Job Discussion Forums

[the_otter]

Hi all,

I currently have a nice but very quiet student. He's in his thirties and has a rather technical job.

Because he'll soon need to use English much more, he's shelled out for a load of lessons, and I'd like it if he came away from them feeling more confident and fluent. I'm not sure how possible that is, since I think he's by nature quiet and more inclined to listen than to chat.

He's quite comfortable doing Controlled Prac, especially things like gapfills. However, it can be hard to prompt him into stringing more than a few sentences together at any one time, and unlike a lot of the students I've worked with, he rarely seems to get at all intellectually or emotionally involved in his subject.

As a consequence, I'm talking too much and he's not talking enough. I think the one real success I had came when I asked him for details about something he has to do in his job, at which point he became almost animated, and started speaking with more expression and asking for vocabulary.

It seems to me that he's happiest talking about factual or technical subjects, and uncomfortable with stuff that's subjective and with expressing opinions.

He's pre-intermediate level. Any kind of suggestions about how to handle him would be welcome.

Hope this is the right forum...

[Glenski]

Exactly why will he need to learn more English? You might simply have to direct lesson planning around that goal.

Presentations?
Dealing with customers?
Email correspondence?
Marketing work?
Informal conversations?
Company tours?

I'd say definitely give him vocabulary to study at home before every lesson, and then get him to use it with you. Don't let him plan any speeches beforehand, because that will not be natural (exception is when he must make a presentation, perhaps), but forewarn him how he will be expected to use the vocab. Maybe make a list of questions he should be able to answer.

[Sashadroogie]

Is he an individual student or in a group? What is his nationality?

In any case, very generally, I think you are right that maybe your own talking time needs to be reduced. There's nothing wrong with waiting for a little spell until a learner volunteers something. Use of gesture to indicate that you need an answer is usually effective.

Also, question type is something to be considered. Open as opposed to closed, and well graded, as I'm sure you already know.

Thinking-time is another factor. Letting a learner have a few seconds to, say, read over a list of questions and think before they formulate their ideas in English usually produces much more extended answers, especially at lower levels like his.

I also find that using the photo material from KET and PET speaking exams and a timer can be an effective spur also. Set the clock for 1 or 2 mins and instruct the learner that he has to speak and describe the pictures in that time. Puts a little pressure on learners, true, but makes it clear to them that the onus has now been transferred to them.

Ultimately however, he is who he is, and if he really doesn't like expressing opinions or subjective stuff, then steer away from that as much as you can. You may want him to come away from lessons feeling more confident and to be more fluent, which is laudable, but they are his lessons, so what he wants is really what counts in the end.

I don't envy you, but best of luck!

[the_otter]

[Sashadroogie]

You are very welcome and all the best to you. But you are putting words into Glenski's mouth there : )

[the_otter]

Oops! I copied and pasted the code and forgot to change the name. *facepalm*

[Glenski]

You still have not said why he is studying, or what his nationality is.

Also, you may want to work into describing pictures slowly. Have the picture and wait, of course, but in addition to questions on paper, maybe even have the start of the answer in front of him. Later, take those away.

Don't worry too much about his work-specific vocabulary overwhelming you. Of course, it is your responsibility to know some of it, mostly the stuff people use in everyday conversations (not just tech terms, either, but words like analyze, calculate, input, etc.).

[Sashadroogie]

Describing pictures is not such a challenging task for a learner who is truly Pre-Int, no matter where he's from really, so no need for some large and slow build-up to it. Learners can surprise you with their hidden capabilities sometimes.

In any case, another idea you may want to experiment with is tape-recording his attempt at a task such as that. Play it back to him and ask him to comment, and/or give himself a mark, based on whatever criteria reflecting the aspect of speaking you have chosen to work on, e.g. pron, accuracy, fluency etc. Sounds a little cruel, but it can very often open learners eyes to the things they need to work on, e.g. fluency, and also can highlight things that they did well. This can be especially effective if you have a recording of another learner, a stronger one, doing the same task, then comparisons can be made, and goals set. Ultimately, the aim for such activities is to increase fluency, and to promote learner awareness.

If he is such a techie type, you may also want to look at IELTS Writing Task 1 in the Academic Module. There are tasks that involve describing a technical process, e.g. the production of an advertisement, or an petroleum-based product. Again, nice diagrams and pictures in this task. Good language support for it too in the course books, which can be readily adapted for your learner and used as a speaking task. Maybe with writing then as homework.

Good luck.

[the_otter]

[Chancellor]

[spiral78]

[riverboat]

I've had a few students over the past couple of years (including techies!) who state their reason for taking English lessons as "to practice speaking" but then don't seem to realise that in order to do this, they actually have to, you know, speak. Not just give the shortest possible answer to any question asked...

I've found that activities based on giving opinions, using their imagination or talking in an anecdotal way about their own experience tend to fall particularly flat for this type of student. I've had more success with activities that are more based on explaining or describing. i.e. half-a-crossword type games to describe different words, tasks that require them to explain concrete stuff like the rules of their favourite sport or systems at their work or the plot of the last film they saw etc. Games that are based on giving and following instructions can work well too (like he has a diagram that he has to get you to replicate by instructing you on how to draw it)

Also, if I DO manage to find a subject that gets the student going, I latch onto it and exploit it as much as I possibly can, often by acting completely dumb and very interested in the subject and making them feel like they're doing me a favour in telling me all about it...in minute detail...with many many follow-up questions. A surprising number of students seem much more comfortable talking if they feel like they're actually helping you out rather than the other way around. Cultural stuff works a treat in this way, like "I've never understood the tax system / election system / pensions scheme in this country", or "I want to go away for a weekend somewhere near here, can you recommend anywhere" or "my friends are coming to the city for the weekend, do you know any good restaurants/museums/things to do off the beaten track"...

[the_otter]

General Update:

I think we're making progress. Drastically reduced the small-talky-what-do-you-think-about-xyz component, increased the number of descriptive or instructive activities and the focus on his specialization.

He seems to be a bit more relaxed and engaged, especially in the second one and a half hour section of the lesson ('...because he knows he can go home soon?' says the voice of cynicism.) He's also being a bit more proactive - asking questions and last night he actually told me an anecdote voluntarily and with no prompting whatsoever.

I'm still going to keep adjusting the lesson content and see if I can get things more specifically suited to his needs and abilities.

He's a student I actually really enjoy teaching. I have a few one-to-one students, and a couple of them are so advanced that I have very little idea why they want formal lessons. It's a battle every week to find something that's useful, interesting and challenging enough for them. The egotist in me enjoys listening to someone who's doing more than polishing the chandeliers.