ARKTESOL - 2013

Abstract

• All too often students understand the grammar and know the vocabulary but can’t seem to put it together. Chunks to the rescue! Come and learn some techniques of incorporating formulaic language into your lessons so that students can take their English use to the next level.

Session Description

• While empirical and theoretical explorations are stacking up for the case of formulaic sequences, these ubiquitous prefabricated strings of language have only slightly gained any pedagogical recognition. Ranging from proverbs, idioms, and phrasal verbs to collocations, word bundles, and other chunks difficult to analyze grammatically (e.g. “by and large” or “how do you do?”), formulaic sequences deserve a place in ESL curricula and especially in EAP and IEP contexts where all too often an oversimplified bilateral (vocabulary and grammar) paradigm of language has been enculturated. Nonetheless, the baby should not be thrown out with the bath water, and thus this practice-oriented demonstration offers strategies that include formulaic language within tried and true skills-based curricula, which certainly do and should embrace more traditional vocabulary and grammar components.

• This presentation first aims to demystify the complexity of formulaic language in a brief teacher oriented multimodal presentation. More importantly and exhaustively, then, attendees will be interactively guided through multiple methods and teaching tips that allow formulaic language to be incorporated efficiently and effectively into any syllabus. Balancing meaning-focused input and output, language-focused learning, and fluency – the presented methods include: utilizing traditional vocabulary building strategies (based on notice – retrieval – generation principles) on lengthier chunks of language; drawing awareness to formulaic sequences through reading and listening activities; utilizing empirically designed, corpus driven formula/phrase lists; and exploiting freely available, recently developed online resources for practice and materials. Finally, the audience will not only take away an eye-opening experience, but also receive handouts (as well as links to online resources) which further develop and exemplify the techniques presented. These methods are theoretically sound and have been intuitively fine-tuned through the presenter’s teaching practice over recent years so that teachers can immediately put them into practice within their teaching context.

Links

www.lextutor.ca/tests/levels/recognition/phrasal/

• from Martinez, R., & Schmitt, N. (2012). A phrasal expressions list. Applied Linguistics, 33(3), 299–320. It is an online Phrasal Vocabulary Test that has links to their research as well as their Phrasal Expression List.

http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/encap/research/networks/flarn/whatis/index.html

• What is formulaic language? Here is a brief introduction from the Cardiff School of English, Communication & Philosophy, Cardiff University.