Source

Özlem Pazvant A & HL 5515 Assignment #1 Source Level Course Focus Supplementary Components Student’s Book, Workbook, Teacher’s Manual, Class Audio Cassettes or CDs, Testing Package. Methodological Approach Linguistic Focus Input2 (Type/Amount) Prof. ZhaoHong Han 06/03/2003 Metalinguistic Exercises2 Output (Type/Amount) 2 1. Passages: An Upper-level Multi-skills Course Highintermediate to Advanced Integrated skills Communicative Approach using a functional syllabus. The units are theme oriented. There is also an explicit grammar focus. Sample unit1: Unit 1 * Phrasal Verbs * Gerund and infinitive constructions Reading statements, reading passages, reading compositions, pedagogic input, listening to conversations, talks, advertisements etc. 33% Reading charts, texts, listening to conversations, sentences with certain stress patterns, pedagogic input in terms of grammar explanations. 36% All the input is pedagogic in the form of grammar charts, lengthy grammar explanations, Fill in the blanks. 11% (only 2 of the 18 different output oriented exercises consist of metalinguistic exercises) Group discussion, answering questions based on personal experience, writing a composition. 66% 2. New Interchange: English for International Communication Highintermediate Integrated skills Student’s Book, Workbook, Teacher’s Manual, Class Audio Cassettes or CDs, Placement Tests. Communicative Approach using a functional syllabus. The units are theme oriented. There is also an explicit grammar focus. Sample unit: Unit 1 * Relative pronouns as subjects and objects * Clauses containing it with adverbial clauses Matching, fill in the blanks in a chart, sentence completion with given expressions. 22% Group discussions, pair discussions, writing a composition, sentence completion. 64% 3. Understanding and Using English Grammar Highintermediate to Advanced Grammar reference Student Book, Workbook, Chartbook, Teacher’s Guide, Answer Key. Structural Approach with an emphasis on communication. Group and pair discussions are encouraged. Sample unit: Unit 1 * The tenses (simple, progressive, perfect, perfect Writing the correct form of the verbs, correcting the errors in the given sentences, Group discussion, answering questions about one’s daily life. 60% 1 progressive) model sentences. 40% reading the given sentences and explaining the contribution of the tense form to meaning. 42% (5 of the output exercises consist of metalinguistic exercises) Fill in the blanks grammar exercises, sentence construction with the prompt words. 100% (The 3rd section of the book – tips for editing- is completely devoted to metalinguistic exercises) Fill in the blanks, question formation, error correction in a given paragraph, Process writing, group discussion of the issues related to the essay topic 47% 4. Mosaics: Focusing on Essays Advanced Writing Student’s Book Functional Approach Writing for recalling, observing, explaining, investigating, restating, analyzing, persuading, problem solving. Sample unit: Unit 2 Words, phrases, and clauses. * Identifying parts of speech * Different types of phrases Independent and dependent clauses Mostly pedagogic input, reading of the sample composition, explanations on the organization of an essay. 53% 5. A Writer’s Workbook: An Interactive Writing Text Advanced Writing Student’s Book Communicative Approach Sample unit: Unit 2 * Forms of the present tense * Adverbs of frequency * Verbs not Mostly pedagogic input, tips for writing, grammar explanation, reading for writing 41% Writing compositions, journal entries, discussion of the given statements, interviews 59% 2 used in continuous tenses multiplechoice exercise for vocabulary 65% (Most of the output exercises are metalinguistic in nature) All pedagogic input 56% (There is explicit information on what words are used when and where appropriately) The majority of the output exercises are metalinguistic in nature. 75% (Fill in the blanks, matching, sentence rewriting, sentence completion) In some exercises the learners are encouraged to discuss the given situation using the words in the units. There isn’t any pair or group work. 44% 6. English Vocabulary in Use HighIntermediate to Advanced Vocabulary reference Student’s Book Structural Approach (The words in the units are organized sometimes around a theme – the weather – , sometimes around a grammatical function – countable and uncountable nouns – or word formation rules – suffixes and prefixes). Since this is a vocabulary reference book, it doesn’t have an explicit linguistic focus. However, some chapters are organized according to linguistic criteria. Sample Unit: Unit 8 Suffixes Unit 8 Prefixes Unit 20 Connecting and Linking - Time 7. Advanced Grammar in Use Advanced Grammar reference Student’s Book Structural Approach Sample Units: Unit 29 Forming All pedagogic input 56% (All the All the output exercises are metalinguistic 100% There aren’t any natural output exercises. 44% 3 passive sentences Unit 30 Using passives Unit 31 Verb + -ing or toinfinitive: passive forms Unit 32 Reporting with passive words 8. North Star: Focus on Reading and Writing Advanced Reading Writing Student’s Book Communicative Approach using a thematic syllabus Sample Unit: Unit 1 Unreal conditionals explanations are grammar explanations) (Fill in the blanks, matching, error correction, sentence completion) Reading passages, maps, pictures, pedagogic input in terms of grammar explanations and vocabulary definitions. The amount of input is very low compared to the amount of output but the reading passages are lengthy. 