Universidad Alberto Hurtado. School of Education. English Pedagogy

Transcription

1 Running head: GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Universidad Alberto Hurtado School of Education English Pedagogy How can I give effective instructions in English to 11th grade A students at Las Nieves School? This research was done to obtain a university degree as an English teacher. Sergio Loyola Sánchez Tutor teachers: Carola Pinto Clavijo - Pablo Silva Ríos Santiago, 2015

2 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 2 Index Abstract... 3 Acknowledgements...4 Introduction... 5 Context... 6 Problem and research question... 8 Rationale... 9 Literature review Methodology Gantt Chart Data Analysis Reflection and analysis Conclusions and implications References Appendices Appendix A: Transcription (Checklist 1) Appendix B: Transcription (Checklist 2) Appendix C: Transcription (Checklist 3) Appendix D: Transcription (Checklist 4) Appendix E: Transcription (Checklist 5) Appendix F: Flashcards Appendix G: Instructions Lesson Plan...43

3 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 3 Abstract This Action Research finds out different strategies to give effective instructions in English in a school located in Puente Alto, Chile, during two months and it was carried out with students around the ages of 16 and 17. In order to achieve this goal, four strategies were used according to students' and researcher's needs. Those strategies are: Use of Total Physical Response (TPR) to model the instructions, support the instructions through the use of the board, and use of Instruction Checking Questions (ICQ's). Additionally, during the process of using the strategies aforementioned, I found new students' needs so I decided to give a 30 minute lesson about vocabulary on instructions and then, glue flashcards about vocabulary seen on this lesson, onto the walls of the classroom. By the end of this project, the researcher finds positive results in the use of those strategies that caused positive reactions in students as well as in researcher's English teaching. Key concepts: Instructions, Total Physical Response, Instruction Checking Questions, Modeling Instructions. El siguiente proyecto de investigación averigua distintas estrategias para dar instrucciones eficaces en inglés en un colegio ubicado en Puente Alto, Chile; durante dos meses y fue llevado a cabo con estudiantes de entre 16 y 17 años de edad. Para alcanzar este objetivo, se utilizaron 4 estrategias de acuerdo a las necesidades de los estudiantes y del profesor. Estas estrategias son: Uso de respuesta física total para modelar la instrucción, apoyar las instrucciones usando de la pizarra, y el uso de preguntas para comprobar la instrucción. Durante el proceso del uso de las estrategias mencionadas anteriormente,

4 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 4 encontré nuevas necesidades en los estudiantes, por lo que decidí dar una clase de 30 minutos acerca de vocabulario de instrucciones y luego, pegar tarjetas de memoria en las paredes de la sala de clases acerca del vocabulario visto en esta clase. Al final de este proyecto, el investigador encontró resultados positivos en el uso de las estrategias, causando una reacción positiva tanto en los estudiantes como en la enseñanza del inglés del investigador. Conceptos claves: Instrucciones, Respuesta física total, Preguntas que comprueban la instrucción, Modelo de instrucción. Acknowledgements My teachers and classmates are a huge part of this project which represents the whole academic process I lived during the last five years of my life since I tried to learn from every single strength of them in order to become a teacher. I lived this process physically away from my parents, but it does not mean they were not less important in this experience. Actually, without them, this study would not be possible, I owe them this and much more. I also want to thank to the rest of my family, girlfriend, and friends in Santiago who gave me shelter and made me feel welcomed in a reality I had no idea about when I started my first year. Finally, this project goes in my grandmother's memory because even though she was not able to look at my degree diploma (as she desired), I am aware of her support and also that she is looking at me every day and everywhere. In memory of our dear teacher José Callado González.

5 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 5 Introduction. Most of the teachers consider instructions as a basic part of their classes. However, I believe instructions are more than basic, they are crucial because if students do not comprehend them easily or do not understand what they have to do, then the activity will not work as expected. "Perhaps the most important point that determines how successfully students will learn is the way instructions are formulated "(Rhalmi, 2010). Moreover, it is quite common that after giving the instructions, some students start to work while some others ask the typical question: Sir, what do I have to do? Then, teachers have to explain the instructions three, or even four times. Therefore, activities usually tend to take much longer than expected. Sometimes this fact occurs because students do not pay attention. However, there are many other cases where despite students attention, they do not understand the instructions given by their teachers. The following Action Research project is focused on the last point afore mentioned. What should I do when students take more time than expected to comprehend my instructions? When students pay attention and do not comprehend in an appropriate time limit, we tend to assume it is because the teacher has not done it right. Moreover, this research attempts to figure out the solution to this problem taking into consideration the context, collecting appropriate data, intervening according to data results and finally, analyzing data and intervention results.

