UNIVERSITATEA BABEŞ-BOLYAI CLUJ-NAPOCA

DEPARTAMENTUL PENTRU PREGĂTIREA PERSONALULUI DIDACTIC

FACULTATEA DE LITERE

LUCRARE METODICO-ŞTIINŢIFICĂ
pentru obţinerea gradului didactic I

Interactive Methods in Teaching Vocabulary

Coordonator ştiinţific,
Lector univ. dr. Alina Preda
Candidat,
Şendruc Ana-Maria

Cluj-Napoca
Seria 2010-2012

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MOTTO:

Tell me,
I forget.

Show me,
I remember.

Involve me,
I understand.

(Ancient Chinese Proverb)

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 INTERACTIVE METHODS IN TEACHING VOCABULARY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD..................................................................................................................................... 6

INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................. 8

PART I: THEORETICAL OVERVIEW....................................................................................... 10

I. ACTORS IN THE GAME OF LEARNING...............................................................................10

1.1. LEARNERS........................................................................................................................................... 10

1.1.2. THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDENT MOTIVATION..................................................................................11

1.1.3. RESPONSIBILITY FOR LEARNING....................................................................................................... 14

1.2. TEACHERS........................................................................................................................................... 14

1.2.1. WHO TEACHERS ARE IN CLASS......................................................................................................... 15

1.2.2. THE IMPORTANCE OF TEACHER MOTIVATION..................................................................................16

1.2.3. ART OR SCIENCE?............................................................................................................................. 17

II. INTERACTIVE LEARNING.................................................................................................... 18

2.1. THE ACTIVE STUDENT PROFILE............................................................................................................ 20

2.2. LEARNING BY COOPERATION.............................................................................................................. 23

2.2.1. COOPERATION AND COLLABORATION VERSUS COMPETITION..........................................................24

2.2.2. KEY ELEMENTS OF LEARNING BY COOPERATION..............................................................................25

2.2.3. STEPS IN LEARNING BY COOPERATION............................................................................................. 26

2.2.4. THE GROUP - THE CENTRAL ELEMENT OF LEARNING BY COOPERATION............................................27

2.2.5. ADVANTAGES OF WORKING IN A GROUP......................................................................................... 32

2.2.6. LIMITS OF WORKING IN A GROUP.................................................................................................... 32

2.2.7. NECESSARY SKILLS OF THE TEACHER................................................................................................ 33

TO SUPPORT LEARNING BY COOPERATION................................................................................................ 33

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III. TECHNIQUES OF ACTIVE LEARNING..............................................................................35

IV. INVENTORY OF INTERACTIVE GROUP ACTIVITIES...................................................38

V. TEACHING VOCABULARY IN THE CLASSROOM............................................................42

5.1. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO ‘KNOW A WORD?’.......................................................................................42

5.2. HOW IS VOCABULARY LEARNT?.......................................................................................................... 42

5.3. HOW ARE WORDS REMEMBERED?..................................................................................................... 43

5.4. WHAT MAKES A WORD DIFFICULT?.................................................................................................... 44

5.5. WHAT KIND OF MISTAKES DO LEARNERS MAKE?................................................................................45

5.6. HOW IS VOCABULARY PRESENTED?.................................................................................................... 46

5.7. HOW TO ILLUSTRATE MEANING?........................................................................................................ 47

5.8. HOW TO EXPLAIN MEANING?............................................................................................................. 48

5.9. HOW TO INVOLVE THE LEARNERS?..................................................................................................... 48

5.10. HOW TO PUT WORDS TO WORK?..................................................................................................... 50

5.11. HOW TO TEST VOCABULARY?........................................................................................................... 53

5.12. HOW TO TRAIN GOOD VOCABULARY LEARNERS?..............................................................................55

PART II: PRACTICAL OVERVIEW........................................................................................... 59

VI. THE RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND METHODOLOGY..................................................59

6.1. The research objectives...................................................................................................................... 59

6.2. The research hypotheses.................................................................................................................... 59

6.3. The research group............................................................................................................................. 60

6.4. Research methods and instruments.................................................................................................... 63

6.5. Methods of collecting the research data............................................................................................. 63

6.6. Methods of organising, presenting and statistic interpretation of the research data............................66

6.7. The organisation and development of the pedagogical research.........................................................67

VII. THE RESEARCH RESULTS................................................................................................. 93

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VIII. CONCLUSIONS.................................................................................................................. 111

ANNEXES:.................................................................................................................................... 113

BIBLIOGRAPHY:....................................................................................................................... 204

FOREWORD

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We live surrounded by people, we are part of a community; in order to feel part of that
community we need to share the same interests, the same goals and, to do that, we need to
communicate. Communication is facilitated by language.

The classroom is a community, as well, in which language is used, learnt and taught.
Teaching and learning are human activities reflecting the times we live in. Therefore,
theories and techniques for learning a language develop and change in tune with the society
which gives rise to them.

A language is made of words. It is not a static process. We are continually learning new
words and new meanings for old words. This happens even in our first language. We learn
all the time - we need to do that if we want to keep up with the world we live in.

The purpose of school is not only to send out information, but also to form and develop
skills of creative thinking. The student must be educated in such a way that he/she can adapt
to the new demands of the information society, this meaning that the human being will be
prepared to use the techniques of anticipation, projection, assessment, to develop critical
thinking, decision making skills, to act freely and independently, to constantly complete
information with creativity. Teaching has changed a lot and all the changes are meant to
give greater importance to the student and to make him/her responsible for his/her own
learning.

The purpose of this paper is to make an analysis of vocabulary teaching methods by

comparing traditional methods of teaching with interactive methods, trying to discover
whether the use of interactive methods determines a change in students’ learning habits and
whether the consequence of their use is a better grasp of vocabulary.

I had several reasons in mind when choosing the topic of this research. The main reason was
the fact that lately a lot of focus has been directed towards active and interactive learning.
A lot of research summarised by Mel Silberman (qtd. in PIR 6-10) has been dealing with
this kind of learning and all the studies have shown that traditional teaching in which the

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teacher delivers a speech, in most cases accompanied by a demonstration that the students
watch, is bound to only produce learning to a low degree.
The results of these studies show it more clearly:
 Students are attentive only 40% of the time allotted to the speech.
 Students memorise only 70% of the information presented in the first 10 minutes and
only 20% of what is presented to them in the last 10 minutes of the speech.

Another study by Johnson (qtd. in Oprea cap.4) shows that:

 Students’ attention decreases with every minute of the speech.
 The speech is only suited for students who learn efficiently through the auditory
channel.
 The speech implies that all students need the same information at the same time.

Learning cannot be effective if, during the class, students listen to the explanations and
maybe even see the demonstrations. The brain itself cannot function like a tape recorder or
VCR because it is not a simple receiver of information. When learning is passive, our brain
is not activated, it does not make any connection between what is taught and what is already
known and, even more, it cannot store information if it is tested or explained to someone
else.

INTRODUCTION

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Why do we speak of interactive learning?
A lot of learning is passive. Students have to spend a lot of time listening to the teacher
and/or reading a text. A lot of students enjoy passive learning. They are the ones who smile
when you start talking, or look really pleased when you tell them to open the book and read
something. But the reality is that these students represent at most 25% of the class. The other
75% do not benefit from a diet of mainly passive learning. Learners retain more of what they
are taught when they are actively involved in the learning process. If they are not, an
incredible amount of classroom information is forgotten within a very short space of time.

Active learning can be enjoyable and fun. There are teachers who think that knowledge is
power and this means they are more powerful and more valuable if they have all the
information. This is not a positive attitude. Allowing students to be more involved in their
own learning may mean that teachers have to give up some of the power and authority they
have in the classroom.

It is true that the person who is learning must build his knowledge through his own
understanding. But it is also true that this personalised construct is favoured by the
interaction with other people who are learning as well. “These partnerships promote active
learning.”(PIR 14) “True learning, that which allows the transfer of acquisition in new
contexts, is not simply active, individually active, but interactive.” (PIR 14)

Jerome Bruner (qtd. in PIR 14) speaks about the concept of reciprocity understood as “a
profound human need to reply to someone and to work with others in order to reach a goal.”
This reciprocity, this team work, stimulates learning.

Personally, in my class activities with the students, I have approached these methods and
techniques of active and interactive teaching - learning and I noticed that students were more
interested, more willing to become active participants.

