2. 2
INDEX
Language learning framework
.……………………………... 3
Learner’s background
……………………………… 4
III.
Testing
……………………………… 5
IV.
Transcription
……………………………... 7
Phonetics analysis
……………………………… 7
Grammatical analysis
……………………………... 9
Lexis analysis
…………………………….. 11
Writing Sample
.……………………………. 12
Grammatical analysis
.……………………………. 12
Lexis analysis
.…………………………… 12
Lesson plan
.………………………….... 13
Lesson plan evaluation
.…………………………… 16
XIII.
Conclusion
.…………………………… 17
XIV.
References
.…………………………… 18
I.
II.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
XII.
3. 3
Language Learning Framework
For many years researchers have tried to find the best alternative to learn the
English language and since it is a difficult language to teach in our country it becomes a
real challenge to choose the suitable strategies for each kind of learner. According to
O‟Malley and Chamot (1990) the learner strategies affected in a positive manner when
they are used. These strategies help our studies to understand more easily what they are
learning, because they involve several techniques to understand the new content.
In this report we are going to analyze different aspects of the learning strategies
through an oral interview. Firstly we are going to set up the context of the learner:
where she lives, where she studies and her perceptions about English, basically to know
more about her background. Secondly, we do an interview about her likes and dislikes,
daily routines and food, from which we are going to take certain mistakes to analyze.
Thirdly, we select the principal errors of the interviewee and we analyze them
grammatically, phonetically and lexically.
We base our analysis on Chamot, Barnhardt, El-Dinary & Robbins (1999) and
the structure they propose, which contemplates five stages. Firstly, in the preparation
phase the teacher provides students with activities which will prepare them to develop
the following task. Secondly in the presentation stage the teacher presents the new
content and provides examples to clarify doubts that can emerge during the lesson.
Thirdly, students practice what they have just learned through meaningful activities and
exercises. Fourthly, in the evaluation stage the teacher asses what the students did in the
previous stage, this can be done in many ways either self-evaluation or co-evaluation.
Finally, the expansion is a stage designed for activities that can be done in future
lessons related to the main topic.
4. 4
Learner’s Background
Melanie Torres is sixteen years old and she lives with her parents and siblings. She is in
her second year of high school in Aurora de Chile College. She lives and studies in
Chiguayante. She has been learning English since elementary school, where she was
taught the basic English.
Her English level is strongly influenced by many factors, either inside the classroom or
outside. Currently she has 3 hours of English per week (3 modules of 45 minutes). She
considers herself very interested in this language, particularly because she usually
listens to music and watches movies in English. In addition to this, she spends a lot of
time in the computer, being exposed to a wide variety of English sources from social
media.
She is one of the outstanding students and it is remarkable to say that when hearing
spoken English she explains that she can get the main idea of the message without
knowing every word. She has very good marks in the subject, even though she has
never taken a course of English.
5. 5
Testing
Taped Interview
I: interviewer
S: student
1
I: Hello
2
S: Hello
3
I: What‟s your name?
4
S: My name is Melanie
5
I: Can you spell your name?
6
S: Yes, M, E, L, A, N, I, E
7
I: Ok, How old are you?
8
S: I’m sixteen years old
9
I: And where do you live?
10
S: I live in Concepción, Chiguayante
11
I: Ok, How many brothers and sisters do you have?
12
S: I have two brothers and one sister
13
I: What does your father do?
14
S: My father is (an) electrician
15
I: What does your mother do?
16
S: My mom work at home
17
I: Ok, now we are going to talk about daily routines, What time do you get up in the
morning?
18
S: I get up at seven o’clock
19
I: What time do you go to school?
20
S: I go to school at seven thirty
21
I: Ok, do you walk to school?
22
S: Yes, I walk
23
I: And what do you do at the weekends?
24
S: I listening to music and go out with my friends…eehm cooking and
checking my facebook
6. 6
25
I: Ok, how many hours do you spend on facebook?
