Conversation (Resource Books for Teachers)

RESOURCE BCDKS FOR TEACHERS seies

edinr

ALAN MALEY

CtlNUERSATI(lN Rob Nolasco & Lois Arthur

Oxford University Press

Oxford Uoiveniry Press Walton Stre€t, Oxford OX2 6DP Ozlotd New Yoth

.*hett Au.hlind Cahu\o

Banghoh Bombat

Ca?e Torun Dar es

Salaan Delhi

Fbence Hong Kong Istanbul Karo.hi Kuala

Lmpu Madrat Madid

Mehoume

llenco City Nd;robi Pais Sinsaporc Taipei Tohyo Toftnro and associated companies in B&lin lbadan Oxford and Oxlod

ISBN 0 19 437096

Engh,

are trade

mark of Oxford Univenity

press.

I

e Oxford Universiry

Press 1987

Fi.st published 1987

Eighd impression 1995 .{ll rights reserved- No pan of this publication may be reproduced, saored in a retrieval system, or Eansmitted, in any form or by any means, elecEonic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise,

'*ithout the prior q,Titten permission of Oxford Universiry

Press,

with the sole exception of photocopying carried our under rh€ conditions described below.

This book is sold subjed ro rhe condirion rhar ir shall not, by way of trade or othenrise, b€ lent. re-sold. hired our. or otherwise circulated \r'iihout fie publisher's pior consenr in any form of birding or cover other than that in which ir is published and withour a similar condirion mcluding thrs condruon beLng irnposed on the suhrequent purchaser Photocopying The Publisher Sranrs permission for the phoaocopying of rhose pages marked 'photocopiable' according to rhe following conditions. Individual purchasers may male copies for iheir om use or for use by ciasses rhey leach. Schoot purchasen may make copies for use by rhet StaII and srudenrs, bur rlis pemission does oot extend to eddirionai schools or branches. ID no circurrsEnces may any pan of this bbok lte photocopied

S€t by Katerprint Tlpesetting Services, Oxford

Printed in Hong Kong

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Acknowledgements

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The publishers would like to thank the following for their permission to use copyright material:

Nathaniel Altman and Thorsons Publishing Group Limited for an exract from The Palmistry WorhDoo& (1984); Charles Handy and BBC Publications for an extract from Taking Sneh - Being FifA in tlp Eightbs (1983); Donald Norfolk and Michael Joseph Ltd. for an extrect from Fareuell to Fatiguc (1985); Oxford Universiry Press for an extract from the English Languge TeachingJoutul,Yol. 4012 (April 1986); Gordon Wells and Cambridge Univenity Press for an extract from Leaning Thraryh Inuracrioa (1981).

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Contents The authors and series editor Foreword

Introduction

I

Towards a classroom aPProach

l5

2

Controlledactivities

zt Lezel

Actioity

Approx time

Desciption

(minutes)

I

Chain names

2

Name bingo

Beginner to Advanced

5-t0

Beginner to

l0-15

and above

Guess who?

Elementary to

Elementary

Sounds English

Beginner to Advanced

Introducing students to

24

Students find out more about each other. Students ask questions in order to establish a person's identity.

25

l0-15

Getting students' tongues around English

27

To help students repeat a dialogue. Giving students simple oral practice tlrough dialogue repetition. To make a recording after listening to a taped model. Building up students' confidenceHow different language is used for the same function. To cue a dialogue so that students have to listen to

I5-20

l5-20

Intermediate

5

24

each other (larger classes).

Elementary

Find someone who . .

Introducing students to each other.

26

sounds.

8

Look and speak

Beginner to

I5-20

Listen and speak

Intermediate Beginner to Elementary

l5-20

Listen and record

Elemenfarv

rt20

and above Shadow reading

l0 \7ho

do you

think. . .?

Beginner to Advanced

10-15

Upper intermediate to

2c_25

Advanced

Do you come here often?

Elementary and above

l0-15

what the other speaker says.

