Friday, October 30, 2020

Rules for Life

Introduction: In today's class we will talk about the topic of rules, obligations, prohibitions, and permissions. Work with your partners to complete the tasks below.

Warm Up: Pronunciation Practice

Use the strategy you just learned about how to pronounce the "ed" endings. If the final sound vibrates, you pronounce it like a /d/. If the final sound doesn't vibrate, you pronounce it like a /t/. If the final sound of the word is a /t/ or /d/ sound, you need to add the sound /id/. Click your group link and get started!

Group 1: CLICK HERE
Group 2: CLICK HERE
Group 3: CLICK HERE
Group 4: CLICK HERE
Group 5: CLICK HERE

Tasks 1: Discussion

Discuss the following questions with your partners. You have exactly 7 minutes. So be sure to click play on the video to keep track of time and ensure that all group members can contribute their ideas.

What rules do you try to live by? What are some behaviors that you see in other people that you try not to do?
What rules did you have in your house when you were a child?
How did the rules change when you became a teenager? Were the rules always the same for you and your brothers and sisters?
What are some rules, obligations, and prohibitions in your job?

Task 2: Quick Listening

Click play on the video to listen to three conversations. For each conversation, answer the questions below. You do not have to write.

What is the problem?
What is the advice?
Do you agree or disagree with it? Give YOUR advice if it is different.

Task 3: Modern Morals

Click on your group link below. Read through the presentation and write advice for each problem. When you finish, write your own unique problems. All instructions are in the link.

Group 1: CLICK HERE
Group 2: CLICK HERE
Group 3: CLICK HERE
Group 4: CLICK HERE
Group 5: CLICK HERE

Task 4: Roleplay

Read one of the scenarios below. Then click play on the video timer and two students have a conversation for one minute to resolve the situation. You can give advice and also remind the person about their obligations. When the time is over, you can read another scenario, click play on the video timer, and act in another scene.

Scenario 1: Social Media

Jessica is a customer service representative at SuperMart, a clothing store. She is friends with most of her coworkers on Facebook. Her boss recently looked at her Facebook profile and noticed that many of her posts, likes, and messages happen during working hours. Jessica thinks there’s nothing wrong with checking her FB on her phone as long as she gets her work done. Her manager wants to speak with her about this.

Scenario 2: Student Complaints

Jeff is an economics professor at a private university. Recently, his supervisor has received many complaints from Jeff’s students about the quality of his classes. Students say he is not prepared for class. They say he spends a lot of time talking about politics and his personal opinion about topics in the news instead of talking about content related to the course. They also say that his exams contain information that they never saw in class. Jeff’s supervisor wants to have a meeting with him to talk about the situation.

Scenario 3: Punctuality

Lindsey works as a cashier (cajera) at the National Bank downtown. She is a hard worker and is very meticulous with her job. However, she has had many problems with punctuality recently. She frequently arrives 5 or 10 minutes late and she always has an excuse. Her manager has already spoken with her about this problem and she promised she would make and effort to arrive on tie. However, the problem has continued and she was 25 minutes late for work this morning. Her manager called her into the office for a meeting.

Scenario 4: Computer Use

John is an employee at DataTech where he is in charge of customer accounts. The IT department has received complaints from many employees about the slow WIFI recently so they started investigating. They discovered that John frequently uses the WIFI to stream music, movies, and podcasts on his company laptop during working hours. His supervisor wants to have a meeting with him to discuss the topic.

Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Coursebook Adaptation and Supplementation

Introduction: This week we are looking at strategies to change and add to what is already in the coursebook you are working with. Complete the following tasks with your partners in order to put into practice the concepts from Chapters 5 and 6 in the McGrath (2016) book.

Task 1: Adaptation - The 3 E's

McGrath tells us that we can think about coursebook adaptation as following the three E's. Read about Extemporization, Extension, and Exploitation below.

Extemporization: McGrath says that the most common form of coursebook adaptation is what occurs spontaneously in the classroom when the teacher responds to an unexpected challenge or difficulty with the coursebook. In response, he or she gives a clarifying explanation or example or modifies the activity on the spot. This is not usually planned by the teacher in advance.

Example: Look at the picture below (excuse the quality). Imagine you needed to cover this exercise in class and you are not sure if all of your students are familiar with the sport and its rules. How could you address this and clarify the picture without spoiling the exercise for students?

Click to see full size image.

Extension: This occurs when the teacher wishes to make a given exercise longer and provides additional examples and questions. The main difference between Extension and Supplementation is that Extension is more of the same activity type why Supplementation involves giving students additional activity types to do.

Exploitation: This occurs when the teacher uses materials from the book for purposes that were not intended by the writer of the book. They teacher may or may not have students complete the exercise as intended before having them do something else with the same text or exercise.

Example: Take a look at these to pages from Interchange. What are ways you might Extend one of the activities? How might you Exploit some of the activities for multiple purposes? CLICK HERE for access.

Task 2: Coursebook Adaptaptions

McGrath outlines several principles that we might take into consideration to movitate adaptations we could make to our coursebooks.

