MACRO SKILLS are most commonly referred
to listening, speaking, reading and writing in
English language.
Input is sometimes called "reception" and
output is sometimes called "production".
Spoken is also known as "oral".
MICRO-SKILLS, which are things like
grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and
spelling.
LISTENING is the ability to accurately receive
and interpret messages in the communication
process. Listening is key to all effective
communication, without the ability to listen
effectively messages are easily misunderstood
– communication breaks down and the sender
of the message can easily become frustrated
or irritated.
Listening is not the same as Hearing.
HEARING refers to the sounds that you hear,
whereas listening requires more than that: it
requires focus. Listening means paying
attention not only to the story, but how it is told,
the use of language and voice, and how the
other person uses his or her body. In other
words, it means being aware of both verbal and
non-verbal messages. Your ability to listen
effectively depends on the degree to which you
perceive and understand these messages.
METHODS OF TEACHING LISTENING
SKILLS
Interpersonal Activities. One effective and
nonthreatening way for students to develop
stronger listening skills is through interpersonal
activities, such as mock interviews and
storytelling. Assign the students to small
groups of two or three, and then give them a
particular listening activity to accomplish. For
example, you may have one student interview
another for a job with a company or for an
article in a newspaper. Even a storytelling
activity, such as one that answers the question
"What was your favorite movie from last year?"
can give students the opportunity to ask one
another questions and then to practice active
listening skills.
Group Activities. Larger group activities also
serve as a helpful method for teaching listening
skills to students. You can begin with a simple
group activity. For the first part, divide students
into groups of five or larger and instruct them to
learn one hobby or interest of at least two other
group members. Encourage them to ask
clarifying questions during the activity, and you
may allow them to take notes if helpful.
However, as time passes and their skills grow,
you should limit students to only writing notes
after the completion of the first part of the
group activity. For the second part, have the
students sit in a large circle, and then have
each individual student share the name and the
hobby or interest of the group members that
she or he met. This second part of the group
activity can also lend itself to additional
listening exercises. For example, you may ask
students to name a number of the hobbies and
interests identified during the sharing session.
Audio Segments/songs. You can also teach
listening skills through audio segments of radio
programs, online podcast, instructional lectures
and other audio messages. You should model
this interactive listening process in class with
your students, and then instruct them to repeat
the exercise on their own. First, instruct
students to prepare for listening by considering
anything that they will want to learn from the
content of the audio segment. Once they have
written down or shared these ideas, then play
the audio segment, allowing the students to
take notes if helpful. Once they have gained
confidence and experience, repeat this activity
but instruct students to not take notes until the
completion of the audio segment. You can use
shorter or longer audio segments, and you can
choose more accessible or more challenging
material for this type of exercise.
Video Segments. Another helpful resource for
teaching listening skills are video segments,
including short sketches, news programs,
documentary films, interview segments, and
dramatic and comedic material. As with audio
segments, select the portion and length of the
video segment based on the skill level of your
students. With your students, first watch the
segment without any sound and discuss it
together. Encourage the students to identify
what they think will be the content of the
segment. Then, watch the segment again, this
time with sound, allowing students to take
notes if helpful for their skill level. After the
completion of the video segment, you can have
students write a brief summary of the segment,
or you can take time to discuss as a group how
the segment compares with the students'
expectations.
Instructional Tips. Whatever method you use
for teaching listening, keep a few key
instructional tips in mind that will help both you
and your students navigate the learning
process. One, keep your expectations simple,
as even the most experienced listener would
be unable to completely and accurately recall
the entirety of a message. Two, keep your
directions accessible and build in opportunities
for students not only to ask clarifying questions,
but also to make mistakes. Three, help
students navigate their communication anxiety
by developing activities appropriate to their skill
and confidence level, and then strengthen their
confidence by celebrating the ways in which
they do improve, no matter how small.
