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/ .. f,*\~· ~··· M. Celce-Murcia (ed.). (1991). Teaching English as a second or foreign language. IV Rowley, MA: Newbury House. \ 1,), I'>· ------~-------------------------- I Guidelines for Classroom Language Teaching1 Graham Crookes and Craig Chaudron INTRODUCTION into the classroom and presented by the teacher to students. 3 Or, if language is not Knowledge concerning what goes on in presented, then a skill, a learning strategy, or :i the classroom between teacher and students some aspect of the use of language will be set ~ ·: l .I is obviously the core area of information per out for consideration. Second, that which has I· taining to formal second language (SL) teach been presented must in addition be learned, d ing and learning. Although knowledge of out and the teacher has to arrange matters and J ! ' ' of-class aspects of SL teaching such as needs events to bring this about. The teacher selects analysis, curriculum design, lesson planning, learning activities and facilitates their utiliza materials design, and evaluation are neces tion. Third, by the very nature of learning, sary for a truly professional operation, at information must be provided to learners times when these must be dealt with mini concerning their success-the teacher must mally (as when teaching under difficult cir provide knowledge of results, i.e., correction, cumstances), so long as there is a teacher or feedback, to the students. Fourth, all of working with a group of students, the essence these processes take place in a social milieu, of classropm SL teaching is present, and SL and because of the way language functions learning is possible. between individuals, the processes cannot be In this chapter we identify and discuss totally separated from the social climate some of the more important characteristics which develops among students and between and principles of this interaction, most of teacher and students. Finally, although the which derive from a logical analysis of the processes immediately adjacent in time to 2 classroom teaching situation. Our concep the lesson (teachers' lesson planning and tion of the teacher is someone faced with a teachers' evaluation of the students' success, great number of decisions to be made at every i.e., testing) are dealt with elsewhere in this moment of classroom instruction. In some book, one more process which is very close cases, research findings can guide those deci to the lesson itself will be discussed here. sions. In many others, research can inform Conscientious SL teachers usually come out professional judgment, but decisions must be of a class asking themselves "how the class based on feel rather than knowledge. went"-which is to say, they engage in · However, the decision will -be aided by a a process of self-evaluation. We believe knowledge of the conceptually determined that this is a vital process for professional range of alternatives available. self-development, and one which needs When a second language is to be taught, to be explicitly structured into Sl teach a number of major steps must be taken, in ers' routines. We include it here as it is terms of which the chapter is organized. First, an integral part of efficient SL classroom elements of the language must be brought skills. 46 LANGUAGE PRESENTATION implies the importance of practice-that is, output, rather than mere input (cf. Harmer's Meta-planning for Lesson 1983 "balanced activities" approach). Objectives Teachers thus need to remain aware that they are not in the classroom to fill up the time Which elements of a lesson are under with the sound of their own voices, but to taken depends on the objectives a teacher has arrange matters so that their students do the in mind to be attained by the lesson. (Such talking (or writing, or listening). Particular~y objectives need not be the ·orthodox 11behav in EFL rather than ESL situations, class time is ioral" objectives, it should be noted.) They so valuable that we believe the teacher are then the result of lesson planning, which should get offstage as soon as possible consis Purgason's chapter discusses. However, in tent with an adequate presentation of mate general terms, the first element of a lesson is rial, and the giving of clear instructions for often the first component of the traditional some practice exercise. (See the section "present-practice-evaluate" sequence which "Class organization.") constitutes many teachers' understanding of Assuming that the instructor decides that basic lesson structure, both within and out a given teaching objective calls for some sup side SL teaching. port in the way of materials, what then? The Though this is not always necessary, par major resource is of course the textbook. In ticularly if the lesson is intended mainly to addition, other teaching aids fall into two practice material already partially learned, let categories (Celce-Murcia, 1979): nontechni us assume for present purposes that a teacher cal aids, and technical (projected) aids (not has selected a particular element of language, counting the students themselves, who can of or aspect of language learning, to be pre course play a stimulating role in the presen sented as the first major stage of a class pe- · tation stages of the lesson). The former are the riod. There are then two main classes of chalkboard, realia, flashcards, magazine pic choices to be made: those concerning the tures, charts, and so on. The latter include the physical characteristics of the presentation, overhead projector, audiotape, and video that is, materials, use of audiovisual (AV) tape. Both types of aids are considered else equipment, etc., and those concerning the where in this book (see the chapter by Brin conceptual aspects of the presentation, i.e., ton), so we will not discuss them in detail deductive or inductive, via rules or analogies, here, except to point out that although it is and so on. The former are considered in the obvious that, for example, visual support of a following section, the latter in the section presentation can aid its comprehensibility, by after that. contextualizing the language involved, in most cases the utility of such aidS''appears rarely to have been thought important Modalities (Materials, AV) enough for SL-related investigation (as op The increasing quantity and quality of posed to prescription). Whether or not to use published ESL materials means that teachers them, therefore, is usually a matter for indi are less and less thrown entirely on their own vidual judgment, supported by general con resources, which is undoubtedly a good siderations. Does their use in a given circum thing. 4 Without materials, the average stance aid comprehension, for example; does teacher is probably even more likely than it stimulate more student talk than would usual to succumb to the tendency to domi have otherwise occurred; above all, does nate the classroom by taking up class time. their use constitute an efficient use of class 5 However, there is increasing recognition of time, particularly taking into account the SL learning as a process of skill acquisition teacher time required to produce them, or the (O'Malley, Chamot, & Walker, 1987), which logistics of setting up and later removing the Crookes and Chaudron: Guidelines for Classroom Language Teaching 47 .''f1ill1 . • ~! equipment? It is also a matter where teachers teacher circulates and checks individual per in general would benefit from some careful formance. The point is that teachers have full teacher investigation and report concerning right and responsibility to utilize the material success and failure in practice. in whatever way seems appropriate. How Perhaps because of the complexity of the ever, we hope they will make use of the find question, a similar research vacuum sur ings that SL research suggests can be applied rounds the question of how actually to use a here. textbook. For the untrained teacher, a good For example, recent work has stressed the textbook can stand for a syllabus and training role of attention and awareness in SL learning program, while an experienced teacher will (Schmidt, 1990), and the importance of draw not hesitate to use the text as an aid, adopting ing the learner's attention to certain charac parts, adapting other elements (d. Stevick, teristics of the language which might other 1971 ), and dispensing with it completely un wise be missed (Rutherford, 1987). It follows, der some circumstances. The utility of the therefore, that the teacher should usually average textbook for a typical present-day present the text or illustrative material with an ESL course is normally unquestioned (but see immediate focus on what the target points All wright, 1981, and O'Nei II, 1982, for po are. On the other hand, research over the last sitions on both sides of this point). The com decade has made clear that SL learning does plexity of most textbooks defies specific sug not take place in a simple linear fashion, with gestions, but we would urge teachers to one linguistic element simply being added to remember that most textbooks are the prod the next. In the syntactic domain, learners uct of the pressures of the market, as imper proceed at different speeds through fairly reg fectly interpreted through the interaction of ular sequences (Pienemann & Johnston, publisher and materials writer. As Ariew 1987, inter alia}. In particular, it is unlikely (1982) mentions, this is why texts (in a given that structural target points will be internal period of time) are often very much alike; ized by many in the class after one exposure. market pressures, however, are not the same Consequently, the presentation phase with as educaJional pressures. What sells may not regard to a particular aspect of language be what works; what works may not neces should almost certainly come up on other sarily have a format which book-publishing occasions, in other lessons.