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FOCUS ON THE LEARNER TEACHING METHODS – AN UPPER-INTERMEDIATE CLASS CASE

STUDY

Laura Rebeca Steigelbauer Lecturer, PhD, ”Vasile Goldiș” Western University of Arad

Abstract:The aim of this scientific paper is to investigate the learning context and to assess the needs of an English learning Upper-Intermediate class in the first two weeks of teaching and to act on this idea by

finding appropriate language support material, which correlates to their needs. Furthermore, this paper

intends to show awareness of how a learner‟s background, previous learning experience and learning style(s) affect learning. It offers hands-on material used during the class. This material and the results it

brought after the lesson are also being analysed in this scientific research.

Keywords: Learner, authentic material, case study, previous language awarenes, learning style

Part 1: Background and Procedure Analysis

The information provided below comes after the first two weeks spent with an Upper-

Intermediate group during an intensive CELTA Course, without having a native common

language (the learners were Hungarians). The participants were tested before the course by the

staff from International House Budapest. The group analysed was a very dynamic and

interesting group. Their level of English varied a little but not too much, making the classes go

according to the Lesson plan. The average age was 55+ with a few around the age of 30. Being a

diverse group, their interests were very different: from a lady who makes soap to a hunter. Their

reasons for learning English were mostly intrinsic integrative with a few exceptions of intrinsic

instrumental.

Most of them liked all the activities, being already used to this method of teaching as they

have previously participated in these kind of sessions, but had a tendency to like more the pair

work than the individual because they could talk more. The majority had a visual tendency but

they were also responsive to auditory input sessions. Regarding the kinesthetic learning style,

there could be seen a reticence coming from the 55+ group, but when it came to games they were

all very competitive. It came as a surprise to experience their willingness to play educational

games, sometimes they seemed more impatient than children.

On the other hand, all along the two weeks, they were intolerant to ambiguity, wanting to

have everything clear, thus asking all the necessary questions. Coming from a diverse

environment and having a vast life experience there could be faced multiple intelligences, which

could be seen during the classes but especially during the Follow-ups and Freer Practice.

Moreover, this group managed to make themselves clear most of the time. However,

there were 2-3 people who had some difficulty in expressing their view in the Follow-up or Freer

Practice but only because they were shy or introvert. Along the two weeks they were very

receptive, always open to the challenge. They knew how to brighten our classes.

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Fluency in speaking was an issue for a few of them noticed more during the Follow-up or

Freer Practice, when it came to expressing their opinion in public, rather than during the

Controlled Practice. When they were in pairs they talked on and on, even the shy ones. They

engaged in the topics even when we thought they might not be relevant to them. Sometimes (not

during a particular stage) the appropriacy of the language was off the topic but this happened

only because they tried to be funny and lighten up the room.

Furthermore, it could be noticed that they had difficulties in managing their time

carefully for the gist task, often wanting to read in detail just to find out more about the topic.

Sometimes, this happened just because they liked the topic very much or it was their domain of

expertise.

Moreover, regarding the listening skill tasks, it was clear that some had difficulties as

they are hearing impaired or sometimes the listening was too long.

Concerning the speaking part, it was unanimously agreed they managed it very well,

always knowing what to talk about with almost anybody during all stages of the lesson, although

some, always sat next to the same person making it easy and confortable to talk to the same

person during the pair work time. The writing part was not approached too much these two

weeks.

Part 2: Strengths and Weaknesses of the Group – Case Study

Grammar Strengths

All along the two weeks there were many moments when the learners interventions came as a

surprise from a grammar point of view. A relevant example could be when we were having a

discussion about appearance and all of a sudden, one person (a man), a risk taker, wanted to

express his opinion (without me asking their personal opinion in particular): I would choose a

lady who looked better than others. Taking into consideration the complex and correct grammar

structure he used (would + past simple) it can be concluded that even if it was a conventional

environment (classroom) the 55+ learner felt relaxed and confident enough to express his

personal view. Sometimes this can hardly be spotted in classes with younger students, as they

might be ashamed and afraid of what their colleagues might think of them.

