STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING THE COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE OF EFL [610707]

UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST “VASILE GOLDIȘ” DIN ARAD
DEPARTAMENTUL PENTRU PREGĂTIREA PERSONALULUI
DIDACTIC

LUCRARE METODICO – ȘTIINȚIFICĂ
PENTRU OBȚINEREA GRADULUI
DIDACTIC I ÎN ÎNVĂȚĂMÂNT

COORDONATOR ȘTIINȚIFIC:
Conf. univ . dr. Stiegelbauer Laura -Rebeca

CANDIDAT: [anonimizat] : Guiu (Cosma) Manuela
Liceul Teoretic Pâncota

Arad , 2018

UNIVERSITATEA DE VEST “VASILE GOLDIȘ” DIN ARAD
DEPARTAMENTUL PENTRU PREGĂTIREA PERSONALULUI
DIDACTIC

STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING THE COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE OF EFL
STUDENTS

COORDONATOR ȘTIINȚIFIC:
Conf. univ . dr. Stiegelbauer Laura -Rebeca

CANDIDAT: [anonimizat] : Guiu (Cosma) Manuela
Liceul Teoretic P âncota

Arad
2018

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER 1: WHAT IS COMM UNICATION?
1.1 DIDACTIC STRATEGIES. CONCEPTUAL DELIMITAT IONS : METHODS, TEHNIQUES , PROCEDURES,
APPROACHES
1.2. COMMUNICATIVE LANGUA GE TEACHING (CLT)
1.3 EVALUATION AND COMM UNICATION
1.3.1 ERRORS AND MIS TAKES IN COMMUNICATI ON
1.3.2 ASSESSMENT AND FEEDB ACK
1.3.3 MOTIVATION IN EFL CL ASS
CHAPTER 2: PRODUCTIVE AND COMMU NICATION SKILLS
2.1. DEVELOPING SPEA KING SKILLS
2.2.SPEAKING STRATEGIES
2.2.1.CONTROLLED COMMUNICA TION

2.2.2.GUIDED ACTIVIT IES
2.2.3. FREE PRODUCTI ON
2.3 ORGANIZED SPEAKING A CTIVITIES
2.3.1 TEACHER’S ROLE IN COMMUNICATION
2.3.2 ROLE PLAYS AND SIMUL ATIONS
2.3.3 SPEECH AND DEB ATE
2.3.4 DRAMA IN EFL CLAS S
CHAPTER 3 : EFL TEACHING
CHAPTER 4: FEEDBACK ON ACTIVITIES APPLIED I N CLASS
5. CONCLUSIONS
6. ANNEXES
7. BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTRODUCTION

Takin g into consideration the recomme ndations of the Ministry of Education forseen in the curriculum for English langua ge
(5-8th grades) which insists on the fact that throughout the mandatory education, students must form indispensable communicativ e
competences for any type pf professional activity: in order to express themselves correctly , clear and coherent , to listen, to understand
and produce oral and written messages in different communicative situations. In this paper , I am trying to suggest a set of strategie s

(complementary activities ) through which we could optimize the communicative competence of secondary school students in
Romania.
This paper is structured in four important parts. In the first part s there are underline d the theoretical concepts linked to the
didactic strategies and , in the last chaper , the practical one, there are presented the consequences of the activities done in order to
enable students to communicate better.
I consider that communication is one of the most important aspect that needs to be taken into consideration when teaching a
foreign language. No matter how well the rules are explained and assimilated by the learners, if they don’t know how words work , the
entire process of learning is useless. The ultimate goal of every learner is communication in a foreign language. Most of us learn
foreign languages because we need to make connection s with people fr om abroad or we nee d to list en and read information that are
not in our mother tongue. Therefore, communication is mandatory. Knowledge of words, structures, idioms, collocations, is par t of the
learning process.
In my opinion, communicatio n is the key to speaking a foreign language. We can speak with grammar mistakes and the
receiver of the message understands us, but if if we do not know words, w e cannot communicate in a proper way.
The first chapter is entitled didactic strategies and it focuses mainly on giving a general perspective upon different strategies of
teaching communicatio n. I have tried to present different approaches, methods and techniques used during time, but I have primarily
focused on the communicative approach. It has be en dealt with evaluation, assessment, feedback and errors and mistakes in
communication.
The second chapter talks about productive and communicative skills and it deals with aspects related to different speaking
activiti es, from controlled to free ones .
The third chapter -organized speaking activities refer mainly to those applied in the the last chapter of the and of course how I
deal teaching English to EFL students.

In the last chapter, I explain how I applied the methods mentioned in the previous chapter s. I have paid particular attention to
helping students express themselves, both freely and in guided conversations. I have se lected different samples fr om my work
throughout the school year highlightening the benefits of communication in classroom and out side it. I have analysed the results,
pointed out the data that I have found and drawn some conclusion s.
I would say that both the students and I had a great time choosing the activities and more than this, doing them. I was a rea l
pleasure to see the stud ents so imvolved in the activities.

Chapter 1 WHAT IS COMMUNICATIO N?
Before saying what it is , we must say what is isn’t : communication does not involve a simple action. As Harmer puts it,
„Communication between humans is an extremely complex and ever -changing phenomenon.”1 He says that when two people are
engaged in talking to each other we may assume the fact that they have certain reasons to do that. Here are three possible reasons that
Harmer came up with: 1. They want to say something -They really need to be heard by someone, otherwise they would keep what
they wanted to say to themselves; 2. They have some sommunicative purpose s-here the talk is about what the speaker needs to say
and what he/she expects from other when he/she says something. The speak er may want to complain, to express an opinion, to agree,
to flatter, to disagree. 3. They select from their language store -In general speaker have a wide range of sentences/ideas that can be
conveyed to the listeners, mainly if the speaker is a native one . He/She may select (from the ‚store’ fo language they own) the
language that they think is appropriate for this purpose.

1 Harmer, carte mai veche -xeroxata

The question is : Why do people communicate? Why do we communicate? Why do people think that communication is the key
to a good relatio nship? There are many questions and as many answers. I think that although we say we communicate, we rarely do
that. We talk to each other, but we don’t really communicate. Communication is, according to…
Some teachers who were teaching in the 60’s and 7 0’s comprehended the fact that learning a foreign language is not just a
matter of memorizing words and structures, but it is a complicated educational experience, and so that it may function well in our
society, a person needs to be a capable or skilled communicator . Only linguistic structures don’t empower speakers to express their
hopes, intentions, share their thoughts, trasmit attitudes and feelings . Meanwhile, audio -linguists had hoped at interaction through
different situational dialogues , but , in th e end, they had achieved none. Real-world interactions are quick and spontaneous and
impulsive , having the pressure of time, because one can never know what the interlocutor will say next, so he/she must figure out the
interlocutor’s message, formulate an answer, and build up the response not only, but also a ppropriately, according to the interlocutor
and according to the situational context and the activity type. The circumstantial dialogues and various pattern practice of aud io-
lingual classes could at t heir furnish the learners with series of cliches for certain situations ; but such cliches have prove d insufficient
or inadequ ate in most real life contexts, explains Vizental in her book.
We all know that communication takes place in a certain social and a certain discourse background
 active cooperation and affective involvement in the learning process, ‚a negotiator between the self, the learning process, and the
object of learning; active modes of learning ensure long -term aquisition ’2
It was considered t hat learners must be able to exemplify the topic of their choice and describe it to their own lives and interests; this
way, the learning mate rial becomes real and purposeful. Spontaneity , unplanned practice is more efficient than mechanical repetition .
More than this, language should be purely a way towards communication; co mmunication must have a social purpose ,

2 Vizental Adriana, Strategies of Teaching and Testing English as a Foreign Language , p.

Communication is essentia lly interactive: -classroom activities must simulate real -world interactions: the teacher must make the
students share a nd negotiate information, the way people do in real life (Vizental explains that it should be done in social and
discoursal contexts that imitate those in which real communication takes place) . Interactive techniques have to be introduced and (e.g.
simula tion, role play, debate) they can be efficient classroom procedures for language learning . Of course, language learning should be
task-oriented: the students must be made to perform tasks with the help of the language, the way people do in real world: e.g. explain
to a friend how to use a piece of equipment, or how he/she can find a place in a new town, suggest activities the class might
impersonate.
Communication competence includes, based on A Guide to English language Teaching Terms , grammatical competen ce,
sociolinguistic competence, that is the knowledge of the relationship between language and its nonlinguistic context, knowing how to
use and respond appropriately to different types of speech acts, such as requests, apologies and so on; discourse compe tence, that is
knowing to begin and end conversations and startegic competence, that is the knowledge of communicative strategies that can
compensate for weakness in other areas.
‚The need to communicate effectively for succeeding in today’s borderies worl d, characterised foremost by globalisation and
internationalisation in all areas of social economic or cultural life cannot be denied ’3, as David Irina says in her book, Enhancing
communication skills in English . Even before people enter a job market young people are aware that advanced communication skills in
their native language, a s well as in other foregin langu uages will increase their chances of being emplyoed by a better company or
having a better position in a company. Employers look for youngesters who can manage communicative competence, mainly because
there will be clients who need explanations, and the employees should be able to interact with them and to explain certain si tuations.

3 David, Irina, Enchancing communicati on skills in English , p. 11

But, no matter what the field of activitity or one’s place in a company hierarchy is, communication is increasingly perceived as a
central element of success at the workplace .(p11)
Also, at the level of the European Union ‚communication in forei gn languages is descriebed as ine qua non condition for every
individual wh o wants to be a full member of the Union and benefit from all the opportun ities that membership provides.’4
One may notice the fact that good communication skills are necessary factors for personal and institu tional performance .
Communication can amplify o r considerably decrease individuals’ and companies’ success opportunities.
1. DIDACTIC STRATEGIE S. CONCEPTUAL DELIMI TATIONS : METHODS, TEHNIQUES , PROCEDURES ,
APPROACHES
According to Semlyen, ‚an approach is a conception, a system, a point of view concerni ng the nature of the subject -matter, to be
taught and the ways by which we come near or get access into it. Therefore, we may speak of: the audio -visual approach, the audio –
lingual, aural -oral, or oral approach (the last three covering the same aspects)
A method is the orderly presentation of the material at a given stage of the lesson; the dominant feature characteristic for a certain
period of the lesson. Pedagogics distinguishes between general methods and special methods used in one special subject or a group
of subjects (e.g. foreign languages). Within one approach there are usually many methods. The order of presentation and the s election
of the methods are influenced by several factors: the aim to be achieved (whether wa want to attain practice in rea ding, skill in asking
questions, fluency in speech, etc.), the age and standard of the pupils, the experience of the teacher etc.
A procedure is part of a mehod. Within each method there may be several procedures which help the teacher to carry out his/her work
more successfully, to vary it, and by increasing the pupils’ interest, make their participation more intensive. Thus, the met hod of

4 Ibidem, page

conversation whihc is in fact a question answer practice contains a whole series of procedures out of which we mention some: the
teacher asks the students a question, one pupil answers; a pupil asks the teacher a question, the teacher answers, etc
The last term to be discussed is ‚technique’ or, as we call it more often teaching aids. A technique is an aid, an implement used to
accomplish an immediate objective. Techniques must be in keeping with a method, and in harmony with an approach .’5
In this chapter, I would consider discussing about some methods and approches : the grammar -translation method, the direct method,
the audio -lingual method , presentation, practice, production, task -based learning, the lexical approach.
I would like to start by defining the grammar -translation method which is, according to many linguists, one of the methods used in
the nineteenth century and which was based manily explaining students parts of grammar, then they were given sentences to explain
what was taught. These pieces were also translated into their own language, so the interference of L1 was quite evident . As Harmer
explains, language was treated at the level of sentence only, no focusng on long texts. Also, there was little, almost none interest in the
spoken language/oral exercises. Because of these facts, accuracy was considered to be mandatory. A method of foreign or second
languag e teaching which makes use of translation and grammar study as the main teaching and learning activities.
The direct -method , which came after the grammar -translation method, was obviously a reform of the latter. It was developed in the
late 19th century. Translation was abandoned in favour of the teacher and students speaking together, moving from the traditional way
of explaining grammar to objects and pictures in order to explain certain meanings to the students. The direct method has four
features:
-only the target language should be used in class
-meanings should be communicated ‚directly’ (hence the name of the method) by associating speech forms with actions, objects,
mime, gestures and situations

5 Semlyen, Eva, An English Teaching Methodology, page 30

-reading and writing should be taught only after spea king
-grammar should only be taught inductively -without grammar rules
The audio -lingual method on the other hand was based mainly on drills to form good habits in language learning. It is well known the
fact that the audiolinguism used the stimulus -respons e-reinforcement model , so the use of drills was consider a way of helping the
students perfect the language. It is considered to be a method of foreign or second language teaching by Stănișoară in her book, The
language of teaching and learning -a guide to English language teaching terms, which : 1.emphasizes the teaching of speaking and
listening before reading an d writing, 2. Uses dialogues and drills and 3. Discourages the use of mother tongue in the classroom and 4.
Often makes use of contrastive analysis. According to this method based on the audio -lingula theory of language teaching the
language is nothing but a set of habits. So, every time the teacher gets the learner to practise something as a habit, for example a
structure drill in which she/he has to use the same grammatical structure ten times, we are adopting this learning theory.
Discussion method is an approach to teaching which consists of goal-focused group conversations involving wither groups of
students or the whole class and which usually involves interaction about subject matter between a teacher and students. Four common
types of discussion pro cedures are used, which differ according to the degree of the teacher control. We talk about: recitation -a teacher
directed and highly structured discussion in which the teacher checks to see if the students have learnt certain facts; guide d discussion –
a less structured discussion in which the teacher seeks to promote understanding of important concepts; reflective discussion -the least
structured form of discussion in which students engage in critical and creative thinking, solve problems, explore issues, e tc.; small
group discussion -the class is divided into small groups, with students assuming responsibility for the discussion.
The presentation, practice and production method, which is a variation of the audio -lingual method, introduces, as Harmers
present s it, a situation which contextualises the language to be taught. Also, the language then, is presented. The students can now
practise using accurate reproduction techniques such as choral repetition, individual repetition or cue -response drills.

