Research portfolio

Research Portfolio

Inspector: Najoua Ben Ali Trainee: OLFA BEN HASSINE

2007-2008

Teaching and learning pronunciation The fourth module of Penny Ur’s book, A Course Language Teaching, is divided into five units.

Unit one defines the concept of pronunciation which is composed of sounds or what is known as phonemes. Phonetic and phonemic transcriptions are very important in the learning of any new language.

Penny Ur believes that stress and rhythm are the second components of pronunciation along with intonation which manifests in the increase or the decrease of the pitch level. Any misuse of one of the pronunciation may seriously affect the understanding of the target language while used; that is why she pointes out that teachers, should take into consideration the importance of integrating this skill while teaching a new language. She insists that learners should be familiar with the phonetic symbols and the way each one is pronounced. They should be able to recognise where a syllable is stressed as well as the instances when there is a fall \

or a rise /, a fall rise ˅ or a rise fall ˄ in

intonation to guarantee not only an appropriate understanding of the target language but also an effective production too.

In unit two, the writer, presents a practical activity that scrutinises the most current difficulties that may encounter foreign learners during the second or foreign language learning process. She suggests four stages to be followed: 1.

Preparing materials by recording spontaneous interviews to get authentic and reliable

results.

2.

Analysing pronunciation errors after writing them on a worksheet provided to sort

out pronunciation mistakes. This can be done either individually or in groups.

3.

Exchanging results comparing them to find out their nature and the reasons for

which they happened.

4.

Discussing the final outcome, proposing possible solutions to minimise mistakes and

develop learners’ ability to pronounce appropriately.

In unit3, Ur displays some effective methods to develop learners’ pronunciation. In fact, she thinks that what matters is not to pronounce words correctly, the way native speakers do, rather than to pronounce appropriately so that they will be able to convey meaning and therefore carry on intelligible speech in different real-like situations.

According to Ur, foreign and second language learners commit pronunciation mistakes for three major reasons. First of all, some sounds do not exist in the speaker’s native language. Second,

although some sounds exist in both languages, they are not recognised as separate phonemes in the first language. Finally, learners are not able to discriminate between stressed and unstressed syllables accompanied with the use of the mother tongue intonation.

Ur argues that it is very urgent to help learner to be aware of their pronunciation errors. This can be done through intensive listening to or pronouncing sentences, words and even syllables.

Moreover, learners are expected to be taught how to articulate correctly. Repetition and drills activities can be effective to avoid pronunciation errors too.

In the following unit, she raises some problematic matters that need to be clarified before starting teaching pronunciation. Solutions to each problem are presented at the end of the unit.

In unit 5, the author deals with pronunciation and spelling, more specifically about sounds and the way words are written starting from the basic sound-symbol to texts. It is necessary, however, to teach the spelling of each new sound and to check learners’ understanding through practice. That is why; teachers are provided with a list of some pronunciation books that can be useful for teaching spelling and pronunciation. There are also some practical ideas on how to introduce them to the learners and check their acquisitions.

As in almost all the modules, module 4 ends with Notes. They consist of some additional remakes concerning pronunciation mistakes and the ways they should be dealt with.

Ur, P, (1991) A Course in Language Teaching, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Comments: Pronunciation appears to play an important role not only in facilitating communication between learners but also in fostering language acquisition. Pronunciation becomes a sign of learners’ understanding of new vocabulary. It is noticed that learners become interested in recognising the phonetic symbols of every new words. When interacting, or reading, learners become able to locate pronunciation mistakes by themselves. This is due to the variety of techniques that exist in the textbooks. These techniques, in the seventh form for instance, are varied. They enable learners to pronounce appropriately through repetition, using phonetic symbols to discriminate between different sounds, odd man activities and identifying stressed syllables. In addition, dictation seems to enhance learners’ awareness of the difference between pronunciation and writing.

Teaching and learning Pronunciation

Pronunciation, edited by CN Candlin and HG Widdowson is composed of three sections. The first one defines pronunciation as a means of indicating one’s identity and socio-economic status.

That’s why many foreign learners may refuse to adopt a native like pronunciation. Their mother tongue becomes their means of self recognition. Others, however, seek to be totally integrated in the second language society. In this respect, building the teaching of pronunciation on the learners’ needs, degree of motivation and attitudes rather than teachers’ is by no means an urgent necessity for what matters while learning or teaching pronunciation is to achieve understanding and convey meaning in a given situation or context. Thus, the notion of the perfect native speaker who must be blindly followed no longer exists.

According to the authors, messages people hear are produced in the form of sounds that are articulated in the different parts of the mouth. They are decoded after a whole process. This process happens inside the human brain. The result is the production of what is called allophones. They give meaning to the connected speech.

Dalton and Seidlhofer claim that to pretend what words to be said while speaking is of great importance especially when the context is clear. It facilitates the communicative task. Yet, this is too difficult for the non native speakers because most of the time they are not exposed to the normal speech in the target language. They are also taught how to pronounce “correctly”; that is to say isolated sounds.

Furthermore, the authors believe that Language learners are expected to recognise that while pronouncing words, many sounds would be assimilated or reduced to the maximum so that they are no longer heard. Native speakers therefore add or elide a supplementary sound to allow the transition between two vowels.

Stress is another component of pronunciation. It is universal. It is the way we pronounce some syllables while speaking. The researchers argue that stress is caused by a rise in pitch for a longer period of time accompanied with greater articulatory energy. Words then need to be divided onto syllables. Suffixes and prefixes along with word-class membership are considered crucial to the location of stressed syllables in isolated words. On the other hand, stressed syllables contribute effectively in the connected speech in the sense that they make it understandable and rhythmic mostly because English is viewed a stress-timed language.

For the authors, pronunciation is composed of intonation too. In fact, while speaking, some syllables or words are pronounced differently, that is louder or higher than the rest of produced speech. This means that pitch tone level change depends on the context. Thus, there can be a fall (\),

a rise (/), a rise fall (˄) or a fall rise (˅) tone. Furthermore, level intonation varies for six reasons: Emotional, grammatical, information structures, textual, psychological and indexical. They are easily defined from context or discourse too. They declare that since discourse is most of the time spontaneous, intonation highlights what the speaker wants the hearer to understand and whether the speaker is ready to continue to hold the turn or yield the floor.

For all these reasons, teachers are required to plan pronunciation courses that are not only able to satisfy learners’ demands but also prepare them to interact appropriately in different meaningful contexts.

In section two, they evaluate what had been introduced previously. It discusses the most effective ways of teaching pronunciation. English teachers are the models for their learners; they should afford satisfactory explanation to each aspect of the target language including pronunciation “pedagogical competence”. In this respect, the writers expect teachers to choose the appropriate approaches to teaching pronunciation. There are two approaches: The bottom up approach and the top down approach.

There are three ways of teaching pronunciation, exposure to the spoken language by practising pronunciation and by explaining how to use phonetic and sounds. Teachers should always think of how to teach pronunciation in a way learners would profit from it to the maximum. For instance, working on stress is to be a focal point in the pronunciation learning process. Intonation too should be taught effectively and pedagogical ways to deal with it effectively should be found such as using pictures or gestures even though it is difficult to be handled. Furthermore, intonation plays important roles in the connected speech. It serves at foregrounding cretin words or syllables while speaking as well as defining the roles, the status and the degree of speakers’ involvement in society.

After discussing stressed and unstressed syllables perception, rules, use, position and the most effective ways to teach them; and because stress rhythm is difficult to foreign learners, the writers proposed some teaching materials along with eight activities to help teachers while planning their lessons. Teachers should decide whether they want to teach pronunciation just for perception or for production: assimilation, elision and linking.

Sounds in isolation should not be neglected either. It is necessary not only to recognise them but also to discriminate between the different ones. They are easier to deal with. Yet, ear training and awareness of these differences should be built among learners. For this reason, the writers suggest three lesson plans about sound perception.

Now that the objectives of teaching pronunciation are achieved, it is high time to check learners’ acquisitions. This can be done through consolidating and production. There are several activities proposed by the writers.

Teachers are expected to decide how to teach sounds: Intuitively, in a given context, or just to provide learners with a phonetic script accompanied with pronunciation rules for each sound. The decision depends on the syllabus objectives as well as on the learners’ needs and expectations. One of the most effective techniques in teaching pronunciation is to enable them to discover sound differences between the first and the second language. This is done by deciding to use either contrastive analysis or frequency and functional load.

Section 4 presents eighteen designed practical activities to be used or adapted in classroom teaching. They are appropriate to all levels.

Dalton, C. and Seidlhofer B. (1994) PRONUNCIATION, Oxford: Oxford University press.

Comment: The book is a helpful handout for both experienced and trainee English language teachers. It provides a detailed understanding of phonetics and phonology. It also lightens many dark areas in the field of pronunciation teaching as well as learning. It seems that what matters now is no longer “correctness”, it is rather “appropriateness” or what is called “intelligibility” since the major reason for learning a foreign language is to be able to express one’s own ideas and to actively use it in real life situation while preserving one’s identity and self-pride. This is clearly obvious in the choice of the syllabus topics. Pronunciation is overtly as well as intuitively tackled. The focus appeared to be on the learners’ ability to discriminate between different sounds in order to interact with people from different nationalities. The eighth form book tries to open the doors to learners to perceive other cultures. Thus, learners become at the core of the learning process. This is exactly what the Tunisian syllabus aims at.

Planning

Classroom Observation tasks is written by Ruth Wajnryb, it deals with the different features of effective learning. For instance, any successful lesson depends on the way it is planned. That is why teachers should always be prepared before they start a new lesson. Wajnryb believes that teachers are required to plan their lessons on a sheet of paper with clear aims, procedure, used materials, class organisation and the way tasks should be presented. Besides, lesson plans should always be flexible, ready to be altered according to the needs of pupils and the observation done by the teachers themselves before they start the lesson, in class or even after the lesson hour finishes, as a self-evaluation. In fact, designing lessons depends on their nature for a lesson devoted to role-play would be different form another one devoted to listening or reading.

The author answered a number of questions (15) which are believed to be crucial to the understanding of the relevance of any given lesson plan while observing or presenting it. These questions help both the observers and the teachers to evaluate and measure the success of a lesson making the appropriate changes when and where necessary.

Yet, she claims that lesson plans, though very necessary, should not be written in details in order not to be enslaved by them. They are expected to be divided into three phases: Before, while and after the lesson. The openings and the closure are also necessary to be carefully designed because every lesson “has a beginning and an ending” and it has its “internal stages”.

Thus teachers are advised to forget about a fixed routine of opening and closing a lesson. They, should, in stead, take some hints into consideration. Moreover, they have to keep the necessary time for transition and for self-evaluation at the end of each lesson.

Transition is considered very important for Wajnryb in the way it links the different stages of the lesson to make them cohesive but also coherent so that the lesson would appear a unity in stead of a set of separate phases with no link between them. This would confuse learners and therefore contributes to the failure of the learning process. In this respect, variety of activities and lesson organisation become an urgent need. Indeed, adopting different learners seating (individual, group work, pair work...) in the same lesson probably enhances motivation and affords a sense of ease, fun, joy, self-confidence and cooperation among learners.

The author warns that the fact of planning a lesson with different activities does not only prevent young learners from being disruptive, as a sign of boredom, but it also foster learnercentred approach keeping teachers to the role of facilitator and manager. Indeed, variation of activities enhances learners’ autonomy allowing more opportunities to teachers to exchange ideas with their learners. Learners in this sense become active rather than a passive recipient of

information. The result would be learners would contribute to the planning of lessons suggesting activities which teachers are expected to take them into consideration while preparing their lessons.

Grammar is another aspect of the learning process teachers are advised to bare special attention while presenting it to the learners. The question is whether it should be taught explicitly or implicitly. Teachers are left free to decide the best way to do so. This depends on the learners’ needs and level. Ten questions are suggested to be answered by teachers about the place of grammar in the lesson. They help them to decide how to teach it, whether learners are receptive or productive, the type of language used to deliver information and finally, which approach was it adopted.

The author finally stresses the importance of lesson plans as they minimise lesson breakdowns. “It is a point in a lesson when due to a communication problem or misunderstanding, the lesson is unable to proceed.” However, if ever any breakdowns have occurred, they can be predicted and settled down provided lessons are well planned.

Wajnryb, R. (1992) Classroom Observation Tasks, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Comments: Lesson plan is crucial to facilitate the acquisition of second or foreign language. That is why special attention should be paid to the way plans should be designed. Detailed plans are useful in many cases especially when dealing with a lesson composed of a set of new vocabulary, structures and functions activities that may confuse learners and embarrass teachers once they are not well prepared to deal with.

Lesson plans are always prepared in such a way to respect learners’ levels and abilities. In other words, preparing different plans to different classes even for the same lesson seems to work effectively mainly because learners are individuals who have different levels of understanding. What seems easy for a learner may be difficult for the others. In this respect, there is always a room left for unexpected answers or responses to every lesson being ready to provide a solution to each problem.

Planning

Action Plan For Teachers is a practical guide for all English teachers all over the world. It is written by Callum Robertson and Richard Acklam. It is divided into three parts: Planning which is itself composed of pre-planning and planning a lesson; action which deals with methodology and teaching aids along with practical activities and suggestions on how to introduce these activities in class; and finally, Glossary which displays specific terminology.

