Contents
Content Type: 4
Title: Giving Suggestions or Advice
Body:
by Becky Lawrence and Ava Swanson
The purpose of this activity is to build the pragmatic competence of intermediate English language learners as it relates to giving suggestions or advice. This activity was originally designed for learners in a class developed to build English skills for individuals from abroad in order to ensure successful completion of post-secondary studies in the United States.
Learners will be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of whether or not give suggestions or advice given a particular power dynamic
- Recognize what suggestions and advice can be deemed as appropriate in a given social context
- Understand the underlying desires implied by a given solicitation for advice or suggestions
Modes: Interpretive Listening, Interpersonal Communication, Presentational Writing
Materials Needed: YouTube Clips that feature advice-giving sequences, rubric
Procedure
- Have learners watch three YouTube clips that depict conversations in which one person is giving advice to another person in the target language. Three good examples include “April Gives Such Good Advice” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAzl5qBe0Vo), “Friends do I look fat” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKPeDxUZmPY), and “Asking Girls for Breakup Advice” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJvzcDSjCyk). As they watch, learners should take notes regarding the relationship between the speakers, the content of the situation, and any forms (grammatical, lexical, etc.) that the speakers use.
- Next, learners will form small groups of no more than four students and discuss how they were able to discern the relationship in each of the clips. Together, they will come to a consensus of how to define each relationship observed.
- As a class, learners will discuss if the advice that was given in the clips was sincere and honest. Use the following questions to guide the discussion: What is the difference between the types of advice and suggestions given among clips? Why is the type of advice different? Do the people receiving the advice or suggestions in the clips actually want advice or suggestions? Are there situations in which you shouldn’t give advice or suggestions?
- Next, learners will return to their small groups to create a list of steps (a turn taking sequence) that occur when appropriately giving advice or suggestions. Provide each group with a social context to focus their work. These contexts could include conversations among friends who are of the same age and socioeconomic class, conversations between an older mentor and student, conversations between parents and their young children, or conversations between strangers on a bus.
- After the group discussion, learners will share their ideas with the class by either writing them on the board or using a projector. As they present, classmates should be encouraged to discuss whether or not they agree with the turn taking sequences suggested.
- In order to practice their new knowledge, learners will get into pairs to write their own conversation in which they imagine one person soliciting advice from another. The situation that colors the conversation should be illustrated by the teacher with a picture with a brief scenario explanation. These situations should go along with whatever thematic units are being taught within the classroom.
- Finally, learners will present the scenes that they have created to the class by performing their scripts. This performance will be assessed with a rubric. After the performances are over, the class will compare and contrast the content of each script in order to discuss how the context surrounding the situation performed impacted the advice or suggestion being given. This conversation should include attention to form as well as content.
Notes: This activity involves presentational writing given the script creation. If the teacher desires to include interpersonal communication, he or she should give learners time to plan the premise of their performance and then perform their role plays with the spontaneous creation of language.
Source: CASLS Activity of the Week
Inputdate: 2016-04-08 16:44:21
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 17:49:50
Expdate:
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 4
Title: Making Requests
Body:
by Kathryn Carpenter and Anna Torkkola, LTS Graduate Students
This activity was designed to help build the pragmatic awareness of intermediate-high English language learners with regards to making requests. It is part of a larger unit regarding jobs and education in which learners explore the vocabulary, grammar, and cultural norms relating to those arenas. The execution of this activity will take place over two days in class.
Objectives: Learners will be able to:
- Identify and use appropriate requests
- Modify request language based on assigned roles
- Demonstrate understanding of ways to negotiate uncertain request interactions through a class brainstorm
Modes: Interpretive Reading, Interpersonal Communication, Presentational Writing (optional)
Materials needed: Guiding questions worksheet, whiteboard or flip charts, roles for role play
Procedure:
- The teacher gives learners two authentic examples of written requests to view in class. These should come from different types of sources such as a Facebook conversation and a written email. The class will engage in a preliminary mini-analysis in which they discuss possible markers of a request, when the markers are used and with whom, and potential responses to the request. Learners should find their own authentic examples in the target language as homework for the next class period. These examples can be markers embedded within a chat, email, blog post, social media, a television show or recorded interview, or a transcript of a conversation that they actually heard.
- The next day in class, learners discuss the examples that they found in small groups (Part 1 of worksheet). They should answer the following questions:
- Where did you find this example?
- How can you tell it’s a request?
