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A
common way of organising certain types of discourse is through
the problem-solution pattern. Basically this is the presenting
of a problem & then discussing the solution. Michael
Hoey (1983) suggested the pattern:
S
= the situation
P = the problem
R = the solution or response
E = the evaluation or result |
In
Process Writing (White & Arndt
1995) they call this the SPRE approach. Hoey's example
of this pattern is:
|
S
= I was on sentry duty
P = I saw the enemy approaching.
R = I opened fire.
E = I beat off the attack.
|
Making
our students aware of patterns in discourse helps them to
use all of the skills - reading, writing, listening &
speaking - more effectively.
Below
are a series of situations divided into the four sections
& here are a few ways of using them.
1.
Jumble the different lines up & the students order each
situation in turn.
2. Jumble all of the lines from the eight situations &
students group them & then order each situation.
3. Just do the above with half of them & then omit different
parts from the remaining situations & students fill in
with their own ideas & finally compare with the originals.
4. Students go on to design their own four part situations.
5. The student invented situations could be carried out in
groups of four as a chain - each adding a line & handing
on, & finally getting four situations together & reading
the results.
6. You could just concentrate on specific genres that use
this pattern such as written newspaper adverts, spoken radio
adverts. The students write their situations & use these
in order to sell things to each other as in door to door salespeople.
This
could all be used as an extended warmer or cooler or it might
be an idea to wait until you come across this pattern &
then diverge into some of these ideas & then return to
what you were concentrating on.
Following
on from this awareness, the pattern can be highlighted whenever
it arises in developing the students' writing skills, dealing
with reading & listening texts, in dealing with storytelling
etc..
| |
S: Houses need cleaning every week.
P: Dust accumulates & it is difficult to clean thoroughly.
R: Persuade people to buy the new DirtKiller vacuum
cleaner.
E: We make lots of money. |
| |
S:
Winter is a time for colds & flu.
P: People are afraid of catching winter illnesses.
R: Advertise the high risks of catching an illness.
E: People are frightened into buying our cure-all winter
medication. |
| |
S:
Young people have a lot of time on their hands.
P: Young people hang around the streets & the chances
of them getting into trouble increase.
R: Offer activities & clubs to fill free time &
educate the parents about the dangers of their children
spending their free time in the streets.
E: Less problems & healthier & happier youngsters. |
| |
S:
Real Madrid were playing against Valencia.
P: There was a really nasty tackle on Raul by Baraja.
R: The referee stopped the game.
E: Raul was taken off & Baraja was booked |
| |
S:
Josh was shopping in a big department store.
P: He went to pay but found he had lost my wallet
R: Josh went to see if someone had found it.
E: The people at the lost property had his wallet. |
| |
S:
Ben was jogging in the park
P: A dog bit chased him & bit him
R: The owner managed to restrain the dog.
E: Ben went for a jab at the hospital & reported
the owner to the police. |
| |
S:
Lots of people take illegal drugs
P: There is a criminal underworld benefiting from illegal
drugs
R: Legalise all drugs, making them available over the
counter.
E: Criminals would not benefit & less people would
be exploited by them. |
| |
S:
There are lots of cars on the road.
P: People use their cars for short journeys that they
could take on foot or use an efficient public transport
system.
R: Educate the public & improve the public transport
system.
E: Less people will use their cars, there will be less
pollution & people will be less stressed out &
healthier. |
| |
Back
to the contents
The 24th
October is United Nations Day & with recent events we
thought that a lesson about the UN would be interesting for
all concerned.
Below
there is a reading text about the organisation
of the UN, together with some comprehension questions.
This might be suitable for intermediate upwards.
There
is also an information gap task below
about the biography of Kofi Anan, the Secretary General of
the UN. This might need grading to suit your groups. Two students
have different information about Anan's life & they have
to ask each other questions until each has a completed biography.
Past tense question practice together with the vocab of the
text.
At the
end of the page there are also some discussion
points to draw it all together.
