CLASS PROFILE

Overview

This is a general English Upper Intermediate class. The course runs for two weeks at IH school, Budapest. This is the beginning of the 2 nd week.
The students have lessons for approximately 120 minutes a day.

The class is monolingual; all students are Hungarian except Nurlan whose mother tongue is Russian. However, he speaks excellent Hungarian.
They are all adults with the youngest student being 24 (Tom) and the oldest 65 (Eva) years old.

The students have been learning English on similar courses before and are familiar with a variety of classroom tasks and activities based on
different methodological practices. They are a very enthusiastic group who are always ready to try out new things.

The majority of students said that they prefer speaking activities and tasks that include group discussions and pair work. A lot of them are quite
fluent and good at communicating their ideas. However, all of them need to improve their accuracy. They are a mixed ability class which means
that it is very important to scaffold tasks, give very clear instructions and allow time for them to process new information. Their knowledge of
grammatical structure is quite sketchy so the input must be very limited to ensure its effectiveness. When speaking they tend to use a limited
number of structures and are often reluctant to actively use new ones.

There are a few very outspoken students, such as Eva, Nurlan and Attila, who tend to dominate the class in open class activities. There are also
some very quiet, risk averse students who need to take time to think about what they are going to say. Therefore, group activities and pair work
are preferred to ensure that every student has an opportunity to participate.

Individual learners

Name Age Reasons for Strengths relevant to the Weaknesses relevant to the Other relevant comments
learning English lesson lesson
Good at producing simple Needs to start incorporating Works very well in small groups. Often is the
utterances on familiar topics. more complex structures into her centre of the group who organizes others.
Edit 40 Travel Has very positive attitude to speaking and writing. Doesn’t like working on her own.
learning and works hard.

Zsozsanna 45 Work Has a solid knowledge of Has quite a strong accent which Needs time to take in new information. Analytical
grammatical structures and is sometimes makes it difficult to learner who requires clear explanations of the
keen on learning new ones. understand her. rules.
 Very active in class.
Has moderate fluency and
Job always works well in class.
Tamas (Tom) 24
(employability) Tries very hard and
improvement is noticeable.
Has a wide range of
vocabulary and uses it well.
Attila 61 Travel
Quite fluent, especially with
familiar structures.
Quite accurate when she
speaks and has good
Edit M. 59 travel
grammatical knowledge
Has a reasonable knowledge
of grammar and just enough
Gaby 39 Work vocabulary to express herself.
She is quick to grasp new
Anita 27 Work concepts and words.
Often has interesting ideas.
A very intelligent student with
a lot of ideas. Always tries to
Tamas 53 Work give full answers. Has a good
range of vocabulary.
Has a decent range of
vocabulary and is able to
express herself in a
Victoria 48 Travel
conversation on a familiar
topic
Eva 65 Personal interest, Eva is very fluent. She speaks
social interaction. a lot and likes learning new
vocabulary.
Has good listening and
reading skills.
Lack of vocabulary and limited
knowledge of structure prevents
him from expressing himself fully.
Needs to improve accuracy of his
written work. Has some problems
with pronunciation on sentence
level.
Lacks fluency especially with
structures she is unsure of.
There are some gaps in her
grammatical knowledge that
impede her progress. Needs
more controlled practice to fill
the gap.
Anita is shy and risk averse. She is
often reluctant to participate and
this affects her fluency.
Listening for details needs
improvement. Can be a little risk
averse.
Has pronunciation problems that
often obfuscate his message.
She has a lack of fluency which
affects her communication.
Requires time for language
searching. Also has a problem
listening for details.
Places emphasis on fluency and
getting her message across and
isn’t concerned about her
accuracy. As a result her speaking
and writing often contains
Quite shy but when in a groups with people who
give him a chance works well and often has
interesting ideas.
Seems to enjoy the classes a lot. One of the first
to start using new vocabulary correctly. Works
well both in groups and in open class discussions
when given a chance to speak.
She is a language teacher (German) and works
very hard in class. However she is a risk averse
learner and needs time to think before she
speaks.
She is reluctant to speak. Very passive learner
who needs a lot of scaffolding and prompting to
speak. Enjoys group work but wouldn’t speak in
open class discussions. Well-traveled and often
has good ideas when working on a task.
Feels a little alienated being one of the youngest
students. Needs personal attention and support.
Has some great ideas but often has problems
expressing them clearly.
Needs a thinking time before giving an answer.
She is a risk averse learner and is often reluctant
to speak in open class discussions. However,
works well in pairs and small groups. When giving
instructions need to check if she knows what to
do.
Eva is a risk taker. She takes every opportunity to
speak up and often dominates the class. Has little
patience when other students don’t understand
what to do as quickly as she does.
 grammatical and spelling
mistakes.
Has a wide range of Has a problem with grammatical Takes lessons very seriously and always tries to
vocabulary, including some accuracy and forming sentences. complete all tasks set by a teacher. He is a risk
Nurlan 42 Travel, study advanced lexis. Is very fluent taker and likes to incorporate new words and
and able to express himself in structures but needs time to think first.
a variety of contexts
Has a good range of Hesitant to speak spontaneously. Very thoughtful, analytical learner. Starts using
Zoltan 40 travel vocabulary and can be quite Accuracy can be a problem when new vocabulary and structures quickly. Works
accurate if given time to think. speaking with fluency. very well in groups.
Works hard, enjoys learning Very risk averse which affects her Very quiet, rarely participates in open class
Travel, social
Szusza 56 new grammar and vocabulary. fluency. Has difficulties when activities. However, works well in groups.
interaction
required to speak spontaneously.