- What happened in the interaction? How was it asked and answered?
- Is it direct or indirect? How can you tell?
- How would you describe the power dynamic?
- What made it a successful request or not?
- Are there any patterns you see across requests in your group?
- Learners should regroup as a class, and each group should share the characteristics of their requests. On the board, the teacher uses learner analysis to document the language was used to make requests. The teacher should write examples on the board based on some organizing principle--formality, certain word use, power dynamic, directness, etc. Then, the teacher should lead a discussion of when each request could be used, with whom, in what medium, etc.
- In groups, learners brainstorm ways of dealing with unclear situations involving requests or situations for which they aren’t sure how to act/respond. (Part 2 of worksheet).
- Learners regroup as a class and share their ideas about how deal with uncertainty in requests. The teacher should give feedback on the appropriateness of decision making.
- Learners receive role play scenarios and practice them in pairs. The teacher should rotate and give feedback as needed.
- Learners present their role plays in front of the class. They will be rated by their classmates on appropriateness of the interaction and give feedback on what part of the interaction should be handled differently.
Notes: As a possible extension, the teacher could provide three request scenarios in which students compose a written reflection detailing how they would respond to the requests made in a socially appropriate manner. Students will also provide a justification for their response that is based on the previous class discussions.
Source: CASLS Activity of the Week
Inputdate: 2016-04-08 17:02:16
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-18 03:29:56
Expdate:
Publishdate: 2016-04-18 02:15:02
Displaydate: 2016-04-18 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 4
Title: Complaint Questions
Body:
by Sara Li and Siri Sitthiwong, LTS Graduate Students
This activity is designed to increase the pragmatic awareness of English learners with intermediate-low to intermediate-high proficiency levels. In completing this activity, learners will gain awareness of the speech act of complaint in the form of a question.
Learning Objectives: Learners will be able to:
- Identify the intended meaning of questions used by speakers in a variety of contexts
- Analyze the characteristics of verbal and written complaints by noticing the speakers’ facial expressions, gestures, tone, and other pragmatic devices.
- Apply the learned characteristics of complaints to appropriately make complaints to produce actions/changes in role plays.
Modes: Interpretive Reading, Interpersonal Communication, Presentational Writing
Materials Needed: Passages from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Excerpts from American Born Chinese, “What would you do?” clip (https://www.pinterest.com/pin/361132463850836835/sent/?sender=361132601278245562&invite_code=24691d4a64a14d5f9fe1406626fe3b2f) and transcript, worksheet, peer evaluation form
Procedure:
- To begin, the teacher provides learner groups (no more than four members each) with a different passage of text from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. These passages show different types of questions that indicate complaints: statements with rising intonation and questions marks, negative interrogative, and pure questions. The teams will find the questions and predict/explain the purpose of these questions.
- The learner teams will report what they found to the class. The learners will discuss the intended meaning of the speakers within the passage and come to a consensus regarding how to categorize the questions that were found. The teacher will embed instruction regarding the use of questions in order to exact complaints throughout this discussion.
- Learners return to their group to analyze excerpts from American Born Chinese, a graphic novel. They will (1) identify the questions in the excerpts; (2) observe the characters’ facial expressions, gestures, and actions to determine/predict the purpose of the questions; (3) identify the devices/terms used to intensify the complaint questions; and (4) rank the intensity of the complaint questions by using a worksheet with a graphic organizer.
- Learner teams report their findings and explain their analyses to the class.
- Next, the teacher plays the clip (1:06-3:45) from the reality show “What would you do?” Learners take notes regarding facial expressions and gestures, devices/terms used to intensify complaint questions, and the purpose of each question posed. A script has been included with this activity for teacher reference.
- Learners rejoin their groups in order to compare their notes and categorize the questions into the three types discussed in class.
- Next, learner groups begin to apply the information that they have analyzed by writing scripts for short scenes related to social maltreatment. These scenes include a restaurant owner kicking a beggar out of the restaurant, a kid being bullied on the playground, an adult torturing an animal, and a blind woman being cheated out of change by a seller. As they write the script, learners must consider the following roles: the wrongdoer, the victim, and witnesses.
- Learners practice the script and focus on incorporating appropriate facial expressions, tone, and gestures.
- Learner groups present their scenes to the class. As they present, the classmates observing the performances evaluate the groups with the peer observation form. Simultaneously, the teacher takes notes to provide the class with global feedback.
