PART-1

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

What do foreign language teachers do?

Before looking at how to plan an individual lesson, it is useful to think about the
broader context of what you will be doing as a foreign language teacher.
Firstly, what do we mean by learning a foreign language?
And secondly, what do we expect of a good teacher?

1. What does ‘knowing a foreign language’ mean?

Let's consider what we mean if we say someone speaks or knows a foreign language.

If you hear statements such as 'Ahmed speaks excellent English', 'Sophie knows
Arabic really well’, 'Dave's Italian is brilliant’, what do you understand them to mean?

Note down your ideas on what Ahmed, Sophie and Dave can probably do in their
foreign languages.

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

What does ‘knowing a foreign language’ mean?

Someone who knows a foreign language well (probably)...

1. can speak quite fluently.

2. knows the grammar rules.

3. can follow what native speakers are saying in different situations, e.g. informal
conversations, listening to the news and/or college lectures.

4. uses grammar rules accurately when they speak or write.

5. can read a range of different types of text and understand them without difficulty.

6. has a wide vocabulary knowledge, including advanced and idiomatic vocabulary.

7. can use vocabulary appropriately in their own speaking and writing.

8. has pronunciation that makes them easy to understand.

9. can write different types of text in the foreign language, e.g. a business letter, an
email to a friend, a note for a delivery person, etc.

10. has some cultural knowledge, e.g. when to say please, thank you and sorry, the
meaning of certain physical gestures, how close to stand to someone when you are
speaking to them, etc.

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Cultural knowledge

Cultural knowledge was separated from the other items in our list on the previous
page because it is slightly different from the other aspects of knowing a language.

Examples of cultural knowledge are when to say please, thank you and sorry, the

meaning of certain physical gestures, how close to stand to someone when you are
speaking to them. These all vary from culture to culture. Let’s consider the role that
our cultural knowledge has on knowing a foreign language.

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Cultural knowledge

Cultural knowledge of the UK, for example, means knowing such things as how to
order a round in a pub or how to attract a waiter's attention (see 'What is Cultural
Knowledge?' in Further Reading at the end of this unit). 

Cultural knowledge includes what are known as 'paralinguistic features' –

something in addition to the language that adds meaning. Examples are physical
gestures and tone of voice. Think about the meaning of sticking up two fingers with
the back of your hand facing the person you are speaking to or gesturing at.

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Knowing a foreign language

What does ‘knowing a foreign language’ mean?

In the UK this is an insulting sign, whereas in most countries it would simply indicate
the number two. 

Or if you said 'That was a really nice thing to do' in a sarcastic tone of voice, your
meaning would actually be exactly the opposite of what the words suggest, but a
non-native speaker might not recognise the sarcastic tone. In many cultures it is
polite to look someone in the eye when you speak to them, but in some places this
could mark a lack of respect, in others it could indicate sexual interest in the other
speaker.

This sort of knowledge is cultural knowledge and people often argue that you cannot
learn a language properly without also learning something about the culture of the
country where the language is spoken. (For more information on body language, see
the 'Body Speaks' article listed in Further Reading at the end of this unit.)

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

English, a global language

We should also consider, however, the fact that English is used as the primary global
language (or 'lingua franca'). If a businessman or woman from Dubai needed to
speak to someone from Tokyo, it is very likely that they would communicate in
English. 

These speakers may feel that they have no need or desire to learn anything about
British culture as they have no intention of ever travelling there. For them, English is
simply a lingua franca.

On the other hand, someone who is learning English because she or he is planning to
study at a British university in two years' time will also need to learn about the
culture of the country they are going to live in. 

These examples show how we need to consider the reasons why our students are
learning English; we have to make sure that the language we teach and the materials
we use are relevant to our students' needs (there will be more about this in Unit 10).

Try this activity on abilities in a foreign language. 

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Language components and language skills

The activity you have just done separates language components from language skills:

Language components: vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation

 knows the grammar rules.
 uses grammar rules accurately.
 has a wide vocabulary knowledge.
  can use vocabulary appropriately.
 has pronunciation that makes them easy to understand.

Skills: Reading, writing, listening and speaking

 can follow what native speakers are saying, e.g. listening to the news.
 can speak quite fluently.
 can read a range of different types of text and understand them without
difficulty.
 can write different types of text in the foreign language.

