Activities

Exploring English To do this exercise you need to know a language other than English reasonably well or to be able to discuss the questions with someone who does (perhaps a student?). If you don't know the language well, you may also find it helpful to refer to a 'self study' course for learning that learner's language. Choose a short text written in a language other than English. Also, if you have access to one, consult a grammar of that language. a. What is it about words or the contexts in which they are used which help you to identify them as nouns? b. Are there singular and plural forms of nouns? How are these distinguished? c. Are nouns classified as being either countable or uncountable? What effects does this have on other aspects of grammar? For example, do you have to choose between different determiners such as much and many or between different forms of verbs such as has or have? d. Are translation equivalents of the following countable or uncountable? grapes; information; money; time e. Are collective nouns followed by singular or plural verb forms and pronouns? f.

Generalise about the differences between nouns in English and the language you have chosen. In what ways (if any) does this influence the kinds of materials that suit your learners?

Exploring how learners use English Look at something that a learner or learners of English have written, or listen to a recording of them speaking. Analyse their use of nouns. a. What do they find easy? b. What difficulties do they have? Course materials Look carefully at course materials that you are familiar with. a. What (if any) explicit attention is paid to features of nouns? For example, are there sections devoted to countability and uncountability? b. When vocabulary is introduced to learners in the materials, how systematically is attention paid to whether the nouns are countable or uncountable, or to their plural form? Course materials

Choose a coursebook for each of two different levels or for different age groups. Consider how much attention is paid to adjectives in each. You may find the following checklist of points useful. a. Are words taught in groups according to meaning? (For example, the book might teach adjectives to describe aspects of personality such as cheerful, sentimental, strong-willed or food such as tasty, delicious, salty, spicy.) b. Are adjectives taught with their opposites (for example, hot/cold)? c. Are distinctions made between words with similar meaning (for example, classic/classical)? d. Is attention paid systematically to suffixes and prefixes? e. Is attention paid to comparative and superlative forms? f.

Is attention paid to word order in groups of adjectives?

g. Is attention paid to whether adjectives are gradable or ungradeable? h. Is attention paid to ways of intensifying adjectives? Exploring English Gather three or four short written texts from very different sources, and ideally written in different styles and for different purposes (for example, a letter from a friend; a serious newspaper article; a recipe). Also listen very carefully to a brief extract of (preferably unscripted) spoken English. If possible, record and transcribe this. Consider: a. how frequently are adverbs used? b. what kinds of adverbs are used (for example, adverbs of frequency, attitude markers)? c. are there any instances of adverbs being used in ways that someone with a conservative view of language might consider unacceptable? d. what effect does the use of adverbs create? Course materials Compare the way aspects of adverbs are treated in two coursebooks a. Is attention paid to the use of adverbs: o

as discourse markers?

o

to add descriptive and interpretative detail? (This is usually taught in the context of writing skills.)

b. Does the material pay attention to the form of adverbs? -Are rules taught for 'making' adverbs (for example, add ly to the adjective)? How comprehensive and accurate are these rules? At what levels are they considered and at what levels are more complex or exceptional forms introduced? c. Does it look at adverbs in 'groups' (for example, adverbs of frequency would be one 'group')? d. Does the material pay attention to differing points of view about what is acceptable? How consistently and at what levels? e. To what extent are adverbs introduced and practised with particular items of grammar? (For example, some courses introduce just, already, yet and ever at the same time as introducing the present perfect.) If adverbs and grammar are introduced together, how distinctly is the meaning of the adverbs treated, their position in the sentence and their use with other forms of the verb? Exploring English Select a short passage of written English or of transcribed speaking (for example, a magazine interview). Look at how articles are used and not used. In each instance, try to account for the choice that has been made. a. how many of these indicate whether or not there is or isn't 'common ground' with the intended reader or audience? b. How many of these are determined by fixed expressions? Exploring how learners use English Select a short passage written by a learner of English or, if possible, record and transcribe their speech. Analyse how they use or don't use articles and try to explain any mistakes or examples of non-standard use. Course materials Select a coursebook and consider: a. How much attention is paid to the use of articles? b. How accurate, comprehensive, clear and useful are the rules provided? c. To what extent are the learners directed to explore how articles are used in texts? d. What are the objectives of any practice activities and how well are these achieved? (For example, do practice activities and exercises encourage learners to internalise rules or practise making appropriate choices?) Exploring English Either:

•

take a newspaper, a chapter from a book or a 15-20 minute stretch of someone speaking (the task will be considerably easier if a recording is used as you can stop this when you want) and scan the text for any use of quantifiers.

•

obtain examples of a selection of quantifiers in context. (You may be able to do this through the Internet, or you may have access to a concordancing programme.)

Or:

Make a list of the words and the contexts they occur in. a. In each case account for the choice of word and the way it is used. b. Look for any idiosyncratic or non-standard uses. c. Look in particular at any instances of some and any to see what proportion of these support the rule of thumb that we use some in affirmative sentences and any in questions and negative sentences. Course materials Choose a coursebook or series of coursebooks for learners of English. a. Look in the Contents section and/or the Index. How easy or difficult is it to find where quantifiers are taught? b. Look at the appropriate pages. Are quantifiers taught as items of vocabulary in their own right or is the teaching integrated with the teaching of other areas of language? (For example, much and many are sometimes taught in the context of countable and uncountable nouns.) c. How much information is given about the meaning of the words and the way they are used? d. How clearly is this described and illustrated? e. How clearly does the material clarify the difference between closely related forms? (For example, some and any; either and neither.) f.

