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Tesol esp-is-presentation-mark-k-march2013-version05-incl-narration

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Mark Krzanowski
Mark Krzanowski

This document discusses the benefits and challenges of commercially produced teaching materials versus self-designed materials for ESP classrooms. It argues that self-designed materials can better meet the specific needs of learners by providing more authentic and memorable contexts. Examples of self-designed materials for art and design, medical English, and English for football are presented. Producing original materials allows teachers to stay engaged in professional development and enhance learner satisfaction.

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Self-designed Teaching materials for Enhanced Harmony in the ESP Classroom (A Practitioner’s Perspective) TESOL 2013 ESPIS-CALLIS-VDMIS Intersection: Dallas – 23 March 2013 Mark Krzanowski markkski2@gmail.com IATEFL ESP SIG Co-ordinator Director of CELT, University of Westminster London Senior ESP/EAP Adviser for Garnet Education Sponsored by: the British Council
Commercially produced materials (CPMs) • Advantages • Disadvantages • Carefully fine-tuned • Often too sanitised and • Normally piloted with not necessarily groups of students authentic • Accompanied by • May get ‘dated’ quickly teacher’s books and • Long production cycle CDs or videos • At times written with • Written by experienced abstract learners in materials writers mind Major issue: Authenticity of purpose (mats not suitable for a given group of learners) or authenticity of response (not achieved) – this affects the ‘harmony’ of the ESP classroom 2 2
Samples of commercially produced materials 3 major Medical English courses compared Traditional topics include: Receiving the patient; past medical and family history; examining the patient; breaking bad news; dealing with sensitive issues; communicating with challenging patients, the elderly, children What is medicine; achievements in medicine; computers in medicine; clinical setting: acute care; non-clinical setting – public health; evidence-based medicine; Emergency medicine; accidents; sports medicine; psychiatry; dermatology; cardiology; tropical diseases; What is missing: More realistic scenarios (e.g. a newly trained nurse making a mistake on the first day of work in hospital) & memorable context Real language and workplace talk, e.g. doctors and nurses to other doctors and nurses, and doctors and nurses to patients Humour (e.g. Jokes and small talk) and real-life drama Coverage of delicate issues (e.g. abortion, use of contraceptives, euthanasia, sex change operations, miscarriage or HIV; medical negligence) – problem of publishers and cultural restrictions and sensibilities 3
Samples of commercially produced materials: English for Football Traditional topics include: It’s my Club; Defender; Midfielder; Striker; Goalkeeper; Scout; Manager; The greatest team The language – very ‘cautious’ and almost ‘contrived’; absence of highly memorable context; everything is fairly predictable What is missing? More challenging, topical and relevant thought-provoking topics such as: Racism in football; match fixing; poor command of English of international football players playing in the UK Premier league; poor command of English of coaches responsible for English teams; the extra time controversy in matches that end up in a draw (why not penalty kicks straight away); corruption in football; football hooliganism; salaries of top football players; not a single gay football player known yet internationally – why? 4
Essential English (E4WP: Football Industry) – what is missing Understanding familiar expressions "The referee's a *" "I am gutted, to be fair“ Using familiar expressions "At the end of the day" "There's a great bunch of lads in the dressing-room“ Introducing themselves "I'm delighted to be joining such a big club" "I really wanted to play for the gaffer" Introducing others "This is my WAG, Chantella. She's been in celebrity magazines" "This is my agent, Paulo. He says many clubs are interested in me" Asking questions about basic personal details "How much is my signing bonus?" "Where is the nearest Bentley dealership?" Answering questions on personal details "My best position is in the hole behind the front two" "I have a sponsorship deal with Nike but I'm open to offers" Have your say Taken from The Times, 7th May 2008 5
Why produce DIY materials? What the others say • ‘Over the years many institutions and teachers have replaced published materials with home-made materials in order to achieve greater relevance and engagement’ (Tomlison, 2012: 158) • *CPMs+ can ‘overprotect learners from and *thus+ not preapre them for the reality of language use outside the classroom’ (ibid: 161) • Call for humanising teaching materials: many CPMs are ‘insufficiently humanistic’ (ibid: 163) – my question: cacophonous rather than harmonious? (MK) • Mukundan (2009b: 96)criticises excessive control exercised by coursebooks; the classroom should perhaps resemble a jungle ‘where chance and challenge and spontaneity and creativity and risk work in complementary fashion with planned activity’ 6
