EN 1209:
Study Skills II
Seminar/group discussion skills
· Provide specific
language which help students to become more confident in taking part in group /
seminar discussions, e.g. language functions: agreement / disagreement /
partial agreement. “I agree with you / I fully support what you say, but...”
· Type of
activities:
- Practice the language functions in dialogue
situations with different forms being substituted
- Introduction of a topic/activity by the teacher or
a leader followed by discussion between teacher and students or students
themselves.
- Observers commenting on the discussion
Presentation skills
· The importance of
preparation:
· Points to
consider: objectives of the presentation, audience, manner, time, length,
method, content, structure, notes, rehearsal
· Se of equipments:
OHP, whiteboard, flipchart, computer, handouts,
· Delivering a
presentation: beginning, rapport, content, body language, audience,
cultural considerations, voice quality
· Language:
simplicity, clarity, useful expressions that can be used to signpost the
various parts of the presentation,
· Language for each
function: introduction, welcome your audience, introduce subject, outline the
structure, give instruction about questions, conclusion.
· Presentation
itself
· Evaluation of
presentation-provide an evaluation form
Learner –training activities
· Classroom
learning: How to keep a reading journal / a vocabulary note book / writing
portfolio
· Self-access
learning: consult reference sources, practice grammar / pronunciation listening
by the learner. Identifying his own problems and practice them
· Out of class
activities: borrowing readers from a library, using cassettes, listening to
English on radio and TV, Using English with outsiders
· Cooperative
learning: equal partnership in which paired / grouped students study together
with a mutual goal of mastering academic content
· Explain why
cooperation as a learning strategy is effective in developing a better
understanding of new concepts and skills and in providing opportunities to
practice academic English.
· Activities:
structure activities in a way that the task can be accomplished through group
interaction, e.g. .Pool information to develop a project. Assign a role to each
member. Give role cards that describe their responsibilities, e.g. recorder-to
make notes, reporter- to give feedback, , reader-to read the
handouts, a checker to go through the material and to see that everyone is
aware of group decisions, animator-to encourage and keep group spirits
high.
Self-evaluation techniques
· Focus: Help
students develop the characteristics of the’ good language learner’ which
involve the ability to assess their own performance.
· Type of
activities: formats for learner evaluation e.g. the following activity requires
learners to reflect on what has been learned over a period of time and express
it as marks out of 10.
Think about your progress this month. Give yourself
a mark out of 10 for these areas; Speaking, Listening, Reading, Writing,
Pronunciation, Grammar, Vocabulary
Ref - Harris.M and
P.McCann.(1994) Assessment. Oxford: Heinemann.
