Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom

December 2001 — Volume 5, Number 3

Teaching and Learning in the Language Classroom

Tricia Hedge (2000)
Oxford Handbooks for Language Teachers
Oxford: Oxford University Press
Pp. xvi + 447
ISBN 0 19 4421724 (Paperback)
£15.40 US$15.95

A quarter of a century ago, Tricia Hedge gave me a thorough and careful introduction to the job I was to take over from her as head of English at an adult-teaching organisation in Uppsala, Sweden. She was leaving for a teacher training post at Ealing College of Higher Education. In teacher education she seemed to find the perfect field for her talents, and she has remained in that area of work ever since, developing her ideas and teacher-training skills on courses and seminars for teachers in the UK and all over the world. Now she has produced a comprehensive book on language teaching; and with such a wealth of experience of and thought about teacher education behind it, that book has to be worth careful examination.

Teaching and learning in the language classroom is aimed primarily at language teachers with some experience, and though it could be very useful for teachers to explore on their own, its main use is likely to be as a core textbook on in-service training courses. Throughout, it encourages teachers to reflect on issues in language teaching and learning on the basis of their own experience. Each chapter begins with an “introductory task” which focuses thought on the area to be considered and which in most cases invites teachers to identify aspects of their current ideas and practice on the issue. Similarly, the penultimate section of each chapter is a considerable list of “discussion topics and projects”, many of which are based on examples of teaching materials. These activities are likely to be most profitable when carried out in groups, and the most obvious way in which to exploit them is on a formal training course.

In between these discussion tasks, each chapter produces a highly concentrated but still readable exploration of the issues in the topic under consideration. Though the main subheadings in each chapter take the form of questions, such as “How do second language learners acquire vocabulary?” or “What role can self-access facilities play in language learning?”, these are questions which the author sets out to answer; they are not specifically addressed to the reader. The general pattern of each chapter is to move from more theoretical to practical considerations, and Hedge draws on both research and published teaching materials in exploring central issues in language teaching. The conclusions drawn are often fairly tentative, though; this is not a book which implies that there are clear and straightforward answers to the questions that concern language teachers, or which sets out to provide simplistic classroom “recipes”. After working through the chapters teachers should end up making more informed choices and decisions, but they will still be making the choices–Hedge views teachers as the “decision-makers in managing the classroom process” (1), and it is not her aim to usurp that role by spelling out some fixed set of classroom practices which she believes to be ideal. As she says in the introduction, her book is not “based on the belief that teachers sit at the feet of educationists and applied linguists waiting for ideas to drop, like crumbs, to sustain them”, since “experienced teachers are more robust and independent than that”(2). She recognises that neither theoretical nor classroom research can provide “a base for unshakeable principles of classroom practice”. Her aim is to help provide “a foundation of knowledge against which we can evaluate our own ideas about teaching and learning, to which we can apply for insights in our attempts to solve pedagogical problems, and from which we can draw ideas to experiment with in our own classrooms” (ibid.). Such an approach should appeal to the experienced teacher.[-1-]

Language teaching practice has seen the emergence of various diverse–and in some respects divergent–threads in the last three or four decades, and it is by no means easy to design a coherent course for teachers which encompasses differing ways of analysing the language to be learned, differing views of the language learning process, differing ideas on language skills, and so on. Hedge’s book is organised in a fairly conventional but very logical way, which can conveniently be used to provide the outline syllabus of a teacher-training course. Part 1 is a “A framework for teaching and learning”; the first chapter of this section covers a massive area of ground, exploring language learning theories, learner differences, and the roles of teachers, learners and teaching materials. It might be argued that the coverage here is a little on the thin side, but the chapter is essentially laying the foundation for the rest of the course by briefly setting out some key concepts, and there are plenty of opportunities to return to these issues later. Part 1 also contains chapters on “The communicative classroom” and “Learner autonomy and learner training”; it may be a little surprising to find these topics discussed so early in the book, but the sequence works well enough. Part 2, “Teaching the language system”, looks at teaching language traditionally divided into the areas of “Vocabulary” and “Grammar”, while Part 3, “Developing the language skills”, has chapters on each of the skills of reading, listening, speaking and writing. These examinations from two different angles of what is to be taught provide overlap with previous chapters and opportunities for review and expansion. Part 4, “Planning and assessing learning”, covers the two topics that always seem to get left to the last section of courses such as this, namely course design and classroom assessment (a concept preferred here to “testing” as describing a wider and more positive process of monitoring learning which includes testing as one of its tools). The chapter on assessment is written by Pauline Rea-Dickens.