Localization: Adapting to our students' national and cultural contexts
Personalization: Adapting to our students' interests and academic, educational, and professional needs
Individualization: Adapting to stuents' learning styles and preferences
Modernization: Adapting to address out of date content and language use
Simplification: Adapt texts or tasks to make them more accessible
Challengification*: Adapt texts or tasks to make them more challenging

Consider the following extracts from a commercial textbook, CLICK HERE to view.

What is objective of the activity?
What does the activity actually have the students do?
What adaptations could I make (delete, replace, add, change)?
Which principles could we use to justify these changes?

Task 3: Functions of Worksheets for Supplementation

McGrath argues that worksheets, either published or teacher created, can serve several purposes.

Awareness Raising or Practice? - Most of the times we use worksheets to have students apply what they have learned. This is practice. However, we can also use worksheets to raise students' awareness about systemic features (or rules) of the language. This is related to the concepts of deductive vs inductive language teaching.

Discuss: What do you remember about the differences between these two approaches? What are their strengths and challenges?
Example: CLICK HERE to review a worksheet. Do you think the activities are more awareness raising or practice? Why do you say so? What are some other ways that you could use supplementary worksheets to help students notice language forms and patterns?

Task 4: Expanding our Repertoire

There are many different different activity types to help students learn about or practice language forms like grammar, vocabulary, spelling, pronunciation and others.

Example: CLICK HERE to review a series of activities to address vocabulary. How do they differ in their specific focus? What other aspects of vocabulary could be an appropriate topic for worksheets?

Task 5: Thinking Critically about Scaffolding

A single worksheet might have student do several activities. The order of the activities is significant because a well scaffolded one can help students gain a better understanding while a poorly scaffolded one can lead to frustration.

Example: CLICK HERE to review two worksheets on the topic of reported speech.

Look at Worksheet A:

How do the exercises differ?
Is the order important?
What is its focus: Form and/or Meaning and/or Use?
If you were preparing a worksheet on this topic, would you borrow any of these activities? Why or why not? What adaptations if any would you make?
What do you like about the design and layout? Would you suggest any changes?

Look at Worksheet B:

How do the exercises differ?
Is the order important?
What is its focus: Form and/or Meaning and/or Use?
If you were preparing a worksheet on this topic, would you borrow any of these activities? Why or why not? What adaptations if any would you make?
What do you like about the design and layout? Would you suggest any changes?

What are the strengths and weaknesses of worksheet A and B?
Which do you prefer and why?
What conclusions can you draw about worksheet design from this analysis?

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

Trick-or-Treat

Introduction: No matter what your personal feelings are regarding Halloween, no one can deny that it is an important part of North American culture. In this activity, you will learn a little about the history of this holiday.

Halloween Puzzle

CLICK HERE to open the puzzle. Go to the page that corresponds to your group number and follow the instructions to complete the puzzle.

History of Halloween

Click on your group link below to open your worksheet. Follow the instructions inside to complete the activities.

Group 1: CLICK HERE
Group 2: CLICK HERE
Group 3: CLICK HERE
Group 4: CLICK HERE
Group 5: CLICK HERE

English as an International Language

Introduction: This week we are reviewing content from the article English as an International Language (EIL) by Sandra Lee McKay from the book "Teaching English Grammar to Speakers of Other Languages" by Eli Hinkel. Complete the tasks below with your group members.

Task 1: Initial Discussion

Discuss the following questions with your partners.

Imagine you overhear a student commit a grammatical error in class and you correct him or her. However, instead of accepting the feedback, your student says, "But, I heard it on TV. How can it be wrong if a native speaker said it?"

How would you react?
Does the student have a point?
What makes someone's grammar right or wrong and who gets to decide this?

Task 2: World English

Think about the people you know who speak English.

How many of them are native speakers, people for whom English is their first language (L1)?
How many of them learned English as a second or additional language (L2)?
The Indian linguist Baj Kachru created the Circles of English model to describe the demographics of English speakers around the world. Look at the graphic below.

The Inner Circle represents countries where English is spoken as a first language. The Outer Circle represents countries that have English as (one of) their official languages although it is not the first language of the majority of their citizens. The Expanding Circle represents all of the other countries around the world where people are learning English for a variety of purposes.

Take a moment to do a Google search to find the following information:

Inner Circle: What countries have a majority English speaking population?
Outer Circle: What countries have English as an official language? How many are not traditionally thought of as native English speaking countries?
Expanding Circle: Look at images of Kachru's Circles model, what countries are in the expanding circle? What are some of the reasons that people in these countries need English?

Which circle is Costa Rica in? How do you know?

Task 3: English Models

In Sandra Lee McKay's article (Hinkel, 2016, p. 20) we learn that there are around 375,000,000 English native speakers but over 1,000,000,000 people around the world speak English as a second or foreign language. That means that non-native speakers outnumber native speakers of English by a factor of three. Discuss the questions below:

With that fact in mind, who can we say "owns" English?
Whose grammar is the right grammar? Whose pronunciation?
What variety (or varieties) of English should we teach?
Should native speakers be the model that English learners try to emulate?
Are there any alternatives?

Task 4: Teaching Implications

You are a non-native English speaking teacher who teaches English in a country in the Expanding Circle. Some of your students will need English to interact with native speakers while others will use their English to consume English media and interact in English with other non-native speakers for a variety of personal, professional, and academic purposes.

