ACCURACY, FLUENCY AND AUTONOMOUS LEARNING: A THREE WAY DISTINCTION.

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ACCURACY, FLUENCY AND AUTONOMOUS LEARNING: A

THREE WAY DISTINCTION.

Dave Willis

ETAS 2007

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Brumfit (1984)

Fluency Accuracy

Krashen (1985)

Acquired Learned

Long (1988)

Form FormS

Willis (2007)

Meaning

(Fluency)

Language

(Autonomous learning)

Form

(Accuracy)

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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.

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Lana’s Story

Lana daddy horsey Man up

Horsey poo

Daddy poo bag

Lana daddy home

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Grandpa, that water

not for drinkin’. It for

puttin’ in a hole.

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FOCUS ON 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)

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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)

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FOCUS ON FORM (ACCURACY)

1.A focus on one or two forms, specified by the teacher.

2.Learners’ language production is controlled by the teacher.

3.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.

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FOCUS ON LANGUAGE

(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…

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Success is judged subjectively by the

learners according to whether or not they

achieve their communicative goals.

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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)

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1.Were your parents were strict or easy- going?

2.Did they allow you to stay out late at night?

3.Did they let you go on holiday on your own?

4.Did they make you help about the house?

5.Did you have to wash the car?

6.What other jobs did they make you do?

7.When you went out did you always have to tell them where you were going?

8.Did you always have to do your

homework before supper?

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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.

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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.

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QUESTIONNAIRE

Priming + Mining + Rehearsal Focus on meaning/fluency.

Focus on language/autonomous learning.

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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 precision (textual) and the presentation of self (interpersonal).

SO….

During PLANNING there is a strong

autonomous focus on language.

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LISTENING + SCRIPT Review + Extension Focus on meaning.

Discussion promotes focus on language

(autonomous learning).

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QUESTIONNAIRE

Priming + Mining + Rehearsal

TASK  PLANNING  REPORT

LISTENING + SCRIPT Review + Extension

FOCUS ON FORM

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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.

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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 ….

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1.Do you think your parents were strict or easy-going?

2.Did they let you go on holiday on your own?

3.When you went out did you always have to tell them where you were going?

4.Did your parents make you help about the house

5.What jobs did they make you do?

6.Did you have to wash the car?

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1.Do you think your parents were --- or ---?

2.Did they --- --- go on holiday on your own?

3.When you went out did you always ---- -- tell them where you were going?

4.Did your parents ---- --- help about the house

5.What jobs did they ---- --- do?

6.Did you ---- -- wash the car?

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My Dad …. 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.

My Dad …. didn't really (----) (--) do much at

home. He sometimes (---) (--) (--) wash his

car or cut the grass, but I was never (---)

(--) do it.

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My Dad …. 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.

My Dad …. (---’--) really (----) (--) (--) much (--)

home. He sometimes (---) (--) (--) wash (---)

(---) or cut the grass, but I (---) never (---)

(--) do it.

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