English Teaching MethodologyPart I Definitions（1）Denotative meaning（指示意义/外延意义）;The primary, literal meaning of a word, which is used to label real objects.（2）Connotative meaning (内涵意义/隐含意义)；The associations that are connected to a certain word or the emotional suggestions related to that word（3）implicit learning;-learning without conscious attention or awareness-Implicit learning is a passive process, where students are exposed to information, and acquire knowledge of that information simply through that exposureExample: learning new words by meeting them repeatedly（4）explicit learning;learning with conscious awareness and intention-Explicit learning is an active process where students seek out the structure of information that is presented to them.Example: learning new words by memorizing , imagining, comparing, etc.（5）synonym（同义词）;Items that mean the same, or nearly the same（6）Spontaneity for speaking（自发性）;In most situations, people do not plan ahead of time what they are going to say. The fact that speech is spontaneous means that it is full of false starts, repetitions, incomplete sentences, and short phrases.（7）assessment（评估）;The collecting of information of a learner’s learning progress and achievement over a period of time for the purpose of improving teaching and learning. Not based on one test or one task, nor on a mark or grade.（8）evaluation;The systematic gathering of information for the purpose of making decisions (Weiss, 1972).（9）validity（有效正确）;The extent to which inferences made from assessment results are appropriate, meaningful, and useful in terms of the purpose of the assessment.A test measures what it is supposed to measure.（10）reliability;The extent to which the results can be considered consistent (一致的) or stable.A test is reliable if it gives the same results when it is given on different occasions or when it is used by different people.（12）Washback(反驳作用);The effect that tests have on learning and teaching.It can be beneficial (positive) or detrimental (negative).（13）Portfolios（学习档案袋）;A purposeful collection of students’work that demonstrates to students and others their efforts, progress, and achievements in given areas over a period of time (Genesee & Upshur, 1996).（14）linguistic competence（语言能力）.Linguistic competence is the system of linguistic knowledge possessed by native speakers of a language. It is in contrast to the concept of linguistic performance, the way the language system is used in communication.Part II Short-answer questions and Discussions.1.Give the differences between British English and American English.American English is evolved from British English. But the differences between them are noticeable.The differences between them:①.V ocabularya.Past Simple/Past Participlesb.Prepositions②Pronunciation（1）[ æ ]—[ɑ:]:（2）[ɑ: ]—[ ɔ] :（3） [ i l ] - [ l ]（4）[ u: ] —[ ju :]:（5）[ i: ] —[ ai ]:（6）the same word③. Spelling (suffix) 拼写（后缀）④. Grammar 语法(1)Use of present perfect tense and simple past tense.现在完成式和一般过去式(2)Verb agreement and collective nouns 主谓一致和集合名词(3)Past tense forms. 过去时态的形式First of all, the difference is vocabulary.The following verbs have two acceptable forms of the past simple/past participle in both American and British English, however, the irregular form is generally more common in British English (the first form of the two) and the regular form is more common to American English.(1)Past Simple/Past Participles⏹Dream dreamt OR dreamed⏹Lean leant OR leaned⏹Learn learnt OR learned⏹Smell smelt OR smelled⏹Spell spelt OR spelled⏹Spill spilt OR spilled⏹Burn Burnt OR burned(2) Prepositions⏹American English - on the weekendBritish English - at the weekend⏹American English - on a teamBritish English - in a team⏹American English - please write me soonBritish English - please write to me soonSecondary, the difference is pronunciation. Sometimes we usually soften or don’t read the vowel (especially the [ ə ] or [ i ] ) in the unstressed syllable out in British English, while we should read all vowels out in the American English. So Americans speak more slowly and clearly than the British people.Differences in pronunciation between American English (AmE) and British English (BrE) can be divided into:⏹Differences in accent (i.e. phoneme inventory and realisation). See differences between GeneralAmerican and Received Pronunciation for the standard accents in the United States and Britain; forinformation about other accents see regional accents of English speakers.⏹Differences in the pronunciation of individual words in the lexicon (i.e. phoneme distribution). In thisarticle, transcriptions use Received Pronunciation (RP) to represent BrE and General American (GAm)and to represent AmE.