OVERALL AIM

Main Aim:

By the end of the lesson students will be better able to recognize and produce reported speech statements in the context of
constructing a dialogue.

The following aspects of reported speech will be focused on:

 choosing correct tenses in the statements and to deciding when to backshift and when not to

 accurate use of reporting verbs say and tell+subject

…he told me he is going to quit.

…he said that his boss doesn’t like him.

He also told me that he was having a meeting that afternoon

Sub skills: Writing (to write a dialogue following the example)

ANALYSIS

Meaning/Use

“Reported speech is used to convey the message of what someone has said. Words spoken in one place by one person maybe
reported in another place at a different time by another person. Because of this, there are often grammatical differences between
direct and indirect speech. These changes are mostly natural and logical and it is not necessary to learn complicated rules…” (Swan,
1995, p. 501)

Form

Backshif

When using reported speech speakers need to decide whether they need to change the tenses in a sentence to reflect the change of
the situation. If the change is necessary the “one step back” rule is applied:

This afternoon we are having a meeting and I’m really He also told me that he was having a meeting that afternoon and
worried about it. that he was really worried about it.

In this example students need to be asked about the time of the reporting. Point out that the second conversation takes place next
day (see Dialogues A and B) and that is why we need to backshift.

If the change is unnecessary then the tense remains the same as in the original:

…my boss doesn’t like me …he said that his boss doesn’t like him.
CCQs: When did Tamas say it? When did Nurlan report it? Has the situation changed?

Using reporting verbs say and tell+subject

Say doesn’t require a subject: He said (that)…

Tell always requires a subject: He told me…

While these verbs are interchangeable, told+subject can be chosen to highlight who is spoken to.

Example: He told my mum that I wasn’t at school that day. In this example my mum is essential to understand the meaning and the
importance of the sentence.

“that” can be omitted after these verbs.

Tell the students that they can choose whether to use it or not, but mention that they want to have both in their sentences.

Pronunciation

In this lesson we won’t be focusing on pronunciation. Because reported speech is a sentence level structure, phonological problems
appear on the sentence level in rapid colloquial speech only.

TIMETABLE FIT

This is the second week of the two week course. In the first week the lessons were focused on getting to know the students and their
preferences in terms of learning styles and needs. The lessons were mostly focused on lexis. These lessons helped to identify
students’ strengths and weaknesses. I have noticed that a lot of students need to improve their accuracy. Therefore, in this lesson it
is important to place the emphasis on accuracy rather than fluency.

In the previous week text-based presentation was used and the students responded well. I will be using this approach to
demonstrate the gap in learners’ awareness of the grammatical structure and to help them notice it.
ASSUMPTIONS

Linguistic

The concept of reporting speech is clear to them.

Students have basic familiarity with reported speech and backshift.

They are familiar with Present Simple, Present Continuous, Past Simple and Past Continuous tenses and can apply them in the
sentences.

They know the meaning of verbs say and tell.

Classroom management

The students work well in pairs and small groups

They are familiar with text based presentation and will be able to focus on the structure taught

There are a few analytical/logical learners who will need explicit explanations of the grammatical rules. However the majority of the
class enjoy inductive activities and are good at picking out patterns and formulating rules.

