BE PART OF THE
CONVERSATION
Welcome to our online support centre for your
IMMERSIVE ENGLISH
conversation class.
The material- weekly lesson plans – is designed for use on English language courses,using the principles of flipped classroom,with a focus on student centred learning.
Each weekly lesson contains
What is Flipped Classroom?
Flipped classroom is a relatively new form of teaching approach. Harvard professor, Eric Mazur played a significant role in its development with an instructional strategy he called peer instruction. Mazur published a book in 1997 outlining the strategy, entitled Peer Instruction: A User’s Manual.
Today, flipped learning has been defined as “a type of blended learning that reverses the traditional educational arrangement by delivering instructional content, online, outside of the classroom. It moves activities, including those that may have traditionally been considered homework, into the classroom. In a flipped classroom, students watch online lectures, collaborate in online discussions, or carry out research at home and engage in concepts in the classroom with the guidance of the instructor.”
(Abeysekera & Dawson, 2015) http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07294360.2014.934336)
Flipped classroom approaches are characterised by:
Perhaps the most recognisable contributor to the flipped classroom is Salman Khan.
In 2004, Khan began recording videos at the request of a younger cousin he was tutoring because she felt that recorded lessons would let her skip segments she had mastered and replay parts that were troubling her. Salman Khan founded Khan Academy based on this model. For some, Khan Academy has become synonymous with the flipped classroom, however, these videos are only one form of the flipped classroom strategy.
Salman Khan speaking at a TED conference in 2011
As of May 2016, the Khan Academy channel on YouTube has more than 2.6 million subscribers and the Khan Academy videos have been viewed more than 840 million times
Student-Centred Learning
What is a conversation?
Oxford English Dictionary; an informal talk involving a small group of people or only two.
When we think about a conversation we use words like spontaneous, relaxed, enjoyable, spur of the moment, impromptu, easygoing, smalltalk.
Whereas we tend to associate schools with words like planned, structured, organised, learning, timetable, etc..
Our first priority as teachers should be to present conditions in which conversations can flourish.
Setting
One of the most important and overlooked aspects on a conversation course is setting. We want our students to practise taking part in informal, spontaneous conversations yet expect this to happen in airless, drab classrooms, designed for formal study.
If you don’t think setting is important consider that other great human impulse; shopping. Most successful retailers invest considerable time,money and research into creating optimal conditions that encourage impulse buying. The objective is to have customers feel at ease and relaxed in their stores. The focus is on the act of shopping and not on the fact of spending money. Similarly, we need students focusing on the impulsive act of communication and not on the facts of language.
Setting Up Your Classroom for Effective Conversations
TIPP #1……remove desks.
TIPP #2……pair-work
This invaluable piece of advice was given to me on my first day as an ESL conversation teacher.
Classroom setup can dramatically affect students’ expectations and participation on a conversation course. In a “learning environment”most students expect to be seated at a desk,next to another student, facing forward. This set up,with a teacher at the apex (teacher-centred learning) is wholly unsuited to engaging conversation. Conversations, by their nature, are wholly participative and democratic. If not, the interaction cannot be considered conversational.
We should aim to replicate the spontaneous conditions in which normal conversation takes place; on a bus, at the hairdresser,in the garden, on a park bench, at the supermarket checkout. It doesn’t mean we have to install a park bench or double decker bus but we do need to remove any physical barriers that are hindering interaction.
As Karl Krahnke (English Department, Colorado State University) notes;
Placing students in a circle improves communication by allowing them to see each other’s faces and hear each other’s responses without straining. And having them move their chairs from rows and columns into a circle explicitly and concretely signals that a particular kind of class participation will soon be expected of them.
In a separate study on effective learning, Douglas Laird, highlights the mutual benefits of working in a circle as follows
Most democratic and unencumbered with no status symbol With no table each person is “totally revealed”
Subtle nonverbal communications are possible
There will be conversations, shorter inputs, and more members will participate when they sit in a circle.
Why pair work ?
What is the most efficient use of a student’s time?
Simple mathematics tells us that on a typical conversation course (2 x 45min =90) with 12 participants, each learner would receive just 7.5 mins of teacher time, if the teacher concentrates solely on individuals. Furthermore, the other 11 will be listening or inactive for 82.5 mins.