（1）[ æ ]—[ɑ:]:When the letter ― a ‖ comes before -s, -f, -th, -lf, -ph, -n , etc. we pronounce [æ] in Am.E , while [ɑ:] in Br.E.（2）[ɑ: ]—[ ɔ] : When the vowel letter ― o ‖ comes after a stressed closed syllable in a plosive , we usually pronounce it [ ɔ ] in the standard Br.E , while [ ɑ: ] in Ar.E .（3）We pronounce [ i l ] or [ l ] in Ar.E while [ ail ] in Br.E when the words end with –ile .（4）[ u: ] —[ ju :]: Americans pronounce [ u: ] while British people [ ju: ] when ― u ‖ and ― new ‖ come after n-, d-, t- etc.（5）[ i: ] —[ ai ]: We pronounce the monogram ― ei ‖ [ i: ] in Am.E while [ ai: ] in Br.E .（6）Even though the same word , there are some pronunciation differences in Am.E and Br.E .Thirdly, the difference is spelling. In the United States’ development of language, spelling have occurred in a similar movement of our simplified characters (The simplified Spelling Movement), delete the word spelling in some of the letters are not pronounced.(1) The aphonic suffix such as -me, -ue in the English words are deleted in the American spelling.⏹Kilogramme kilogram⏹programme program⏹catalogue catalog⏹dialogue dialog⏹prologue prolog(2) There are ―our‖ at the end of the words and the aphonic letter ―u‖ is deleted in the American spelling.⏹Behaviour behavior⏹colour color⏹honour honor⏹labour labor(3) The suffix ―re‖ which is read [ə] become ―er‖.⏹centre center⏹fibre fiber⏹metre meter⏹theatre theater(4) The suffix ―ence‖ which is read [ns] become ―ense‖.⏹defence defense⏹offence offense⏹licence license⏹pretence pretense(5)The suffix ―ise‖ becomes‖ize‖ .⏹criticise criticize⏹organize organize⏹realise realize⏹recognise recognize⏹standardise standardize(6) Double ―L‖ in the British English words becomes ―L‖ in the American English words⏹councilor councilor⏹counsellor counselor⏹jeweller jeweler⏹marvellous marvelous⏹parcelled parceled⏹travelling traveling(7) Someone else.⏹Cheque check⏹Gaol jail⏹kerb curb⏹moustache mustache⏹plough plow⏹pyjamas pajamas⏹skeptical skeptical⏹erarer rubberFourthly, the difference is grammar.（1）Use of present perfect tense and simple past tense.Speakers of American English generally use the present perfect tense (have/has + past participle) far less than speakers of British English. In spoken American English it is very common to use the simple past tense as an alternative in situations where the present perfect would usually have been used in British English. （2）Verb agreement with collective nouns. In British English collective nouns, (i.e. nouns referring to particular groups of people or things), (e.g. staff , government, class, team) can be followed by asingular or plural verb depending on whether the group is thought of as one idea, or as manyindividuals , e.g.: My team is winning. The other team is all sitting down.In American English collective nouns are always followed by a singular verb, so an American wouldusually say: Which team is losing?Whereas in British English both plural and singular forms of the verb are possible, as in:Which team is/are losing?（3）Past tense forms.Below is a table showing verbs which have different simple past and past participle forms in American and British English. Note that the irregular past forms burnt, dreamt and spoilt are possible in American English, but less common than the forms ending in -ed.infinitive simple past (Br) simple past (Am) past participle (Br) past participle (Am)burn burned/burnt burned/burnt burned/burnt burned/burntbust bust busted bust busteddive dived dove/dived dived diveddream dreamed/dreamt dreamed/dreamt dreamed/dreamt dreamed/dreamtget got got got gottenlean leaned/leant leaned leaned/leant leanedlearn learned/learnt learned learned/learnt learnedplead pleaded pleaded/pled pleaded pleaded/pledprove proved proved proved proved/provensaw sawed sawed sawn sawn/sawedsmell smelled/smelt smelled smelled/smelt smelled2.The characteristics of American English（1）Reservation of the ancient English featuresIt retains and revives many of the words in that have already become "obsolete" in British English, such as“I guess“，“I think”，“I suppose”，“I believe”. Also，the American English has reservd many vivid ,imaginative ancient words,such as: “fall”, meaning "autumn", deriving from “the fall of leaves (deciduous season)”.In addition, compared with London accent , American English pronunciation is a little old-fashioned with some typical features of the British English in the 17th and 18th century.For example, the retention of retroflex R.