MASARYK UNIVERSITY Dealing with Mixed Ability Classes

107 Pages·2010·2.17 MB·English

MASARYK UNIVERSITY
FAKULTY OF EDUCATION

Department of English Language and Literature

Dealing with Mixed Ability Classes

Diploma Thesis

Brno 2010

Supervisor: Written by:
PhDr. Alena Kašpárková Bc. Adéla Šimanová
Anotace

Diplomová práce „ Práce se studenty s rozdílnou jazykovou úrovní“ se zabývá
problematikou žáků s výrazně rozdílnou jazykovou úrovní v jedné třídě, a to zejména
v jazykových školách. Práce řeší problematiku individuálních rozdílů mezi studenty,
zejména co se týče věku, jazykového nadání, úrovně jazyka, motivace atd. Dále se
pak práce zabývá problémy, které z těchto individuálních a zejména jazykových
rozdílů plynou. V diplomové práci jsou popsány klady a zápory tříd se studenty s
rozdílnou jazykovou úrovní a možné výukové strategie a metody pro práci
s takovouto třídou.

Annotation

Diploma thesis “Dealing with Mixed Ability Classes“ focuses on the problems of
classes with significant language differences, which may appear especially in
language schools. The thesis concentrates on individual learner differences, such as
age, language aptitude, language levels, motivation etc. Further, the thesis describes
the problems arising from individual, particularly significant language differences in
one class. In the diploma thesis, there are described advantages and disadvantages of
classes with diverse language levels and possible teaching strategies and methods to
be used in such a class.
Klíčová slova

individuální rozdíly mezi žáky, věk, jazykové nadání, učební styly, jazykové úrovně,
dospělí studenti cizího jazyka, inteligence a rozmanité inteligence, Evropské
jazykové portfolio, sebehodnocení, autonomie žáka, žákovi preference a potřeby,
třídy s rozdílnou jazykovou úrovní, klady a zápory tříd s rozdílnou jazykovou úrovní,
možná výuková řešení a strategie ve třídách s rozdílnou jazykovou úrovní

Key words

individual learner differences, age, language aptitude, learning styles, language
levels, adult learners of foreign language, intelligence and multiple intelligence,
European Language Portfolio, self-evaluation, learner autonomy, learner preferences
and needs, mixed ability classes, advantages and disadvantages of mixed ability
classes, possible teaching solutions and strategies in mixed ability classes
Prohlášení:

Prohlašuji, že jsem závěrečnou diplomovou práci vypracovala samostatně, s využitím pouze
citovaných literárních pramenů, dalších informací a zdrojů v souladu s Disciplinárním řádem
pro studenty Pedagogické fakulty Masarykovy univerzity a se zákonem č. 121/2000 Sb., o
právu autorském, o právech souvisejících s právem autorským a o změně některých zákonů
(autorský zákon), ve znění pozdějších předpisů.
Souhlasím, aby práce byla uložena na Masarykově univerzitě v Brně v knihovně
Pedagogické fakulty a zpřístupněna ke studijním účelům.

Declaration:

I declare that I worked on my Final Diploma Thesis on my own using only cited literary
sources, other information and sources in agreement with the Disciplinary Regulations for
Students of Faculty of Education at Masaryk University and with the Law 121/2000 Coll., on
Copyright, Rights Related to Copyright and on the Amendment of Certain Laws (Copyright
Law), Subsequently Amended.
I agree with the storage of this work in the library of the Faculty of Education at Masaryk
University in Brno and making it accessible for study purposes.

…………………………………
Brno, 20th April 2010 Bc. Adéla Šimanová
Poděkování:

Ráda bych vyjádřila své poděkování vedoucí mé diplomové práce PhDr. Aleně
Kašpárkové za cenné rady a doporučení, které přispěly ke konečné podobě této
práce.

Acknowledgments:

I would like to express my thanks to the supervisor of my Diploma Thesis PhDr.
Alena Kašpárková for the valuable advices and recommendations which helped
towards the final version of this work.
Table of Contents
Introduction .................................................................................. 2

1. Theoretical part ...................................................................... 4

1.1. Learner differences .................................................................... 4
1.1.1. Age ................................................................................................ 4
1.1.2. Adult learners .............................................................................. 5
1.1.3. Language aptitude ....................................................................... 7
1.1.4. Intelligence and multiple intelligences ....................................... 8
1.1.5. Learning style............................................................................... 8
1.1.6. Language levels .......................................................................... 12
1.1.7. Motivation .................................................................................. 15
1.1.8. Learner Autonomy .................................................................... 16
1.1.9. Learner expectations about the language, their needs and
preferences .............................................................................................. 17
1.2. Mixed-ability classes ................................................................. 19
1.2.1. Possible problems in mixed-ability classes .............................. 20
1.2.2. Advantages of mixed ability classes ......................................... 22
1.2.3. Teaching suggestions for mixed-ability classes ....................... 23
2. Practical part ........................................................................ 30

