The PPP Approach to Communicative Language Teaching

By: Roger Miller Corral

Academic Coordinator

Universidad Sergio Arboleda

Santa Marta

2016

It is a new approach designed to make English teaching and learning easier

and funnier, based on a series of steps known as the Three P’s (Presentation,

Practice, Production) which takes the students through an interesting and

entertaining process in order to strengthen, reinforce or learn to master the

four basic abilities in any language learning process.

There is certain and limited

participation from the teacher

or the student depending on

each stage.

What is the PPP approach?

Step # 1: Presentation

Presentation involves the building of a

situation requiring natural and logical use of

the new language. With this students know

what they will learn and why.

Features of the presentation:

• Meaningful

• Memorable and realistic examples

• Logical connection

• Context

• Clear models

• Sufficient meaningful repetition

• Staging and fixing

• Briefness and recycling

Step # 2: Practice

Practice is the testing procedure for accuracy, and the

frequency procedure for familiarity with the language.

The goal of this stage is to help the students use the

new language. Pair Work / Group Work

Practice activities need to be:

• Clear and understandable

• Promote confidence

• Attractive (Eye-catching)

• Challenging but within reach (Do not make

it impossible for students to understand or

do it, the simpler the better, so that they

can understand easily, gradually we

increase the difficulty).

Target

Activities that can be included in the practice

Some good examples of effective Practice activities include:

1. Fill in the blanks

2. Complete with the missing words

3. Unscramble the sentences

4. Matching

5. Structuring, among others

Step # 3: Production

The Production Stage is the most important stage of

communicative language teaching. Successful

Production is a clear indication that the language

learners have made the transition from "STUDENTS" of

the key language to "USERS" of the language.

Production involves creating a situation requiring the

language that was introduced in the presentation stage.

These stage can help motivate students to communicate

meaning with the new language.

Activities that can be included in the production

Some good examples of effective Production activities include situational role-plays, debates, discussions, problem-solving, narratives, descriptions, quizzes and games

Use of the PPP on the board (Suggestion)

Presentation Practice Production

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In order to get an optimal result when you

are preparing or teaching a good ESL class,

you should take into consideration the

following variables

Variables to consider when preparing and teaching a class

Learner’s role - USER

Make sure the students know exactly what they

are going to do

Control noise in the classroom

Use group or pair work

Carry out selective checking walking around the classroom and listening to students

Be aware of the time spent on each

activity, timing is key to reach success in a

class (Time management)

Be aware of the seating arrangement (Space

management, next slide)

Provide any necessary feedback

Teacher’s roles in a class (next slide)

Effective Classroom Seating Arrangements

Factors That Influence Classroom Configurations: 1. Classroom Size and Shape 2. Distractions (Air-corditioner) 3. Student Age and Size 4. Teaching Style & Objectives

Who do you want to be the focus of the class?

Teacher-Centered Class: If your class is going to be lecture- and presentation-

centric, use a configuration where all students can see you and the lectern.

Learner-Centered Class: With these classes, student discussion and group work are

paramount. Find a seating arrangement that encourages students to interact with

one another.

Both: Many educators adhere to the belief that a balanced education has a healthy

mixture of both teacher-centered presentations and student-based discussions and

work. Look for seating layouts that are flexible and functional.

How do you want the class to interact?

Minimal: Interaction flows from the teacher to the student. Student-to-student

discussion is scarce. Testing and individual work also dominate the class.

Small Groups: Students interact in pairs or small groups.

Large Groups: Students engage in group discussions and lessons with the entire class.

What are your learning objectives?

Knowledge: Students will learn and understand the content of the coursework. Use

configurations that support independent activity and emphasize focus on content.

Skill Growth: Students develop a certain set of skills during this course. For skills that rely

on cooperation, communication, teamwork, reflection, etc., layouts that encourage group

work and discussion are preferred. For more independent skills like troubleshooting,

analysis, listening, etc., look for configurations that support independent work and

minimize distractions.

Most Common classroom Configurations / Classroom layouts

Others 1. Circle, teacher

out 2. Circle, teacher

inside 3. Boarding

meetings 4. Mix and mingle

The roles of the teacher in a class

Controller/Conductor: The teacher acts as a controller at the presentation stage, at the practice stage and in lockstep activities. • At the presentation stage ,the teacher checks that all the students have

understood the form and meaning (not necessarily in Spanish) of the new language item.

• At the practice stage, the teacher elicits responses, provides cues and drills, works out the instructions for the activities and check that the students are doing the activity in a proper way.

Assessor: The teacher will correct students’ mistakes at the practice stage. He/She should also assess how well they are performing. On the other hand, the teacher will encourage self-assessment. In this way the students will become more responsible, autonomous and independent, and they will get more involved in the learning process, which is very important, as it is the center of learning and a pint of reference. The teacher must also assess his/her own work as a teacher.

Organizer: The success of many activities depends on good organization and on the students knowing exactly what they have to do. The main aim of the teacher when organizing an activity is to give clear instructions and get the activity going. Prompter: The teacher will encourage the students to participate or make suggestions about how to carry out an activity when there is a silence or when they do not know what to do next. Participant: The teacher will sometimes act as a participant. This will contribute to create a pleasant atmosphere in the class, and will also give the students the opportunity of practicing English with someone that speaks it better than they do. Resource: The teacher should always be willing to offer help if necessary.

Learner’s role

One of the major changes in foreign language teaching refers to the learner’s role,

whereas in the traditional foreign language methods the learner assumed a passive role,

the teacher being the focus, in the communicative approach the learner plays an active

role and is responsible for his/her own learning.

Resources and material the D.I.U.S.A has to help teachers make

their classes more interesting, more accurate and better