Why produce DIY materials? What the others say • Block (1990) – 3 reasons: • 1. [better] contextualisation [than in CPMs] • 2. timeliness – CPMs so dated that practically unusable. • 3. the personal touch – learners value a teacher’s effort when s/he goes beyond a coursebook • Engagement in DIY mats – helps to become a reflective ELT practitioner and enhances teacher development • Gilmore (2007:98) points to ‘the gap between authentic language and textbook language’; *...+ ‘although recently much has been done to redress the balance, there remain numerous gaps’ • ‘Publishers are reluctant to take risks with innovative materials or to change the status quo’ (ibid: 112); the costs of producing global textbooks are normally very high 7
Why produce DIY materials? My ideas (MK): • Commercially produced mats (CPMs) aimed at abstract cohorts of learners – effectively such mats not always able to meet needs and wants of specific groups of students • To create a memorable context in a conducive learning and teaching environment – such an effect is often absent in CPMs • Go beyond editorial and content restrictions that traditional publishers need to honour – an individual teacher can assess what can be safely ‘risked’ with a particular group in a particular country/culture • Ease of self-identification with what one has produced for one’s students – not so easy to read the mind of other authors • To ‘seize the moment’ and make use of the topic that might wait for coverage too late with a traditional publisher and even be ‘shared’ • For ESP/EAP teachers to ‘add value’ by adding another important professional skill to their teaching repertoire, even if this happens through trial and error 8
Neglected areas of ESP/EAP – e.g. Art and Design • ESP and EAP publishers seem to cater more for text- based disciplines (e.g. Engineering; Law; Economics) • Youngest academic discipline - Nursing (some improvement recently in ESP/EAP mats available) • Art and Design courses and students – ‘neglected’; a dearth of ESP and EAP CPMs available • Solutions: Teachers tutoring such students need to bridge the lacunae and engage in production of DIY mats 9
Art and Design – some specimen DIY materials 10
Art and Design – some specimen DIY materials 11
Art and Design – some specimen DIY materials 12
Potential sources for DIY materials for Medical English & English for Football • TV dramas and series, e.g.: • TV sports channels, e.g.:Special • ‘Casualty’: Report: Sky Sports News http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006m uncovers racism in football 8wd • Radio programmes, e.g.: Chinese football • ‘Holby City’: clubs punished for match fixing | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006m ABC Radio Australia hd6 • Topical newspaper articles (paper or online • Documentaries: BBC - Horizon - Is alcohol editions): Robbie Rogers: Former Leeds worse than ecstasy? football player comes out as gay and ... • BBC - Radio 4 - The Making of • Regional topics not covered by mainstream Modern Medicine TV and radio stations or global • Comedies, e.g.: Carry on Matron Part 1 - newspapers, e.g.: Nigeria win Africa Cup of YouTube Nations 2013 beating Burkina Faso 1-0 in ... 13
How such materials can be designed and what skills and knowledge are required • Emulation of good practice as • (Normally) solid EFL and ESOL seen in leading proven CPMs background to be able to transfer skills into ESP and • Application of creativity and EAP flair • Familiarity with current • Creation of memorable trends in mats adaptation, adoption, creatio context exploiting striking and n and design unique authentic mats • Willingness to experiment • Attention to detail through trial and error if necessary • Aesthetic presentation to • Reasonably good level of match the standard of CPMs knowledge of a particular EAP • Adding the personal touch to or ESP specialism in order to humanise DIY mats and address the needs and wants of the learners involve learners 14
Conclusions References: • ESP practitioners still need to • Block, D. (1990) Some Thoughts produce their own materials to on DIY materials design. ELT better cater for the needs and Journal 45.3, pp. 211-217. wants of the learners • Gilmore, A. (2007) Authentic (complementary use rather than materials and authenticity in exclusive) foreign language teaching. • ‘Adding value’ to ones CPD Language Teaching 40.2, pp. 97- (Continuous Professional 118 Development) through mats • Mukundan, J. (2009b) Are there design really good reasons as to why • Effect on the ESP classroom: textbooks should exist? In J. enhanced harmony, cohesion Mukundan (ed), 92-100 and better synergies: satisfied • Tomlison, B. (2012) Materials learners and professionally- development for language fulfilled tutors. learning and teaching. Language Teaching 45.2, pp. 143-179 15