Even just surveys of each of the areas covered by the 11 chapters could easily form separate books in themselves. However, all this material is crammed into 447 pages, with a substantial number of these being accounted for by reproductions of teaching materials, lists of suggested further reading, a glossary (very useful), bibliography, index, introduction, etc. Clearly, then, the material in the actual text is quite compressed. It is a credit to the writer that the style remains clear and comprehensible, but this is not light and easy reading. The book demands that readers concentrate hard and think carefully about the text during reading, actively weighing up the ideas presented and integrating them into their mental picture of the teaching and learning processes. The argumentation is often tightly structured. This is a book to be digested in fairly small sections. Again, it is ideally suited to accompanying a course, where the text can be used as introduction or follow-up to seminar sessions and discussions held over a number of weeks.

If I were running a training course for experienced teachers such as one leading to the British UCLES DELTA examination, I would be very happy using this book as a central text book, and indeed I expect that it will rapidly become established as a standard text for such courses. It challenges teachers to consider, justify and perhaps rethink their classroom practices without preaching at them and while respecting their right to their own views. It provides copious ideas and examples of teaching materials for discussion. It summarises important theoretical research on language learning and classroom practice without suggesting that our current state of knowledge is adequate to dictate classroom methodology. It provides a good outline course structure without forcing the course tutor to follow a rigid programme imposed by the book author. And while the author’s own voice comes through clearly, and her preferences are sometimes apparent, she makes every effort to leave issues open to debate. Some might even think that occasionally she leaves things too open, balancing advantages and disadvantages too scrupulously, but personally I much prefer this approach.[-2-]

The cover blurb and the introduction suggest that the book can be used in other ways, for example as a reference book and handbook for individual teachers, a sourcebook for teacher educators, or as an introduction to the profession for new teachers “who wish to gain an overview of theory and practice” (3). It is indeed a surprisingly adaptable text, and I have used it with some success as a textbook on an academic course about English Language Teaching for university students of English who were prospective schoolteachers but who had no actual teaching experience. However, I do think that only teachers with some solid classroom experience will get full benefit from the book, and that similarly only those able to devote time to its study and to discuss the ideas in it with others–generally, teachers on formal courses–will get the best possible use from it.

How to Use a Textbook

The focus on getting through the material assigned can consume a teacher and the way the teach. Time can be an educators’ biggest enemy but at the end of the day, it is more important for your students to understand the material rather than plowing through it. This chapter was very insightful on the use of textbooks. Early in the chapter it states, “Students don’t need more time with their noses in the textbook- they need tons and tons of practice time reading, talking, and writing about important subject-matter content.” This stood out to me because when I was growing up majority of my teachers would just assign chapter after chapter with quizzes and or test to follow and as a student I never enjoyed any of the reading because all I worried about was making sure I finished it fast enough. What is the point of reading a book with your students if you are not going to spend the time taking in all the book has to offer? This chapter presents some great ideas on how to change that. One activity I enjoyed learning about was the jigsawing. As much as I rather every student gets to enjoy the chapters and follow the book in order, jigsawing offers a way that allows the class to work together and spend more time on certain parts of the book. This activity not only focuses on reading but it teachers the students how to work in groups, be able to pick out the main points of the chapter, and connect to the chapter. Every subject matter has different skills required in order to comprehend the material but every subject require the student to be able to write about what they just read and as a teacher it is important to take the time and educate them on how to do so.

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The Unexpected Power of Reading Conferences

A high school English teacher has a single accountability measure for her students’ choice reading: talking to them about it.

By Jori Krulder

August 29, 2018

©iStock/Steve Debenport

Teachers face many challenges when it comes to helping students develop a love of reading, some of which I wrote about in “Putting an End to Fake Reading,” but one of the most daunting is the accountability piece. How do we know if students are actually reading? How do we assess the learning students are gaining from choice reading? How do we include this in our grade books?

