Creating one’s exercises is imperative for anyone teaching language.
Course books, workbooks, grammar books often fall short of my needs, which is
why I routinely create exercises of my own for grammar and vocabulary
consolidation and revision.
There are some very important factors determining the type of exercise I
create, which is certainly not because it is included in exams.
First and foremost, an exercise must take into
account the level of your students. A grammar
exercise which places unreasonable demands on the students in terms of
vocabulary is pointless. And only you know what you have taught. In addition, you
need to bear in mind at all times what is tested in a given exercise and focus
on one grammar point rather than a mix. Needless to say, content is essential
whatever is tested. An exercise should stimulate the student’s interest so that
they will immerse themselves in the task.
Another consideration is to take into account mother tongue interference, which means adjusting the
exercise so that you can elicit and therefore highlight mistakes resulting from
language transfer. A few typical examples of transferring from Greek to English
include the use of “with” instead of “as” after the word “same” or the use of
“for” instead of “to” after the word “important”. Also a very common
grammatical error is the use of Present Simple instead of Present Perfect for
an action which started in the past and reaches the present. Accordingly, most
Greek students will come up with sentences like
I know this guy for a long time.
rather than
I have known this guy for a long time.
Or
I play the piano for five years
rather than
I have been playing the piano for five years.
It takes a lot of time and perseverance to correct mistakes of this kind.
One inviolable principle in creating an exercise is an ascending degree of difficulty so you know at a
glance whether your students have got the basics but need more work on details.
The students can also evaluate themselves and acknowledge the need for more
work depending on the gravity of their mistakes.
An exercise should be suited to individual
and/or group needs and weaknesses. This explains why I am so cautious
about standardised exercises.
Course books place far too much emphasis on certain aspects of grammar
but grossly underestimate others, which in fact might not even have an
equivalent in the students’ mother tongue. Let me illustrate with an example. Causative form
is a type of structure which is foreign to Greek students. So the English
sentence
We are having
the flat redecorated
would translate into
We are
redecorating the flat
in Greek.
The structure in question and several others are too hastily dealt with
in course and grammar books and because of the order most course books follow
in presenting grammar items there is hardly any space or time for revision
before students are ready to sit a basic exam like B2. Besides, students are
not able to familiarise themselves with a way of thinking that is very
different from what they are used to in their own language. After all language
embodies cultural differences and varying perceptions of the world so learning
a foreign language is supposed to also give you insights into cultural and
linguistic diversity .
Here is an exercise which I created for my students to practise causative
form.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K5peGhnH1eF4OiULfi0sCmNGhRT1qk6R/view?usp=sharing
Note that I have included the whole range of tenses as well as the
infinitive and gerund forms. I have also made sure to include an example of the
case in which people suffer a misfortune rather than causing the action to
happen. (sentence 10
Another aspect of language which is not presented systematically in most
courses – let alone practised – is linking. I
normally start with the more manageable types of clauses-- clauses of time and
reason-- for example, and continue with the rest. Students of English usually
find it hard to understand the function of conjunctions, prepositions and
adverbs in linking ideas. For instance, they will use “despite” in the place of
“although” or “although” in the place of “however”. What makes the issue even
more complicated is the fact that the same word may have different grammatical
functions, “though” being just one example that springs to mind. The confusion
may continue even after they attain B2 level. This means teachers should
persist with extra practice at all levels.
Here is an example of a simple exercise I created to test understanding
of concession. Let me point out that before this exercise there have been
others – simpler and more straightforward.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JhkViYIcYdMBS--0ItLvNYJN_NZa7izO/view?usp=sharing
Once the students have had sufficient practice and assimilated whole
chunks of certain grammar areas, I create revision exercises to spot gaps and
make sure they have a good understanding of the area I am testing. If there is
still confusion or uncertainty I prepare more remedial work. For instance, I
have a number of exercises on past tenses and all kinds of linkers – among
others.
Examples
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vn4EjmafuNDb1YFXqEFGXhoPUtvIfxXt/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1A-EuO6a_bN9sFnIujwo0q7zNE3XvsSv4/view?usp=sharing
To sum up, fine tuning your material is an ongoing struggle which never
ends while you teach, and looking back to detect mistakes or weaknesses in
exercises or tests you have prepared is a standard part of the teaching
process.