BEFORE LISTENING. Prepare your learners
by introducing the topic and finding out what
they already know about it. A good way to do
this is to have a brainstorming session and
some discussion questions related to the topic.
Then provide any necessary background
information and new vocabulary they will need
for the listening activity.
DURING LISTENING. Be specific about what
students need to listen for. They can listen for
selective details or general content, or for an
emotional tone such as happy, surprised, or
angry. If they are not marking answers or
otherwise responding while listening, tell them
ahead of time what will be required afterward.
AFTER LISTENING. Finish with an activity to
extend the topic and help students remember
new vocabulary. This could be a discussion
group, craft project, writing task, game, etc.
TIPS TO HELP TEACHERS DEVELOP
STUDENTS’ LISTENING SKILLS
Promote active listening: giving the students
something to listen for ensures that they are
involved in the task. Exercise sheets are
another tool that promote active listening;
Identify listening strategies: give the
students tools to guide their listening; such as,
looking for specific information, identifying
predictable words or phrases, or discussing
what they expect in certain forms of speech;
such as, newscasts or advertisements.;
Selecting the most appropriate strategy for
presenting the lesson; for example, using a
top down (general meaning, summarizing) or
bottom up (cognates, specific words, word
order patterns) approach;
Allow the students to hear as much of the
target language as possible while using a
variety of teaching methods; for example,
sometimes using visual cues, at other times
not;
Use authentic materials; for example, a
lecture or a radio announcement in the target
language, to help students become
accustomed to different accents and to a
realistic pace of speech;
Ensure the students know the goals of the
listening task: is the goal to understand
what’s being said, to decide whether to keep
listening or to obtain specific information?
Provide opportunities for reflection and
discussion. So students can share what was
heard, what was learned and methods they
employed to better understand what was said;
Organize pre-listening activities, such as
providing students with relevant vocabulary,
reading a related text, looking at a related
image or clarifying necessary cultural
information etc.;
Be sure to check level of the listening
exercise beforehand to ensure it is an
appropriate level for the students.
SPEAKING is "the process of building and
sharing meaning through the use of verbal and
non-verbal symbols, in a variety of contexts." It
is a crucial part of second language learning
and teaching. Despite its importance, for many
years, teaching speaking has been
undervalued and English language teachers
have continued to teach speaking just as a
repetition of drills or memorization of dialogues.
STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPING
SPEAKING SKILLS
Using minimal responses. It is a good
strategy that really works when we have
learners who lack confidence in their ability to
participate successfully in oral interaction often
listen in silence while others do the talking.
One way to encourage such learners to begin
to participate is to help them build up a stock of
minimal responses that they can use in
different types of exchanges.
Minimal responses are predictable, often
idiomatic phrases that conversation
participants use to indicate understanding,
agreement, doubt, and other responses to what
another speaker is saying. Having a stock of
such responses enables a learner to focus on
what the other participant is saying, without
having to simultaneously plan a response.
Recognizing scripts. Some communication
situations are associated with a predictable set
of spoken exchanges -- a script. Greetings,
apologies, compliments, invitations, and other
functions that are influenced by social and
cultural norms often follow patterns or scripts.
So do the transactional exchanges involved in
activities such as obtaining information and
making a purchase. In these scripts, the
relationship between a speaker's turn and the
one that follows it can often be anticipated.
You can help students develop the speaking
ability by making them aware of the scripts for
different situations so that they can predict
what they will hear and what they will need to
say in response.
Using language to talk about language.
Language learners are often too embarrassed
or shy to say anything when they do not
understand another speaker or when they
realize that a conversation partner has not
understood them. in this cases, you can help
students overcome this reticence by assuring
them that misunderstanding and the need for
clarification can occur in any type of interaction,
whatever the participants' language skill levels.
You can also give students strategies and
phrases to use for clarification and
comprehension check.
ACTIVITIES
 What a life
 Taboo
 Consequence Role Play
 Fashion Statement
 Food Flashcards
 Picture Dictation
 True-False Story
 Finding the Murderer
 Brain Storming
 Reporting
SUGGESTIONS FOR TEACHERS WHEN
TEACHING SPEAKING
Provide maximum opportunity to students to
speak the target language by providing a rich
environment that contains collaborative work,
authentic materials and tasks, and shared
knowledge.
Try to involve each student in every speaking
activity.
Reduce teacher speaking time in class. Step
back and observe students.
Indicate positive signs when commenting on a
student's response.
Ask eliciting questions such as "What do you
mean? How did you reach that conclusion?" in
order to prompt students to speak more.
Provide written feedback like "Your
presentation was really great. It was a good
job. I really appreciated your efforts in
preparing the materials and efficient use of
your voice…"
Do not correct students' pronunciation
mistakes very often while they are speaking.
Correction should not distract student from his
or her speech.
Involve speaking activities not only in class but
also out of class; contact parents and other
people who can help.
Circulate around classroom to ensure that
students are on the right track and see whether
they need your help while they work in groups
or pairs.
Provide the vocabulary beforehand that
students need in speaking activities.
Diagnose problems faced by students who
have difficulty in expressing themselves in the
target language and provide more opportunities
to practice the spoken language.
"READING" is the process of looking at a
series of written symbols and getting meaning
from them. When we read, we use our eyes to
receive written symbols (letters, punctuation
marks and spaces) and we use our brain to
convert them into words, sentences and
paragraphs that communicate something to us.
Reading can be silent (in our head) or aloud
(so that other people can hear).
Reading is a receptive skill - through it, we
receive information. But the complex process
of reading also requires the skill of speaking,
so that we can pronounce the words that we
read. In this sense, reading is also a productive
skill in that we are both receiving information
and transmitting it (even if only to ourselves).
READING STRATEGIES
Skimming. Used to quickly gather the most
important information, or 'gist'. Run your eyes
over the text, noting important information. Use
skimming to quickly get up to speed on a
current business situation.
Scanning is used to find a particular piece of
information. Run your eyes over the text
looking for the specific piece of information you
need. Use scanning on schedules, meeting
plans, etc. in order to find the specific details
you require.
Extensive reading is used to obtain a general
understanding of a subject and includes
reading longer texts for pleasure, as well as
business books. Use extensive reading skills to
improve your general knowledge of business
procedures.
Intensive reading is used on shorter texts in
order to extract specific information. It includes
very close accurate reading for detail. Use
intensive reading skills to grasp the details of a
specific situation. In this case, it is important
that you understand each word, number or fact.
"WRITING" is the process of using symbols
(letters of the alphabet, punctuation and
spaces) to communicate thoughts and ideas in
a readable form.
"Writing" can also refer to the work/career of an
author, as in: "Shakespeare didn't make much
money from writing."
Generally, we write using a pen/pencil
(handwriting) or a keyboard (typing). With a
pen/pencil we usually write on a surface such
as paper or whiteboard. A keyboard is normally
attached to a typewriter, computer or mobile
device. Voice recognition programs allow those
who can't see or use their hands to have their
thoughts transcribed.
7 WRITING TASKS FOR YOUNG ESL
LEARNERS
 Word Jumble
 What happens next
  What is happening in this picture?
 Story with a twist
 Let’s write together
 Yummy writing
 What’s missing?
A LANGUAGE TEACHING APPROACH is a
way of thinking about teaching and learning. An
approach produces methods, which is the way
of teaching something, in this case, a second
or foreign language using techniques or
activities.
Method and approach are similar but there
are some key differences. An approach is the
way of dealing with something while a method
involves the process or steps taken to handle
the issue or task.
Throughout history, there have been just over
30 popular approaches to language learning.
However, there are around 10 that are most
widely known including task-based learning,
the communicative approach, grammar-
translation and the audio-lingual approach.
These days, the communicative approach is all
the rage.
