SOME METHODS FOR TEACHING IDIOMS AT ADVANCED LEVELS EFFECTIVELY...5 2.4.. Teaching idiomatic expressions to EFL learning students at advanced levelsrequire a number of pedagogical invest
Trang 1THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
BIM SON UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL
Trang 2CONTENTS
1 INTRODUCTION 2
1.1 REASONS FOR CHOOSING THE RESEARCH 2
1.2 AIMS OF THE RESEARCH 3
1.3 RESEARCH SUBJECT 3
1.4 RESEARCHING METHOD 3
2 CONTENT 3
2.1 THEORETICAL BASIS: 3
2.2 REAL SITUATION BEFORE APPLYING THE INNOVATION 4
2.3 SOME METHODS FOR TEACHING IDIOMS AT ADVANCED LEVELS EFFECTIVELY 5
2.4 RESULT AFTER APPLYING THE RESEARCH IN TEACHING 17
3 CONCLUSION AND REQUEST 19
REFERENCE MATERIALS 21
Trang 31 INTRODUCTION
1.1 REASONS FOR CHOOSING THE RESEARCH
The English language being very flexible constantly enriches its vocabulary withwords invented by language speakers, making it more colourful with newidiomatic expressions Idioms are pervasive They’re used in formal andinformal speech, conversation and writing and are part of standard speech inbusiness, education and the media Second- language learners are expected tounderstand a variety of common idioms, which is advantageous for thoseplanning to work in a world that increasingly uses English as the language ofcommunication and commerce Whether it is working in one’s native country or
in an English-speaking country, idioms are important as part of the sharedknowledge among English speakers Since vocabulary and culture areintertwined, speakers can gain more vocabulary through idioms and conversely,can learn more about idioms from being exposed to the target culture The morecomprehensible input there is, the more learners’ listening, speaking, writingand reading skills will improve
Teaching idiomatic expressions to EFL learning students at advanced levelsrequire a number of pedagogical investigations Non native speakers face somedifficulties while gaining knowledge of foreign language I myself found it soconfusing to teach my students, many of whom got 6.5 ielts because of limitedteaching materials and the difficulty of knowledge They always showed theirdepression when they couldn’t succeed in hard idioms
A couple of years ago, I had some methods that helped students a lots withsimple idioms It can be clearly seen that after applying some methods to helpthem learn English idioms which are at rather easy levels, students are no longerafraid of them and become more eager to practice more difficult idioms.However, advanced idioms are not simple for students even for gifted students.Therefore, they may be deeply frustrated
Most of my students unveiled that they wanted to try more difficult exercises onidioms as they were studying to get IELTS band 7 or 8 in speaking and somewriting to prepare for the entrance exam for top universities or to study abroad.New changes in college entrance in recent years require that students must adapt
to them Many top leading universities offer admission to universities with Ieltscertificate and my students who are rather good at English try to get itsuccessfully, but they are worrying about idioms in examinations However,they don’t have sources of suitable materials for studying and efficientassisstance In addition, limited kinds of exercises and uninteresting onesprevent them from obtaining what they want I tried to get solutions from othercolleges, but they got the same trouble
Trang 4Seeing their wants and needs, I myself made effort to think, explore , exchangeand consult my group leader along with my colleges to release my innovation:
“Some mothods to help grade 11B8 students at Bim Son high school conquer English idioms at advanced levels”
Hopefully that the results of my study will be shared with any colleagues whosestudents have the same problem or anyone who is interested in this study And I
am extremely greatful to any contribution to make the study more perfect
1.2 AIMS OF THE RESEARCH.
- To to gain a deeper knowledge of the creative expression of human thoughtand language development over time
- To design different kinds of exercises on advanced idioms correctly
- To help use idioms at advanced levels fluently and efficiently
2.1.1 What are advanced idioms?
The word 'idiom' is a Greek term meaning 'own or 'peculiar.' Advanced idiomsare idioms which are extremely difficult because they provide little or no contextrelated to their meaning Without a definition, it would almost be impossible tofigure out what they mean In contrast, easy idioms do not cause any difficulty
in guessing their meaning, take the sentence He's been on cloud nine ever sinceshe agreed to marry him for example From the context, students guess themeaning of the idiom
Thus, an idiom is a figurative expression that can usually be interpreted literallybut that takes a non-literal meaning when used in a specific context (Rohani &Ketabi, 2012) Idioms are pervasive in the English language They are used informal style and in slang Idioms may appear in poetry, literature, exams even
in everyday conversation And idioms at advanced levels make studentsdepressed
Trang 52.1.2 Opions about effective teaching.
