How to organize pair work and group work effectively in teaching english for 10th grade students at ham rong high school

SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO THANH HOÁ 
 TRƯỜNG THPT HÀM RỒNG
 INITIATIVE EXPERIENCE
HOW TO ORGANIZE PAIR WORK AND GROUP WORK EFFECTIVELY IN TEACHING ENGLISH FOR 10th GRADE STUDENTS AT HAM RONG HIGH SCHOOL
Người thực hiện: Phạm Thị Ngọc Yến
Chức vụ: Giáo viên 
SKKN thuộc lĩnh vực môn: Tiếng Anh
THANH HOÁ NĂM 2019
SỞ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO THANH HOÁ
TRƯỜNG THPT HÀM RỒNG
 INITIATIVE EXPERIENCE
HOW TO ORGANIZE PAIR WORK AND GROUP WORK EFFECTIVELY IN TEACHING ENGLISH FOR 10th GRADE STUDENTS AT HAM RONG HIGH SCHOOL
 Người thực hiện: Phạm Thị Ngọc Yến
 Chức vụ: Giáo viên 
 SKKN thuộc lĩnh vực môn: Tiếng Anh
 THANH HOÁ NĂM 2019
 I. INTRODUCTION
1. Reason for choosing the topic
	As we know, in traditional classroom, the teacher controls the class with authority, there is no active role of students during teaching- learning process. Therefore, the introduction of a new English textbook at high school in the last few years has created some difficulties for teacher. This innovation demands a move in the direction of a more learner- centered approach to teaching. The main objective of teaching English is to have a communicative lesson.
	However, in fact, the teacher- student interaction is very limited in the classroom. Many teachers have troubles adapting their teaching and the new textbook to their own students’ learning needs. These difficulties include the use of group work and pair work.
	As a teacher of English at high school, I myself always desire to find out and apply the new methods of teaching in order to meet the educational goals. I have been a teacher of English at high school for 26 years. From my own experiences, I find that using pair work and group work is one of the teaching strategies of collaborative language teaching which provides chances for communication and interaction among students and between students and teacher. Language classroom is the place where teacher and learners come together for interaction and can learn in natural settings. The effective use of pair work and group work in language class can provide a value experience to students and give them the opportunity to practically experience the ideas presented and strengthen their learning.
	I have applied pair work and group work activities in teaching English at high school, especially for 10th grade students of Ham Rong High School and got satisfactory results. I, therefore, in this research, would like to share my own experience in how to use and organize pair work and group work effectively in teaching English procedure.
2. Aim of the study.
To introduce pair work and group work and show the advantages and disadvantages of working in pairs and groups.
To suggest how to organize pair and group work effectively and how to deal with initial problems that may arise.
To show how pair work and group work can be used for various classroom activities.
To help teachers be confident in using pair and group work themselves.
3. Scope and research methodology 
- Scope: Researching in the process of teaching English to 10th grade students at Ham Rong high school.
- Research methodology: making survey, reading reference books, applying in teaching, observing and drawing out experiences.
II. MAIN CONTENT
1. Theoretical background 
	Language teaching came into its own as a profession in the last century. Since the 1960s, there has been an increasing attempt in research on teaching and learning and types and quantities of the relative amount of participation by the teacher and students.
	Group work and pair work started getting attention of educationists in the 1970s. During the 1980s and 1990s, the development of communicative language teaching brought an important change in the role of students. Working together is worthwhile as “pair work and group work immediately increase the amount of students’ talking time” ( Harmer, 1991).
	Researchers are convinced that the students who take the initiative in learning learn more things and learn better than those who sit and passively wait to be taught. They also claim that a teacher’s dominance in class makes it dull and it kills the students’ interests.
	I am myself of the view that students are more motivated to engage in further communication when they have more opportunities to speak. Using pair work and group work stimulates the learners’ experience of various types of interaction and helps to generate a more relaxed and cooperative classroom atmosphere. It is during group and pair work that a lot of real learning takes place since the students can use language really to communicate with one another.
