CC BY
57
ISSN 1998-5320 (Print) ISSN 12587-943Х (Online)
Pedagogical Science
УДК 37.016:811.111
DOI: 10.17238/issn1998-5320.2021.15.4.13
Scientific article
S. A. Rassada1H, O. V. Freze1
И [email protected] 'Dostoevsky Omsk State University, Omsk, Russian Federation
1
Models of teaching foreign language communication skills and examples of their implementation in practice
Abstract: This theoretical article is devoted to the problem of developing students' skills in foreign language communication in connection with the modern requirements of the state and society to the level of mastering by students of basic skills and abilities in a foreign language. The purpose of this article was to consider the models of teaching communication in foreign language classes existing in foreign methodology and compare them. Research methods: analysis of literature on linguistics, methods of teaching foreign languages. The work within the frameworks is based on an action-oriented approach and the principle of the need to pay more attention to spontaneous speech by reducing the mechanical work on linguistic aspects (A. Davenport, L. Dawes, P. Kerr, N. Mercer, M. V. Verbitskaya, K. S. Makhmuryan). The article presents examples of the implementation of the proposed frameworks in the form of a series of tasks in an English lesson. The use of frameworks will help teachers of a foreign language in planning lessons, assignment, in understanding the approaches that underlie the development of different teaching materials and providing feedback to students regarding the level of formation of their communication skills. The proposed teaching frameworks "fit" into the structure of the educational process, most fully satisfy didactic requirements and bring the process of teaching English as close as possible to real conditions.
Keywords: foreign language teaching, communication competencies, action-oriented approach, framework for teaching speaking, communicative tasks.
Paper submitted: January 14, 2021.
For citation: Rassada S. A., Freze O. V. (2021) Models of teaching foreign language communication skills and examples of their implementation in practice. Russian Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, vol. 15, no. 4, pp. 127-133. DOI: 10.17238/issn1998-5320.2021.15.4.13.
Аннотация: Данная теоретическая статья посвящена проблеме развития навыков иноязычного общения учащихся в связи с современными требованиями государства и общества к уровню освоения обучающимися базовых навыков и умений по иностранному языку. Целью написания статьи явилось рассмотрение существующих в зарубежной методике моделей обучения общению на занятиях по иностранному языку и их сравнение. Метод исследования — анализ литературы по лингвистике, методике обучения иностранным языкам. В основе работы в рамках данных моделей лежат деятельностный, коммуникативный подходы и принцип необходимости уделять больше внимания на уроке иностранного языка спонтанной речи за счет сокращения механической работы над языковыми аспектами (A. Davenport, L. Dawes, P. Kerr, N. Mercer, М. В. Вербицкая, К. С. Махмурян). Результаты исследования: в статье представлены примеры реализации предложенных моделей в виде алгоритмов работы учителя и учащихся на занятии по английскому языку. Вывод: использование моделей окажет пользу учителям иностранного языка при планировании заданий, занятий, в понимании подходов, лежащих в основе разработки разных УМК и обеспечении обратной связи учащимся относительно уровня сформированности у них навыков общения. Предложенные модели обучения вписываются в структуру учебного процесса, наиболее полно удовлетворяют дидактическим требованиям и максимально приближают процесс обучения английскому языку к реальным условиям.
Научная статья
С. А. Рассада1, О. В. Фрезе1
И [email protected] 'Омский государственный университет им. Ф. М. Достоевского, г. Омск, Российская Федерация
1
Модели обучения иноязычному общению и примеры их реализации на практике
© С. А. Рассада, О. В. Фрезе, 2021
Ключевые слова: методика преподавания иностранных языков, коммуникативные компетенции, деятель-ностный подход, модель обучения общению, задания по обучению общению.
Дата поступления статьи: 14 января 2021 г.