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Tesol esp-is-presentation-mark-k-march2013-version05-incl-narration

  • 1. Self-designed Teaching materials for Enhanced Harmony in the ESP Classroom (A Practitioner’s Perspective) TESOL 2013 ESPIS-CALLIS-VDMIS Intersection: Dallas – 23 March 2013 Mark Krzanowski markkski2@gmail.com IATEFL ESP SIG Co-ordinator Director of CELT, University of Westminster London Senior ESP/EAP Adviser for Garnet Education Sponsored by: the British Council
  • 2. Commercially produced materials (CPMs) • Advantages • Disadvantages • Carefully fine-tuned • Often too sanitised and • Normally piloted with not necessarily groups of students authentic • Accompanied by • May get ‘dated’ quickly teacher’s books and • Long production cycle CDs or videos • At times written with • Written by experienced abstract learners in materials writers mind Major issue: Authenticity of purpose (mats not suitable for a given group of learners) or authenticity of response (not achieved) – this affects the ‘harmony’ of the ESP classroom 2 2
  • 3. Samples of commercially produced materials 3 major Medical English courses compared Traditional topics include: Receiving the patient; past medical and family history; examining the patient; breaking bad news; dealing with sensitive issues; communicating with challenging patients, the elderly, children What is medicine; achievements in medicine; computers in medicine; clinical setting: acute care; non-clinical setting – public health; evidence-based medicine; Emergency medicine; accidents; sports medicine; psychiatry; dermatology; cardiology; tropical diseases; What is missing: More realistic scenarios (e.g. a newly trained nurse making a mistake on the first day of work in hospital) & memorable context Real language and workplace talk, e.g. doctors and nurses to other doctors and nurses, and doctors and nurses to patients Humour (e.g. Jokes and small talk) and real-life drama Coverage of delicate issues (e.g. abortion, use of contraceptives, euthanasia, sex change operations, miscarriage or HIV; medical negligence) – problem of publishers and cultural restrictions and sensibilities 3
  • 4. Samples of commercially produced materials: English for Football Traditional topics include: It’s my Club; Defender; Midfielder; Striker; Goalkeeper; Scout; Manager; The greatest team The language – very ‘cautious’ and almost ‘contrived’; absence of highly memorable context; everything is fairly predictable What is missing? More challenging, topical and relevant thought-provoking topics such as: Racism in football; match fixing; poor command of English of international football players playing in the UK Premier league; poor command of English of coaches responsible for English teams; the extra time controversy in matches that end up in a draw (why not penalty kicks straight away); corruption in football; football hooliganism; salaries of top football players; not a single gay football player known yet internationally – why? 4
  • 5. Essential English (E4WP: Football Industry) – what is missing Understanding familiar expressions "The referee's a *" "I am gutted, to be fair“ Using familiar expressions "At the end of the day" "There's a great bunch of lads in the dressing-room“ Introducing themselves "I'm delighted to be joining such a big club" "I really wanted to play for the gaffer" Introducing others "This is my WAG, Chantella. She's been in celebrity magazines" "This is my agent, Paulo. He says many clubs are interested in me" Asking questions about basic personal details "How much is my signing bonus?" "Where is the nearest Bentley dealership?" Answering questions on personal details "My best position is in the hole behind the front two" "I have a sponsorship deal with Nike but I'm open to offers" Have your say Taken from The Times, 7th May 2008 5
  • 6. Why produce DIY materials? What the others say • ‘Over the years many institutions and teachers have replaced published materials with home-made materials in order to achieve greater relevance and engagement’ (Tomlison, 2012: 158) • *CPMs+ can ‘overprotect learners from and *thus+ not preapre them for the reality of language use outside the classroom’ (ibid: 161) • Call for humanising teaching materials: many CPMs are ‘insufficiently humanistic’ (ibid: 163) – my question: cacophonous rather than harmonious? (MK) • Mukundan (2009b: 96)criticises excessive control exercised by coursebooks; the classroom should perhaps resemble a jungle ‘where chance and challenge and spontaneity and creativity and risk work in complementary fashion with planned activity’ 6
