A Problem Tense to Teach: The Present Perfect’

Vol. 3 Issue#80

ISSN 0975-3036

Edited and Published by

Tarun Patel Bhaskar Pandya Kaushal Kotadia Rajesh Bharvad

Vol. 3 Issue#80 January 24, 2011

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http://eltweekly.com ISSN 0975-3036

Newsletter Contents

Word of the week: PPP 3

Video: Shaping the Way We Teach English: Module 10, Alternative Assessment 4

Susan Ryan’s Tip: ‘The Importance of the Schwa Vowel Sound’ 5

Article: ‘ICT in Education: HOW and WHAT to study in 21st Century?’ – UNESCO

Tashkent

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Research Paper: ‘A Problem Tense to Teach: The Present Perfect’ by İsmail ÇAKIR 8

Research Paper: ‘Bringing Internet & Multimedia into ELT Classrooms’ by Rajesh

Bharvad & Tarun Patel

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GUIDELINES FOR CONTRIBUTORSs 32


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Word of the week: PPP

PPP is a paradigm or model used to describe typical stages of a presentation of new language. It means presentation, production and practice. The practice stage aims to provide opportunities for learners to use the target structure. Criticism of this paradigm argues that the freer ‘practice’ stage may not elicit the target language as it is designed to do, as in this meaning-based stage, students communicate with any language they can. It is not clear that forcing students to use certain structures to communicate in a practice activity will necessarily mean they will use these structures spontaneously later.

Example

The teacher presents and illustrates the communicative purpose of a new structure ‘If I was you…’ for advice. Then learners use prompts to complete sentences with the correct forms of the verbs. They practise by giving each other advice.

In the classroom

Despite current doubts about the usefulness of the practice stage in the PPP model, it is still a common framework to find in classes and in materials.

[retrieved from http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk]


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Video: Shaping the Way We Teach English: Module 10, Alternative Assessment

Alternative assessment is a way to directly evaluate learners’ language skills. A

paper-pencil test shows knowledge about the language. Alternative assessment

shows learners’ ability to use the language.

There are many reasons for using alternative assessment techniques. With

alternative assessment: * Learners make real use of the target language–��in this

case English–for an actual purpose. * Learners demonstrate the things that they

have learned in class. * Learners take responsibility for and self-direct some of

their own learning. * Learners’ motivation to learn and use the target language may

increase. * And, alternative assessment provides students with an opportunity to

directly display their progress to others in their school and community, and to

family members.

An innovative offering from the Office of English Language Programs, Shaping

the Way We Teach English, is a 14-module teacher training video series developed

and produced in cooperation with the University of Oregon.

Watch the video at http://www.eltweekly.com/elt-newsletter/2011/01/80-video-shaping-the-way-we-teach-english-module-10-alternative-assessment/


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Susan Ryan’s Tip: ‘The Importance of the Schwa Vowel Sound’

In order to improve your English pronunciation it is critical that you learn to use

the schwa sound. That is because the combination of stressed syllables with long

clear vowels and unstressed syllables with the schwa vowel sound help to create

the rhythm of spoken English. Native English speakers listen for this rhythm and it

helps them to identify words.

What is the schwa sound?

The schwa is a vowel sound, it is not a letter of the alphabet. It sounds like “uh”

and is pronounced with your tongue in the middle section of your mouth. Your

mouth should be very relaxed when you say this sound. Because the schwa sound

can be represented by any vowel, it is the most common vowel sound in English.

The IPA symbol for the schwa sound is /ə/.

Here are some examples of how native English speakers use the schwa vowel

sound in words with more than one syllable. In the first group of words below the

vowel in first syllable is stressed and the vowel in the second syllable sounds like a

schwa /ə/.

womən

breakfəst

recənt

postəge


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In this group of words the vowel in first syllable sounds like a schwa /ə/ and the

vowel in the second syllable is stressed.

bəlieve

dəliver

rəpeat

prənounce

Remember that vowels that occur in stressed syllables have a long clear sound. The

pitch should be slightly higher. The vowels in unstressed syllables are reduced and

are often pronounced with the schwa sound. Pronouncing vowels in this pattern

will help you create a rhythm that makes it easy for native English speakers to

understand you.

