Errors and Feedback por: Aubrey Divino Y Laura Playa.

Errors and Feedback

por: Aubrey Divino

YLaura Playa

Cindy is 7 years old and has been learning English for about 1 year. Her first language is Korean. (This is real.)

In summer day the goose’s baby geese are hatched. but goose gave to Templeton one of the not hatch egg. But everybody don’t think Templeton can take care of those egg. And Fern coming and visit Wilbur almost every day and setting on the stool and watched

How would you correct this as a teacher?

As a teacher: How do you feel about correcting students?

As a student: How do you feel about being corrected by a teacher?

Is there a proper way to correct students?

In the long run, is error correction helpful or detrimental to students learning?

Before we start…

A teacher’s attitude/opinion on how to correct mistakes can depend on:

Whether they’re teaching their native language vs. second language

Their approach or method they were taught and/or use- Direct Method: no use of student’s native language as a tool

for comparing or explaining new words- Audiolingualism: behavioral approach.

Focus: *Static drills *positive vs. negative reinforcement* *Grammar*Memorization*

- Natural Approach: influenced by SLA theory. Focus: language acquisition vs. language learning

- Suggestopaedia: Focus: relaxation of the student to take away anxiety that may hinder learning

- Total Physical Response (TPR): coordination of speech and action

Focus: Listening before speakingMore often or intense the memory= more likely to

remember it

Because everyone has an opinion…

What are some reasons for errors that language learners make?

Pre-Systematic = They guessSystematic = Made while the student was testing out a hypothesisPost-Systematic= Slip of the tongue, a careless mistake

(How can we categorize these errors?)

Types of Errors

How can we categorize these errors?oLexical

Vocabulary: He likes to eat soupa.

oPhonologicalPronunciation: I saw a wabbit.

oSyntacticGrammar: He bought a house purple.

oInterpretive Misunderstanding: The intention of the speaker is not well understood.

P1: I like to eat popcorn.P2: Hears: I like to eat corn.

oPragmaticoConversational: Don’t apply conversational rules.

Interrupt when you’re not supposed to.

Identifying Errors

*Writing is often times more criticized than spoken language in the real world*

Sample model:1. Comprehensibility

Is it understandable? (What are they trying to say?) Are there areas of incoherence? (If you have no idea what they’re saying…)If so, do they affect the overall message? (Can you still see the big picture?)Does communication break down? (Not comprehensive=no communication)

2. Task Has the student fulfilled the task required of them? (Assignment details, etc.)

3. Syntax and Lexis Are they appropriate to the task? Are they accurate?

Note: What are the advantages and disadvantages of this particular model?

*Only One Shot*

Written Language in the Classroom

Friend:•Mind maps•How many paragraphs will you need?•Outlines•Write out the vocab and grammar structures you are going to use•What information to I need•What type of paper is this? Compare and Contrast, biography, etc.

Planning: Friend or Foe?

Foe:•Don’t provide students with a layout.•Don’t provide them structure.

Ex: It can be however long you want it to be.

•Students use the wrong style.•No flow to the paper.

•No connection words.•As a teacher, you need to provide the correct information to the student!

Planning: Friend or Foe?

Techniques for correcting papers:•Example from field teach/consistency•What would you have done in that situation?•Student’s Job:

Edit, edit, edit!•Grammar auction/mistake maze activities

•Teacher’s Job (That’s YOU!)

Be careful…How much is too much? How much is not enough?

Planning Ahead

Helpful tips:•In a different color pen, underline correct examples.•Write the correct form in their place. (depending on the level)•Use codes

VOC=Vocabulary, WO= Word Order

•Put the number of errors in each line, then let the students look for them.•Peer-editing•Meet with the student and let them know their main errors

What would you do?

•In summer day the goose’s baby geese are hatched. but goose gave to Templeton one of the not hatch egg. But everybody don’t think Templeton can take care of those egg. And Fern coming and visit Wilbur almost every day and setting on the stool and watched.

Do you change your mind?

Some students focus more on fluency rather than accuracy, and some care more about accuracy than fluency.

Examples:Accuracy: “I…bought it….for…those kids...over there.”

*The perfectionist

Fluency: “I go shopping today and I buyed new clothes.”

