Information-gap activity

A classroom activity in which learners work in pairs or groups. Learners are given a task, but they are given different information and, to complete the task, they have to find out the missing information from each other.

Input (n., v.)

Information which is given to learners by the teacher, e.g. through a text or via electronic means. This constitutes the language to which the learner is exposed. It can be spoken or written. It serves as the data which the learner must use to determine the rules of the target language.

In-service teacher

An individual who has been hired by a district and is actively teaching.

Intensive listening/reading

One meaning of intensive listening/reading is reading or listening to focus on how language is used in a text. See extensive listening/reading.

Interaction patterns

The different ways learners and the teacher work together in class, e.g. learner to learner, in pairs or groups or teacher to learner, in open class, in plenary. When teachers plan lessons, they think about interaction patterns and write them on their plan.

Interference

Interference happens when the learner’s mother tongue affects performance in the target language, especially in pronunciation, lexis or grammar. For example, a learner may make a grammatical mistake because they apply the same grammatical pattern as they use in their mother tongue to what they want to say in the target language, but the L1 grammatical pattern is not appropriate in L2.

Interlanguage

~ is the language produced by an individual learner in the process of learning a foreign language. This idiosyncratic variety will differ from standard forms of the target language and is likely to contain errors, simplification, negative transfer etc. It is the learners’ own version of the second language which they speak as they learn. Interlanguage is constantly changing and developing as learners learn more of the second language.

Intermediate

At this level a student will have a working vocabulary of between 1500 and 2000 words and should be able to cope easily in most everyday situations. There should be an ability to express needs, thoughts and feelings in a reasonably clear way.

Intrinsic motivation

Motivation that comes from within the individual.

Introductory activity

An activity which takes place at the beginning of a lesson. Introductory activities often include warmers and lead-ins.

Item

1. A piece of language, e.g. a vocabulary or a grammar item. 2. The questions (items) in a test to which a learner has to respond.

J

Jigsaw listening/reading

A text is divided into two or more different parts. Learners listen to or read their part only, then share their information with other learners so that in the end everyone knows all the information. In this way, the text is made into an information-gap activity.

Jumbled letters/paragraphs/pictures/sentences/words

A word in which the letters are not in the correct order, a sentence in which the words are not in the correct order, a text in which the paragraphs or sentences are not in the correct order, or a series of pictures that are not in the correct order. The learners put the letters, words, text or pictures into the correct order.

L

L1

First language / the mother tongue.

L2

Second language.

LAD (Language acquisition device)

A term coined by Noam Chomsky to explain an innate psychological capacity for language acquisition; mentalist theories of language acquisition emphasize the importance of the innate capacity of the language learner at the expense of environmental factors. Each learner is credited with a ~, which directs the process of acquisition. This device contains information about the possible form that the grammar of any language can take. See universal grammar.

Language laboratory

A room equipped with headphones and booths to enable students to listen to a language teaching programme, while being monitored from a central console. Labs may be Audio- Active (AA), where students listen and respond to a tape, or Audio-Active-Comparative (AAC), where they may record their own responses and compare these with a model on the master tape. It is a room in a school where learners can practise language by listening to tapes or CDs and by recording themselves speaking.

Language practice

Activities which involve repetition of the same language point or skill in an environment which is controlled by the framework of the activity. The purpose for language production and the language to be produced are usually predetermined by the task of the teacher. The intention is not to use the language for communication but to strengthen, through successful repetition, the ability to manipulate a particular language form or function. Thus getting all the students in a class who already know each other repeatedly to ask each other their names would be a practice activity. See language use.

Language proficiency

~ is what a learner can do and/or how well he/she can perform using language, given an identified and defined purpose. Language proficiency is often measured with reference to a scale of levels. It is the level of competence at which an individual is able to use language for both basic communicative tasks and academic purposes.

Language use

Activities which involve the production of language in order to communicate. The purpose of the activity might be predetermined but the language which is used is determined by the learners. Thus, getting a new class of learners to walk round and introduce themselves to each other would be a language use activity, and so would be getting them to complete a story.

Language variety

Variations of a language used by particular groups of people, includes regional dialects characterized by distinct vocabularies, speech patterns, grammatical features, and so forth; may also vary by social group (sociolect) or idiosyncratically for a particular individual (idiolect).

Lead-in (n.), lead in (v.)

The activity or activities used to prepare learners to work on a text, topic or main task. A lead-in often includes an introduction to the topic of the text or main task and possibly study of some new key language required for the text or main task.

Learner autonomy

~ is the capacity learners have to take charge of their own learning. This implies choice of aims, content, approaches and/or forms of evaluation based on reflection related to individual needs and interests.

Learner autonomy (n.), autonomous (adj.), learner independence

When a learner can set his/her own aims and organise his/her own study, they are autonomous and independent. Many activities in course books help learners to be more independent by developing learning strategies and focusing on learner training.

Learner feedback

~ is an account of progress / performance given to learners by teachers or peers to enable them to reflect on, analyse and evaluate what they have or have not achieved. It may also refer to what learners tell those who are teaching them and/or monitoring their progress, how well they, the learners, believe they are performing.

Learner strategy

~s are the behaviours or actions that learners engage in, in order to learn or use the L2. They are generally considered to be conscious. See also cognitive and metacognitive strategies.

Learner-centred

When the learners are at the centre of the activities and have the chance to work together, make choices and think for themselves in a lesson. See teacher-centred.

Learning

A cumulative process whereby individuals gradually assimilate increasingly complex and abstract entities (concepts, categories, and patterns of behaviour or models) and/or acquire skills and competences. It is the internalization of rules and formulas which can be used to communicate in the L2. Krashen uses this term for formal learning in the classroom.

