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Ellis talked about 8 points during his presentation:

1. Should we teach grammar
2. What grammar should we teach?
3. When should we teach grammar? at the beginning or after learners have acquired some competence in the language.
4. Should grammar instruction be massed (available teaching time concentrated into a short period) or distributed (spread out over time)?
5. Should grammar instruction be intensive (one grammar structure per lesson or group of lessons) or extensive (many structures in one lesson or group of lessons)?
6. Is there any value in teaching explicit grammatical knowledge?
7. Is there a best way to teach grammar for implicit knowledge?
8. Should grammar be taught in seperate lessons or integrated into communicative activites

The answer to the first question was clearly yes - despite what Krashen says about explicit knowledge Ellis claims that there are numerous studies that have countered Krashens claim that knowledge of grammar does not lead to acquisition of language. I agree with this stand, but I do believe Krashens work is still important and has value for teachers.

The answer to the second question was to wait for learners to have acquired some ability in the language. Ellis said that grammar instruction should actually wait until learners have reached the intermediate level. I agree here to a point - I think at the true beginner stage there really is no need for grammar instruction. I would even go so far as to say that grammar instruction can wait until learners are at the high beginner level. The evidence to support this is that native speaker children have no grammar when they first start speaking. Additionally L2 speakers at the beginning use single words and short phrases to communicate as well as unanalyzed chunks.

Ellis also said that a massed approach to grammar instead of a distributed approach may be more effective. However the evidence is not yet strong enough to state this as a fact. More research into this area is required. I cannot remember exactly what the answer was for question five, but my view on this is that it should be intensive. i.e. only one structure focus per lesson - at most two to be used as a comparison: perhaps present simpler vs present continuous or future vs future perfect.

There is value in teaching explicit grammar in that some difficult grammar structures that are not easily acquired naturalistically need to be taught in order to raise awareness in the learner. Additionally Ellis states (in the proceedings): Teaching explicit knowledge can be incorporated into both a focus-on-forms and a focus-on-[meaning] approach. When focusing on meaning explicit grammar instruction can take the form of error correction which can be personlized for each learner present. This type of error correction usually involves the teacher taking note of errors made by learners during a fluency activity and then reviewing those errors on the board or sometimes with individual groups or learners.

The answer to question 8 is that both approaches should be taken. That is seperate grammar instruction would be a focus-on-form lesson whereas the integrated communicative approach would be a focus-on-meaning lesson with incidental grammar covered.

The best part of this presentation was that it validated much of what I do in my classes and my beliefs about language teaching. I did learn some new things as well - I love going to conferences and look forward to attending more in the future.

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I have previously mentioned that I spend a good deal of time teaching learner style and strategy awareness in my classes. Since my students now have a foundation of understanding about what conscious use of strategies can do for them I am thinking about giving them the SILL.

There are two versions of the SILL one for native English speakers learning another language (80 questions) and one for non-natives learning English (50 questions). Both of them have been subjected to analysis and been confirmed to be highly valid (recently read this but cannot remember the source). There is additionally several translations of the SILL available including a Korean one, which I am in the process of trying to find. Even if I cannot find a Korean version the English version has still been proven to be statistically valid though slightly less than if conducted in the students native language.

I would encourage any teacher or second langauge student to get a copy of this book (most libraries should have it) and do the SILL in the appendix. It will also be very enlightening to read through the book as there are several good explanations of the various strategies and classroom activities that evoke their use. If you know where I can get a copy of the Korean language version I would be very grateful. If I cannot find one soon, perhaps I will google Rebecca Oxfords email address and ask her if she could direct me to the correct person.

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The plan is tomorrow I head over to the electronics market and find a digital recorder where I can download the files to my computer via USB as I must include either a cassette or a CD of the interview in addition to a transcription. I googled digital recorder and snooped around only to find that everything is much more expensive than I thought.

I figured I could find one for less than us$100 but anything cheaper than that does not come with USB capability. I cannot afford more than that and this now means I will end up getting a mini-cassette recorder to only use it once.

At least with a digital recorder I could see classroom applications I could use it for and thus feel good about spending the money. But if I buy a cassette recorder it will be for a one time event - a real waste of money. Classroom applications for digital recorders include - during presentations or speeches students record thier voices and then listen to them later. It would be very easy for me to put thier speeches online for download.

I could also record sound-bites of people talking around me in my personal life and then use those for authentic listening exercises. Again via a web-site or more realistically making a CD and playing it in class. There are other uses, but these are the two most versatile and appealing uses for the digital recorder.

I do hope that prices are cheaper here, but I doubt it. Experience has shown that electronics in Korea are generally 20-30% more than in North America.

Update

I found exactly what I wanted and much cheaper than expected. It is approximately us$63 can record upto 4 hours of voice has a USB connection and the sound quality is much better than I expected. It even comes with a connection to my phone so I can record phone calls. Looks like 007 - the ESL spy film is coming out next year.

I met a friend at starbucks and recorded our conversation with the recorder just lying on the table. Even though it was very noisy it is very easy to hear and understand the recording. It is even easier when listening with headphones or on the computer.

Overall a very satisfying purchase. Now it is time to start devising uses for it in my classes.