25% Reading the passages and answering the open-ended and multiplechoice comprehension questions, fill in the blanks, sentence combining. 60% (Even though there are output exercises that encourage free production, most of them are still guided output exercises) Discussion, writing reports and compositions. 75% 4 9. Expressways 4 Highintermediate to Advanced Integrated Skills Student’s Book, Activity Workbook, Audio and Picture Program, Navigator Companion Books, Teacher’s Guide, Testing Program. Communicative Approach using a functional syllabus Sample Unit: Exit 1 * Embedded Questions * Gerunds * Infinitives * Noun clauses * Time expressions marking the past Pictures, reading passages, reading the modal conversations, pedagogic input, listening to conversations, 35% Multiplechoice questions, fill in the blanks, sentence completion, sentence reduction using the noun clauses, matching, error correction, true-false exercises. 58% Discussion, interactions with other students, writing a composition, role-plays. The output exercises, when not metalinguistic in nature, are discussion based. Most of them are guided but the aim is to promote natural conversation. 65% Picture discussion, group discussions, essay writing. 80% 10. Focus on Grammar: An Advanced Course for Reference and Practice Advanced Integrated Skills with a strong focus on grammar Student’s Book, Answer Key, Workbook, Audio Program, Teacher’s Manual, CDROM. Structural Approach with an emphasis on communication. Some exercises aim at fostering communication skills using the grammar points in question. Sample Unit: * Tense and time * present and future time * past time * past, present, future (together) Reading passages, pedagogic input in the form of grammar charts, and lengthy grammar explanations, listening to conversations 20% The majority of the exercises are metalinguistic exercises to practice the language forms. Truefalse exercises, multiplechoice exercises, error correction, fill in the blanks, explanations on the contribution some components of the sentence to the meaning. 5 69% Notes 1 The list of the linguistic focus throughout the books is provided in the Appendix A. 2 The calculations are usually based on one unit or a collection of units. This way is pursued since the majority of the books replicated the same pattern of content presentation and exercises in all the units. Summary In this survey I examined 10 different ESL/EFL textbooks which aim at addressing to the language needs of high proficiency learners. The target audience for the books is most of the time young adults and adults. Accordingly, the reading and the listening passages are of adults’ interest. The Integrated Skills textbooks come with supplementary materials and they are designed for classroom use. They include many opportunities for discussion. The Reference books, grammar or vocabulary, usually lack this communicative component. They are mostly designed for self-study and self-reference. Accordingly, most of the exercises are mechanical. However, I observed that new editions of the books try to incorporate the communication component in case the books are used in the classroom. The communication is fostered by asking the learners to discuss certain topics using the language structures presented in the units. Some books also use picture descriptions to give way to communication. The one-skill books, such as Writing books, also focus on grammar. The grammar is presented by explanations of the rules and the learners are asked to practice the structures. It seems even though there is a strong emphasis on communication, grammar still keeps its place in the language classroom. A major finding in terms of the input and output ratio is that the input the learners receive is always lower in the amount than the output they are asked to produce in all the types of books with the exception of two books (see Figure 1 for Integrated Skills textbooks). The majority of the books have a 35/65 ration for input and output respectively. Figure 2 illustrates the ratio across all the books. The exceptional books, Grammar in Use and Vocabulary in Use, are designed for the self-study and the units contain extensive information on the vocabulary choice and grammatical structures. 6 Figure 1. The Input/Output Ratio for Integrated Skills Textbooks 90 80 80 70 Percentage of Input/Output 66 64 65 60 50 40 33 30 36 35 20 20 10 0 Passages New Interchange Textbooks Input Output Expressways 4 Focus on Grammar 7 Figure 2. The Input/Output Ratio in the Selected Textbooks Input 40% Ouput 60% 8 The number of metalinguistic exercises, which are designed to practice the grammatical structures, varies from textbook to textbook. In the self-reference books almost all the exercises are metalinguistic. The common types are fill-in-the-blanks, sentence completion and error correction. In the book Mosaics, the section for grammar is called Section for Editing and all the exercises in that section are metalinguistic. Figure 3 illustrates the percentages of this type of exercises across all the books surveyed. In general, the textbooks are function oriented. The learners are expected to fulfill certain functions of the language by using the necessary grammatical features and vocabulary. The output exercises focus on discussion and role-plays, sharing personal information. Upon reviewing the contemporary books that are used in the classrooms, I can conclude that communication gets the primary importance yet grammar is not forgotten. References: Flachmann, K., Maher, J., Campbell, E. H., Johnson, N., & Magee, D. B. (1998). Mosaics: Focusing on essays. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, Inc. Hewings, M. (1999). Advanced grammar in use. New York: Cambridge University Press. Maurer, J. (2000). Focus on grammar: An advanced course for reference and practice (2nd Ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman. McCarthy, M., & O’Dell, F. (1994). English vocabulary in use. New York: Cambridge University Press. Miller, J. L., & Cohen, R. F. (1998). North Star: Focus on reading and writing. White Plains, NY: Longman. Molinsky, S. J., & Bliss, B. (1999). Expressways 4 (2nd Ed.). Prentice Hall Regents. Richards, J. C., Hull, J., & Proctor, S. (1998). New interchange: English for international communication. New York: Cambridge University Press. Richards, J. C., & Sandy, C. (2000). Passages: An upper-level multi-skills course. New York: Cambridge University Press. Schrampher Azar, B. (1998). Understanding and using English grammar (3rd Ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman. Smoke, T. (1998). A writer’s workbook: An interactive writing text (3rd Ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press. 9 Percentage 100 120 20 40 60 80 0 U nd er st an di N ng & U si ng En e 22 Pa ss ag es 11 ew In te rc h an g gl is h G ra m m ar 42 An In te ra c tiv e W rit in g Te y G ra m xt ar in ai cs M os 100 Vo ca bu l 65 Figure 3. The Percentage of Metalinguistic Exercises Textbooks U m ar se 75 in U N se or Ex Fo pr es s cu s th 100 St ar w on 60 ay G s 4 ra 58 m m ar 69 10 Source 1. Passages: An upper-level multi-skills course APPENDIX Linguistic Focus in the Selected Textbooks Units Linguistic Focus Unit 1 Phrasal verbs Gerund and infinitive constructions Unit 2 Verb patterns Cleft sentences with what Compound adjectives Superlative adjectives Reporting clauses Reporting clauses in the passive Sentence adverbs Negative adverbs at the beginning of a sentence Such … that and so … that Double comparatives Cause and effect with participles Relative pronouns in defining relative clauses As if, as though, as the way, and like Placement of direct object and indirect objects Verbs in the subjunctive Noun clauses with whoever and whatever Whenever and wherever contrasted with when and where Subject-verb agreement in sentences with quantifiers Overview of passives Indefinite and definite articles Present perfect and present perfect continuous tenses Subject and verb inversion in conditional sentences Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5 Unit 6 Unit 7 Unit 8 Unit 9 Unit 10 Unit 11 Unit 12 11 Adverb clauses of condition 2. New Interchange: English for International Communication Unit 1 Relative pronouns as subjects and objects Clauses containing it with adverbial clauses Gerund phrases as subjects and objects Comparisons with –er/more/less than and as … as Requests with modals and if clauses Indirect requests Past continuous and simple past Past perfect Noun phrases containing relative clauses (not) supposed to, expected to, the custom to, (not) acceptable to Past participles as adjectives, verbs, and nouns Need with passive infinitives and gerunds Passive in the present continuous and present perfect Prepositions of cause Infinitive clauses and phrases Would rather and would prefer By + gerund for manner Have and get something done (active and passive) Suggestions with gerunds, infinitives, base-form verbs, and negative questions Referring to time in the past with adverbs and prepositions: during, in, ago, from … to, for, since Describing future time with will, be going to, future continuous, and future perfect Time clauses: after, as soon as, before, by the time, once, the moment, until Describing regrets about the past with should have + past participle and if clauses + past perfect Infinitive clauses and phrases of purpose: in order to, in order for Describing features with noun phrases Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5 Unit 6 Unit 7 Unit 8 Unit 9 Unit 10 Unit 11 Unit 12 Unit 13 12 Giving reasons with because, because of, the reason Unit 14 Unit 15 Unit 16 Past modals for degrees of certainty: must have, may have, could have, might have Past modals for opinions and advice: should have, would have, could have The passive to describe process with be and modals Defining and non-defining relative clauses Recommendations with passive modals: ought to be, should be, has got to be, must be Tag questions Complex noun phrases with gerunds Tense review (present perfect, simple past, future perfect and would like to have + past participle) 3. Understanding and Using English Grammar Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11 Ch 12 Overview of the tenses Present and past, simple and progressive tenses