Notes: A possible extension of this activity would be to provide the learners with different scenarios to create a non-scripted role play to be recorded and uploaded to a class website for another round of analysis in class. This second round of analysis should include attention to the social context of the situation at hand (the power dynamic between the individuals involved in the interaction, for example).
Source: CASLS Activity of the Week
Inputdate: 2016-04-09 11:27:59
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-05-02 03:31:01
Expdate:
Publishdate: 2016-05-02 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-05-02 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: April 2016 issue of KinoKultura
Body:
The April 2016 issue of KinoKultura, and online journal dedicated to new Russian cinema, is available at http://www.kinokultura.com/2016/issue52.shtml.
In this issue:
Articles
Festival Report
Lilya Nemchenko: "Belye Stolby" for the Twentieth Time
Reviews
Double View: Vasilii Sigarev: The Land of Oz
Reviewed by Dane Reighard
Reviewed by Lilya Nemchenko
Bakur Bakuradze: Brother Dejan by Justin Wilmes
Marjoleine Boonstra: Kurai-kurai – Tales on the Wind (KYR) by Robyn Jensen
Nurzhamal Damir: Frunze (KYR, short) by Gulbara Tolomushova
Stanislav Govorukhin: The End of a Great Era by Tim Harte
Arkadii Iakhnis: The Doorman by Theodora Kelly Trimble
Zhanna Issabaeva: Bopem (KAZ) by Peter Hames
Vladimir Kott: The Lower Depths by Irina Anisimova
Marina Migunova: Mirrors by Åsne Ø. Høgetveit
Elchin Musaoglu: Nabat (AZER) by Joe Andrew
Roman Shalyapin: Demons by Katherine Bowers
Ivan Vyrypaev: Salvation by Emily Hillhouse
Source: KinoKultura
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:49:58
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate:
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: Book: Discursive Construction of Bicultural Identity
Body:
Discursive Construction of Bicultural Identity: A Cross-Generational Sociolinguistic Study on Oromo-Americans in Minnesota
By Oromiya-Jalata Deffa
Published by Peter Lang International Academic Publishers
The author examines the cultural identity development of Oromo-Americans in Minnesota, an ethnic group originally located within the national borders of Ethiopia. Earlier studies on language and cultural identity have shown that the degree of ethnic orientation of minorities commonly decreases from generation to generation. Yet oppression and a visible minority status were identified as factors delaying the process of de-ethnicization. Given that Oromos fled persecution in Ethiopia and are confronted with the ramifications of a visible minority status in the U.S., it can be expected that they have retained strong ties to their ethnic culture. This study, however, came to a more complex and theory-building result.
Visit the publisher’s website at http://www.peterlang.com/index.cfm?event=cmp.ccc.seitenstruktur.detailseiten&seitentyp=produkt&pk=90846&concordeid=267312
Source: Peter Lang International Academic Publishers
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:50:40
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate:
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: Call for Proposals: AATSEEL National Meeting
Body:
The American Association of Teachers of Slavic and East European Languages solicits proposals for its 2017 National Meeting, to be held February 2-7, 2017, in San Francisco. The conference regularly includes panels in the following areas:
Linguistics
Phonology, Morphology, Syntax, Historical Linguistics, Discourse Analysis, Pragmatics, Semantics, Dialectology, Sociolinguistics, Cognitive Linguistics, Applied Linguistics, and Linguistics and Pedagogy.
Pedagogy and Second Language Acquisition
Second Language Acquisition, Empirical Studies in Language Learning, Study Abroad, Teaching of Individual Skills (pronunciation, reading, listening, writing, speaking), Content-based Instruction (in film, history, politics, culture, literature, etc.), Curriculum Design, Language Teaching for Special Purposes, Teaching of Languages other than Russian (Polish, Czech, BCS, Romanian, etc.), Use of Technology in Language Teaching.
Literature and Culture
Individual Writers and Poets (Pushkin, Gogol, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Akhmatova, Bulgakov, Nabokov and others), Themes (history and literature, travelogues, gendered readings, etc.), Critical approaches (including various theoretical approaches), Genre (avtorskaia pesnia, ode, drama), Periods (medieval to contemporary), Culture, Film, Dance, Music, Philosophy, and Religion.
Proposal deadlines are April 15, 2016 and July 1, 2016.