THE DIRECT METHOD. All teaching occurs in
the target language, encouraging the learner to
think in that language. The learner does not
practice translation or use their native language
in the classroom. Practitioners of this method
believe that learners should experience a
second language without any interference from
their native tongue. Instructors do not stress
rigid grammar rules but teach it indirectly
through induction. This means that learners
figure out grammar rules on their own by
practicing the language. The goal for students
is to develop connections between experience
and language. They do this by concentrating
on good pronunciation and the development of
oral skills. This method improves
understanding, fluency, reading, and listening
skills in our students. Standard techniques are
question and answer, conversation, reading
aloud, writing, and student self-correction for
this language learning method.
GRAMMAR-TRANSLATION. The student
learns primarily by translating to and from the
target language. Instructors encourage the
learner to memorize grammar rules and
vocabulary lists. There is little or no focus on
speaking and listening. Teachers conduct
classes in the student’s native language with
this ESL teaching method. This method’s two
primary goals are to progress the learner’s
reading ability to understand literature in the
second language and promote the learner’s
overall intellectual development. Grammar
drills are a common approach. Another popular
activity is translation exercises that emphasize
the form of the writing instead of the content.
On the other hand, it has significant drawbacks
that have caused it to fall out of favor in
modern schools. Principally, students often
have trouble conversing in the second
language because they receive no instruction
in oral skills.
AUDIO-LINGUAL. This approach encourages
students to develop habits that support
language learning. Students learn primarily
through pattern drills, particularly dialogues,
which the teacher uses to help students
practice and memorize the language. These
dialogues follow standard configurations of
communication.
There are four types of dialogues utilized in this
method: first “Repetition”, in which the student
repeats the teacher’s statement exactly.
Second, “Inflection,” where one of the words
appears in a different form from the previous
sentence (for example, a word may change
from the singular to the plural.) Third,
“Replacement,” which involves one word being
replaced with another while the sentence
construction remains the same. Lastly,
“Restatement,” where the learner rephrases
the teacher’s statement.
STRUCTURAL APPROACH. Proponents of
the structural approach understand language
as a set of grammatical rules that should be
learned one at a time in a specific order. It
focuses on mastering these structures, building
one skill on top of another, instead of
memorizing vocabulary. This is similar to how
young children learn a new language naturally.
The structural approach teaches all four central
language skills: listening, speaking, reading,
and writing. It’s a technique that teachers can
implement with many other language teaching
methods.
TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE (TPR). This
method highlights aural comprehension by
allowing the learner to respond to basic
commands, like “open the door” or “sit down.” It
combines language and physical movements
for a comprehensive learning experience. In an
ordinary TPR class, the teacher would give
verbal commands in the target language with a
physical movement. The student would
respond by following the command with a
physical action of their own. It helps students
actively connect meaning to the language and
passively recognize the language’s structure.
COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING
(CLT). This method stresses interaction and
communication to teach a second language
effectively. Students participate in everyday
situations they are likely to encounter in the
target language. For example, learners may
practice introductory conversations, offering
suggestions, making invitations, complaining,
or expressing time or location. CLT teachers
focus on being facilitators rather than
straightforward instructors. Doing so helps
students achieve CLT’s primary goal, learning
to communicate in the target language instead
of emphasizing the mastery of grammar. Role-
play, interviews, group work, and opinion
sharing are popular activities practiced in
communicative language teaching, along with
games like scavenger hunts and information
gap exercises that promote student interaction.
NATURAL APPROACH. This approach aims
to mimic natural language learning with a focus
on communication and instruction through
exposure. It de-emphasizes formal grammar
training. Instead, instructors concentrate on
creating a stress-free environment and
avoiding forced language production from
students. Teachers also do not explicitly
correct student mistakes. The goal is to reduce
student anxiety and encourage them to engage
with the second language spontaneously.
Classroom procedures commonly used in the
natural approach are problem-solving activities,
learning games, affective-humanistic tasks that
involve the students’ own ideas, and content
practices that synthesize various subject
matter, like culture.
