"A More Creative Use of the Language Laboratory in Second Language Acquisition."

"A More Creative Use of the Language Laboratory in Second Language Acquisition

What Works in Portuguese Can Work for ESL too!

"A More Creative Use of the Language Laboratory in Second Language Acquisition. What Works in Portuguese Can Work for ESL too! How to use the Sony Systems to your advantage." A closer look at the Sony LLC-5510 Console and/or Sony LL Control Console LLC-9000 System.

Joseph Abraham Levi
Adjunct Assistant Professor
African American World Studies Program
The University of Iowa

Invited guest speaker at the:
English as a Second Language Program
end of the semester faculty meeting
34 Macbride Hall
November 11, 1997
© Joseph Abraham Levi, 1997.

Currently I am in my 21st year of teaching. I have eighteen years of teaching experience at university level, eleven here in the U.S. and nine abroad: i.e., Italy, Portugal, and Tanzania. Given the rather specific nature of my interests and, therefore, studies, I have taught and teach a full range of subjects that by their very nature are all inclusive as far as multicultural experience and, consequently, expertise go. I have taught ESL, British and North-American Literature, Italian Language and Literature, Urdu, Swahili, History of Africa, Portuguese Language and Lusophone Literature and Culture, Brazilian Literature, Medieval Spanish Literature, Jewish Culture and Society of Medieval Iberia, and Islamic Studies. This semester I am teaching Pre-Colonial African History; next semester I will be teaching African Islam.
I have taught in many places and in many settings. Three continents, three different experiences, but the core is the same: students are the same wherever we go, despite the differences in language, culture, society, and, most of all, exigencies. During these past twenty years I have learned many things, mainly that no matter where, a student, in order to grow, intellectually as well as personally and emotionally, needs to be encouraged, stimulated, and followed in his/her daily progress. Students are human beings just like anyone else, and they deserve to be heard, understood, and inspired, mainly through our own enthusiasm for the subject as well as our sincere interest in their welfare. We should always keep in mind that we are the ambassadors of the language and/or society and culture that we are teaching. In all the classes that I have taught during these past twenty years I have always emphasized the individuality of each one of us, the uniqueness of each group, and, consequently, of each people and nation in history.
My teaching philosophy and practice are based upon what I have learned during my studies, continuous research in the fields of methodology and pedagogy, and, last but not least, on my own experience. The latter aspect is my main guide, since it automatically embodies the former two. I am always looking for new ways for improving, for making each day the best class, where learning, communication, and growth are the main objectives. I always ask students for their feedback, for ideas on how they would improve the class, and what they would like to see. Hence, students' evaluations are very important to me, they help me reassess my goal(s) each semester, therefore improving my approach to the subject matter as well as my teaching methodology. The 'ideal class' is not what we have read about or what we have talked about at a conference. Certainly these concepts and theories are vital and instrumental tools which should always be there in the background, as a constant reminder, as a mental prompt. The 'ideal class' becomes a reality only when we put together what we have learned and what we experiment in class-on a daily basis-until the class is all at a unison, in complete harmony. Each student is an individual, and as such he/she deserves my fullest attention, in class as well outside of class. I constantly remind students that "this is our class, not mine!" Every day is a new experience; every day I learn something new. I strongly believe that students are not the only ones who are learning. I have grown and keep growing as I teach, as I communicate with students, listening to their questions and trying to respond in a way that they can understand. No question is left unanswered; no question is 'irrelevant.' I strongly believe that our task is to teach through communication, discourse, and, most of all, leaving ample space for discussions, so that students can virtually experience the subject at hand. In all my classes there is, and has always been, ample space for lectures, active participation, discussions, and, most of all, criticism, thus leaving room for improvement, from my part as well as the readings. Active participation and critical approach are essential requirements in almost all the subjects that I teach. Analytical thought is encouraged from day one; students are constantly reminded and encouraged to come and talk to me.
In language classes participation is, of course, required and demanded, since only through constant active use of the target language students can achieve and keep an adequate level of fluency in the target language, be it ESL or any L2. Students are always exposed to a wide gamma of exercises and activities, designed to portray the composite make of our as well as other societies and cultures. In my language classes, besides in the traditional classroom, I have also had great results in a laboratory setting where I have used both the Sony LLC-5510 Console System and the Sony LL Control Console LLC-9000 System. Needless to say, the results have always been great. Two of my favorite features are the 'paired and group conversations' and the questions and answers drills within the 'analyzer mode.' However, there are many more activities, innumerous, provided we have a fertile imagination and a great sense of adventure!
1. First of all, we can use the language laboratory as a traditional classroom: we can start with a warm-up. Headphones down, just asking questions "How are you?," "How was your weekend?," etc. As you ask, make sure you move around, not showing your lips. In learning a language-ESL or any other L2-our first instinct is to read the lips. By 'hiding' the source of the sound, we force students to listen carefully. This will enable them to perform well outside, to survive in the real world. This should be our goal. ESL and L2 have the same objective: teaching language skills that will enable students to proficiently use a different code. Then we can put our headphones on, no master cassette tape on, just our voice. We can thus give a dictation, emphasizing certain grammatical aspects, and/or simply talk and then ask questions.
2. A second activity could be, like in #1, a dictation; however, this time ask for a student to write on the board as his/her colleagues are taking the dictation through the headphones. Make sure to press the room speaker, so that your student at the blackboard can hear you too! Remind students not to look at the board, but to concentrate, instead, on the dictation. Remember: dictation should be short, three paragraphs at the most. Make sure to include the most important grammatical and lexical items. Once done, thank the student, send him/her back to his/her seat, and start correcting the dictation by reading it, slowly, on the board, with your finger pointing at the words. Pause at mistakes or if you want to emphasize certain linguistic and/or lexical-morphological aspects. Remember: always keep your headphones on!