2.1. Introduction of the practical part ........................................... 30
2.2. Introduction of the research group ......................................... 33
2.2.1. Individual differences among learners .................................... 33
2.2.2. Unique differences of the learners ........................................... 36
2.3. Learner expectations about the language, their needs and
preferences .......................................................................................... 38
2.3.1. Learning a language: experience and expectations ................ 38
2.3.2. Questionnaire for learners: Individual learning preferences 39
2.3.3. Needs analysis questionnaire .................................................... 41
2.3.4. Language self-assessment according to European Language
Portfolio ................................................................................................... 42
2.4. Main problems in the course ................................................... 45
2.5. Teaching strategies for mixed-ability classes ......................... 47
2.5.1. Communicative activities .......................................................... 48
2.5.1.1 Changing pairs ........................................................................................... 49
2.5.1.2 Examples of communicative activities....................................................... 51
2.5.2. Listening exercises ..................................................................... 55
2.5.2.1 Example of listening exercises ................................................................... 56
2.5.3. Working with texts .................................................................... 59
2.5.3.1 Examples of working with texts activities ................................................. 60
2.5.4. Open – ended exercises ............................................................. 63
2.5.4.1 Open-ended exercises ................................................................................ 63
2.5.5. Drama techniques ...................................................................... 65
2.5.5.1 Examples of drama techniques .................................................................. 65
2.6. Practical activities - summary ................................................. 69
3. Course evaluation................................................................. 71

Conclusion ................................................................................... 86

Bibliography ............................................................................... 88

List of Appendices ...................................................................... 90

Appendices .................................................................................. 91

1
Introduction

English language is an inseparable part of today´s world. People want to learn the
language to travel, to get better jobs, to watch movies, read books or to study abroad
to get a higher qualification. The increasing requirements for the public to speak
English language result in the growth of language schools. There are many schools,
which offer various approaches towards students’ learning and genuinely strive to
provide their clients with the highest quality of language education and innovative
language-teaching methods. However, money is always the main issue, therefore
many language schools are focused on the financial matter rather than on the
language improvement of their clients.

I am an English teacher at a language school in Liberec. I have been teaching there
since October 2008. I teach three public courses, one company course and five
individual classes from A1 to B2 level according to European Language Portfolio.

Our language school does not follow any official educational documents. The
management is interested rather in general satisfaction of the students with the
courses than in their language progress. They do not have any placement system and
students can assess their language level according to their consideration-which
results in uneven language ability within a course. Such situation represents special
situation both for teachers and students and it requires application of teaching
strategies suitable for mixed-ability environment.

With regard to my experience I have decided to write my diploma thesis on the topic
referring to mixed ability classes. Not a single class is homogenous, but at the
language school where I teach there are significant differences among learners which
negatively influence the learning and teaching process. The goal of the diploma
thesis is to identify strategies suitable for teaching English to students in mixed-
ability classes and incorporate them in a teaching practise. I would like to become
aware of problems of mixed ability classes, find possible solutions and further begin
to use methods and strategies for mixed ability classes automatically without
thinking about them.
2
The diploma thesis consists of a theoretical and a practical part. In the theoretical part
I will closely examine individual learner differences and their consequences on
learning and teaching process. Further I will discuss issues of mixed ability classes –
advantages and disadvantages, possible solutions and recommended methods,
strategies and activities to be used in such a class.

The practical part consists of research which was carried out by a continual
observation and questionnaires. I will describe the learners’ differences in one of
language courses and their impact on a classroom dynamics. Furthermore, I will
explain the main teaching problems in the course and I will present activities and
strategies which I tried out over a certain period of time. To conclude, I will
comment on the activities and their effectiveness.

3
1. Theoretical part

1.1. Learner differences

In general, language learners may differ in many aspects that influence the language
learning abilities. Students have different strengths, weaknesses and approaches
towards learning. They respond differently to the specific teaching methods and
classroom situations. The more teachers are familiar with students’ differences, the
better they are able to satisfy diverse learning needs. Teachers should be flexible,
innovative and provide learners with various teaching strategies and attitudes.

Whereas some differences are easy to see, others are difficult to discover. The first
aspect, which is connected with the differences among learners, is age.

1.1.1. Age

Age is one of the major factors which influence the way how and what we teach.
People of different ages have different needs, competences and cognitive skills
(Harmer 37). There are certain beliefs about language learning concerning particular
age groups. Young learners are believed to learn faster than other age groups. As
Harmer (37) claims, “this has something to do with the plasticity of a young brain”.
Also, according to The Critical Period Hypothesis (CPH), there is a specific and
limited time period for language acquisition (Lightbown and Spada 19). For
Lennenberg, the author of CPH, this is the age between the age of two and puberty
(McLaughlin 96) and after this time certain language abilities are impossible to
develop. Harmer (38) states that “young children learn differently from older
children, teenagers and adult learners”. They learn indirectly as they take in
information from all sides rather than focusing on one topic they are being taught.
They learn from everything around them, they need to see, hear, touch and interact
with things in order to understand them. Last but not least, they are enthusiastic and
curious learners, keen to talk about themselves. However, it is not easy to keep them
4