Korean Job Discussion Forums

[the_beaver]

I was pming with a friend today and we were talking about conversation textbooks and I got to thinking that I have no idea about these. Whatever I teach has an element of conversation but those conversation materials I make myself.

Are there any good conversation textbooks?

[JacktheCat]

The best one I have come across is A Conversation Book: English in Everyday Life by Tina Carver and Sandra Fotinos, publisher, Longman. Two very big, thick books.

Although a little dated and geared towards adult immigrants to the USA, its a great, everyday life themed conversation book.

And the pictures in it are hilarious. There is a cartoon picture of Park Chung He in book two in the section dealing with politics and dictatorships.

[chronicpride]

[tzechuk]

[gi66y]

I like the New Interchange series when used as a stand alone book because there's a bit of everything. For just conversation, after a couple of hours at Kyobo, I found Express Yourself by LIS Korea and Duane Vorhees.

It's a good book for mature (older) Intermediate to Advanced students. I'm using it right now with an advanced middle school student. It's good, but not great for him because it asks quite a few questions more suitable for adults. However, my friend uses it with a group of Ajummas and he says it keeps them talking and talking so much that he has to keep bringing them back on topic.

There are a lot of questions that are geared towards Koreans. I don't much care for the "Useful Expressions" part because they aren't expressions and there's nothing really "useful" about them. But, I think that with a high-level student it would be good to see if they can understand the joke, pun, or thoughful comment that they're getting at in the "expression."

[some waygug-in]

Interchange is OK if the students have the book, but if you are working for a cheapie haggie, where you have to copy everything, it's pretty much useless.

If you have to photocopy, I've found American Streamline far more useful........ for lower level classes.

One thing I hated about Interchange is that they always have only half the dialogues printed in the books. If you want the full script you HAVE TO buy the teachers guide.

Another problem is the lack of questions for the pair work and group discussion sections. I mean really, for some sections they have a grand total of 2 questions. Hardly worth the time.

The Let's Talk, Talk Talk, and Teen Talk books are Ok for advanced students, but the language is way too difficult for most of my classes.

What I've been using lately are reading books, Reading Advantage, Reading Challenge, Read All About It, True Stories In The News etc.

The two problems with these are:

a) they don't have enough good conversation questions......... but I can usually write up my own easily.


b) they don't have any dialogues to practice........ so I like to use dialogues from other books or write my own.


I used to like Headway, but now I can see that it is way too grammar based for low-level students. I do like the fact that the tapescripts and complete dialogues are in the back of the book however.


I am considering going back to using "Side by Side" for those classes that just refuse to talk. At least it gets them doing something.

[Kenny Kimchee]

For upper intermediate students, I recommend Impact Values by Longman
http://www.longmanjapan.com/search/onlinecatalog.html?id=90

One caveat is that it's more of a conversation-oriented book, so it's ideal for privates and small classes.

For a more Four Skills-oriented book, I like American Headway by Oxford University Press - a better book than New Interchange, I think.

[Hanson]

Hey, Beav,

What about the "Communication Strategies" and "Further Communication Strategies", By David Paul (?)...

Good for high intermediate and above... Lots of extra activities, role plays, work on collocation and so on... It does take some prep to come up with supplementary material, but what books don't?

Also, I like to use "Dante's" black 'Conversation Questions' book (I forget the actual name...), which simply has lists of conversation questions, divided into categories/topics. It's a good resource to insert extra conversation questions when you don't think you have enough with the book/materials you are using.

I think I'm gonna use a New Interchange for my ConEd Lev. 3 this semester (with Mr.K...).

Hey Beav - why don't you just make a textbook committee at work, get teachers (suckers) to write a chapter each and then publish it via the Uni press...?

[the_beaver]

[Hanson]

Nobody I know!!!

[coolsage]

For most freshman students, unfocused and scattered as they are, almost anything that you can serve up convincingly will do. The material that will get them speaking English with each other cuts through the stress and builds some confidence. A good pair-work book that deals with topics that are real for students (family, dating, food, movies, music, etc.) if presented by the teacher with some enthusiasm and credibility will make it happen. Person-to-Person is a snooze; Interchange is marginally better. Forget the Headway series; it's designed for students in America, not here. Springboard is not bad, but thin; it needs padding. I've had some success with Get Real, lots of listening and pairwork. I'm looking forward to using the next book from the same publisher (no, I'm not getting a kickback), Gear Up.

[mithridates]

http://www.phoenixlearninggroup.com/plr/reading_for.htm

These are my favourite. They go from level A to F and consist of one page on the left, with questions on the right. Level A is somewhere around the level of Very Easy True Stories, maybe about ten to fifteen short sentences per story, and they are educational too.

[stalinsdad]

I suggest trying something other than all the books mentioned for adult classes;

Reasons:

1. They have probably done them already.
2. They are so methodical and allow no creative thought.
3. The students just want to go out for a meal and a cheap thrill anyway.
4. Why don't you be creative!!!


It all means diddly-squat anyway-but how about asking them to get a dictionary?

Don't take it so seriously because inevitably your students won't.

[mithridates]

I don't know about that...a conversation class without any material is like a Dave's ESL Cafe without any thread titles. Maybe it could work but it would be pretty chaotic.

[chronicpride]

I think books can be good as a base, for use as a springboard and to have flow to reflect on what you've done and how you can reinforce it into future lessons.

As Mith said, going in without anything is just free talking, and the students like it once and awhile, but it wears thin real quick, if done too much. They'll spot the non-teacher after a few classes.