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Contents

I. Introduction

1.1. General characteristics of the work

1.2. Method of games for teaching English

II. Main Part

Chapter 1. Theory Part

2.1.1. Techniques in games

2.1.2. The method of note-taking with fun

2.1.3. Using Games to Promote Communicative Skills in Language Learning

2.1.4. Learning grammar through games

2.1.5. Linguists opinions on using games

Chapter 2. Practice Part (on the example of grammar games)

2.2.1. Competitive games

2.2.2. Cognitive games

2.2.3. Feeling and grammar

2.2.4. Listening activities

2.2.5. Movement using in game learning

2.2.6. Meaning and translation

2.2.7. Problem Solving

2.2.8. Making presentations and critical thinking

2.2.9. Passive voice (methodic elaboration)

III. Conclusion

IV. Bibliography

V. Appendix

I. Introduction

1.1 General characteristics of the work

Before making the investigation in our qualification work we should give some notions on its organization structure.

1. Theme of qualification work.

The theme of my qualification work sounds as following: “Using games at the practical course of the English language” I have chosen this theme as in my opinion games are the most interesting and adequate for any language learning by students because they (games) arise fun and interest among students and inforcingly stimulate them to learn better.

2. Actuality of the theme.

Actual character is clear for everyone: in language learning process the most important point is to make the lesson more interesting. Though being investigated and proved that games are popular means for teaching English many some scores of years ago in our Republic this method was still new and it makes to be considered itself as actual and ready for applying novadays.

3. The tasks and aims of the work.

Before the beginning of writing our qualification work we set the following tasks and aims before ourselves:

1. To investigate the peculiarities of the method of teaching English on the playing moment.

2. To analyze the opinions of linguists on the question studied.

3. To investigate the problem from both theoretical and practical sides.

4. To give some interesting examples for the use of the method and give the methodic elaboration for one session dealing with grammar.

5. To demonstrate the profits of the method on the basis of grammar games.

4. The novelty of the work.

I also want to notice that my work possesses novelty concluded in the fact that I worked out my own games and elaborations based on previous pedagogical experience.

5. Practical significance of the work.

In our opinion the practical significance of our work is hard to be overvalued. This work reflects modern trends in comparative linguistics dealing with theory of education and we hope it would serve as a good manual for young teachers who are only going to become teachers and stay up-to-date.

6. Ways of scientific investigation used within the work.

The main method for compiling our work is the method of investigative analysis.

7. Fields of amplification.

The present work might find a good way of implying in the following spheres:

1. In High Schools and scientific circles of linguistic kind it can be successfully used by teachers and philologists as modern material for writing research works dealing with games.

2. It can be used by teachers of schools, lyceums and colleges by teachers of English as a practical manual for teaching English.

3. It can be useful for everyone who wants to enlarge his/her knowledge in English.

8. Linguists worked with the theme.

As the base for our qualification work we used the works of a distinguished British and American linguists A. Uberman, C. Fayardo, B. Sh. Azar, P. Ur and many others. The full list of works and authors is mentioned in bibliography to this qualification paper.

8. Content of the work.

The present qualification work consists of four parts: introduction, the main part, conclusion and bibliography. It also includes the appendix where some interesting Internet materials, tables, schemes and illustrative thematic materials were gathered. Within the introduction part, which includes two items we gave the brief description of our qualification work (the first item) and gave general notion of the theme. The main part of our qualification work includes several items. There we discussed the problem from two points: theoretical and practical ones. We took into consideration such modern proposals on making notes on the game method, using games in grammar teaching, the advantages of using games for revising vocabulary and improvement listening skills. In the conclusion to our qualification work we tried to draw some results from the scientific investigations made within the main part of our qualification work. In bibliography part we mentioned more than 20 sources of which were used while compiling the present work. It includes linguistic books and articles dealing with the theme, a number of used dictionaries and encyclopedias and also some internet sources. Appendices to our work include some interesting examples of games used in the learning process in Oxford university.

1.2 Method of games for teaching English

This qualification work presents two teaching methods widely approved in Oxfrord Universities: grammar and vocabulary games and the variations of taking notes during the lesson.

Both of methods are embodied in the theory and practical part. As a theory part I give research works of professional lavguage teachers who studied the methods they considered as useful and effective and put their opinion and reseach works on the press. I'm very grateful to them for sharing their experiences with us. So this part of my work describes the method itself, gives tests proving its effectiveness and touches some problem spots of it. Next I offer practical part containing examples of taking these methods in the classroom.

None of these methods presented here is any brand new discovery for the language teacher. Every teacher used to practice them in his/her work, there's only a try to add something new to well known and allegedebly usual techiques (like note-taking), to study them deeper and show more interesting and useful side of them. In short words some suggestions to make them work better.