Perfect and perfect progressive tenses Future time Adverb clauses of time and review of verb tenses Subject-verb agreement Nouns Pronouns Modals, Part 1 Modals, Part 2 The passive Noun clauses 13 Ch 13 Ch 14 Ch 15 Ch 16 Ch 17 Ch 18 Ch 19 Ch 20 4. Mosaics: Focusing on Essays Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 5. A Writer’s Workbook: An Interactive Writing Text Ch 1 Ch 2 Adjective clauses Gerunds and infinitives, Part 1 Gerunds and Infinitives, Part 2 Coordinating conjunctions Adverb clauses Reduction of adverb clauses to modifying adverbial phrases Connectives that express cause and effect, contrast, and condition Conditional sentences and wishes Words: Identifying parts of speech, phrases, clauses Subjects, predicates, basic sentence patterns, sentence combining Fragments, run-on sentences Subject-verb agreement, pronoun/antecedent agreement Verb forms, nouns and pronouns, modifiers Verb forms: Forms of the past tense Forms of the present tense, adverbs of frequency, verbs not used in continuous sentences Pronouns Countable and uncountable nouns Determiners The compound sentence, commas with subordinate clauses Modal auxiliaries Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 14 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11 Ch 12 Ch 13 Ch 14 Ch 15 Unit 8 Unit 9 Unit 20 Unit 21 Unit 22 Unit 23 Unit 24 Unit 26 Unit 27 Unit 28 Unit 30 Unit 1 2345 6789 10 Comparatives and superlatives, commonly confused words then/than Prepositions, idiomatic use of prepositions with verbs Gerunds and infinitives Relative clauses Use of participle forms Direct and indirect speech Passive verbs Conditionals using if Suffixes Prefixes Connecting and Linking – Time Connecting and Linking – Condition Connecting and Linking – Cause, reason, purpose and result Connecting and Linking – Concession and contrast Connecting and Linking – Addition Uncountable words Words that only occur in the plural Countable and uncountable with different meanings Making uncountable words countable Tenses 6. English Vocabulary in Use 7. Advanced Grammar in Use 15 Unit 11 12 13 14 15 16 Unit 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 Unit 26 27 28 Unit 29 30 31 32 Unit 33 34 35 Unit 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 Unit 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 Unit 50 51 52 53 54 55 Unit 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 Unit 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 Unit 70 71 72 73 74 75 The future Modals Be, Have, Do, Make, etc. Passives Questions Verbs: Infinitives, -ing forms, etc. Reporting Nouns and compounds Articles Determiners and quantifiers Relative clauses and other types of clause 16 8. North Star: Focus on Reading and Writing Unit 76 77 78 79 80 81 Unit 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 Unit 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 Unit 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 Unit 115 116 117 118 119 120 Unit 1 Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5 Unit 6 Unit 7 Pronouns, substitution, and leaving out words Adjectives Adverbs and conjunctions Prepositions Organizing information Unreal conditionals Noun clauses Identifying and nonidentifying adjective clauses Adverb clauses and discourse connectors expressing cause and effect Adverb clauses of comparison and contrast Definite and indefinite articles with count and non-count nouns Specific uses of gerunds and infinitives 17 Unit 8 Unit 9 Unit 10 Exit 1 Direct and Indirect Speech Reporting ideas and facts with passives Review of verb tenses Embedded questions Gerunds and Infinitives Noun clauses Time expression Embedded questions Reported speech Noun clauses Imperatives Time expressions Embedded questions Passive voice Present perfect tense Time expressions Should/ ought to/ have to/ have got to/need to Impersonal; expression with you Reported speech Sequence of tenses Embedded questions Should have/could have/must have Gerunds and infinitives Short answers Want + object + infinitive Present real conditional Should have/could have Present perfect tense Had better Short answers Supposed to Sequence of tenses Reported speech 9. Expressways 4 Exit 2 Exit 3 Exit 4 Exit 5 Exit 6 18 Noun clauses One/ones Tense review Short answers Exit 7 Emphatic sentences Tag questions Present unreal conditional Wish-clauses Hope-clauses Question formation Adjectives Sequence of tenses, Reported speech Tag questions Have to/ have got to/need to/ supposed to Short answers Tense and Time – Present, future, past Modals – necessity, certainty Nouns – count and non-count, definite and indefinite articles, modification of nouns, quantifiers Adjective clauses – review and expansion, adjective clauses with quantifiers, adjective phrases Passive voice – review and expansion, reporting the ideas and facts with passives Auxiliaries and phrasal verbs – contrast and emphasis Gerunds and Infinitives Adverbs – clauses, viewpoint, focus, negative, sequence, discourse connectors, adverb phrases Noun clauses – subjects and objects, complements Unreal conditionals – ways of expressing unreality, the subjunctive, inverted and implied conditionals Exit 8 10. Focus on Grammar: An Advanced Course for Reference and Practice Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 19 20