The first part of the book presents the three stages that are expected to form every English lesson: Engaging, study and action. The first stage is designed to attract learners to the topic.

Engaging is crucial when planning a lesson because the more teachers engage learners the more learning process is effective. The second phase exposes the different language aspects, that is to say, the practice of what has been presented earlier. The last step is the production stage. It consists of either spoken or written activities. It allows teachers to check learners’ acquisitions of English. It also offers the opportunity to foster their language through recycling what they have learned. In addition, it motivates them creating a sense of competitiveness between one another.

“Pre-Planning” is thought very necessary in the success or failure of any lesson. In fact, the lesson is “like a journey” while its plan is “the map”. It contains lesson objectives, steps to follow to achieve them as well as teacher’s notes and ideas. The authors insist that there are different ways for planning. Trainee teachers for instance are encouraged to produce detailed lesson plans while the more experienced teachers can plan their lessons in their heads. Yet, whatever the level of teachers’ experience, planning one’s lesson continues to be crucial to the effectiveness of learning process. Moreover, planning is a sign of professionalism; it promotes self-confidence in front of one’s class. It helps with preparing a lesson that fits with learners’ levels and needs as well as anticipating breakdowns that may appear while teaching even with the availability of course books.

According to the writers, there are three principles of planning: 1. Realistic, clear objectives that respect learners’ early knowledge, needs and levels.

2. Variety of activities and materials to keep learners busy all the time and to avoid disruptive behaviour caused by boredom.

3.

Flexibility to respond to all unexpected questions or problems that may be raised by learners.

“Planning a lesson”, however, displays a practical way on how to put the different

components of the lesson together. Besides, the concept in study should be planned in the same way that native speakers deal with. This means that teachers should show knowledge of the subject in hand. In this sense, every lesson plan should begin with a warm-up. It is the

engaging phase which should be motivating, attractive, activating learners’ prior knowledge and sensitising them to the topic of the lesson. In other words, warm-up activities should push learners to check and recycle what they studied in the previous lessons then to move to discover the way to present new functions, structures, vocabulary, spelling and pronunciation.

On the other hand, teaching aids along with eliciting answers from learners are of great importance while introducing new language especially when it is done in a meaningful context.

Controlled practice follows the warm-up and the lead-in. During this stage, learners practise what has been introduced earlier in order to become familiar with the target language in a meaningful, real-like context. Drills, gap-filling, sentence completion, quizzes, games, information search and dictation are activities teachers can adopt in the controlled practice.

Freer practice or the production activities is the last stage of the lesson. It is meant to develop learners’ fluency and accuracy in a less controlled way. Activities can be written or spoken. They can be role-plays, written diaries, letters, postcards and project works.

Production activities should be carefully set up because their major aim is to check learners’ acquisition without the interference of the teachers. Feedback should necessarily be delivered at the end of the lesson to consolidate frequent mistakes. Timing is to be taken into consideration once planning a lesson for it is necessary to finish in time. “A good ending of a lesson is as important as a good start”.

“Action” is the practical part of the book. In this part, the writers shed light on the best methodology to teach English as well as the most effective teaching aids that can help with facilitating the learning process. There are different modern ways of teaching English in class that should be planned in advance: 1.

Mother tongue is allowed to be used occasionally but carefully because learners should always be encouraged to use English all the time.

2.

Eliciting answers enhances learners’ contribution in the learning process to become active rather than to rely on the teacher who gives them information. Eliciting can manifest under the form of drawing, using visuals, miming and answering questions.

It is motivating.

3.

Blackboard management or what should be written on the board especially the new information. Yet, it is advisable not to spend too much time writing on the board with the back to the class. This would cause disturbance as learners feel they are left alone

with nothing to do. Teachers are also expected to clarify everything they write on the board (pronunciation, meaning, function…)

4.

Drilling or repeating saying the new vocabulary. There are choral drilling which fosters self-confidence; individual drilling which checks pronunciation, word stress and intonation encouraging self-correction; substitution drilling which consists of changing one of the parts of the sentence while repeating. Drilling should not take long time.

5.

Once new language is introduced, correct pronunciation should be emphasised through imitating the teacher or the tape in the drilling stage. Specific attention is to be drawn to the phonetic transcription.

While planning a lesson, teachers should think of how to organise learners in different ways such as open class, when all the class is listening to the teacher; it is useful in the engaging phase. Open pairs, when two pupils perform a conversation or do an activity in front of the class. Closed pairs, when every two learners work together especially in the production stage. Group work, can be adapted when discussing or collecting information. Finally, “mingle activities”, when learners move freely around the class to collect answers of some questions from each other.

Furthermore, teachers should be aware of the nature of the lesson being prepared. For instance, teaching listing and reading texts require specific procedure to be followed. First of all, learners are to be introduced to the context using teaching aids corresponding to what they are going to listen to or to read. Besides, learners should always be told to listen for purpose; that is for gist. They should be taught how to master the appropriate strategies such as inferring meaning from the context and trying to focus only on some specific details. Furthermore, peer correction is needed to enhance self-confidence and cooperation before eliciting answers in open class.

The last part of the book is about technology teachers are required to use. The authors argue that modern technology would probably attract learners’ attention keeping them engaged all along the lesson. Effectively, the board no longer plays an important role in displaying information. In stead, teachers can use the overall projector, the tape recorder, the radio which supplies authentic and up to date materials along with TV which adds another dimension to the learning experience.

Computer is another material that helps learners to practise English more naturally enabling teachers to plan activities based on the internet such as project work activities. The book provides some planned activities ready to be used in class in the different stages of the lesson.

Comments:

The book is a clear guide for English teachers all over the world. It clarifies the different stages of the lesson with detailed examples and activities that can be adapted to all learners’ levels. Yet, What is worth noticed is that the writers focus on the modern technology and neglect the traditional teaching aids. It is true that nowadays, technology becomes a necessity and that it is the duty of the teachers to bring it to their learners but one should not deny the fact that millions of learners have no access to computers, TV and even the OHP in their schools. In such conditions, what should teachers do? Should they stop teaching? Will their lesson plans be of no value? Of course not. it is found that when lessons are planned according to the facilities that are available at the school, would achieve its objectives effectively. A lesson plan with simple but effective teaching aids such as visuals or a tape recorder; clear objectives and clear procedure in which there is a variety of activities as well as a variety of class organisation would probably be successful.

Teaching and learning speaking Effective Techniques for English Conversation, is written by Dobson. It consists of twentyfour chapters that highlight the importance of speaking English spontaneously and fluently in

different contexts. In this respect, directed conversation sessions are the ability of English second and English foreign language learners to move from using English language just for drills to a means of self-expression.

Dobson announces that there are many stages as well as various proficiency levels for conversation practise. For instance, elementary level needs two to five minutes conversation session throughout a class hour while the intermediate learners need five to twenty minutes per class hour and finally thirty minutes at least are sufficient for the advanced learners.

As far as the author is concerned, there are two types of conversation groups: Academic, during the class hour, and social, during English clubs organised outside the class hours. Despite every attempt to restrict the use of any other language except English during lessons hours, native language continues to persist. Teachers have not got to worry about the first language interference.

They can themselves switch to the learners’ native language when necessary bearing in mind that to achieve their objectives, they should be good speakers of English, friendly, cheerful strict but understandable and most importantly motivating to be able to overcome any problem that may face them during their careers.

It is admitted that some learners can refuse to take part in the conversation practice for many reasons, or they may show unease while dealing with speaking. They can lack self-confidence especially when they are exposed to a large class. They may also be not ready yet to interact. In these cases teachers are expected to provide guidance, show interest in every member of the class, train them carefully and enhance their self-confidence through practise, creating an atmosphere of cooperation and respect.

Dobson sees that sometimes, teachers are faced with learners who want to monopolise conversation and tend to inhibit their colleagues. The solution then, is to create situations where everybody is allowed to interact easily with no interruption or contribution from the teacher except when it is necessary. In fact, interrupting learners while they are speaking would break their string of ideas which itself results in confusion. Moreover, when teachers feel that learners are no longer in the activity, they have to stop it and to move to something else.

Dobson presents another major problem that may face teachers during their career is the different levels that exist among learners of the same class so teachers are invited to divide them into mixed level groups where the advanced ones are the leaders or the teachers like who facilitate and organise work between the rest of the group.

There are four factors to keep learners motivated: 1. The joy of discovery.

2. The success of mastering new materials.

3.

4.

Constant review of what has been mastered.

Continuous use of English outside school; through diaries, correspondence or chatting with

native speakers.

The second chapter is entitled “The art of conversation”, consists of a description and discussion of the main characteristics of oral conversation between two native (American) speakers. The author then explains the importance of listening as being one of the two components of any conversation for the success of any conversation necessitates a good listener as well as a good speaker.

The next chapter deals with the different types of questions and answers and the way they should be used to foster learners’ communicative acquisitions. The first type is “question-single statement”.

It needs only one statement reply. Though it is not common in English, it is recommended to be used in class. The second type is “question-multiple statements”. It necessitates more than one statement. It is common in native speakers’ everyday speech. The third type is “question deduced form answer”. It means to afford answers and ask learners to think of possible questions. The last type is “multiple questions drawn from a single statement”. It is to sort out different questions from one given answer.

Another component of conversation is comments. They are presented in both its forms the simple remarks and the rejoinders. They help learners to replace stressing silence with remarks about specific topic. Exclamations, however, are not common compared to question-answers and comments. Yet, Dobson advises learners to become familiar with them since they are used by native speakers.

From chapter four to chapter eleven, the author lists different sorts of conversations.

Dialogues are the major ones. Despite the fact that they are not communicative, it is advisable to introduce them in class using some practical procedures that exist in the chapter. Improvisation is another technique for conversation. It happens when two speakers or more interact with each other in a meaningful situation. To make it clearer, the author displays fifty situations that can fit all learners’ levels along with some proposed procedures that can be easily adapted.

Plays are another important device of conversation. They are very popular among learners and need time to be studied, practised and performed. That is why some helpful suggestions are introduced to facilitate selection but also the working with a given play.

Selective reading too, has many benefits in the improvement of learners’ communicative skills.

In this sense reading is required as a focal point to discussion. For this reason chosen reading should take into consideration learners’ levels, ages and the objectives situated in the official program.

Teachers and learners can go through the list of procedures listed at the end of the chapter for more clarification.

Composition has a great effect in fostering learners’ self confidence and fluency especially if teachers take into account techniques and some composition-speech topics assigned by the writer.

Along with speeches, small-group discussions and debates designed for advanced learners accompanied with suggested procedures and topics are presented.

The following three chapters treat the two different types of teaching aids and the most effective ways to be used to develop learners’ speaking skill.

1.

Visual aids: Blackboards, bulletin boards, Flannel boards, magnet boards, realia, pictures, charts, flashcards, maps, clocks, calendars, cartoons, advertisements, opaque projector displays, slides and filmstrip. Direct and indirect use of television accompanied with motion pictures such as films.

2.

Audio aids: Radio, tapes.

In chapter 16, Dobson affirms that there are many attractive motivating topics to both

adolescents and adult learners such as the comparison between the American culture and their own culture. Yet, teachers are asked to be careful when handling cultural topics to avoid possible confrontations or tensions that may arise between learners even if they belong to the same country.

In the next five chapters, Dobson analyses other devices, poetry and correspondence, the well known proverbs, English jokes and riddles, English songs, mainly the traditional ones like “Mary got a lamb”, “London Bridge” and “Old Mc Donald” which can be taught to all levels. Group projects and field trip can enable learners to develop their own communicative competences.

The last chapter comes under the title “games”. It treats the funny face of conversation.

Games are funny, motivating and relaxing. They help to recycle acquired vocabulary grammar as

well as provide situations foe interaction. It is crucial to plan games carefully before playing them. They should be productive, challenging but not beyond learners’ expectations.

Ten games are introduced in this chapter. They are true and false story telling, word psychology, I love my love, Definitions, classroom Twenty questions, what would you do if?, fast thinking, active adverbs and category bingo. All of them are explained in details with clear examples to be easier performed in class.

Dobson, M (1991) Effective Techniques for English Conversation Groups Comments: The book is of great usefulness for English second language and English foreign language teachers especially non native teachers and those who lack experience. It provides them with ideas and techniques that foster not only speaking skills but also the three other skills in an integrative real like way. Taking the example of songs, they are motivating activities. Whenever learners are exposed to songs following one of the methods presented in the book learners seem not just to be able to improve their speaking skill but they improve their listening, writing, reading while repeating new words, improving their pronunciation consequently.

Yet, some devices are not appropriate to Tunisian learners such as field trips which are not realistic since it is almost impossible to organize a trip or an excursion to a group of adolescents or even adult learners in Tunisia and oblige them to use English or any other foreign language all the time.

Teaching and learning speaking Learning Teaching is designed for teachers of English as a foreign language. It guides them towards effective strategies and techniques that are useful to the development of their teaching in

general. The book is composed of twelve chapters each deals with a specific topic. Yet, every chapter is related to the others. For instance, to deal with speaking in chapter five one has to move backward to chapters one, two and three and simultaneously forward to chapters eight and eleven.

