In September, Drexel University and Princeton University cosponsored an American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Familiarization Workshop, led by Dr. Virginia Maurer of Harvard University. The first day introduced the ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) assessment format, procedure, and scoring criteria. The second day focused on the pedagogical implications of the OPI. We discussed how to structure classroom activities that would provide opportunities for our students to practice using more sophisticated language.

Dr. Maurer began the second day by asking the workshop participants to identify where most of our ITAs would be rated on the ACTFL scale and what score we would like them to achieve. For example, in the ITA program at Drexel, our ITAs often test at the intermediate mid or intermediate high level, and after completing our training program, we would like them reach the intermediate high or advanced level. Dr. Maurer asked us to brainstorm how we could provide opportunities in class to use the language skills and functions at the desired level. She also challenged us to think about the activities we already use and determine if they are actually achieving that goal.

After reflecting on my classroom practice, I noted that although I give my students ample opportunities to speak and produce language, the aim of the tasks are generally to “discuss” topics in a generalized way. Few of the activities are aimed at pushing the ITAs to use higher level speaking skills. In fact, I realized that my students could often complete the tasks successfully by using very basic language.

On the first day of the workshop, I learned that in order to achieve a score at the advanced level, there are several skills the ITAs need to demonstrate most of the time. First, students need to be able to successfully narrate and describe “in the major time frames of present, past, and future” (ACTFL, 2012, p. 5). They also need to be able to discuss a topic at the concrete as well as abstract level. Finally, and what I felt was most lacking in my own classroom practice, was that the students need to demonstrate their ability to narrate in the form of a paragraph and not simply in strings of sentences. In other words, they need to produce interconnected discourse, with foreground and background, using a variety of connectors. For a score of intermediate high, the students need to show an emerging ability to do all of the above, at least some of the time.

After the workshop, I was inspired to rethink what I was already doing in the classroom rather than start from scratch. I had many lessons in which the ITAs were required to produce and practice their language skills. However, I felt that I needed to look at those lessons again and revise, refocus, and repurpose them in order to challenge the ITAs to produce a higher level of English.

Some very simple examples of lesson revisions I made were with discussion questions. For example, one question that I ask my ITAs on the first day of class is “What are the qualities of a good teacher?” This question was meant to be a springboard to incite a discussion on good teaching practices. However, what the question actually asks the students to do is produce a list. Students who already have advanced levels of English might turn the list into a more sophisticated discussion, but not necessarily. And further, students at the intermediate range are not at all pushed to practice or produce beyond a list. Rather than change the question, I simply added to it in order to provide these opportunities. Below are some of the questions that I added, followed by the skill elicited:

• Tell me about a teacher you had in the past. Include a story that would demonstrate why you liked him or her. How might the qualities of this teacher inform your own teaching in the future? (narrating across time frames)

• Discuss one quality of a good teacher. Explain and define what that quality means to you and give examples (real or hypothetical) that show how a teacher can embody that quality. Explain what a teacher without that quality might lack in his or her teaching (speaking in paragraph form with foreground and development)

• Discuss the idea of evaluating teachers. Do you think that the “good” qualities you mentioned above should be criteria for determining whether a teacher is effective or not? (moving from concrete to abstract discussion within a topic)
  
  

I also wanted the students to have the opportunity for extended practice, awareness raising, and feedback, so I added weekly audio journal assignments. After recording their journals, students were asked to self-assess them based on the language skills we had worked on in class (i.e., using connectors to organize ideas, developing a topic). I generally listen to and provide feedback for several journals throughout the term.

Following is one example of a lesson I use and how it was repurposed to elicit certain advanced language functions.

Secret Lives of ITAs: Introducing Yourself

From “The Secret Life of Scientists and Engineers” on PBS

• What field are you in, and what are your research interests?

• Tell the story about how you were drawn to this field.

• Tell your group one to three additional facts about yourself outside of your academic interests.
  

Video: Before showing the video, ask students to brainstorm about people in their fields who they admire or who have made an impact on the field. Ask: What do you know about them?

Choose one profile to watch on “The Secret Life of Scientists and Engineers” on PBS

• Listen to the first clip. (The scientist or engineer explains what he or she is famous or known for in 60 seconds).

• Watch the additional clips (The scientist or engineer explains a “secret,” or hidden, interest or hobby).

*** Optional: listen to the first clip as a class and assign the rest for homework.

Postvideo: Discuss the following questions in groups:

• Who is the person and what is he or she famous for?

• What other interests does this person have?

• Can you find any connections between his or her field and hobby?

*** Vocabulary and expressions may also be discussed in this part.

Closing: Introduce homework:

Suggestion for Assessment: Students can self-assess or peer-assess using a rubric evaluating their spoken language.

By giving each activity focus and designing tasks to elicit more sophisticated language, I felt that my class was challenged. I saw the students concentrating more on their language and less on "completing" the task at hand. The ITA curriculum had not changed, but the lessons did feel more structured and purposeful, and, as a result, I felt confident that I was doing my part in helping the students advance their language skills.

References

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (2012). ACTFL proficiency guidelines 2012. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Anne Politz is an ESL instructor at Drexel University’s English Language Center. She also coordinates and teaches in the ITA training program.