Learning by doing

Learning acquired by repeated practice of a task, but without instruction.

Learning by using

Learning acquired by repeated use of tools or facilities, but without instruction.

Learning content

The topics and activities which make up what is learned by an individual or group of learners during a learning process.

Learning contract

An agreement between the teacher and the learners about their roles and responsibilities (i.e. what the teacher will do and what the learners will do to help the learners to learn).

Learning outcome(s) / learning attainments

The set of knowledge, skills and/or competences an individual acquired and/or is able to demonstrate after completion of a learning process.

Learning strategies

~ are the range of tactics a learner uses to make learning effective. These may be ‘specific actions, behaviours, steps, or techniques that students employ – often consciously – to improve their progress in internalising, storing, retrieving, and using the L2 (second language)’ (Oxford 1993 p175). These are the techniques which learners consciously use to help them when learning or using language, e.g. deducing the meaning of words from context; predicting content before reading. These account for how learners accumulate new L2 rules and how they automate existing ones. They can be conscious or subconscious. These contrast with communication strategies and production strategies, which account for how the

learners use their rule systems, rather than how they acquire them. Learning strategies may include metacognitive strategies (e.g., planning for learning, monitoring one's own comprehension and production, evaluating one's performance); cognitive strategies (e.g., mental or physical manipulation of the material), or social/affective strategies (e.g., interacting with another person to assist learning, using self-talk to persist at a difficult task until resolution).

Learning style

The way in which an individual learner naturally prefers to learn something. There are many learning styles. Three of them are below. Auditory learner A learner who remembers things more easily when they hear them spoken. This type of learner may like the teacher to say a new word aloud and not just write it on the board. Kinaesthetic learner A learner who learns more easily by doing things physically. This type of learner may like to move around or move objects while learning. Visual learner A learner who finds it easier to learn when they can see things written down or in a picture. This type of learner may like the teacher to write a new word on the board and not just say it aloud. Further examples of different styles are

analytic vs. holistic processing; auditory, visual or kinaesthetic etc. One of these may dominate and often they exist in unequal combination. The way(s) that particular learners prefer to learn a language. Some have a preference for hearing the language (auditory learners), some for seeing it written down (visual learners), some for learning it in discrete bits (analytic learners), some for experiencing it in large chunks (global or holistic or experiential learners) and many prefer to do something physical whilst experiencing the language (kinaesthetic learners).

Lesson plans

~ outline in a systematic way how a particular unit of work is to be taught. They normally identify: • learning objectives, which may be new or based on/ consolidating/extending previous learning • proposed or expected learning outcomes • equipment, resources, materials needed by the teacher and the learners for the lesson(s) • a logical sequence of activities together with an indication of possible timings • differentiation within the proposed activities to account for a range of abilities and learning styles • the practice and use of some/all language skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing) • evaluation and assessment opportunities • future targets.

Lexical approach

It is a way of teaching language that focuses on lexical items or chunks such as words, multiword units, collocations and fixed expressions rather than grammatical structures. The Lexical Approach develops many of the fundamental principles advanced by proponents of the Communicative Approach. The most important difference is the increased understanding of the nature of lexis in naturally occurring language, and its potential contribution to language pedagogy.

Lexical item

An item of vocabulary which has a single element of meaning. It may be a compound or phrase: bookcase, post office, put up with. Some single words may initiate several lexical items; e.g. letter: a letter of the alphabet / posting a letter.

Lexical set

A group or family of words related to one another by some semantic principle: e.g. lamb, pork, chicken, beef are all different types of meat and form a lexical set.

Lexis (also vocabulary)

Individual words or sets of words, e.g. homework, study, whiteboard, get dressed, be on time.

Linguistic competence

A broad term used to describe the totality of a given individual’s language ability; the underlying language system believed to exist as inferred from an individual's language performance.

Linguistic

Connected with language or the study of language.

Listen and do/make/draw

A classroom activity where learners listen to the teacher or to another learners and while they are listening they perform an action (listen and do), make something (listen and make) or draw something (listen and draw). These activities are usually used as comprehension tasks. See action rhyme and picture dictation.

Look-and-say method

A method for teaching children to read, especially in L1, which is similar to the whole-wordmethod except that words are always taught in association with a picture or object and the pronunciation of the word is always required.

Lower primary forms/classes

Elementary classes 1-4 in the Ukrainian educational system.

Lower secondary education

Lower secondary education generally continues the basic programmes of primary, although teaching is typically more subject-focused, often employing more specialised teachers to conduct classes.

M

Matching task

A task-type in which learners are asked to pair related things together, e.g. match two halves of a sentence, or a word with a picture.

Materials

Anything which is used to help to teach language learners. Materials can be in the form of a textbook, a workbook, a cassette, a CD-Rom, a video, a photocopied handout, a newspaper, a paragraph written on a whiteboard: anything which presents or informs about the language being learned.

Materials adaptation

Making changes to materials in order to improve them or to make them more suitable for a particular type of learner. Adaptation can include reducing, adding, omitting, modifying and supplementing. Most teachers adapt materials every time they use a textbook in order to maximise the value of the book for their particular learners.

Materials evaluation

The systematic appraisal of the value of materials in relation to their objectives and to the objectives of the learners using them. Evaluation can be pre-use and therefore focused on predictions of potential value. It can be whilst-use and therefore focused on awareness and description of what the learners are actually doing whilst the materials are being used. And it can also be post-use and therefore focused on analysis of what happened as a result of using the materials.