In order to enhance speaking in class and to encourage learners to be able to interact fluently, the author advises teachers to follow different strategies and methods. For instance, they are asked to select an attractive motivating topic in which pupils know what to say. A topic they feel themselves involved in when discussing it. Thus, learning environment is expected to be positive facilitating cooperation. Moreover, when using questions, open ended ones are the best, they push learners to interact freely with one another but also with the teacher. It is also crucial to introduce the context in which the conversation or the discussion will take place; it would put learners on the right path especially if it is accompanied with the necessary words and expressions they need during the warm-up and the lead-in stages. Besides, providing learners with enough time to think of what they are asked to speak about would foster their speaking skills. Finally, role-cards or role-play are sometimes the best to facilitate speaking and to help learners to be creative since they are hiding behind other characters in real-like situations.

To be able to speak fluently, freely and easily, learners can be organised in different ways such as lockstep, small groups, pairs and individuals. They can be asked to work in “pyramid discussion” which starts as a pair work and ends as a whole class discussion. It enable all the learners to practice speaking in a safe way enhancing their self-confidence through the repetition of the same ideas as each time learners join a new group. They can also be asked to sit in a circle or in the form of a horse shoe rather than in fixed rows. Adapting new classroom arrangement allows them to speak without fearing they would be heard by everyone in the classroom.

On the other hand, several communicative activities that enhance speaking can be useful to the learners; chief among them is to get learners use language they are learning to interact in realistic and meaningful context, usually involving exchanges of information. In this context, giving instructions on how to use a machine is the best example of an effective communicative activity.

There are other communicative activities that could boost speaking. “Pair interview”, considered to be a good way to get learners know one another-- a good communicative activity to start with the school year. It is an ice breaker which helps learners to get on well with one another. “Pair compare” is another ice breaker made of three stages; filling the grid, comparing and discussing, and sharing ideas with the whole class. “Picture differences” are a third sample of communicative activities designed for interaction. It is a pair work consists of describing pictures to locate the differences.

“Stamp collecting” is a group work based on describing stamps one needs to buy to sell them to the others. “Planning holidays is another group work where each group member is given the time to speak about where he/she wants to spend his/her holiday. It ends to be a whole class discussion.

Another activity called “survival” accompanied with a picture and some notes to be used to plan the best way to be saved from the forest. At the end the writer proposes “a whole class puzzle” which necessitates that the teacher keeps the role of the monitor without interfering. It is suggested to be done in groups too.

“Drama” and “role-play” are the best to practise speaking. They are highly motivating; they also free one’s imagination. There are six types of drama activities; role-plays, guided improvisation, drama games, acting play script and prepared improvised drama. In order to perform these activities appropriately, teachers should be sure that learners have understood the instructions; that is why an amount of time should be left to the learners so that they read the cards carefully to be able to prepare the conversation. Teachers should also help learners to improvise while speaking as this would be more real like preparing them to deal successfully with different situations that may face them in their real life.

What matters when assigning a speaking activity, as said by the author, is to enable learners to speak accurately, that is to say to interact with people using English in an easy way in different meaningful situations. In order to achieve this aim, teachers are asked to listen to the learners speaking without interrupting them even if they commit mistakes; intelligibility is the most important key feature. Indeed, learners are expected to speak to the maximum while teachers keep the role of monitors before they start receiving feedback. This does not mean that teachers should neglect correctness, in the opposite; they are advised to prepare activities in which they just focus on correctness and other activities in which they just focus on intelligibility.

The writer demonstrates that there are many ways to correct activities designed for fluency. It can be through discussing the most frequent mistakes that affect meaning which is to be done either orally or in the written form. One has not to forget that the major objective of correction is to foster learners’ self-confidence along with awareness and self-development. Thus, it should be done at the end of the activity if its prior aim is fluency. There are several ways to draw learners’ attention to the spoken mistakes they have committed. For instance, teachers can directly tell them the mistake by echoing, asking a question, repeating the false statement, using gestures and facial description or writing the false sentence on the board. It is better that teachers encourage learner’s self correction or “student-student” correction; in other words; when a learner commits an error, the teacher can elicit the correct answer from different learners. This would enhance communication.

Comment: Learning a foreign language is most of the time done to understand native speakers while speaking and be able to interact with them fluently but also accurately. More emphasis is put on the interaction between learners through designing different communicative activities that respond to their levels as well as their needs as individuals who are members of the society. While correcting, both fluency and accuracy are taken into consideration. It looks that they should not be treated separately. During the feedback, it seems better to divide learners into groups asking each one of them to sort out a specific type of mistakes (pronunciation, grammar, content...) then discussing them together. In this way, learners may be able to speak more naturally. Intelligibility then would go hand in hand with correctness.

Teaching and learning reading Reading is composed pf three sections. The first section defines reading as the use of the written text to convey meaning in a given context along with social expectations to which readers belong.

In this respect, written materials are received in different ways depending on the readers’ background for each of them decodes the written message according to “the degree of care and

attention” it necessitates as well as the aim of reading such a text. In fact, people read for different purposes. They may read to survive in order to respond to immediate needs. They can also read to learn, it most of the time happens at schools, or they choose to do so just for pleasure.

Yet, Wallace admits that people are not only exposed to texts or more precisely to “the output of a writer which can be recorded and studied”; but they are also exposed to the discourse or, in other words, to “the reader’s process of constructing meaning from the text” On the one hand, written texts are seen as a well structured system presented according to conventional rules. They contain formal features such as cohesion and coherence, prepositional meaning and communicative functions; they play an important role in analysing and interpreting any text. On the other hand, discourse is believed to depend on each society’s culture and values; that is to say, the way the readers as well as the writers think of certain subjects and topics. It is on this basis that reading becomes a social matter. Readers are thus viewed as members of the whole society.

According to the author, there are three levels of context while interpreting texts: The immediate context of situation which is found around us conveying messages about the immediate physical environment, the institutional context in which the existence of particular notices, signs and documents demonstrate the power of institutions, and finally, the wider social context which is the presentation of shared principles and conventions between the writer of the text and the readers.

This means that meanings revealed from reading different genres of texts are social dependent; in other terms, “knowledge of the genre allows us to predict the likely occurrence of certain discourse”. Some genres, however, need knowledge of other cultures “cross-cultural differences”.

Furthermore, Wallace claims that reading is viewed as a process. This means that reading is an interaction between the reader and the writer throughout a given text which itself results in creating meaning by the means of prediction basing on schematic knowledge. In this context, reading effectively becomes the ability to use the appropriate strategies via selection and prediction. Yet, one have not to forget the “bottom-up” strategy or the reading for specific details strategy, and the “top-down” strategy or the reading for gist strategy that draws on schematic knowledge of genre and topic.

The author believes that there are two kinds of readers, the submissive and the resistant. The first accept and value positively every topic tackled by the writer especially if they are unaware or unable to sustain a critical view. This kind of learners are mostly the children at schools. The second feel free to judge or interpret any discourse according to their experience of the genre and understanding of the circumstances in which the text was composed. It is worth noticing that

readers, whatever their levels, are not able to interpret or comment on any text without having prior knowledge of other texts. This is called “intertextuality”.

The second section deals with the second language learners. It sheds light on the different points of view of the learning to read process given by second language learners themselves. Indeed, some of them think that learning to read means learning specific skills. Yet, it is advisable to pay more attention to the development of reading strategies since reading is dynamic. In this respect, some strategies are suggested such as “sentence building” and the exposure to different written English genre through books, songs, videos…

Teachers’ roles as stated by the writer are thus restricted to strategy-oriented and reading becomes a strategy-based approach while readers become able to predict, interpret, guess meaning from the context and select specific information relevant to their reading purpose. In this way, both learners and teachers succeed in sharing the same knowledge of a particular topic and therefore improve their meta-cognitive as well as their meta-linguistic strategies. Moreover, it is recommended that reading is to be taught in an integral way along with the other skills. It cannot be taught or learnt in isolation. Furthermore, teaching English to foreign speakers means to be aware of the particular educational, cultural and living purpose of reading written English texts. Second and foreign learners want to learn reading for almost the same reasons as the native speakers do. They need to read for specific purpose but also for pleasure to acquire language effectively. That is why texts should be chosen carefully. They should be clear, offer universal ideas and open new gates on the exploration of a new culture and a new way of life.

She demands from the English teachers to follow a number of criteria when selecting materials for reading. Texts are expected to be a vehicle for teaching language structure and vocabulary through repetition. However, grammar should not be taught or focused on explicitly; it should be taught in context. Besides, selected texts should be authentic, offer high interest content to be motivating and engaging; though access to authentic texts is not granted and they are more difficult to deal with. Accessible simple and simplified texts need to take into consideration learners’ needs, expectations, and objectives for learning English. Selecting authentic genre and situation could be the best way to teach reading since authenticity becomes the ability of the learner to interact successfully with any given text drawing on “relevant kinds of schematic knowledge.

Here are some procedures on how to teach reading effectively proposed by Wallace.

1.

Pre-reading: Very important. It motivates learners and makes them feel more selfconfident. It helps them select the appropriate strategy while dealing with any text. This

Can be achieved through questions learners answer to from the text (No longer used), or through reading for gist, preparing them for likely linguistic difficulties before they start reading sensitising them to the topic as well as activating their prior knowledge or through brainstorming (the most popular one) which provides opportunity to almost everyone in the class to participate.

2.

While-reading: helps readers to be “flexible, active and reflective”. It develops interaction between the writer and the readers. It enables learners to be critical. It can be organised in pairs or groups. It manifests in several activities like, reading for gist, reading sentences to get a coherent text, inferring meaning from the context, cloze procedure which leads to the production stage, information gap and transfer information from a linear text to a table.

Although this stage helps learners to recognise reading as a process, it is time consuming.

3.

Post-reading: Contributes effectively in fostering speaking and writing skills. It consists of multiple choice questions and producing written input or role plays.

The author sheds light on a number of approaches that enhance more critical view to second language reading in terms of text selection and classroom procedure. The problem-posing approach, for instance necessitates the selection of texts that raise potential issues. Learners are then asked to identify the issue which is most of the time social. Teachers can use pictures or dialogues to push learners to identify with that issue. It may manifest in poems, stories, personal narrative… The cross-cultural material approach consists of selecting texts that enable learners to better understand the others’ cultures so that they move from “the known to the unknown” in a smooth transition.

Finally, the alternative discourse approach; it insists on the collection of different texts that deal with some topics under the same genre but treated and presented differently At the end of the section, the writer argues that learners should be encouraged to develop awareness of their own learning process, their own roles as members of a particular society which has particular values and believes because this would develop their critical as well as their interpretative skills.

Section three presents practical tasks to help teachers to design some effective activities suitable for different proficiency levels as a way to facilitate not only the teaching but also the learning of reading.

Wallace, K. (1994) Reading, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Comments:

It is important to focus on reading as a social process. In fact, learners of English as a second or foreign language are expected to be able to use English actively in different real life situations; either through speaking or writing or most importantly through reading for reading gives the opportunity to explore new culture, new values and new “strange” ways of life. It pushes learners to be tolerant, and makes them aware of the existence of “the other” who needs to be recognised and known. That is why it seems to be necessary that they would be continually exposed to authentic, well selected texts that help them to get idea about English people and all aspects of their everyday life.

Learners are also trained to be able to use the appropriate reading strategies while reading. This would help them to acquire English easily and more effectively. How and when to introduce these strategies appeared to be very important. It is found that when learners become able to use the acquired strategies while reading intuitively rather than explicitly, reading becomes natural.

Like writing and speaking, reading should motivate and attract learners whatever their ages or levels. This depends on how to plan a reading lesson that can be effective once taught in class.

When teaching materials are well selected and carefully introduced to the class, especially in the pre-reading stages along with texts that are also selected according to specific objectives. Reading would probably becomes an

Teaching and learning reading How to Teach English deals with different problematic issues that face teachers, especially the trainees, while teaching English. Chapter seven, “How to teach reading” for instance, presents practical ideas concerning reading.

The writer believes that reading needs to be taught to second and foreign language learners to achieve different objectives, long term objectives and short term objectives. In other words, learners are required to read in English to be able to apply for a job in the future as well as to read and understand stories, newspapers, magazines… But they also need it to be able to discover new vocabulary, functions and structures in order to use them actively in meaningful contexts, especially if the topics involve learners and stimulate them for this means that “Some language sticks in their minds as part of the process of language acquisitions”.

Furthermore, it is advisable that learners be exposed to authentic texts that befit their levels, satisfy their needs and answer positively to their expectations. Non authentic or adopted texts can be of great importance too provided they are real like, that is to say selected readings should achieve equilibrium between learners levels and the amount of difficulty some authentic texts display.

However, there are some authentic texts that can be taught to beginners effectively such as minus, timetables, signs and basic instructions. Topics and genre of any chosen text should also be taken into consideration for teachers are advised to bear in mind lesson’s objectives before they assign reading.

On the other hand, teaching reading should allow learners to be able to distinguish between different skills and to use them appropriately. Scanning a text for specific information is one of these skills along with skimming or reading for gist to sort out the main idea and infer meaning from the context. Finally, learners are expected to concentrate in particular details such as discovering new structures and new communicative functions.

