Framingham State University, M.Ed in TESL Comprehensive Exam Study Guide The TESL Comprehensive Exam consists of four questions primarily from five courses; TESL 901, 902, 913, 948, and 966, however you may incorporate information from all courses in the program in your answers. You will be given examples to analyze or problems to solve to demonstrate that you are able to apply what you have learned to a teaching situation. When taking the exam please make sure you read each question carefully and address all of the points in the question. Cite specific theorists and authors when asked and give relevant examples from your own experience where appropriate. Question #1 Linguistics - This question combines content from two courses; TESL 901, Phonetics and Morphology, and TESL 902, Syntax, Semantics, and Pragmatics. There are two sections (901 and 902) to this question and you choose questions to answer. You will be expected to use accurate linguistic terminology, symbols, and abbreviations in your descriptions and solutions. Section 1: 901 Phonetics and Morphology Phonetics Know how minimal pairs are constructed and their role in teaching pronunciation Know the difference between phonemes and allophones (positional variants) and their effects on comprehensibility Understand and be able to explain the concept of linking (consonant to consonant, vowel to consonant, consonant to consonant, etc) and vowel lengthening when teaching pronunciation Be able to explain the importance of the schwa sound in pronunciation, and word and sentence stress, which words are stressed in English, content vs function words Be familiar with common pronunciation problems and the issue of intelligibility Know the domains of each suprasegmental and why surprasegmentals should be presented/taught first or last to ELLs
Morphology Know how words are put together and how the parts contribute to the meaning of the whole; Know the difference between inflection and derivation. Know how new words are created in English. Be able to provide examples of learners errors in word production and comprehension. Question #1: Section 2: 902 Syntax, Semantics and Pragmatics Be able to explain what syntax is, and what its function is, and the word order of English Be able to label and then explain the difference (color coded below) between word category, syntactic categories and syntactic functions and how the latter two work together. Example below: (from Morenberg; Doing Grammar) For example: You would explain the prepositional phrase: on his Asian trip as follows: This is a prepositional phrase (syntactic category) and it is functioning as an adverb of place, modifying China. Within the phrase on is a preposition and is the head of the phrase. his Asian trip is a NP and is functioning as the object of the preposition on. His is a possessive pronoun functioning in the determiner slot before the NP Asian trip. Asian is an adjective, and adjectives occur before the noun in English. Trip is a count noun, singular in this example. A visual diagram of the sentence would look like this: Marco Polo might not have reached China on his Asian trip PROPN M Neg HAVE VT PROP N PREP Poss Pr Adj N NP:Subj Inf Past/Part NP:DObj Det -------NP------- -------------Aux---------- ----------MV: Past Perf Cond------- -------NP:Obj/Prep------ -------------PrepPh: Adv -place--- --------------------------------------VP: Pred --------------------------------------------------- Additional concepts in syntax to know and explain:
Types of nouns, common, proper, and where adjectives occur within NP Know rules governing adjectives, types of adjectives, participial (a broken window) and descriptive adjectives (a blue coat) Understand use of adverbs, types of adverbs (degree extremely, and manner - quickly) and rules governing adverbs (what combination can they occur with for example: descriptive adjectives can be modified by degree adverbs and participial adjectives can be modified by adverbs of manner) Understand the difference between complements and modifiers at the phrase and sentence level Be able to identify verb types (transitive, ditransitive, intransitive, copula, complex transitive, prepositional, phrasal.) (Mahler Handbook) Understand Adverbials (optional modifiers that occur at VP level or S level )(different from adverbs) Know adjunct adverbials, conjunct, disjunct Be able to describe the difference between lexical and auxiliary verbs, constructions that depend on auxiliaries; passive, negative (with auxiliary do) and questions fronting the tensed auxiliary. (Chapter 6 Analysing Sentences, Noel Burton-Roberts, Mahler Handbook - Auxiliaries) Be able to recognize and explain the hierarchical organization of complex sentences.s S C - NP and VP etc (Mahler Handbook, Analysing Sentences, Morenberg) Be able to explain the importance of clauses in English and explain clause types (Finite, non-finite, relative, subordinate. Know the function of the clauses Semantics Know how each component of language contributes to the production of meaning in language: the phonological level, the morphological level, the syntactic level, and the semantic level. Understand thematic roles, agent, experiencer, etc., verb valency and arguments of the verb For semantics: difference between lexical and compositional semantics, LEXICAL: word sense and reference, dictionary-style definitions, mental image definitions, word reference, hyponymy, synonymy, antonymy COMPOSITIONAL: truth values, principles of compositionality Pragmatics Know the participant roles in conversation and what may contribute to a breakdown in communication Importance of context in conversation, felicitousness, be able to explain Grice s four maxims
Question #2 Second Language Acquisition This question focuses on material from TESL 913, Current Issues in Second Language Acquisition. It will be important to know the following: The kinds of roles that an ESL teacher would have in a public school setting Knowledge of best instructional practices in order to consult with teachers (Gottlieb) Knowledge of state testing practices (WIDA) and how the tests profile students in ways relative to specific skills Underlying research-based theories that relate to effective classroom instruction for ELL students such as interactionist theories, the input hypothesis, socio-cultural theory, socio-linguistic studies and communities of practice implications (Ortega text or Mitchell text for courses prior to Summer, 2015) Knowledge that addresses specific interventions for student weaknesses and progress monitoring of specific skills (Gottlieb) Differentiating between language proficiency levels and academic achievement (Gottlieb) The importance of performance-based assessment for ELL's and teacher considerations (Gottlieb) Use of visual/graphic support, cross-cutting instructional techniques and student self-assessment (Gottlieb) Grading systems to consider for ELL students (Gottlieb) Understanding that ELL students may appear to have learning disabilities and why that may be so
Question #3 Reading and Writing This question focuses on material from TESL 948, Reading and Writing. It will be important to know the following: The eight protocol steps in SIOP and how these pieces fit together to create scaffolded and appropriate lessons for the English Language Learner How and why reading English can be challenging for the ELL How to unpack texts to make them accessible for the ELL How to implement Bloom s Taxonomy of Cognitive Domain when creating lessons and/or assessments Implement Howard Gardner s Multiple Intelligences when creating lessons and assessment. How to activate background knowledge in order to help ELLs make connections from what they know to what they are learning Various techniques of teaching vocabulary How to create alternate assessments How to encourage and teach writing skills How to implement constructivist techniques and strategies in your lessons using the philosophies of Vygotsky and Krashen
Question #4 Culture This question focuses on material from TESL 966, Seminar in Applied Linguistics: Language Planning and Multicultural Education. You are expected to be able to: Explain the major theories related to the cultural identity of individuals Explain how language functions as an identity marker Explain the role that language plays on a societal level Explain the relationship between discourse and culture Relate cultural and linguistic identity to the language learning, content learning, and academic achievement of ELLs Explain status, corpus, and language acquisition planning and if and how these have been implemented in the US Explain the evolution of educational public policy in the US and how this policy has affected the teaching of ELLs in the classroom Be sure to include examples of how culture and language impact people s lives in the US as well as in different countries around the world. Draw on examples you have read about in the course materials, heard about in your classmates Wiki presentations, and that we have discussed in class.