28

29

29

30

3l

32

game Elementary 10-15 and above 13 Who said it? Intermediate 15-20 and above 14 Split exchanges Elemenrary l0-I5 and above 15 Anyone for tennis? Elementary to 5-10 Lower 12

The phone

Controlled practice of telephone conversadons. Inrerpredng and attributing urterances. Focusing on exchange structure. Practice with gaing ro to express the future.

34 35 36 39

intermediate

16

l7

Is

thatright?

Elementary 10-15

Dialogue

fill-in

Inrermediare and

l8

The besr years my life

of

19 Experiences

40

Pet

hates

2l Theolddays

above

10-15

producing

4l

Practice in more than minimal responses.

Elementary I0-15

Practice in the

and

past forms.

above

Elementary 15-20 and

20

gambits.

Recognizing

and above

above

practice in the perfect tense.

above

I loae,I

Elementary 10-15 and

Intermediare

15-20

simple

42

present

42

Practice in forrns such hate, etc. Practice in

as

43

uedro.

44

hypothetical

44

hypotherical

15

Pracdce in u:ould.

hyporhetical

46

Practice ir forms.

quesdon

47

and above

22 Ifonly...

Intermediate and

above

lO-15

rien Intermediate 15-20 and above 24 Cheat Intermediate 10-15 and above 25 Could I ask you a Elementary 15-20 few questions, and above 23

Je ne regrette

Practice in zuould.

Practice in

ztould.

please?

3 Awareness activities 26 Encouraging noises Elementary 15-20 - and above 27

Keep

talking

Elementary 10-15 above

and

28 Encouragement Intermediate 10-15 and above 29 Repetition

5l Expressions which encourage the other speaker to condnuerVays in which fiIlers

52

53

can contribute to an rmpression offluency. Expressions which encourage lhe speaker to

54

say more.

Upper

to Advanced intermediate

15-20

Different uses to which repetition can be put in tlre spoken language.

55

30

As I was saying

3l

Gestures

32

Follow me

33

Sound

Upper intermediate to Advanced Intermediate

20_25

tlem. Using gestures as reinforcement of what is being said. (video task)

58

t5-20

Repetition of certain words and phrases, and body language. (video task)

60

Extra-lingui stic clues to

60

and above

off

Elementary

l0

help students understand and interpret what is being said. (video task)

and above

34

Sound only

35

\7hat's next?

Elementary

20 (max.)

A smiling face?

Intermediate

a feel

for

6l

l5 (max.)

Practice in following extended conversation. (video task)

62

20-25

To raise sensitivity in students to body

63

and above

35

Developing

voice quality. (video task)

and above

Elementary

57

l0

and above

Elementary

Types of interruption and how to deal with

and above

language.

37

The message is

Intermediate

t5-20

and above 38

I want

39

I haven't got any ice!

a blue onel

Elementary to Intermediate Intermediate

l0-15 5-10

and above

40

Intermediate

Take that!

15-20

and above

4l

is a question?

.This

42 43

20-25

English. Stress practice in the context of a dri.ll. Shifting stress in a prompted dialogue, altering meaning. Making students aware of sentence stress. How intonation can alter meaning.

64

67 68

69 70

and above

-

Same words different message

True or false?

,14 Similariries and differences

Upper intermediate

Recognizing the function ofgestures in

Intermediate to

15-20

Advanced

Upper intermediate to Advanced Upper intermediate to Advanced

25-30

2U25

Ways in which the rneaning of an utterance can be altered by changing the intonation. Ways in which native speakers try to be pol.ite in social encounters. Social behaviour in the target language.

70

73

75

f I

45

Culture shock!

25-30

Intermediate and above

Problems people encounter when tiey have to live in a new

'

country. : !

4

Fluency activities

46

I hated Maths you?

47

- did

Habits

79

25-30

83

30-35

Introducing students to fluency activities. Sharing opinions.

2r30

Sharing opinions.

86

Intermediate to

30-35

Uppet intermediate Intermediate

Telling each other about emotions.

20 (max.)

Talking about likes and dislikes. Getting students to explore their life style. Talking about fears.