3. Third activity: place the overhead projector by your side, i.e., to the left of the Sony Console (in between the Console and the booths). Prepare a few transparencies ahead of time, i.e., color and/or black and white. You can use images, vignettes, and/or you can draw your own figures. You can then ask, always with your headphones on, specific questions related to the grammar and/or the vocabulary of the day. With one or two markers and a tissue you can also 'add' or 'delete' features directly on the transparency and then ask more questions. Finally, you can also use the transparency as a situation for a small dictation or 'oral history.'
4. A fourth activity could be playing the standard master cassette tape. Students will thus have to listen carefully, record their own voices, then compare pronunciations. During all this, our task is to listen, monitor and, most importantly, to intervene when appropriate. We have to make sure not to intimidate, but rather, to encourage and help students achieve accuracy and proficiency. We can do this, for example, by using the main speaker so that no student in particular is singled out. We can single out but, of course, in private, using the intercom, i.e., the one on one connection, where we can be the model and the student will listen carefully to the sound(s).
5. A fifth activity could be the famous paired and group conversations. You can assign this activity when you wish students to "practice conversing with each other, in pairs or in groups." This would be a great way for checking pronunciation and aural comprehension. Encourage students to be creative. It is my experience that once you allow creativity you incite participation and, most of all, an active interest in learning. When students create a dialogue or a story they feel the topic at hand, they participate in the creative process, thus the activity is not passive, like a dictation or listening comprehension. In actively creating and making the dialogue or in writing a story they can use the grammar and all the other expressions they have previously learned. This will enable passive knowledge to become active knowledge. You can give 'guided' conversations: choose a specific topic, then allow one or two minutes for discussion, i.e., giving them time to choose how to present the situation, then let them write up what they want to (re)present. If you provide students with a photocopy where there are some vignettes, for example, you can then ask them to create a dialogue or to write one or two paragraphs below them in which they describe what they think it is going on or did happen. You can ask to use only certain verbs, tenses or adjectives and so forth. You can use holidays and/or other real-life events. You should pair students in groups of 2 or 3. You will be the silent partner. You will intervene only to solve problems of pronunciation or, in case of doubts, of lexical choice. Do not try to correct everything they do or say there; make room for creativity; listen in, correct when appropriate and move on to the next group. At the end of the class you should collect these exercises. The following class period start the day by putting on the board the main points: mistakes to avoid, things to use when we want to express something and so forth. Students will learn more this way: they are using grammar and, at the same time, they can associate this with what they have done, with the things they have created. In every day life, they would have to communicate, they would have to create situations in which grammar is used; they won't have their copybooks!
6. Sixth activity: this activity is a potpourri, a mixture of #3 and #5. Pair students off as in #5. Use a transparency just like in #3 and let students come up with a situation on their own. You can guide the 'story' by putting on the board a list of basic vocabulary and/or grammatical points that you would like to be covered. Proceed as in #5.
7. A seventh activity could be the questions and answers drills within the analyzer mode. Example: prepare a dictation or have a paragraph or two ready. On a blank sheet, ¼ towards the bottom, put 3 or 4 answers. Just write down the answers to a story/situation contained in your dictation or paragraph(s); all but one should be very realistic and related to the story: two very similar-thus forcing students to really think well before answering-one should be somehow related, but absolutely not the correct answer-thus we are testing a medium level of aural proficiency-and the fourth one should be completely off the wall, hence we are seeing if the student is really in tune with the language and the pace of the class. This activity should be done at least once a month to test new grammatical points or other subject matter so that we can take care of future problems from the start. Distribute the sheets with the 4 questions. Read the dictation and/or paragraph. Ask the questions, one at the time. Give ample time for students to respond, press the analyzer mode button for the first printout. Proceed to the next questions. When done, press the analyzer mode button. It will give you the final printout. This printout will show you where each student stands, linguistically speaking, as well as it could help you with the grading!
8. An eighth activity could be the use of the television/vcr, i.e., the Video Projector and Console mode. Hook up the television/vcr set to the Sony Console so that they can all listen to the television through their headphones. You can use the television/vcr set in many ways. First, you can use the news, previously recorded, and play it. Play it for a few minutes. You can stop at any time. You can ask, using your headphones, if they understood; you can ask specific questions, etc. You can rewind and play it again a few times so that they can understand better or catch a specific expression and/or accent. You can pause it and explain and/or give your 'version,' your 'rendition,' if dealing with idiomatic expressions and/or accent, and then compare the two 'outcomes.' You can introduce more examples: e.g., you can play an audiocassette tape featuring southern accents, then you can switch back to yourself and to the tv. You can also use a specific part of the news as a dictation. Students will love this because, in their first stages of learning, being able to understand the news is a real conquest! Try to use small segments. Explain the situation first. Play it once. Then start the dictation. Pause often. Remember, this is not stenography 101! Finally, play it once more so that they can verify what they have written down. Now, distribute parts of that segment and give as an assignment: e.g., ask them to compare 'versions;' or, collect the dictations and correct them at home, noting the discrepancies. You can use this activity with parts of movies, sitcoms, soap operas, popular songs, Emmy or Grammy awards, etc.