ROLE-PLAYS AND PROJECTS AT THE ENGLISH LESSONS

ROLE-PLAYS AND PROJECTS AT THE ENGLISH LESSONS

During the past two decades, the exercise of spoken language skills has received increasing attention among educators. Foreign language curricula focus on productive skills with special emphasis on communicative competence. Students' ability to engage in meaningful conversational interaction in the target language is considered an important, if not the most important, goal of language education. This shift of emphasis has generated a growing need for instructional materials that provide an opportunity for controlled interactive speaking practice outside the classroom.

We see almost daily in our classroom a learner with high quantitative and analytical intelligence that is not guaranteed success in language learning. Further, many of our brightest and fastest language learners may even show relatively low levels of ability in quantitative and analytical types of reasoning. The scientists propose some types of personal capability that, in his view, better define that complex cognitive, physical, and social interactions which determine the intelligence and abilities of a human being. These categories are: verb linguistic intelligence, professional intelligence, musical intelligence, logical intelligence, interpersonal self-knowledge intelligence.

The work is designed to help foreign language teaching professionals to see the concept of intelligence in a new light in order to broaden its traditionally narrow definition and develop awareness of learner differences, with the goal of introducing classroom approaches and techniques that will better meet the needs of individuals within the learning collective.

Experienced language teachers know that individual learners have distinct sets of personality characteristics which determine their talents, abilities, and preferences in language learning: some learners are «quick», some are thoughtful, some love to work independently, others require explanations, guidance, and constant attention from the teacher. That's why we must use the most effective teaching methods and aids at our disposal. Role-plays, projects, video situations can greatly widen our horizons of creativity within the suggested methods. Nowadays the whole English Language Teaching community is entering a new stage of interactive learning by means of new technologies. We give the preference to using English for Specific Purposes educational role-plays and projects. The system of role-plays is a valuable approach because it is very motivating and integrates all the language skills. It encourages the students to work independently and together and involves genuine communication. It takes language learning out of the classroom into the real world. More over English for Specific Purposes role-plays take an opportunity of using performances in the learning process. This method encourages cooperation and sharing of the ideas and skills within the group. In the present article we attempt to seek answers to a number of questions relating to the role of role-play activities in the English Language Teaching classroom. They are: why are these activities useful? What goals are to be set and results obtained? What kinds of plays to choose? What hidden obstacles prevent a performance from being a success?

To begin with role-playing might be interesting from the point of view of a cross-cultural perspective. Second, it might be useful for practical and professional purposes as well as to draw a distinction along the lines of contrast between role-playing in process and role-playing as a product.

Here the method of presentations and explanations, so common for classroom activities, is of much help. As for multi-media in the performances colorful and funny posters are also employed as an aid in grasping the meaning of unknown words. Slides and recordings are used as a mean of further explanations. Music and songs accompanying acting help the audience to relax.

Before the role-play during several lessons certain skills or language structures have to be introduced and then further illustrated or drilled during performance. Suppose that there are some places in the text or in the coming play, say grammar structure, new words or speech patterns or something else which the teacher considers difficult for particular groups of students. Approached creatively, the problem might be solved by introducing and incorporating them into materials of a corresponding lesson - to facilitate their understanding during the performance.

On the other hand, the teacher might reverse the procedure and introduce some elements into a play to be drilled by actors during the preparatory period - unless those performances are considered as 4-6 minutes activities.

In order to conduct a game successfully, it is necessary to pay attention to the peculiarities of the educational project and a role of a teacher in project.

We consider the educational project to be an active and research method, which takes much time to produce an end-product. Project work may be divided into some stages. They are:

Motivate the learners. It means that at the beginning stage of the project work the teacher explains the learners what the project is. He gives them necessary information about project. He tells them that a project is a group activity. He gets them exited about the idea, the topic and what they know already and what they will have to find out.

Organize class. It means that they decide on the size of group and divide the class up of 4-5 learners in each group.

Practice. It means that the project takes much time to produce. The learners cannot do a project in one lesson. It might take several lessons or the teacher may ask the learners to work on the project after lessons. It means that the learners have to practice any language skills they may need - perhaps question's forms (for questionnaires and interviews), letter writing, using reported speech, etc.

Design the material. It means that each group should decide on the end-product. The end-product might be a wall display, drama, an advertisement, etc.

Collect the information. It means that a project involves research. Learners will have to read books, ask questions, find out information, and do questionnaires outside the room. This information will form the basis of the project.

Collate the information. In groups prepare all the material they will need for the project.

Assemble the end-product - put the product together (working in groups) and make the presentation in public.

