| G |
| Gap-fill
exercises |
See
Fill-in
exercises.
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| Graded
language |
This
is language that has been adapted according to the level of
the students.
The standard structural-situational
grammar presentation is an example of a presentation using
graded language.
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| Graded
sequence |
See
Grading
Language.
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| Grading
language |
This
is adapting the language according to the level of the
students.
The standard structural-situational
grammar presentation is an example of grading language.
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| Grammar
/ Translation method |
An
old-fashioned teaching technique that involves rote
learning of verbs and vocabulary, together with
translation of sentences from L1
to L2
and vice versa.
Just because it’s old fashioned doesn’t mean that it’s
wrong! In fact, translation (as a way of comparing L1 and L2,
and developing learner awareness) is back in favor as an ELT
tool.
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| Gross
motor skills |
See
Fine
motor skills / Gross motor skills.
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| Guessing
meaning |
An
important reading
skill. Students read a passage which contains new
words and phrases. They try to guess the meaning of the new
words and phrases by their context.
Guessing meaning is an example of a situation where students
should be allowed to use their L1
in class as it may be very difficult for them to give the
meaning in the target language.
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|
| H |
| Hand-eye
coordination |
Most
of the hand movements we make require visual input to be
carried out effectively. For example, when a child is learning
to write, he follows the position of his hands visually as he
makes lines on the paper.
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| Heuristics |
Simple
rules which students use when speaking or writing L2.
Examples:
Spelling and pronunciation rules, such as
i before e except after c
(When i and e come together, i is always
first, e.g. pier unless there’s a letter c
before them, in which case e comes before i e.g.
receive.)
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| High
challenge |
See
Challenge.
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|
|
| I |
| Identifying
key words |
An
important reading
skill. Students underline the key words in a text, or
complete a table with key words from the text.
Example:
Students read a description of a house and complete a table
with key words. The completed table might look like this:
Location: near the town, on a hill
Size: big
Rooms: kitchen, sitting room, dining room, study, 4 bedrooms,
4 bathrooms
Special features: large garden, swimming pool
General impression: very comfortable, expensive.
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| Identifying
the source of written material |
An
important reading
skill. It involves using the features of the text –
sentence length, choice of vocabulary, layout etc. – to
determine where a text is from (an encyclopaedia, an
advertisement, a business letter, etc.).
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| Identifying
the topic sentence |
A
reading
skill. The idea is to find the sentence in a paragraph
which gives the idea of what the paragraph is about.
However, many authentic
reading materials do not contain a single clearly
identifiable topic sentence. So topic sentence activities
often have to use specially-written paragraphs.
With authentic and semi-authentic
materials it’s often more appropriate to use skills
such as skimming
and reading
for gist.
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| Immersion |
This
approach tries to reproduce the experience of being in the L2
country in class using these techniques:
- No textbooks or notebook, only authentic materials.
- No grading
of the language.
- Using several teachers who may have conversations
between themselves, or ungraded conversations with the
students.
- Only using L2.
- No grammar or vocabulary explanations.
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| Inductive
/ Deductive |
The
deductive approach goes from the rule to the example.
Example:
You could present the negative past simple to your students by
giving them the rule Pronoun + didn’t + infinitive
and then elicit examples of the negative past simple from the
students.
The inductive approach goes from the example to the
rule.
Example:
You could present the negative past simple to your students by
giving them six model sentences.
After choral and individual drills, you could then elicit the
grammatical rule from the students.
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| Inferential
listening |
In
an inferential listening exercise, the answers to the
question you ask the students are not in the language of the
tape. Students must infer the answers from a range of clues.
Example:
Students listen to a tape of an argument in an office. They
identify the people who are angry and the people who are
trying to stop the argument.
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| Information
gap |
A
simple type of communicative
activity, usually in pairs.
Student A has half of the information.
Student B has the other half of the information.
They must ask each other questions to complete their
information.
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| Information
transfer |
One
of the reading skills. Information transfer involves using
information presented in one way and transforming it to, or
comparing it with, information presented in another.
Examples:
- Reading an itinerary and drawing the route on a map.
- Getting information from a graph and completing
sentences to present the information.
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| Input
/ Output |
Input
is the language which students are exposed to in class.
This can be via presentations, reading passages, listenings
and so on.
Input can be graded,
as in a Structural-Situational
presentation, or it can be ungraded, as in a deep
end strategy or a listening task using authentic
material.
Output is the language which students produce during
the class, through speaking or writing.
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| Instructivism |
A
theory of teaching. The basic idea of instructivism is
that teaching is just a matter of giving facts to students.
Instructivist classes work in transmission mode. This
means that the flow of information is one way, from the
teacher to students. The students are simply passive receivers
of knowledge.
The opposite approach to instructivism is Constructivism.
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| Integrating
skills |
This
is when we do a sequence of exercises with our students using
different skills, transferring information from one skill to
another.
Example:
- Identifying the key words in a reading text about the
climate of North America.
- Using the key words to write a summary of the text.
- In pairs, asking and answering questions about the
climate of North America.
- Listening to a tape of a person talking about the
climate of North America and identifying the new
information in the tape, compared with the reading text.
This sequence of activities integrates all four skills of
reading, writing, speaking and listening.
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| Intensive
reading |
See
Extensive
/ Intensive reading.
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| Intransitive
verbs |
See
Transitive
/ Intransitive verbs.
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