|
Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Students and Teachers from Around the World!"
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
daodejing
Joined: 08 Sep 2006
Posts: 39
|
 Posted: Thu Mar 29, 2007 10:34 am Post subject: Best Textbook? |
 |
|
I believe I will soon have a gig teaching an 18-year-old English for a few hours on the weekends. She is a Russian-language student, hasn't studied English for a few years, and her English level does not appear to be very high. The purpose of the lessons would be to help her pass an English competency exam that will alow her to enter a particular school or university. She's not too clear what will be on the exam, and I've told her to try to obtain last year's exam or a studyguide.
I was wondering if anyone can recommend a textbook to use for the lessons, and if such a textbook is likely to be found at a Shanghai bookstore. |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Steppenwolf
Joined: 30 Jul 2006
Posts: 1769
|
| Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 10:36 am Post subject: |
|
|
My personal favourite has always been NEW CONCEPT ENGLISH, Tome 2, Practice and Progress.
This is a learner- and teacher-friendly book that requires little preparation yet offers a lot of exposure to good English to the student. The book has four levels that recycle the same grammar points.
If you want to find something more recent, try the list of teaching materials on the following website:
www.findbookshere.com |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Plan B
Joined: 11 Jan 2005
Posts: 266
Location: Shenzhen
|
| Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 3:55 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I have taught Slavic speakers in two countries - Czech Republic and Kyrgyzstan. I used the New Headway series very successfully, and the students responded to the text in a very positive fashion.
The Headway serious, however, does NOT work with Chinese students |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Shakhbut
Joined: 14 May 2005
Posts: 167
|
| Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 4:39 pm Post subject: |
|
|
edit
Last edited by Shakhbut on Thu Nov 07, 2013 12:55 pm; edited 1 time in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
sheeba
Joined: 17 Jun 2004
Posts: 1123
|
| Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2007 12:03 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Quote: |
| The Headway serious, however, does NOT work with Chinese students |
I am using the Headway pronunciation (intermediate level) with my Chinese students and finding it very useful . We practice weak/strong forms, long/short vowels, individual phonemes they have problems with,intonation and so on . I don't know if the normal Headway series is so useful with the students.
If students have problem with pronunciation I think this is a good book , especially if doing one to one lessons . |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
latefordinner
Joined: 19 Aug 2003
Posts: 973
|
| Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2007 3:30 pm Post subject: |
|
|
OP, you've already overcome the greatest obstacle there is to teaching EFL in China. You've discovered that the student isn't interested in learning the language, but in preparing for an exam. Depending on what that exam is, you and your student may or not be in luck.
If it is one of he standard Chinese exams (CET, TEM, etc) you can confidently fob him/her off on a local chinese teacher who has already paid for the answers and will assist the student in the arduous process of memorisation and regurgitation. When it comes to knowing the answer without understanding the question, you can't beat a chinese teacher.
If it is a foreign uni that relies upon IELTS, TOEFL or something of the like, you both have a problem. Do you focus on learning the language and using it as effectively as possible, or on learning test taking tricks and masking inadequacies as thoroughly as possible? Within my limited experience, those few students who do make an effort to immerse themselves in the target language have had much greater success, but the local culture is such that convincing students to take this path is a Sisyphean task. You might well accomplish more (in the short term) by teaching tricks than by teaching the target language, simply because of the overwhelming initial opposition to actual learning. In the long term of course its counterproductive, but in the long term you have to decide whether its more important that the student know the answers or understand the questions. No easy anser to that one. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
no_exit
Joined: 12 Oct 2004
Posts: 565
Location: Kunming
|
| Posted: Sat Mar 31, 2007 5:13 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| latefordinner wrote: |
OP, you've already overcome the greatest obstacle there is to teaching EFL in China. You've discovered that the student isn't interested in learning the language, but in preparing for an exam. Depending on what that exam is, you and your student may or not be in luck.