Traditional methods of teaching idioms focus on rote learning andmemorization They are time- and effort-consuming, as learners picked upidioms discretely without associations between forms and meanings (Chen &Lei, 2013)
There has been the need of a flexible and dynamic approach towards theteaching of English idioms
According to Thomas L Good, Caroline R H Wiley, and Ida Rose Florez,effective teaching is the ability to improve student’s achievement
However, ideally, Homer coker, Donal M Medley, and Robert S Soar consider
it mastery of the competence and effectiveness in the class room
In short, there are many other opinions about it, but the aim of teaching focuses
on student’s achievement
2.1.3 Unsuitable and limited materials
The wicked problem at hand is the lack of resources in classrooms Thisproblem affects students and teachers The lack of resources in classrooms cancause extreme distress on the students and teachers Not only are the studentsand teachers in distress, but they are unable to learn to their fullest potentialbecause they are not being given the proper resources Once I realize theseproblems, I then can investigate solutions for this wicked problem
Teachers are a key factor in teaching Without teacher, the learners will not gainand gather information In this problem the teacher is the most affected person
If the teacher is a resourceful person, then this problem will be solved It isimportant that we as a teacher must make an alternate solution or ways on how
to sustain our needs in teaching through this way teaching learning process willbecome and conducive The teacher is the one who spends time finding andcreate suitable exercises to meet the demand of her students
2.2 REAL SITUATION BEFORE APPLYING THE INNOVATION.
English is used more and more commonly in many aspects of life Learners want
to get good knowledge of both grammar and vocabulary However, how tomaster English vocabulary, especially hard idioms, isn’t easy at all My studentsoften ignored or chose the anwer at random in the tasks or the tests Then Icollected one trial test on idioms and tested them The result made medisappointed Only ten students got from 7 to 8 mark and two got 9 The rest gotunder five The real situation really made me think Inspite of being good atEnglish, the students were not familiar with hard idioms So, how to teach themmore effectively and interestingly is a raised question and I myself considered
my role very important
Trang 62.3 SOME METHODS FOR TEACHING IDIOMS AT ADVANCED LEVELS EFFECTIVELY
2.3.1.Teaching idioms in essay writing.
This helps advanced English learners improve their vocabulary It is perfect forintermediate to advanced English learners and a good general practice forstudents taking IELTS, TOEFL & SAT English exams
One of the ways to present idiomatic expressions is by integrating it into theteaching of essay writing as illustrated below:
1 The teacher asked the students to write an essay describing an experience ofbeing extremely happy
2 After submitting the first draft, the students were introduced to the concept ofmetaphors
3 Two-page handouts were distributed in class as the teaching materials Thecontent was a few idioms as examples
4 To illustrate the concept of metaphor, a short article about issues of emotioncontrols was given on the first page of the handout; the students were asked toread over the article and to circle the idiomatic expressions used in it Figure 1 isthe sample handout
A Happy Day in Your Life
Our life is not a bed of roses We have to face a lot of difficulties in our life.There are a few happy days in our life When a happy day comes in our life, weare filled with joy Recently I have enjoyed a happy day in my life The memory
of that happy is fresh in my mind
The results of my annual examination were to be announced on the 23rdDecember I had not done well in the examination So, I was afraid that I mightnot obtain good marks When I reached school I was very sad I thought that Imight be declared unsuccessful When the results were announced, I wassurprised to know that I had topped the list of all the successful students of myclass The headmaster congratulated me on my success I had never expected tosecure the highest marks in my class My great success was unexpected So, Iwas filled with joy I was surrounded by my friends who all admired me
When I returned home, my parents congratulated me on my success They feltlike their feet barely touched the gound My father decided to arrange a feast tocelebrate my success He went out to invite his friends to the feast My motherbegan to make preparations for the feast After some time my father returnedhome with a packet of sweets His spirits were flying high He told us that hehad got the first prize in the Uttar Pradesh State lottery When we heard thathappy news, our joy knew no bounds I started jumping and dancing My motherwas mad with joy She said that she always prayed ot God for riches We went
to a temple to offer our prayers We worshipped at the temple and distributedsweets among the beggars When we returned home, we found large crowds ofpeople They congratulated my father on his good luck My father arranged a
Trang 7grand feast at night About two hundred quests attended the feast.