The task-based learning ‚makes the performance of meaningful tasks central to the learning process. It is informed by a belief that if
students are focused on the completion of a task, they are just as likely to learn language as they are if they are focusing on la nguage
forms.’6 In This method, students are presented with a task they have to perform or a problem they have to solve.
The lexical approach was discussed mainly by Michael Lewis and it is based on the affirmation/statement that ‚ language consists not
of traditional grammar and vocabulary but often of multi -word prefabricated chunks’ (Lewis 1997:3). Lewis suggests that fluency is
the result of aquisition of a large store of these fixed and semi -fixed pre -fabricated items.
The humanistic approach is a ter m sometimes used for what underlies methods in which the following principles are considered
important: -the development of the human values; growth in self -awareness and in understanding of others; sensitivity to human
feelings and emotions; active student involvement in learning and in the way learning takes place ( student centred)
Learner -centred approach In language teaching, a belief that attention to the nature of learners should be central to all aspects of
language teaching, including planning teach ing and evaluation. Learning is dependent upon the nature and will of the learners. Learner
centreness may be reflected by: -recognizing learners’ prior knowledge; -recognizing leaners’ needs, goals and wishes; -recognizing
learners’ learning styles and lea rning preferences; recognizing learners views of teaching and of the nature of classroom task. In
learners centred approaches, course design and teaching often become negotiated processes, since needs, expectations and stud ents
resources vary with each gro up. Learner -centred teaching is contrasted with teacher -centred teaching.
Natural approach -a term for a number of teaching -learning methods which were developed in the 19th century as a reaction to the
grammar -translation method. These methods emphasized: -the use of spoken language; -the use of objects and actions in teaching the
meanings of words ad structures; -the need to make language teaching follow the natural principles of first language learning (these
methods lead to the direct method)

6 Harmer, page 71

Situational method -A term sometimes used to refer to a programme or method in which the selection, organization, and presentation
of language items is based on situations (eg. At the bank, at the supermarket, at home). A syllabus for a language course or a textbook
may be referred to as a situational syllabus. Many methods make use of simulated situations as a way of practicing language ite ms, but
use other criteria for selecting and organizing the content of the course. Only if situations are used to select, organize, and practice
language would the term ‚situational method’ stricly apply.
1.2 COMMUNICATIVE LANGUA GE TEACHING (CLT)
The communicative approach to teaching foreign languages developed due to the changes in the British language teaching
tradition in the late 1960s. We may say that the communicative approach is not really an efficient meth od, but rather has a great
number of ideas accepted in general as good teaching practice. Communicative language tea ching is defined by certain features :
 the ultimate objecti ve of foreign language teaching is to develop the learner’s communicative competence. As we may notice,
human communication relies on much more than the interlocutors’ linguistic competence.
 it can be noticed the fact that learning begins with imitation; but, unless the learner continuies from the stage of imitation to the
stage of free production.
 promoting language skills is more important than teaching content: the students must be qualified with tools for l anguage
performance in the real world; student s must be taught to use the language both functionally and strategically, in order to obtain
real-world aims, the way people do in real life
 meaning is more important than form : fluency of language is as important as accuracy -learners must aquire confidenc e in their
linguistic activities and become less startled of making mistakes; we have to teach them that errors are a natural part of le arning: as
long as the speaker manages to get his/her message through, the teacher should not interfere to correct their mistakes; students
must learn the language by using the language, i.e. by struggling to communicate: this way, they learn vocabulary and grammar in
context

 acceptability of language is as important a s linguistic accuracy (Vizental)
Harmer presents the CL T method in his book as being equal to real communication and that the real problem when attempting CLT is
that it means different things to different people. Or maybe it is like an extanded family of different approaches, and ‚…a s is the case
with most families, not all members live harmoniously together all of the time. There are disagreements if not total wars, from time to
time. However, no one is willing to assert that they do not belong to the family’ (Nunan 2004:7)
A major strand of CLT centres ar ound the essential belief that is students are involved in meaning -focused communicative tasks, then
‚language kearning will take care of itself’ (p52), and that plentiful exposure to language in use and plenty of opportunitie s to use it
are vitally import ant for a student’s development of knowledge and skill. Activities in CLT typically involve students in real or
realistic communication , where the successful achievement of the communicative task they are performing is at least as important as
the accuracy of their language use. Thus, role -play and simulation have become popular in CLT. For example,
In order for these activities to be truly communicative, it was suggested from the very beginning, students should have a desire to
communicate something. They should have a purpose for communicating (e.g. to invite a friend at your house, to buy a bus ticket).
They should be focused on the content of what they are saying or writing rather than on a particular language form. They shou ld use a
variety of language rather than just one language structure. The teacher will not intervene to stop the activity; and the materials he/she
relies on will not dictate what specific language forms the students use either. In other words, such activities should attem pt to
replic ate real communication .
EFL students and EFL teaching
‚Motivation has long been a major problem for most teachers of English as a Second Language (ESL) or as a foreign language not
only in the Arab World but also elsewhere. Motivation in the ESL/EFL classr oom is easily one of the most important factors as I'm
sure most teachers would agree with me. The main reason I'm coming to this point of view is that most of our students have lo w
motivation to learn English. In addition to that, while most of them have a vague sense that whether ‚English will be useful for my

future’ or not, they don't have a clear idea of what that means, nor is that a very strong motivator; it's too vague and too far off. The
first step in tackling the problem of motivation is that the teachers need to understand and appreciate the role and importance of
motivation in any learning. In the context of second language learning, William Littlewood (1987: 53) observes:
In second language learning as in every other field of human learning, mo tivation is the critical force which determines whether a
learner embarks on a task at all, how much energy he devotes to it, and how long he perseveres. It is a complex phenomenon an d
includes many components: the individual’s drive, need for achievement and success, curiosity, desire for stimulation and new
experience, and so on. These factors play a role in every kind of learning situation.
“Student motivation is influenced by both internal and external factors that can start, sustain, intensify, or disc ourage behaviour”
(Reeve, 1996).The teacher has to activate these motivational components in the students but that is the precise problem. How can it be
done in every class everyday?7
Although this is not a chapter about motivation, we can surely different iate differences in motivation. Adult motivation, adolescents,
children -all these categories are differently motivated in learning a forgein language. I am merely interested about children’s
motivation, as the traget group are students in the 6th grade. As Harmer explains in his book, The practice of English Language
Teaching , I needed to know if my students are motivated or not in learning English. Of course, not all my students started having the
same type of motivation, but I was able to make some genera l remarks about motivation factors of their age. As a general aspect that
may ne taken into consideration is the children’s curiousity. Form the early age of childhood, we may notice that children ar e curious

7 Retrieved from : https:// www.teachingenglish.org.uk/blogs/alexenoamen/ways -motivating -efl-esl-students -classroom

in finding out different facts or merely satisf ying the need of ‚why’ questions. The children’s span of attention or concentration is less
than that if an adult. As a key factor here, I was able to notice the fact that, if children are engaged in something that re ally drwas their
attention and they are really involved in that activity, they sometimes forget how long they have been doing it. As Harmer says, almost
always, children seek teacher approval and the fact that the teacher notices them and shows appreciation for what they are do ing is of
vital i mportance. Children need/want frequent changes of activities -more than this, they need activity that are engaging and stimulate
their imagination/curiosity. They really need to be appreciated by the teacher, the teacher being a really important figure f or them. It is
quite unlikly, as Harmer notices, that they will have any motivation if these aspects are not fulfilled. It is almost certain the fact that, in
order to have great results (I am reffering to their attention and involvement), everythings weighs on the teacher’s shoulder’s: the
teacher’s attitude and behaviour will make a different at this stage.
1.3 EVALUATION (CORECTNESS) AND COMMUNICATION
1.3.1. Errors and mistakes in communication
As teachers of English, we would like to teach our students to become the best in everything: to speak fluen tly and accurately, to write
well, to read fluency and without mistakes, to understanding everything from the first time they hear. I think this is a grea t goal, but
many times we find ourselves trying and tryi ng to achievement perfect and so many times it disppearance when we want to ‚touch’ it.
When we talk about corretness, it is our ‚job’ to make sure that one thing is correct and the other is not. And, as Gerry Abbott says, it
is also our duty to make our s tudents aware of their mistakes or errors. However, because we are not native speakers of English we
may sometimes not consider a mistake which is certainly considered by native speakers of English. Be cause we discuss about
effective communication in Engli sh, we shouldn’t accept wrong utterances , we should teach the same. We cannot accept any wrong
utterances because there may be times when another teachers examines the students and they need to know what is correct and w hat is
not. Mistakes, on the other h and, are inevitable. They occur frequently and even if we have discuss them so many times. In his

chapter, Oral fluency, Gerry Abbott says that in the last two or three decades, there has been an increasing concern with
communication in English language te aching. What is meant by ‚communication’ in this context? Does it mean ‚passing information
to somebody’? Yes, but this can be done without the use of language at all in many everyday situations, and –as we have seen -can be
achieved without linguistic accu racy. Does it mean ‚saying what one wants to say, instead of what one is told to say?’8
We also have to make a difference between errors and mistakes. In plain speaking, errors are something we can’t accept, while
mistakes may be repeating themselves and a re not as damaging as errors.
Error is considered first of all to be an imperfect production caused by genuine lack of knowledge about the language, secondly, the
use of linguistic item in a way in which a fluent or native speaker of the language regards as faulty or showing incomplete learning
and, thirdly, in the speech or writing of a foreifn language learner, the use of a linguistic item in a way in which a fluent or native
speaker of the language regards as showing faulty or incomplete learning. A dis tinction is sometimes made between an error , which
results from incomplete knowledge, and a mistake made by a learner when writing or speaking and which is caused by lack of
attention, fatigue, carelessness, or some other aspect of performance. Errors are sometimes clasified according to vocabulary, (lexical
error), pronunciation (phonological error), grammar (suntactic error), misunderstanding of a speaker’s intention or meaning
(interpretative error), production of the wrong communicative effect through the faulty use of a speech act or one of the rules of
speaking (pragmatic error). In the study of a second or foreign language learning, errors have been studied to discover the p rocesses
learners make us of in learning and using a language. (carte in limb a romana)
Concerning the error correction, it is considered to be solely led by the teacher and it is considered to be a controlled act ivity.
Strategies used by the teacher or more advanced learner to correct errors in a learners’ speech. Error correction may be direct (teacher
supplies the correct form) or indirect (the teacher points out the problem and asks the learner to correct it if possible.

88 Abbott, G., The teaching of English as an International languahe – A practical Guide, pag. 116 -117

Error prevention. The principle that students learn better by having correct responses rewarded, than by havin g incorrect responses
punsihed. According to this principle, strong measures should be taken to ensure that each step is well within reach of stude nts so that
they have a very high chance of making a correct response. (The Language of Teaching and Learning -A Guide to English Language
Teaching Terms)
No matter what type of e rror we are talking about, throu gh distortion or being inadequate, the status of being an error is determined
following a procedure of reconstitution ( according to Cristia) or reconstruc tion and comparison. The concepts with which operates the
analysis of errors are closely linked/related to this starting point. So, we are having here the following examples: -updated statements
(wrong) -He read; -reconstructed statements (corrected) -He read s. A discrimination commonly used literature is the difference between
error and mistake. Therefore, an error is considered a deviation due to the fact that there is a lack in competence, knowledg e, thus
being a competence deficiency. The mistake, on the other side is considered to be a performance flaw and it is referred mainly to the
situations in which the student is not able to upgrade/refresh/update his competence. (carte in limba romana)
Concerning error correction in role plays, we may notice that there numerous ways of correcting mistakes during role play. It may be
appropriate for the teacher to jump in and correct every mistake. However this could be very demotivating. More and more teac hers
view mistakes as an integral part of learning a langua ge and most of these mistakes ‚indicate certain stages in aquisition of the
language’9 With time and pratise , these mistakes vanish and students become more competent. Some students like to be corrected
straight after role play, while the language is still fresh in their minds, but, with the weaker ones, it may be quite discouraging.
Teachers can make notes of the mistakes, and after the activity these can be discussed and corrected by the group or class.

9 Gillian Porter Ladousse, Role play , Oxford University Press, 19 87, p.15

1.3.2. Assessment
Regarding assessment and testing speaking skills, the teacher should devise his own rating scale describing clearly the criteria for
assessing oral ability. The criteria selected may vary -according to Heaton – and it may focus on accuracy, appropriacy and fluency,
accuracy, appropriacy, r ange, flexibility and size; or fluency, comprehensibility , amount of communication, quali ty of communication
and effort to co mmunicate. Rating scales usually have a 6 -point scale which allows for a good range of discrimincation but which
would not be very easy to work with, due to their length. In my opinion using holistic scoring with clear point prior discussed with the
students. I would include: accuracy, range, flexibility, amount of communication and effort to communicate in an attempt to stimulate,
to encourage my students. The way I have planned to asssess my students focuses on role play and discussions. I have proposed to use
activities for meaningful and active involvement. Since these activities are exactly the ones suggested by many of may studen ts for our
future classes, I have concentrate d on giving some clear effective examples of activities designed for teaching and testing speaking
skills. I have also tried t o introduce meaningful, challa nging humourous elements as well in order to integrate these speaking activities
into my future classes. Of course, testing the students can be done in an informal or formal way. It can be done for diagnostic purposes
at the beginning of a course/year/semester, or as a means of checking progress. Informal test ing is an integral part of teaching, and it
can refer to: oral questions and answers, asking students to repeat or explain, etc. The teacher may ask 10 -15 quick questions; the
stude nts have to mark their answers or their colleagues’ answers; in this way, s tudents kno w what they still have to learn. Concerning
oral tests, the teacher should not award an overall impression mark for an oral test, bu t separate marks for some or all the following,
of course, depending the level of the students:
-for reading alo ud-pronuncation of vowels and consonants and clusters; intonation and stress; phrasing and fluency
-in an oral conversation -all the points mentioned above plus quickness to respond and clarity of communication. Students really need
to be tested in oral wor k as well, otherwise they won’t be able to know if they have made progress or not. The teacher may observe a
student in any of the following situations: talking about a particular picture, film, reading something expressively after a brief period

of prepar ation; participating in a small group discussion; answering open -ended questions with more than simple phrases; giving an
improvised talk; or retelling some incident from his/her experience. Using such general criteria as coherence, clarity, relevance,
fluency, spontaneity or effectiveness with listeners, the teacher should be able to determinate whether or not the oral work is having
any mark effect on the student s’ speech.
When we discuss about assessment of productive skills (Vizental p 214 -215)
1.3.3. Feedback on oral work/skills (mai trebuie scris)
According to the The Language of Teaching and Learning (A Guide to English Language Teaching Terms) , feedback is an
information about the results of someone’s actions to the person responsible. And, it is als o considered to be any which provides a
report on the result of behaviour, for exa mple, a verbal or facial signal which listeners give to speakers to indicate that they understand
what the speaker is saying. In discourse analysis, feedback is given while s omeone is speaking and it is som etimes called back channel
cues, for example commments such as uh,yeah, really, smiles, headshakes which indicate success or failure in communication. In
discourse anaysis, feedback given while someone is speaking is sometim es called back guiding , for example comments such as uh,
yeah, okay, really, smiles, headshakes, frowns that indicate success or failure in communication.
Feedback during oral work, as Harmer , enlightens the fact that there is a decision that teachers ha ve to make whether a particular
activity is designed to assess students’ accuracy -for example, in the study of a part of grammar, or some pronunication techniques, or
whether we are asking students to use the language as fluently as possible. It is mandato ry to make a clear difference between ‚non –
communicative’ and ‚communicative’ activities. The immediate and constant correction of all errors is not necessarily an effe ctive
way of helping course participants improve their English. During communicative act ivities, it is generally felt that teachers should not
interrupt students in the mid -flow to point out a grammatical or lexical error, since to do so interrupts the communication and drags an
activity back to the study of language form or precise meaning. (Harmer, page. 143)

1.3.4 Motivation and self -esteem
Motivation is an important part in the students journey of learning a foreign language. I have done my disertation paper on s tudents’
motivation and I think it’s an important aspect in teaching and impl ementing skills, but mainly when we talk about speaking. There
are times when students were shy or didn’t have confidence in themselves, so prasing them in front of the class, boosts their
confidence in themselves. The students’ desire to communicate is in fluenced bu their motivation. Motivation is affected by the
international interest, which means their closeness to other people, other countries, other cultures. Motivation is also infl uenced by the
level of intelligence of the child/student. Many times, c hildren seem to consider strange that fact the they should speak in English
because they know they are understood if they merely talk in romanian. Usually, the teacher talks a lot and the children don’ t receive
the chance to assert themselves. A very comme nt aspect of teaching is when the teacher asks questions, the student answers and, in the
end, the teacher gives feedback evaluating the students’ answers. At this stage, the teacher is controlling the situation. Th e students
interpret the type of answer w hich is required by the teacher. This type of communication is common in the group discussions as well.
To make students get more involved in talking, the discussions in pairs and role -plays can be used. Dialogues are also an efficient way
to repeat phrase s.?! Dialogues can consist of interviews where students can ask questions, which is also a way to extand? The
interaction. Another important effect is that students learn to interact. Role -play can offer the necessary practice to express their
feelings. T he discussions -in smaller groups or with the whole class can ne a good opportunity (modalitate) to let the students express
their opinions. Another issue may be the one when some of the students talk too much and do not let their colleagues to expre ss
them selves. The subject is very important -because it can attract the students to participate as many as they are. The students are
usually interested to discuss about their own lives, for example, or about their friends, holidays, interests.
When the teacher d ecides to work in pairs or groups the level of motivation in that class. If the group is motivated, discipline is not a
problem. If the class is too large there is a possibility that discipline may harder be kept when you work in pairs or groups . Another
difficultyis that the students can talk when their turn comes in order to be understood and not all of them have the possibili ty of

talking. When the student is talking, the teacher can correct him/her repeating the correct sentence. Mistakes can be correct ed using a
game. The children can repeat the words and learn quicker to pronounce the more difficult words.
One may observe the fact that the teacher has so many roles, but he/she must be careful when and in which types of actions an d as
Penny Ur says in her book, teachers would like to see themselves not as dictators, but rather supportive ones. And, as I said above, the
teacher (beside the two main functions of instructor and activator), needs to have several others during lessons.