TASK-BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING
(TBL). With this method, students complete
real-world tasks using their target language.
This technique encourages fluency by boosting
the learner’s confidence with each task
accomplished and reducing direct mistake
correction.
Tasks fall under three categories: first,
“Information gap,” or activities that involve the
transfer of information from one person, place,
or form to another. Second, “Reasoning gap”
tasks that ask a student to discover new
knowledge from a given set of information
using inference, reasoning, perception, and
deduction. Lastly, “Opinion gap” activities, in
which students react to a particular situation by
expressing their feelings or opinions.
SUGGESTOPEDIA LANGUAGE LEARNING
METHOD. This approach and method in
language teaching was developed in the 1970s
by psychotherapist Georgi Lozanov. It is
sometimes also known as the positive
suggestion method but it later became
sometimes known as suggestopedia.
Apart from using physical surroundings and a
good classroom atmosphere to make students
feel comfortable, here are some of the main
tenants of this second language teaching
method: first, “Deciphering,” where the teacher
introduces new grammar and vocabulary.
Second, “Concert sessions,” where the teacher
reads a text and the students follow along with
music in the background. This can be both
active and passive. Third, elaboration where
students finish what they’ve learned with
dramas, songs, or games. Fourth, Introduction
in which the teacher introduces new things in a
playful manner. Lastly, “Production,” where
students speak and interact without correction
or interruption.
THE SILENT WAY. The silent way is an
interesting teaching method that isn’t that
common but it does have some solid footing.
After all, the goal in most language classes is
to make them as student-centred as possible.
In the Silent Way, the teacher talks as little as
possible, with the idea that students learn best
when discovering things on their own. Learners
are encouraged to be independent and to
discover and figure out language on their own.
Instead of talking, the teacher uses gestures
and facial expressions to communicate, as well
as props.
FUNCTIONAL-NOTIONAL APPROACH. This
English teaching method first of all recognizes
that language is purposeful communication.
The reason people talk is that they want to
communicate something to someone else.
Parts of speech like nouns and verbs exist to
express language functions and notions.
People speak to inform, agree, question,
persuade, evaluate, and perform various other
functions. Language is also used to talk about
concepts or notions like time, events, places,
etc.
THE TEST TEACH TEST APPROACH (TTT).
This style of language teaching is ideal for
directly targeting students’ needs. It’s best for
intermediate and advanced learners. There are
three stages: first, a test or task of some kind
that requires students to use the target
language. Second, explicit teaching or focus on
accuracy with controlled practice exercises.
Third, another test or task is to see if students
have improved in their use of the target
language.
PRESENTATION, PRACTICE, AND
PRODUCTION (PPP). First, begins with
teacher presenting, or demonstrating language
to be taught. Second, students the practice the
language, often by repeating after the teacher
in chorus. Finally, students produce the
language, by answering questions orally and
doing written exercises.
Classroom Assessment Techniques
3-2-1 Format
The 3-2-1 format is a quick reflective activity
similar to think-pair-share. It encourages
students to reflect on a course experience and
organize their thoughts and identify areas of
confusion or concern.
How does it work?
In reaction to presented content, students are
asked to take a few moments and jot down:
3 ideas or issues from what was presented
2 example or uses for how the ideas could be
implemented
1 unresolved area / muddiest point
Focused Listing
Focus Listing activity focuses on one concept,
term, or topic. Students are asked to provide
several ideas related closely with the one
concept, term, or topic.
How does it work?
1. Select an important topic or concept that's
just been studied or is just about to be studied;
write it in a word or brief phrase.
2. Write the word or phrase at the top of a
sheet of paper as the heading for a "Focused
List" of related terms important to
understanding that topic.
3. Set a limit for either number of items to list (5
to 10) or limit the amount of time (2 to 3
minutes) to list the points.
4. Test it yourself (keep to your own limits)--
write a list of important words and phrases you
recall that are related to or included within the
heading you wrote down.