6 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 6 Context. This research was carried out at Colegio Técnico Las Nieves, which is located in Puente Alto, Concha y Toro Avenue #2188, Santiago. This school belongs to a foundation called "Protectora de la Infancia" and shelters 805 students approximately. Even though it is a subsidized school, according to the academic coordinator, it has 76,6% of vulnerability which means that most of the students are at social risk. Colegio Técnico Las Nieves offers technical education and it is intended for secondary female students. Therefore, there are students only from 9th to 12 th grade, with an average of 43 students in each classroom. Moreover, there are three technical specialties students have to study during 11th and 12th grades. These specialties are: Gastronomy, Children nursery, and Telecommunications. Regarding infrastructure, the school provides students with the required spaces and equipment for each specialty. There is a laboratory implemented with computers and digital control equipment for students taking telecommunications. In addition, there is a big kitchen where gastronomy students learn to cook. Finally, there is a special room for Children Nursery students where they have access to the necessary equipment to complement their learning process (Musical instruments, didactic games, etc.). Additionally, the school has a complete library where students have access to books and journals that cover all the subjects they have to study at school. Finally, there is a computer lab for students with 45 computers with Internet access. In terms of English teaching, there are only two English teachers since 9th and 10th graders have only 4 pedagogical hours of English a week, while 11th and 12th graders only

7 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 7 have two. In 9th and 10th grade, teachers spend two of the four hours working with a book called "Touchstone 1" for 9th graders and "Touchstone 2" for 10th graders. Regarding 11th and 12th graders, teachers plan their classes using a book called "Business start-up", which has activities and vocabulary focused on business and jobs. In addition, every single student is provided with a dictionary at the beginning of the year. It is also important to mention that there are no computers nor data projectors in the classrooms. This action research project is going to be carried out with 11th grade A, a class composed by 40 students. Therefore, I have only two pedagogical hours a week, and I was required to plan my classes using the "Business start-up book". Classes are held on Thursdays from 15:25 to 16:55.

8 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 8 Problem and Research Question I have had the opportunity to do two activities with 11th graders during the observation period. During these activities, there was one particular problem I was able to identify which is related to giving instructions. The main issue I faced was that students did not easily comprehend my instructions in English. I spent more time than expected doing so. At the beginning, I thought it was because they did not pay attention. Nevertheless, they kept misunderstanding my instructions even when they were paying attention. Therefore, I realized it was not a students' issue but there was something I was not doing right. When I gave them instructions in Spanish, students did not take more than forty five seconds to understand their task. However, when I did it in English, I took at least two four minutes trying to efficiently deliver the instructions. Therefore, the problem is that I spent an excessive amount of time giving instructions in English. In my opinion, I should not take more than two minutes giving instructions to my students, unless the activity has certain complexity for them. Hence, my Action Research Question is: How can I give effective instructions in English to 11th A grade students at Las Nieves School?

9 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 9 Rationale I decided to undertake this project because I do not feel confident when I have to give instructions to my students. In addition, I get easily overwhelmed when I think about the effectiveness of the instructions I expect to give to my students. Finally, I believe it is very important to give effective instructions since I consider that part as an inflection point of the lesson. I mean, that I can do an outstanding pre-activity and introduction of new vocabulary, but if my instructions are not effective, then the rest of the lesson is not going to work as successfully as expected. Additionally, even though the problem identified could be considered as over exaggerating, throughout my short experience I have been able to realize that if I take too much time giving instructions, then the rest of the activity will be distorted in terms of time since I will have less time to give feedback and deliver the rest of the class, mostly the post activities. Sometimes I just do not have enough time to finish my class, which means that in some classes, students do not reinforce their productive skills (post-activity). Hence, students' learning process is seriously disadvantaged. Moreover, giving effective instructions "can also have a major impact on confidence- the teacher s confidence in their teaching, and the students confidence in English as something that they can understand" (Case, 2010). Therefore, from the effectiveness of instructions, another inflection point can arise in terms of students' and teacher's confidence since, effective instructions can increase classroom confidence and therefore, teacher's and students' intrinsic motivation increases as well during the rest of the lesson.

10 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 10 The afore mentioned quotation explains my feeling of frustration when I give instructions in English ineffectively, as well as my feeling of satisfaction when I realize the class is delivered successfully. Additionally, the same quotation explains students' frustration that I could observe during my lessons and consequently, they tend to lose the motivation to learn.