CHAPTER 2: PROD UCTIVE AND COMMUNICATION SK ILLS -TEACHING -LEARNING METHODS
2.1. DEVELOPING SPEAKING SKILLS
Vize ntal explains in her book, Strat egies of Teaching and Testing English as a Foreign Language , that there are two main methods of
oral communication: one is t he conv ersat ional mode (dialogue) mode and the other one is t he expositional (monologic) mode . The
first one is considered to be interactional and communicative and depends on a very quick change of information. We may say that
there is a permanent exchange of meaning between two or more participants in a conversation , a speaker and a listener, who change
roles at a quick pace. Whereas, i n the expositional mode there is only one speaker, who presents and develop s his/her ideas at some
lenght. Each mode /method consists of a wide diversit y of discour se types, each having a its own classroom teachniques. For example,
the question -answer exchange is typical for the conversational mode, while summmarising is distinctive for the expositional mode.
Producing language in each o f these modes is controlled by the special characteristics of the mode, so that the teacher who intends to
develop th e students’ speaking skills has to monitor the activities for each discourse type in a different way . Consequently , the basic
characteristi c of the conversational mode is its unexpectedness: face -to-face conversation relies on a very quick exchange of ideas and
the speakers change roles fast. No preparation is possible, as one can never predict what one’s interlocutor is going to say, and

listening skills are as important as speaking (you must first understand what your interlocutor says before you can answer his/h er
questions). The speaker ’s words work as props on which the speaker can base his/her next interference . ‚Interactive listening -speaking
activities are at the basis of communication teaching: the students are invited to take on social roles and exchange informat ion, share
opinions and negotiate meaning in their assumed roles. This way they get practice in communication strategies and learn to managea
conversation. ’10 Hence, the teacher should involve all the students in the classroom activities and motivate them to participate. Classes
are stimulating if the students get the opportunity to talk to each other – in pairs or groups -about w hat is important to them, if they can
share their own ideas, thoughts and wishes. When doing all these activities with the students from the 6th grade, they couldn’t belive
that they will all be involve and they will all participant in different activities . In order to accomplish this, I had to find topics could be
personalized, and as well it was create d a friendly, encouraging and inspiring classroom atmosphere, so that the students should gain
confidence to speak up. Pair work and group activities and al so individual work allow the students to co-operate directly, and motivate
them to communicate.
Likewise, f luency is an essential feature of interactive communication. The students may not always find their words to say what they
want correctly, but ina ccurary is of slighter importance as long as the students’ language is flowing ., the speakers’ message is
understood, and the listeners can give the suitable response. Of course, there might be mistakes, fillers, repetitions, but no unusually
long gaps in the flow of speech. Vizental draws attention upon the fact that a ppropriacy of language is also essential, as inappropriate
language can lead to social and other conflicts, so that the students must be taught to choose their vocabulary and style wisely and
according to the roles they personify and the different situational context s. In the classroom, the conversational mode Vizental talks
about usually takes the form of question -answer, exchanges, brainstorming, conversation, simulation, role -play, improvisati on,

10 Vizental, page 216

discussions, or debates. Such activities generate transfer of informat ion from one person to another and are enjoyable , engaging the
students’ attention, stimulating their imagination and reducing their anxiety.

As Dawson articulates in his book, Teaching English as a foregin language , in order to make put students talk, first of all if our
goal/aim is oral fluency, we should organize lessons in which students have the chance to talk as much as they can in English. He says
that mainly pres enting grammar, asking the students to read certain texts and allowing students to talk 2 minute per lesson is not
enough. Students’ speaking/talking time can be tremendously boosted by chorus work and pair work. Students will be more
enthusiastic to speak if they have something interesting to talk about, if they feel you are realy interested in them as people, and the
most important thing is the aim of speaking being real communication. Concerning correcting the students’ speech, there are two main
ideas D awson draws attention upon: the first one is that we should correct the students ’ mistakes only over some specific language
that they are presentl y learning and the second one is that we should not correct them if they are engaged in a general conversation as
long as what they want to share/transmit is clear. And, as show n above, w e may also pay attention to activities that require fluency or
accurary . Also, when we talk about feedback and how it should be done, we have to take into consideration these ter ms.
For the activities that I have done with this class, my main purpose was to give them confidence and thus, they would become more
fluent. I have noticed the fact that those students who were good at English, became even better, and those who were not brilliant at
English ( mainly at the skill of speaking), became better and became more involved in the activities. There were few times wh en I
have actually corrected them, because I really wanted for them to become more confident in themselves. As far as the choice of
materials and types of acvitities, sometimes I tried to bring the m form the ‚safe’ zone to the situations where my aim was. Other times,
I put them and allow them tu use their imagination and in this way, they stayed in their ‚safety’ zone. B ecause they were able ( at first)
to choose their type of dialogues, their own ideas and their situational dialogues, they became more confident in the later acti vities. I
think the most demading one was the play written by Shakespeare, Twelfth Night. They had to learn the lines, to enter the lives of the

characters, to undertstand their feelings and act acording to that. I think that they really enjoyed many of the activities. I could notice
the fact that many students, who didn’t participate at the Englis h class, got involved happily in these activities, acting out in many
different situations.
Because I really wanted for them to get a real sense of how should English or any other foreign language should be learnt, I chose
those types of activities that w ould really boost their confidence in talking in English and expressing their own feelings and managing
in different contexts. As teachers, we know that if we focus manily on language repetition s, we may miss the core of the speaking
activity.
A really im portant aspect is the interest in the subject presented. If the students have not interst in the subject, no relevant knowled ge
or experience, no motivation, no desire to speak about it and worst of all, a slight panic. In order to make the students to talk, we
should take all these aspects into consideration. If the subjects we have chosen are relevant and interesting, if the student s already
know about or are provided with information to give substance to the topic, if they feel motivated to talk about it , if they that they
really want to say something, there is a god chance of something interesting happening. To be able to accomplish the main goal, that
of working on fluency , we often have to find ways of enabling as many students as possible to speak as much as possible. When
having an all -class speaking, we have to be careful with the students talking time, because it can offer very little speaking time to each
individual students. It’s usually a good idea to organise speaking activities in pairs, or sma ll groups , as well as with the class as a
whole.
Giving the students clear and concrete tasks (for example, describing a photo or answering a specific question) may offer a m ore
manageable starting point than a general inviation to present your point of vi ew). Similarly, having a ‚role’ may give learners
permission to speak more freely, taking some of the nervourness associated with formulating one’s own view.
There are some keys to g etting a good discussion going. It shouls have a preparation time -the stud ents may need some quiet time
before the speakig activity, for example to look up vocabulary in their notebooks, think through their thoughts, make some no tes, etc.

The teacher must not interrupt the flow -if it’s possible, the teacher should try and avoid classroom management techniques that
interfere with the natural flow of c onversation. I am reffering to those learners who put their hands up before they speak. I suggest
trying alternatives such as keeping a watchful eye on the class and noticing those sm all movements and looks that suggests someone
wants to speak, and then invite them to speak with a gesture or by a natural comment such as: Fernando, what do you think?’
It may be noticed that specific problems are more productive than general issues -rathe r than giving the students a general topic to
discuss, try setting a specific, related problem. This is often more inspiring , more interesting and more realistic . For example, I gave
students the idea of using school uniforms or not. Then, they were able t o form two groups and they had to decide, bringing arguments
if they are pro or against this issue. If we give students general topics, they won’t understand what they have to do and as is the topic
given, as will their answer be -vague. Sometimes, we may a ll break the rules -occasionally, it can make sense to go straight into the
discussion (perhaps because you want them to get some practice at unprepared speaking)
So, as a conclusion, I would say that there are some really important facts that must be taken into consideration when teaching
speaking skills. Students should be really ‚into’ the subjects so thet may freely communicate and say their points of view. T here are
some guidelines we must consider, but, there are sometimes times when we must just break the rules and follow the course of
discussion.

2.2.SPEAKING ACTIVIT IES
Goals of teaching speaking
Speaking is ‚the process of building and sharing meaning through the use of verbal and non -verbal symbols, in a variety of contents’
(Chaney, 1998, p.13). T oday’s world requires that the goal of teaching speaking should improve students’ communicative skills,
because, only in that way, students can express themselves and learn how to follow the social and cultural rules appropriate in each
communicative circu mstances. Therefore, ‚teaching speaking’ is to teach students to:

1. produce the English speech sounds and sound patterns;
2. use word and sentence stress, intonation patterns and the rhythm of second language;
3. select appropriate words and sentences acc ording to the proper social setting, audience, situation and subject matter;
4. organize their thoughts in a meaningful and logical judgments;
5. use language as a means of expressing values and judgments;
6. use the language quickly and confidently with f ew unnatural pauses, which is called as fluency (Nunan, 2003)
According to Syakur, there are at least five components of speaking skills concerned with comprehension, grammar, vocabulary,
pronunciation and fluency. (Syakur, 1987:3).11
Approaches to teaching speaking
The goal of teaching speaking skills is to ensure tat students are able to make themselves understood, using their current pr oficiency to
the fullest. They should try to avoid confusion in the message due to mispronunciation, faulty grammar, or v ocabulary, and to observe
the social and cultural rules that apply in each communication situation. To help students develop communicative efficiency i n
speaking, teachers can use activities that combine language input, structured output, and communicative output approaches.
Language input comes in form of the language heard and read outside of class, listening activities, class interaction, and it give s
students the material they nee d to begin producing language themselves. Language input may focus on con tent or form.
Focus on content input involves information. It may also include descriptions of learning startegies and examples of their us e. Focus
on form input involves ways of using the language: guidance from the teacher or another source on vocabulary , pronuncation, and
grammar (linguistic competence); appropriate things to say in specific contexts (discourse competence); expectations for rate of

11 Retrieved from: http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Kayi -TeachingSpeaking.html

speech, pause length, turn -talking, and other social aspects of language use (sociolinguistic competence); and elicit instruction in
phrases to use to ask for clarification and repair miscommunication (strategic competence). In the presentation part of a les son, a
teacher combines content -oriented and form -oriented input. The amount of input that is actually pr ovided in the target language
depends on students’ proficiency and also on the situation.

Language output
Structure output focuses on students’ using corect language forms/structures. They may have options for responses, but all of the
options require th em to use the specific form or structure that the teacher has just introduced. Structured output is designed to make
learners comfortable producing specific langauge items recently introduced, sometimes in combination with previously learned items.
In comm unication output, the students’ main purpose is to complete a task. To complete the task, they may use the language that the
teacher has just presented, but they also may use any other vocabulary, grammar, and communication strategies that they know. In
communicative output activities, the criterion of success is whether the student gets the message across. Fluency , not accuracy is a
consideration, unless the lack of the latter interferes with the message. In everyday communication, spoken exchanges take pl ace
because there is some sort of information gat between the participants. Communicative output activities involve a similar rea l
information gap. In order to complete the taks, students must reduce or eliminate the information gap. In these activities, l anguage is a
tool, not an end in itself. In the communicativre model of language teaching, teachers help their students develop knowledge by
providing authentic practice that prepares students for real -life communication situations. To help students develo p communicative
efficiency in speaking, teachers can use a balanced activities approach that combines language input, structured output, and
communicative output.

Communicative output activities allow strudents tp practice using all of the language they kn ow in situations that resemble as real
settings. In these activities, students must work together to deevelop a plan, resolve a problem, or complete a task. The mos t common
types of communicative output activity are role plays and discussions.

Activit ies to promote speaking
1. Discussions foster critical thinking and quick decisions making; students learn how to expres and justify themselves in po lite ways
while disagreeing with the others; teachers set the purpose of the discussion, so that students become involved in agree/disagree
discussions; students are encouraged to ask questions, paraphrase ideas, express support, check for clarification.
2. Role -play-students pretend they are in various social contexts and have a variety of social roles; the t eacher assigns roles (gives
information to the learners such as who they are and what they think or feel).
3. Simulations -similar to role -plays but more elaborate -students can bring items to the class to create a realistic environment; role
plays and simul ations are entertaining, motivate the students and increase the self -confidence of the shy ones.
4. Information Gap -students are supposed to be working in pairs -one student will have the information that other partner does not have
and the partners will sh are their information; advantages: in solving a problem or collecting information, each partner plays an
important part/role because the task cannot be completed if the partners do not provide information the others need; everybod y has the
opportunity to t alk extensively in the target language

5. Brainstorming/problem solving -students are required to produce ideas on a given topic in a given time period; can be done
individually/in pairs/groups; is effective -students generate ideas quickly and freely; stude nts are not criticized for their ideas so they
are open to sharing new ideas.
6. Storytelling -fosters creative thinking; helps students express ideas in the format of beginning, development, and ending, including
the characters and setting a story has to h ave.
7. Interviews -students are required to conduct interviews on selected topics with various people; the teacher may provide a rubric to
students so that they know what type of questions they can ask, but it is the students who prepare their own intervi ew questions.
Advantages: give students a chance to practice their speaking ability not only in class but also outside; helo them becoming socialized.
8. Story Completion -a very enjoyable, whole -class, free -speaking activity; the teacher may provide the be ginning of a story, the, each
student starts to narrate from the point where the previous one stopped.
9. Reporting -students are asked to read a newspaper or magazine before coming to class, watch a video clip; in class, they report to
their friends what t hey find as the most interesting news.
10. Oral presentations on a given topic
Communicative activities
We typically communicate when one of us has information (facts, opinions, ideas, instructions, etc.) that another does not ha ve. This is
known as an ‚in formation gap’. The aim of a communicative activity in class is to get learners to use the language they are learning to
interact in realistic and meaningful ways, usually involving exchanges of information or opinion. For example, giving instruc tions so
that someone can use a new machine, or asking for information concerning a film. We can consider these two activities that in volve
real communication. Communicative activities are not simply grammar -practice activities, for although you could offer likely
grammar or vocabulary before the activity, the main aim for the students is achievening successful communication rather than

accurate use of paricular items of language. Here are some examples of some popular general types of communicative activities you
may wish to try out. For example, picture difference task, when, in pairs, one student is given picture A, one picture B. With our
looking at the other picture, they have to find the differences (i.e. by describing the pictures to each other).
There are som e main guidlines
There are some principles when we talk about language teaching and we would like it to be more effective. The teachers should
encourage the development of a positive self -image by providing success -oriented tasks and positive feedback; cr eate a supportive
environment, one that allows pupils to take risks, to make errors and experiment with the language; create a language -rich
environment, one that provides pupils with ample opportunities to encounter a variety of verbanl and visual stimuli and use the
language in different contexts and registers; activate and build on pupils’ background knowledge; take pupils’ level of cogni tive and
linguistic development into account; encourage pupils’ autonomy; help pupils become aware of using appropriat e learning strategies;
creat problem -solving contexts; provide feedback that is on -going and formative; provide opportunities for peer interaction; encourage
pupils to use English outside the classroom; stimulate pupils to broaden their horizons through th e use of English.
Language learning is facilitated when pupils:
-have developed literacy skills in their first language /mother tongue
2.2.1.CONTROLLED COMMUNICATION
As Vizental puts it in her book, she underlines the fact that, i n the early stage of langua ge teaching (also called the manipulative
phase), the students learn the basic vocabulary and structu res through drills and exercises , controlled activities hold first place. Due
to the fact that I have been teaching this group of students from the 3rd gra de, so for 4 years now, they neither knew enough language,
nor the did they have the required skills to produce messages on their own, so my basic role was to to introduce vocabulary and
develop basic langua ge skills. Concerning this stage, the students ne eded a model for their own language an d they relied mainly on the
text and on the teacher for the language they produced. Therefore, the initial stage in language aquisition is basically immi tative: the

students listen to the teacher and repeat the words a nd structures, or read aloud the dialogues in their textbooks. With beginners,
reading alod (in fact, a basic speaking activity) is very important: the students practice pronunciation, stress, intonation, etc. And the
teacher corrects the students’ mistake s. Many of the texts in the textbooks come in form of dialogues -this is because the dialogue
simulates the most typical real -world linguistic exchange: face -to face conversation . However, the teacher must remember that, when
reading aloud, students often f ocus too hard on the act of reading and ignore the m essage of the text. That is why, several readings are
required, some of them silent. Simulation is even closer to real -world interaction, as the students no longer read the tex t, but repeat it
from mem ory, and they may also be allowed to make changes, according to their imagination. With young beginners, as my students
were, teaching hte language with the help of language games or songs proves to be the most effective. With such activities, the
students pr actice new langauege -in linguistic contexts, that are similar to, or slightly different from, those in the model text -until the
basic linguistic habits of pronunciation and patterns are formed.
At this stage, for this group of students, I have selected tw o lessons from the textbook . The lessons are based on speaking and
listening skills.
LESSON PLAN

SCHOOL: LICEUL TEORETIC PÂNCOTA
DATE: 6th of March 2018
TEACHER: Guiu Manuela
Grade: 6th
LEVEL: Pre-intermediate (intensive class)
Unit: House and home
SUBJECT: Picture description

TYPE OF THE LESSON: Knowledge aquisition
TIMING: 50 minutes
• Aims : Students will be able to: -design dialogues;
-talk freely about given photographs
-use vocabulary related to the topic in appropriate contexts;
-speak about different places in a town; give simple directions
– describe pictures

