Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

Surkhet

Resolving ELT Challenges Through CriticalThinking Strategies

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

AbstractOverviewing the existing ELT challenges in Nepalese education, this article attemptsto explore the challenges resulted from the age long conventional teacher-led,drilling, lecturing, note providing, and translation based teaching, and suggeststo opt critical thinking (CT) strategies to solve the problems based on experiencesand observations of the researcher for more than a decade. It tries to reflecthow CT strategies help students in learning English inclusively in a co-operativeand democratic class. A model lesson plan (along with pictures downloadedfrom the Internet) has also been appended to show how a teacher can introduceCT in ELT class in Nepal to overcome the challenges and lead the students toactive and stress-free English learning. It also depicts positive consequencesof the intervention (CT strategies) of the study resulted from action learning duringthe decade long practice and exploration of a teacher in his local context.

Key words: ELT challenges, hangover, critical thinking (CT) strategies, action research andaction learning, government-aided and privately owned boarding schools.

BackgroundTeaching English in Nepal was started duringRanarchy from Darbar High School hiringEnglish teachers. It was further expanded duringpost-democracy era when schools mushroomedin Nepal. Then, English was taken as astimulating vehicle of an ideal culture anddevelopment. It was formally introduced inschools and colleges after the recommendationof National Educational System Plan (NESP)1971. At that time, it was taught as a subject;rather than a language for communication.Neither language skills nor language aspects;

but the content was solely focused. The trendexists even today after more than two scores ofyears

Nowadays, English is being introduced as amedium of instruction form primary schools touniversities in Nepal. Thus, we can say that therehas been paradigm shift in English languageteaching in Nepal, because it has become a meanto achieve certain ends. Nevertheless, whetheror not we should use it as a medium of instructionhas already become a matter of debate anddiscussions. To comply with the new traditions,new methods, and new pedagogies have been

1

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

searched; and courses have been prepared witha view to preparing learners compete globally.However, teachers who handle these courseshave still hangovers of their past experienceswhich is why they encounter many challengesin their classes. These challenges have causedstudents’ poor performance in English.

English language teaching in NepaleseeducationIn Nepal, English is taught as a compulsorysubject from the first grade and this continuesup to Bachelor Level in formal education. Butthe bitter truth is that the majority of thegraduates feel frustrated when they have to askfor a cup of tea in English. Let’s not talk thosewho fail in only English and therefore aredeprived of being awarded the degree. This hasmade every English teacher in Nepal think overwhat we have been doing from ages. It is saidthat if the students do not learn/perform well,the teacher has not taught well. If this is to betaken for granted, we have not taught them inthe way we should have (in many of the cases).All students/guardians/parents have ownedconsiderable space, even the rights to blame tothe teachers for the pitiable English languagelearning situation in Nepal.

ELT challenges in NepalThe government itself does not formulate anypolicies to make education state-funded. Thereare two types of schools in the country, viz. thegovernment aided community schools and theprivately owned boarding schools. Children fromthe rich families receive the awaited Englishmedium quality education and lead themselvesto better careers, but the children from middleclass families receive lower-quality Englishmedium education and are denied better career

opportunities, let alone the fate of those studentsfrom poor families who are compelled to receiveNepali medium education, which has created ahuge gulf in the community (Shrestha, 2009).Although the policy of the government itself hasmade the level of English proficiency of thestudents from the poorer background inferior tothose from well-off families, they have to attendthe same School Leaving CertificateExamination popularly nicknamed as the iron-gate. Passing through this gate is mandatory toopen up the window of higher education ahead.

The discrimination even does not end at thispoint. Those students have to face differententrance examinations to get admitted in thesubjects of science, technologies, etc., and thetest writers write the tests in English to whichthe students from the Nepali medium schoolsare less familiar with. English only hinders theirperformance resulting them to opt the subjectsfrom humanities and education faculties. TheirEnglish does not improve in the over-crowdedlarge classes there among the heterogeneousstudents (in terms of their linguistic, cultural,geographical, age, and sex related factors amongothers) either. It means the majority of ourstudents studying B. Ed. are those students whoare deprived of getting so-called English mediumquality education in school level.

The weaknesses do not only go to thegovernment. Teachers teaching English in schoollevel use grammar translation method and chorusdrills in the classroom though the textbooks arewritten according to CLT and task based learning(TBL) (Shrestha, 2009). There is mismatchbetween the theory and practice in the sense thateven the trained teachers do not materialize thetheories that have learned into practices. In fact,the teachers have been teaching the way their

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

2

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

teachers taught them. That is to say, they allhave been using grammar translation methodvery extensively. Furthermore, the number ofstudents in the public institutions: be they inschools or campuses is very large. Sometimes,it exceeds hundreds of students in campus classes(especially in compulsory English). Theclassroom management and the school practices(to be fully based on the teacher and a singletextbook) being continued are posing challengesin ELT. The overall challenges of ELT in Nepalare listed in the following points after a decadelong experience, careful observation, andunderstanding derived from different discussionswith the colleagues and students, trainings,seminars, conferences, and library study of theresearcher:

• Lack of well trained teachers• Gap between theory and practice (of the

tutors)• Mixed ability heterogeneous students

(in terms of age, sex, linguisticknowledge, culture, etc.) in the classes

• Over-crowded large classes• Poor physical facilities of the

classrooms and the institutions• Over- dependence on the teachers

because of the assertive, dogmaticbehavior of the students resulted byteacher/spoon fed instruction instead ofstudent centered teaching

• Treating English as a subject rather thana language

• Lack of practice to discuss localcontext in English (nativization ofEnglish), i.e. dreaming for thecommunicative competence; ratherthan thinking about interculturalcommunicative ommunication

• Dual-education system in the school

(government aided for the poor andprivately owned boarding schools forthe rich)

• Avoidance of the entrance examinationsto opt English based on the aptitude andlevel of the students

• The way questions are asked inexams/examination system (carelessnessof the test writers and examiners thathas encouraged students to depend onguess papers and plagiarized bazarnotes/ if test writers do not write thetests creatively and critically, let alonethe creative and critical performancefrom the side of the students.)

• Absence of social use of Englishelsewhere outside the classroom (Bothteachers and students do not feelcomfortable in using English as a meansof communication outside the classroom.)

• The practice of exam orientedinstruction where the students ask thepossible questions to be asked in theexamination right from the beginningof the courses and teachers also try tofocus on them

• The teachers are not well-paid and arecompelled to search for additional jobs.As a result, they are less motivated totheir professional development and donot prepare well and try their best tocarry out classroom researches.

• Fear and anxiety of the students inEnglish language classes

• Inability of the teachers and students toconcentrate in teaching and learningAnd the must

• Unwillingness to think critically/absence of critical thinking practice inteaching and learning

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Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

searched; and courses have been prepared witha view to preparing learners compete globally.However, teachers who handle these courseshave still hangovers of their past experienceswhich is why they encounter many challengesin their classes. These challenges have causedstudents’ poor performance in English.

