Risk – Taking

In the last chapter we saw that one of the prominent characteristics of good language learners, according to Rubin and Thompson (1982), was the ability to make intelligent guesses. Impulsivity was also described as a style that could have positive effects on language success. And we have just seen that inhibitions, or building defenses around our egos, can be a detriment. These factors suggest that risk-taking is an important characteristic of suc­cessful learning of a second language. Learners have to be able to gamble a bit, to be willing to try out hunches about the language and take the risk of being wrong.

Anxiety Intricately intertwined with self-esteem and inhibition and risk-taking construct of anxiety plays an important affective role in second language acquisition. Even though we all know what anxiety is and we all have experienced feelings of anxiousness, anxiety is still not easy to define in a simple sentence. It is associated with feelings of uneasiness, frustration, self-doubt, apprehension, or worry (Scovel 1978: 134).

In common terminology, empathy is the process of "putting yourself into someone else's shoes," of reaching beyond the self to understand what another person is feeling. It is probably the major factor in the harmonious coexistence of individuals in society. Language is one of the primary means of empathizing, but nonverbal communication facilitates the process of empathizing and must not be overlooked

32 Вопрос

Before reading

1 Arouse interest and help prediction

Encourage the students to think about and discuss what they are going to read. Or create a 'need to know' by telling them how the reading fits in with a later activity they are going to do.

Don't worry about grammar 'mistakes' during these lead-in activities - the aim here is not to focus on grammatical accuracy but rather to interest and motivate the students to read.

Use such prompts as realia, visuals, references to your or the students' experiences, and questions to arouse the students' interest, to activate any knowledge they have about the topic and to help them predict what they are going to read.

Use any clues afforded by the text layout and format. Is it a magazine article, a letter, a theatre programme, etc? Are there any photographs or pictures accompanying the text that can help the students predict what the text is about?

2 Teach any key words

Consider whether there are any key words which you want to teach before the students read the text. As in a listening text the context makes the task of understanding individual words and expressions easier. However, unlike a listening text, the students can see the words so it is not as difficult for them to identify proper names or to take the time to puzzle out the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary.

First reading

1 Set a task to assist overall understanding

This can be in the form of two or three gist questions, or a task.

Example

Choose a headline from a choice of three logo with the article.

Don't make the completion of the task dependent on the students reading in too much detail.

Give advice about the type of strategies the students might employ.

Example

Don't try to read everything. Just read the first sentence in each paragraph and try to get a general idea of what it's about so that you can answer the questions on the board/choose an appropriate headline. You have two minutes.

Chapter 5 Developing skills and strategies

2 The students read the text

You may want to give a time limit - this may discourage students from reading for detail when they should be skimming. On the other hand you may want to give them as much time as they feel they need.

3 Feedback

Ask the students to discuss their answers and opinions in pairs or groups before you elicit them.

Second reading

1 Set a task to focus on more detailed understanding

Whether you are using material from published materials or devising your own activities, try to vary the tasks - including tasks which require the students to 'read between the lines' as well as answer questions which call for factual answers.

2 The students read the text for the second time

Again, give them some idea of how long they have to do this and how they should set about the task.

Example

You have three minutes; don't forget to look carefully at the linking words - they'll help you work out the order of events in the story. You can use your dictionaries if you wish.

3 Feedback

Again, encourage the students to work together before eliciting their responses.

Follow-up

You will probably want to encourage a personal response to the text from your students.

Example

What did you think of the man's idea? Would you have done that?

In this way reading can be naturally integrated with speaking practice.

It may be appropriate for you to read, or to play a recording of all or part of the text so the students read and listen simultaneously. By doing so the sounds and spelling of the language are linked. If the resources are available students often enjoy doing this as a self-access activity. Or you could use part of the text as a dictation activity, perhaps as a revision activity in a later lesson.

As with a listening text, you may want to go on to use a reading text as a context for the introduction or practice of specific language; a point of grammar or pronunciation, a functional or vocabulary focus. (See Chapter 6: Presenting and practising language.)