Competences targeted: communicative (linguistic and discourse ) in producing written, but mainly oral messages based on the
reception of an oral message
• Skills : Speaking, reading, writing, listening
• Vocabulary : lexis related to picture descriptions
• Didactic strategies :
– methods , procedures and techniques: pre diction, silent reading; matching, conversation, explanation, observation,
open -questions
– organization: whole class, individual work, pair work;
– materials and aids: pictures,whiteboard, CDs
• Teacher’s roles : organizer, resource, monitor, ass essor, prompter, participant
• Evaluation : based on students’ performance
• Bibliography :

1).Falla T., Davies A., P., 2012, Pre-Intermediate , Editura Niculescu -partener Oxford University Press
2). Harmer, Jeremy, 2007, The Practice of English Language Te aching, Macmillan Publisher Limited
3). Scrivener, James, 2005, Learning teaching –A guidebook for English language teachers, Second Edition , Macmillan Publisher
Limited

STAGE PROCEDURE TASKS INTERACTION AIMS ESTIMATED
TIME
1
Review &
homework
checking
Teacher greets the
students, checks the
attendance and the
students’ homework
and asks them what
do they remember
from the previous
lesson
The students answer
the teacher’s
greetings and tell
the absents
The students read
their homework and
correct if ne cessary
The students present
a few ideas from the
previous lesson

T&Sts
-to correct and
check the
homework

-to check items
learnt in the
previous lesson
2 '
2

Introduction to a
new lesson The teacher asks the
students if they can
relate places they
see in the image in
the textbook with
places in their town

The teacher asks the
students to describe
a place they think is
important in their
town The students present
some important
places in their town
if they kno w

The students
describe an
important place T&Sts

IW

PW

– to introduce the
topic

-to create a good
atmosphere in the
classroom

6 '
3 Presentation
The teachers asks
the students to
match the words
from ex. 1 with the
photos from the
textbook
The teacher asks
Students work in
pairs and match the
words with the
given photos

Students offer
different ideas

PW

T & Sts

-to raise students’
interest in the new
topic
– to get familiarized
with the topic of the
lesson

`6

them to describe the
pictures in the
textbook
The teacher asks the
students to listen to
a girl, called
Hannah and say
which is the photo
she is de scribing
Students listen and
then they discover
that Hannah is
talking about photo
no. 1
4
Practice The unfamiliar
words are explained
as the need arises or
the students may
guess their
meanings from the
context.
The teacher asks the
students to listen
again abd tick the
phrases Hannah Students write down
in their notebooks
the unfamiliar
words

Students listen and
identify all the
phrases Hannh used
to describe picture
no 1
T&St

PW -to understand and
learn the meanings
of new words

-to organize the
classroom in an
efficient way

'30

uses to describe the
photo
The teacher asks the
students talk in pairs
and describe the
farmer on page 29,
including phrases
from ex. 3
The teacher asks the
students to look at
picture 1 and then
take turns to ask and
answer the some
questions, using
fillers from ex. 5
The teacher points
out different fillings
they might want to
use: eg. Let me
think, hmmm…what
Students discuss
between themselves
and then, they
present so me ideas
to the class

Students read the
questions and then,
they answer them

Students listen and
write down some
fillers

Students form pairs
and describe the
photo as in the
example from ex. 7 T&St

IW

T&St

PW
-to deepen the facts
they have rea d

-to understand and
learn the meanings
of new words

else?; Let me see…
The teacher asks the
students to create
pairs and to
simulate the
dialogue at ex. 7
using the fillers and
phrases they have
previoulsy
discussed
5 Evaluation Teacher asks the
students to
remember one thing
they have learnt
during this lesson
and name the most
interesting

The teacher gives
Students name the
most interesting
place they have
heard about this
lesson

Students write down
IW

IW
– to get feedback on
the activity

-to get the students

‘5

`1

the stude nts the
following
assignment: to think
of the most
beautiful place they
have ever been and
describe it next time the written
assignment to perform written
tasks from different
sources

LESSON PLAN

SCHOOL: LICEUL TEORETIC PÂNCOTA
DATE: 8th May 2018
TEACHER: Guiu Manuela
Grade: 6th
LEVEL: Pre-intermediate (intensive class)
Unit: Shopping
SUBJECT: Making a complaint
TYPE OF THE LESSON: Knowledge aquisition
TIMING: 50 minutes

• Aims : Students will be able to: -make a formal complaint;
-negotiate a solution;
-use vocabulary related to the topic in appropriate contexts;
-speak about different problems that may occur;
-act o ut a specific dialogue;

Competences targeted: communicative (linguistic and discourse) in producing written, but mainly oral messages based on the
reception of an oral message
• Skills : Speaking, reading, writing, listening
• Vocabulary : lexis r elated to (making) complaints
• Didactic strategies :
– methods , procedures and techniques: prediction, silent reading; matching , conversation, explanation, observation,
open -questions
– organization: whole class, individual work, pair work;
– materials and ai ds: pictures,whiteboard, CDs
• Teacher’s roles : organizer, resource, monitor, assessor, prompter, participant
• Evaluation : based on students’ performance

• Bibliography :
1).Falla T., Davies A., P., 2012, Pre-Intermediate , Editura Niculescu -partener Oxford University Press
2). Harmer, Jeremy, 2007, The Practice of English Language Teaching, Macmillan Publisher Limited
3). Scrivener, James, 2005, Learning teaching –A guidebook for English language teachers, Second Edition , Macmillan Publisher
Limited

STAGE PROCEDURE TASKS INTERACTION AIMS ESTIMATED
TIME
1
Review &
homework
checking
Teacher greets the
students, checks the
attendance and the
students’ homework
and asks them what
do they remember
from the previous
lesson
The students answer
the teacher’s
greetings and tell
the absents
The students read
their homework and
correct if necessary
The students present
a few ideas from the
previous lesson

T&Sts
-to correct and
check the
homework

-to check items
learnt in the
previous l esson
2 '

2
Introduction to a
new lesson
The teacher asks the
students to describe
the picture from
page 50

The teacher asks the
students to answer
some questions
regarding
conversations
between customers
and assisstants

The students
describe the picture
in their own words
and then

The students answer
the questions
presenting their own
points of view

T&Sts

IW

PW

– to introduce the
topic

-to create a good
atmosphere in the
classroom

6 '
3 Presentation
The teachers asks
the students to read
and listen to the
dialogue and then,
answer the three
questions
Students read the
dialogue silently
and then listen and
after that, they
answer the
questions

PW

-to raise students’
interest in the new
topic
– to get familiarized
with the topic of the

`6

The teacher
discusses with the
students the
questions
The teacher a sks the
students to listen to
a girl, called
Hannah and say
which is the photo
she is describing
Students offer
different ideas

Students listen and
then they d iscover
that Hannah is
talking about photo
no. 1 T & Sts lesson

4
Practice The unfamiliar
words are explained
as the need arises or
the students may
guess their
meanings from the
context.
The teacher asks the
students to complete
the first column if
the chart with the
items presented: a
DVD, a jacket and a
television Student s write down
in their notebooks
the unfamiliar
words

Students complete
the chart using the
given words

T&St

-to understand and
learn the meanings
of new words

-to organize the
classroom in an
efficient way

'30

The teacher asks the
students work in
pairs readin g the
dialogue from ex. 2
changing the words
in blue, using
different items and
problems
The teacher asks the
students to listen to
two customers
complaining
After listening to
the dialogue, the
teacher asks the
students to complete
the chart from ex. 6
The teacher asks the
students complete
the sentences (1 -6)
with the words
given, then listen to
the dialogue and
check the answers
Students discuss
between themselves
and then, they start
practising the
dialogue and
changing the words
in blue with their
own

Students read the
questions and then,
they answer them

Students listen and
write down some
fillers

Students form pairs
and describe the
photo as in the
PW
T&St

IW

T&St

PW
-to deepen the facts
they have read

-to understand and
learn the meanin gs
of new words

The teacher asks the
students to work in
pairs and prepare a
dialogue following
the instruction given
at ex. 8/page 50 example from ex. 7
5 Evaluation Teacher asks the
students to act out
the dialogue to the
class
The teacher gives
the students the
following
assignment: to
think/imagine a
time when they had
to complain about
something
Students present the
dialogue

Students write down
the written
assignment
IW

IW
– to get feedback on
the activity

-to get the students
to perform written
tasks from different
sources

‘5

`1

fig. 1 Lesson: Making a complaint
fig. 2 Lesson: Picture description

49

Furthrmore, also at this stage, I would like also to present the play that the students have learnt –
Shakespeare’s Twelfth N ight. It was probably near the middle of his career, around 1601, that
Shakespeare wrote Twelfth Night . Most critics consider it one of his greatest comedies, along with plays
such as As You Like It, Much Ado About Nothing, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream . Twelfth Night is
about illusion, deception, disguises, madness, and the extraordinary thing s that love will trigger us to do
and to see. Twelfth Night is the only one of Shakespeare’s plays to have an alternative title: the play is
actually called Twelfth Night, or What You Will. Critics are divided over what the two titles mean, but
“Twelfth Night” is usually considered to be the twelfth night of the Christmas celebration (January 6). In
Shakespeare’s day, this holiday was celebrated as a festival in whic h everything was turned upside down
(much like the upside -down, chaotic world of Illyria in the play ).
As G. K. Hunter says in his book, each of Shakespear’s play is unique in its own way. ‚Twelfth Night
centres on the vision of happiness through love, as it is seen by high -born heroine who is condamned to
serve love out her love in a strange country, disguised as a boy. The play sets the loving self -awareness
of this heroine against a gallery of poseurs lamed by self -love and show her depth of sanity of he r
capacity to play the strange role that the harsh world set her, with efficiency but without losing faith in
the true identity to which faith and her own eff orts wil l eventually return her.’12

The characters:
Lady Olivia, Viola -a young noblewoman, a sea captain, Duke Orsino, ruler of Illyria, Malvolio, Olivia’s
steward, Sir Andrew, Sir Toby, Feste, Maria -Olivia’s maid, Sebastian -Viola’s twin brother, , Antonio -a
sailor, the priest, Feste -Olivia’s jester.
They have learnt the fact that this story is based on William Shakespeare famous play written a very
long time ago. Back then, people used to celebrate Christmas over twelve days, finishing with a feast on
the twelfth night. This play would have been staged at that feast. A love story full of comic twists and
turns, it was the perfect entertainment. The students have learnt the lines re -written for them, but
sometimes they encountered lines written by Shakespeare himself, those being his original words. The

12 Hunter, G., K.,

50

play is written for children and is devided into 6 chapters: Shipwreck, Fools and lovers, Making
mischief, Another survivor, More mix -ups, Happy ever after.

‚Performing Shakespeare, even at the most rudimentary level, script in hand, stu mbling over the difficult
words, but in this case, it was a re -written play for children, can and usually does permanently change a
student’s relationship with the plays and their author. I think that, with the necesssary adjustments,
Shakespeare is for everyone. I consider that students of all ability levels, all backgr ounds, and at all
grade levels can and do successfully engage with Shakespeare’s works. Why? Because Shakespeare,
done right, inspires. ’13 This is the story of my idea to bring a play to life in our class. It was a difficult
task, because first of all, they had never done such a thing and secondly, they were only 6th graders, so it
was a difficult task. Of of his plays are full of explosive family situations and complex relationships that
adolescents recognize. Performance is predominantly in teaching Shakes peare, whose language on the
page was difficult to understand at times . “Performance” in this sense does not mean presenting
memorized, costumed, fully staged shows, although those can be both satisfying and educational.
Performance means getting students up on their feet, moving around a classroom as characters,
and speaking the lines themselves. It was a great experience both for them as for myself. It should be
noticed the fact that enthusiasm is more important than e xpertise ( there is always more for ev eryone to
learn, so en joy the ride with your students) I allowed them to laugh, to present their own opinions and
ideas; also, we should t rust Shakespeare’s original language, but don’t strive over every word. More
than this, the teacher should p ick out ke y scenes that speak most clearly to your students. I considered
important to have an adaptation of Shakespear’s play, from the Osborne young. It was important to u se
the text to explain the life and times, not vice versa .

13 Retrieved from: http://www.simonandschusterpublishing.com/folgershakespearelibrary/assets/fcg -twelfth -night.pdf

51

fig. 3 Character conne ctions

fig. 4 Twelfth Night -adapted for children

Fig. 6 Chapter 6

52

fig. 7 Final scene
2.2.2.GUIDED ACTIVIT IES
Regarding controlled activities, thourgh which the students begin to produce language, mai nly by
imitating the model provided by the teacher or the textbook -offer the students s upport and giv e them
confidence (Vizental 200 8:221) However, repetition does not mea n actual production of language, as
Vizental explains in her book. The teacher must k eep in mind the fact that human communication is
random and unpredictable and that, if they want to prepare the students for real life, they must move as
far away from the models as possible. Thus, c onversa tion means interaction. We must consider the fact
that the students should learn to express themselves in creative contexts and i n a progressive way. I n
order to accomplish that, classroom activities must be active and interactive and oriented towards
production of messages rather than towards repetition of a model. Consequently, as soon as the students
have attained certain linguistic knowledge to rely on, the teacher must move on to the stage of guided
practice. When we talk about guided speaking, we consider the moment when the learners produce texts
similar to those in the textbook, but use different material: they no longer repeat the words of the text,
but paraphrase them, or they use their imagination to expand the text. At this stage, the learners still
need support and guidance, so they rely heavi ly on the props offered by the teacher . At this time , the
teacher has to motivate students to speak by involving them in conversations that are similar to those in
the real world and close to their personal experience. Topic -centred texts and activities li nk the new
material directly to the students’ life and stimulate them to participate. The home and the family,

53

shopping and travelling, music or professions are topics the students can identify with. In our case,
going to a travel agency or having an inter view with someone who loves animals. Such topics can
activate the students’ prior knowledge of the world and hence ensure concrete support for language
production. When talking about guided speaking activities, the teacher can also start to train the lear ners
in the art of making short guided speeches. I will present three girls who wanted to present their short
speeches in front of the class. Apart from making the students speak for several minutes, the efficiency
of the activity consists in the fact that it also gives them practice in facing an audience. Vizental
underlines the fact that s peaking without interruptions and in an effective way (catching the audience’s
attention) for a number of minutes may prove difficult even for the best of the students, so that at this
stage they may need consistant guidance. Since making a good speech requires high language
proficiency, as well as independence and creativity, such activities prepare the students for advanced,
communicative phase of language learning.
In this part of my research, I will explain some of the activities done during my English class and I will
attach some photos with each activity described.
Before doing the actual activity called ‚Find someone who …’, I went through some vocabulary from the
completion sheet that some of the students found hard , then I gave each student a completetion sheet . I
let the students asked me questions related to any aspects of the activity and then, I told them that the
winner is the person who gets most names soon est. It was a fun activity due to the fact that all of them
were involved in it and they were eager to have as many answers as they could on their completion
sheet. The students were running to get as many answers as possible on their answer sheet. The
challenge was bigger because they had to talk only in English. It was more difficult for the students who
were not as good as the other at English, but, somehow they were able to ask questions and to receive
the answers they have expected. Here are some photo s from the activity „Find someone who…”. the
children were running to find out as many names as they could.

54

Fig. 8 Activity -‚Find someone who…’
The next activity called ‚ Lost in the forest , allow ed the students to discuss among themselves and to
reach a consensus. The class was divided into two teams, both teams receiving the same task: to find
solutions to a problem. The students discussed among themselve s and, at the end of the activity, each
team sends a representative to tell the whole class what they have decided in their group and what ideas
did they agree upon. It was a good opporunity for all the students to talk and to say their points of view.
Even the shier ones got involved and played a part in the activity. Group planning task -I have chosen
the second example from Scrievener’s book, the Survival. I have told the students a tale about them
being lost in a forest. I explained that they were 2 grou ps; one of them being in a minibus crash and the
other group was in a plane crash. Both groups receive the same task: to present a way in which they
think thay could be saved. Both groups receive a map of the same event and they have to discuss among
thems elves ways in which they can arrive at the certain destination and live.

55

fig. 9 ‚Lost in the forest’ activity -Conclusions
Another guided activity was the one called the Fishbowl -in this activity, there were three students in the
middle of the class who chose to talk about different subjects and, at some time, when I saw that the
other children (we called them the observers) wanted to say something about that subject, I a sked them
to come in from of the class, as there was an unoccupied chair/seat, and say something about that
subject. At our Fishbowl activity, the three students had discus sions about: Chocolate or fruit; Fast food
or healty food ; Geography or history. It was a great opportunity for all students to get involved in this
activity. Of course, some of them were not able to talk so much about the subjects, but either way, they
were involved and even if they said only one idea it was a great achievement. The students enjoyed the
activity and considered it to be a succ ess.

