Unit 10 Teaching speaking 1.Teaching Aims: To discuss how to teach speaking From the characteristics of spoken language I will introduce types of spcaking tasks and the ways to improve students' speaking abilitry 2.Teaching Content: 1)What are the characteristics of spoken language? 2)Designing speaking lasks 3)Using group work in speaking tasks 4)Types of speaking tasks 5)Conclusion 3.Teaching Hours::4 periods 4.Teaching materials: 1)Texthook 2)Falsh cards 3CAI 4)Tape recorder 5.Teaching Methods: 1)Lecture Computer-aided Instruction) 2)Demonstralion 3)Students Practice 6.Teaching Procedures:
Unit 10 Teaching speaking 1.Teaching Aims: To discuss how to teach speaking. From the characteristics of spoken language I will introduce types of speaking tasks and the ways to improve students’ speaking abilitiy 2.Teaching Content: 1) What are the characteristics of spoken language? 2) Designing speaking tasks 3) Using group work in speaking tasks 4) Types of speaking tasks 5) Conclusion 3. Teaching Hours:: 4 periods 4. Teaching materials: 1)Textbook 2)Falsh cards 3)CAI 4)Tape recorder 5.Teaching Methods: 1) Lecture ( Computer-aided Instruction) 2)Demonstration 3) Students Practice 6.Teaching Procedures:
Part one Some Questions: 1)Why is speaking important? When we talk about speaking in class it is important to differentiate between the kind of speaking which occurs in mechanical drills and repetition,on the one hand,and situations where students use as much language as they can and where getting their mexage across is just as important as grammatical accuracy,on the other.In this article it is the latter kind of speaking that we are going to look at. There are three main reasons why it is important to encourage students to speak as fluently as possible.In the first place.speaking activities give them a chance for rehearsal-practising the real skill of speaking as a preparation for using it outside the classroom.Secondly,when students speak using all and amy language they know,it provides valuable feedback about their language knowledge,for both them and their teachers How well can they perform in spontaneous comversationall situatios?What do they seem to know?What are they finding difficult to achieve? Lastly,good speaking activities provoke genuine student engagement where they really get involved with the process of language learning in class 2)What is good speaking material? Good speaking activities should have a number of characteristics they should engage the students by making them want to take part.They should have some purpoose which is not purely linguistic. such as solving a problem or reaching a decision.They should be designed to maximise the range of language they will use.so they should not restrict students for example.to specific gramma patterns. 3)What kinds of speaking activity can we use? A popular kind of speaking activity involves an information gap Students have different information and they have to solve a problem by swapping facts to bridge the infommation gap between them.Typical examples include situations where four students hae each seen separale pictures:by telling each other what they have seen,they are able to work out the story that the pictures
Part one Some Questions: 1) Why is speaking important? When we talk about speaking in class it is important to differentiate between the kind of speaking which occurs in mechanical drills and repetition, on the one hand, and situations where students use as much language as they can and where getting their message across is just as important as grammatical accuracy, on the other. In this article it is the latter kind of speaking that we are going to look at. There are three main reasons why it is important to encourage students to speak as fluently as possible. In the first place, speaking activities give them a chance for rehearsal - practising the real skill of speaking as a preparation for using it outside the classroom. Secondly, when students speak using all and any language they know, it provides valuable feedback about their language knowledge, for both them and their teachers. How well can they perform in spontaneous conversational situations? What do they seem to know? What are they finding difficult to achieve? Lastly, good speaking activities provoke genuine student engagement where they really get involved with the process of language learning in class. 2) What is good speaking material? Good speaking activities should have a number of characteristics: they should engage the students by making them want to take part. They should have some purpose which is not purely linguistic - such as solving a problem or reaching a decision. They should be designed to maximise the range of language they will use, so they should not restrict students, for example, to specific grammar patterns. 3) What kinds of speaking activity can we use? A popular kind of speaking activity involves an information gap. Students have different information and they have to solve a problem by swapping facts to bridge the information gap between them. Typical examples include situations where four students have each seen separate pictures: by telling each other what they have seen, they are able to work out the story that the pictures