The reason I've chosen this theme is the wish to know more about how to make the lesson more interesting and useful at the same time. I've benefitted much by collectiong and studing all this material I present here and hope you'll find this work worth reviewing.

Vocabulary acquisition is also increasingly viewed as crucial to language acquisition. However, there is much disagreement as to the effectiveness of different approaches for presenting vocabulary items. Moreover, learning vocabulary is often perceived as a tedious and laborious process.

In this article I would like to examine some traditional techniques and compare them with the use of language games for vocabulary presentation and revision, in order to determine whether they are more successful in presenting and revising vocabulary than other methods.

From my teaching experience when passing pedagogical practice, I have noticed how enthusiastic students are about practicing language by means of games. I believe games are not only fun but help students learn without a conscious analysis or understanding of the learning process while they acquire communicative competence as second language users.

Vocabulary teaching techniques

There are numerous techniques concerned with vocabulary presentation. However, there are a few things that have to be remembered irrespective of the way new lexical items are presented. If teachers want students to remember new vocabulary, it needs to be learnt in context, practiced, and then revised to prevent students from forgetting. We can tell the same about grammar. Teachers must make sure students have understood the new words, which will be remembered better if introduced in a "memorable way". Bearing all this in mind, teachers have to remember to employ a variety of techniques for new vocabulary presentation and revision.

As it concerns teaching one more significant aspect of language - vocabulary techniques - we should mention at last the opinion of Gairns and Redman.

Gairns and Redman (1986) suggest the following types of vocabulary presentation techniques:

1. Visual techniques. These pertain to visual memory, which is considered especially helpful with vocabulary retention. Learners remember better the material that has been presented by means of visual aids. Visual techniques lend themselves well to presenting concrete items of vocabulary-nouns; many are also helpful in conveying meanings of verbs and adjectives. They help students associate presented material in a meaningful way and incorporate it into their system of language values.

2. Verbal explanation. This pertains to the use of illustrative situations, synonymy, opposites, scales (Gairns and Redman), definition (Nation) and categories (Allen and Valette ).

3. Use of dictionaries. Using a dictionary is another technique of finding out meanings of unfamiliar words and expressions. Students can make use of a variety of dictionaries: bilingual, monolingual, pictorial, thesauri, and the like. As French Allen perceives them, dictionaries are "passports to independence," and using them is one of the student-centered learning activities.

II. Main Part

Chapter 1. Theory Part

2.1.1 Techniques in games

The advantages of using games. Many experienced textbook and methodology manuals writers have argued that games are not just time-filling activities but have a great educational value. W. R. Lee holds that most language games make learners use the language instead of thinking about learning the correct forms. He also says that games should be treated as central not peripheral to the foreign language teaching program. A similar opinion is expressed by Richard-Amato, who believes games to be fun but warns against overlooking their pedagogical value, particularly in foreign language teaching. There are many advantages of using games. "Games can lower anxiety, thus making the acquisition of input more likely" (Richard-Amato). They are highly motivating and entertaining, and they can give shy students more opportunity to express their opinions and feelings (Hansen). They also enable learners to acquire new experiences within a foreign language which are not always possible during a typical lesson. Furthermore, to quote Richard-Amato, they, "add diversion to the regular classroom activities," break the ice, "[but also] they are used to introduce new ideas". In the easy, relaxed atmosphere which is created by using games, students remember things faster and better (Wierus and Wierus ). Further support comes from Zdybiewska, who believes games to be a good way of practicing language, for they provide a model of what learners will use the language for in real life in the future.

Games encourage, entertain, teach, and promote fluency. If not for any of these reasons, they should be used just because they help students see beauty in a foreign language and not just problems .

Choosing appropriate games. There are many factors to consider while discussing games, one of which is appropriacy. Teachers should be very careful about choosing games if they want to make them profitable for the learning process. If games are to bring desired results, they must correspond to either the student's level, or age, or to the material that is to be introduced or practiced. Not all games are appropriate for all students irrespective of their age. Different age groups require various topics, materials, and modes of games. For example, children benefit most from games which require moving around, imitating a model, competing between groups and the like. Furthermore, structural games that practise or reinforce a certain grammatical aspect of language have to relate to students' abilities and prior knowledge. Games become difficult when the task or the topic is unsuitable or outside the student's experience.

Another factor influencing the choice of a game is its length and the time necessary for its completion. Many games have a time limit, but according to Siek-Piskozub, the teacher can either allocate more or less time depending on the students' level, the number of people in a group, or the knowledge of the rules of a game etc.