11 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 11 Literature Review In order to continue with this project, I believe it is necessary to define some concepts so as to contribute to the complete understanding of the research. These concepts are: - Instructions - Modeling instructions. - Total Physical Response (TPR) - Instruction Checking Questions (ICQ) While I was reading some possible references that can be useful for my research, I realized it is necessary to be clear about the definition of "instructions". In order to do so, instructions are being defined as "the directions that are given to introduce a learning task which entails some measure of independent students activity" (Ur, P p.16). This means that this research is going to be focused on those exercises or tasks of the class where the teacher has to explain students what they have to do in order to enable them to make the task independently but under teacher's guidance. Unlike other authors who refer to instructions as synonym of teaching. For example, Orleich, Harder, Callahan, Trevisan and Brown (2007), define instructions as "a systematic process that encompasses several different concepts". Those concepts Olreich et al. (2007) offers, conduct to give an entire class successfully rather than focusing exclusively on giving effective instructions, which is the aim of this project. Finally, it is important to clarify that, during this research, the instruction process finishes when the teacher clarifies students doubts after receiving the instructions. I point out this because if students have countless questions after receiving my

12 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 12 instructions, then they are not effective at all since the instruction process finishes when all students are clear about what they have to do. Regarding to modeling instructions, Jim Scrivener (2011) proposes some steps to improve instructions, one of them consists of not only explain but also, as much as possible, to make demonstrations of the exercises. Following the same idea, Penny Ur also offers a similar step which is about "and actual demonstration of the activity yourself with the full class or with a volunteer student before inviting learners to tackle the task on their own" (2007 p.16). In other words, modeling instructions is to show students how to do the activity. According to both authors, it is not enough to read the instructions to students aloud and giving them an amount of time to do the activity. Instructions have to be modeled by the teacher and/or one student by using body language to make an exercise of the activity as an understandable example for the rest of the class. Then, the afore mentioned topic leads us to another one. Total Physical Response (TPR) basically consists of teaching vocabulary through body language. This method combines brain and body since, according to Brown (2001); there have been some psychologists who assured that motor activity contributes to the improvement of memory by activating it. This means that body language complements the mind when memorizing vocabulary, mostly for visual learners since it would be easier to understand the meaning of a word by observing how that word works. Moreover, "TPR was developed in order to reduce the stress people feel when studying foreign languages" (Larsen-Freeman, 2013 p. 113). Therefore, it's a high recommended technique since TPR activates students' minds without stressing them.

13 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 13 The relationship between TPR and giving instructions has to do basically with modeling the instructions. Therefore, that is the reason why these concepts are interrelated. Finally, we have Instructions Checking Questions (ICQ) which are questions the teacher asks to students in order to be sure they understood what they have to do. We must be very careful when formulating ICQs since they have to be precise. "It is not enough to ask Do you understand?" (Ur, 2007) since with that question, the teacher do not necessarily guide students to come up with the answer expected. Instead, it is recommended to use closed questions about the activity itself, for instance, Do you have to read or listen?; Do you have to complete, or answer the questions?. Evidently, the questions afore mentioned increase the probabilities of students to come up with the expected answer as they only have two choices. Moreover "Key words" are included in those questions (Read, Listen, Complete, Answer).

14 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 14 Methodology As this research aims to find the way to give effective instructions, the process of that specific part of the class needs to be observed and analyzed. In order to do so, I decided to collect data through an events checklist so as to analyze my performance weekly, according to some specific steps I should use to give effective instructions. Besides, "this type of checklist gives you an objective picture of the patterns of activities occurring in a classroom" (Burns, 2010 p.65). Therefore, through checklists I can realize whether the strategies I will be using during this project are being fruitful or not. This checklist is composed by seven facts, four of them about students' feelings and behavior, and three about my impression and attitude after giving the instructions for each activity. However, what can I do if I do not have anybody to observe my class and complete the checklist? This is the reason why I decided to video record my classes in order to analyze my instructions after class. Moreover, the transcriptions of the videos will allow me to get empirical evidence in order to complete the checklist as objectively as possible. Those transcriptions can be found in the appendices session, from Appendix A to E. Additionally, I will design and complete an observation sheet in order to share a self-reflection about how instructions worked during the classes. As this sheet will be made by myself, they will be personal, subjective and more descriptive than checklists as they are restricted and limited to seven facts. In addition, observations sheets will allow me to think on new suggestions for my intervention that I probably will not be able to realize by watching the videos and observing the checklists

15 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 15 Finally, as the aim of this project is to give effective instructions, I decided to take the time of the instructions through the videos recorded so as to measure the effectiveness of instructions in terms of time. Regarding time, this action research will be held between October the 1st and December 4th and it is composed by five phases (From data collection phase to the submission). Data collection is divided in two parts, one before the intervention and during the intervention, where I will have three weeks to collect data (from October 1st to October 22th), one week to analyse the data, and three weeks of intervention (from October 29th to November 12th). During the intervention, I will collect data with the same instruments so as to check how my interventions will be working. Throughout the week of November 12th I will analyse the intervention. Finally in the last week, this Action Research will be proofread by teachers and tutors and submitted on December 4th.

