Essentials Of Conversation

Essentials of Teaching Conversation

TESOL 2010, Boston

Kitty Purgason, Ph.D.

Department of Applied Linguistics and TESOL,Cook School of Intercultural Studies,

Biola University, California

Overview of the PCI

1. Topics and prompts2. Language and background knowledge3. Class management4. Feedback5. Other issues, including teaching beginners6. Questions

Topics

1. What do your students like to talk about?

2. Group discussion Which topics have been especially successful

with your students? Why? Which topics have been failures? What factors should we consider when we

choose topics?

Topics

3. With your partner, think of as many specific questions related to your topic as possible.

Topics posted around the room are: friendship, success, men & women, parents & children, young & old, health, learning a language, appearance & beauty, cross-cultural communication, crime & punishment, food, jobs & work, environment, heroes, faith & religion, personality, dreams, news, technology, regrets, making decisions

Topics

Example: money

How important is money to you? Is your view similar to or different from other people in your community?

What are the top three things you spend money on?

Is it important for you to save money? If so, what are you saving for?

Do you borrow money? Why or why not? Do you lend money? Why or why not?

Topics Do you think rich people should engage in

philanthropy? If so, what causes should they support or how should they do it? (Think, for example, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, or the Aga Khan Foundation.)

Do you think everyone should engage in charitable giving? If you give away money, how do you do it (for example, within your extended family, to a religious institution, to an international organization like UNICEF or the Red Cross/Crescent)?

How would you define “rich”? “poor”? Do these definitions vary according to the place or time we’re considering?

Topics What are some important things that we need

money for? What are some important things that money can’t buy?

In your family, who makes decisions about money? Who pays the bills?

What are some common things people waste money on?

What is a common proverb or saying about money in your culture?

Respond to this quotation, “The love of money is the root of all evil.”

Topics Respond to this cartoon:

Topics

With your partner, go to one of the topics around the room.

1. Rate the topic in terms of general suitability for your students. 1 = good topic, 2 = it depends,

3 = would probably not use

2. Think of as many specific questions as you can to prompt good conversation about this topic. Cluster the questions or identify them as good for young people/adults and easy/hard.

Compare three ways of doing conversation:

1. T asks whole class a question.

2. Ss discuss questions in small groups.

3. Class does a conversation-based task.

Topics, prompts

Issues

1. Interest: Intellectual, emotional, cultural, political considerations

2. What the students bring—cognitive development, background knowledge, linguistic proficiency

3. Variety over the course of the week, term

4. Element of student choice

5. Details in the prompt

Language and Conversation

How can we help students improve their language in terms of:

Accuracy? Fluency, automaticity? Complexity, depth?

Language instruction, scaffolding, focus on form

Example: Conversation Cards (Gifts)

Remember:give / bring a gift to someone

give / bring someone a gift

people give each other gifts

people exchange gifts with each other

receive a gift from someone

Example: Conversation Cards (Gifts)

Mingle with people, walking around the room. Find someone to talk to.

Take turns. First, A looks at her question card, reads it out loud, and answers it. Then, it’s B’s turn to read her question and answer it. Feel free to ask each other for more details.

When you’re finished, walk around and find someone else to talk to. Try to talk to at least three people.

Language and Conversation

Debrief:

What was the effect of repetition?

Did the language-focused preparation at the beginning help?

Example of lexical and collocations preview: Philanthropy, philanthropic, engage in philanthropy Charity, charitable, charitable giving, accept charity, live on

charity Give money away to ___ Lend (give) money to ___ Borrow (take) money from ___ Spend money on ___ Save money for ___ Owe money to ___ Make/earn money (by ____ing) Live on $500 a month Waste money on ___; ____ is a waste of money

Language and Conversation

Example of implicit language instruction:

A checklist or rating sheet that prompts conversation

Ss look at it for homework and learn new words

Language and Other Background

Note: May need to teach not only lexical and grammatical

features, but also conversational functions and cultural moves.

Don’t overwhelm Ss with too much language.

Building background knowledge, providing ideas to talk about:

Read an article and then talk Listen to a lecture and then talk Watch a movie and then talk

Managing a Conversation Class

Experience #1 - Talk Tokens

Everyone in the group should contribute ideas. The Token Manager will reward participation by giving students a coin (or chip) when they speak. If someone has a lot of coins, they should wait and let other people speak. If someone doesn’t have any coins, encourage them to speak.