When to use games. Games are often used as short warm-up activities or when there is some time left at the end of a lesson. Yet, as Lee observes, a game "should not be regarded as a marginal activity filling in odd moments when the teacher and class have nothing better to do". Games ought to be at the heart of teaching foreign languages. Rixon suggests that games be used at all stages of the lesson, provided that they are suitable and carefully chosen. At different stages of the lesson, the teacher's aims connected with a game may vary:

1. Presentation. Provide a good model making its meaning clear;

2. Controlled practise. Elicit good imitation of new language and appropriate responses;

3. Communicative prastice. Give students a chance to use the language.

Games also lend themselves well to revision exercises helping learners recall material in a pleasant, entertaining way. All authors referred to in this article agree that even if games resulted only in noise and entertained students, they are still worth paying attention to and implementing in the classroom since they motivate learners, promote communicative competence, and generate fluency. However, can they be more successful for presentation and revision than other techniques? The following part of this article is an attempt at finding the answer to this question.

The use of games for presenting and revising vocabulary Uberman. A. The use of games for vocabulary presentation and revision. Oxford Univ. Press. Oxford 2000. pp. 13-18.

Vocabulary presentation. After the teacher chooses what items to teach, Haycraft suggests following certain guidelines. These include teaching the vocabulary "in spoken form first" to prevent students from pronouncing the words in the form they are written, placing the new items in context, and revising them..I shall now proceed to present practical examples of games I have used for vocabulary introduction and revision.

Description of the groups. For the purpose of vocabulary presentation, I chose two groups of third form students. With one of them I used a presentation game and with the other translation and context guessing. In both groups, students' abilities varied-ranging from those whose command of English was very good, able to communicate easily using a wide range of vocabulary and grammatical structures, and those who found it difficult to communicate.

After covering the first conditional and time clauses in the textbook, I decided to present students with a set of idioms relating to bodily parts-mainly those connected with the head (taken from The Penguin Dictionary of English Idioms ). The choice of these expressions was determined by students' requests to learn colloquial expressions to describe people's moods, behavior, etc. Moreover, in one of the exercises the authors of the textbook called for examples of expressions which contain parts of the body. For the purpose of the lesson I adapted Gear and Gear's "Vocabulary Picture-Puzzle" from the English Teaching Forum (1988). Students were to work out the meanings of sixteen idiomatic expressions. All of them have Polish equivalents, which made it easier for students to remember them.

Description of vocabulary picture-puzzle

To prepare the puzzle, I cut two equal-sized pieces of cardboard paper into rectangles. The selected idioms were written onto the rectangles in the puzzle-pieces board and their definitions on the game board. On the reverse side of the puzzle-pieces board, I glued colorful photographs of landscapes and then cut the puzzle-pieces board into individual pieces, each with an idiom on it. The important thing was the distribution of the idioms and their definitions on the boards. The definitions were placed in the same horizontal row opposite to the idioms so that when put together face to face each idiom faced its definition.

Puzzle Pieces Board

The idioms and their definitions were the following (all taken from The Penguin Dictionary of English Idioms p.77):

1. to be soft in the head: foolish, not very intelligent;

2. to have one's hair stand on end: to be terrified;

3. to be two-faced: to agree with a person to his face but disagree with him behind his back;

4. to make a face: to make a grimace which may express disgust, anger;

5. to be all eyes: to be very attentive;

6. to be an eye-opener: to be a revelation;

7. to be nosy: to be inquisitive, to ask too many questions;

8. to be led by the nose: to be completely dominated by, totally influenced by;

9. long ears: an inquisitive person who is always asking too many questions;

10. to be all ears: to listen very attentively;

11. to be wet behind the ears: to be naive, inexperienced;

12. a loose mouth: an indiscrete person;

13. one's lips are sealed: to be obliged to keep a secret;

14. to have a sweet tooth: to have a liking for sweet food, sugar, honey, ice cream, etc.;

15. to grind one's teeth: to express one's fury;

16. to hold one's tongue: to say nothing, to be discrete;

The task for students. Work out the puzzle by matching the idioms and their definitions. First, put puzzle-pieces on the desk with the word facing up. Take one and match the idiom to the definition. Having done that, place the puzzle-piece, word-side-up, in the chosen rectangle. When you have used up all the pieces, turn them over. If they form a picture of a landscape, the choices are correct. If not, rearrange the picture and check the idiom-definition correspondences.

The game objectives. To work out the puzzle, students had to match idioms with their definitions. The objective of the game was for each pair to cooperate in completing the activity successfully in order to expand their vocabulary with, in this case, colloquial expressions.

All students were active and enjoyed the activity. Some of their comments were as follows: "Very interesting and motivating" "Learning can be a lot of fun" etc.