Sunshine flooded my soul and I could not sleep at night I thought that it was aday of great happiness in my life I had never enjoyed such a happy day Icannot forget that happy day I wish such a happy day might come again in mylife
5 The teacher then led the students to think about general metaphoric themes ofthe idiomatic expressions, and to draw linking diagrams for expressions whichbelonged to the same metaphoric themes In the meantime, the teacher explained
to the students that the linking diagrams were the logical mappings for themetaphors (i.e., metaphoric mappings)
6 The teacher then directed the students to complete the exercise on the secondpage of the handout: to create metaphoric mappings for the idiomaticexpressions of anger Figure 2 is the sample handout
English has a lot of expressions/ idioms to describe happiness For example:
full of joys of spring, have a ball To make your language more varied, other
expressions or idioms can be used to specify the kind of happiness
Following are 7 expressions Think about the corresponding characteristicsand relationships between happiness and comparable concepts, and brieflywrite down these relationships
Happiness is colour
The color red or pink is bright and
can be assoiciated with happiness -Her students are all gonna paint thetown red
- I was tickled pink to be invited totheir wedding anniversary
Happiness is the moon, cloud and air
-Mai is over the moon when she getsfyling colours
-Her brother was on cloud nine to getthat job
-After being elected Prime Minister ofEducation, her father walked on air Happy people are animals
-The participant was like a dog withtwo tails when she got the award
-A few weeks ago he was struttingaround like the cat that got the cream
Trang 87 The handouts were collected back to the teacher after the students completedthe exercise
8 At the end of the class, the students were told to revise their first draft athome, and were encouraged to integrate as many idiomatic expressions aspossible They submitted both the original and the revised essays a week later.The essays were then analyzed by the teacher to investigate how the studentsused idiomatic expressions
2.3.2 Teaching idioms through online games.
Teaching idioms to the students at advanced levels still remains a challengingtask for the teachers who adopt traditional way of teaching Hence, I myself try
to explore the novel ways of teaching idioms through online games to thestudents
Burke (1998) goes as far as claiming that there is ―absolutely no way anonnative speaker of English could fully understand an American movie, TVshow, or news broadcast without help because English language is loaded withnonstandard English, i.e., “slang and idioms” He explains that nonnativespeakers do not understand idioms, they will never be able to completelyintegrate and, instead, they will always be outsiders Cooper (1998) agrees,Sooner or later, imprecise idiomatic usage will cause difficulties even for astudent with an excellent knowledge of grammar and a high level ofvocabulary attainment because English language is loaded with nonstandardEnglish, i.e., “slang and idioms”
Thus, the fact that students most definitely will encounter idiomaticexpressions is definitely a main reason as to why their idiom awareness needs to
be developed during their language learning
Students have been instructed on how to play the online games of idiom Theyhave to play the game again and again till they get mastery over the meanings
of idioms placed in the video The more they play, the more they learn themeanings of idioms Each game consists of from eight to ten idioms in it.Each idiom has four options The student has to select one among the fouroptions If he chooses the wrong answer, it will sound “boom”
Ultimately, one has to go for another option
For example:
1 Beat a dead horse - wasting energy on a lost cause or a situation
that cannot be changed
2 A little bird told me - not saying from whom you received theinformation
3 Gone to the dogs - something that has gone wrong
4 Down to earth - one who is realistic & practical
5 Get your ducts in a row - organize yourself
6 To give your eye teeth - to give up a precious possession
Trang 97 Being hrough the mill - undergoing an unpleasant experience
8 Hit the hay - to go to bed
9 Have a ball - to have a really good time
10 Open a can of worms - to cause more trouble than it’s worth
Thus, Games online have great attraction and make students think they areplaying, not studying Therefore, studying is of less pressure and becomeseffective in improving the process of idiom learning at advanced levels
2.3.3 Teaching idioms through storytelling.
Teaching will be successful only when the appropriate methodology is chosenaccording to the concept In a writing, Mr sc Mauro Dujmović, Visokaučiteljska škola, Pula ragarded storytelling the art of narrating a tale frommemory rather than reading Storytelling involves two elements – selection anddelivery Many teachers are interested in storytelling as a resource in teaching Asuccessful storyteller chooses adequate stories and must be a good performersince the delivery is crucial and requires both preparation and rehearsal.Storytelling has the potential of fostering emotional intelligence and helpstudents gain insight into human behaviour Storytelling also promotes languagelearning by enriching learners’ vocabulary and acquiring new languagestructures Moreover, storytelling can provide a motivating and low anxietycontext for language learning I do believe that storytelling is a pedagogical toolteach and to learn English idioms for students in an efficient way Storytellingaids the learners to comprehend and remember the idioms at high levels moreeasily
I use an idiom story to teach ten English idioms I ask my students to underlinethe idioms to check if they are able to recognize the idioms used in the story.Then, students will explain each of them one by one This is one of the bestways to learn English Idioms
The story following is an example
The Sleep Over
By: Michael F
It was a very rainy day—it was raining cats and dogs! It was way too cold to gooutside to play, and I (Ryan) was having my friend Adam comes over Wewere planning on riding our scooters and bikes, but it was way too wet andwindy The door made a loud knocking noise I answered it, and Adam had an
apple in his hand He gave it to my mom—boy, what a goody two shoes he is!