ANTICIPATED PROBLEMS

Linguistic:

Problem 1: Ss ask about use of other reporting verbs (ask, think, etc)

Solution 1: Deal with them briefly; show how they work but not go into details.
Problem 2: Ss know the backshift rule and ask about it/try to apply it mechanically.

Solution 2: Explain that they need to look at the time of the reporting; use examples to highlight that the change of tense is not
always necessary.

Problem 3: Ss make mistakes changing pronouns, names, expressions of time and date, etc.

Solution 3: Use examples from the dialogues to explain the changes. Draw their attention to the change of a speaker.

Problem 4: Ss have difficulties forming sentences with reporting verbs say and tell.

Solution 4: Provide examples on the board; highlight the ones in the texts. If there are questions about which to choose explain that
they are mostly interchangeable but tell+subject is often used when we need to know who was spoken to.

Classroom management related:

Problem 1: Since it is a mixed ability class some students will be finishing earlier than others. This is a particular concern for the
controlled practice activity.

Solution 1: Ask earlier finishers to check each other’s sentences while waiting for the one who are still finishing.

Problem 2: When writing a dialogue some students will have difficulties generating ideas for the dialogue.

Solution 2: While monitoring, help the teams that struggle. Give them a few possibilities and let them choose the ones they like
most.
Problem 3: Students avoid using reported speech in the dialogue, relying on general sentences they are more familiar with (this has
been in issue in previous lessons).

Solution 3: Remind the students that they need to use target structures in the dialogues. Monitor and point out where reported
speech is needed.

Problem 4: Setting up the mingle and flash activity can be a challenge because it’s something we haven’t done in the first week.

Solution 4: When giving the instructions, ensure that everyone is listening; be very clear, give the instructions step by step following
with ICQs. Demonstrate with one student.

Problem 5: Some of the students tend to dominate in class and the quieter learners often don’t have a chance to participate.

Solution 5: Call out students’ names when asking for answer and do not let students shout out the answers. In group work, try to
arrange the groups according to students’ personalities and abilities.

MATERIALS:

1. dialogues A and B
2. flash and mingle cards
3. template for writing a dialogue
4. Summary of the lesson

TEACHING AIDS:

1. Whiteboard and markers

 2. Blue tack

Rationale related to Learners’ needs/characteristics

As I mentioned in my background essay, reported speech is one of the high frequency structures and is very important for effective
day-to-day communication. Since the majority of the class said that they needs English to communicate with foreigners, either at
work or in social situations this structure will be valuable for their interaction with people on daily basis. I have learned that forming
reported speech can be difficult for Hungarian students because of L1 interference. For this reason, making a distinction between say
and tell, for example, can be difficult for them.

Also as I could see from the previous lessons a lot of the students’ writing skills are not up to the level and require a lot of
improvement. This particular weakness is the reason why I decided on writing a dialogue as a final task. Writing in groups will help
them to notice structures and spelling and motivate them to want to be accurate.

It has become obvious that most students have a decent vocabulary range but are often unable to form correct sentences which
impedes quality communication. This was the main reason I have decided to put emphasis on form and accuracy rather than on
fluency. When using reported speech it is important to be accurate because of the changes in time and prospective that they need
to convey.

The dialogues that I use in the lesson are not on a particular topic and do not contain any new vocabulary. The reason for this is that
this class is keen on learning new words, in particular students like Nurlan and Attilla, who are very curious about new words.
Students would get distracted if there was new lexis in the lesson and the efficiency of the presentation would decrease. Due to the
time restraint, I chose simple, while authentic, context that they will all be familiar with.

I chose text based presentation approach for two main reasons:

 In the previous lessons this class have been exposed to text based presentations and reacted positively to the approach. It
helps them to see the target structure in context, highlights the knowledge gap and helps noticing patterns. Inductive
activities have worked well because this class is generally good at picking out patterns from examples ( although for analytical
 students, like Edit M and Szoszanna, it is useful to have a clear example of the structures in the dialogues and to provide them
with a summary of the lesson that they can take home for future reference).

 Because of the deictic nature of reported speech, context is crucial for making necessary changes. It helps the students to see
when the backshift is necessary in reported statements and when it isn’t by looking at the sentences from a deictic point of
view by providing the learners contextualized support.

I chose a dialogue for the text based presentation because it is one of the most common forms of communication in day-to-day
interaction. It is how language is used in the real world. Also, even though it is a scripted dialogue it is close to authentic texts.