English language teaching in NepaleseeducationIn Nepal, English is taught as a compulsorysubject from the first grade and this continuesup to Bachelor Level in formal education. Butthe bitter truth is that the majority of thegraduates feel frustrated when they have to askfor a cup of tea in English. Let’s not talk thosewho fail in only English and therefore aredeprived of being awarded the degree. This hasmade every English teacher in Nepal think overwhat we have been doing from ages. It is saidthat if the students do not learn/perform well,the teacher has not taught well. If this is to betaken for granted, we have not taught them inthe way we should have (in many of the cases).All students/guardians/parents have ownedconsiderable space, even the rights to blame tothe teachers for the pitiable English languagelearning situation in Nepal.

ELT challenges in NepalThe government itself does not formulate anypolicies to make education state-funded. Thereare two types of schools in the country, viz. thegovernment aided community schools and theprivately owned boarding schools. Children fromthe rich families receive the awaited Englishmedium quality education and lead themselvesto better careers, but the children from middleclass families receive lower-quality Englishmedium education and are denied better career

opportunities, let alone the fate of those studentsfrom poor families who are compelled to receiveNepali medium education, which has created ahuge gulf in the community (Shrestha, 2009).Although the policy of the government itself hasmade the level of English proficiency of thestudents from the poorer background inferior tothose from well-off families, they have to attendthe same School Leaving CertificateExamination popularly nicknamed as the iron-gate. Passing through this gate is mandatory toopen up the window of higher education ahead.

The discrimination even does not end at thispoint. Those students have to face differententrance examinations to get admitted in thesubjects of science, technologies, etc., and thetest writers write the tests in English to whichthe students from the Nepali medium schoolsare less familiar with. English only hinders theirperformance resulting them to opt the subjectsfrom humanities and education faculties. TheirEnglish does not improve in the over-crowdedlarge classes there among the heterogeneousstudents (in terms of their linguistic, cultural,geographical, age, and sex related factors amongothers) either. It means the majority of ourstudents studying B. Ed. are those students whoare deprived of getting so-called English mediumquality education in school level.

The weaknesses do not only go to thegovernment. Teachers teaching English in schoollevel use grammar translation method and chorusdrills in the classroom though the textbooks arewritten according to CLT and task based learning(TBL) (Shrestha, 2009). There is mismatchbetween the theory and practice in the sense thateven the trained teachers do not materialize thetheories that have learned into practices. In fact,the teachers have been teaching the way their

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

2

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

teachers taught them. That is to say, they allhave been using grammar translation methodvery extensively. Furthermore, the number ofstudents in the public institutions: be they inschools or campuses is very large. Sometimes,it exceeds hundreds of students in campus classes(especially in compulsory English). Theclassroom management and the school practices(to be fully based on the teacher and a singletextbook) being continued are posing challengesin ELT. The overall challenges of ELT in Nepalare listed in the following points after a decadelong experience, careful observation, andunderstanding derived from different discussionswith the colleagues and students, trainings,seminars, conferences, and library study of theresearcher:

• Lack of well trained teachers• Gap between theory and practice (of the

tutors)• Mixed ability heterogeneous students

(in terms of age, sex, linguisticknowledge, culture, etc.) in the classes

• Over-crowded large classes• Poor physical facilities of the

classrooms and the institutions• Over- dependence on the teachers

because of the assertive, dogmaticbehavior of the students resulted byteacher/spoon fed instruction instead ofstudent centered teaching

• Treating English as a subject rather thana language

• Lack of practice to discuss localcontext in English (nativization ofEnglish), i.e. dreaming for thecommunicative competence; ratherthan thinking about interculturalcommunicative ommunication

• Dual-education system in the school

(government aided for the poor andprivately owned boarding schools forthe rich)

• Avoidance of the entrance examinationsto opt English based on the aptitude andlevel of the students

• The way questions are asked inexams/examination system (carelessnessof the test writers and examiners thathas encouraged students to depend onguess papers and plagiarized bazarnotes/ if test writers do not write thetests creatively and critically, let alonethe creative and critical performancefrom the side of the students.)

• Absence of social use of Englishelsewhere outside the classroom (Bothteachers and students do not feelcomfortable in using English as a meansof communication outside the classroom.)

• The practice of exam orientedinstruction where the students ask thepossible questions to be asked in theexamination right from the beginningof the courses and teachers also try tofocus on them

• The teachers are not well-paid and arecompelled to search for additional jobs.As a result, they are less motivated totheir professional development and donot prepare well and try their best tocarry out classroom researches.

• Fear and anxiety of the students inEnglish language classes

• Inability of the teachers and students toconcentrate in teaching and learningAnd the must

• Unwillingness to think critically/absence of critical thinking practice inteaching and learning

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Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

The challenges mentioned above can belessened (if not avoided) if we, languageteachers try CT strategies in English classes.Students can activate their schemata, i.e. theirprior knowledge about English and the wholeworld by critical thinking. CT leads studentstowards goal directed problem solving usingtheir cognitive skills and strategies that guidethem towards possibilities of desirableoutcomes. In the paragraphs below, I discusshow CT strategies can be used to overcomethe challenges in Nepalese ELT context.

Critical thinking in Nepalese ELT contextCT requires learners follow enquiry-basedlearning. It engages the learners while learningsomething. We can teach English to our studentsinvolving them in each and every activity wecarry out in the classroom. Students exercisethe freedom of answering questions andexpressing their opinions during the class. CTcan also build the habits of persuading othersby rational arguments. We can change the classinto thinking class to promote ELT getting thestudents do different activities using English inthe class. Bowell and Kemp (2006) mention:

We do many things with language - state afact, ask a question, tell someone to dosomething, insult someone, promise to dosomething, swear an oath, make a threat,tell a story, recite a poem, sing a song, say acharacter’s line in a play, cheer on a footballteam. (p. 4)

This way, we can make the students dosomething by themselves even if the thing issmall. CT urges the students to raise questionsto explore the truth or knowledge. It does notlead them to take things for granted. As a result,they do not believe on dogmas, rather on the

process of rational reasoning. We can developthe habit of critical thinking among our studentsthrough learning and training. We can encouragethem to question, examine, create, solve,interpret, apply, and debate (rather than onlymemorizing) which, of course, minimize the voidbetween the theory and our practices. In otherwords, CT aims at the higher order thinking fromthe side of the students instead of imitating andparroting the content to reflect it in theexamination as the answer of the questions- thosemarked as VVI during instruction (because theyare asked repeatedly) in their final paper andpencil tests.