Elementary and above

Intermediate

84

i l

I

Intermediate

Famiiy life

I

J't

I

and above

48

I II

and above

Emotions

50

A coma

kit

and above

5l How much

energy

do you have? 52

Emotional match

Intermediate

30-40

and above

Elementary

20_25

88

90

and above

53

Exchange

EIementary

20

(min.)

and above

55 56

Have you heard

Elementary

of . .

and above

.?

35-40

It's all in your hands

Uppe.

35-40

The best

intermediate to Advanced Elementary to

20-25

Lower intermediate

57

Eureka!

Intermediate

30-35

and above

58

Time Time capsule A just punishment

5l

Future shock

Intermediate Advanced Intermediate Advanced

to

30-35

to

25-35

Uppet

30-35

intermediate to Advanced Intermediate Advanced

to

30-35

Finding out about each otier by asking questions.

9l

Cross-cultural exchange in mixed nationality groups. Talking about personal characteristics, and

92

palmistry. Introducing students to ranking activities. Promoting discussion about inventions. Justifying and explaining preferences.

Things students value in their daily lives. Considering the extent to which punishments fit the crime. Discussing priorities for the future.

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I

93

96

'97

I I i

97

99 i

100

i

l0l

l

bridge

62

The

63

From what I remember

64

A dream

Upper 30-35 inrermediate to Advanced Elementary 2C_25 and above

classroom Elementary and

65

Plan your

time

above

30-35

Intermediate 30-35 and

above

Deciding on individual responsibility for a tragedy. Discussing the results of a simple memory experiment. Carrying out a design task togetherConsidering ways in which students can learn English outside the

102

104

l(X 105

classroom.

56

My ideal

book

phrase- Elementary 35-40 and above

67

Building

a

model Intermediare 25-30 and above

68 I'll give you . . .

Elementary

above Upper intermediate to Advanced and

69 Airport 70

7l

Attitudes to gifts

giving Ifho's

the

72 Gifts

to

Working together produce and evaluate phrase-books.

and Intermediate and

above

boss? Intermediate and above Elementary

Evaluating how effectively students are able to perform a given task. 2135 Students buy and sell (2 lessons) things. 30-35 A conflict situation in which students have to decide what to do. 25-30 A cross-cultural discussion about gifts and giving. 35-40 Discussing the role of secretaries at work. 2540 Talking about gifts.

106

107

108 109

II

I

112 I 14

and above

73

Love

story

Intermediate 4045 and

5

above

well-known

Using a story as a stimulus for students to produce their own.

Feedback

Task

I

Task

2

Task

3

Task 4

I 15

t17 Elementary Advanced Elementary Advanced Elementary Advanced Elementary Advanced

to

to

Students look closely at the language they use.

125

Encouraging

126

expressrons.

hesitation

to

Fillers and devices.

to

128 Strategies we use to keep a conversation going.

127

.l I

Task

5

Task 6

Task

7

Task

8

Task

9

Task l0

Task

ll

Story-telling devices.

t29

How we make and respond to suggestions in order to encourage people to be constructive. Ways in which we seek and give opinions. Ways of introducing polite disagreement. Giving a talk.

130

t34

I

How we use comrnunication strategies to carry on speaking. Students consider how they behave in meedngs.

r35

-t I

Intermediate

Patternsofinteraction

143

and above

within

Elementary to Advanced Elementary to Advanced

Elemenmry to Advanced Elementary to Advanced Elementary to Advanced Elementary to Advanced

Upper intermediate

I

i I

.t

.t 131 I

133

-t

.t

I

I4l

I

I

and above

Task

12

Bibliography

a

i

group.

I

,{ 145 I

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The authors and series editor Rob Nolasco has been involved in English as a foreign language since 1970. He was pan ofthe senior management ofThe British Council managed ESP proiect at King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah (1978-80). Between 1981 and 1983 he was a Project Director with the Overseas Development Administration in Angola, and wi*r The Cenre for British Teachers Ltd. in Morocco (1933-85). He has also taught EFL to secondary and adult srudents, at all levels, in the UK, Turkey, France, and Spain. He is currently working as an EFL author and consultanr. His books for students include *rree OUP courses: lZOlZ./ (Window on the WorlQ, Ameican IVOIV!' and Streetwise.