An excellent animated website that you can use to view the articulation of the

schwa vowel sound and all of the other American English vowel and consonant

sounds is the Phonetics website from the University of Iowa.

http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/phonetics/english/movies/schwa-sound.htm

*******

Susan Ryan is an American English pronunciation teacher and accent reduction

coach. She currently lives in South Florida. Read more articles by Susan at

http://www.confidentvoice.com/blog/


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Article: ‘ICT in Education: HOW and WHAT to study i n 21st Century?’ – UNESCO Tashkent

“Enhancing educational quality is a constant process and is our top priority.

Education systems work to prepare the next generation for a successful future in a

changing world, the knowledge economy of 21st century. Today, it is necessary to

help students develop the intellectual skills they need for a higher order of thinking

and to assist them to realize their abilities and potential.

Intel is working to fruition with teachers all over the world, implementing one of

the most effective and successful initiatives in the field of education. Their work in

education includes programs for basic, secondary, tertiary and lifelong education.

These multilateral projects between Intel, UNESCO Tashkent and The Ministry of

Public Education of the Republic Uzbekistan present successful examples of

private and public sector cooperation. They stand as mentors in the field of

education for the professional development of teachers, sharing the ultimate goal

of improving the quality of education”.

Read the full article at http://www.unescobkk.org/education/ict/online-

resources/databases/ict-in-education-database/item/article/how-and-what-to-

study-in-21st-century/


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Research Paper: ‘A Problem Tense to Teach: The Present Perfect’ by Đsmail ÇAKIR

Đsmail ÇAKIR, Ph.D., is an assistant professor and currently working in ELT

Department, Faculty of Education, Kayseri, Turkey. He has several publications

on foreign language teaching, and is specifically interested in teaching English to,

teacher trainer, teaching young learners, teaching language skills, teaching

culture etc.

The perfect in English creates problems for both elementary and advanced learners. It is interpreted frequently as an optional alternative to the simple past tense; this interpretation of its function leads to frequent errors of tense usage. Difficulties with the present perfect tense are often reinforced by faulty teaching. The basic uses of the perfect are outlined and contrasted with the functions of the simple past tense. (Richards, 1979:95)

1. Introduction

The present perfect tense is one of the most, probably the most, problematic tenses for foreign language learners. It is not so easy to learn for foreign language learners, Turkish students in this study, to be able to use the present perfect tense correctly and appropriately for the appropriate situations as they have difficulties in grasping it. This tense is usually confused with the simple past by the Turkish students. The differences between the present perfect and the past simple are complicated and difficult to analyse, and the rules given in grammars are not always very clear and accurate (Swan, 1982:493). Not only in Turkish but also in many of the European languages present perfect is used as the simple past tense. Even American usage is also not exactly the same as British.

The use of present perfect tense appears to create special difficulties for foreign learners in sentences as follows.


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• He has never met you before. (during the whole of past time up to the present)

• That is the second time someone has interrupted me this evening. (during the whole of this evening and up to now)

• This is the first cigarette I've smoked. (during the whole of today and up to now)

The present perfect in the sentences above automatically implies "until now". Considering the difficulties in comprehending this tense for Turks and misusing, this study intends to clarify the differences between the present perfect and past simple.

2. The Meaning of the Present Perfect Tense.

The present perfect is almost a kind of present tense. When we say that something has happened, or has been happening, we are generally thinking about the present as well as the past. Hence, we can say that this tense is a sort of mixture of present and past. It always implies a strong connection with the present and is chiefly used in conversations, letters, newspapers and television and radio reports. When we make a present perfect sentence, we could usually make a present tense about the same situation. Difficulties for foreign learners arise either from the fact that their own language hasn't led them to look at events in this way, or from the fact that their language contains a verb from that looks similar to the English form but operates differently. For example:

• I have known you for a long time. (I know you well.) • I have been working all day. (And I am tired.) • Jane has gone to England. (She is in England now) • Have you read that book? (Do you know it?)

3. How to Use the Present Perfect Tense

The present perfect describes a past happening which is related in some way to the present. So it can be regarded as a tense of past happening-related-to-present time (Leech and Startwik, 1996:68). The place of the present perfect tense is shown in the following diagram.


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PAST_______________________NOW_______________FUTURE

There are two factors that appear to operate in determining an English speaker's choice.

i) The perfect forms indicate that an action or event occurs before the time indicated by the context. We can, therefore, distinguish between;

a) Come over and see us when our guests leave. b) Come over and see us when our guests have left.

The first sentence might suggest that the arrival of one set of visitors will coincide with the leaving of the other, whereas the second one clearly indicates that "our guests" will no longer be with us when our visitors come.

ii) The perfect forms also indicate that an action or event has produced a result or state of affairs that is relevant to the current situation, and there is often a casual connection between the time (adverbial) clause and main clause.