What are some of the reasons that non-native speakers need to interact with each other in English for personal, professional, and academic purposes?
Most English speakers around the world are non-natives and they use their English more often to interact with other non-natives. What immplications could this fact have for the way that English should be taught?
How can you better prepare your students to be competent users of English as an International Language?
How can you help raise students' awareness about different language varieties and make choices about which varieties are appropriate in a given context?

Activities

Instructions: In this activity, you will listen to the song "Computer" by Walter Ferguson, a Costa Rican calypso artist, cacao farmer, and native English speaker born in 1919. Walter was born on the Panama border near Sixaola but has lived his entire life in Cahuita. His first language is Limón Creole English, a variety of English that is similar to other varieties spoken in the Caribbean basin.

CLICK HERE to access the worksheet.

Focus on Pronunciation

Listen to the above video. How does Walter pronounce words that begin with a voiced "th" sound (the, this, that)? This is a characteristic of Caribbean Englishes. Think of some other words that begin with a voiced "th" sound. How do you think a Caribbean English speaker would pronounce them?

Play this video. How does Walter pronounce the word computer? How is it different from the standard North American pronunciation? This characteristic is typical of Caribbean and British English varieties. Think of other words that finish with an "r" sound. How would a British or Caribbean English speaker probably pronounce them?

Listen to the three video clips above. What similarity do you notice about the way Walter pronounces the words understand, all, and executer?
This is another typical characteristic of some Caribbean and British Englishes. H-adding occurs when speakers add an "h" sound at the beginning of words that starts with a vowel. They might say "h-ignorant" instead of "ignorant" or "h-understand" instead of "understand". The opposite phenomenon, H-dropping, is more common. This occurs when speakers do not pronounce the "h" at the benning of a wold and say "ospital" or "elp" instead of "hospital" or "help".

Finally, listen to Walter's pronunciation of the word "going". He says it twice in this clip. Reducing this two syllable word into a single syllable is common in Caribbean Englishes and also some older varieties of African American English from the southern United States.

Focus on Grammar

Now, CLICK HERE to read the lyrics of the song again with your partners. Imagine you wanted to use this text to raise your students' awareness about some of the grammatical features of Walter's variety of English. What are some aspects that you could focus on?

Additional Resources

If you are interested in learning more about Walter Ferguson's life and hearing him speak, CLICK HERE to watch the documentary "Ferguson: El Último Trovador de Cahuita". It has interviews with him in English with subtitles in Spanish.

Bibliography

Hinkel, E. (2016) Teaching English Grammar to Speakers of Other Languages. New York: Taylor & Francis.

Friday, October 23, 2020

TOEIC Preparation Demo Class

Introduction: Hello everyone, the purpose of today's session is to give you an idea of what it's like to take the online TOEIC Preparation Course.

Task 1: What is happening and where?

Look at the images below and practice the strategy of asking yourself WHO? WHAT? and WHERE?

Click to see full size image.

Task 2: Identify Physical Relationships with Prepositions

Click on the pictures below to see the full size version and analyze them. What people and objects can you identify in the picture? What prepositions can you use to describe them? Look at the sentences. What prepositions would make senses in those examples?

Now for the last picture, work with your partner to create sentences to describe the relationships between the people and objects in the photo. Try to use as many different prepositions as possible.

Asynchronous Tasks

Task 1: Speed Reading Practice

CLICK HERE to complete your weekly speed reading task. Remember to read the text as fast as you can while still understanding what you are reading. When you finish the text, answer all of the comprehension questions you can from memory. If there is anything you can't remember, quickly scan the text to find the answer. Submit your results and stop the timer.

Task 2: Weekly Mini Test - Part 1 Photos

CLICK HERE to access the weekly mini test. During the test, try to apply the strategies that we have practiced for his section of the exam.

Task 3: Learning Journal

Go to your Learning Journal and complete the reflection and analysis tasks for Week 3.

Love Story

Introduction: In today's class we are talking about love, famous romance stories, and ways to describe events in the past. Complete the tasks below with your partners.

Task 1: Reaction to Quotes

Read the following quotes about love. What do they mean to you? Do you agree or disagree with any of them? Why?

Click to see full size version.

Task 2: Group Discussion

Discuss the following questions with your group members. When you finish, move on to Task 3.

Who do we fall in love with? Someone like ourselves, or someone different? Do opposites attract?
What couples do you know who are a good match? Why do they go well together?
Romance is one of the most popular genres of fiction in novels, tv shows, movies, etc. Why do you think these kinds of stories are so popular?
Even in movies from other genres, there is almost always some part of the plot that is related to love, romance, and heartbreak. Think of the audiobook you listened to. Was there an element of romance in it? What about the movies and TV series you have watched recently?

Task 3: Listening Comprehension

You will listen to three people talking about the first time they fell in love. Click on your group link to open your worksheet. Then click play on the video to listen to the audio.

Group 1: CLICK HERE

Group 2: CLICK HERE

Group 3: CLICK HERE

Group 4: CLICK HERE

Group 5: CLICK HERE

Task 4: Past Perfect Review

Work with your partners to complete the brief grammar exercise.