What opportunities does the material provide for studying how quantifiers are used in context? Are authentic materials used?

g. What opportunities are provided for learners to practise quantifiers in controlled exercises and to use them more freely? How learners use English Read the following very quickly and use a pen to circle which of the three words (correct; dubious; incorrect) best describes your immediate reaction to the underlined part of the sentence. Try not to look back at your answers to previous items as you go through it I

He's the more important person of all.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

II

He runs quicker than me.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

III He runs faster than I.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

IV

He's more old than me.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

V

He's pleasanter than me.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

VI

He runs faster than me.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

VII He's more pleasant than me.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

V He's older than me. III

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

IX

He's the more important person.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

X

He runs faster than me.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

XI

He's the most important person.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

XII She's the most quick off the mark.

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

X She's the most important person of the team. III

Correct

Dubious

Incorrect

a. Study your responses to this questionnaire, and try to give reasons for any sentences that you have classified as dubious or incorrect. b. Ask two or three very competent users of English to complete the same questionnaire or one that you devise to focus on points of particular interest to you. Compare their responses with your own and with each others. Is there any disagreement? How can you account for this? Exploring English EITHER: Ask two or three very competent speakers of English briefly to compare two or more objects, people, institutions or ideas. Record them doing so and subsequently transcribe any relevant sections of the recordings. Do not tell them the reason for this experiment. OR: Find a written text which is making a comparison (for example, comparing two or more products in terms of value to the consumer, comparing two recordings of the same piece of music, comparing two towns, comparing a place or life in a place before and after significant changes). a. How much use do they make of comparative and superlative forms? b. What proportion of comparative forms are followed by than ...? c. What proportion of superlative forms are followed by in ... or by a relative clause? d. Do they make any use of 'non-standard' expressions (more bigger; more big) e. How clearly do they pronounce the sounds which are normally 'weak' (for example, er; than) or are often left out (for example, the final /t/ in est). Course materials

Study two coursebooks, if possible from the same series. a. At what levels (for example, elementary; upper intermediate) is attention paid explicitly to different formal aspects of comparative and superlative forms of quantifiers, adjectives and adverbs (such as the use of ...er and ....est as opposed to more and most)? b. How accurate and comprehensive is this information? c. How much attention is paid to the meanings of these forms? d. How accurate and comprehensive is this information? e. How much attention is paid to relevant aspects of spelling? At what levels? f.

How much attention is paid to relevant aspects of pronunciation? At what levels?

g. How much attention is paid to ways of intensifying and qualifying these expressions? At what levels? h. How much opportunity is provided for looking at how these forms are used in authentic texts or transcriptions of spoken English? i.

How much opportunity is provided for practice of these forms? How controlled is this practice? How natural is it?

Exploring English Listen to a few minutes of someone speaking naturally (for example, not reading aloud or reciting a poem), and if possible record them so that you can repeat the listening. How clearly do they pronounce the prepositions? How easy or possible is it to recognise them on the basis of sound alone? Researching how people use English Devise a brief questionnaire to find out people's reactions to variant and/or non standard use of prepositions. Make a list of short phrases and read these aloud to four or five other proficient users of English. Ask them to respond immediately by saying 'normal', 'acceptable' or 'unacceptable'. The following is an example for you to use or adapt. It's different to mine. We discussed about it a lot. It's similar with mine. We got off of the bus at the traffic lights. I looked up the street. Who did you come with? a. To what extent do the different people agree with each other? b. Do they agree with you? c. Do their opinions in any way conflict with what you teach?

If you have access to a corpus of English and a concordancing programme, you can also compare these responses to the data available in the corpus. Course materials Examine two or more coursebooks from the same series: a. At what stage in the course do prepositions first appear? Is attention paid to them explicitly at this stage? b. At what stage in the course are learners first required or asked to produce prepositions? Are the prepositions simply contained in larger units of language (for example, I come from ....... . might be taught as a functional expression) or are they explained in their own right? c. When verbs, adjectives or nouns are taught, is attention paid to prepositions which normally accompany them? Comparing dictionaries Use the following list of verbs or, if you prefer, write a list of your own. age appoint apologise create must tell

Choose two or more dictionaries, preferably ones intended for learners. Look up these words and concentrate on the grammatical information that is provided. a. How much information is given? b. How clearly is this expressed? (For example, is a code used which refers the user to some other part of the book, or is the information included in or beside the entry?) c. Which dictionary would you recommend to students who want information about the grammar of individual verbs? Exploring English Choose short extracts from different kinds of text, for example, from a novel, a newspaper article, an advertisement, an interview. Ask yourself the questions that occur on page 103 (Language in context) about these texts. To what extent can you generalise about how often we use different kinds of verb (for example, main v auxiliary; event v state; no object v object)? Exploring how learners use language a. Ask a class of learners at upper-intermediate or advanced level to study the language in a text that they have already read for general comprehension. Ask them to identify: o

the verbs

o

the main verbs

o

the modal auxiliary verbs

o

other auxiliary verbs

o

state and event verbs

o

object and no-object verbs

b. How accurately are they able to do this? c. Ask them whether they are conscious of these categories when they read or listen or express themselves in English. Do they think a conscious knowledge of these factors is: o

useful?

o

not useful?

o

a hindrance?