The reading
text is taken from the
Cyber School Bus section of the UN web site & is well
worth checking out for lots more information. Clearly, the
material will need changing slightly for use with our EL students.
It is well worth having a good look round, especially for
the older teenager. Here are some links among many:
http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/gallery/pfp/index.asp
For younger
learners the UN Cyberbus had a project to design a Peace Flag
- have a look at the site to get an idea. You could copy the
ones on the site & the class could vote on the best ones
- then show the real winners. And they could design their
own Peace Flags & then vote on the best & compare
their designs to the competition ones.
http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/poverty2000/intro.asp
The Poverty
Curriculum has a lot of usable material for class use. Each
section is divided into an explanation, a class activity,
a community service idea & internet links. For example,
the introduction has descriptions of the three different income
groups in the world as well as brief profiles of children
from each group. A roleplay, the students taking on the role
& discussing differences in their lives, could be very
productive. Lots of discussion, reading & listening to
you read aloud or summarise the explanations.
http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/peace/home.asp
"There
is no way to peace. Peace is the way." – Gandhi.
The Peace Education section has some interesting stuff on
the teacher as learner & the learner as teacher.
http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/habitat/index.asp
'"Cities
of Today, Cities of Tomorrow!" The Cities project is
an interactive programme brought to you by the United Nations
CyberSchoolBus. Its six intense units of clear writing, exciting
information and great images give you the best overview of
urbanization—its history, its potential, its problems...
'
http://www.un.org/cyberschoolbus/infonation/info.asp
Compare
statistics on all member states.
http://cyberschoolbus.un.org/infonation/index.asp
Or get
information on member states one at a time.
The
reading task
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Some
questions to go with the UN text below
|
|
1.
When was the UN formed?
2.
What is the purpose of the UN?
3.
How many members are there?
4.
Where is it based?
5.
What are some of the aims of the UN?
6.
What might be some of the principles of the UN?
7.
How is the decision-making process described for peace
keeping missions?
8.
What are the Specialised Agencies?
|
The
reading text
|
|
|
The
United Nations officially came into existence on 24
October 1945, when the UN Charter had been ratified
by a majority of the original 51 Member States. The
day is now celebrated each year around the world as
United Nations Day.
The
purpose of the United Nations is to bring all nations
of the world together to work for peace and development,
based on the principles of justice, human dignity and
the well-being of all people. It affords the opportunity
for countries to balance global interdependence and
national interests when addressing international problems.
There
are currently 191 Members of the United Nations. They
meet in the General Assembly, which is the closest thing
to a world parliament. Each country, large or small,
rich or poor, has a single vote, however, none of the
decisions taken by the Assembly are binding. Nevertheless,
the Assembly's decisions become resolutions that carry
the weight of world governmental opinion.
The
United Nations Headquarters is in New York City but
the land and buildings are international territory.
The United Nations has its own flag, its own post office
and its own postage stamps. Six official languages are
used at the United Nations - Arabic, Chinese, English,
French, Russian and Spanish. The UN European Headquarters
is in the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland. It
has offices in Vienna, Austria and Economic Commissions
in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, Amman in Jordan, Bangkok
in Thailand and Santiago in Chile. The senior officer
of the United Nations Secretariat is the Secretary-General.
The
Aims of the United Nations:
To keep peace throughout the world.
To develop friendly relations between nations.
To work together to help people live better lives, to
eliminate poverty, disease and illiteracy in the world,
to stop environmental destruction and to encourage respect
for each other's rights and freedoms.
To be a centre for helping nations achieve these aims.
The
Principles of the United Nations:
All Member States have sovereign equality.
All Member States must obey the Charter.
Countries must try to settle their differences by peaceful
means.
Countries must avoid using force or threatening to use
force.
The UN may not interfere in the domestic affairs of
any country.
Countries should try to assist the United Nations.
The UN System
The
basic structure of the United Nations is outlined in
an organizational chart.
