T.C.

ONDOKUZ MAYIS UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

LANGUAGE ACQUISITION FINAL PROJECT

PROF.DR.NALAN KIZILTAN

RABİA YILMAZ

YAREN BAŞTÜRK

MUHAMMET BATUHAN AKAT

AYLİN YILDIZ
WHAT IS THE PROJECT?

Project 6: Make a single visit to each of several language classes (with different
teachers) and assess each on a continuum for formal grammar instruction,
coommunicative activities, use of L1 to explain things, and so on. Supplement
this information with interviews with the teacher and a couple of students from
each class. Ask them what they felt the balance was in the lesson you observed,
as a way of assessing the correspondence between their views and yours
(consider the significance of a mismatch). Check whether the teaching content
and/or approach is laid down by the institution, and if so, whether it is what the
teacher would use by choice. To what extent can this, or any teaching, be
labelled as fully ‘communicative’ or ‘grammar-driven’, and why? Classroom
observation is difficult tos o wel and you may find Spada and Frohlich (1995)
useful in developing your approach.

HOW DID WE PREPARE OUR PROJECT?

We visited two teachers, a high school English teacher and a university English
teacher, in the classroom. We examined many features such as teaching
methods, dialogues with students, ability to manage the classroom etc. We wrote
down our observations and used them to determine what kinds of questions we
should ask. We tried to get to know the teachers by asking personal questions in
addition to the questions about the course.

While the first teacher (high school teacher) we interviewed preferred the
Communicative Teaching method, our second teacher (university teacher) said
that he preferred the Grammar Teaching method and we asked them why.

After getting satisfactory answers from the teachers, this time we asked
questions to the students in the same class. Apart from the questions we asked
the teachers, we asked questions reflecting the students' ideas about the course
and the teacher.
FIRST TEACHER’S INTERVIEW
Hello, as an English teacher, we would like to ask you some questions and get information.
First of all, do you really enjoy teaching English? Was English your favorite subject as a
student?
+ Of course. Although there were other courses that I was interested in, English was among these
courses. The more my students learn, the happier I am and I encourage them to learn English not only
in class but also in their daily lives.
-What kind of teaching method do you prefer in general?
+We read paragraphs and do activities that given in the book together. Apart from that, we often do
speaking activities. I try to make my students talk as much as possible.
- Then which approach do you apply? Could you give more detailed information about how you
applied this approach?
+I prefer to apply the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach. We focus a lot on the
speaking activities given in the book. I give students the opportunity to think. We communicate as if
we were chatting. Thus, I think about their anxiety levels and act accordingly. I'm not just asking yes
or no questions. I also ask why they think so. In addition to the given questions, I also ask personal
and current life questions. Because these kinds of questions intrigue them and enable them to give
better answers. I often ignore grammatical mistakes when they speak, so they don't hesitate. Their self-
confidence increases and they become more willing.
-Which techniques of the CLT approach do you use most? Or which parts do you find more
useful?
+ I attach great importance to the PPP model. After explaining the subject, we do many activities and
examples on it. Afterwards, I expect a good performance from my students, but when they make
mistakes, I don't get angry with them, I even ignore most of them. When they examine it later, they
realize their own mistakes. At the end of the topic, we do a roleplay activity. I find this very important
for their social development. Thus, the students get closer with their other friends.
-Well, learning grammar structure in a language is really important. How do you teach this?
+At the beginning of the lesson, we read a paragraph. In the paragraph, there is already a grammar
subject for our lesson that day. When everyone understands the topic of the paragraph, I draw their
attention to these grammatical structures. I'm asking what they know about this grammar structure. I
allow them to comment by asking questions such as how it was used or what it was used. Thus, I
reveal students' previous knowledge or make them think. Then I explain the grammatical structure.
- Do you ever use your native language while teaching? Do you think the use of L1 is correct?
+ Yes. I use my mother tongue especially when my students cannot fully understand or pay attention. I
think that way I can get their attention faster. When I teach in Turkish, my students also learn their
foreign language better by associating it with their mother tongue. It gives them confidence and
support. Although we generally speak English, we switch to our mother tongue when things are not
going well.
-Do you always teach according to the curriculum?
+ Yes, we always try to stick to the curriculum. This is determined by the Ministry of Education. But I
determine the teaching style, as I just mentioned. Sometimes I can use different approaches in
different classes.
-Thank you for the interview. You’ve been a great help for us.
+ Glad to be of assistance.