(2)Rich creativityCreate some new words that do not exist at all.Instances :pizzazz(时髦派头的人);black hole(黑洞); space walk(太空行走);Based on the old words ,it create new words by free use of affixes, or blending (and inverse method (backformation) .Instances :defrost(除霜),racist(种族主义者),smog(烟雾)来自于smoke(烟)和fog(雾)(3)Absorption of multi-national languages①Absorption of the Indian language (Indian American)Such as moose, raccoon, opossum,squash, wigwam②Absorption of Holland languageFood vocabulary: cole slaw (sandwich Caisi), cookie (dessert), cruller (pot, cheese (fried) loaded with cheese, waffle (porcelain) waffles); and barrack (hay: farm building, stoop (HUT) corridor), saw Buck (sawbucks); there are some social attribute words, such as: boss (Foreman), patron (latifundistas)③Absorption of Germany languagebeer soup(啤味汤),blutwurst(黑香肠),diener(实验室助手),semester(学期),seminar(研讨会),hex(符咒),katzenjammer(醉汉),wunderkind(神童),zinc(锌)(4)The widely usage of slangDifferent social groups often have their own specific life circles, therefore different classes and regions will have their own different slang.Instances: He is just a booker. (He studies too much.)You are out of your tree. (You are out of mind.)3.The difficulties that the foreign language learners will learn the pronunciation of FL.Difficulties for Students:Sounds:a. the sound may not in fact exist in their native language.b. two sounds may not be differentiated in their native tongue.c. groupings of sounds or clusters may appear to very strange.Word Stressa. there is no apparent rule here, unlike many other languages.b. the meanings of words are often differentiated soled by stress(e.g. decade/decayed)Sentence Stressa. note that English is in fact stress-timed and not syllable-timed.b. Meaning is conveyed by stress.(A red book/ A red program)Intonationa. conveys the attitude and mood of the speaker.b. English uses a wide voice range and students may not understand that a narrow range can make them sound bored/rude/uninterested.c. intonation is often described as the “music”of the language.4.Please tell some basic organs for pronunciation.5.the classification of English Vowels.（1）Generally, according to their componential elements, English vowels can be classified into three categories: single vowels, diphthongs, and triphthongs.（2）Single vowelsSingle vowels contain a single element. They can be further classified according to different factors.According to the position of the highest part of tongue in producing the sound, there are:front vowels----/ i:, i, e,ε, æ ,a /central vowels----/ə:, ə, /back vowels—/u:, u, a: /According to the degree of lip rounding, there are:unrounded vowels----/i:, i, e, æ, ə:, ə, a:/rounded vowels----/u:, u /According to the tension of muscles, or the length of sounds, there are:tense vowels ----/ i:, ə:, u:, a:/ (long)lax vowels ----/ i, e, æ, ə, u, / (short)（3）DiphthongsDiphthongs contain two elements. They are produced with the tongue moving from one vowel position to the other. In English, there are 8 diphthongs: /ei, ai, au, əu, i, iə, Wə, uə/.(4) TriphthongsTriphthongs are composed of three elements. In their production, two movements of the tongue are involved. There are 3 triphthongs in English: /aiə, auə, iə/. Here, it should be pointed out that many scholars do not take triphthongs as members of basic English speech sounds. In their opinion, triphthongs are nothing but diphthongs followed by the sound /ə/.6.The appropriate attitudes to Vocabulary learning.V ocabulary items can be single words, compounds, phrases, and even sentences.Not every word has an equivalent in another language (e.g., the)V ocabulary can be taught.Both teachers and students need to know the difference between active and passive vocabulary.Translation is not the best way to explain new words.English-English explanation is better than translation, but still not the best way.An English-English dictionary is very useful.It is more effective when words of related meaning are taught and learned together.Studying vocabulary in context is more effective.Forgetting is inevitable. But if words are frequently used, they are less easy to forget.7.explain the sense relations of words.（1）Collocations 词语搭配Definition:Words that co-occur with high frequency and have been accepted as ways for the use of wordsInstances:Set phrases or constructions: in one’s opinion, after all, ask sb. to do sth.…Perform an operation /have or hold a discussionDo a lot of damage do one’s duty do wrongMake trouble make noise make an excuseAdvantage:Be able to increase fluency and appropriate language use.（2）Synonyms 同义词Definition:Items that mean the same, or nearly the sameInstances:Big-huge-large, country-nation-motherland（3）Antonyms 反义词Definition:Items that mean the opposite of a wordInstances:Big-small wide-narrow hot-cold（4）Hyponyms 下义词Definition:Words that can be grouped together under the same superordinate上位的conceptThe meaning of one word includes the meaning of the other wordInstances:8.What should we pay attention to when we learn foreign vocabulary? Please discuss it based on your experience.How to learn foreign vocabularyOnce you have got to grips with the fundamentals of a language (pronunciation, orthography and basic grammar), you can concentrate on learning vocabulary. This is probably the most important and time-consuming part of learning a language.