The personal reasons of choosing this topic derive from the observations that I have made
during the class activity. These would be: group work and the tasks in which students

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depend one on the others in order to achieve a result make the students get more involved in
learning than in frontal or in individual approaches; once involved, students want to discuss
with the others about what they have discovered; when they have the chance to explain or
even teach to the others what they have learnt, students benefit from a deeper and more
thorough understanding. These observations have made me study the theme more closely,
the present paper representing an attempt to prove the advantages of using active and
interactive group methods and techniques of teaching, and the way in which they determine
lesson efficiency.

For each subject there is a new curriculum, based on the students’ acquisition. It brings
variety and diversity of learning methods, of ways and means of lesson organisation: “The
learning methods are action schemes identified by learning theories; they are applied to the
contents of the subject studied and represent actions which are internalised by the student.”
(PIR 22)

The learning methods centered on the student can be divided into methods based on activity
– such as practical papers, learning through discovery, projects or experiments, games, role
-plays, and methods based on the content of learning – such as debating, brainstorming,
conversation, demonstration, dialogue. The learning methods centered on the teacher can be
divided, as well, into methods centered on the activity – the exercise, programmed
instruction, and methods centered on the content of learning – the explanation, the story
telling, the delivery of a speech.

PART I: THEORETICAL OVERVIEW

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 I. ACTORS IN THE GAME OF LEARNING
1.1. LEARNERS
The main actors in the process of learning are the learners and the teachers. The learners are
characterised by differences not only in terms of age and level, but also in terms of different
individual abilities, knowledge and preferences. Generally, we are aware of the fact that
children do not focus only on what is being taught, but they also learn different other things
at the same time, taking information from everything that happens around them. We know
that seeing, hearing and touching are also extremely important for understanding, just as the
teacher’s explanations are.

Children usually respond well to activities that are related to their lives and experiences. As
compared to them, adolescents have a greater capacity for abstract thought, they are able to
talk about more abstract ideas. Since they are in search for identity and they need self
-esteem, as characteristics of their age, they are therefore more interested in their position
within their peer group rather than being interested in getting their teacher’s approval as it
happens with young children.

Due to the fact that students at different ages manifest different characteristics, it is obvious
that teaching them will differ as well. A greater variety of activities is offered to younger
children whereas with adolescents we, as teachers, have to bear in mind the importance of a
student’s place within his/her peer group and we must make sure that our choice of topics
will match their emerging interests. Students love action, group debates, they like to produce
something, to show their creativity. Generally, the more active and involved they are, the
more they like what they are doing. Therefore, learning becomes efficient only when it
determines the student to act.

Modern teaching is oriented towards competence shaping, that is “those structured units of
knowledge and skills acquired through learning, which allow the identification and solving
of specific problems in various contexts.” (PIR 23) Modern society needs individuals who
are able to explain and justify their own points of view and who are able to exchange ideas

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with other people. Therefore, it is more effective for students to participate actively, to
discuss, to give arguments, to investigate, to experiment, these being, in fact, essential
methods for effective and lasting learning.

1.1.2. THE IMPORTANCE OF STUDENT MOTIVATION

The desire to learn can be caused by a variety of factors. The learners might love the subject
they are studying or maybe they are simply interested in seeing what it is like. Some
students have a practical reason for their study: they want to learn English so that they can
communicate with native speakers or find a better job. This desire to achieve some goal is
the basis of motivation and, if it is strong enough, it provokes a decision to act.

If we are speaking about an adult learning English, this may involve enrolling in an English
class. As far as a teenager is concerned, it might be choosing a subject over another. As
Harmer points out:
This kind of motivation – which comes from outside the classroom and may
be influenced by a number of external factors such as the attitude of society,
family and peers to the subject in question – is often referred to as extrinsic
motivation, the motivation that students bring into the classroom from outside.
Intrinsic motivation, on the other hand, is the kind of motivation that is
generated by what happens inside the classroom; this could be the teacher’s
methods, the activities that students take part in, or their perception of their
success or failure. (Harmer 20)

Taking into account the latest socio - political changes Romania has faced – the integration
of our country into European Union, the opportunities Romanians have nowadays to study
abroad or to get a work permit in different English speaking countries, or the increasing
number of people applying for a ‘green card’ to the United States of America or Canada –
we may also speak of the integrative motivation, which is associated with the English
learners’ orientation towards the target language and culture, and the presence of a desire to
integrate into that culture.

I remember the first days of my teaching ‘career’, when I met my colleagues and students.
Emotions and a lot of worries were overwhelming me and the contact with ‘the real job’
made me turn back to the reasons I had had for choosing this profession. This is why during
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the first meetings with my students I asked them which are the most important school
subjects for them and why they learn English. The answers were varied: one student said he
liked English the most because of the computer games and music that he listens to; another
told me that his mother was going to leave for the USA and she had to be able to speak
English once she got there too. Of course, there were also the students who said that English
was too difficult, they did not like it and they did not like school at all.

Teaching young learners requires knowledge of the developmental differences between

children and teenagers, and of the appropriate management skills. Differences include
conceptual and cognitive variations, variations in attention spans and motor skills, such as
drawing and cutting, as well as social and emotional differences.

We should not underestimate the importance of self-esteem and of a sense of competence in

language learning, as crucial factors affecting motivation. For the failing students, in
particular, it is important that we try to develop their sense of success and a feeling that they
can do something, rather than a feeling that they cannot. In practical terms, this means that
we need to be sensitive to the psychology of language learning. When a test is designed or a
particular type of exercise is used, an important question arises: How will the weaker
students feel if they cannot do this?

One of the commonest exercises used in the classroom is “matching words to their
antonyms”. Confident, motivated students who have a history of success are likely to
approach such exercises feeling that they have done these exercises before and, as they have
usually done well, they will probably be able to do this one too. If they do complete the
exercise successfully, they will have in front of them confirmation of what they already
knew, and their confidence and motivation are renewed again.

Weaker students, however, may have exactly the opposite experience. Previous failure may
create a lack of confidence as they approach the task, and if they find that they can complete
only one or two of the gaps correctly, then once again they are presented with a picture of

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what they cannot do – and so the spiral relationship of motivation - ability takes another step
downwards.

There is a psychology involved in everything we do in the classroom, and this is concerned

with the students’ feelings of success/failure, high/low self-esteem, high/low confidence,
and this has a direct impact on motivation. Taking this into consideration, we may be able to
understand some of the reasons why, over time, motivation may fail. Where we see students
beginning to fail and beginning to lose motivation, one means of repairing the situation may
be choosing the tasks which we believe the students can do, in order to develop a sense of
competence and confidence.

It is not very difficult to have a desire to do something, but sustaining that motivation is a
real problem, since students can become bored, or they may find the subject more difficult
than they expected it to be. One of the teacher’s most important aims is to help students to
sustain their motivation. This can be done in a number of ways. The activities that we
choose during our lessons can help them to stay interested in the subject if they are exciting
and if they provoke their participation. It is also essential to select an appropriate level of
challenge so that things are neither too difficult nor too easy.

One way of helping students to sustain their motivation is to allow them to take some
responsibility for themselves, meaning that they will have some decision - making power in
terms of choosing which activity to do next. If students feel that they have some control over
what is happening, rather than always being told exactly what to do, they are often more
motivated to take part in the lesson. Irrespective of how much teachers do to support student
motivation, they can only encourage by word and deed, offering support and guidance. Real
motivation should come from within each student.

1.1.3. RESPONSIBILITY FOR LEARNING

It is not only important to give students more decision-making power, but it is also
necessary to encourage them to take more responsibility for their own learning. Students

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need to become active learners rather than be passive recipients of teaching, if they want
their learning to be successful.

It might not be an easy task for teachers, but students’ role in learning must be gradually
extended. This can be done by trying to get the students to make their own dialogues after
having listened to a model on a CD, or to investigate a grammar issue or to solve a reading
puzzle on their own, rather than the teacher explaining things to them. The students
themselves should look for the meanings of words and how they are used rather than ask the
teacher what the words mean. If students get used to working things out for themselves, they
can gradually start to become more autonomous.

One of the most efficient ways to encourage student autonomy is to get students to do
various kinds of homework. Teachers must also choose the right kind of task for the student.
It should be neither too difficult, nor too easy and teachers should follow up homework
when they say they are going to, imposing the same deadlines upon themselves as they do
on their students. In short, teachers should do their best to encourage students to take some
responsibility for themselves without forcing it upon them.