26
S: I spend six hours …on facebook
27
I: Ok, now we‟re going to talk about food, what‟s your favorite meal?
28
S: My favorite meal is chocolate and French fries.
29
I: And what do you usually have for breakfast?
30
S: eeehm bread eehm bread and butter and milk
31
I: Ok, now we‟re going to talk about likes and dislikes, what is your favorite subject
at school?
32
S: My favorite subject is biology
33
I: Why?
34
S: Because is very important for my future studies
35
I: Ok, you like music, right?
36
S: Yes
37
I: And what type of music do you like?
38
S: Ehhm Pop, bachatas
39
I: Why?
40
S: Because I dancing with…with those
41
I: Ok, do you like movies?
42
S: Yes
43
I: And what kind of movies do you like?
44
S: I like comedy movies
45
I: Why?
46
S: Because is very fun
47
I: Ok, what are your favorite computer games?
48
S: Ehhm… The Sims... is my favorite
49
I: Ok, Thank you
7. 7
Transcription
//aɪ ˈlɪsnɪŋ tə ˈmjuːzɪk ənd gəʊ aʊt wɪð maɪ frendz (eehm) ˈkʊkɪŋ ənd
ˈʧekɪŋ maɪ feɪsvʊk//aɪ spend sɪks ˈaʊrs ɒn feɪsvʊk//maɪ ˈfeɪvɒrɪt mɪl ɪz
ˈʧɒkəleɪt ənd frenʃ ˈfraɪz//(eeehm) bred (eehm) bred ənd ˈbʌrər ənd
mɪlk//
Analysis
Phonetics analysis
Commonly, high school students do not deepen on phonetics and we found that this is
crucial if we want them to acquire a better pronunciation and understanding of spoken
English. Melanie‟s pronunciation is good according to her level of English. It is very
easy to understand her due to her simple vocabulary and her clear pronunciation.
However she mispronounces some vowel sounds basically because in Spanish we have
5 vowels and all of them are strong, while in English there are 6 strong and 6 weak
vowel sounds. She as a Spanish speaker is not familiarised with this wide variety of
sounds. This is clearly seen in the following samples.
In line 20 we can see the use of the vowel sound /ɪ/ instead of the vowels sound /ɜː/.
Word
Student‟s Pronunciation
Correct Pronunciation
Thirty
ˈθɪrtɪ
ˈθɜːtɪ
In line 28 she uses the diphthong /eɪ/ instead of the short vowel /ɪ/, making the last
syllable of the word longer.
Word
Student‟s Pronunciation
Correct Pronunciation
Chocolate
ˈʧɒkəleɪt
ˈʧɒkəlɪt
8. 8
In line 32, biology is pronounced almost like the Spanish word by joining the vowels
sounds /ɪ/ and /ɒ/ instead of the diphthong /aɪ/ and /ɒ/.
Word
Student‟s Pronunciation
Correct Pronunciation
Biology
bɪˈɒləʤɪ
/baɪˈɒləʤɪ/
Line 34 shows a typical mispronunciation, where the short vowels sound /ʊ/ is used
instead of /ʌ/. These cases are just a confusion of sounds that can be easily corrected
making use of drilling exercises.
Word
Student‟s Pronunciation
Correct Pronunciation
Studies
ˈstʊdɪz
/ˈstʌdɪz/
In line 24 we can notice that the consonant /b/ is replaced by /v/. This case commonly
happens to ESL students because of the speed and fluency of the speech. Students tend
to shorten words and change elaborated sounds for simple ones.
Word
Student‟s Pronunciation
Correct Pronunciation
Facebook
feɪsvʊk
feɪsbʊk
9. 9
Grammatical analysis
Generally speaking, Melanie does not show lots of grammatical and syntactical
mistakes. For producing answers she tends to rely a lot on her Spanish structure, which
is very different from the English one, causing the following mistakes.
Use of tenses
Firstly we focus on the incorrect usage of tenses during the interview. In the first case
there is an inaccurate use of the verb “work”.
