Three Discourse Lessons

Presentation Review

Group 1: Osaro & Jim

I like the music and imagery. Also, hearing Osaro speak is powerful because English is her second language. This could be motivational for students. I think it’s a shame that many schools abroad, only hire native English speakers because a lot of ELLs are fluent, and more grammatically accurate. It is cool she talks about an authentic listening experience though. Jim presents great information, and uses intonation to emphasize information, questions, and specific information he wants to share. They did a great job adding in videos into their presentation, I need to learn how to do that. They also, met the time length considering they only have two people. I like how Osara ends the presentation. I think they did an awesome using cool DML tricks for their complete presentation!

Discourse & Pragmatics

TESOL Concepts and Communication strategies, through Immigrant, ELL, Conversation Observation:

Alexandria White

Discourse and Pragmatics

MA-TESOL, USFCA

Introduction

            This paper evaluates conversations between native, English speaking students, in their one-on-one meetings with recent, one to three year, US immigrant students, who attend Newcomer school, which specialized in TESOL, specific academics. Approximately four minutes, of conversation and transcript is observed from New Immigrants Share their Story video, Youtube, 2011.  This video was chosen because the conversation emphasizes Gee’s, seven building tasks to efficient English language learning, sociocultural influences, and pragmatic deconstruction, for ELL conversation practice (Gee, 2014)

Self-Assessment:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1W-o7MzWZbn860j6JVYjyIuktVGO9ADDQT2lC6LhsCxQ/viewform

This form created through Google docs. would be a great way to assess student communicative competency levels. I would use discourse analysis in reading their responses. I created short answers, paragraph answers, and multiple choices to get an idea of where students are in their comprehension, reading, and writing skills. This would be used to introduce student, and give me an idea of areas we can improve and strengthen. My favorite question is asking "where knowing English would help the student most?" This way I can plan, and create a curriculum that fits student communicative needs. I would incorporate simulation, spontaneous speaking, and role playing activities for better discourse analysis. 

Group Presentation

Grice's Maxims

1. The maxim of quantity, where one tries to be as informative as one possibly can, and gives as much information as is needed, and no more.
   
2. The maxim of quality, where one tries to be truthful, and does not give information that is false or that is not supported by evidence.
   
3. The maxim of relation, where one tries to be relevant, and says things that are pertinent to the discussion.
   
4. The maxim of manner, when one tries to be as clear, as brief, and as orderly as one can in what one says, and where one avoids obscurity and ambiguity.
   
   
   As the maxims stand, there may be an overlap, as regards the length of what one says, between the maxims of quantity and manner; this overlap can be explained (partially if not entirely) by thinking of the maxim of quantity (artificial though this approach may be) in terms of units of information. In other words, if the listener needs, let us say, five units of information from the speaker, but gets less, or more than the expected number, then the speaker is breaking the maxim of quantity. However, if the speaker gives the five required units of information, but is either too curt or long-winded in conveying them to the listener, then the maxim of manner is broken. The dividing line however, may be rather thin or unclear, and there are times when we may say that both the maxims of quantity and quality are broken by the same factors.
   
   
   

There are similar strategies that are needed for efficient listening and reading. Choose two strategies that apply to reading and listening. Explain each strategy and how it applies to reading and listening. Then suggest one type of activity to help students develop one of the strategies that you explained. Be sure to describe the type of student this activity can be used with (e.g., young learners, adolescents, adults, college students):

5. Decode language effectively and quickly without using context, when needed.

       Student is an excellent decoder, using linguistic skills, semantic and syntactic knowledge to authentically and automatically, recognize vocabulary and context.

8. ELLs need to develop metacognitive awareness of top-down, and bottom-down strategies, and skills.

       Student is simultaneously using top-down, and bottom-up strategies, and consciously practicing, by applying knowledge of roots, to guess meaning of unknown words.

An activity for college, ESL students, practice and apply effective reading and listening strategies, would be a timed reading, that uses unfamiliar words, in an already practiced topics. I found a worksheet, at http://www.losmedanos.edu/assessment/documents/accuplacer-esl-samplequestions.pdf, that is college, level ESL testing. There is not as much motivational, fun to the worksheet, but is a test to understand where the student is in processing ideas, understanding concepts, predicting, using top-down, bottom-up together, and their metacognitive application of knowledge. This tests, both 5. And 8. Strategies. Here is one question that has listener administering these skills:

R4. Speaking to a group of people can be a frightening experience. Some speakers cope by looking above the heads of the audience. Others try to imagine that they are talking to a friend. A few try picturing the audience in some non-threatening way, such as in their pajamas.

The author of the passage assumes that speakers should

A. feel comfortable when addressing an audience.

B. scare the audience.
C. encourage people to talk during the speech.
D. speak only to familiar people.

The answer is A. the author wants the reader to know, you should feel comfortable when speaking to a group of people, because he gives tips on how to feel comfortable, even though it can be a “frightening experience.” This text would be timed. I would use the time to see the students, pace in processing questions.

ACCUPLACER ESL Reading Skills Test. (2007, January 1). Retrieved November 29, 2014, from http://www.losmedanos.edu/assessment/documents/accuplacer-esl-samplequestions.pdf

Reading Processing, Scanning for Information Activity

M5, P2: Design one activity for students using authentic materials that focuses on a specific purpose for reading and a specific reading skill such as skimming, scanning, or extensive reading. Do not choose intensive or close reading. Be sure to describe the students your exercise targets.

Activity: Plan a movie night for the weekend. Class will view three movie trailers, that is appropriate for age, and information to ESL.