Dictionaries Look up 7-8 multiword verbs or verbal expressions in one or more general dictionaries for learners of English and/or dictionaries of 'phrasal verbs' or of 'idioms'. Choose at least one multiword verb which: •

uses a verb which frequently occurs in multiword verbs.

•

can have several meetings.

•

belongs to each of the main grammatical types.

Try to include at least one very common and one very rare item. a. How clearly are different uses of the same multiword verb or verbal expression differentiated from each other? (For example, make up a story v make somebody up.) b. How clear and full are explanations of meaning? c. Is attention paid to aspects of style and frequency? How much? d. How clearly does the material deal with aspects of word order and which words can go together? e. Are examples given of the items in context? Are these authentic? How clearly do they illustrate key features of meaning and form? Exploring English Choose three authentic texts, each of two or three paragraphs in length, >from very different sources (for example one might be a transcript of unscripted discussion, one

might be a newspaper article and the other an extract from a novel or written advertisement). Identify any multiword verbs or verbal expressions in these texts. 1. Does there appear to be any difference in the frequency with which these forms occur in the three texts? 2. Could these forms be replaced by simple verbs? Would this affect the meaning or the tone of the texts? Course materials Look carefully at one or two coursebooks for learners of English at different levels or at a book which is primarily designed to teach multiword verbs. a. (coursebooks only) Is it clear from the contents pages where attention is paid to multiword verbs and verbal expressions? Is this in a limited number of special sections or is this integrated throughout? Are multiword verbs and/or multiword verbal expressions treated simply as vocabulary items/expressions as they occur? b. Are multiword verbs classified and taught separately as phrasal and prepositional verbs? c. How systematically and clearly are the following taught: o

meaning;

o

frequency;

o

style;

o

syntax (differences between the 4 main types of multiword verb);

o

literalness

d. Are multiword verbs and multiword verbal expressions grouped together according to any of the following criteria: o

associated meanings or topic (for example, expressions used in talking about cooking)

o

syntactic patterns (for example, type 1; type 2 multiword verbs etc.)

o

the verb (for example, multiword verbs and expressions with give)

o

the particle (for example, multiword verbs with up)

e. Are multiword verbs considered together with multiword verbal expressions or separately? f.

To what extent (if any) are students asked/encouraged to work out the meanings of these items either from:

o

the meanings of their constituent parts?

o

the contexts in which they occur?

g. How much use (if any) is made of authentic text in which multiword verbs and multiword verbal expressions occur? h. How much opportunity is provided for students to practise these forms? How much guidance or freedom is given:

i.

o

in choosing items?

o

with regard to accuracy?

In general, how thoroughly and interestingly do you think this topic is dealt with?

Researching how people use English Construct a brief questionnaire to use with a few native speakers or other proficient users of English in order to find out how they use or perceive that they use modal verbs. You could use or adapt the following, or could explore other aspects of modal verbs. Example questionnaire What differences, if any, are there between the meaning or use of the sentences in the following groups? i.

He may come here tomorrow. He might come here tomorrow. He could come here tomorrow.

ii.

He He He He He

iii.

We ought to be leaving, oughtn't we? We ought to be leaving, didn't we? We ought to be leaving, shouldn't we?

has to be here early. must be here early. ought to be here early. should be here early. needs to be here early.

Comparing dictionaries Choose one 'pure' modal verb and one semi-modal verb. Look each of these up in at least two learners' dictionaries. The aim of this exercise is for you to decide which of these two dictionaries you would most recommend to learners at different levels. a. How clearly, accurately and fully do the dictionaries define and illustrate the different meanings of the different verbs? b. How clearly, accurately and fully do the dictionaries describe and illustrate the formal and syntactic characteristics of the verbs?

Course materials Choose a coursebook intended for learners in a particular year of studying English or of a particular level of English (for example, pre-intermediate). Before looking at it closely, consider: •

which uses of which modal verbs might you expect to be taught at this level?

•

how detailed and comprehensive would you expect the material to be in terms of subtleties of form and meaning (including analysis of differences between different modal verbs)?

Look carefully at the material and answer the following questions. a. How clearly does the contents page or the index enable you to find the relevant pages in the book? b. Are: o

different meanings and functions of each verb considered together?

o

different verbs with similar meanings and functions considered together?

o

the different meanings and functions of the different verbs all considered separately?

How much contrasting of different uses and different verbs is there (if at all)? c. How clearly, accurately and fully does the material define and illustrate the different meanings and functions of the different verbs? How appropriate is this? d. What sorts of opportunities does the material provide for the students to practise using the verbs? Is there a main focus on choosing correct forms? Are there opportunities for the students to use the verbs in order to understand or express ideas and opinions, or to obtain or communicate information? Course materials Study the Contents pages and indexes of course materials that you use or have access to. a. How easy is it to find where attention is paid to infinitive and -ing forms? b. Is this topic classified under grammar or vocabulary? c. Is the topic considered systematically? d. Is a distinction made between gerunds and present participles? e. Is a distinction made between full and bare infinitives? f.

