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A N I N T E R N A T I O N A LA N D I N T E R D I S C I P L I N A R YJ O U R N A L O F T H E E L TP R A C T I C E A N D R E S E A R C H

ELTA Journal • December 2016 • Volume 4, No. 4

E-mail correspondence: [email protected] Copyright ELTA Journal 2016

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ELTA Journal: An International & Interdisciplinary Journal of the ELT Practice & Research

ISSN 2334-9662 (Online)

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ELTA – English Language Teachers’ Association Nemanjina 28, 11000 Belgrade

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Editor-in-Chief: Maja Jerković, Vocational Medical School, Zrenjanin, Serbia

Co-editors: Vicky Papageorgiou, ESL Instructor, Metropolitan College, Thessaloniki, Greece

Zorica Đukić, The School of Pharmacy and Physiotherapy, Belgrade, Serbia Branka Dečković, Vocational Medical School, Kragujevac, Serbia

Bojana Nikić Vujić, MA, The School of Pharmacy and Physiotherapy, Belgrade, Serbia Milena Tanasijević, English Language Lecturer, Belgrade Metropolitan University, Serbia

Milica Prvulović, PhD candidate, Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade, Serbia

Proofreaders Milena Tanasijević, English Language Lecturer, Belgrade Metropolitan University, Serbia

Milica Prvulović, PhD candidate, Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade, Serbia

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Editorial ELTA Journal

Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the publication of the fourth issue of ELTA Journal. Our

mission is to promote research and the practice of language learning and teaching and to

present some theoretical considerations in the field of ELT. The ELTA Journal welcomes

submissions of previously unpublished manuscripts on any topic related to the field of

language learning and teaching. We particularly encourage authors to submit articles written

so that they are accessible to a broad audience of educators. We also welcome contributors

from around the world who would like to be published because we value their different

perspective and approach.

The ELTA Journal is peer-reviewed and published annually. Manuscripts are subjected to a

double-blind peer review, which ensures that the name, institution and the country of the

submitting authors are hidden from peer reviewers and vice versa, providing the authors,

thus, with the opportunity to have their articles rechecked, reevaluated and inspected by

unbiased experts.

For another year, we are very happy to present domestic and international voices in our

Journal. In this issue, Ivana Martinović Barbul from Novi Sad Business School/Novi Sad

(SERBIA) uses Problem-based learning (PBL) as an effective approach of helping students

to integrate the knowledge and concepts previously learned as they solve interdisciplinary

and real-situation problems. Her article‟s goal is to improve teaching writing in ESP classes

and help students to integrate and apply the learned knowledge.

In her article, Jayne Whistance (University of Southampton, UK) provides a brief overview of

Pinterest as a social bookmarking tool for learning and its benefits in increasing student

engagement, enhancing accessibility and developing employability skills and she then

suggests ways in which Pinterest can be used both inside and outside the classroom.

Vraka Vagia-Anastasia (GREECE), in her article „Promoting British Culture, History and

Literature with a WebQuest‟ presents the utilization of an original WebQuest based on

Charles Dickens‟ masterpiece “Oliver Twist” created by the writer in order to teach British

history, culture and literature to a class of ten-year-old students in a Greek primary school.




The three constructivistic lessons based on it aim not only at enriching students‟ schemata

about Charles Dickens, the novel “Oliver Twist” and the historic era presented in it, but also

at promoting students‟ research skills, socio-cultural competence and active involvement.

Svitlana Tubaltseva (Admiral Makarov National University of Shipbuilding, Mykolaiv,

UKRAINE) takes the position that most traditional coursebooks are quite standardized and

offer traditional repetitive tasks. The article discusses Tomlinson‟s framework „Text-driven

approach‟ which is aimed to help learners move away from their tendency to study texts so

that they can engage with the text instead experientially.

The editorial team would like to express their appreciation to all the contributors for the time

and effort that they have put into making this issue successful. We extend our gratitude to

eminent professors and esteemed colleagues for their gracious expertise in reviewing the

articles. We would also like to thank the ELTA Board for their support.

We hope this issue will be of broad interest to the readership of the journal and we look

forward to receiving the feedback. We would encourage the submission of articles to further

the advancement of the teaching profession.

With best wishes,

ELTA Journal Editorial Team




Table of Contents

1. Problem Based Model for Teaching the Aspect of Style in an ESP Writing Course by

Ivana Martinović Barbul _______________________________________________5

2. Materials Development - How to Make a Reading Class More Effective? Using

Tomlinson’s ‘Text-Driven Approach’ by Svitlana Tubaltseva __________________25

3. Teaching British Culture, History and Literature with a WebQuest by Vraka Vagia-

Anastasia _________________________________________________________41

4. Using Pinterest for Learning by Jayne Whistance___________________________51




Problem Based Model for Teaching the

Aspect of Style in an ESP Writing

Coursei

Ivana Martinović Barbulii, Novi Sad Business School, Serbia

Abstract: Problem-based learning (PBL) is an effective approach which helps students to integrate the

knowledge and concepts previously learned as they solve interdisciplinary and real-situation problems. The core concepts of PBL are using professional knowledge, goal setting, problem resolution, and evaluation of the results. Also, PBL activities meet students' learning interest as well as take into account the effects of individual learning. The main goal of this paper is to improve teaching writing in ESP classes and help students to integrate and apply the learned knowledge. PBL model for teaching the basic principles of professional writing style (clarity, conciseness, tone and word choice) was created according to the principles of PBL implementation: 1. The creation of the problem situation; 2. Problem definition; 3. Decomposition of the problem; 4. Suggesting hypothesis; 5. Self-study (verification of hypotheses); 6. Generalization of results and synthesis of knowledge; 7. Application of newly acquired knowledge on a similar problem. Keywords: problem based learning, teaching writing, style, ESP writing Apstrakt: Učenje zasnovano na rešavanju problema (eng. problem based learning) predstavlja efikasan pristup

koji pomaže učenicima da integrišu znanje i koncepte koje su ranije naučili dok rešavaju interdisciplinarne i probleme iz svakodnevnog života. Ključni koncepti problemske nastave su upotreba stručnog znanja, postavljanje ciljeva, rešavanje problema i vrednovanje rezultata. Isto tako, aktivnosti na času problemske nastave podstiču interesovanje za učenje, ali uzimaju u obzir i pozitivne efekte individualnog učenja. Glavni cilj ovog rada je da se poboljša nastava pisanja u jeziku struke i pomogne učenicima da integrišu i primene naučeno. Problemski modelovana nastavna jedinica za učenje osnovnih principa profesionalnog stila pisanja (jasno a, konciznost, ton i izbor reči) kreirana je u skladu sa principima implementacije problemske nastave: 1. Stvaranje problemske situacije; 2. Definicija problema; 3. Dekompozicija problema; 4. Postavljane hipoteza; 5. Samostalan rad učenika (verifikacija hipoteza); 6. Generalizacija rezultata i sinteza znanja; 7. Primena na sličnom problemu. Ključne reči: učenje zasnovano na rešavanju problema, nastava pisanja, aspekt stila, jezik struke

1. Introduction

According to Chris Davis and Mary Birbili

(Davies and Birbili, 2000) in written

business communication, emphasis is on

taking action rather than creative

expression, and this difference is reflected

in the content, form, and tone of business

genres such as a proposal, report,

memorandum. Although professional texts

can be written by individuals, they often

represent the result of cooperation of

several authors, and almost always, the

text reflects the position of the institution

not an individual. Also, there is greater

complexity when it comes to target

readers and the purpose of writing in the

workplace, as opposed to writing classes

at school, where the tasks of writing are

directed to a main reader – the teacher,

and only for one purpose –assessment of




knowledge. Therefore, it is unlikely that the

skills acquired in writing classes and

knowledge of some general principles will

be sufficient to help students in work

contexts outside the classroom.

2. Main characteristics of Problem

Based Learning

Theoretical basics of problem based

learning can be found in research and

scientific work of the representatives of

Gestalt theory, the Swiss psychologist

Jean Piaget, Jerome Bruner’s theory of

discovery learning, project-method of

American philosopher John Dewey and

others. Among all the theories of learning,

constructivism, which believes that

students are active constructors of their

own knowledge, is certainly the most

prominent theoretical approach underlying

problem based learning.

Savery and Duffy (Savery & Duffy, 1996:

136) list three basic aspects of

constructivism that are related to the

problem based learning. The first concept

of constructivism illustrated in PBL, is that

we can understand something only

through interaction with the environment,

that is, how we are going to understand

something depends on our experience and

activities in a particular context. The

second concept is that learning is the

result of cognitive conflict. When students

realize that their knowledge cannot be

applied to solve problems, they feel

tension and the need to change their

approach, which serves as a stimulus for

further learning. Finally, according to the

third concept that connects PBL and

constructivism, knowledge must be tested

through a process of social negotiation.

Working in collaborative groups provides

an opportunity to test what we know, what

other students know, and in that way

improve our knowledge. Different views

are used to re-examine our beliefs and

serve as a stimulus for new learning.

The educational objective of PBL is to

motivate and engage students to explore

the “bad structured open-ended questions

with which they will meet in their daily

lives”. These ill-structured problems can

be described as a complex open-ended

questions, which present a minimum of

information and provide a lot of ways to

solve the problem (Harper-Marinick, 2001:

11). Such complex problems provide a

stimulus for learning and integration of

knowledge, which helps to retain

knowledge and recall it for the later use.

Throughout the literature, researchers list

the advantages and disadvantages of the

implementation of PBL. The advantages

are: improved retention of knowledge,

encouragement of lifelong learning,

increased motivation, better interaction

between students and teachers, improving

the skills of problem solving and

information gathering, as well as improving

metacognitive skills (Duch et al., 2001;




Hung, 2011; Thorpe & Sage, 2002,Yew &

Schmidt, 2011).

Uden and Beaumont (Uden & Beaumont,

2006) point out that the PBL promotes

learning with understanding. First of all,

PBL prepares students for their jobs, helps

them in achieving competence, such as

coping with problems, making reasonable

decisions in a variety of circumstances,

research the problem from a holistic

approach, the ability to work in a team,

respect for the views of other people but at

the same time recognizing their own

strengths and weaknesses, adapting to

changes in the workplace.

One of the goals of PBL is to develop self-

directed learning skills. SFL is defined as

“a process in which individuals take the

initiative in diagnosing their learning

needs, formulating goals, the selection

and application of appropriate learning

strategies, and evaluating learning

outcomes” (Loiens, Magda & Rikers,

2008). In PBL, students are invited to take

responsibility for their own learning which

leads to an increase in self-directed

learning skills. In the initial phase of

problem-solving activities, students are

usually gathered in small, collaborative

working groups. While the group

discusses, talks about the problem,

generates hypotheses and

identifiesrelevant elements of prior

knowledge, they often realise which parts

needed to solve the problem are missing

(Evensen & Hmelo, 2000). This leads to

the “division of labor” phase which is a

component of SFL.

Sendagi and Odabasi (Sendagi &

Odabasi, 2009) argue that PBL can

improve the development of critical

thinking because students learn how to

analyze a problem, identify the relevant

facts and generate hypotheses, identify

the necessary information to solve

problems and make reasonable decisions

about how to solve the problem.

3. Problem Based Learning and

teaching English as a foreign

language

Many approaches to foreign language

teaching coincide with the philosophy of

learning through solving problems.