Meaning-focused tasks

These tasks focus on communication of meaning. Meaning-focused tasks do not provide practice activities which focus on individual linguistic components as a preliminary to engagement in communicative tasks. According to the meaning-focused approach, involvement in communicative tasks is all that is necessary to develop competence in a second language: See form-focused tasks.

Metacognitive strategy

Many L2 learners are able to think consciously about how they learn and how successfully they are learning. ~s involve planning learning, monitoring the process of learning, and evaluating how successful a particular strategy is.

Method

A method is an overall plan for systematic presentation of language – a set of procedures based on a selected approach.

Methodology

~ is the implementation of learning objectives through teaching procedures. It is based on principles deriving from theories of language description, language learning and language use. Methodology may focus on how teachers deal with the four main skills of speaking, writing, listening and reading or on specific aspects of language such as grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.

Micro-teaching

A technique used on teacher training courses: a part of a lesson is taught to a small number of students. A variation of this is ‘peer teaching’, where the 'students' are often peers of the trainee teacher attending the same course.

Mime (n., v.)

Body movements used to convey meaning without using words.

Mingle (n., v.)

A mingle is an activity which involves learners having to walk round the classroom talking to other learners to complete a task.

Minimal pair

A pair of items differing by one phonological feature; for example: sit/set, ship/sheep, pen/pan, fan/pan, pan/pat, among others.

Minimal pair drill

A drill in which minimal pairs are practised together, especially to help students to learn to distinguish a sound contrast. For example, if a teacher wanted to practise the contrast between /b/ and /p/, the teacher could a) explain how the sounds differ; b) present pairs of words containing the contrast, for listening practice, e.g. bore – pour, big – pig, buy – pie; c) get the students to show that they know which member of the pair they have heard; d) get them to pronounce such pairs themselves.

Mistake

According to Corder (1967), a ~ is a deviation in learner language that occurs when learners fail to perform their competence. It is a lapse that reflects processing problems. It contrasts with an error.

Mixed ability, mixed level

The different levels of language or ability of learners studying in the same class.

Model (n., v.)

A clear example of the target language for learners to repeat or write down or save as a record. If a teacher is focusing on the target language of a lesson, s/he usually chooses a model sentence, which s/he writes on the board. The teacher often models the language as well, by saying it clearly before drilling the learners.

Mother tongue

The very first language that you learn as a baby, which is usually the language spoken to you by your parents. Also called L1 or first language. See L1/L2

Motivation (n.), motivate (v.)

Motivation is the thoughts and feelings which make us want to do something and help us continue doing it. Demotivate (v.), demotivated (adj.) To make someone lose motivation. Unmotivated (adj.) Without motivation; having no motivation. ~ can be defined in terms of the learner's overall goal or orientation. 'Instrumental' motivation occurs when the learner's goal is functional (e.g. to get a job or pass an examination), and 'integrative' motivation occurs when the learner wishes to identify with the culture of the L2 group. 'Task" motivation is the interest felt by the learner in performing different learning tasks. ~ is an emotion or psychological need that incites a person to do something. In general terms, ~ refers to the

effort learners put into learning an L2 as a result of their need or desire to learn it. Gardner and Lambert (1972) distinguish ‘instrumental ~’, which occurs when a learner has a functional goal (such as to get a job or pass an examination), and ‘integrative ~’, which occurs when a learner wishes to identify with the culture of the L2 group. 1) ‘Task motivation’ or ‘intrinsic motivation’ – the interest that learners experience when performing different tasks, 2) ‘Machiavellian motivation’ – the desire to learn a language that stems from

a wish to manipulate and overcome the people of the target language, 3) Resultative motivation – the ~ that results from success in learning the L2.

Multilingualism

Ability to speak more than two languages; proficiency in many languages. This is the use of three or more languages by an individual or within a speech community. Frequently, multilingual people do not have equal control over all the languages they know and also use the languages for different purposes.

Multi-media materials

Materials which make use of a number of different media. Often they are available on a CDRom which makes use of print, graphics, video and sound. Usually such materials are interactive and enable the learner to receive feedback on the written or spoken language which they produce.

Multiple intelligences (also MI)

A theory of intelligence that characterizes human intelligence as having multiple dimensions that must be acknowledged and developed in education. The theory of MI is based on the work of the psychologist Gardner who posits 8 intelligences.

Multiple-choice questions/items

A task-type in which learners are given a question and three or four possible answers or options. They choose the correct answer from the options they are given.

N

Native language

Primary or first language spoken by an individual. See L1.

Native speaker

Someone who has spoken a particular language since they were a baby, rather than having learnt it as a child or adult. See L1/L2 and mother tongue.

Natural approach

Created by Stephen Krashen and Tracy Terrell (1983), the Natural approach involved the learners into TPR activities, but at the beginning level when “comprehensible input” is essential. The authors believed that the learners would benefit from delaying production until speech “emerges,” that learners should be as relaxed as possible in the classroom, and that a great deal of communication and acquisition should take place. The Natural aimed at basic communication skills, that is, everyday language situations like conversations, shopping, listening to the radio, and so forth. Pioneered by Krashen, this approach combines acquisition and learning as a means of facilitating language development in adults.

Natural order

Some people believe there is an order in which learners naturally learn some items in their first or other languages. Some language items are learned before others and it can be difficult for teachers to influence this order.

Needs

The language, language skills or learning strategies a learner still has to learn in order to reach their goals, or the conditions they need to help them learn.