Another kind of activity which provokes the kind of speaking we are considering.involves the students in cooducting surveys.These can be on any subject:they can question each other about their daily lives (habits.family.)or preferences (food.films,books)Questionnaires and surveys can fit into a longer teaching sequence so that planning the questionnaire and collating the results afterwards can be valuable language-learning activities in themseves Discussions provide ideal opportunities for speaking.Subjects with scope for controversy are best for discussion:roles of men and women,censorship,animal rights patriotism,for ecample.Many people have plenty to say on such topies.Some of the most enjoyable classes of all are ones when unplanned discussions suddenly arise on issues that matter to the students But most teachers will also be able to remember discussions that simply did not work,despite a scemingly good topic se it is unrealistic to expect someone to discourse fluently in a foreign language without any warning.formuing deeply-held opinions quickly in front of fifteen.twenty-fiv or more fellow students.It is not enough,in other words,to ask students."What do you think of x?.Instead.teachers should plan the discussion sequence giving students material to react to,and time to plan what they are going to sary A popular way of emphasising the rehearsal apect of speaking activities is to use simulations and role plays.This is where students pretend that they are in a different situation,either as themselves or playing the role of someone quite different We could ak them to be guests at some party and go there as different characters.We might elear the classroom so there is an open space for them to party in.They could,as themselves,pretend to be at an airport trying to check in luggage,or cither as themselves or another character take part in a television programme.In all these cases the students are using language in order to participate in the activity rather than the other way round Some students find it very comforting to use language in a simulaled environment,playing the role of someone else-it allows them to experiment more freely than they ordinarily would. 4)When should students speak? Many people have thought that speaking activities should come at the end of a teaching squences you have taught the present continuous for future,for excample,and now you ask students to role-play situations in which they make arrangements and invite each other (What are you doing
Another kind of activity which provokes the kind of speaking we are considering, involves the students in conducting surveys. These can be on any subject: they can question each other about their daily lives (habits, family,) or preferences (food, films, books). Questionnaires and surveys can fit into a longer teaching sequence so that planning the questionnaire and collating the results afterwards can be valuable language-learning activities in themselves. Discussions provide ideal opportunities for speaking. Subjects with scope for controversy are best for discussion: roles of men and women, censorship, animal rights, patriotism, for example. Many people have plenty to say on such topics. Some of the most enjoyable classes of all are ones when unplanned discussions suddenly arise on issues that matter to the students. But most teachers will also be able to remember discussions that simply did not work, despite a seemingly good topic. This may be because it is unrealistic to expect someone to discourse fluently in a foreign language without any warning, formulating deeply-held opinions quickly in front of fifteen, twenty-five or more fellow students. It is not enough, in other words, to ask students, ‘What do you think of X?’. Instead, teachers should plan the discussion sequence giving students material to react to, and time to plan what they are going to say. A popular way of emphasising the rehearsal aspect of speaking activities is to use simulations and role plays. This is where students pretend that they are in a different situation, either as themselves or playing the role of someone quite different. We could ask them to be guests at some party and go there as different characters. We might clear the classroom so there is an open space for them to party in. They could, as themselves, pretend to be at an airport trying to check in luggage, or either as themselves or another character take part in a television programme. In all these cases the students are using language in order to participate in the activity rather than the other way round! Some students find it very comforting to use language in a simulated environment, playing the role of someone else - it allows them to experiment more freely than they ordinarily would. 4) When should students speak? Many people have thought that speaking activities should come at the end of a teaching sequence; you have taught the present continuous for future, for example, and now you ask students to role-play situations in which they make arrangements and invite each other: (What are you doing
this evening?How about coming to a movie?etc.)There is nothing wrong with this of course,but it should not be thought that there has to be that kind of linear relationship between a speaking activity and non-speaking materiall that went before it.Indeed,students prohably need quite some time for new languge to sink in before they can produce it spontaneously in conversation Speaking activities can be used at any stage.Indeed,a direct opposite of what we have just described is a kind of'boomerang'procedure,where students are imvolved in a speaking activity and it is their performance in this activity that helps the teacher to decide what to teach next. Speaking activities are often part of longer squences (as discussed above)Teachers may use speaking activities as welcome relief from more concentrated study.or as a way of seeing how well students have been learning over the last few day's or weeks 5)What do teachers have to do? It is vitally important to be sure beforehand what students need to know for the activity to be successful and to make sure that they are given suitable information or provided with key language. Tell them the purpose of the task,how they should carry it out,how long they have got.If this is the first time they have used an information gap activity,for example,they must be told not to look nt each other's material. Many teachers prefer to demoeestrate an activity before getting students to do it.Such demonstration clarifies the procedures in a wary that instructions sometimes do not. 6)How should teachers correct speaking? When teachers are conducting drills or checking written homework they often correct all the mistakes they hear or see immediately they hear or see them.But if they do the same when a student is trying to speak fluently,they may throw the student off balance and make fluency impossible.It will also suggest that the teacher is more concemed with the 'how'than with the'wha”of what is said Of course there are times during speaking activities when teachers may intervene gertly to help