“My mom work at home.”
This is because she uses the plural form instead of the 3rd singular of the verb work. The
correct answer would be “My mom works at home”.
Another mistake that she committed is the use of the present continuous form of a verb
to talk about a certain activity.
“I listening to music and go out with my friends.”
In this case, the correct answer would be “I listen to music and go out with my friends”
because we are talking about an activity that she likes to do, not about something that is
currently happening.
Another case that calls our attention is a sentence which also has a problem with tenses
“Because I dancing with... with those”
10. 10
Firstly there is a problem with the verb dancing because it is expressing a continuous
action happening at the moment of speaking. The correct answer would be “Because I
dance with that music”. She confuses the continuous tense with the present simple
tense to talk about her likes and dislikes.
Missing words and Pronouns
Another issue that we noticed is the omission of certain words and pronouns.
Another central point that we analyzed in relation to grammar errors, was the omission
of some words, especially pronouns.
The first problem that we found was the omission of the article an before a noun.
“My father is electrician”
The correct answer would be “My father is an electrician”. This mistake is caused by
the interference of Spanish in English. Normally in Spanish we don‟t use pronouns
before nouns as in English. For Example if we say this in Spanish it would be “Mi padre
es electricista”. We can notice that there is no need of an article.
Another mistake that we found is the omission of the pronoun it before the verb to be.
“Because is very fun.”
The correct answer would be “Because it is very fun”. This answer is not grammatically
correct because there is no subject. She is talking about something fun but she doesn‟t
mention what it is. This mistake is also caused by the interference of Spanish in English.
In spoken Spanish we can omit the subject and it would sound correct whereas in
English it sounds wrong.
11. 11
Lexis analysis
Melanie made herself clear, however sometimes her answers are not according to the
question given. She answered what we ask but in some cases her answers were not what
we were expecting because they were not appropriate for the context of the question.
“My favorite meal is chocolate and French fries”
In this sentence the word chocolate is out of context since it is not exactly a meal.
Perhaps, she thought that we were asking for food in general. Basically the problem lies
on a vocabulary issue since Melanie didn‟t know the meaning of the word meal.
12. 12
Writing Sample
Write a short paragraph about your last vacation.
1.
My last vacation I went to Villarrica in the south of Chile. I went with the family and my dog.
2.
Also I visiting Pucón, Lican Ray and Coñaripe that were really beautifull places. I stayed in
3.
the house of my grandmother and it was really big. I played tennis and volleyball with all my
4.
cousins and my little nephews. I was in a very relax place and it was really calm for me. I had
5.
a lot of fun in my last vacation because I visited many places and I want to go again.
Grammatical analysis
Use of tenses
As seen before, in line 2, there is a mistake with the use of the present continuous form
of a verb to talk about an activity that happened in the past. The correct form would be:
``I visited Pucón and Lican Ray (…)‟‟.
Missing words
In line 1, there is a preposition missing. The correct answer would be: „‟On my last
vacation (…)‟‟.
In line 2, Melanie used the determiner the instead of the possessive adjective my to talk
about her family.
In line 3, we can notice that there is a genitive case which Melanie did not use. The
correct form would be: „‟I stayed at my grandmother‟s house (…)‟‟
Lexis analysis
In line 4, there is a vocabulary mistake with the word relax, whre the word is used as a
verb instead of an adjective. In this case the correct form would be: ``I was in a very
relaxing place (…)‟‟
13. 13
Lesson Plan
Content area: Vocabulary
Topic: Food and Traditions
Grade: 2nd grade High School
Objectives
Content knowledge skills: Learn specific English vocabulary related to food and
drinks
Learning strategy: Using grouping/deducing to facilitate learning and knowing the
meaning of new vocabulary.
Procedures
Preparation
Provide Students with a strategies questionnaire and that asks them which one of those is
suitable for them in order to learn vocabulary and meaning.