CT develops the feel of ownership of theirlearning among the students. Ultimately, thelearners become independent and life-longlearners. They construct their knowledgethemselves from their own rationality andexperiences of the real world around them. Theydevelop the habit of observing, noticing andlocating the facts, guessing rationally, buildingassumptions and hypothesis, experiencing theiropinions, arguing, analyzing critically, andcreating. They enter into the realm of rationalityand problem solving.

The study: Rationale, objectives, datacollection tools and procedureBeing well-informed with the context of ELT inNepal it was urgently realized to search thecontextual strategies to be applied in ESL/EFLclasses. The study was carried out to seekanswers of the following questions:

• Why are the students poor even theyare supposed to have achieved specifiedobjectives?

• What are the alternative ways ofteaching to improve their performance/

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

4

readiness in learning English?• Will the students improve after being

exposed to the critical thinkingstrategies?

• Who must have been responsible for thestudents’ poor performance of Englisheven they graduate?

• How can we motivate and encouragestudents to learn actively by themselves?

• What could be the potential result/difference if critical thinking strategiesare introduced in ELT classroom?

I tried an action in my regular compulsoryEnglish classes in collaboration with mystudents. I kept the records of the students for aweek observing their interaction in the classamong themselves in the groups and pairs andwith me, the teacher. I analyzed the context usingmy own impression, judgment, reactions,feedback of colleagues, and students’ opinions.During that period I used observation and oralquestions as the tools to identify the real causesbehind the poor performance of the students.The study was carried out in spite of theconstraints of (a) the time (b) the incentive and(c) the expertise or professional support to getmeaningfully engaged with research (Dornyei,2007, p. 192) during my usual teaching. It wasthe result of an individual practice and reflectionthrough the action in real classroom where theteacher himself has stood as the researcher. Asan action research in nature, the main aim ofthis study was to observe the potential changein the students’ performance in English had theybeen introduced CT strategies in theirclassrooms.

As action research, in the words of Cohen,Manion, and Morrison (2010), “…can be castinto two simple stages: a diagnostic stage in

which the problems are analyzed and thehypotheses developed; and a therapeutic stagein which the hypotheses are tested by aconsciously directed intervention or experimentin situ” (p. 304), this study broadly followedthose two stages suggested by them. In thediagnostic stage the problems of ELT in ourcontext were identified and the causes behindeach problem were also listed and explained. Inthe therapeutic stage, CT strategies werepracticed in the classroom unlike the teachercentered traditional strategies being used asusual and the outcomes were testedobservationally and through oral questionsagain. This classroom research followed thecommon action research stages, viz. plan, teach/act/ intervene, observe, and reflect to be specific.I rightly followed the seven steps suggested byNunan (2010, p. 19) in this study. At theinitiation step I came up with the problem - thestudents passively listening and expectingeverything from me, the teacher. I collectedbaseline data through observation and interviewbeside the study of ELT literature of Nepal, inpreliminary investigation step. Then, I built thefollowing hypotheses in the third step:

• Ho: There is no any relationship betweenour teaching and poor performanceof our students in English.

• H1: Poor performance of our students isresulted because of our practice ofconventional teaching methods.

• Ho: CT strategies cannot motivate,promote and improve students’proficiency in English over theconventional institutional practices.

• H1: CT strategies can motivate, promoteand improve students’ proficiency in

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

5

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

The challenges mentioned above can belessened (if not avoided) if we, languageteachers try CT strategies in English classes.Students can activate their schemata, i.e. theirprior knowledge about English and the wholeworld by critical thinking. CT leads studentstowards goal directed problem solving usingtheir cognitive skills and strategies that guidethem towards possibilities of desirableoutcomes. In the paragraphs below, I discusshow CT strategies can be used to overcomethe challenges in Nepalese ELT context.

Critical thinking in Nepalese ELT contextCT requires learners follow enquiry-basedlearning. It engages the learners while learningsomething. We can teach English to our studentsinvolving them in each and every activity wecarry out in the classroom. Students exercisethe freedom of answering questions andexpressing their opinions during the class. CTcan also build the habits of persuading othersby rational arguments. We can change the classinto thinking class to promote ELT getting thestudents do different activities using English inthe class. Bowell and Kemp (2006) mention:

We do many things with language - state afact, ask a question, tell someone to dosomething, insult someone, promise to dosomething, swear an oath, make a threat,tell a story, recite a poem, sing a song, say acharacter’s line in a play, cheer on a footballteam. (p. 4)

This way, we can make the students dosomething by themselves even if the thing issmall. CT urges the students to raise questionsto explore the truth or knowledge. It does notlead them to take things for granted. As a result,they do not believe on dogmas, rather on the

process of rational reasoning. We can developthe habit of critical thinking among our studentsthrough learning and training. We can encouragethem to question, examine, create, solve,interpret, apply, and debate (rather than onlymemorizing) which, of course, minimize the voidbetween the theory and our practices. In otherwords, CT aims at the higher order thinking fromthe side of the students instead of imitating andparroting the content to reflect it in theexamination as the answer of the questions- thosemarked as VVI during instruction (because theyare asked repeatedly) in their final paper andpencil tests.

CT develops the feel of ownership of theirlearning among the students. Ultimately, thelearners become independent and life-longlearners. They construct their knowledgethemselves from their own rationality andexperiences of the real world around them. Theydevelop the habit of observing, noticing andlocating the facts, guessing rationally, buildingassumptions and hypothesis, experiencing theiropinions, arguing, analyzing critically, andcreating. They enter into the realm of rationalityand problem solving.

The study: Rationale, objectives, datacollection tools and procedureBeing well-informed with the context of ELT inNepal it was urgently realized to search thecontextual strategies to be applied in ESL/EFLclasses. The study was carried out to seekanswers of the following questions:

• Why are the students poor even theyare supposed to have achieved specifiedobjectives?

• What are the alternative ways ofteaching to improve their performance/

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

4

readiness in learning English?• Will the students improve after being

exposed to the critical thinkingstrategies?

• Who must have been responsible for thestudents’ poor performance of Englisheven they graduate?

• How can we motivate and encouragestudents to learn actively by themselves?

• What could be the potential result/difference if critical thinking strategiesare introduced in ELT classroom?

I tried an action in my regular compulsoryEnglish classes in collaboration with mystudents. I kept the records of the students for aweek observing their interaction in the classamong themselves in the groups and pairs andwith me, the teacher. I analyzed the context usingmy own impression, judgment, reactions,feedback of colleagues, and students’ opinions.During that period I used observation and oralquestions as the tools to identify the real causesbehind the poor performance of the students.The study was carried out in spite of theconstraints of (a) the time (b) the incentive and(c) the expertise or professional support to getmeaningfully engaged with research (Dornyei,2007, p. 192) during my usual teaching. It wasthe result of an individual practice and reflectionthrough the action in real classroom where theteacher himself has stood as the researcher. Asan action research in nature, the main aim ofthis study was to observe the potential changein the students’ performance in English had theybeen introduced CT strategies in theirclassrooms.