2. Practical background 
2.1. Definition of pair work 
Pair work is learners working together in pairs. One of the main motivations to encourage pair work in the English language classroom is to increase the opportunities for learners to use English in the class.
2.2. Definition of group work 
	Group work is defined as more than one person working together to complete a task or assignment. In the classroom, group work can take many forms, however, the goal remains the same--get students to interact with each other and collaborate to complete a unified task. By doing so, we are getting students to work with people they may never have chosen to work with. This concept teaches diversity, communication, and compromise.
	There is a tendency of teacher- dominated lesson and students usually get bored with teacher- centered presentation. Teachers at high schools are in the period of getting used to new English textbook. Pair work and group work didn’t use to be organized in class, so a lot of us – teachers of English at high school – get stuck in organizing pair work and group work effectively. Some teachers haven’t been clearly aware of the roles of pair work and group work in teaching and learning a foreign language. A few teacher reject the possibility of success of pair and group work. They give different reasons for their belief, some of the reasons are lack of resources, students use mother tongue during pair and group work , discipline problem due to noise generated during pair and group work activities and so on.
	As a result, despite being an important part of collaborative teaching and learning, pair and group work generally neglected in teaching English at high school.
3. Solutions and methods for implementation
3.1. Solutions 
	Teacher should know well about what pair work and group work are, their both advantages and disadvantages as well as solutions to these problems. Moreover, they should find the ways to organize pair work and group work activities effectively so that we can make use of their benefits and limit their problems. In order to organize pair and group work well, teacher will need to do the followings:
Select the activity.
Presentation.
Prepare any physical materials for group work ahead of time.
Anticipate the size and the selection of groups.
Anticipate how students will be organized within the groups (tasks and roles).
Control the class well.
Consider the timing of the group work.
Give feedback
Teachers should give some demonstrations for pair work and group work activities and suggestions for some popular kinds of practice.
2. Method for implementation 
 Teacher should know well about what pair work and group work are, their both advantages and disadvantages as well as solutions to their problems.
2.1. What are pair work and group work? 
2.1.1. Pair work 
	The teacher divides the whole class into pairs. Every student works with his or her partner and all the pairs work at the same time. The teacher walks around, listens and intervenes little if necessary.
2.1.2 Group work 
 Students work in small groups (of four or five) on tasks that entail interaction conveying information, for example, or group decision making. All the groups work at the same time. The teacher walks around listening, intervenes little if at all.
3. Main advantages, problems and solution to the problems.
	For certain types of activity, pair work and group work have a number of advantages over working with the whole class together. Teachers should think what the main advantages are, and also what problems might be involved in pair work, group work and the solutions for these.
	Here are some main advantages and problems:
Advantages
Problems
- More language practice
- More speaking time
- Students are more involved
- Students feel secure, confident
- Students help one another
- Give students the sense of achievement when reaching a team goal.
- Noise arrangements
- Students make mistakes
- Lose control of the class
..
. 
3.1. Advantages
3.1.1. More language practice
	Pair work and group work give students far more chance to speak English. For example, students are given an exercise of making sentences (question & answer), working in pair, each student makes as many sentences as they can. If the exercise were done ‘round the class’, students would only say one sentence each , and in a large class many students would say nothing at all.
3.1.2. More speaking time
	Learners in a class that is divided into 9 groups of 5 or 22 pairs get six times or fifteen times as many opportunities to talk as in full class organization. – 3.1.3. Student are more involved
	Some activities will probably be dominated by a few students and others would lose interest if they are conducted with the whole class together. Working in pairs or groups encourages students to be more involved and to concentrate on the task.
3.1.4. Students feel confident
	Students feel less anxiety when they are working privately than when they are on show in front of the whole class. Pair work and group work can help shy students who would never say anything in a whole class activity.
3.1.5. Students help each other:
 	Pair work and group work encourage students to share ideas and knowledge. In a reading activity, students can help each other to explore the meaning of a text; in a discussion activity, students can give each other new ideas.