(1)Associate the familiar with the unfamiliarTry to find word or phrases in your L1 which sound like and if possible have a similar meaning to words in your L2. Build mental images or draw pictures based on the connections. For example, the Spanish for "ice" ishielo (m), which sounds like yellow. To remember this word imagine yellow ice. This is an enjoyable method because many of the associations you think up will be silly, absurd or bizarre.(2)GendersTo remember genders try picturing a Spanish-speaking region, divide it into two and place masculine nouns on one side and feminine words on the other. In the case of ice imagine the masculine half covered in yellow ice.If your L2 has many genders, imagine a large building with many floors, assign a different gender to each floor and place words on the appropriate floor according to their gender.(3)Avoiding language mix upsAssociating words from each language you learn with places where they are spoken will help you to avoid getting your languages mixed up. For example, if you're learning French and Spanish, imagine a map of Europe and place the French words in France and the Spanish words in Spain. Alternatively you could imagine a map of North America and place the Spanish words in Mexico and the French words in Quebec.(4)Testing and revisionTo ensure the words stick in your memory, test yourself on them at regular intervals. If you learn some new words in the morning for example, check that you can still remember them later that day, the next day, a week later and a month later. If you find some words hard to recall, try thinking up different associations for them. You may need to try several different associations before you find one that works.(5)Learn related words & phrasesWhen learning the word for hand, for example, try to learn related words, such as parts of the hand; actions of the hand; other parts of the body, and things you might wear on your hands. Also try to learn words with the same rootand phrases which include the word hand.As you learn more words you will start to spot connections between words. The more words you learn the easier you will find it to guess the meanings of new words.(6)Learn words in contextLearning long lists of unrelated words is boring, difficult and doesn't help you much when you come across those words in a different context. If you focus on learning words in the context you're most likely to find them, you're more likely to recognise them when you encounter them or need to use them again.When learning food words, for example, think about when you'd be most likely to use them, i.e. when cooking, eating, shopping, etc, and learn other words related to those situations. Then try constructing sentences using the new words. Good dictionaries contain examples of usage which you can use as models for your own sentences. As your knowledge of your L2 improves, using a monolingual dictionary is a good idea. This helps you to understand words through their meaning rather than relying on translations into your L1.(7)Practice reading as much as possibleA great way to build up you vocabulary is to have a go at reading books, magazines, newspapers or comics written in your L2. Ideally look for reading material covering topics you find interesting. When reading, try to guess the meanings of any words you don't know and then check them in a dictionary to see if your guesses were correct. You don't have to look up every unfamiliar word as long as you can get the gist of the text.9.implicit teaching (内隐教学)and explicit teaching（外隐教学）(1)Implicit teaching or instruction:teaching a certain topic in a suggestive or implied manner;the objective is not plainly expressed.Students are required to infer appropriate rules by themselves from examples presented by teachers.(2)Explicit teaching or instruction:directing student attention toward a specific learningobjective in a highly structured environmentStudents are taught in a logical order directed by the teacher through demonstration, explanation and practice.10.Deductive method in grammar teaching(演绎法)（1）advantages and disadvantages（2）The application of the deductive method：a.Presentation：The teacher presents the following sentences:If I had a laptop now, I would lend it to you.If you left me tomorrow, I would die.If you had studied hard, you would have passed the exam.B.explanationC.practiceThe teacher contrasts the difference between sentences of real condition and unreal condition:If we leave now, we can catch the train.