Norm-referenced assessment

An assessment in which an individual or group's performance is compared with a larger group. Usually the larger group is representative of a cross-section of all US students.

O

Odd-one-out

A task type in which learners have to find usually a word among three or four words that do not belong to the same lexical category. For example, cat, dog, pen, mouse – the ~ will be pen because it does not constitute part of the given lexical set of animals.

Off task

When learners are distracted or not completing an activity in the way the teacher wants them to do it then they are off task. See on task.

On task

When learners are doing an activity in the way the teacher intended that it should be done then learners are on task. See off task.

One-minute paper

A short test with a few simple questions that can be answered briefly in a minute.

Open class, whole class

When the teacher leads the class and each learner is focusing on the teacher, rather than working alone or in groups. When learners respond, they do so in front of everyone in the class.

Open(-ended) comprehension questions

~ are a task-type in which learners read or listen to a text and answer questions (using their own words). It is also a task or question that does not have a right or wrong answer, but which allows learners to offer their own opinions and ideas or to respond creatively, e.g. Why do you think the writer likes living in Paris?

Oral test

A test of speaking ability.

Outcome

Result. This is what the teacher hopes will be the result in terms of learning at the end of the lesson.

Overhead projector (OHP)

A piece of equipment that makes images appear on a wall or screen. It can be used in a classroom instead of a whiteboard or blackboard.

Overhead transparency (OHT)

The plastic sheet a teacher can write on and use with an overhead projector (OHP).

P

Pace

The speed of the lesson. A teacher can vary the pace in a lesson by planning different activities in order to keep the learners’ attention.

Pair Work

A learning activity in which students work together in pairs for practice or discussion

Pairs

• Closed pairs – When learners in the class do pair work with the person sitting next to them but not in front of the class. • Open pairs – In open pairs, one pair does a pair work activity in front of the class. This technique is useful for showing how to do an activity and/or for focusing on accuracy.

Parent-teacher conference

A face-to-face meeting between a teacher and one or both parents (or guardians) of a student to discuss the student's academic performance and any concerns either party might have.

Passive vocabulary

The vocabulary that students are able to understand compared to that which they are able to use. Contrasted with Active Vocabulary

Peer assessment

~ refers to judgements about learner performance, normally according to set and explicit criteria, made by same or similar age learners. See also assessment.

Peers

~ are same or similar age learners.

Peer teaching

Classroom teaching in which one student teaches another, particularly within an individualized approach to teaching. For example, when students have learnt something, they may teach it to other students, or test other students on it.

Perception

The recognition and understanding of events, objects, and stimuli through the use of senses (sight, hearing, touch, etc.)

Performance assessment

When students demonstrate their mastery of material through a “hands-on activity” (assembling an electrical circuit, for example). See also assessment.

Performance

The ability to effectively use new information in a productive manner.

Phonics

~ is an instructional strategy used to teach reading. It helps beginning readers by teaching them letter-sound relationships and having them sound out words. It is also a recognition of sound-spelling relationships in printed words.

Picture dictation

A classroom activity where the teacher describes a scene or an object and learners draw what they hear. See listen and do/draw/make.

Picture stories

Stories that are shown in pictures instead of words.

Portfolio

A collection of various samples of a student’s work throughout the school year that can include writing samples, examples of math problems, and results of science experiments. This collection of work can be used by a learner to show what he/she has done during a particular course. A purposeful document, regularly added to that may be part of continuous assessment. It may contain evaluative checklists (completed by the individual learner and/or others about him/her), samples of written work, examination results, certificates etc, and other evidence of learning (cassettes, software etc). All these elements are assembled in a portfolio as evidence of an individual’s performance. See portfolio assessment.

Portfolio assessment

A collection of materials designed to demonstrate progress over time.

PPP

An approach to teaching language items which follows a sequence of presentation of the item, practice of the item and then production (i.e. use) of the item. This is the approach currently followed by most commercially produced course books and has the advantage of apparent systematicity and economy. However, many SLA researchers would argue that it is an inefficient approach which creates the illusion of learning. They would say that learning an item takes much longer than this approach suggests and that far more experience of the item in communication is necessary for any lasting learning to take place. See language practice; SLA; language use.

Practice

• Controlled practice, restricted practice When learners use the target language repeatedly and productively in situations in which they have little or no choice of what language they use. The teacher and learners focus on accurate use of the target language. • Less controlled, freer practice, free practice When learners use the target language but have more choice of what they say and what language they use.

Presentation (n.), present (v.)

1. When the teacher introduces new language usually by focusing on it, often by using the board and speaking to the whole class. 2. When a learner or learners gives a talk to their class or group.

Preservice education / preservice training

In teacher education, it is a course or programme of study which student teachers complete before they start teaching. ~ often sets out to show future teachers basic teaching techniques and give them a broad general background in teaching and in their subject matter. This may be compared with in-service education, which refers to experiences which are provided for teachers who are already teaching and which form part of their continued professional development.

Pre-teach (vocabulary)

Before introducing a text to learners, the teacher can teach key vocabulary from the text which s/he thinks the learners do not already know and which is necessary for them to understand the main points of a text.

Problem solving

Learners work in pairs or groups to find the solution to a problem. Problem-solving activities usually help to develop oral fluency. It is the ability to identify and solve problems by applying appropriate skills systematically.

Procedure

The details of exactly what is going to happen in each stage of a lesson, e.g. learners practise the language of complaints in a role-play in pairs.

Productive skills

When learners produce language. Speaking and writing are productive skills. See receptive skills.

Professional development

Programs that allow teachers or administrators to acquire the knowledge and skills they need to perform their jobs successfully.