16 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 16 Gantt Chart PERIOD OF TIME ACTIVITY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEM BER and 5 Observation Research Question Formulation. Development of data collection instruments. Data collection. Data Analysis Intervention Reflection and analysis of intervention. Proofreading. Submission,

17 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 17 Data Analysis In order to find out a solution for the identified problem, I decided to implement some strategies that would lead me to give effective instructions in English to my students. Those strategies are pointed out in the checklists presented in this section. The first two checklists and observation sheets are the most appropriate evidence to show the identified problem because of their results. Then, there is a third checklist and observation sheet that shows a little change on my performance as the intervention process started. Finally, there are two more checklists and observation sheets that demonstrate a positive change that contributes to reach effective instructions. Checklist 1. Students ask questions about the task after receiving instructions Students demonstrate understanding of the key words of the instructions. Students ask the teacher to repeat the instructions. I feel comfortable during giving instructions. I use ICQs after giving instructions. I model the instructions through Total Physical Response. I support my instructions through the use of the board. All the time Most of the time Occasionally Barely Never

18 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 18 Sheet 1. My feelings once I gave the instructions Stressed and frustrated. What to improve? - Organize the instructions by steps. - Use TPR to model the instructions. What to change? - My attitude to give instructions. I looked bored and discouraged when giving the instructions. -Redundant speech. Go straight to the point. What to add? - Try with using the board to support the instructions by writing each step. - Explain the keywords of the instruction (Match in this case). Students behavior once they received the instructions Confused and frustrated. According to the transcription (see Appendix A) more than five minutes was the time I took giving instructions for an activity and students asked me to repeat what they have to do at least twice so the instruction was not effective at all. Besides, six students started to ask me about what they have to do immediately after I gave the instructions. If we look at the checklist, we realize I barely used ICQ's. I did not use TPR to model the instructions but in order to make students get the vocabulary related to the instruction and I did not write the specific steps on the board. In addition I was very redundant when telling the instructions to my students instead of going straight to the point. Finally, I said the steps quickly and in a disorganized way.

19 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 19 Regarding the observation sheet (sheet 1), we can realize that I not only felt uncomfortable but also stressed and frustrated after giving the instructions. Besides, I needed to change my attitude and feel motivated and encouraged at the moment of giving the instructions of students' tasks since "teacher enthusiasm can lead to better teaching evaluations, positive attitudes toward teachers, better student performance, and improved classroom behavior" (Zhang, Q. 2014). In addition, students feelings were quite worrying since frustration after receiving instructions could conduct them to be reluctant to do the tasks. Hence, students' language acquisition can be damaged. Finally, I needed to be sure students manage the keywords of the instructions when giving them. Checklist 2. Students ask questions about the task after receiving instructions Students demonstrate understanding of the key words of the instructions. Students ask the teacher to repeat the instructions. I feel comfortable during giving instructions. I use ICQs after giving instructions. I model the instructions through Total Physical Response. I support my instructions through the use of the board. All the time Most of the time Occasionally Barely Never

20 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 20 Sheet 2. My feelings once I gave the instructions Overwhelmed. What to improve? - Organize the instructions by steps. - Avoid redundant words like: OK, for example, What to change? - My attitude to give instructions. I looked bored and discouraged when giving the instructions. - Explain key concepts of the activity before giving instructions. What to add? -Try with using the board to support the instructions by writing each step. Students behavior once they received the instructions Confused. According to the second video transcription (see Appendix B), I took four minutes and thirty one seconds giving instructions. From the second checklist (Checklist 2) I can infer similar issues than in the previous instruments. Even though I used TPR at times, I did not use the board nor ICQ's. Consequently, students asked me to repeat the instructions, and five students asked me questions about the task after receiving the instructions. Besides, according to Appendix B, I was still a little bit redundant when speaking. Moreover, I told the specific steps to my students although I did not write them on the board. Regarding to the observation sheet (Sheet 2), even though students demonstrated understanding of the key words of the instructions, they did not understand the key words of the activity itself. That is the reason why I wrote in the sheet that I must teach the key

21 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 21 concepts of the activity before giving the instructions. I wrongly assumed students managed that vocabulary when giving instructions. Besides, I still show the same attitude to students. There is an evident lack of enthusiasm from me. I need to change it if I want to avoid students' frustration. Much to the contrary, I aim to get students engaged with the tasks. Finally, I need to consider to write the steps on the board so as to help students to do not forget them once I told the steps. Checklist 3. Students ask questions about the task after receiving instructions Students demonstrate understanding of the key words of the instructions. Students ask the teacher to repeat the instructions. I feel comfortable during giving instructions. I use ICQs after giving instructions. I model the instructions through Total Physical Response. I support my instructions through the use of the board. All the time Most of the time Occasionally Barely Never Sheet 3. My feelings once I gave the instructions Dissatisfied. What to improve? - Students' vocabulary on instructions. Students behavior once they received the instructions Confused.