56

Fig.10 The ‚Fishbowl’ activity

Fig.11 Missing information -Shopping and Movies

57

The activities presented above were activities done with the whole class, and I treid to involve as many
students as I could.
The following activities will describe som e of the activities that I have asked them to prepare. They
received some main guidelines and some ideas, but most of the outcome was their own
accomplishment. The students have been working on the area of tourism. They were told that they are
going to act out a scene in a travel agency where one student is customer and the other is a travel agent.
Student A is given some information (which, in our case, was only orientative), and student B can show
the customer about certain hotel information and touristic packages and explain the information to the
customer. Of course, students are given time to prepare the information. The teacher points out that the
customer needs to select the hotel based, as far as possible, on the qualities they want.
In this video, t hese girls are playing their roles as a a woman who runs a travel agency, or works as a
travel agent, and the other girl comes and asks some information about different types of holidays. The
dialogue between them runs smoothly and they are able to make ea ch other understood. Both girls
enjoyed the roles they had.

fig. 12 Tourism agency
In this role -play a girl is bullied by her friends because she tripped and fell. The other girl got involved,
helped her and encouraged her as reals friends do. This part of a role -play was invented by the students
themselves and I was only a spectator.

58

fig.13 Real friends
Beside those mini role -plays thay they performed, I have asked them to move to a more personal role –
play, called real -play. Scrievener explains in his book that real –play is a ‚powerful variation of role
play’ (Scrivener 158). In this case, situations and one or more of the characters are drwan not from card
or other imaginary situations, but from the participant’s own life and world. Typically, one of the leaners
plays himself/herself, but in a context other than the classroom. This person explains a context to other
leaners, and then tog ether they recreate the situation in class. The real play technique allows learners to
practice language they need in their own life.
Here, in this activity, tho girls playing a ‚real’ situation. One of them, Laura, comes to her friend’s
house, Daria, in order to ask her about what they recieved as homework. It is a friendly and cozy
atmosphere and the girls really enjoy playing in a scene as themselves.

Fig. 14 Asking for homework (Real -play)

59

The following two dialogues deal with more than role -play, t he girls playing as themselves. The real
play in which they are involved refer to themselves as friends and colleagues. The first one refers to a
question: Did you see my friends? And the other one asks is a conversation about a potential idea of
going to a pop concert. The four girls were involved in the conversations, it was easier for them to play
roles as themselves. Therefore, Marinela asks Anastasia if she has seen some of her friends because she
would like to play with them. The dialogue is a short o ne, but helped them in acting in a small scene.

fig.15 ‚Did you see my friends?’
Here, these two girls play a real -play as I can name it and they were talking about going to a pop
concert. Alexandra is the one who is making an invitation and Iasmina, the other girl gives a positive
answer. The real -play takes place in the park.

fig.16 Going to the concert
Another real -play was when a girl has lost her key s and a colleague helped her search for it. The real –
play was set in their environment, near the flats where they live. The girls used their own names and
they hae created this imaginary, but possible situation.

60

fig.17 The lost key
There was an other role -play, called Interview -Working with animals , where I have asked two girls to
prepare a short interview about something. I have helped them in explaining what they have to do, but
the scripts were made by them and also they have come up with the idea for the interview. In this
sequence, one girl had the role of the interviewer and the other one had the role of the interviewee . I
explained how an interview should be, how should they react and ask questions. I have read the scripts
they have created and I was pleased that they imagined such great questions and answers. They have
kept their names but played a role as well. The first question was how did Andreea have such an idea –
and the answer was that she loves animals and because on the streets ther e are so many animals without
masters. The second question was how does she have enough money for feeding all the animals;
Andreea says that she sells the animals to different people. Nicola asks what would she do if she didn’t
have enough money to feed al l the animals -she says that she will go and find a job. The next question
was how much times does she spend when she feed the animals -Andreea says that it takes an hour, but
she receives help from her mother as well. The last question was about the type of food she gives the
animals -Andreea explains that she gives them natural food. That is the end of the interview. Before
actually filming this sequence, they have asked me about language phrases they may use in order to give
a good structure fo the discours e/dialogue/conversation. As the interview takes place, the whole class is
watching, after which we gave them feedback on how well the questions were asked, how well the
interviewee managed to deal with them and whether the right language had been used. Thi s simulation
has provided not only an opportunity for rehearsal, but also the opportunity for the teaching of specific
process language.

61

Fig.18 Interview -Working with animals
As Harmer explains in his book, ‚news bulletin are especially interesting for students of English, not
only because they will want to be able to understand the news in English, but also because news
broadcasts have special formats ans use recognisable language patterns. Recognition of such formats
allow teachers to ask students to p ut their onw bulletins together, based on the news from today’s papers
on stories which they have been studying. Students can first watch news bulletins and analyse the
language that is particular to this genre. They can film their broadcasts, these are th en watched by their
classmates and by the teacher, who can lead the feedback session which ensues. ’14
This following simulation was done by a girl and is entitled „News bulletin’ . One girl to ok the role of a
news presenter. I chose her because she is a liv ely student, who like to talk very much. She was thrilled
by the idea of thinking about a subject to present the news in front of the class. She presented the
following news: ‚The importance of vitamins in the body of children.’ It was a great opportunity for her
to search for information, an interesting activity for the class and a motivating one for me.

14 Harmer, Jeremy, The practice of English Language Teaching, pages. 361 -362

62

fig. 19 News bulletin
2.2.3. FREE PRODUCTION
From guided speaking there is only a small , but significant step to free production and communication.
When the learners have developed fluency and proficiency of language, they are invited to collect their
own material to produce their own texts. There should not be a limit to language and situations , and the
unexpectedness of real -world communication meakes it impossible to predict what kind of language the
students might need. That is why, as Vizental explains, learners must be allowed to produce language in
a creative way from the very beginning. By organizing activities that simulate real -life-like intera ctions,
the teacher helps the learners to interact with the world and produce language the way they might have
to do in the real world. With the help of guided activities, the teacher has trained the students to become
less dependent on help and support, a nd to begin to produce language spontaneously and imaginativ ely.
Evidently , in the same class, there may be students who still cannot do without the teacher’s
interference. The teacher must take such differences into consideration and act accordingly. With the
help of efficient group work, she/he must train the students to help one another: the students who
demonstrate independence and creativity should be assigned to ad vise and provide support for those who
need to be guided. This kind of group work more r elaxed if helped by their peers; while helping their
mates, the proficient students actually produce language in an organized way. Free communication finds
its best expression at intermediate and advanced levels of language learning, when the students acqu ire
the linguistic baggage and the skills necessary to accommodate various situations. To achieve his/her
educational goal, the teacher has to devise complex classroom activities that should involve the learners
intelectually as well as emotionally. At int ermediate and advanced levels, dialogues, role -play and
improvisations are used to stimulate conversation and develop speaking skills. With dialogues, the

63

students are taught to use the language to build a character to to create social relationships, so
that the students also have the opportunity to practice actual social skills. At this stage, they not
only transfer information, but also functionalize the language according to the roles they take on and the
siutational context, in a way that is close to fr ee expression.
Dialogues are considered to be a much greater source of oral work than prose passages, underlines
Dawson. They are especially good for pronunciation practice. There are some characteristics Dawson
mentions in his book: the dialogues shouldn’ t be too long, they should have two or three speakers only
and it should be quite realistic, it does not introduce too much new material and it contains one or two
new grammar points .
I have started my work/research by asking my students to come up with d ifferent situational dialogues,
all of them being filmed in the classroom, but happening in different imaginary contexts. I would like to
present some of those activities. One of them is called ‚At the doctor /surgery ’ and during this activity,
one student plays the role of a doctor, another plays the role of a pacient and the other one plays the role
of a nurse. This dialogue was entirely the students’ idea and it was played in such a way that they really
entered the characters’ roles. They have also wrote the scrip down. It is attached in the annexes.
fig. 20 -At the doctor

Another activity chosen by the students was a ‚Job interview’ . One of them was looking for a job and
the other student asked her so me questions that were related to a job that might fit the possible
employee. The first question of the interviewee was how many hours does she have to wor k. The
interviewers answers, and then, she procedes to the actual interview. The interviewer asks som e

64

questions: Why do you want to work here?; Did she work somewhere else ?; Where did you work in the
past?; Why is he not working at the bank?; The person interested in the job, answers the questions and,
at the end of the interview, she receives some paper work to fill in/complete. The interviewer gives the
lady in search for a job, the last indications/aspects realted to the job. This activity was previously done
and the interview with animals was its sequel. The interview -working with animals was a guided
activity, an activity I have askes the students to do, whereas this dialogue was performed from their own
creativity and with no interference from the teacher.

Fig. 21 Job i nterview
Here, one student is working at a Tourist information centre and the other two boys come in and
they would like to know where are some places in a town. Andrei, the boy ‚employed’ at the tourist
information explain the tourist where they should go.
fig.22 At the tourist information
centre

65

Here , there are two girls who play the roles of a shop -assistant and the customer.
fig. 23 At the supermarket
In this activity, these three girls play the roles of a tourist agent and two customers, who are quarelling
because each of them wnated a room, but there was only one room left in the hotel and they were
arguing who should be given that room. At one point, a police officer comes and calms them down.
fig. 24 The Hotel Rugby
Because this paper deals with non -nativ speakers of English, I have decided to introduce some
simulations or role -plays having a romanian translation as well. Therefore, having as a guide Oprescu’s
book, Studies in the teaching of Englis h at various levels, I wanted the students to offer some
translations to different dialogues. For example, one was about agreeing to to something:
one was about disagreeing , one was about apologizing , one was about making a request , and one was
about asking for information (the last one being a formal one).

66

fig. 25 Apologizing
fig. 26 Asking for information
fig. 27 Diagreeing
fig. 28 Making a request

67

fig. 29 -Agreeing

2.3 ORGANIZED SPEAKING A CTIVITIES
2.3.1 The roles of teacher in speaking activities
The teacher’s role at this stage is that of organizer of the activity (he/she may suggest the activity
type), of facilitator of the interaction (he/she gives advice if and when necessary), of moderator and
analyst. (he/she ma kes critical observations and corrects mistakes, etc.)
As we may all know (teachers), in his book, Harmer presents some roles teacher might have during
lessons. For example, we may take the role of controller whose role is to dominate the class, controlli ng
what the students do, when they speak and what language they use. There are certain stages of the lesson
which are appropiate for this role: introduction of new language, accurate reproduction stage. When
teachers are controllers in the class, they do a lot of talking, a fact that has a bad effect on the students’
talking time, but it is important, as the teacher is the most important source of comprehensible input.
Control, thus, should be relaxed, so that the students have a chance to practice the lang uage themselves.
Another role can be that of an assessor , an important role as well. One important part of a teacher’s job
is to asses the students’ work and their performance. It is important because the students expect it, they
want to know how well they have done. There are two types of assesssment: correction and organising
feedback. Correction is done immediately, whereas the feedback stage is the one which appears after an
activity has finished, showing the students if the activity has been a succes o r a failure. Concerning the
fact that I am mainly focusing on speaking activities, I will underline the part of organising feedback.
Content feedback refers to the ability of the students to perform the task whereas form feedback refers to

68

the lanhuahe ski lls of the students. The teacher should refer both to the content and form during the
feedback stage. Of course, the focus should be on positive aspects.
The role of organiser is very important when we talk about speaking activities, this being the one of the
most difficult roles of the teacher. Whe n performing this role, the teac her should give instructions about
the task, the way the students are organised, timing. Teachers should also check if the students have
understood the instructions (the use of mo ther tongue is useful in this case). The next step is to
demonstrate the activity and initiate it, the final part being feedback organisation. The success of the
activity depends on a good organisation and clear instructions.
The teacher as a prompter should be performed with discretion.
The teacher as a participant during a certain type of activities (mainly communicative ones) may join
the students as a participant. This will improve the atmosphere and the students will feel more relaxed.
They will also have the opportunity to speak English with somenone who speaks better tan them.
The teacher as a resource -especially during communicative activities, the teacher could act as a
resource, offer help when necessary (language, task),
The teacher as a tutor -the teacher should help the students with advice in different situations: when they
do individual work, when they need help clarifying ideas, looking for resources etc.
The role of teacher in role plays. Maybe some wonder and ask themsleves what roles can t eachers have
in role -plays. First of all, he teacher may be a facilitator -‚students may need new language to be ‚fed’ in
by the teacher. If rehearsal time is appropriate, the feeding in of new language should take plave at this
stage.’15, then he/she may be a spectator -the teacher watches the role -play and offers comments and
advice at the end and , in the third place, participant -it is sometimes appropiate to get involved and take
part in the role -play yourself.
Concerning the class organisation, the teach er may pay attention to the disruptive behaviour and, the
causes of that can depend on different factors:
-students may gat bored; they may be tired at the end of the day; family problems may als offer a
response. Their attitude (how they view the class, t he teacher) is also important

15 Gillian Po rter Ladousse, op. cit., p. 12

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-the teacher’s attitude and bahaviour may be another answer: if the teacher has a negative attitude, goes
to class unprepared, issues threats, is unfair, then the students will respond in a similar way
-the attitude of the ins titution to disruptive behaviour is also important. (Penny Ur)
Organising pair work and group work
In a class of 25, like in our case, some will have the opportunity to speak more, other won’t speak at all
if the teacher don’t organize the the class diffe rently. One of the successful ways, if the teacher is
resourceful and skilful enough, to motivate his/her students to participate in the le sson is to use “pair
work” or “g roup work” appropriately. Language is best learned through the close collaboration an d
communication among students. This type of collaboration results in benefits for all or both learners. In
fact, learners can help each other while working on different types of tasks such as writing dialogues,
interviews, drawing pictures and making comm ents about them, play roles, etc… Researches on Second
Language Acquisition have shown that learners have differences in mastering skills. While one student
is good in drawing, another can be good in expressing ideas verbally; a third other student can be good
at role play and imitation. Besides, some students find it less stressful, if not much comfortable to learn
certain rules or usages of language from their pears and comrades than from their teacher. Finally,
communicative language teaching requires a sense of community and anenvironment of trust and mutual
confidence which “pair work” or “g roup work” can provide. Forming pairs and groups can be done in
different ways: either letting the students group as they are sitted, mix the weak and strong student s. The
teacher can form groups of weak students and groups of strong students, giving them different tasks.
Another possibility is to let them make groups, according to their interets, friendship. There is also the
flexible group: a student starts in a gro up: as the activity progresses, the groups are split and other
groups are formed. Groups should not be too large: a group of more than 5 members is difficult to
manage. One of the students could act as a group leader (organiser), making sure that the stude nts
perform the task, conducting the activity, if necessary. He/She could also halp with the language and
prompt the other members of the group to speak English and focus on the task, acting, in fact, as a
‚mini -teacher’ (H armer). Regarding the activites d one, I may divide them into four categories: therw
was individual work (speech -es), pair work (dialogues. Real -plays, role -plays) and group work (debates,
acting in the Shakespearian play, reaching a consensus), whole class (the lesson describe above ,

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Fishbowl, ‚Find someone who…” ). All these groupings helped the students to organize better, helped me
to involve the whole class in different activites. In such a way, all students had at least teo or three
occasions to talk or to be involved.
Types of inter action
The frontal approach (lockstep) is the traditional teaching situation in which the teacher is working
with the whole class. There are certain situations in which this approach is necessary (introducing new
language, the accurate reproduction stage). Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages.
Individual work is another manner of working in the classroom. It is a comfortable way of working
with the students, allowing them ‚learning space’ (Harmer). It is mostly used for practising receptivr
skills.
Pair work and group work are frequently used at certain stages of the lesson: when practising
speaking, most often, but also writing, reading. These are grouping that encourage communication,
cooperation, built a team spirit, increase imagination and also motivate students to learn.
The seating of the students
The way the students are seated in the classroom will often determine the dynamics of the lesson.
Indeed, a simple change in the seating pattern can make an incredible difference to group cohere nce and
student satisfaction, and I’ve seen many other cases where seating has been a crucial element in the
success or failure of the lesson.The seating pattern you use may, in some cases, not be fully under your
control – if for example the desks are fix ed to the ground or the school has strict rules about not moving
the furniture. Student numbers are also going to be an issue.
I’ll talk about average size classes – anything from 6 to 25. Teachers have different preferences for
seating arrangements – groups seated round small tables is often one choice. This is probably the best
option for the larger classes in this range, but for smaller numbers and with adult or teenage students I
think the horseshoe shape, which I find has all of the advantages of group s, and none of the
disadvantages. A horseshoe may be desks in a U -shape with a hollow centre, students in a semicircle on
chairs with arm -rests and no desks, or students seated around three sides of a large table, with the
teacher at one end.nIn any case, whatever seating pattern you choose or is imposed on you, the class is