E.g. You will feel a lot better after you've had a rest.

The conjunction "after" itself clearly establishes the time relationship between the two activities or events rather than to establish a time difference between them. The conjunctions commonly used to introduce time (adverbial) clauses are: when, as soon as, before, after, until, once, by the time ...etc.

We can summarise the use of the present perfect tense by analysing it in two groups:


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a) Actions and situations continuing up to the present. b) Finished actions and events.

Now let's analyse them one by one.

a. Actions and Situations Continuing up to Present

1. We often use the present perfects tense to talk about actions and situations which began in the past, and which have continued up to the moment when we speak (or just before). For example:

• I have lived (or I have been living) in Ankara since 1989. (Not I am living ....) We have known each other for a long time. (Not we know ....)

• The taxi has arrived. (It is now outside.) • All police leave has been cancelled. (The police remain on duty) • Her doll has been broken. (It's still not mended)

2. We also use the present perfect to talk about a series of repeated actions which happened up to the present. For example:

• I have often wondered where she gets her money • We have been seeing a lot of Henry and Diana recently. • I have written four letters today. • How often have you been in love in your life?

3. "Since" and "For" are used with the present perfect tense to indicate beginning or

duration or continuance of an action or state of affairs up to the time specified by the context or situation.

i. Since is used with a phrase or clause denoting the beginning of an action or state of affairs, to indicate the continuance of that action or state of affairs from


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the time specified until the present time, or until the time specified in the past. For example:

• I have lived in Ankara since 1989. • We haven't seen each other since we left the school.

ii. For is used with the phrase denoting a period of time, to indicate the duration or continuance of an action or state of affairs up to the time specified by the context or situation. For example:

• I have lived in Ankara for ten years. • We haven't seen each other for a long time.

4. Present perfect is used for long actions and situations which started in the past and went on until very recently. For example:

• I have painted the rooms since lunchtime. • A: You look hot.

B: Yes, I have been running.

• I have been reading your book. It is not bad.

5. The present perfect is often used with expressions of time which refer to a period "up to now": for instance, all this year, all my life, so far, during the 20th century, recently, lately, since, for up to now, up to present. We do not use the present perfect. For example:

• He has worked hard all this year. • Nothing has been declared so far. • Have you seen him lately? • I haven't smoked all my life.

b. Finished Actions and Events


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1. The present perfect simple is often used to talk about past actions and events which are completely finished. This only happens when the past events have some present importance; usually they are "news", and generally we could make a present tense sentence about the same situation. For example:

• The president has been assassinated. (The president is dead.) • The USA declared war on Iraq. (Iraq and the USA are at war.) • I can't play football because I have broken my leg. (My leg is broken.) • I have been all over Kırıkkale. ( I know Kırıkkale well.) • I have seen this film before. I don't want to see it again now • She has left the company. She doesn't work there now.

2. Present perfect is often used to give news: it is especially common in reports, letters and conversations. For example:

• She has had a baby. It’s a boy. • According to the latest reports, the NATO forces have pushed back the

Serbs and retaken the town. • I am sorry to tell you that you have failed your exam.

3. Present perfect is also used to talk about past actions which are not recent, but are "still with us" as part of our experience and knowledge. For example:

• I have never been to the USA. ( So I can still have it) • Have you read "War and Peace?" (Do you know War and Peace?)

4. Present perfect is used after a superlative. For example:

• It is the most interesting film I have ever seen. • He is the best teacher I have ever met. • This is the first time I have smoked.


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5. We don't use definite time expressions in present perfect tense when we want to talk about a past event. With adverbs of finished time we normally use past simple. If we say "when" a past event happened (for example by using time expressions) we do not usually use the present perfect tense. For example:

• The president has been assassinated. The president was assassinated last year.

• He has left. He has left an hour ago.

• The USA has declared war on Iraq. The USA declared war on Iraq two months ago.

• I have spoken the boss about my holiday. I spoke to the boss about my holiday yesterday.

6. The present perfect is often used with time adverbs like never, just ever, before, yet, already, still. For example:

• A: Could I speak to Jane, please? B: I am afraid, she has just left. (A short time ago)

• A: Is Jane going to phone you later? B: No, she has already phoned me. (Jane phoned before Bill expected her to phone.)