22 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 22 What to change? - My attitude has changed positively a little bit, but it is still improvable. - Explain key concepts of the activity before giving instructions. What to add? -Explain students some vocabulary about instructions. In the checklist (Checklist 3) and observation sheet (Sheet 3) above, things changed a little bit since I took three minutes and thirty seven seconds delivering the instruction. According to Appendix C and Checklist 3, I used TPR to explain the word "match", and I wrote on the board at the end of the instruction the steps of the activity and the time students had to do it. Moreover, students did not asked me to repeat the instruction once they received it. Nevertheless, I did not use ICQ's so that is why two students asked me about some details of the task after giving the instructions. Regarding to the observation sheet, I needed to explain vocabulary on instructions to students because I had to explain again the word "match". Thus, there is a common problem I could identify which is students' lack of knowledge of vocabulary related to instructions such as the words: Read, Listen, Underline, Choose, Match, etc. Therefore, I decided to give a thirty minute lesson to students about vocabulary related to instructions and glue "flashcards" on the classroom's walls that could work as a support for students to comprehend future instructions effectively. The flashcards can be found in Appendix F and the lesson plan of the class in Appendix G.

23 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 23 Finally, I demonstrated a better but improvable attitude and I did not feel happy nor frustrated after giving instructions, but I felt dissatisfied. I still needed to improve our feelings in order to encourage students to work in class. Checklist 4. Students ask questions about the task after receiving instructions Students demonstrate understanding of the key words of the instructions. Students ask the teacher to repeat the instructions. I feel comfortable during giving instructions. I use ICQs after giving instructions. I model the instructions through Total Physical Response. I support my instructions through the use of the board. All the time Most of the time Occasionally Barely Never Sheet 4. My feelings once I gave the instructions Satisfied. What to improve? - Attitude is good, but can be better. What to change? - Emphasize the keywords of the instructions: In this case, the word "Organize". Students behavior once they received the instructions Encouraged.

24 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 24 What to add? -Maybe a flashcard that explains the word "Put". The checklists (Checklist 4 and 5) and observation sheets (Sheet 4 and 5) were completed based on a transcription about a worksheet activity held after the class about vocabulary of instructions and gluing the flashcards on the walls. The main idea in this class was to put into practice, as much as possible, the strategies mentioned in the checklists as well as taking advantage of the flashcards glued onto the walls. Both transcriptions correspond to the same week. Two minutes and thirty four seconds was the time I took delivering this instruction. According to checklist 4, we can realize there is an improvement in comparison to the previous instruments. Even though one student asked me a question when finishing the instruction, I found the way to solve her doubt immediately by modeling the instruction. Besides, students did not ask questions about the task after receiving the instructions. In my opinion, this was because the steps were written on the board once I gave the instructions. I decided to do this because "learners have only a limited attention span" (Ur, 2007) so they could tend to remind easily the steps of the task by looking at the board. In addition, students could get the vocabulary of the instruction, not because of the flashcards but due to my use of TPR since, the word "organize" does not appear in the flashcards.

25 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 25 Regarding the observation sheet (sheet 4), I felt satisfied but not happy because I believe that if I used ICQ's then I could probably avoid the student's question that almost made me repeat the instruction. Despite that situation, students felt encouraged to work and I found myself a little motivated, unlike in the previous activities where I looked boring. Checklist 5. Students ask questions about the task after receiving instructions Students demonstrate understanding of the key words of the instructions. Students ask the teacher to repeat the instructions. I feel comfortable during giving instructions. I use ICQs after giving instructions. I model the instructions through Total Physical Response. I support my instructions through the use of the board. All the time Most of the time Occasionally Barely Never Sheet 5. My feelings once I gave the instructions Happy. What to improve? - Attitude is good, but can still be better. Students behavior once they received the instructions Encouraged and happy. What to change? - Avoid to ask: Do you understand? because it is a general question.

26 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 26 What to add? Finally, in checklist 5, I realized my performance enhanced considerably since students did not ask questions about the task after the instructions, nor asked to repeat the instructions. In addition, I felt quite comfortable while giving instructions and students demonstrated understanding of the key words of the instructions. I used ICQ's all the time, consequently, I did not receive any question after giving instructions as they answered my questions correctly. Finally, I just used TPR only for two words and, according to the transcription, I just wrote "read and listen" as I believed that maybe it was unnecessary to write more as the instruction did not required many steps. Regarding the observation sheet (sheet 5), our feelings after instructions were much better than in the previous activities and I looked motivated while delivering instructions. Finally, I took two minutes and three seconds delivering the instruction. Therefore, this instruction was quite effective mainly because of the appropriate use of the flashcards as well as the use of ICQ's.