Group 1: CLICK HERE

Group 2: CLICK HERE

Group 3: CLICK HERE

Group 4: CLICK HERE

Group 5: CLICK HERE

Task 5: Reading and Speaking

Now you will read on of the most famous love stories of all time. Click the link and open the document. Read the story and discuss the questions at the end.

Reading: CLICK HERE

Task 6: Alternative Text

Now you will read an alternative version of this story. As you read, compare the stories to find similarities and differences.

Group 1: CLICK HERE

Group 2: CLICK HERE

Group 3: CLICK HERE

Group 4: CLICK HERE

Group 5: CLICK HERE

Friday, October 16, 2020

Finding Your Story

Introduction: In today's class we will talk about the importance of finding your own personal story of what makes you you! Work with your partners to complete the following activities.

Warm Up: Word by Word

You and your partners are going to tell a story together. Each person will contribute one word. You must accept your partners' suggestion and add another word. One member of the group should write the words in the chat so you can share the story when you get back to the main room.

Task 1: Group Discussion

Talk with your partners about these questions.

What are you passionate about?
Is it possible to turn a personal passion into a career?
Are all passions equaly profitable (make money)?
Have your interests and passions changed since you were a child? If so, how and why did they change? Is there something that you were very interested in that you now don't care about so much?
Do you think it is important to have interests outside of your field of study and work?

Task 2: Humans of New York

Today we will read about a photographer with a project called Humans of New York. Before we read, let's watch this short video showing some of the subjects of his photography. Watch the video and discuss the questions with your partners.

What are your first impressions of the video?
What emotions did you feel? What emotions did the people express?
Watch the video again and identify some of the quotes that the people said. What do you think about them?

Task 3: Behind the Lens

Now you are going to read an article about the photographer, Brandon Stanton. Click on your group link below.

Group 1: CLICK HERE
Group 2: CLICK HERE
Group 3: CLICK HERE
Group 4: CLICK HERE
Group 5: CLICK HERE

Task 4: Humans of Costa Rica

Tell your own story. Use the phrases below to talk about yourself. When your partners talk, ask them follow up questions to ask form more details.

I ____ born in ...
When I was ____ years old, I ...
In the year ____ I was ____ing and ____ing because...
When I was a child I used to...
When I became a teenager, I stopped ____ing and started _____ing because...
By the time I ____, I had already _____.

Thursday, October 15, 2020

Performance 2: Work Readiness Podcast (15%)

Introduction: For your second performance evaluation you will work in a group of three to create an audio podcast. This blog post will help you get started.

Learning Objective: Collaborate with partners to record a 7 to 10 minute audio podcast on the topic of work readiness.
Evaluation Rubric: CLICK HERE to see the rubric for this performance.

Task 1: Brainstorm

Take a moment to prepare for your podcast. Click on your group link below and complete the brainstorm document with your partners.

Group 1: CLICK HERE

Group 2: CLICK HERE

Group 3: CLICK HERE

Group 4: CLICK HERE

Group 5: CLICK HERE

Group 6: CLICK HERE

Podcast Guide

You should not read during your podcast. Your speech should sound natural like you are having a conversation. You can use the questions below as a guide to help you create your recordings for the different sections of the podcast.

Part 1: Introduction

How are we going to start our podcast in a unique way to catch the audience's attention?
In our introduction, we should probably mention the topic of our podcast and why it is important. How can we express that information?

Part 2: The KASH Model

In this section we need to describe the knowledge, attitudes, skills, and habits that young people should have to find success at work. How do we want to explain this section?
Knowledge: What kinds of information do people need to know to be successful? What kind of educational experiences should they have? Why are these experiences important?
Attitudes: How should people feel about work? What attitudes should they have about the world, society, culture, and other people? How will these attitudes help them to find success?
Skills: What do successful people need to be able to do? What skills do they need to have related to their specific field? What general skills do successful people need? What kinds of interpersonal skills do they need.
Habits: What are some habits that successful people should develop? How will these habits help them be successful?

Part 3: How

In this section we need to share some ideas about how young people can develop those knowledge, attitudes, skills, and habits for sucess. What can individuals do to develop these? What can families do to help their children develop these? What can the educational system do? What can the government or society do?

Part 4: Conclusion

Now we need to finish our podcast with a concluding message. How do we want to do this? What can we say to end the podcast with a positive message? Is there an inspiring quote we could share? Do we want to make a call to action? Do we want to leave the audience with a question? What other strategies could we use?

Recording the Podcast

We are going to use the site CleanFeed to record the podcast. It is very simple to use and only one person in each group needs to create an account. Watch the video below to see the instructions.

Register for CleanFeed: One person from your group needs to go to www.cleanfeed.com and register for an account. The system will require you to confirm with an authentication email.

Open CleanFeed: Open CleanFeed and invite other users to your recording with their email addresses.

Record the Podcast: Be sure to mute your microphone in ZOOM so that there is no echo. Then record your podcast. When you finish, stop recording and download the audio file. Send the file to your partners and teacher via email. That's it!

Wednesday, October 14, 2020

Lesson Observation Processing

Instructions: Let's take a moment to process the observations that you carried out of your assigned learners. Use the prompts below to guide your conversation.