Educational project as a method of English learning is closely connected with the problem of developing the teacher's project culture, concerning to the formulation of goals, selecting English for Specific Purposes materials and situations of professional profile, spheres of future specialist’s activity and all the stages of project work. They are: motivate the learners, organize class, practice, design the materials, collect and collate information, assemble the end-product (presentation in public).

This material is very useful at the lessons of Business Course of English. Here you can see some steps of such lessons as an example of role-plays and projects.

Topic: Business Activities.

Dilemma: Exporting to Mexico

A British company, Systemax, manufactures and sells laboratory equipment to three main regions: Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Systemax is entering a new export market in Mexico. Sales in Mexico are small at the moment, but the company expects a big increase in the next two years and hopes to expand further into South America during the next five years. Systemax has two export managers for the main regions: George Johnstone, North America; Linda McCade, Europe.

Now someone has to take responsibility for exports to Mexico. Is it better to give extra responsibility to George Johnstone or to Linda McCade? Or perhaps the company needs to find a third export manager?

The extra responsibility means travelling to Mexico (and in future, to countries in South America) several times a year and building good relationships with customers there. Mexico has a border with the US and, in terms of geography, could be part of the North America region. But its culture is very different from the US culture. It is in many ways more similar to the culture of Spain.

You are the Systemax directors and have to decide. Consider:

1. What abilities and experience do George and Linda have?

2. How much time does each have for extra responsibilities?

3. Are they ready to increase the amount of travel abroad?

Task 1. Work in two groups. Look for the answers to the three questions above.

Group A: Find out more about George Johnstone.

George Johnstone

• An excellent salesman. Has good relations with the customers in the US and Canada.

• 32 years old and single. Keen to expand his area of responsibility.

• Travels a lot on business to Mexico easily because it is close to US.

• Doesn't speak Spanish and no experience in Spanish-speaking cultures.

Group B: Find out more about Linda McCade.

Linda McCade

• Linda is an excellent manager. She is very good at planning and organising her work.

• Speaks Spanish. Experience of Spanish – speaking cultures. Good relationships with Spanish customers.

• Travels a lot on business. Mexico would mean longer flights.

• 29 years old and married. Hopes to start a family in two to three years.

Task 2. Work in new groups of 4-6. Half of each group should be from Group A and half from Group B. Tell the others what information you have about George Johnstone or Linda McCade. Discuss the information and decide if it is a good idea to give extra responsibility to either George or Linda. Or you may decide to look for a third export manager.

Write it up. Write an email to either George Johnstone or Linda McCade, offering him/her the job and explaining why. Use these words in your email:

I'm writing to tell you that we would like to offer you the job of ... We think you are the right person for this job because ...

Decision. Read how Alistair Cross, a director of Systemax, Alistair explains the company's decision regarding responsibility for exports to Mexico. Compare your own decision with Alistair’s one.

Alistair Cross

George Johnstone is an excellent export manager and a very good salesman. But he doesn’t have experience of Mexico. When you start to do business in a new region, it’s very important to understand the culture. If you make mistakes, you can lose a customer. Linda has a lot of experience of doing business in Spain, and she knows something of South American cultures. She also speaks excellent Spanish. So we think that Linda is the best person to take responsibility for exports in Mexico. We know that she may not want to stay in the job for more than two or three years, so we are also looking for a new person to join the sales team – someone who speaks good Spanish and has a lot of experience of doing business in Latin America. Then if Linda wants to stop travelling, we will have someone who can take this role.

It can be seen that it is difficult and probably undesirable to attempt to determine the difficulty of a listening and viewing task in any absolute terms. By considering the three aspects that affect the level of difficulty, namely text, task, and context features, it is possible to identify those characteristics of tasks that can be manipulated. Having identified the variable characteristics of tasks in developing the model, it is necessary to look to the dynamic interaction among, tasks, texts, and the computer-based environment. Task design and text selection in this model also incorporate the identification and consideration of context. Teachers can make provision for their influence on learner perception of difficulty by providing texts and tasks that range across these levels, and by ensuring that learners with lower language proficiency can ease themselves gradually into the more contextually difficult tasks. This can be achieved by reducing the level of difficulty of other parameters such as text or task difficulty, or by minimizing other aspects of contextual difficulty. Thus, for example, learners of lower proficiency who are exposed for the first time to a task based on a broadcast announcement would be provided with appropriate visual support in the form of graphics or video to reduce textual difficulty.

Literature

1. Артемьева, О.А. Новые подходы в обучении английскому языку: учебно-ролевые игры и проекты профессиональной направленности.- Вестник ТГТУ, 2005.

2. Christine Johnson. Intelligent Business. Pre-Intermediate. Longman, 2006.

Резюме

В данной статье автор рассматривает новые подходы в обучении английскому языку, которые позволяют учащимся анализировать, строить и выдвигать свои предложения в виде проектов и ролевых игр на примере урока Business Course of English.