3.2. Disadvantages
3.2.1. Noise arrangements 
	Obviously pair work and group work in a large class will be noisy, and this cannot be helped. But usually the students themselves are not disturbed by the noise; it is more noticeable to the teacher standing at the side or to someone in the next room . The noise created by pair work and group work is usually “good” noise. “ Group work , by its nature, is designed to generate noise” ( Nunan and Lamb p.14, 1996). Students use English or engage in a learning task. Teacher should stop the activity when most groups or pairs have finished or prepare a “reserve” task to occupy members of groups who finish earlier than expected.
3.2.2. Students make mistakes 
	During a pair or group activity, the teacher cannot control all the language used, and should not try to do so. When doing controlled language practice in pairs or groups, the number of mistakes can be reduced by giving enough preparation, the activity can be done with the whole class first, and pair work used for final stage. Checking afterwards is also important. The teacher can ask some pairs or groups what they said , and then correct mistakes if necessary.
3.2.3. Difficult to control class
 	The teacher has less control over what students are doing in pair work and group work than in normal class. To stop activities getting out control, it is important to give clear instructions about when to start, what to do and when to stop. Give them clearly defined tasks which do not continue for too long. Teacher should set up a routine so that students accept the idea of working in pairs or groups, and know exactly what to do.
3.3. Steps used to organize pair work and group work activities effectively in the classroom:
3.3.1. Select the activity
	An activity that is best suited for group work may meet the following criteria such as the activity which has multiple tasks that can be shared among group members or a single task, such as generating ideas, that benefit from the participation of all individuals within a group. The activity involves problem solving and discussion and examples of activities that may be suited for group work are investigations of materials (newspapers, scientific specimens) and development of ideas or arguments.
3.3.2. Presentation.
	It is advisable to give the instructions before giving out materials of dividing the class into groups; and a preliminary rehearsal or ‘dry run’ of a sample of the activity with the full class can help to clarify things. If your students have already done similar activities, you will be able to shorten the process, giving only brief guide lines; It is mainly the first time of doing something with a class that such care needs to be invested in instructing.
	Try to foresee what language will be needed, and have a preliminary quick review of appropriate grammar or vocabulary. Finally before giving the sign to start tell the class what the arrangements are for stopping: If there is a time limit, or a set signal for stopping, say what it is; if the groups simply stop when they have finished, then tell them what they will have to do next. It is wise to have a reserve task planned to occupy members of groups who finish earlier than expected.
3.3.3. Preparation of materials
	The teacher will need to personally collect, or organize students to collect, physical specimens for investigation. For example, if the teacher anticipates doing a lesson on the role of the media, she or he might ask the students to bring into class examples of newspapers and magazines. There should be materials sufficient for each group.
3.3.4. Size and selection of group.
	Group size normally ranges between 3-5 students. Group size can sometimes go larger, although groups larger than 8 do not ensure that everyone will participate. Since groups often report their work back to the whole class, teachers also take into account the total number of groups within the class.
	Group membership can be determined in different ways. A random selection might be done by "counting off" with students (go around the room systematically having students count 1, 2, 3, etc., with each numbers representing a group) or selecting groups on the basis of birth date.
	In a nonrandom selection, groups will be selected based on the teachers' prior knowledge. Usually, groups are selected to maximize diversity within the group, since diversity enhances learning. Such groups often have a balance of girls and boys, and students with differing ability levels. Teachers can also use their best judgment about personality mixes that would enhance the work of the group. Sometimes groups are organized only for one activity. Other times, teachers use the same small groups for a series of activities, so that students get used to working with one another. 
	If the tables and chairs cannot be moved for group work, then students can form groups by turning around in seats to face the children behind.
3.3.5. Organize students within the group.
	A laissez-faire approach to group work would be that the teacher give a general assignment to the group -- like organize a research project on 'qualities of good leaders' -- and the students are left to organize themselves.