• The post hasn't arrived yet. ( It probably will arrive) • Have you paid the bill yet? (Perhaps you have not paid the bill, but

you are going to pay it soon.) • I haven't been to England before. • Mrs. Bell is out. Jenny and Nick are cooking dinner to surprise her.

Jenny: I've washed the lettuce and I've chopped the tomatoes. I can make the salad now.

Nick: No you can't. You haven’t peeled the potatoes yet.


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Jenny: Oh yes. I have. Look! Here they are. I have already cooked them. And what have you done? Have you finished the washing up yet?

Nick: Yes, I have just finished the washing up.

7. We introduce an event with the present perfect, but we continue to talk about

it with the Past Simple.

• A: Ann has broken her arm. B: How did she break it?

A: She fell on some rocks.

8. When we talk about past events which have no present importance, we do not use the present perfect tense, past simple is used instead. For example:

• Lincoln was assassinated for political purposes. • Some people think that Shakespeare travelled a lot in Germany.

c. Summary

Here is a summary of the main uses of the Present Perfect Tense

• Talking about something which began in the past and hasn't changed. (Especially with for, since.)

• Talking about general experience: e.g. what have you done in your life up to now? (especially with ever or never)

• Talking about recent events or states. (especially with already, still and yet)

• Talking about very recent events. (with just) • Talking about events whose results are still noticeable. (especially with

the Present Perfect Progressive) • Talking about events after a superlative. e.g. It is the worst film I have

ever seen.


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4. Some Suggested Supplementary Activities.

A. Complete the dialogues using the Present Perfect or Past Simple. A: I....................... (see) Mert last night.

B: Oh really, I................................ (not see) him for two years. How is he?

A: We..................... (go) to the theatre two days ago.

B: ...................... you (enjoy) the play?

A: Yes, it........................ (be) very good.

A: I ................................ (never/hear) of this group before. Are they famous?

B: Yes, they are very popular. They ...........................(be) famous for years.

B. Choose the correct sentences. 1. a. I saw Ali five days ago.

b. I have seen Ali five days ago.

2. a. Did you ever eat Chinese food? b. Have you ever eaten Chinese food?

3. a. He is the funniest person I met. b. He is the funniest person I have ever met.

4. a. Ali has been to America. He is in America now b. Ali has been to America. He is back now.

5. a. Have you ever tried Japanese food in your life? b. Have you ever tried Japanese food last year?

6. a. I haven't yet finished my homework


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b. I haven't finished my homework yet.

7. a. They have lived in Ankara for two years. b. They have lived in Ankara since two years.

8. a. I ate two sandwiches yesterday evening. b. I have eaten two sandwiches yesterday evening.

C. Complete the story. Put the verb in brackets into the Present Perfect or Past Simple tense.

A SAD STORY OF A SAD MAN

One Sunday evening two men (a)................... (Meet) in a London pub. One of them was very unhappy.

"Life is terrible, everything in the world is really boring" he said.

“Don’t say that," said the other man.

"Life is marvellous! The world is so exciting! Think about Italy. It is a wonderful country. (b) ............you ever.............. (Be) there?"

"Oh, yes. I (c)................ (Be) there last year and I (d)....................... (Not like) it.”

"Well, (e)................you (be) to Norway?"

"Oh yes. I (f)............ (Go) in 1989 and I (g)...............(see) the midnight sun. And I (h)...............just.............. (Return) from safari in Africa. I (i)............. (Not enjoy) it. It was really boring."

"Well," said the other man. "I think you are very ill. Only the best psychiatrist can help you. Go to see Dr. Greenbaum in Harley Street."

“I am Dr. Greenbaum" answered the man sadly.


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(New Headway Elementary:2008)

D. Complete each sentence with already, still, yet or just.

1. My room is dirty. I haven't cleaned it ................ 2. My room is clean. I have ...............cleaned it. 3. My room isn't clean enough for my mom. She thinks I

................haven't cleaned it. 4. I can't believe that you...............haven't finished studying. 5. I haven't studied .......... 6. Have you finished studying..........

E. Write answers to the questions.

1. What is the best film you have ever seen? 2. What is the most beautiful place you have ever been to? 3. What is the funniest TV programme you have ever seen? 4. What is the most interesting thing you have ever done? 5. Who is the best teacher you have ever met?

REFERENCES

Leech, G. and Startvik, J.(1994). A Communicative Grammar of English. New York: Longman

Richards, C.J. (1979). Introducing Grammar the Perfect: An Exercise in Pedagogic: TESOL Quarterly, Vol. 13. No.4

Soars, L. and Soars, J. (2008). Headway Elementary Course Book, Oxford University Press: London.