According to Harmer, there are six principles behind the teaching of reading. First, learners should be able to communicate with the text actively for reading “is not a passive skill”. Second, teachers should know how to engage learners, motivate them and attract their attention to the content of the text through careful selection of the topic that involve them actively and give them the chance to express their ideas about the topic using language acquired through the reading process. Fifth, prediction plays an important role in enhancing reading; it prepares learners to what are they going to read next. Finally, topics are expected to be well selected. Tasks also, should be appropriate to the topic so that reading texts would be exploited to produce writing or speaking tasks.

The author admits that while dealing with reading, it is important to think of the ways it should be presented to learners, the skills learners should follow to practise the new acquired language and what type of production will follow up the reading. In this respect, four different authentic texts

designed to different levels of learners, beginners, lower intermediate, intermediate and advanced, are suggested as examples on how to teach reading effectively. It is noticed that the four teachers follow the same procedure while teaching these texts. They started with sensitising the learners to the topic using warm-up activities which involved them actively since they put emphasis on expressing their own feelings and highlighted their background knowledge in order to be able to communicate with the text successfully. After that, they moved to practise reading. Learners were asked to answer some questions using different skills “to clear up any small comprehension problems before they talk in front of the class”. At the end; after a short transition activity, learners came to the production stage where they were asked to produce written output related to the topic of reading they already studied in class.

At the end of the chapter, Harmer notices that reading and writing are closely tied to each other.

In fact, the second cannot be done without the first; reading “provides the model for English writing”. He also admits that teaching reading is similar to teaching listening.

Harmer, J. (1998) How to Teach English, New York: Longman.

Comments: Reading English texts are very necessary to foster learners’ language acquisition. It plays an important role in enabling them to use English language effectively in everyday life. This can be either for pleasure, like reading sporting magazines, decoding instructions or use English for specific purpose especially as it is considered to be the first language in the world. Every learner comes to the classroom with some background knowledge that they can be explored while preparing reading lessons either in the first stage (warm-up) or in the last stage (production). This seems to encourage learners as they feel involved in the lesson, motivated and eager to exchange their experience. Reading therefore becomes a relaxing enjoyable task which results in the success of the learning process.

Teacher and learner roles Roles of Teachers and Learners clarifies that one of the best ways to teach and learn English as a foreign language is to identify the roles of the teachers as well as the learners in the learning process putting an emphasis on their social and psychological aspects. The book is composed of three

sections. The first moves from defining the term ‘role’ in general to the displaying of the different factors that affect teachers and learners roles specifically.

The writer believes that there are two kinds of roles in society; the first are imposed on us either by force or by chance while the second is chosen freely. This leads us to conclude that ‘roles’ are not restricted to drama; they are rather social for “We are in a multitude of ways actors of social roles.” Moreover, it is argued that every social role individuals perform should conform to the conventional attitudes, values and norms of the society they belong to. This means that every one of them is supposed to understand his/her social role in order to be able to behave according to the others’ expectations, therefore guarantying a ‘normal relationship with the other members of society.

However, teachers and learners play different roles in society as both of them come to the class with different beliefs that may affect the learning process positively but also negatively. In fact, Wright found out that there are many factors that influence teachers and learners roles. Chief among them are the interpersonal factors which are social and psychological. It is through them that one can recognise the difference between ‘position’ and ‘statue’ for the former means what occupation one has while the latter is the way people are considered to behave normally in society. In this respect, the role of the teacher and the role of the learner become two “position(s) with a certain amount of statue.” Furthermore, to have a position means to carry out certain degree of duty, along with some rights acquired from society and obligation that arises from one’s self-awareness.

Power also can affect learners and teachers roles. It is most of the time exercised by the latters which means that power relationship is never symmetrical. Three types of power are stated by the author; coercive, reward and reference. Since teachers and learners belong to society and since every social behaviour is supposed to be subject to inferiority or superiority, their relationship is governed by social difference which is acquired due to the difference of ages, interests, positions, status, beliefs and distribution of power.

The researcher notices that attitudes, beliefs and values contribute importantly in defining teachers and learners roles. They are the result of the social education and are deeply stored into one’s personality. That is why, they can seriously affect their behaviour inside the classroom, while interacting with each other. Learners are divided into three groups, each maintain special personal attitude towards their teachers some of them believe that teachers are supposed to be authoritarians; some others admit that teachers’ authority should be relative while the rest of them see teachers as the tools to achieve their goals.

Wright points out that personality should be taken into consideration while dealing with learners and teachers roles. It is also acquired through experience and influences one’s behaviour. There are five kinds of personalities; authoritarian, affeliative, conformist, aggressive, cooperative and achieving. That is why, teachers are asked to vary their personalities according to their learners’ expectations, to the lesson, tasks and even to the norms inside the school as well as outside it.

Motivation is also crucial to the success of the learning process. Both learners and teachers need to be motivated in class. Motivation can be integrative fostering knowledge acquisition, or instrumental standing as a barrier against language learning.

The second set of factors that influence teachers and learners roles are called the task-related factors. They are constituted of two aspects, cognitive as well as affective. Teachers present many different tasks during a lesson. Some of their topics may involve both of them and the learners especially through interaction. In fact, it is advisable that learners participate in the setting of the task objectives for this would foster motivation and therefore enhances their learning acquisitions reducing at the same time any possible disruptive behaviour that may emerge during the lesson.

In the second section, the writer discusses the different teaching tasks and strategies adopted by teachers in class along with the way learners behave towards them. In other terms, the focus in this section is on the major roles of teachers and learners once in class. Teachers have two major roles in the classroom. Firstly, they are the managers of the learning process. It is viewed as the social side of teaching. It is substituted into a number of sub-roles: 1-

Motivators who enhance positive attitudes towards learners treating them equally, respecting their differences, personalities and mostly giving positive feedback and enabling learners to be self-evaluators and actively involved in the classroom process.

2-

Controllers and discipline settlers through their careful choice of activities as well as learners seating. They can control the learning process in two interdependent ways. That is to say by controlling discipline and by controlling the learning acquisition. Once disruptive behaviour is encountered, an immediate decision should be taken to regain control over the class.

3-

Organisers of the learning groups who enhance interaction and cooperation among the learners. They take part in reducing distance between them and their learners .This can be done by modifying the way learners are organised in class; whether they are put in

groups, in pairs or individually; in rows, in circles or in horseshoes. Once the activity is assigned, it is the role of the learners to carry it out.

4-

Teachers’ personality is very important. Teachers are acquired to be able to decide when to be authoritarian and when to be affiliative bearing in mind learners’ attitudes and beliefs and how they define their relationship with their teachers.

5-

Teachers’ attitudes towards learning and teaching. Some are dominant and seek to keep some degrees of control over the class while others tolerate a degree of freedom that leads to some interpretation.Teachers can play other sub-roles such as the evaluators, the guides and resource of knowledge;

Secondly, teachers are considered to be the instructors or the task-oriented. This means that they should always vary the modes of their interaction setting them on the basis of their personalities, teaching materials being used, expectations of the learners, objectives and their own interpretation of the instruction. In this respect, teachers are seen as facilitators of the learning process. They are also the elicitors who are able to activate learners’ previous knowledge, ask questions with the help of teaching materials which promote language learning and check to what extent they have achieved their aims. This can be done in lockstep where they totally have control over the learners.

Learners, however, are expected to contribute to the learning process through participation, interaction with each other, discovering new vocabulary and structures, creating their own teaching materials and even through asking questions for further clarification. In addition to that, it is necessary to create a sense of relaxed atmosphere in the classroom so that learners become warm, friendly and cooperative. It is worth noticing that they are expected to be placed at the centre of the learning process. This allows greater boost to the interpersonal relationship which allow them to be able to take leadership as well as management decisions. Teachers are advised to increase the learners talking time in order to be able to exchange values and ideas freely in a more comfortable and less formal class.

Yet, Wright claims one has not to forget that learners are individuals who belong to a large society; each one of them has his/her own personality, beliefs and attitudes towards school.

Learners can be enthusiasts, oracular, participators or rebel. Besides, it is argued that learners share the right to “pursue individual learning goals in classroom.” They are expected to satisfy their psychological needs. In this way, they become actively in the creation of classroom process of learning.

In the last section, the author presents some tasks with procedure and interpretation. They provide further explanations and suggestions to how teachers can investigate them in their classrooms. For this reason, they are invited to follow the given instructions carefully.

Wright, T. (1996) Roles of Teachers and Learners, Oxford, Oxford University Press.

Comments: It seems to be essential to adopt more than one role in the same lesson. For instance, to be a manager and possess a total control over the learner in the presentation stage; that is to say, while presenting new language or sensitising learners to the topic, using drills or teaching materials, to be a controller, a motivator, an elicitor and a source of information too. In the practise stage, however, it is better to restrict oneself to the roles of organiser and guide. That is to guide learners toward practising what they have come to learn. In the production stage, one can plays the roles of a monitor and an evaluator.

Learners, on the other hand, seem to accept to play an active role in class especially if they feel motivated to do so. When learners are aware of the important role they play in making the learning process effective; they become able to understand that, for example, they should be able to evaluate their own learning and that it is no longer the duty of the teacher to do so. Thus, once they are involved in a production activity, it is suggested to let them do the task on their own from the beginning to the end.

Teacher and learner roles Aspects of Language Teaching is written by H.G Widdowson and composed of eleven chapters that scrutinise all aspects of the English language teaching that contribute to the learning process.

The writer argues that one of these aspects that influence the teaching process positively, if it is well understood, is the teachers’ and the learners’ roles.

Teachers and learners roles are analysed in the last chapter. In fact, the writer starts by defining the term ‘role’ in general that is in society, it is what is considered normal behaviour for people perform according to the norms and conventions set up in society in particular contexts and according to the positions they hold. In this respect, classroom itself is viewed as a physical space that gathers members of society. It is the microcosm of the whole society. Classroom contains a setting as well as a scene. The former affects the latter although the latter helps in identifying teachers and learners roles.

It is argued that it is not only teachers and learners who have different contradictory positions in society. The different terms ‘pupil’ and ‘student’ are seen to be defined as occupations in society, while the term ‘learner’ is no more than “an incidental activity”. The same is for the word ‘teacher’ which is believed to be ambiguous but the words ‘schoolmaster’ and ‘schoolmistress’ are considered as positions. This difference results in the separation between learners and teachers so that each of them was put in the opposite extreme of the other.

Widdowson believes that there are two kinds of classroom engagements. They sometimes converge and sometimes conflict. It depends on the way teachers and learners understand their roles in the classroom. The first engagement is called the interactional engagement in which every participant in the classroom played a definite role influenced by social attitudes and the way society defines teachers and learners positions. Transactional engagement, however, defines the relationship between the teachers and the learners according to the ways learning pedagogical objectives should be achieved. This means that each type of engagement suggests different role manifestations that can complement as well as conflict with each other.

Examining teachers and learners role from an interactional engagement point of view means that teachers play the role of authoritarians who dominate class interaction as well, as all the aspects of the learning process. They control learners’ participation and classroom interaction. Learners, on the contrary, are fixed and non negotiable. They show total dependence on the teachers and submit blindly to his instructions and orders. These roles held by the teachers and the learners are in fact the product of the social environment which is position-oriented. It does not take into consideration the learners as individuals who need to draw on their previous knowledge in order to develop their acquisitions and enhance their self-confidence. The shift then is to be done to person-oriented interaction.

Objection to the interactional engagement is built on the basis of pedagogical transaction. Thus, an urgent change and challenge to these traditional teachers and learners roles could probably

enhance their abilities to learn effectively. Indeed, challenging the traditional teacher’s authority to give way to the learners’ autonomy becomes urgent especially as learners are now at the core of the learning process. This means that the dominant role of the teachers which gives them the right to impose their wills on the learners and oblige them to obey their power has to be replaced by another transactional authority. In other words, authority should no longer be reinforced because of the teachers’ position in the classroom or mare precisely in society, in the opposite, it should be reinforced in order to achieve pedagogical roles and to enable learners to learn in a relaxed cooperative atmosphere.

Teachers and learners roles changes once they are viewed from this perspective. In fact, teachers are no longer authoritarians. They are by now authoritative. They use their authority to control, conduct the learning process, monitor learners while working in groups, in pairs and individually and guide them towards self-development. Teachers are then the classroom managers.

Comparing their roles in the transactional engagement, learners become totally dependent to the teachers. This is due to many factors chief among them the way they ware brought up in society.

They were convinced to deal with the teacher in the same way they deal with any other person holding an important position. Yet, natural self-directed learning is to be encouraged.

Autonomous Learners are to be allowed to express themselves, contribute to the learning process but this is advisable to be done in precaution. Young learners, children mainly, should be given a total autonomy because this may be open the door to the disruptive behaviour to emerge. Autonomy and freedom can be misinterpreted by young learners. Transactional autonomy is to be used from time to time bearing in time learners’ needs, interests and attitudes towards tunihe teacher, the subject and even the school. Whatever autonomy learners posses, they are supposed to be guided by teachers authoritative guidance.

