Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons^™

Teaching Negotiation: The Choices, Ljerka Sedlan Konig

MA TESOL Collection

This paper discusses the choices for teaching business skills in an elective negotiation skills course in the graduate program for entrepreneurs at the Department of Economics, University of Osijek. The paper first describes the author's teaching context. Then, it offers the author's views of learning and teaching, and discusses the relationship between students and the material they learn, between students and teacher, between individual students as well as the relationship the student has with himself . Next, the theoretical frameworks of Reflective Model, Experiential Learning and Reflective Teaching are presented. In the third chapter, the paper discusses techniques and materials …

Opening The Classroom Door To Vocabulary Learning, Karl Finseth

MA TESOL Collection

This paper details my effort to focus my attention on the learning of my students and to help each student see his or her own learning. Limiting the focus of my study to vocabulary learning, I describe my attempt to develop activities which would help students learn new words in the classroom and, subsequently, to appreciate this learning for themselves. I explain how, after a rather troubling start, I turned to a combination of literature research, classroom experimentation, reflective writing, and student feedback in order to learn how to facilitate my students’ vocabulary learning. Following a description of my findings, …

Creating The Fluent, Confident Writer: Innovative Techniques For Esl Writing Courses, Prudence Ingerman

MA TESOL Collection

ESL students are usually concerned with writing with no errors and this built-in critical editor stifles the rich writing potential which all students have. Through creating a safe environment and activities which nurture the creative spirit, it is possible to limit this editor to infrequent but necessary appearances and encourage writing large quantities of ungraded material. This paper suggests techniques for building a classroom community, including the use of a scripted writing process, responding to instructor writing and one-to-one conferencing. The essay also demonstrates how fluency can be achieved via a weekly silent class, mind-mapping and copious free-writing. These techniques …

Writing On!, Maria Aranda

MA TESOL Collection

This paper describes my participation in the development and implementation of an online writing program at Associacao Alumni, a Binational Center in Sao Paolo, Brazil. The program, Writing On!, was Alumni’s first of many online programs that was developed by a team of teachers of writing.

In Chapter One, I narrate my first experience with giving feedback online in a writing program designed for a young Brazilian student who needed to improve his academic writing skills in order to study in the U.S.A. this enriching learning experience planted the seeds of Writing On!.

In Chapter Two, I give an overview …

Esl Mentoring: An Empowering Tool, Maria Cristina Tur

MA TESOL Collection

The purpose of this IPP will be a qualitative case study of the mentoring program at Hostos Community College, City University of New York. I will learn the working of the mentoring program. I will examine the mentor’s role and strategies in helping her two protégés. I will reflect upon the relevance of a Mentoring Program as a tool in facilitating the acquisition of ESL. Finally, I will explain the advisor/advisee program at Intermediate School 184 in the South Bronx in whose pilot program I participated.

Adapting The Current Chinese Textbooks To Meet The Requirements Of The National Standards, Gloria Feung

MA TESOL Collection

The ever-increasing diversity of the language classroom has become a trend in this pluralistic American society. The presence of large groups of students who have home backgrounds in Chinese has outnumbered the non-native speakers in my class at Enloe High School in recent years. Since Chinese is still a small program, the school cannot offer a separate track for non-native students. Furthermore, due to the limited number of classes, students officially registered in different levels cannot be placed in different classrooms. How to provide a feasible, sequenced, and integrated curriculum to a mixture of native-speakers and non-native speakers as well …

Tenant Partners For Community Education: A Family Literacy Project, Pamela J. Anderson

MA TESOL Collection

The purpose of this paper is to discuss, describe, and evaluate a family literacy program I developed as a pilot project for Southeast Asian immigrant families with elementary school-aged children living in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco.

I will give an overview of this project and review recent research on the different approaches to family literacy. Using a working definition of family literacy based upon current research and implementation in the field, the Indochinese Housing Family Literacy Project-a description of its structure and expected outcomes, lesson plans, and useful findings from current working programs-will be explored and described. Finally, …

Increasing Cultural Awareness Through Writing Activities, Blaire Rankin Kibley

MA TESOL Collection

This project is a series of writing and reading techniques designed to help students increase awareness of themselves and of others as cultural beings. The techniques incorporate freewriting and revision processes to encourage the students to think more deeply and to express themselves more clearly in writing. Each technique includes cultural and writing objectives, procedure, results and an evaluation. The techniques are designed for intermediate to advanced ESL students in a multicultural classroom.