Swan, M. (1982). Practical English Usage. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.


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Research Paper: ‘Bringing Internet & Multimedia int o ELT Classrooms’ by Rajesh Bharvad & Tarun Patel

The evolution of technology has an impact on the way we live, work, teach and learn. According to Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Information and Communication Technology has transformed education. Indeed, what we are witnessing is a revolution of education. Some believe that ICT provides global marketing opportunities. Others believe that ICT helps students broaden their knowledge base. Among this internet is seen a huge prospect in terms of classroom teaching.

The Internet is without doubt the fastest growing communication technology today. With such rapid speed, the education field has not been spared the onslaught of this revolution. The Internet revolution has brought drastic changes to the area of education. It has revolutionized the way students learn and how teachers teach in the classrooms. Indeed, the permeation of the Internet technology into classrooms has created the opportunities for students to be active learners and allowed instructors to be facilitators. Because of this lessons become more interactive and students become more independent.

Major benefits of Internet aided teaching in the classroom

The following are the major benefits of using internet in the classroom:

→ Increased Student Motivation

Many students love computers. Students feel comfortable with computers and are very receptive to any learning activities that involve the computer. Increased motivation leads to increased language use which leads to improved proficiency. When a writing activity is truly communicative, as e-mail projects are, the language is authentic. The students are not going through the motions of an artificial exercise. They are communicating because they need and want to communicate. Most of the information on the World Wide Web has been written in English by native speakers. The Web is, therefore, a rich source of authentic reading materials in English.


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→ Global Awareness

Information can be exchanged easily between people in different corners of the world, connecting students around the globe. This enhances their chances of using the language and such activities may result into high proficiency. Students attest that this kind of communication increases global understanding.

→ Environmental Friendliness

Use of the Internet can decrease the amount of paper used in the classroom. Much of the writing can be done on the computer. Web sites can replace some printed materials thereby conserving natural resources.

Internet in the classroom

→ Research

Research is the number one reason to use the internet in education. Students have a wealth of information open to them. Often, when they are researching obscure topics, school libraries do not have the needed books and magazines. The internet helps solve this problem. Here's an example of a great research project.

→ E-mail Projects

English teachers around the world are finding creative ways to use e-mail in their classes. They are discovering that e-mail projects can truly help students improve their writing and reading skills. The communication in e-mail projects can involve the teacher and each student individually, two students, small groups of students within a class or groups of students in more than one class.

→ Dialogue Journals

Dialogue journals are a popular means of improving the writing fluency and reading comprehension of students. Students write in their journals in class or outside of class. The teacher then collects the journals and responds to the student entries. Since the focus is on communication, the students write on topics of their own choosing, and their grammar and spelling errors are not pointed out. Dialogue journals may easily become electronic, with students sending the teacher their


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journal entries via e-mail rather than in a paper notebook. This type of e-mail writing assignment is an excellent way to ease students into sharing their writing electronically.

→ HUT E-Mail Writing Project

The HUT E-Mail Writing Project and the Cities Project are two examples of interclass e-mail projects carried out by students in different cities. While these projects were originally designed for university students, they could easily be adapted for use with students at any level of education-elementary, secondary, university or adult education.

EFL instructor Ruth Vilmi at the Helsinki University of Technology in Finland founded the HUT E-Mail Writing Project in 1993. Since then many students in Finland, Norway, France, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and the United States have taken part in HUT collaborative writing activities. Students have collaborated via e-mail on writing research papers, designing robots and proposing solutions for environmental problems.

→ The Cities Project

An interesting spin-off of the HUT E-Mail Writing Project is the Cities Project developed by Andrew Hess, an instructor at the New York University in New York City. Hess invited instructors Ron Corio at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia and Christine Meloni at The George Washington University in Washington, DC to develop an e-mail project for their high intermediate ESL students. The project involved student collaboration via e-mail on a three-city travel guide. Classes in New York, Washington, DC, Paris, Trondheim, and Hong Kong participated in a second Cities Project. In addition to creating a travel guide, the classes sent each other "culture packages" by snail mail that included such items as city maps, postcards, newspapers, tapes (both audio and video) and other memorabilia. More detailed information about the initial Cities Project and subsequent projects (including culture packages) can be found at Andrew Hess's web site: http://www.nyu.edu/pages/hess/cities.html. Such activities can be carried out in India as well.