Firstly, to improve language skills,

students should have the opportunity to

communicate with each other. PBL offers

many opportunities for students to

communicate in a foreign language as

communication is generated in a problem-

solving task. According to Barrett, “in PBL,

students constantly interact and share

knowledge because communication leads

to more communication; ideas generate

ideas, discussions lead to thinking, but

thinking leads to further discussion among

students” (Barrett, 2010).

Secondly, Krashenexplains (Krashen,

1982) that there is a significant difference




between language acquisition and

language learning. Adopting the language

is unconscious, while language learning is

a conscious process. Children acquire

their mother tongue through interaction

with parents and the environment.

Children acquire language through

unconscious process, during which they

have no awareness of grammatical rules.

This suggests that the native language is

acquired through exposure to the

language and meaningful communication,

without the need for systematic lectures of

any kind. The duty of teachers is to create

a situation where students will acquire not

learn the language. Unfortunately, in

foreign language teaching interaction is

neglected, even ignored. Most of the

courses are related to grammar, patterns,

repetition and memorizing. Is this similar to

the way the child acquires language?

Definitely not. This is language learning.

PBL is an effective and innovative

approach where learning environment is

converted into a place where language

acquisition takes place. There is no explicit

language learning in PBL. Also, there is no

teacher who shows how and what to say

in various situations. Students are the

ones who shape the situation and are

involved in the communicative activity.

Language is acquired through problem

solving, because students do not think

about the language but try to communicate

during the activity.

Thirdly, motivation facilitates the process

of learning the language, and classroom

activities should be purposeful and

meaningful, so that students recognize

their value in the learning process. In that

way, students will be intrinsically

motivated. Motivation can also arise from

emotional satisfaction. It lies in the power

of decision making and excitement of

interaction. When it comes to intrinsic

motivation, people are not only interested,

but they feel competent and determined.

According to Stepanovna (Stepanovna,

2000), motivation is an integral part of the

problem based learning since it creates

pleasant feelings, the conditions for the

emergence of real “situation of success”–

teaching situations in which a student feels

like a winner, a researcher of the new

landscape. It is important that each

student experiences situation of success

and personal victory.

To sum up, numerous authors (Savery,

2006; Barron, 2002, Othman, & Shah,

2013) argue that other techniques

employed in EFL learning/teaching such

as: the project method, task-based

learning, and discovery learning are

pedagogies that promote active learning

and engage students in higher-order

thinking. These approaches try to make

learning more meaningful for students and

transferable to situations outside learning

contexts. They promote lifelong learning

and require from students to use task




related language. However, these

approaches use problems which are

structured, elected by teachers in order to

practice desired language functions.

Although these approaches use problems

to motivate students to use a foreign

language, they work in a very traditional

teaching format “presentation – practice –

production” and there is very little

research. When expected results are

clearly defined there is less need or

incentive for students to set their own

parameters. In the real world, the ability to

define the problem and a range of possible

solutions is extremely important. Thirdly,

the main difference between PBL and

these approaches relates to the role of the

teacher. Only in PBL, teacher supports the

process but does not provide information

relating to the problem - they are the

responsibility of the student.

4. PBL and ESP

Pennelll and Miles (Miles & Pennell, 2009)

advocate for PBL as a rhetorical pedagogy

for business communication. PBL inverts

the typical instructional sequence; rather

than presenting concepts first and then

asking students to apply them, PBL

creates situations in which students must

learn the concepts in order to solve a

“problem” constructed for that purpose.

Thus, students learn in an iterative

process as they cycle through the three

key questions: 1. What do we know? 2.

What do we need to know? and 3. How

will we learn it?. Pennell and Miles argue

that PBL moves the classroom situation

closer to authentic rhetorical learning, with

its emphasis on deriving solutions from the

situation itself. Another way to

conceptualize this switch is to think along

a spectrum of how many parameters are

given to the students upfront, and how

many different types of rhetorical choices

students are required to make for

themselves. We locate genre-based

assignments on one end of this spectrum:

In the typical genre-based assignment

(e.g. write a memo to your boss requesting

permission to telecommute or revise this

bad news letter to a client), most of the

rhetorical parameters are given – the

genre, the audience, and often the tone as

well. In such classrooms, teacher and

textbook present the necessary

information, and students practice the

skills at home and turn in their completed

draft for review and revision. Farther along

the spectrum, there are case-based

assignments, in which students are

exposed to concepts that they then apply

to a case. The specific genre or genres

may or may not be assigned; other

elements of the rhetorical situation may or

may not be spelled out. Approaching the

opposite end of the spectrum, in

situational assignments, students are

placed in a situation and need to figure out




for themselves how to respond, often

guided by a particular chapter in a

textbook. Their completed projects may

include a range of genres. At the far end of

the spectrum, we can put PBL. With PBL,

students are not provided with a guiding

theory or theme for the project; rather, it is

up to them to figure out what the situation

calls for, how to do what they are being

asked to do, and how to do it effectively.

Because it prescribes so few of the

parameters, we claim that PBL provides

an inherently rhetorical framework for the

business communication classroom.

5. The basic approaches to

teaching the aspect of style in ESP

writing classes

In the traditional teaching, style is closely

associated with the form, which means

that the style is treated as separate from

the meanings, ideas and the writing

process. Traditional exercises are devoted

entirely to the sentence level and

emphasize the impact of grammatical

decisions on style in different situations.

The style is considered as a local aspect

so that inefficient style becomes

something that can be easily corrected

(Medzerian, 2010). When we give a value

judgment on the writing style of the

student, the text is treated as a product.

The efficiency of the student style is

determined in relation to the reader. When

the style is assessed based on the effect it

has on the reader, writing skills are

assessed based on the ability to

accurately predict the reactions of the

audience and the style is separated from

the other components in the process of

writing. When we equate style with the

finished product, we teach students that

style is out of their control and that the

revision was in vain because students

learn that good style means to anticipate

and meet the style preferences of readers

and teachers.

Another approach to teaching style, which

takes more account of the writer and the

writing process, presented the idea that

the writer's style indicates his or her view

of the topic. Writers bring stylistic decision

from their view of the world, these

decisions determine the selection and

presentation of information, including the

micro level of diction and sentence

patterns. However, Daniel Horowitz

(Horowitz, 1986) argues that the process-

oriented approach does not consider the

professional realities faced by students of

foreign language and suggests switching

pedagogical focus on writing genres to a

specific field of study of students learning

a foreign language. Therefore, teachers

need to teach students the textual

characteristics relevant disciplines, to

teach them to analyze their needs,

evaluate the expectations of the audience

and produce texts that are acceptable in

the discourses of certain communities

(Ferris & Hedgcock, 2005).




Dana Ferris (Ferris, 2002: 51) talks about

the importance of reading in the

development of understanding of stylistics

and states that the style of writing is

acquired through exposure to the target

language (particularly written language)

rather than the correction in the

classroom. So teachers need to use

models of written language when they

want to draw attention to style. It is not

enough, however, for students just to read

these texts; teachers need to point out

when their relevant characteristics. Ferris

and Hedgecock (Ferris and Hedgcock,

2005: 53) believe that the reading of texts

helps students to understand the various

elements of writing, including the rhetorical

structure and stylistic features. Scientists

agree that reading and analyzing authentic

texts of style can help students to adopt

aspects of academic writing style.

The idea of post process era in the

teaching of writing occurred in the early

nineties. Li En Breuch (Breuch, 2002)

elaborates on two basic principles of post

process theory. First, writing pedagogy

requires a dialogue between teachers and

students, rather than monologue of

teachers. Post process encourages the

participation of teachers through a two-

way dialogue between teachers and

students. Instead of the traditional

concept, where the teacher teaches and

the students receive, memorize and repeat

the knowledge, the author recommends

the concept of learning through problem

solving (problem posing concept) that

invites students to play an active role in

learning. Breuch (Breuch, 2002) looks at

the lecture as a way of mentoring and

believes that the relationship between

teachers and students should be

collaborative. Post process theory

advocates the training of students and

equalization of power between teachers

and students. The role of teachers in the

post process is to be a facilitator that

provides feedback and encouragement,

and in that way making the process of

writing more easy.

6. The PBL model

In the next section of the paper, we will

present a model for teaching professional

writing style through the problem-based

learning (PBL). Students are encouraged

to integrate concepts such as clarity,

conciseness, tone, word choice on their

own. Students are encouraged to

collaborate and discuss in order to finish

the given tasks. Based on the results of

theoretical analysis of PBL

implementation, we concluded that the

most effective teaching unit should consist

of following seven phases:

1. The creation of the problem

situation;

2. Problem definition;




3. Decomposition of the

problem into smaller

problems;

4. Suggesting the principles of

problem solving (hypothesis)

– generate possible

solutions;

5. Self-study – In this phase,

teacher distributes the tasks.

Students work in groups and

individually to organize ideas

and prior knowledge, e.i.

define learning issues (what

do we know and what do we

need to know). They

research the unknown in

order to solve problem

(verification of hypotheses)

and choose the most

valuable solution;

6. Generalization of results and

synthesis of knowledge;

7. Application of newly acquired

knowledge on a similar

problem.

PROBLEM BASED TEACHING UNIT –

PROFESSIONAL WRITING STYLE

The creation of the problem situation:

Discuss and try to explain the following

statements (quotes).

“Proper words in proper places make the

true definition of style.” – Jonathan Swift

“When we come across a natural style, we

are surprised and delighted; for we

expected an author, and we find a man.” –

Blaise Pascal

“Let every word say.” – Unknown

“That writer does the most who gives his

reader the most knowledge, and takes

from him the least time.” – C. C. Colton

“I believe more in the scissors than I do in

the pencil.” – Truman Capote

“Never use a longer word when a shorter

word will do.” – Ben Franklin

“I never write metropolis for seven cents

because I can get the same money for

city. I never write policeman, because I

can get the same money for cop.” – Mark

Twain

“A designer knows he has achieved

perfection not when there is nothing left to

add, but when there is nothing left to take

away.” – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

“You catch more bears with honey than

you do with vinegar.” – an English saying

Definition of the problem: How to

achieve a good style in business

documents?

Decomposition of the problem:

a) How to achieve clarity?

b) How to achieve conciseness?

c) What is tone? What tone should

business documents have and how

to achieve it?




d) What is meant by good use of the

words (word choice)?

Suggesting hypotheses:

A)

Clarity can be ruined mostly by modifiers

used in the wrong place in the sentence,

as well as examples of wrong parallelism.

Also, to write more clearly, ambiguous

pronouns should be identified and

replaced.

When it comes to the connection between

clarity and the use of words, it is advisable

to avoid the use of acronyms, jargon,

clichés and banal business terms and

phrases (trying to sound business and

professional). Also avoid ambiguous and

vague words because precise, direct,

specific and concrete words are always a

better choice. Of course, our document will

be clearer if we use standard and familiar

words, simple and plain and not pompous

with which our documents sound artificial.

B)

Our documents can be concise and

economical if avoid unnecessary

nominalization (e.g. make a decision –

decide);

You must look for all the sentences that

start with who, which, that because you

probably can shorten and a large number

of unnecessary prepositions. Also be

careful not to be too extensive to express

something with more words than

necessary (at this moment in time vs.

now);

After that, we can throw out unnecessary

long introduction and comments;

Sentences which start with there is / are

and it is / was usually can be shortened;

The most common examples of

unnecessary redundancy is tautology –

repeating words of similar meaning and

pleonasms – the accumulation of

unnecessary, superfluous speech.

