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four repetitions until the students are confident. STEP 4: HALF CLASS REPETITIONS Get half the class to repeat by gestures. Do not give verbal orders. This slows down the drill. STEP 5: SMALL GROUP REPETITIONS Get small groups to repeat. Make a circular direction with the teacher's hand in the direction of the group. Remember to smile if they do it well. The teacher remodels once or twice if the students have difficulties. STEP 6: INDIVIDUAL REPETITIONS Ask individuals to repeat. Point clearly and avoid using names. It does not matter if a different student responds, or two students instead of one. Using names slows down the drill. At this stage the teacher will hear mistakes clearly. Remodel if necessary and smile encouragingly . STEP 7: COMPLETION Finally, get a few more class repetitions. Each drill should only take about a minute. Remember to keep it flowing. Note : When they can say all the lines well, the teacher could ask one half of the class to be Student 1 and the other half Student 2. Drill a few times then swap roles. 3.1.2.2. The Substitution Drill Remember that the original sentence structure from a drill can generate many other useful sentences. This usually goes easily and quickly once the main structure has been drilled. The substitutions can be prompted by pictures or mine. Example 1: ORIGINAL STUCTURE: How often do you | go | to the zoo? Introduce pictures of the park, the sports center, the mountain, the river, the kitchen and the school. Check if the students know the vocabulary. Set up a substitution drill. Teacher: (Show a picture of a park. Students should make a question.) Students: How often do you go to the park? Teacher: (continues with all the pictures) Now introduce some different responses. Model the pronunciation and practice with the students. Write these prompts on the board as a support for the students: once | twice | a week three times | a month four times | a year every day Repeat the same drill again. This time ask for a response by pointing to the response on the board. After they have enough practice, rub out the table and make a simpler one so that they have to think more. Example: 1 | 2 | week 3 | month 4 | year day Note: The students should now be ready for a pair work activity. PAIR WORK ACTIVITY (Tell the students they are now going to do some pair work.) 1. The teacher has already presented the language he wants the students to use. 2. TEACHER-STUDENT MODEL: Ask a student to stand. Teacher: How often do you go to the park? Student: Once a week. Teacher: How often do you play sports? Student: Twice a week. 3. OPEN PAIRS Choose two students who are sitting far away from each other. Ask them to stand. Get one to ask and one to answer. Use either pictures or prompts on the board to guide students to ask different questions. The answers should be realistic. Student 1: How often do you go camping? Student 2: Once a year. 4. SIMULTANEOUS PAIR WORK Now tell the students to work in pairs and ask each other how often they do things. They should take it in turns to ask. Go around and listen to them working. The teacher can leave some prompts on the board if necessary, e.g. zoo, park, sports, camping, fishing, mom. 5. PUBLIC CHECK Stop the activity and choose a random pair. Ask them to repeat the activity. Do the same with two other pairs. If the students know the teacher is going to check after the activity, they will work harder. 6. CORRECT ANY COMMON MISTAKES If the teacher has noticed any common mistakes, bring them to the attention of the students. FURTHER PRACTICE If the teacher has enough time and the students have mastered the structure, the teacher can give them some more practice. Show some pictures of sport and leisure activities. Elicit the language from students. How often do | you | VERB | NOUN? Teacher: (Show a picture of someone watching TV.) Students: How often do you watch TV? Teacher: (Show a picture of someone swimming.) Students: How often do you go swimming? Teacher: (Show a picture of someone listening to the radio) Students: How often do you listen to the radio? Elicit as many different actions as the teacher thinks the students will know, using pictures. Write prompts on the board. TV, RADIO, SWIMMING, FOOTBALL, HIKING, BOOKS. PAIR WORK: The teacher can ask the students to do the activity again. This time the teacher asks questions using prompts on the board. 3.1.2.3. Drilling a Complete Dialogue If the teacher feels that a complete dialogue is suitable for the students to practice (with a speaking focus) then this is a good procedure to follow: (UNIT 11, TIẾNG ANH 6, pg 116) Salesgirl: Can I help you? Ba : Yes. I’d like some beef, please. Salesgirl: How much do you want? Ba : Two hundred grams of beef, please. Salesgirl: Two hundred grams of beef. Is there anything else? Ba : Yes. I need some eggs. Salesgirl: How many do you want? Ba : A dozen, please. STEP 1: PRESENTATION (Students should not open their books yet.) Students must understand what they are repeating. PRESENT VOCABULARY: Show pictures of different foods (oil, tea, chocolate, rice, beef, eggs, peas, soap, toothpaste). Present the words beef and egg. Check if the students understand the questions, “How much do you want?” and “How many do you want?” WRITE THEM ON THE BOARD. Bring their attention to the structure PRESENT SIMPLE (used for shopping people do every day). Explain that people use either HOW MUCH or HOW MANY with this structure. STEP 2: LISTENING ACTIVITY (Let the students listen to the dialogue first and focus on meaning.) Students must have their books closed. The teacher writes two guiding questions on the board. 