this evening? How about coming to a movie? etc.). There is nothing wrong with this of course, but it should not be thought that there has to be that kind of linear relationship between a speaking activity and non-speaking material that went before it. Indeed, students probably need quite some time for new language to sink in before they can produce it spontaneously in conversation. Speaking activities can be used at any stage. Indeed, a direct opposite of what we have just described is a kind of ‘boomerang’ procedure, where students are involved in a speaking activity and it is their performance in this activity that helps the teacher to decide what to teach next. Speaking activities are often part of longer sequences (as discussed above). Teachers may use speaking activities as welcome relief from more concentrated study, or as a way of seeing how well students have been learning over the last few days or weeks. 5) What do teachers have to do? It is vitally important to be sure beforehand what students need to know for the activity to be successful and to make sure that they are given suitable information or provided with key language. Tell them the purpose of the task, how they should carry it out, how long they have got. If this is the first time they have used an information gap activity, for example, they must be told not to look at each other‘s material. Many teachers prefer to demonstrate an activity before getting students to do it. Such demonstration clarifies the procedures in a way that instructions sometimes do not. 6) How should teachers correct speaking? When teachers are conducting drills or checking written homework they often correct all the mistakes they hear or see immediately they hear or see them. But if they do the same when a student is trying to speak fluently, they may throw the student off balance and make fluency impossible. It will also suggest that the teacher is more concerned with the ’how‘ than with the ’what‘ of what is said. Of course there are times during speaking activities when teachers may intervene gently to help
out a communication problem (though he or she should conesider how important this is and whether or not it might disrupt the activity),but in general it is better for the teacher to listen to what the students are sying.intervene as little as possible,and then give feedhack when the sctivity is finished.First they should tell students what they liked about the activity and comment on the ideas conveyed and then go on to pount out mistakes,and do some work to correct them. 7)What do students need? Practice at using LI (mother tongue)strategies,which they don't automatically transfer. An awareness of formal informal language and practice at choosing appropriate language for different situations The awareness that informal spoken language is less complex than written language.It ues shorter sentences,is less organised and uses more 'vague'or non-specific language. ·上posure to a variety of spoken tet types .The ability to cope with different listening situations Many listening exercises involve students as 'overhearers'even though most communication is face-1o-face. To be competent at both 'message-oriented or transactional language and interactional language,language for maintaining social relationships. .To be taught patterns of real interaction. To have intelligible pronunciation and be able to cope with streams of speech .Rehearsal time By giving students guided preparation rehearsal time they are more likely to use a wider range of languge in a spoken task. Part Two Practical suggestions .Transferring LI strategies When preparing for a spoken tak,make students aware of any relevant I1 strategies that might help them to perform the task successfully.For example.Tephrasing'if someone does not understand what they mean. Formal/informal language Give students one or more short dialogues where one speaker is either too formal or informal.Students frst identify the inappropriate language.then try to change it Also
out a communication problem (though he or she should consider how important this is and whether or not it might disrupt the activity), but in general it is better for the teacher to listen to what the students are saying, intervene as little as possible, and then give feedback when the activity is finished. First they should tell students what they liked about the activity and comment on the ideas conveyed and then go on to point out mistakes, and do some work to correct them. 7)What do students need? • Practice at using L1 (mother tongue) strategies, which they don't automatically transfer. • An awareness of formal / informal language and practice at choosing appropriate language for different situations. • The awareness that informal spoken language is less complex than written language. It uses shorter sentences, is less organised and uses more 'vague' or non-specific language. • Exposure to a variety of spoken text types. • The ability to cope with different listening situations. Many listening exercises involve students as 'overhearers' even though most communication is face-to-face. • To be competent at both 'message-oriented' or transactional language and interactional language, language for maintaining social relationships. • To be taught patterns of real interaction. • To have intelligible pronunciation and be able to cope with streams of speech. • Rehearsal time. By giving students guided preparation / rehearsal time they are more likely to use a wider range of language in a spoken task. Part Two Practical suggestions • Transferring L1 strategies When preparing for a spoken task, make students aware of any relevant l1 strategies that might help them to perform the task successfully. For example, 'rephrasing' if someone does not understand what they mean. • Formal / informal language Give students one or more short dialogues where one speaker is either too formal or informal. Students first identify the inappropriate language, then try to change it. Also