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→ E-mail Discussion Groups

Students can also sign up for electronic discussion groups. They will receive all of the messages posted to the group by the other subscribers and they can post their own messages as well.

Language learners of all ages enjoy communicating in the target language via e-m ail. Within their own classes, teachers can divide students into groups for e-mail communication. For example, if the class is reading a collection of short stories, after the students finish a story, they can write a summary and a critique of it to send to the other members of their group via e-mail. Small groups of four or five students work well. Although it may seem artificial for students to write to classmates with whom they could easily communicate face-to-face, intraclass e-mail projects can be effective in helping the students improve their writing and reading skills in English. It also gives shy students an opportunity to participate as much as the more outgoing ones. Of course, it is exciting for students to communicate with students in other places. It might be another school in the same city or a school on the other side of the world. If the participants come from different cultures, the experience will be more stimulating and enriching for all of the students.

→ Creating a Website

A second project that can help integrate technology while truly getting the students excited about school is website creation. You can publish a website with your class about information the students have researched or personally created. Examples of what this page might focus on include a collection of student-created short stories, a collection of student-created poems, results and information from science fair projects, historical 'letters', even critiques of novels could be included.

Consideration on using Internet in the Classroom

English teaching scenarios require teachers to engage in classroom teaching according to the real world. The main materials, rich emotional scenes and the specific atmosphere inspire and attract students to take the initiative to study.

→ Systematization


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The aim of English teaching is to provide students with such a learning environment and conditions. One should compose the communicative structure for the language environment, and grasping the Meaning Potential of the language.

→ Authenticity

The real context can meet students’ practical needs in communication. In ELT, teachers have various choices of multimedia software, videos, films, slides, photographs, and other media. They can also use multimedia tools to provide vivid materials, creating real contexts and giving background information in order to help students to create an atmosphere of participation and exchange in different contexts.

→ Appropriateness

Multimedia and networks are characterized by the prolific development of information. Although students can access massive amounts of information, they cannot digest and absorb it directly. Therefore, they cannot develop their long-term memory and communicative competence. In order to optimize multimedia English teaching in context creation in terms of the appropriate selection of information, we should take care to classify and organize information effectively and make choices according to students’ needs. Otherwise, there will be too much information for them. Moreover, attention should also be paid to fit students’ different requests when designing the curriculum, following the process of information exchange. For example, when setting the curriculum, it should be known that the difficulty should be slightly higher than the students’ actual level. It is true that appropriate control of the type and amount of material, as well as making good use of time, can be more effective when learning English through multimedia language teaching.

→ Interactivity

During the process of in-classroom English multimedia teaching, it is believed that the goal of interaction between teachers and students is to achieve exchanges in the real language context. Teaching content should be designed with consideration of how to achieve interaction between teachers and students, among students


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themselves, and between students and modern technology. This method of language teaching provides various ways to promote the growth of students’ creativity, cooperation, and interaction. It also makes multimedia language teaching and learning active and vivid, from which we can see that the interactive exchange of information reflects the characteristics and advantages of multimedia teaching in context creation.

→ Coordination

During the process of optimizing multimedia English teaching in context creation, it is inappropriate to change the classroom into a platform for information exchange between students and modern machinery. Attention should be paid to coordination between teachers and students, teaching materials and methods, theory and practice and multimedia teaching and the real learning environment.

→ Pluralism

Pluralism with Intelligence requires teachers to choose and create appropriate and comprehensive educational methods to promote the full development of students based on the educational content, their intelligence structure, their interests, and their different characteristics. Teaching English in order to create a multimedia classroom context not only restricts but also affects the students’ own intellectual development. English teachers should constantly make use of the advantages of multimedia teaching to update English teaching concepts and teaching strategies, and produce scenario-style, animation-style, case-style, analogue-style, and game-show-style films as self-supporting material to inspire students.

→ Intelligibility

The process of understanding discourse is the process of the context establishment. An effective way to understand the discourse is to choose and establish an appropriate context to get people involved in the context. This includes communicative context, communicative environment, and communication based on common sense. English teachers should socialize and contextualize the multimedia classroom, as well as trying to transplant the real use of English into an in-classroom multimedia environment to improve students’ interpretative skills. It


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is helpful for teachers to use the characteristics of contexts in teaching materials to enable students to learn when and where they should speak English in line with the discourse and ultimately improve their English language skills. Teachers can also use multimedia to help students to predict the text in order to grasp the context and enhance their comprehensive skills. From a practical context to language understanding and usage based on different types of training, students may improve their communicative competence effectively in different contexts.