As action research, in the words of Cohen,Manion, and Morrison (2010), “…can be castinto two simple stages: a diagnostic stage in

which the problems are analyzed and thehypotheses developed; and a therapeutic stagein which the hypotheses are tested by aconsciously directed intervention or experimentin situ” (p. 304), this study broadly followedthose two stages suggested by them. In thediagnostic stage the problems of ELT in ourcontext were identified and the causes behindeach problem were also listed and explained. Inthe therapeutic stage, CT strategies werepracticed in the classroom unlike the teachercentered traditional strategies being used asusual and the outcomes were testedobservationally and through oral questionsagain. This classroom research followed thecommon action research stages, viz. plan, teach/act/ intervene, observe, and reflect to be specific.I rightly followed the seven steps suggested byNunan (2010, p. 19) in this study. At theinitiation step I came up with the problem - thestudents passively listening and expectingeverything from me, the teacher. I collectedbaseline data through observation and interviewbeside the study of ELT literature of Nepal, inpreliminary investigation step. Then, I built thefollowing hypotheses in the third step:

• Ho: There is no any relationship betweenour teaching and poor performanceof our students in English.

• H1: Poor performance of our students isresulted because of our practice ofconventional teaching methods.

• Ho: CT strategies cannot motivate,promote and improve students’proficiency in English over theconventional institutional practices.

• H1: CT strategies can motivate, promoteand improve students’ proficiency in

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

5

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

English over the conventionalinstitutional practices.

After that, I prepared for the intervention. CTstrategies were introduced to motivate andencourage the students to relate any of thecontents of the lesson to their own backgroundsand interests. After four weeks of teaching usingCT strategies, I assessed my students and foundmuch greater improvement in their performanceand even in their motivation, in the evaluationstep. It was found that complexities of languagelearning were minimized and student ledinteractions were enhanced. This improvementwas discussed and circulated among thecolleagues and the students in the disseminationstep. I also prepared this paper as a part ofdissemination. I have still been searching andinvestigating alternative methods of motivatingstudents and improving their performance in thefollow-up step. This is a never ending continuouscycle. The study can also be viewed through theeight step model of action research by McNiff(2002, p. 71) as cited in Cohen, Manion, andMorrison (2010, pp. 305-6), viz.

• Review your current practice• Identify an aspect that you wish to

improve• Imagine a way forward in this• Try it out• Monitor and reflect on what happens• Modify the plan in the light of what has

been found, what has happened, andcontinue

• Evaluate the modified action• Continue until you are satisfied with

what aspect of your work (e.g. repeatthe cycle)

Foreign or second language classroom wasrealized as a primary research site in applied

linguistics (Dorneyei, 2007) in this study as well.Observation and self-reflection were used forresearch activity in teachers’ professional lifejust like Dorneyei mentions, “Beside askingquestions observing the world around us is theother basic human activity that all of us havebeen involved in since babyhood to learn andgain understanding.” (ibid. p. 178).Observationand oral questionnaire to the students, thus, wereused as the research tools in this research. Itwas geared up with the view that teaching is notonly information transmission. The teachers’ rolein the class is not to spoon-feed the students,rather supporting their learning. In this sense,it is not only an action research but also actionlearning. The former is a methodological,systematic, and rigorous process of enquiry inwhich the results are disseminated for peerscrutiny, but the latter relies on personalobservation and reflection (Norton, 2009, p. 31).Action learning involves taking action andreflecting upon the results to solve the problems-that I have been doing since then. This studyalso helped to learn about the students’perceptions and feelings about their learning.

Analysis and interpretationQualitative analysis was used in this studybecause it is useful where:

• Little is known about the research area• Richer understanding is sought• More in-depth information is needed• There are already existing sources such

as diaries, students’ assignments, videorecordings, and reports.

(Norton, 2009, p. 116)

Very little was known about using CT inNepalese ELT before the study was commenced.But I wanted to seek its deeper understanding. I

needed the in-depth information of my students’beliefs of their learning. I had prepared thediaries of my teaching in the form of self-evaluation or reflection. I also had collected thefirst hand evidence of my students’ assignmentsand reports. Because of these reasons, I usedqualitative analysis in this study.

ResultCommon strategies of critical thinking likethink/pair/share (T/P/S), know/want toknow/learn (K-W-L), what/so what/now what,mix/freeze/pair, quick write, pens in the middle,value line, directed reading activities (DRA), jig-saw, one stray/three stray, walk around/talkaround, reciprocal teaching, save the last wordfor me, etc. were used to encourage even thehesitated students in language classrooms.Instructional language was rough-tuned and theteacher was even-handed in the class while usingany of these activities among the students. It wasto make the students autonomous in theirlearning. Students became accountable to whatthey did/ did not do during the class activities.

These strategies of critical thinking are alwaysvery engaging and interactive. I tried many ofthese strategies in my classroom. I instructedthem comprehensively reminding myselffrequently to the points, viz. prepare, make sureyou have the class’s full attention, present theinformation more than once, be brief, illustratewith examples, and get feedback (Ur, 2010, pp.16-17). Those points were found positive to meand the students. I found my students encouragedand interested during the classroom instructionwith these activities. They felt happy to sharetheir ideas among others. Each of the activitiesdiscussed above made the classroom lively andstudent centered. Students did not hesitate toask questions with their friends when such

activities were introduced. I tried to solve theproblems with speaking by using group work,making the activities easy language, making acareful choice of topic and task to stimulate theirinterest, giving instruction or training in discussionskills, and keeping students speaking the targetlanguage (ibid., pp. 121-22) in the class. Theydid not only depend on their teachers and builtthe habit of thinking for the solutions/ answersof the questions/problems. It, ultimately,discouraged the exam only oriented instructionrather helped to achieve the objectives of thecourse/lesson creating an English environmentat least in the classroom. Students were laterfound taking/using English even in the absenceof teachers in and outside the classroom beingequipped with such strategies that demandgroup/pair participation.

Similarly, I followed the ABC phases of criticalthinking approach in English language teachingcalled anticipation, building knowledge andconsolidation. At the stage of anticipation, Icontextualized the content to use English andasked students what they already knew about it.I set the purpose of learning and clarified anymisconceptions if they had about the topicsunder discussion. Students focused theirattention on the topic and derived the contextfor understanding new ideas. In the second stageof building knowledge, I brought the learnersinto contact with new information, let them toquery, find out and make sense of the idea underdiscussion. They identified the main points andmade inferences about the materials. They madepersonal connections to the lesson orpersonalized the task or idea. Lastly, at theconsolidation stage, students reflected on whatthey learnt, interpreted and shared experiences,summarized the main idea, and assessed theirlearning. They also thought of the solutions or

- Rajan Kumar KandelResolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

76

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

English over the conventionalinstitutional practices.