5. Look over your list quickly; add any items
you may have left out. Determine if any
modifications need to be made to this activity,
e.g. number of items required or length of time.
6. If your test convinces you that the topic is
important and well defined have the students
complete the exercise. Be sure to increase the
time limits you set for yourself, however, since
you are the ‘expert’ and students are the
‘novice’ learners.
7. Collect their anonymous responses and
review the answers by sorting them into piles of
appropriate or inappropriate to determine how
well students are recalling the main points.
8. At the beginning of the next class session,
review with the students the findings of the
activity. List the points or ideas you developed
and include some of the ideas students
provided that were not on your list, but were
still relevant.
Muddiest Point
Muddiest Point is probably the simplest
classroom assessment technique available. It
is a quick monitoring technique in which
students are asked to take a few minutes to
write down the most difficult or confusing part
of a lesson, lecture, or reading. It is simple to
create and facilitate. In fact, it only takes 15
minutes to collect and scan approximately 100
muddiest points. While it is easy to use, be
careful not to over-use this or any single
assessment technique. Over using one
technique can fatigue students and devalue the
process.
How does it work?
1. Determine what feedback you want. Do you
want to ask a question that encompasses the
entire class session or one self-contained
segment? Do you want to ask a questions
related to a specific lecture, discussion, or
presentation? Figure out what is of most value
or where students struggle the most.
2. Reserve a few minutes at the end of the
class session. Leave enough time to ask the
question, have students respond, and to collect
the responses.
3. Let students know how much time they will
have to answer the question and when you will
follow up with the results and provide feedback.
4. With so many students using laptops and
tablets, it is plausible students will not have
extra sheets of paper. Plan on distributing slips
of paper or index cards for students to write on.
5. Collect the responses as or before students
leave.
6. Respond to the students' feedback during
the next class meeting. Share with students
how responses will be used as a guide to plan
the next instruction.
One Minute Paper
One minute paper is a popular introductory
active learning strategy that requires minimal
preparation on the part of the instructor. During
a one minute paper exercise students are
given one minute to write a response to a
prompt or question posed by the instructor.
Minute papers can segue into a discussion or
simply be collected for review by the instructor.
How does it work?
1. Decide what you want to focus on, where
you want students to reflect on a topic.
2. Write Minute Paper prompts that fit your
class and meet your goal. The prompts are the
heart of one minute papers.
3. Set aside 5-10 minutes to facilitate, as well
as time later to discuss the results.
4. Share the question with students.
5. After the chosen topic or activity is
completed, hand out scraps of paper or index
cards for students to record their response.
6. Let students know how much time they will
have, what kinds of responses you are looking
for (words, bullets, short sentences), and when
they can expect feedback.
7. Collect the responses as or before students
leave.
8. Tabulate the responses and make note of
useful comments.
9. Respond to the students' feedback during
the next class meeting. Share with students
how responses will be used as a guide to plan
the next instruction.
Think-Pair-Share
Think-pair-share can be a great technique for
facilitating discussion. It is a quick and simple
technique to adopt. Faculty present a question
or challenge, students reflect quietly and then
partner with someone to discuss. A think-pair-
share session could be 5 to 15 minutes.
How does it work?
1. Develop an engaging question or problem,
ideally one with many viable potential
responses
2. Have a plan for how to present the question
(worksheet, PPT slide, etc.) and how you will
facilitate students reporting out to the whole
group.
3. Pose a question to students.
4. Students reflect on and write brief notes for
one minute in response to the question.
5. Students pair up with someone sitting near
them and share their answers verbally for two
to three minutes. Alternatively, they may also
work together to create one best answer.
6. Randomly choose a few pairs of students to
give 30 second summaries of individual or joint
answers.
Concept Mapping
Concept maps are drawings or diagrams used
to help students organize and represent
knowledge of a subject. Concept maps begin
with a main idea (or concept) and then branch
out to show how that main idea can be broken
down into specific topics.