FIRST STUDENT’S INTERVIEW

+Is English your favorite course? What is your point of view?
Yes, English is my favorite course because since I was in middle school, I have had speacial interest
for it. I liked memorizing words and songs in English. I always had high grades. Also, I admired my
English teachers a lot.
+ Do you like your teacher’s teaching?
Yes, I like it because it is very interactive and it gives importance to communicate in real life
situations.
+ How does it affect you if your teacher sometimes uses your mother tongue while teaching?
In my opinion, it affects me positively and I appreciate it a lot. Because students need some
explanations when they do not understand the things in the target language and the topics in the target
language can be too complicated to explain for teachers because of this reason, they prefer the mother
tongue to explain them,and it helps us to understand these complicated things.
+Do you find the roleplay activity useful and why?
Roleplay activiy can be useful because students find chance to use what they had learnt in the lesson.
It provides them to be more creative and interactive with each other and while doing this type of
activity, they gain confidence.
+Would you like to learn grammar structure in another way rather than studying from reading texts
and why?
Yes, I would. Because there are other ways to learn grammar and I think reading texts can be boring, I
prefer studying grammar with funnier ways if it is possible.

SECOND TEACHER’S INTERVIEW

Hello,as an English Teacher, we would like to ask you some questions and get information.
- Firstly, were you so interested in English when you were a student?
+ Of course, after realizing my interest in English, I started reading books written in this language and
improved myself further. Later, I tried to use my English in daily life.

-So how do you generally teach English in the classroom?

+ Sometimes I teach by doing exercises from a book. Sometimes I teach the lesson with the materials I
bring myself. We definitely do the activities in the book. I always help students when they have
difficulties.

- Can you tell us which approach or method you use while teaching and why?
+I know many approaches and methods but like most English teachers, I use Grammar Teaching
Method (GTM). I teach grammar structure . We study reading texts and dialogues, and I usually
translate them for students. In fact, I would like my students to do this by trying it out on their own.
Unfortunately that's not possible because of the curriculum.

-Why do you think teachers have to use GTM?

+ This is probably due to our country conditions and the problems in children's English education at a
young age. In our country, English is not used much in daily life. That's why, I focus mostly on
teaching vocabulary. At least I'm trying to make sentences based on words.

-You told us that there are some methods or approaches you want to use. What are these and
how are they different from GTM?
+ First of all, I would prefer the Suggestopedia method for my younger students. Because, besides
teaching English to the little ones, you have to be able to get their attention. You can have various
posters, pictures and informative articles in the classroom environment that will prepare them even
before they start their lessons. This method offers students a more comfortable environment. There is
also art and music involved. That's why it makes learning English more fun for them. For older
students, I would use the Cooperative Language Learning method.

-Finally, do you teach according to the curriculum or do you sometimes act extracurricularly?
+ I generally follow the curriculum. I pay particular attention to what subjects I should teach and I try
to give children all the information completely before their exams. However; as I said, I help those
who want to learn English privately, apart from exams only. I decide myself how I should implement
the exercises and activities. It varies according to the class status, interest and number of students. In
other words, it can be said that I try not to go beyond the curriculum.

SECOND STUDENT’S INTERVIEW

+Is English your favorite course? Tell us why.

English, which is the universal language of the whole world, appears in every aspect of our lives,
sometimes even if we are not aware of it. That's why I think everyone should know and learn English.
It is not an ordinary language, it can even change our lives. And of course,It is my favourite course
because I like to be involved with English since middle school. I discover and learn new things about
English everytime. Finally , I see English as my future.

+What do you think about Turkish teachers’ methods of teaching English?

I think that Turkish teachers only teach grammar with simple rules. They teach grammer rules by
formulating only, they do not associate it with English, so students just memorize these rules and
forget them immediately,however, students need to learn these rules by living.

+Do you want to learn grammar directly (explicitly) or indirectly (communication,games…) ?

It may seem like the easiest way to learn explicitly, but I would like to learn the grammar structure by
reading, speaking and writing because these methods allow me to learn the rules of that language
better and that information is permanent.

+Would you like to learn English at a young age and why?

I have been taking and learning English lessons since I started school, but of course, I would like to
learn English at an earlier age because children at this stage can learn English more easily, so the role
of parents is very important .They can make their children listen to English songs, watch cartoons or
talk to each other in English at that age, so the more children are exposed to English, the easier they
can learn English.

+Would you like to learn English actively in your daily life?

Of course, I would like to be cause I think we should apply and use what we learn about English in
our daily lives. Thus, our English improves and we can see the differences between our native
language and English. I would like to use English in my daily life by communicating everywhere I go.