Keynote address for ALTs in Gifu prefecture in Jan. 2015

1. Problems
and Suggestions
for public English Education
神奈川県立国際言語文化アカデミア
Marcel VanAmelsvoort
2015 GifuALTWorkshop
January 23, 2015

2. http://mimiandeunice.com/2011/08/01/looking-for-problems/

3. What is something you
have always wanted to do?
Why haven’t you done it
yet?
What are your plans for
doing it?

5. 神奈川県立国際言語文化アカデミア

6. KANAGAWA INSTITUTE OF LANGUAGE
AND CULTURE STUDIES

7. KANAGAWA INSTITUTE OF LANGUAGE
AND CULTURE STUDIES
♢ Elementary school teacher training
♢ Cross-cultural understanding for teachers
♢小学校英語活動教員研修
♢教師のための異文化理解、外国語研修♢ English teacher training
♢ English teacher training
♢英語担当教員研修

8. Problems
Sounds
Conversations
Discussions

9. We’re going to play Top 5! For each topic, write five things. If
you have the same things as on my list, you get the points.
Count your points.

10. ScoringPoints
Cars
5 points: BMW
4 points: Toyota
3 points: Mazda
2 points: Honda
1 points: Suzuki
7 Points!
Toyota – 4 points
Honda – 2 points
Suzuki – 1 point
Compare your list with mine.
If you have the same things, you get the points!

11. Topic 1: Fruit
Write your
5 fruits

12. Top 5 Fruit
5 points: bananas / banana
4 points: strawberries / strawberry
3 points: peaches / peach
2 points: plums / plum
1 point: pears / pear

13. Topic 2: The Biggest Problems with English
Education in Japan
Write your
5 problems

14. Top 5 “Problems”
5: Ineffective use / support of teachers
4: No goals / no vision / no planning
3: No balance of input / output
2: Focus on discrete grammar / vocab
1: Emphasis on entrance exams

15. We suck

16. We suck?

17. iBT TOEFL (2013)—Asia Results
Reading Listening Speaking Writing TOTAL

23. Insights from class
observations (June, 2014)
25 teachers: 1330 min
(22.2 hours)

24. V, G, L, R, Fl, S-Int, W, Mis
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Mis
W
S＋Inter
Fluency
R
L
Gram
Voc
%
Voc 14.7
Gram 15.6
L 8.2
R 35.5
Fluency 9.25
S＋Inter 1.35
W 4.51
Mis 4.51

27. So, what
can we do
about this?

28. Sounds

29. Sounds?

30. English is a
stress-timed
language.

32. The cows eat the grass
The cows will eat the grass
Cows eat grass
The cows have eaten the grass
The cows will have eaten the
grass

33. Sentence Stress
Generally, the major sentence stress falls
on the last content word within a
sentence.
⇒ louder (強く)
longer (長く)
higher-pitched (高音で)

34. Pauses
Expert speakers provide natural
pauses between sense groups.

35. Connected Speech
Grant, L. (ed). (2014). Pronunciation myths. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press

36. Using a Movie Scene

37. Procedure
1. Select a scene
2. Print the transcripts
3. Practice 5 minutes each class
until students have memorized
the sounds and lines for both
parts
4. Provide formative feedback (from
teacher, from partners, from self)
5. Do a productive assessment test

38. Lampwick: My name’s Lampwick. What’s yours?
Pinocchio: Pinocchio.
Lampwick: Ever been to Pleasure Island?
Pinocchio: Uh-uh. But Mr. Honest John gave me/
Lampwick: Me neither. But they say it’s a swell joint—no school, no
cops—we can tear the joint apart and nobody says a word.
Pinocchio: Honest John gave me/
Lampwick: Loaf around, plenty to eat, plenty to drink…and it’s all free!
Pinocchio: Honest John/
Lampwick: Boy, that’s the place. I can hardly wait.

39. “Much better
than Speed
Learning”
Benefits of Using
DVD Movie Scenes for Students
 Language learning (sounds, vocab, grammar)
 Repeated exposure facilitates
noticing
 Sound training
 Identity formation
 Authentic materials feel “real”
 Acting out creates an L2 you
 Self-access technique promotes
autonomy

40. Benefits of Using
DVD Movie Scenes for Teachers
 Language learning
 Repeated exposure facilitates noticing
 Multi-modal materials
 Translations available
 High-interest, so better motivation
 Easy to assess

41. Memory-stretching
Dictation
Hear it, hold it………say/write it.

42. Conversations

43. ConversationsTimed pair conversations using frames

44. Students learn what
they learn in the
way that they
learn/practice/do it.

45. 45
Conversation Frame
A: How’s it going?
B: Not bad. You?
A: Pretty good. So... _______________?
B: ________________. How about you?
A: ________________.
B: Well, nice talking with you.
A: Me, too.

46. Benefits of Using Frames
 Facilitate real conversations /
communication
 Formulaic expressions / “scripts”
 Flexible
 Facilitate the teaching of interaction

47. What I Teach / Practice:
Reacting language
 Rejoinders
 Echoing
 Follow-up Questions
 Interjections

48. Discussions

49. DiscussionsWorking toward age-appropriate thinking

50. Memory is the residue of
thought.
Daniel Willingham
Why Don’t Students Like School?
We evolved in tribes, we
grow in
families, and we learn in

51. What I Teach:
 Clarify / Elaborate
 Support ideas w/ examples
 Agree and add on
 Disagree politely
 Paraphrase
 Synthesize / Conclude

52. Activities
 See Think Wonder
 Dictogloss
 HOT questions
 (Debate)

53. See Think Wonder
A Topic Introduction Technique

55. Dictate 2-3 sentences or a full
paragraph*. Have students
reproduce it as best they can.
Dictogloss
*adapted (re-written) from the
textbook or from a parallel text

56. HOT Skills and Questions
Higher Order
Thinking Skills

57. Thank you