(真实条件句: 可能实现）If we left now, we could catch the train.(虚拟条件句: 纯然假想、无法实现)11.Can you give some suggestions for teaching grammar?Learning grammar itself is not the ultimate goal of learning EnglishGrammar presentation methods should be varied in accordance with corresponding situations (the inductive and guided discovery method used for easily perceived structures/ the deductive method used for complex structures) Grammar presentation should include both oral and written and both form and meaning.Plenty of contextualized examples of the target structure are necessary.Comprehension should be enhanced via visual materials, such as tables, diagrams, pictures, realia, etc.Complex terminology should be avoided for younger learners, whereas commonly used terminology should be introduced for relatively advanced learners.Interaction between the teacher and the learner and between the learners should be improved.12.What are the difficulties you encounter in English listening?Insufficient resources for listening(lack of listening materials, equipment, and real-life situations)Different ways of producing the same sounds(e.g., different dialects and accents, stresses, rhythms, intonations, mispronunciations, etc)Little or no control over the speed of the inputNo chance to go backNo time to pause to work out the meaningThe influence of background noiseSimultaneous treatment with other tasks13.Explain the characteristics of listening process.（1）Spontaneity. We listen to people peaking spontaneously and informally without rehearsing what whey are going to say ahead of time.（2）Context. While listening, we know the relationship between the listener and the speaker. The situation helps to predict what we are going to hear.（3）Visual clues. Facial expression, gestures, and other body language, and the surrounding environment, these visual clues help us predict and understand what we hear.（4）Listener’s response. In a conversation, we can interrupt the speaker and ask for repetition or clarification. （5）Speaker’s adjustment. The speaker can adjust the way of speaking according to the listener’s reaction, e.g. he/she may rephrase or elaborate (to put it in more details).14.Give some examples for the activities of while-listening stage.Purpose:check comprehensionActivities:no specific responseslisten and ticklisten and sequencelisten and actlisten and drawlisten and fill (fill in the blanks)listen and take notesSummaryMost of the time, it is helpful to provide a task for the students to do something while they are listening.By providing a variety of types of tasks, students learn to listen for a variety of purposes, which better prepares them for listening in the real world outside the classroom.15.What can we do in the pre-listening stage?Purposes：Motivate studentsActivate prior knowledgeTeach key words or structuresActivities:PredictingSetting the sceneListening for the gistListening for specific informationPredictingGood listeners are good predictors.There are many different activities that can be used to encourage students to predict the content of what they are about to hear.Visual aids are immensely helpful in aiding students’comprehension. “They attract students’attention and help and encourage them to focus on the subject in hand”(Ur, 1984:30).Setting the SceneThe teacher can help provide the background information to activate learners’schema, so they will be better prepared to understand what they hear.Listening for the gistListening for the gist is similar to skimming a passage in reading. The key is to ask students one or two questions that focus on the main idea or the tone or mood of the whole passage.Notice that students can answer the gist questions even though they do not understand every word or phrase in the passage.Listening for specific informationThere are situations in real life where we listen only for some specific details and ignore the rest of the entire message. e.g. weather forecast, announcements in train stations/airportsIt is important to expose our students to a variety of types of listening texts for a variety of purposes so that they will develop a variety of listening strategies to use for different situations.Summary:We may use more than one kind of pre-listening activity;Pre-listening tasks should not take much time;The purpose of pre-listening activities is to activate the students’schema, i.e. to provide context.16.What are the differences between spoken language and written language?Spoken language Written language1. Simple form,not even correct,incomplect,short