230560 Classroom Communication (S) (WiSe 2021/2022)

PRACTICAL ORGANISATION

This seminar will take place in "hybrid synchronous" mode, with a twist. Most of the participants will be at home and participate via Zoom - me included. (This is due to my very high risk status vis-à-vis Covid infection.) Those students who have to or want to be on campus at the time of the seminar can go to the seminar room every week and participate together via Zoom there. Instead of breakouts, these students can form actual groups for the interactive group-work phases. These students MUST please have a) their own devices, so they can follow on Zoom and b) headphones with microphones. Your devices' built-in mics and speakers can't be used in a seminar room, as there is massive echo and feedback if others are using also their devices' built-in mics and speakers nearby. When you speak yourself, you might also have to lift the earphones (but still use the earphones' microphone) or mute your speakers, because otherwise there's an annoying echo. This mode should enable those at home and on campus to participate, however, and at-risk participants to be safe.

SEMINAR CONTENT

The major aim of the seminar is to ensure you can use English, and above all spoken English, with assurance and accuracy in the classroom. To this end, the course will include a variety of tasks and exercises designed to improve pronunciation and fluency and to consolidate control of relevant areas of grammar. You will practise reading various kinds of texts you might use in class, including poems, aloud. The lexis used in the early English classroom and the language you use for classroom management - for example to introduce materials and supervise tasks - is equally important, and we will practise this as well.

Besides this, the course aims to give you practice in producing your own worksheets and other materials, or adapting authentic materials to your teaching needs. Here, again, the intention is to make sure that the language you use is accurate and idiomatic.
Each participant will prepare a "storytelling" sequence which will be videoed/recorded for analysis and admiration.

Requirements for participation, required level

This is an M.Ed. seminar for students studying to become primary school teachers.

Bibliography

To be given in class.