After that, I prepared for the intervention. CTstrategies were introduced to motivate andencourage the students to relate any of thecontents of the lesson to their own backgroundsand interests. After four weeks of teaching usingCT strategies, I assessed my students and foundmuch greater improvement in their performanceand even in their motivation, in the evaluationstep. It was found that complexities of languagelearning were minimized and student ledinteractions were enhanced. This improvementwas discussed and circulated among thecolleagues and the students in the disseminationstep. I also prepared this paper as a part ofdissemination. I have still been searching andinvestigating alternative methods of motivatingstudents and improving their performance in thefollow-up step. This is a never ending continuouscycle. The study can also be viewed through theeight step model of action research by McNiff(2002, p. 71) as cited in Cohen, Manion, andMorrison (2010, pp. 305-6), viz.

• Review your current practice• Identify an aspect that you wish to

improve• Imagine a way forward in this• Try it out• Monitor and reflect on what happens• Modify the plan in the light of what has

been found, what has happened, andcontinue

• Evaluate the modified action• Continue until you are satisfied with

what aspect of your work (e.g. repeatthe cycle)

Foreign or second language classroom wasrealized as a primary research site in applied

linguistics (Dorneyei, 2007) in this study as well.Observation and self-reflection were used forresearch activity in teachers’ professional lifejust like Dorneyei mentions, “Beside askingquestions observing the world around us is theother basic human activity that all of us havebeen involved in since babyhood to learn andgain understanding.” (ibid. p. 178).Observationand oral questionnaire to the students, thus, wereused as the research tools in this research. Itwas geared up with the view that teaching is notonly information transmission. The teachers’ rolein the class is not to spoon-feed the students,rather supporting their learning. In this sense,it is not only an action research but also actionlearning. The former is a methodological,systematic, and rigorous process of enquiry inwhich the results are disseminated for peerscrutiny, but the latter relies on personalobservation and reflection (Norton, 2009, p. 31).Action learning involves taking action andreflecting upon the results to solve the problems-that I have been doing since then. This studyalso helped to learn about the students’perceptions and feelings about their learning.

Analysis and interpretationQualitative analysis was used in this studybecause it is useful where:

• Little is known about the research area• Richer understanding is sought• More in-depth information is needed• There are already existing sources such

as diaries, students’ assignments, videorecordings, and reports.

(Norton, 2009, p. 116)

Very little was known about using CT inNepalese ELT before the study was commenced.But I wanted to seek its deeper understanding. I

needed the in-depth information of my students’beliefs of their learning. I had prepared thediaries of my teaching in the form of self-evaluation or reflection. I also had collected thefirst hand evidence of my students’ assignmentsand reports. Because of these reasons, I usedqualitative analysis in this study.

ResultCommon strategies of critical thinking likethink/pair/share (T/P/S), know/want toknow/learn (K-W-L), what/so what/now what,mix/freeze/pair, quick write, pens in the middle,value line, directed reading activities (DRA), jig-saw, one stray/three stray, walk around/talkaround, reciprocal teaching, save the last wordfor me, etc. were used to encourage even thehesitated students in language classrooms.Instructional language was rough-tuned and theteacher was even-handed in the class while usingany of these activities among the students. It wasto make the students autonomous in theirlearning. Students became accountable to whatthey did/ did not do during the class activities.

These strategies of critical thinking are alwaysvery engaging and interactive. I tried many ofthese strategies in my classroom. I instructedthem comprehensively reminding myselffrequently to the points, viz. prepare, make sureyou have the class’s full attention, present theinformation more than once, be brief, illustratewith examples, and get feedback (Ur, 2010, pp.16-17). Those points were found positive to meand the students. I found my students encouragedand interested during the classroom instructionwith these activities. They felt happy to sharetheir ideas among others. Each of the activitiesdiscussed above made the classroom lively andstudent centered. Students did not hesitate toask questions with their friends when such

activities were introduced. I tried to solve theproblems with speaking by using group work,making the activities easy language, making acareful choice of topic and task to stimulate theirinterest, giving instruction or training in discussionskills, and keeping students speaking the targetlanguage (ibid., pp. 121-22) in the class. Theydid not only depend on their teachers and builtthe habit of thinking for the solutions/ answersof the questions/problems. It, ultimately,discouraged the exam only oriented instructionrather helped to achieve the objectives of thecourse/lesson creating an English environmentat least in the classroom. Students were laterfound taking/using English even in the absenceof teachers in and outside the classroom beingequipped with such strategies that demandgroup/pair participation.

Similarly, I followed the ABC phases of criticalthinking approach in English language teachingcalled anticipation, building knowledge andconsolidation. At the stage of anticipation, Icontextualized the content to use English andasked students what they already knew about it.I set the purpose of learning and clarified anymisconceptions if they had about the topicsunder discussion. Students focused theirattention on the topic and derived the contextfor understanding new ideas. In the second stageof building knowledge, I brought the learnersinto contact with new information, let them toquery, find out and make sense of the idea underdiscussion. They identified the main points andmade inferences about the materials. They madepersonal connections to the lesson orpersonalized the task or idea. Lastly, at theconsolidation stage, students reflected on whatthey learnt, interpreted and shared experiences,summarized the main idea, and assessed theirlearning. They also thought of the solutions or

- Rajan Kumar KandelResolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

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Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

remedies of the problematic parallel problems.A plan to teach a poem of B. Ed. 1st yearfollowing the strategies and phases of CT hasalso been appended herewith (Appendix I)consisting of some potential problems the teachermay have to face in the classroom so that s/hecan try earlier to overcome/neutralize suchproblems whenever they arise. Useful picturesdownloaded from the Internet to teach the poem(Letter From Foreign Grave - by D. B. Gurung)have also been included with the plan.

Discussions of findingsCT strategies helped me to foster the goodlanguage learners’ characteristics like- lowerinhibition, encourage risk taking, build students’self-confidence, help students develop intrinsicmotivation, promote cooperative learning,encourage students to use right brain processing,promote ambiguity tolerance, help students usetheir intuition, get students to make theirmistakes work for them, and get students to settheir goals (Brown, 2010, pp. 16-17) among thestudents of my classroom. Students thought oftheir learning rationally and did not afraid ofcommitting mistakes while learning. CTpromoted cooperation and positive competitionamong the students. They tried to learn even fromtheir own mistakes and positive competitionamong their friends’. They claimed of theirsubjectivity to any issues under discussion ratherthan the fixed dogmas. CT strategies motivated,promoted, and improved students’ proficiencyin English over the conventional teachingmethods. It showed that poor performance of ourstudents was the result of our institutional practices.

