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Cascade Master Trainer Notes Primary (Final)
Cascade Master Trainer Notes Primary (Final)
Primary
September 2016
Course overview
Aims
To introduce the CEFRs core conception of language learning
To introduce the CEFRs six level framework of language proficiency
To raise awareness of language learning pedagogy perspectives in the CEFR
and implications for curriculum, teaching methodology and assessment
To induct participants into the characteristics of input (listening and reading)
and output (speaking and writing) for relevant CEFR levels
To encourage participants to reflect on how CEFR could impact on areas of
education in Malaysia
To plan and consider how to use the CEFR in the classroom
Seminar delivery
The material is intended to be used as a workshop rather than a presentation. Some
trainer-talking time is unavoidable, but aim for maximum audience participation.
Type of support
Use of the common L1 (Bahasi) as needed.
For activities, create groups with mixed English language ability.
Encourage stronger members of the group to explain what weaker
members may not fully understand.
Doing the task together at the beginning.
Doing the first few questions together.
Going through the handouts for things that are not clear.
Splitting the task up and asking different groups to do different parts of the
task.
Rationale The aim of this section is to introduce the aims of the training
programme and introduce participants to the CEFR and provide an
overview of the CEFR scales.
Timing 3 hours
Slides 1-2 Introduction: Welcome, ice breaker and set None 15 minutes
up for sessions
Slides 3-7 Introducing the CEFR: Global impact and None 10 minutes
key terminology
Slide 1
Show the title slide in background. Introduce yourself, welcome the participants and
explain the purpose of the workshops briefly. Invite participants to talk for a few
minutes with someone sitting close to them that they do not know well. They should
exchange information about what, where and how long they have been teaching.
Complete a short icebreaker task that will allow participants to mingle as a warmer
to the session. This could be a warmer of your choice e.g. find someone who. One
option is to give each person a sticky label and ask them to write four words or draw
4 mini images on the sticker, which represent important things about themselves
(e.g. a picture of 2 stick figures to represent their children; a word that represents a
hobby, etc.) Ask them to stick this on and mingle for 6 - 8 minutes, speaking to at
least 3 other people they dont know/know least. They should try to guess what each
persons sticker is showing by asking and answering questions.
Allow the participants to mingle and get to know each other. Bring the task to a close
and ask for some feedback what have they found out about each other?
Slide 2
Briefly clarify what you will be doing in Session 1 referring to the slide. Emphasise
that the aim is to introduce the CEFR, why it is useful, the six proficiency levels and
an overview of the scales. Explain that you will then start to look in more detail at the
CEFR and will continue to do this over the remaining sessions, covering all the skills.
Check the materials and make sure that everyone has the necessary handouts (see
materials section), which include any additional activities planned. Explain that the
training will be a mixture of presentation and participant activities.
Reassure participants that they shouldnt worry; that the presenters were in the same
situation recently, but that by the end of the course they will know all about the
CEFR. Remind participants that the aim of the course is to introduce the CEFR and
that participants will not be expected to start using it until later in the Roadmap, and
that, before this happens, there will be more training, but this is in the future.
Slide 3
Ask participants if they know anything about the CEFR. Elicit a show of hands rather
than ask for any details. Explain that by the end of the session they will know a lot
more.
Slide 4
Show slide: What do you think the map shows? Ask trainees to work in pairs and
give them one minute to discuss. Elicit back a few ideas.
Slide 5
Clarify that the CEFR is now the de facto world standard and is being used
internationally to identify and measure language achievement in educational systems
around the world. Point out that it is being adopted in Malaysia. Note that it is has
been translated into over 40 languages including Chinese and continues to be
Slide 6
Explain the impact of the CEFR internationally by running briefly over the points on
slide 6, showing the CEFR impact in different regions of the world. Note that despite
originating in Europe the CEFR has more and more currency outside of Europe and it
is increasingly difficult to talk about language ability without reference to the CEFR
proficiency levels.
It is translated into over 40 languages including Chinese.
If anyone asks about the differences between the projects or asks about the
difference between Educational language policy and incorporating the CEFR into
their educational systems, tell them not to worry.
Slide 7
Explain that participants may hear different ways of referring to the CEFR: they may
have heard people refer to the Common European Framework of Reference as
CEFR as CFR or CEF. It originated in Europe hence the E for European - but as
the framework is being used now across the world, more and more people are
dropping the E (hence CFR). This presentation will use the term CFR without the E
even though we will spell it with an E.
Slide 8
Explain that you will now look in more detail at the features and uses of the CEFR but
before you do, briefly ask participants what the CEFR is and why it is useful.
Elicit brief ideas from participants. 1-2 minutes
If earlier with slide 3 it was clear that there was knowledge about the CEFR in the
room, put participants into small groups and ask them if they can think of one or two
uses. If they cant, no problem feedback immediately as a whole group.
Slide 9
Briefly discuss some of the history and background to the CEFR:
The CEFR is the result of developments in language education that date back to the
1970s. The landmark publication (often referred to as the blue book) appeared in
2001, which was the culmination of 10 years of meetings and a consultation process
involving language educators and learners throughout Europe but informed by
research beyond Europe.
The development of the CEFR was supported by the Council of Europe and was
created to have a common language to talk about and compare language ability
across countries and across languages. This was particularly important in Europe
where free movement of people within the European Union meant that there was a
need for a mechanism to compare and recognise language qualifications from
different countries and institutions. This feature is also what makes it useful beyond
Europe: it allows countries to compare learning outcomes with other countries.
Slide 10
The CEFR is an important tool for those involved in language education. The aims of
the developers of the CEFR are:
This is what we spoke about many times during the workshops in Kuala Lumpur. The
CEFR is a view of language as communication; everything flows from that. For us in
the workshops this means 1) the scales 2) how this view of language affects teaching
and testing.
Slide 11
John Trim was an expert in the field of phonetics, linguistics, language teaching and
policy. He taught phonetics and set up the Department of Linguistics at Cambridge
University, and lectured and conducted seminars in around 40 countries. Most
notably he was director of the Council of Europes Modern Languages Projects from
1971 to 1997, where he was responsible for the composition, piloting and publication
of the Common European Framework for Languages (CEFR), of which he was part-
author.
Note that the concepts are based on an international approach. Ask participants to
work in pairs and read the description on the slide. Ask them to find any phrases or
Slide 12
Show the answers:
central point of reference
international system
cooperating institutions
shared by all
Link these concepts to what has been discussed to this point the CEFR is designed
to bring transparency and coherence in language education. The CEFR gives
learners, teachers, policy makers a common language to talk about language
proficiency which allows for comparisons within and across borders, thus improving
cooperation and understanding of effective and efficient language learning (i.e.
transparency and coherence).
Slide 13
Put trainees into small groups and ask them to discuss how the CEFR could be used
(keep it general at this point). Give them 2 - 3 minutes to list as many ideas as they
can.
Elicit their ideas and see how many uses they can identify.
Slide 14
Tell participants to look at the uses and identify which ones they have listed. Explain
that some of these uses will become or are already relevant to the Malaysian context.
After one minute, ask them to work in groups of 3 - 4 and compare what they have
listed and why. Give them 4 - 5 minutes. Briefly discuss how similar or different
peoples choices are.
Note: The CEFR emphasises plurilingualism (see Section 1.3; pages 4 - 5 in the
CEFR Book/PDF for a definition).
KEY:
Participants own answers, but answers that may feature in the discussion are:
A: Current curricula and materials may benefit from being aligned with international
standards to strengthen their definition in terms of delineation of skills and clarify
learning objectives across phases of the curriculum, which could result in a greater
sense of progression within and across learning materials. The Cambridge Baseline
study reported on lessons consistently lacking in degree of challenge which can be
tied to the idea of clearer definition being needed for different levels.