→ Penetrability

To achieve the success of multimedia English teaching in context creation, English teachers should involve their own sincere feelings in the classroom and make use of multimedia to stimulate students’ emotions. This is a joint method, where the two elements complement each other to promote and optimize the context creation of multimedia English teaching, which is one of the internal driving forces of students’ learning interest. The learning process can stimulate students’ desire to learn, so that students leave with positive feelings after class.

Resources that can be incorporated in the classroom

Reading

• Fluency Through Fables

At this site your students will find a short fable to read. After reading the fable, they can complete a variety of activities: vocabulary matching, a true or false comprehension exercise, vocabulary completion and written discussion. They can then use the index to find other fables and accompanying activities. http://www.comenius.com/fable/index.html

Writing

• Purdue's Online Writing Lab

This site offers instructional handouts on subjects such as punctuation, spelling, writing research papers and citing sources. Originally created for native speakers, it has a special section for ESL students that includes explanations about the use of articles and the use of prepositions in English. http://owl.English.purdue.edu


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Vocabulary

• Weekly Idiom Page

This site features a new idiom every two weeks. Each new idiom is given with its definition and a sample dialogue. http://www.comenius.com/idiom/index.htm l

• Toon in to Idioms

Students will find this site attractive. They will find an idiom along with an amusing illustration and a sample dialogue that they can listen to if their computer has speakers. http ://www.elfs.com/2nInX-Title.html

• Crossword Puzzles for ESL Students

This site is a new project undertaken by the Internet TESL Journal. It currently has four puzzles and is soliciting volunteers to create additional ones. http://www. aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj/cw

Grammar

• Grammar Safari

Students can participate in hunting activities such as "Hunting adjective clauses in Little Women" and "Hunting past perfect verbs in a magazine article." http ://deil.lang.uiuc.edu/web.pages/ grammarsafari.html

• Professor TOEFL's Fun Page

Professor TOEFL will respond to your students' questions about English grammar. http://www.slip.net/~caa

• Self-Study Quizzes for EFL Students

This site is another project of The Internet TESL Journal. Students can take grammar quizzes in a variety of subject areas such as holidays, sports and culture. The quizzes are graded on the spot. http://www.aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj/quizzes

Teacher Resources on the Web


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Resources for teachers on the Web are numerous, so it is difficult to present a complete list when space is limited. The following are important sites for ESL/EFL teachers.

• National Clearinghouse for Bilingual Education

Among NCBE's many offerings are hundreds of links to web pages on language and education issues, lesson plans and other practical classroom information. http://www.ncbe.gwu.edu

• Ask ERIC Virtual Library

This site offers lesson plans and information guides. Of particular interest is the AskERIC Toolbox, which offers links to sites on the Internet where teachers can find information on educational technology and other subjects. http://ericir. syr.edu/Virtual

• ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics

This is the home page of the ERIC Clearinghouse on Languages and Linguistics, located at the Center for Applied Linguistics in W ashington, DC. http://www.cal.org/ericll

• Internet TESL Journal

This is a monthly web journal for ESL teachers. One can find many excellent articles at this site related to diverse aspects of language teaching. http://www.aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj

• TESOL

This is the home page of the professional international Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) organization. The "Wandering the Web" columns from TESOL Matters have been put online at this site. There are also links to all of the TESOL affiliate home pages. http://www.tesol.edu

• ELT Weekly


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The site provides research papers related to the latest trends in teaching and other relevant information to its members on a weekly basis. People from all over the world contribute in this site and all the services are given free of cost. http://www.eltweekly.com

Concerns

A newer area of the internet to explore is online assessment. You can create your own tests online through your own website. These require knowledge of internet; so many new users might not be quite ready for this. And there are some concerns that might hinder the effective use of internet in the classroom.

→ Time

Objection: Teachers hardly have enough time to do all that is expected of them as it is. Where do we find the time to implement this into the curriculum without 'wasting time'?

Possible Solution: Teachers have to do what works for them. The internet, just like any other technology, is a tool. Many times information can only be passed on through books and lectures. However, if you feel that integrating the internet is important, just try one project each year.

→ Cost and Available Equipment

Objection: School Districts do not always provide a large budget for technology. Many schools don't have the necessary equipment. Some aren't connected to the internet.

Possible Solution: If your school district is not supportive or unable to provide technology, you can turn to corporate sponsors and grants. Sources of Grants. If you would like information to help you write grants, read Grant Writing Tips.

