Sunday, March 21, 2021

TESL 140 Unit 1 Needs Assessment

This assignment was to create a needs assessment or a diagnostic test for the provided teaching context.

You are teaching a CLB 7 class in a part-time five month LINC program. It’s the second month of the instruction. One of the most popular topics your students chose in the initial needs assessment was buying a house. You want to create a short needs assessment to inform your module and lesson planning for this topic.

The following questions can serve as a needs assessment test. 

  • What is your dream home?
  • When you read adds for accommodation, how much do you understand?
  • When you talk to somebody about housing, how much do you understand?
  • What terms do you find difficult?
  • Are you able to communicate your needs?
This should serve as a starting point for lesson planning around housing issues.

Sunday, March 14, 2021

TESL 140 Unit 1 Goal Setting

 This is my goal setting for the TESL 140 Course

My goal for this course:

My goal by April 4 is to learn how to create a summative needs assessment.

My plan for learning it:

Over the next few weeks, I will complete the assigned readings and course assignments to help me understand assessments and how to create them.

How I know I have achieved it:

I will have achieved my goal when I am comfortable in creating a summative needs assessment.

Demonstration that I have learned it:

I will create a summative needs assessment for the final assignment for the course by April 4.


Friday, March 5, 2021

TESL 130 Unit 3 Aha Moment

 My Aha moment for Unit 3 Reading and Vocabulary, came from a fellow classmate who made a comment about students paraphrasing the reading. I found this very perceptive. It is an excellent way to help the students and to evaluate the students understanding of the vocabulary and context of the reading text. If the students are able to paraphrase the text and insert synonyms for the new words encountered, we have completed our goal.

Thursday, March 4, 2021

TESL 130 Unit 3 Vocabulary Activity

 

Vocabulary Activity for

“Learning English with CBC: It’s Time to Fix Aboriginal Education.”

https://universityofmanitoba.desire2learn.com/content/enforced3/393774-59971.202110/Content/Readings/Unit%203%20Skills-Based%20Lesson%20Plan.doc?_&d2lSessionVal=yX9iYt5j9ffLO431YMIEHIN77&ou=393774

Level: CLB 5+

Purpose: This is a pre-reading vocabulary activity to teach Ss the new words they will encounter in the reading activity.

Materials: All Ss need access to a computer.

Activity:

·       Teacher will print the vocabulary words on the board.

            Aboriginal, trend, disaster, contributing, social requirements, post-secondary education, K – 12, mature student, First Nations, precious resource, adequate.

·       Ss will use computers to look up words on an online corpus site such as Corpus of Contemporary American English (Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) (english-corpora.org)

·       Ss will discuss how the words are used in context.

Post-Lesson: Teacher will evaluate how well the students interpreted meaning from the context.

Sunday, February 21, 2021

TESL 130 Unit 2 "Think-Aloud" Exercise

 Here is my first attempt at doing a "think-aloud" video. It is regarding a few small readings from survivors of residential schools in Canada.



TESL 130 Unit 2 Adapt a Reading Text

 The following text was presented as an example of a Reading Skills Practice with the following questions asked.

Sorry I haven't written till now. Since I got here I've been really busy with the course and making new friends. I'm speaking English all the time and going out in the evenings with my classmates. We're a real mix of nationalities: Chinese, Russian, Thai, Italian, Spanish, Brazilian, etc. We all talk in English but I'm learning loads about other languages and countries too.

My host family are really nice. The parents, Susan and Paul, are very friendly and kind. The children are called Lewis and Amy. They're both in primary school and are very sweet but they can be a bit annoying too. If I have to watch the film frozen with them one more time, I'm going to go crazy! I know all the songs by heart now. Ahhhh!

We live pretty near the school so I walk there every day. It's only a short bus ride from Edinburgh city centre, and there are loads of shops and cafes there. There's an ancient Castle too and we're going there on a school trip next week. Edinburgh is a really interesting place to be and there’s a festival on at the moment. It's awesome but a bit expensive for us students, so we've been hanging out in the streets watching the free street performances from actors and musicians. Yesterday I saw a magician doing card tricks - it was so much fun!

I'll send some photos of Edinburgh Castle next time. Take care and let me know how you are doing.

Reading Skills Practice Foreign Exchange Emails.pdf (desire2learn.com)

How might you adapt this text for a LINC level 4 class with mature students?