1. How much beef does Ba want? 2. How many eggs does Ba want? The teacher plays/reads the dialogue. The teacher plays /reads it again if they don’t know the answers. STEP 3: BEGIN THE REPETITION (Display the dialogue on a flipchart.) The teacher models the first sentence. Students repeat. If students have PRONUNCIATION errors, focus their attention on the problem word and ask them to repeat just that word together as a class and individually. Continue through each line of the whole dialogue. Go through the whole dialogue with students repeating after the teacher. The teacher is the salesgirl. Students are Ba. Repeat the dialogue. Half the class is the salesgirl. Half the class is Ba. Students work in pairs. Each student should practice both parts. The teacher should go around and listen (MONITOR). Go over any common PRONUNCIATION mistakes. STEP 4: GAP-FILL EXERCISE (Listening) Ask the students to close their books and listen. The teacher is going to ask them to fill in the missing words. Read/play the dialogue again and stop before a key word. Make gestures for students to say the missing words. Example: Teacher: Yes. I’d like some... (PAUSE AND GESTURE) Students: beef STEP 5: PAIRWORK - ADAPTING THE DIALOGUE TO THEIR LIVES. (Using prompts) Explain to the students that they are going to do the dialogue again in pairs, using their own information. This time the teacher is going to encourage them to really think by only putting PROMPTS on the board. Example: Write the following on the board Student 1: I / help / you? Student 2: Student 1: much / you / want? Check that the students Student 2: can make the complete Student 1: half a kilo / pork / anything else? sentences from these Student 2: prompts. Student 1: many / you / want? Student 2: Before the teacher asks them to practice in pairs, do the dialogue with a few students and ask a pair to demonstrate it in front of the class. When simultaneous pair work has finished, ask some pairs to demonstrate. SUMMARY OF IMPORTANT POINTS Always present vocabulary, topic, structures and pronunciation first. The drill moves from the WHOLE CLASS to SIMULTANEOUS PAIR WORK. CHANGING the role while drilling keeps it interesting. After students have practiced the original dialogue in pairs, take it a step further by using prompts and if possible adapting the information to reflect THEIR LIVES. (real information) Always ask a pair to demonstrate the dialogue before doing simultaneous pair work to make sure everyone knows what to do. If students know they MIGHT be chosen to DEMONSTRATE after pair work, they will work harder and not speak in Vietnamese. 3.1.3. Less Controlled Speaking Activities 3.1.3.1. Chain Game This is suitable for small class. In large classes, after demonstrating the game, let the class play it in groups of around ten. Start the game with a sentence like: (TIẾNG ANH 6, Unit 11, A 4) ‘I need some eggs.’ The first student repeats this sentence, adding an item of their own: ‘I need some eggs and some rice.’ The teacher does not repeat these sentences. Each student adds something until no one can add any more without a mistake. For older students the items can be more complex: ‘I need some eggs, some rice, a bottle of cooking oil and half a kilo of beef.’ This activity tests both listening and memory. In order to give an added incentive to the students to improve, the teacher can make a student who gets it wrong drop out for one round and come in again later. Adapt this activity for: -Near future -Conditionals 1, 2 and 3 -Lexical sets 3.1.3.2. Dialogue Frame The teacher puts a dialogue on the board in cues. The teacher models the dialogue, pointing to each cue in turn. The teacher runs through the cues like a drill with the whole class to make sure they know what to say at each cue. The students practice the dialogue in pairs. Example: You are a tourist to HCMC. You want to visit a market. This is the conversation between you and the tourist officer. (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 11, SPEAK) You Tourist officer Excuse me! I’d like to visit a market. Would you mind suggesting me one? That sounds interesting. Thank you. Yes? Not at all. How about going to Ben Thanh Market? It opens from about 5am to 8pm. You‘re welcome. The teacher puts the dialogue chart on the board. The teacher elicits the exchanges from students and asks them to repeat. The teacher asks a pair to demonstrate the dialogue. (open pair) The teacher asks students to work in pairs. (closed pairs) The teacher monitors and corrects. Adapt this activity for: Offers and requests 3.1.3.3. Role Play Role play is a communicative activity in which students talk to each other in different roles. Role play encourages the use of spoken English. Students learn both by repeating the words given to them and by making up their own words to fit the situation. Example: The teacher asks students to play the role of A and B, ask and answer about their partner’s home village in pairs then swap roles. (TIÊNG ANH 9, Unit 3, Speak) A: Where is your home village? B: It’s to the west of the city. A: How far is it from the city? B: It’s about 15 kilometers from the city. A: How can you get there? B: We can get there by bus. A: How long does it take to get there? B: It takes an hour. A: What do people do for a living in your village? B: They plant rice and raise cattle. A: Does your village have a river? B: There aren’t any rivers, but there is a big lake. 3.1.3.4. Interview The teacher asks students to ask and answer about a certain topic in pairs. One student is the interviewer and the other is the interviewee and then they swap roles. Example: Asking and answering about students’ wear (TIÊNG ANH 9, UNIT 2, SPEAK) S1: What do you usually wear on the weekend? S2:................................................................................................ S1: Why do you wear these clothes? S2: ............................................................................................... S1: What is your favorite type of clothing? Why? S2: ................................................................................................ S1: Is it comfortable to wear uniform? S2: ................................................................................................ S1: What color is it? S2:.................................................................................................. S1: What type of clothing do you usually wear on Tet holiday? S2:................................................................................................. S1: What would you like to wear to a party? S2: ................................................................................................ Adapt this activity for: - Daily activities - Holiday plan - Study plan - Future plan - Famous people 3.1.3.5. Discussion The teacher organizes an informal discussion on a topic of interest to the students. The teacher can get students to propose a topic. Example: The effects of the new mall (TIẾNG ANH 8, Unit 7, READ) The teacher asks students to discuss the topic in groups of about 10. One member from each group writes down their friends’ ideas and opinions. After discussion, one representative from each group presents it in front of the class. Possible answers: - To shop under one roof in comfort with air-condition, entertainment (cinema, restaurant and children’s play area) - To have a wider selection of goods at lower prices - Small shop owners are worried about their future. Adapt this activity for: Safety precautions in the street City life and country life The Internet How to minimize pollution 3.1.3.6. Story-telling The teacher should encourage students to tell stories as soon as they have some ability to speak English. It will be difficult at first, but they will soon get used to it. Example: The lost shoe (TIIẾNG ANH 8, Unit 8, READ) The teacher asks students to retell the story in details in front of the class. They can use the statements in the gap-fill exercise and add some more. Suggested answer: Little Pea’s father was a poor farmer. Unfortunately, Little Pea’s mother died when she was very young and her father got married again. The new wife was very cruel and made her work all day. One day, the prince wanted to choose a wife from her village. Her new mother didn’t make new clothes for her, but the fairy did. She came to the festival and lost a shoe. The prince found her shoe and decided to marry her. Adapt this activity for: - Stories students have heard before - Stories they may make up - Things they have seen and done 3.1.4. Summary Conversation is difficult for many students because it involves various skills. While learning to speak a foreign language, the students inevitably make mistakes. Because of these reasons, the teacher should create a relaxed atmosphere, accustom students to speaking in natural interaction, organize pair and group work, and avoid any obsession with accuracy. The teacher should encourage incidental classroom speaking, giving students the expressions they need, and exploit every opportunity for conversation. 3.2. TECHNIQUES FOR TEACHING LISTENING 3.2.1. Introduction It is generally believed that listening is the most important skill for learning to speak a language. When students speak English, they have time to think about what they want to say, and about what words to use. When students listen, they have little control over what they will hear, but in order to communicate they need to understand what is being said to them. Unfortunately in junior high schools, listening is by far the weakest of the skills. When listening is taught, the methods are sometimes not very useful. The teacher can really help their students learn English by actively teaching listening in a communicative way more often in his classes. The teacher can make the course-book or other listening practice more realistic or interesting by following specific stages and using specific techniques. The stages generally recommended are: Pre-listening: This stage is to prepare the students for what they are going to hear. The teacher should not just tell the students to listen and then start the cassette. While-listening: This stage is to help the students understand the text/dialogue. The teacher should not expect them to understand every word. In general, the teacher should help his students understand rather than test their understanding the whole time. Post-listening: This stage is to help the students to connect what they have heard with their own experience. It also allows the teacher to move easily from listening to another language skill. Why is listening so difficult? The listeners have little control or no control over what they will hear. The speakers talk too fast. There are too many new words. Accents are different and difficult to understand. Remember that if the teacher follows the correct procedure for teaching listening the students’ listening skill will definitely improve. There are a few points to remember when using the text/dialogue for listening : 1. The teacher needs to get the students interested in the topic before he plays/reads the text/dialogue. Use flashcards/pictures related to the topic. Ask simple questions about the topic. Chat informally about the topic. 2. The teacher should present some key vocabulary. 3. The teacher must make sure all the students’ books are closed when he plays/reads the text/dialogues. If they are open, it is a useless listening activity. Listening and reading are two different skills. The teacher cannot ask students to read and listen if he wants to improve their listening .This is a common mistake made by teachers. 4. The teacher gives the students one or two general questions about the main points of the text/dialogues before the teacher plays/reads it. This will help them focus on the text/dialogues when they first listen to it. 5. Give the students a task to complete while listening. Break this task up into two parts since listening is hard for students and the text/dialogue in the books are often long. a good listening activity procedure with TIẾNG ANH 8 ,UNIT 7 (p 63) 1. Students CLOSE their books. 2. The teacher introduces the topic: Na has just moved to a new place and Nam is telling her something about their neighborhood. 