The CEFR is an important framework which will become key in the Malaysian
context. Therefore this training programme aims to introduce the core conceptions of
the CEFR, familiarise them with the framework and related implications for pedagogy
and assessment and prepare them to cascade this knowledge to other educational
practitioners in Malaysia. Highlight the fact that this is just a taster course because it
would need a month to really go into the CEFR in great depth. Explain that when they
open the CEFR book, there will be a lot of additional information that you wont really
have time to talk about, but you hope that this taster course will give teachers the
basic knowledge of (and enthusiasm for) the CEFR, as well as the tools to be able to
find out more information about the CEFR after these training sessions have finished.
Slides 16
The next part of this session will focus on the view of language learning underlying
the CEFR and the six reference levels. Before doing this, start with an activity:
K (I know) W (would like to know) L (learnt) activity (to be picked up again at the end
of the session)
Complete a KWL chart. Pin up 3 or 4 large sheets of paper on the walls and write the
letters K, W, L as titles across the top of each paper. Explain K means I know, W
means I would like to know and L means I have learnt. Tell them to ignore the L
for now. Give participants some sticky notes and group them in roughly equal sized
groups around each paper. Ask them to write down what they already know and want
to know about the CEFR on the sticky notes and stick them in the appropriate column
e.g. if there is information they know they should note it on the sticky note and put it
under K, if they have heard something they dont understand they should note it and
stick it under W. Give them 4 - 5 minutes. Once finished, elicit a few ideas and
reassure them if there are aspects they dont know, you will come back to these later.
Use this information to know how to pitch the rest of the sessions and decide whether
alternative activities should be included.
Slide 17
Explain that the CEFR has two key areas of focus and show the slide. Elicit the two
key areas from participants:
Can-do approach; focus is on what can be done rather than what cannot be done
(i.e. a positive focus rather than deficit focus).
Handout 2
Give participants Handout 2 and ask them to work in pairs and try to complete the
gaps. Recommend they work upwards through the levels in all such activities,
starting from A1. Give them approximately 5 minutes. Elicit back some ideas briefly
and then show the next slide, which contains the answers.
The core view of language learning in the CEFR is that learning a language is
essentially a process of learning to use language to perform communicative acts -
either in social contexts with others or in private contexts in communicating with
ourselves. These are shaped by the different forms of language activity of which
they are comprised, which can be described in terms of four broad categories :
reception, production, interaction and mediation. The process of engaging with
texts - spoken or written -in these different ways requires language users to draw on
a range of communicative language competences [linguistic, socio-linguistic,
pragmatic] to negotiate communication with flexibility in a variety of contexts.
Performing tasks in different contexts, to the extent that these tasks are not routine
or automatic and subject to different conditions and constraints, will require
learners to use different strategies for their successful completion. It is this broad
conception of language use and emergent communicative competences that
underpins the action-oriented approach to language teaching and learning
embodied in the CEFR.
These concepts will come up again and again because they are core to the CEFR
and are discussed in detail in Chapter 2, pages 9-16.
Emphasise the fact that the CEFR is about what learners can do rather than what
they cannot do which is an important distinction.
Slide 19
The CEFR describes language ability at six levels with A1 being the lowest level and
C2 the highest. The levels are grouped into 3 broad categories - basic user,
independent user, proficient user. These terms (basic, independent and proficient)
replace the traditional terms of beginner, intermediate and advanced which are often
defined differently by each user, institution and country, which makes it hard to
understand what these terms actually mean when we are discussing language ability.
C2 (proficient user) is the highest level: C1 and C2 are both proficient user
levels.
A1 (basic user) is the lowest level: A1 and A2 are basic user levels.
For each level, the CEFR describes in depth the language knowledge, skills and
competencies necessary for effective communication. The levels have been scaled
empirically (scaling is described in Appendix A; pages 205 - 216).
Handout 3
Give out Handout 3 and ask participants to read the illustrative descriptions of three
different levels. Explain these are global descriptions. Ask them to talk in pairs and
decide where each one might fit on the scale. Elicit back some ideas. Then direct
them to page 24 Table 1 and ask them to check their answers.
KEY:
1B 2A 3C
Elicit back the correct answers from the book. Explain this table is important for
understanding the overall criterial features for the CEFR levels.
Slide 20
Shows the answers for Handout 3 and where the descriptors are in the global scale.
Now explain to participants that they will look in more detail at how descriptors differ
by level.
Ask participants to look at Handout 4a and underline the key differences between
levels on poster paper in groups (identify criterial features).
Next, look at Handout 4b and plot their knowledge of a foreign language in two skills
of their choice. Point out that this is a scale that could be used with learners as the
focus is on I can rather than can do. Ask them to work alone first of all. They should
think about a language they have learnt or are learning and plot where they think
they are on the scale.
After a few minutes ask them to work in pairs and explain to their partner where they
positioned themselves, clarifying why they placed themselves on particular points of
the scale. Elicit back some ideas.
KEY:
Key is on slide 21
Slide 21
Discuss some of the key criterial features that distinguish levels. Reassure
participants that they will be watching video and reading pieces of writing soon so not
to worry if it isnt all clear. Point out the descriptors are positive (do not focus on
deficits but on what can be done). The colouring is for highlighting only: it has no
other significance.
B1= is perhaps most categorised by two features. The first feature is the ability to
maintain interaction and get across what you want to. The second feature is the
ability to cope flexibly with problems in everyday life.
A2=has the majority of descriptors stating social functions and getting out and
about.
A1=is the lowest level of generative language use - the point at which the learner
can interact in a simple way, ask and answer simple questions about themselves,
but communication is totally dependent on repetition at a slower rate of speech,
rephrasing and repair.
Also, point out that there are plus levels (A2+, B1+) to indicate a stronger
performance within the same level.
Slide 22
Summarise by using the car metaphor. Show them the slide and elicit how they think
this is comparable.
When you learn to drive a car you need to learn the basicsthe mechanicsso this
is grammar and vocabulary and knowledge of the sounds of a language. You then
need to apply that knowledge driving in different situations e.g. in heavy traffic or in a
highway or in a quiet street with no other cars or when its raining (i.e. when
conditions are difficult) it is the same with all skills. As you move up the CEFR
levels, you are more able to process language and produce language in a range of
communicative situations and with greater degrees of accuracy (fewer accidents).
Slide 23
Thinking of the CEFR as a cone is relevant because as you advance up the levels,
the breadth and depth of knowledge increases, so each level does not contain the
same amount to learn and it usually takes longer to move from one level to the next
as you progress up the levels.
Emphasise that learners need to extend their skills across the levels and not just
focus on going up the scale. It is very useful to think of the CEFR as having two
dimensions; vertical and horizontal. Most users are focussed on the vertical
dimension, going up the levels, but you can also progress by broadening your
abilities within a level (to do be able to read more types of texts or for different
purposes, domains: to be able to move from being only able to use language in the
familiar / personal or public domains to the educational or occupational domains.
Handout 4 can be referred to again as required.
Handout 5
Give out Handout 5 and ask participants to work in pairs and use the grid to fill in
details on the levels. Give them 5 minutes to work on this. Slide 24 contains the
same information as Handout 5.
Slide 24
Explain that now you will look at a few levels which are most relevant for participants
educational stage in more detail.
Primary pre-A1, A1, A2,
Info on levels is found in Section 3.6 on page 33-36 but these pages also introduce
the plus levels (A2+, B1+, etc.):
A2=has the majority of descriptors stating social functions like use simple
everyday polite forms of greeting and address; greet people, ask how they are and
react to news; handle very short social exchanges; ask and answer questions about
what they do at work and in free time; make and respond to invitations; discuss what
to do, where to go and make arrangements to meet; make and accept offers. Here
too are to be found descriptors on getting out and about: make simple transactions
in shops, post offices or banks; get simple information about travel; use public
transport: buses, trains, and taxis, ask for basic information, ask and give directions,
and buy tickets; ask for and provide everyday goods and services.