Does the material guide learners to analyse the use of infinitive and -ing forms in authentic contexts?

g. Does the material provide learners with the opportunity to choose appropriate forms? Exploring how learners use English Devise a very brief test/questionnaire to discover how aware your students are of this area of grammar, and devise a diagnostic test to discover exactly what kinds of problems this area of grammar poses them. The awareness test/questionnaire might ask the students to identify and correct typical mistakes (for example, * I advised him going...), and to comment on how they recognise that these are mistakes. The diagnostic test might consist of a list of sentences to demonstrate the main uses of infinitive and -ing forms. In each case, the students have to choose which form is appropriate (for example, I wanted him going/to go). Over a period of time teach a range of the major uses of infinitive and -ing forms. Repeat the diagnostic test and discuss the results with your students. Exploring English EITHER: Ask someone to tell you about their daily life. If you have access to the necessary technology, record this so that you can listen to it several times and even copy part of it down. OR (if the above is not possible): Find a magazine interview with someone talking generally about themselves and their daily lives. a. Explain to yourself the choices the speaker makes with regard to present tenses. b. Account for any unexpected or unconventional uses of these tense forms. Course materials Choose two coursebooks and compare how they teach tenses which can refer to present time. a. What 'rules' are provided? How accurate, comprehensive, clear and useful are they? b. What kinds of texts are provided? Are these real or are they especially constructed to provide examples of a particular rule? If they are especially constructed, how natural are they? c. Are learners guided to work out the meaning of the language for themselves? d. Is the use of the present perfect to refer to present events clearly distinguished from its use to refer to past events? e. What opportunities are provided for practice of present tense forms? Do these involve simple choices between verb forms? Do they involve more extended creative speaking or writing? Do they provide opportunities for students to work together?

Exploring English Select an article or feature from a newspaper which makes reference to the future. Also ask someone to talk about their plans (for example, for the evening or weekend) and, if possible, record them doing so. Try to avoid giving away your interest in what forms they choose to express future time. Analyse the ways future time is expressed in both these texts. a. To what extent could you predict the choices they make from the standard rules of thumb for future tenses? b. Account for any choices that don't follow these rules of thumb. Course materials Choose an English language course which covers a range of levels. Examine the material which teaches ways of expressing future time. a. In what order and at which levels are the tenses introduced? b. Where one form has more than one future meaning (for example, we use going to for both plans and predictions) are the different meanings considered together or at different places in the course? c. Are the different ways of expressing time presented under formal labels (for example, present simple), under meaning labels (for example, plans) or are both kinds of label used? d. Are there exercises in which learners have to choose between different forms of the verb according to the context (for example, gap-fill exercises or exercises in which the verb is provided in its infinitive form and the learner has to 'put it into the correct tense')? In these exercises, is only one choice always considered to be acceptable, or is the student encouraged to consider whether other forms might also be appropriate? Comparing reference grammars Different reference grammars of English pay substantially different amounts of attention to the meanings of future tense forms. They also sometimes appear to disagree in the way they explain the meanings of these forms. Choose two future tense forms, and compare how these are treated in two reference grammars of English. a. How clearly are the meanings explained and illustrated? b. What use (if any) do the grammars make of authentic text to illustrate this? c. How much attention (if any) do the grammars pay to factors other than meaning that can affect the choices we make (factors such as personal preference, formality or type of text)? d. Which of these grammars would you recommend to learners?

Exploring English EITHER: Ask someone to tell you about their career or life. If you have access to the necessary technology, record this so that you can listen to it several times and even copy part of it down. OR (if the above is not possible): Find a magazine interview with someone talking generally about their careers or lives a. Explain to yourself the choices the speaker makes with regard to present perfect and past simple tenses. b. Account for any unexpected or unconventional uses of these tense forms. Course materials Choose two coursebooks and compare how they teach the past simple and the present perfect to refer to past time. a. What 'rules' are provided? How accurate, comprehensive, clear and useful are they? b. What kinds of texts are provided? Are these real or are they especially constructed to provide examples of a particular rule? If they are especially constructed, how natural are they? c. Are learners guided to work out the meaning of the language for themselves? d. Is the use of the present perfect to refer to past events clearly distinguished from its use to refer to present events? e. Are the uses of the present perfect simple clearly distinguished from those of the present perfect continuous? f.