3. PRESENT VOCABULARY - close by (adv): (explanation) - to serve (v): (definition) - a pancake (n): (translation) - tasty (adj): (synonym) 4. GUIDING QUESTIONS: The teacher asks some guiding questions on the main points of the dialogue. The teacher writes the questions on the board before playing/reading the dialogue. a) How long has Nam lived in that neighborhood? b) Where does Na want to go? 5. LISTENING-PLAY/READ THE WHOLE DIALOGUE The teacher plays/reads the whole dialogue. Students listen and answer the guiding questions. No books are open. Nam: Hi. My name’s Nam. Na : Hello. Nice to meet you, Nam. I’m Na. Nam: Are you new around here? Na : Yes. We’ve been here since last week. Nam: I’m sure you’ll like this neighborhood. Na : I hope so. How long have you lived here? Nam: Oh, we’ve lived here for about 10 years. Na : You must know the area very well. Nam: I do. Na : Is there a restaurant close by? My mother is too tired to cook tonight. Nam: There is one just around the corner. Na : What is the food like? Nam: It’s very good. We like to eat there. It serves Hue food and the pancakes are delicious. You should try them. Na : I will. Thanks. 6. GAP-FILL ACTIVITY The teacher sets students a TASK to complete WHILE listening. In this task students fill in the missing words. The teacher can prepare a flipchart or write it on the board .The teacher can show how many letters each missing word has. E.g. were _ _ _ _, on_ _ a) Na is _ _ _ to the neighborhood. b) She and her family arrived _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _. c) Na’s mother is very _ _ _ _ _. d) There is a _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ in the area. e) The restaurant serves food from _ _ _. f) Nam thinks the _ _ _ _ _ _ _ are tasty. Students do not have to copy down the whole sentences. They should write down the answers ONLY. 7. 1/2 THE TASK The teacher plays/reads half the dialogue. Students listen and write only the answers (a, b, c). The teacher checks the answers. 8. 1/2 THE TASK The teacher repeats the above procedure with d- f. 9. STUDENTS SEE THE DIALOGUE FOR THE FIRST TIME Now students open their books on pages 63-64. (TIENG ANH 8, Unit 7) The teacher plays/reads the dialogue while the students follow in their books. 10. SIMULTANEOUS PAIR WORK ACTIVITY DIALOGUE SUBSTITUTION S1: How long have you lived here? studied English S2: About 10 years. played football The teacher should encourage students to substitute their own answers. SUMMARY OF LISTENING PRACTICE PROCEDURE 1) Students CLOSE their books. 2) The teacher introduces the topic. 3) The teacher presents vocabulary. 4) The teacher gives guiding questions on the main points of the dialogue/text. 5) The teacher plays/reads the whole dialogue/text .Students answer the guiding questions. 6) The teacher gives students a task to complete while listening. 7) The teacher plays/reads 1/2 the dialogue/text. Students answer 1/2 the task. 8) The teacher plays/reads the rest of the dialogue/text and students answer the rest of the questions. 9) Students can open their books and the teacher reads the WHOLE dialogue/text again. 10) Set students some additional listening activities. There are plenty of classroom techniques for improving listening. Here are some of them: 3.2.2. Pre-listening Techniques 3.2.2.1. Guiding Questions The teacher puts a few guiding questions on the board: one guiding question for each main point in the listening text. Students think about the guiding questions. After the first listening they answer the questions. Guiding questions Listening text (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 1, LISTEN AND READ) 1. Is Nien Lan’s friend or Hoa’s friend? 2. How old is Nien? 3. Where does Nien live? 4. Is she a beautiful girl? Hoa: Hello, Lan. Lan: Hi, Hoa. You seem happy. Hoa: I am. I received a letter from my friend Nien today. Lan: Do I know her? Hoa: I don’t think so. She was my next-door neighbor in Hue. Lan: What does she look like? Hoa: Oh. She’s beautiful. Here is her photograph. Lan: What a lovely smile! Was she your classmate? Hoa: Oh, no. She wasn’t old enough to be in my class. Lan: How old is she? Hoa: Twelve. She’s going to visit me. She’ll be here at Christmas. Would you like to meet her? Lan: I’d love to. 3.2.2.2. Ordering The teacher gives students jumbled statements, pictures or words on the board. The students’ task is to arrange them in the proper order, or a possible order. Students listen and correct their order. Example: How to play the guessing game (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 14, LISTEN & READ) The teacher puts the statements chart on the board. Students put the statements in the right order. Students listen and correct their order. Jumbled statements Order 1. B asks questions to find out who or what is. 2. A thinks of a famous person or place. 3. B wins if s/he can guess the correct answers. 4. A gives B a clue. 5. B loses if s/he cannot guess the correct answers. 6. A can answer ‘yes’ or 'no'. 2-4-1-6-3-5 3.2.2.3. True-False Statements The teacher writes between 6 and 8 statements on the main ideas in the listening text on the board. Only half the statements are true. In pairs students predict which statements are true and which are wrong. The teacher does not say if they are right or wrong. After the first listening they correct their answers. Example: Nga is talking to Kate about her studying English. (TIÊNG ANH 9, Unit 4, Listen) The teacher asks the students to work in pairs to predict which statements are true and which are false. Statements True False Answer keys 1. Nga’s studying English for her work. ٱ ٱ 2. She learned English at school and university. ٱ ٱ 3. She works for a national bank in Ha Noi. ٱ ٱ 4. She needs to improve her writing. ٱ ٱ 5. Her listening is excellent. ٱ ٱ 6. She hopes she can talk to people from all over the ٱ ٱ world, and understand her favorite English songs. T T F T F T 3.2.2.4. Brainstorm around a Topic The teacher asks students to suggest words associated with a topic. The teacher writes the topic in the middle of the board and as students call out words, s/he writes their words with a line connecting them to the central word. Example: Get students to suggest words about ‘city life’. (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 8, LISTEN & READ) City life Possible answers: - tall buildings - plenty of goods - polluted air 3.2.3. While-listening Techniques 3.2.3.1. Comprehension Questions The teacher writes the questions to check students' comprehension of details on the board. Students listen and answer the questions. Example: Ask students questions to check comprehension of the