If it is one of he standard Chinese exams (CET, TEM, etc) you can confidently fob him/her off on a local chinese teacher who has already paid for the answers and will assist the student in the arduous process of memorisation and regurgitation. When it comes to knowing the answer without understanding the question, you can't beat a chinese teacher.
If it is a foreign uni that relies upon IELTS, TOEFL or something of the like, you both have a problem. Do you focus on learning the language and using it as effectively as possible, or on learning test taking tricks and masking inadequacies as thoroughly as possible? Within my limited experience, those few students who do make an effort to immerse themselves in the target language have had much greater success, but the local culture is such that convincing students to take this path is a Sisyphean task. You might well accomplish more (in the short term) by teaching tricks than by teaching the target language, simply because of the overwhelming initial opposition to actual learning. In the long term of course its counterproductive, but in the long term you have to decide whether its more important that the student know the answers or understand the questions. No easy anser to that one. |
If you're preparing him for a Chinese exam, you might actually end up doing more harm than good. Those exams usually require a specific strategy in order to pass, not actual language skills. On tests like the CET, TEM, etc. and sometimes a native speaker will be able to pick out several right answers, whereas a Chinese student will have been taught tricks and rules and guidelines which will tell him, without question, which answer is the "right" one. If she's a high school student, she's probably preparing for the college entrance exam, which contains a significant English portion. Her immediate goal IS to pass the test, not to learn the language, so the "tricks" will probably be more useful to her. She probably has good intentions in choosing a foreign teacher, but honestly a good Chinese teacher with experience coaching students for this exam would be a better choice. You will, without doubt, want her to focus on learning English, not learning how to pass the exam, and while she may be to immature to understand the difference, obviously there IS a big one there.
As for textbooks, if it is the college entrance exam, then choose something very heavy on vocabulary and grammar. These exams will often test the student's ability to regurgitate obsucure vocabulary terms and even more obscure grammar rules. Stay texts that are too heavy on the oral English, like New Interchange (which I generally like). You might be able to find some books that specifically prep for this test, so ask her if she has anything in mind (a young student of mine had this HUGE book of possible entrance exam vocab, possibly the largest English book I've ever seen) -- even if there is a lot of Chinese, it might give you an idea of what sort of language will be most important for the exam.
Good luck, I'd be interested in hearing how it goes. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
daodejing
Joined: 08 Sep 2006
Posts: 39
|
| Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:26 am Post subject: right |
|
|
| I was just thinking to myself lately that the last two posts might be correct. If a student has to cram for an English exam, they might be better off with a Chinese teacher that can teach them English grammar terms in Chinese, which makes them easier to remember. I will call them back tonight (the parents do all the talking, or course) to see if they have any more details on what will be on the test. Maybe they have to be able to converse to pass the test? It's unlikely, but possible. I need more details; thanks so far for the book suggestions. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
james s
Joined: 07 Feb 2007
Posts: 676
Location: Raincity
|
| Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:41 am Post subject: |
|
|
...
Last edited by james s on Sat Sep 29, 2007 1:54 pm; edited 1 time in total |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
mondrian
Joined: 20 Mar 2005
Posts: 658
Location: "was that beautiful coastal city in the NE of China"
|
| Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 11:25 am Post subject: |
|
|
| Steppenwolf wrote: |
My personal favourite has always been NEW CONCEPT ENGLISH, Tome 2, Practice and Progress.
This is a learner- and teacher-friendly book that requires little preparation yet offers a lot of exposure to good English to the student. The book has four levels that recycle the same grammar points.
If you want to find something more recent, try the list of teaching materials on the following website:
www.findbookshere.com |
I agree with using this series of books. It has a similar "format" to that of a Chinese English teacher's mind and expectations for test teaching. It is very popular locally with Chinese English teachers for that reason.
I like it because you can get underneath the grammar/vocabulary surface (favored by my Chinese colleagues) and open up the lesson topics for discussion.