	A highly structured approach would be that the teacher assigns a specific role to each group member. Depending upon the task, the roles might include 'materials handler', 'scribe', 'reporter to the large group' and so on. A semi-structured approach might be that the teacher recommend certain roles, but leaves it to the group to assign roles.
	A more structured approach, with rotation of tasks within a group, is often used with younger children. A less structured approach can be used with students with experience in group work or for simple tasks that do not require that students take on different roles.
3.3.6. Control the class during students’ working time
	Teacher goes from group to group, pair to pair, monitor, and either contribute or keep out of the way whichever is likely to be more helpful. If you do decide to intervene, your contribution may take the form of providing general approval and support; helping students who are having difficultly; keeping the students using the target language (in many cases your mere presence will ensure this). Tactfully regulating participation in a discussion where you find some students are over dominant and others silent.
3.3.7. Time the group work.
	The teacher should anticipate student questions about timing, the task results, sharing with the whole group, and so on. After giving clear instructions to the students, the teacher should be available to answer questions, but not interfere with the groups' activities. It is common in many classrooms that a small group activity constitutes 20 minutes of a 40 minute-period, with 10 minutes allowed for sharing small group work with the whole class. 
3.3.8. Give feedback
	A feedback session usually takes place in the context of full-class interaction after the end of the group work. Feedback on the tasks may take many forms such as giving the right solution, if there is one, listening to and evaluating suggestions, pooling ideas on the board, displaying the materials the groups/ pairs have produced. The main objective here is to express appreciation of the effort that has been invested and its results. Feedback on language may be integrated into this discussion of the task, or provide the focus of a separate class session later.
4. Some demonstrations for pair work and group work activities
 1. UNIT 1 - PART B: SPEAKING
Task 2 and Task 3. Talk about Quan’s activities, using the pictures below and then tell your classmates about your daily routine.
- Asks students to work in pairs to describe about Quan’s activities( base on the pictures) , then ask and answer about their daily routine at that time.
T: Look at picture a, what does Quan do at 14:00?
S: He gets up after taking a short nap.
T: What do you usually do at 14:00?
S: I usually do my homework.
- Teacher suggests some phrases if necessary: to get up, to read books, to watch TV, to go to school, to play football, to go home, to have a shower, to go to the stadium,
- Teacher asks students to fill the information in the following table. (Give each pair a handout)
Using the pictures in your textbook, describe Quan’s daily activities and find the same information about your partner.
At
Quan usually..
Your partner usually.
14:00
14:15
16:30
17:00
17:15
18:30
18:45
19:00
20:00
- After 5 minutes, asks some pairs to practise in front of class.
2. UNIT 3 –PART B: SPEAKING
	Task 2. Imagine you are a journalist. Use the cues below to interview a classmate about his/ her background or that of a person he/ she knows well. Change the roles when you have finished.
- For weaker students, teacher should give them a handout to make it easier.
INTERVIEW FORM
Order
Items
Information
1
Greeting
Hello./ Good morning.
2
Date of birth
When were you born?
3
Place of birth
Where were you born?
4
Home
Where are you living now ?/ Where do you live?
5
Parents
Can you tell me about your parents? (name/ age/ occupation,)
6
Brother(s)/ Sister(s)
How many brothers/ sisters have you got? 
7
Primary school/ Secondary school
What’s the name of your primary school / secondary school?
8
Schoolwork
How do you work at school?
9
Favourite subject(s)
What subject(s) do you like best?
10
Experience
Were you a member of any clubs?
11
11/ Thanking
Thank you very much.
3. UNIT 3 - PART B: SPEAKING
Consolidation
- To consolidate the lesson, teacher gives a picture of My Tam singer ( Students look at the picture while listening a song sung by My Tam). As a result, students can both consolidate the lesson, know how to ask, answer and complete the sentences and have happy learning atmosphere.
1. Name/ Phan Thi My Tam.
2. She/ singer.
3. She/ be b