Difficult,complicate2. Convenient,efficient,ungrammatical Sentences:well-organised,carefully-constructed3. Informal,with body language,spontaneous, Formal,permanent,can be readnot recorded,expect to be understand immediatelyLanguage students must also consider who they are talking to and be able to check if they are being understood. If no, they need to be able to change strategies. In speaking, unlike writing, the speaker gets immediate feedback from the listener.17.Explain the principles for teaching speaking.Balancing accuracy with fluencyContextualizing practicePersonalizing practiceBuilding up confidenceMaximizing meaningful interactionHelping develop speaking strategiesMaking the best use of classroom learning environment(1)Balancing accuracy-based with fluency-based practicesOn one hand, we need to allow time for grammar and vocabulary learning so that students have sufficient linguistic competence. One the other hand, we need to provide sufficient opportunities for students to develop fluency.(2)Contextualising practiceTeachers need to identify a situation in which a target structure is commonly used.(3) Personalising practiceWe need to help students learn better by personalizing the content and context so that students can talk or write about their own life experiences and their personal opinions.(4)Building up confidenceIt is very important for the teacher to create a relaxed and supportive environment and help them build up their confidence. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes.(5) Maximising meaningful interactionsAs one of the main objectives of teaching speaking is to develop students’ability to initiate a topic, to ask questions, to take turns in speaking, to change topics and to have some control over the communication, it is best practiced within small groups or in pairs. When we design speaking practices, we need to ensure that the interaction is meaningful and participation is maximum(6) Helping students develop speaking strategiesSpeaking involves strategies, such as initiating a conversation, turn taking, asking for clarification, asking for repetition, getting others’attention, getting help from others, and ending a conversation, etc.(7) Making the best use of classroom leaning environment to provide sufficient language input and practice for the students.In china, students have the opportunity to hear and speak the language only in the classroom. So creating an English speaking environment to maximize learning opportunity is crucial for students.18.Explain the advantages for group work in speaking activities.More opportunities. As compared with activities for the whole class, group work enables students to talk a lot because it increases the time for each student to practise speaking in one lesson.More motivation. Group work helps students avoid losing their face in front of a whole class, and thus it makes students courageous to speak.More authenticity. Speaking in a small group is more natural than speaking in a large group, because the latter is usually more formal and requires preparation.Different levels. Students can naturally perform to their abilities more readily in small groups than in a whole class, i.e. students of different levels can participate.More cooperation. Small group work helps students learn to work cooperatively and it helps develop interpersonal skill –fostering development of tolerance, mutual respect and harmony.19. What does effective reading involve?have a clear purpose in reading;read silently;read phrase by phrase, rather than word by word;concentrate on the important bits, skim the rest, and skip the insignificant parts;use different speeds and strategies for different reading tasks;perceive the information in the target language rather than mentally translate;guess the meaning of new words from the context, or ignore them;have and use background information to help understand the text.20.Explain the principles for teaching reading.The texts and tasks should be accessible to the students.Tasks should be clearly given in advance.Tasks should be designed to encourage reading for the main meaning rather than test the students’understanding of trivial details.Tasks should help develop students’reading skills and strategies rather than test their reading comprehension. Teachers should help students develop reading strategies and abilities applicable to out-of-class situations. Teachers should help the students to read on their own, so that they eventually become independent readers.21.Explain the 3S reading methods.Setting the scene setting the cultural scene setting the background sceneSkimming (main idea)Scanning for specific details for specific vocabulary and structure。