27 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 27 Reflection and Analysis Regarding the strategies I used during the intervention process of this research, I realized that using TPR was no longer necessary to explain the exhibited vocabulary in the flashcards after two weeks I glued onto the wall. In those cases, it was enough with indicating the appropriate flashcard, and for some basic words like read, write or match, it was not even necessary to indicate the flashcard since the majority of the students already kept those words on their minds. However, Instruction Checking Questions were necessary for every single process of giving instructions since they made me sure that students were clear about what they had to do. Through the use of ICQ's, I could avoid doubts about the activity after giving the instructions and therefore, contribute to the effectiveness of instructions. As a final reflection, I need to mention that the strategies carried out in classes were successful for students because they could finally understand the instructions effectively and, consequently, this helped them to enhance their disposition to work since they felt comfortable and even (sometimes) happy when receiving the instructions effectively. Moreover, it was not only fruitful for my students but also for myself since now I feel I finished the semester giving effective instructions as expected, thanks to the strategies I used. My feelings when giving instructions changed considerably. Now, instructions became a part of the class that I enjoy to do. In addition, as I stated before, this inflection point (which are instructions of tasks) occurred in my favor since this helped me to keep students' interest on the class.

28 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 28 Conclusions and Implications While I was doing this project, I realized I passed by two cycles as I added the use of the flashcards after the third intervention. I decided to use flashcards because I found the strategies described on the checklist were not enough to give effective instructions. Therefore, the first cycle was composed by the use of TPR to model the instructions, ICQ's, and the use of the board to write the steps, while the second cycle is composed by the strategies aforementioned, plus the lesson on instructions and the use of the flashcards glued on the board. After completing the second cycle of my research, instructions were as effective as expected since many of the students demonstrated to keep on their minds common instruction vocabulary (Read, Listen, Write, and Match). Hence, the students' understanding of key vocabulary on instructions considerably contributed to the aim of this project. This does not invalidate the first cycle, indeed it helped as it was included in the second cycle. Therefore, all strategies were a complement for me to reach a unique objective which was to give effective instructions. If I were to do this research again I would take more advantage of ICQ's and flashcards, as well as including flashcards from the beginning since I believe those are the strategies that worked most in this project, although the other strategies (TPR to model and support of the board) also gave an important contribution. Supporting the instructions on the board was quite helpful for the class since it helped students to do not forget the steps of the activity as they looked at the specific steps written on the board. Besides, I would probably choose a class group with more hours of English classes a week so as to avoid the issue of loosing automatically one week to do my project when English classes were canceled for my course several times for different reasons.

29 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 29 Finally, I need to recognize I underestimated this project since I considered this research just as the final step to finish my pre grade studies. However, during the process of this action research I realized how important it was for my language teaching in future schools since, thanks to this project I could reach a huge improvement since through giving effective instructions I could keep my students' motivation and focus on the lessons, and that is very valuable for me as future teacher. From now on, I will try my best to be motivated in every single part of my lessons, including instructions, as well as looking for (according to the context) the necessary ways to give effective instructions as their consequences I experienced this semester were fruitful. By this project I took outstanding ideas about how to improve such an important part of the lessons as instructions are.

30 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 30 References -Brown, H. D. (2001). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy. White Plains, NY: Longman. -Burns, A. (2010). Doing action research in English language teaching: A guide for practitioners. New York: Routledge. -Case, A. (2010). Making sure students understand your instructions TEFL.net. Retrieved from -Larsen-Freeman, D. (2004). Techniques and principles in language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press. -Orlich, D. C. (2010). Teaching strategies: A guide to effective instruction. Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. -Rhalmi, M. (2010, March). Practical Teaching Tips For Giving Instructions. Retrieved from -Scrivener, J. (2011). Learning teaching: The essential guide to English language teaching. Oxford: Macmillan Education. -Ur, P. (2007). A course in language teaching: Practice and theory. Cambridge [England: Cambridge University Press. -Zhang, Q. (2014, February). Instructor's Corner #3: Teaching with Enthusiasm: Engaging Students, Sparking Curiosity, and Jumpstarting Motivation. Retrieved from

31 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 31 Appendices Appendix A: Transcription October 8th (Checklist 1) 1 Teacher so let's read the instructions. look at the office plan. silence please. Look at the office plan. Silence please. can you match the silence please can you match the questions and the answers? hey, thank you, shhh. silence please. So, let's do it again. what does the instruction say. Look at the office plan, can you match the questions and answers? Which are the questions? those are the questions, and you have to match, these questions with these answers, you know what match is? (Teacher points the questions and answers on the board). 2 Students No. 3 Teacher match (Teacher put his hands together to show his hands matched) 4 Student 1 juntar 5 Student 2 unir 6 Teacher yes that's it. Ok. So, you have to match these questions (teacher indicates the questions projected on the board) with those answers. now do you understand? 7 Students no. 8 Student 3 profe no entiendo nada. Ni del mapa ni de lo que hay que hacer. 9 Teacher ok don't worry. but I need your complete silence. silencio chicas para que me entiendan. ok lets do it again. what is this? (teacher points to one part of the board). 10 Student 4 oraciones. sentences 11 Teacher Yes. but what kind of sentences. (After 5 minute silence). these are questions (teacher