*The speedy paper writer

As a language learner, do you fall into one of these categories? (What do you focus on?)

Accuracy vs. Fluency

*Written proficiency more common than oral proficiency*

Many MSU graduates have this problem! Why?

This can happen because:• Students don't experiment with new language they

hear. • At lower levels, students' output is mostly lexical. • The slower, accuracy-focused students may test

the patience of their listeners.• The speech of some very “fluent” students contain

so many errors that it may negatively affect the listener and overall conversation.

Oral vs. Written Language

Questions to think about..1. Does the mistake affect communication?2. Are we concentrating on accuracy at the moment?3. Is it really wrong? Or is it my imagination?4. Why did the student make the mistake?5. Is it the first time the student has spoken for a long time?6. Could the student react badly to my correction?7. Have they met this language point in the current lesson?8. Is it something the students have already met?9. Is this a mistake that several students are making?10. Would the mistake irritate someone?11. What time is it?12. What day is it?13. What's the weather like?

Let it go or no?

These are used for dealing with errors as they occur.

oUsing fingersFor example, to highlight an incorrect form or to indicate a word order mistake.

oGesturesFor example, using hand gestures to indicate the use of the wrong tense.

oMouthingThis is useful with pronunciation errors. The teacher mouths the correct pronunciation without making a sound. For example, when an individual sound is mispronounced or when the word stress is wrong. Of course it can also be used to correct other spoken errors.

oReformulationFor example:

Student: I went in ScotlandTeacher: Oh really, you went to Scotland, did you?

•Field place examples?

On-the-Spot!

•Have you seen these types of errors in your field placements? Which ones?

FingersGestures

Mouthing Reformulation

•Have you seen your teachers use anything different than these types of correction?

On-the-spot!

•Noting down common errors•Individual or as a whole class.•Give each student a note card and have them write one thing the want to work on. (ex. Rolling my r’s). Watch the student throughout the semester.

As a class: •Use the preterite form more often.•Recording

Have students record themselves, then listen to the errors they have made. Redo it several times.

Student’s see improvement + pay more attention

Delayed Correction Techniques

Know the level you are teaching

•crawling vs. running

Different stages of SLAhttp://fcit.usf.edu/esol/resources/stages.html

Stages of SLA

Systematicity- idea that learning is highly systematic•“L2 learners follow a fairly rigid developmental route, in the same way as children learning their L1 do, and not dissimilar in many respects from the L1 route.”

•Ex. Hernández Chávez (1972) showed that although the plural structure is almost the same for Spanish and English, Spanish children learning English still went through a phase of omitting plural marking just like English children do.

-Before this, it was thought that second language learners' productions were a mixture of both L1 and L2, with the L1 either helping or hindering the process (depending on whether structures are similar or different in the two languages). This was clearly shown not to be the case, even if the L1 of learners does of course play some role

In a nutshell: Idea that there’s a similar systematic process for learning any language, and many L2 learners follow it no matter what their L1 is.

Systema-what?

•Generally and surprisingly…•Whether the L2 learner is learning in class or immersed in the country of the language, no matter what their L1, AND no matter what was taught…

•Learners develop in similar ways no matter what age they are!!!

Variability

•Learners still follow the same stages, but at different speeds, depending on their L1

•Example:•English learners of French:•Produce: la souris mange le

(the mouse eats it) •Don’t Produce: la souris le mange

(the mouse it eats)

•French learners of English•Never produce: the mouse it eats•Why? Their interlanguage which one would expect if transfer was taking place.•Interlanguage places the linguistic level of the L2 learner. Their interlanguage is learning the placing of prepositions.

*We don’t know why learners learn at different rates. Young or old L2L, they learn

language in the same route.*

Variability

•Why is there variability???•Motivation

•Attitude•Intelligence

•Sociolinguistic Variables

•Social Setting•Aptitude

•Fossilization

Variability

1. Groups of four

2. Come up with:-1 “DO”-1 “DON’T” for your assigned topic

3. Write the “do” on your purple paper and “don’t” on your green paper separately on the two sheets of paper given to you. Options:4. Briefly explain the “do” and “don’t” of your group -or- Spice it up and briefly act it out as if it was a classroom!

Do’s and Don’ts Activity