Dictations

Thereare visual (or delayed) dictations already described. There is also dictating word for word, dictations drills and self-dictations.

a) Dictating word for word is full of disadvantages:

· it takes a lot of time, especially if the dictation is corrected word for word afterwards;

· it does not really develop writing skills – students do not have to express ideas in written form or find ways of construction sentences. The main skill practised is spelling;

· it is an unrealistic activity – listening is ‘word for word’ and at an unnaturally slow speed;

· it can be done quite mechanically, without real comprehension.

There are certain advantages of dictation as a written exercise:

· it is an intensive activity, which makes students concentrate;

· the teacher can keep good control of the class, so it is a suitable technique for large classes;

· it helps develop listening as well as writing.

b) Dictogloss

To make use of these advantages to the full, the dictation drill technique is used. This alternative to dictation, sometimes called dictogloss, develops both listening and writing skills. The dictation drill technique is focused on meaning. It is for the students to listen to a text (a sentence, a word-combination) and then try to reconstruct it from the prompts. The technique goes through stages:

1) Write the prompts on the board:

Giovanni – fishing

friend’s house – bus – river

tree – fishing

a few minutes – Giovanni – small fish

2) Read the text. Ask students to listen but not to write anything. The text:

Giovanni decided to spend the day fishing. He went to his friend’s house and they took a bus to the river. There, they sat down under a tree and began fishing. After a few minutes Giovanni caught a small fish.

3) Ask students to write a version of the text using the prompts on the board. (It does not have to be exactly the same as the original. The first sentence could be, e.g.: Giovanni decided to go fishing.)

The dictation drill may be given for 10-12 minutes depending on the grade and the language input. Once again it should be stressed that if we compare this technique with ‘normal’ dictation, it may be pointed out that students have to listen carefully to understand the text and then have to think about what they are writing and how to construct sentences.

c) Self-dictation. Students are given a text to learn by heart. After they have learned the text at home, they are asked to recite at the lesson. Then they are told to write the text from memory. This type of written exercise may be given at junior and intermediate level.

d) How to use a dictation. There is a suggested approach to using dictation:

1) Don’t use texts from your textbooks for dictation, as it will then be just a memory test. It is better to write your own texts for dictation. Decide which thing you want to reinforce or test and compose a passage round things previously done.

2) Don’t try to trip the students up. Progress from dictating simple words to simple passages. Then gradually increase the length of the students’ scripts.

3) Remember that as dictation is quite a difficult ability, your students’ concentration span will be quite short, so do not make your dictations too long.

4) Think of what might possibly be dictated in real life. e.g.: messages, telegrams, instructions, etc., and dictate this.

5) If you are not using dictation as a testing device, try to make it as friendly as possible. Remember that in real life the recipient of anything being dictated has the opportunity to request that something be repeated, so why not in the classroom?

6) Have the corrected version masked on the overhead projector or blackboard or an easel-type board, magnet-type board, sticky-type (sandpaper or flannel board) blackboard facing away from the class. You could also get a bright student to write the correct version on the blackboard. In this way, if the dictation is marked by the students straight away, they will get immediate feedback.

7) Instead of the teacher reading the text again, once the students have written it, get one of the students to read it back.

8) Give your students a text with gaps that the students fill in after listening. The gaps can either be structure of vocabulary based, depending on what the teacher wishes to practise.

9) Dictate things that may be of use to your students, e.g.: if your students keep a vocabulary list, dictate sentences, which will help them with new lexis.