CT strategies reduced the time and effort ofthe students' learning. It discouraged them tomemorize the plagiarized bazar notes and theteachers’ lecture notes only. Their learning also

became goal oriented and they built themselvesas the active learners fully accountable andresponsible to their learning. None of thestudents in the class remained passive and mererecipients of the teacher’s knowledge. CTintrinsically motivated them and grew them tosolve problems and built intuition when needed.Their performance was dramatically improvedbecause of their activies, immersion, into theproblems and critical-creative thinking.

ConclusionWe can make use of strategies like usinganalogies and imaginations, promotinginteraction among the students, allowing morethan sufficient time for reflection in the class topromote critical thinking strategies in ELTclasses. We can ask open ended questions to thestudents seeking varied subjective answers withconsiderable amount of time. Students may notanswer instantly. Don’t worry. They may havebeen thinking inside. Wait! The rice inside thepressure cooker may have been getting ready. Itwhistles to inform being ready when the studentsspeak/write the reply. We must guide the studentsto apply the knowledge they learnt in differentcontext with considerable modification. Ratherthan asking the problem just they are there, wecan relate them to the real life situation of thestudents and we need to allow thinking practiceand never expect for the fixed answers. Weshould not interrupt or overcorrect the students.It may discourage them. We should try our bestto be as indirect as possible while correctingthem. Fixed answers may be sought in othersubjects but not in language teaching because ourmain goal behind teaching language is teachingthe language itself not the subject matter alone.

Our current courses of TU (of B. Ed. and M.Ed.) have been changed reflecting the newly

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

8

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

developed social, political, cultural,philosophical and academic changes home andabroad. They seek new student centered methodsand nativization of English in different Nepalesecultures. They need a lot of reading and thinkingfrom the parts of the teachers and studentsbecause the skill alone does not produceobject/product without tools and the rawmaterials. Reading a lot, raising questions, andcritical thinking both from the side of the teachersand students are desired.

About the authorMr. Kandel is Teaching Assistant of EnglishEducation at Surkhet Campus (Education) TU.He has been teaching Research Methodologyfor Language Education, English LanguageTeaching Methods, and Linguistics for morethan five years. He is interested in researchand research-specific practices. He has editeda couple of research and academic journals.He is Life Member of NELTA.

ReferencesBowell, T., & Kemp, G. (2006). Critical

thinking: A concise guide. London andNew York: Routledge.

Brown, H. D. (2010). English language teachingin the ‘post-method’ era: Toward betterdiagnosis, treatment, and assessment. InRichards, J. C., & Renandya, W. A. (ed.).

Methodology in language teaching: Ananthology of current practice.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,pp. 9-18.

Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K.(2010).Research methods in education.London and New York. Routledge.

Dornyei, Z. (2007). Research methods inapplied linguistics: Quantitative,qualitative and mixed methodologies.New York: Oxford University Press.

Nunan, D. (2010). Research methods inlanguage learning (First South Asianedition). New Delhi: CambridgeUniversity Press.

Norton, L. S. (2009). Action research inteaching and learning: A practical guideto conducting pedagogical research inuniversities. London and New York:Routledge.

Shrestha, P. N. (2008). An overview of ELT,EAP, and ESP in Nepal: Whose interestis served? In Krzanowsky, M. (ed.) EAPand ESP in developing countries: Stateof play vs actual needs and wants.Canterbury: IATEFL (ESP SIG), pp. 191-210.

Ur, P. (2010). A course in language teaching:Practice and theory. Noida, U. P. India:Cambridge University Press.

9

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

remedies of the problematic parallel problems.A plan to teach a poem of B. Ed. 1st yearfollowing the strategies and phases of CT hasalso been appended herewith (Appendix I)consisting of some potential problems the teachermay have to face in the classroom so that s/hecan try earlier to overcome/neutralize suchproblems whenever they arise. Useful picturesdownloaded from the Internet to teach the poem(Letter From Foreign Grave - by D. B. Gurung)have also been included with the plan.

Discussions of findingsCT strategies helped me to foster the goodlanguage learners’ characteristics like- lowerinhibition, encourage risk taking, build students’self-confidence, help students develop intrinsicmotivation, promote cooperative learning,encourage students to use right brain processing,promote ambiguity tolerance, help students usetheir intuition, get students to make theirmistakes work for them, and get students to settheir goals (Brown, 2010, pp. 16-17) among thestudents of my classroom. Students thought oftheir learning rationally and did not afraid ofcommitting mistakes while learning. CTpromoted cooperation and positive competitionamong the students. They tried to learn even fromtheir own mistakes and positive competitionamong their friends’. They claimed of theirsubjectivity to any issues under discussion ratherthan the fixed dogmas. CT strategies motivated,promoted, and improved students’ proficiencyin English over the conventional teachingmethods. It showed that poor performance of ourstudents was the result of our institutional practices.

CT strategies reduced the time and effort ofthe students' learning. It discouraged them tomemorize the plagiarized bazar notes and theteachers’ lecture notes only. Their learning also

became goal oriented and they built themselvesas the active learners fully accountable andresponsible to their learning. None of thestudents in the class remained passive and mererecipients of the teacher’s knowledge. CTintrinsically motivated them and grew them tosolve problems and built intuition when needed.Their performance was dramatically improvedbecause of their activies, immersion, into theproblems and critical-creative thinking.

ConclusionWe can make use of strategies like usinganalogies and imaginations, promotinginteraction among the students, allowing morethan sufficient time for reflection in the class topromote critical thinking strategies in ELTclasses. We can ask open ended questions to thestudents seeking varied subjective answers withconsiderable amount of time. Students may notanswer instantly. Don’t worry. They may havebeen thinking inside. Wait! The rice inside thepressure cooker may have been getting ready. Itwhistles to inform being ready when the studentsspeak/write the reply. We must guide the studentsto apply the knowledge they learnt in differentcontext with considerable modification. Ratherthan asking the problem just they are there, wecan relate them to the real life situation of thestudents and we need to allow thinking practiceand never expect for the fixed answers. Weshould not interrupt or overcorrect the students.It may discourage them. We should try our bestto be as indirect as possible while correctingthem. Fixed answers may be sought in othersubjects but not in language teaching because ourmain goal behind teaching language is teachingthe language itself not the subject matter alone.

Our current courses of TU (of B. Ed. and M.Ed.) have been changed reflecting the newly

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

8

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

developed social, political, cultural,philosophical and academic changes home andabroad. They seek new student centered methodsand nativization of English in different Nepalesecultures. They need a lot of reading and thinkingfrom the parts of the teachers and studentsbecause the skill alone does not produceobject/product without tools and the rawmaterials. Reading a lot, raising questions, andcritical thinking both from the side of the teachersand students are desired.

About the authorMr. Kandel is Teaching Assistant of EnglishEducation at Surkhet Campus (Education) TU.He has been teaching Research Methodologyfor Language Education, English LanguageTeaching Methods, and Linguistics for morethan five years. He is interested in researchand research-specific practices. He has editeda couple of research and academic journals.He is Life Member of NELTA.