Для цитирования: Рассада С. А., Фрезе О. В. (2021) Модели обучения иноязычному общению и примеры их реализации на практике. Наука о человеке: гуманитарные исследования, том 15, № 4, с. 127-133. DOI: 10.17238/ issm998-5320.202lЛ5.4Л3.
Introduction
Communication training has been the focus of attention of both teachers and students for many decades. In the methodology of teaching foreign languages, there is a principle of interrelated teaching of all types of speech activity, however, according to research conducted by Cambridge University Press, most teachers in the world noted that the most important skill that students should master is the ability to speak a foreign language (70%). Listening, writing and reading account for 10%, 8% and 7%, respectively (Kerr, 2017).
Teachers in Russian schools also note that students experience difficulties precisely in unprepared communication in a foreign language. It is difficult to involve them in the communication process for various reasons: from not knowing what to say and how to personal characteristics, for example, shyness. Among other reasons for ineffective communication training, one can single out: — lack of time in class (teachers concentrate on working out grammatical and lexical material, but it never comes to speech practice); — uninteresting topics for communication in the textbook; — incorrect approach to the organization of communication in the classroom (often in textbooks, speaking tasks take up very little space on the page purely visually, but this does not mean that communication should play an insignificant role in the classroom); — consideration of speaking tasks only as a means of controlling the assimilation of acquired knowledge, and not as an opportunity to learn a language in the process of communication.
The question arises, what time in the lesson should be given to communication? It is difficult to answer this question unequivocally. However, as noted by modern British (P. Kerr) and Russian methodologists (M. V. Verbitskaya, K. S. Makhmuryan), it is necessary to pay more attention to spontaneous speech in the lesson, possibly by reducing mechanical work on the language, since the development of foreign language communicative competence of students will be more effective if a lot of opportunities for oral interaction of students are created in the lesson (Kerr, 2017).
Purpose. Today, students are faced with complex educational and communicative tasks. For example, in the task of a high level of complexity of the "Speaking" section in the Unified State Exam, both linguistic knowledge and interdisciplinary skills and abilities are needed. Foreign methodologists (Alan Davenport and others) offer several models for building an educational process aimed at developing productive foreign language speaking skills (Davenport). This article will describe the main distinctive features of the three communication learning models and offer practical recommendations for their implementation in practice.
Methods
To describe communication learning models, the method of analyzing literature on linguistics, psychology and methods of teaching foreign languages was used. The methodological basis of the presented models were: the activity approach (Leontiev A. N., Galskova N. D., etc.), the communicative approach (Passov E. I., Milrud R. P., etc.).
The main part. It is the planning of a lesson based on the proposed models, where students would speak in essence, and not just reproduce memorized phrases and sentences, that is the key to success in teaching foreign language communication.
The first model is a model based on documents: "Pan-European competencies of foreign language proficiency. Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR)", and its updated version "The CEFR Companion Volume with New Descriptors, 2018" (Council of Europe, 2018). These are documents that allow not only to assess and determine the level of proficiency in a foreign language, but also to help organize the process of learning to communicate based on an activity approach.
ISSN 12587-943X (Online)
Pedagogical Science
The activity-based approach in teaching speaking in a foreign language implies interaction in the process of communication, the performance by students jointly, in cooperation, of a number of tasks that are aimed not at obtaining language knowledge, but at the formation and development of speech skills and abilities (Namaziandost, Shatalebi, Nasri, 2019). In practice, in a foreign language lesson, the activity approach is implemented through learning in the process of students communicating with each other, as a result of which the contact necessary for speaking arises. The activity approach assumes: a) recognition of the social nature of the language being studied, b) interaction between the social and the individual in the learning process, c) social communication of students who are active users of the language.
In classes aimed at teaching foreign language communication, teachers use such methods as role-playing games, modeling of real speech situations, active and interactive methods of work (Belova, Slabysheva, 2017). Within the framework of the activity approach, students alternately perform different social roles — leader, performer, organizer, speaker, expert, researcher, etc.