„„Today we are going to talk about food and traditions from different places in the world. For
a start, we are going to focus on how we can learn new words related to food and traditions
and their correct meaning. Complete this questionnaire by numbering from the one you like
the most to the one you like less (1 to 5). If you have other strategies for learning vocabulary
write them down. Share your answers with a classmate when you are finished. ‟‟
14. 14
Presentation
Present the strategy grouping and explain what it is consisting of.
„„Today you are going to learn about the strategy grouping, which is helpful for remembering
and understanding new vocabulary since it makes it more organized. Using schedules and all
sorts of charts and notes will help you classifying items like the types of traditions and foods
that we are going to learn today.‟‟
Draw a chart in the whiteboard demonstrating how to use grouping.
„„For instance we can classify food in salty, sweet and acid food.‟‟
Practice
Divide the class into two groups. Provide one group with a list of words related to traditions
and the other group with the list of words about food. (These words are unknown for them but
their meaning can be easily deducted). Make each group work in pairs and ask them to make
categories with those words (national traditions and international traditions; Breakfast food,
Lunch food and dinner food).
„„Make two groups, one is going to be the Food‟s group and the other one is going to be the
Traditions‟ group. Between your groups work in pairs and classify the given words in the
category you think is the most suitable for each list‟‟
15. 15
Evaluation
When students are finished ask each couple from the food‟s group to join another couple
from the traditions‟ group and ask them to compare and explain the new words the
classified.
„„ When you finish, each couple from the food‟s group has to find another couple from the
traditions‟ group to compare and explain the meaning of the new words appearing in the
classification you did.‟‟
Expansion
Give students time to study those new words at home or in the lab. After a certain amount of
time, give them a quiz on the new vocabulary they learnt.
Make student to look for more specific words for each category presented in class and
explain that you will include those words in future quizzes so every student learns them.
16. 16
Lesson Plan Evaluation
We considered the lexis mistake made by the student for creating the lesson. It
was very difficult to choose the correct type of activity and the objective of the lesson.
When choosing strategies we tended to deepen on wrong factors which were not
certainly useful for the type of mistake we were dealing with. In addition to this, we
have never worked with this type of lesson before, its different stages and procedures
made our work complicated but not in a considerable way. Chamot‟s book was useful
for developing the activities, working as a guide in order to face the exact mistake. We
believe this lesson, even modified, is helpful for many other learning problems and
mistakes which will appear during our future duty as teachers.
17. 17
Conclusion
To sum up briefly this assignment was very challenging for us since it involved
a new kind of structure for creating lessons. Moreover, it was very complete assignment
because we analyzed deeply certain features of language. It is remarkable to say that
there are many factors that can influence the student‟s performance at the moment of
producing English, whether spoken or written. Principally, the phonetics and grammar
mistakes that we found were caused by the interference between English and Spanish,
where Melanie replaced English structures by Spanish ones. Secondly, lexis mistakes
were mainly caused because of the lack of vocabulary. These facts are common in high
school students; they can make themselves clear by using a reduced amount of words.
This is not a bad feature; however, when it comes to develop specific tasks this reduced
amount of vocabulary becomes insufficient.
Influences outside school are also important for developing knowledge not only
of vocabulary but also of structures and pronunciation. Melanie has a considerable
exposure to English outside the classroom. When listening to music in English and
repeating the lyrics, she acquires certain patterns of pronunciation innately. The same
happens with structure and lexis. For further studies it would be good to analyze all the
aspects of language, not only in speaking but also in writing, reading and listening.
18. 18
References
Chamot, A. U., Barnhardt, S., El-Dinary, P. B., & Robbins, J. (1999). The Learning
Strategies Handbook. White Plains, NY: Addison Wesley Longman.
O'Malley, J.M. & Chamot, A.U. (1990). Learning Strategies in Second Language
Acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Smith, B., Swan, M. (2001). Learner English: A Teacher's Guide to Interference and
other Problems: A teacher‟s guide to interference and other problems.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