Vocabulary Strengths

Moving on to vocabulary, the two weeks spent with this group offered a great opportunity to

really experience how a meaning of a word/phrase can be conveyed without having a common

language (the professors were not able to jump to their native language if they did not manage to

make themselves understood, as there was not common language). The professors needed to

make use of the CCQs (Concept Checking Questions) in order to check the understanding of the

meaning. Sometimes it was needed to underline the form and the pronunciation of the

word/phrase or even the phonology. It was surprising to find out they were quite fond of the

phonetic alphabet.

Just to give an example of their language proficiency, in one lesson where the topic was fashion,

at the Orientation Stage, a non-risk taker, when asked (she spoke only on request, she never

talked without being asked) what she thought about fashion, she came up with: I am not up to

date with fashion, as I am not a fashionable person. Without prior teaching of the phrase/word:

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to be up to date with/fashionable, the appropriacy of the vocabulary used is above the group

level. Hence, there were surprises in the least expected moments and from the least expected

people. This conclusion is very valuable when it comes to organizing the Lesson Plan, namely

the Anticipated Problems and Solutions Part – expect the unexpected and try to deal with it in the

most professional possible way.

Pronunciation Strengths

There are a lot of pronunciation stereotypes when it comes to teaching a Hungarian group of

Learners but during the Pre-Teach stage one of the students, namely a risk taker, politely asked: I

don‟t want to misunderstand the meaning of this word, but can I also use this word...?

I found the stress on misunderstand (correctly pronounced mɪsʌndəstænd) was well placed

taking into consideration that sometimes mother tongue can interfere with the accent, as in

―Hungarian, stress (manifested by a slight increase in intensity) falls on the first syllable on each

word‖1

Pitfalls Encountered

―It would be safe to say that the better command of a Foreign Language the learners have, the

more efficiently they can use it as a means of communication; consequently, the less likely they

are to experience (..) feelings of inadequacy precipitating anxiety‖2 However, when it came to

grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation there were noticed a few drawbacks, caused either by

mother tongue influence or by the anxiety created by a public speech.

Grammar Weakness

What the Student said (wrote): “We don’t have so many free time at this age”.

What is wrong? Wrong form with uncountable noun. It should have

been “much free time”

Why did the student make the mistake? The student might have forgotten the difference

between many and much and when to use them, and

probably in speaking, willing to express his opinion

quickly overlooked the rule.

Vocabulary Weaknesses

What the Student said (wrote): “For the mens today it is very important how a

woman looks”

What is wrong? Wrong form of irregular plural. It should have been

men.

Why did the student make the mistake? The student might have forgotten the special nouns

with irregular plural. He probably made a slip while

speaking.

1 Ann M. Peters, ―Language Typology, Prosody and the Acquisition of Grammatical Morphemes‖, published in Dan Isaac Slobin

(ed.) The Crosslinguistic Study of Language Acquisition: Vol: 5 Expanding the Contexts, p.142 2 Tóth, Zsouzsa ―Foreign language anxiety and advanced EFL learners: An interview study‖ published in Working Papers in Language Pedagogy, vol 5, pp 40

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Pronunciation Weaknesses

What the Student said (wrote): It is excellent to find someone with the same hobby.

What is wrong? Wrong stress on the second syllabus.

Why did the student make the mistake? The student might be influenced by his mother

tongue stressing the second syllabus instead of the

first. This is a common problem with Hungarian

native speakers.

Part 3: Helping the Learner - In-depth Analysis – problem possible solution

In order to exemplify a student-centeredness attitude and sensitivity towards the learner I would

like to offer possible teaching solutions for two of the three above-mentioned weaknesses.

The first weakness taken into discussion is the one that belongs to Vocabulary: wrong irregular

plural.

This activity is intended to provide the students with a refresher stage on noun plurals with a

focus on the irregular ones.