Examples include a) when we use the

word with the same meaning (e.g. big in

size – big, repeat again – repeat, true facts

– facts) or obvious words (e.g. month of

June, red in color, subject of chemistry)

and doubled/tripled words – e.g. right and

proper, null and void, urgent and

important, full and complete, acknowledge

and appreciate).

Many words express the highest levels

and modifiers add nothing: absolutely

sure, honest truth. Some modifiers add no

information, the meaning is contained in a

noun or a verb: e.g. previous experience,

join together.

The general and abstract modifiers: very,

great, extreme, several, dramatic,

paramount, vital do not mean anything.

Adjectives and adverbs that add the

intensity are also unclear, like really, good,

nice and similar words that are commonly

used, because the writer cannot be

bothered to think of anything more, or

simply because they filled the sentence.




C)

Tone means the way in which we address

the reader, our relationship with the

reader, and our topic. Tone is mostly

determined by our choice of words. It can

be friendly or cool, optimistic or

pessimistic, insecure or secure but it must

always be positive, polite, professional

and, most importantly, adequately formal.

Formal tone is achieved using a passive

voice, avoiding contraction, idioms and

phrasal verbs, using titles when

addressing readers, formal (standard)

terms and rare use of personal pronouns I,

you, instead of which more use the

pronoun we, while informal document

written similar the way we talk with a lot of

abbreviations and incomplete sentences.

D)

Words or phrases that are popular,

modern, with which we want to sound

professional and above all to impress.

Short, simple and plain words are much

more efficient.

Avoid vague and ambiguous words, only

use precise.

Action verbs leave stronger impression.

Use jargon (technical language used by a

specific group or profession) when you

know that the word is appropriate for the

intended audience.

As mentioned with clarity, clichés – too

used expressions, slang – non-standard

terms used in the conversation, a

tautology – unnecessary repetition and

pleonasms – use more words than

necessary, as the diameters of

redundancy that corrupt conciseness and

should be eliminated when revising your

documents.

Every word you write should have a

purpose. Every word should be used for a

reason: to convey the message, set the

tone or connect ideas. All unnecessary

words should be eliminated.

Discriminatory words and expressions

which in any case must be avoided: the

words that offend members of a particular

sex – sexist, race and nationality, as well

as words that offend people with special

needs.

One must resort to positive words because

they contribute to the overall tone of the

letter.

Self-study:

Task

You will work in groups. Answer the

following questions.

1) How is the business style different from

other styles (literary, personal)?

2) What are three main rules of business

style?

3) What is a clear message? How would

you define clarity?




4) Why is clarity very important in the

business world?

5) How is clarity achieved? What can

interfere with clarity?

6) What are misplaced modifiers? Why do

they spoil the clarity? Find and give

examples.

7) What are dangling modifiers? Find and

give examples.

8) Parallelism means

__________________________________

___

9) What's wrong with the following

sentence – “When I put the computer on

the desk, it broke.”

10) Explain the connection between clarity

and use of words.

11) Helen Wilkie in his book, Writing,

Speaking, Listening mentioned that when

writing business documents should write

to express not to impress? Explain

12) Mary Ellen Guffey Business

Communication in Process and Product

mentioned the abbreviation KISS. What

does this abbreviations mean and how it

relates to the clarity of business

document?

13) Lauren Starkey in Goof Proof

Business Writing argues that writers of

business documents need to write to the

level of understanding? Explain.

14) Since clichés are known to all people,

can they help you write it clearer? Please

explain.

15) What is a buried verb? Give an original

example. Why you should avoid them?

16) What's wrong with the sentence –

“Profits showed a negative trend.”? What

do we really want to say?

17) Why good writer would never use the

following sentence? “When it arrived, I

read your message and am now replying.”

Task

Correct the following sentences to make

them more clear and explain how clarity

was ruined.

1. Skilled at social networking, the

marketing contract was won by

ReachOut.

2. She told Lucy that her presentation

was wonderful.

3. After being photocopied, the

assistant delivered the report to all

team members.

4. He told the boss that he was

wrong.

5. In preparing next year’s budget,

several assumptions had to be

made by us.

6. She offered her a job as

salesperson, with a reasonable

starting salary, commission

structure, and the benefits were

also good.

7. Many small investors would rather

save their money than risking it in

the stock market.




8. They are more interested in

financial security than to make a

large profit.

9. Both recession and the fact that

savings accounts yield low interest

have led many people to other

areas of investment.

10. Here are important tips for

protecting your car from our

insurance company.

11. Mutual funds not only provide high

yield but they offer reasonable

security.

12. The investor is taking neither an

enormous risk nor giving up to

recession.

13. I saw the ad in the paper, but now I

can't find it.

14. Take the reports from the desks

and dust them with a clean cloth.

15. When I loaded the new program on

the computer, it crashed.

Task

You will work in groups. Answer the

following questions.

1) Why is concision important? How is it

achieve?

2) BWC mentions to go on a witch-hunt?

What do you think it means?

3) What sentence is more economical?

Why?

The number of applications to schools of

business is on the increase.

Business school applications are

increasing.

4) What is redundancy? Give an example.

Why should it be avoided?

5) Do you know what pleonasm and

tautology are?

6) What do you think the long lead-ins

are? Give an example.

7) What's wrong with the following

sentence: There is no one who can do the

job better than you.

8) What's wrong with phrases such as:

due to the fact that and in view of the fact

that?

9) Why we should never start a sentence

as follows: I am sending this e-mail

because we have just hired a new

manager, and I would like to introduce

her.?

Task

Make the following sentences more

concise.

This is to inform you that per request of

yours to ordering new computer

equipment we will proceed to do so within

seven days.

Pursuant to questions concerning revised

guidelines for writing policies, a meeting is

scheduled for May 27 to ensure

clarification of the above-mentioned

guidelines.

The reason she quit was because of the

fact that she was sick.




We began the project in the month of April.

He opened the conversation with a

reference to the subject of inflation.

The field of engineering is a profession

that offers great opportunities.

The human-resources manager spoke to

the printing-plant supervisor with regard to

the scheduling of employee vacations.

We cannot fill the order until the time as

payment is received for previous

shipments.

Due to the fact that our manager is

acquainted with your sales rep, we are

fully cognizant of your price increases.

As a general rule, we would not accept the

return; however, we will in all probability

make an exception in this case.

This message is to let you know that i

received your e-mail and its attachments.

I am writing this letter to inform you that

your homeowners’ coverage expires soon.

On behalf of the entire staff, I would like to

take this opportunity to thank you for your

many years of outstanding service.

There are many businesses that are

implementing strict e-mail policies.

It is the CEO who must give her approval

to the plan.

Task

Answer the following questions.

1) How often have you heard someone

complain: “The problem is not what he

said but how he said it. Who does he think

he's talking to?”

2) What is the tone?

3) What is the appropriate tone (which

elements does it contain)?

5) Which documents are considered

formal and how we can achieve a formal

tone?

6) Which documents we can be informal?

7) Regarding the tone, what should you

consider before you start to write?

Task

Bearing in mind characteristics of a good

business style, think about the difference

between the two versions of the same

letter. If you had to choose one of two

letters, which one would you choose and

why?

Dear Mr. Singh:

With reference to your order for a Nashito

camcorder, we are in receipt of your check

and are returning same.

I beg to inform you that, as a

manufacturer, our company sells

camcorders to dealers only. In compliance

with our wholesale agreement, we deem it

best to refrain from direct business with

private consumers.

For your information, there are many

retailers in your vicinity who carry Nashito

camcorders. Attached please find a list of

said dealers.

Hoping you understand.




Yours truly,

Dear Mr. Singh:

We have received your order for a Nashito

camcorder but, unfortunately, must return

your check.

As a manufacturer, we sell only to dealers,

with whom we have very explicit wholesale

agreements.

Nevertheless, we sincerely appreciate

your interest in Nashito products. We are

therefore enclosing a list of retailers in

your community who carry a full line of our

camcorders. Any one of them will be

happy to serve you.

Sincerely yours,

Task

The following email can be categorized as

formal, distant and neutral. Write it up and

give it an informal and personal tone.

To: [email protected]

Subject: IT support

Dear Nick

I am writing in connection with your email,

offering IT support to our organisation.

The range of services offered is

impressive and does, indeed, match our

requirements. However, I regret to inform

you that there is no possibility at present to

increase our current budget for IT

services. Therefore it will not be possible

for us to take up your generous

introductory offer. Going forward, we will

monitor the budgetary situation and if it

changes, I will definitely contact your

organisation.

Finally, I would like to thank you again for

contacting us.

Regards

Pavel Stokowicz

Task

You will work in groups. Try to answer the

following questions. The answers that you

do not know, you can search for on the

Internet.

1) How does the use of words affect the

clarity, conciseness and tone?

2) Is it better to use complex or simple

words?

3) Is it good to use technical terms?

4) Why should we avoid acronyms?

5) Do you know what slang is?

6) Do you know what the jargon is?

7) Do you know what the clichés are?

8) How would you explain the trite

phrases business?

9) What is the office speak, management

speak, legalese, commercialese, buzz

words (five phrases)?

10) What could be discriminatory to say?

Task

Correct the use of word in the following

sentences and make them more

appropriate.




1. I telephoned you concerning the

folder I purchased from you, and

which I need to submit to my

committee tomorrow.

2. The shift from animal and muscle

power to machine power was a

major achievement for man.

3. It would be advantageous for us to

finalize the project: we can modify

it at a date to be determined later.

4. They transmitted the invoice by

fax, with additional information, but

it was evident they hadn't

implemented the changes.

5. Jeff Davies is a superb secretary,

despite the fact that he is a man.

6. It would be of benefit to us if you

could perform the repairs by

employing the latest components.

7. Our team must be willing to think

outside the box in coming up with

marketing ideas that pop.

8. Mark Mendenhall, a manager, and

Linda Decker, a supervisor and

mother of two, are vying for the

position.

9. True to form, our competitor has

made a snarky claim that we think

is way below the belt.

10. If you will refer back to the budget,

you will see that there are

provisions that prevent blowing the

budget.

Task

Group 1: Make a checklist with the

guidelines for the verification of clarity;

Group 2: Make a checklist with guidelines

for checking the concision;

Group 3: Make a checklist with the

guidelines for the verification tone;

Group 4: Make a checklist with guidelines

for checking the use of the word.

Reporting and Synthesis:

Identify stylistic errors in the following

letter according to the checklist from the

previous task.

BURGESS FINANCIAL SERVICES

4 Market House, Union Street Warchester,

WR1 4ST

Tel. 01234 567890

24 October 20XX

Mr Stephen Morris

24 College Road

Warchester

WR2 3UV

Dear Mr Morris

This is to confirm my telephone

conversation with you this morning




regarding your request for a quote for car

insurance.

I have taken on board your requirements

and conducted a thorough investigation of

all the options open to you, leaving no

stone unturned and looking at all the

policies on offer.

Attached are the details of the best policy I

have been able to find for your needs. As I

said on the phone, it provides all the

standard cover you asked for. The

downside is that in the event that you

needed to utilise your vehicle for business

travel you would need to take out a

completely new policy.