A1=is the lowest level of generative language use - the point at which the learner
can interact in a simple way, ask and answer simple questions about themselves,
where they live, people they know, and things they have, initiate and respond to
simple statements in areas of immediate need or on very familiar topics, rather than
relying purely on a very finite rehearsed, lexically organised repertoire of situation-
specific phrases. However, communication is totally dependent on repetition at a
slower rate of speech, rephrasing and repair.
Have a brief discussion, having them reflect on this information in relation to their
students. Do these levels capture what their students are able to do?
Slide 25
Explain that there are more than 50 of these scales which can be found in Chapters 4
and 5 of the CEFR book. The illustrative scales are grouped into 3 main categories:
language activities, language strategies and language competencies. Refer to p222.
Activities are what you do eg. Lets read the instructions
Strategies are how you cope often if things go wrong eg, I need to monitor and
repair
Competences are what we do to communicate.
Remember if you want to simplify the task, go through one or two examples together
at the start so effectively you are giving the participants some of the answers.
Give out Handout 6 and ask participants to work in pairs.
Handout 6
Give out Handout 6 and ask participants to work in pairs and use the grid to fill in the
activities, strategies and competencies while also indicating whether the activities
and strategies are production, reception or interaction. Give them 10 minutes to work
on this.
KEY:
Slide 26
There are more than 50 of these scales which can be found in Chapters 4 and 5 of
the CEFR Book/PDF. The illustrative scales are grouped into 3 main language
activities which cover the 4 skills, and which are referred to as either productive
(speaking and writing), or receptive (reading and listening) and interactive when
more than one skill is involved.
Then there are the language strategies that are needed to achieve the language
activities; and finally language competencies which cover the linguistic and
sociolinguistic knowledge needed to communicate. These subscales cover different
areas but are applied to the same 6 levels of A1 - C2.
Handout 7
Give out Handout 7 and ask participants to look at the word cloud and identify scale
names by combining the words they can refer to Chapter 4 and 5 for help.
Note-taking
Orthographic control
Creative Writing
Propositional Precision
Text processing
Reading correspondence
Identifying cues
Formal discussion
Turn-taking
Vocabulary range
Vocabulary control
Slide 27
Ask participants to look back at the KWL chart. Ask if they would like to move any of
the post it notes into a new column. Give them a few minutes to do this. Elicit back
what they have moved and why. Then ask them to work in pairs and answer
questions 2 and 3 on the slide. Give them 2 minutes to discuss. Elicit back some
ideas.
Wrap up this session by asking teachers to reflect on what they have learned so far
and the relevance / application of these concepts in their own classrooms.
Timing 3 hours
Slide 47-51 Exploring key terms and notions in teacher- None 20 mins
given L2 listening input in the Primary
classroom
Slide 28
Overview of the session. Consider including a review task from Session 1 (10
minutes).
If you want to get going quickly, simply ask what the key to the project is. Malaysia
has a 10-year Roadmap where English teaching will be revised. All the revisions
refer to and are informed by the CEFR so this is why we need to learn about it. Ask
what the main points are: that it is a view of language as communication; that this
view will have consequences for teaching and assessment (later); that there are the
6 scales to describe language.
Slide 29
Introduce the new topic the Cambridge Baseline Study 2013 which provides a
rationale for why the Malaysian education system might benefit from introducing the
CEFR.
Slide 30
Begin the session by asking participants about the education blueprint and/or
Roadmap in terms of aspirations and the relevance of the CEFR for achieving these
aspirations:
What are the key aspirations for English language learning in Malaysia?
What are the key challenges to learning English in Malaysia?
Participants discuss in pairs for a minute to identify issues and then feed back
together. Be careful as some participants might still feel negatively about some
aspects of the Baseline. Some teachers felt that they werent prepared for the tests.
Tell them this is in the past and that they shouldnt worry.
Slide 31
The Baseline study conducted in 2013 provided a baseline of student and teacher
performance as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the English education
system. The CEFR was used to measure English proficiency and this allows for
comparisons in the future to determine the extent to which initiatives over the next 10
years have impacted on learning and teaching in Malaysia.
Slide 32
Included students and teachers from all states and different types of schools
(urban/rural, Malay, Chinese, Tamil, Religious, Arts, Science, etc.)
Slide 33
All states were represented and here are some pictures from the researchers who
went out to some schools. Ask participants which states they are from.
Slide 34
Measured all 4 skills as well as teacher proficiency and teaching knowledge and
practice. Also reviewed key documents which allowed the report to include a
comprehensive review of the educational system
Slide 36
Can see improvement as students move up the grades but a key finding was
variation in performance within grades. There were strong performances and weak
performances throughout the system.
Slide 37
Good achievement but some students are being left behind.
Slide 38
Point out the number of learners who are not moving beyond A1/A2 levels even into
secondary school
Slide 39
There was also variation by location of school, gender of student and type of class
(subject focus)
Slide 40
Discussion point: Based on the student performance presented in the previous 4
slides: How can the introduction of the CEFR benefit the Malaysian education
system? This discussion may include addressing the issues of why there are both
these strengths and weaknesses in the system.
Link back to how introducing the CEFR can support this (i.e. the CEFR emphasises
communicative interaction)
Slide 41
Note: This is what the learners report this doesnt necessarily mean it is true;
however, there was a lot of variation in this area. Some students are learning English
as their third, fourth or fifth language and dont see the value in it.
Therefore its important to capitalise on this interest, and where it doesnt exist, to
identify ways of generating interest in learning English.
Slide 42
This may be controversial as the teachers did the Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT)
but had not prepared for it so results must be interpreted with some caution. A
common finding from the observations was that teachers were not always
challenging their students. They were giving them activities / exercises which were
too easy. Important to challenge learners which can improve their motivation
(disinterest does not always equal inability to do something).
Slide 43
Read the slide together then do the activity. Ask teachers to what extent do these
findings correspond with their experience of English language education in Malaysia?
Discuss in groups.
Handout 8 (5 - 10 minutes)
Slide 44
(15 minutes) Put participants into groups of four. Ask them to work together and
answer the questions on the slide. Elicit back some ideas. Now ask them to focus on
the areas of difficulty and suggest an activity that would support understanding and
make the content more accessible. Give them a few minutes to work on this and then
share ideas together.
You may highlight that the picture the Baseline paints is generally positive, that there
are solid foundations to build on. Also say that the Baseline also shows that there
needs to be change.
Slide 45
Introduce the topic of the session.
The ability for learners to develop their language skills depends to a large extent on
the type of language input that they receive. For input to be effective for second-
language acquisition, it must be comprehensible. Merely being immersed in a
second-language environment is no guarantee of receiving comprehensible input.
One way that teachers help to make input comprehensible to learners is to modify
and simplify their language in the classroom. In the next few slides we will look at
input and output.
Slide 46
Ask participants to read the overview for the session briefly. Then, ask participants to
rank them according to which they can answer in the fullest detail. Elicit some
responses for statements ranked first.
Slide 47
Introduce the slide by explaining that research on how exactly learners acquire a new
language spans a number of different areas. The focus of much of the research is
directed toward providing proof of whether basic linguistic skills are innate (nature),
acquired (nurture), or a combination of the two.
Give participants a few minutes to read the slide, then ask if they have heard of, or
are familiar with, any of the terminology of Second Language Acquisition, commonly
referred to as SLA. Move onto a brief overview of the terms (below). If they say they
are familiar, ask them if they would like to add or comment on your explanations
afterwards, but avoid putting participants on the spot.
Interlanguage
The language that learners use is not simply the result of differences between the
languages that they already know and the language that they are learning, but a
complete language system in its own right, with its own systematic rules. This
interlanguage gradually develops as learners are exposed to the target language.
Cognitive approaches to SLA research deal with the processes in the brain that
underpin language acquisition, for example how language acquisition is related to
short-term and long-term memory.
Research into Individual factors looks at how SLA can be affected by individual
factors such as age, learning strategies, and affective factors (anxiety, personality,
social attitudes, and motivation).
The differences between adult and child learners is another area of research,
although a great deal of the research compares children learning their first language
with adults learning a second language.
