Resources for teaching listening

In the classroom there are three types of resources for teaching listening:

1. Live speech (teacher’s speech (another teacher or guest’s speech), face–to-face interaction of learners in interviews, dialogues, etc.) Teacher should:

• Speak foreign language a lot during the lesson

• Pronounce sounds and words correctly

• Use short sentences with pauses in speech

• Speak with intonation

• Stress important words

• Use gestures, mime and visual aids (objects, charts, pictures, etc.)

2. Recordings on CD, tape or MP3 players as a part of a coursebook or as additional (authentic) material (announcements, radio and television programs, news broadcasts, weather forecasts, phone conversations, dialogues, songs, etc.)

Most of the recordings that coursebooks have are made in studios and contain adapted material. So they are not natural, authentic (e.g. speech is slower, words and grammatical structures are simplified). It is good at the beginning level: learners understand words, meaning of the listening material and feel comfortable.

But authentic listening is very important. It brings real life language and situations from outside classroom. Some authentic material should be used even at the beginning level and increased with each level. Learners of higher levels should be given listening material that is beyond their productive level. They should guess unknown words, do some activities and try to speak. In general, learners themselves must be ready for authentic listening and not afraid of difficulties.

3. Video materials:

- without sound: learners discuss what they see and what the characters are saying, then listen and check

- audio without the picture: learners listen, imagine what they listen, listen again with picture and check

- freeze frame: teacher freezepicture, learners predict what will happen then listen and check

The content of teaching speaking

Speaking is a process of speech production.

Reasons for speaking:

To take part in conversations, provide information, give instructions, express oneself, request, so on.

In Foreign Language Teaching speaking is a productive skill.

The purposes for teaching speaking:

1. To train learners’ oral speech:

• to construct connected speech in meaningful and logical order, with proper pronunciation, intonation, stress and rhythm, expression, vocabulary and grammar.

• to communicate fluently

• to balance accuracy and fluency.

• to express values and judgments

• to interact

• to speak in different contexts ( at school, in the shop, with strangers, etc.)

2. To stimulate learners to master English language and culture

3. To stimulate learners to think in English.

Principles of teaching speaking:

Approaches	Brief description
Conscious approach	- Giving knowledge of a language and knowledge of how to use the language in communication.
Practical approach	- Providing various speaking exercises according to speakers' age, abilities, level. Participation of each learner in speaking activities is obligatory (in individual form, in pairs, in small groups, with the whole class both fluently and accurately). -Setting relaxed and supportive atmosphere (presentation of new vocabulary, social and cultural norms, help, use of visual aids, mime and gestures). - Reducing of teacher’s speaking time and correction during speaking activities. - Recognizing learners’ problems with pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar.
Structural approach	- Memorization of sentence patterns and their oral language.
Situational approach	- Learning speaking through sentence patterns in different situations.
Different approach	- Teaching of active grammar minimum (for speaking) and passive grammar minimum (for reading and writing). Selection of grammar material should be based also on the principle of frequency (the Present Simple (Indefinite) is frequently used both in conversation and in various texts. Therefore it should be included in the grammar minimum.

Learners’ difficulties with speaking:

Difficulties	Reasons
Difficulties with construction of speech: Making phonetic, vocabulary and grammar mistakes in speech.	Poor knowledge of language forms.
Difficulties with production of speech: - Learners don’t want to say anything - Learners can’t start the talk. - Learners can’t finish the talk. - Learners don’t understand what to say. - Learners have nothing to say - Low or uneven participation. - Low interaction. - Learners use L1. - Learners overuse time	1. Low motivation. 2. Poor organization: no time limits, teacher’s support, clear instructions, variety of forms of work, good atmosphere. 2. Learners’ fears to make mistakes and be criticized. 3. Material is boring or at the wrong level. 4. L1 is easier.