1.2. TEACHERS
Teaching is not an easy job, it is not well paid, but it can be more rewarding than any other
jobs when we see our students’ progress and we know that we have helped to make it
happen. It is difficult to define ‘a good teacher’ because different teachers can be successful
in different ways. Some teachers may be more extrovert or introvert and different teachers
have different strengths and weaknesses.

If people are asked to recall their schooldays, most of them remember certain teachers who
influenced them. The reasons why some teachers stuck as special are varied: their
personality, the interesting things they might have had to say, the fact that they loved their
job, their compelling interest in their students’ progress, etc. As Harmer explains:
It is often said that good teachers are born, not made and it does seem that
some people have a natural affinity for the job. But there are also others,
perhaps, who do not have what appears to be a natural gift but who are still
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 effective and popular teachers. Such teachers learn their craft through a
mixture of personality, intelligence, knowledge and experience (and how they
reflect on it). And even some of the teachers who are apparently born teachers
weren’t like that at the beginning at all, but grew into the role as they learnt
their craft. (Harmer 23)

1.2.1. WHO TEACHERS ARE IN CLASS

Teachers, like any other group of human beings, have individual differences. However, there
is one thing that makes us different from other professions and that is the fact that we
become different people when we are in front of a class, different from the people we are in
other situations, for example at home.

The personality of a teacher plays an essential part in defining a good teacher. The blend
between who we really are and who we are as teachers results in effective teacher
personality. Therefore, teaching is much more than just ‘being ourselves’, irrespective of
how much our students want to see the real person. It is essential to be able to present to the
students a professional face which they find both interesting and effective.

Adaptability is another important aspect that may mark out one teacher from another
because, no matter how well we have prepared, chances are that things will not go exactly
according to plan. A good teacher is able to face the unexpected and to use it to his/her and
the students’ advantage. The teacher can be considered the link that stimulates the
development of students’ knowledge skills. He/she has to create and use various instruction
alternatives; and has to organise the group work in such a way that the ’weaker’ student does
not simply accept the point of view of the ‘better’ student.

The target of the modern teacher is to teach the students how to think not what to think.
He/she has to find the appropriate teaching – learning methods that should arise curiosity,
should increase interest and should set ways of thinking freely. The teacher is a facilitator of
students’ knowledge rather than an authority who teaches in order to allow students to learn
confusing and difficult concepts. He/she accepts, clarifies, supports students’ ideas and
feelings, he/she praises them, encourages students and supports them in making decisions.

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The new postmodern approaches demand the use of interactive strategies in teaching
-learning and in assessment. The classroom is a research community where the teacher trains
the students to discover ways of asking questions and debating problems. The postmodern
methodology focuses on the emotions of the participants, on their personal experience, their
empathy, intuition, expression of opinions, stimulation of imagination, creativity and
divergent thinking. The assessment has to be corrective and not punishment-oriented or
meant ‘to hunt’ for mistakes. Positive feedback is motivating and has a good effect on the
personality of the student.

1.2.2. THE IMPORTANCE OF TEACHER MOTIVATION

Teacher motivation naturally has to do with teachers’ attitude to work. It has to do with
teachers’ desire to participate in the pedagogical processes within the school environment. It
has to do with teachers’ interest in student discipline and control, particularly in the
classroom. Consequently, it could underlie their involvement or non-involvement in
academic and non-academic activities, which operate in schools.

The teacher is the one who translates educational philosophy and objectives into knowledge
and skill, and transfers them to students in the classroom. Classroom climate is important in
teacher motivation. If a teacher experiences the classroom as a safe, healthy, happy place
with supportive resources and facilities for teaching and for optimal learning, he/she tends to
participate more than expected in the process of management, administration and the overall
improvement of the school. The teacher commands and emits the image of one who
improves not only knowledge, but also the physical conditions of the classroom through
orderliness, discipline and control. He can provide a diagnosis of students’ feelings and
attitudes inferred from their behaviour and response in the classroom environment.
Therefore, depending on the degree of congruence with classroom practices and the school
environment, teachers teaching activities may dilute or enhance students’ performance. In
other words, teacher motivation is everything done to make teachers happy, satisfied,
dedicated and committed in such a way that they bring out their best in their places of work
so that students, parents and the society will greatly benefit from their services.

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Teachers have both intrinsic and extrinsic needs. A teacher who is intrinsically motivated
may be observed to undertake a task for its own sake, for the satisfaction it provides or for
the feeling of accomplishment and self-actualisation. On the other hand, an extrinsically
motivated teacher may perform the activity/duty in order to obtain some reward such as a
salary. Extrinsic motivation plays an important part in people's life. It is pre-eminent in
influencing a person’s behaviour. Therefore, the aim of the school should be to build on and
enhance the intrinsic motivation for teachers to teach effectively and, at the same time, to
supply some extrinsic motivation along the way, for the school’s improvement.

1.2.3. ART OR SCIENCE?

Is teaching language an art or is it a science? This is the question that could be asked when
trying to define this domain of activity. Understanding the language system and finding the
best ways to explain it is some kind of a scientific endeavour, especially when we continue
to research its changes and evolution. In the same way, some of the technical skills that are
required of teachers (procedures for how to do things, a constant attention to innovation in
educational technology and materials design) need to be almost scientific in their rigour.

However, teaching is an art as well. It works when the relationship that is created between a
teacher and his/her students, and between the students in a group, is at its best. If we have
managed to establish a good rapport with a group, almost anything is possible. Good
teachers listen and watch, and use both professional and personal skills to respond to what
they see and hear. Good teachers have a knack of responding by doing things correctly, and
that is clearly an art.

II. INTERACTIVE LEARNING

Interaction involves direct or mediated inter-relation with the others, with the teacher and
colleagues, and processes of transformative action of the topic discussed. Interactive
learning implies the combination of the efforts of both educational agents in building
knowledge. The relation teacher - student acquires a new dimension. The educated takes on
the part of subject of his own formation whereas the teacher becomes his guide. Interactive
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learning is a special form of school learning which appeared as a result of the necessity to
make the school keep up with the latest changes that the day-to-day life is presenting.

The man of the future has to come up with appropriate and efficient solutions to the
problems that life offers. He has to be a man of action, not a man of word. Therefore,
interactive learning is necessary in order to shape the creative man, the builder of ideas who
does not only come up with ideas, but uses them to make decisions and solve life problems
through actions.

This type of learning is not opposed to the classical type of learning, but it is a new quality
of it through the objectives aimed at shaping the personality. It focuses on learning through
research - discovery and on learning on your own, independently or guided, it focuses on
creative thinking and imagination. Stimulating an active attitude in schools implies creating
an interactive, exciting and dynamic learning environment.

Learning by cooperation ensures the development of appropriate relationships meant to

contribute to an active manifestation of the student in the classroom. It develops and
maintains motivation for knowledge, contributing to active involvement in the task and to
creative contributions from the participants.

The conditions and specific situations that can lead to the development of a researching
spirit, divergent thinking and creative attitude are the following:
 encouraging students to ask questions
 limitation of constraints and factors that produce frustration
 stimulating communication by the organisation of discussions and debates among
students, between the teacher and the students
 activating students by their involvement in solving tasks that imply operating with
ideas, concepts with a view to reconsidering them and coming up with new
alternatives
 cultivating cognitive independence, spontaneity and autonomy in learning

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  stimulating positive critical spirit and the ability of giving arguments and looking for
alternatives
 enabling access to knowledge through personal efforts

Thus, the teaching - learning lesson becomes an adventure of knowledge in which the child
participates actively, within the limits of his own efforts, coming up against difficult
problems and situations, examining them and finding efficient solutions. The teacher’s role
is to stimulate and guide, the motivation for the activity deriving from the enthusiast
participation of the teacher.

The student is involved in the process of teaching - learning and assessment, and discipline
becomes self-discipline of work and interest, ensured by the satisfaction of cooperation.
Making learning active is not synonym with overwhelming the student with too many
activities, it must be understood as more of an intensification of the teacher’s work to offer
the students opportunities of learning, teaching being the activity through which the teacher
facilitates students’ learning.

The atmosphere created in the classroom by the educator constitutes a factor which
influences the student’s learning behaviour. Creating a climate meant to ensure a positive
collaboration between the educated and the educator, a climate characterised by a positive,
affective tonality of rigour and understanding, of responsibility represents the main
condition that must be met during the lesson.

