their own and for their own purposes. For example, when students ask the meaning of a new word, or its pronunciation, instead of giving it to them, we can show them how to look it up in a dictionary (I personally provide them with different sites, such as the Cambridge Online Dictionary, and, for phonetics, I suggest that they buy/rent/borrow the Cambridge Pronouncing Dictionary (the one with the CD-ROM), in which they can both read and hear the pronunciation and record themselves to self-assess their pronunciation).

And last, but not least, we should do our best so as to convince students that they are capable of greater independence in learning by giving them successful experiences of independent learning. Before providing our students with any technique or tool, we have to be sure that they will be able to use it successfully. For instance, if I decide to suggest that they buy the Cambridge Dictionary I previously mentioned, I need to be sure that they will be able to afford it. If I constantly provide them with tools they cannot get access to, they will definitely reject independent learning because of the feeling of frustration brought about by their impediment to get them.

It is really important for us to be in contact with our students' needs all the time. Helping them find their way out is as important as giving them useful but at the same time accessible tools.

Based on Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom, Chapter III, Tricia Hedge, OXFORD, 2000.

Who has and who should have power in the classroom?

When teaching, have we ever stopped for a minute to think about who takes the decisions in the lesson?
Who decides what is taught? Who decides how and when it is going to be taught?
Are we ready, as teachers, to hand over some power? Or is it precisely power what makes us different from the students?
To me, teaching is all about sharing and negotiating with the students. How am I going to help them if I only teach what I think is relevant and not what they really need? How am I going to help them if I can only rely in one way of teaching?
After observing a lesson at a Secondary School in Buenos Aires City, I wrote a report focusing on power. I analysed what decisions were taken by the teacher (and/or by the students) and which were the general tendencies. Were students given opportunities to take some decisions? Or everything was set and established by the teacher?

I invite you now to go over my report. I really hope you enjoy it as much as I did while writing it. I can assure you it will be a great opportunity for you to reflect on your own teaching. It really helped me realise how important it is for a teacher to be aware of the decisions we take (or let students take). As you will notice while reading the report, I tried to analyse both aspects of classroom power: who does and who should take the decisions (this was done, of course, following my own heart and my personal views).

2nd Report / Alejandra de antoni / Classroom Observation / Methods 2 2009

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Humanities Research report teaching

After writing my report, I came to the following conclusion:

I generally share some decision-making with my students. I don’t generally let them decide everything simply because there are some things that have to be done in a certain period of time (this is related to what I explained in points 5 and 6 above). Of course I know that there are certain aims that we should achieve in a certain period of time but, at the same time, I know that we can sometimes negotiate the way in which we are going to do so. I know that sometimes I put at risk some short-term goals (for instance, practising a certain language topic in a given activity) while letting them decide on the way they will carry out an activity or the topics they are going to talk about. It’s definitely more demanding and risky for us to hand over power but, in the end, it is a lot more rewarding because they will not only enjoy what they are doing but they will also remember it! The key is M & M: Motivating and Memorable!

Lesson Observation Nº1: We All Teach What We Are!

After observing a lesson at a Secondary School (Buenos Aires City, Argentina) I tried to take a deep look into the organism that is given birth through the interaction of a teacher with her students.
Since the classroom is like an organism, there are many different factors that play an essential role in its functioning.
But, what are those factors and what is their contribution to the lesson?
The following document is the report I wrote after observing the lesson in which I analysed some of them.
Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed being in that classroom!

1st Report / Alejandra de Antoni / Classroom Observation Methods2 2009

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Arts & Architecture Research report teaching

Pair and Group Work: Two Powerful Allies to Promote the Communicative Classroom

Discussion taken from "Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom." (Tricia Hedge, Ch. 2)


Aim: to analyse and discuss two main reasons for using pairwork and groupwork in the communicative classroom.

Guiding questions:

• Do you agree with them?
• Would you add any from your experience?
• What do you think are the disadvantages of pairwork and work in small groups?
• Would you place any conditions on their successful use in the classroom?

Reasons for using pairwork and groupwork:

• It enables students to take risks with the language and to see if they can negotiate meaning.
• It gives students the opportunity to monitor how well they understand and are understood.

First of all, I have to say that I do agree with both reasons. I think that giving students the opportunity to take part in student-student interactions (in contrast with student-teacher interactions in which the "communicative" relevance of the message is most of the times blurred by a feeling of being tested -a feeling that, of course, can be washed away through fostering natural interaction with our students.-) is a not only a great way of helping them build their communicative skills but also a must if we want our classroom to be a communicative one. This idea of student-student interaction is what allows our students to take risks (it is always more relaxing to make a mistake while talking to a partner than when talking to the teacher no matter how communicative we may be) and to see if they can negotiate meaning. However, there is one problem that may arise and it's what makes a connection between making mistakes and negotiation of meaning. When it comes to mistakes, they can always be overcome by students if they do not hinder communication. If students understand what they say regardless of its language accuracy, they will probably not care about the accurate version of the message simply because that is not their concern. So, if our aim as teachers is to foster fluency and communication, how and when are we going to focus on the accuracy of the messages our students are sending? When students are carrying out the activity, they will certainly find a way of making themselves clear even if they have to resort to their mother tongue. Therefore, if they were to be in such a situation but in a real context with native speakers, how can we be certain that they will understand and be understood?