Background Information:

What course did you observe?
What was the topic of the lesson?
In a few words, describe the sequence of activities that students engaged in.

Students:

What were you able to observe or infer about students' demographics?
What could you observe or infer about their personalities and attitudes toward learning?
What were there strengths as learners?
Imagine you were the teacher of this course, what would be challenging about working with this particular group of learners?

Content and Materials:

What didactic materials were used in the lesson?
What is your opinion about the appropriateness of those materials for this context?
What is your opinion about how effectively those materials were used in this lesson?

Questions and Takeaways:

What doubts or questions do you have about the learners or context?
Can you think of any questions you would like to ask the teacher to resolve these doubts?
What insights are you taking away from this observation that are relevant to your context and needs analysis research?

The Columbian Exchange: Countable and Non-Countable Noun Review

Introduction: On October 12th we celebrate the Day of Cultural Exchange. This date marks the date in 1492 in which Spanish expeditions made the first contact between the Old World and New World. This sigular event had many historical consequences and in this activity, we will explore the effects of the exchange of animals and plants between these two parts of the globe. Work with your partners to complete the tasks below.

Task 1: Old World or New World Origin?

Your teacher assigned you to a group. Click on the link below and then go to your assigned section of the document.

Shared Document: CLICK HERE

Task 2: Paragraph Writing

Now work with your partners to write a paragraph by completing the missing information below.

"The Columbian Exchange is an event that changed the world. It represents the exchange of plants, animals, and diseases between the New and Old Worlds starting on October 12, 1492. Before the arrival of Europeans, in the Americas people ate many ______s, ________s, and also some _______ but they did not eat any ______ or ______. Europeans did not have access to _______s or _______s but they did have many ______s and a little ______. Over the centuries, these plants and animals have traveled around the globe. Now people everywhere can enjoy as much ______ and ______ as they want and they can easily buy a few ______s and _______s at their local supermarket.

Task 3: Pair Discussion

Talk to your partners about the things you eat and drink using the sentence starters below.

I typically eat lots of ______ because...
I don't drink much ______ because...
My typical meal does not include any _____ but it does include a many ______...
I think I eat to much ____ because...
I think I eat too little ______ because...
I should probably eat more ______ because...
For a light snack I eat a few ______ and ...

Continue your conversation with your partners. How many of these words can you include?

some
any
much
many
a few
a little

Task 4: Critical Thinking

Discuss these questions with a partner.

What proportion of your diet consists of New World items and Old World items?
Think about three typical Costa Rican dishes. What are their ingredients? How many of them are Old World items? How many are from the New World?
The Columbian exchange also brought many negative consequences. What were some of them?
The world of 2020 is now completely connected. What are some possitive and negative effects of our globalized society?

Saturday, October 10, 2020

Parts of Speech Rally

TOEIC - Recognizing Parts of Speech Rally

Instructions: In Parts 5 and 6 of the exam you need to be able to identify the part of speech of the missing word or phrase in order to select the right answer choice. Let's do a review of the seven most important parts of speech. Click on your group link below and complete the chart with the part of speech, a group definition, and several examples.

Group 1: CLICK HERE

Group 2: CLICK HERE

Group 3: CLICK HERE

Group 4: CLICK HERE

Group 5: CLICK HERE

Friday, October 9, 2020

Defining Success

Introduction: Hello class! In today's lesson we are going to talk about qualities of successful people and and daily strategies they use to manage their many responsibilities. Work with your partners to complete the tasks below.

Task 1: Group Discussion - Discuss the following questions with your partners for 7 minutes.

Click play on your timer.

What does success mean to you?
How does your society or culture define success?
How does the mass media define success?
No one can deny that some people are more successful than others. What are some factors that contribute to different levels of success among people? Do all people have the same chance of becoming successful?
From a business perspective, what characteristics do you think successful entrepreneurs (emprendedores) share?

Task 2: Character Traits - Click the link below and go to your assigned section of the document. Here you will find a list of character attributes. You need to categorize them as positive, negative, or neutral and say why.

Activity Document: CLICK HERE

Task 3: Listening Practice - At the Office

Click on your group link to open your worksheet. Then press play on the video in the blog to listen to the audio. Follow the instructions in the worksheet to complete the tasks.

Group 1: CLICK HERE
Group 2: CLICK HERE
Group 3: CLICK HERE
Group 4: CLICK HERE
Group 5: CLICK HERE
Group 6: CLICK HERE

Task 4: Reading and Speaking - You will read about strategies and habits than differnet successful people have developed and consider which ones could work for you. Click on the link for your group and follow the instructions in the document.

Group 1: CLICK HERE

Group 2: CLICK HERE

Group 3: CLICK HERE

Group 4: CLICK HERE

Group 5: CLICK HERE

Group 6: CLICK HERE

Task 5: Critical Thinking - Discuss the following questions with your partners.