conversation. (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 7, LISTEN) 1. Does Na like movies? (Yes) 2. Why won’t she go to see the film ‘The Newcomer’? (because she has seen it before) 3. Why won’t Na go to the photo exhibition? (because it doesn’t open during the weekend) 4. Who will Na go to the soccer match with? (Nam, Ba and Minh) 5. What time does the match start? (At 4p.m.) 3.2.3.2. Grids The teacher puts the grid on the board. The grid gets students to listen for details in the text. Some of the information has already been filled in to guide their listening. Students listen and fill in the rest in note form. Example: Listen to the weather forecast and fill in the blanks with the information in the text. (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 12, LISTEN) No City Weather Low High 1 Sydney dry, windy 20 26 2 Tokyo dry, windy 15 22 3 London humid, cold -3 7 4 Bangkok warm, dry 24 32 5 New York windy, cloudy 8 15 6 Paris cool, dry 10 16 The answer keys are in bold type. 3.2.3.3. Identify the Exact Topic The teacher writes some titles on the board. Students have to say which title is the most suitable. Example: Look at the four titles and try to identify which is the best one. (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 4, LISTEN) 1. Don’t kill chickens 2. Don’t be foolish and greedy 3. Be happy with what you have 4. It is difficult to find gold Answer key: 2 3.2.3.4. Gap Fill The teacher puts a summary of the listening text with gaps in it on the board. Students listen to the tape and fill in the gaps. Example: Listen and fill in the gaps with words from the listening text (TIÊNG ANH 7, Unit 9, LISTEN) Liz was excited as the bus (1)..............through the countryside. Everything (2).............calm and peaceful. At 1 o’clock the bus (3)............at a small roadside restaurant. Mrs. Robinson (4).........some peanuts and an ice cream for Liz. The bus (5)...........in Ha Noi at about 7 p.m. Answer keys: 1. drove 2. looked 3. stopped 4. bought 5. arrived 3.2.4. Post-listening Techniques 3.2.4.1. Role Play Students dramatize the listening text, taking the roles of the characters in the story they have just heard. The teacher organizes the role play by eliciting and letting them practice what they will say. Example: Students work in pairs, interviewing Liz about her family’s trip back to Ha Noi. (TIÊNG ANH 7, Unit 9, A3) S1: How did you travel back to Ha Noi? S2: By bus. S1: What did you see on the way back? S2: I saw the paddies. S1: How did everything look? S2: Everything looked calm and peaceful. S1: Were you tired? S2: No, I wasn’t. 3.2.4.2. Write a Brief Report The students reconstruct the text in their own words using the information in the listening text. Students can practice writing in groups, pairs or individually. Example: Ask students to write a passage about solar energy using the information in the listening text. (TIÊNG ANH 9, Unit7, LISTEN) 3.2.4.3. Write a Similar Text The teacher chooses a related topic which is inspired by the listening text for the students to do. Students can recount similar stories to the listening text-things that have happened to them personally. Example: Ask students to write a passage about their neighborhood (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit7, LISTEN & READ) 3.2.4.4. Retell the Story Students retell the story in the listening text in their own words. The teacher can help them by doing a drill first using the pictures or statements in the pre-listening task and in the while-listening task. Example: Ask students to retell the story of ‘The Chicken Laid Gold Eggs’. (TIÊNG ANH 8, Unit 4, LISTEN) 3.2.5. Summary Some teachers say listening is much easier than speaking, but understanding normal conversation or public announcements is hard for most students. What the students hear is usually out of their control and often unclear. Their knowledge of situations and topics help them make sense of it. Using English in the classroom as much as possible is fundamental in developing listening comprehension, but needs to be supplemented with recorded texts from varied situations outside the classroom. Listening comprehension is best taught in three stages: pre-, while-, and post-listening. The first stage prepares students, the second develops and checks comprehension, and the third relates what they have heard to their own experience. 3.3. TECHNIQUES FOR CORRECTING STUDENTS’ SPOKEN ERRORS 3.3.1. Introduction Making mistakes is an inevitable part of learning a language. This seems to happen regardless of the teacher’s skill. Most teachers believe that ignoring these mistakes might risk students’ linguistic development. Current research tends to support this view. However, correcting mistakes often means having to make a number of on-the-spot decisions: what, why and how to correct. These include the questions a teacher might ask when faced with a student’s possible mistake: Is there a mistake here? What kind of mistake is it? What caused it? Does it matter? What should the teacher do about it? IMPORTANT POINTS: Mistakes are not “bad”. They are natural and unavoidable part of learning a language. They are useful. They show the teacher what their students have and have not learnt. There are times when the teacher should correct them and there are times when they should not. Correcting mistakes should be handled differently in different situations. Teachers should not feel like they are doing a bad job if their students make mistakes. Instead of seeing mistakes negatively as a sign of failure by students, the teachers should see them positively as an indication of what they still need to teach. If the teacher is teaching a grammar structure, then he should correct major incorrect uses of this structure. The aim is for accuracy. If the teacher is trying to encourage his students to be adventurous and ‘chat’ in English, he is aiming for fluency. It would be harmful to keep interrupting them. In this case, make a note of common mistakes and correct them with the whole class after the activity. STEPS FOR CORRECTING MISTAKES: Alert the student to the mistake. Ask another students or the whole class for the correct answer. Let the student try again. Praise the student. NOTES Encourage students. Focus on what they get right, not what they have done wrong. Praise students for correct answers, or even half-correct answers. Examples: Good Nice try Not bad Well done Almost Excellent Avoid humiliating students or making them feel a mistake is ‘bad’. Correct errors quickly when you correct them. Always try to encourage students to correct themselves. Always give the student a chance to say the correct version. 