Storytelling In A Second-Language And Cross-Cultural Education: A Positive Approach To The Learner’S Unconscious Potential, Cynthia A. Jaffe

MA TESOL Collection

The paper describes the technique, and rationale of storytelling in second-language and cross-cultural education. The storytelling technique is designed to approach learners through subconscious pathways, in order to reinforce their linguistic skills, to engender a positive attitude toward their learning of the second language and their involvement in the second culture, and to stimulate the development of their creative potentials. The paper includes an extensive rationale for the application of the technique, a description and step­-by-step manual for the application of the techniques and skills involved in the telling of tales, ideas on how to select stories appropriate to the …

“Ritmos” Rhythmic Spanish Poems And Dialogues, Veronica Darer

MA TESOL Collection

This is a materials development project. It consists of "RITMOS", rhythmic poems and dialogues that supplement the teaching of oral Spanish.

The ''RITMOS" help students acquire the correct stress, intonation and pronunciation, while creating an opportunity for practice in a fun and non-threatening activity.

Each ''RITMO" focuses on different vocabulary words, grammatical structures and pronunciation difficulties.

Included is a recorded casette of the ''RITMOS" for demonstration purposes.

Even though the ''RITMOS" are targeted to beginning Spanish students, they can be adapted to more advanced levels.

The Advantages Of The Shared Reading Experience For Bilingual Elementary Students, Barbara A.T. Franceschini

MA TESOL Collection

The Shared Reading Experience is a method being applied in the Cambridge public school system for bilingual elementary students. The objective of this paper is to discover why this method is effective. Consideration is given to language acquisition factors, reading methodologies, and the psychological and cognitive context of the bilingual child himself. A description of the procedure for presenting within the Shared Book Experience, and an explanation of the rationale for this procedure are contained in this investigation. The subsequent writing that the bilingual children produce finalizes this project. This paper is based on a two-month internship during the Fall …

In Preparation: Lesson Plans For An Intensive German Course, Renate Falk Cammin

MA TESOL Collection

This paper consists of ten lesson plans for the predeparture program of the Outbound Program at the Experiment In International Living and programs similar to it.

The lesson plans are designed for both beginning and intermediate students of German. Special emhasis is given to communicative competencies, such as: introducing oneself and the increase of student's awareness of cultural differences between the American and German culture.

The lesson plans span a time period of ten days. The ten days are divided into three modules plus one additional day. Each module covers three basic topics which provide the focus for each day. …

An Introduction To Reading Comprehension Through Exercise For Intermediate English As A Second Language And English For Foreign Language Students, Natalie Barbera

MA TESOL Collection

For English as a Second Language/English as a Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) students, understanding what is read is a complex and often difficult task. This project presents a teacher's guide to exercises for intermediate young adult second language learners to acquire skills helpful in reading comprehension. After an overview of the philosophical and theoretical principles underlying the material, exercises are presented in four sections. Most of the texts for the exercises have been selected from periodicals, since they are a good source for reading material on themes which could be of interest to students.

Exercises in Part I concentrate on how …

Handbook For Prospective Esl Teachers To Japan, Linda Veno-Kan

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is a handbook for ESL teachers which high­lights problem areas in the Japanese ESL classroom that can affect teaching/learning effectiveness.

The introduction presents my specific teaching situation in Japan. The next section summaries the process which I use in analyzing the problem areas. Following are ten chapters each of which focuses on a problem area.

Each chapter points out both Japanese and American values in conflict and suggests teaching strategies for working with each area.

A Planning Paper Monolingual To Bilingual: The Conceptualization And Transformation Of A Colombian School, Eileen Nancy Whelan

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is the result of the researcher's recent engagement as the Program Coordinator for a monolingual elementary school in Floridablanca, Bucaramanga, Colombia, South America. As the coordinator must design and implement a bilingual program for successful transition, this paper addresses and discusses the conceptualization and preparation needed to make the task possible.