In order to stimulate activism, the teacher him/herself must be an active person, with a
positive attitude and behaviour. Interactive instruction redefines the roles and dimensions of
the teacher. The teacher is:
 a pedagogue who does not impose scientific information, but constructs learning
devices, practising a different and individual pedagogy
 a tutor, a manager, a mediator, an organiser and supervisor of contents, activities and
experiences
 a facilitator of learning

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  a counsellor for the student who needs support in learning
 a partner of the student in an interactive educational partnership
 a coordinator of the student’s work

In the instructive - educational process it is necessary to change the attitude toward the
student. He must be considered an active and creative participant to his own formation.
His/her progress must be appreciated. Students gather information from various sources.
School must keep up with everything that is new, it must update both knowledge and
methods.

2.1. THE ACTIVE STUDENT PROFILE

When considering the active student profile, Bocos explains that:
An active student is the student who gets involved effectively in the teaching
activity and modifies its variables, its characteristic parameters: he/she makes
efforts of personal reflection, of thinking, does mental and practical activities
of research, of investigation, rediscovers new truths, rethinks new knowledge
becoming aware of the fact that external influences and messages always act
with the help of internal conditions. (Bocoş 64)

This outlook on the student is opposed to the traditional one, according to which he received
passively the information given by the teacher, later on being asked to repeat it. The active
student is the one who becomes co-participant with the teacher to his own formation and co-
responsible to realising and to the effects of the learning process. Taking on the role of actor
in the educational process, he designs effectively the project of personalised learning; he
builds knowledge taking on risks, being aware of the necessary efforts, choosing their
learning strategies, managing their time and using formative assessment. The active student
shows a lot of boldness in appreciating a product critically, independence in tackling and
analysing problems, spirit of contradicting, freedom in his/her general behaviour.

Taking into account the idea that active learning is done with the help of active methods, it
is therefore necessary to diminish the number of activities that limit activism and to extend
the use of modern, active methods which promote thinking, students’ investigation skills, as
well as their participation in learning contents, to independent work and using in practice the

20
theoretical concepts that they have learnt. Active methods are considered those that do not
frame the student in a network of fixed expressions or rigid rules, but they allow the student
to interact with the elements of his learning. An active student is that student who thinks,
who does not rely on receiving and repeating knowledge.

Geoff Petty considers that there are two types of students:

The active student

- Learning is something that I can do alone
- So success or failure is my responsibility:
- I must find the right resources
- I must check what I understood
- I must discover my own learning problems
- I must solve these problems
- In short, I must take control and assume responsibility
- So, if I don’t learn: I must -study more
-change the learning strategy
-try with another book
-ask some friend for help
-revise what I have learnt before
In any case if I assume responsibilty I might succeed.
Mood: Strong!
‘I can change something!’
‘I should try harder!’
Focused on:
- the process: What should I do next?
- improvement (not perfection)
- positive aspects (avoids the negative ones)

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 - flexible, open, self-confident

The passive student

- Learning is done by experts
- So success or failure is determined by factors that I cannot control:
- how good is the teacher
- resources
- my intelligence
- my talent for a certain subject
So, if I don’t learn: -the teacher is to blame
-resources are not good
-I am stupid
In any case the only reasonable thing is to give up.
Mood: Powerless!
‘I don’t have control!’
‘I won’t succeed, so I give up!’
Focused on:
- possible negative results
- impossibility of doing something perfect
- the negative aspects
- hopeless, fatalistic
(Petty 56)

2.2. LEARNING BY COOPERATION

Motto:
Students must tell each other and to the world
what they know – in order to find out what they
know. By telling, they will interpret the world
as they see it, for us the others.

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 Judith Renyi

Learning by cooperation is a structured and organised educational strategy during which

students work together, sometimes in pairs, sometimes in small groups, in order to solve a
common objective: solving a problem, exploring a theme, producing some ideas and new
solutions in a given situation.

Working in a team develops students’ ability to work together, it offers the possibility to
achieve a positive social experience based on cooperation and collaboration in solving the
problems of life, and ensures living in a peaceful world. Students must be educated so that
they should be one for the other and not one against the other, to develop their ability to
solve possible conflicts in a positive way – an important competence for the life and activity
of future citizens. Learning by cooperation demands patience and tolerance for different
ways of thinking and feeling, placing value on the students’ need to work together, in a
peaceful atmosphere of mutual support.

2.2.1. COOPERATION AND COLLABORATION VERSUS

COMPETITION

As far as cooperation and collaboration are concerned, Oprea states in her book that:

23
 Cooperation (working together with someone) implies collaboration (active
participation in doing an action, based on exchanging proposals, ideas).
Despite the fact that the two notions are synonymous, some distinction can be
made, understanding by collaboration a form of relationships among students
which consists in solving some common interest problems, in which everyone
contributes actively and effectively, and by cooperation a form of learning, of
study, of mutual interpersonal action with a viable duration which results from
reciprocal influences of the agents involved. (cap. 4)

Collaboration is based on tasks, and cooperation on the process of fulfilling those tasks.
Cooperation is a superior form of interaction within the learning process, including
collaboration. Comparing cooperation and competition, we can distinguish the following
characteristics:
Learning by competition – is not commonly based on psycho-social interaction, consisting
of rivalry and interpersonal competition, each person having his/
her own purpose
- motivation derives from the desire of self-assertiveness
- the focus is on the product, on what is obtained as a result of
learning
- assessment is based on comparing oneself to the group, this
creating hierarchies and later on, hostile behaviours and envious
attitudes
Learning by cooperation - is a superior form of psycho-social interaction based on mutual
support, on tolerance, on efforts made by everyone, all directed
towards the same purpose
- motivation is the result of the action of all members who have a
common destiny
- attention is directed towards working together, everyone can
offer valuable alternatives in order to solve a problem if they are
given the right conditions and if they are helped
- assessment is meant to provide immediate help, is meant to
improve not to punish. It is done by comparison to individual
progress and considers the participation of each member and
also the results of the team.

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Competition and collaboration become equally destructive to the harmony of the educational
climate when they are exaggerated and become a purpose themselves. Teachers must
balance the two forms of organising the teaching - learning activity, creating opportunities
based on group work which supports cooperation and maintains constructive competition.

2.2.2. KEY ELEMENTS OF LEARNING BY COOPERATION

There are some key elements that define learning by cooperation:
1. Positive interdependence, according to which the success of the group depends on the
effort of all the team members in fulfilling the task. Students must become aware of the fact
that it is to everyone’s advantage if they all learn well, just as it would be a collective
disadvantage if the others do not learn well. They are directed towards a common goal,
stimulated by a collective appreciation, the result being the sum of everyone’s efforts.
Positive constructive interdependence can be done by:
 a collective decision about the aims of learning (aim interdependence)
 the division of work within the group (task interdependence)
 the division of resources (materials and information) among the group members
(resource interdependence) giving collective rewards (reward interdependence)
2. Personal responsibility which means that every member of the group takes responsibility
for the task. Students cooperate and collaborate in learning, giving mutual help and support
and taking, at the same time, responsibility for what they are doing.
3. Forming and developing social skills, stimulating interpersonal intelligence which refers
to the ability of communicating with another person, receiving support when needed,
offering help, solving conflicts. Students are taught, helped, monitored in using collaborative
social skills which increase the efficiency of working in a team.
4. Face to face interaction which involves direct contact with the working partner, the seat
arranging in the classroom so that small interaction groups can be created and in those
groups students can encourage and help each other.
5. Dividing group tasks and reflection on the way in which the tasks will be solved by each
member on his/her own and by the entire team.

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In learning by cooperation there are several principles which are respected: the spirit of
equality, anti-hierarchy and anti-authority, tolerance to other people’s opinions and
avoidance of labelling. The teacher gets involved in the students’ collaboration, being a
member, or offering help, or animating and stimulating the activity.