Commentary word count: 517

Stages and Aims Procedure Interaction Timing

Lead-in T-SS 2-3
min
To generate interest in Ask the students if they have had work problems? What were they? How did
the dialogues; to set up a they solve them? Did they talk to their friends about the problems? Did it
context
Reading for gist
To set up an objective for
the task.
To encourage cognitive
processing of the text
To activate schemata and
identify the knowledge
gap
To check if ss’ predictions
were correct; to show
target language in
context
Noticing target language
To draw ss’ attention to
target language
structure;
to encourage noticing of
TL and its use
help?
10 min
Tell the students that they are going to read a dialogue. When they finish they T-SS
need to answer questions on the board:
“How does Tamas feel?”
“What are the problems he has at work?”
“What is he going to do?”
Ss read the text individually. After they finish elicit the answers the questions. Individual
Tell the students that next day Nurlan is meeting his friend Gaby who works in T-SS
the same company as Tamas. Ask them what they think Nurlan and Gaby will
be talking about and what Gaby’s response might be. Elicit a few suggestions
using the beginning of a sentence written on the whiteboard.
Note down if there are any reported speech sentences and their accuracy.
SS-SS
Ss work in groups of three. They need to write three predictions for the next
dialogue on a handout with the beginnings of the sentences.
SS-SS, SS-T
Hand out the second dialogue. Ss read and check if their predictions were true.
Which groups had the most accurate predictions?
T-SS 5-10
Write three direct speech sentences from the first dialogue on the whiteboard. min
Ask the students to find the corresponding reported sentences in the 2nd
dialogue. Write them up on the board.
Ask them what is different. Elicit the tense change. Ask them if we need to
change tenses every time (NO). Why not? (It’s still true, nothing has changed).
Draw students attention to the reporting verbs say and tell. Ask them how they
are different. Elicit that tell needs an object.
Controlled practice SS-SS
5 min
to focus on and practice Give each student a card with a direct speech sentence. Ask them to rewrite
accuracy in writing the sentence using reported speech. Make sure that they pay attention to the
TIME of the original sentence.

to provide opportunity After each student has finished his/her sentence, they check the sentences
for peer correction; to with their partners and then in groups of 6.
check if the students are
using language correctly. Monitor very closely to ensure that all sentences are correct. Note down ss’
errors for the delayed correction.
Production under time SS-SS,
pressure (flash and mingle 10 min
mingle activity) When all students finished their sentences and the T checked them, ask them
(flexi stage) fold their cards so that they can only show the first part with the direct speech
sentence.

T explains the activity. Ensure that everyone knows what to do. Demonstrate
with one of the students. Use ICQs to ensure that everyone understands the
activity.
to provide ss with an
opportunity to use TL Ss stand up and go to one student from another group. They show them their
under time pressure; sentence. The student needs to say a correct reported speech sentence. If they
to provide opportunities are incorrect the student who has the answer written on the other side,
for the ss to “teach” and explains what is wrong and helps to form a correct sentence. Then they move
correct each other which on to another student from the other group. Continue until they have
speeds up remembering “flashed” all students in the other team.

T monitors and notes down ss’ errors for the FB session. There is no need to
interfere unless someone is still unsure of the procedure.

Feedback
to re-enforce the correct When all ss finished and sat down, T writes examples of ss’ errors up on the T-SS 5-10
use of TL; board and ask the ss to say why they’re incorrect and correct them. If min
To prepare for the writing necessary provide more examples. Use this stage to clarify all problems that
task have come up in the previous activities. Leave on the whiteboard for ss
reference during the next activity.
Writing 10-15
T-SS min
to set up the context for Remind the students about the dialogues they have read at the beginning of
the task the lesson. Tell them that there is more to the story of Tamas, Nurlan and
Gaby.
Explain that Gaby is a close friend of her and Tamas’ boss and that they meet SS-SS
in the evening for a cup of coffee. What do they talk about? Elicit ss’
suggestions.

Tell the students that they are going to write the dialogue now. Remind them
about the time of the conversation in relation to the original one. Show the
template and explain that they need to give a name to the boss. Also point out
that they don’t need to use all the lines on the template. They can decide on
the length of the dialogue.
Tell them that they only have 10 min and that we will choose the most
interesting one.