Widdowson, H. (1990) Aspects of Language Teaching, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Comments: It seems that teacher should adopt more than one role while dealing with learners. To be authoritarian or authoritative depends on the situation, the type of learners, that is whether they are motivated or disruptive and whether they are teacher-dependent or still need the help as well as the presence of the teacher.

Teacher development Reading in Teacher Development is concerned with the ways teachers develop themselves in order to become more proficient. It is composed of eight chapters each deals with a specific aspect of teacher development starting from the general to the specific.

At the beginning, Kathie Head and Pauline Taylor define the teacher development as a process; that is to say as something dynamic that moves towards perfection. It is a personal will that emerges from the deep inside the teacher to ameliorate his/her ways of teaching. Being personal, teacher development is viewed from different perspectives as it depends on the teachers’ own experience as well as their self-awareness of the necessity to bring about some transformations in their teaching methods for the benefits of the learners.

This is obvious in the psychological English Language Teaching articles or books and the different meetings organised to discuss the best ways to improve teachers’ own readings through displaying the newest ideas and practices in the teaching field. In this respect, the authors insists that teachers should differentiate between training and teacher development despite the fact that they are complementary to one another. On the one hand, that training concentrates on the pedagogical skills, methods and objectives that new English teachers need to know at the beginning of their career. On the other hand, teacher development focuses on the learning atmosphere and the interaction between the learners and the teachers. Yet, to attend training courses is not enough to be a good teacher, in addition to that, teachers should be self-aware of the importance to develop their competence and their reactions towards all aspects of school life; so that development becomes the goal of all teachers whatever levels of experience they have. In this way, effective learning means to “redress the balance between training and development” to achieve self-confidence and eagerness to challenge difficulties through creativity and flexibility whenever they face problems.

Developing teachers’ own teaching is necessary according to the authors since the world is changing continually and learners should be aware of and prepared to be able to deal with these changes. Different ways to improve teachers’ own ability to cope with these transformations are highlighted. It is declared that teachers should be aware of their personalities. They should understand themselves before going into action; they also have to start changing themselves positively because “we see people and things not as they are but as we are. When you are finally aware, you don’t try to make good things happen, they just happen.” Brainstorming old concepts and ideas already stored in the mind is the next step that may help teachers to develop their own teaching. Moreover, reviewing their beliefs and old ideas can liberate them from being “stuck”.

This would foster not just their creativity but also their innovation. This can be fulfilled when they discover their readiness to ameliorate their way of thinking. Once locating the disabling beliefs, their causes and their manifestations, teachers need to initiate the appropriate solutions then select the best that fits most with the problem. Later on, they have to plan the different steps to go through to achieve development. Once the plan is ready, they expect teachers to monitor, check and evaluate their progress.

Besides, teachers are advised to choose to speak with one or more colleagues who are considered to be successful in managing good behaviour in order to find reasons for their success.

Furthermore, it is crucial to be objective when dealing with change. In other words, teachers are supposed to look at every situation they find themselves in from more than one perspective. Finally, positive feelings play an important role in developing teaching so that teachers would find their job enjoyable especially if they succeed in building a new relaxed relationship with their learners. This can be achieved only if special care is taken to the mind as well as the body such as massage, Yoga, Tai Chi, breathing correctly…

The authors list a number of stages to manage Teacher development. Each stage is characterised by specific emotions that vary from choc to fear to release and at last to confidence. Changing oneself is not enough; teachers should influence who and what are around them. In addition, development should be personal, not forced by any one. It is an inner feeling that must flourish from oneself. It boosts the development of society in general as it starts from the self to move to the others. In other terms, it begins now and continues long for years. That is why, learners attentions are supposed to be drawn to their teachers’ ability to change which would enable them to be critic, dynamic and flexible.

Head and Taylor remind the reader that s/he has not to forget that teachers are individuals who live in society. They have their own values, culture and ways of life that differ from one individual to the other. Development means to change and challenge all this knowledge in order to discover oneself. Even the teaching skills and techniques taught during training courses should be put in action selectively paying special attention to what occurs inside the classroom while teaching. It is advisable to learn from past experience to be able to react effectively when faced with a problem. Past experience mainly the negative ones have a great effect on teacher development. It helps them to use it as a prompter to change. For example, recalling the bad behaviour of one’s teacher can push the learner to avoid behaving the same way in the future once starting a new teaching career. Sometimes, a negative memory would force teachers to create an atmosphere of ease and cooperation between them and the learners but also among the learners themselves. Indeed, past experience should not stand as a barrier against the development of teachers. It must be, however, overcame so that new doors would be widely opened to settle down “new habits” which itself will give way to adapt new flexible rules in class to break down routines and bring about innovation. There is always the possibility to perform better as teachers always learn from their past experiences. This means that feeling of fear; anxiety and guilt would no longer prevent them from viewing deep inside themselves in order to enhance self- evaluation.

Finally, the authors admit that teachers and learners relationship is very important in the teaching development process. In fact, learners are considered to be the mirror of their teachers.

They reflect their image according to the way they behave with their teachers. For this reason, teachers are asked to be flexible, creative and motivating. Every learner in class should be taken into consideration, given equal opportunity to learn and to express himself. In this respect, special interest is to be taken to every gesture made by the teachers in class along with gestures, eyes contact, the way instructions are presented and finally the teaching talking time. Teachers, should enable learners to see things through their eyes, identifying learning objectives, believing in their teachers to be a source of information but also a facilitator who allows them to be at the core of the learning process, giving them the opportunity to be initiative by providing them with the appropriate amount of learning space respecting their levels, needs and expectations, guiding them towards self-fulfilment.

Head, K. and Taylor, P. (1997) Reading in Teaching Development, The Bath press.

Comments: This book is one of the Teacher Development series. It offered interesting views on how teachers can develop their ways of teaching English effectively. It is important to go to class in a good mood so that one would be ready to deal with whatever problem that may arise. It seems to be crucial to develop a critical spirit; this means it is necessary to work harder and harder to improve oneself but most importantly to be aware of the importance of change.

Development seems to affect the class atmosphere positively as learners notice that their teacher is always changing to the best and that this change is in fact for their benefits. They themselves become motivated and discover, indirectly, that teacher development after all means learners development breaking with routine, stress and old out of date teaching methods. They start to be creative hard working to prove they are also changing for the best.

Teacher development Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom, contains seven chapters that highlight the importance of effective designed tasks in developing teachers ways of teaching English language and their roles in fostering self-reflective methodology that enables them to be selective, creative and relying on what happens in their classrooms while designing their lessons.

The writer starts the book by defining the word ‘task’ as a well structured work that learners perform in class. Tasks foster learners’ communicative skills and are composed of a definite number of objectives, carefully designed input that can be verbal as it can be non verbal, activities that follow each other smoothly, learners and teachers roles implicitly set up and finally, the way learners are organised in the classroom while doing them.

Later on, the writer claims that tasks should be designed on the basis of the curriculum and the syllabus which are themselves designed by professionals and aim at guiding teachers to the best theories they have to adopt while teaching. They also provide them with the objectives they need to achieve during the learning process. Yet, teachers are advised not to restrict themselves totally to the syllabus while planning tasks but to take the objectives and try to be active, creative and flexible, adopting the tasks and teaching materials according to their learners’ needs and levels. In this way teachers should be able to develop their teaching process and therefore become selfdirected who are able to satisfy the needs of their learners, evaluate their tasks during or after the lesson and achieve the learning objectives successfully.

Teachers are advised not to follow any specific abstract methodology literally for classroom setting impose themselves as the chief emphasis of any development in lesson design. Teachers are then required to build a critical attitude towards every task they present in class. Three areas should be emphasised while dealing with task evaluation. “Problematicity” that is whether the task fosters learners’ abilities and language acquisition. “Implementability” which specifies used teaching aids and the way learners are organised and managed while doing the task. “Combinability”, which questions the presence of smooth transition between the tasks of the same lesson.

After that, the writer suggests a checklist for evaluating communicative tasks. It is argued to be of great usefulness for the teachers who wish to develop their own teaching. It is composed of a set of different evaluative questions. They are considered to be all answered mainly when teachers want to check the value and the effectiveness of a new task for the first time, or a task which is familiar to the teacher but not to the learners. This can be done through class observation either through participating in other teachers classes then evaluate the tasks or recording the lesson to evaluate it later on.

The evaluating questions are about goals and relations, input, activities, role and settings, implementation grading and integration and finally, assessment and evaluation. Moreover, relying on their knowledge of their learners’ levels, expectations, and attitudes, teachers will be able to

decide what kind of development they can maintain since any improvement in their teaching methodology should necessarily affect learners’ abilities to acquire knowledge.

Furthermore, the writer advises teachers not to design tasks that are not implemented or directed to their own learners even if they proved to be of great success to other learners. They are also asked to use a variety of activities and to change learner’s way of seating continually during the tasks in order to keep learners motivated and well managed. Continual motivation along with continual checking would probably give a clear idea on whether teachers have achieved their goals or not as well as it would enhance language practice and production.

Another way to use tasks in teacher development is to introduce teachers to the notion of ‘task’ as a departure for programme planning and evaluation. In other words, tasks were exploited in a workshop which is believed to be reliable allowing teachers to evaluate their own development.

Tasks they taught in class were used as the basis for a classroom research project organised by teachers themselves to evaluate their teaching methods and try to find the appropriate solution to develop themselves.

The workshop was composed of five steps. Pre-workshop tasks in which teachers who would participate sent the best of their tasks to be evaluated. The ‘good’ language learner task, it consists of a questionnaire directed to the participants to define the characteristics of a ‘good’ learning task and how it should be. In the next step, the participants were asked to discus together and select the essential characteristics before they move to the task analysis where they evaluate the tasks they already sent before the workshop had started. After that, teachers were asked to sort out the levels of difficulties according to the learners, the task and the text. In the last step, participants were handed out some copies of the tasks being evaluated in step four and asked to reorder them from the easiest to the most difficult.

It is one of the ways that seemed to prove to be among the most effective methods that contribute actively in teacher development. It boosts cooperation, exchange of ideas and investigates theory for the sake of discovering practice concerning the classroom. That is why it is crucial to achieve equilibrium between theory and practice as this would push teachers to adopt an action research oriented specifically to their own designed tasks, ready to scrutinise any issue that may face them.

This may be found in the same class within the same levels.

Nunan, D. (1993) Designing Tasks for The Communicative Classroom, Cambridge: Ambridge University Press.

Comments: Cooperating with colleagues can be one of the best ways to develop one’s ways of teaching for by doing so, it is found that new ideas, new notions of cooperation and of keeping in touch with every recent data in the field of teaching. By cooperating with the other teachers it is easier to compare one’s development to the others and to measure the degree of this development as well as the best ways to develop it.

Classroom management Designing Tasks for the Communicative Class is composed by Nunan; each chapter of the book deals with a specific aspect of English language learning and teaching. For instance, chapter eleven is devoted to classroom management. It insists on its importance in the success as

well as the effectiveness of the learning process. The chapter is divided into four parts; the role of the teachers, student groups, disruptive behaviour and conclusion.

The author claims that teachers’ roles vary according to the tasks they perform. Indeed, they are placed between two opposite endings, controller and facilitator. A controller means a God like teacher who masters everything in class. He is the core of the learning process. He assigns tasks, indicates who speaks and who does not. He monopolizes the time of speaking and he is the only source of information but also of inspiration. This role is believed to be too “authoritative” depriving learners from learning appropriately.

Teachers are also viewed as “assessors”. The author expects them to check learners’ acquisitions regularly. There are two kinds of evaluation. The first is gentle correction; that is to correct learners’ mistakes during the different stages of the lesson without affecting the general atmosphere of the classroom organisation. The second is organising feedback. It occurs during the practice and the production stages; it is divided into content feedback and form feedback. The former is about the understanding of the general idea of the activity while the latter is about the most current mistakes.

There are different ways of locating mistakes such as jotting down all mistakes committed by the learners and discuss the most important and frequent ones, recording learners feedback then listen to it and scrutinise the mistakes and finally filming the activity then watching it to sort out the language mistakes everyone committed whether grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation or style and appropriateness.

Another role of the teachers, stated by the writer, is that of an “organiser”. It means to enable learners to understand instructions effectively. Though it is the most important teachers’ role, it is seen to be the hardest task for almost all teachers. For this reason, teachers should be sure that all the learners have understood what to do. Questions are to be clear and brief otherwise lesson objectives will not be achieved. Moreover, an activity should contain a lead-in that is a presentation or an engagement phase. Instructs which demonstrate question and Initiating: to check learners’ understanding of the question. Once learners start working, teachers no longer interfere in the work.

Teachers, according to Nunan, play many other roles. They are “prompters” who push learners to ameliorate their learning clarifying any confusion or misunderstanding that may happen during any stage of the lesson. They are also “participants” in the sense that they themselves participate in the learning process and therefore contribute to the development of learners’ acquisition through practising language “with someone who speaks it better than the others”. They are “the resource” who should always be present to provide learners with the appropriate information when needed.

They are “tutors” who provide clarifications and solutions to any problem that may happen in class.

This role is “the piece of the other roles. Finally, teachers should always develop themselves either by participating into training courses, cooperating with colleagues or improving their own techniques by themselves because they are “investigators”.