3.3.2. Correction Techniques 3.3.2.1. Self-Correction The teacher offers the student a clue so that the student can correct himself. Example: Practicing daily routines using the present simple Teacher: Trang, what do you do in the morning? Trang : I am get up at half past six. Teacher: O.K. Nearly. What should be? I... (Pause and give a hand movement showing this is where the mistake is.) Trang : I get up at half past six. Teacher: That’s right. Good. 3.3.2.2. Peer Correction The teacher asks students to correct each other. Example: Practicing daily routines using the present simple Teacher: Hung, what do you do in the morning? Hung : I am get up at half past six. Teacher: Well, nearly. Anybody else? What do you do in the morning? Yes, Thuy? Thuy : I get up at seven o’clock. Teacher: Yes, that’s right. I get up. Now, Hung, try again. Hung : I get up at half past six. Teacher: Yes. Well done. 3.3.2.3. Finger Correction The teacher marks out each word on his/her fingers, indicating with his/her fingers the part of the phrase or sentence that needs correction. Finger correction is often used for the following mistakes: [a] missing contraction e.g. “I have got a book.” Show the first word (e.g. “I“) with one finger and the word it is contracted to (e.g. “have“) with the next finger. Squeeze the two fingers together to show the contraction (e.g. “I’ve“). [b] missing word e.g. “I’ve got a bike.” Point to the finger which represents the missing word in the sentence. [c] too many words e.g. “I’m agree with you.” Point to each finger which represents the unnecessary word in the sentence. 3.3.2.4. Teacher Correction (Teacher as a Model) If the teacher has no success with the above-mentioned techniques, repeat a good model for the student to copy. Example: Back chaining for pronunciation mistakes Student: I li cup o tea. Teacher: tea. Repeat. Student: tea Teacher: a cup of tea Student: a cup of tea Teacher: like a cup of tea Student: like a cup of tea Teacher: I’d like a cup of tea. Student: I’d like a cup of tea. 3.3.2.5. Indirect Correction Over period of teaching, note down common mistakes that students repeatedly make. Every few weeks, as a way of viewing and testing, the teacher can prepare a flipchart on the board and gets students to work in pairs and correct the mistakes. Example: Common spoken mistakes Yesterday she go swimming with her friends. He love her very much. There are three book on the table. Yesterday I am very ill. She asked me where I’m going. Would you like go to cinema? This one is gooder than that one. They maked a cake for there mother. 3.3.3. Summary To sum up, students need correction to their production. This suggests that teachers should deal with at least some of the errors that arise. The choice of correction strategy will depend on such factors as: The type of errors: Does it have a major effect on communication? Is it one that the student could possibly self-repair? The type of activity: Is the focus of the activity more on form or on meaning? If the latter, it is probably best to correct without interfering too much with the flow of communication. The type of student: Will the student be discouraged or humiliated by correction. Alternatively, will the student feel short-changed if there is no correction? PART THREE: CONCLUSION 1. Recapitulation With the objective to analyze the current situation of teaching and learning English in JHSs in Quang Ngai province then to suggest certain techniques to improve teaching oral skills for JHS teachers, the research is done in three main chapters: Chapter one briefly presents an overview of the definitions of techniques, methods, approaches and a history of methods/approaches, and also introduces the definition, principles and techniques of the communicative approach. Chapter two elaborates the analysis of the current performance of English teaching and learning in JHSs in Quang Ngai province. Time and efforts have been spent on accumulating information about teachers and teaching methods applied in JHSs, viewing teaching and learning materials and assessing the utility of these materials. Also in this chapter a survey is conducted and lessons are observed to know more about teachers, schools, students, teaching, methods and techniques applied in JHSs. Chapter three focuses on the techniques which should be applied to improve the teaching of oral skills for JHS teachers. These techniques are realized in three sections: how to improve their teaching of speaking; how to improve their teaching of listening; how to improve correcting students’ errors. The suggested techniques are as follows: Techniques to Improve the Teaching of Speaking Controlled Speaking Activities: - Repetition Drill - Substitution Drill - Drilling a Complete Dialogue Less Controlled Speaking Activities - Chain Game - Dialogue Frame - Role Play - Interview - Discussion - Story-Telling Techniques to Improve the Teaching of Listening Pre-Listening Techniques - Guiding Questions - Ordering - True-False Statements - Brainstorm around a Topic While-Listening Techniques - Comprehension Questions - Grids - Identify the Exact Topic - Gap Fill Post-Listening Techniques - Role Play - Write a Brief Report - Write a Similar Text - Retell the Story Techniques to Improve the Correction Students’ Errors - Self -Correction - Peer Correction - Finger Correction - Teacher Correction - Indirect Correction These techniques, to be frank, are not the all-time resorts; however, they are obviously efficient escorts of the teachers who expect to improve their teaching of oral skills. 