If you are happy with the terms as

outlined, I would be grateful if you could let

me have your cheque for the first premium

at your earliest convenience, so that

provision can be made for cover as from

the beginning of next month.

Yours sincerely,

Martin Burges

Application:

Below is the text of the email to a friend

about a business trip to Germany. What

should be changed so the style of the e-

mail becomes acceptable?

I had a fantastic trip to Berlin last week.

Horst Kuhn, the guy I was doing business

with, was great, and we got on really well.

He took me to this amazing restaurant one

evening for dinner, and then on to a club,

where we met up with some of his friends.

The business side went well, too. His

company is very interested in a joint

venture with us, to supply financial

software to banks and other financial

institutions across Europe. Horst reckons

that with our complementary markets (they

do a lot in Eastern Europe, while we’re

particularly strong in Scandinavia, France

and Holland) we could clean up if we

joined forces. The terms he suggested

were a bit tricky (he’s a persuasive guy,

and was trying to get me to agree to them

having a 60 per cent share) but I stuck to

my guns and managed to persuade him to

ask his Board to consider equal shares.

There’s still a lot of work to do, but I think

we’ll get a really good deal out of this. At

the risk of blowing my own trumpet, I

reckon I’m capable of getting our Board to

take the idea seriously.

7. Conclusion

PBL is a modern pedagogy, very close to

the principles of post-process writing

theory, principles of collaboration and

active learning, and as such, according to

the Breuch (Breuch, 2002) contributes to

the development of writing skills in ESP

because it is concentrated on the social,

contextual even political forces

surrounding the writing process.

Furthermore, there are a lot of

commonalities between PBL and EFL




methodology. With the introduction of PBL

successful active learning is achieved,

which provides motivation for learning,

because it is interesting and at the same

time provides an opportunity for the

adoption of all language skills

(Stepanovna, 2000). PBL uses authentic

materials and encourages students to use

language in meaningful contexts because

it allows the student to develop a

successful aspect of style in teaching

writing in the language of the profession.

During the problem-solving task, students

feel the need to communicate with each

other. In other words, students naturally

communicate in order to solve the

problem. In this way, when troubleshooting

the students do not learn the language but

acquire it, since they do not think about

language but try to communicate during

the activity (Krashen, 1982).

Ferris and Hedgcock (Ferris and

Hedgcock, 2005: 53) believe that the

reading of texts help students understand

the various elements of writing, including

the rhetorical structure and stylistic

features. To resolve problem situations

students have to think, discuss, highlight

and check the hypothesis, as well as read

additional literature. Reading and analysis

of a style of authentic texts can help

students to adopt aspects of professional

writing style. Better results with PBL

implementation can be expected due to

the fact that students have to read

extensively and with understanding, in

order to collect the information needed to

solve the tasks within the PBL class.

Implementation of PBL is just starting to

be tested in areas such as English for

Specific Purposes. PBL provides an

alternative functional approach in the

literature for English for Specific Purposes

because in this way teachers facilitate the

practical application of the language

through a series of thematically-organized

tasks. Problem based learning recognizes

the needs of students in terms of the

communication, the communication

environment, means of communication,

language skills, functions, structure and

puts precisely these needs student at the

center of teaching foreign languages.

However, given the specific characteristics

of language learners (for example, the

level of knowledge, time constraints and

motivation), some of the principles of PBL

must be changed and adapted to the

disciplines, but retain the essence of the

PBL at the same time.




References:

Barrett, T. (2010). The problem‐based learning process as finding and being in flow.

Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 47(2): 165–174.

Barron, C. (2002). Problem-solving and EAP: themes and issues in a collaborative teaching

venture. English for Specific Purposes Journal, 22, 297–314.

Breuch, L. M. K. (2002). Post-process pedagogy: A philosophical exercise. In V. Villanueva

(Ed.), Cross-talk in comp theory: A reader (pp. 97-125). Urbana, IL: NCTE

Davies, C. & Birbili, M. (2000). What Do People Need to Know About Writing in Order to

Write in Their Jobs?. British Journal of Educational Studies, 48 (4), 429 - 445.

Duch, B. J, Groh, S. E, & Allen, D. E. (2001). Why problem-based learning? A case study of

institutional change in undergraduate education. In B. Duch, S. Groh, & D. Allen (Eds.), The

power of problem-based learning (pp. 3-11). Sterling, VA: Stylus.

Evensen, D. H, & Hmelo, C. E. (2000). Problem-based learning: A research perspective on

learning interactions. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Ferris, D. (2002). Treatment of error in second language student writing. Ann Arbor, MI:

University of Michigan Press.

Ferris, D., & Hedgcock, J .S. (2005). Teaching ESL composition: Purpose, process, and

practice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Harper-Marinick, M. (2001). Engaging students in problem-based learning. Maricopa Centre

for Learning and Instruction. [Online]. Retrieved from

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/forum/spr01/t11.html

Horowitz, D. M. (1986). Process, not product: Less than meets the eye. TESOL Quarterly,

20 (1),141-144.

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/forum/spr01/t11.html




Hung, W. (2011). Theory to reality: A few issues in implementing problem-based learning.

Educational Technology Research and Development, 59(4): 529–552.

Krashen, S. D. (1982). Principles and practice in second language acquisition. London:

Pergamon.

Loyens, M. M., Magda, J. & Rikers, R. (2008). Self-Directed Learning in Problem-Based

Learning and its Relationships with Self-Regulated Learning. Educational Psychology

Review, 20(4), 411-427.

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202.

Othman, N. & Shah, M. (2013). Problem-Based Learning in the English Language

Classroom. English Language Teaching, 6 (3), 125-134.

Pennell, M, & Miles, L, (2009). It Actually Made Me Think: Problem-Based Learning in the

Business Communications Classroom. Business Communication Quarterly, 72(4), 377 -394.

Savery, J. R., &Duffy, T. M. (1996). Problem based learning: An instructional model and its

constructivist framework. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Educational technologies.

Savery, R. J. (2006). Overview of Problem-based Learning: Definitions and Distinctions. The

Interdisciplinary Journal of Problem-based Learning, 1 (1), 9-20.

Sendag, S. & Odabasi, H. F. (2009). Effects of an online problem based learning course on

content knowledge acquisition and critical thinking skills. Computer & Education, 53, 132-

141.

Stepanovna, A. (2006). O inovacionim i tradicionalnim modelima nastavnog preocesa.

Nastava i vaspitanje, 2, 3-8.

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education. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.




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Information Science Publishing.

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process analysis. Instructional Science, 40 (2): 371–95.

iThe PBL model presented in this paper was written within the research which was carried out for the

needs of the doctoral thesis on the topic "Problem based learning and ESP writing skills", which is in

the process of being written.

ii Corresponding author contact email: [email protected]





Materials Development - How to Make a

Reading Class More Effective? Using

Tomlinson’s ‘Text-Driven Approach’

Svitlana Tubaltsevai, , MA Applied Linguistics and TESOL, Admiral Makarov

National University of Shipbuilding, Mykolaiv, Ukraine

Abstract:

This paper takes the position that despite an abundant number and variety, most traditional coursebooks are quite standardized and offer traditional repetitive tasks which almost eliminates an individual or personalized component and a possibility to trigger emotional involvement. This motivates material writers and ELT teachers to adapt teaching materials according to personal needs of their students and increase their exposure to the language in use. As an example, the article analyses teaching reading in the ELT class and the problems teachers and students can face by using traditional coursebooks. It is proposed to apply principles of materials development in order to make students involved in the process of reading and boost their language awareness. The article discusses Tomlinson‟s framework „Text-driven approach‟ which is aimed to help learners move away from their tendency to study texts so that they can engage with the text instead experientially. The sample reading lesson where the framework was applied, is presented and principles of adaptation of the material are highlighted.

Keywords: reading, Text-driven approach, emotional involvement, personalization.

Apstrakt:

Rad zastupa stanovište da je većina tradicionalnih udžbenika, uprkos tome što ih ima u ogromnom broju i što su raznovrsni, prilično standardizovana i tradicionalno nude zadatke koji se ponavljaju, što gotovo eliminiše komponentu individualnosti i personalizacije, kao i mogućnost unošenja emocija u sam proces.Ova činjenica motiviše pisce udžbenika i nastavnike engleskog jezika da prilagoĎavaju materijal u skladu sa ličnim potrebama svojih učenika, i da povećaju njihovu izloženost jeziku koji je u upotrebi. Kao primer, članak analizira podučavanje veštine čitanja u nastavi engleskog jezika i probleme sa kojima se nastavnici i učenici mogu suočiti prilikom korišćenja tradicionalnih udžbenika. Članak predlaže primenu principa proširivanja materijala u cilju uključivanja učenika u proces čitanja i buĎenja njihove jezičke svesti. Članak se zasniva na Tomlisonovom obrascu „pristupa voĎenog tekstom“ koji ima za cilj da pomogne učenicima da se udalje od pukog učenja teksta, i da umesto toga u analizi angažuju sopstveno iskustvo. Predstavljen je uzorak teksta na kome je obrazac primenjen i istaknuti su principi adaptacije materijala.

Ključne reči: čitanje, pristup voĎen tekstom, emocionalna uključenost, personalizacija

1. Introduction

Teaching materials are one of the most

important parts of any ELT class. Even the

most innovative and experienced teacher

is likely to face a challenge when materials

are inappropriate or inadequate for a

chosen class. Despite a wide range of

course books and additional online and

paper materials, one must remember that

„impact is achieved when materials have a

noticeable effect on learners, that is when

the learners‟ curiosity, interests and




attention are attracted‟ (Tomlinson, 2011,

p.8). This can only be achieved when

teachers take the teaching context which

includes students‟ age, needs, skills,

objectives, aptitudes, and learning

strategies into consideration. As a result, it

is usually quite difficult to find a perfect

match as most course books are

predominantly generalized and unable to

meet all students‟ needs and, therefore,

most teachers have to conduct materials

development.

„Materials development is both a field of

study and a practical undertaking. As a

field, it studies the principles and

procedures of the design, implementation

and evaluation of language teaching

materials‟ (Tomlinson, 2011, p.66).

Regarding its effective representation,

materials development includes what can

be done to materials through adaptation,

supplementation, editing, rewriting in order

to facilitate the students‟ learning process

and make a class most beneficial. One of

the main teachers‟ objectives is to teach

their students how to communicate in the

foreign language. When we talk about

communication, we usually assume four

main skills – speaking, listening, reading

and writing. In this article, the author

would like to discuss one of the four main

skills – reading and how teachers can

adapt reading activities to make them

enjoyable and more effective for students.

1. Difficulties associated with

reading in ELT classes

Reading is one of the two receptive skills

which usually involves a great effort that

readers have to make as they strive to

interpret information and fit the new

information into what they already know. It

is primarily linked to decoding isolated

words and understanding of texts which

requires two types of processing – „top-

down‟ and „bottom-up‟. Carter and Nunan

(2001, p.227) define the former as „using

background knowledge and expectations

about what is being written to understand

a message‟. In other words, students may

not have enough background knowledge

about the topic which might cause

difficulties with text understanding. By

„bottom-up‟ Carter and Nunan mean

„processing using phonological and verbal

clues from the input to attend to micro-

features of a text such as the form of

individual words and grapheme

connections‟ (ibid.). This may involve

problems with recognising and

understanding grammar or vocabulary as

well as conjunctive ties in the text.