Lois Arthur started her career with the Centre for British Ltd. in West Germany. In 1979 she took up the post of Senior Tutor at The Bell School of I-anguages at Cambridge. Between 1983 and 1985 she was the Deputy Project Director with The Centre for British Teachers Ltd. in Morocco. She is currently Director of UK Schools and Young I-eamers for The Teachers

Bell Language Schools.

Alan Maley worked for The British Council from 1962 to 1988' serving as English l-anguage Offrcer in Yugoslavia, Ghana, Italy'. France, and China, and as Regronal Representadve in South India (Madras). From 1988-1993 he was Director-General of the Bell Educational Trust, Cambndge. He is currenrly Senior Fellow in the Depanment of English I-anguage and Literature of the National University of Singapore. Among his publications ate: Quartet (wirh Frangoise Grellet and !(rim Velsing)' Be1'ozd ll'ords, Sounds Interesting, Sounds Intriguing, Words' Vaiations on o Theme, Literature (in this series), and Drama Techniques in Language Learning (all with Alan Dufi, The Mind's Eye (with Frangoise Grellet and AIan Duff), Leaming to Listen and Poem into Poem (wirh Sandra Moulding), and Shon and Sweer. He is also Series Editor for the Oxford Supplementary Skills series.

Foreword The distinction between accuracy and fluency is now a familiar one. Almost as familiar is the further distinction between fluency and appropriacy. To be accurate is not necessarily to be fluent. And to be fluent is not necessarily ro be appropriate in a given set of circumstances.

In this book the authors make a further distinction: between speaking skills and conversation skills. They conrend thal there are skills specific to conversation which make it easier for people to talk to each other informally, and that these do not overlap a hundred per cent with the skills involved in fluent speaking. Being able to speak reasonably correct and even fluent English is one thing. Being able to engage in on-going, interactive, mentally satisfying conversation is anorher. This is not to deny that speaking skills are necessary for conversation; simply that they are not alone sufficient for successful conversation to take place.

It is these specific conversational skills which the book sets out to cover. In order to do so, the authors first examine in the introduction what ir is that native speakers do when they 'make conversation'. They then use this inforrnation as the basis for the tasks and activities in the remainder of the book. Two obvious, but nevertheless frequently neglected facts about conversations, are that they involve at leasr rwo people, and that the pardcipants in a conversadon cannot talk simultaneously all rhe time. Unless they agree to share the speaking time, listen, react, and attend to each other, the conversation dies. This is in contrast to a view of speaking, which is often handled as if it were the only factor ofimportance. Absorption in speaking, without attending to the other, can only lead to surreal parallel monologues, such as we encounter in Pinter. The mutual, interdependenr, interactive nature ofconversation is given special emphasis in tle sections on Az.ucreness actioities and Feedbach actizities. A series of tasks is developed here to sharpen the students' awareness and observation both of themselves and of others. The rmportance given to equipping the students with tools to evaluate dreir own performance tboth in dre conversations and in tieir own learning) is especially welcome. Conaersation is rnique in its insistence on the need to teach conversational skills. The imponance ir gives to developing a sensitivity to fellow participants in conversarions is likewise highly original. Above all it offers a rich and varied selection ofactivities and msks to draw upon.

It will be welcomed by all teachers interested in developing further the teaching of this important aspect of oral expression. Alan Maley

Introduction Foreign language teachers often tend to assume that conversation in the language classroom involves nothing more than putting into practice the grammar and vocabulary skills taught elsewhere in the course. So, the 'conversation class'may turn out to include everything from mechanical drills to task-based problem-solving activities. It is true that both tlese types of activity may, to some extent at least, help students develop the skill of taking part in conversation. But, if we want to teach conversation well, we need to know something about what native speakers do when they have conversations. This information can then help us to develop appropriate materials and techniques for teaching purposes. In this section therefore, we shall be looking at the characteristics of native-speaker conversation in order to provide a rationale for the practical exercises which follow in the remainder of the book.