Students also had to find the appropriate matches in the shortest time possible to beat other participating groups. The element of competition among the groups made them concentrate and think intensively.

Translation activity. The other group of students had to work out the meanings of the idioms by means of translation. Unlike the previously described group, they did not know the definitions. The expressions were listed on the board, and students tried to guess their proper meanings giving different options. My role was to direct them to those that were appropriate. Students translated the idioms into Polish and endeavored to find similar or corresponding expressions in their mother tongue. Unlike the game used for the purpose of idiom introduction, this activity did not require the preparation of any aids. Fewer learners participated actively or enthusiastically in this lesson and most did not show great interest in the activity.

Administering the test. In order to find out which group acquired new vocabulary better, I designed a short test, for both groups containing a translation into English and a game. This allowed learners to activate their memory with the type of activity they had been exposed to in the presentation.

The test checking the acquisition of newly-introduced reading vocabulary.

I. Match the definitions of the idioms with the pictures and write which idiom is depicted and described:

1. to be inexperienced

2. to listen very attentively

3. to be terrified

4. to be dominated by someone

5. to be attentive

6. to be insincere, dishonest

The proper answers are the following:

1. d ., to be wet behind the ears

2. a ., to be all ears

3. e ., to have one's hair stand on end

4. f ., to be led by the nose

5. b ., to be all eyes

6. c ., to be two-faced.

II. Translate into English (the translated sentences should be the following):

1. He is soft in the head.

2. She is two-faced, always criticizes me behind my back.

3. Mark has a sweet tooth, so he is not too slim.

4. Will you hold your tongue if I tell you something?

5. Why are you such a loose mouth?

6. Don't be nosy! This is none of your business.

Analysis of the results. Group I received an average mark of 3.9 as compared to 3.4 obtained by group II. In other words, the group which had learned vocabulary through games performed significantly better. However, it is especially interesting and surprising that group II also received high scores for the game. Even though learners in group I had the material presented by means of translation, most students got better marks for the game.

Summing up. Even though the results of one activity can hardly lead to informative conclusions, I believe that the results suggest that the use of games for presentation of new vocabulary is very effective and enjoyable for students. Despite the fact that the preparation of a game may be time-consuming and suitable material may be hard to find, teachers should try to use them to add diversion to presentational techniques.

Revising vocabulary

Many sources referred to in this article emphasize the importance of vocabulary revision. This process aims at helping students acquire active, productive vocabularies. Students need to practise regularly what they have learnt; otherwise, the material will fade away. Teachers can resort to many techniques for vocabulary consolidation and revision. To begin with, a choice of graphs and grids can be used. Students may give a definition of a given item to be found by other students. Multiple choice and gap filling exercises will activate the vocabulary while students select the appropriate response. Teachers can use lists of synonyms or antonyms to be matched, sentences to be paraphrased, or just some words or expressions in context to be substituted by synonymous expressions. Doing cloze tests will show students' understanding of a passage, its organization, and determine the choice of lexical items. Visual aids can be of great help with revision. Pictures, photographs, or drawings can facilitate the consolidation of both individual words as well as idioms, phrases and structures. There is also a large variety of word games that are "useful for practicing and revising vocabulary after it has been introduced" Abbott, G., D. McKeating, J. Greenwood, and P. Wingard. 1981. The teaching of English as an international language. A practical guide. London: Collins.. Numerous puzzles, word squares, crosswords, etc., are useful especially for pair or group work.

I shall now present the games I have used for vocabulary revision.

Description of the group. I gave teachers a questionnaire to determine their view of using games for vocabulary teaching. In response to the questionnaire, many teachers said they often used games for vocabulary revision. Some claimed they were successful and usually more effective than other methods. To see if this is really true, I decided to use a crossword puzzle with a group of first year students.

The crossword puzzle. After completing a unit about Van Gogh, students wanted to expand their vocabulary with words connected with art. The students compiled lists of words, which they had learnt. In order to revise the vocabulary, one of the groups had to work out the crossword puzzle.

Students worked in pairs. One person in each pair was provided with part A of the crossword puzzle and the other with part B. The students' task was to fill in their part of the puzzle with the missing words known to their partner. To complete the activity, learners had to ask each other for the explanations, definitions, or examples to arrive at the appropriate answers. Only after getting the answer right could they put it down in the suitable place of their part of the crossword. Having completed the puzzle, students were supposed to find out what word was formed from the letters found in the shaded squares.

Students enjoyed the activity very much and did not resort to translation at any point. They used various strategies to successfully convey the meanings of the words in question-e.g., definitions, association techniques, and examples. When everyone was ready, the answers were checked and students were asked to give examples of definitions, explanations, etc., they had used to get the missing words.