  • 7. Why produce DIY materials? What the others say • Block (1990) – 3 reasons: • 1. [better] contextualisation [than in CPMs] • 2. timeliness – CPMs so dated that practically unusable. • 3. the personal touch – learners value a teacher’s effort when s/he goes beyond a coursebook • Engagement in DIY mats – helps to become a reflective ELT practitioner and enhances teacher development • Gilmore (2007:98) points to ‘the gap between authentic language and textbook language’; *...+ ‘although recently much has been done to redress the balance, there remain numerous gaps’ • ‘Publishers are reluctant to take risks with innovative materials or to change the status quo’ (ibid: 112); the costs of producing global textbooks are normally very high 7
  • 8. Why produce DIY materials? My ideas (MK): • Commercially produced mats (CPMs) aimed at abstract cohorts of learners – effectively such mats not always able to meet needs and wants of specific groups of students • To create a memorable context in a conducive learning and teaching environment – such an effect is often absent in CPMs • Go beyond editorial and content restrictions that traditional publishers need to honour – an individual teacher can assess what can be safely ‘risked’ with a particular group in a particular country/culture • Ease of self-identification with what one has produced for one’s students – not so easy to read the mind of other authors • To ‘seize the moment’ and make use of the topic that might wait for coverage too late with a traditional publisher and even be ‘shared’ • For ESP/EAP teachers to ‘add value’ by adding another important professional skill to their teaching repertoire, even if this happens through trial and error 8
  • 9. Neglected areas of ESP/EAP – e.g. Art and Design • ESP and EAP publishers seem to cater more for text- based disciplines (e.g. Engineering; Law; Economics) • Youngest academic discipline - Nursing (some improvement recently in ESP/EAP mats available) • Art and Design courses and students – ‘neglected’; a dearth of ESP and EAP CPMs available • Solutions: Teachers tutoring such students need to bridge the lacunae and engage in production of DIY mats 9
  • 10. Art and Design – some specimen DIY materials 10
  • 11. Art and Design – some specimen DIY materials 11
  • 12. Art and Design – some specimen DIY materials 12
  • 13. Potential sources for DIY materials for Medical English & English for Football • TV dramas and series, e.g.: • TV sports channels, e.g.:Special • ‘Casualty’: Report: Sky Sports News http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006m uncovers racism in football 8wd • Radio programmes, e.g.: Chinese football • ‘Holby City’: clubs punished for match fixing | http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006m ABC Radio Australia hd6 • Topical newspaper articles (paper or online • Documentaries: BBC - Horizon - Is alcohol editions): Robbie Rogers: Former Leeds worse than ecstasy? football player comes out as gay and ... • BBC - Radio 4 - The Making of • Regional topics not covered by mainstream Modern Medicine TV and radio stations or global • Comedies, e.g.: Carry on Matron Part 1 - newspapers, e.g.: Nigeria win Africa Cup of YouTube Nations 2013 beating Burkina Faso 1-0 in ... 13
  • 14. How such materials can be designed and what skills and knowledge are required • Emulation of good practice as • (Normally) solid EFL and ESOL seen in leading proven CPMs background to be able to transfer skills into ESP and • Application of creativity and EAP flair • Familiarity with current • Creation of memorable trends in mats adaptation, adoption, creatio context exploiting striking and n and design unique authentic mats • Willingness to experiment • Attention to detail through trial and error if necessary • Aesthetic presentation to • Reasonably good level of match the standard of CPMs knowledge of a particular EAP • Adding the personal touch to or ESP specialism in order to humanise DIY mats and address the needs and wants of the learners involve learners 14
  • 15. Conclusions References: • ESP practitioners still need to • Block, D. (1990) Some Thoughts produce their own materials to on DIY materials design. ELT better cater for the needs and Journal 45.3, pp. 211-217. wants of the learners • Gilmore, A. (2007) Authentic (complementary use rather than materials and authenticity in exclusive) foreign language teaching. • ‘Adding value’ to ones CPD Language Teaching 40.2, pp. 97- (Continuous Professional 118 Development) through mats • Mukundan, J. (2009b) Are there design really good reasons as to why • Effect on the ESP classroom: textbooks should exist? In J. enhanced harmony, cohesion Mukundan (ed), 92-100 and better synergies: satisfied • Tomlison, B. (2012) Materials learners and professionally- development for language fulfilled tutors. learning and teaching. Language Teaching 45.2, pp. 143-179 15