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Project work discussion
Sam Jones
INTO Centres
What is INTO?
• A Joint Venture and true partnership between leading UK and US state institutions & INTO to provide pathway courses for international students
• University validated and recognised pathway programmes
• Programmes for international students to widen access to quality higher education in the UK & US
• Living and studying in the heart of a UK or US state university
• The best possible introduction to UK & US education and culture; a great place to study and a great place to make friends
What I believe about language learning
• Jot down some ideas of what you believe about language learning
What I believe about language learning
• This is your personal theory of language learning
What I believe about language learning
• Every teacher has their own individual theory and chooses their own methodology (?)
Project work - questions
• What is a project? Create a short definition of project work in an ELT context
• In your opinion would project work benefit your students’ language development? Why/why not?
• Do you use projects as part of your teaching already?
A Brief Definition
An activity over a period of time in which the content and process of studying the content takes precedence over, but does not necessarily exclude, a formal language syllabus.
A period of project work usually culminates in the production of a document, presentation or other artefact likely to be of intrinsic interest to both the students who produced it and outsiders.
Some advantages of project work are:
Increased motivation - learners become personally involved in the project.
All four skills, reading, writing, listening and speaking, are integrated.
Autonomous learning is promoted as learners become more responsible for their own learning.
There are learning outcomes learners have an end product.
Authentic tasks and therefore the language input are more authentic.
Interpersonal relations are developed through working as a group.
Content and methodology can be decided between the learners and the teacher and within the group themselves so it is more learner centred.
Advantages of project work (cont)
Learners often get help from parents for project work thus involving the parent more in the child's learning. If the project is also displayed parents can see it at open days or when they pick the child up from the school.
A break from routine and the chance to do something different.
A context is established which balances the need for fluency and accuracy.
Academic skills relevant to future study
Beliefs about teaching
No 15. The teacher should always be in a position to answer the “Why are we doing this?” question.
The consequence: conscious decisions need to be made about every stage of the project, about who does what and why they do it. But many of the answers to “why” can be drawn from above.
Some decisions....
Decision 1
How much of the learning time should be devoted to the project?
All of it? - in circumstances where the teacher has full control and believes in it.
A large percentage? - where the teacher has freedom within a specified syllabus and/or approach.
A small percentage? - where the teacher is working from, say, a prescribed text and wants “friday afternoon” variety,
Some examples
Dear Brown Eyes - International students preparing for and teaching in a UK primary school over a period of 10 weeks
The First Year Handbook - University students preparing a handbook for first year students of English in a university
The advertising campaign - Secondary students prepare a campaign to sell a product or place derived from their course book
Decision 2
Who chooses the subject?
The students? - increased motivation, problems of management, likely lack of agreement etc...
The teacher? - lack of student engagement, is it different from any other activity etc...
Negotiated? - Someone has to make the decision in the end, need for teacher persuasion skills etc...
Decision 3
Language: grammar, lexis, pronunciation, text structure etc...
Non-language skills: communication skills, working with others, a sense of audience, design skills, IT skills etc...
Distribution of labour: management, best person for the job, a set of learning opportunities
Before, during or after?
Before: preparation for each task, unpredictability of language, reinforcement opportunities etc...
During: immediacy, relevance, only what is needed, lack of focus etc...
After: loss of relevance, recap, learning from experience, skill of summary, learning reflection etc...
Decision 4
Correction or not?
During or after? Language only? “Known” language only? Individually or group? Written or oral? Immediate or summarised? Behaviour as a group? Design? IT skills? etc...
Decision 5
The outcome, the end-product.
Important for sense of achievement, pride, display.
Choice: posters, texts, plans, films, radio reports, presentations, books, leaflets, text books, readers, webpages, etc...
Decision 6
The audience and a sense of audience.
If there is one thing that is intrinsically lacking from classroom language learning and teaching it is a real audience that needs to understand what you are saying or writing.
Students very, very rarely write or say anything in their new language that is required to influence opinions or require action on the part of the listener or reader.
Audience options, from weakest to strongest
•The rest of the class
•The teacher (no action required)
•Another class
•The wider student body
•Parents
•The teaching staff (action required)
•An external, unknown audience
And finally...
Decision 7
Evaluation and assessment?
Yes or no? What to evaluate? When to evaluate? How to evaluate? Who to evaluate - group or individual?
Why evaluate?
With an external audience, the audience evaluates.
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants”
Newton Programme - INTO UEA Norwich
• The only university-based A level programme in the UK (the world?)
• Elite research-intensive university environment• Elite, science-based student for top students• Generous scholarship programme for gifted students• Access to university facilities and teaching staff• Assistance and preparation for entrance to elite universities• Combination of A Level preparation and university-level lectures• Project work with university students• Placements, shadowing, experience