Slide 48
Explain that we are now going to look at some differences between L1 (acquisition)
and L2 (learning) in terms of input and output.
The first column lists sources of input for the L1 child: the parent/carer and language
of the home, which may be directed to them, or language they hear between others
in their environment.
Output appears to play an important role, and among other things, can help provide
learners with feedback, make them concentrate on the form of what they are saying,
and help them to automatize their language knowledge. These processes have been
codified in the theory of comprehensible output.
As participants what they expect to remain the same for the next slide on L2 oral
development in terms of input/output. Discuss in pairs.
Slide 50
Participants read the slide. Discuss how critical the classroom is as a source of
comprehensible input and output.
Conditions for acquisition are especially good when interacting in the second
language; especially when a breakdown in communication occurs and learners must
negotiate for meaning. The modifications to speech arising from interactions like this
help make input more comprehensible, provide feedback to the learner, and push
learners to modify their speech.
Slide 51
Participants read the slide. Discuss how this can be applied to the classroom in
Malaysia.
Slide 52
Use this slide to do a sample activity that illustrates some of these concepts where
you ask different learners to make different animal shadow shapes on the board and
then to perform different movements to show actions : run snail run eat the snail Mr
Bird etc..
Slide 53
Use this slide to consolidate some of the learning points from the activity on the
previous slide.
Slide 54
Use the next three slides to explore CEFR A1 and A2 Listening comprehension
scales and look at the types of activity that fit the can-do perspectives described here
for younger children.
Slide 55-7
Participants read the slides.
Slide 58-59
Use these slides to focus on how listening can be graded by modifying both input and
task.
Slide 60
Use the activity: Watch, Listen and Speak, Make, Decorate and Fly a paper plane
which involve making responses to prompts as well as receptive skills to
demonstrate some features of pre-school listening and speaking activity.
Slide 62
If there is time, participants can go to You Tube to view some examples.
Slide 63
Participants read the slide. Remind them that these are the implications for the
classroom in order to supply regular comprehensible input, which is essential for
language acquisition.
Slide 64
Consolidation and Reflection: ask participants to review what they learned by
discussing the questions in pairs.
Slide 65
Wrap up activity to review some of the key concepts covered so far. Have
participants reflect on what was most useful to them and how they might apply what
they have learned today in their own classes.
Handout 10
Give out Handout 10 and ask participants to discuss in groups the terms that we
have seen today. How do they relate to the CEFRs perspective on language learning
and assessment?
Key:
Teachers own answers but possible further sample ideas in blue
Key training outcome Activity/ interaction Adaptation for
cascading
De facto world standard Identified the scope and Teachers could predict
influence of CEFR the possible areas on a
map before looking at the
P/W discussion about slide.
map
Key aims of CEFR as Three broad aims on Trainer could show first
intercultural, shared slide. aim and ask trainees to
knowledge predict areas other two
P/W discussion about hidden aims might relate
other aims. to
Common uses of CEFR Slide highlighting different Trainer could ask trainees
uses to rank uses which could
most immediate impact in
P/W ranking activity Malaysia
Key:
independent: describes the B2 level/independent user
service interactions: spoken text type that A2 learners can begin to engage with
strategies: Primary Speaking and Competence Strategies (use of strategies such
as repair, effective turn-taking helps facilitate communication); learners have to use
strategies to perform tasks successfully.
production: features in CEFR scales of spoken and written production
fluency: spoken fluency is one of the descriptive speaking scales
Rationale
to raise awareness of spoken production and spoken interaction competences
described in CEFR scales and to reflect on how these relate to Primary learners
Timing 90 minutes
Procedure
Slide 66
Start with a brief warmer. Ask trainees to turn to the person next to them and choose
two adjectives describing how they are feeling at the start of the third session and
why. Elicit a few examples back and explore if others are feeling the same.
Slide 67
Introduce the topic for the day.
Slide 68
Tell participants that first we are going to look at one clip to analyse and understand
how the CEFR sees language. Elicit that communication is the key. Reassure them
that they will be watching the levels later, for now they are simply looking at how the
After the clips ask participants to compare notes. Elicit back ideas drawing out
concepts of what they think the learners were able to do which made the interaction
successful or less successful. Ask them to identify what kinds of skills and strategies
good speakers use that might be included in the CEFR scales. Elicit their thoughts
and then say you will try to apply this further.
Handout 12
Key:
Obviously participants own answers, but may feature:
pronunciation: individual sounds, accent, intonation, stress
interactive ability, fluency, turn-taking
accuracy of language: grammar, vocabulary
range of language and expression
promptness of response
relevance of ideas
expansion of answers
Slide 69
Use Handout 13, which links back to the video clips, to give participants an overview
of the spoken production scale and to focus in particularly on the A1 and A2 levels
Starters candidates like those in the clips are usually operating at A1level.
Handout 13
Masa Solid A1
Masa is a good example for solid A1: he has a basic repertoire of words and simple
phrases to talk about very everyday matters: Im eleven years old, This is a
computer, but this is, happy, sea, Kai is tall, but Leo is same, my same. He can
answer questions about personal details, but need quite a lot help to overcome the
pauses
Maria pre-A1
Maria is a good illustration of very weak A1. In the first part she understands most of
the questions and can follow some of the instruction when she is told to put things on
the picture. She produces one or two very short phrases brown, dark brown, in
sitting room, no idea, but most of the time she answers with single words: This?
Fish, pink, books. She can answer questions about personal details, but is totally
dependent on the other person.
Lucas solid A2
Lucas speaks at A2 level: he can make himself understood in short sentences and
utterances despite false starts. He can initiate and respond appropriately and he
maintains the conversation: eg and the music and he uses basic linking: eg so,
and maybe. There is some control of simple structure and a basic range of
vocabulary in this context: eg I would like to eat cakes and candies, and to drink,
what do you want to drink?
Marc strong A2
Marc is strong A2: he can make himself understood in short sentences and
utterances despite pausing to plan what he wants to say: for example, before talking
about what drinks there will be at the party. He can respond appropriately and
maintain the conversation in this context: eg what do you want to prepare? using
basic linking: so, because it my birthday. There is some range and accuracy with
simple structures: eg I want to listen, if you want.
Slide 70
Give out Handout 14, which presents exam tasks. Ask them to work in small groups
and match the task type with the level. Tell them to think about the types of
interaction and production that would be needed in each level to help them identify
the level.
Elicit answers and feedback. Before moving to the next slide elicit from participants
any area that they think has not yet been considered in the scales. Elicit the idea of
pronunciation. Tell the participants not to worry and that they will look at this in
another session.
Key:
Task 1 B1
Task 2 B2
Slide 71
Speaking involves various types of interactions as well as production. It is important
to ensure that learners are given different types of interactions in order to develop
their speaking skills. We as teachers need to give our students opportunities to
practice all these interactions.
KEY
A1
short question and answer sequences short statements short dialogues
responses to prompts
A2
dialogues, service interactions, phone conversations, interview sequences,
announcements, voicemails, personal anecdote telling
B1
collaborative discussions quiz forums short presentations using visual prompts
B2
problem-solving group discussions , presentations using visual, graphic or written
media, radio phone-in discussions, short news and documentary features
Slide 72
Clarify that for each CEFR level there are five key qualitative aspects to spoken
language use. Show the characteristics on the slide. Point out that these aspects are
particularly useful when designing learning tasks for speaking and for assessing
speaking performance. (see Table 3, pages 28 - 29)
Start by discussing briefly what each word means. Finish by eliciting Which of these
dimensions is most important currently in your context? Which do you think is most
important in the CEFR?
Handout 16
Give out Handout 16 and ask participants to work in pairs and match each descriptor
with a heading. Give them 3 - 4 minutes to complete and then elicit their answers.
KEY:
Slide 73
With this slide the focus of the session shifts to looking at how teachers/interlocutors
typically engage Pre-school learners in speaking in the language learning classroom.