Right Time: What time of day or night do you feel most energetic, creative, and productive?
Routines: What do you think would make you happier at work, a predictable routine or one that is varied? Why?
Stress Management: What are some of the leading causes of stress in your field? How do people manage stress to avoid burnout?
Gratitude: What do you think could be the connection between gratitude and mental health? How could people cultivate a sense of gratitude?
Self-Assessment: What strategies do you use to evaluate your own work and performance? Why do you think it is a good idea to develop the ability to be self-critical?
Personal Space: Sometimes our schedules are incredibly full and it is hard to find time for yourself. What strategies could a busy professional use to find mental space to relax and recharge?

Thursday, October 8, 2020

TOEIC Speaking - Practice Pack

Introduction: In this post you will find a series of practices exercises to improve your performance on the TOEIC Speaking exam. You have already learned many strategies during the course to provide better responses in each section of the test. Now you can use the exercises here to continue practicing in preparation for test day.

The post is organized into three sections:

Strategy Review
Practice Exercises
Sample Responses

Workflow: To get the most out of these resources, I recommend the following workflow.

Select a particular section of the test that you want to work on.
Review the strategies for that part of the exam.
Record your voice on your phone as you respond to one of the exercises.
Compare your recording to the sample response for that exercise. Ask yourself:

"What did I do well?"
"What parts of my response could be improved to be more complete, accurate, and comprehensible?"

Repeat the original exercise and record your voice.
Evaluate your second response and identify areas that have improved compared to the first recording as well as problem areas that could still be improved.

Strategy Review

Questions 1-2: Read a Text Aloud

Strategy 1: Distinguish Content Words from Function Words

English is a stress timed language. That means only certain words in the sentence receive the stress while the others are weakened and condensed. We have two kinds of words: Content Words, which are stressed, and Function Words, which are reduced and condensed to fit between the beats of the content words. The graphic below shows which kinds of words make up each category.

Example: I went for a walk in the country yesterday but it was really hot and I was bitten by a lot of mosquitoes. I can't stand mosquitoes!

Strategy 2: Use Punctuation Clues to Include Appropriate Pauses

As the strategy suggests, you will want to make a brief pause each time you come to a comma or final punctuation mark. We can combine this with Strategy 1 and read a text with appropriate word stress on the content words and include pauses on the relevant punctuation. Consider the example below.

Strategy 3: Use Appropriate Rising and Falling Intonation

In addition to stress and pausing, you will also need to use appropriate intonation. Keep in mind the following typical intonation patterns in English.

Yes-No Questions: These questions finish with rising intonation.

Are you looking for me (↑)? Can I help you (↑)? Do you like to travel (↑)?

Information-WH Questions: These questions finish with falling intonation.

What style of flooring tiles do you want to use in the lobby(↓)?

Lists of Three or More Items: Intonation in lists follows the pattern rising, rising, falling.

The store sells clothing (↑), equipment (↑), and memorabilia (↓).

Question 3: Describe a Photograph

Strategy 1: Follow the Photo Description Framework

Click to see full size image.

Context: Introduce the photograph using a one sentence description that provides the general context and answers the questions Who, What, and Where?

Example: "In this picture I see a couple (who) ordering food (what) in a restaurant (where)."

Focal Point: Describe in rich detail the main focus of the picture including what the people are doing, what they look like, their clothing, and their emotional state (if appropriate).

Example: "A waitress is taking a man’s order while his partner is reading the menu. The waitress is wearing a white dress and an apron. She is taking notes on a small pad. The man is wearing a formal long sleeve shirt and the other person at the table has glasses and is wearing a sweater."

Speculation: Add detail to your description by making intelligent guesses when you are not completely sure about something. Use speculative language like: may, might, could, perhaps, it seems, etc. You can speculate about the relationship between the people, what they are talking about, what they are doing, what they might have done just before the photo was taken, or what they might do next. Be sure to provide evidence for your speculations, though. Use phrases like: “For that reason, I think...”, “This makes me think...”, “Which is why I think...”, etc.

Example: "It looks like they are in an outdoor patio section of the restaurant. It is quite sunny and there are coffee cups on the table. This makes me think that it might be breakfast time. Perhaps this is a hotel restaurant and the diners are guests staying there."

Relationships: Use prepositions of place (on, next to, under, behind, etc.) to describe the placement of different people and objects in the photo. Use phrases to direct the listener’s attention to different parts of the photo like: “in the background”, “in the foreground”, “on the left/right”, “in the bottom right corner”, “in the center”, etc.

Examples: "On the table in the foreground there are empty dishes and coffee cups. There seems to be a plant or flower in the center of the table. In the background of the picture I can see other customers eating and conversing at their tables and behind them there is a garden or green area with trees and bushes."

Questions 4-6: Personal Information Questions

Strategy 1: Recognize the Question

Identify and answer everything the question is asking. Be aware that some questions will ask for multiple pieces of information.

“When and where do you…?” - Place and Time
“How often do you…?” - Frequency
“How do you decide…?” - Method
“What is your favorite... , and why?” - Example and Reason

Strategy 2: Use Tenses and Structures in Your Response

Pay attention to structure of the question to recognize which verb tense you should use in your answer.

“What is one of the most popular…?” - Present
“When was the last time...?” - Past
“What is the most...you have ever…?” - Present Perfect / Past

Strategy 3: Transform the Question into a Statement

In order to provide complete answers quickly, transform the question into a statement to begin your response.