Moreover, readers constantly have to

switch from one to another which proves

to be mentally challenging and requires

much concentration and pressure. This

has also been proved by a number of

studies, such as Koda (1999), Chikamatsu




(1996), and Shimron & Savon (1994),

which showed that the process of reading

comprises cognitively complex tasks.

The second difficulty most ELT teachers

may face is how to encourage students to

read. Teaching reading can be questioned

on the grounds that most learners can

already read in the first language and,

therefore, can read in the foreign language

(Swan, 1985). Consequently, some

students, especially young learners whose

motivation primarily depends on whether

the class is interesting and relaxing, do not

usually understand the necessity to

improve various reading skills and may

even find them inappropriate and

ineffective. However, second language

acquisition shows the contrary results. L1

reading skills do not positively transfer into

L2 reading skills when writing codes differ

in L1 and L2 (Birch, 2002; Ediger, 2001;

Koda, 1999, 2005). Therefore, teaching

reading skills in L2 is of primary

importance in order to gain a full language

and communicative competence.

Finally, the last issue concerns texts

themselves and follow-up reading

activities. Most course books usually

present texts related to general topics

(sport, relationships, food, culture, history,

adventures, fashion) with traditional

multiple-choice questions, matching tasks,

analyzing pictures as a warm-up, and

language awareness tasks such as

guessing highlighted words or structures.

In other words, these tasks are aimed to

make students merely understand the

factual content of the text with some focus

on new vocabulary rather than engage

students effectively and cognitively in the

language experience (Tomlinson, 2003).

As a result, these activities prove a

common students‟ opinion that reading is

boring or difficult, and usually, a „must-do‟

task rather than a „want to do‟ one.

To conclude, we have identified main

difficulties associated with reading such

as: a) reading is mentally challenging for

students; b) topics can be generalized and

not personalized; c) activities preceding or

following texts are usually repetitive and

not engaging. With the aim to overcome

these problems and bring novelty and

variety in the reading class, the author

would like to look at the innovative

framework of material writing “Text-driven

Approach” created by Tomlinson and

present a sample reading class using the

analysed approach.

2. Tomlinson’s framework

Tomlinson‟s framework for developing

material is aimed to expose students to an

original, engaging text and read it

experientially. His idea is based on the

principles that materials should maximize

learning potential by encouraging

intellectual, aesthetic and emotional




involvement which stimulates both left and

right brain activities and at the same time

help learners feel at ease (Tomlinson,

2011). His framework can be divided into

three parts. First is a preparatory stage

where the teacher has to find or create a

text with the potential for useful

engagement for the target learners. The

second stage consists of a range of

activities to engage the learners with the

text. They are designed to help learners

access the emotions and feelings that the

developer experienced when choosing the

text for the class and to help the learner

engage with the language of the text.

Tomlinson (2003) differentiates activities

according to five types as following:

1. Readiness activities (aimed to help

the learners achieve mental

readiness for experiencing the text

through sensory imaging, inner

speech and the establishment of

affective and cognitive

connections);

2. Experiential activities (devised to

help learners move away from their

tendency to study texts so that they

can engage with the text instead

experientially);

3. Intake response activities (aimed to

help learners articulate and

develop their mental

representations of the text which

makes them more relaxed and

confident in response to texts);

4. Development activities (devised to

express themselves in the target

language intelligently creatively);

5. Input response activities (made to

get the learners to develop their

analytical skills and their ability to

make discoveries about the target

language for themselves).

The final part of the framework is devoted

to evaluation and improvement of the

activities. Tomlinson supported Jolly and

Bolitho (1998) who believed that material

writing is a dynamic process, which

requires trialling, evaluating and revision.

Teachers can use questionnaires or

interviews to find out what effect the

material had on students, which will show

the students that they are respected. To

this end, Tomlinson‟s framework highlights

an importance of thorough preparation and

following evaluation of the material which

enables the teacher to adapt and improve

the materials in order to gain the most of

students‟ intellectual and emotional

involvement in the activities which

ultimately leads to the better learning and

boost of motivation.

3. Sample of reading activities

In this section, the author will show how

ELT teachers can adopt Tomlinson‟s Text-

driven approach in order to solve the

problems of teaching reading, which were




analysed in the previous section, facilitate

students‟ learning process and make

reading more effective. As an example,

the author has taken a reading activity

called „The Night in the Hotel‟ from the

coursebook Language in Use Pre-

Intermediate (2000) by Doff A. and Jones

C. (see the Appendix). This sample

represents a typical reading activity which

includes a story, questions to check text

understanding and a short opinion task.

Despite an interesting content and

inspiring ideas contained in the text, the

very reading activity in its controlled way

without a hint of creativity and

personalization might contribute to

decreasing of learners‟ performance as

what is only achieved by these tasks is

mechanical processing that cannot help

learners maximize their exposure to

language (Tomlinson, 2011). Bearing this

in mind, the author rewrote this reading

activity and created the lesson plan which

is suitable for 90 minutes‟ class and aimed

at maximizing learning potential by

encouraging intellectual and emotional

involvement.

LESSON PLAN. The Night in the Hotel

AIMS

● To expose students to an original,

engaging text and read it

experientially;

● To do activities devised to help

students develop their mental

representation of the text.

● To practice the language of feeling

and emotions.

● To produce a story.

LEARNING OUTCOME

When students have completed this

lesson, they should get the experience

of a text as a multidimensional process

involving sensory imaging. Students

should get affective and cognitive

connections with the text which is

expected to inspire them to use the

target language of emotions.

ANTICIPATED PROBLEMS

● Initially, students might find reading

activities unmotivating.

● Students might have insufficient

knowledge of personality and feelings

adjectives.

SOLUTIONS

● Prepare students mentally and

emotionally to the text. Motivate

students to read a text in a new

experiential way.

Accompany tasks with the vocabulary

input.




Students’activities Teacher’sprocedures Type of activity

1. Think about waving. ● When was the last time you

waved?

● What does it express?

● Under what circumstances do we usually wave?

● Do you normally wave at someone or does someone wave you back?

● Why is it important to wave back?

Lead-in T personalizes the topic by means of asking sts about their last experience of waving. Ask sts about the concept of waving (Ex 1) T conducts feedback

1, 2 Readiness activities

2. Look at the title. What do you think the story will be about?

Pre-task T checks sts‟ mental readiness to do a reading task Ask sts to look at the title. Ask sts to predict what the text will be about.

3. Read the text ‘The Night in the Hotel’

Task 1. Reading for gist T tells sts they are going to read the text. (Ex.3)

3. Experiential activities

4. Close your eyes. Try to see the pictures of the hotel.

What does it look like?

5. Think about the feelings you

had when you were reading the text.

How did they change during the reading?

What did you feel in the end? What are you feeling while reading

the story?

Post reading task 1 T helps sts get engaged with the text by means of sensory imagining (Ex.4)

T conducts feedback Post reading task 2 T helps sts articulate and develop their emotional representation of the text by asking about the feelings sts have during the reading. (Ex.5)

T conducts feedback

4, 5 Intake response activities

6. Now, think about the main idea of the story. What lesson can be learned? Why do you think this happened? What were the reasons behind it? Do you think this is still true about our contemporary society? Why (Why not)?

Post reading task 3 T checks sts‟ mental understanding of the text by asking about the main idea of the text (Ex.6).

T conducts feedback

6. Development activity




7.Read the text again and find what the following words mean? - a crutch

- a soul of glass

- a rascal - sensitive

- despondent Who do these words refer to?

Reading for details T checks understanding of some words by asking sts to deduce their meaning from the context and who they refer to (Ex. 7)

T conducts feedback

7. Input response activities (Awareness activities)

8. What do you think about main characters – Mr. Schwamm, Stranger, Son? How do you imagine them? Can you describe the characters’ personalities? What are their key features? 9. Look at the list of adjectives. Which adjectives can you refer to Mr. Schwamm, Stranger, and Son? affable aggressive affectionate polite energetic creative arrogant decisive careless determined harsh easy-going emotional nervous pessimistic irritated miserable energetic reserved enthusiastic faithful sensitive warm hearted helpful 10. What did they feel at different stages of the story?

Pre vocabulary task T asks sts to imagine the main characters and discuss their personality (Ex.8)

Focus on vocabulary T introduces a list of adjectives and asks sts to refer them to the main characters. Some unknown words are defined by the teacher. (Ex. 9)

T conducts feedback

Focus on vocabulary 2 T asks sts to describe feelings the characters have at different stages of the story (Ex.10)

T conducts feedback

8-10. Intake response activities

11. Choose one character and reproduce a story from his perspective.

Production stage T tells sts to choose one character and write a story from his perspective by using the target language of feelings and emotions (Ex.11)

T conducts feedback

Did you enjoy the reading? Did you find imagining helpful? What did you learn?

Recap and evaluation T recaps on the session and asks sts evaluative questions.

Evaluation and revision




The lesson plan presented above can be

applied flexibly in accordance with

students‟ different needs, aptitude,

learning strategies and language

proficiency. Initially, this text was allocated

to a pre-intermediate level (A2). However,

the author‟s teaching experience proved

that the lesson plan could be used with

students of different levels and abilities.

Some activities can be swapped or even

omitted if the teacher feels this activity will

not be beneficial for their class context. In

order to make a lesson interesting and

bring more challenges to the class, the

teacher can include input tasks into the

reading class to bring some additional

language related to the topic and make

students feel confident to use it

appropriately. Including language

awareness tasks in a reading class was

also supported by Nation (2005) and

Hulstijn (2001) who claim that merely

deducing new words from the context is

insufficient for learning and what leads to

revising vocabulary is deliberate attention

to alienated words. In this particular text,

the teacher can focus on adjectives

related to feelings, as the characters‟

emotions change throughout the text and

play an important role in understanding the

message of the text (see task 9 above).

This task can be modified in various ways

(e.g. changing it into multiple choice or

matching definitions and adjectives or

even putting all adjectives in the Wordle in

order to trigger cognitive connections).

4. Adaptation of learning material

As the author pointed out before, it is vital

for ELT teachers to understand their

teaching context and students‟ profile.

While adapting, editing or even rewriting

teaching materials, teacher must

remember why they do it, what outcomes

they are aiming to gain and what learners‟

needs are. As McDonough and Shaw

(2003:74) noted „it is difficult to see how

the dependent activity of adaptation can

take place … unless we are clear about

what it is we are changing‟. The reasons

behind supplementing the materials can

vary from insufficient coverage of

particular language unit to intellectual or

cultural unacceptability. McGrath

(2002:74) designed five principles

motivating adaptation of the teaching

material. They include:

1. Localisation (materials may work

well in one country and not

another);

2. Personalisation (increasing the

relevance of content in relation to

learners‟ interests and their needs);

3. Individualisation (addressing

learning styles of individuals and




the class members working

together);

4. Modernisation (changing any

instances of language that may

seem out of date);

5. Simplification (procedures

designed to make things easier or

more accessible to the learners;

e.g. editing texts or reducing the

linguistic or conceptual difficulty

and modifications to tasks).

