Effective Remedial Programs for Low-Achievers: Key Factors and Strategies

1. A) Choose the best answer from a), b), c) and d):

2. 1. An effective remedial programme should be based on … a) what teachers think low-achievers can achieve. b) oral expressions and graded listening goals, all the time. c) what low-achievers can realistically achieve. d) praising low-achievers in an overstated manner. 2. Remedial plans should…………………… a) be based on what low-achievers can do. b) reflect the syllabus on which it is based. c) provide an opportunity for immediate feedback. d) enable separate skills to be practised.

3. 3. In a successful lesson, ………………………… a) the instructional objectives are achieved. b) the class is well managed. c) effective teaching is in progress. d) evaluation is performed. 4. Effective learning takes place when the………………… a) teacher uses appropriate error correction techniques. b) teacher uses oral-based methodology. c) learners take part in their own learning. d) learners practise socialization.

4. 5. Teacher’s effectiveness and efficiency is due to………… a) being qualified for the job. b) the readiness to be a teacher. c) the awareness of the objectives. d) his/her abilities and capabilities. 6. A head of staff is no doubt one of the educational leaders, so he has to………… a) benefit his staff members whether they wanted or not. b) be biased and influenced only by distinguished teachers. c) keep on a critical eye all the time. d) have a professional alertness all the time.

5. 7. Opportunities offered by technology are providing…… a) minimum conditions for learning. b) new types of interaction. c) less meaningful communication. d) non-authentic use of language. 8. In order to modify the course, we have to……………… a) add extra class activities and relate experiences to pupils’ lives. b) create a relaxed atmosphere in the class. c) encourage learners to speak the target language. d) use well-designed teaching aids.

6. B) Answer the following questions:

7. 1. ‘We all realize that it is possible to teach elaborately but this does not necessarily lead to effective learning.’ How can we help make our students learn actually? Model Answer Wecanhelpmakeourstudentslearnactuallyby …… • giving the students a feeling of success to develop their self-confidence. • having competent, patient, friendly, tolerant and broadminded teachers. • developing students’ motivation to learn and creating a positive attitude towards learning. • correcting students’ mistakes without humiliating them. • creating a relaxed teaching atmosphere in class. • making class activities enjoyable to have efficient learning. • being well-prepared for the lesson as that makes the teacher aware of the main target of the teaching process. • skilful use of the teaching aids as that saves teacher’s time and effort and facilitates the learning process. • considering the individual differences among learners as that leads to effective learning. • shifting gradually from the known to the unknown as that is very important from the psychological point of view.

8. 2. ‘It is said that a successful teacher means a very successful lesson.’ How? Model Answer Asuccessfulteachermeansaverysuccessfullesson, iftheteachersucceedsin ….. • being creative and innovative and has got imaginative power in class. • having the ability to predict the areas of difficulty and tackle them. • dealing with various activities (skills) to maximize the pupils’ participation. • striking the balance between the teacher’s talking time and the pupils’ talking time inside the classroom. • being skilful at using or utilizing the required teaching media. • being always ready to change the techniques applied whenever necessary depending on the mood of the class or unexpected difficulty of the lesson. • evaluating his lesson objectively. • developing the competitive spirit of his learners. • creating a real friendly teaching atmosphere in class. • being keen enough on the on-going assessment of pupils’ progress and achievement in class.

9. 3. On designing a ‘Remedial Plan’ for low-achievers, the main factors or elements should be taken into consideration. What are these main elements or factors? Comment on each in brief. Model Answer The teacher (who carries out the plan), the low-achiever (pupil) and the plan itself are the three main elements or factors of a Remedial Plan. • The teacher has to be patient, tolerant, motivating, trust-worthy, efficient, professional, creative and thoughtful while applying the plan. • The low-achievers always need support and encouragement. They must feel sense of achievement and this needs a lot of drilling activities. They also need to improve their self-management skills. They also need daily evaluation and constant feedback. • The plan should be specialized, concrete not abstract, based on what low-achievers can do, not on what we think they can do. It should be graded, systematically applied and it should aim at final results. There is not greater achievement in teaching than to help a child or a pupil gain self- confidence and begin learning again.

10. 4. In not more than five lines write what you know about ‘Process approach’ and ‘Product approach’. Model Answer • Process approach: The process approach focuses on the means whereby learning occurs. The process is more important than the product. In terms of writing, the important aspect is the way in which a complete text was created. The act of composing evolves through several stages as writers discover, through the process, what it is that they are trying to say. • Product approach: The product approach focuses on the end result of teaching/learning. In terms of writing, there should be something ‘resulting’ from the composition lesson (e.g. letter, essay, story, etc.). This result should be readable, grammatically correct and obeying discourse conventions relating to main points, supporting details and so on.

