Phrases for Conversation

ESL tutors and teachers frequently talk too much, and I'm as guilty of this as any of you!  English learners may struggle to understand us and don't get enough speaking practice when we go on and on.  That being said, the ESL tutor or teacher may be the learner's best role model and mentor for English conversation.  Through our experience, we know how to talk to a learner much better than the average native speaker they meet, and also better than their fellow English learners.  Practical conversation is something most of our clients enjoy, and every tutoring session should include speaking and listening.  Your learner may enjoy subject specific conversations.  For ideas, check out this web-site
http://www.eslgold.com/speaking/phrases.html

Writing Tutor Tips

From What the Writing Tutor Needs to Know by Margot Iris Soven (108-109)

v  Give equal amounts of sympathy and encouragement.  ESL students deal with more than just writing.

v  Rephrase comments that confuse students.  If the student doesn’t get what you are trying to say, try rephrasing your comments instead of repeating yourself.

v  Notice students’ expressions and body language. As with any tutee, body language helps you see if the students are confused.

v  Brush up on your grammar.  Although you don’t need to be an expert, many ESL students want deeper explanations of how and why grammar works.

v  Watch for plagiarism.  This doesn’t necessarily happen on purpose.  In some cultures borrowing from other sources is accepted.

v  Be patient.  You will probably need to devote more time to an ESL student because you will need to explain things more thoroughly.

Tutor self-evaluation checklist

Tutor Self-Evaluation Checklist   How well did I .....?	Very Well	Satisfactory	Could Improve
Prepare for the tutoring session
Get the lesson underway (establish goals, etc.)
Ask questions and prompt the learner
Handle the learner’s comments and questions
Maintain learner interest
Provide help when the learner was having difficulty
Ensure key points were drawn out
Bring session to a close and set out homework

Conversation Card game

Print the form, add a deck of cards and you have great conversation starters to use with your learners.

ESLSAP Chilliwack

Error Correction

1. Mistakes are good and students need to know they are. Explain that we learn best through making mistakes.  Of course, we hope not the same ones over and over...


2. Sometimes, tutors should correct mistakes anonymously. Do this by making notes of students' mistakes as you monitor their English and then work on them later. 


3. When a student makes a mistake it’s not wise to say "No!"/"That's wrong!"  It's better to say "Not bad"/"Almost"/"Good try"/"That's an interesting mistake"


4. The ability to self-correct is an important one for students to develop. Encourage it and give them time to correct themselves - don't jump in immediately to correct them. Most students (and indeed some teachers) seem to think that it is the teacher's job to correct students mistakes but this is not necessarily so.  Teachers can correct their students endlessly but this is not real life.  It's much better if learners get into the habit of listening to themselves when they are speaking and correct themselves as they go along.  


5. Don’t correct every mistake, especially in conversation.  Accuracy is important but so is fluency.  Learners need to be able to keep a conversation going and constant interruptions will be discouraging and counter-productive.


6. Be careful with humour but sometimes it’s okay to laugh about mistakes, especially when you can blame the craziness of the English language.


7. Learning English is like learning to ride a bike - you fall off a lot, but you get the hang of it in the end. You will make a lot of mistakes but you will be able to communicate effectively in the end.  

Pronunciation

Interesting post on English Central today by a Speech Language Pathologist:

Teachers often report that teaching pronunciation is frustrating – a lot of pain for limited gain. This is especially so when prerequisite skills integral to acquiring new speech sounds are missed in the lesson.
Teachers and students often assume that a pronunciation problem is due to not understanding how to articulate (or say) the new target sound. While this is true to an extent, a pronunciation problem is just as likely due to the student’s inability to perceive the new sound. This includes an understanding of how the sound is organized in the language sound system and an ability to recognize it.
Perception precedes production.
Our brains are wired to perceive sounds of our first languages, and not necessarily those of a new language. If we can’t accurately hear or perceive the sound, it is not possible to practice making it.
Try these easy activities:

• Use minimal pairs. The word pairs differ by one sound, (e.g., “sheet” and “seat”). Present the words and say one of the words in the pair. The student indicates which word s/he perceived by pointing to the correct word/picture. Lots of practice, careful listening, and giving immediate feedback are key. This works especially well when the word pair contrasts the new target sound with the student’s replacement sound, (e.g., ‘s’ instead of ‘sh’).
• Increase awareness of the target sound: provide multiple examples of useful words and sentences that include the sound; read aloud passages from any resource and ask students to identify how many times you said (or they perceived) the target sound; ask students to identify objects in the classroom or in pictures that have the target sound.

Remember that these are listening exercises only. Take care that you are talking while students are listening, and avoid giving unwanted visual clues with spelling in words. Once students truly perceive the new sound, they are ready to move forward with learning how to produce the sound.

English Central thanks Adrienne Nobbe for writing these teaching tips. Adrienne is a Speech-Language Pathologist who is also a certified ESL instructor.