32 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Students respuestas. indicates the question symbol of the questions on the board) so what are those? 13 Teacher answers ok. so you have to look at the map, and match do you remember what match is? you have to match the questions with the answers that are directions to (Teacher indicates on the board the questions and the answers). 14 Student 5 entonces tengo que unir eso de ahí con eso de ahí? 15 Teacher that's it. but first you have to look at the map. 16 Student 6 como profe? 17 Teacher yes. ok I think I should do it again. You have to look at the map and identify the places of the office. we have a reception desk, computer room, right? 18 Students Yes. 19 Teacher ok. then we have questions right? 20 Students yes 21 Teacher and we have answers right? 22 Students yes 23 Teacher Those answers are directions about how to get to the places of the map. that s why you have to first look at the map. The answers (the teacher indicates the answers with his hand on the board) are directions of this map (the teacher shows the map). 24 Student 7 aaaaahhh entonces las respuestas son en base a las preguntas que aparecen ahi, que preguntan cómo llegar a tal parte.

33 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Teacher Excelent thats it. Can you please explain (teacher emphasizes the word "explain") to the girls? 26 Student 7 Chicas tienen que mirar al mapa. las preguntas preguntan cómo llegar a los lugares del mapa y tienen que ver cuáles son las respuestas adecuadas. 27 Teacher do you understand know? 28 Students yeeeees 29 Teacher ok, you have 5 minutes to do it. Time: 5:13 minutes. One minute later, six students raised their hands because they do not know what they have to do.

34 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 34 Appendix B: Transcription October 15th (Checklist 2) 1 Teacher So now let's work on this. make phrases using the following directions. for example we have right. pass the lift. to the end of the corridor. left and through the doors ok. for example here we have one phrase. Turn left ok. we use this word (Teacher crosses out the word left on the board) and we say turn left. ok. then we have here. For example we have this image that says turn. 2 Student 1 Left (Teacher turns around and stands as giving his back to students, and makes a gesture with his right hand pointing to his right side) 3 Student 2 turn right 4 Teacher Turn right so where is "right" here? Turn right ok (Teacher cross's out the word right on the board). Copy the instruction please and the chart as well. 5 Student 3 Profe qué significa through? 6 Teacher Through in real spanish means "a través de" go through the doors. ve a través de las puertas. ok so what do you have to do? You have to copy the instructions. copy the chart. and then I will show you the images so you can make the exercise. Got it? yuyo what do you have to do? 7 Student 4 Copiar las instrucciones, la tabla. 8 Teacher copy and answer this (Teacher indicates the instruction and the chart). copy the chart. and then I will show you the images so you can answer the exercise. ok? ok here, do you get it Zamora? cualquiera de las 2. Francisca. No? Francisca. Lorena (Students start laughing). Ya Francisca, le achunté. cuál es cuál? (Students laugh) ok. Zamora do you understand? explain in spanish, don t worry. (Francisca and Lorena are twins)

35 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 35 9 Student 5 No, no entendí. 10 Student 6 No. 11 Student 7 Yo sé profe, copiar las instrucciones, la tabla y después responder. 12 Teacher Ok, excellent. one minute to copy this. 13 Student 8 Pero profe. que hay que responder. 14 Teacher Write the phrases according to the images and the words of the chart. 15 Student 9 Escribe las oraciones viendo las palabras y las imagenes. Ahí en la pizarra hay un primer ejemplo. 16 Teacher Thats it. You have ten minutes to do the complete activity. One minute later, five students raised their hands because they do not know what they have to do. Time: 4:31 minutes.

36 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 36 Appendix C: Transcription November 5th (Checklist 3). 1 Teacher Please look at the worksheet I gave you. lets begin by the. from exercise number 1. lets read the instruction. match from column A with the meanings on column B. match, do you know what match is? no? 2 Students : No 3 Teacher : ok. match is this (Teacher puts his hands together to depict a hands match) 4 Student 1 : Unir 5 Teacher : Right. so you have the column A and you have some words right. leave. how can I get to is the question. for example how can I get to the library? how can I get to the principal office? do you remember that question? yes or no? 6 Students YES 7 Teacher Ok. right whats the meaning of right? 8 Student 2 Derecha 9 Teacher Ok. and we have the basement. what is the basement? 10 Student 3 Subterráneo. 11 Teacher Ok, the first floor and the stairs. ok. in column B you have the definition of those words so you have to match the word with the definition. ok? 12 Students YES 13 Teacher Ok. you have no more than five minutes to do it. You have to (Teacher writes on the board: Match column A with B. 5 minutes to complete it). So you have to match column A with B and you have five minutes to do it. start.