Within the framework of the CEFR model, the formation of skills such as initiating communication, responding correctly and appropriately to the interlocutor's remarks, using copula words, introductory phrases and other skills of unprepared speech comes to the fore.
The descriptors of the formation of speaking skills in the documents indicated above are presented as communicative tasks, for example: "A student can tell in detail about his family, housing conditions, education; can describe and tell about everyday things in familiar situations (for example, my neighborhood, the weather); can tell about his last job or occupation, can communicate with colleagues or immediate superiors without prior preparation (can ask questions about work, complain about working conditions, weekends, etc.). Can make brief messages on the phone; can give simple instructions and instructions for performing simple tasks in everyday life (for example, in a store)".
Descriptors can help the teacher: 1) in the preparation of tasks focused on a specific product or result, such as, for example, planning an excursion, creating a poster, developing a blog, conducting interviews, organizing a festival, electing a candidate, etc., 2) in assessing the formation of students' speaking skills.
The CEFR model serves as a kind of reminder to teachers that speaking is not just a reproduction of memorized words, phrases and topics, it is an interaction in the process of communication. In addition, understanding the CEFR model gives the teacher comprehensive and prompt feedback. The model helps the teacher: track the progress in mastering students' speech skills; realistically set goals for a series of classes; realize how effective the methods used in the lesson are. The model implies that communicative competence includes linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic competencies, that is, knowledge not only of the language, but also of how the language functions, where and how its application is relevant (Gedik Bal, Savas, 2020).
Below is the sequence of actions of the teacher and students in the organization of teaching speaking within this model. Once again, the tasks should involve students in solving a problem, discussing an issue, telling a story, exchanging opinions and experiences, creating a product, responding to an incentive. A lesson aimed at developing speaking skills, for example, on the topic of "The perfect party", includes such stages as:
1) Warm-up (students answer the teacher's questions: When do you celebrate? What do you celebrate? Do you have parties to celebrate special occasions? What food do people eat at celebrations in your country? Do people eat at celebrations in your country? (you can use sources from the Internet) What is your favourite party food and why?)
2) Prepare (students in pairs are invited to imagine that they are party organizers, they will have to organize a party for "clients" — another pair of students and, accordingly, pre-ask "clients" about the event, place, time, guests of the event, special diet, surprises, etc.). The questions are formulated in advance by the teacher, but interaction during communication is already taking place.
3) Decide (students "organizers" in a couple plan a party taking into account the wishes expressed by "clients").
4) Discuss ("organizers" and "clients" discuss the event plan and express two ideas each that they support and two that they would like to change).
5) Present (students present the party plan to the class, the class chooses the best menu, the best party, etc.).
Students with poor language training can be offered supports in the form of useful phrases for each stage of the lesson. For example, at the "Prepare" stage, you can use the following expressions: I'd like that \ I wouldn't like that, I'd prefer..., my brother is a vegetarian, my sister is allergic to nuts. At the "Decide" stage, the following phrases can be given: Let's invite..., The party will take place in ..., We'll have ... on the menu. And finally, at the "Discuss" stage, the structures will be useful: I really like that idea, I'd love to come to your party! It sounds like fun! We think you're going to love this.
The next model that will be considered in this article is Andrew Wilkinson's oral language proficiency model. A British researcher and educator coined the term "oracy" in the 1960s to draw attention to the neglect of communication skills in teaching schoolchildren their native language. However, this model can be successfully adapted to teaching a foreign language. This model consists of 4 groups of skills: physical, linguistic, cognitive, social and Emotional (Oracy Cambrige. The Highest Hall Center for Effective Spoken Communication. Available at: www.oracycambridge.org.). The skills included in each block of the model are presented in the table (see table).
