FOCUS ON MEANING, LANGUAGE AND FORM : A THREE WAY DISTINCTION. Dave Willis dave@willis- elt.co.uk

FOCUS ON MEANING, LANGUAGE AND FORM : A THREE WAY DISTINCTION. Dave Willis dave@willis- elt.co.uk www.willis- elt.co.uk TESOL ARABIA 2008 TESOL Arabia

Fluency Accuracy Accuracy/ Fluency Conformity Appropriacy Meaning Language Form TESOL Arabia

Three reasons why we can’t teach grammar: 1 It’s too complex. 2 There’s too much of it. 3 That’s not how learners learn. TESOL Arabia

Lana’s Story Lana daddy horsey Man up Horsey poo Daddy poo bag Lana daddy home TESOL Arabia

Grandpa, that water not for drinkin’. It for puttin’ in a hole. TESOL Arabia

MEANING Focus on meaning involves all three of Haliday’s ‘macro-functions’: - IDEATIONAL (getting the message across) - TEXTUAL (making the message readily accessible) - INTERPERSONAL (taking account of the receiver and presentation of self) TESOL Arabia

Why do we need grammar? 1 To express some complex notions. 2 To be receiver friendly. (Textual) 3 For precision. (Textual) 4 For presentation of self. (Interpersonal) 5 To respect the receiver. (Interpersonal) TESOL Arabia

FOCUS ON FORM • (CONFORMITY) • A focus on one or two forms, specified by the teacher. • Learners’ language production is controlled by the teacher. • The success of the procedure is judged in terms of whether or not learners do produce the target forms with an acceptable level of accuracy. TESOL Arabia

FOCUS ON LANGUAGE (ACCURACY/AUTONOMOUS LEARNING) Learners pause in the course of a meaning-focused activity to think for themselves how best to express what they want to say, or a teacher takes part in an interaction and acts as a facilitator by rephrasing or clarifying learners language. AND… TESOL Arabia

Success is judged subjectively by the learners according to whether or not they achieve their communicative goals. TESOL Arabia

How strict were your parents? Work in groups. Talk about your childhood. Whose parents were the strictest? Whose parents were the most easy-going? (With thanks to Tim Marchand, Smith’s School of English, Kyoto, Japan) TESOL Arabia

Were your parents were strict or easy- going? • Did they allow you to stay out late at night? • Did they let you go on holiday on your own? • Did they make you help about the house? • Did you have to wash the car? • What other jobs did they make you do? • When you went out did you always have to tell them where you were going? • Did you always have to do your homework before supper?

My Dad is a quiet man really, so he didn't really make me do much at home. He sometimes asked me to wash his car or cut the grass, but I was never forced to do it, and I could usually get some pocket money for it as well. I think my Mum was also pretty easy-going; she let me stay out late with my friends. As long as she knew where I was, she wouldn't mind so much what I did. TESOL Arabia

My father was definitely stricter than my Mum. If I had been in trouble at school, it was always left up to him to tell me off. But I wouldn't say that my Mum was easy-going exactly. She would sit me down sometimes and make me do my homework in front of her, or force me to eat my greens, things like that. I guess I was just more scared of my father. TESOL Arabia

QUESTIONNAIRE Priming + Mining + Rehearsal Focus on meaning/fluency. Focus on language. (Autonomous learning) TESOL Arabia

TASK  PLANNING  REPORT The TASK is predominantly ideational. There is a strong focus on meaning, on getting the message across. At the REPORT stage learners are more concerned with explicitness and precision (textual) and the presentation of self (interpersonal). SO…. During PLANNING there is a strong autonomous focus on language.

LISTENING + SCRIPT Review + Extension Focus on meaning. Discussion promotes focus on language (autonomous learning). TESOL Arabia

QUESTIONNAIRE Priming + Mining + Rehearsal TASK  PLANNING  REPORT LISTENING + SCRIPT Review + Extension FOCUS ON FORM TESOL Arabia

Focus on form. Think about your schooldays… 1 List three things you had to do. 2 List three things you weren’t allowed to do. 3 List three things you were supposed to do but didn’t. TESOL Arabia

Do you think your parents were strict or easy-going? • Did they let you go on holiday on your own? • When you went out did you always have to tell them where you were going? • Did your parents make you help about the house • What jobs did they make you do? • Did you have to wash the car? TESOL Arabia

Do you think your parents were ****** or ****-*****? • Did they *** *** go on holiday on your own? • When you went out did you always **** ** tell them where you were going? • Did your parents **** *** help about the • house • What jobs did they **** *** do? • Did you **** ** wash the car? TESOL Arabia

think you do parents your strict easy-going or were • let you holiday on go they did own your on • help house about the make your you parents did • Etc. TESOL Arabia

Complete these to make true sentences: 1 When I was a child my parents made me …. 2 They let me …. 3 I was forced to …. 4 I was allowed to …. 5 I was supposed to …. TESOL Arabia

A focus on form: … destabilises the learners system … makes forms salient and facilitates acquisition in the future. … enhances motivation by providing specific learning aims. TESOL Arabia

Autonomous learning/focus on language: … maximises learning opportunities. … encourages learners to incorporate ‘new’ forms in their language. … promotes genuine learning. AND … Without autonomous learning no one could possibly learn a language. The systems are too complex and too numerous for conscious learning. TESOL Arabia

A final look at a three way distinction: Meaning Language Form Autonomous learning Fluency Conformity Appropriacy/ Accuracy TESOL Arabia

Doing Task-based Teaching Dave and Jane Willis 2007 OUP dave@willis-elt.co.uk www.willis-elt.co.uk TESOL Arabia

FOCUS ON MEANING, LANGUAGE AND FORM : A THREE WAY DISTINCTION. Dave Willis dave@willis- elt.co.uk