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This assignment involves collecting a small sample of empirical data, and writing a report based on the analysis of this data. The aim of this exercise is for you to get a feel for what is involved in collecting and analysing second language data. Since not all candidates will have previously completed a research methods course, you will not be expected to conduct a carefully controlled experimental study or to use inferential statistics

I have not completed a research methods class, so it is good that I do not have to use statistics. In the fall I am taking that class.

There are two options. I will probably choose to do option one - the relevant part is below:

The data which you analyse should come from one of the following sources.
Transcribe approximately 10-15 minutes of the data in as much detail as you can manage. Ensure that you transcribe all the errors of the second language learner(s). A set of transcription conventions from van Lier (1988) is in your printed Course Readings..
Option 1
A structured interview. Before doing the interview, think about the research question(s) you are asking and the information that you need to obtain to answer this question. If you are setting out to investigate a particular aspect of language learning (eg finding out about someone’s learning strategies or motivation), your interview will be more focused and your questions will tend to be fairly specific. With this type of interview, you can use the research literature to help you to frame your questions.

I have already chosen two students that I think would be good subjects. I haven’t yet contacted them as I have not prepared the questions I need to nor have I finished the reading. These students are from my last job and I have taught them many times so they should be comfortable talking with me while recording. 

My focus will be on learner strategies and how they consciously employ them to aid their language acquisition. I’m sure that I will have more data than I need to as both girls are very loquacious and excitable. Interestingly all of my ex-colleagues who have taught these two girls agree that their personalities are also extremely different from the typical Korean university student. I am sure that the personality differences are also a contributing factor to their success - If I can I will try to work that into the essay but as I am envisioning it now, I do not think it will fit.

All transcriptions, and the audio-tape(s) from which they were transcribed, should be included in an appendix as part of the assignment

I do not have a cassette recorder nor access to one. Since I now have to buy something I have written the professor a message asking if I can use a digital recording device and make a CD or preferably leave a copy of the recording on my web site for download. If not I guess I will have to buy a cassette recorder, but it seems like such a waste of money to buy something so archaic to use only once. At least with a digital recorder I can find other uses for it.

Good luck to me.

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The reason that many people believe this is that early, flawed, research showed that there was a cognitive and social disadvantage to bilinguingual children. However, recent research has shown that there is no negative affect and that there is in fact a positive benefit. Blinguals are superior to monolilnguals in verbal and nonverbal intelligence. This research unfortunately is not applicable to foreign language learning. It is applicable to immersion programs though.

More important than age is the amount and intensity of language exposure. How much time is required? It is accepted that children will master their first language, with the exception of some rare grammar and high level vocabulary, by the time they are four years old. During this entire time they are exposed to Language from the moment they wake up until they sleep. At this point Spada brought up 10,000 hours as the amount of exposure recieved required. Last fall I was doing research for an essay and used the 10,000 hour figure myself. You can read more about it in: Annual Review of Psychology, Feb 1996, Vol. 47, pp. 273-305 EXPERT AND EXCEPTIONAL PERFORMANCE: Evidence of Maximal Adaptation to Task Constraints by K. A. Ericsson and A. C. Lehmann Or google ericsson and expert performance.

Spada then stated that for immigrant children to achieve native social fluency they require a minimum of 5000 hours of instructional and play time. In addition to reach academic fluency they need to be exposed for at least five years. The next bit was about the benefits of immersion study, extended daily exposure over a short timve vs the “drip-feed” approach, small exposure over a long time. The research she cited is: Hawkins, E. & Perren, G. (1978). Intensive language teaching in schools. Centre for information on language teaching and research. London UK The results clearly indicate that it is intensity of time that is more important. This is because in the drip-feed approach the teacher is the only model of proficiency and that most if not all input comes from the learners themselves. This sounds almost exactly what the Korean (Asian?) education system does. A drip feed of English, unfortunately focusing on grammar and discrete testing rather than fluency.

Spada concluded by saying that incomplete acquisition is due to lack of time rather than age. And if instruction time is limited it is more efficient to begin instrution later. If possible, intiensive exposure to language is better than a slow constant approach.

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During the Q&A time Spada was asked a question that I didn’t write down but her answer stated that mastery of English is not necessary nor realistic in a foreign language setting. The questioner then asked a followup question about whether it is good to talk to learners about it not being reailistic to want to master English as it may be discouraging. Spada’s response was that it is good for students to set high goals but that they should be realistic. I agree 100 percent with this statement. Besides what is the point of sounding like a native speaker?

Her presentation in all four cities in Korea were taped and will be available on the oxford Korea site in early May.

Any errors in all five sections of the write up are entirely due to me - poor notes, poor memory, and taking a long time to write it up rather than doing it that day or the next day.

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When will L2/FL learning be most effective?

Conventional wisdom says that earlier is better and Spada refers to the axiom that You cannot teach an old dog new tricks and then quoted Shakespeare Richard the Second Act I Scene III

The language I have learn’d these forty years,
My native English, now I must forego:
And now my tongue’s use is to me no more
Than an unstringed viol or a harp,
Or like a cunning instrument cased up,
Or, being open, put into his hands
That knows no touch to tune the harmony:
Within my mouth you have engaol’d my tongue,
Doubly portcullis’d with my teeth and lips;
And dull unfeeling b