This list was enlarged by Islam and Mares

(2003:89) who proposed additional

principles such as “providing learners with

real choice, catering for all sensory

learning styles, providing for more learner

autonomy, encouraging higher level

cognitive skills, making the language input

more accessible, making the language

input more engaging”. Thus, these

principles can explain a teaching paradox

when a perfect material for one group can

turn into a disaster for another one, as

each group and each individual vary and

the teacher must take into consideration

the features and needs of the target class.

Through the whole process of materials

development, we must remember our

teaching context and what principles are of

the highest priority for the particular

situation.

5. Conclusion

Despite an abundant number of different

books and online materials, most teachers

have to supplement their lessons with

extra materials in order to meet all

students‟ needs and targets. The article

attempted to analyse problems associated

with teaching reading in the ELT class and

the ways in which they can be overcome.

As Gilmore (2007) and Mishan (2005)

noted, reading should be aimed to provide

examples of targeted language in use,

focus on forms and function as well as the

context of situations. In reality, however,

many students associate it with boring,

complicated texts with a lot of complex

vocabulary and repetitive comprehensive

tasks. In order to make the reading

process interesting, enjoyable and

effective, the article proposed to apply

principles of materials development which

comprise understanding students‟ needs,

personality, teaching context. As an

example of successful adaptation of

reading class, the article discussed

Tomlinson‟s framework „Text-driven

approach‟, which helps students learn

through experiencing and emotional

involvement, and presented a sample

lesson plan based on the proposed

framework. The main aim of the

adaptation was to make tasks more

engaging and simultaneously cognitively

challenging. “Thinking while experiencing

language in use helps to achieve the deep




processing required for effective and

durable learning” (Craik & Lockhart, 1972,

cited in Tomlinson, 2010, p.88). Moreover,

it might help to achieve not just

pedagogical (increasing a level of

language) and educational outcomes

(students‟ awareness, critical thinking,

problem-solving), but also psycho-social

ones (increasing self-esteem, confidence,

building positive attitudes toward learning)

(Maley, 2003). Deploying this approach

would make the insight of the teaching

process broader and more complex. As a

result, it might contribute not just to short-

term outcomes (passing exams) but also

to long-term ones that will be effective and

beneficial for students further in their lives.




References

Birch, B. (2002). English L2 reading: Getting to the bottom. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence

Erlbaum.

Carter, R. &Nunan, D. (2001). The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English to

Speakers of Other Languages. Cambridge University Press.

Chikamatsu, N. (1996). The effects of LI orthography on L2 word recognition. Studies

in Second Language Acquisition, 18, 403-432.

Ediger, A. (2001). Teaching children literacy skills in a second language. In M. Celce-

Murcia (Ed.), Teaching English as a second or foreign language. Boston:

Heinle&Heinle.

Hulstijn, J. (2001). Intentional and incidental second language vocabulary learning A

reappraisal of elaboration, rehearsal and automaticity. In P. Robinson (Ed.),

Cognition and second language instruction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Islam, C. & Mares, C. (2003). Adapting Classroom Materials in Tomlinson, B.

Developing Materials for Language Teaching. London, Continuum International

Publishing Group Ltd.

Jolly, D. & Bolitho, R. (2011). A framework for materials writing, in Tomlinson, B. (ed.)

Materials Development in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University

Press.

Koda, K. (1999). Development of L2 intraword orthographic sensitivity and decoding

skills. Modern Language Journal, 83, 51-64.

Koda, K. (2005). Insights into second language reading. New York: Cambridge

University Press.




Maley, A. (2003, November). Inputs, processes & outcomes in materials

development: extending the range. Folio, 8(1), 8-12.

McDonough J, & Shaw C.(2003). Materials and Methods in ELT: A Teacher's Guide,

2nd Ed, Oxford: Wiley Blackwell.

McGrath, I. (2002). Materials Evaluation and Design for Language Teaching.

Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

Nation, I. S. P. (2005). Teaching and learning vocabulary. In E. Hinkel (Ed.),

Handbook of research on second language teaching and learning. Mahwah, NJ:

Lawrence Erlbaum

Shimron, J., & Savon, T. (1994). Reading proficiency and orthography: Evidence

from Hebrew. Language Learning, 44, 5-27.

Swan, M. 1985 A critical look at the Communicative Approach. ELT Journal, 39(1),

pp.1-12.

Tomlinson, B. (2003). Developing Principled Frameworks for Materials Development

in Developing Materials for Language Teaching. Illustrated edition. Continuum

International Publishing Group Ltd.

Tomlinson, B. (2010). Principles of effective materials development. In N. Harwood

(Ed.), English language teaching materials (pp. 81-108). Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press.

Tomlinson, B. (Ed.) (2011). Materials development in language teaching.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.




Appendix

The original reading activity




From

Doff A. and Jones C. (2000). Language in Use Pre-intermediate. Cambridge University

Press




i Corresponding author contact email: [email protected]





Teaching British Culture, History

and Literature with a WebQuest

Vraka Vagia- Anastasiai, Hellenic Open University, Greece

Abstract: WebQuests are a distinct exemplar of the great “range of computer technologies that can be harnessed for language teaching and learning.” (Garrette, 2009: 719). The advancements in technology aid teachers “demolish” classroom walls and bring the real world into the teaching procedure, transforming learners into knowledge constructors (Grant, 2002) and active participants in the learning process (Levy, 1997). This article presents thus the utilization of an original WebQuest based on Charles Dickens‟ masterpiece “Oliver Twist” created by the writer in order to teach British history, culture and literature to a class of ten-year-old students in a Greek primary school. The three constructivistic lessons based on it, aim not only at enriching students‟ schemata

about Charles Dickens, the novel “Oliver Twist” and the historic era presented in it but also at promoting students‟ research skills, socio-cultural competence and active involvement.

Keywords: WebQuest, research skills, socio-cultural competence, historic knowledge, literary awareness. Apstrakt: „WebQuest” je izrazit primer širokog “spektraračunarskih tehnologija koje se mogu iskoristiti za

podučavanje I učenje jezika,” (Garet, 2009;719). Napredak tehnologije pomaže nastavnicima da “sruše” zidove učionica I uvedu pravi svet u svoje nastavne postupke preobražavajući učenike u konstruktore znanja (Grant, 2002) i aktivne učesnike u procesu učenja (Levi, 1977). Ovaj rad prikazuje korišćenje originalnog „WebQuest”-a

zasnovanog na remek delu Čarlsa Dikensa „Oliver Tvist“ koji je autorka napravila kako bi podučavala odeljenje desetogodišnjaka u osnovnog školi u Grčkoj o britanskoj istoriji, kulturi i literaturi. Tri konstruktivističke lekcije su zasnovane na ovome i imale su za cilj ne samo da obogate konceptualnu šemu učenika po pitanju Čarlsa Dikensa, romana „Oliver Tvist“ i istorijske epohe predstavljene u njemu, već i da pospeši istraživačke veštine učenika, društveno-kulturološku kompetenciju i aktivno učešće učenika. Ključne reči: WebQuest, istraživačke veštine, društveno-kulturološka kompetencija, poznavanje istorije i svest o značaju književnosti




1. WebQuests1 in the ELT classroom

When Dodge Bernie first introduced the

WebQuest technique in 1995, he could

probably not imagine how popular and

influential his new tool would become.

Since then many teachers worldwide have

integrated this real, rich and relevant

method (March, 2005) in their classrooms

to transform their learners from passive

recipients of knowledge (Berge & Collins,

1995) to active protagonists (Abbit &

Ophus, 2008), digital natives (Agolli, 2011)

and autonomous investigators (Lee,

2000).

According to their creator, a WebQuest is

“an inquiry-oriented activity in which some

or all the information learners interact with

comes from resources on the internet”

(Dodge, 1995: 10). He divided WebQuests

into two distinct categories: the short-term

WebQuest that should be completed in

one to three teaching hours and the long-

term WebQuest designed to be completed

from one week to one month. What is

interesting though concerning WebQuests

is that they are not a simple internet-based

teaching tool. On the contrary, they are a

multi-layered platform consisting of five

different sections; (i) the introduction

which introduces the topic and activates

students‟ schemata about it, (ii) the task

1 WebQuests can be created with the aid of various

online templates. One of the most popular is

zunal.com, which was used for the creation of the

WebQuest presented in this article.

that describes the problem or the

assignment students need to deal with, (iii)

the process which illuminates the course

of action students should undergo to fulfill

the task, (iv) the evaluation, comprising

all the material necessary for the

evaluation of students‟ performance

during the WebQuest procedure and (v)

the conclusion which apart from closing

the WebQuest, it serves as a reminder of

what students have learned and offers

optional research material. All the

aforementioned sections can be

supplemented with videos, songs,

handouts and other documents to facilitate

students‟ learning. Simply put, WebQuests

consist of authentic tasks, allowing

students to analyze internet recourses in

order to enhance their understanding

about an abundance of topics (Schweizer

& Kossow, 2007) through the creation of

various products.

A handful of researchers have

accentuated the merits of WebQuests.

The most obvious advantage is that they

insert technology into learning and

teaching (Abbit & Ophus, 2008).

Moreover, they can serve as tools of

differentiated teaching (Schweizer &

Kossow, 2007). Taking into consideration

that students differ in experiences,

cognitive level, cultural origin, motivation,

learning styles and gender (Tomlinson,




1999), WebQuests allow students to utilize

these differences for their own benefit.

Undoubtedly, WebQuests are a learner-

centered tool (March, 2005), since

teachers quit their role as information

providers and become guides of students‟

efforts. During this motivating learning

experience (Lipscomb, 2003), students

are able to advance their critical skills, as

they are asked to combine their

background knowledge with the new

knowledge to complete synthetic tasks

(March, 1998). Furthermore, WebQuests

offer the possibility for collaborative work,

enhancing thus all those social skills that

students need both inside and outside the

classroom (Gaskill, McNulty & Brooks,

2006). It must be stressed that they also

promote contextualized learning (Viddoni

& Maddux, 2002), enabling

learners to raise their metacognitive

processes (March, 2003).

2. Literature and culture in the ELT

classroom

Teaching a foreign language is more than

the mere presentation of grammatical,

syntactic and lexical facts. It should also

be an in-depth analysis of its culture, not

only as this is expressed in customs and

national holidays but also as this is

presented in literature.

A great number of educational

researchers have investigated the

beneficial role of literature in L2

classrooms. According to them, literature

boosts students creativity (Preston, 1982),

exposes learners to contextualized

authentic language (Liaw, 2001), provokes

critical thinking (Oster, 1989), promotes

tolerance of diversity (Mc Kay, 1982),

develops learners‟ self-realization

(Bettelheim, 1986), fosters the growth of

emotional intelligence (Goleman, 1995)

and facilitates the integration of the four

skills and their macro skills (Ghosn, 2002).

The fore mentioned advantages in favor of

the use of literary texts in L2 instruction

could be summarized in the following

phrase: “Anyone who wants to acquire a

profound knowledge of language that goes

beyond the utilitarian will read literary texts

in that language.” (Bassnet & Grundy,

1993: 7).

Accordingly, educationalists have also

acknowledged the interwoven relationship

of culture and language. For instance,

Tang‟s (1999) declaration that language is

culture and culture is language

summarizes this strong interdependence

(Kramsch, 1998) and stresses their

„keystone‟ connection to the ELT

classroom (Brown, 2000). It becomes

clear that literary texts and their cultural

wealth should be indispensable parts of

English language teaching efforts.