→ Knowledge

Objection: Learning about new technology and the internet is confusing. You will be teaching with something you may not completely understand.


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Possible Solution: Hopefully most districts have instituted an inservice plan to help acclimate teachers to the web. Barring this, there are some online help sources.

→ Quality

Objection: Quality on the internet is not guaranteed. It is easy to run a biased and inaccurate website with no regulation whatsoever.

Possible Solution: First, when you are thinking about having your students research a topic, do a search to make sure the information is available. A lot of time is wasted searching for obscure topics on the web. Second, review websites either on your own or with your students. Here is a great site with information about evaluating web resources.

→ Plagiarism

Objection: When students research off the web to produce a traditional research paper, it is often difficult for teachers to tell if it is plagiarized. Not only that, but students can BUY papers off the web.

Possible Solution: First, educate yourself. Find out what's available. Here are some resources with which to start. Also, a solution that works well is oral defenses. Students answer questions I pose and must be able to explain their findings. If nothing else, they have to learn what they have stolen (or bought) off of the internet.

→ Cheating

Objection: There is nothing stopping students from cheating with each other while on the internet, especially if you are giving online assessments.

Possible Solution: First, cheating off of each other has always existed, but the internet seems to make it easier. Many schools make the sending of emails and instant messages against the school code because of possible abuses. Therefore, if students are caught using these during an assessment, they would not only be guilty of cheating but also of violating school rules.


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Second, if online assessments are given, watch students carefully because they could switch back and forth between the test and web pages that might give them answers.

→ Parental and Community Objections

Objection: The internet is full of items that most parents would rather keep away from their children: pornography, foul language, and subversive information are examples. Parents and community members might fear their children would be able to access this information if given the opportunity to use the internet at school. Also, if students' work is to be published on the internet, it might be necessary to gain a parent's approval.

Possible Solution: Unlike public libraries, school libraries have the ability to restrict what is viewed on the internet. Students caught accessing information that is questionable can be subject to disciplinary action. Libraries would be wise to make sure that computers with internet access are easily observable in order to monitor student activity. Classrooms pose a different problem, however. If students are using the internet, the teacher needs to check and make sure they are not accessing questionable material. Fortunately, teachers can look at the 'history' of what was accessed on the internet. If there is any question whether a student was viewing something that was inappropriate, it is a simple matter to check the history file and see which pages were viewed.

Despite the above mentioned benefits and various techniques, not everyone is ready to board the Internet bandwagon. Some teachers have convinced themselves that the Internet is a waste of precious time. Others harbor a certain curiosity and would like to learn more about the possibilities but feel that they just cannot invest the time to learn about what is available and keep up with frequent changes.

Surveys, however, have shown that fear is the main reason many teachers shy away from the Internet and why they tend to ignore the computer revolution that is rapidly spreading into all areas of daily life. One of the fears is a fear of technology itself. Teachers from non-technical backgrounds are worried that they will not be able to master the new technology. But ESL/EFL teachers all over the world are amazing themselves by quickly learning the basic skills needed for computer-


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assisted language learning and are progressing rapidly beyond the basics. Another fear that teachers have is that computers will replace them. It is true that computers can now do many things that teachers can. Language learning is, however, a very human experience and human teachers will always be needed in the classroom.

The computer revolution, however, seems irreversible. ESL/EFL teachers cannot ignore the Internet. They must be aware of its potential and how their colleagues are using it. Everyone must remember, however, that technology should never be used just because it is there. Technology must be used only when it enhances the language learning experience. If the computer offers students something that they cannot obtain from an in-class communicative activity, then the use of technology is appropriate. When the computer is simply a poor substitute, its use is not acceptable. ESL/EFL teachers can make use of the two most popular features of the Internet, electronic mail (e-mail) and the World Wide Web.

References:

I. The Internet Guide for English Language Teachers by Dave Sperling, Prentice-Hall Regents.

II. New Ways of Using Computers in Language Teaching, edited by Tim Boswood, TESOL.

III. E-Mail for English Teaching: Bringing the Internet and Computer Learning Networks into the Language Classroom by Mark Warschauer, TESOL.

IV. Virtual Connections: Online Activities and Projects for Networking Language Learners by Mark W arschauer, University of Hawai'i Press.

V. http://www.internet4classrooms.com/ VI. http://www.teach-

nology.com/teachers/educational_technology/internet_in_class/


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A Problem Tense to Teach: The Present Perfect’

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