show students how disorganised intormal speech is Vague languge Using tapescripts of informal speech,foous on examples of vague language Different spoken text types Draw up a list of spoken text types relevant to the level of your class.Teach the language approprate for each text type. Intcractive listening Develop interactive listening exercises.Face-to-face listening is the most common and the least practised by course books.Amy form of Live listening'(the teacher speaking to the students)is suitable.(See Try article for a more detailed outline of this) Transactional and interactional language Raise students'awareness by using a dialogue that contains both It could be two friends chatting to each other (interactional)and ordering a meal(transactional). 。Real interaction patterns Teach real interaction patterns Introduce the following basic interactional pattern Initiate Respond.Follow-up.This is a simplification of Amy Tsui's work See Tsui (1994) The following interaction could be analysed as follows: A:What did you do last night?(Initiate) B:Went to the cinema (Respond) A:Oh really?(Follow-up) What did you see?(Initiate) B:Lord of the Rings (Respond) Have you been yet?(Initiate) A:No it's difficult with the kids (Respond) B:Yeah of course (follow-up) .Understanding spoken English After a listening exercise give students the tapescript.Using part of it,students mark the
show students how disorganised informal speech is. • Vague language Using tapescripts of informal speech, focus on examples of vague language. • Different spoken text types Draw up a list of spoken text types relevant to the level of your class. Teach the language appropriate for each text type. • Interactive listening Develop interactive listening exercises. Face-to-face listening is the most common and the least practised by course books. Any form of 'Live listening' (the teacher speaking to the students) is suitable. (See Try article for a more detailed outline of this) • Transactional and interactional language Raise students' awareness by using a dialogue that contains both. It could be two friends chatting to each other (interactional) and ordering a meal(transactional). • Real interaction patterns Teach real interaction patterns. Introduce the following basic interactional pattern: Initiate, Respond, Follow-up. This is a simplification of Amy Tsui's work. See Tsui (1994) The following interaction could be analysed as follows: A: What did you do last night? (Initiate) B: Went to the cinema (Respond) A: Oh really? (Follow-up) What did you see? (Initiate) B: Lord of the Rings (Respond) Have you been yet? (Initiate) A: No it's difficult with the kids (Respond) B: Yeah of course (follow-up) • Understanding spoken English After a listening exercise give students the tapescript. Using part of it, students mark the
stressed words,and put them into groups (tone units).You can use phone numbers to introduce the concept of tone units The length of a tone unit depends on the type of spoken text.Compare a speech with an informal conversation.In the same lesson or subsequent listening lessons you can focus on reductions in spoken speech,for example, linking.elision and arssimilation. ·Preparation and rehearsal Before a spoken task,give students some preparation and rehearsal time Students will need guidance on how to use it A sheet with simple guidelines is effective Real-life tasks Try to use real-life tasks as part of your teaching Part Three Some experiences on Teaching Speaking 1)What language should I teach? Spoken language is both interactional and transactional.bu what should teachers focus on in class? Brown and Yule (1983)suggest the following: .When teaching spoken language,focus on teaching longer trarcactional turns This is because native speakers have difficulty with them and because students need to be able communicate information etficiently whether in their country or in a natrve-speaker country. .Teach imeractional language by using an awareness-raising approach.For example,with monolingual classes by listening to a recorded llconversation before a similar 12 recording. For recordings of native-speaker interactional and traresactional comversations,have a look at 'Exploring Spoken English'by McCarthy and Carter (1997)It not only contains a variety of text types,but each recording comes with analysis. 2)How do I get studemts to use mew language? Research by Peter Skehan on Task-hased Learning shows that giving students preparation time
stressed words, and put them into groups (tone units). You can use phone numbers to introduce the concept of tone units. The length of a tone unit depends on the type of spoken text. Compare a speech with an informal conversation. In the same lesson or subsequent listening lessons you can focus on reductions in spoken speech, for example, linking, elision and assimilation. • Preparation and rehearsal Before a spoken task, give students some preparation and rehearsal time. Students will need guidance on how to use it. A sheet with simple guidelines is effective. • Real-life tasks Try to use real-life tasks as part of your teaching. Part Three Some experiences on Teaching Speaking 1) What language should I teach? Spoken language is both interactional and transactional, but what should teachers focus on in class? Brown and Yule (1983) suggest the following: • When teaching spoken language, focus on teaching longer transactional turns. This is because native speakers have difficulty with them and because students need to be able communicate information efficiently whether in their country or in a native-speaker country. • Teach interactional language by using an awareness-raising approach. For example, with monolingual classes by listening to a recorded l1conversation before a similar l2 recording. For recordings of native-speaker interactional and transactional conversations, have a look at 'Exploring Spoken English' by McCarthy and Carter (1997) It not only contains a variety of text types, but each recording comes with analysis. 2)How do I get students to use new language? Research by Peter Skehan on Task-based Learning shows that giving students preparation time