Skills that are part of E. Wilkinson's oral language proficiency model Умения, входящие в состав модели владения устной речью Э. Уилкинсона
Physical Linguistic Cognitive Socio-emotional
Voice: the tempo and timbre of speech, the correctness of pronunciation The right choice of lexical means The content of the utterance Interaction with other people
Sign language: gestures, facial expression, eye contact Grammatical structures Language register Cognitive techniques Self-confidence
Rhetorical techniques Self-regulation Reaction to the interlocutor
Expressing your opinion
The group of physical skills implies the correct use of voice, intonation, sign language and body in various communication situations to achieve communication goals.
Linguistic skills are associated with the choice of lexical and grammatical means for the implementation of a communicative task, as well as with the use of rhetorical techniques in one's speech, such as metaphors, comparisons, etc. to expand or clarify the meaning of what is said.
Cognitive skills are responsible for the content of the utterance and its qualities from the point of view of the adequacy of the solution of the communicative task.
Socio-emotional skills are associated with the use of language as a means of creating or maintaining communication in a group. This group of skills means that students are able to solve communicative tasks by working together, are able to listen attentively to each other, and are able to put themselves in the other's place (Kurbakova, 2015).
According to this model, when teaching communication, it is necessary to focus not only on grammatical correctness of speech, and not even on fluency of speech, but on its correspondence to the speech situation, real life circumstances. It helps to simulate the process of real communication, since it takes into account the importance of extralinguistic factors, such as voice, gestures, the ability to listen and hear each other, etc. Practical techniques of this model of oral speech training include a variety of work in groups.
Here is an example of the implementation of the model in a foreign textbook, Super Minds — 5, where students need to prepare a presentation on the topic "Natural Disasters".
Firstly, students get acquainted with the basics of how to speak in public (careful preparation of a speech, the unacceptability of reading from a sheet, the need for eye contact with the audience, etc.). Further, the work is divided into two stages: preparatory (Prepare It) and the actual presentation (Present It).
ISSN 12587-943X (Online)
Pedagogical Science
The preparatory stage includes the following actions: a) division into groups; b) search for information and its recording (possibly in the form of a poster); c) selection of illustrative material (pictures, photographs); d) preparation of the text of the speech (each student must write 3-4 sentences to describe the selected picture or photo), correction of the text by the teacher if necessary; e) multiple reading of the text to memorize it.
At the presentation stage, students present their photos and pictures and comment on them.
This model is very similar to the first one in terms of the significance of the content side of foreign language speaking, but unlike it, it is simpler and more understandable to practicing teachers and focuses on the ability to present oneself, taking into account voice, intonation, facial expressions, gestures, etc.
The third model, which will be discussed, is called the communication skills development model based on the Cambridge University project "Competencies for Life" "Cambridge Life Competence Framework"^]. Communication skills are key skills for a person's professional and personal growth. Over the past 20 years, methodologists have been talking a lot about the need to take into account such aspects as creativity, critical thinking, and cooperation in foreign language classes (Bim, 1996). The third model focuses our attention primarily on readiness for communication, and includes three key components (competencies) of communication:
a) the use of appropriate language means and style of speech (official, informal, colloquial) in the speech situation. The developers of the model point to the need to develop students' ability to use, depending on the context, appropriate forms of address, greetings, farewells, express their ideas clearly and convincingly, use appropriate means of expression, take into account who the interlocutor is (familiar / unfamiliar person, etc.), ask rhetorical questions, the ability to attract attention, hold it, joke at the right moment, the ability to demonstrate an understanding of what topics can be raised during a particular conversation, etc.;
b) conducting a conversation expressing understanding or signaling its absence, use the necessary linguistic means to ensure that the interlocutor repeats or clarifies what was said, slows down / accelerates the pace of his speech, speaks quieter or louder to check whether everything said is clear to the listener. Here it is important to teach students to use the simplest techniques for initiating, maintaining and completing conversations of varying length; use appropriate language tools to ask the interlocutor to pause, ask the interlocutor for help, be able to paraphrase what was said, use non-verbal means of communication, be able to guess the meaning of the expression from the context, attract other participants to the conversation, show interest, give detailed answers and ask follow-up questions.
c) confident, clear, transparent expression of thoughts during a conversation is manifested in fluent speaking, the ability to quickly write in a foreign language, confidently start and conduct a conversation, confidently contact unknown people in the language being studied, accompany verbal communication with facial expressions and gestures, logically build descriptions, narratives, use connecting means to build a logical, coherent, consistent and holistic statement (Belova, Slabysheva, 2017).