The other group performed a similar task. Students were to define as follows:

I. Define the following words: shade, icon, marker, fresco, perspective, hue, daub, sculptor, still life, watercolor, palette, background.

II. Find the words these definitions describe:

1. a public show of objects

2. a variety of a colour

3. a wooden frame to hold a picture while it is being painted

4. a pale or a delicate shade of a colour

5. a picture of a wide view of country scenery

6. an instrument for painting made of sticks, stiff hair, nylon

7. a painting, drawing, or a photograph of a real person

8. a piece of work, especially art which is the best of its type or the best a person has made

9. painting, music, sculpture, and others chiefly concerned with producing beautiful rather than useful things

10. a line showing the shape (of something)

11. a person who is painted, drawn, photographed by an artist

12. a picture made with a pen, pencil, etc.

Analysis of results. The results show that the crossword puzzle, though seemingly more difficult since it required the knowledge of words and their definitions and not mere recognition and matching, was easier for 27.4% of the learners and granted them more points for this part of the test. For the majority of the students (nearly 60%) both activities proved equally easy and out of the group of thirteen, eleven students had the highest possible score.

Summing up

These numbers suggest that games are effective activities as a technique for vocabulary revision. Students also prefer games and puzzles to other activities. Games motivate and entertain students but also help them learn in a way which aids the retention and retrieval of the material (This is what the learners stated themselves).

However, the numbers also show that not everyone feels comfortable with games and puzzles and not everyone obtains better results.

Although one cannot overgeneralise from one game, student feedback indicates that many students may benefit from games in revision of vocabulary.

2.1.2 The method of note-taking with fun

A Useful Device

Has it ever happened that you read or listen to something, and shortly afterwards when you want to recall it, you can only remember a small part? Have you ever thought of how many interesting ideas you have missed, just because you have not taken a few seconds to note them down as they occurred to you? Everyday happenings pass through time and can never be recalled again if they are not recorded either on a tape or with a video camera. But, not many of us have these devices always handy. What we do have available is a simple sheet of paper, a pencil, and our five senses. Taking notes on what takes place not only permits us to remember but also facilitates our oral and written communication.

Regardless of their age or level, students tend to rely too much on their memory, instead of taking notes. For this reason, I began devising different tasks which demand the recall of facts that the students would have only if they had taken notes. The results have motivated me to do further research on the topic through interviews, reading, and analysis-all the time noting down the information I was obtaining.

The note-taking process

In order to reconstruct a complete account of what one perceives through listening, reading, observing, discussing, or thinking, it is necessary to take notes either simultaneously with the act of perception or after an interval of just a few seconds. We cannot expect to remember everything we perceive, and despite the advantages of training our memory, it is better to have notes taken at the moment things happen.

Language educators have approached note-taking from different perspectives. McKeating (1981) sees note-taking as a complex activity which combines reading and listening with selecting, summarizing, and writing.

Grellet Wright. A. Games for Language Learning. Cambridge University Press, 1984. pp. 34-35 (1986) advises helping students to establish the structure of a text so they can pull out the key ideas and leave out nonessential information. Nwokoreze (1990) believes that "it is during the note-taking stage that students reach the highest level of comprehension."

Two main aspects concerning note-taking:

* It involves the combination of different skills, i.e.; listening or reading, selecting, summarizing, and writing.

* It requires the selection of relevant information from the nonessential.

Moreover, most authors see note-taking as a complex activity which must be approached gradually. When teaching the skill, Raimes suggests that elementary-level students can be given a skeleton outline to work with when they take notes, so that their listening is more directed. Advanced students can listen to longer passages and make notes as they listen.

Murray refers to a "rehearsal for writing," which begins as an unwritten dialogue within the writer's mind: what the writer hears in his/her head evolves into notes. This may be simple brainstorming-the jotting down of random bits of information which may connect themselves into a pattern later on.

Note-taking involves putting onto paper the data received through any of our senses. These data could range from simple figures, letters, symbols, isolated words, or brief phrases to complete sentences and whole ideas.

Most teachers instruct students to take notes while perceiving. However, Nwokoreze insists on the need for first listening long enough to make sure the essence of the information is perceived before taking notes. The decision on whether the notes are to be taken at the moment of perception or shortly afterwards depends on the complexity of the task and the ability of the note-taker. Consequently, if we are to take notes with figures, letters, or single words to fill in a pre-designed skeleton, we can do it at the same time we receive the information; whereas notes which require selection, summarizing, and organization ought to be taken later.

Guided note-taking

As teachers, we must decide what sort of help our students need for every task we assign. The guidance we give for taking notes will depend on various aspects. One of them is language level. Raimes suggests providing beginners with a skeleton outline to fill in or expand to make their listening more directed. She also proposes letting the advanced students listen to longer passages and make notes as they listen.