Use the slide and handout 17 to open discussion as to why these techniques help
generate talk with younger learners
Handout 17
No key: participants own views.
Slide 74
Use the next series of slides to go over different types of enabling techniques with
children such as: modelling, drilling, recasting which support child spoken output and
different tools that teachers can use to engender pre-school learner speech.
KEY:
comprehend
formulate
produce
respond
answers
Contributions
-correction
engagement
Slide 75
Use this to look at ways to engage learners in self-correction. Demonstrate with the
support of participants that you ask to make deliberate mistakes.
Avoiding echoing is important to show learners that you understand their meaning
without the need to repeat what they say. Think about everyday conversation: it
would be most unnatural to repeat everything other people in your conversations
said.
Slide 76
Presents different techniques that can be used when drilling language with children.
Drilling is one of the key ways that teachers can model spoken language for children,
breaking language down into chunks and then running it altogether to highlight how
sounds are linked for example.
Back-chaining for example helps learners pick up the rhythm of English sentences. It
is a technique where teacher models the last word in an utterance first and works
back along the other words before putting the whole utterance together. Such
classroom techniques focus on enabling [CEFR term] learners to take part more
effectively in communication. Learning how to hold a pencil and write letters of even
size on lines would be analogous enabling skills in learning to write.
Slide 77
Considers some of the advantages in using pair or group work in speaking lessons,
essentially allowing more time for learner spoken output.
Elicit from participants which techniques they use.
Slide 78
Is a reminder of the different tools that teachers can use to engender Primary
learner speech the kind of support that helps T to get younger learners speaking.
This slide can thus be used for consolidation with participants encouraged to share
an example of something related to each point that they have encountered in this and
the previous session.
Slide 79
This slide is designed to generate discussion around the points peculiar to child
directed speech which CEFR does not address. The slide presents the perspective
that with children there is a trade off in language learning between focusing on
authentic interaction and engaging in spoken output more as emotional response
activities.
Rationale
to introduce the global reading scales and the notion of a global reading construct.
to raise awareness of literacy onset issues that will be prevalent with children at Pre-
A1 and A1 CEFR levels and consider particular complexities of the English code and
how these might present problems for early Primary readers
Timing 90 minutes
Procedure
Slide 80
Introduce the focus of the session
Slide 81
Put participants into small groups (3-4) and ask them to discuss the questions briefly.
Use the questions on the slide to generate discussion around subject of teaching
early primary children to read. Encourage participants to discuss the questions from
the perspective of their own classroom experiences.
Handout 18
Recognising lower case and upper case letters
Recognising CVC words
Recognising common written words in the environment
Recognising sound-letter relationships
Blending letter strings together
Learning the alphabet
Recognising basic punctuation marks
At this stage, accept answers and then use the rest of the session to give a clearer
outline of how these different ideas fit within a broad early literacy framework.
Slide 83
Use these next two slides together with Handout 19 to consider some of the early
Reading processing skills involved in decoding written text. In Session 6 a fuller
model of the Reading construct relating in a more detailed way to levels of text
comprehension and interpretation of written meaning in the CEFR will be presented.
Handout 19
Key:
Task 1 lexical search
Task 2 word recognition
Task 3 syntactic parsing
Slide 84
Look at the simplified version of the model in the handout and and explain the
version on the slide is organised from the top to the bottom, rather than working
upwards from the bottom as the handout version does.
Slide 85
Use slides 85 86 to discuss early literacy issues such as complexities in the English
code: letter names do not sound like the most common sound of the letter they
represent, lower case and upper case letters on the whole do not look alike etc..
These facts should at least give practitioners pause to think about universal methods
for teaching early reading skills. Phonics ,for example, is a widely used
methodology but how many teachers using phonics find English sound letter
relationships quite impenetrable at times. English does not have a phonic alphabet
as the fact that there 44 sounds in English and only 26 letters should demonstrate.
This does not mean that we should not use techniques with children that encourage
them to see sound letter relationships but relying exclusively on such approaches
may not be the most effective way to get children reading quickly and effectively
which should be one of our main literacy goals.
Awareness of aspects of the English written code such as these helps early literacy
teachers in their task of getting young children get to grips with processing written
English.
Slide 86
Put participants into groups of 3-4 to discuss the questions. Feedback in plenary.
Key
A lot is claimed for different systems and approaches but most logically as English
has 44 sounds and as children acquire sounds before letters it makes sense to see
English from a childs perspective as a sound to sound picture [letter/digraph] code.
Thought of this way teachers can introduce learners to sound and sound picture
relationships systematically but will probably want to support such approaches with a
range of others that we will consider in this session and the next.
Slide 88-89
Use these slides to show participants that they should already be intrinsically aware
of how common/frequent different sound - sound picture realisations are in English
and that this is something that may possible guide them in thinking about when to
introduce learners to different sound pictures.
Ask a volunteer to sound out the words in the first column to illustrate the same
phoneme written in different ways. Ask participants to predict the frequency of the
words in the list, starting with the most common. Slide is animated to reveal the
second column in descending order.
Slide 90
Ask participants to look at the examples for /s/. What do these words tell us about the
phoneme /s/? The slide shows how this information is typically represented in
different kinds of wall chart for early readers. Ask participants if they are familiar with
a THRASS chart or if they use other sound/picture charts in their teaching: there may
be examples in the room you are training in. If they are not familiar, go to the link
here:
http://www.thrass.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Parent-Notes.pdf
Slide 91
Shows a systematic sequence for those wishing to follow a systematic
phonographic thread in structuring early literacy content in presenting sound
sound picture relationships to children. If slide 87 represents Phase 1, teachers move
progressively on to
- Consonant blends
- Consonant digraphs
- Split vowel diagraphs [sometimes called magic e
- Vowel digraphs
- Sound picture environment in words
- Variation in English code [one sound different sound pictures]
- Overlap in English code [one sound picture different sounds]
The idea here is that sound grasp of relationships at one level prepares children for
the complexities of the next and the approach is consistent in always presenting
sound to sound picture relationships.
Slide 92
Presents the key early skills that children need in making sound and sound picture
relationships in words : blending, segmenting and manipulation. Another strength of
the approach is it allows children to encode e.g. spell as well as decode read using
the same principles.
Slide 94
Participants look through the list and identify areas which are familiar/already part of
classroom practice in Malaysia; and which are new concepts for their context.
Slide 95
This slide can be used to introduce the idea of a completely different approach [some
would argue necessarily complimentary approach] if we are to engage children with
reading whole text/books/stories quickly.
The table represents 100 of the most common words in English. They are mainly
structure words and because they all originate from earlier forms English are not
orthographically regular. The sight-word approach often taken with these words
involves getting learners to visualise/memorise them as whole words rather than
break them down. Where learners have good recognition of these words they can
start to process short texts more quickly and their reading speeds will increase. This
is why many primary teachers like to combine more phonic/graphemic approaches
with sight-word ones.
Slide 96
Slide 96 presents a range of principles for guiding early literacy work beyond just
engaging learners with sound sound picture and graphemic patterns.
More meaning-focused decoding work which aims to get children engaging with texts
as soon as possible. The idea of sight-words is that the most common words of
English are not easily accessible in terms of basic CVC phonic approaches so if we
want children reading whole books [e.g. following script in Big Books] we need to find
ways for them to visualise these common structure words as whole words. Multi-
sensory approaches e.g. experiencing letter and word shapes through touch or
drawing can also be helpful in getting children to visualise words.
Slide 97
Use slide 97 to round off by revisiting some of the key concepts/terms looked at in
this session for developing pre-A1 CEFR level decoding skills Participants read
through the list and clarify any terms they are unsure about.
Timing 90 minutes
Slides 103 Eliciting areas covered by the term motor None 10 minutes
skills in writing.
