Module 3 Preparing to Teach 2

Unit 3.2 Language Skills – Teaching Speaking

Session 2
Topic Types of spoken production and spoken interaction
Curriculum requirements for teaching speaking to different age groups
Speaking in the CEFR

Objectives By the end of the session, students will be aware of

 psychological, linguistic and communicative aspects of speaking
characteristics of a good language speaker;
 curriculum requirements for teaching speaking for different purposes;
 spoken production and spoken interaction, their relevance to learners’
communicative needs at different language proficiency levels
Time 80 mins
Materials and Handouts 1, 2
equipment

Activity 1: Types of spoken production and spoken interaction

 Read the differences between spoken production and spoken interaction.

 Find the key-words, underline them and make clear definitions for both of the
notions on the separate sheets of paper.

Unit 3.2: Language Skills – Teaching Speaking

Session 1: Types of spoken production and spoken interaction.
Aspects of speaking (psychological, linguistic and communicative) and
difficulties they present for learners when speaking a foreign language.
Curriculum requirements for teaching speaking to different age groups.
Speaking in the CEFR.
Handout 1: The differences between spoken production and spoken interaction
_____________________________________________________________________________
Read the differences between spoken production and spoken interaction. Find the key-
words, underline them and make clear definitions for both of the notions on the seprate
sheets of paper.

On conformity with situations, speaking can be productive and interactive. But the majority of
linguists divided speaking situations into three types. S. Vilagran (2008) named them as: interactive,
partially interactive and non-interactive. She states that interactive speaking includes face-to-face
conversations, telephone calls, asking for clarification, repetition, etc. Partially interactive speech is
giving an oral report to a live audience when the convention is that the audience does not speak.
And the last one can be a speech recorded for a radio broadcast, performing a play, reciting a poem,
or singing. We can consider partially and non-interactive speech as spoken production because in
both situations students prepare their talks beforehand, they find information and organize their
ideas.
According to CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference), in spoken interaction
learners can express themselves fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for
expressions. They can use the language flexibly and efficiently for social and professional purposes.
Additionally, a speaker formulates his/her ideas and opinions with precision and relates his/her
contribution skillfully to those of other speakers. In spoken production learners can present cleat,
detailed descriptions of complex subjects integrating subthemes, developing particular points and
round off with an appropriate conclusion. In short both types of speaking are very crucial for
language learners. However, the researcher selected to carry out the study of spoken production due
to the fact that productive speaking helps students to succeed in English for academic purposes and
prove their own opinions among other people. It gives them a good foundation for leadership skills.
 Activity 2: CEFR and Language Assessment
 Watch the video https://youtu.be/KquYBc11FP0
 Answer the questions:
- What is the CEFR? The Common European Framework of Reference, it is used to
describe language learners ability in European languages
- Who developed it? Council of Europe
- What levels are described within the CEFR? Beginner, intermediate and advanced
- What are Reference Level Descriptions (RLDs)? Basic A1, A2, independent B1, B2 and
proficient C1, C2

Activity 3: Speaking in the CEFR

 Handout 2.
 Order the descriptors of spoken production and spoken interaction from the CEFR by level of
language proficiency with A1 at the bottom and C1 at the top.

Unit 3.2: Language Skills – Teaching Speaking

Session 1: Types of spoken production and spoken interaction.
Aspects of speaking (psychological, linguistic and communicative) and
difficulties they present for learners when speaking a foreign language.
Curriculum requirements for teaching speaking to different age groups.
Speaking in the CEFR.
Handout 2: Speaking in the CEFR
Order the descriptors of spoken production and spoken interaction from the CEFR by level
of language proficiency with A1 at the bottom and C1 at the top.

Spoken interaction
A1 I can interact in a simple way provided the other person is prepared to
repeat or rephrase things at a slower rate of speech and help me formulate
what I'm trying to say. I can ask and answer simple questions in areas of
immediate need or on very familiar topics.

A2 I can communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a simple and

direct exchange of information on familiar topics and activities. I can handle
very short social exchanges, even though I can't usually understand enough to
keep the conversation going myself.

B1 I can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area
where the language is spoken. I can enter unprepared into conversation on
topics that are familiar, of personal interest or pertinent to everyday life (e.g.
family, hobbies, work, travel and current events).

B2 I can interact with a degree of fluency and spontaneity that makes regular
interaction with native speakers quite possible. I can take an active part in
discussion in familiar contexts, accounting for and sustaining my views.
C1 I can express myself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching
for expressions. I can use language flexibly and effectively for social and professional
purposes. I can formulate ideas and opinions with precision and relate my
contribution skilfully to those of other speakers.

C2 I can take part effortlessly in any conversation or discussion and have a good
familiarity with idiomatic expressions and colloquialisms. I can express myself
fluently and convey finer shades of meaning precisely. If I do have a problem I can
backtrack and restructure around the difficulty so smoothly that other people are
hardly aware of it.

Spoken production
A1 I can use simple phrases and sentences to describe where I live and people I
know.

A2 I can use a series of phrases and sentences to describe in simple terms my family
and other people, living conditions, my educational background and my present or
most recent job.