Guidance provided will depend on the degree of difficulty of the task involved. The reasons for taking notes and the follow-up activities are also important. If the students only take notes of simple figures, letters, or single words as the basis for a discussion to take place immediately, they will not need much guidance. But if they are supposed to take notes of a higher complexity to use in writing a report for homework, they will need more preparation.

Using note-taking in class

Assuming an extreme position when defining the concept of note-taking, we can say that even checking or ticking items on a list is a form of note-taking, as long as what students have to "tick" represents the content of the reading or listening passage. If we give students a multiple-choice exercise, a list, or Yes/No questions, and ask them only to tick the correct answer, they will be taking notes. This could be considered the most basic form of note-taking. Nevertheless, if we analyze the task in detail, we find it is not as simple as it seems. To answer accurately, the students will first have to understand the statements and determine whether their choices are correct or not. Furthermore, they have to predict and speculate about what they are going to perceive.

When revising any topic we may practice it and use this technique giving students a skeleton to fill in while listening Example see in the Table 1, Appendix. Example:

With this last question, we are prompting the students to note down other information, not limiting them only to what the chart asks for. Not all the students will be able to take further notes, but the most skilled will not get bored while their classmates are engaged at a more elementary level.

Another instance that calls for note-taking is reporting on medical cases. To do this, the class may be divided into teams of three or four students. Each team prepares a case for the others to analyze. One variant would be having each team first brainstorm, then prepare a skeleton outline with the sort of information they need the other team to provide in order to write a full case report. Once ready, they exchange skeletons, brainstorm again, and note down the information the skeleton forms ask for. The teams should give neither the diagnosis nor the treatment. As soon as they finish, they swap these "problem-cases," analyze them, and confer on the diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of the patient. Next, they write a full case report that everyone reads and discusses. The class then moves around, reads, and comments on them. Finally, they decide which of the skeleton forms are better and which reports are the most coherent and faithful to the information provided.

A simpler variant would be having each team ask for the information orally from one another, take notes on it and then report on the case orally or in writing.

In teaching Medically Speaking , I suggest taking notes while listening to the dialogues or reading the case studies given in the text. Instead of having the students take down all the information, teams are formed to take notes on specific parts.

Before presenting your case orally, copy the outline on the board, ask your classmates to also copy it in their notebooks. You will all follow this order for the presentation and discussion of your case. Your classmates will ask you for the data they need to complete their outlines and discuss the case. Once the discussion is over, they will use their notes to write a report on the case you presented See Table 3 in the Appendix.

Report to the chart.

Today we discussed the case of a 22-year-old white man who was in good health prior to two days ago, when he began to have an abdominal pain. This pain was sporadic and colicky in nature. It began in the epigastrium and has since migrated to the right lower quadrant. The patient has had three episodes of vomiting associated with the pain. He has been anorectic and feverish. He has had no bowel movements for two days. He reported no diarrhea, coughing with expectoration or shortness of breath. He has no past history or family history of abdominal pain or any other disease. The pertinent physical findings are related to the abdomen. There is extreme tenderness to palpation, especially over Mc Burney's point Wright A. Games for Language Learning. Cambridge University Press, 1984. p. 35. Guarding, muscle rigidity and rebound tenderness are all present. Bowel sounds are absent. There is a difference between the axillary and the rectal temperature. His urinalysis, hemoglobin and hematocrit are within normal limits. Nevertheless, both white blood count and red rate are elevated. His chest film is clear, but in the abdominal film we observed the psoas line is absent. Finally, we decided the definitive diagnosis is acute appendicitis. Among the possible complications to consider are perforation, necrosis and peritonitis. Therefore, the prognosis is anceps. The only possible treatment is surgical: appendectomy.

Conclusion

As we have seen, there are numerous opportunities to help students develop the skill of note-taking. Note-taking assists the listener, reader, or observer in achieving a better understanding of what is presented, and it facilitates recall of facts as well as oral and written expression. The student's language level and the purpose which the notes are to serve will determine the type of guidance the teacher must provide to help them to take notes in class and later on the job.

2.1.3 Using Games to Promote Communicative Skills in Language Learning

This chapter considers the reasons why games serve as excellent communicative activities. The use of games can be a powerful language learning tool. On the surface, the aim of all language games is for students to "use the language"; however, during game play learners also use the target language to persuade and negotiate their way to desired results. This process involves the productive and receptive skills simultaneously. In this article the author also shares her experience of some interesting games and their application in the language classroom.