What is conversation? People sometimes use the term 'conversation' to mean any spoken encounter or interaction. In this book however, 'conversation' refers to a dme when two or more people have the right to talk or listen without having to follow a fixed schedule, such as an agenda. In conversation everyone can have something to say and anyone can speak at any time. In everyday l-ife we sometimes refer to conversation as 'chat' and the focus of the book is on this type of spoken interaction, rather than on more formal, plamed occasions for speaking, such as meetings.

The functions of conversation The purposes of conversation incllrde t}te exchange of information; the creation and maintenalce of social relationships such as friendship; the negotiation of starus and social roles, as well as deciding on and carrying out joint actions. Conversation therefore has many functions, although its prirnary purpose i-n our own language is probably social.

The units of conversation The basic unit of conversation is an exchange. An exchange consists of two moves (an initiating move and a response). Each move can

also be called a turn, and a turn can be taken without using words, e.g. by a nod of the head. So for this dialogue the move and exchange structure can be illustrated in the following way:

A B

Jane. Yes?

A B A A

Tum

Could I borrow your bike, please? Sure, it's in the garage. Thanks very much.

1

lsolicit: calrj

Turn 3

Tum 5

Isolic : reguestl

[Acknowledge: thankl 'Thanks very

'Could I bonow your bike, please?'

'Jan€.'

mrrch.'

B

Iu.r'

Tum 4

2

lcivet availabld

lciue: conpvr 'Sure, it's in the

'Yes?'

garage.'

€xchange

3

,---------------

We can give a function to each move, e.g. request, acknowledge. This may not be easy, and to do so we need to take account of factors such as who the speakers are, where and when the conversation occurs, as well as the position of the move in the stream of speech.

Notice that an exchange, or a series ofexchanges, are nol necessarily tie same thing as a conversation. The following is an example of al exchange:

A Hi! B HiI The second example conlains lwo exchanges, but it is not a conversation because the two speakers wanr to finish their business as q'.'ickly as Possible'

A How much are the oranges? B Eighteen pence each, madam. A I'll have two, please. B That's thirty-six

pence!

Conversation is open-ended and has the potential to develop in any way. It is possible that the second example could contain a conversation if the speakers decided to ralk about the price of oranges. They may do riis in order to get a discount, or to develop a social relationship, and the potential is always there in real life. Unfonunately, many students never have the confidence or

INTRODUCTION

opportunity to go beyond simple exchanges like dre one above, and one of the main objectives of this book is to introduce exercises which allow students to develop tle ability to initiate and sustain conversadon.

What do native speakers do in conversation? Conversation is such a natural part ofour lives that many people are not conscious ofwhat happens within it. However, conversadon follows certain rules which can be described. For example, when we look at norma.l conversation we notice that: usually only one person speaks at a rimel the speakers changel the length of any contriburion variesl there are techniques for allowing the other pany or panies to speak; nei*rer the content nor the amount ofwhat we say is specified in advance.

-

Conversation analysis seeks to explain how this occurs, and the aim ofthe secdons which follow is to make the readers sensitive to the main issues from a teaching point of view.

The co-operative principle Normal conversations proceed so smoothly because we co-op€rate in them. Grice (1975) has described four maxims or principles which develop co-operative behaviour. These are: The maxim of quality Make your contribution one that is true. Specifcally: a. Do not say what you believe to be false. b. Do not say anything for which you lack adequate evidence. The.maxim of quantity Make your contribution just as informative as required and no more. The maxim of relation Make your conribution relevant and timely. The maxim of manner Avoid obscurity and ambiguity. Readers will realize that these maxims are often broken and, when this happens, native speakers work harder to get at the underlying meamng, e.g. A How did you fnd the play? B The lighting was good.

By choosing not to be as informative as required, B is probably suggesting the plav is not worth commenting on. A lot of the material written for teaching English as a foreign language is deliberatel-v free of such ambiguity. This means that students have

problems later in conversational situations where the ma-.'