receptive skills - avaliação dissertativa

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AVALIAÇÃO DISSERTATIVA 
 Receptive Skills 
 1. What are the implications for teaching reading and listening in an EFL context versus in 
 an ESL context? 
 There are some important points that should be considered regarding receptive skills, such 
 as: 
 - The essential goal of teaching receptive skills is to assist learners in the 
 development of the necessary skills to understand and apply them in spoken or 
 written material. 
 - People often read or listen with a purpose in mind. It might be to get specific 
 information or a general idea about the text or audio. However, sometimes 
 listening and reading are done for pleasure or leisure, so the intensity of our 
 attention is affected by it; 
 - Receptive skills cannot be considered passive skills. When reading and listening, we 
 still use our brains; 
 The great difference between EFL and ESL rests in the context where the language is 
 taught. The first context (EFL) implies that English learning takes place in a country where 
 the main language(s). In effect, the student who learns EFL, usually has more limited access 
 to the language, since school might be possibly the only opportunity for language 
 experience and contact. In contrast, in the second case (ESL), the student learns English in 
 a country where the main language spoken is English. The ESL student will naturally be 
 more exposed to English since it is the main language used in the country they are in. This 
 kind of exposure to the language tends to be more authentic and intense. Due to that, 
 students will use the language in many different moments, increasing the opportunities for 
 input and output. 
 For EFL students, the language school and the teacher are often the only sources or 
 references of the language. It is important to always create constant opportunities to 
 practice and use the language, especially orally. Teachers should develop activities that 
 simulate the real or accurate environment where the language is used - through some 
 legitimate English productions like movies, songs, TV shows, commercials, etc. Additionally, 
 students increase their knowledge about the culture. The teacher is responsible to promote 
 the learning and the motivation to achieve it. It is necessary to share stories and facts so 
 that the learners can engage and become more involved with their learning process 
 beyond the classroom. 
 As an ESL teacher, it is necessary to be aware of the fact that the students' main focus is 
 possibly on learning the language they will need in everyday life. It is also relevant to have 
 discussions about the cultural differences between the students' home countries, besides 
 exposing clearly the values and standards of the country they are in. As a reference for 
 students, you will be responsible to wide their cultural background. 
 2. What are the benefits of using authentic texts and recordings/videos? 
 - Exposing students to real-world English usage, context, and cultural aspects, 
 allowing them to imagine themselves in those situations; 
 - Having evidence of the use of vocabulary and grammar in an authentic context; 
 - Helping students develop a meaningful and deep connection with the language, 
 supporting the whole learning experience; 
 - Creating a creative atmosphere in the classroom, which might inspire and motivate 
 students; 
 - Promoting more interest among students, leading to a more engaging learning 
 experience; 
 - They are easily available and accessible everywhere, especially online, giving 
 students full access to vast resources (news, articles, audio, videos, songs, podcasts, 
 games, movies, documentaries, etc.). 
 3. What are the basic phases of a receptive skills lesson? and 4. What are the aims of each 
 phase? 
 ● Warm-up /Lead-in: to set the scenario for the main task. 
 Aim: to introduce/get the students interested in the topic; to make an explicit link between 
 the topic of the text and students own lives and experiences (i.e. to elicit background 
 knowledge); to help students understand the following activity. 
 ● Pre-Teaching: explanation and demonstration of reading or listening (e.g. 
 vocabulary, predicting, inferring meaning from the context), needed to understand 
 the spoken or the written text; 
 Aim: to enable students to listen/read without being hindered (passive vocabulary) and to 
 complete the comprehension tasks; to build new language (active vocabulary); to help 
 learners understand the listening/reading content; to help establish listening/reading 
 purpose; 
 ● Reading/Listening for Gist: general comprehension of the content (skimming). 
 Aim: To give the students confidence in general comprehension (content based), not 
 language based (vocabulary and grammatical structures); to improve speed and overall 
 comprehension. to give students a purpose for reading or listening; to build confidence 
 among them through communication. 
 ● Listening/Reading for Detail : detailed understanding of the content (scanning). 
 Aim: to give students a more thorough understanding of the reading/listening; to make 
 sure that students can read/listen for more detail focusing on individual pieces of 
 information and meaning; to clarify correct answers; to build confidence. 
 ● Follow-Up : activity that summarizes the text (connects it to the students' life 
 experiences or leads them to react with it). 
 Aim: to allow students to activate the content (personalize) their learning and extend the 
 topic of the reading/listening and practice speaking. 
 5. Which reading strategies are commonly used in each phase? Why? 
 Predicting and Previewing 
 Phase: warm-up 
 Why? To use information or elements from a passage (e.g. title, headings, pictures, etc.) 
 and personal knowledge, to anticipate what the text is about. The teacher introduces the 
 topic to students, preparing them for the next steps. 
 Vocabulary Knowledge 
 Phases: warm-up, presentation, intensive practice 
 Why? The teacher introduces new vocabulary and students will look for specific 
 details/information to connect ideas and words to build meanings and comprehension. 
 Topics of the Text 
 Phases: warm-up, presentation, extensive practice 
 Why? Identify the main idea to help students connect to what they already know. 
 Topics of the Paragraph 
 Phases: warm-up, presentation, extensive practice 
 Why? Identifying the main idea of a group of sentences helps students to focus on the 
 overall information. 
 Patterns of Organization 
 Phase: intensive practice 
 Why? This makes it easier for the brain to comprehend and gather information. 
 Making Inferences 
 Phase: intensive practice 
 Why? After receiving input, students will be able to make suppositions, creating their own 
 conclusions. 
 Summarizing 
 Phases: production, intensive practice 
 Why? Giving a brief statement of a text by identifying the most essential points helps 
 students integrate the main ideas in a meaningful way. 
 Thinking Skills 
 Phases: warm-up, intensive practice 
 Why? Students are allowed to think about and follow the ideas they have read in English. 
 Reading Faster 
 Phase: extensive practice 
 Why? Without focusing on details, students can read more in less time, improving 
 comprehensionand reading abilities. 
 Recognize Writing Styles 
 Phases: warm-up, presentation, intensive practice 
 Why? It helps students to recognize different writing styles (e.g., drama, biography, novel, 
 etc.). 
 SOURCES 
 Brown, H. Douglas, “Principles of Language Learning and Teaching”, 2006. 
 Richards, Jack C.; Rodgers, Theodore S. “Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching”, 
 2001. 
 Scrivener, J. (2011). Learning Teaching. (3rd ed). Oxford: Macmillan Books for Teachers. 
 Notes from classes and material provided by the teacher.