significantly increases the range of language used in the performance of the task,whereas the accuracy of the language is not as influenced.If this is so,then it seems sensible to give students preparation time when encouraging them to use new language Imagine you have been working on the language that would be useful for the following task Having a comversation with a stranger on public transport.You have now reached the stage where you wish students to perform the task.Rather than just give students 10 minutes to prepare and rehearse the task.give students guided preparation time. A simple preparation guide for the task could be a few key questions like: How will you start the comversation? What topics are you going to talk about? How are you going to move from one topie to another? How are you going to end the conversation? After the preparation stage,students give a'live performance.This can be in front of the class or group to group in a large class This increases motivation and adds an element of real-life stress. Another way of encouraging students to use new language in a communication activity is to make a game out of'it Give students a situation and several key phrases to include. They get points for using the language Similarly.when working on the language of discussion,you can produce a set of cards with the key phrases/exponents on.The cards are laid ou in front of each group of 2/3/4 students If a student uses the language on a particular card appropriately during the discussion.he/she keeps the card.The student with the most cards wins Ifhe/she uses the language inappropriately,then he/she can be challenged and has to leave the card on the table. Part Four Goals and Techniques for Teaching Speaking
significantly increases the range of language used in the performance of the task, whereas the accuracy of the language is not as influenced. If this is so, then it seems sensible to give students preparation time when encouraging them to use new language. • Imagine you have been working on the language that would be useful for the following task: 'Having a conversation with a stranger on public transport'. You have now reached the stage where you wish students to perform the task. Rather than just give students 10 minutes to prepare and rehearse the task, give students guided preparation time. A simple preparation guide for the task could be a few key questions like: How will you start the conversation? What topics are you going to talk about? How are you going to move from one topic to another? How are you going to end the conversation? After the preparation stage, students give a 'live performance'. This can be in front of the class or group to group in a large class. This increases motivation and adds an element of real-life stress. • Another way of encouraging students to use new language in a communication activity is to make a game out of it. Give students a situation and several key phrases to include. They get points for using the language. Similarly, when working on the language of discussion, you can produce a set of cards with the key phrases/exponents on. The cards are laid out in front of each group of 2/3/4 students. If a student uses the language on a particular card appropriately during the discussion, he/she keeps the card. The student with the most cards wins. If he/she uses the language inappropriately, then he / she can be challenged and has to leave the card on the table. Part Four Goals and Techniques for Teaching Speaking
The goal of teaching speaiking skills is communicative efficiency.Leamners should be able to make themselves understood,using their curren proficiency to the fullest.They should try to avoid confusion in the message due to faulty pronunciation.grammar.or vocabulary.and to observe the social and culturall rules that apply in each communication situation. To help students develop communicative efficiency in speaking,instructors can use a hallanced activities approach that combines language input.structured ouput.and communicative output. Lauguge Apur comes in the form of teacher talk,listening activities,reading passages,and the language heard and read outside of class It gives learners the material they need to begin producing language themsclves. 1)Language imput may be comtent oriented or form oriented. Content-oriented input focuses on information,whether it is a simple weather report or an extended lecture on an academic topic Content-oriented input may also include descriptions of learning struegies and examples of their use. Form-oriented input focuses on ways of using the language:guidance from the teacher or another souree on vocabulary.pronunciation.and grammar (linguistie competence). appropriate things to say in specifie comtexts (discourse competence).expectations for rale of specch.pause kngth,turn-taking and othar social aspects of language use (sociolinguistic competerce);and explicit instruction in phrases to use to ask for clarification and repair misommunication (strategic competence). In the presentation part of a leson,an instructor combines content-oriented and form-oriented input.The amoun of input that is actually provided in the target language depends on students listening proficiency and also on the situation.For students at lower levels,or in situations where a quick explanation on a grammar topie is needed,an explanation in English may be more ppropriale than one in the target language. Smcrwed owpur focuses on correct form.In structured output,students may have options for responses,but all of the options require them to use the specific form or structure that the teacher has just introduced