How does it work?
Select the concept/theme you wish students to
use as a starting point.
Create a concept map:
a. Identify related key words or phrases. Write
down words and key phrases.
b. Rank the concepts (key words) from the
most abstract/general to the most
concrete/specific.
c. Cluster concepts that function at similar level
of abstraction and those that interrelate closely.
Start to determine the ways the various
concepts are related to each other and write
that on the lines connecting the concepts.
d. Arrange concepts into a diagram.
e. Continue identifying the ways the various
concepts are related to each other and write
that on the lines connecting the concepts.
1. Add second and third level associations, if
appropriate.
2. Good maps usually result from three to
many revisions.
3. After students have completed the concept
maps, present your own example to the
students and walk through it with them step-by-
step, explaining your thinking as you created
the concept map.
Jigsaw
Jigsaw involves students doing individual
research on a subset of a given subject area,
and then piecing their research together with
other students “to build the whole picture”.
Jigsaw exercises challenge students to engage
in reciprocal teaching and can be a popular
activity for courses that rely on heavy
transference of information.
How does it work?
1. Identify a concept area (the whole puzzle)
which contains roughly 4-6 subtopics (pieces of
the puzzle).
2. Divide the class into teams of 4-6 students
(the number of students on a team should be
equivalent to the number of subtopics).
3. Assign each student on the teams a different
subtopic. Allow sufficient time for students to
“develop expertise”, doing their own reading
and research. Jigsaw falls apart if students are
not prepared. Assigning questions, reading
logs, study guides or reaction papers helps to
ensure preparation. Consider asking for a
summary of their readings by a certain date.
4. Students return to class and consult with the
same content experts from the other teams.
They are asked to discuss the topic as a group
and how best to present it to their respective
teams, possibly through creating review sheets
/ summary guide / examples/ list of resources
etc.
5. Students return to their original teams where
they are then asked to present/teach the topic
to their team.
6. Conclude with whole class reflection /
discussion.
Memory Matrix
Memory Matrix is a simple, two-dimensional
table divided into rows and columns. The table
is used to organize information and identify
relationships in the content. Some cells in the
table are intentionally left blank where students
are asked to fill in the blank cells,
demonstrating their understanding of the
content. There is moderate investment of time
required on behalf of faculty to create the
matrix and then analyze the results.
How does it work?
1. Carefully choose your content topic. Make
sure the content can be organized in a table
with rows and columns.
2. Create a simple matrix. Make one completed
matrix to use as a key. This will make the
analysis much easier. Also create a blank
matrix for students to fill in.
3. Explain the purpose of the exercise.
4. Let students know how much time they will
have, what kinds of responses you are looking
for (words, bullets, short sentences), and when
they can expect feedback.
5. Handout blank or partially filled matrix. Have
students work on in class, individually or in
groups. Provide practice matrices or examples
if this is the first time you are presenting a
memory matrix.
6. Students complete the matrix and hand-in.
7. Review and analyze results
Analysis: Scan the completed matrices and
compare to your key matrix. correct responses
vs incorrect responses - focus on patterns in
the responses.
Results: Record the number of each correct or
incorrect response into an Excel spreadsheet
(or any data management system) where data
can be reported in a variety of methods. Look
for common misconceptions or errors. This
could indicate recall problems, difficultly
categorizing information, or insufficient
teaching focus on a particular topic or category.
8. Provide feedback and clear misconceptions
at next class meeting
Quiz Show
Quiz Show uses quiz game show format (e.g.
Jeopardy or Who Wants to Be a Millionaire) to
rapidly move through a series of questions with
students. This strategy is popular for
introducing game mechanics (points,
competition) into a classroom activity.
How does it work?
Present a grid (or list) of questions on a
whiteboard or PowerPoint. When crafting
questions be mindful of the standard advice on
writing multiple choice questions. Depending
on class size you would likely divide students
into groups. Student can be given a “bell” to
ring in, or simply rotate between students. Quiz
show is more appropriate for short answer
questions not open ended questions.