In addition, class organisation is seen to be a part and a parcel of the classroom management skills since when it is used in a varied appropriate ways; it would result in the success of the learning process. The author lists four ways of learners grouping.

1.

Lockstep: It is when the whole class is gathered as one group and is dominated by the teacher. It has many advantages; it creates an atmosphere of self-confidence among learners as they all work together following a “good language model”. Yet, it has more disadvantages; it deprives learners from their right to participate and therefore from practising language, it doesn’t respect learners’ levels or personalities either. Although it is expected to be used when organising feedback, evaluating or initiating an instruction, “lockstep involves too much teaching and too little learning”.

2.

Pair work: It provides a good language practice creating a sense of cooperation and competition between learners. Teachers thus become just facilitators of the language acquisition. To be sure pair work is carried appropriately, they are advised to keep moving and circulating round the learners to evaluate their performance but also to be sure they are using English while they are working. It is important also to assign pair work for a short period of time otherwise learners especially the youngest ones will loose concentration and start causing noise. It is up to the teachers to decide how to put learners together as it depends on their knowledge of the class. Pair work can be used either orally, in written activities or in reading.

3.

Group work: It has many benefits, it is more motivating than pair work, it also offers better opportunities to cooperate and practise language through interacting with one another. It also reduces the role of the teacher to a controller which creates a sense of selfconfidence and self-reliance among learners. Yet, there are many problems that may face teachers while assigning group work, it is the choice of group members. Some solutions are suggested such as using a socio-gram, mixing learners with different levels together or keeping the weak ones together and the strong ones together assigning varied tasks to each one of them to work on.

Group size: The author maintains that the number of group members depends on two factors.

The nature of the activity which defines whether groups are to be fixed or flexible; and, the

necessity to give each member of the group a definite function to perform; for example, a learner would be the group leader who would act as a mini-teacher making sure everything is going as it is expected to be, a time keeper, a reporter and a writer. This means that all the group members find themselves useful and cooperative. This enhances self-confidence and dynamism.

Nunan insists that although the use of the mother tongue may bother teachers while managing their classrooms, they should not consider it as a real barrier in the English learning language. In the opposite, it could help learners to acquire knowledge in a “relaxed” way provided they are told when to use it and when to restrict themselves to English only. In this respect, three solutions are suggested to teachers to tolerate the use of their native languages; teachers are asked to talk to the learners to convince them of the useless of any other language except English especially in the communicative activities. Furthermore, English use should be enhanced while monitoring learners during an activity. Finally, teachers are asked to use more controlled activities to be sure learners use only English while working.

4.

Individual study: It is crucial while managing the classroom. It settles down learners as it needs more concentration. It also enhances self-reliance and allows teachers to check and evaluate the amount as well as the quality of language learners acquire.

To sum up, it is advisable to the teachers to use different class organizations to keep motivation and dynamism but more importantly to satisfy learners’ needs along with effective learning and teaching.

Yet, the writer admits that one of the biggest barriers that may destroy classroom management if not stopped immediately is the persistence of disruptive behaviour. In fact, disturbance is not restricted to children or teenagers only, adults also can display disagreement too. There are three reasons for discipline problems. Chief among them is Teachers’ personality and behaviour in the classroom. That is why the writer makes it clear that they should plan their lessons carefully before they come to school, be strict and consistent concerning some behaviour, when they promise to punish or to reward someone, they have to carry out the promise, be calm and speak quietly but in an assertive way, create activities that motivate learners and keep them busy all the time and show respect to every learner treating them equally and respecting the code of conduct.

The other reason of disruption is believed to be learners’ behaviour. It can be due to the timing of the lesson, their attitudes towards the subject, the teachers, the classmates and the institution. Besides, some teenagers want to show off in order to attract the others’ attention or

two or more troublemakers may sit together. The solution is to keep everybody in the room busy dealing with attractive subjects.

The institution plays an important role in controlling disturbance. It is its duty to take in charge the punishment of the severe undisciplined learners.

At the end of the chapter, the author suggests a number of solutions to be taken in order to settle down trouble. All of these solutions insist on the importance of teachers’ interference as well as their personalities in managing the disruptive behaviour.

Nunan, D. (1993) Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Comments: Nunan’s book is a useful tool for all the English language teachers, trainees and experienced.

It helps defining all the aspects of language learning and teaching more precisely those of classroom management. In fact the book displays almost all the problems that may face teachers during their careers and provides useful solutions to each of them.

However, many manifestations of classroom management are missing in this chapter. For instance, it does not present the roles of the learners though they are part of classroom management and the centre of the learning process. Besides, teachers are not informed of where should they stand and whether they are supposed to circulate around the class all the time how they are supposed to address to the learners that is how to use eye contact and gestures.

Furthermore, teaching aids and their roles in attracting learners’ attention and therefore preventing disruptive behaviour and ambiguity while teaching have no place in the chapter. It is true that group work takes the major part in enhancing cooperation and dynamism among learners; but the chapter does not show how to assign group work in the traditional classrooms that still exist in Tunisia.

Classroom management

Classroom Teaching Skills is composed of chapters written by different classroom researchers. It is edited by E.C Wragg and Routtedge. The second chapter of the book, ‘Class management during teaching practice”, is devoted to classroom management observation during teaching practice. It is written by E.C. Wragg and P.A. Dooley. The chapter is an analysis of 204 lessons given by 34 PGCE trainees who were observed while teaching in class by volunteer teachers in their schools.

The teachers were asked to determine the different aspects of class management and how the trainees handled the class.

The research is based on the findings of different other researches done earlier in different decades of the twentieth century. They concluded that the major worry of almost all the new teachers is how to deal effectively with disruptive behaviour once aroused in class. In this respect the writers, E.C. Wragg and P.A. Dooley are interested in this chapter in scrutinising some of the aspects of successful classroom management which is defined as the best ways to create an effective atmosphere of learning in the classroom.

Disruptive behaviour manifests in different forms. It can be shown through facial expressions, refusing to do homework, noise, verbal aggressiveness and can reach physical violence including the damage of the class furniture. It affects the quality of teaching seriously and diminishes teachers’ capacity to foster the learning process successfully.

The writers argue that it is important to observe teachers’ reactions towards any misbehaviour that happens in class in order to understand the reason behind it, the decision teachers take to stop it and whether their decisions were successful or not. In fact, the ways teachers behave in the classroom can to a large extent influence learners’ behaviour either t the best or to the worst.

One of the effective aspects of classroom management is that teachers should always predict disturbance before it happens and if ever it occurs, they should be ready to capture it and stop it as soon as it takes place. The most effective method is believed to be through the use of humour especially when dealing with troublemakers. Indeed, teachers should neither show anger while settling down trouble nor embarrass learners or provoke them verbally for this would make things worse. ‘Verbal deftness’ is another successful method that can stop noise and encourages learners to keep working.

In addition, the author encourzge building a cheerful relationship with learners along with showing understanding as well as treating them equally but each according to its personality is seen to create a sense of respect and confidence between the teacher and the learners.

On the other hand, new teachers are warned not to come to class without a careful preparation of their lessons; designing a variety of activities that are smoothly interlinked, taking into consideration the necessary teaching materials, the way learners should be organised(individually, pairs, groups, whole class) and haw much time each activity would take in order to avoid boredom, keeping learners with something to do all along the lesson. It is worth noticing that according to the writers, the way time is managed in classroom is of great consideration for classroom management and therefore for the success of the learning process. That is why, teachers are asked to measure the time learners spent learning in comparison with that the trainees spend settling down trouble.

According to the earlier as well as the actual researches, new teachers should show readiness to alter some of their ‘fixed patterns of teaching’. If they will not do this, they would fail to adopt new methods during their teaching practice which itself means that they will not be able to develop themselves. Developing one’s skills of explaining lessons is beneficial since it attracts learners to the lesson and keeps them highly motivated. It also makes teachers become more self-confident.

The researchers find that teachers’ personality plays an important role in maintaining discipline inside the classroom. Trainees are then invited to train themselves on how to develop a strong personality by being flexible able to cope with the different moods and personalities of the learners so that it becomes easier to ameliorate learners’ attitudes towards their teachers. They, then, accept to do whatever activity their teachers assign.

On the other hand, good class managers are those who come into class before their learners.

They meet them at the door, supervisor them and attract their attention by ordering them to keep calm from the beginning to make sure everyone is ready for the lesson. Lesson should not start when teachers are not sure that all the learners following. This helps to avoid confusion and ambiguity which make learners unaware of the value of the activity and chooses to shift their attention to something ‘worthier’.

Finally, it is claimed that that effective teachers are those who avoid threatening learners of being punished but if they do so, they have to punish them in order to maintain their respect. They are warned to keep distance and avoid any confrontation with troublemakers for loosing temper would have bad results.

Wragg, E.C and Dooley P.A (1996) Classroom Teaching Skills. Routtedge Press.

Comments:

The writers focused on some aspects of classroom management that, according to them, played major roles in settling trouble down whenever it happens. In other words, the chapter put emphasise on the major reasons of ‘deviance’. It seems to be true that deviance whatever its amount contributes negatively to the learning process. An urgent decision should be taken whenever a sign of disturbance is predicted. Yet, there are other aspects of classroom management the writers did not pay attention to them. Teachers’ position in class, for instance, appeared to be of great importance for if teachers do not vary their standing positions they may not be able to control all the learners especially those sitting at the corners. Furthermore, when teachers keep moving, they create dynamism in the classroom and learners become obliged to follow and to participate actively in the lesson.

Eye contact may also help teachers to scan the classroom; therefore be aware of the general atmosphere of the classroom as well as any attempt to cause problems. It can also be an effective way to interact with learners indirectly. Gestures, on the other hand, seem to help learners to understand more easily and to keep concentrating with the teachers’ explanation for longer time.

Teaching aids

The Practice of English Language Teaching focuses on the aspects of teaching English as a foreign language. In this chapter, “Managing resources equipment and Teaching aids”, the writers highlight the different materials needed to be used by teachers as well as what they believe to be the best way to use them in order to facilitate the learning process and make it effective.

Harmer believes the board is the most popular and well known teaching material all over the world. There is a board in every classroom. New information is always displayed on the board too.

For these reasons, teachers should pay special attention while using the board for any misuse would probably affect learners’ learning process badly. Thus, it is recommended to clean it before the beginning of the lesson. Teachers are also advised to write clearly so that every learner can see and understand what’s written on it. Teachers’ handwriting is supposed to be clear and readable by everyone in the classroom so that confusion among learners would be reduced to the maximum.

Besides, teachers should use different colours to attract their learners’ attention; they can stick visuals or flash cards on it. This makes it crucial to plan what one is going to write on the board; they are asked to be selective while writing and to build up board work bit by bit after each activity.

Learners should also be invited to write on the board. They should be given time to copy what is necessary. So planning what one is going to write on I to reduce confusion to the maximum.

The Over head Projector is another teaching aid listed by the author. It has many disadvantages.

It is time-saving since instead of spending a long time writing on the board, teachers can use ready photocopied transparencies. Yet, OHP has many disadvantages. It is not always available. Teachers who want to use the OHP need some training and some appropriate conditions that does not exist in many educational institutions. OHP and the OHT should continually be checked to be sure they are ready to teach English effectively.

Harmer announces that the third teaching aid teachers can use while teaching English is the visuals which are composed of realia or the real objects, pictures, photos and cuisine rods. They are necessary for teachers because they convey meanings clearly. They are very attractive and more memorable. Visuals, for instance, are used for different reasons chief among them to activate prior knowledge, to sensitize learners to the topic of the lesson, in drilling and as a way to stimulate lesson.

The author declares that there are plenty of resources from which teachers can collect materials, magazines, brochures, tourist information office, catalogues… Teachers can also prepare their own visuals themselves or ask learners to bring some of them to the class. Visuals should be big enough

to be seen by every learner in the room, clear to convey meaning easily and stuck on the board to be able to use it again when necessary. That is why, it is necessary to store it carefully.

Worksheets and work card are very helpful too. Harmer believes that it is sometimes necessary to make ones’ own worksheets especially if some changes are needed to be done in the text for the sake of learners. Yet, teachers should be careful while producing a worksheet. Their handwriting should be clear, professional and attractive with a variety of activities.

The cassette recorder is very essential in teaching English as a foreign language. That is why; Harmer advises teachers to practise using the tape as well as the tape recorder checking their validity and availability before the lesson starts. They can record their own tapes either by selecting some authentic materials or by recording their own voices.

In addition, video is a teaching aid that can be used in teaching English. It has many advantages.

It is more authentic, easy to convey meaning, more attractive and more motivating. As for the tape recorder, teachers should train themselves on the use of video machine before they come to class.

Video has many disadvantages, if they want to prepare their own videos, they would find it difficult. It is time-consuming and they need a set of equipments which are expensive and most of the time difficult to afford.

As maintained by the researcher, teachers can use computers while teaching but it is necessary that they know how to use it appropriately. Computers have the same advantages as well as the disadvantages as videos. Photocopiers however should not be relied on all the time especially if they are not available. Teachers can find other more effective solutions.

