Focused Error Correction

When thinking about error correction, consider the following: How can I help learners self-correct?

A good rule to follow is: Don’t do the corrections for your students!

Help learners notice the error. Once the learner notices, he or she may self-correct if the form is the focus of the lesson and the learner is ready for the correction. Remember that heavy correction is premature when you are just introducing new language. During activities that focus on accuracy, correction is helpful.

Example A: During an oral practice activity with the irregular past tense:

Student speaking: Yesterday I go to the store.

Teacher/tutor: Yesterday I…? (uses a nonverbal cue, like a questioning look, or a gesture to signify past tense).

S: Yesterday I no go to the store?

T: Try again. Yesterday I _____ to the store. (T emphasizes “yesterday” and hums where the word should be).
Note: If the learner continues to struggle, ask others if they can help. If someone knows the correct form, model it, ask the original learner to produce it. Then let them know they have it right. Ask them to produce it one more time. If a learner isn’t able to make the correction, then he or she probably isn’t ready for it. Let it go, but make a note that this is an area that needs more work for that student.

Example B: For recurrent errors, like the “S” in third person, hold up a big “S” or make a sign for the wall that you can point to. All you need to do is point to the sign or hold it up as a reminder. Repeat up to the point where the learner made the error and let them “fill in the blank.”

Example C: Write the student’s incorrect sentence on the board with a blank in place of the error. Give them a questioning look or ask them what’s missing. Or, if there are examples on the board, point to the correct form.

Example D: You are moving around the room, helping students individually as they complete a worksheet. Fadumo has finished, but 2 of her answers are wrong.

T: Fadumo, you did a great job. 10 of your answers are correct! Now look at numbers 7 and 12 again.

Note: Sometimes you can give a hint. “There are 2 words missing” or “Think about the tense. It says ‘yesterday’. Is that past tense or present tense?” You can also help by pointing out other key words that give clues.

Did you try these suggestions? Were they effective? Please share by making a comment below.

Rules of the Road

Purpose: To talk about rules using “can’t” and “have to” and to discuss cultural issues in driving laws

Preparation Time: None

Materials: Board and markers; pencils and paper

Procedure:
1. Ask students if they drive. Ask students “What are some of the laws you must follow if you drive in Minnesota/the United States?”
2. Write students’ ideas on the board using “can’t” and “have to”. Examples: You have to wear a seat belt. You can’t pass in a no-passing zone.
3. Put students in small groups. Ask them to compare the driving laws between here and the country they came from. They should speak and work together to find 2 differences.
4. Groups share the differences they found with the rest of the class.

Did you try this activity? Do you have an idea for a variation on the activity? Please share by making a comment below.

Getting to Know Your Dictionary

Purpose: To familiarize learners (low intermediate and above) with parts of a dictionary entry. This activity would work especially well if a weekly spelling/vocabulary list is part of your instruction.

Note: Dictionaries are a great resource for tutors as well as for learners. For example, the Longman Dictionary of American English defines words in simple language that students can understand. It also uses each word in a sentence to aid comprehension. Not sure how to explain a word to your students? Check the learner dictionary!

Prep time: 10 minutes

Materials: word list, class set of learners’ dictionaries

Prep: Prepare several dictionary entries to use as examples. Decide which features you’d like students to become familiar with. It would be ideal to project the examples on the white board or use a transparency for easy viewing.

Procedure:

I do it (Tutor):
Explain the purpose of the activity.
Have actual learners’ dictionaries on hand as visual aids.
Ask learners: When and why do you use a dictionary?
What information can be found in a learner’s dictionary?

Elicit:
definitions/meanings of words
grammar information
pronunciation
(other features may be discovered in next steps)

Put an example of an entry on the overhead projector. Initially, you might restrict yourself to 3-4 features. Underline, circle and label the features.
For example:
pronunciation
definition
example of the word used in a sentence
grammar/part of speech

We do it (Tutor/learners together):
Do another example, this time asking learners to come up and label the different parts. Hand out the dictionaries and look together at the section in the front that explains abbreviations, short forms and codes. Highlight a few of these.

You do it (Learners working independently or in pairs):
Provide students with a list of vocabulary words or refer them to your word wall. Working with dictionaries, students look up each word, noting the definition, the grammar information, and one other piece of information about the word.

Best Practice: I do it, We do it, You do it!

Whether you are planning an activity or a whole lesson, here’s a simple and effective way to organize it.

I. I do it

“I” represents the teacher or tutor and includes any or all of the following:
-explaining why you are doing the activity/learning the skill
-creating context
-introducing new language or teaching key vocabulary
-activating learners’ prior knowledge
-giving examples and/or modeling to show learners what you want them to do
-using visuals and realia to aid comprehension
The teacher plays a major role in this step and the learners have a more passive role. We sometimes call these “controlled activities”

II. We do it

“We” means the teacher/tutor and learners are practicing together, or learners are working on structured (controlled) activities, with lots of teacher support, as they practice the new language or skill in multiple ways. Examples of “we do it” would be:
-worksheets
-drills
-speaking activities like role plays where tutor initially plays one of the roles
-cloze (fill in the blank) activities
-reading out loud as a class

III. You do it

“You” represents the learners. They are now practicing on their own, applying what they’ve just practiced, as the teacher moves among them, observing and providing assistance as needed. These are called free practice activities and tend to be more authentic or “real life” situations.
-interviews
-dialogue journals
-mingles
-projects
-role plays
-games

Progression within lessons and activities generally follows this pattern, from more controlled to less controlled, so keep this formula in mind when you plan: I do it, we do it, you do it! You’ll see some tutor tips in the coming year that follow this format, too.

A quick example:
I. I do it: T models a short dialogue using a picture, props, gestures, etc.
II. We do it: Learners repeat after T, one line a time, with multiple opportunities to repeat
III. You do it: Learners practice dialogue in pairs, while T observes and assists

Using Model Texts

Purpose: To help learners better understand features and language of a writing task they will be attempting

Some activities using model texts

• Label the different parts of the model. For example, if you are working with business letters, learners would label the addresses of the sender and receiver, the date, the greeting, the closing, the signature, the name typed out and any abbreviations used at the bottom.
• Match standard phrases used in the letter to their meanings, which you have written below the model text. An example of a standard phrase is “Please do not hesitate to contact me …”, for which you might write, “It is ok to write or phone the person who sent the letter.”
• Compare a successful version of that writing task to an unsuccessful version. For example, you might choose a good business letter and compare it to one that is too informal or poorly organized.
• Fill-in-the-blanks
• Learners put paragraphs or sentences from the text in the correct order.
• Learners discuss the purpose of paragraphs or sentences.
• Learners highlight sentences or paragraphs with different colors to denote their function.
• Learners copy the model (shorter text) into their notebooks, substituting their personal information for the given information in the text.

Introduction

Welcome to this new blog from the Minnesota Literacy Council. In this blog you can read tips, activity ideas, strategies and advice for adult literacy volunteers who work with adult immigrants and refugees. Check back every week for new tips.

Feel free to comment on the tips, ask questions, make suggestions and share your ideas related to volunteering to help adult immigrants and refugees learn English.