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likely to be more successful if you keep the following principles in mind: Try and maximise eye
contact. Both teacher to student and student to student. In full class phases of the less on, if the person
who is speaking does not have eye contact with the others, then attention is likely to drop. This is the
main reason I personally think the horse shoe shape to groups is better. Make sure students are seated
at a comfortable distance from each other. Make sure you don’t have one student sitting alone or
outside the groups. Besides, try to leave a fair empty, but not so much a space because large distances
between the students will tend to lead to a “muted” atmosphere, low pace, and less act ive student
participation in the lesson. Think in advance about how you will organise changing partners or
changing groups. This is a stage of the lesson which can potentially descend into chaos if it’s not
tightly controlled, with students wandering aimle ssly around not knowing where to go or confidently
moving to the wrong place. ’16
Besides the seating of the students and grouping them, we need to take into consideration the atmsphere
in the classroom. As Klippel says in his book, Communicative fluency act ivities for language teaching ,
the first essential requirement/ obligation for the use of learning -centred activities is a relaxed and
friendly atmosphere in the group. Only after the teacher accomplishes that, can the aims/goals of these
activities be achi eved : cooperation and the growth of understanding. Also, teacher should be able to
select activities which their students will feel at ease with.
2.3.2 Role play s and simulation s
Vizental explains that, w ith simulation , the students are asked to act out t he model dialogue from
memory, or to create a similar one. Although basically imitative, the activity is close to face -to-face
conversation. In the ealry stages of language aquisition, simulation is useful for introducing vocabulary,
structures and functio ns; in later stages, it is efficient for developing fluency of speech.
Role -play is a popular classroom activity that starts from the text and leads to interactive
communication similar to that occuring in the real world. With role -play, the students may b e invited to

16 Retrieved from: https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/blogs/alexenoamen/ways -motivating -efl-esl-students -classroom

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take on the roles of the characters in the text they have read, use their imagination, and act out a
conversation. Role play is a technique that both teachers and students enjoy because it is entertaining,
easy to understand, and leaves freedo m for individual initiative: it is a kind of children’s game, yet it
also resembles the theatre, so it is serious enough to be enjoyed by older students, too; consequently, it is
one of the best ways of reducing the learners’ anxiety.
Improvising and drama tization are similar to role play in that two or more speakers are assigned roles
and invited to interact accordingly; however, the techniques are more creative and complex. The activity
may be triggered by a literary text (e.g. the Twelfth night), or by a real-world event (e.g. a political or
military conflict). Starting from the situation from the text, the teacher sets a hypothetical situation:
Gulliver has landed in your classroom; or President Bush faces Osama bin Laden . Then the teacher
assigns the s tudents roles in the situation and asks them to produce a plausible converation without any
special preparations. (Vizental -pp. 216 -218)
One of the basic problems in foreign -language teaching is to prepare learners to be able to use the
language. How this preparation is done, and how successful it is, depends very much on how teachers
understand their aims. It is obvious that in order to be able to speak a foreign language, it is necessary to
know a certain amount of grammar and vocabulary. A part of the la nguage course is therefore generally
devoted to this objective. But there are other things involved in speaking which have to be included in
our teaching. We have to take into consideration that there is a ‘difference between knowledge about a
language and skill in using it and the distinction between knowledge and skill is crucial in the teaching
of speaking. The ultimate aim for teachers is to produce good communicators, i.e. ‘to bridge the gap
between knowledge of the rules and vocabulary and the student s’ to express their own meanings.’17 The
purpose of real communication is to accomplish a task. In real communication, participants must
manage uncertainty about what the other person will say. To create classroom speaking activities,
teachers need to incor porate a purpose and an information gap and allow for multiple forms of
expressions. Teachers ‘need to combine structured output activities, which allow for error correction and
increased accuracy, with communicative output that give students opportunities to practice language use

17 Martin Bygate, Speaking, Oxford University Press, 1987, p.3

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more freely.’18 The most common types of communicative output activities are role plays and
discussions. Role play is a very popular classroom activity which both students and teachers enjoy.
As Kipple underlines in his book, it i s not easy to make a clear difference between role play and
simulation. Both of them are considered forms of games illustrating parts of reality. ‘As a rule,
simulations are highly structured and contain more diverse elements in their content procedure.
Simulations are considered to be simplified patterns of human interactions or social processes where the
players participate in roles.’19 Many of the simulations require that the participants receive information
they need and materials to work before the actu al simulation takes place. Opposed to simulations, role –
plays often consist of short scenes, which can be quite realistic -for example, acting out in a shopping
situation, or at school, or pure imagination -as pretending to present the news bulletin. Role -plays can be
achieved around?! everyday situations as well as around topical/given problems like the violence. Why I
have chosen these specific role -plays and simulations for the paper? Well, there is a necessity of
‘training the students with the unpredicta ble nature of language communication.’20
‘Real -world interactions are rapid and spontaneous, conditioned by time -pressure’21, therefore we have
to bring these situations into the class to encourage the students to use everyday language. There are
special rea sons for using role play. Here is a list of the main ones22:
1. By using role -play, students develop their communicative competences, which help them in everyday
life. Teachers need to encourage students in a variety of situations and help them speak with c onfidence,
and also help learners to interact

18 Vizental, Adriana, Strategies of Teaching and Testing English as a Foreign Language’, Iasi, Polirom, 2007, p.57
19 Kipple
20 Gillian Porter Ladousse, Role-play, Oxford University Press, 1987, p. 6
21 Vizental, Adriana, Strategies of Teaching and Testing English as a Foreign Language’, Iasi, Polirom, 2007, p.35
22 Gillian Porter Ladousse, op.cit., p.6

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2. A wide variety of experience can be brought into the classroom through role -play, a wide range of
functions and structures, and areas of vocabulary can be introduced. Through role play we can improve
the stu dents speaking skills in any situation.
3. Role play is very important in learning En glish for specific purposes, because there are people who
learn English to prepare for specific roles, people who want to travel or work in an international context
4. For shy students, role play helps by providing a mask. They get the chance to express themselves,
because they no longer feel that their own personality is implicated
5. Perhaps the most important reason for using role play is that it is fun and motivating
‘Simulation is a language learning model which allows students to express themselves to their peers in a
group setting groups comprising usually three or four. It is related to role -play, but in simulation
students retain their own persona and are not requir ed to pretend to be someone else. In role play, one
student might be told that she is a supermarket checkout assistant whilst another is a customer. Students
might also be given fairly tight guidelines outlining the nature of their e xchange or the language points
they are expected to cover.’23
Concerning simulations, there are some benefits, as seen in the book ‘Simulation as a language learning
tactic’ . There are underlined some benefits: gives students the chance to carry out a task or solve a
problem toge ther, removes error correction from the equation at the time of the exercise, allows students
to experiment with new vocabulary and structures, gives students the freedom to make their own choices
and decisions, allows students to base their choices and de cisions on their own experience and allows
teachers to monitor progress participation unobstrusively.

23 Simulation as a language learning tactic

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2.3.3 THE SPEECH
In this chapter, I would like to underline maily the two organised speaking activities: the speech and the
debate, but, I would also li ke to name some of the activities that requested some preparation at home.
Vizental explains in her book how importa nt it is to encourage the students to express their ideas; in that
way, the teacher is able to offer various opportunities for them to part icpicate in dialogues and
discussions. Within the expositional mode, storytelling is frequently practiced. Nontheless, there are few
teachers how useful it is to give the students opportunities to make actual speeches, i.e. to let them speak
in front of an audience, on a given subject, for a given number of minutes. The authos explains that
practice in speech -making guides students to organize their materials logically, use paralanguage
effectively, and develop the habit of speaking in public. Of course, th e activity will be useful and helpful
if the students are given time to prepare their speeches carefully and are allowed to deliver them in front
of the critical audicence of their collea gues. Thus , they understand both the restraints and the difficulties
of speech -making, and learn to control their emotions. ’ (Vizental. P. 232)
This time I have asked three girls to prepare some speeches. Although the speeches are not so elaborate,
I really appreciated their enthusiasm and I think that they did a great job .? One of them presented the
importance of receiving homework, another girl presented the problems that may occur when there is
violence and the other girl explained the appearance of the dinosaurs. All of them presented their
speeches in their own way. Th ey have chosen the subjects and they were very enthusiastic about them.

fig. 30 -Speeach about dinosaurs

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For example, here, this girl gave a speech ( a smaller speech) about dinosaurs. She explained how
dinosaurs appeared . She was very pass ionate about the theme she has chosen. After finishing her speech,
some of her colleagues wanted to ask her questions. Although she was not prepared to ansswer them, it
was an impromtuu talk, she manage to deal with the situation without problems.
fig. 3 1-Speech about the importance of homework
Here, there is another girl who talks about the importance of doing homework and how it helps her to
become better and better at different subjects. Again some colleagues wanted to ask her some questions.
At first, she was a bit nervous about the sponaneity of the discussion, but she managed the situation
quite well, giving intersting answers.
fig. 32 -Speech about violence
The third mini speech was about violence. This girl explains why are children violent and w hat should
be doing in order to avoid violence. She said that she thought this topic will help students (and mainly
her classmates) to think before they act and to avoid violence at any cost.
All three mini speeches were helpful first of all for the girls who were involved: they had to reseach for
data, they had to remeber the facts in order to share them with the class and also they had to be
convincing for the audience. The children who listened to these three speeches were engaged in the

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activities becau se they asked them questions and, in this way, all the class was involved and all of them
benefited from the activity. Although maybe they were not according to the perfect definition of speech,
but for their level of English and according to their age I t hink it was a succes and they were able to
leran new things and thus, they became more interested in the subjects/topics thay have presented.
THE DEBATE
‚The debate is an organized form of competitive s peaking, an event in which two sides or two teams -use
reasoned discourse to argue about a particular subject. ’24 The aim of each team is to persuade an
audience that its arguments are bet ter than those of the opposit part . Regarding debates, we put an accent
on logic ; but, the speakers may also use arguments and claims that bear emotional weight. Debate
require s quite high language proficiency, as a result, the activity is generally recom mended for advanced
or intermediate learners. ‚By mixing the ’ preparedness’ of the speech with the unexpectedness of face to
face conversation, the debate develops three basic skills: listening, thinking and speaking. ’25 Each
partic ipant presents his/her perspective and listens to the others’ views, then formulates his/her response
quickly, in response to the opinions expressed b y the opponent team’s speaker /s. Hence , with the debate,
the participants learn to make coherent presentations of their views, to present relevant argum ents, to
think fast, and to offer quick responses. The debate is organized around a motion, generally in the form
of a declarative sentence (or in this case, a question) , whic h functions as the title or topi c of the debate.
For example, I have used two types of debate as experiment with this class. None of them are regarded
as classical. One of them presents a group of famous people in a hot air balloon. There is the moderator,
who is in charge with presenting each participant, to present the whole situation and to underline the
conclusions. Therefore, the presenter allows each participant ( in our case: J.K. Rowling, Barack Obama,
Morgan Freeman and Albert Einstein.). Each of them presemts the first row of arguments and then, the
moderator asks the public, the class, to vote who should leave the ballon. Then, the presenter asks the
three who remain to bring ot her arguments in their favour. The class decides who should be the last two
survivors. The last part of the activity presents the final two competitor who bring their final arguments.
And, for the last time, the audience chooses who should live and remain in the hot air balloon. The

24 Vizental, p.
25 Ibidem

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students really enjoyed this activity, aminly because they were able to be in some famous characters’
shoes and they chould express their arguments in front of their colleagues.
The other activity I can call debate is when the c lass was devided into two and each team decided if they
are in favour or not of the following statement: School uniforms are good or bad? The first team was not
in favour of having school uniforms in the school, underlining the fact that not all of the stu dents feel
confortable. A member from the other group said that many students can’t afford buying new clothes, so
having uniforms might be a good idea. The first group presented ideas such as: the uniforms are too
thick?!,

Fig.33 Debate: ‚ School uniforms are good or bad? ’

Fig. 34 Hot Air Ballon Debate
In the following activity, I considered that it was time my students are ‚out of their co mfort zone’ and I
went with them at the restaurant i n our town. The owner of the restaurant was kind enough to speak
English during all our stay there. I have asked my students to go to the bar and order what they would

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like to eat, in English of course. Then, after they have received what they ordered , they had discussions
in English. Everything that happened in the restaurant was in English. I talked to them in English, they
talked among themselves in English . It was a good opportunity for them to talk in English and see how
is the real world of communicat ion. It should have been evern better to go to England and in this way,
they could have been really in the ‚centre’ of action.
The next activity was held in an informal environment, at a restaurant in town. The students and I have
talked to the owner of th e restaurant and she gladly helped us in our goal. The proposition was that the
students would go to her restaurant, but the orders and other talks would be done in English. So, each of
them went in front to order. For some, it was a bit difficult, but the y manage to make themselves
understood. After they have ordered, they sat down but they continued talking in English. It was fun for
them and I think they really enjoyed doing that. They talked to each other, they talked to me, and, at the
end, I think the y went home more motivated to learn and to practice English not only at school, but in
many other circumstances.

Fig. 35 At the restaurant

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Fig. 36 At the restaurant -ordering food
CHAPTER 3: EFL TEACH ING
Teaching foreign language or literature is a complex enterprise ? That often involves, for the teacher, the
risk of wasted effort. I have observed how the teacher’s teaching experience can vary according to the
learners’ level of perception. Teachers wh o prefer a traditional approach usually offer background
information about the literature subject they are teaching. In this approach, which may be viewed as a
kind of dramatic monologue, the teacher is the only speaker and the students being ‚passive reci pients’
rather than ‚active agents’, have practically nothing to do than listen to what the teacher says, whether
they understand or not. In traditional approaches teachers often stand in front of the class, as if they were
enjoying their lectures, but not receiving any feedback from the students. A teacher, however, can create
an ideal classroom situation by introducing wide -ranging student -centred learning.
Second Language Teaching is becoming more and more aware of the importance ofe developing the
students’ positive attitudes towards learning as a key feature of successful language aquisition. Tha
changes in behavioural chracteristics in all age groups under the influence of the information
technologyprovides that the contents of the ESL classroom shoul d be tailored to meet the expectations
of a younger generation the seems to exhibit a different rhythm of life than the previous generations.
Students’ focus on the contents has becomean issue for nowadays teachers who are compelled to use a
variety of str ategies to maintain a steady level of concentration throu ghout the class.

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English as a global language
Harmer explains in his book, The practice of English Language Teaching , how the proportion of native
and non -native speakers has changed in the last few decades, but the way this has happened, and its
implications, need to be explored further. In 1985 , Kachru described the world of English in terms of
three circles. This circle is shown below. In the inner circle he put the countries such as Britain, the
USA, Australia , etc, w here English si the primary language. The outer circle contained countries where
English had become an official or widely -used second langauge. These included India, Nigaria,
Singapore , etc. Finally, the expanding circle represented th ose countries where English was learnt as a
foreign language -countries such as Poland, Romania, Hungary, Italy, Japan , etc.
But now Harmer underlines the fact that Kachru’s numbers have been dramatically exceeded . But
something else had happened, too. It w as once ass umed that there was some kind of natural superiori ty
for inner circle speakers. They ‚spoke’ bettter Engl ish, and there were more in number that the others .
Amo ng other things, it has raised an inferiority complex amon g many non -native speakers. Harmer
explains that English is now used more oft en as a lingua franca tha n as a native language -and as the
majority of competent English speakers are not native speakers , but second -language users, it means that
the inncer circle has lost much of its lin guistic power, may it be real or imagine d ( although there are
still man y people who are still concerned about the fact the native -speakers should be those who set a
target). As a result, a compromise has arisen that instead of talking about inner, outer a nd expanding
circle Englishes, we need to recognise ‚World Englishes” or ‚Global English’. As Harmer puts it:
‚World English belongs to everyone who speaks it, but it is nobody’s Mother Tongue’. Nobody owns
English any more, in other words -or perhaps we co uld say that we all, ‚native’ and ‚non -native’ speakers
alike, own it together in a kind of international shareholders’ democracy since whatever English we
speak -Indian English, Bri tish English or Englis h-we have, or should have, equal rights as English
users.’26

26 Harmer, page 18

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Fig. 2.1 Kaxhru’s circles
EFL, ESL, ESOL and ELF
English as a Foreign Language, or EFL, refers to learning and using English as an addition al language in
a non -English speaking country. It can be compared with ESL and ESOL, which r efer mainly to learning
English as a new inhabitant i n an English -speaking country. I would like to focus mainly on EFL and
ESL. One can notice that fact that f or m any years, scholars and teachers have made a distinction
between EFL (English as a Foreign Language) and ESL ( English as a Second Language). This
distinction is made in Harmer’s book and he clarifies that EFL described situations where students were
learn ing English in order to use it with any other English speak ers in the world -especially when the
students might be tourists or business people , or just visiting English speaking countries . Frequently,
students studied EFL in their own country, or occasional ly, on short courses in Britain, the USA,
Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, etc. EFL includes short summer courses in an English –
speaking country, such as the UK, Canada or the US. ESL students, on the other hand, were labelled as
usually living in a target -language community (e.g. Britain, the USA, etc.) and required the target
language (English) in order to survive and thrive in that community doing such things as reting or
buying apartments, accesing the local health service, etc. It follows from this separation that the
language studied in EFL lessons will be different from the language which ESL students concentrate on.
Nevertheless, t he distinction had become difficult to bear for two reasons. Firstly, many communities –
whether in English – or non -speaking English countries -are now multilingual, and English is a language
of communication. Does that make it a foreign or a second language? Asks Harmer in his book.
Secondly, however, many students of EFL use English in a global context, as we have see n. Using
English for international communication, especially on the Internet, means that our students are in fact

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part of a global target -language community (the target language being not British or American English,
but, as we have see n, some form of Worl d English.) . As Vizantal clarifies in her book, developing
receptive skills and learning vocabulary and structures do not amount to leaning the language. It is only
when the teacher can get the students to respond by producing their own messages that one c an say that
they are beginnig to learn the langauge. It is relatively easy to get the students to understand oral or
written messages, to learn vocabulary and language structures; but the teacher must remember that many
people who understand messages and k now a fair amount of language have difficulty in actually taking
part in a conversation. That is why, the foreign language teacher must involve the students in the
classroom activities and make them communicate, express opinions and negotiate meaning.
Natu rally, in practice, productive skills cannot be separated from receptive ones. Listening and
speaking always interact with reading and/or writing.
Differences between ESL and EFL classrooms
One may think that teaching English is teaching English, w hethe r you’re doing it in a Singapore village
or a suburban American school. Andm in some ways, one may be right . Many of the same textbooks,
lesson plans, and online resources serve in both cases. Many English teachers go from one type of
teaching position to the other, and back again. But there are fundamental differences between ESL and
EFL classrooms. Understanding them will make you a more effective teacher.
An ESL classroom is in a place where English is the dominant language. The students are probably
immigrants or visitors. The class is usually of mixed nationalities, so students don’t share a native
language or a common culture. Outside the classroom, students have a specific, practical need for
English, and ample opportunity to use it. For example, some of the students, being adults, may be in the
need to search for a job, or they may need English to obtain citizenship. Students have extensive daily
exposure to English -speaking culture, although their understanding may be limited by their language
skills . It is a difficult task, but the students are more motivated to learn in such cases.
An EFL classroom is a place where English is not the dominant language. Students share the same
language and culture. The EFL classroom applies to us, to my 6th graders. The teacher may be the only
native Englis h speaker they have exposure to, but, in this case, I am not a native speaker of English. I

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have participated at different courses outside the country. It can be discussed the fact that o utside of the
classroom stud ents have very few opportunities to use English. For some, learning English may not have
any obvious practical benefit. Students have less exposure to English -speaking culture, most often
through a distorted lens like TV or music. They may not be motivate d enough to learn English, although
they know they need it when they go to different foreign countries in holidays or other purposes.
Based on these definitions, we can see that there are important differences in the student population.
Effective lesson pl anning must take them into account. EFL materials tend to be written for learners
either studying English in their own country or on a short course in an English -speaking country. ESL
materials tend to focus on ‘survival English' for people now living in a n English -speaking country.

Concerning the needs of ESL students, we may enounter some, but the teacher should be prepared to
overcome them. First of all, the teacher should explicit cultural instruction . For sure, t hese students
come from many places, al l very different from your classroom. They should be taught about different
cultural norms, how to get along in the society. They should be told them how people from the teacher’s
culture see their culture. One might not think this is traditional English t eaching, but it will generate
intriguing and cativating discussion s. Understanding culture is an pricelss step towards fluency.
Secondlt, the teacher has to create bridges towards integration . As an ESL teacher, you may not consider
yourself a guidance cou nselor, but be ready to suggest concrete ways for your students to address their
daily problems in your local community. Whether that means referring them to an immigrant assistance
association or helping them apply for a job online, you’re likely to be th e first person they ask for help.
Thirdly, the teacher must equip him/herself with the knowledge he/she need s, and be ready to do more
research when asked. The teacher should consider lots of practice using English, especially orally .
Students should be go t to speak in the classroom, but also be taught where to find opportunities to
practice speaking English outside of class , and reward them for doing so. I have explained above the
importance of going with my students to a local restaurant where they had th e opportunity to talk in
English. In that way, they were exposed to living English . A teacher should not direct his/her students
to believe that English is only a set of rules and words to memorize. It is indeed the living, breathing
creation of cultures and communities around the world. We, as teacher must do whatever we can to

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reveal this depth /complexity . Pen pals, non -traditional teaching materials, and field trips are great ways
to make Engli sh come alive for your students; that’s why O chose to go to the restaurant with my
students and also to film the Twelfth Night in a museum. They need reasons to learn English, and
motivation to stick with it. English can be quite theoretical when you’re gr owing up in a village like
Pâncota . These are the key diffe rences I see between these student communities and strategies to teach
English accordingly . ’27
The use of mother tongue
This is one of the most difficult problems teachers encounter especially during pair and group activities.
There are several reasons for which students use their mother tongue during English classes:
-the language required by the activity is not adapted to the students’ level (for example, asking beginner
students to talk about a complex subject, like globalisation)
-it is a natural thing to use the mother tongue: we perform, explain better when we use our first language
-teachers may be another caouse of th use of mother tongue: if they frequently use it, then the students
will follow their example
Then, when should we use the mother tongu e? For grammar explanations, giving instructions, checking
comprehansi on, discussing class problems.
Chapter 3: Drama in ELF class
William Shakespeare said that:
‚All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits an d their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages.’28 As You Like It Act 2, scene 7, 139 –143

27 Retrieved from: https://oupeltglobalblog.com/2011/07/12/how -esl-and-efl-classrooms -differ/
28 William Shakespeare, As you like it ,

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According to the definition given by dictionaries, drama is a liter ary from involving parts written for
actors to perfom. Greek word meaning ‚action, drawn from the classical Greek word which means ‚to
do’.
Drama provides for different opportunities such as multisensory, kineasthetic, responses to stories and
engages stu dents in ‚learning by doing’ at a number of different levels, as Mărgineanu says in ther book ,
The use of plays, stories and dramatization in Teaching English. At a basic level through listening and
responding to storytelling and doing short, introductory drama activities; children use different sounds
and gestures to show their understanding of the play or story. Preparing and performing a class play can
have enormous benefitsfor children’s language development, confidence and self -esteem and prove
extreme ly worthwhile and rewarding.
Role -play-Aims: to prepare and to do a role -play between two or more characters in a stor; to think and
act creatively in relation to the characters in the story; to collaborate in pairs or in groups. The role -play
creates a st imulating environment that simulates reality enabling students to intensify their
understanding of the situation or event being reenacted. Students gain a deeper insight into key concepts
by enacting issues discussed in the classroom. They also develop pra ctical skills for professional
practice.
Aside from direct benefits for learning English using creative drama makes students more skilled and
more rounded individuals. Plays provide practical experience in communicating, they give students the
opportunity to learn to work together and to be part of something, to belong in a group and to develop
tolerance and empathy as they begin to see the world from different perspectives. They promote active
learning, enriching and reinforcing their more traditional sch ool experiences. In addition, most children
are excited by the prospect of being/performing in front of others as a chance to be in the center of
attention. Many teachers feel intimidated by the idea of leading students in dramatic activities; however,
the most dramatic activities do not require teachers to have direct theatre experience. The intriguing
nature of drama and theatre relies in its flexibility, plasticity and continuity. There are no specific
patterns or models for most dramatic activities. Whe n drama and theatre serve as teaching methods,
teacher should view them as a concept and a philosophy rather than a set of curriculum models.

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Teachers are usually reluctant to using plays during classes as they fins them useless, they are afraid of
wasting time of looking ridiculous, of doing something which really must not be done .
When teaching EFL students, working in role has lots of particular befenits which meet their language
learning needs appropriately and effectively. These are: the provision of ‘real’ contexts for the language;
opportunities to hear others modelling the appropriate language; opportunities to practice language and
take risks with new vocabulary constructions in an enjoyable and non -threatening situations;
opportunities to ‘re -run’ or ‘repeat’ language scenarios in order to practice fluency, expression and build
confidence.
‚The Benefits of Using Drama in the ESL/EFL Classroom
‚Dynamic as the plays are, they constitute a perfect exercise for people who learn a foreign language,
making use of everyday speech and offering the nearest -to-life to the reader as a player.’29 As Beșuan
explains here, when teachers attempt to teach drama to children in the secondary school, they built on
something they have created, for example: short dialogues, or different communication postures. It can
be noticed the fact that mainly these a cting scenes are liked by the primary and secondary school
students, rather than high school ones.
‘A theatre performance speaks for itself and if comments follow after the play, the children will have the
theatre with an image of what drama really is .’30 If so, then maybe we need to use drama more in the
schools. Using drama in the ESL classroom is not a new concept. Drama provides an excellent
platform for exploring theoretical and practical aspects of the English language (Whiteson, 1996). The
improvis ation aspect of drama gives students opportunities for developing their communicative skills in
authentic and dynamic situations. By using drama in the English classroom, we can use English with
our students in intriguing and useful ways. The language can be used in context and makes it come to
life. Drama has the potential of making the learning experience fun for the students and even
memorable because it is interactive and visual. There are many studies about using drama to learn
English. Wan Yee Sam t alks about the communicative approach, drama techniques, value of drama in

29 Methods of Teaching English, Tudor, Be șuan, p. 96
30 Idem, p. 97

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education, advantages and disadvantages (Sam,1990). Alan Maley and Alan Duff are classic sources for
the benefits of using drama techniques; how it helps to learn new vocabulary, bu ilds confidence,
motivates the students and helps shift the focus from the teacher to the students (Maley,1982). Drama is
a special communication situation which makes considerable demands on the flexibility and skills of the
teacher (Kao,1998). We have Mo rrow (1981) who gives some guiding principles behind the use of the
communicative activities. Susan Holden (1981) adds some definitions as to what drama is and how it
provides opportunities for a person to express themselves. The personal nature of improvi sation provides
many outlets for self -expression. We even hear that children need to play as an important developmental
process.
Reasons for using drama in class
First of all, as Margineanu says in her book, it’s authentic; using drama enable students to use English
appropriately in real conversations. English is taught in the context in which it may be used, which
makes students aware of the language first and foremost as a means of communication and which is far
removed from lists of vocabulary and textbo oks. Another reason woud be the conversational use of
language in a play script promotes fluency -while learning a play, children listen to and repeat their lines
over a period of time. By repeating the words and phrases they become familiar with them and a re abe to
say them with increasing fluency; drama also teaches students to enunciate their words properly and to
project their voices when they speak, helping them to become clear and confident speakers; using drama
to teach English also helps to improve t he understanding and retention of language. The active
participation required in a drama lesson involves not only the intellect but also children’s imagination
and emotions. By encouraging self -expression, drama motivates children to use language confident ly
and creatively. Drama allows children to tap into different leanring styles -visual, auditory, kineastethic,
and tactile.Hearing the lines, seeing the actions, feeling the props, acting out movements, and using
expression all make the lesson a far richer one. Plays are ideal for mixed ability groups. Children whose
language skills are still very limited can be given fewer lines and in addition are given the opportunity to
communicate using non -verbal cues such as body movements and facial expressions.

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As Munteanu explains in her book, Drama techniques for teaching English, we may say that drama is a
brilliant stream of knowledge and enjoyment, opening new perceptions into the study of human nature
and language achievement , I have sustained this appeal/idea with the reasons chosen by me, the goals
and the objectives that should be followed and the particular ways of accomplishing them . ‘As complex
a term as drama can be, when applied in classroom practice its benefits are unquestionable and
practically unlim ited. Using drama and drama activities has clear advantages for language learning. It
encourages students to speak and it gives them the chance to communicate, even with limited language,
also using non -verbal communication, such as body movements and faci al expressions.’31
CHAPTER 4: FEEDBACK ON ACTIVITIES APPLIED I N CLASS

4.1 Reasons for selecting the topic
My experiment was applied to a 6th grade class of 25 students on different occasions. I have chosen
different activities. Conversation and different d ialogues are extremely important in a child’s early year
of learning a new foreign language. Unfortunately, nowadays, children are much more accustomed to
using smartphones and tablest than having a real conversation between them. Even though some of them
still like having dialogues, some of them prefer apps such as Ibooks, eBooks, kindle, etc. Teacher need
to understand that like it or not, technology gains territory in teaching and it they want to attract students
to their subject, they also need to adjus t to certain changes. On the other hand, English is the language of
technology, of computer games and apps. The child’s speaking abilities can be enriched via ?!
techonology. Children enjoy playing these games and therefore they need English. I believe tha t their
attention and interest in learning English can increase when they work with gadgets or devices that they
like. Playing eduactional games in English, watching English videos or cartoons, reading comic stripes
or magazines in English are much more ap preciated by students than the traditional way of working with
textbooks.
However, we need to keep in mind the fact that teachers work according to a curriculum. Therefore, they
need to carefully consider its objectives and structure their activities acco rdingly. Students need to sit

31 Muneanu, p.97 -98

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certain national examinations and the struncture of the examination is the same in most school. Thus,
teachers should plan activity, even if they use technological devices in accordance to the curriculum and
the requirements o f these examinations.
I have chosen this topic for my reasearch be cause I believe that the use of drama and dialogues in
teaching speaking in more efficient than the traditional approach to teaching foregin languages.
The aim of the re search
The aim of t his research is to prove the benefits and importance of direct communication between
children of the same age.
Research objectives
I have set the following research objectives:
-to stimulate the students’ interest for English, irrespective of the methods u sed by the teacher;
-to develop their speaking skills
-to enrich the students’ vocabulary
-to aquire new competences regarding the act of speech?
Hypothsis
If teachers use both modern and traditional methods in teaching speaking, the students’ interest for
English increases and their result improve considerably.
Selecting the sample
To verify the hypothsis and to reach the objectives I have selected the following sample. The
experimental class was 6th grade A, they having intensive courses of English. I cou ldn’t compare two
classes, but I gave the same class two questionnaires: at the begining of the activity and at the end of the
activities. Type of research: The research had a formative -observational character and it was conducted
at Liceul Teoretic Pâncot a, during the school year 2017 -2018.
The research experiment
Research methods and techniques
When selecting the research methods, I have taken into account the following aspects:
-the use of objective research methods. i.e. methods that can observe, re gister and measure the subjects’
reactions to direct and indirect action of external stimuli;

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-the use of methods that would enable a systematic approach of the investigated phenomenon;
-the use of complementary sytem of methods that would allow the investigat ion of the phenomenon in
terms of general and particular manifestation.
For data collection I hve used methods such as:
a). Observation: Current observation is a “method of understanding the human personality, which
consists of methodical, trustworthy and intentional recording of individual and collective manifestations,
the way they occur in their natural way of being’. Therefore, I have used this method very much to
observe the pupils’ behavior and attitude when working with the methods and strategies whi ch involve
active vocabulary learning.
b). The analysis of students’ activity and outcomes
I have analysed the worksheets that pupils completed during our activities, the charts and puzzles they
have completed and the exercises they have solved.
The advant ages of this method are that shier and less communicative students can be analysed better
than during the observation method. Data were used to control the results obtained through other
methods.
c). Different dialogues -to determine the level of English wi th these students and as well drawbacks. I
have applied two questionnaires: one at the beginning of the activities and one at the end of the
activities.
When I started thinking about the activities that I would like to insert in this paper as my research, I have
paid particular attention to their accessibility and complexity, starting with the easier tasks and moving
on to more complex. I have taken into consideration both the students’ level of English and the types of
activities?!
The stages of the experi ment
1. Pre-stage is necessary to det ermine the pupils’ initial ideas about what is communication. Its aim was
to gather information about their knowledge and competences as well as to establish a relationship
between the students involved in the experieme nt.