3. The teaching aims underlying the

utilization of the ‘Oliver Twist’

WebQuest2

This technologically-oriented lesson is

based on a short term WebQuest. It is a

multidimensional learning experience,

connecting literature to the historical and

social aspects of the Victorian Era.

Its main aim is to bring students into

contact with the literary work of Charles

Dickens and its era, through the

adventures of his popular hero, Oliver

Twist. The utilization of two film

adaptations of the specific novel fulfills the

assumption that to really know a language

means to be able to deal not only with

restaurant menus but also with novels

(Zyngier, 1994). The main goal of the

lesson is thus to utilize literature as a

change agent through which children

achieve personal growth, by sympathizing

with the hardships of a Victorian boy.

Literary awareness is accompanied by

cultural awareness, social reflection and a

deeper understanding of British historical

events.

Apart from the humanistic aim of personal

development, students are also given

adequate opportunities to practice the four

skills for communicative purposes. The

WebQuest is enriched with material

aiming at stimulating both the productive

and receptive skills. Despite seeming

2 The WebQuest, as well as all the supplementary

material can be viewed on the following link.

writing-oriented at first glance, it is highly

interactive.

4. The methodological presentation of

the lesson

The specific short-term WebQuest is

designed to be completed in three

teaching hours with an estimated

additional time of three hours assigned to

homework tasks. It is entitled “Oliver

Twist: The great Dickensian hero”.

Following Au and Raphael‟s‟ advice

(2000) that literary texts should be age

and level appropriate, the writer-teacher

selected the specific novel, convinced that

the students would sympathize with the

adventures of a child at their age.

It is strongly believed that students‟

contact with literature, either in written or

visualized form, should be an interactive

process with its content (Ali, 1994). The

learners should therefore be encouraged

to bring their personal experiences and

beliefs while dealing with literature and

become “independent makers of meaning”

(Amer, 2003: 68). This process of multiple

interpretations (Rosenblatt, 1995)

develops students‟ creativity and critical

thinking and promotes language skills

(Kim, 2003).

The specific WebQuest echoes the

assumptions of three methodological

orientations. By giving emphasis to two

basic episodes of Oliver Twist, the teacher

conceptualizes the theory of Story

http://zunal.com/webquest.php?w=226270




Grammar which focuses on the

description of the setting, characters,

problem, action, events and resolution of

specific scenes (Cooper, 1986). Moreover,

the WebQuest level of linguistic difficulty

follows Krashen‟s i+1 Comprehensible

Input Hypothesis (1982), as it is slightly

above learners‟ language level. Finally,

the selection of the tasks echoes Swain‟s

Comprehensible Output Hypothesis

(1985)which claims that acquisition is

more likely to occur when learners

produce spoken and written language.

To be more precise, the three WebQuest

lessons are organized under the pre-

while-post teaching framework to ensure

students‟ active involvement in the

learning procedure. The following brief

description of the technologically-oriented

literary lessons obey to the ideas of both

the cultural and language models of

teaching literature (Carter & Long, 1991),

as emphasis is cast both on the socio-

cultural attitudes of the literary heroes and

the way that these are expressed through

language.

Lesson 1 brings students into contact with

Charles Dickens‟ life to help them gain a

deeper understanding of the

autobiographical elements reflected in his

work. The Warm-up stage consists of a

thought-provoking brainstorming activity,

aiming to activate students‟ background

knowledge (Kang, 2004) about the famous

writer. For the Pre stage the students

watch a short cartoon3 (2010) about

Dickens‟ life to complete a table of

bibliographical information, as “a very high

proportion of all sensory learning, is

visual” (Avgerinou & Ericson, 1997: 287).

Furthermore, the While stage includes

three activities that the students need to

complete after watching the cartoon for a

second time and reading its transcription.

Despite successfully integrating the four

skills, this phase is mostly linguistically

oriented, as it focuses on lexical

acquisition and Simple Past Tense

revision. Additionally, the Post stage

engages students in a role-play activity

that students need to prepare, using the

new schemata they created during this

lesson. They have to create a fictional

interview between a journalist and Charles

Dickens and then act it out in the

classroom. The integration of this role-play

aims at improving language and promoting

students‟ appreciation of literature

(Norwick, 1995). Lastly, the Follow-up

stage practically applies the discovery

technique, as students research certain

sites to learn more about Charles Dickens‟

life.

Lesson 2 introduces the novel “Oliver

Twist” to learners. A brainstorming activity

is utilized once again in the Warm-up

phase to present the topic and attract

learners‟ interest. The Pre stage realizes

the notion of cross-linking by engaging

3 The cartoon can be found in this link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unKuZ2wlNdw




learners in an inference process. Students

watch the first four minutes from BBC

Oliver Twist episode 1 (Giedroyc &

Dickens, 2007) and are asked to predict

whether Oliver will have an easy life. They

are thus asked to “read with the eye of the

mind” (Zyngier, Fialho & Rios, 2007: 196).

Furthermore, the While stage consists of

two steps. Firstly, the learners watch two

other short extracts from the BBC episode

2 (Giedroyc & Dickens, 2007) depicting

Oliver working for a funeral parlor to

examine whether their pre-stage

predictions were correct. Then, they try to

complete the missing words of a short

summary of the episode they just

watched, a task demanding global

comprehension abilities. In addition, the

Post phase is based on a critical-thinking

writing task that fulfills the perception of

Psycho-narratology (Bortolussi & Dixon,

2003), namely their ability to sympathize

with the characters of a novel. For this

purpose they are asked to describe orally

two of the novel‟s characters, participating

in the extracts they have just watched.

Finally, the follow-up stage is writing-

oriented. It is also a socially and

historically-oriented phase, since they

need to read the diary of a child worker,

delve into the notion of child labor during

the Victorian Era and then prepare their

own diary entry, pretending to be one of

those children.

Lesson 3 is based on the musical “Oliver

Twist” (Reed & Bart, 1968). The Warm-up

stage revises some of the information

learned about the novel in the previous

lesson. In the Pre stage students watch a

scene from the musical with the sound off

and engage in a multiple interpretations

task4, as they need to complete some

speech bubbles in a task sheet, using their

imagination. The following While stage is

completed in two steps. Initially, the

learners watch the scene displayed in the

pre phase with the sound on to verify their

predictions. Afterwards, they watch

another short extract5 from the musical

and try to critically reflect on some

questions included in a task sheet.

Nevertheless, learners are more likely to

enjoy the task of the post stage, as they

are asked not only to offer an alternative

ending of the scene between Oliver and

Mr. Bumble but also act it out in front of

the classroom.

All in all, the Oliver Twist WebQuest is a

motivating experience which successfully

integrates technology in a teaching

4. They watch a scene from the musical with the

sound off and complete some speech bubbles

which according to Brown (1999), allow multiple

interpretations. 5 It is the famous scene in which Oliver Twist has

the audacity to ask Mr. Bumble for more food

(available at this link). The emotional power of the

scene aims to realize Kim’s claim (2003:6) that

“understanding is never complete until one can

actually experience or imagine what it is like being

one of the characters”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlJugdk4OGc&list=PLiDG_03PsougZmiIlVVbesOUHDX1XtA67&index=4




context which prioritizes the “washback

effect” (Zerkowitz, 2007).

5. Suggestions for the use of

WebQuests

As with all computer-mediated teaching

tools, ELT instructors need to keep in

mind the following suggestions when

using WebQuests in their classrooms

(Lipscomb, 2003):

1. The topic of the WebQuest must be

chosen carefully to suit learners‟ age,

needs and interest.

2. The WebQuest should be designed

appropriately and supplemented with all

the necessary material to facilitate

students‟ learning efforts. It is extremely

important that the WebQuest is both

alluring and easy to access and navigate.

3. Teachers need to be aware of their

students‟ familiarity with technology. This

teaching tool can become useless if

students do not know how to surf the

internet or if they do not have a domestic

internet connection.

4. The availability of computers in the

classroom and a wifi internet access are

prerequisite for the realization of a

WebQuest-based series of lessons.

5. Students need to be aware of their roles

and obligations for each task. WebQuests

are highly collaborative and interactive, so

if a student decides to remain inactive

during a task, this can jeopardize its

successful completion.

6. As WebQuests are time-consuming,

teachers must be prepared to spend

additional teaching time.

7. Learners, especially young ones, must

be constantly reminded that WebQuests

are not some sort of computer game, but

an alternative teaching method. It would

be wise then if teachers included some

type of assessment and informed their

students about it.

8. Teachers should keep in mind that

computers and internet access

occasionally fail, so they need to have

supplementary material available to avoid

the inconvenience of not having anything

to teach.

6. Concluding Remarks

The introduction of a WebQuest-based

lesson is undoubtedly an innovative way

of bringing learners into contact with the

social dimension of English (Sen &

Neufeld, 2006), thus allowing them to

appraise language as communication.

Nevertheless, WebQuests are also more

time-consuming, demanding and

unfamiliar to most students, so teachers

need to be vigilant facilitators of learner‟s

attempts.




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Using Pinterest for Learning

Jayne Whistancei, University of Southampton, UK

Abstract: This article shows how the social bookmarking tool Pinterest can be used to motivate students to learn, both as a self-access learning tool and as an in-class activity, giving examples from my teaching work whilst at Southampton Solent University. Following the use of Pinterest on the units I was teaching on, I carried out some focus groups to obtain student feedback. Overall, the response was positive, with students finding Pinterest ‘inspiring’ and ‘informative’ Keywords: Pinterest, social bookmarking, student engagement, accessibility, employability Apstrakt: Ovaj članak pokazuje kako alatka za društveno obeležavanje - Pinterest – može da se upotrebi za motivisanje studenata; kao alatka za učenje kojoj studenti mogu sami da pristupe, i kao alatka koju mogu da koriste za aktivnosti na časovima. Primeri su uzeti iz moje prakse, dok sam predavala na Southempton Solent Univerzitetu. Koristeći Pinterest za neke oblasti koje sam predavala, imala sam nekoliko fokus grupa, kako bih mogla da dobijem povratnu informaciju od studenata. Sve u svemu, njihova povratna informacija je bila pozitivna; studenti smatraju da je Pinterest informativan i inspirativan. Ključne reči: Pinterest, društveno obeležavanje, angažovanje đaka, dostupnost, zapošljivost

1. Introduction

A brief overview of Pinterest is provided,

giving a background of the tool as a social

bookmarking site for learning, before

looking at its benefits in increasing student

engagement, enhancing accessibility and

developing employability skills. The article

then suggests ways in which Pinterest can

be used both inside and outside the

classroom and includes a practical step-

by-step guide, so that you can easily start

using Pinterest as an educational

practitioner.

.

2. What is Pinterest?

Pinterest is a social bookmarking site,

which is defined as ‘an emerging type of a

Web service that helps users share,

classify, and discover interesting

resources’ (Yanbe et al, 2007:107). It

looks like an online pin board, with each

‘pin’ allowing you to save links to useful

websites, providing direct hyperlinks to

them, and having the capability of storing

related information. It is also possible to

curate pictures and other images such as

infographics, though copyright issues need

to be taken into consideration when doing

this. You can group your links together by




theme using ‘boards,’ thus organising

them in a suitable manner. As well as

being able to share links and boards with

others, it is possible to search your own

links and find links from other ‘pinners.’