Managing a Conversation Class

Experience #1Discuss: What problems with conversation do my Ss

have? What keeps them from being able to converse

well in English? What are some linguistic problems? What are some problems based on culture? What are some problems due to personality?

Managing a Conversation Class

Experience #2 – Think, Pair, ShareStep 1 – each person gets a piece of colored

paper. Your paper has a problem teachers of conversation face. Think of some solutions.

Step 2 – Find a partner with a different color of paper. Share your problem and solution.

Step 3 – Get in a group of 6 (different colors) and share your problems and solutions.

Managing a Conversation Class

Experience #3 – Conversation Ball

Get in a circle.

Think of a question you want to ask someone in the circle. Throw the ball to them. Ask your question.

Focus of the questions: about our experience at the TESOL conference

For example, “Is this your first convention?” “What was the best session you attended?” etc.

Managing a Conversation Class

Various formats Small group Conversation cards

Double line or circle Mingle (cocktail party)

Think – pair – share Debate Hot seat, interview, press conference Conversation ball Chart Discussion squares

Managing a Conversation Class

Various types of activity or task Share an opinion or experience Prioritize a list Rate Choose Plan Solve a problem Agree or disagree Respond to quote, picture, cartoon

Managing a Conversation Class

Choosing a format and task type Does it match your objectives? Does it fit the Ss’ proficiency? Is it feasible within your constraints? Have you included enough variety?

Managing a Conversation Class

Getting students to do more Roles within the group

Leader Secretary Reporter Time-keeper English monitor Materials person/runner Talk token person Reader

More student autonomy (later)

Feedback in a Conversation Class

Experience

Small groups Why do students use their first language? What are some ways we can encourage

them to use English only?

Feedback in a Conversation Class

Student autonomy

Help students manage the conversation so you can focus on feedback

Train them to lead the group with phrases to: Introduce the topic Make transitions Reinforce a comment Control excess talk Elicit comments from quiet students Direct the flow of talk Clarify

Student autonomy

Conversation with beginners

1. Oral drills – familiarize Ss with structure and vocabulary

2. Charts – familiarize Ss with Q-A routines

3. Question cards – more Q-A routines

4. Group discussion + report

Simple present to describe everyday activities: drill

Alma is a nurse. She has a strange schedule.

She _________ late.

Remember: verb+s

Simple present to describe everyday activities: charts

Take out a piece of paper and copy this:

Turn to people nearby and ask them “What time do you get up?” etc. Write their name and answer on your chart.

Simple present to describe everyday activities: question cards

Question cards: double line

Row 1: turn around to face the row behind you.

Row 2: stay facing forward.

Odd numbered rows: turn around

Even numbered rows: face forward

You should look like this:

∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∧∧∧∧∧∧∧∧∧∧

∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∨∧∧∧∧∧∧∧∧∧∧

Question cards: double line

People in even-numbered rows have a question card. Read it to your partner opposite you.

Partner, answer it.

∨

∧Never. I drive.

How often doyou walk towork?

Question cards: double line

People in even-numbered rows with cards (facing forwards): When you hear the time signal, give your card to the person on your right.

Person at the end: give your card to the runner who will take it to the other side.

∧ ∧ ∧ ∧ ∧ ∧ ∧ ∧

Question cards: double line

When you hear the double-time signal, give your card to the person in front of you. Now you can switch roles for asking and answering.

Simple present to describe everyday activities: small group discussion

What is something you rarely do?

What is something you often do?

If you can, talk about why.

Be ready to tell the class something about a classmate in your group.

Other Issues, Troubleshooting, Questions

kitty.purgason@biola.edu

For handouts and ppt slides, go to:

http://tesolresourcesfromkitty.pbworks.com

Group Discussion Squares

Work in groups of 4

x x x x x x x x x xx x x x x x x x x xx x x x x x x x x xx x x x x x x x x x

Group Discussion Squares

Fold a piece of paper into quarters. Write your name in one quarter. Write the names of the other people in your group in the other quarters.

name name

name name

Group Discussion Squares

Think of a meal which had special significance to you and prepare to tell your group about it.

In your square, you can write three or four words to help you remember what to say.

After you listen to your group

members, be prepared to tell

the whole class what you heard.

You may write no more than

four words for each person to

help you remember what to say.

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Group Discussion Squares• Make the sure the question is a good one for

your students: • Interest• Proficiency

• Why use the squares? Why

write cues?• Why not allow more writing?• Why have a “report” phase?

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