I also agree with Plan B:
| Plan B wrote: |
I have taught Slavic speakers in two countries - Czech Republic and Kyrgyzstan. I used the New Headway series very successfully, and the students responded to the text in a very positive fashion.
The Headway serious, however, does NOT work with Chinese students |
The Headway series, I have found, has not been popular here in China., although it is liked by English English teachers. In my College the books were replaced by Cutting Edge (still not perfect, but had a better balance of the four disciplines).
But to return to the OP, I currently have students who are preparing for various National exams and they have asked me to postpone my text book lessons and give them intensive reading exercises, including Fast Reading practice. They want me to teach them "reading for gist" and "speed reading". I am currently using mock and past papers with them. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
peepertice
Joined: 23 Nov 2005
Posts: 63
|
| Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 6:56 am Post subject: |
|
|
make that NO Concept English.
absolutely dreadful book to teach in a class although I must admit it would probably be ok for one-to-one classes.
i couldn't stand the convoluted stories with the grammar shoe-horned into them in a completely unnatural way as well as vocabulary that's so rarely encountered in everyday English that it feels pointless to try to explain it.
the fact that it was written over 40 years ago and ignores any new thinking on english teaching from within that period says it all, IMO.
my advice would be to choose a modern textbook such as New Interchange or New Headway as these cover topics that might actually be of use to your student. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
californian
Joined: 30 Jun 2005
Posts: 129
Location: 31.07'24.07"Nx121.26'22.52"E
|
| Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 3:21 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Yes, New Interchange is excellent! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Steppenwolf
Joined: 30 Jul 2006
Posts: 1769
|
| Posted: Tue Apr 03, 2007 3:44 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| peepertice wrote: |
make that NO Concept English.
absolutely dreadful book to teach in a class although I must admit it would probably be ok for one-to-one classes.
i couldn't stand the convoluted stories with the grammar shoe-horned into them in a completely unnatural way as well as vocabulary that's so rarely encountered in everyday English that it feels pointless to try to explain it.
the fact that it was written over 40 years ago and ignores any new thinking on english teaching from within that period says it all, IMO.
my advice would be to choose a modern textbook such as New Interchange or New Headway as these cover topics that might actually be of use to your student. |
Your opinion on New Concept English is borne by nothing more dramatic than bias and prejudice and it's totally devoid of any practical, fact-based truths!
Well, not quite - I will do myself that little harm by agreeing where it is technically possible: the stories are set in a "convoluted" English and yes, the book was designed "40 years ago".
But what do you know about the NEEDS of our Chinese English learners?
I recommend NCE for the reason that it is a holistic book, i.e. one that helps students become versed in every aspect of the English language. It does precisely what Chinese teachers so signally fail to do - to drill their students in the more relevant points of English usage, grammar and syntax structures, and it does so using all four skills.
It's also designed in a most user-friendly manner so that both teachers and students can use it efficiently.
All those new-fangled, topically diverse Headway and Expressway and other novel way textbooks are in fact useless for the majority of our learners. They may be superficially more attractive but our students need meanbingful drills, not just "interesting" topics! A cursory investigation will quickly reveal that most university students are unable to even read a text in simplified English, let alone understand it!
The truth is that no other textgbook produced in the past 40 years has come sufficiently near the quality level of NCE!
Sad to know that Chinese English teachers don't know how to make effective use of NCE! They only scan texts for new vocabulary, and they read the Chinese translation before they venture into the English text! With Headway and other faddish materials there is less brain work to do - but more memorisation. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
diana83709
Joined: 30 Apr 2006
Posts: 148
Location: Nanchong, Sichuan province, China
|
| Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 10:08 am Post subject: |
|
|
| "Rewards" (MacMillan Publishing) is excellent for brushing up. Cambridge is also excellent for future TOEFL exam practise. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
This page is maintained by the one and only Dave Sperling.
Contact Dave's ESL Cafe
Copyright © 2018 Dave Sperling. All Rights Reserved.
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2002 phpBB Group
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