11. 5. A successful head of staff must establish a good self-repertoire to gain his/her colleagues respect. Discuss while highlighting some of his/her desirable characteristics. Model Answer Agoodheadofstaffmustbe ……………… • Innovative, knowledgeable and willing to share experiences as to enrich the teaching field. • Inspiring and pushes others to move forward by his/her new ideas and enthusiasm for work. • A good observer and a fair evaluator. • A helpful guide and an effective trainer as pre-service and in-service training is the essence of his/her job. • Patient and tolerant, knowing that lack of progress is a temporary situation and only through hard work and self-confidence, his/her goals will be achieved.

12. 6. What is ‘repertoire’ and how can a teacher maintain and extend his repertoire? Model Answer For teachers, repertoire consists of the techniques and activities that they use in the classroom. Ateachercanextendhisrepertoireby ……… • reviewing teaching. • following peer observation. • caring for Interaction. • growing professionally.

13. 7. Write in brief what you know about ‘Authentic Text’. Model Answer • It is a text which is not written or spoken for language teaching purposes. A newspaper article, a rock song, a novel, a radio interview and a traditional fairy tale are examples of authentic texts. • A story written to exemplify the use of reported speech, a dialogue scripted to exemplify ways of inviting and a linguistically simplified version of a novel would not be authentic texts.

14. 8. What are the features of a ‘good report’? Model Answer • The objectives are set. • Scrutinizing all feedback. • Gathering-first hand evidence. • Grouping. • Recognizing irrelevances / redundancies. • Distinguishing facts from personal opinions. • Exploiting and giving examples. • Wrapping up / drawing conclusions.

15. 9. What does leadership mean to you? Model Answer • The ability to empower. • Taking up responsibility. • Being fair and just. • Giving a good model of work. • Taking sacrifices. • Holding good relations with others.

16. 10. As a supervisor, you were asked to plan an effective ‘Remedial Programme’ for low-achievers. Name some rules or features needed to plan such a ‘Programme’. Model Answer Rulesorfeaturesneededtoplananeffectiveremedialprogrammeare: • Using variations in methods and techniques help make the plan successful with low-achievers. • The programme should be based on what low-achievers can realistically achieve not on what we think they should achieve. • "Reading and Writing" skills are the weakest skills of low-achievers, so a teacher has to focus on them when preparing his remedial plan. • A teacher has to be supportive and encouraging because low-achievers need help and praise but he has to avoid over-praising and exaggeration. • Planning every step carefully is of top importance in applying any remedial programme; insufficient planning will be confusing to low-achievers. • Achieving and applying the remedial plan systematically aiming at end results or final targets, help make the remedial plan successful. • Tests should be given in sections for low-achievers, and not all at once as a teacher does in a regular class, as that helps low-achievers achieve better results. • Daily evaluation and constant feedback of achievement increase the feeling of success of any remedial plan for low-achievers. • Sometimes, a teacher has to be patient and tolerant particularly with disruptive pupils, when applying low-achievers’ programme.

17. 11. As head of staff, you are asked to give newly appointed teachers some tips on how to write effectively on the board. Mention them. Model Answer • The writing should be large enough to be read from the back of the class. • Writing has to be in a straight line. (Write across a section of the board not across all the board) • Teachers have to stand in a way that does not hide the board. (half facing the board and half facing the class) • Teachers have to talk while writing. (They should say aloud what they are writing, phrase by phrase, to involve the class)

18. 12. Aptitude and Attitude are two different terms in the field TEFL studies. Show the difference. Model Answer • Aptitude: The specific ability a learner has for learning a second language. This is separate from intelligence. • Attitude: Learners possess sets of beliefs about language learning, the target culture, their culture, the teacher, the learning tasks, etc. These beliefs are referred to as attitude. They influence learning in a number of ways.

19. C) Decide whether the following statements are true () or false (), and correct the false ones:

20. ü 1. ‘Authentic Text’ is a text which is not written or spoken for language teaching purposes. ( ) 2. There is no ‘correct’ format of a lesson plan. ( F ) 3. The textbooks should not consider what teachers want the learners to learn, but what they want them to do. ( ) 4. The command of a language is not a matter of knowledge. ( ) ü ü

21. ü 5. The operations we usually aim to realize in education and evaluation are mental ones which cannot be easily observed. ( )