Objective: Reading Processing, scanning for specific information.

Scenario: Student has Saturday night to go to the movies with a friend. They get to pick the movie of their choice, out of three movie trailers watched in class. Their time frame to go out to movies is from 6PM- 9PM.

Resources: Students can visit, http://www.fandango.com/denver_+co_movietimes, this site is set for Denver, CO because that is were I hypothetically teach.

Goals: I want to students to be able to apply scanning to their everyday life. Scanning includes, knowing the specific information you want, to get the information you need. For example, the student, must organize timing with fiend, know which movie they are interested in, and then go to website to organize, and plan through scanning, which movie time fits their schedule. Students must find the movies, at specific time, and consider the length, time of the movie.

Proverb, I love!

Lecture on Conceptual Metaphors by George Lakoff

This is a marvelous lecture, by Professor George Lakoff, on conceptual metaphors that help linguist and scientist, generalize relationships, life situations, and events, through metaphors, that help us understand dynamics, emotions, and ideas behind actions. Lakoff became interested in conceptual metaphors, after a student brings up her break-up, for class discussion. Thus, together they conceived the generalization of “love seen as a journey.”

            It is this idea, that a relationships can be related to love, literally like you are going on a journey. The amazing views, and adventures you will encounter, as well as the hardships that are endured. Lakoff, breaks down the relationship through mathematical mapping. I.e. the person(s): driver(s), love: vehicle, spinning wheels: impediments in relationship, or obstacles, no progress in relationship: stuck in snow, sand, ice, equals feelings of frustration. Break-up: cannot keep going, giving up.

            This generalization and analogies, through metaphor, is relatable; allowing others to feel connection, empathy, and compassion towards the student’s break-up situation. The idea, of “______, as a journey,” can be anything; career, relationships, academics, actual travel, which can be inserted into sentence above. Any of these concepts can relate to the “love as a journey,” metaphorically, mostly because the metaphor explains highs and lows, interpersonal struggles and defeat, that can sometimes be hard to explain to others.

G. Lakoff, Metaphors in our Daily Lives, Conceptual Metaphors. YouTube,https://usfca.instructure.com/courses/1423849/assignments/5400106#submit.

Comprehension Exercise:

Timeline:

Childhood (87-2000)           High School (’01-’07)     College (’07-’10)     Adult                                                                                                                               (’10-Today)

___________+___________________+________________+______________+

Where the Red Fern Grows               Sula            Not very much Reading     Ekart Tolle

Nancy Drew                                 Native Son                newspapers            Depak Choprah

Lord of the Flies                    Wuthering Heights          Textbooks                  Spiritual

                                               

Books I loved as a child:


Where the Red Fern Grows, Lord of the Flies, Nancy Drew series

Memories I have of seeing somebody read:

My mom would read books like the Celestine Prophecies, Ismael, and other books about religion, and discuss them with my grandma at the coffee table. I also watched a lot of Oprah, so I followed her book club, even though I never fully read her book club books.


People I remember who loved to read:

Friends, in AP English class loved to read and discuss books.

People who read to me when I was little:

I remember, mostly, my teachers, and grandma would read to me.

Books I loved reading in school:


I loved American literature, like Mark Twain, The Awakening, and The Great Gatsby, Native Son, A Raisin in the Sun, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest, and Sula. I like any book that discusses history and social change controversy.

Books I hated reading in school:


I hated to rush through books. A lot of times I would read for class, and have a few chapters to cover in a night. I never thought that was a fair amount of time to read and process what I was reading. But I did not like reading Albert Camus books, I am not a fan of existential writings, too negative.

Books I have read on my own and enjoyed:

Ekhart Tolle, Depak Chopra books, on life, ego, relationships, interpersonal healing. These authors have a lasting influence on how I want to show up in the World.

Literary characters I connect to:

I loved Emily Bronte’s, Wuthering Heights, it took me forever to read. I wrote my high school senior paper on there work. The book was gothic, and depressing, but dissecting the themes within her writing was fascinating. Her diction, and imagery in writing is impeccable. Also, Memoirs of a Geisha, was another book I really connected to. I guess, I have a preference for book with strong female characters experiencing social strife, along with strong imagery.

Books that have captured my imagination:


The Awakening, Wuthering Heights, and Memoirs of a Geisha. With each of these books, I imagined what I would do and how I would feel in these women’s shoes. Today, I will go to the beach and imagine how much going into the ocean symbolizes renewal, new beginnings, creativity, artistic inspiration, and liberation, like in the book The Awakening. I read this book when I was 16, I am now 26.

Books and/or writers I am interested in, but haven’t yet read:

I pretty much know what I am interested in, books that are spiritually, and mentally inspiring.

Books I pretended to read or understand:


I tried to read Fifty Shades of Grey, and Hunger Games. I did not like them, they are trendy books, that do not inspire me. In fact, I think it is stupid certain school districts required students to read the Hunger Games because the message and theme of that book is terrifying.

Other types of reading materials I read and enjoy:


I like to read magazine articles; celebrity gossip is a guilty pleasure of mine. I like drama, when I am not involved in it, and it is light.

Other memories I have about books and reading:

I remember that I did not like to read when I was a kid. The materials did not interest me. Until, I read Where the Red Fern Grows, in 3^rd grade. I was literally crying at my desk, and when reading block was over, I asked my teacher to let me finish the last chapter, or else I couldn’t go on with my day. It was in this moment, that I realize now, that I like to be emotionally connected to what I read. Everything I spend time doing, especially reading, I want it to teach me something about the World, how it works, and give me perspective on life events, that people overcome.