The goal of teaching speaking skills is communicative efficiency. Learners should be able to make themselves understood, using their current proficiency to the fullest. They should try to avoid confusion in the message due to faulty pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, and to observe the social and cultural rules that apply in each communication situation. To help students develop communicative efficiency in speaking, instructors can use a balanced activities approach that combines language input, structured output, and communicative output. Language input comes in the form of teacher talk, listening activities, reading passages, and the language heard and read outside of class. It gives learners the material they need to begin producing language themselves. 1) Language input may be content oriented or form oriented. • Content-oriented input focuses on information, whether it is a simple weather report or an extended lecture on an academic topic. Content-oriented input may also include descriptions of learning strategies and examples of their use. • Form-oriented input focuses on ways of using the language: guidance from the teacher or another source on vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar (linguistic competence); appropriate things to say in specific contexts (discourse competence); expectations for rate of speech, pause length, turn-taking, and other social aspects of language use (sociolinguistic competence); and explicit instruction in phrases to use to ask for clarification and repair miscommunication (strategic competence). In the presentation part of a lesson, an instructor combines content-oriented and form-oriented input. The amount of input that is actually provided in the target language depends on students' listening proficiency and also on the situation. For students at lower levels, or in situations where a quick explanation on a grammar topic is needed, an explanation in English may be more appropriate than one in the target language. Structured output focuses on correct form. In structured output, students may have options for responses, but all of the options require them to use the specific form or structure that the teacher has just introduced
Structured output is designed to make leamers comfortable producing specific language items recently introduced,sometimes in combination with previously leamed items Instructors often use structured output exercises as a transition between the presentation stage and the practice stage ofa leson plan textbook exercises also often make good structured output practice activities In commwicotrre onput,the learners main purpose is to complete a task,such as obtaining information,developing a travel plan,or creating a video.To complete the task,they may use the language that the instructor has just presented,but they also may dran on any other vocabulary, grammar,and communication strategies that they know.In communicative output activities the criterion of success is whether the learner gets the message across.Accuracy is not a consideration unless the lack of it imterferes with the message In everyday communication,spoken exchanges take place because there is some sort of information gap between the participants Communicative output activities involve a similar real information gap.In order to complete the task,students must reduce or eliminate the information gap.In these activities,languge is atool,not an end in itself. In a halanced activities approach,the teacher uses a variety of activities from these different categories of input and output.Learners at all proficiency levels.including beginners.benefit from this variety.it is more motivating.and it is also more likely to result in effoctive language learning. Part Five Suggestions for the Classroom In speaking classes students must be exposed to three key items (1)form-focused instruction.that is,attention to details of pronunciation,grammar,vocabulary,and so forth;(2)meaning-focused instruction,that is,opportunities to produce meaningful spoken messages with real communicative purposes,and (3)opportunities to improve fluency.Elements of all of the above should be present throughout a speaking program,with emphasis on form-focused instruction at the elementary levels and,as the learners progress,on meaning-focused instruction at the higher levels.This paper will also discuss different types of errorsand how to work with them to help learners
Structured output is designed to make learners comfortable producing specific language items recently introduced, sometimes in combination with previously learned items. Instructors often use structured output exercises as a transition between the presentation stage and the practice stage of a lesson plan. textbook exercises also often make good structured output practice activities. In communicative output, the learners' main purpose is to complete a task, such as obtaining information, developing a travel plan, or creating a video. To complete the task, they may use the language that the instructor has just presented, but they also may draw on any other vocabulary, grammar, and communication strategies that they know. In communicative output activities, the criterion of success is whether the learner gets the message across. Accuracy is not a consideration unless the lack of it interferes with the message. In everyday communication, spoken exchanges take place because there is some sort of information gap between the participants. Communicative output activities involve a similar real information gap. In order to complete the task, students must reduce or eliminate the information gap. In these activities, language is a tool, not an end in itself. In a balanced activities approach, the teacher uses a variety of activities from these different categories of input and output. Learners at all proficiency levels, including beginners, benefit from this variety; it is more motivating, and it is also more likely to result in effective language learning. Part Five Suggestions for the Classroom In speaking classes students must be exposed to three key items: (1) form-focused instruction, that is, attention to details of pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and so forth; (2) meaning-focused instruction, that is, opportunities to produce meaningful spoken messages with real communicative purposes; and (3) opportunities to improve fluency. Elements of all of the above should be present throughout a speaking program, with emphasis on form-focused instruction at the elementary levels and, as the learners progress, on meaning-focused instruction at the higher levels. This paper will also discuss different types of errors and how to work with them to help learners