Procedure
Slide 98
Introduce the topic of the session
Slide 99-100
Use these slides to introduce participants to different CEFR scales which relate
to the focus of the session. Refer participants to the relevant sections of the CEFR
handbook to view the full orthographic control and grammatical accuracy descriptive
scales. Highlight for participants that the aim of this session is to explore the motor
and enabling skills that will allow Primary learners to work towards level A1.
Slide 101
Highlight we will be looking at writing from an assessment point of view and not what
people write in their day to day lives. In order to assess writing we need to think
about what aspects of writing we can measure and what writing is: in other words we
need to have a construct of writing.
Slide 102
Use this slide to focus participants on some of the issues we will explore in this
session associated with teaching Writing to early Primary learners at the word/letter
formation/early spelling i.e. where they are working towards achieving A1 level
orthographic control competences.
Slide 103
Use slide 103 to elicit a range of types of writing focus that typically go on in Primary
classrooms. e.g.
- holding a pencil with a firm grip
- writing letters on lines
- writing letters of even size and shape
- forming lower case and upper case letters
- cursive writing and starting letters from an appropriate point
- copying and writing common names
- writing words that are spelled out
- forming/manipulating CVC words
Slide104
The spelling of English words reflects a number of different kinds of influences and
teachers should be open to considering different approaches that will help learners
memorise spelling / grapheme patterns and visualise words
lexical patterning e.g. a word like sign can be seen to be at the heart of all sorts of
words signature signal design etc.
grapheme patterning: certain graphemes are very common some in certain kinds of
words e.g. wh - questions
etymological patterning: perhaps less important for early spellers but can used to
raise awareness of words from different roots c from French/Latin city citadel
citizen
Slide 105
Highlights for participants that many of the common words of English from old
English roots as with the sightword slide from the previous session contain
grapheme patterns that phonic-oriented work will not allow Primary learners
to decode/encode using early acquired phonic rules and yet these words can be
critical for early engagement with text. Whole word recognition/memorisation/
visualisation techniques are probably better for these sort of words.
To demonstrate this bring 3 participants to the board. On the board write a random
selection of 14 words from the list on slide 95. Ask participants to memorise the
words [visualise them] and then ask them to turn around. Remove one word and ask
them what is missing when they turn around again. All sorts of variations on this type
of activity: adding words, changing words, writing a misspelt word etc.. can be done
in such visualisation activities
Slides 106
These slides highlight approaches to remembering significant graphemes in
English. Slide 106 shows that learners attention can be drawn to significant patterns
that words typically begin and end with. These could be digraphs as in the examples
or morphological patterns as in the final example.
Slide 107
Shows how activities can focus in on one kind pattern to memorise. Here
phonological patterns involving the magic e.
Slide 108
Promotes memorisation of another kind of patterning, here the grapheme
igh; here learners are encouraged to visualise the word by association with
words of the opposite meaning.
Slide 109
Presents a simple activity for encouraging learners to think of words that share
spelling patterns. A card is given to a learner who says a word with that pattern in it.
It is passed on until a learner cannot think of another word with this pattern in it.
Obviously the learner who ends up with the least number of cards wins.
Slide 110
Rounds off the focus on grapheme patterning by encouraging participants to think of
Significant areas that such work could focus on/be built around.
Syllables that can be highlighted in different words where the pattern is the same e.g.
phone photo
Common CVC words that double consonant with ing running swimming hitting
etc.
illegal endings - spotting words that contain an ending that is not possible in English
Slide 113
Highlights some basic ideas in helping learners to look at print with intent and using
different techniques for remembering the shape/pattern of words. Print is a visual
medium and the techniques looked at here highlight the importance of giving
learners mnemonics for visualising words.
Use slide 113 to prompt participants into talking about multi-sensory and visualisation
techniques they have used in class to promote early literacy engagement.
Slide 114
Use this slide to remind participants of different techniques seen in this
session for engaging Primary learners with English spelling and Handout 20 as a
prompt for getting participants to consider how these techniques can be used
in encouraging learners to record spellings in memorable ways.
Rationale
to introduce the CEFR global reading scale and related descriptive scales and
notions of reading activities, reading purposes and reading strategies that inform
these scales
to explore how the CEFR action-oriented approach to reading can be applied to the
Primary learning context.
Timing 90 minutes
Procedure
Slide 117
Establish the concept of activities, strategies and purposes.
Handout 21
Give out Handout 21 and ask them to work in pairs and categorise.
Key:
Reading Activities
website signs instructions notes correspondence
Reading Purposes
pleasure specific information gist general orientation detailed understanding
reference
Reading Strategies
skimming scanning text structure inference
Slide 118
Show the global reading scale for A2. Ask participants to read it and identify how they
think A1 and B1 will differ. Direct them to the global scales in the CEFR Book/PDF
(see p.69) and ask them to read through the scales quickly and see if they were right.
Handout 22
Give out Handout 22 and ask the participants to complete the information in the
gaps. If you want to challenge them, tell them to close their CEFR books and see
what they can remember. Check and feedback.
C2
Can understand and interpret critically virtually all forms of the written language
including abstract, structurally complex, or highly colloquial literary and non-literary
writings.
Can understand a wide range of long and complex texts, appreciating subtle
distinctions of style and implicit as well as explicit meaning.
C1
Can understand in detail lengthy, complex texts, whether or not they relate to his/her
own area of speciality, provided he/she can reread difficult sections.
B2
Can read with a large degree of independence, adapting style and speed of reading
to different texts and purposes, and using appropriate reference sources selectively.
Has a broad active reading vocabulary, but may experience some difficulty with low
frequency idioms.
B1
Can read straightforward factual texts on subjects related to his/her field and interest
with a satisfactory level of comprehension.
A2
Can understand short, simple texts on familiar matters of a concrete type which
consist of high frequency everyday or job-related language.
Can understand short, simple texts containing the highest frequency vocabulary,
including a proportion of shared international vocabulary items.
A1
Can understand very short, simple texts a single phrase at a time, picking up familiar
names, words and basic phrases and rereading as required.
Slide 119
Look at the simplified version of the model in the handout and go through the terms.
Handout 38
Give out Handout 38 and have the participants match the questions to the levels in
the diagram.
Key:
A1 B2 A2 B2-C2 [depending on text] B1 C1
It is possible that these tasks [depending on the texts they are used with] could target
different CEFR levels of comprehension competence.
This is one of the most testing handouts. If you think participants will struggle, do it as
a group.
Slide 121
Show the descriptor for orientation and ask participants to read it through quickly.
Handout 24
Then give them Handout 24 to read and ask them where it fits on the scale (B1). Put
them in groups of 3 - 4. Ask some groups to adjust the reading and make it more
challenging; ask other groups to adjust the reading and make it less challenging.
Share ideas and elicit from groups which factors made the text easier or more
difficult.
Slide 122
Discuss top down and bottom up and how both occur simultaneously depending on
the strategy / activity etc.
Example
Asking learners to read aloud may encourage bottom-up processing because they
focus on word forms, not meaning.
In the classroom
Learners can be encouraged to use both bottom-up and top-down strategies to help
them understand a text. For example in a reading comprehension learners use their
knowledge of the genre to predict what will be in the text (top-down), and their
understanding of affixation to guess meaning (bottom-up).
https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/bottom
Slide 123
Put participants in small groups and ask them to analyse the tasks and decide if they
would involve mainly bottom-up or mainly top-down activities. Ask them to discuss
for 5 minutes then feedback. Emphasise that in most reading activity both types of
processing are usually happening simultaneously.
Key:
Mainly bottom-up:
finding specific words/numbers in a text
Mainly top-down:
extracting main ideas in a text
using context to guess the meaning of an unknown word
stating explicit and implicit meaning of text
predicting outcomes in a text
summarising ideas in a text
Slides 124
Use slide 124 to highlight for participants how learning to read and engage with texts
represents huge interpersonal, emotional and citizenship goals for children and thus
the importance of teachers finding ways of getting each individual child there. This is
why in our sessions on literacy we have stressed different approaches as each child
will have a different set of needs and any one may the secret for fostering the next
critical step towards greater fluency in Reading.