Two is the optimum number for engaging on a conversational course.
By working in pairs we can, theoretically, increase talking time dramatically to 45 mins with an equal amount of time dedicated to listening.
In pairs or small groups (max 3) students learn from and help each other. They can compare and discuss answers, share ideas, opinions and experiences.
Immersive English and Learning a Foreign Language
The question I hear most often from students is, “how can I improve my English? In response, I place the students in pairs and ask them them to come up with three or four suggestions about the best way to improve English, or any language.
Doing this, at the very beginning of a course, demonstrates a number of important characteristics
1: The course is student centred. Not looking to the teacher for answers. Every student is already fluent in their own mother tongue and have experience of the real world. They have their own opinions. When it comes to conversation, the teacher’s opinion is no more valid than that of the students. It’s important to highlight this fact on day one, because it indicates that students will be taking responsibility for their own learning
2: All questions are valid and can be used as material in the classroom
3: Students get maximum benefit out of the course by working together in pairs. Conversation is a democratic process. You wouldn’t normally hold a conversation with someone who wants to dominate, and equally you will be less inclined to talk with someone who isn’t listening. Working in pairs encourages real communication. It helps focus listening and teaches students to be aware of each other’s body language. In groups containing three or more, certain individuals can easily disengage and let others lead the conversation. This is not possible with two.
And what is the number one suggestion for learning a language?
In my experience, the number one suggestion is to move to a country where the target language is spoken.
What does that say about the majority of courses on offer?
It says, that learning a foreign language in a classroom setting is a compromise; it is not the best available system.
My lessons are a small attempt at replicating how language is learnt in a country where the target language is spoken.
When people learn a second language, they do so in a variety of ways.
The three main learning styles are: visual (75%), auditory (13%), kinesthetic/ tactile. (Approach to Training and Development, Douglas Laird)
By incorporating these features in each lesson, students receive a feature of real world experience. The news/documentaries/videos/reading exercises are not edited to suit any particular language level (A1/A2, B1/B2, etc.)
Participating students are required to be active learners, using homework and the allocated time (6 days) to familiarise themselves with the material,and come to class well prepared and looking forward to taking part in small discussions.
Recommended Web sites
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/
http://www.iteslj.org/questions/
http://www.learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/
http://www.macmillanenglish.com/resources/
For inspiration
http://www.onestopenglish.com/
(yearly subscription-excellent value)
My name is Frank Mc Girr. I moved to Bremen in 2008 and began teaching English at the VHS in 2009. Since 2011, I only deliver what might be called non standard courses. The number of students currently attending my courses is more than 120 per week
The course
Immersive English A course designed to improve fluency in English.
The programme is a combination of individual study and group practise. It’s student centred, and runs on the principles of flipped learning.. Each lesson plan contains teacher’s notes which outlines a timeframe,instructions for each activity and prompts for when students should swap partners.
The teacher’s role is that of a mentor whose primary function is ensuring the atmosphere is conducive to conversation
The content
The course contains two important,complimentary elements
1: Online:
2: Classroom based: Group practise
1 Online: Individual learning Students access learning material 5/6 days in advance of each class. The material is made up of reading, writing, listening, vocabulary exercises, comprehension and discussion questions. The students can work at their own pace,allowing them to become familiar with the material and using the time preparing to talk about the topic in the next classroom activity.
2 Classroom: Group practise As much as possible the focus of the classroom should be practising conversation,and preferably in pairs.
If you are interested in the Immersive English Flipped Learning Course then sign up for our newsletter to keep you up to date with on going developments.
Everyone likes to test something new. It’s nice to have idea of what we’re investing both our time and money in. Opposite you can download and access two complete lessons from our “Immersive English FLIPPED LEARNING” course, including Student’s Home Study Packet, Teacher’s Notes, Answers, Discussion Question and Web-links.
To help prepare your students for the material used on Immersive English, we recommend you can try these two lessons and see the results for yourself.. (you will need WiFi, a projector, and speakers for these lessons).
Print them out and try them with your next class. We’re confident your students will love them.
Please click on the link below to access your material…
Please click on the link below to access your material…