Applied Teaching Methodologies in TESOL Class - Essay Example

Name of Student EB 4502-Methodology in TESOL Name of Professor Date Applied Teaching Methodologies in TESOL Class In my TESOL classes I applied three teaching methodologies to facilitate an effective transfer of knowledge thereby guiding students to be proficient in using the English language. Task based learning method, setting activities requiring students to use their imagination and getting students to do a short presentation in class are the three teaching methodologies I employed in my TESOL classes. The results of the application of these methodologies will be discussed in e subsequent sections. A short discussion on opinions from persons who are knowledgeable about these teaching methodologies will also be shared. Rationale, Outcome and Experts’ Feedback behind the Teaching Methodologies Applied in Class Task based learning method. I applied the task based learning method facilitated by a game. Students identify and correct errors in the grammars of the essays written by their fellow students. Students were divided into two teams. Each team was given a sheet of paper with erroneous sentences culled out from essays submitted by the students themselves. The teams are required to identify as many grammatical errors as they can within a time limit. A time extension was provided to allow students to correct the grammatical errors they have found in these sentences. Costas Gabrielatos (p. 4) viewed learning and teaching to be effective when students are treated as members of a team of learners or “fellow explorers rather than guinea pigs or disciples” (p.4). It is more conducive for learning facilitation. Further, he sees interaction as important for language learning. It can actually “make or break” attempts in learning a second language. Also, Stephan Hegglin-Besmer (par. 35) has proven in his study that “transforming grammar into more communicative units” (par. 35) allows students an interesting and coherent experience of the English grammar lessons. This is exactly the rationale why I decided to apply this error identification and correction method in class to allow students to interact with their fellow learners using a fun game. In the process of the game they will develop the mindset of identifying errors in sentence grammars and eventually correct it. In the end they will apply it to their own manner of executing sentence grammars in written or oral forms. In short, the activity would help them develop the awareness of correcting their own grammars. Doing so will help them deeply process or analyse their manner delivering the English language that will facilitate a change in their perspective of its delivery whether oral or written. It is necessary to create a “conceptual change” (Murphy & Alexander, p. 49) in their perception of the delivery of English language. The outcome of the activity was expected. Students had fun playing the game and interacting with their fellow students. Shy students were specifically seen to have overcome their shyness during the game. They were particularly engrossed in participating in the discussion with their respective teams, asking questions why certain team members consider a particular sentence grammar an error. I have seen that through this discussions, students who are not participative during panel discussion in class have become vocal asking questions and in sharing their thoughts. In the end, the activity became successful in facilitating learning the English language among the students particularly in effective sentence construction. Using the imagination activity. I applied the Bag Drama for this particular activity. I brought five different from my home and put it in five different bags. A torn cloth, a book, a hat and a doll are some of these items. I then divided the students into five groups wherein each group was assigned a particular bag. Each group was required to imagine and develop a drama story in relation to the things found in their respective bags. These things will become a central item in the story which they will act out in front of the class a week after the formation of the group and the distribution of the personal items inside the bags. Each group dramatised their respective stories in front of the class for 10 to 15 minutes. I have selected to apply this method in my TESOL class to help student enhance their ability to communicate using the English language by allowing them to use their imagination to develop a story out of a certain item. I envision this activity to help students learn the art of storytelling not in their native language but through the English language. It will also be an avenue for them to develop complex sentencing that will improve their proficiency in the English language. Experts in story telling as a method for teaching second language relayed that repetitive and complex sentence structures (Rowan par. 6) used in storytelling is seen as an effective medium to help students become “fluent and proficient in second language” (par. 6). Also, providing an object as stimulus for students to develop a storyline to practice their English language skills serves as a “positive reinforcement” (Schunk, p. 51) for students to increase their mastery of the English language through application via a storyline. At the end of the activity, students were able to develop storylines and dramatise these stories in front of the class. What is impressive was the ability of the students to be imaginative and creative in their development of the story out of an item and communicate it verbally using the English language. It was also an opportunity for me as their teacher to assess their capabilities to develop complex English sentences and grammar. At the same time, it was a confirmation for me as their teacher that they have learned from my lessons by applying it in the Bag Drama Activity. On the other hand, the students showed that they were able to inculcate the lessons they have learned from class and express it in their storylines. Short presentation method. I divided the class into small groups and let each group create a short presentation which was related to our lesson and present in front of the whole class. I have chosen this method to encourage the students to speak in class and provide feedback for each lessons discussed in class. Costas Gabrielatos (2003) affirmed that “learning is helped by support and challenge” (p. 4). This activity is exactly an implementation of this concept. The lessons serve as the support given by me as a teacher to the students while the presentation in front of the class is a challenge given to the students after they were supported by the necessary tools used in the lessons. This activity of letting the students do a short presentation of the lessons provided in class is an attempt to balance the support given by the teacher and the challenge given to the students through the feedback that the students will give during their presentations. It will also allow me as a teacher to assess how my students perceived the lessons I gave them so that I can make adjustments in my subsequent lessons. As expected, the feedback gathered during the activity immensely helped me as a teacher to adjust the pace of my teaching and the use of lesson materials to adequately address the general needs of each of the students. For example, one group presented about the subject and verb agreement lesson with a bit of confusion on how to practically implement it in a complex sentence. I did not take it as a negative reproach to my teaching but as an opportunity for me to adjust my level of teaching to complement the level of understanding of my students. Also, it gave me an opportunity to know who among my students needed close monitoring. Thus, my teaching eventually became personalised. Conclusion Applying the three methodologies in my TESOL class have affirmed my assumptions on its effectiveness in the proficiency of students in the English language. The task based method of correcting grammatical errors in a sentence was effective in involving students to learn what the acceptable sentence grammar construction is. The Bag Drama Activity on storytelling was effective in guiding students to apply complex sentences as well as contextualise their ability to communicate to an audience. The presentation activity was effective in creating a feedback mechanism from the students. It also allows them to effectively communicate verbally what they have learned from the lessons in class. Thus, I will continue to use these methods in teaching my TESOL classes. However, I will improvise the specific methods. For example, I plan to use a digital game for correcting grammatical errors adapting the style of the game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire to make students easily relate to the learning of the activity. I also plan to adopt a different approach to the storyline activity by allowing myself as the teacher to guide or initiate the storyline chain in the activity. I would start the story and I would let the students add to the storyline individually in class to give them an impromptu opportunity of creating sentences on their own to help them become comfortable in speaking the English language. Works Cited Besmer, Stephan. “The Impact of Consciousness-Raising Activities on a Mixed Level Classroom”. Accessed on December 21, 2009 from http://www.philseflsupport.com/mixedlevel.htm Gabrielatos, Costas. “My Methodology”. IATEFL Issues April-May 2003: 3-4 Murphy, Karen and Alexander, Patricia. Understanding How Students Learn: A Guide for Instructional Leaders London: Sage Publications Limited, 2006 Rodger, Theodore. “Language Teaching Methodology”. Center for Applied Linguistics: Online Resources Digests (September 2001). Accessed on December 20, 2009 from http://www.cal.org/resources/Digest/rodgers.html Rowan, Karen. “TPR Stories”. Accessed on December 21, 2009 from http://www.tprstories.com/ Schunk, Dale. Learning Theories: An Educational Perspective (4th ed) Australia: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2004 Read More