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

The four skills

When we teach a foreign language we are teaching both the linguistic

elements: vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation, and what are known as the
'four skills': listening, speaking, reading, writing. The four skills are what
we do with language.

People who learned a foreign language through more traditional methods, focusing
on grammar and translation, often complain that although they studied the language
for many years at school, they can't actually do or understand anything in it. (Notice
how in the 'language components' list previously we have said that a learner needs
to know and be able to use grammar and vocabulary.)

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Receptive and productive skills

In modern foreign language teaching the emphasis is not only on the linguistic
elements, but also on the four skills.

The four skills are subdivided into receptive skills and productive skills.

'Receptive skills' refers to the ability to receive or understand the language.

'Productive skills' refers to the ability to produce language.

Have a go at this activity below to check your understanding of what is meant

by 'receptive' and 'productive' skills. 

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Teaching a foreign language

So far in this unit we have considered what we teach when we are teaching a foreign
language.

We also need to think about how we teach these things.

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

What makes a good teacher?

Think back on all the teachers you've had - good and bad. What was it  that makes
you judge them as good or bad teachers?

Make a list in your notebook of all the qualities and behaviours that you feel
make someone a good teacher. Try to be specific. Don't, for example, just write
'teaches well' or 'gives interesting lessons'.

Think about what it is that makes you feel someone teaches 'well', or what it is that
makes a lesson 'interesting'. There are no right or wrong answers – this is just an
activity to help you think about what good teaching involves.

When you've completed your list, compare it with ours on the next slide.

What makes a good teacher?

Here are some ideas on what makes a good teacher. You've probably thought of
others which are equally relevant.

A good teacher:

 explains new ideas clearly

 is confident
 is 'in control' of students
 is not too strict
 is friendly
 doesn't just 'tell' students things, but gives them the chance to try out and
practise new ideas and skills
 is patient
 varies their lessons with different types of activities
 has a sense of humour
 makes students feel they have learned something by the end of a lesson
 uses teaching materials students find interesting
 is interested in their students
 is interested in what s/he's teaching
 treats all students with respect
  is fair
 knows what s/he's talking about
 is well organised
 creates lessons that link together logically
 is able to make students see the point of what the teacher makes them do
 enables students to make good progress
 gets good results for the whole class

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

Traits of a good teacher

It is useful to further categorise these traits into different aspects (there is some
overlap):
The quality of lessons and teaching:
explains new ideas clearly

 doesn't just 'tell' students things but gives them the chance to try out and
practise new ideas and skills
 makes students feel they have learned something at the end of a lesson
 uses teaching materials students find interesting
 is well organised
 creates lessons that link together logically
 uses varied lessons with different types of activity
 gets the students to see the point of what the teacher makes them do
 enables the students to make good progress
 achieves good results for the whole class

We could break this category down further; some of the items are about individual
lessons and others are judged over a longer period than a single lesson.

How students feel about the lessons  (we can achieve these through careful
lesson planning):

 varies their lessons with different types of activity

 uses teaching materials students find interesting

The way the lesson is delivered; the teaching style:

 is well organised
 explains new ideas clearly
 doesn't just 'tell' students things but gives them the chance to try out and
practise new ideas and skills
The way the teacher relates to the students

 is not too strict

 is friendly
 is patient
 has a sense of humour
 is interested in their students
 is interested in what s/he's teaching
 treats all students with respect
 is fair

Teacher's confidence/competence

 knows what s/he's talking about

 is confident
 is 'in control' of students

Part 1: What does foreign language teaching involve?

What makes a good lesson?

All of the aspects of a good lesson can be achieved through careful preparation; the
teacher needs to research any new language s/he is going to teach* and plan
suitable activities to help the students learn. 

Being well prepared makes the teacher feel more confident and this confidence
allows the teacher to build up a good relationship with students.

If you are delivering a poorly planned lesson and do not really know what you are
talking about, you will lack confidence. The students will quickly sense this and the
lesson will be unsuccessful. In the rest of this unit we look at how to go about
planning a lesson.

*  We will talk about teaching vocabulary in Unit 2 and teaching grammar in Unit 7.