Harmer classifies teaching materials into two types. First, published materials which consist of published books. It has many advantages. It helps both teachers and learners because it facilitates the learning process. It has many disadvantages; however, they sometimes do not present activities that are suitable to the learners’ levels and needs. They may prevent teachers from being creative and this would probably demotivate learners. Teachers are thus required to readjust course books according to their learners’ ages, background, culture, values and beliefs and most importantly, their abilities.

The chapter gives some hints on how to use the course books successfully are provided. For example, teachers can alter the order of the activities or add supplementary ones from other sources when necessary. Furthermore, they should bare in mind the timing each activity needs along with the right teaching aids to attract and motivate learners. In other words, teachers are advised to plan

their lessons carefully taking into consideration all what has been noticed, the aim of course is to foster the learning process.

Published materials contain other books such as skills books; they deal with practising and developing the different skills and strategies; other supplement books that display different aspects of language focusing on communicative activities; reference books such as dictionaries, grammar books, thesaurus, encyclopaedias, and others designed for learners can also be assigned to them provided they are taught how to use them; resource books may be important for teachers too. They contain plans and ideas to improve the different skills. Finally, video and computer assistant language learning are accompanied with teachers’ books. They are helpful for both teachers and learners.

The second type of teaching aids is the authentic materials. They consist of recorded spoken texts or conversations produced by native speakers in a real-time context. Teachers can benefit from them following a careful selection strategy. Authentic materials can be adopted according to the learners’ levels. It is also advisable to introduce them in class as they are highly motivating. If ever they are well use in class, they would enhance the leaning process to the maximum.

Harmer, J. (1996) The Practice of English Language Teaching. New York: Longman.

Comments: It is found that teaching aids contribute effectively to the success of almost every lesson. They facilitate the understanding of new vocabulary and help learners to memorise concrete but also abstract expressions. It is noticed that materials prepared by learners themselves contribute better to the success of the lesson because while preparing them, they concentrate on the different details, aesthetic, cognitive and linguistic. This seems to guarantee learners’ ability to acquire knowledge easily as well as effectively making them at the core of the learning process.

Authentic materials are necessary too. They foster learners’ ability to communicate fluently using the different communicative devices appropriately, so that they’d be able to use English not only actively but naturally in the real life. This may be done through allowing them to be exposed to English songs, conversation and texts produced by native speakers.

Teaching aids In the tenth chapter of their book, Success in English, Paul Davis and Eric Pears highlight ‘Teaching aids’. They notice that despite the widely different conditions in which English language teaching takes place, teaches are advised to engage learners in an effective learning process by the use of a varied number of teaching aids and materials.

1. The board: The writers claim that it is chief among the teaching materials for the success of any lesson depends, to a large extent, to the way teachers write and organise their handwriting on the board. That is why teachers are advised to organise their handwritings carefully as well as clearly once they use the board. Furthermore, teachers are reminded to check all they write from time to time in order to be sure that every learner, wherever their seats are, can read what is written on it easily. Boards are also useful when teachers want to explain lessons through drawing as it is time-saving.

Teachers can draw facial expressions, human activities and common objects or places.

Another stated benefit of drawing on the board is that it is a good for oral and written productions. Yet, the writers insist that learners should be kept busy when the teacher is drawing to avoid trouble.

2. Visuals: According to the writers, designed pre-prepared visuals can be either homemade or ready-made. They can be used while presenting new grammatical structures, new vocabulary items or in role plays. To be sure learners are profiting from the pieces of information a ‘wall chart’ or a ‘cue card’ presents, the writers admit that they should be clear and big enough to be seen by everyone in the classroom.

3. ‘Realia’: They are real and imaginary objects, can be exploited for clarifying information. The writers require teachers to use realia during both the presentation and the practice stages.

4. Gestures: The writers argue that they are the best when explaining an action that happens in a given tense or place. Besides, miming is viewed to motivating.

5. Audio cassettes: They are seen to be helpful provided they are clear, authentic and motivating. They should be appropriate to the learners’ levels; most importantly prepare them to use language proficiency in real-time situations.

6. Songs: They are viewed as one of the most popular audio-aids. For this reason, teachers are asked to be careful when selecting songs. They are advised to choose the song that fits with the objectives of the lesson they are actually teaching. Yet, teachers are expected to find difficulties in handling songs. Thus, the writers propose some ideas, they believe can facilitate teaching and learning songs. First, teachers are asked

to organise learners into groups, pairs or individually before they are given a scrambled song and asked to reorder it. Second, learners can be asked to fill in a gaped song. Finally, songs can be used to practise or consolidate grammar.

7. Visual aids: They are considered effective if used appropriately. They need knowledge and careful planning along with available equipment. Video can be useful for developing listening, speaking and even writing.

At the end of the chapter, Pears and Davies, suggest some procedures and practical activities to be used by the readers to check their understanding of the information presented earlier in the chapter.

Davies,P. and Pears, E. (199 ) Success in English, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Comments: The writers dealt with the most common teaching aids that can be used by every teacher in almost all over the world. They highlighted their importance in fostering the learning process. In fact, it seems true that teaching aids play a crucial role in attracting learners’ attention to the lesson.

When visuals or realia are introduced at the warm-up stage, they enable learners to activate their early acquisitions as well be sensitised to the major theme of the lesson. When audio or video materials are used in the practice stage, it is found that they can provide a good model to language practice. When miming is performed at the end of the lesson or during the third hour they appeared to attract learners’ attention, motivate them creating an atmosphere of fun among them. This can not be achieved if as the writers noticed without careful selection of teaching materials trying to be sure they enhance learners’ learning abilities effectively preparing them to use English actively as well as fluently in a meaningful, real situations.

Teaching and learning listening The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English To Speakers of Other Languages is divided into chapters each one of them contains a number of papers and articles delivered during conferences.

The first chapter, for instance, displays an article written by Michael Rost about listening. The article is composed of four parts.

At the beginning, the paper defines the process of listening and its components, then it displays the development of listening in language teaching; In fact, the communicative language teaching movement was the first to view listening as part and parcel of the learning process and by 1970s, applied linguistics reached the most privileged position in teaching since then, listening has become “a primary vehicle for language learning”.

Later on, the researcher stats ways listening has been tackled in some recent researches that were interested in second language teaching pedagogy.

1.

Listening in Second Language Acquisition: Researches interested in SLA believe that learners should be exposed to the target language spoken by native speakers in specific meaningful situations. Learners, on the other hand, are expected to understand what they hear; That is why, it is recommended to vary activities in order to improve learners’ acquisitions;

2.

Speech processing: Researches that adopt speech processing think that there are four major differences between native speakers and non native speakers while listening to a given language spoken by both of them. To decode what they hear successfully as well as to avoid any confusion that may arise during listening, second language learners should be aware of the phonological system, the phonetic rules, tone and intonation and finally the stress system. Moreover, teachers are advised to be conscious of the difference between syllable-timed languages and stress-timed languages. Furthermore, speech processing researches insist that intelligibility depends on enabling learners to locate stressed and unstressed syllables successfully.

3.

Listening and interactive setting: Some researchers consider it important to be aware of key conversation features which vary from one society to the other. This can cause some disorientation and misunderstanding while exposed to second language. The suggested solution to overcome this barrier is to be more and more exposed to “international work”.

4.

Strategy use: Some researches claim that language learners always listen for specific information. Thus, practise is very important to the development of their listening strategies.

In the third part of the paper entitled “practise”, the author reported that there are four criteria of how to teach listening effectively so teachers should be able to choose the appropriate listening input by planning lessons carefully to enable learners to practise and check their listening skills.

In addition to that, they are advised to orient learners towards the most effective listening strategies bearing in mind that the latter is to be taught in an integral way in order to achieve balance between the different skills.

After that, the writer illustrates the most important pieces of advice that were extracted from many recent researches. What is worth noticing is that all of them agree on the necessity to expose learners to real-life listening passages. Materials are to be authentic, attracting learners’ attention enabling them to improve their listening skills effectively. It is also crucial to train learners to develop their listening skills on their own. This could be achieved by providing them with effective teaching aids such as course books.

The last part of the paper is presented under the name of “current and future trends”. It deals with the urgency to adapt a specific phonological system to reduce the gap between the native speakers and the second language learners and vice versa. The writer insists again on the necessity to guide learners to listen for purpose to achieve a kind of awareness-triggering learning”.

At the end of the paper, the researcher states many technological materials teachers can use to foster effective teaching like tape recorders, videos, CDs, DVDs and internet but what matters most is the choice of how, when and why teachers use that material.

Rost, M. (2001) The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Comments: Cross presented an overview of how listening researches have developed throughout the twentieth century and the major strategies they created to foster listening. It is found that all the researches agree on the fact that second language learners should be continually exposed to the target language spoken by native speakers to be able to decode it and therefore to speak it

correctly. Yet, learners can listen to second language speakers in condition they provide an appropriate model to be followed since learning a second or a foreign language is no longer a means to speak it correctly. It is rather a means to facilitate communication and intelligibility between speakers as well as listeners from different cultures using different phonetic and phonological rules. In class learners are exposed to both kinds of listening. They listen to authentic English spoken by native speakers in a real-like context in order to imitate their speaking styles; and they listen to non native speakers (Tunisians) who speak English for specific purpose; either for pronunciation or to answer questions.

Teaching and learning listening Inside Teaching is written by Tim Bowen and Jonathan Marks and it is composed of twelve chapters. The aim of the book is to foster teachers’ self-awareness and self-development. The authors include questions to which different teachers and learners answers are presented in order to give readers the opportunity to “listen to views of their colleagues and peers and to be able in a sense to enter into dialogue with them.” The book is designed to English as a second as well as foreign language teacher.

The ninth chapter written by Jonathan Marks sheds lights on the different aspects and features of listening in the classroom. The author constructs this chapter, as in the previous ones, upon a set of five questions providing answers given by teachers and sometimes by learners. After that, he states his commentaries. Answering the first enquiry, what counts as ‘listening’ in the classroom?” He admits that there are two kinds of listening activities. Some are ‘typically’ introduced as ‘listening’ like listening to a tape or to a text read by the teachers themselves. Others such as explaining, asking questions, drilling, discussing… can be seen as ‘listening activities’ for listening to one another while speaking even without contributing in the speaking activity can enhance the listening abilities of the learners.

Moving to the next question, “why do listening?” the writer claims that it is crucial to teach and learn listening in class for two major reasons. First of all, it enables learners to practise the new acquired language. Second, learners should be able to foster their listening skills. He notices that learners, on the other hand, see that what matters is not the listening activity itself but rather the “value of listening material as a source of new vocabulary.”

Concerning the next question “what people do when they listen?” Marks observes that listening is an integrative skill which cannot be done in isolation. It is ‘highly automatic’ in that, listeners while exposed to any form of speech, single out sounds and words as well as they build a ‘coherent interpretation’ of what will be heard next. It is unconscious natural mental process that necessarily involves the listener even if he/she does not participate verbally.

After that, the author compares between reading and listening. In fact, according to him there are as many similarities between them as differences. Learners, the author declares, consider listening difficult because they believe that English people speak too fast so that many words are not perceived. Spoken language is also different from the written forms. So, pronunciation becomes different from writing and reading.

It is necessary to vary one’s own strategies when exposed to a second or a foreign language for while listening to a native language, the listener is able to select the information he/she wants to hear; and when there is an obscurity with understanding “it is more likely to blame the speaker.”

When listening to a second or a foreign language, however, it is urgent to be able to predict what is coming later, drawing on learners’ early knowledge of the topic in order to realize the same level they master in their native language. This can be done through activities that enable learners to adopt the same strategies used in the mother tongue. These activities should be challenging, selective and boosting self-confidence. They should also be life-like allowing learners to use English effectively in a natural context outside school.

The author shifts his attention to the fourth question, “what teachers do when they ‘do’ listening?” For him, it is recommended to afford enough time to teach listening because it is the most natural way of speaking language in real life. Moreover, listening activities should be designed to improve learners’ skills and strategies to understand native speakers. Learners are expected to be encouraged to communicate with each other. This would probably shift the interest from the teacher as the centre of the learning process to the learners who are by now at the core of the learning process. Besides, listening to one another would increase cooperation, fluency but most importantly respect among the classmates.

Yet, it is advisable to use the tape recorder and video continually because these materials facilitate learners’ exposure to authentic language spoken by natives in real contexts. In addition, listening to the teacher’s own voice allow learners to understand spoken language easier as they are able to interpret what they hear through his/her “gestures and facial expression”. On the other hand, listening material is expected to respond to the learners’ interests and needs.

Furthermore, Marks, believes that it is crucial to ask learners to listen for specific purpose.

Listening tasks should be appropriate to the learners’ levels providing a variety of activities.

Teachers are also required to decide whether their learners listen for gist or for details. It depends on the level as well as the difficulty of the activity.

Later on, the author gives seventeen hints on classroom tasks involving listening and activities, asking the readers to identify a rational behind each of them.

Finally, Marks concludes with a schema for description and experimentation. It starts with the features of listening material selections. He then moves to the different ‘variables’ teachers can

present in class as a warm-up or a pre-stage along with the characteristics of those in the whilestage.

Bowen, T and Marks, J (1994) Inside Teaching, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Comments: Learning a language means to learn how to listen to people and react to them while speaking.

