Understanding and Using English grammar interactive by Pearson Longman
2004-2007
Author: Betty Schrampfer Azar
Target group: ESL/EFL inter-mediate, advanced
This software can be used to teach grammar to intermediate learners. It provides an introduction of grammatical items by using animation character of each item. Each character introduces each grammatical item as students can read and listen to their explanation of each grammatical item. Passage that highlights grammatical points is introduced. It shows how grammar items are contextualised in the passage. It has pop-up explanation of each item, so that students are able to check the explanation by clicking the words. Students can practice these items through interactive exercise such as: error-correction, crossword, listening with a transcript with each section. Their result of assessment is available in progress report which shows their achievement in table. They can easily check their progress with the progress report.
This software is useful to introduce grammar explicitly in an enjoyable way. Although explicit approach to teach grammar tends to be straightforward and lose students’ attention, this software provides animation, audio, and pictures in every section. Passages are also colourfully highlighted. It helps catch students’ attention and easy to get started.
The activities are interactive in a way that students can access to the pop-up explanation when they need. They are instant positive feedback to students while they are doing language exercise. Explanation will be provided when students make mistakes. In this process, students keep interacting and engaging with learning resource, not being passive so it is useful to motivate students intrinsically.
Navigation of learning process is clear and effective. It starts from presentation of grammatical items, and then students practice them through interactive exercise. Lastly they produce the items and assess their progress. The program covers both of input and output of explicit knowledge of grammar.
I recommend this software when teaching explicit grammar knowledge. This software provides not only grammatical terms but also how it is used in the context. Although main focus is still an explicit knowledge of grammar, it is helpful when students learn language use in context as well. The frequent use of animation, audio and pictures is also strength of this software that textbook cannot achieve.
textbook evaluation
Making connections in English: Towards critical literacy
Author: Elaine and Peter Robins
Publisher: Oxford university press
Publication date: 1999
Target group: ESL intermediate / EFL upper-intermediate
Language area: critical literacy
This course book can be useful to develop students’ critical literacy and thinking. It contains writing, reading, poetry, communication and listening sections, where students can develop their each skills in each section. Each unit has clear instruction with questions to help students to respond thoughtfully and critically using writing, reading, and speaking. These activities will enable students to make meaning of their own life experience and connect such meanings with those provided by this text. Each section of the text has an explanation of grammar items or a specific aspect of language such as: verb, adverb, dialogue, historical account, etc. Listening section has listening material and provides additional worksheet.
This course book has many pictures, photos and uses different colours relating to each topic. It is helpful for teachers as it has grammar and a specific aspect of language instruction, as well as useful activity questions to help students develop their critical literacy skills. Although the topic in the textbook is not current, language and activities are authentic. It has example of food advertisement to critically evaluate their aims, amusement comic strip. It also provides meaning of interview and how to describe a certain character using many adjectives and so on. As this textbook offers not only various types of the texts and language aspects, but also effective questions to motivate students to connect their experience to what they read, or listen and critically evaluate them. Through this process, students will be able to be aware of how and what text offers. In EFL countries such as Japan, students tend to be passive when they receive information form English texts. They have less opportunity to evaluate English text, or provide their opinions toward what they read and listen. Therefore this course book may be useful to motivate them to evaluate English text and improve their critical English literacy skills.
website evaluation
Adult learning activities
http://www.cdlponline.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=activity4&topicID=2&storyID=67
Target group: EFL/ESL intermediate/ upper-intermediate
Brief summary
This web is useful for developing reading and listening skill. It provides the text with audio. Students can listen to the passage whenever they want. The passage is introduced paragraph by paragraph. The web is navigated with voice and sound and words animation, which is clear and attractive. There are ‘learn new words’ exercise when after reading. The new words are introduced with sound and students can spell those words afterwards.
Teaching idea
This web is useful for students’ self study, because after-reading exercises are suitable for them to check their comprehension of passage by themselves. It is possible to let students access to this web and practice their reading skill at home as a homework.
Breaking news English
http://www.breakingnewsenglish.com/
Target group: ESL/ EFL intermediate/ upper-intermediate
Summary of the site
This website is useful to teacher to find a number of resources for newspaper reading. There are up-dated newspaper articles and teachers can choose any article that they want to provide in class. The strength of this website is that, as it shows in title, it breaks news English in order for students to understand more easily. Each news article has well planned teaching support exercise. For example, Students can listen to the articles, fill-in-the-blank, matching, warm-up question, etc. It also has discussion questions so that students can work in pairs or group.
Teaching idea
Comprehending activities are printable, so teachers can use them easily in classroom after presenting a newspaper article. As the topics are current and authentic, it is useful to expose students to real-world language in classroom other than course book.
Free English language learning Materials
http://www.eslreading.org/
Target group: ESL/ EFL intermediate/ upper-intermediate
Summary of the site
This web will be helpful for teachers to find interesting and attractive reading. It introduces various types of stories such as tales of mystery, funny story, poems, etc. Most topics are unique and unlike those in English textbooks, so it is useful to motivate students to enjoy reading. Each section has pop-up explanation and pictures, which helps for teachers to find right resource. The web provides not only interesting stories, but also p suggests classroom activities, writing task and vocabulary task related to each reading topic.
Teaching idea
Teachers can adopt stories provided by this web in the classroom as a reading task. It is also possible to provide classroom activities introduced on this web. It provides such classroom activities as role play, group work and reading comprehension quiz.
Agenda web English easy reading
http://www.agendaweb.org/reading/comprehension_easy_interm1.html
Target group: All levels. You can choose your target level at the top of the web it has from elementary to advance.
Summary of the site
This website provides a number of narratives for all levels. Each narrative has three steps: texts with comprehension multiple-question, writing task, and gap-filling exercise for summary of the story. Students can get instant response from the tasks. This web helps to motivate students to read because they can decide which narrative they going to read. Some stories provide colourful picture with each paragraph as if you are reading a picture book.
Teaching idea
This website can be used for students to develop their reading comprehension skill as well as creative writing. It is also useful to give them opportunities to expose narrative genre.
Time for Kids: Around the world
http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/kids/hh/goplaces
Target group: intermediate or upper-intermediate
Summary of the site:
This website has a list of different countries’ information: sight-seeing guide, language, history, etc. Students select a particular country, and it will show you each country’s sight-seeing guide, language, history and so on. For example, sightseeing guide of Thailand provides a map and you can select any city you would like to go. It will show a picture and tourist attraction in the area. It has attractive layout with colours, pictures and animations. Although this website is not language-focused learning resource, students can experience authentic language.
Teaching idea
It is possible to provide this website to students to explore their favourite country, or the country they would like to go. After they explored, they can present any information such as ‘sightseeing in Thailand’. The language areas covered are: skimming important information and summarise in English, present them to other people. Through this activity, they are able to learn the language using authentic language and meaning-focused activity. It is also related to their language task in real world.
Goodnight stories
http://goodnightstories.com/finish.htm
Target group: ESL/EFL intermediate
Summary of the site
This web provides unfinished stories so that learners can write the rest of it and finish it. It enables students to practice reading and writing. As they are going to write the rest of a story, they are easily engaged to the text and motivated to read. When students finish a story, they can submit their writing on the web. The writings produced by other students are also available on the web. It is interactive in two points: students can participate in reading exercise by writing the rest of a story, and they can see other people’s work.
Teaching idea
This activity can be adopted in classroom. Teachers can print out the unfinished stories and bring to the class, and then students can read and write the rest of story. At the end of the class, the stories can be shared with peers, which can be another effective reading task.
