Questions on Text 20

Text 20: DECARRICO – Vocabulary learning and teaching


1- Do you teach vocabulary? How do you do it?

2- What is involved in teaching/learning vocabulary? Gather as many aspects as possible. For example, what does it mean to know a word? Is it possible to use the meaning of a word out of context?

3- What is the difference between implicit and explicit instruction of vocabulary? Give an example of each approach.

4- Should more emphasis be given to implicit or explicit vocabulary teaching at the beginning level? Why? What does the author say about intermediate and advanced levels?

5- According to the author, what does it mean “to learn 2000 words” at a basic level? Does it mean to identify and use 2000 isolated words? Explain.

6- Which teaching techniques for explicit teaching are highlighted in this text? Why are they important? What do you find important or interesting about them?

7- What vocabulary learning strategies does the author present? Do you think students develop them by themselves or do teachers have to allow them to practice those strategies? Give examples for each strategy.

8- How does the author define and comment on collocations? What categories of collocations are there? Should they be presented only at more advanced levels? What can and should be presented at the beginning levels? Why?

Questions on Text 18 & 19

Text 18: Teaching Pronunciation – Janet Goodwin

1) Summarize the points Goodwin finds as absolutely necessary in the teaching of EFL(English as a foreign language) pronunciation.
2) Answer discussion question 2 on page 131.
3) After reading “The communicative framework for teaching pronunciation” (p. 124 - 131), make a brief class plan for the students you have been working with.

Text 19: Uncovering Grammar – Chapter 1 (Grammar as a process) by Scott Thornbury

1) Why does the author argue that “grammar” should be seen as a verb?
2) Make a distinction between what the author affirms to be the situations in which language needs no grammar and when it does.
3) What does grammaticization mean?

Uma aula diferente!

Ontem fomos assistir a aula da Jane novamente. Era o início de uma nova lição e a Jane resolveu levar o CD para a aula e tocar o texto da lição para que os alunos tentassem entender antes de fazerem a leitura do texto no livro. Ela pediu que todos fechassem os livros e explicou que fica mais fácil entender a gravação quando o assunto é conhecido. E o assunto era conhecidíssimo: Harry Potter!!! Depois de tocar o CD, Jane tentou elicitar dos alunos aquilo que tinham entendido. Foi impressionante: vários alunos demonstraram ter conseguido entender longos trechos da gravação, que continha informações bastante complexas, além de ter sido gravada por um nativo.

Antes do término da aula, contudo, alguém bateu à porta e avisou que haveria uma reunião de professores e que os alunos deveriam ser dispensados para ir para o recreio mais cedo. Como eles teriam um recreio mais longo, aproveitei e pedi que eles escrevessem rapidamente numa folha de papel o que tinha acontecido na aula, como se estivessem me contando como foi a aula. Achei que eles não iriam se interessar pela tarefa e fossem acabar saindo da sala. Nova surpresa: 21 alunos responderam! O comentário geral foi de que a aula tinha sido diferente porque eles tinham tido a oportunidade de ouvir e tentar compreender o texto antes de fazer a leitura. Vários comentaram sobre a importância de se ouvir o falante nativo como forma de melhorar suas habilidades de compreensão oral. Foi também quase que unânime a frase "pena que a aula terminou mais cedo." Enfim, eles adoraram!

Questions on Text 15

Texto 15: Kumaravadivelu, B. Integrating language skills. Beyond Methods: Macrostrategies for language teaching. New Heaven: Yale Un. Press



1. Quais as críticas apontadas pelo autor para o ensino separado das habilidades de ler, ouvir, falar e escrever ?
2. Por que existe a necessidade da integração do ensino das habilidades?
3. Quais os tipos de atividades de sala de aula que melhor propiciam a integração das habilidades?

Questions on Text 14

Texto 14: Nunan, D. Focus on the learner. Second language teaching and learning. Boston: Heinle & Heinle. (Chapter 5)

1. What is the difference between objective needs and subjective needs? Which would be easier for the classroom teacher to deal with?

2. What assumptions about language underpin a needs-based approach to course design?

3. What learner roles are implicit in the interview data with learners presented in the body of the chapter?

4. What learner roles are implicit in your own classroom or a classroom with which you are familiar?

Questions on Text 13

Texto 13: Heatlth, S. P. Ethnography in education: defining the essentials. In: Gilmore, P.; Glattorn, A. Children In and out of school. Un. Pensylvania: The Center for Applied Linguistics. pp. 33-55.


1. What is the difference between “doing Ethnography” and “doing Ethnographic research”?
2. What is the goal of ethnography? What are the main attempts of the ethnographer?
3. What are the ethnographer’s principles of operation?
4. Why is the definition of “community” so important for ethnography?
5. What does Ethnography have to do with Linguistic Investigation?
6. What does the author understand by “analysis of artifact”?
7. What are the weaknesses and strengths of ethnography?

Questions on Text 12

Text 12: Fetterman, D. M. Finding your way through the forest: Analysis (chapter 5) Ethnography: step by step. Thousand Oaks: Sage. 1998.

1. Ethnography is a process and, therefore, the analysis informs the researcher how the research is developing and how it should continue. Based on this idea, discuss with your partner the following excerpt from page 92 “Ethnographic analysis is iterative, building on ideas throughout the study. Analyzing data in the field enables the ethnographer to know precisely which methods to use and when and how to use them. Analysis tests hypotheses and perceptions to construct an accurate conceptual framework about what is happening in the social group.”

2. What is data triangulation? Give an example of triangulation that you can do with your own research data.

3. Choose two of the following ways of looking at data and discuss them with your partner:
a) look for patterns;
b) analyze key events;
c) draw maps, flowcharts, organizational charts and matrices;
d) do content analysis;
e) do statistical analysis.