What Is Instructional Design
The Association for Educational
Communications and Technology (AECT)
defines instructional design as “the theory and
practice of design, development, utilization,
management, and evaluation of processes and
resources for learning” (Reiser, 2002, p. 1).
The role of instructional design is often
misunderstood. Perhaps this is because while
the term “industrial design” is a fairly common
one, the concept of instructional design is one
that many people are unfamiliar with. So when
they encounter the term “instructional design”
for the first time, they may mistakenly assume
that it is just another branch of the industrial
design field that deals with various kinds of
engineering. This confusion may lead to the
idea that the role of instructional designers is
similar to that of architects, draftspersons,
computer programmers, or mechanical
engineers.
But in reality, instructional design does not
involve any of the processes commonly
associated with industrial design, such as
engineering, construction, or product
fabrication. Rather, instructional design is the
science of creating instructional curriculum that
is geared towards producing specific learning
outcomes, based not only on pedagogical
research, but also on current instructional
practices. Although instructional design per se
has nothing to do with computer programming
or graphic design, these skills are extremely
useful in producing effective curriculum, which
is why usually individuals with such skills are
included as part of the team designing courses.
Having said that, it is worthwhile noting that
while the implementation of certain
technological resources can enhance and
enrich learning outcomes, the end goal is
effective instruction, not the production of
technology-rich materials. In essence, then, the
role of instructional design is to create
instructional experiences that facilitate the
acquisition of knowledge in a way that is not
only efficient, but effective and appealing to
learners. As a framework for developing
learning modules, the focus of instructional
design is on enhancing the learning acquisition
process with the goal of engaging,
encouraging, and motivating learners to gain
deeper, more significant, and more meaningful
levels of understanding and knowledge.
Historically, it is often thought that instructional
design emerged in response to the need,
during WW2, for the United States to rapidly
train the thousands of new recruits enlisting in
the armed forces. In fact, it was during this time
period that a new term, “instructional
technologist,” was first used. However, the
actual conceptual roots of industrial design can
be found in the work of early behavioral
theorists Thorndike and Watson, and more
recently, Pressey and Skinner. Perhaps the
most accurate way of describing the history of
instructional design is to say that it arose as a
response, on the one hand, to the burgeoning
empirical research in psychology and
education, and on the other, to specific needs
of the educative system as a whole.
One of the most influential individuals in the
field is certainly Benjamin Bloom, whose highly
respected taxonomy was published in 1965.
According to Bloom, learning objectives can be
classified into three specific domains: affective;
cognitive; and psychomotor.
designers work individually, others work in
collaborative teams that include experts in
certain types of subject matter, such as faculty
staff or field-specific technicians, the
commonality in each situation is that the focus
is always on improving content, increasing
accessibility and comprehension, and
improving learning outcomes.

In 1965, Robert Gagne expanded upon this

classificatory model. While his work retained
the three primary classifications defined by
Bloom, he also defined five learning outcomes
(verbal information, intellectual skills, cognitive
strategy, attitude, and motor skills), as well as
nine instructional events that comprise the
“conditions of learning.” Gagne’s work became,
and still remains, the foundational basis of
instructional design practices.
Instructional designers most commonly have a
background in the education field, such as an
M.A. in Education, Educational Technology,
Training and Instruction, or Curriculum and
Instruction. The majority are employed by
institutions engaged in education-related areas,
ranging from primary schools, colleges and
universities, to school districts, companies
specializing in educations materials (software,
textbooks), and government, business, and the
military.
Instructional designers are engaged in any
number of education-related undertakings,
ranging from the design of training materials
(including teaching manuals and guides for
students), to creative complete courses or even
entire curricula, to utilizing various media
resources to enhance learning environments,
including operational job-aid materials,
pamphlets, online tutorial guides, interactive
multi-media technologies. While some