Slide 125
Can be used to engender discussion around the type of Primary activity than
engages Primary children with text meaningfully in line with the CEFRs can-do
activity orientation. Participants should be encouraged to discuss types of activity
they have experience of.
Read and do activities can often be done in the form of treasure hunt games with
children.
These slides give practical exemplars of tasks following approaches on Slide 125.
Slide 128
Gives ideas of typical activity phases that teachers can deploy when engaging
younger children with stories. Encouraging children to read stories for themselves in
Slide 129
This slide gives teachers some ideas of the type of can-do focuses that can make up
early reading lessons and could possible feature in childrens can-do language
portfolios as objectives achieved.
Timing 90 minutes
Slide 135 Writing descriptive texts and the Creative Handout 25 20 minutes
Writing scale
Slides 138 - Text level Primary Writing activity using the None 20 minutes
139 immediate environment.
Overall timing 90 minutes
Procedure
Procedure
Slide 134
Introduce the session focus by showing Slide 134 and reminding participants of the
overall written production scale which we saw in Session 5 where we
focused on motor skills and early Primary writing focuses
Slide 135
Use the slide to show participants that unlike our previous focus, we are now looking
at demands placed on writers when engaging in the writing of actual texts which are
written with a clear purpose, audience and expected outcome or result in mind. Here
the descriptive scale in question is the Creative Writing scale so we are considering
the production of different kinds of descriptive and imaginative texts for a range of
purposes and audiences which will impact on qualitative aspects of the writing such
as organisation and style.
Handout 25
Give them Handout 25 and ask each pair to match the descriptor with the
appropriate level. After 5 minutes check their answers and guide them to the correct
pages in the CEFR Book/PDF (Creative Writing descriptors p.62). Ask them to scan
through the Written Interaction scales and elicit the types of competencies this
covers. Elicit back a few ideas. Remember this refers to the creative writing scales.
Key:
CEFR Descriptor
level
Can write a series of simple phrases and sentences about their family,
A2
living conditions, educational background, present or most recent job.
A2 Can write short, simple imaginary biographies and simple poems about
people.
A2 Can write very short, basic descriptions of events, past activities and
personal experiences.
Slide 136
As above use the slide and Handout to draw participant attention to the questions of
the type of purpose, audience and result of writing that learners at the
different levels on the CEFR scale can be expected to engage with.
Handout 26
Key:
B2
Can write letters conveying degrees of emotion and highlighting the personal
significance of events and experiences and commenting on the correspondents
news and views.
B1
Can write personal letters giving news and expressing thoughts about abstract or
cultural topics such as music, films.
Can write personal letters describing experiences, feelings and events in some
detail.
A2
Can write very simple personal letters expressing thanks and apology.
A1
Can write a short simple postcard. (if the participants would like the full set)
Slide 137
Handout 27
Give out Handout 27. Participants put the text types from the slide into the table
according to the level of language required to produce each piece of writing.
Ask participants to look at the various text types on the slide and think about what
learners would need to do to be able to produce these text types successfully. Give
them an example (e.g. a postcard is at small sentence level so suitable for lower
levels). Ask them to discuss the other text types in pairs for a couple of minutes. Ask
for group feedback.
Key:
A2 B1 B2
Use slide 138 to remind participants of some of the early writing techniques looked at
in Session 5 where the focus was on writing and spelling words and phrases and use
slide 139 to show how from such focuses e.g. where teachers use script and print in
the immediate environment, lessons working up to more text message level writing
can be built.
Rationale The aim of this section is to understand the approach to teaching and
learning that underpins the CEFR and to review the key concepts
related to Learning Oriented Assessment.
Timing 90 minutes
Procedure
Slide 140
Explain that in this session we will be considering broader perspectives on language
teaching and learning alluded to in the CEFR and that you will explore learning
oriented assessment. Highlight this is key because it explores how all learning and
assessment essentially work together and that knowing more about the CEFR allows
classroom practitioners to apply this knowledge in all aspects of teaching and
learning, not just summative style assessments.
Slide 141
Use Slide 141 and Handout 28 to talk about creating a communicative language
learning classroom environment and broad pedagogic principles relating to active
task-based learning. Some key features of classroom arrangement are:
Handout 28
Obviously participants own answers but their reflections may include:
Slide 142
Elaborate on the slide and aspects in the images using the points below.
1 Modelling
2 Active Learning
Active learning engages students in two aspects doing things and thinking about the
things they are doing. In language classrooms teachers are able to promote the use of
language by creating communicative contexts around affective, physical or problem
solving activities and then have students reflect on strategies they needed to best
complete tasks.
3 Learning Conversations
Learning Conversations is the term used to describe discussion around behaviours and skills that
are instrumental in helping learners effectively achieve task outcomes and thus focus on the
process of learning itself : meta-learning, use of learning strategies and the idea of learning-how-to-
learn.
Collaborative learning is where two or more learners learn through working on tasks
something together. Unlike individual learning, learners are engaged in collaborative
processes: capitalising on one anothers resources and skills (asking one another for
information, evaluating one anothers ideas, monitoring one anothers work. Indirect
outcomes of collaborative learning are learning how to manage tasks co-operatively
seen as an important 21st century skill
5 Differentiation
"Ensuring that what a student learns, how he or she learns it, and how the student
demonstrates what he or she has learned is a match for that student's readiness level,
interests, and preferred mode of learning." [Ann Tomlinson] Teachers can differentiate
through four ways: 1) through task 2) process, 3) outcome and 4) learning environment
based on the individual learner.
6 Cross-curricular links
Working on tasks in English that relate to tasks and content covered in other areas of the
curriculum. The motivation for this may be to engage learners through wider subject
content, play to learner strengths or reinforce skills across different subjects.
Refers to the process of starting where the learner is at rather than racing through a
course content. Modifying approaches and making space in the learning process to
address learners needs.
8 E-learning
Ensuring that learners can optimise learning by effectively using the range of resources
available through computers and the net e.g. reference and media resources and engage
with self-directed learning and processes such as accessing immediate feedback on their
responses.
Slide 145
Use the slide and Handout 29 to generative discussion around what formative
assessment is. Formative processes clearly put adapting to learners ongoing
development at the heart of assessment processes. Ask participants to compare
this to their own experiences of different kinds of assessment process.
Handout 29
Slide 146
Ask participants if they have heard of the term learning-oriented assessment. Ask
participants which of the basic principles reflect what is happening in classrooms and
schools in Malaysia. Move to Handout 30 and set up activity. Remember if you want
to make the task easier simply do the first few together to get the group going.
Slide 147
LOA involves the collection and interpretation of evidence about performance so that
judgements can be made about further language development to promote learning.
Stress that although this diagram looks at first to be quite complex, it is what many
teachers do as a matter of course in their classrooms when monitoring language
activities.
What aspects of this cycle do they think teachers would be familiar with? Unfamiliar
with?
Slide 148
Putting the learner at the centre (and all forms of assessment can support the learner
and learning).
Ask participants what they think this might mean in practice, especially thinking about
the LOA cycle we have just seen.
How might this slide be interpreted by Malaysian teachers in a context they are
familiar with?
Slide 150
All lessons and lesson plans should start with the lesson goals so by the end of the
lesson the teacher and the learners will have some evidence of how far they have
achieved a particular goal or completed a particular task.
Evidence is the basic currency of LOA but evidence can only be collected and
interpreted against a standard or objective. We collect different types of evidence on
learners performance. Evidence is used to monitor and evaluate learners progress
as well as to drive the feedback. The key is that LOA is a systematic approach rather
than an intuitive one.
And so LOA is about setting clear learner objectives and tracking progress on a
regular basis and assessing inside / outside the classroom, and using the gathered
and recorded insights to feed into the teaching cycle.
Experienced teachers do this intuitively, but novice teachers perhaps dont. LOA
attempts to pull it all together, and make it accessible to teachers and learners
through user-friendly materials.