“What is the most important holiday in your country?”
The most important holiday in my country is…
“What do people in your country like to do on vacation?”
-For vacation people in my country tend to prefer…

Strategy 4: Review Useful Phrase to Organize Your Ideas Quickly

Become familiar with useful phrases that can help you organize your ideas quickly.

“Well, there are a lot of _____ that I like, but if I had to choose one, it would have to be ________.” (framing your answer)
“I would have to say that my favorite ______ is ______.” (framing your answer)
“The reason I say this is because…” (adding detail)
“One reason for this is…” (adding detail)
“For example, you can…” (adding detail)
“Hmmm, that’s a good question.” (buying time)
“Well, uh...let me see...basically in my country people like to…” (buying time)

Strategy 5: Improvise if Necessary

You have to answer the question appropriately but you do not have to tell the truth. Don’t waste time thinking of a true answer if it would be quicker and easier to make it up. Just make sure you answer the question appropriately and completely.

Questions 7-9: Respond to Questions Using Specific Information

Strategy 1: Skim the Document

Use the preparation time to skim the document to understand its structure and identify where key information can be found. This will save you valuable seconds when responding to the questions.

Look for arrival and departure dates, start and finish times of meetings, names of people or companies.
Look for exceptions marked with asterisks or signaled in some other way as this information might be relevant for one of the responses to the questions.

Strategy 2: Use Filler Language

When answering a question, use filler language to buy time while scanning for the specific information you need.

I'd be happy to find that information for you...
Let me just check the agenda here...
Let's see...according to the information I have...

Strategy 3: Be Diplomatic

Your responses should be factually accurate and socially appropriate. Be diplomatic when giving bad news. Use phrases to soften your answers when giving negative responses.

Unfortunately, Mr. Smith will not be attending the conference due to a schedule conflict.
I’m sorry to say that it looks like the scheduled dinner meeting has been canceled.
I´m afraid that won´t be possible because...

Question 10: Solve a Problem

Strategy 1: Follow the Problem Solving Organizational Framework

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Introduction: In your opening sentence say who the message is for, identify yourself and state why you are calling. The following frames can help you create your introduction.

"Hello, this message is for ___(caller's name)___. I am __(your name)__ from __(your company)__ and I'm returning your call about __(the problem)__."
"Good afternoon, this is __(your name)__ from __(your company)__. I am calling __(caller's name)__ to talk about __(the problem)__."
Example: "This is a message for Jenny Pollard. This is Mark from the Central Heating Company returning your call. I got your message regarding the fact that your new heating system doesn't seem to be working properly and I want to see how we can help you with this.

Focus on the Problem: After your introduction you should apologize and express sympathy for what the caller is going through. These phrases can be helpful.

I'm/We're sorry to hear that...
I/We'd like to apologize for this...
Please accept my/our apologies for this...
We sincerely hope you will accept our apologies for this situation.
I know it must feel frustrating for you to be in this situation.

Be sure to restate the issue in your own words so that the TOEIC raters can tell that you fully understand the problem. One way to do this in a natural way is to offer some kind of explanation about why the problem may have occurred. Take a look at these examples.

Situation: Delivery was late.
We recently hired a new delivery driver and he got lost on his route. That is why he arrived a little late with the delivery.

Situation: Wrong color chair was shipped.
It seems that there was a problem with the computer system in the warehouse and that is why the wrong color chair was shipped to you by mistake.

Provide a viable and time-bound solution or suggestion about how the problem can be fixed. Give specific time references regarding what you will do and when.

We´re going to arrange for someone to fix the problem this afternoon.
We'd like to send the missing parts by courier to your office this evening.
I would like to offer you a replacement copy. Come by the store anytime this week to pick it up.
We will fix the problem in the system immediately so that this problem will never happen again.

If the problem does not have a solution, you can explain what steps you will take so that the problem doesn't happen again in the future. You can also offer some kind of financial compensation if appropriate.

Because this was our mistake, we would like to offer you a 20% discount on your next purchase.

Wrap Up: Finish the call by offering another sincere apology.

So once again, I would like to apologize on behalf of _____ for the trouble you had.
We're really sorry for the mistake and I can assure you it will not happen again.

Question 11: Give an Opinion

Strategy 1: Recognize What the Question is Asking - Question prompts in this section typically fall into the following categories. Pay close attention to what the prompt requires so that you are sure to respond completely and appropriately.

Preference: Would you rather ... or ... ?
Agree / Disagree: Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
Hypothetical: Imagine you were ...
Direct Opinion: What is your opinion about ... ?

Strategy 2: Organize your ideas: In order to provide a coherent and cohesive response to this task, it is helpful to follow this simple framework to organize your talk.

Click to see full size image.

Introduction: Express your opinion in the first one or two sentences so that the listener clearly understands what you think. Do not "sit on the fence" and fail to commit to a clear opinion when asked to choose between two alternatives. As with other sections of this test, you have to provide an appropriate response, not necessarily a TRUE response. If it is easier for you make something up rather than give your real opinion, DO IT!

I believe...
In my opinion...
I agree with the statement that...
I would have to disagree with the idea that...

Content: It is important to support your opinion with reasons and details. Use transitional phrases to guide the listener.