ReferencesBowell, T., & Kemp, G. (2006). Critical

thinking: A concise guide. London andNew York: Routledge.

Brown, H. D. (2010). English language teachingin the ‘post-method’ era: Toward betterdiagnosis, treatment, and assessment. InRichards, J. C., & Renandya, W. A. (ed.).

Methodology in language teaching: Ananthology of current practice.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,pp. 9-18.

Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K.(2010).Research methods in education.London and New York. Routledge.

Dornyei, Z. (2007). Research methods inapplied linguistics: Quantitative,qualitative and mixed methodologies.New York: Oxford University Press.

Nunan, D. (2010). Research methods inlanguage learning (First South Asianedition). New Delhi: CambridgeUniversity Press.

Norton, L. S. (2009). Action research inteaching and learning: A practical guideto conducting pedagogical research inuniversities. London and New York:Routledge.

Shrestha, P. N. (2008). An overview of ELT,EAP, and ESP in Nepal: Whose interestis served? In Krzanowsky, M. (ed.) EAPand ESP in developing countries: Stateof play vs actual needs and wants.Canterbury: IATEFL (ESP SIG), pp. 191-210.

Ur, P. (2010). A course in language teaching:Practice and theory. Noida, U. P. India:Cambridge University Press.

9

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

Appendix IA model lesson plan based on critical thinking strategies

College: Surkhet Campus (Education) Class: B. Ed. 1st yearSubject: C. English Time: 50 minutes

1. Lesson ObjectivesAt the end of this lesson the students will be enabled to:

• summarize the poem Letter From Foreign Grave.• argue for and against fighting for others as Gorkhas.• discuss on one’s own enemies and the enemies of the masters/ employers (driving by

rationality/heart vs. compulsion/ force).• write a letter from the side of dead soldier’s mother who still hopes that her son will return home.

2. Teaching Materials

Materials of daily use, Pictures of Gorkha soldiers fighting abroad for others(aggressively attackingthe enemies in the fronts with the sharp Khukuris and the shout “Ayo Gorkhali”, a soldier shotdead), New Generation English (the textbook - Letter From Foreign Grave - by D. B. Gurung)

3. Teaching Learning ActivitiesStages Teacher Students Potential Problems

Anticipation Phase (10 minutes) Strategies: Think/ Pair/ Share (T/P/S) Know/Want to know/ learn (K- W- L)

• Manages the class in the orderly rows.

• Displays the pictures and asks students to say a few sentences about the pictures.

• Selects 15 phrases from the poem like; hundred seas away, mundane avarice, resting at peace, ruined destiny, the unsung song, bid farewell, eyes welling up with tears, abir-daubed brow, fronts, piece of glowing lead, scare to death, make up for your milk, misery, lost citizen of the world, plunder and asks them to use the phrases.

• Asks the students to think up a story of a Gorkhali soldier

• Follow the directions. • Try their best to describe

the pictures. • Share their opinions

about soldiers, their fate and the force that lures and compels them to be involved as Gorkhas.

• Try to use these phrases/words into their own sentences.

• Discuss with their friends and teacher whenever they feel difficulty.

• They build up their story and try to visualize the sufferings of a soldier in the fronts.

• Some students find no seats for them.

• Back benchers do not participate/ hesitate to participate.

• Students find some phrases/ words very difficult.

• Some students whose nearest ones are soldiers or the one affected by war/ conflict may feel like scratching the healed wound.

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

10

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

Stages Teacher Students Potential Problems Building Knowledge phase (30-35 minutes) Strategies Directed reading activity (DRA) What/ So what/ Now what

• Introduces the poet and the context on which the poem was written.

• Asks SS to read the first stanza silently and discuss.

• Asks SS "How can you claim that this is a letter?", "Was the son dead?", "Was he dead or killed?"

• Asks SS to think what the son may write next.

• Asks the SS to read the second stanza silently and discuss.

• Raises questions like, "What does the son remembers now?", "Did he have a dog?", "How did the dog behave?"

• Elicits the SS to guess further.

• In the same way, gets the students to deal the rest of the stanzas encouraging the students and relating the theme of each stanza to their context or that they may have seen in their neighboring context.

• Asks them what they would do if they were the mother of the soldier.

• Tells the main point s or summary of the poem.

• Writes few key questions on the board.

• Asks the SS to create constructive answers to the questions written on the board.

• Moves throughout the class and helps the students when they ask for.

• Listen to the teacher attentively.

• Read the first stanza and discuss with their friends.

• Reply the teacher. • Listen to their friends

replying their teacher and try to notice the points that they may have missed.

• Say what they think. • Read and ask if some

words/phrases are difficult.

• They discuss among their friends and try to reply the teacher. They try to personalize the situation into their context.

• Activating themselves, discuss and come up with different ideas.

• Listen to their friends carefully and add to them.

• They try thinking creatively and participate in the discussion after they finish reading the poem once again.

• They try to pretend themselves as the mother, father, brother, sister of the soldier.

• Listen to the teacher and compare what they think and the teacher says.

• Create constructive answers of the questions written on the board.

• Few of the students do not understand the teacher.

• SS may not guess meanings of words.

• Some of the SS may have forgotten their textbooks.

• Some of the SS may not listen to others/ make noise.

• Teacher may miss to involve the hesitated SS.

• Some SS do not listen to their friends.

• Some SS do not try to put forward their ideas.

• SS may feel tired to participate.

• They may not be involved in thinking creatively.

• SS may feel worried/ disappointed when they think of being the nearest one of the soldier killed.

• Some of the SS may only write the questions on their notes.

11

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

Appendix IA model lesson plan based on critical thinking strategies

College: Surkhet Campus (Education) Class: B. Ed. 1st yearSubject: C. English Time: 50 minutes

1. Lesson ObjectivesAt the end of this lesson the students will be enabled to:

• summarize the poem Letter From Foreign Grave.• argue for and against fighting for others as Gorkhas.• discuss on one’s own enemies and the enemies of the masters/ employers (driving by

rationality/heart vs. compulsion/ force).• write a letter from the side of dead soldier’s mother who still hopes that her son will return home.

2. Teaching Materials

Materials of daily use, Pictures of Gorkha soldiers fighting abroad for others(aggressively attackingthe enemies in the fronts with the sharp Khukuris and the shout “Ayo Gorkhali”, a soldier shotdead), New Generation English (the textbook - Letter From Foreign Grave - by D. B. Gurung)

3. Teaching Learning ActivitiesStages Teacher Students Potential Problems

Anticipation Phase (10 minutes) Strategies: Think/ Pair/ Share (T/P/S) Know/Want to know/ learn (K- W- L)

• Manages the class in the orderly rows.