2. Limitations and Suggestions for Further Study As in any research papers, limitations are unavoidable. The study presented in this minor thesis is of no exception. Firstly, due to time constraints lesson observations were only limited to 25 teachers in urban, rural and remote areas. Secondly, although most of the techniques suggested in this study are found interesting by JHS teachers, other techniques not presented in this study are also necessary for the teaching of oral skills in JHSs. This calls for further research on all the techniques for the teaching of listening and speaking at JHSs. Also, there are differences in the perceptions of how to deal with large classes and reluctant speakers but within the scope of the study it is impossible to cover them all. This study is just prepared for JHS teachers, techniques to improve the teaching of oral skills for senior high school (SHS) teachers, therefore, may be a good subject for further study. REFERENCES Brumfit, C. J. & Johnson, K. (1974). The Communicative Approach to Language Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Brumfit, C. J. (1984). Communicative Methodology in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Byrne, D. (1978). Teaching Oral English. London: Longman Group Ltd. Davies, P. & Pearse, E. (2000). Success in English Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Doff, A. (1988). Teach English: A Training Course for Teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Dubbin, F. & Olshtain, E. (1986). Course Design: Developing Programs & Materials for Language Learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Edwards, C. &Willis, J. (2005). Teachers Exploring Tasks in Language Teaching. Palgrave Macmillan. Harmer, J. (1991). The Practice for English Language Teaching. London: Longman. Hubbard, P. (1983). A Training Course for TEFL. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Johnson, K. (1982). Communicative Syllabus Design & Methodology. Oxford: Pergamon Press. Johnson, K. (2003). Designing Language Teaching Tasks. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Jones, K. (1982). Simulation in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. La Dousse, G. P. (1994). Role Play: Resource Books for Teachers. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Lewis, M. & Hill, J. (1992). Practical Techniques for Language Teaching. London: Language Teaching Publications. Lightbown, P. M. & Spada, N. (1999). How Languages Are Learned. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Littlewood, W. (1981). Communicative Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Livingstone, C. (1983). Role Play in Language Teaching. Essex: Longman Group Ltd. Loi, N. V. et al (2002). TIENG ANH 6, 7, 8, 9. Hanoi: NXB Giao Duc. Munby, J. (1978). Communicative Syllabus Design: A Sociolinguistic Model for Defining the Content of Purpose Specific Language Programs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Nolasco, R. & Arthur, L. (1988). Large Classes. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Nunan, D. (1988). Syllabus Design. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Nunan, D. (2002). Research Methods in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Richards, J.C. & Rodgers, T.S. (2001). Approaches & Methods in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Richards, J.C (1974). Error Analysis. London: Longman. Rivers, W. M. & Temperley, M.S (1978). A Practical Guide to the Teaching of English as a Second or Foreign Language. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Sesnan, B. (2001). How to Teach English. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Ur, P. (1996). A Course in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Woodward, T. (2001). Planning Lessons & Courses: Designing Sequences of Work for the Language Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Yaiden, J. (1987). Principles of Course Design for Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. APPENDIX I SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR JHS TEACHERS A. Teacher's Personal Information Please put a tick next to the appropriate answers and give the details in the blank provided. 1. Name (optional): ................................................... 2. Age: Below 25 years — 35-39 years — 50-54 years — 25-29 years — 40-44 years — 55-59 years — 30-34 years — 45-49 years — 3. Years of teaching:....................................................................................................... 4. School: ....................................................................................................................... 5. Tick which qualification you have: CDSP/CQ in English — CDSP BA in Russian + CDSP/TC in English   CDSP/TC in English   DHSP BA in Russian + CDSP/TC in English   DHSP/CQ in English   DHSP/TC in English   Other (specify): 6. Have you ever attended a training course (e.g. short courses, summer workshops, etc.)? Yes   No   If yes, give details below: ................................................................................................................................................ 7. In the following table, please give the information of your teaching: Column 1: the grade (grade 6, grade 7 etc.) Column 2: the number of classes you teach Column 3: the number of lessons a week with each class Column 4: the coursebook you use for each grade 1. Grade 2. # classes 3. # lessons/wk 4. coursebook 8. Which other English levels have you taught previously? Grade 6   Grade 7   Grade 8   Grade 9   9. Do you teach any other subjects? Yes   No   If yes, which subjects? ........................................................................................................... 10. Do you have any part-time job? Yes   No   If yes, which jobs?.................................................................................................................. 11. What have you done to improve your level of English? 12. Which of the following can you use daily to improve your English? Radio   Cassette-player   Video   Television   Computer   B. Information about your school 1. The number of students studying English in your school: Grade 6 ............................................................. . Grade 7 .......................................... Grade 8.............................................................. Grade 9 ......................................... 