I’ve tried many accountability measures over the years, including reading logs of various formats, book reports, assorted handouts, and reading quizzes on Accelerated Reader, but Donalyn Miller’s The Book Whisperer and Penny Kittle’s Book Love helped me realize why those assessments were so unsatisfying. If I wanted my students to become authentic readers, why was I assigning them activities that real readers—including me—would never voluntarily engage in?

I had to ask myself: What do real readers do? And one important part of my own reading life is talking about what I read with others. So I decided to try an experiment and do away with all accountability measures for choice reading except for one-on-one conferences with me.

The results were profoundly positive.

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THE LOGISTICS OF CONFERENCING

Although the idea of talking about books with students is appealing—honestly, it’s one of the main reasons I became an English teacher—the first thing I had to tackle were the logistics of the conferences.

In my on-level 10th grade English classes, I allot 10 to 15 minutes of our 55-minute periods for choice reading, and my students range widely in reading ability and motivation. I was worried that juggling everything going on in my classroom would be overwhelming, but with some structure and fine-tuning, I was able to have great discussions with two to three students each day, and to talk with each of my students at least once a month.

At the beginning of the period each day, I greet students and quickly take down the page number they’re on in their books. This serves several purposes. First, it’s a reminder for students to have their books out and open for reading right at the beginning of the period. Also, it gives me a quick way of assessing their progress through their book. If a student has read only a few pages over the course of the week, I know they’re probably in need of some help in either getting into their books or choosing a new one, and a conference is a perfect way to work out which it is and find a solution.

I then grab my reading conference binder and sit down in one of two chairs I’ve arranged in a comfy corner of my room, calling over a student to begin our chat. I’ve established norms for independent work in my classroom, so with occasional reminders, students know that this is a time to work quietly on their own.

KEEPING TRACK OF CONVERSATIONS

To keep track of conferences, I keep a binder with dividers for each class and a note sheet for each student where I record the details of our conversations for future reference.

I always start out by asking each student to remind me what they’re currently reading and what page they’re on, and I ask what rating they would give their book and why. This gives us a jumping-off point for what to talk about next. I also have some reading conference questions to refer to if I’m stuck for something to ask, but the more I conference with students, the easier it is to know what to talk about. I only need to remember my purpose for reading conferences: supporting students in thinking about their books and helping them find books they enjoy.

ASSESSING CHOICE READING

Real-life readers don’t get scored for reading for pleasure, but I do want to encourage students to find books they enjoy and to give them a way to keep track of their own reading progress, so I created a simple sheet for them to record the books they finish, along with their thoughts about what they read. When students finish a book, they complete this sheet and bring it to our conference, and we use it to talk about the book and what they might like to read next.

I don’t have a requirement for how many books students must finish, and these sheets are not scored in any way. I simply save them in the student’s class file for reflection at the end of the grading period. The only score my students receive for choice reading is this reading reflection each six weeks, in which they write their thoughts and feelings about the books they’ve read and what they’d like to read next. I give them completion points, not a grade, for doing the reflection.

THE RESULTS OF MY CHOICE READING EXPERIMENT

When I began this experiment, I was concerned that, without the accountability of points entered in the grade book, my students would not be motivated to read. My fear, however, was proven beautifully unfounded.

More of my students read far more books than ever before, and with our regular conversations, it’s far easier to notice and support students who are struggling with finding a book they enjoy. I’m able to tap into some student interests—sports fiction and poetry collections among them—and, most importantly, I’ve noticed my connections with students strengthening. And that’s probably the most important thing a teacher can do to improve learning in the classroom.

Help for Struggling Readers

Reading is such an important part of a persons daily life. Growing up, every student has a different relationship with reading. It can come easily for some students but not so easily for others. As a teacher, it is very important to understand when your students aren’t understanding what they are reading and why. Young readers need to be able to develop reading skills like turning what they are reading into a picture in their head. As talked about in the chapter, students don’t fully comprehend what they have read until a considerable amount of discussion brings the picture into focus. I found it fascinating to read about this in this chapter and how even when students do construct pictures in their minds, they still need to understand how to search through the paragraph for information to fully understand the text. This chapter has shown me that there are a lot of things I would have assumed students would understand but learning about the key strategies for helping struggling readers has taught me that what might come second nature to me now, did not always. No matter what the subject, every teacher plays a very important role in educating their students on strategies on how best to read and fully understand the material.

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