In recent years language researchers and practitioners have shifted their focus from developing individual linguistic skills to the use of language to achieve the speaker's objectives. This new area of focus, known as communicative competence, leads language teachers to seek task-oriented activities that engage their students in creative language use. Games, which are task-based and have a purpose beyond the production of correct speech, serve as excellent communicative activities (Saricoban & Metin 2000). On the surface, the aim of all language games is for students to "use the language"; however, during game play learners also use the target language to persuade and negotiate their way to desired results. This process involves the productive and receptive skills simultaneously.

Games offer students a fun-filled and relaxing learning atmosphere. After learning and practicing new vocabulary, students have the opportunity to use language in a non-stressful way Uberman. A. The use of games for vocabulary presentation and revision. Oxford Univ. Press. Oxford. 2000 p. 16. While playing games, the learners' attention is on the message, not on the language. Rather than pay attention to the correctness of linguistic forms, most participants will do all they can to win. This eases the fear of negative evaluation, the concern of being negatively judged in public, and which is one of the main factors inhibiting language learners from using the target language in front of other people (Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope 1986). In a game-oriented context, anxiety is reduced and speech fluency is generated--thus communicative competence is achieved.

Games are also motivating. Games introduce an element of competition into language-building activities. This provides valuable impetus to a purposeful use of language (Prasad 2003). In other words, these activities create a meaningful context for language use. The competitive ambiance also makes learners concentrate and think intensively during the learning process, which enhances unconscious acquisition of inputs. Most students who have experienced game-oriented activities hold positive attitudes towards them (Uberman 1998). An action research conducted by Huyen and Nga Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen, Khuat Thi Thu Nga. Learning Vocabulary Through Games. 'Asian EFL Journal' - December 2003. pp.56-57, students said that they liked the relaxed atmosphere, the competitiveness, and the motivation that games brought to the classroom. On the effectiveness of games, teachers in Huyen & Nga's reported that action research reported that their students seem to learn more quickly and retain the learned materials better in a stress-free and comfortable environment.

The benefits of using games in language-learning can be summed up in nine points.

Games....

are learner centered.

promote communicative competence.

create a meaningful context for language use.

increase learning motivation.

reduce learning anxiety.

integrate various linguistic skills.

encourage creative and spontaneous use of language.

construct a cooperative learning environment.

foster participatory attitudes of the students.

Some Fun Games

Based on the advantages discussed above, English teachers designed a school-wide English competition to help students experience the fun and usefulness of English. Here I would like to share with other teachers the games we played and some observations I have made.

Our competition involved major five tasks. Students broke into teams of five members. The team that finished first was the champion. To further complicate the game, each task station was hidden in different locations all over campus. Participants only obtained directions to the next station after completing the present task. This not only offered students a chance to use their map-reading and problem-solving skills, but it also added a dynamic atmosphere to the competition. The participants were college freshmen at lower-intermediate language level (about 18 years old).

The tasks are described as follow:

I. Mysterious Landmarks

Competitors assemble a 20-piece jigsaw puzzle of a world famous landmark (such as the Eiffel Tower, Mt. Fuji the Great Wall, etc).

Then they describe puzzle image in five sentences to complete the task.

This game encourages students' productive skills and elicits their speech fluency. Cross-culture concepts are also addressed. The number, the length, and the patterns of sentence can vary depending on the students' language ability and linguistic points the instructor would like to reinforce.

II. What's the Number?

Participants use the four basic operations (addition, subtraction, division and multiplication) to compute a simple mathematical equation provided orally by the instructor.

They call out the correct answer as soon as possible.

This game addresses students' listening skills and tests their understanding of numbers, which is often an important part of language teaching materials.

III. Story Time

Participants pick and listen to a tape randomly selected from a provided stack of tapes (the recording contains a spoken excerpt of a well-known children's story, such as the Snow White, the Ginger Bread Man, etc).

After listening to the entire excerpt, competitors correctly identify the title of the story from a provided list.

The recorded stories are all classical bedtime stories for young children and have been translated into most of the major languages worldwide. Students should be familiar with those stories. This game focuses on gist-listening skills. Students only need to catch the key terms to figure out what the story is.

IV. Art Master

The instructor describes a picture orally.

Competitors simultaneously recreate the picture on a sheet of paper, correctly including named objects in accurate positions.

This game reinforces the use of prepositions, such as to the right of, to the left of, in the middle of, or under, etc. It also reinforces the vocabulary of concrete objects students have already learned before. The complexity of the picture will depend on the level of the students.

V. What's Cooking?

Participants read a recipe and make the dish.

The amount of ingredients and assembly process must follow exactly the instructions laid out in the recipe.

The participants eat the dish they have prepared, all together and as fast as possible, because whoever finishes the five tasks first wins the entire competition.