2.2.3. STEPS IN LEARNING BY COOPERATION

Learning by cooperation implies some dynamics and activity maintained continuously
through the efforts of the participants. The steps of the strategy of team work imply
considering the favourable and less favourable factors of solving problems in a team.
 A first step deals with the forming of the group work. Its members must have some
qualities to facilitate solving the problem discussed: to be tolerant with their
colleagues’ opinions, to possess appropriate communication skills for what they want
to communicate, not to be selfish, to offer help and to receive help when they need it.
The task must be solved by all members of the group together, each having his/her
own contribution.
 A second step is realised when participants are confronted with the situation to be
solved and are stimulated to work together in order to solve it. At this stage, students
get familiar with the elements of the problem, they analyse them and set priorities
and responsibilities. Taking into account the content of the task, the teacher can
establish the group leaders so that each member will end up being a leader and take
responsibilities for solving the problems.
 The third step is destined to reflections, incubation and trials. It is the time of
documentation and research which can be extended to a longer or shorter period of
time.
 The fourth step refers to collective debates, when ideas are confronted, errors and
strengths analysed.
 The fifth step refers to planning actions towards the end of the debate with drawing
conclusions and solving the problem.
The conditions regarding the development of the stages of efficient cooperation refer to
relationships of good understanding among members of the working team, to acceptance

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from all the members, of the working plan meant to help reach the common aim, to the
adoption of a common way of communication of results and evaluation of the solution.

2.2.4. THE GROUP - THE CENTRAL ELEMENT OF

LEARNING BY COOPERATION

Every student feels the need to belong to a group, to a community: family, group of friends,
group of students in the classroom, school, he feels the need to be appreciated and respected
within this community. In a community, the members of it are aware of their belonging to
that community by the fact that they work together, they speak to one another and basically
they have common needs and purposes.

For a class to become such a community, it is necessary for the educational agents (the
students and the teacher) to be constantly preoccupied with building this community day by
day, in all lessons, since according to Cristina Ulrich “building a community must become
the heart of every effort to improve school.” (22)

Why should we use the group? Geoff Petty supported the idea that any activity, which is
deeply liked or disliked, becomes more pleasant, respectively more bearable if we involve
the others as well, if we work together with someone. “Homo sapiens is a social animal and
even that so-called form of distinctive life students quasi-sapiens works happily in a group
as long as the teacher manages to supervise the activities correctly.”(221)

The pedagogical intervention of the teacher with the aim to build the community of the
classroom can be manifested in different ways. One of them is to organise learning activities
in groups. An absolutely necessary condition to the existence of activism and consistent
learning is the direct involvement of the students in the task.

In supporting this idea, Appelbaum P. claims that:

students learn better when they care about what they are learning, when they
are directed motivated to accomplish something, when there is a purpose,

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 when there is a responsibility and a commitment regarding something that
they have to do.’(qtd. in Oprea cap.4.2.)

According to Appelbaum, there are some factors that favour learning by cooperation (qtd.
in Oprea cap 4.2.):
1. Stimulation in the task is improved due to someone’s presence
2. Group resources (of memory, of attention, etc.) are richer than in individual cases
3. There are high chances that among members of the group there is one capable to
discover the solution
4. Chance mistakes are balanced: despite their occurrence ‘the general result of the
group will be more precise than that of the individual taken separately’
5. ‘Blind spots’ are corrected. ‘It’s easier to admit someone else’s mistakes rather than
your own’
6. Stimulating the occurrence of new ideas is a result of cumulative interaction
‘because each member develops somebody else’s ideas’
7. Things can be learnt from someone else’s experiences
There are also some factors which prevent group work from being efficient like (qtd. in
Oprea 4.2.):
1. The opposition of aims, interests and habits of members which can make
collaboration extremely difficult
2. Communication difficulties tend to increase as the group becomes bigger and for the
shy students it is difficult to actively participate when the group is bigger
3. Coordination difficulties increase as well, as groups are bigger, so that it is more and
more difficult to make a common, integrated effort, without spending too much time
to solve and prevent coordination difficulties
4. Distraction and overestimation which make an individual concentrated effort more
difficult to obtain when learning some subjects and solving problems
5. Excessive dependence on the others can be encouraged by group work. The fact that
some group members rely on the capable ones leads to laziness and avoidance of
personal responsibilities

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Comparing group learning to individual learning, scientists reached different conclusions,
some being more optimistic, others moderate, placing group work on an inferior position,
equal or superior to the individual one, involving the same task, taking into account the
individual resources of the group members, the type of task, their way of interaction. (Doise,
Mugny 38)

According to Johnson, Johnson and Smith, there are, however, three general types of groups:
 informal learning groups
 formal learning groups
 team study (qtd. in Oprea cap.4.2.)
Informal learning groups are created on the spot, temporarily, by asking the students to form
a team by simply turning towards his/her desk mate and discuss a given problem for a few
minutes. Groups of 3 - 4 students can be formed just as quickly and they could be asked to
solve a problem, to find solutions or to answer a question. The teacher can create informal
groups at any time, of any number of members, in order to appreciate the students’
understanding of a material or to give them the chance to apply what they have learnt or just
to change the type of class organization, in order to increase motivation and to catch their
attention.

Cătălina Ulrich suggests an amusing and instructive exercise of grouping students using the
technique of rebuilding broken proverbs. (44) If in the classroom, there are 24 students and
we can have groups of 4 students each, then six proverbs of four words can be chosen. Each
word from every proverb is written on a piece of paper. Students choose pieces of paper and
then look for the other students having the other words so as to rebuild the proverbs. Other
ways of forming groups quickly are:
Cards: If we want to form four-member groups, then the use of cards is very appropriate.
We can use as many groups of cards as many groups we want to form
Number flashcards: We decide the number of groups and the number of members of each
group. We write the number of groups on as many flashcards as how many members we
would like to have in each group. We mix the numbered flashcards and ask the students to
choose one. They will find the number of the group they belong to. For example, if we want

29
to form 6 groups of 5 members, we make 30 flashcards, five of each number from 1 to 6.
We place a number from 1 to 6 on the six tables where students will reorganise based on the
flashcard they chose.
Flashcards with different symbols: We do just as mentioned above. Instead of numbers we
can use colours, images with flowers, animals etc. For example, we can colour 6 flashcards
of each of the following colours: red, blue, green, yellow, purple. We can draw 6 of the
following flowers: tulip, rose, daffodil, daisy, lily
Specific series: Starting from the specific of a certain subject, we can form groups according
to categories of concepts, relationships, phenomena. For a foreign language class, we can
form 5 groups with: animals, clothing items, food, furniture, objects in the classroom.
Birthdays: Students can be organised according to the months in which they were born.
This kind of organisation is not equal and a decision must be taken on the way of grouping
the months based on the number of children. (for example: a group of those born in January
and February, a group of those born in March etc.)
Puzzle: We can buy puzzles for young children (4-6 pieces). We can use a puzzle for each
group. We mix the pieces and we let the students recompose the images. We can make the
puzzles ourselves by cutting some pictures in as many pieces as how many members we
would like to have in each group. We mix them and ask the students to put them right. Thus
we form the groups.

All these ideas can be used for random groups of students. Taking into account the students’
needs and the aims, the grouping can also be done based on learning styles, types of
intelligence. A modular type of furniture is best in order to organise the students in the best
way possible. Setting the table can be done according to the interacting needs anticipated by
the teacher and obviously to the space available. Here are some sitting examples (PIR12):

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Formal learning groups are pre-established teams before solving a certain task. Students
work together for a long time (several days or weeks) or until they finish a certain project.
Team study implies collaborative working on a longer period of time (even a semester). The
teams establish their rules and responsibilities and their working plan. The activity is based
on cooperation among members and mutual support. The final assessment is usually done by
offering all members the same mark which results from measuring and appreciating the
collective result. This stimulates working together, mutual support and does not stimulate
competition inside the teams but among teams.

2.2.5. ADVANTAGES OF WORKING IN A GROUP

Group work is an active one. It gives the students the chance to use methods, concepts and
the vocabulary that they learn. Shy students who do not take part in frontal discussions can

31
generally be convinced to participate and contribute to solving the group task. Furthermore,
a characteristic of working in a team involves a certain degree of self-assessment and inner-
learning, where misunderstandings can be corrected in a more relaxed and more encouraging
atmosphere. Students can very often do together what they could not do individually, each
member of the group offering his/her own version of the diversity of the means of
understanding. Team work involves participants in discussions focused on the given task
which create great learning opportunities. Within the group, students process the new
material and give a personal interpretation. Efficient group work passes on the responsibility
of learning to the students.

Group work covers all students’ needs. They have the chance to practise both superior
mental skills (creative thinking, evaluation, synthesis, analysis) and average skills (the
ability of working and communicating in a group). Group work gives them the chance to
know one another. It can lead to forming loyalty towards the group, especially where there
are competition elements, which lead to a strong learning motivation. The use of group work
strengthens relationships among students and creates a trustful and supportive atmosphere
during the activity. Social activities are appreciated by everyone, so group work will
generate a positive attitude towards both the subject and the teaching. In group work
students’ opinions are accepted and appreciated, whereas during a teacher’s lecture, they are
ignored.