Proficiency (n.), proficient (adj.)

Level of ability; to be very good at something because of training and practice, e.g. speaking English.

Project assessment

When students design a project that illustrates a specific principle (science fair projects, for example).

Project work

An activity which focuses on completing an extended task or tasks on a specific topic. Learners may work in groups to create something such as a class magazine. Learners sometimes do some work by themselves, sometimes outside the classroom.

Prop (n.)

An object used by the actors performing in a play or film. Teachers may give learners props to use when they are doing a role play in class.

Puppet

A model of a person or animal often made of paper or cloth, which a teacher or learners can move by putting their hand inside. Puppets are often used when teaching young learners.

Q

Quiz (esp. AmE)

A very short informal test given to students. Pop quiz (AmE) a short test given to students

without any warning.

R

Reader

1. A senior teacher at a British university just below the rank of a professor 2. An easy book that is intended to help people learn to read their own or a foreign language.

Reading

1. Perceiving a written text in order to understand its contents (usually done silently – silent reading); 2. Saying a written text aloud (oral reading) Reading approach In FL teaching, a programme or method in which reading comprehension is the main objective. In a ~, a) the FL is generally introduced through short passages written with simple vocabulary and structures; b) comprehension is taught through translation and grammatical analysis; c) if the spoken language is taught, it is generally used to reinforce reading and limited to the oral reading of texts.

Realia (pl.)

Three-dimensional objects used for instruction. Real objects such as clothes, menus, timetables and leaflets that can be brought into the classroom for a range of purposes.

Recall (n., v.)

To remember, bring something back into the mind.

Recast

To reword a sentence or phrase to improve it, e.g. Learner: I find myself unable to accept your statement Teacher: Oh, you don’t agree. Why not? Teachers recast language which may not contain errors but which is inappropriate for the context it is being used in. Compare with reformulate.

Receptive skills

When learners do not have to produce language; listening and reading are receptive skills. See productive skills.

Recycle

To focus on words or structures that have been taught before, for revision and more practice.

Reference materials

The materials which teachers and learners can use to find or check information, e.g. grammar books, dictionaries or CD-ROMs.

Reflecting teaching

An approach to teaching and to teacher education which is based on the assumption that

teachers can improve their understanding of teaching and the quality of their own teaching by reflecting critically on their teaching experiences. In teacher education, this may involve a) journals in which student teachers or practising teachers write about and descrbe classroom experiences and use their descriptions as a basis for review and reflection; b) audio and video taping of a teacher’s lesson by the teacher, for purposes of later review and reflection; c) group discussion with peers or a supervisor in order to explore issues that come out of classroom experience.

Reflective (teachers)

Teachers who look back on the lessons they have taught and think about what worked and what did not work in order to improve their teaching.

Refresher course

A short period of training to improve one’s skills or to teach one about new ideas and developments in one’s jobю

Repetition (n.), repeat (v.)

To say something again, often for practice. This is often done in drills.

Report card (AmE), school report (BrE)

A written statement about a student’s work at school, college, etc.

Resources

~ are the variety of sources teachers can draw on in the process of locating, selecting and/or producing ideas, texts, activities, tasks and reference materials useful for their learners. See aids, reference materials, learning resources.

Review (n., v.), revision (n.), revise (v.)

When a learner, often guided by the teacher, looks again at language that has already been taught in order to remember this language better. Teachers may choose to review vocabulary or grammatical structures in the classroom, for example, in order to help learners consolidate the language or to prepare for a test.

Revise (BrE), review (AmE), study (for an exam)

Prepare for an exam by looking again at work that one has done

Rhyme

1. Words that sound similar because they have the same ending, e.g. hat, cat. 2. A song or poem with words that sound the same at the end of each line I believe I can fly. I believe I can touch the sky.

Risk-taking

A personality factor which concerns the degree to which a person is willing to undertake actions that involve a significant degree of risk. ~ is said to be an important characteristic of successful foreign or second language learning, since learners have to be willing to try out hunches about the new language and take the risk of being wrong.

Role-play

A classroom activity in which learners are given roles to act out in a given situation, e.g. a job interview role-play where one learner would be the interviewer and the other learner would be the interviewee. Role-plays are usually done in pairs or groups.

Routine

Something which is done regularly such as a teacher setting writing homework every Friday. Teachers try to develop some routine habits in the classroom, e.g. always asking learners to record new words with their meaning and an example sentence. It also means ways of managing the classroom; an established set of expectations.

Rubric

Refers to a grading or scoring system. A rubric is a scoring tool that lists the criteria to be met in a piece of work. A rubric also describes levels of quality for each of the criteria. These levels of performance may be written as different ratings (e.g., Excellent, Good, Needs Improvement) or as numerical scores (e.g., 4, 3, 2, 1). It also means written instructions for an exercise, activity or task in a test.

S

Scaffolding

A term originally used to refer to teacher talk that supports pupils in carrying out activities and helps them to solve problems. Examples include simplifying tasks by breaking them down into smaller steps; keeping pupils focused on completing the task by reminding them of what the goal is; showing other ways of doing tasks. Scaffolding also includes support strategies for writing and speaking, examples of which are the use of substitution tables and language frames. Scaffolding is temporary support which is gradually taken away so that learners can eventually work without it.

Scan

To read a text quickly to pick out specific information, e.g. finding a phone number in a phone book. See detail, gist, global understanding, skim.

Schema theory

A theory of language processing based on the notion that past experiences lead to the creation of mental frameworks that help us make sense of new experiences.