2. The number of English teachers: 3. The average size of your classes: 4. What percentage of English students passed the final exam? ....... % 5. Which of the following can you have access in your teaching performance? Cassette player   DVD   Photocopier   Computer   Card, paper, colored pencils, etc for making materials   ELT reference books If yes, name some books:................................................................... .................................................................................................................................................6. Does your school provide? Teacher's Books accompany Student's books   A curriculum document   Subject group meetings   If yes, how often? Once a week   once a month   once a semester   once a year   7. Please list the favorable conditions for teaching English:.................. 8. Please list the unfavorable conditions for teaching English: C. Students' Attitude Answer the following questions about your students using the scale below: NONE SOME ABOUT HALF MOST ALL 0 1 2 3 4 They enjoy studying English. 0 1 2 3 4 They find it difficult to speak English. 0 1 2 3 4 They find it difficult to listen to English. 0 1 2 3 4 They find it difficult to read English. 0 1 2 3 4 They find it difficult to write English. 0 1 2 3 4 D. Teacher's Performance and Perception 1. What do you like about being a teacher? What do you dislike about it? 2. Who do you get professional support from? ELT Specialist   Other colleagues   Group leader   No-one   4. How much time do you spend preparing your lessons each day? 1/2 hour or less/day   about an hour/day   more than an hour/day   5. Where do you prepare your lessons? at home   at school   Why? 6. What do you like and dislike about the new textbook your use? I like I dislike ................................................................................................................................................ 7. Do you use other materials in addition to the text book? Yes   No   If yes, what kind of materials do you use? Where do they come from? 8. Please give the following information about the tests you give your students. Column 1: write the kind of tests that you give, e.g. classroom tests, school tests, etc. Column 2: write how often you give the test, e.g. weekly, monthly, once a semester, annually, etc. Column 3: write the areas that you test your students in, e.g. grammar and vocabulary, reading, listening, speaking, writing. Column 4: write the person responsible for writing the tests, e.g. classroom teacher, subject group leader, etc. 1. TYPE OF TEST 2. HOW OFTEN? 2. WHICH AREAS ARE TESTED? 4. WHO WRITES THE TEST? 9. Use the following scale to evaluate your own ability in the following areas: 1= You have a strong working knowledge in this topic and you use it in your teaching already. 2= You know something about this topic but do not use it very much in your teaching now. 3= You would like to find out more about this topic so that you can use it in your teaching. 4= You do not think this topic is relevant for teaching junior high school students. Topic 1 2 3 4 Presenting new grammar Presenting new vocabulary Grammar practice activities Practicing new vocabulary Using dialogues for practice Eliciting Checking understanding Using drills Getting students to speak freely Teaching listening Teaching writing Teaching reading Teaching speaking Using dictation Using songs Correcting students’ errors Giving instructions for classroom activities Classroom management Organizing pair and group work Planning lessons Testing grammar Testing vocabulary Testing spoken English Testing comprehension APPENDIX II OBSERVING TEACHERS (used as a checklist) Good OK Bad 1) Teaching procedure Is the aim of the lesson clear? Are the stages of the lesson clears? Does the teacher do a variety of activities? Does the teacher encourage real use of language? Does the T use a warmer to begin the lesson with? 2) Use of teaching aids Does the teacher write clearly on the board? Does the T use any pictures to elicit vocabulary? Does the T use prompts to encourage speaking? 3) Management of the class Do the students participate actively in the lesson? Does the teacher have good discipline? Does the T encourage weaker Ss to answer questions? 4) Teacher’s personality Does the teacher smile often? Does the teacher seem interested in the lesson? Does the T praise the Ss when they work well? 5) Command of English Does the teacher have clear pronunciation? Does the teacher use English to organize the class? (adapted from Adrian Doff Teach English: A Training Course for Teachers, Oxford,1988) APPENDIX III TEACHER OBSERVATION AND FEEDBACK Teacher: School: Observer: Book: Date: Unit: Warm-up and introducing the topic: Which warm-up does the teacher use? Is it successful? Presenting vocabulary: What procedure does the teacher follow? Does the teacher elicit vocabulary by using pictures, mime and gestures? Does the teacher give useful clear examples and ask the students questions with the new words? Preparation for Practice: What does the teacher do in order to focus the students' attention for the next activity? Further practice: What other activities does the teacher do to give the students a deeper understanding of the text, dialogue or structure? Pair work: Does the teacher use prompts on the board to help during pairwork? Does the teacher give a specific task and enough time for them to complete it? (1-2 minutes)? Does the teacher check some of the students afterwards? Pronunciation focus: Are there any words which the teacher or students commonly mispronounce? Methodology: What kind of methodology is mostly used? Classroom management and teacher/student relationships: Does the teacher smile often and seem interested in the students? Does the teacher praise students when they work well and encourage weaker students to participate in the lesson? Comments and useful suggestions: How can the teacher improve his/ her teaching?