The text appears to be at CLB 5 currently. LINC 4 is relatively equivalent to CLB 4, so the text would have to be made less difficult. Making the text shorter and changing some of the informal words such as “loads” to “lots” and “hang out” to “spend time with friends”.

As for adapting the text for mature students, I would change the setting. It could be changed from a student and classmates to adults going on a tour with other international adults with the common language of English. Instead of a host family it would be a hotel and then touring is still a good option.

What edits would you make to accommodate a group of international students in an EAP setting?

I do not see any need to change or adapt the text for EAP students. Hanging out with friends and touring are perfectly acceptable for professionals as well.

If you are teaching at a school that uses a learning management system (LMS), how would you share this reading with students? Do you know what copyright laws say about sharing texts in an educational setting and how to provide appropriate references?

I have no idea what a LMS is. I have no idea how it can be used. I am also unaware of what copyright laws say. I do not believe they have been covered in any of the courses yet.

Is this text too difficult for your group of learners? What would you do if your curriculum includes this as a mandatory reading?

I do not have a group of learners, so this is irrelevant. I do not see a problem using this text as mandatory reading if it was for the appropriate CBL, although I wouldn’t mind having a Canadian version instead.

Where can you springboard from here?

From here you can easily discuss the differences between formal and informal writing and reading. With the use of culturally specific language in the text, you could also continue with identifying more culturally specific vocabulary in other texts. There are also grammar and structural mistakes which could be addressed and discussed as a class.

Sunday, February 7, 2021

TESL 0120 Assignment 4

 TESL 0120

Assignment 4: Speaking & Listening Lesson Plan


Class: COVID 19

Time: 2 hours

Unit: Current Events

Created by: Trent Cheney

Context: Stage 2, CLB 5 – Low intermediate; newcomers in a government-funded classroom in Manitoba; class of 20 students.

Language Skill Focus: Listening and Speaking. Students should be able to follow basic instructions at CLB 5. Students should be able to give instructions to another person at CLB 5. Specific instructions will focus on COVID 19 safety and mask wearing.

Objective

Students will be able to understand and follow instructions about COVID 19 mask wearing. 

Students will be able to instruct another student regarding how to wear a mask.

Materials

Computer to show video https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/video/covid-19-wear-non-medical-mask-face-covering-properly.html

Worksheet A 

Transcript of video https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/video/covid-19-wear-non-medical-mask-face-covering-properly.html

Lesson Plan:

1. Welcome

Time: 15 min.

Welcome students and engage in small talk until everyone arrives.

2. Introduction to topic

Time: 15 min.

Ask students about recent news regarding COVID 19.

3. Listening

Time: 5 min.

Watch video https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/video/covid-19-wear-non-medical-mask-face-covering-properly.html

4. Worksheet

Time: 15 min.

Handout Worksheet A.

Instruct students to fill in the blanks in the worksheet.

5. Correction

Time: 15 min.

Handout Transcript of video.

Watch video a second time while reading the transcript.

Have students correct their mistakes from Worksheet A.

6. Vocabulary

Time: 5 min.

Ask students if there is any vocabulary they don’t know. They should know most, or all, of the vocabulary.

7. Speaking

Time: 20 min.

In pairs, have students instruct each other regarding how to wear a mask.

Students can provide feedback to each other regarding pronunciation and grammar.

8. Speaking

Time: 15 min.

Have some volunteers come to the front of the classroom and instruct the class regarding how to wear a mask.

9. Review and Dismissal

Time: 15 min.

Ask students what the found difficult with todays lesson.

After the lesson the teacher will evaluate the lesson regarding length of each activity, clarity of instructions, and language level of activities.


Worksheet A

Please fill in the blanks.

1. Wear a non-medical mask or face covering when _________ _________ is difficult.

2. First, wash your hands with ____.

3. Place the mask over your _____ and _____.

4. Adjust the ____ to ensure your nose and mouth are ____ ______.

5. Avoid _______ the mask or your face.

6. Remove the mask by the ties or loops without touching the ____.

7. After you remove the mask, place it in a _____ ___ to wash or put in the garbage.

8. ______ your mask whenever it becomes moist, dirty, or damaged.

9. Don’t leave the mask _______ from your neck or ears.

10. Always wash your _____ after using a mask.


TESL 0100 – Unit 8 – Reflections

  TESL 0100 – Unit 8 – Reflections Assessments have always been an afterthought for me. My experience as a learner was that assessment occ...