37 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Student 4 Pero profe, que significan esas oraciones de la derecha? 15 Teacher They are definitions. for example. what is a basement? 16 Student 5 Un subterráneo 17 Teacher Yes, but the definition of basement. the explanation of the word basement. (Teacher shows quotation marks with his fingers to students) 18 Student 6 Ah, son las definiciones. 19 Teacher Exactly, so you have 5 minutes to do the exercise. Two students asked me about the task after receiving the instructions Time: 3:37 minutes

38 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 38 Appendix D: Transcription November 12th (Checklist 4) 1 Teacher Now look at your worksheet. Look at your worksheet. Javiera, look at your worksheet. Thank you. Instruction number one. Think about the job interview process. Put the (Teacher makes gestures as if he was organizing objects) in the right order. So you have the pictures. You have to put them 2 Student 1 Poner las fotos en el order correcto 3 Teacher That's it (Teacher indicates the students who spoke). Organize them in the correct time order. So you have to.(teacher writes on the board the steps to follow: Look at the pictures. Organize pictures in correct time order). Organize the pictures in the right time order. From the picture that goes first to the picture that goes after. Do you get it? 4 Student 2 Como profe? 5 Teacher You have to put the pictures 6 Student 3 Lo que se hace antes y después. 7 Teacher Yeah! That's it. What image happen first? The images have letters: A, B, C, D, E and F, right? 8 Students Yes. 9 Teacher For example, what is the first image? What happen at first? 10 Student 4 La D 11 Teacher Newspaper advert, right? So you write number 1 letter D, right? (Teacher writes on the board 1-D). And what happen after?

39 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Students try to answer 13 Teacher Ok, do it by yourself (Teacher points to students). You have two minutes. (Teacher writes on the board "2 minutes"). Students do not ask questions about the task after receiving the instruction. Time: 2:34 minutes

40 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 40 Appendix E: Transcription November 12th part 2 (Checklist 5) 1 Teacher Now, turn your page. Like this (Teacher turns his page in front of the students). Here you have a text (Teacher indicates in his worksheet the location of the text) ok? 2 Students Yes 3 Teacher And we are going to watch a video. The video has the answer to the previous exercise and it says exactly the same than this text, right? 4 Students Right 5 Teacher So, you have to follow the video by reading the text. Read the text, and listen to the video at the same time, simultaneously (Teacher says this last words slowly). (Teacher first indicates the flashcard of "read", then he puts on finger on his ear and indicates the flashcards of "listen" while saying "Read and Listen"). So, what do you have to do? Are you going to write? (Teacher indicates the flashcard of "write"). 6 Students NO. 7 Teacher Are you going to read or listen? 8 Students Las dos po profe. 9 Teacher Excellent (Teacher writes "read and listen" on the board). What are you going to read? 10 Student 1 El texto que sale acá (Student 1 shows the text for the class) 11 Teacher Excellent, and what is the video about?

41 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Student 2 El video dirá lo mismo que el texto. 13 Teacher Excellent! Can you please tell the class? 14 Student 2 Chicas tienen que seguir el video con este texto por que dicen lo mismo. 15 Teacher That's it. Do you understand? 16 Students SI. YES. 17 Teacher Now, complete silence please. (Teacher plays the video) Time: 2:03 minutes

42 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 42 Appendix F: Flashcards

43 GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH 43

44 Running head: GIVING EFFECTIVE INSTRUCTIONS IN ENGLISH Appendix G: Lesson Plan OBJECTIVE(S) LESSON STEPS STRATEGIES ACTIVITIES ASSESSMENT TIME RESOURCES By the end of the lesson, 1.Pre 1. Formative -Whiteboard students will be able to Present Brainstorming. -Marker Motivate recognize vocabulary Activate related to instructions. Engage 2.While Comprehension 3.Post Productive skills Lang. awareness Practice Function - Teacher writes the words "Instructions" on the board. - Then, teacher asks students what words are related to instructions. Students are expected to come up with words like "read", "write", "listen", "match", etc. Teacher shows the slides to students composed by the word above a draw that represents the meaning of the word. Here, students are expected to recognize the meaning of the words and/or translate them into Spanish. Teacher projects 7 instructions on the board and students have to recognize what the instruction is asking for. Students who tend to pay less attention than their classmates are encouraged to participate in this activity. Closure 5-10 min. Feedback: Teacher checks students answer at the end of each activity. Ask the students what they did. 2. Slides. Formative -Whiteboard -Marker -data projector 3. Recognize instruction. Formative -Whiteboard -Marker - Data Projector