View the full call for proposals at https://www.aatseel.org/cfp_main
Source: AATSEEL
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:51:56
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate: 2016-07-01 00:00:00
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: Call for Digital Presentations: Digital Literacies In and Beyond the L2 Classroom with Arizona Computer-Assisted Language Learning
Body:
From https://cerclldiglit.wordpress.com/
Building on the successes of the 2014 symposium, this year’s DLL2C symposium, Digital Literacies and Technology-Enhanced Language Learning: Interdisciplinary Intersections and Interactions, will be co-convened with AZ-CALL, a conference that brings together CALL researchers and practitioners from across the region. The joint symposium will be sponsored by CERCLL (the Center for Educational Resources in Culture, Language and Literacy) with support from units at the University of Arizona and Arizona State University.
On October 8 there will be live webcast and in-person events, including several panels and keynotes by Heather Lotherington of York University and Steve Thorne of Portland State University/University of Groningen. Digital presentations will be hosted online during the week of October 3 – October 8. Asynchronous fora (discussion threads) will allow for question-and-answer for the entire week, and presenters may conduct synchronous chat at designated times as well.
Research studies, theoretical discussions, and exemplary practices are all equally welcome. While the special theme of the joint symposium is “Interdisciplinary Intersections and Interactions”, presentations need not address both DL and CALL, and may focus on a topic in one area.
Abstract submission deadline: May 23, 2016
View the full call for presentations at https://cerclldiglit.wordpress.com/
Source: CERCLL
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:52:41
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate: 2016-05-23 00:00:00
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: Call for Abstracts: Special Issue of Language Acquisition/L2 Journal: Symbolic Competence: From Theory to Pedagogical Practice
Body:
From http://www.linguistlist.org/issues/27/27-1513.html
Kimberly Vinall and William Heidenfeldt are guest editing a special issue of Language Acquisition/L2 Journal dedicated to symbolic competence. “Initially described in terms of gameplay--as an ability to position oneself to one's benefit in a symbolic power game through the manipulation and interpretation of symbolic systems, practices, and relationships therein (Kramsch, 2006; Kramsch & Whiteside, 2008), symbolic competence has come to include the potentiality of L2 users to ''recognize and transgress the multiple borders of the contact zone, through and between many meaning-making systems, between the self and the other, among various timescales and contexts, and, ultimately, across power structures'' (Vinall, 2010).”
This special issue will include theoretical, empirical, as well as pedagogically focused articles that explore the critical potentials of symbolic competence in relationship to L2 and TESOL/ESL researchers, teachers, and learners. Contexts may range from the scale of a single language classroom--K-12, university, adult education; second language, foreign language, heritage language--to the scale of national or international language learning contexts.
Call Deadline: 30-Apr-2016
View the full call for papers at http://www.linguistlist.org/issues/27/27-1513.html
Source: LINGUIST LIST
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:57:33
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate: 2016-04-30 00:00:00
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: Long Island ESOL Conference 2016
Body:
From http://liesol2016.ezregister.com/
Long Island ESOL Conference 2016
The Changing Landscape of Instruction for English Language Learners
Collaborating Professional Organizations:
Long Island Professional Committee on ESOL Education
Long Island Regional Adult Education Network
New York State Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Molloy College
Rockville Centre
Register at http://liesol2016.ezregister.com/
Source: Long Island ESOL Institute at Molloy College
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:58:21
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate: 2016-04-16 00:00:00
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
Content Type: 1
Title: Workshop: Adapting and Creating Activities for Heritage Learners of Spanish
Body:
Adapting and Creating Activities for Heritage Learners of Spanish
June 10-11, 2016
The University of Texas at Austin
This two day summer workshop for K-16 teachers of heritage learners of Spanish will provide participants plenty of time to design lessons for their own classes. With guidance from presenters, participants will find new ways to meet the particular needs of their heritage learners by applying a variety of strategies for adapting, creating, and sharing original activities based on textbooks, open educational videos, and digital storytelling techniques.
The event is part of COERLL’s Heritage Spanish project, which seeks to build a community of Spanish heritage language teachers for sharing and collaborating on classroom resources.
Learn more and register at http://heritagespanish.coerll.utexas.edu/event/heritage-spanish-workshop/
Source: COERLL
Inputdate: 2016-04-10 16:59:07
Lastmodifieddate: 2016-04-11 03:29:15
Expdate: 2016-06-11 00:00:00
Publishdate: 2016-04-11 02:15:01
Displaydate: 2016-04-11 00:00:00
Active: 1
Emailed: 1
Isarchived: 0