Due to this functionality, Pearce and

Learmonth (2013:3) describe Pinterest as

‘a contemporary digital version of creating

a collage or scrapbook.’ Pinterest was

voted number 13 in the Top 100 Tools for

Learning 2015 (Directory of Learning and

Performance Tools and Services, 2016).

3. Why use Pinterest for learning?

Firstly, as a social media tool, Pinterest

can increase engagement by ‘involving

students in active cognitive processing,’

which is motivating for them (Rockinson-

Szapkiw and Szapkiw, 2011:361). It is

particularly helpful to generate discussion

or to collaborate on creative group work

both inside and outside of the classroom.

In addition, Pinterest can be used to

supplement the required reading list and to

act as an enjoyable revision resource prior

to examinations, as put forward by Pearce

and Learmonth (2013:4), who set up

pinboards to reflect each week of their

introductory anthropology class.

Secondly, Pinterest can be used to

increase accessibility. For example,

Thornton (2012:165) analysed how 57

academic libraries in the United States

were using Pinterest, and found that it can

‘draw visitors to collections, resources,

and digitised archival materials, and share

information and knowledge,’ thereby

increasing the approachability of material.

Hansen et al (2012:7) reported that

Pinterest’s pictorial aspect is particularly

helpful for visual learners.

Thirdly, Pinterest can help to develop

employability skills by enhancing

information and digital literacies

(Dudenhoffer, 2012:330) - through the

application of information technology,

students are working towards one of the

key graduate employability skills identified

by the Confederation of British Industry

(CBI, 2009:8). To give a personal

example, my professional use of social

media online has led to me being offered

work at other institutions.

4. How can Pinterest be used in

education?

As an educational practitioner, you could

set up your own boards related to courses

on which you teach, in order to signpost

your students to additional reference

material, as Pearce and Learmonth

(2013:4) did. In my case, after creating

some boards relating to my teaching, I

then embedded the links to these boards

on the Virtual Learning Environment,

which allowed me to monitor which ones

the students were using the most. I mainly




set up boards and monitored their use for

my International Foundation Year students

when I was teaching at Southampton

Solent University.

These students were adult learners aged

18 and above, were between IELTS level

4.5 and 5.5 and found the Pinterest

resources helpful in sourcing

supplementary information and learning

new vocabulary. The boards ranged from

those focusing on language skills such as

reading and writing to content-oriented

ones such as UK political parties, the

National Health Service and the

monarchy. I found that some boards were

worth inviting colleagues to collaborate on,

particularly for those who were also

teaching on the International Foundation

Year, as this was useful for us to share

ideas when planning lessons for different

groups of students undertaking the same

course.

During classes themselves, Pinterest can

be used for various activities. For

example, again with International

Foundation Year students at Southampton

Solent University, I encouraged students

to work individually and in groups to create

their own Pinterest boards linked to a

specific unit or assessment-related project.

In one case, students had to pretend that

they were the Human Resources

department of a company and prepare

written job advertisements and

descriptions for two roles that they needed

to recruit to. During the research phase of

this assessment, one group used Pinterest

to save job advertisements related to the

roles they wanted to hire, as well as

bookmarking information from trustworthy

sites such as Acas (the Advisory,

Conciliation and Arbitration Service) to

assist them in their project. Another group

were preparing to deliver presentations on

political parties in the UK and they used

Pinterest to collate information from the

main political parties’ websites as well as

their representation in the media.

Due to the level of critical thinking required

in a university setting, I always asked my

students to ensure that they pinned

reliable sites, thereby engaging research

skills and demonstrating digital literacy

abilities. Further, by following reliable

pinners such as approved organisations or

newspapers, students could use the links

appearing in their news feed to find new

vocabulary and then share these words

with the rest of the class. Fortunately, I

was able to book classes in IT rooms in

advance to facilitate these lessons.

5. Reflection on using Pinterest for

learning

During the academic year 2014 – 2015,

whilst lecturing at Southampton Solent

University, I carried out a series of focus




groups with my students and collated their

feedback on using Pinterest. Some

students were on the International

Foundation Year (IELTS level 4.5 – 5.5),

whilst others were international students

undertaking a range of different degree

programmes from business to creative

subjects who had chosen an optional

advanced English unit to complement their

studies (IELTS level 5.5 and beyond).

For the students on the International

Foundation Year, I had set up various

Pinterest boards relating to the topics they

were studying, and so the focus groups I

carried out with them centred around how

useful they had found these as a resource

to aid their learning throughout the

academic year. Some of the students had

also chosen to use Pinterest to collaborate

together on group work projects and so I

asked how they had found this process.

For these focus groups, the goal was to

see if using Pinterest had motivated them

in their learning. The word cloud below

provides a summary of the feedback

obtained:

(Enideo, 2016)

For the students taking advanced-level

English units, I asked them to look at my

Pinterest boards and to evaluate them,

using the reflective template given below.

For these focus groups, the goal was to

obtain a more objective view of Pinterest

as a tool, since I had not set up any

specific boards for them to use as part of

the advanced unit. These students echoed

the sentiments of the International

Foundation Year cohort, finding Pinterest

inspiring and full of information. The

advanced students also provided feedback

on how the boards could be improved,

such as by narrowing the focus of some of

the boards to have fewer pins on to make

them appear less visually confusing and

by categorising or labelling the pins more

successfully to optimize the search

function.

6. What steps can I take to explore

Pinterest as an educational

practitioner?

If you feel confident enough, you can start

with the ideas suggested above, but if not,

the steps below give a basic introduction

to using Pinterest.




6.1. Set up an account

● Sign up at

https://www.pinterest.com/ using

your email address or Facebook

account.

● Follow 5 general topics you’re

interested in - it won’t find really

specific topics such as ‘corpus

linguistics’ at this stage but you

could follow ‘education,’

‘languages’ or ‘technology,’ for

example.

● Search for and follow universities,

publishers, libraries, colleagues

and so on to see what they’re

doing and to generate a news feed.

For example, some suggestions

include: University of

Southampton, The English

Language Centre, Brighton (ELC,

Brighton), Europass, Education

Support Partnership, Edudemic,

Routledge Textbooks, Nik

Peachey, Kamil Trzebiatowski etc.

6.2. Set up a board

● Choose a topic you’re interested in

and create a board.

● Find 5 related websites to ‘pin’ to

the board.

● ‘Send’ the board to a friend or

colleague who is using Pinterest

and browse each other’s pins,

adding comments if you wish.

6.3. Invite someone to collaborate

on your board

● Create a shared board on a topic

of your choice with a colleague

who is using Pinterest – perhaps

begin by finding 20 pins between

you to add to it. For example,

suggested themes could include:

assessment, culture, e-learning,

IATEFL etc.

● Discuss with your colleague: how

do you envisage using Pinterest

within your context? (both in and

outside class); can you envisage

any issues with using Pinterest?;

what do you think is the ideal

number of pins per board?; how

often should someone ‘declutter’

work-related boards and test for

broken links?

6.4. Reflect on your board

You may like to use the template below to

help you to reflect. It could be done by

yourself and then with a colleague, or

given to students to use in class on their

own and then with peers.

https://www.pinterest.com/




Complete on your own:

What do you like

about this

board?

What do you

dislike about this

board?

How would you

improve it?

Discuss with others:

If you were to evaluate this board

on a scale of 0 to 10 where

0 = completely useless and 10 =

extremely useful, what number

would you agree on for this board?

Describe the

reason for your

collaborative

score.

What is the one

most important

thing that could

be done to make

this board more

effective?

7. Conclusion

This article first provided a background to

Pinterest as a social bookmarking site for

learning, before looking at its benefits in

increasing student engagement,

enhancing accessibility and developing

employability skills. I then demonstrated

how Pinterest can be used to motivate

students to learn, both as a self-access

learning tool and as an in-class activity,

giving examples from my teaching work

whilst at Southampton Solent University.

Focus groups to obtain feedback

determined that students’ experience was

mostly positive, with them finding Pinterest

‘inspiring’ and ‘informative.’ Finally, the

article included a practical step-by-step

guide to easily start using Pinterest as an

educational practitioner.




References

Acas. 2016. Home: help and advice for employers and employees. [viewed 19

December 2016]. Available from: http://www.acas.org.uk/ . 2009. Future fit: preparing

graduates for the world of work. London: CBI.

Directory of Learning and Performance Tools and Services. 2016. Top 100 Tools for

Learning. [viewed 20 September 2016]. Available from:

http://c4lpt.co.uk/directory/top-100-tools/

Dudenhoffer, C. 2012. Pin it! Pinterest as a library marketing and information literacy

tool. College and Research Libraries News, 73(6), pp.328-332.

Enideo. 2016. Word it out. [viewed 20 September 2016]. Available from:

https://worditout.com/

Hansen, K., G. Nowlan and C. Winter. 2012. Pinterest as a tool: applications in

academic libraries and higher education. Partnership: the Canadian Journal of Library

and Information Practice and Research, 7(2), pp.1-11.

Pearce, N., and Learmonth, S. 2013. Learning beyond the classroom: evaluating the

use of Pinterest in learning and teaching in an introductory anthropology class.

Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 2013(2).

Rockinson-Szapkiw, A. and M. Szapkiw. 2011. Engaging Higher Education students

through tweeting. Proceedings of Global Learn Asia Pacific, AACE, pp.360–364.

Thornton, E. 2012. Is your academic library pinning? Academic libraries and

Pinterest. Journal of Web Librarianship, 6(3), pp.164-175.

Yanbe, Y., Jatowt, A., Nakamura, S., and Tanaka, K. 2007. Can social bookmarking

enhance search in the web?. In Proceedings of the 7th ACM/IEEE-CS joint

conference on Digital libraries, pp.107-116. ACM.

http://www.acas.org.uk/

http://c4lpt.co.uk/directory/top-100-tools/

https://worditout.com/




Ethical considerations ELTA Journal reviewing process follows the guidelines of the double peer review and neither the reviewer nor the submission authors are informed of the other. ELTA Journalreviewers have been recruited according to their field of academic specialization, academic credibility, degree level (Ph.D.) and/or the track record of theirengagement in the ELT or other educational fields. ELTA Journal reviewers in the current issue have been:

Agnieszka Uberman, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Institute of English Studies, University of Rzeszów, Poland

Ana Sentov, Ph.D., Faculty of Law and Business Studies Dr Lazar Vrkatić Novi Sad, Union University Belgrade, Serbia

Andrej Bjelaković, Ph.D. candidate, Teaching Assistant, Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade, Serbia

Brooke R. Schreiber, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of English, Baruch College, CUNY, USA

Dunja Živanović, Ph.D., The School of Electrical Engeneering, University of Belgrade, Serbia

Isidora Wattles, Ph.D., Assistant, Faculty of Law and Business Studies Dr Lazar Vrkatić Novi Sad, Union University Belgrade, Serbia

Jelena Grubor Hinić, Ph.D., State University of Novi Pazar, Department of Philology, Serbia

Olja Milošević, Ph.D., International School of Belgrade, Serbia

Tatjana Glušac, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Faculty of Law and Business Studies Dr Lazar Vrkatić Novi Sad, Union University Belgrade, Serbia

Tijana Parezanović, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Faculty for Foreign Languages, Alfa BK University, Serbia

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