Scheme of work

A basic plan of what a teacher will teach for a number of lessons. Its aim is to try to ensure that lessons fit logically together, to give the teacher clear goals and to try to ensure a balance of language, skills, topics and activities over a number of weeks or months.

Seating arrangement, seating plan

The way the learners sit in the classroom, e.g. in rows, in a circle around the teacher, in groups around different tables. A plan of where the learners should sit in the classroom.

Second language learners

Students whose primary language is not English. They are learning English as their second language.

Second language / L2

The term is used to refer to a language which is not a mother tongue but which is used for certain communicative functions in a society. Thus Ukrainian is a second language in Transcarpathia for Hungarians. See foreign language.

Self-access centre, learning centre

A place with learning resources such as books, computers and cassettes where learners can study by themselves.

Self-access materials

Materials designed for learners to use independently (i.e. on their own without access to a teacher or a classroom). They are normally used by the learner at home, in a library or in a self-study centre.

Self-assessment

~ is a judgement made by the learner on his or her own performance, knowledge, strategies etc. See assessment.

Sentence completion

A task-type in which learners are given parts of a sentence, e.g. the beginning or the end, and are asked to complete the sentence, using specific target language, e.g. At the weekend, I love … ; In the evenings, I enjoy … .

Sentence transformation

A task-type in which learners are given a sentence and a prompt, and have to make a second sentence using the prompt so that it means the same as the first, e.g. It’s too cold to play tennis. It ____________ to play tennis. (enough) It isn’t warm enough to play tennis.

Silent period

The time when learners who are beginning to learn a first (or second) language prefer to listen (or read) before producing the language, e.g. babies have a silent period when they listen to their parents before starting to try to speak themselves.

Silent Way

Like Suggestopaedia, The Silent Way method rests on more cognitive than affective arguments for its theoretical sustenance. But the method lies in a problem-solving approach to learning. – Learning is facilitated if the learner discovers or creates rather than remembers and repeats what is to be learned. - Learning is facilitated by accompanying (mediating) physical objects. – Learning is facilitated by problem solving involving the material to be learned. The Silent Way method was fond of "discovery learning" activities.

Simplified texts

These are texts which have been made simpler so as to make it easier for learners to read them. The usual principles of simplification involve reduction in length of the text, shortening of sentences, omission or replacement of difficult words or structures, omission of qualifying clauses and omission of non-essential detail. It is arguable, however, that such simplification might make the words easier to understand but could make it more difficult for the learners to achieve global understanding of a text which is now dense with important information. It might be more profitable to simplify texts by adding examples, by using repetition and paraphrase and by increasing redundant information. In other words, by lengthening rather than shortening the text.

Skill

The knowledge and experience needed to perform a specific task or job. The four language skills are listening, speaking, reading and writing. See develop skills, subskills, receptive skills, productive skills.

Skim

To read a text quickly to get a general idea of what it is about. See detail, gist, global understanding.

SLA

This is an abbreviation for Second Language Acquisition and is normally used to refer to research and theory related to the learning of second and foreign languages.

Standardized test

A test that is in the same format for all who take it. It often relies on multiple-choice questions and the testing conditions—including instructions, time limits, and scoring rubrics—are the same for all students, though sometimes accommodations on time limits and instructions are made for disabled students.

Stimulus

An event that causes something else to happen or take place

Story corner

A permanent space in the classroom where learners can tell each other stories or sit quietly and read stories.

Storyboard

To show the events in a story sometimes with speech and thoughts or short text.

Storybook

A book with stories for children.

Strategies

~ are seen as a hinge between a learner’s resources (competences) and what he/she can do with them (communicative activities)’ (CEFR p25).

Strategy training

Training in the use of learning strategies in order to improve a learner’s effectiveness. A number of approaches to strategy training are used, including: explicit or direct training – learners are given information about the value and purpose of particular strategies, taught how to use them, and how to monitor their own use of strategies; embedded strategy training – the strategies to be taught are not taught explicitly but are imbedded in the regular content of an academic subject area, such as reading, maths, or science; combination strategy training – explicit strategy training is followed by embedded strategy training.

Structural approach

A way of teaching which uses a syllabus based on grammatical structures. The order in which the language is presented is usually based on how difficult it is thought to be.

Subskill

Each of the four language skills can be divided into smaller subskills that are all part of the main skill, e.g. identifying text organisation (reading); identifying word stress (listening). See detail, gist, global understanding, scan, skim

Substitution

Replacing words, phrases or clauses in discourse with another word or words to achieve cohesion e.g. in the sentence ‘Bill is going to university next year, and Jim is too’, ‘too’ substitutes for ‘going to university next year’.

Substitution table

A grid giving a choice of grammatical forms.

Subtest

A test which is given as part of a longer test. For example, a language-proficiency test may contain subtests of grammar, writing, and speaking.

Suggestopaedia

Derived from Bulgarian psychologist Georgi Lozanov, Suggestopaedia has not been as successful as CLL. The idea brought by Lozanov was that people should be able to learn a lot more when the right conditions for learning would be set. Drawn from insight of Soviet psychological research on extrasensory perception and from yoga, Suggestopaedia capitalized on relaxed states of mind for maximum retention of material. Music, with specific rhythm, was central to this method. The followers would "experiment" the foreign language with the presentation of vocabulary, readings, dialogs, role-plays, drama, and a variety of other typical classroom activities.