At different stages of learning a foreign language, it is possible to develop students' speaking skills based on the three competencies listed above, the combined functioning of which ensures effective communication.
Examples of tasks implementing this model can be the following:
1) "Match the uses (trying to get someone to change their opinion; showing you agree with people; showing you disagree) with the phrases from the Useful Phrases Box (Don't forget that; I see your point, but; Let's agree to disagree; May be you are right, but; Remember, that)".
2) Do you agree or disagree with these ideas? "We should not keep wild animals as pets", "All transport should be electric", "Plastic should be banned", "It's OK to cut down rainforests". Write notes.
3) Work in pairs. Compare your opinions. Plan a conversation.
4) Practice ythe conversation. Remember to use the first and second conditional phrases from the Useful Phrases and Everyday English Boxes.
5) Work with another pair. Listen to their conversation and decide what idea they are talking about. Do you agree with their opinions?
The advantages of this, the third model of communication training, are that: here the process of developing the ability to communicate in the educational process is demonstrated; the model is simple and easy to understand; it is easy to incorporate the goals of teaching speaking into the plans of classes in a foreign language; the model helps students to master the strategies of effective communication; the model reflects the type of communication that we face in reality.
This is the simplest model of the three proposed in this article. However, one foreign language training program is not enough to realize the potential inherent in the model. It takes a good UMK and the ability of the teacher to correlate the task with a particular competence to see how the model works. This model should be used as a kind of guide for the teacher in the process of developing students' speaking skills, and not a yardstick for evaluating their oral foreign language utterances.
Results
We share Alan Davinport's opinion that the time allotted to speaking in a foreign language class should be increased due to the time devoted to working on language aspects: grammar, phonetics, vocabulary. This may seem unreasonable to some teachers, but according to foreign colleagues: 1) students often do not "learn" what they are specially taught in the lessons of the teacher, and 2) there is a much greater probability that they will learn something when the teacher offers many opportunities for their oral interaction with each other in a foreign language during the lesson.
Conclusions
Thus, in the article we considered three models of teaching foreign language speaking of varying complexity, all of them are aimed at organizing communication in a foreign language lesson, all three models reflect the idea that foreign language speaking is something more than just pronouncing words, sentences, topics. The models will benefit foreign language teachers when planning classes, in understanding the approaches underlying the development of different UMCS, and providing feedback to students regarding the development of their communication skills. The models are not mutually exclusive, but complement each other, however, the simultaneous use of all of them is undesirable.
The main message of all three models is that the time allotted for speaking should not be spent on checking, for example, the level of formation of grammatical skills of students, this is the time of the development process of speech skills and what students learn through speaking, communication, interaction is much more valuable than what students learn in the course of working with language aspects.
References
Belova L. A., Slabysheva A. V. (2017) Sozdaniye usloviy dlya realizatsii kommunikatsii na uroke inostrannogo yazyka. [Creating conditions for the implementation of communication in a foreign language lesson]. In: Teoreticheskiye i prikladnyye aspekty lingvoobrazovaniya [Theoretical and applied aspects of language education]. Ed. by L. S. Znikina. KuzSTU Publ., Kemerovo, pp. 37-41. (In Russian). Bim I. L. (1996) Tseli obucheniya inostrannomu yazyku v ramkakh bazovogo kursa [Objectives of teaching a foreign language in the framework of the basic course]. Inostranniye yazyki v shkole - Foreign Languages at School, no. 1, pp. 48-52. (In Russian).
