Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Teaching & Education

Unit 15: Approaches to Language Teaching

What Is an Approach to Language Teaching?

Our view of language and how language learning takes place influences our teaching approach. For example, one view might consider language as a set of grammar rules, learned through study and translation. Another approach might emphasize communication, focusing on fluency through interactive activities.

Comparing Approaches

Synopsis

Sam Sylvester, a dedicated teacher at Hawkwood School, strives to instill ambition in his students and inspire them to achieve great things. He decides to train them for a sports competition against the affluent students of Greycoats. The great adventure begins here.

Key Vocabulary

• Team: A group of people who play a sport or game together against another group.
• Race: A competition to see who can run, ride, or drive the fastest.
• Course: The ground where a race is run.
• Competition: A game or sport that people try to win.
• Mare: A female horse.
• Recording: The process of storing sounds or images.
• Shed: A small building used for storage.
• Knackers: People who buy and sell old horses.
• Score: The number of points in a game or test.
• Slide: To move smoothly

Tercer rekorda:

Re: Third reminder letter regarding bill RefNOXX. Third payment reminder of invoice refno

Hereby I would like to remind you that as at today your arrent debt with us for the supply of our services/We are sorry to let you know that as at today we have not received any reply to any of our letters dated on 6^thPuesto k a dia de la fch no recib: Since as at today we have not received from you any of our two previous reminder letters. Nuestros 2rekord: Despite our two previous reminders of 2nd and 1st.Relativas al abono de la fact ref444 por un importe de: respectively about the payment of our invoice ref444 amounting to €44,4. Vencio ace mas de: it expired the past 15th januay / is now past due more than.. Deberia aver sido saldada:... Continue reading "Third Reminder Letter for Unpaid Invoice - Urgent Payment Request" »

Do business, a job • make money, a loss • launch a product, a campaign • cut costs, jobs • reach a decision, a target • run a business, a company

PAST SIMPLE • Yesterday • Last week/month/year etc • Ago • In/at/on + time e.g. on Monday

PRESENT PERFECT • Since • For • Yet • Already • Just • So far/up to now • Always/ever/never

• 1. The staff training programme was upgraded a) Last year b) in the late 1990s • 2. The first computer was invented a) In the 20th century c) many years ago • 3. It has been a difficult year in Portugal b) so far c) till now • 4. They have b) already c) never met their targets • 5. How many new products have they launched a) Since last summer b) this year?

•In – for long periods... Continue reading "Business English Grammar and Vocabulary Exercises" »

Mastering English Vocabulary and Grammar

Common Verb Collocations

• Make: progress, money, suggestions, sense, a reaction, a choice, competition, an appointment
• Take: part, action, achievement, place, a rise, an effort, one’s time, responsibility, age
• Raise: a solution, issues, money, one’s voice, a question, an award, children, awareness, a price, doubt

Essential Idiomatic Expressions

• Move with the times: to adapt to current trends
• Have you on the edge of your seat: something that is very exciting or suspenseful
• His mind is made up: he has decided firmly
• Dead-end job: a job with no prospects for advancement
• Get your foot in the door: to get started in a new career or organization
• Make a living: to earn enough money to live
• Tricks of the trade: clever

Modal Verbs in English

Obligation:

• Must (deber, tener que)
• Have to (tener que)

Must is used for orders and strong obligations, while have to is often used in a more general sense.

Prohibition:

• Mustn't (no deber)
• Can't (no poder)

Mustn't is more commonly used.

Necessity:

• Need to (necesitar)

Permission:

• Can (poder)
• May (poder)
• Could (podría)

Can and could are used more informally, while may is more formal.

No Necessity:

• Needn't (no necesitar)
• Don't have to (no es necesario que...)

Recommendations, Advice, Opinions:

• Should (deberías)
• Ought to (deberías)

Negative recommendations: Shouldn't and Oughtn't

Ability:

• Can (present)
• Be able to (future)
• Could (past)

Understanding Advice, Nouns, and Suffixes

A piece of advice: un consejo
Advisable: aconsejable
Advise: aconsejar... Continue reading "Understanding Modal Verbs and English Grammar" »

UNIT 1 PRAGAMATICS

INTRODUCTION

• Deixis: Refers to words and phrases that cannot be fully understood without additional contextual information. Pointing via language.

“You’ll to bring this tomorrow because it is not here”

• Referenic. Act by which a speaker uses language to enable a listener to identify something.

• Inference: Additional information used by the listener to connect what is said to what must be MEANI

• Anaphora: Subsequent reference to an already introduced entity

“My brother came to see me. He was furious”

• Supposition: What a speaker assumes is true or known by what he hears

“Your qualified is waiting outside” → You heard a qualified

• Politeness: showing awareness of others' perform fave. Fave = public self-image

  • Fave-threatening

Describe two direct and another two indirect strategies you usually use for language learning. Write about the specific strategy and not about the strategy group. Explain them and give one example of how you use them for language learning.

1. Direct Strategy Grouping (Memory Strategy)

Involves classifying or reclassifying what is heard or read into meaningful groups, thus reducing the number of unrelated elements. It sometimes involves labeling the groups, as well.

In my case, when I am learning a foreign language, in this case, English I tend to use this Strategy. While I read a text I underline the words I did not understand such as, friendly, lively, lonely, much, little, several, as soon as, after, however, etc. Then I group them in three... Continue reading "Effective Language Learning Strategies and Examples" »

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