What opportunities are provided for practice of the language? Do these involve simple choices between verb forms? Do they involve more extended creative speaking or writing? Do they provide opportunities for students to work together?

g. How much attention does the book pay to this aspect of grammar compared to other grammatical topics? Do you think this degree of attention is appropriate? Exploring English Listen attentively to people talking about the past. Ideally this should be unscripted (for example, friends talking or a radio or television interview), but if you don't have access to this, you could also use part of a feature film. If you have access to the necessary technology, record this so that you can listen to it several times and even write it down. a. Identify examples of simple past, past perfect and past continuous tenses. b. Explain to yourself why the tenses are used in this context.

c. Account for any unexpected or unconventional uses of tenses. Course materials Choose one of the tenses considered in this chapter (for example, past perfect simple), and find the parts of two coursebooks in which this is taught. You may find that the approach in the two books is similar, but you may also find that there are significant differences. a. What 'rules' are provided? How accurate, comprehensive, clear and useful are they? b. What kinds of texts are provided? Are these real or are they especially constructed to provide examples of a particular rule? If they are especially constructed, how natural are they? c. Are learners guided to work out the meaning of the language for themselves? d. Does the material suggest that we can choose between different forms, or does it suggest that there is always one, 'correct' form in any context? e. To what extent are the uses of different forms compared and contrasted? (For example, is the past continuous compared with the past simple?) f.

What opportunities are provided for practice of the language? Do these involve simple choices between tenses? Do they involve more extended creative speaking or writing? Do they provide opportunities for students to work together? Does the material include exercises which demand one answer when more than one would be possible?

g. How much attention do the books pay to this aspect of grammar compared to other grammatical topics? h. Think of a particular group of learners. How far do you think this degree of attention is appropriate? Comparing languages Look back at the verbs marked 4-6 in the text in 16.4.2. Mentally translate these sentences into another language that you know well, or collaborate with a student who can do this for you. a. Are similar distinctions made with regard to aspects of past time? b. If not, what kinds of distinctions (if any) are made? c. What implications does this have for people learning used to and would? Exploring English Study two or three pages of a biography or history and look carefully at the verb forms used. a. How much use is made of used to and would?

b. Are there opportunities to use these forms that the writer doesn't take? Does the writer appear to have a strong preference for either of these forms? Course materials Select course materials which teach the use of these forms. a. Are they treated together or separately? b. At what level(s) are they taught? c. How clearly does the material distinguish between the use of the two forms? d. Does the material make it clear that use of these forms isn't obligatory? e. What kinds of opportunity does the material provide for practice of these forms? Exploring language Find two or three short newspaper articles in which there is some reporting of what was said and/or ask someone to tell you about a conversation that you know they have had with someone else (if possible record and transcribe part of this). Study the reporting carefully or listen carefully to language and answer these questions: a. What is the balance between direct speech and reporting? b. To what extent do they summarise and interpret what was said in the process of reporting? c. What kinds of reporting verbs do they choose? Course materials Choose one or more coursebooks which teach aspects of reported speech and analyse the relevant sections. a. What use is made of texts in which speech is reported naturally (i.e. summarised, interpreted or commented on by the person who is reporting)? b. How strict or flexible is the material in requiring learners to apply mechanical rules for changing: o

tenses?

o

ways of expressing time and place?

o

word order?

o

names, pronouns and possessive adjectives?

c. What kinds of practice activities are there for the students?

o

Are they asked to summarise stretches of speech or conversation in their own words?

o

Are they asked to transform isolated sentences from reported to direct speech or vice versa?

d. How effective do you consider this material to be? Exploring language Over a period of time, jot down conditional sentences that you come across listening to the radio and television or reading books, magazines, newspapers and advertisements. a. What proportion of these are two-part conditional sentences which conform to one of the four basic 'types'? b. What proportion of these contain only a conditional clause? c. What proportion of subordinate clauses use if as opposed to other conjunctions or no conjunctions at all? d. What other features which don't conform to one of the four basic 'types' do you come across? e. Can you generalise about any differences in the kinds of conditional sentences that occur in different kinds of speaking or writing (for example, newspapers as opposed to novels, formal interviews or informal 'chatting')? Course materials Identify where in a series of coursebooks attention is paid to conditional sentences. a. At what levels do they teach the different conditional types? b. To what extent do they teach 'variant' forms? c. To what extent do they teach the basic elements of all conditional sentences (for example, the meaning of if and the tenses we use to express 'unreal' meaning)? d. Do they pay attention to the functions we often use conditional sentences to express? e. Do they include exercises and materials to help learners identify and get their tongues round awkward combinations of auxiliary verbs? f.

Compare one of the books from this series with a book from another series. What differences are there in the way they teach conditionals?

Exploring English Select two or three texts or extracts from texts of different types, each of 6-8 lines. Ideally, at least one of these should be a transcription of spoken English (if you have access to recording facilities, you may be able to make the transcription yourself).

a. As far as you can, divide the texts into clauses, and the identify main clauses. b. Identify and classify the main sentence constituents (see questions a to f in Language in context 2 above for guidance). c. Count the number of times each of the 5 types of verb (object, object complement etc.) occurs in the texts. Which types are most common? Does this vary from text to text? d. Compare the ratio of simple noun phrases (for example, one word) to complex ones (a number of words). Does this vary from text to text? Are complex noun phrases more common in subjects, direct objects or indirect objects? Comparing grammars Different grammars use different categories and different terms for identifying the basic constituents of sentences. Compare two reference grammars. a. What similarities and differences are there between the way the two books analyse and describe the structure of sentences? b. What similarities and differences are there between these analyses and descriptions and those in Section 2 of this chapter? c. How much attention does each book pay to aspects of word order and the basic constituents of sentences? d. How clear are the descriptions and explanations? e. How detailed are these? f.