A key role in making all this workable in practice is TECHNOLOGY for recording
progress.
Slide 152
Which of the three bullet points do participants expect future trainees/teachers will
need most support with? How could these concepts be explained the teachers in a
supportive way?
What benefits do participants see for the LOA approach?
Slide 158
Participants discuss what they understand by the terms on the slide.
Slide 159
Language Portfolios:
Bring in the idea of Young Learners starting to create a language passport that
follows them through their school years.
Rationale The aim of this section is to explore and become more familiar with the
scales related to language knowledge
Timing 90 minutes
Procedure
Slide 160
Start with a brief warmer or reflection on what participants have done since the last
session have they applied any concepts/aspects of the training in their teaching
report back.
Point out that there are no language specifications in the CEFR, but that the people
who wrote the CEFR have worked on projects that have produced lists of vocabulary
and language points, and that we will be looking at some of them in this session.
Slide 161
Look at the following sentences: what CEFR level do you think these grammatical
errors are associated with?
Let participants know that these are errors associated with progress from one level to
another (e.g. the first one is moving from A2 towards B1: learners who progress
show improvement in this area).
see http://www.englishprofile.org/images/pdf/theenglishprofilebooklet.pdf (p.25 27)
Slide 162
Ask participants if they remember talking about the scales for phonographic control,
vocabulary range etc. in an earlier session. Then ask them to read the scales for the
two levels shown and pick out the main differences between them. Discuss in pairs.
The scales are on p.112 in the CEFR Book/PDF.
Recommend they think of a learner they know when looking at the scales, to help
contextualise it.
Slide 163
After giving out Handout 31, explain that an influential development in the early
history of communicative language teaching was the work of the Council of Europe in
creating new language syllabi, and they set out to provide syllabi that would meet the
needs of European immigrants. The British linguist, D. A. Wilkins, defined language
using notions and functions, rather than more traditional categories of grammar
and vocabulary.
Notions include concepts such as time, location, frequency, and quantity.
Functions include communicative acts such as offers, complaints, denials, and
requests.
Ask them to look at the functions of language on Handout 31 and decide the level:
A1 (Breakthrough) A2 (Waystage) or B1 (Threshold). Remember our example of
regretting being a B1function as it demands quite high level language and
discourse.
Participants can complete this in pairs. Elicit their ideas and in each case why they
think it is the level they chose. Round up by emphasising that although language is
not mentioned directly there is a certain level of insight because of the functions and
types of words.
Handout 31
Key:
A1
expressing factual agreement
expressing dislike
expressing ability
seeking identification
A2
talking about what people are doing at the moment
making and responding to offers
introducing oneself and other people
asking and answering questions about personal possessions
asking for repetition and clarification
giving warnings and stating prohibitions
giving reasons
B1
talking about how to operate things
describing simple processes
criticising and complaining
expressing purpose, cause and result
drawing simple conclusions and making recommendations
resuming or continuing the topic
persuading people to do something
Slide 163
Show participants the word pay and how it is listed on English Vocabulary Profile.
Look at the levels and the other details (word class; collocation etc.) Ask them to go
onto the website using their own device, choose a word and look it up. Give them a
few minutes to do this and make notes. Then ask them to work in pairs and share
what they found out with their partner.
Ask them to work in groups and assign the words to the appropriate point in the
scale. Put the words on coloured card and ask participants to arrange the words
along a line on the wall, sticking them up with blu tac.
Handout 32
Slide 165
Look at the answers briefly and check if groups were correct.
Elicit the idea that in encouraging and improving language use we are not always
clear about integrating this into skills work or about how to measure vocabulary when
students are doing skills work.
Slide 166
Explain in more detail what English Vocabulary Profile is and demonstrate what it can
do show them examples of searching for language and how the tools can support
them.
Slide 167
Slide 168
This slide suggests where participants should begin to look if they wish to focus on a
pedagogic rather than a formal grammar specification for Primary L2 learners.
The YLE Handbook for teachers [above] which categories structures into Starters
[pre-A1], Movers [A1] and Flyers [A2]. Remember that for Young Learners of English
the structures on Handout 33 are more likely to experienced/learned through
embedded activity contexts rather than formal grammar explanation.
Handout 33
Pre-A1
So do I
I love hippos.
So do I.
A1
Must for obligation
You mustnt give the rabbit cheese
Verb + ing
I went riding on Saturday
Infinitive of purpose
She went to town to buy a toothbrush
Be called + n
A baby cat is called a kitten.
A2.
Be/look/sound/feel/taste/smell like
Whats your new teacher like?
Infinitive of purpose
She went to town to buy a toothbrush
Tag questions
Thats Johns book, isnt it?
Handout 34
Ask participants if they have heard of the English Grammar Profile. As participants
read through the slide, distribute the handout.
Note: The Cambridge Learner Corpus is a multi-million word collection of written and
spoken learner texts collected from all over the world, initially from exam scripts.
Key:
C1 assumed, discovered, felt, found, proved (in The children stories were felt
Passive voice) + infinitive to be the best idea for kids,
after, of course, the pony rides.
A2 Verb+subordinate clause with or without that I knew that you have a new
house too.
These structures comprise one main clause containing
a Noun Phrase and a Verb and a subordinate I think the zoo is an
complement clause with a finite Verb (i.e. a verb interesting place.
inflected for person and tense) (e.g. they thought that
he was always late).
If there is time, participants can look at the English Grammar Profile website. This
could also be an optional activity during the reflection phase on the next slide, or for
follow up activity after the session.
The homepage contains a (6 mins) video of Mike Macarthy explaining what the EGP
is and how the research was carried out.
http://www.englishprofile.org/english-grammar-profile
There is also a link to a demo (7 mins) of how to use the website:
http://www.englishprofile.org/english-grammar-profile/egp-demo
Rationale
Timing 90 minutes
Slides 171- CEFR scales and Primary speaking rating Handout 36 25 minutes
172 scales and exemplar performances
Procedure
Slide 170
Key
Obviously participants own answers but here are some of the obvious interlocutor
behaviours that help facilitate the interaction:
Interlocutor sets the scene and describes action to allow learner to get into
context
Interlocutor moves cards while talking [semantically contingent actions]
and initially only requires learner to point
Interlocutor gives examples and models task
Interlocutor asks open questions
Use these slides to highlight that the learner in the previous activity is working
towards level A1 on the Spoken Production and Spoken Interaction scales.
Highlight for participants that the different criteria that can used to assess candidates
at the A-level by looking at the rating scales in Handout 36
and ask participants to rate the learner using the scale. Massa is towards the top end
of the scale for each criteria.
Masa A1 Solid
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3e7Q97rWW5Q
Masa is a good example for solid A1: he has a basic repertoire of words and simple
phrases to talk about very everyday matters: Im eleven years old, This is a
computer, but this is, happy, sea, Kai is tall, but Leo is same, my same. He can
answer questions about personal details, but need quite a lot help to overcome the
pauses,
Use the slides to remind participants of the target level of competence in the written
production and interaction scales at CEFR level A2
Use slide 176 to focus in on the scope of an assessment task for the A2 level and
slide 177 and Handout 37 to consider criteria on a rating scale for assessing learner
performance at this level.
Handout 37
Key
Candidate A
Band 3
Satisfactory attempt at task. Two elements of the message are clearly
communicated. Information about what time to come is not included. Some effort is
required of the reader, for example with the last sentence
Candidate B
Band 5
Very good attempt at task. All three elements of the message are clearly
communicated.
Band 2
Inadequate attempt at task. Only two elements of the message are communicated.
Information about which DVD to watch is not included. Significant effort is required of
the reader, e.g. DVD is a film and I can you come at 12.30.
Rating Speaking
To do extra Practice rating speaking, use the addresses below and refer to the
scales in the handouts or in the CEFR PDF.
Short commentaries (for most of the videos) and a link to a PDF with longer
commentaries are on the following pages.