Adult ESL Listening Skills Class

Adult ESL Listening Skills Class Lesson Plan

Adult ESL Listening Skills Class: Daily Lesson Plan

Level: Adult -- Listening Skills

Performance Indicators:

Vocabulary enhancement

Vocabulary comprehension

Attention to intonation

Context specific and textual cognitive comprehension

Additional interpersonal communication skills

Develop context-dependent ESL listening skills that can be applied to the real world, and improve English vocabulary, intonation, and communication skills. This will be accomplished in a manner that is not only robust, but a "typical" experience within contemporary society.

Warm-Up/PreLoad:

Pass out the handout for the next class, which includes the dialog for the most difficult scenes in the movie, character list, content questions that should be answered by the end of the class, vocabulary lists, and helpful background information that may increase the viewer's interest in the movie. Ensure the class has the necessary handouts for the currents class. Set up the media equipment for viewing the film.

Tasks

Task Chain 1: Previewing Exercises. One or two scenes appropriate for the level of English language proficiency the students have will be dissected before the film clip is shown (Conlon, 1991).

1. Scene(s) will be first presented without audio and the class will be asked several questions about the scene, such as location, historical period, possible language(s) being used, attire, mood/body language, and possible plots.

2. Scene(s) will then be played with the soundtrack and the class will be asked questions about the scene, whether their feelings changed about the actors and the perceived mood/body language, and if they guessed right about the languages being used and the plot. Vocabulary, intonation, and grammar will also be emphasized to ensure that most students will be able to comprehend the scene when it appears in the subsequent, uninterrupted 45 minute showing of the partial film.

3. For variety, a scene can be started in the middle to challenge the ability of students to infer past events from partial information.

Task Chain 2: Viewing Exercises. Students watch a 45 minute segment of the movie during a single class, thus completing an entire movie over two classes. Subtitles will not be used. If necessary, movies will be abridged to fit within the time frame by removing panoramic shots used for between scenes transitions, redundant recall shots, irrelevant scenes, and scenes of impropriety if not critical to the plot (Lin, 2000, p. 5).

1. Students will write down as much of the dialog that they hear in their class journals as the movie is being viewed. This task forces students to listen, and despite predictable claims of cruelty, the progress made by the end of the semester can sometimes be remarkable (Lin, 2000). The number of correctly heard words will be used as one measure of comprehension.

2. Students should be able to answer the content questions provided in last week's handout by the end of the film presentation.

3. Teacher support is provided while the movie is playing, by restating difficult to hear passages, passages requiring specialized vocabulary, or passages requiring more advanced English language skills. Context-specific meanings can also be emphasized during the movie presentation.

4. If the film is a drama with an unknown ending, the film will be stopped at a selected position and the class asked to try and predict the final outcome of the movie.

Task 3: Post-viewing Exercises.

1. Vocabulary, difficult passages, and context-specific meanings will be discussed.

2. Imitation of actor intonation and body language exercises will be performed, followed by paraphrasing exercises.

3. General discussion time, if available, will be used to answer questions.

Warm-Down/Review:

Distribute the take home quiz, which is designed to further test vocabulary and grammar comprehension as presented within the movie.

Family Interaction:

Encourage students to discuss issues with family members and find areas of commonality on major themes or paradigms.

Technology:

There are numerous ways in which technology could specifically contribute to this lesson, depending on the resources of the particular classroom. Most assuredly, we would need a good quality film projector and screen; alternatively, personal computers to watch the film. However, if we wanted to do an in-depth analysis of specific scenes, replay, etc.; it would be best to use a high quality DVD player or computer for analysis. Additionally, for student interaction or home activity, they would need a way to watch or at least listen to the movies; YouTube.com might have clips, but they would still need access to a computer. A Smart Board would be helpful for analysis, but not necessary. Other technological innovations might be useful for diverse populations (see below). Students may be asked to find locations and/or events pictured in films by using Google Earth or other online encyclopedias. PowerPoint for presentation is an option.

Diversity:

Depending on the special needs of the student, this unit may be adapted accordingly. For students with a language other than English, worksheets will be adapted and their particular culture focused towards their area of expertise. Learning issues will be handled via the buddy system, extra worksheets and explanations, and more oral interaction. Much of the work in data mining, physical disabilities can be accommodated as well. Again, depending on the physical or psychological issues, we might need to accommodate special learners with microphones, tablets, etc.

Pedagogical Background:

Theoretical basis for lesson- Most contemporary scholars note that the key to a successful classroom is being able to adapt to various learning styles. Each teacher has a different style, and each student the same. When there are 25-35 students per classroom, teachers comment that it is sometimes difficult to match styles at the appropriate time. So, besides diversity in the classroom, we now add another template to the mix -- that of differences in learning style and cognition. These are rather broad generalities about the stylized cognitive processes, but all fit into the paradigm of "learning style." What is critical is to note the difference in the way the newer cognitive models establish baseline hierarchies in the process: