second language acquisition
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WCh7FurtherExplainationsPPT-1.pptx
Chapter 7 Grammar Consciousness-Raising Tasks
What is Grammar Consciousness-Raising Tasks?
Grammar Consciousness-Raising Tasks (GCR): Heighten someone's awareness about something
Rutherford & Smith (1985) talked about GCR in terms of SLA
Attentive ways to pull L2 learners into formal learning of a target language
Makes learners aware of language rules but also engages and allows for a meaningful opportunity for learners
Input Enhancement
Sharwood Smith later changed the GCR name to Input Enhancement
Emphasize the idea that having external efforts for learners to pay attention to form doesn’t mean they will pay attention
GCR
Rules for L2 are not explicitly taught
Instead learners discover rules on their own using interactive tasks
How to carry out GCR tasks
Grammar Focused
Learners don’t actually produce the target structure
Get learners to pay attention to form, not necessarily to use it
If students understand the grammatical form, then this could lead to acquisition in the future
Using GCR
Sentences
Use correct/incorrect sentences to show the rules
WHY
Learners must identify WHY sentence is correct or incorrect
Group setting
Work in pairs or small group setting
Example: To Teach the Past Tense
Non- GCR tasks
The teacher might ask students to tell her what do they think she did last night after school? The students are required to use the past tense, even if it is not 100% correct, and they have to compare their guesses with another student.
GCR tasks
Students would given a series of correct and incorrect sentences that use the past tense
Students are working in teams or partners
Student 1 would read the sentences to his partner without showing him the written form. They will work together to decide the correct and the incorrect sentences that use of the past tense.
Students should generate a rule about the use of the past tense.
One student or member share out the results to the whole class.
Using GCR in the classroom
How do you use GCR in the classroom?
Personal Examples
Using worksheets to identify tense sentences
Partner activities
Small group activities
Fotos Research
First year Japanese university students learning English
3 groups
GCR task group
Teacher-fronted grammar lesson group
Communicative task group (control group)
First two groups were given a pre-test to judge if a sentence was correct or not & sentence writing test
GCR group worked on tasks (no explicit teaching)
Teacher-fronted group: teacher wrote correct/incorrect sentence on the board, asked students if they thought they were correct or not, and gave them the rule
Communicative task group: communicative tasks not based on grammar
Given post-test (same test)
Results
Both groups made similar gains
GCR group was effective, just as good as Teacher-Fronted grammar lessons
Does GCR help learners notice structures?
All groups were given activities to do over a two-week time frame
Reading passages and dictation exercises
Underline any special use of English in these passages
Results
50% of GCR participants underlined the target structure
None of the participants in the Teacher-Fronted group or communicative task group did
Foto determined that once consciousness is formed via GCR tasks, learners are more likely to notice them later on
Advantages vs. Disadvantages
Advantages
Help learners pay attention to grammar forms
Provide opportunities for meaningful interaction
Notice & apply target forms later on
Learners themselves must explain why a rule happens (not teacher)
Disadvantages
Grammar can be a dry topic
Tasks are teacher generated
Not always appropriate for beginning learners
Not meaning-bearing
Sentences don’t always communicate a message
Language for display purposes
Limited to sentence-level input
“L2 is used to illustrate a grammatical form rather than to communicate a message” (pg. 85)
Implementation
Structural Syllabus
Organized around a specific grammar type
Engage in GCR tasks to introduce specific grammar topics
Teacher can go back and formally teach if needed after consciousness has been raised
Functional Syllabus
Organized around different linguistic functions
Ex: giving compliments, making a complaint
GCR is used if learners are having trouble with a certain grammar idea needed for a purpose
Teacher moves on once consciousness has been raised
What have you learned?
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What have you learned?