This game not only reinforces food vocabulary, but it also tests the ability of students to comprehend written instructions. This is also good for introducing cross-culture topics. Recipes may vary depending on what food terms and cultures the teachers wishes to cover. Salads and sandwiches are easy-to-prepare recipes. The eating part adds an additional element of fun to the game.

Although the whole competition is a combination of five games, each game is suitable for reinforcement of individual language skills and easily applied in the classroom. One feature of these games is that students with lower language ability in a team can still contribute if they are good at skills other than languages, such as putting together jigsaw puzzles, calculating numbers, drawing, or eating fast.

Observations

Throughout the competition, I observed that students were more engaged in and committed to using English than they would be in the classroom. They were attentive to instructions, which they usually are not in regular class. In each of the games, students found their own ways to express themselves. Participants went all out with their English to win the game.

The games also aroused cultural awareness. After the competition, students told me they will now pay more attention to geographical names that they often ignored before simply because they had never been there. Thus, students expressed a motivation and desire to know more than just linguistic knowledge.

Our experience creating a competition for our students taught us that games stimulate communicative skills. Competitors revealed that they felt less afraid of using their English during game play. I also observed that they were more willing to ask questions and think creatively about how to use English to achieve the goal. The competition gave students a natural opportunity to work together and communicate using English with each other. Furthermore, by integrating playing and learning, students practiced the learned linguistic knowledge in a vivid and meaningful context. Many came to understand that they could successfully use English to accomplish a variety of tasks. And finally, the competition stimulated their interest in foreign culture. As Uberman Uberman. A. The use of games for vocabulary presentation and revision. Oxford Univ. Press. Oxford. 2000 pp. 13-18. writes, "Games encourage, entertain, teach, and promote fluency and communicative skills. If not for any of these reasons, they should be used just because they help students see beauty in a foreign language and not just problems that at times seem overwhelming."

2.1.4 Learning grammar through games

The collection of word games is a valuable resource for the teacher of young through adult learners of English as a second or foreign language. Focusing primarily on language development through the use of high frequency vocabulary and structures, they reinforce classroom lessons and provide additional spelling, conversation, listening and speaking practice.

The most instructive language learning games are those that emphasize specific structures. They do not only practice the basic pattern but also do so in a pleasant, easy way that allows the students to forget they are drilling grammar and concentrate on having fun. The following games are concerned with Yes/No questions, Wh-questions, tag questions, comparative and superlative, adverbs, modals, demonstratives, etc.

Most learners somehow accept that the sounds of a foreign language are going to be different from those of their mother tongue. What is more difficult to accept is that the grammar of the new language is also spectacularly different from the way the mother tongue works. At a subconscious, semiconscious and conscious level it is very hard to want to switch to “to be” (`I'm 23', `I'm hungry', `I'm cold') if it is “have” in Italian.

Grammar is perhaps so serious and central in learning another language that all ways should be searched for which will focus student energy on the task of mastering and internalizing it. One way of focusing this energy is through the release offered by games. Teenagers are delighted to be asked to do something that feels like an out-class activity and in which they control what is going on in the classroom - they become the subjects, while for a lot of the 15,000 hours they spend in schools they are the objects of teaching. The point is that fun generates energy for the achievement of the serious goal.

Where exactly do such games fit into a teaching programme? Grammar games can be used in three ways:

iagnostically before presenting a given structure area to find out how much knowledge of the area is already disjointedly present in the group;

after a grammar presentation to see how much the group have grasped;

as revision of a grammar area.

One should not use grammar games as a Friday afternoon `reward' activity. Using them as a central part of the students' learning process would be a better idea. Thus, each game is proposed for a given level ranging from beginner to advanced. This refers simply to the grammar content of that particular game. But, as it has been already mentioned above, a lot of activities can be adapted to different classes with different grammar components. By changing the grammar content a teacher can, in many cases, use the game frame offered at a higher or lower level. Generally, any frame can be filled with any structures you want to work on with your students. The students have to take individual responsibility for what they think the grammar is about. The teacher is free to find out what the students actually know, without being the focus of their attention. Serious work is taking place in the context of a game. The dice throwing and arguing lightens and enlivens the classroom atmosphere in a way that most people do not associate with the grammar part of a course. The `game' locomotive pulls the grammar train along. Everybody is working at once- the 15-30 minutes the average game lasts is a period of intense involvement.

Other reasons for including games in a language class are Rinvolucri Mario. Grammar Games: cognitive, affective and drama activities for EFL students. Cambridge, 1989.:

1. They focus student attention on specific structures, grammatical patterns.

2. They can function as reinforcement, review and enrichment.

3. They involve equal participation from both slow and fast learners.