What
the structure does not show is that decision-making
within the UN system is not as easy as in many other
organizations. The UN is not an independent, homogeneous
organization; it is made up of states, so actions by
the UN depend on the will of Member States, to accept,
fund or carry them out. Especially in matters of peace-keeping
and international politics, it requires a complex, often
slow, process of consensus-building that must take into
account national sovereignty as well as global needs.
The Specialized Agencies, while part of the UN system,
are separate, autonomous intergovernmental organizations
which work with the UN and with each other. The agencies
carry out work relating to specific fields such as trade,
communications, air and maritime transport, agriculture
and development. Although they have more autonomy, their
work within a country or between countries is always
carried out in partnership with those countries. They
also depend on funds from Member States to achieve their
goals.
For
links to the areas in the chart
|
The
information gap task
|
|
|
|
Student
A: Complete the biography of Kofi Anan by exchanging
information with your partner. Don't show each other
your papers.
|
|
Mr.
Annan was born in ______, _____, on 8 April 1938.
He
studied at the University of Science and Technology
in Kumasi and completed his undergraduate work in economics
at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A.,
in ______.
From
1961 to 1962, he took graduate studies in economics
at the Institut universitaire des hautes études
internationales in ______.
As
a 1971-1972 Sloan Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology, Mr. Annan received a Master of Science
degree in management.
Mr.
Annan joined the United Nations system in _______ as
an administrative and budget officer with the World
Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva.
In
1990, following the invasion of ________ by ______,
Mr. Annan was asked by the Secretary-General, as a special
assignment, to help repatriate more than 900 international
staff and citizens of Western countries from Iraq. He
then led the first United Nations team negotiating with
Iraq on the sale of oil to fund purchases of humanitarian
aid.
Mr.
Annan served as Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping
Operations from March 1992 to February 1993 and then
as _____________________ from March 1993 to December
1996.
Mr
Anan was the ________ Secretary-General to be elected
from the ranks of United Nations staff. He began his
first term on 1 January 1997.
Kofi
Annan of Ghana is the seventh Secretary-General of the
United Nations.
On
29 June 2001, acting on a recommendation by the Security
Council, the General Assembly appointed him by acclamation
to a second term of office, beginning on 1 January 2002
and ending on 31 December 2006.
On 10 December 2001, the Secretary-General and the United
Nations received the ______________. In conferring the
Prize, the Nobel Committee said Mr. Annan "had
been pre-eminent in bringing new life to the Organization".
In also conferring the Prize on the world body, the
Committee said that it wished "to proclaim that
the only negotiable road to global peace and cooperation
goes by way of the United Nations".
The
Secretary-General is fluent in English, French and several
___________ languages.
He
is married to Nane Annan, of Sweden, a ________ and
_________ who has a great interest in understanding
the work of the United Nations. Two issues of particular
concern to her are HIV/AIDS and education for women.
She has also written a book for children about the United
Nations.
Mr.
and Mrs. Annan have _________ children.
|
| |
Student
B: Complete the biography of Kofi Anan by exchanging
information with your partner. Don't show each other
your papers.
|
|
Mr.
Annan was born in Kumasi, Ghana, on __________.
He
studied at the University of __________________ in Kumasi
and completed his undergraduate work in economics at
Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, U.S.A., in
1961.
From
______ to _______, he took graduate studies in economics
at the Institut universitaire des hautes études
internationales in Geneva.
As
a 1971-1972 Sloan Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology, Mr. Annan received a _____________
Mr. Annan joined the United Nations system in 1962 as
an __________________ officer with the World Health
Organization (WHO) in Geneva.
In
1990, following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq, Mr.
Annan was asked by the Secretary-General, as a special
assignment, to help repatriate more than 900 international
staff and citizens of Western countries from Iraq. He
then led the first United Nations team negotiating with
Iraq on the sale of oil to fund purchases of humanitarian
aid.
Mr.
Annan served as _________________________ from March
1992 to February 1993 and then as Under-Secretary-General
from March 1993 to December 1996.
Mr
anan was the first Secretary-General to be elected from
the ranks of United Nations staff. He began his first
term on ___________.
Kofi
Annan of Ghana is the __________ Secretary-General of
the United Nations.
On
29 June 2001, acting on a recommendation by the Security
Council, the General Assembly appointed him by acclamation
to a second term of office, beginning on 1 January 2002
and ending on 31 December 2006.
On 10 December 2001, the Secretary-General and the United
Nations received the Nobel Peace Prize. In conferring
the Prize, the Nobel Committee said Mr. Annan "had
been pre-eminent in bringing new life to the Organization".
In also conferring the Prize on the world body, the
Committee said that it wished "to proclaim that
the only negotiable road to global peace and cooperation
goes by way of the United Nations".
The
Secretary-General is fluent in English, French and several
African languages.
He
is married to __________, of _________, a lawyer and
artist who has a great interest in understanding the
work of the United Nations. Two issues of particular
concern to her are HIV/AIDS and education for women.
She has also written a book for children about the United
Nations.
Mr.
and Mrs. Annan have three children.
|
Discussion
points
| With
your partner, discuss the following questions: |
|
1.
Do you think it is necessary to have the UN?
2.
How much authority should the UN have over individual
countries?
3.
Choose three of the most worthy UN projects mentioned
in the texts. Why are these more worthy than the others?
4.
What do you think the UN's most important priority should
be at the moment?
4.
Kofi Anan has had a very successful career - do you
know anyone else who has has such a career?
|
The English
entry to the UN site can be found at:
http://www.un.org/english/
Back
to the contents
A major
way we can help out students is in first understanding their
motivations for coming to class. There are four main types
of motivation:
|
Integrative
motivation: the learner is interested in the target
culture & people & feels a need to integrate.
Instrumental
motivation: the learner wishes to achieve something
as a result of learning the language such as promotion
in a job, being able to negotiate with others etc.
Intrinsic
motivation: the learner decides to goes along to
class.
Extrinsic
motivation: the learner is sent along to class.
|
For example,
you might have a professional person with extrinsic, instrumental
motivation, sent along by the company because they want to
send her to another country to work. Or a younger learner
sent along by parents to a bilingual school with extrinsic,
integrative motivation. Or a learner with an English-speaking
partner with intrinsic, integrative motivation.
It is
not as clear cut as this. It's not a question of one or the
other, a learner might have different elements with one or
two predominating. You
might argue that the more motivated learner has the combination
of intrinsic & integrative motivation but it all depends
on the person as there are a lot more factors involved.
And then
there is the difference between the younger learner &
the adult. Some would argue that it is not our job to motivate
the adult, they should come along to class already motivated.
If this were the case! For ideas on motivating the younger
learner with sweets as an incentive see
the Tip - Sweet Motivation.
And then
there is the difference between the short-term, over a lesson
or a week, & the longer-term, over a month, term or course.
Motivation is dynamic & constantly changing as external
influences affect the learner, things such as a change in
job, season etc.
The more
motivated a learner is the more autonomous she is & among
all of the different things we can do in the classroom to
maintain & increase motivation there are three main areas:
•
involving the learners in the planning stages of the course
• engaging the learner
• providing the right degree of challenge |
Learners
need to feel in control of their learning situation &
involving them in the planning promotes this. Periodic consultation
on how the course is going is essential. This can be done
through individual & group tutorials, see
the Teaching Tip - Giving Tutorials
Engaging
the learners is a question of catering to their specific language
& classroom needs, choosing relevant & interesting
topics & activities, & explaining why the lesson &
activities are being given.
For ideas
on challenge see the Teaching Tip
- Arouse, confront, dare, stimulate, provoke...
Motivation
is a complex area, difficult enough with one to one classes
& made more so when dealing with groups, needing to be
actively considered & promoted in the classroom.
Back
to the contents
To
the Past Teaching Tips
|