Ten Basic Grammar Hurdles For Mandarin Chinese Speakers: A Contrastive Guide For The Beginning Teacher Of Adult Mandarin Chinese Efl Students, Mark Anthony Steele

MA TESOL Collection

This handbook is written specifically for EFL teachers of Mandarin Chinese speaking students at the high elementary and intermediate levels of study. It is intended, through contrastive analysis, to provide the teacher with:

a) an understanding of why these students have particular difficulty with certain structures and sentence patterns in English;

b) a tool in predicting what ten of these patterns are; and c) strategies and activities for use in the classroom that will help the student overcome these ten hurdles in learning English.

The plan of this handbook rests on the belief that the more we as teachers understand …

Teaching/Training Social Language In Galang Refugee Camp: A Learning Process, Jon Phillips

MA TESOL Collection

From 1984 through 1986, I worked as an ESL Supervisor in the Intensive English as a Second Language component at Galang Refugee Processing Center in Indonesia. My job was to train locally hired teachers, and to provide them direction and support through classroom observation and individual teacher evaluation. In 1985, I and the other ESL supervisors perceived a great concern among refugees about their ability to interact with Americans in the United States. To meet that need, we wrote the Social Language unit, which was added to the ESL curriculum. The following paper will describe the rationale for writing such …

The Migrant Reading Program At San Elizario, Texas; An Examination Of The Activities Of 1986-87, Robert Scott Morris

MA TESOL Collection

To support and give supplementary educational services to migrant workers and their children, Chapter 1 of the Educational Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981 established a fund for the Higher Education System. The purpose of this case study was to describe the activities of the Migrant Reading Program of the San Elizario Texas elementary school from October 1986 to May 1987. Additionally, the author discusses his rationale for each of the lessons, gives an evaluation of the lessons and makes suggestions for improvement of future classes.

Living To Learn In Italy, Margo L. Connell

MA TESOL Collection

Living to Learn in Italy is a personal account of the time I spent in Florence and Torino, Italy, and the challenges I faced in adapting to a new environment, as well as the personal issues that surfaced as I moved through major life transitions.

I have organized this paper chronologically in three sections, orientation, adaptation, and elaboration.

The first section, orientation, recounts experiences from my first months in Florence. This was the initial, exploratory phase of my 1ife in a foreign culture, and during which I was not as involved with the people, language and way of life as …

Planning Task-Oriented Field Trips For Beginning Esl Students, Nikki Sarita Ellman

MA TESOL Collection

Field trips into the surrounding community can be valuable learning tools for ESL students living in the target country. These trips expose students to different facets of American culture and give them the opportunity to communicate with native speakers. Preliminary activities, tasks to be done during the trips, and follow-up activities all help students get the most out of these excursions. Beginners in particular need these activities to orient them to what they are going to see, to focus their attention, and allow them to process their feelings about the experiences. This paper addresses the many factors that must be …

In Preparation Lesson Plans For An Intensive German Course, Renate Falk Cammin

MA TESOL Collection

This paper consists of ten lesson plans for the predeparture program of the Outbound Program at the Experiment In International Living and programs similar to it.

The lesson plans are designed for both beginning and intermediate students of German. Special emhasis is given to communicative competencies, such as: introducing oneself and the increase of student's awareness of cultural differences between the American and German culture.

The lesson plans span a time period of ten days. The ten days are divided into three modules plus one additional day.

Each module covers three basic topics which provide the focus for each day. …

A Ten-Week Internship Teaching Literacy To Adult Refugees: Pre-Literate, Semi-Literate And Non-Literate., Rebecca Ann Boon

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is the culmination of a ten week internship teaching literacy to adult refugees who had attended little or no school prior to living in the U.S. Included in this paper are definitions of literacy terms, and a description of the host institution and students involved in this internship Also included is a list of my assumptions about teaching and learning literacy, an explanation of my teaching approach based on these assumptions, and several methods, materials and ideas for teaching literacy also consistent with my approach.