2.2.6. LIMITS OF WORKING IN A GROUP

Groups can follow a wrong direction or can be misled by a more determined member or by
the members who become simple passengers, allowing the others to take control if the
teacher does not make sure that students take responsibility for their own work, monitoring
the group efficiently and asking for permanent feedback. Like any other method, group work
becomes inefficient when it is used randomly or too often or for too long.

Classroom sitting is an important coordinate. If students work in a group, it is important for

them to have visual contact. Fixed furniture makes group formation difficult, students being

32
forced to turn to those behind them. If tables and chairs are arranged in such a way that they
serve the intended aims then attention to the working task will increase considerably.

2.2.7. NECESSARY SKILLS OF THE TEACHER

TO SUPPORT LEARNING BY COOPERATION
A series of questions can be asked: if students are always active and use active and
interactive learning methods and techniques, what is the teacher supposed to do? Are
educators still needed? If yes, what skills should they have so that they support learning by
cooperation? In traditional schooling, the teacher has complete control over knowledge and
consequently over the events of the classroom. In student centered schooling, the teacher
apparently gets a secondary part, since the student is the core of the problem. The problem is
that in order to have a truly active student, involved in interactive learning tasks of
cooperation, that is a student in the centre of the process, the teacher fulfills different roles
than before. Taking into account the context, the teacher is always in action, but in an
adapted and appropriate way to the students’ needs.

Learning by cooperation demands intellectual and practical effort on the part of the students
and of the teacher who coordinates the proper development of activity. Using the strategy of
learning by cooperation, the teacher must have the following skills:
1. The energetic skill: it deals with the teacher’s skill to make the students want to get
involved in the activity and solve the task. Students must be encouraged and stimulated not
to stop at the first solution found but get trained in looking for alternative solutions.
2. The emphatic skill: it implies the ability to work with students succeeding to undergo the
situations/feelings that they underwent. This way, the teacher will know better his students
and will improve communication with them.
3. The ludic skill: it refers to the teacher’s skill to respond to the students’ game with a
game, favouring the use of playful elements in the learning activity in order to make it more
attractive and to maintain students’ intellectual and physical effort.
4. The organising skill: it considers the teacher’s skills to organise the class in groups and
maintain and impose the obeying of rules that concern learning through cooperation. At the

33
same time, the teacher is the one who can intervene in crisis situations, stopping conflicts
and choosing the right direction of activity. He maintains the connection between
participants’ interventions and the topic of discussion, avoiding any deviation.
5. The inter-relational skill: it involves communication abilities with the students, meant to
develop in them the social abilities necessary to a proper integration in the class.
Besides these skills there are the necessary and specific skills of the teachers as well:
6. The scientific skills which refer to scientific correctness, to the quality, the structure and
didactic transposition of contents which will help to reach the established aims and develop
operational, emotional, motivational, volitional and action structures with all students.
7. The psychological – pedagogical skills which ensure the efficiency of the teaching
efforts, the teacher connecting the student with the educational study.
8. The managing and psycho-social skills which relate to the educational management and
organisation of the social relationships in the classroom.

The roles of the teacher get redefined and acquire new meanings which overcome the
traditional view of the teacher being a/the source of information. In organising learning by
cooperation, he becomes a co-participant, together with the student, in the activities. He
accompanies and guides the student on his way towards knowledge.

Postmodern school focuses on modern elements of improvement of didactic methodology so

that the active character of learning methods is increased, so that highly formative methods
are used, contributing thus to the development of the student’s full potential. Although
learning is a fully individual activity considering the individual effort of understanding and
becoming aware of the scientific meanings, it is nonetheless true that interpersonal, group
relationships are an essential factor to the appearance and building of personal and collective
learning.

III. TECHNIQUES OF ACTIVE LEARNING

Exercises for Individual Students
Because these techniques are aimed at individual students, they can very easily be used
without interrupting the flow of the class. These exercises are particularly useful in

34
providing the teacher with feedback concerning student understanding and retention of
material. Some exercises are especially designed to encourage students' exploration of their
own attitudes and values. Many other exercises are designed to increase retention of material
presented during classes and in texts. These techniques are designed to give the teacher
some indication of student understanding of the material presented during the lecture itself.
These activities provide formative assessment rather than summative assessment of student
understanding. Formative assessment is evaluation of the class as a whole in order to
provide information for the benefit of the students and the teacher, but the information is not
used as part of the lesson grade; summative assessment is any evaluation of student
performance which becomes part of the lesson grade. For each feedback method, the teacher
stops at appropriate points to give quick tests of the material; in this way, he/ she can adjust
the lesson, slowing down to spend more time on the concepts students are having difficulty
with or moving more quickly to applications of concepts of which students have a good
understanding.

The "One Minute Paper" - This is a highly effective technique for checking student
progress in understanding the material. Students are asked to take out a blank sheet of paper,
ask a question (either specific or open-ended), and give them one (or perhaps two - but not
many more) minute(s) to respond.   
Reading Quiz - Clearly, this is one way to force students to read assigned material! Active
learning depends upon students coming to class prepared. The reading quiz can also be used
as an effective measure of student comprehension of the readings. Furthermore, by asking
the same sorts of questions on several reading quizzes, students will be given guidance as to
what to look for when reading assigned text. If the teacher’s goal is to instruct (and not
merely to force), then it is essential to carefully choose questions which will both identify
who has read the material (for the teacher’s sake) and identify what is important in the
reading (for the student’s sake).
Clarification Pauses - This is a simple technique aimed at fostering "active listening".
Throughout a lecture, particularly after stating an important point or defining a key concept,
the teacher should stop, should let it sink in, and then should ask if anyone needs to have it
clarified. The teacher can also circulate around the room during these pauses to look at

35
student notes, answer questions, etc. Students who would never ask a question in front of the
whole class will ask questions during a clarification pause as you move about the room.
The ‘Socratic Method’
This technique in its original format involved teachers ‘testing’ student knowledge (of
reading assignments, lectures) by asking questions during the lesson. Typically, the teacher
chooses a particular student, presents her with a question, and expects an answer forthwith;
if the "chosen" student cannot answer the question presented, the teacher chooses another
(and another) until the desired answer is received. This method has come under criticism,
based on claims that it singles out students (potentially embarrassing them), and/or that it
favours only a small segment of the class (i.e., that small percentage of the class who can
answer any question thrown at them). In addition, once a student has answered a question
they may not pay much attention as it will be a long time before the teacher returns to them
for a second question. In spite of these criticisms, the Socratic method is an important and
useful one; the following techniques suggest variations.
Wait Time - Rather than choosing the student who will answer the question presented, this
variation has the instructor WAITING before calling on someone to answer it. The wait time
will generally be short (15 seconds or so) - but it may seem interminable in the classroom. It
is important to insist that no one raise his hand (or shout out the answer) before the teacher
gives the OK, in order to discourage the typical scenario in which the five students in the
front row all immediately volunteer to answer the question, and everyone else sighs in relief.
Waiting forces every student to think about the question, rather than passively relying on
those students who are the first to answer every question. When the wait time is up, the
teacher asks for volunteers or randomly picks a student to answer the question. Once
students are in the habit of waiting after questions are asked, more of them will get involved
in the process.
Student Summary of Another Student's Answer - In order to promote active listening,
after one student has volunteered to answer the teacher’s question, another student can be
asked to summarise the first student's response. Many students hear little of what their
classmates have to say, waiting instead for the teacher to either correct or repeat the answer.
Having students summarise or repeat each others' contributions to the lesson both fosters
active participation by all students and promotes the idea that learning is a shared enterprise.

36
Given the possibility of being asked to repeat a classmate's comments, most students will
listen more attentively to each other.