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ISSN 12587-943Х (Online)
Pedagogical Science
McCaughey K. (2015) Practical tips for increasing listening practice time. English Teaching Forum, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 2-13. (In English).
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Источники
Белова Л. А., Слабышева А. В. (2017) Создание условий для реализации коммуникации на уроке иностранного языка. В кн.: Теоретические и прикладные аспекты лингвообразования. Под ред. Л. С. Зникиной. Кемерово, Изд-во КузГТУ, 2017, с. 37-41.
Бим И. Л. (1996) Цели обучения иностранному языку в рамках базового курса. Иностранные языки в школе, № 1, с. 48-52.
Brown G., Yule G. (1983) Teaching the spoken language: an approach based on the analysis of conversational English.
Cambridge University Press, New York, 162 p. (In English). Cambridge Life Competencies Framework. Communication (2019) Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 15 p. (In English). Council of Europe (2018) Common European framework of reference for languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment.
Companion volume with new descriptors. Council of Europe Publishing, Strasbourg, 235 p. (In English). Courtney D. (2020) Activities to activate and maintain a communicative classroom. English Teaching Forum, vol. 58, no. 1.
Available at: https://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/etf_58_1_pg10-21.pdf (In English). Davenport A. Speaking is more than saying words. Available at: http://learnteachweb.com (In English). Gedik Bal N., Savas P. (2020) Intercultural competence in the eyes of state school english language Teachers in Turkey.
Journal of Language and Education, no. 6 (2), pp. 56-75. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17323/jle.2020.10327 (In English). Izquierdo V., Felipe A. (2004) Practical tips for increasing listening practice time. English Teaching Forum, vol. 42, no. 2, pp. 20-25. (In English).
Kerr P. (2017) How much time should we give to speaking practice? Part of the Cambridge Papers in ELT series. Cambridge
University Press, Cambridge, 15 p. (In English). Kurbakova S. (2015) Cognitive aspect of intercultural communication. Journal of Language and Education, no. 1 (3),
pp. 52-62. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17323/2411-7390-2015-1-3-52-62 (In English). McCaughey K. (2015) Practical tips for increasing listening practice time. English Teaching Forum, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 2-13. (In English).
Namaziandost E., Shatalebi V., Nasri M. (2019) The impact of cooperative learning on developing speaking ability and
motivation toward learning English. Journal of Language and Education, no. 5(3), pp. 83-101. (In English). Oracy Cambrige. The highest hall center for effective spoken communication. Available at: www.oracycambridge.org. (In English).
Siegel J. (2016). Pragmatic activities for the speaking classroom. English Teaching Forum, vol. 54, no. 1, pp. 12-19. (In English).
Author's information
Svetlana A. Rassada
Cand. Sc. (Pedagogy), Associate Professor. Dostoevsky Omsk State University (55a Mira Ave., Omsk, 644077, Russian Federation). ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-00003-2143-6180. E-mail: [email protected] Olga V. Freze
Cand. Sc. (Pedagogy), Associate Professor. Dostoevsky Omsk State University (55a Mira Ave., Omsk, 644077, Russian Federation). ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4794-3167. E-mail: [email protected]
Информация об авторах
Рассада Светлана Анатольевна
Кандидат педагогических наук, доцент. Омский государственный университет им. Ф. М. Достоевского (644077, РФ, г. Омск, пр. Мира, 55а). ORCID ID: https://0rcid.0rg//0000-0003-2143-6180. E-mail: [email protected] Фрезе Ольга Владимировна
Кандидат педагогических наук, доцент. Омский государственный университет им. Ф. М. Достоевского (644077, РФ, г. Омск, пр. Мира, 55а). ORCID ID: https://0rcid.0rg//0000-0002-4794-3167. E-mail: [email protected]