A Collection Of Original Stories And Lessons For Teaching Idiomatic Expressions, Elisabeth C. Glister

MA TESOL Collection

This project consists of a series of twelve original stories that each incorporate 10-20 commonly used American English idiomatic expressions. A list of the expressions used is included with each story.· Each expression is defined and an example of its use is given.

Eight different activities that can be used to work with the stores are offered. Included are some techniques for teaching the students some important metalinguistical phrases. Finally suggestions are made to other teachers as to how they can write their own stories.

Materials Development Project: The Development Of An Esl Program At Mci-Framingham, Sara Dunham

MA TESOL Collection

A presentation of ESL methods and activities developed while teaching English as a second language to female Hispanic inmates at MCI-Framingham (Massachusetts Correctional Institution). Includes an in-depth discussion of an ESL Tutor-Training Workshop that trained advanced ESL students to tutor beginning ESL students. Emphasis on results of program through progress of student/inmates.

With Assumptions In Mind, Claire Eleanor Creelman

MA TESOL Collection

This paper is an account of a three month teaching assignment in Guatemala in which I examined and tested my assumptions about teaching and learning in light of the techniques I used in the classroom, my lesson preparation and my selection of materials. This is done through the examination of a series of lesson plans which I used in classes of different levels and at different times in the program. I was able to demonstrate through these critiques when my actions supported those assumptions as well as the times when they conflicted or even ignored them. In addition, I was …

Readings In American History And Culture For Japanese College Students A Materials Development Program, Teresa Bruner Cox

MA TESOL Collection

This paper describes a materials development project carried out at a junior college in Osaka, Japan. The purpose of the project was to develop a set of English language readings about American history and culture suitable for use in a content area course for Japanese students majoring in English at the college. Theory and related research on readability applicable to EFL/ESL content-focused materials are surveyed and discussed in an attempt to identify key factors and to develop an approach to writing the readings and supporting exercises. This is followed by a description of how six American history and culture readings …

Esl Curriculum Development In Southeast Asia: A Personal Account, Kathleen M. Corey

MA TESOL Collection

This paper provides an account of the development of the Southeast Asian Department of State Overseas Refugee Training Program's competency-based ESL curriculum. The author relates her personal experience as the curriculum, developer for the refugee program in Ban Vinai, Thailand in 1980 and 1981. The paper discusses the history of competency-based education and explains why a competency-based model was chosen. The paper concludes with a discussion of the principles that guide ESL instruction in the overseas training program.

Using Music To Teach Spanish, Isabel Lowrie Childs

MA TESOL Collection

The purpose of this project is to discuss different ways for teachers to use songs in language class, specifically in Spanish classes. The paper contains three sections for beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels.

At the beginning of each of the three sections I have written an introduction stating why the songs are appropriate for that level. Each song also has an introduction consisting of a title page which includes a brief description and comments on why I chose the song. Each song is presented with a breakdown of all the lexical items and grammatical structures found in the song. Following …

Eighteen Language Teaching Techniques: A Report On A Chinese Tutorial, Yalin Chen

MA TESOL Collection

This is a report on an experience of tutoring Mandarin Chinese for 28 hours. The report consists of a description and discussion of 18 techniques used in the tutorial. Each technique is discussed in terms of the following: Objectives--what the student is expected to learn from the technique; Rationale--the reasons for using that particular technique to meet the objectives; Procedure-­ a description of the activities used in class; Comments--an evaluation of the effectiveness of the technique and ideas for follow up or expansion; Implications for teaching—the applicability to language teaching in general. The techniques are geared to helping the student …

“El Puente” An Advanced Spanish Reader For Cultural Exposure, Angela Maria Garcia Mast

MA TESOL Collection

The present work is an advanced reader for adult learners of Spanish. Each of its 21 passages highlights a features of the Hispanic culture or a constrast between North American and Hispanic culture. The author's intent is to present to the reader the struggles, ambiguities and confusion that being between two cultures can bring to bear upon a person whose world view is based upon two separate and distinct realities.

Each passage introduces colloquial expressions as they are used by native speakers. Along with each is a culture capsule which attempts to further explain the point illustrated by the passage, …