Indications:

First individual work and after that with the person on their left check the right answers. I would

give them an exercise in which they should put the noun in brackets into plural. After they check

in pairs, we check together. For the Freer Practice activity I would change/split them into a

group of 3-4 (it depends on their number) and play the game Pelmanism. (See it exemplified in

Annex 2) Take 10 of the irregular plurals from the above exercise and write their singular in one

pile and their plural in another pile. The teams take turns in remembering the matching.

Rationale:

I would choose to do this activity because in this way they refresh their knowledge about the

plurals and have a chance to check it with their partners before checking it in public. Taking into

consideration the fact that they like challenges and games I consider this game to be adequate for

this lesson, as both the visual part and the team work are purposeful.

The second weakness taken into discussion is the one that belongs to Pronunciation: wrong

stressed syllable

This activity is intended to provide the students with the necessary knowledge of how to

distinguish between stress patterns in adjectives (on the first or second syllable).

Indications:

First individual work and after that with the person on their left check the right answers. I would

give them 10 words with the stress either on the first or second syllabus. (5 for each). On a

specific paper they should put them into 2 columns according to the stress of the word. (See

Annex 1) After they check, we check together and I drill the words. For the Freer Practice I

would change pairs (move only one person clockwise and tell them to choose the person on their

right). With the new partner, using the words from the prior exercise they should ask each other

in turns the following question: ―Would you prefer to be in a …….. or in a ………. situation?

Why? “ After 5-7 minutes I would like to have an Open Class Feedback with the

funniest/strangest answers.

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Rationale:

I would choose this type of activity because it encourages them to talk to each other using the

learned pronunciation. I would not move them too much as they are not too kinesthetic (the 55+

Upper-Intermediate group) but I would make use of their willingness for the auditory style. I

would choose to work in pairs and not in larger groups because in this way both the risk takers

and the shy ones would have a chance to talk. I think that the first activity is important as in this

way they get accustomed to the word and to its pronunciation (using the drilling)

Annex 1. (2) Pronunciation

Put the following words into the correct column: disgusting, excellent, interesting, confusing,

unhappy, beautiful, stressful, unfriendly, informal, serious.

Stress Stress

1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

4. 4.

5. 5.

Annex 2. (1) Vocabulary (large print – Times New Roman 28+)

MAN MEN

WOMAN WOMEN

CHILD CHILDREN

OPPORTUNITY OPPORTUNITIES

LEAF LEAVES

GLASS GLASSES

FORK FORKS

SPECIES SPECIES

PERSON PEOPLE

SERIES SERIES

Conclusion

After a two week daily encounter with a 55+ Hungarian Upper-Intermediate Learner Group and

after clearly analyzing their background, with information on their preferred language styles and

motivation, some of their strengths and weaknesses could be outlined. This brief research is

meant to come as a support or as a method of approach for those interested in analyzing their

students‘ needs, strengths and weaknesses and more important than that, is meant for those

teachers who are willing to find the right activities in order to counteract the pitfalls and to

enhance the pros.

A good awareness of the group leads to a relevant choice of activities.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Cambridge Dictionary – online http://dictionary.cambridge.org/

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2. Murphy, Raymond, Essential Grammar in Use published by Cambridge University Press,

2005

3. Nunan, David, Language Teaching Methodology, published by Prentice Hall, New York,

1991

4. Nunan, David, Learner Centered English Language Education published by Routledge, New

York, 2013

5. Peters, Ann M., ―Language Typology, Prosody and the Acquisition of Grammatical

Morphemes‖, published in Dan Isaac Slobin (ed.) The Crosslinguistic Study of Language

Acquisition: Vol: 5 Expanding the Contexts, Psychology Press, New York and London 1997

6. Powell, Debra, Grammar Practice for Upper Students, published by Pearson Longman, 2010

7. Swan, Michael, Practical English Usage, published by Oxford University Press, 2009

8. Tóth, Zsouzsa ―Foreign language anxiety and advanced EFL learners: An interview study‖

published in Working Papers in Language Pedagogy, ISSN 1789-3607, Budapest 2011, pp

39-57