Summative evaluation

Evaluation that occurs at the end of a unit of study

Supervision

In teacher education, it is the monitoring and evaluation of a student teacher’s teaching performance by a supervisor. Current approaches to ~ differ with respect to whether the supervisor’s primary role is seen to be as an evaluator of teaching performance or as a facilitator or consultant. When the former is the case, the supervisor seeks to point out the differences between actual teaching performance and ideal teaching behaviour, guiding the student teacher’s development and offering suggestions for improvement. When the supervisor acts more as a consultant or facilitator, the goal is to explore aspects of teaching that have been determined through negotiation and to encourage teacher self-development through reflection and self-observation.

Supplementary material (n.), supplement (v.)

The books and other materials which teachers can use in addition to a course book, e.g. pronunciation practice materials. This is material designed to be used in addition to the core materials of a course. They are usually related to the development of skills of reading, writing, listening or speaking rather than to the learning of language items. See course book.

Survey (n.)

An activity in which learners find out information from others by asking questions or using questionnaires in order to practise speaking skills and/or specific language.

Syllabus (pl. syllabi)

This describes the language and skills to be covered on a course, and the order in which they will be taught. See curriculum.

T

Tapescript, audio script, transcript

The written version of the words learners hear when doing a listening activity. These can often be found in a teacher’s book or at the back of the learner’s book.

Target language

1. The language which is the focus of the lesson or a part of the lesson. It could be grammar, lexis, functions or pronunciation. 2. The language being studied (often called the L2). This is the language that the learner is attempting to learn.

Target language culture

The traditions and culture of the country whose language is being studied.

Task

An activity that learners complete. For example, problem-solving activities or informationgap activities are tasks. A task usually focuses on communication. Task may also be used as another word for activity. ~ is ‘any purposeful action considered by an individual as necessary in order to achieve a given result in the context of a problem to be solved, an obligation to fulfil or an objective to be achieved.’ (CEFR, p10) See Task-based Learning

(TBL).

Task-based

This refers to materials or courses which are designed around a series of authentic tasks which give learners experience of using the language in ways in which it is used in the 'real world' outside the classroom. They have no pre-determined language syllabus and the aim is for learners to learn from the tasks the language they need to participate successfully in them. Examples of such tasks would be working out the itinerary of a journey from a timetable, completing a passport application form, ordering a product from a catalogue and giving directions to the post office. See authentic tasks.

Task-based learning (TBL)

A way of teaching in which the teacher gives learners meaningful tasks to do. After this the teacher may ask learners to think about the language they used while doing the tasks, but the main focus for learners is on the task itself. Project work is often task-based.

Task type

A set of questions that are all of one kind, e.g. multiple choice, gap-fill, matching.

Teacher role

Teacher role refers to the different functions a teacher can have in a class and the different ways a teacher can manage the classroom and the learners, e.g. a teacher can choose to take a controlling role, giving directions or instructions at the front of the class or to take a less controlling role, monitoring learners as they work. Teacher roles include: • Assessor Assessing learners’ performance, behaviour, effort and contribution. Checking understanding, Evaluating learners’ performance, behaviour, and contribution. Testing learner progress and level. Providing feedback on work, progress, behaviour and contribution. • Contributor Contributing ideas or information other than language, e.g. participating in discussions. • Counsellor Giving learners advice on difficulties they may have outside of their language class. Showing understanding of issues learners bring to the classroom from outside. • Diagnostician Diagnosing, evaluating learners’ needs and difficulties. • Facilitator Developing learner autonomy. Enabling learners to fulfil their potential. Helping learners to access resources. Providing opportunities for individual learning. • Language resource Clarifying language. Correcting learner language. Consolidating learner language. Contextualising language. Eliciting language. Explaining language. Modelling language. Personalising language. Providing language input. • Manager Managing the learners, the lessons and procedures in the classroom, e.g. Controlling the group dynamic. Deciding on interaction patterns. Demonstrating tasks and activities. Developing rapport. Encouraging learners. Giving instructions. Motivating learners. Praising learners. Maintaining discipline.

Responding to classroom problems as they happen. • Monitor/Observer Monitoring, observing and collecting information about learner performance, behaviour, contribution and effort and progress. Keeping a written record of learners’ work. • Narrator Narrating stories and things that have happened. • Planner Anticipating problems. Deciding on a methodology for lessons. Designing and adapting texts and materials for lessons. Preparing texts and tasks for learners. Selecting materials and texts for lessons. • Reflector Thinking about his/her own performance. Reflecting on learners’ progress.

Teacher talk

Teachers address classroom language learners differently from the way they address other kinds of classroom learners. They make adjustments to both language form and language function in order to facilitate communication. These adjustments are referred to as ‘~’.

Teacher-centred

When the teacher is seen as the source of all knowledge in the learning process and acts as the provider of knowledge rather than making use of the knowledge and experience of the students to guide the learning process. See learner-centred.

Team teaching

A teaching method in which two or more teachers teach the same subjects or theme. The teachers may alternate teaching the entire group or divide the group into sections or classes that rotate between the teachers. Student teachers often team teach when they start their training in order to build up confidence and experience without having the sole responsibility for a whole class. Team teaching may involve teachers of the same or different subjects.

Team work

~ refers to the process or product of a number of individuals working together to produce a common project, joint piece of work, an agreed solution to a problem.

Technique

A technique is a specific classroom device or activity, [such as a role-play] that is consistent with a method and therefore in harmony with an approach. Some techniques are used in more than one method, e.g. modelling & repetition.

TEFL

Teaching English as a Foreign Language – a term that refers to teacher training programs in EFL

TELL (Technology Enhanced Language Learning)

Derived from the term CALL, this is an approach to language teaching and learning which uses a range of technology and electronic media.

