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1. Classroom Techniques: Romeo and Juliet in One Hour

   In: English Teaching Forum 2006, Volume 44, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   This article describes the use of drama activities to motivate students, to teach vocabulary and pronunciation, and to enhance cooperative learning. The author describes in five steps the classroom procedure of an activity based on the play of Romeo and Juliet. The author discusses the results of the activity and its implications. Play scripts used in the activity are included.

2. The TOEFL and Grammar

   In: English Teaching Forum 2001, Volume 39, Number 3 Format(s): Text

   This article examines the implications of universities in non-English-speaking countries imposing TOEFL requirements on their students. The author points out the difference between grammar taught in classrooms and how structure is evaluated on the TOEFL. The author identifies and discusses three categories: syntax, combination, and vocabulary. The article discusses important features of the test in order to familiarize EFL teachers with the TOEFL in each of these categories.

3. Destroying the Teacher: The Need for Learner-Centered Teaching

   In: English Teaching Forum 2012, Volume 50, Number 1 Format(s): Text

   This article advocates using English to teach content, addressing this through five areas: Reduction of Coercion (not eliciting correct answers, but engaging students in thinking); Active Learner Involvement (less teacher talk and more material chosen to engage learners), Experience Before Interpretation (handling material before interpreting it), Avoidance of Simplification (choosing materials challenging enough to learn skills for tackling new ideas), and Value of Silence (allowing students to think without forcing them to talk).

4. Reconceptualizing Interactional Groups: Grouping Schemes for Maximizing Language Learning

   In: English Teaching Forum 2010, Volume 48, Number 1 Format(s): Text

   While noting the research on the benefits of learner interaction, this article states that more attention needs to be given to strategies for planning successful group work while avoiding the problems that can come with group activities. The author gives guidelines for forming groups, such as how many students to put in each group, whether to use flexible or fixed groupings, and how to divide students (by personal affiliation, oral language ability, personality, L1, and academic interests). Also addressed are guidelines for designing tasks and assigning group roles.

5. Using Guided, Corpus-Aided Discovery to Generate Active Learning

   In: English Teaching Forum 2008, Volume 46, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   This article shows how English teachers can provide careful guidance for students to use a corpus to research, discover, and reflect on the grammatical and sociolinguistic aspects of English. The author introduces the idea of using a corpus in teaching English and offers several important online resources for English language corpora. The author provides a rationale for corpus-based teaching and gives two examples of how to guide students in exploring linguistic features of English.

6. SWELL: A Writing Method to Help English Language Learners

   In: English Teaching Forum 2007, Volume 45, Number 4 Format(s): Text

   Social-interactive Writing for English Language Learners (SWELL) is collaborative writing based on Topping’s Paired Writing Method. The method was changed to meet the needs of English language learners. In both methods, pairs are formed according to proficiency, pairing a more advanced student (a Helper) with a less advanced one (a Writer). The author describes the steps of generating ideas, drafting, reading, editing, best copy, and evaluating. Features of SWELL include using students’ linguistic knowledge (L1), balancing fluency with mechanics, and promoting explicit teacher instruction.

7. English Teaching Forum 2011, Volume 49, Number 4

   Format(s): Text

   The last hobby featured in 2011 is bowling. Articles by contributors examine the topics of yoga in the English language classroom, rock and roll English teaching, using letters to tell stories, and encouraging students to express their opinions.

8. Teacher Resources

   In: English Teaching Forum 2002 (Volume 40, Number 1) Format(s): Text

   Information about four resource books is provided. The first, “Film,” contains 68 games and activities based on films, each designed for students at various levels of proficiency. The second, “Imaginative Project,” includes project work and lesson plans for 11 to 17 year olds. The third, "Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages,” is a reference that contains 30 chapters on current topics about language teaching. Lastly, “American Roots” provides various readings on U.S. cultural history as well as various intermediate level exercises on the topic.

9. Using L1 in the English Classroom

   In: English Teaching Forum 2002 (Volume 40, Number 1) Format(s): Text

   The author provides details on a case study she performed to examine the effectiveness of using the native language (L1) in foreign language classrooms. The article describes the details of her research design and her methods and procedures, including classroom observations, interviews, and questionnaires. One hundred first-year English major students in Beijing participated in her study. Included are the results of her study and a comparison of her findings to that of other researchers.

10. Transforming the Whole Class into Gossiping Groups

    In: English Teaching Forum 2002 (Volume 40, Number 1) Format(s): Text

    This article discusses various communicative purposes displayed by speakers of a language, including focusing on the topic of gossiping as a universal language function and exploring ways to exploit our human tendency for gossip to provide language fluency practice. The author provides two different interactive gossip activities that can be used in the classroom to help students speak more fluently. Included are step-by-step details for each lesson plan and each activity.

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