To focus on the form; Ss write the dialogue on a provided template in groups of three.
To give the ss an Monitor. Keep the students focused, if necessary help.
opportunity to practise
TL in writing
After they all finished, put their dialogues up on the walls in the classroom for 5 min
them to read. Write a number on each paper. T-SS
To sum up the lesson Give each student a small piece of paper and ask them to write a number of
the most interesting one.
See which group won. Congratulate the winners.
Give out the summary handout and dismiss the class.
Materials

Dialogue A
Nurlan and Tamas are best friends. But Nurlan likes to gossip and often talks too much. Read the dialogue.

Tamas: Hi Nurlan, how are you?

Nurlan: I’m good. How are you? You don’t look happy.

Tamas: Yeah, I’ve been having all kinds of thoughts recently. I think I’m going to quit my job.

Nurlan: Really? Why?

Tamas: Well, it’s boring and my boss doesn’t like me. I want to travel a bit and with this job I will never be able to. I want to see the
world!

Nurlan: Okay, I understand the travelling part. But what is it about your boss?

Tamas: Well, she is never happy with what I do. My projects don’t get approved. This afternoon we are having a meeting and I’m
really worried about it.

Nurlan: I don’t know. Maybe you are just taking it too seriously. Look, I have to go now, sorry. Can we talk later? Tonight?

Tamas: Sure. I’m going to Tom’s tonight. See you there?

Nurlan: Yes, great. See you there.

Dialogue B
Nurlan: Gaby, how are you? I haven’t seen you for ages!
Gaby: Nurlan! Hi, it has been a while. I’m fine. How are you?

Nurlan: I’m good. Listen, do you work in a travel magazine now?

Gaby: I do. How do you know?

Nurlan: My friend Tamas works there.

Gaby: Oh, Tamas, I know him. He’s a good writer.

Nurlan: Yes, he is. But he told me that he is going to quit.

Gaby: Really? Why?

Nurlan: Well, he said that his boss doesn’t like him.

Gaby: I’m surprised to hear that. She is very fair.

Nurlan: I don’t know. He said his projects don’t get approved. He also told me that he was having a meeting that afternoon and that
he was really worried about it.

Gaby: Oh, that meeting? It was just about our next month plan. Nothing to worry about it.

Nurlan: I don’t know. He said he’s going to quit because he wants to travel.

Gaby: Why? It’s a great job. And there are opportunities to travel.

Nurlan: I don’t know. He said he was going to come to Tom’s last night, but he didn’t. Maybe I will see him at the weekend.

Flash and mingle cards (small, I will be using A4 sized cards in the lesson)
 Last week Yesterday Wednesday
Maria: I have two children. John: I am meeting my friends this afternoon. Sonya: I’m going to Paris next week.

Reported speech: Reported speech : Reported speech:

Last week Today Two years ago

Dennis: We want to visit our friends this Mike: She doesn’t speak English. Ann: My mother is learning English.
weekend.
Reported speech: Reported speech:
Reported speech:

Last week Yesterday Thursday

Kate: I have three brothers. Will: I’m leaving in the afternoon. Sasha: I’m going to see my grandmother next
weekend.
Reported speech: Reported speech :
Reported speech:

Two weeks ago Today Four years ago

Tom: We want to buy a new TV set. Josh: She doesn’t know how to cook. Ben: My sister is taking dance lessons.

Reported speech: Reported speech: Reported speech:

Last Saturday: Tuesday
Candice: We are going dancing tonight. Phil: I come from a small town in Australia.

Reported speech: Reported speech

Writing template
In the evening Gaby meets with her boss.

What do you think they will talk about? Write their dialogue. (give the boss a name)

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________

Gaby: _____________________________________________________________________________

____: _____________________________________________________________________________
Summary

Look at the sentences from the first and second dialogue. What are the difference
I’m going to quit my job. …he told me he is going to quit.

…my boss doesn’t like me …he said that his boss doesn’t like him.

This afternoon we are having a meeting and I’m really worried He also told me that he was having a meeting that afternoon
about it. and that he was really worried about it.

When we report someone’s words we use what is called reported speech. When we change sentences to report, we need to decide
if what was said is still true and what has changed. If the situation has changed we need to change the tenses accordingly.

Reporting verbs:

Say doesn’t take an object.

Example: She said that she wanted to visit her grandmother.

Tell always takes an object.

Example: She told me that she wanted to visit her grandmother.

Note: “that” can be omitted. Example: She said she wanted to visit her grandmother.
Bibliography:

Swan, M. Practical English Usage, OUP