How comprehensive are these?

Course materials Examine a beginners' coursebook. a. What explicit attention is paid to word order and the basic constituents of sentences? b. How clearly do the Contents section and the Index identify the material which deals with these topics? c. Are the examples provided natural and convincing? d. What opportunities are provided for learners to practise ordering words and basic sentence constituents? Exploring English Study two or three pages of a magazine, newspaper or book. Look carefully at each sentence.

a. What proportion of adverbials occur at the end of a clause, at the beginning or in the middle? Is this affected by whether the clause includes one or more adverbials? Is this affected by the type of adverbial (for example, their length, whether the phrases begin with a preposition or a noun, whether the adverbials refer to place, time or manner)? b. Are there any instances of either there or it used as a dummy subject? Why are these used to 'push' new information to the end of the clause? c. Are there any other instances of fronting or spotlighting information? How would meaning or emphasis be affected if the standard ordering of constituents were followed? Course materials 1. Study a coursebook for late intermediate or advanced learners. a. How much attention is paid to ways of fronting information, pushing it back and putting it under the spotlight? b. Does this attention extend to spoken English as well as written? c. What kinds of guidance are given to learners in choosing and using variants on the standard order of sentence constituents? 2. Study a coursebook for elementary learners and consider the following: a. Does it teach question forms tense by tense? b. Does it teach that there is a pattern that underlies all question forms? Extension Exercises Index | Chapter 21 - Passive constructions | Possible Answers Exploring English Mentally or on paper, translate the following sentences into a language that you know well so that they sound natural and idiomatic. (If you don't know a language other than English sufficiently well, try to enlist the help of an advanced learner.) Then answer the questions which follow. i.

Is French spoken in Cameroon?

ii.

I need to have my hair cut.

iii.

Be careful you don't get caught.

iv.

When were you born?

v.

Where was your shirt made?

vi.

It is believed that the attacker was a man of about 20, with long, fair hair, worn in a pony tail.

a. Is there one form in the foreign language which is equivalent to the passive in English or are you obliged to use different forms? If you are obliged to use different forms, what determines the way you choose among these? b. Did translating these forms present any particular problems or lead to any particular insights? What? Course materials Choose two coursebooks for learners. Locate those sections in the books which deal with passive constructions, and then answer the following questions. a. Is this topic dealt with in one section or are different aspects of it dealt with separately? b. At what level(s) is the topic dealt with? c. How much attention is paid, respectively, to use and to form? How comprehensively are these covered? d. How clear are the explanations and examples? e. How much opportunity is provided (if at all) for learners to study the use of passive forms in authentic texts? Do these texts include spoken use as well as written? f.

What opportunities are provided for learners to practise using passive constructions in a controlled context (for example, exercises, 'question and answer' activities or dialogue activities)?

g. What opportunities are provided for learners to use passive constructions naturally i.e. where the instructions or the task doesn't dictate that they use these? Exploring how learners use English Arrange to interview two or three learners of English who are at an intermediate level or higher. If possible, ask them to write something in which you would expect passive constructions to be used (for example, how some kind of manufactured goods are produced - perhaps car tyres, socks or books), or ask them to talk about the subject and record them doing so. Ask them some questions about the use of passive constructions in English, for example, •

how widely are these used?

•

when are these used?

•

how are they formed?

Ask them to compare the use of these in English with any equivalent forms in their own language(s).

Ask them how easy or difficult they have found it to: •

understand the use and meaning of these forms.

•

understand the construction of these forms.

•

remember these forms.

•

use these forms in speaking and in writing.

Compare what they have to say about using passive constructions with the way they used them in the initial exercise Extension Exercises Exploring language Listen carefully to two people talking and, if possible, record this so that you can transcribe a section of 20 or 30 lines. Also look at a page or two of some kind of textbook (for example, dealing with history, politics or art). a. List the discourse markers that occur. b. In each case account for their use. c. Are any markers used particularly frequently? d. Where do the various discourse markers occur in the sentences and paragraphs? Course materials Choose a book or part of a book that aims to teach 'conversational English' and one that aims to teach writing skills. a. How much space does each give to the use of discourse markers? b. Is there any overlap in the contents of the two books? c. How precisely are broadly similar markers differentiated in terms of meaning and function? d. How much attention does each book pay to sentence position? e. Are real texts provided for analysis? f.

What opportunities are provided for practice?

Exploring English Choose a newspaper article and a page from a novel which includes a lot of dialogue - or, if you have access to the necessary technology, record someone talking or a conversation which you can then analyse.

a. Identify examples of ellipsis and substitution in these texts. b. Identify any instances where opportunities for using ellipsis and substitution have not been taken, and the language is consequently more 'wordy' than is necessary. c. Identify any instances of ellipsis or substitution which might make understanding difficult for a learner. d. If you are able to do this, choose similar texts in a foreign language that you know well. Identify examples of ellipsis and substitution. What kinds of words are left out? What kinds of words are used as substitutes? How does this compare with ellipsis and substitution in English? Course materials Choose course materials you are familiar with and, if possible, some that you don't know. Analyse and compare them bearing in mind the following questions: a. How easy is it to locate material which deals with the topic of ellipsisand substitution? (Look at the contents page, 'map of the book', index orgrammatical summary.) b. Are ellipsis and substitution treated as an aspect of grammar?vocabulary? reading skills? writing skills? c. At what levels (for example, elementary, intermediate) is attention paidto ellipsis and substitution? d. To what extent is ellipsis and substitution treated as one topic asopposed to separate topics (for example, ellipsis in short answers toquestions, 'situational' ellipsis of pronouns in conversation)? e. What balance is there between sensitisation and analysis, and practice?,/li> f.