Thus listening seems to be of the same value as learning speaking; reading and writing. In fact, teaching listening seems to be even more important than teaching some of the other skills. For instance, it may be impossible to be able to learn how to speak a language without being able to listen to the way words are articulated and words are gathered to form a stream of speech. This means that the aim of learning a language in general and English in particular is to be able to communicate with the native speakers. That is to use it in the real life. This reinforces Marks’s view that learners should be exposed to authentic material for this would develop their listening strategy and would prepare them to use language outside the class appropriately.

Appropriate selection and the way listening activities are planned are to be of great importance.

If the teacher selects an attractive, challenging activity that respects the level of the learners, learning process would necessary succeed. If also the teacher follows the three-stage plan with realistic objectives and clear subskills learners would profit from the lesson and show readiness to learn more.

Teaching and learning writing Teaching and Assessing Writing is a training module designed by a number of Tunisian trainers to be used by Tunisian trainee inspectors or teachers who want to improve their ways of teaching writing.

The module opens with stating the major difficulties Tunisian learners face while dealing with writing tasks. These difficulties are considered to be due to the way writing activities are taught in class for teachers are viewed to put themselves at the centre of the learning process depriving learners from their rights to contribute to the choice of topics and the process they want to go through while producing their writing. This created a feeling of frustration making writing seems to be the hardest task. Thus a new vision among teachers but also among learners should be developed. Teachers are asked to encourage learners to become cooperative, motivated and involved in what they are asked to produce. Teachers are also advised to select the writing activities according to their learners’ levels, needs, expectations along with the objectives stated in the official programme. It is also believed that learners dislike writing because they lack self-confidence which has developed through the traditional methods teachers use to correct learners’ output. They consist of signalling every single mistake so that learners are left with a copy full of mistakes with no remarks for clarification or encouragement. On the other hand, learners should be allowed to evaluate each others’ productions before copies are collected for the final evaluation. Even so, they are expected to minimise errors to the most frequent ones.

Despite the fact that there is no specific writing approach to be considered the best; two writing approaches are presented, contrasted and analysed in the module of training.

1.

The product approach, it consists of parallel writing; that is to say, learners are expected to produce an output following an original model. The approach goes over four stages.

First, learners are exposed to a model text; mostly letters, postcards, invitation cards. After that, learners identify the structures, lexis as well as the layout of the model text. They start organising their ideas before they finally produce their own piece of writing following the example studied. Parallel writing gives more interest to the form than to the content. It deals with unreal and sometimes abstract topics in which teachers are the only evaluators. This is supposed to be demotivating.

2.

The process approach, it is a dynamic method of writing which progresses through eight stages. During the first stage, teachers activate learners’ early knowledge and sensitise them to the topic. Learners are asked then to organise their ideas before they start to

produce the first draft. After that, learners move to the peer correction, they evaluate each others’ productions. Later on, they get back their copies, edit their writings and produce the final draft. Finally they reread each others’ second draft. Writing as a process is seen to be motivating, dealing with everyday topics, involving learners in the learning process allowing them to become active, creative, self-confident, self-evaluators as well as cooperative as process writing stages can be performed individually but also in pairs or groups. Adopting this method is thought to bring about changes to the learners’ stereotypes they have developed towards writing.

As learners and teachers are the chief participants in the writing process, it is believed that both of them should be aware of their specific, well determined roles during each process step.

Generally, teachers should prepare a well planned lesson with clear objectives, tasks and appropriate teaching materials, setting effective instructions that fit learners’ levels, motivate them as well as challenge their knowledge. Moreover, they are the guides, the facilitators, the monitors and the source of information whenever a clarification is needed. On the other hand, they are self-confidence boosters, assessors and managers of the way writing process is handled in class. Learners, however, are expected to be active performers of language, cooperative and self-evaluators. They should foster their self-confidence through being evaluators of each others, monitors of their own progress and self-assessors exploiting their early acquisitions effectively.

Teachers are also advised to go beyond evaluating learners to evaluate the textbook itself. It is believed that the writing tasks and activities that are included in most of the text books need to be modified to respond to each teacher’s learners’ levels and needs. Some need to be more challenging, while others necessitates more details.

Furthermore, the book provides a list of “some possible types of writing tasks and outputs” that can be used in class along with procedures teachers are required to follow in order to achieve effective results. All the examples follow the process writing approach. Teachers are compelled to start from brainstorming, moving to organising ideas, writing the first draft, peer correcting, editing, arriving to displaying their outputs. This is applied to letters, invitation cards, synectics, argumentative texts and emails. Besides, the module insists that every writing task should be set clearly and in a meaningful context, giving the possibility to learners to work together so that writing is no longer a lonely process. Topics are supposed to be authentic. Writing tasks as well, should enable learners to produce coherent texts pursuing a consistent stream of ideas in which the target readers to whom the writing is addressed are clearly mentioned.

Nevertheless, some types of writing such as emails and sms are expected to be treated in a particular way because, though they are written, their major aim is to foster interaction among learners. They not just authentic and motivating but they can involve learners easily. This would probably facilitate the retaining of their layout and all their features. Yet, they should be written on the computer, for writing emails on the computer makes the task looks more authentic as well as more flexible fostering self-reflex since the comparison between the different ou comes becomes easier. Emails are claimed to be produced correctly in their forms as in their contents. They are advised to be clear, concise with a complete ideas and courteous respectful language.

The last example of writing task analysed in the training module is the project work. It is a kind of writing production that develops in more than one lesson. It can take a whole term to be completed. For this reason, projects are argued to be carefully planned so that in each session learners are introduced to a specific task to be done at home. In the first step, learners are to be engaged in the topic with the help of different teaching materials. In the second step, they are to be introduced to the genre of the project and its deadline. In the third step, they should know their target readers for the sake of authenticity. In the fourth step, they identify the vocabulary and grammar necessary for each step. After that, they are divided into groups and start working.

In the next step, teachers monitor them and check their performance. Learners are engaged in peer correction before they edit their evaluated compositions. Finally, the project is ready to be displayed in front of the class.

Comments: Writing is one of the static stages in almost all the English lessons designed to all the levels, preparatory as well as secondary. In fact each lesson should be composed of presentation, practice and production. The first two parts of the lesson pave the way to the writing. That is why, writing seems to be as important as speaking and writing activities should be well selected or modified, if it is not to be done in the third hour, to suit learners’ needs, levels, interests and linguistic abilities.

Furthermore, it is found that Both Parallel and process writing can be of great usefulness for beginners. They may even be used in an integral way. For instance, writing an invitation card following a model is a parallel writing but it can be done following the process writing approach.

Learners can start brainstorming words related to party then learners identify the structures, lexis as well as the layout of the invitation card. After that, they produce their own postcards following the

example studied. They exchange their cards, check mistakes before they get their output back in order to edit it and rewrite the final draft. At the end, volunteers read their second drafts.

Other types of writing can be studied in class. For instance, learners were asked to rewrite dictated sentences differently using their own words which would consequently lead them to further discussion. It seemed to be motivating because learners felt free to add or omit expression of their own choice. Peer correction was encouraged to enhance self-confidence and check language acquisition.

As there is no access to computers, teaching emails naturally (by writing on the computer directly) cannot be achieved. Writing emails, is thus done like any other writing activity. Yet, this appeared to boost communication and learners looked eager to exchange their emails.

Teaching and learning writing Beginning to Write is written by Arthur Brooks and Peter Grundy. It is composed of eight units which contain together approximately one hundred writing activities designed for beginners and intermediate learners of English as a second or foreign language of different ages. They are claimed to be motivating and confidence builder. In addition, some of them deal with one stage of the process writing, while others deal with the whole process. The way learners are expected to be organised as well as the time each activity is supposed to take along with suggested procedure and teaching aids to support these activities are also mentioned.

In this book, the authors highlight writing as “a skill in its own.” They believe that, nowadays, writing needs special interest as much as more emphasis is continually put on oral skills. They start by defining its nature. They insist that it is different from that of speaking in that writing is a ‘conscious’ process in which the writer pays more attention to the delivery of ideas, word choice, grammar structures, style and coherence. Furthermore, it can exploit visual devices while speech occurs through different stress and intonation patterns. Moreover, it can help communities that share the same written form but speak different unintelligible dialects to interact with each other successfully. Besides, it is a dynamic process. It needs continual progress and development. Finally, writing is standard with obvious strict rules needed to be followed to achieve effectiveness compared with the spoken varieties.

However, the authors argue that writing like the other skills should be always done for specific purpose. They believe, it is needed to “transcend the here and now”. This means it can be transmitted to different places in different periods of time for written texts or documents can live for long time without being destroyed or lose their meanings. Written data can be ‘skimmed’ easily it also facilitates one’s integration in society. Finally, while writing, people try to express their ideas clearly, briefly and concisely to the maximum adapting them to the readers they are addressed to.

It is claimed that learners’ written compositions should be real-like in order to make them able to use English actively every day. In this respect, Brooks and Grundy offer a sixty-two-item list of real world-writing” suggested by a twenty second year-English native speakers trainees to be taught in class. They are all part of everyone’s life and the authors insist on this aspect.

Writing is seen to be composed of seven steps for it is a process in which teachers are no more than facilitators whose role is to help learners to improve their methods of writing effectively. In fact, the authors bring to light that there are “three pre-writing process; planning, targeting and organising and four in-writing process; drafting, evaluating, editing and rewriting.” They, on the

other hand, pressure ‘authenticity’, ‘enjoyment’ or motivation taking into consideration learners’ interests so that they feel engaged and involved in the writing process as well as become able to organise their own life outside the classroom.

It is viewed that in order to move towards an effective piece of writing, it is crucial to follow the different stages of the process writing; but before that, the writers make it clear that writing process should be placed in the core of the lesson and “ build an activity around it.” Wherever possible, learners should be given the opportunity to discuss their writing strategies at the end of the lesson.

While teaching process writing, Brookes and Grundy think that learners are expected to be able to define the objective of the writing activity. They are asked then to find out the topic while referring to their earlier acquisitions. Information can be gathered through brainstorming, discussing with one another- in pairs or in groups, or organising ideas. Later on, learners are invited to identify their target readers. That is to say, the person to whom they are supposed to write. This would probably help them to produce a well organised writing. After that, they are required to write their first draft. They can be told that they can choose to start writing from the general to the specific or from the most important to the least important. They should be able to distinguish between the different types of writings for each is organised differently. Peer correction, is the next step. It’s where each piece of writing production is checked and evaluated by fellow learners before each one of them moves to the last step in which he/ she rewrites his/her final draft.

It is worth noticing that the writers state that teachers should be present at the last step of the writing process so as to supervise errors and provide feedback. Yet, teachers are warned not to evaluate their learners’ productions by themselves. What matters is the fact that “writing is taken seriously, readership is provided and students learn from each other.” Following these steps while composing would, according to the authors, by no means enable learners to “know what they are doing when they write.” Learners thus become self-confident.

The authors provide answers to some possible questions they think to be raised by the readers while intending to use the one hundred activities in the book.

Brookes and Grundy declare that they constructed the first chapter on easy activities that befit beginners and can be easily adopted and adapted. Indeed, the first sixteen activities are premeditated to learners whose levels vary from Level 1 to level 7; and from just copying new words to composing texts. Furthermore, the first three activities emphasize editing, while the others move between rewriting and drafting.

After that, they propose nine activities that spotlight on the mechanic of writing; that are ‘spelling’, ‘punctuation’ and ‘layout’. They move gradually from the guided writing to free writing.

Moreover, most of them stress drafting, while the others deal each with another specific process step.

The next unit shed light on real-like situations that learners may exist in learners’ everyday life.

They rank from the common topic, such as ‘shopping for a friend’ and ‘giving instructions’, to the quite demanding one like ‘writing a weather forecast’ and ‘creating characters’.

In the following unit, the authors present ten different activities that help teachers to tackle the seven steps of the learning process each by itself to facilitate the accomplishment of the writing process. Levels vary from L 4 to L8.

The authors show in test of process writing project as a useful practice of the writing process they are supposed to learn in class. Projects are assigned as a homework following models presented in class.

Computers attract learners’ attention effectively; that is why the writers display sixteen activities.

Some of them can be used without the help often, they are very popular. Some of the activities can be used without computers. The level of the learners are mentioned as in the other units The seventh unit draws attention to the formal outcomes such as essays and reports. These activities require higher level of learners in order to be done effectively. Seventeen activities with different levels, , topics, duration and process stage are introduced.

In the last unit, the authors, introduce eight activities they believe, they would effectively foster learners’ abilities to evaluate not just each others’ piece of writing, but also their own compositions.

As the all the earlier units the activities move from the easiest self-evaluating activities to the hardest activities that need to be evaluated by a peer.

Brooks, A and Grundy, B (2002) Beginning to Write, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Comments: Writing is a mixture of skills in the sense that learners draw on all their acquired knowledge in order to write. That is why it seems important to give special attention to the writing tasks especially as learners do not show the same interest to the writing as they do with speaking for

example. The best solution appeared to be motivating learners and selecting a topic that challenges them but suits their levels and touch them. For example, writing diary about their day, writing an email to express their attitudes towards someone or something‌