IV. INVENTORY OF INTERACTIVE GROUP

ACTIVITIES
Cooperative Learning Exercises
For more complex projects, where many heads are better than one or two, the teacher may
want to have students work in groups of three or more. As the term "cooperative learning"
suggests, students working in groups will help each other to learn. Generally, it is better to
form heterogeneous groups (with regard to gender, ethnicity and academic performance),
particularly when the groups will be working together over time or on complex projects;

37
however, some of these techniques work well with spontaneously formed groups.
Cooperative groups encourage discussion of problem solving techniques (‘Should we try
this?’, etc.), and avoid the embarrassment of students who have not yet mastered all of the
skills required.
Cooperative Groups in Class – The teacher can ask a question to be worked on in each
cooperative group and then circulate around the room answering questions, asking further
questions, keeping the groups on task, and so forth. After an appropriate time for group
discussion, students are asked to share their discussion points with the rest of the class.
Work at the Blackboard - In many problem solving lessons (e.g. logic or critical thinking),
teachers tend to review homework or teach problem solving techniques by solving the
problems themselves. Because students learn more by doing, rather than watching, this is
probably not the optimal scenario. Rather than illustrating problem solving, the teacher must
encourage the students to work out the problems themselves, by asking them to go to the
blackboard in small groups to solve problems. If there is insufficient blackboard space,
students can still work out problems as a group, using paper and pencil.
Brainstorming - It is a tool for generating ideas. It is an activity in which all members of a
group contribute to a list of problems to be solved or solutions to a problem. Brainstorming
helps get a lot of ideas into discussion in a short amount of time. Brainstorming may look
unstructured, but to be effective, there should be some ground rules. These can include:
setting a time limit on the brainstorming session, making sure everyone contributes and
everyone speaks freely.
Night and Day - This brainstorming game is all about opposites, and remove us from our
normal routines. We can start by making a list of common words, such as night, orange,
heavy, fast, etc. Then, we can get a team to come up with the first opposite they can think of
for each word. Those words should then be eliminated. This gets rid of the most obvious
words. After that, the team should come up with three more opposites for each word. This
encourages them to think more creatively. Similar words will eventually find their way into
the list. This is not necessarily a bad thing, since they can spark more ideas. The teacher has
to make sure not to spend more than about a quarter of an hour on this exercise, so that
he/she can move on to the more useful brainstorming. The teacher has to write down the

38
problem statement clearly and simply, then he/she should start generating new ideas with the
creative thinking he/she has just unlocked.
Concept Mapping - A concept map is a way of illustrating the connections that exist
between terms or concepts covered in class; students construct concept maps by connecting
individual terms by lines which indicate the relationship between each set of connected
terms. Most of the terms in a concept map have multiple connections. Developing a concept
map requires the students to identify and organise information and to establish meaningful
relationships between the pieces of information.
Visual Lists - Here students are asked to make a list - on paper or on the blackboard; by
working in groups, students typically can generate more comprehensive lists than they might
if working alone. This method is particularly effective when students are asked to compare
views or to list pros and cons of a position. One technique which works well with such
comparisons is to have students draw a "T" and to label the left- and right-hand sides of the
cross bar with the opposing positions (or 'Pro' and 'Con'). They then list everything they can
think of which supports these positions on the relevant side of the vertical line. Once they
have generated as thorough a list as they can, they can be asked to analyse the lists with
questions appropriate to the exercise.
Jigsaw Group Projects – Groups with five students are set up. Each group member is
assigned some unique material to learn and then to teach to his group members. To help in
the learning, students across the class, working on the same sub-section, get together to
decide what is important and how to teach it. After practice in these "expert" groups, the
original groups reform and students teach each other.
Role Playing - Here students are asked to "act out" a part. In doing so, they get a better idea
of the concepts and theories being discussed. Role-playing exercises can range from the
simple to the complex.
Panel Discussions - Panel discussions are especially useful when students are asked to give
class presentations or reports as a way of including the entire class in the presentation.
Student groups are assigned a topic to research and asked to prepare presentations. Each
panelist is then expected to make a very short presentation, before the floor is opened to
questions from ‘the audience’. The key to success is to choose topics carefully and to give
students sufficient directions to ensure that they are well-prepared for their presentations.

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 Think-Pair-Share – This involves a three step cooperative structure. During the first step
individuals think silently about a question posed by the instructor. Individuals pair up during
the second step and exchange thoughts. In the third step, the pairs share their responses with
other pairs, other teams, or the entire group.
Cultural Charades - Before the lesson, the teacher has to fasten cards under the children's
desks or seats. When the class begins, the students are asked to read the word that is on their
card, but to keep it secret. The name of each child has to be put into a hat, and a name at
random must be picked out. When called, out the child must come to the front of the class
and try to describe the object on their card. When the class correctly guesses the right
answer, the word has to be written on the blackboard. The process continues until every
student has had his or her turn. Next, the students are asked to read all the words on the
blackboard that they have described, and to tell you which could be grouped together. This
is easier if specific topics are chosen when initially writing the card, for example, animal
names, types of clothes, different sports etc. This game can be adapted to fulfill any topic
that the class may need to cover, or to improve upon.
Word Association - The seats or desks in the classroom are arranged into one wide ring. A
topic is decided upon, and the activity begins with just one word. The teacher goes around
the circle in an counterclockwise direction and asks the children to say another English word
that they think links to the previous word. (e.g.. If the teacher began with ‘hot', the next
word might be ‘cold', and then ‘ice', ‘snow', ‘sledging', and so forth). If a child hesitates for
too long or calls out a word that does not really fit with the previous utterance, he/she is
asked to move out of the circle. The person on their immediate right will then begin an
entirely new topic with a word of their choosing. The process continues until there is just
one winner left, and the child is awarded a sticker or a badge. A more difficult variation of
this game is to ask the child to give a word that begins with the last letter of the previous
one. This can be as topic specific as the teacher wishes. For example, if the first word is
‘animal', it could be followed by words such as ‘little', then ‘elephant', ‘tiger', ‘rabbit' etc. If
the game is going slowly a time limit has to be put on the students for giving the next
answer.
Description Groups - The class is split up into small groups, and they are asked to secretly
elect one member. Each group is supplied with a very large piece of paper, and several

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differently coloured pens. Then the students are asked to describe the elected member within
the group by writing down adjectives on the paper. Firstly, the group is asked to describe the
elected child physically, using just one colour of pen. Then the group has to ask the elected
student questions about themselves in English. They are asked to record the answers in
different colours – for example, ‘likes' in green ink, and ‘dislikes' in red. Next, the groups
are asked to come to the front of the classroom one by one. Their large piece of paper is
pinned up, and the rest of the class is asked to guess whom the group have been describing.
If time allows, the class can ask the elected members questions about what has been
recorded. For example, if it has been written that the elected member dislikes slugs, they
should be asked why, and then the rest of the class is asked to raise their hands if they agree
or disagree. This exercise also has strong benefits regarding student bonding.
Pass the Question - The desks or chairs are arranged into a rough circle and the teacher
stands in the center with a small ball in his hand. A question is asked, and then the ball is
passed to a student at random (for example, ‘what is two plus two', or ‘what is the capital of
England'). If the student knows the correct answer they should pass the ball back to the
teacher as they answer. If they don't know, they must call out ‘sorry, I don't know', and
throw the ball to one of their classmates. If the second student knows the answer they return
the ball to the teacher, if not they pass it on again. The process continues until the correct
answer appears, and the game begins again with a new topic. It is a good idea to repeat
questions that the students have struggled with at a later stage in the game.

V. TEACHING VOCABULARY IN THE CLASSROOM

Motto:
The words of a foreign tongue which we commit to memory are
prisoners of war, incessantly trying to escape, and it requires great
vigilance to detain them; for unless our attention be continually
directed towards them, and unless we muster them frequently, they steal
away into the forest, and disperse. But when they are bound together in
sentences, the same degree of watchfulness is not required, because

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 they escape with difficulty, and a whole gang of them may easily be
traced and recaptured at once.
T. Prendergast (qtd. in Gairns and Redman)

5.1. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO ‘KNOW A WORD?’

At the most basic level, knowing a word involves knowing its meaning (in context e.g. book
– to book tickets and its sense relations - synonyms and antonyms), its use (collocations,
style and register) and information about that word (parts of speech, prefixes and suffixes,
spelling and pronunciation)

We recognise and hear more words than we actually use, that is our PASSIVE (receptive)
vocabulary exceeds our ACTIVE (productive) vocabulary. We normally hear or see a word
many times in different contexts before we begin to use it, that is an incubation period.
Receptive knowledge exceeds productive knowledge and generally it precedes it. That is, we
understand more words than we utter, and usually understand them before we are capable of
uttering them.