Is use made of authentic text?

g. Evaluate the materials in terms of the amount of attention paid toellipsis and substitution and the effectiveness of this treatment

Extension Exercises Exploring English Skim through some pages of any book or magazine to identify adverbial clauses and the use of conjunctions. a. What is the proportion of subordinating conjunctions to coordinating conjunctions? b. What proportion of the subordinate clauses precede (or follow) the main clause? c. Can you identify any sources of difficulty for a learner in reading and understanding the text?

Course materials Choose one or two coursebooks and look at those parts which teach conjunctions and the use of adverbial clauses. a. Are the learners given the opportunity to notice and analyse how these are used in real text? b. Does the material clearly distinguish between conjunctions which can only be used after the main clause, and those which can be used to introduce subordinate clauses before the main clause? c. Does the material help learners to decide what order to use for the main and subordinate clauses where this is a matter of choice? d. What kinds of opportunity for practice are provided? Exploring English Skim through some pages of any book or magazine to identify noun clauses. a. How frequently do they occur? b. What proportion of these clauses use question words, if, whether or that as conjunctions? c. How often is that used (and not used) to introduce 'that clauses'? d. Are there cases where that is left out which might cause difficulties of comprehension for learners of English? (If possible, test this out by showing the text to learners and asking them to identify any difficulties or potential difficulties). Course materials Choose one or two coursebooks and look at those parts which teach noun clauses (you may need to look under reported speech or indirect speech). a. Are the learners guided to notice and analyse how these are used in real text? b. Does the material deal with the use of noun clauses other than in reported speech? c. Does the material help learners to decide whether or not to use (or to leave out) that? d. What kinds of opportunity for practice are provided? Exploring English Choose five or six pages of any written text. Skim through these pages and identify all the examples of relative clauses. a. How often are relative pronouns used in contexts where they could be left out?

b. How often is that used in contexts where another relative pronoun (for example, who, whom, which) could be used? c. Would any of these relative clauses pose particular problems of comprehension for your students? Exploring how learners use English Investigate the difficulties your students have with relative clauses by carrying out one or more of the following tasks. (You may also want to devise and use additional or alternative tasks.) These tasks all presuppose that your students have a reasonable level of English already. a. Ask a class to carry out an exercise in constructing relative clauses. Use materials from the students' coursebooks if they have these. Alternatively, you could ask them to: o

combine sentences to make single sentences containing main and relative clauses (for example, combine the following using a relative clause: I saw a child. The child was crying);

o

complete sentences with gaps (for example, fill the gap with a relative pronoun if one is necessary: I saw a child ______ was crying). Ask them to indicate which answers (if any) they are:

o

sure are correct;

o

particularly unsure about.

Analyse their work to identify any common problems. Interview students to discover how aware they are of their difficulties. Consider to what extent their difficulties are related to the difference between their own language and English. (You can carry out this exercise before a lesson or lessons focusing on relative clauses, and can then repeat it subsequently.) b. Over a period of time analyse the compositions that students in one of your classes write. o

How much do they use relative clauses?

o

How correctly do they use them?

o

Do they avoid using them? Teach a lesson which aims to help them with problems you have identified. Use the term relative clause.

o

What changes in their output do you notice subsequently?

c. Arrange to interview a small group of students. Ask them: o

to write down examples of different kinds of relative clause;

o

to tell you when we use relative clauses and how we construct them;

o

what problems they are aware of in understanding sentences which include relative clauses;

o

what problems they have in using relative clauses.

Course materials Choose materials which aim to teach or practise relative clauses. You may need to look through a coursebook or a series of coursebooks in order to identify those parts which deal with this aspect of grammar. a. What attention does the material pay to the reasons for using relative clauses? b. What help and guidance is provided in understanding relative clauses? c. Are relative clauses introduced bit by bit over a period of time or are they considered as a single, major, topic? d. Does the material make it clear that we use relative clauses in spoken as well as written English? Are there spoken as well as written practice activities? e. How clear are the explanations? f.

How comprehensively are features of relative clauses explored?

g. How much of the material concentrates on aspects of form? h. Does the material deal with defining and non-defining clauses separately from relative clauses? i.

Does the material encourage learners to use relative clauses other than in controlled practice activities? How?

