Педагогические науки/ 5. Современные методы преподавания
Старший преподаватель Головинцева В.В.
Павлодарский
государственный университет им. С.Торайгырова, Казахстан
To a new teacher of English. WAY
AHEAD course analysis.
Being
a first year teacher is a time of more professional growth than you can ever
imagine. Everyone knows how hard and challenging it is to start a class for the
first time, to stand in front of your new students not knowing what to say or
do. A lot of new teachers forget to introduce themselves, to say “Hallow” to
students, to teach them how to say “Hallow”. The first part of this article is
devoted to the first classes of English with beginning students in elementary
school.
Any
foreign language is something absolutely new for children, something
mysterious, that even their parents do not know. And the teacher of foreign
language is a bearer of this mysterious knowledge like a magician. Do not ruin
this image and use it to your profit! First of all, a teacher of English can
introduce him(her)self in an English manner like Ms. Julia, Ms. Mahabat or Mr.
Michael. Then, you can say that kids in England and America have names
different from theirs, so you can suggest new names for the kids like Mary,
Nick, George, etc. Your third step will be an exciting story about
English-speaking countries (Great Britain and the USA). In this part you can
tell some facts about these countries and those facts must be interesting for
your students, for example about Disney Land in the USA and so on. Your speech
must be accompanied by pictures or even video. And the last thing to do will be
to tell your students about the book you are going to use in your studies. Do
not go into methods and structure of the book, but draw their attention to the
most exciting activities you will do like singing songs in English, coloring
pictures, having contests and getting medals and certificates for the victory.
A great number of Kazakhstani teachers use WAY AHEAD course
which is described as follows: “WAY AHEAD is an imaginative, six-level course
for primary school children who are learning English as a first foreign
language. The course is reading based, with a strong communicative flavor. The
structures and functions of English are taught through a variety of inviting,
child-centered activities, which have been carefully graded and are suitable
for classes in a variety of cultural backgrounds.” As the book was published by Macmillan and FLTRP in Beijing, in China alone, it is used
by more than 6 million children each year. Way Ahead, now used in Russia,
Kazakhstan and Eastern Europe, has been a major primary school series.
Printha Ellis,
the leading author of the course, was born in Pasadena, California, but her
family subsequently moved to Idaho. After graduation from the University of
Idaho, she went to Thailand as a teacher with the Peace Corps. On arrival, her
first task was to teach a lesson to the entire school of 600 children.
On a trip to
Nepal, Printha met an Englishman, Mark Ellis, a teacher and novelist who shared
her interest in linguistics. They were married in England in 1969. Printha took
an MA in literature at Leeds University in 1970. After spells teaching together
in Thailand and Libya, they returned to England and became co-authors of two
series that were to prove groundbreakers.
She believed
strongly that, to be an effective communicator, she had to meet her audience.
She was an enthusiastic and fearless traveler, who promoted her books and gave
seminars around the world. In Saudi Arabia, she found herself lecturing to an
audience of men and women separated by a screen, around which only she could
see both sides.
As well as
possessing a global perspective, Printha was an enthusiastic member of her
local community in Marlborough, Wiltshire. She and Mark helped to found the
town's noted jazz festival, and her promotional skills proved invaluable to its
growth in size and prestige.
She died in a
crash in which both her mother and husband's stepmother were also killed.
Printha Jane Ellis, author and educationist, born January 6, 1947; died
September 7, 2004.
Basic principles of WAY AHEAD
- A balanced approach to the
development of all types of speech activity, every lesson of the textbook
contains exercises to develop all kinds of speech activity.
- Using the principle of "from
simple to complex." The formation of linguistic skills and language
abilities has several stages; new vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar are
carefully worked through and repeated.
- Special attention is paid to the
development of grammar skills and the development of writing technique.
- The pupil’s book aims to develop
students' compensatory skills.
- Systematic revision and
compilation of the studied material enable students with different language
abilities to learn well the material studied, and the teacher to check the
degree of student learning.
- Regular testing of students. In
the book, the teacher is proposed 4 tests (one for each section passed + 1 test
to check the material of the whole textbook.)
Distinctive features of the manual
are:
- Wide range and effectively
selected themes for the children of 7-12 years old;
- A clear structure of each lesson,
allowing teachers and students to see the goals and progress at each stage of
learning;
- Maintaining a common format in the
pupil’s book and in the workbook, which is especially important for students of
primary school age;
- The semantic connectedness of all
themes, which helps to improve learning motivation and promote the development
of cognitive abilities of students;
- Consideration of the real
possibilities of student learning in terms of volume of new lexical and
grammatical material that allows for the principle of health-technology and use
allowance in secondary schools in classes with multi-level training of
students;
- Required level of training of the
linguistic and speech material.
- Systematic revision of the material studied by means of a balanced
system of exercises and assignments, including assignments of playful
character;
- A variety of pair and group work
to encourage the development of communication skills necessary to communicate
in real-life situations;
- Extensive use of songs, rhymes,
games that will not only motivate and develop the creative abilities of
children, but also form the language skills and develop verbal skills;
- Detailed lesson plans,
supplementary materials and assignments in teacher’s book that enable teachers
to effectively prepare for the lesson;
- The presence of an elaborate
system of testing that allows regular monitoring of student’s learning;
- Grammar reference for students;
- Availability of visual clarity
(Flashcards) and video for interactive whiteboards (CD - ROM WAY AHEAD).
An analysis of textbook "WAY
AHEAD" showed that its use in English lessons in secondary schools will
enable students to master the material in accordance with the requirements of
the educational standards in primary and secondary schools in the area of
language skills formation and development of speech skills of students,
ensuring at the same time level of communicative competence necessary for
communication between children from eight to twelve years old.
Presented in the textbook "WAY AHEAD" materials
enable students to master the basics of working with different types of
authentic materials, form and language skills, develop verbal skills to
communicate in real-life situations. The material of social and cultural plan,
presented in various components of the training manual, promotes students'
social competence.
Literature:
1. Printha Ellis and Mary Bowen. Macmillan Publishers Limited, Teacher’s
Book, 2004
2. Printha Ellis and Mary Bowen. Macmillan Publishers Limited, Pupil’s
Book, 2004
3. Printha Ellis and Mary Bowen. Macmillan Publishers Limited, Workbook,
2004