First of all...
Second...
Another reason...
For example...
Finally...

Conclusion: Finish your talk by restating your opinion in different words.

...and that is why I think it is important to...
...and those are reasons why I agree that...
...so that is why I believe that...

Practice Exercises

Questions 1-2: Read a Text Aloud

For each exercise, study the text for 45 seconds. Then record your voice as your read the text aloud. You have a maximum of 45 seconds for each recording.

Exercise 1: Hi. This is Myra Peters calling about my appointment with Dr. Jones. I have a three o’clock appointment scheduled for this afternoon. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to keep it because of an important meeting at work. So, I’ll need to reschedule. I was hoping to come in sometime next week. Any time Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday afternoon would work for me. I hope the doctor has some time available on one of those days. Please call me back and let me know.

Exercise 2: Our speaker tonight is Mr. John Wilson, who has just returned from traveling in South America. Mr. Wilson spent his trip photographing scenes of small-town life across the continent. His work is well known around the world, and his photography has been featured in numerous newspapers, magazines, and books. Tonight he will share with us photographs and stories from his recent trip and will answer any questions you may have. Due to time constraints, we ask you to hold your questions until the end of the talk.

Exercise 3: Wonderland Mall is the largest shopping mall in the city, with over one hundred stores on three levels. Wonderland Mall is conveniently located near all major bus lines, and we offer free parking in our garage. Everything you need to buy is here - clothes, shoes, books, sports equipment, furniture, and much more. After shopping, you can enjoy a tasty snack, lunch, or dinner. We have seven restaurants and three cafés. Then, relax with a movie at our fifteen-screen movie theater. Wonderland Mall is a great place for the whole family.

Exercise 4: Tourist agencies often offer sightseeing tours by bus. Many tourists, however, prefer to sightsee on foot. A walk through the streets of an unfamiliar city brings you closer to the people and activities around you. On foot, you can really hear the sounds, smell the smells, and see the sights of the city. If you see an interesting store, you can pay it a quick visit. You can stop at a café to try out some local dishes. Or you can take a shortcut through a pretty park. It’s fun to take a sightseeing tour on foot.

Exercise 5: When looking for a place to live, most people think about convenience. If they are parents with children, they want to lie near the best schools. They want to have public transportation or good roads available to them. They don’t want to have to travel far for shopping and entertainment. People also enjoy living near a park or gym so that they have easy access to recreation. And, of course, for the majority of people, the most important thing is to live in close proximity to their jobs.

Exercise 6: Whether you’re visiting the city for business or pleasure, High Towers Hotel is the place to stay. All our rooms are clean and spacious with comfortable beds and pleasant views of the city. We are conveniently located in the center of the city, near stores, museums, and offices. For the enjoyment of our guests, we have a swimming pool and exercise room. The hotel restaurant is one of the best in the city. Tourists and business people alike choose the High Towers Hotel time after time.

Exercise 7: When you go on a job interview, it is important to make a good impression. The first thing the interviewer will observe about you is your clothes, so dress in a neat, conservative outfit. Dark colors are best. Men should wear simple ties, and women should not wear short skirts. The way you behave is equally important. Enter the room with confidence. Look the interviewer in the eye while shaking hands. Don’t forget to smile pleasantly at the same time. Introduce yourself in a clear voice.

Exercise 8: Do you like seafood? The Ocean View Restaurant offers the tastiest seafood dishes in town. Relax in our spacious dining room while enjoying spectacular views of the beach and ocean. Choose from a large variety of seafood dishes on our menu or enjoy a little bit of everything at our Sunday evening buffet. At the end of the meal, be sure to try one of our famous desserts. The chocolate cake is simply scrumptious. For a relaxing, delicious meal, visit the Ocean View.

Question 3: Describe a Photograph

Give yourself 30 seconds to study the photograph. Then record your voice as you describe what you see in the image for 45 seconds.

Exercise 9

Exercise 10

Exercise 11

Exercise 12

Questions 4-6: Personal Information Questions

For each exercise, press play on the video and record your voice as you respond to the three questions. You have no preparation time for this part of the exam.

Exercise 13

Exercise 14

Exercise 15

Exercise 16

Questions 7-9: Respond to Questions Using Specific Information

For each exercise, take 30 seconds to study the information in the graphic. Then press play on the video and record your voice as you answer the three questions.

Exercise 17: Click play on the video and respond to the questions using the graphic below.

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Exercise 18: Click play on the video and respond to the questions using the graphic below.

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Exercise 19: Click play on the video and respond to the questions using the graphic below.

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Exercise 20: Click play on the video and respond to the questions using the graphic below.

Click to see full size image.

Question 10: Solve a Problem

In each exercise press play on the video and take notes on a piece of paper as the person describes their problem. Then you will hear a beep which indicates the start of your 30 seconds of preparation time. When you hear the second beep, you should record your voice as you deliver your response for 60 seconds.

Exercise 21

Exercise 22

Exercise 23

Exercise 24

Question 11: Give an Opinion

In each exercise, press play on the video to hear the question prompt. You will hear a beep that indicates the start of your 30 seconds of preparation time. When you hear the second beep, record your voice as you provide your response for 60 seconds.