The answer, I guess, must be balance. As it is generally the case, extremes are not good. Of course we do teach communication (if not, what would we be teaching a language for?) but, whether we like it or not, we need to, somehow, find a balance between fluency and accuracy. It's true that when it comes to pairwork and groupwork activities, students do not generally have the time to sit down and analyse not only what they are going to say what how they are going to say it due to time constraints. That is why paraphrasing, monitoring and process writing and speaking are so important! Gradual and process writing and speaking are a perfect opportunity for preparing not only the content of the message but also its form in a guided way. Monitoring is also of key importance since the teacher needs to be there with the students, ready to help them but, of course, without invading them: suggest! Do not impose! That is why, from my personal experience, I really think that they work wonderfully when they feel they are free enough to explore and self-discover answers but when, at the same time, they know you are there to help them. Finally, it is essential for us to teach them how to monitor themselves. We should let them know that monitoring does not mean that they have to self-correct every word they produce but that they have to be ready to spot any unclear message or idea so as to find a way of making it understandable for others. Accuracy is not the perfection of isolated grammatical structures but the appropriateness of a certain language form for putting across a certain message in a certain context. Accuracy is not a weapon to kill fluency but an excellent tool to enhance it.

1st Discussion Topic: "Learners & Learning, Classroom & Contexts."

Discussion taken from "Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom." (Tricia Hedge, Ch. 1)


Context: at the beginning of teaching a course with a new group of adolescent or adult students.
Objective: create activities (a) to find out their reasons for learning English and (b) to motivate them towards their language learning task.

(a) I would ask them to create a chart called: "My Top Five Reasons for Learning English." If the students are beginners or pre-intermediates this will be carried out in their mother tongue (keeping the English title, of course) because I want them to feel free and be able to write whatever they want.
When it's finished, I would ask them to carry out a survey to find out which are the Top Five Reasons in the class and, finally, I would encourage a short debate about why they think those are the most "popular" reasons in their group.

(b) I would ask them to read the Seven Rules of Motivation (taken from http://www.motivation-tools.com/elements/seven_rules.htm) and encourage them to discuss if they think they may be useful for improving or helping their learning:

Seven Rules of Motivation

Set a major goal, but follow a path. The path has mini goals that go in many directions. When you learn to succeed at mini goals, you will be motivated to challenge grand goals.
	Finish what you start. A half finished project is of no use to anyone. Quitting is a habit. Develop the habit of finishing self-motivated projects.
Socialize with others of similar interest. Mutual support is motivating. To be a cowboy we must associate with cowboys.
	Learn how to learn. When we learn the art of self-education we will find, if not create, opportunity to find success beyond our wildest dreams. Ask your instructors to provide you with tools to enhace your learning.
Harmonize natural talent with interest that motivates. Natural talent creates motivation, motivation creates persistence and persistence gets the job done.
	Increase knowledge of subjects that inspires. The more we know about a subject, the more we want to learn about it. A self-propelled upward spiral develops.
Take risk. Failure and bouncing back are elements of motivation. Failure is a learning tool. No one has ever succeeded at anything worthwhile without a string of failures.

Seven Rules of Motivation - Copyright http://www.motivation-tools.com

I deeply believe that encouraging students to talk about motivation (especially with adolescents and adults who are ready to analyse their objectives and goals in language learning) is an excellent way of showing them that, without their really wanting to do it, without any motivation, attending an English lesson will inevitably become pointless.

Excuse me, may I come in? - Getting ready for Classroom Observation

Here I am starting off a new stage in my teaching and learning life. Teaching life because I'll be analysing my work as a teacher and learning life because I'll be learning a lot from these experiences (both writing this blog and attending the subject "Methods and techniques to teach adolescents" in my course of studies). What I will be analysing first is how to get ready for Classroom Observation. Whenever we want to observe a class we first need to talk to the teacher of the course. What should we mention? What do I think I should mention? And, of course, why?

• What?

-Who I am and where I come from;

-When I want to visit them;

-How many lessons I need/want to visit;

-Why I want to observe them;

-Why I chose that course and not another one.

• Why?

-To let the teacher know who I am and where I am studying;

-To clarify dates, timetables and to arrange a date as convenient as possible for both of us;

-To let them know how many lessons I want to visit in case I may need more than one to fully observe a certain aspect (even though that is not generally possible);

-To let them know why I need to observe a class (because of an assignment in which I have to analyse a lesson through obverving it so as to help my improve and examine my own teaching);

-To explain the reasons why I want to observe that specific course (because of the age of the students, because of their number, because of their level or simply because that was the only one available that coincided with my timetable).

The most important thing to do before observing a lesson is letting the teacher know that you are not there to test, examine or criticise their teaching but to be able to understand and analyse your own teaching through external input. We cannot see our own lessons objectively and that's why observing someone else's teaching helps you spot out different aspects to be analysed in your own teaching.