• Displays the pictures and asks students to say a few sentences about the pictures.

• Selects 15 phrases from the poem like; hundred seas away, mundane avarice, resting at peace, ruined destiny, the unsung song, bid farewell, eyes welling up with tears, abir-daubed brow, fronts, piece of glowing lead, scare to death, make up for your milk, misery, lost citizen of the world, plunder and asks them to use the phrases.

• Asks the students to think up a story of a Gorkhali soldier

• Follow the directions. • Try their best to describe

the pictures. • Share their opinions

about soldiers, their fate and the force that lures and compels them to be involved as Gorkhas.

• Try to use these phrases/words into their own sentences.

• Discuss with their friends and teacher whenever they feel difficulty.

• They build up their story and try to visualize the sufferings of a soldier in the fronts.

• Some students find no seats for them.

• Back benchers do not participate/ hesitate to participate.

• Students find some phrases/ words very difficult.

• Some students whose nearest ones are soldiers or the one affected by war/ conflict may feel like scratching the healed wound.

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

10

- Rajan Kumar Kandel

Stages Teacher Students Potential Problems Building Knowledge phase (30-35 minutes) Strategies Directed reading activity (DRA) What/ So what/ Now what

• Introduces the poet and the context on which the poem was written.

• Asks SS to read the first stanza silently and discuss.

• Asks SS "How can you claim that this is a letter?", "Was the son dead?", "Was he dead or killed?"

• Asks SS to think what the son may write next.

• Asks the SS to read the second stanza silently and discuss.

• Raises questions like, "What does the son remembers now?", "Did he have a dog?", "How did the dog behave?"

• Elicits the SS to guess further.

• In the same way, gets the students to deal the rest of the stanzas encouraging the students and relating the theme of each stanza to their context or that they may have seen in their neighboring context.

• Asks them what they would do if they were the mother of the soldier.

• Tells the main point s or summary of the poem.

• Writes few key questions on the board.

• Asks the SS to create constructive answers to the questions written on the board.

• Moves throughout the class and helps the students when they ask for.

• Listen to the teacher attentively.

• Read the first stanza and discuss with their friends.

• Reply the teacher. • Listen to their friends

replying their teacher and try to notice the points that they may have missed.

• Say what they think. • Read and ask if some

words/phrases are difficult.

• They discuss among their friends and try to reply the teacher. They try to personalize the situation into their context.

• Activating themselves, discuss and come up with different ideas.

• Listen to their friends carefully and add to them.

• They try thinking creatively and participate in the discussion after they finish reading the poem once again.

• They try to pretend themselves as the mother, father, brother, sister of the soldier.

• Listen to the teacher and compare what they think and the teacher says.

• Create constructive answers of the questions written on the board.

• Few of the students do not understand the teacher.

• SS may not guess meanings of words.

• Some of the SS may have forgotten their textbooks.

• Some of the SS may not listen to others/ make noise.

• Teacher may miss to involve the hesitated SS.

• Some SS do not listen to their friends.

• Some SS do not try to put forward their ideas.

• SS may feel tired to participate.

• They may not be involved in thinking creatively.

• SS may feel worried/ disappointed when they think of being the nearest one of the soldier killed.

• Some of the SS may only write the questions on their notes.

11

Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014Journal of NELTA Surkhet Vol. 4 December, 2014

Resolving ELT Challenges Through Critical Thinking Strategies

Stages Teacher Students Potential Problems Consolidation Phase (10-15 minutes) Strategies: T/P/S, Walk around /Talk around, Quick write

• Divides the SS into three groups.

• Says them to list few important vocabularies and points of the poem.

• Asks each group to share their points.

• Enlists the vocabularies and points from the class.

• Elicits them to argue for and against "Fighting for others as Gorkhas" and then on "Fighting by heart and fighting by force".

• Says SS to jot down few points they put forward after discussion in their respective groups, come front and read it out.

• Assigns SS to write an argumentative essay on 'The Fate of Gorkhas'

• Assigns SS to write a letter to the killed son being his hopeful mother

• Be members of the groups. • Work in group and list the

key vocabularies and the points of the poem.

• Reflect the work of their groups.

• One group speaks for the motion and another against it and the third group tries to negotiate being neutral.

• Each group leader justifies and illustrates the reasons logically from the front.

• Write quickly. • Listen to the teacher and

map their mind for the task.

• Imagine being the mother of the son killed in the foreign grave still waiting her son's safe return and overflow their feelings and prepare for expressing them in the letter.

• Some SS may like to change the group.

• Some SS may just look at their friends enlisting.

• SS may make noise in the class.

• The argument may proceed aggressively.

• Teacher may forget to calm down the SS at the back/corners.

• Some SS may not record the assignments claiming that they can do them well.

All the photos are downloaded from the Internet through Google search engine.

12

Surkhet

Unable to Find a Research Title?- Bal Mukunda Bhandari

AbstractMost of the Master’s students who opt for thesis writing could not find an appropriatetitle for them, and they ask their supervisors, professors and seniors for a title.Similarly those who are aspiring for a Ph.D. cannot start the work because they areunable to find a suitable title for them. When I ask my colleagues and students to gofor Ph.D., to carry out classroom research and other small scale research, to writeresearch article, they say that they have no idea on what to write, and they ask me toprovide them with a topic for the research. This article, based on my experience ofsupervising and evaluating theses, is an attempt to help Master’s and Ph.D. studentsin general and M.Ed. English students in particular, find a suitable title for theirresearch. It discusses some sources, from which thesis titles come, viz. problem,curiosity, disagreement, courses of study, and previous works in the related field.

Key words: Research, research titles, problems, curiosity, disagreement.

Getting startedPeople have different feelings about the term‘research’ which comes from old Frenchrecerchier and middle French recherché meaningto go about seeking. Some people feel it high-sounding while others feel it laborious. Somepeople think, it is not within the reach of themand are afraid of it while others love it. Research,as Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionarydefines, is a careful and diligent search. It is theinvestigation or experimentation aimed at thediscovery and interpretation of facts. It can alsobe carried out for revision of accepted theoriesor laws in the light of new facts. A piece ofresearch may be carried out to receive a degreefrom a university or to develop profession or tosolve some practical problems.

Most of the students who are doing theirMaster’s degree or those who want to enroll intoPh.D. get stuck on the first step. They are unableto select an appropriate title for them because“searching a title for thesis is seldom a simplematter even after you discover a title that attractsyour interest, you may well find yourselfrevisiting your choice, modifying your approach,or changing title altogether after you have begunresearch” (Gibaldi, 2000, p.4).You can use oneof the models of research. It may be survey, anexperiment, a case study or an action research,and you can choose qualitative or quantitativedesign depending upon the nature of the issue,your knowledge, resources and enthusiasm. Onlyafter a research topic has been chosen andfinalized, you can decide what data would be

13