Getting the Students into Languages

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This practical guide provides teachers with a range of practical strategies that can be used to motivate pupils of all ages, especially boys. Amanda Barton shows how learning languages can be transformed into a fun and exciting activity with the use of such simple aids as business cards, jokes, comics and red and yellow cards. Many teachers are particularly concerned with the problem of underachieving boys, and specific strategies toaddress this issue are provided in chapters 2 and 4. Brimming with useful tips and inspirational advice on every aspect of modern language teaching, this book will prove essential reading for every modern language teacher. About The Author Dr Amanda Barton is Lecturer in Education and Director of PGCE Modern Foreign Languages at the . She regularly runs in-service training workshops for modern language teachers. Table of Contents Why don’t the buggers love languages? Tackling prejudice through language awareness Will boys really be boys? Parents Primary school Being ‘cool’ A cool subject or a girls’ subject Using languages and making them relevant Explaining the aims Which languages are best? Boys’ learning styles The teacher Speaking How do boys see speaking? Create more speaking opportunities Group- and pair work v teacher-led question and answer sessions Confidence-building exercises v accuracy Making speaking a means to an end Mobility Creativity Expressing opinions Drama Games Problems and solutions Listening The difficulty of listening Making listening purposeful ‘Hands-on’ listening tasks Training listening skills Pre-listening activities Listening to each other Focus on pronunciation Giving pupils control Reading Do boys read? The Internet Making reading (inter)active Training reading skills Reading aloud Presenting the written word for the first time Reading for pleasure Tasks presented as a challenge Listening to the teacher Writing The problem with writing Handwriting and spelling Making bridges with English Visuals and drama Finding an audience Creative writing Writing independendy or avoiding ‘Copiez les mots’ Coursework The teaching and learning environment Pupils’ responses to being taught in single-sex groups Behaviour Pupil confidence Friends Reasons for disliking single-sex groups The sex of the teacher The effects of single-sex grouping on pupils’ attitudes to modern foreign languages Teachers’ perceptions of girls’ performance in single-sex groups Teachers’ perceptions of boys’ performance in single-sex groups What are the potential advantages of teaching single-sex groups? Which other factors affect pupils’ performance? Looking to the future Recommended reading Useful addresses Index