Education Commons^™

Guided Discovery Grammar Instruction: A Review Of The Literature With Original Teaching Materials, Marcella Caprario

MA TESOL Collection

Although grammar instruction is a hotly debated facet of language teaching, a review of Second Language Acquisition, Foreign Language Instruction, and Educational Psychology literature reveals that inductive explicit grammar instruction is a viable method, which can generate positive learning outcomes. Studies have shown that learners tend to learn grammar more accurately and faster through explicit instruction. By utilizing inductive techniques, teachers can create a student-centered classroom that encourages critical thinking and problem solving, in addition to language study. With these principles in mind, I have created a series of guided discovery grammar worksheets, accompanied by the procedure and teaching notes …

A World Englishes Study Of Korean University Students: Effects Of Pedagogy On Language Attitudes, Patrick Rousseau

MA TESOL Collection

I examine the impact of raising awareness of World English varieties on the language attitudes of Korean university students. This study triangulated direct attitudinal measurements through the use of a 6-point Likert scale survey with indirect attitudinal measurements by employing a verbal guise test. The verbal guise test used recordings of representative speakers from six varieties of English: American, Chinese, Japanese, British, Saudi, and Korean English. Attitudinal measurements were taken pre and post a series of four 1½-hour practical English classes designed to raise awareness of world varieties, along with global trends in language use that highlight the importance of …

Framework And Rationale For Developing A Single Language Exploratory Program For Students In Grades 1 – 3, Amy Bentley

MA TESOL Collection

This materials development project provides middle and high school language teachers, in a public school setting, the rationale and curriculum for implementing an introductory language program to elementary aged children in their school. This paper explores the author’s school community and the interest in providing an introductory language program for elementary aged students in the school district. The author, a second language teacher in the school, is also an advocate for introducing this type of programming, with the hopes that it will create enthusiasm and motivation for further language study in the students’ middle and high school years. The project …

Teaching Cultural Awareness Using The Four Skills, Alison Garza

MA TESOL Collection

The following project examines the validity of teaching cultural awareness in a language classroom and includes five readers’ theatre plays that help students explore five different countries from around the globe. The countries were determined by the nationalities of the students that participated in the project. The setting for this study was a pull out ESL program in a public school with a large multi-ethnic population. Besides the plays, there are lesson plans, activities sheets and a biography of multi cultural books for children. All activities are designed to incorporate the four skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening.

The paper …

Visual Language: Using Color, Myth And Image To Present Grammar In The Spanish Language Classroom, April Miller Mcmurtry

MA TESOL Collection

Spanish grammar can be presented in a memorable way by using a system of color-coding and storytelling. This materials development project includes three stories written or adapted by the author to present the gender of nouns, noun/adjective agreement and verb inflection. Images of the sun and the moon, and the colors purple and orange are used to illustrate masculine and feminine gender of nouns. Chameleons and the color green exemplify adjectives. Additionally, patterns of verb conjugation charts are presented using color to show how verbs inflect to agree with the subject pronoun and tense. While learning Spanish grammar, these colors …

We Talk Too Much: Quantitative And Qualitative Aspects Of Teacher Talk, Lynn Corwin

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is one teacher’s exploration of teacher talking time. As a language teacher the author understands that teacher talk is an essential tool of the trade and critical to the language learning process. However, she recognized that talking too much could be a problem. This paper describes the journey the author took to understand how and when to talk in the classroom. The author provides reasons and examples of why teacher silence can sometimes be more effective than talking. Throughout the paper, she focuses on the power of silence in the classroom when the teacher values it and when …

Connecting With Elementary School Esl Students Through Dialogue Journals, Amelia Myers Collins

MA TESOL Collection

This paper presents my experiences using dialogue journals with English as a Second Language students at Ephesus Road Elementary School in Chapel Hill, NC. The history and background of dialogue journals is discussed, as well as my philosophy of teaching. The practical aspects of using dialogue journals with elementary school non-native English-speaking students and the benefits and difficulties associated with them are described using student material. In addition, the work covers how my experience using dialogue journals differed from my expectations when I began using them. Excerpts of written dialogues between students and teacher are included.

Applications Of The I-Thou-It Framework To Teaching English As A Foreign Language In Macedonia, Zora Busovska

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is based on David Hawkins’ framework of the I-Thou-It with an expanded and personalized interpretation. It aims at defining more precisely the roles of the I, the Thou, and the It in the author’s classroom. The paper also cites research related to this framework and compares the findings, differences and similarities of author’s research with those of other researchers. The paper examines each of the roles and the interplay that takes place between and among them.

The paper explains the advantages of the subject-centered classroom, i.e. dominance of the It. Thus, the emphasis of the paper is on …