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2. The experimental stage is the period when the teaching -learning -evaluation process is based on
activities which involve more interactive vocabulary teaching by using various and interactive activities
and engages them in the teaching process.
3. Pos t-stage is the period when the progress and the development level assessed. The teacher
determines whe ther the use of interactive methods in teaching is useful. In this stage, the teacher
determines if the hypothesis is valid or not.
Duration of the exper iment
The experiment took place over school year 2017 -2018 as follows:
1. Pre -stage: November 2017
2. Experimental stage: February 2017 -May 2018
3. Post -stage?!
The place where the experiment was conducted:
The experiment was conducted at Pancota Highschoo l, Arad County with the 6th grade.
Content sample
I have selected conversation /dialogues’ enrichment, involvement of children in teaching through the
stimulation of their interest for songs, games, pictures, All activities are design ed based on the school
syllabus. I have tried to accomplish the facts that are mentioned in our Ministry of Education
curriculum. There are certain goals in producing oral or written messages in different communication
contexts; here, the students should know how to describe (or ally/in writing) of certain daily activities
and hobbies; to recount a content of a film/of a story, being given a plan of ideas?!; to present/redact of
paragraphs/texts on a theme of interest; to complete/ to fill out forms.
The first stage of the activit ies was that I asked the students to prepare different dialogues according to
their own liking. So, they formed groups, sometimes of two or three and they presented their dialogues
in front of the class. Therefore, they acted out dialogues such as: The M aths lesson , At the supermarket,
Rugby Hotel, The blue riding hood, At the surgery, At the tourist information and so on. These
dialogues and conversations were acted out in the classroom and all of them were composed by the
students themselves.

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The second s tage was when I have offered them certain prompts about different situational dialogues
and they were happy to do them. I have presented them the activity called fishbowl. In this activity there
were three students in the centre of the class and they start ed discussing about different subjects. There
were four chairs and one was left unoccupied. The purpose of the activity was to allow other students
(who are not so talkative) to use the empty/free chair and to present their own points of views. The other
three students (who were sitting and talking), helped the student who wanted to come and to discuss
with them. In that way, more students were able to communicate. One more strong points of this activity
was the variety: the variety of subjects and the fact that not only those three pupils discussed, but, at
some times, one other student came in front of the class and presented his/her ideas.
Sadly, we may notice the fact that many teachers nowadays think that vocabulary and grammar are the
most important pa rts of learnin g a foreign language. However , one competent user of a foreign language
is able to interact with other members of society and he/she is not limited to grammar rules or semantic
word building. As a result of different research /analysis , lingui sts came to the conclusion that both
vocabulary and grammar are incapable to give reason for the vast majority of individual sentences. More
than this, they were able to show that although communication is formed by faulthy linguistic
constructions , yet t heir not so rightly formed contructions do not prevent relevant communication.
‚Dell Hymes -socio -linguist demonstrated that a competent speaker knows tu use the languaga not only
corretly, but also apppropriately with respect to context, addressee, regist er and speech event. He
insisted on the fact that: „there are rules of use without which the rules of grammar would be useless”,
and even suggested that „ some occasions call for bei ng appropriately ungrammatical.’32
As a result of these various findings, I would say that we should (as teachers) involve our students more
in the process of communication . It’s not enough to teach them grammar rules and semantic structure.
They should also be able to communicate in the real world.
‚The teaching of the speakin g skill is more demanding on the teacher of any other language skill. That is
why some teachers give up the attempt to teach it and concentrate on making the students aware of
certain aspects of the code of the foreign language (vocabulary of the respectiv e language, phonological

32 Vizental, Adriana, The …., p. 18

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or morphological features, syntactic rules). On the contrary, other teachers think that if they speak the
foreign language exclusively in the classroom the students will, at some time, begin to speak it fluently
too. It is a well -known fact that the methods used by the teachers during foreign language class are:
exposition, practice of the grammatical item being taught, conversation, comparison with the
students’ native language and translation . The most efficient method of all the above mentioned
methods as regards the development of the speaking skill is the method of conversation.
Using the method of conversation at the Elementary Stage
The activity practice of speech cannot be left to a „later stage” as some teachers think. At th e elementary
stage the aim of the teacher is to build in language, habits by well -designed practice. Consequently with
beginners, the teacher should introduce only Imitative Repetition and Substitution drills . As progress
is made through the year Simple Si mulated Conversation (e.g. Question -Answer Drill) can be added
gradually. Later more complicated Simulated Conversation Drills or Retelling with pictures and picture
sequences may be effective devices.
Just to show how Simulated Conversation Drills can be done with a picture chart in a beginners’ class in
English, we give here a list of graded patterns all of which are interesting to beginners and easy for them
to practice. The procedure is as follows: The teacher gives the new pattern, pointing to the fir st picture,
and the students repeat in chorus. Then the teacher gives all the necessary explanations. If the exercise is
clear, the teacher goes on to the next picture. Then the teacher gives only the cue and the students
produce the pattern. From then on, the teacher can „cue” by either saying the name of the ojj ect or
pointing to the picture.”33
I have tried to mingle different activities so they can be both useful and pleasant for the students. First of
all, I have started my research by asking my student s to imagine some dialogues between them and in
certain situations. I haven’t helped them at all. I would like to list here some of their dialogues. Then, I
considered important to diversify the activities, so I have asked them to prepare different speak ing tasks.
Some of the students have prepared speeches, some of them have prepared dialogues with romanian

33 -Simona Oprescu , Studies in the teaching of English at various levels , page 62

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translations and some of them really enljoyed taking part in the play The Twelfth night, by William
Shakespeare.
3.2. Findings
For the last part of th e experiment I considered that the students should deal with something different.
Therefore, I presented them The Twelfth Night, b y William Shakespeare and I have asked them if they
were interested in studying it and take part having different roles. They were happy and eager to learn
the lines and enter in the character’s skin.
Regarding the two questionnaires applied, I would like to analyze them. Because I didn’t have two
classes to be able to make a comparison between them, I thought I will apply two t ypes of
questionnaires to the same class and interpret the results . Thr first questionnaire was written in English
and applied at the beginning of the activities, and the other one was written in romanian and it was
applied at the end of the school year, a fter doing all of the activities. Thus, I would like to start with the
fist questionnaire. The first question that comes up is: How much do you enjoy communicating with
those around you ?, the aswers having three options: very much, not very much and a litt le. So, there
were 23 students, so 92% of the students involved answered with very much, one student said not very
much and one said a little. The second question was: Which is the easiest way for you to
communicate ? Having these three options: orally, in writing and gestures , 19 students, so 76% of the 25
students involved said orally, while 5 of them saif in writing and one said in gestures. The third question
was: Who are your favourite partners in discussions ? And the answers were: colleagues and friend s,
parents and others (teachers, neighbours) . 80% of the students answered colleagues and friends, 20%
said parents and none of the students picked option c -others (teacher, neighbours). Question number 4
was: In which way c an you easier express yourself? The options being : in writing, in drawing and
dancing, movements . Here, 48% of the students involved said in writing, 28% answered in drawing and
24% said in dancing, movements. Concerning question number 5, which was: Do you encounter
difficulties in com munication? 60% of the students involved said seldom, 24% said often and only
16% said never. Question number 6 referred to: How important is for you other people ’s opinion in a
conversation? 76% answered very important , 12% answered not so important and also 12% said not at
all. Question number 7 was: Why do you usually enjoy having a conversation with other people?

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40% of the students said because you want to express yourself , 40% said because of the people involved
in the conversation and 20% said becau se of the subject discussed . Question number 8 implied: Why do
you think it’s important for peop le to communicate between them? 8% picked option a, which was
because some people need to be heard by others , 20% said b. because in this way they can discover their
weaknesses and strenghts and 72% said c. because in this way they can solve many problems . Question
number 9 proposed the following: Where do you find the ideas you usually talk about? 24% of the
students involved picked option a. from books, 64% s aid from friends, and only 12% said c. on the
internet . Question number 10 talked about: What do you like doing in your free time? Here, only
8% of the studets, so two of them answered a, which is reading, only one student said playing
computer games and 8 8% percent (22 students) said playing outdoors.
These were the mere findings of the questionnaire applied at the beginning of the activites. It was
something new for the children because of two aspects: it was the first time they have completed a
question naire in English, and secondly, they didn’t really know what to expect regarding the activities
that they will do. So, I found out that most of them like communicating with the people around them,
and the easiest way for them to communicate was orally. Tha t was a great opportunity for me to take
chance /take advantage of these answers and it was appropriate to pick certain communicative activities.
Because most of the students answered that their favourite partners in discussion are their colleagues and
friends, I knew that I had to find activities that would involve that. Concerning question no. 4, because
the answers were divided, I had to find activites that would involve writing, speaking, drawing and
movements as well. Due to the fact they they didn’t re ally encounter problems in communicating with
other, it was quite easy to find activities that would suit their desires and expectations. They considered
other people’s opinion quite important in a concersation, that’s why I agreed with the fact that they may
find their own partners in conversations. Interpreting question number 7, most of the students said that
they usually enjoy having a conversation with other people because they want to express themselves and
because of the people involved in the conver sation. Thus, it was the moment when I thought about a
possible play -so they could express themselves, and I also let them choose the partners in different
communicative activities, so the activities would be a success. They think that it’s important for p eople
to communicate between themselves because in this way, they may be able to solve many problems that

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may occur. So, as many times something came up and interrupted in a way, they were able to solve their
problems by communicating. Because the usually find ideas from their friends, I think the activities
chosen heloed them in that direction as well. At the last question, most of the students said that they like
playing outdoors, so it was quite a challenge to do that. But, I asked them to film some dial ogues in
nature, to go to one another’s house, we went to a museum to film the play -and in this way, they were
happy and they were not stuck between four walls.
The second questionnaire, which was written in Romanian , has got open ended questions and stude nts
were able to express what they felt at the end of the activities . Therefore, the first question -How do you
perceive communication after doing the activities in class ?-48% of the students said that they
communicate easier/more easily with those around them, 8% -I haven’t become more communicative
and 44% said that they consider they can express themselves easier. The second question was about
how do they think or in which way will the activities help them in the future ? 72% said -when they will
go abro ad, 28% said i twill be easier at the English classes/courses and none of them said the activities
won’t help. The fourth question, which is : how do you define your relationshiops with your colleagues
after doing these activities together ? What abou the relationship with the teacher ? 24% said that they
are just like before, so nothig has changed, 32% said that they notice small changes in good, 44% said
that they have definitely improved. Question number four –Would you like to participate at such
activi ties in the future ? 96% said yes and only one student answered no. The fifth question was -Has
your opinion about communication changed after these activities ? 80% of the students said yes, while
only 20% of the students said no. The sixth question was : Do you consider that the activities matched
your personality ? 16% said very much, 8% said no and 76% said most of the time, yes. Question
number 7 – After participating in these activities, how do you manage to express yourself better? 20%
said that throug h writing or drawing , 76% said that talking/speaking and only one student said through
movements, dancing.
The following three questions were open -ended ones and they were a great possibility for stundets to
explain what they have enjoyed, to present inte resting ideas and to be able to say their future wishes.
Consequently, question number 8 -Present some of the activities that helped you improve your English
language. At this statement, 12 students said that Shakespeare;s play helped them, 4 said the Ballo on

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debate, 1 said the missing information, 11 students said Fishbowl, 6 said Lost in the forest, 7 said the
debate, 6 said the dialogues 2 said role -plays, 5 said real -play 1 said the speech and 1 said at the
restaurant. At question number 9.Which of the a ctivities did you enjoy most ? Why ? Fishbowl -3
students, Lost in the forest -3 students, The play written by Shakespeare -10 students, the debate -3,
balloon debate -3, the speech -1, different dialogues -2 and interview for a joc -1 student.
And, the last quest ion, Propose at least two activities which you would like to continue. And the students
said :
-to have interviews with a policeman or a fireman
-to go to an amusement park and talk in English
-to have more debates (+Balloon debate)
-to play more the ‘Fish bowl’ activity
-to use plays more often
-to do activities such as the one ‘Lost in the forest’
-to do real -plays and role -plays
-to go to a museum and talk in English
-to go and ask people on the streets how to arrive at the police station
-to talk in gro ups about films
-to exchange ideas in groups
-to make dialogues
-to go an eat ice -creams and talk in English
-to describe a deskmate in English
-to go in a foreign country by plane
As a conclusion, I would say that there is a change in the pupils’ percepti on about studying English,
about role -plays, simulation, about the relationships among themselves and with me.

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Conclusions (mai trebuie scris)
There hav e been a great variety o f activities, the students were interested and motivated most of the
time. I think it was a success and I think I have accomplished what I had in might. There were numerous
strategies and def initely a great experience for the students involved and I can say the fact that there
have been improvements. Mainly at the weaker students , I could see a preoccupation for involvment.
They were keen to interact with their colleagues and more than this, they eagerly learnt the line of the
play by heart. Because the activities have been quite diverse, they could all be inolved in them in a way
or another. Of course, there were times when it was difficult -for me and for them as well – when we had
to mingle the fun exercices with the mandatory ones. I allowd them to express themselves when I have
asked them to play the dialogues and role -plays, bu t I have also guided them in others.
I consider that the students were enriched by this expericence and according to their answers to the
questionnaires, I believe they think the same.
Writing and working on this paper has been long, but a happy and rewar ding one.

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University Press, 1987
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Questionnaire
Grade:
1. How much do you enjoy communicating with those around you ?
a. very much
b. not very much
c. a little
2. Which is the easiest way for you to communicate ?
a. orally
b. in writing
c. gestures
3. Who are your favourite partners in discussions ?
a. colleagues and friends
b. parents
c. others (teachers, neighbours)
4. In which way can you easier express yourself?

a. in writing;

b. in drawing;

c. dancing, movements

5. Do you encounter difficulties in communication?

a. often

b. seldom

c. neve r

6. How important is for you other people ’s opinion in a conversation?

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a. always/very important

b. sometimes/not so important

c. rarely/barely

7. Why do you usually enjoy having a conversation with other people?

a. because you need/want to express yourself

b. because of the people involved in the conversation

c. because of the subject discussed

8. Why do you think it’s important for people to communicate between them?

a. because some people need to be heard by others

b. because in this way they can discover their weaknesses and strenghts

c. because in this way they can solve many problems

9. Where do you find the ideas you usually talk about?

a. from books;

b. from friends;

c. on the internet;

10. What do you like doing in your free time?

a. reading;

b. playing computer games;

c. playing outdoors;

Chestionar pentru elevi
Clasa a VI -a (final)

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Clasa………….…. Sexul M

F

1.Cum prive ști comunicarea după activitățile realizate în clasă ?

a). comunic mult mai ușor cu cei din jurul meu
b). nu am devenit mai comunicativ/ă
c). consider că mă exprim mult mai ușor

2. În ce fel crezi că te vor ajuta pe viitor activitățile realizat e?

a). atunci când voi merge în străinătate
b). îmi va fi mai ușor anul viitor la orele de engleză
c). nu cred că mă vor ajuta

3. Cum poți defini relațiile cu colegii tăi după aceste activități? Dar cu profesorul?

a). sunt la fel ca înainte
b). observ mici schimbări înspre bine
c). au devenit mult mai bune

4. Ai vrea să mai participi la astfel de activități pe viitor ?

a). da
b). nu

5. Ți s -a schimbat părerea despre comunicare după aceste activități?

a). da
b). nu

6. Consideri cǎ activit ățile s -au potrivit personalității tale?

a). foarte mult
b). deloc
c). în mare parte da

7. După ce ai participat la aceste activități, cum reușești să te exprimi mai bine?

a). în scris sau desenând

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b). vorbind
c). prin mișcări, dans

8. Prezintă cât eva activități care te -au ajutat să îți îmbunătățești limba engleză.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………….
……………… ……………………………………………………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. ………….. …………

9. Care dintre activități ți-a plăcut cel mai mult? De ce?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………….
………….. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. ………………………..
………………………………………………………………………………………… ……………

10. Propune cel puțin două activități pe care ți -ar plăcea să le desfășurăm în continuare.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. …………………. …………………
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. …………………………………….
…………………………………………………………. …………………………………………..

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