How to Teach Speaking in the ESL Classroom
Posted: Monday, April 18, 2011
by Chris Cotter
http://www.betterlanguageteaching.com
Mastery of English as a second or foreign language (ESL or EFL) comes down to the speaking ability of the student. He/She may write well, for example, do well on tests, or even have near-native pronunciation skills. Unfortunately, if the student also can't express ideas or instructions smoothly in a conversation, few would call him/her proficient. We use English to communicate information, and that generally means speaking.
Here are four steps which serve as a framework for how to teach English speaking. Conversation involves using the language, listening to the language, processing the information, and responding correctly to the information. Each step works towards improving these areas.
Preparation: You should begin with students preparing for the tasks ahead with an effective warm-up. The warm up gives all of the students in the class a chance to get their English wheels turning. After all, they may not have spoken English for several days or more, so adequate time translates into fewer mistakes while you're practicing the target language.
Present: Next you should present the target grammar or any vocabulary selected for the lesson. The warm up can serve as a first step into the lesson, but here is where you can explain in more detail the relevant points for the lesson. Note that if students inadvertently used any of the target language in the warm up, then you can use these instances as examples when presenting the new material here.
Practice: After the presentation, students need to practice the new language. It's unfair to expect them to make use of the material without adequate practice. Drills work to achieve automaticity, even with high-level students. With more drills, they work to make their language production smoother and quicker. Controlled practiced with new grammar points or vocabulary provide the foundation and provide examples. Activities should then move into freer and freer use of the language. This allows each student to integrate the lesson material with pre-existing language.
Free Use: You should always work towards real use of English. The first part of the lesson focuses on accurate language production. It's done to let students later focus on their fluency skills. Activities at the end of the lesson let students select vocabulary and grammar structures. They can also tie the day's focus with previously studied language. These activities also let stronger learners apply speaking strategies, use gestures and body language, and so on.
If a student wants to be seen as a proficient speaker, he/she needs to speak it well. Language is part of communication. Teachers should work towards incorporating the above steps to allow you to teach English speaking that really gets students to talk more.
For more ideas and information about how to teach English speaking, please visit www.betterlanguageteaching.com.
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