B1 I can connect phrases in a simple way in order to describe experiences and events,
my dreams, hopes and ambitions. I can briefly give reasons and explanations for
opinions and plans. I can narrate a story or relate the plot of a book or film and
describe my reactions.

B2 I can present clear, detailed descriptions on a wide range of subjects related to my

field of interest. I can explain a viewpoint on a topical issue giving the advantages
and disadvantages of various options.

C1 I can present clear, detailed descriptions of complex subjects integrating sub-

themes, developing particular points and rounding off with an appropriate conclusion.

C2 I can present a clear, smoothly-flowing description or argument in a style

appropriate to the context and with an effective logical structure which helps the
recipient to notice and remember significant points.
 Further reading

Session 2.

CHARACTERISTICS OF SPEECH

To understand what is involved in developing oral L2 skills, it is useful to consider the nature and
conditions of speech. Most current approaches draw on a psycholinguistic skills- (or 'information-')
processing model. Levelt (1989) proposed that speech production involves four major processes:
conceptualisation, formulation, articulation and self-monitoring (for an accessible account, see Scovel
1998). Conceptualisation is concerned with planning the message content. It draws on background
knowledge, knowledge about the topic, about the speech situation and on knowledge of patterns of
discourse. The conceptualiser includes a 'monitor', which checks everything that occurs in the interaction to
ensure that the communication goes to plan. This enables speakers to self-correct for expression, grammar
and pronunciation. After conceptualisation, the formulator finds the words and phrases to express the
meanings, sequencing them and putting in appropriate grammatical markers (such as inflections,
auxiliaries, articles). It also prepares the sound patterns of the words to be used: LI errors of pronunciation
very commonly involve switching sounds between words that are separated from each other; such switches
suggest that the pronunciation of words must be prepared in batches prior to pronunciation. The third
process is articulation. This involves the motor control of the articulatory organs; in English: the
lips, tongue, teeth, alveolar palate, velum, glottis, mouth cavity and breath. Self-monitoring is
concerned with language users being able to identify and self-correct mistakes.
All this happens very fast and, to be successful, depends on automation: to some degree in
conceptualisation, to a considerable extent in formulation and almost entirely in articulation.
Automation is necessary since humans do not have enough attention capacity consciously to
control the three types of process. Hence, for an elementary L2 speaker it will be difficult to
manage this speech fluently and accurately, since they lack automation and/or accuracy, and it is
difficult for them to pay attention to all these processes simultaneously under pressure of time.
The skills are also affected by the context. Speaking is typically reciprocal: any interlocutors are
normally all able to contribute simultaneously to the discourse, and to respond immediately to each other's
contributions. Further, in oral communication many people can participate in the same interaction, making
it somewhat less predictable than written interaction. Oral interaction varies widely in terms of whether
participants have equal speaking rights, or whether one of the speakers adopts or is accorded special rights,
such as in doctor-patient, teacher-pupil, professor-student, examiner-examinee, parent-offspring, adult-
child interactions. Symmetry affects the freedom of speakers to develop or initiate topics, ask for
clarification or close the interaction. Further, speaking is physically situated face-to-face interaction:
usually speakers can see each other and so can refer to the physical context and use a number of physical
signals to indicate, for instance, attention to the interaction, their intention to contribute and their attitude
towards what is being said. Hence, speech can tolerate more implicit reference.
Finally, in most speech situations speech is produced 'on line'. Speakers have to decide on
their message and communicate it without taking time to check it over and correct it: any
interlocutors cannot be expected to wait long for the opportunity to speak themselves. Hence, time
pressure means that the process of conceptualisation, formulation and articulation may not be
well planned or implemented, and may need pauses and corrections.
These conditions and processes affect the language that is typically produced. For instance, speech
more often than writing refers to the interlocutors and the physical time and place of the communication.
In addition, speech typically expresses politeness so as to protect the face of the interlocutors (Scollon and
Scollon 1983), and to structure the dialogue in stages (see Widdowson 1983). The discourse typically results
in patterns which are distinct from those normally found in writing (such as the beginnings, endings and
intervening phases of a doctor-patient or teacherstudent interaction). Selinker and Douglas (1985),
Zuengler and Bent (1991) and Bardovi-Harlig and Hartford (1993) showed that familiarity with interlocutor,
content and type of speech act could impact on non-native speaker talk.
Further, the on-line processing conditions produce language that is grammatically more
'fragmented', uses more formulaic ('pre-fabricated') phrases, and tolerates more easily the
repetition of words and phrases within the same extract of discourse. Finally, the inevitable adjustments
that occur in speech are overt and public. These include:
• changing the message or its formulation before it is expressed ('communication strategies'),
whether or not interactively negotiated (Yule and Tarone 1991);
• self-correction after the message has been expressed; and
• various kinds of hesitation, introduced to slow down output and create planning time. Hence, oral
language differs from written language both in process and product (although of
course spoken language can resemble written language, and written language can simulate spoken
patterns). The implication for teaching is that oral skills and oral language should be practised and
assessed under different conditions from written skills, and that, unlike the various traditional
approaches to providing oral practice, a distinct methodology and syllabus may be needed.
From: The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, edited by R.Carter and
D.Nunan, Cambridge Univercity Press, pp. 16-17.