Tertiary education (BrE)

Education at university or college level

TESL

Teaching English as a Second Language – a term that refers to teacher training programs in ESL

TESOL

Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages – a term that is used to distinguish English language teaching as a professional activity that requires specialized training. Also, a USbased international association of teachers of English as a second or foreign language. There are regional affiliates and many countries have their own affiliated associations.

Test

A formal assessment of a learner’s language. An achievement test is used to see how well learners have learned the language and skills taught in class. Achievement tests are often at the end of term or end of the year and test the main points of what has been taught in that time. A diagnostic test is used to identify problems that learners have with language or skills. The teacher diagnoses the language problems learners have. It can also be used to diagnose learner strengths. It helps the teacher to plan what to teach, or what not to teach, in future. An objective test is marked without using the examiner’s opinion, e.g. true/false questions, multiple-choice questions. There is a clear right answer. A placement test is often used at the beginning of a course in a language school in order to identify a learner’s level of language and find the best class for them. A proficiency test is used to see how good learners are at using the target language. The contents of a proficiency test are not chosen according to what has been taught, but according to what is needed for a particular purpose, e.g. English for hotel receptionists, English for studying at university, English for general communication. Cambridge ESOL First Certificate in English (FCE) and IELTS are examples of proficiency tests. A progress test is used during a course in order to assess the learning up to a particular point in the course. A subjective test is marked using the examiner’s opinion about the quality of the answer. The answer is not simply right or wrong, e.g. marking written stories, compositions, interviews, conversations, story-telling. A summative test is used at the end of a course. The focus is on the mark or grade given and feedback is not usually provided. See formative assessment.

Test-teach-test

A way of teaching new language. The teacher asks learners to do a task to see how well they know a certain piece of language (this is the first test). The teacher then presents the new language to the learners (teach), then asks the learners to do another task using the new language correctly (this is the second test). This way of approaching teaching target language can be helpful if the teacher thinks the learners may already know some of the target language. It helps the teacher diagnose what the learners need to learn so that s/he can focus only on what learners need to learn in the presentation (teach) stage.

Text

Any scripted or recorded production of a language presented to learners of that language. A text can be written or spoken and could be, for example, a poem, a newspaper article, a passage about pollution, a song, a film, an extract from a novel or a play, a passage written to exemplify the use of the past perfect, a recorded telephone conversation, a scripted dialogue or a speech by a politician. ‘Text is used to cover any piece of language, whether a spoken utterance or a piece of writing, which users/learners receive, produce or exchange. There can thus be no act of communication through language without a text’ (CEFR p93).

Text types

~ are groups of texts which exhibit similar features resulting from their overall function, from rhetorical conventions associated with them, from style etc. Common spoken/spoken interaction text types are: telephone calls, conversations, jokes, stories. Common written text types are: narrative texts, informative (articles etc), persuasive (speeches etc), letters, poems, advertisements, emails, text messages etc.

Textbook

A collection of the knowledge, concepts, and principles of a selected topic or course. See book.

The three R’s (“reading, ’riting, and ’rithmetic”)

The three basic subjects in primary education

Thematic unit

A unit of study that has lessons focused on a specific theme, sometimes covering all core subject areas. It is often used as an alternative approach to teaching history or social studies chronologically.

Timing

The likely time different activities or stages in a lesson plan should take. When teachers plan lessons, they think about how long each activity will take and they usually write this on their plan.

TOEFL test

Test of English as a foreign language – a standardized test of English proficiency; it is widely used to measure the English-language proficiency of foreign students wishing to enter American universities

Topic

The subject of a text or lesson.

Total Physical Response (TPR)

A way of teaching in which the teacher presents language items in instructions and the learners have to do exactly what the teacher tells them, e.g. Open the window. Stand up. Over the years, language teachers have intuitively recognized the value of associating language with physical activity. James Asher (1977) developed the Total Physical Response method from this idea. In addition to evolve around that concept, the method also combines insights from children language acquisition concepts. Asher believed that the process of learning should include a lot of reading and listening before acting. He also gave importance to "right brained" learning, whereas the right brain hosts motor activity. In a TPR classroom, the students would a great deal of listening and acting. The teacher would give many directives for the students perform the acting. As Asher quoted, "The instructor is the director of a stage play in which the students are the actors." This over-directing attitude of the teacher was believed to reduce stress for the students, and therefore facilitate learning.

Turn, turn-taking

When someone speaks in a conversation this is called a turn. Speaking and then allowing another person to speak in reply is called ‘turn-taking’.

Tutor

A private teacher, esp. one who teaches an individual student or a very small group

Tutorial

When a teacher talks to a learner individually or to a small group of learners to discuss their learning and give feedback on their progress in class.

Tutoring

Any activity offering a learner guidance, counselling or supervision by an experienced and competent professional. The tutor supports the learner throughout the learning process (at school, in training centres or on the job). Comment: tutoring covers various activities: - academic subjects (to improve educational achievement); - careers (to ease the transition from school to work); - personal development (to encourage learners to make wise choices).

U

Usage

Widdowson (1978: 3) uses the term ~ to refer to ‘that aspect of performance which makes evident the extent to which the language user demonstrates his knowledge of linguistic rules’. The term contrasts with use.

Use

Widdowson (1978: 3) uses the term ~ to refer to that aspect of performance which ‘makes evident the extent to which the language user demonstrates his ability to use his knowledge of linguistic rules for effective communication’.

Utterance

A complete unit of speech in spoken language. An utterance can be shorter than a sentence, e.g. A: When’s he coming? B: Tomorrow. ‘Tomorrow’ is an utterance here.

V, W