Exploring how learners use English Look for a short section of text which contains a number of non-finite clauses and, as far as possible, a variety of non-finite clause types. (You can choose one of the examples used in section 4 of this chapter.) Use the text with a class of learners with a good level of English, concentrating on general reading skills. When you are satisfied that they understand the main points in the text and much of the key vocabulary, ask them very specific questions to test whether they understand the function of the non-finite clauses in the text, and ask them to write down their answers so that you can collect them in and analyse them. For example, if you used the text about Czech beers on page 374, you might ask: •

What is the subject of turning in line 5?;

•

Does turning refer to past, present or future?

•

Is the use of confined in line 13 active or passive?

Then point out the non-finite clauses and ask the learners to underline them. Ask them whether they see these as presenting any problems of comprehension.

•

What are the problems?

•

How generally do they think we use non-finite clauses?

•

Do they use non-finite clauses in their own English? How much? What types?

•

How accurately and appropriately do they think they use them?

Ask a group of students with a good level of English to write a composition. Prepare the activity so that they are motivated to write, and so that they have sufficient ideas and vocabulary for this not to be too difficult. The aim of this exercise is to analyse what they write to see if and how they use nonfinite clauses, and so you may want to encourage them to do this by reminding them explicitly to use the clauses. Alternatively you may want to do this more indirectly. You can give them a text to read which includes a lot of non-finite clauses, and you can ask them then to put this on one side and to express what the writer said in their own words, adding their own opinions and reactions to the topic. Analyse their compositions to see how much use they make of non-finite clauses. •

What kinds do they use? How appropriately? How many?

•

If you have carried out Exploring how learners use language 1 with the same learners, to what extent are their impressions about how they use non-finite clauses confirmed in these compositions?

Course materials Choose a coursebook or series of coursebooks and identify where non-finite clauses are taught. You may need to look under different headings to find the relevant materials (for example, participle clauses or -ing clauses or infinitives). a. How comprehensively does the material deal with non-finite clauses? b. How systematically does it teach them? c. How much attention is paid to recognition and comprehension? d. How much attention is paid to the functions these clauses express? e. How much attention is paid to appropriacy of use (for example, whether the clause is appropriate in spoken or written English, whether its use is particularly formal)? f.

What opportunities are provided for practice of these clauses?

g. For example, o

Are there exercises which involve combining sentences using a non-finite clause?

o

Are learners asked to write complete texts?

o

What kinds of models or encouragement are they given to use the clauses accurately and appropriately when they write?

Exploring English Skim through some pages of any book or magazine. a. Underline: o

phrases in apposition

o

prepositional phrases

o

participle, infinitive and relative clauses.

b. Classify each of these as defining or non-defining, or other. Are any of these ambiguous cases, i.e. not clearly one or the other? c. What proportion of these phrases are defining, non-defining and ambiguous? d. Are commas used to separate non-defining clauses from the main clause? Course materials Choose one or two coursebooks and look at those parts which teach defining and nondefining clauses and phrases. a. Are the learners encouraged to notice and analyse how these are used in real text? b. Does the material deal with phrases and clauses other than relative clauses? c. What kinds of opportunity for practice are provided? d. How much attention is paid to pronunciation differences in defining and nondefining clauses and phrases? e. Does the material suggest that we always separate non-defining clauses and phrases from the rest of the sentence by a comma, or does it acknowledge that we are flexible about this? f.

Does the material acknowledge that it is not always clear whether phrases are defining or non-defining?

Exploring learners' problems with comprehension Find a piece of authentic written English on a topic that you think will be of interest to one of your classes. Look specifically for a text which includes complex sentences that you think will cause difficulties of comprehension for many of students. After using the text in class for general comprehension purposes and/or discussion of the topic, ask the students to pick out any sentences whose grammar makes them difficult to understand and ask them to explain where the difficulties lie.

If the students don't focus on the sentences you had anticipated, draw their attention to these, and ask them to explain them to you. What insights or knowledge do you gain through carrying out this activity? Exploring how learners use English Choose a class which has already studied and practised aspects of constructing complex sentences in English. In class, prepare the students to write a composition by discussing the topic and providing some help with vocabulary and expressions which will be useful to them. Tell the students that in correcting the composition you will focus in particular on the construction of sentences and will give credit for appropriately constructed complex sentences. Before you collect in the compositions, ask students to mark on the composition in a different coloured pen any sentences or parts of sentences that they either feel they have constructed particularly well, or that they feel particularly unsure about. Ask them to add a written comment to explain their markings. Analyse (some of?) the compositions and consider: a. What specific strengths and difficulties are characteristic of your students' writing? b. What is the relationship between these strengths and difficulties and the particular aspects of sentence construction they have studied? c. What is the relationship between these strengths and difficulties and the way sentences are constructed in their first language(s)? d. How aware do the students seem to be of their strengths and difficulties? e. To what extent is there any correspondence between students who construct sentences well and those who are strong in other aspects of the language? f.

Is there any other way in which you can account for differences between individual students with regard to their ability in this respect?

If possible, ask a colleague or some colleagues to carry out a similar activity so that you can compare and discuss the results. Course materials Choose some course materials which your students use to study English. Consider the following specific questions: a. How much guidance and practice is provided in identifying and unravelling the meaning of complex sentences and badly-expressed sentences? b. How much systematic guidance and practice is provided in identifying the structure of specific kinds of complex sentences?

c. How much guidance and practice is provided in producing these specific features of complex sentences?