I and Adam aren’t two peas in a pod He was always clean as a hound's tooth and I, well, I’m a backseat driver—well, at least that's what people
say about me Time went by and it was already 9:30 I was planning on playing
some video games and eating ice cream, but Adam just wanted to burn the
Trang 10midnight oil because it was a weekend! We decided to go to bed, so I got into some sweat pants and a shirt and got in bed, but like a bolt from the blue
Adam came out in bunny pajamas I could not stop laughing! “Take those offand change into normal clothes!” I demanded
“People are right, you are a backseat driver!”
That's when I totally hit the roof! “Oh yeah, well you're just a bull in a china shop!” That's when we both started to get mad
“I’ll call my mom Maybe she will pick me up and take me home!” Adamsaid
It was 9:45 and Adam was calling his mom She finally answered, and boy did
she sound down in the mouth “What's wrong, Mom?” asked Adam
All she said quietly was, "I’m just down in the dumps today because I lost my job today.”
“What!” I yelled “When?”
“Just today; He just called me!” “Then I guess you wouldn’t be able to
come pick me up from Ryan's house, 'cause I am about to blow my stack!”
Adam said
Adam's mom always called the shots so when she heard that Adam wanted her
to pick him up at 1:00 a.m she just blew her stack! “Adam, it's eleven o'clock You need to work out your guy problems, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Soon Adam and Ryan solved their problems, and they were then all ears to what each other had to say Soon they became two peas in a pod, and they
promised to be best friends through thick and thin.
There are ten idioms in the stories which need explaining
1 goody two shoes: person always does everything right and always
follows the rules, so much so that it becomes annoying
2 two peas in a pod: look very similar or are always together.
3 clean as a hound's tooth: very clean, spotless
4 burn the midnight oil: staying up very late in order to study or do some
other work
5 a bolt from the blue: something completely unexpected that
surprises you very much
6 a bull in a china shop: a person who breaks things or who often makes
mistakes or causes damage in situations that require careful thinking or behavior
7 down in the mouth: unhappy or depressed
8 blow my stack: you become very angry with someone and shout
Trang 11To make use of the maximum advantage of this method, some tips followingshould be given to help the teacher prepare for an excellent storytellingperformance for students.
-First, learn the story Learning the story means to make the story your own.Read it from beginning to end several times Read it out loud Master thestructure of the story: the beginning (introduction of characters), the body(building of conflict), and the climax (resolution of conflict) Visualize thesuccession of scenes Work on creating sensual setting and characterdescriptions Note unusual expressions, word patterns, rhymes, and dialog -Second, outline the story Storytellers agree that memorizing word for word isnot useful Learn a story incident by incident, and prepare notes that will helpyou remember this structure Typed skeleton outlines stick in the minds of visuallearners Cue card outlines are also useful in preparation and storage of tales, butshould not be used in telling
-Third, control the story's length Long stories can be simplified or serialized,but not excessively modified or censored Time yourself during practice A
"story hour" should probably include a mixture of activities: reading storybooks,listening to story tapes, reciting poetry, singing songs, playing games, etc.besides the oral story itself
-Fourth, control the story's vocabulary A rich vocabulary, with carefully chosenadjectives ,adverbs and phrasal verbs or expressions gives colour and texture tothe telling However, you need to be comfortable with your use of language andnot try too hard to get things "right" or the story will come out flat and nervous.Don't worry if the listeners don't already know every word; guessing is part oflanguage learning
-Fifth, refine your storytelling style Tell the story aloud to listen to your voice –your instrument - which you can exercise, train, and even change A pause anddropped voice are often more effective than shouting Take poetic passagesslowly; report conversation at natural speed; tell narration more rapidly, buildingtoward the climax
- Sixth, practice, practice, practice Practice aloud to yourself, your family orfriends You could practice on audio or even video tape Practice in front of amirror to eliminate poor gestures and facial expressions Some say practicemakes storytelling artificial and studied, but it is essential to the beginner
-Last, relax before telling Warm up as the situation allows with breathing,stretching, and vocal exercises
2.3.4 An Idiom notebook.
Through time, students accumulate more complex idioms The idioms may beforgotten and not be used because students don’t have anything to keep theidioms with them That’s why my students often complained to me that howdifficult it was to memorize them or said the idioms appeared somewhere in