5.2. HOW IS VOCABULARY LEARNT?

Knowing a word is one thing, but the important question that arises is how is that knowledge
acquired? When learning their first language, the first words that children learn are typically
those used labelling – in other words, mapping words on to concepts-, so that the concept for
example, of dog has a name, dog. But not all four-legged animals are dogs: some may be
cats, so the child then has to learn how far to extend the concept of dog, so as not to include
cats, but to include other people’s dogs, toy dogs and even pictures of dogs. In other words,
acquiring a vocabulary requires not only labelling but categorizing skills as well. Finally,
the child needs to realize that common words like apple and dog can be replaced by
superordinate terms like fruit and animal. And that animal can include other words like cat,
horse and elephant. This involves a process of network building which means building a
complex web of words, so that items like black and white, or fingers and toes, or family and
brother are now interconnected. Regarding this matter, Thornbury explains that:

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 Network building serves to link all the labels and packages, and lays the
groundwork for a process that continues for as long as we are exposed to new
words (and new meanings for old words) – that is, for the rest of our lives.
(Thornbury 18)

In what way is the development of a second language vocabulary any different from that of
the first language? One of the most obvious difference might be the fact that the second
language learners already have a first language. Besides having the words of their first
language, they also possess the conceptual system that these words encode, and the complex
network of associations that link these words one with another. Learning a second language
involves not only learning a new conceptual system, but also constructing a new vocabulary
network.

5.3. HOW ARE WORDS REMEMBERED?

When a learner is faced with learning words, it is not only important to do that, but also to
remember them. In fact, learning is remembering. Unlike the learning of grammar, which is
mainly a rule-based system, vocabulary knowledge is largely a question of accumulating
individual items. It is essentially a question of memory. The short-term memory is the
brain’s capacity to hold a limited number of information for periods of time up to a few
seconds. It is the kind of memory that is involved holding in your head a word that you have
just heard the teacher saying. Successful vocabulary learning involves clearly more than
simply holding words in the mind for a few seconds.
Long-term memory can be thought of as a kind of filing system. It has an enormous
capacity, and its contents are durable over time. However, the fact that learners can retain
new vocabulary items the length of a lesson, but have forgotten them by the next lesson
suggests that long-term memory is not always as long-term as we would wish.

An essential remedy against forgetting is recycling. Research shows that spaced review of
learnt material can dramatically reduce the rate of forgetting. But it is not enough just to
repeat words, or to re-encounter them in their original contexts. It is much better to recycle
them in different ways, and, ideally, at successive levels of depth. Research suggests that if

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learners see or use a word in a different way from the one in which it was first met, then
better learning is achieved.

5.4. WHAT MAKES A WORD DIFFICULT?

Anyone who has learned a second language will know that some words seem easier to learn
than others. The easiest to learn are those that are more or less identical, both in meaning
and form, to their first language equivalents. These are called cognates when they derive
from a common origin. The global spread of English has meant that many English words
have been borrowed by other languages. Cognates and loan words provide a useful way in to
the vocabulary of English. However, there are a number of false friends that make learning
difficult and could be real traps for the new learners. (e.g. eventually= în cele din urmă,
actually= de fapt) Other factors that make some words more difficult than others could be:
- pronunciation: Research shows that the words that are difficult to pronounce are more
difficult to learn. Likely difficult words are those that contain sounds that are unfamiliar to
some learners. Many learners find that words like strength or crisps or breakfast are
problematic due to the cluster of consonants.
- spelling: Sound-spelling mismatches are likely to be the cause of errors, either of
pronunciation or of spelling, and could contribute to a word’s difficulty. Words that contain
silent letters are especially problematic: e.g. foreign, listen, doubt, honest.
- length and complexity: Long words seem to be no more difficult to learn than short ones,
but, high frequency words tend to be short in English. Therefore, the learner might meet
them more often. Variable stress in polysyllabic words (e.g. necessary, necessity,
necessarily) can add to their difficulty as well.
- grammar: The grammar associated with the word could also be problematic if this differs
from that of its first language equivalent. The grammar of phrasal verbs is especially
troublesome, since some phrasal verbs are separable (e.g. she looked the word up), while
others are not (e.g. she looked after the children).
- meaning: When two words overlap in meaning, learners are likely to confuse them (e.g.
make and do). Words with multiple meanings, such as since and still, can also be considered
troublesome for learners. Having learnt one meaning of the word, they may not accept a
second totally different meaning. Unfamiliar concepts may make a word difficult to learn.

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- range, connotation and idioms: Words that can be used in a wide range of contexts will
generally be considered easier than their synonyms with a narrower range (e.g. put is a very
wide-ranging verb as compared to impose, place, position). Words that have style
constraints, such as informal words, may also cause problems. Uncertainty as to the
connotations of some words may be problematic too.

5.5. WHAT KIND OF MISTAKES DO LEARNERS MAKE?

Given the difficulties mentioned above, it is not surprising that learners make mistakes with
words. Errors can be categorised into two major types: form-related and meaning-related.
Form-related errors include mis-selections, mis-formations and spelling and pronunciation
errors. A mis-selection is when an existing word form is selected that is similar in sound or
spelling to the correct form (e.g. She was very hungry with him for angry). Mis-formations
often appear from misapplying word formation rules, producing non-existent words. (e.g.
visitator instead of visitor) Spelling mistakes result from the wrong choice of letter
(responsable for responsible), omission of letters (studing for studying), or the wrong order
of letters (littel for little). Pronunciation errors may result from the wrong choice of sound
(leave for live), addition of sounds, omission of sounds or misplaced word stress. Meaning-
related errors normally occur when words that have similar or related meanings are confused
and the wrong choice is made. These may derive from the learner’s first language, where the
meaning of a first language word may not exactly match its second language equivalents.

Sometimes the errors can be both form - and meaning - induced. That is, a similar-sounding
form is selected because it has a similar meaning to the target one (e.g. I have friends who
speak English as their nature language - for native language). Therefore, it is essential for
learners to have tasks and strategies that help them organise their mental vocabulary by
building networks of associations. Words have to be presented in their typical context, so
that learners get a feel for their meaning, their register and their collocations. Learners need
to be actively involved in the learning of words and they need multiple exposures to words.

5.6. HOW IS VOCABULARY PRESENTED?

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If the teacher has decided to teach a related set of words - for example, items of clothing:
trousers, jacket, shirt, dress, jeans. An important question that is raised is how many words
to present. That will depend on factors like:
 the level of the learners (beginners, intermediate, advanced)
 the learners’ likely familiarity with the words (learners may have met the words
before, even though they are not part of their active vocabulary)
 the difficulty of the items – whether, for example, they express abstract rather than
concrete meanings, or whether they are difficult to pronounce
 their teachability - whether, for example, they can be easily explained or
demonstrated
 whether items are being learnt for production (in speaking and writing) or for
recognition only (as in listening and reading). Since more time will be needed for the
former, the number of items is likely to be fewer than if the aim is only recognition.

Furthermore, the number of new words presented should not overstretch the learners’
capacity to remember them. Textbooks tend to operate on the principle that a vocabulary
presentation should include at most about a dozen items. Once the number of items to be
taught has been decided on, the choice of the sequence of presentation is to be considered.
This could either be meaning first, then form, or form first, then meaning. In the first case,
the teacher could hold up the picture of a shirt (the meaning), and then say It is a shirt (the
form). In a form first presentation, the teacher could say shirt a number of times, have the
students repeat the word, and only then point to the picture.Both approaches are valid.
There is an argument that presenting the meaning first creates a need for the form, opening
theappropriate mental ‘files’, and making the presentation both more efficient and more
memorable. On the other hand, form first presentation works best when the words are
presented in some kind of context, so that the learners can work out the meaning for
themselves.

The next set of choices relates to the means of presentation - whether to present the meaning
through translation, real things, pictures, actions/gestures, definitions, situations or whether
to present the word in its spoken or written form and in what order (e.g. spoken before

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written) and how soon (e.g. delaying the written form until the spoken form has been
thoroughly learned). Traditionally, translation has been the most widely used means of
presenting the meaning of a word in monolingual classes. Translation has the advantage of
being the most direct route to a word’s meaning – assuming that there is a close match
between the target word and its first language equivalent.

5.7. HOW TO ILLUSTRATE MEANING?

An alternative to translation – and an obvious choice if presenting a set of concrete objects
such as clothing items – is to somehow illustrate or demonstrate them. This can be done
either by using real objects (also called realia) or pictures or mime. The use of realia,
pictures and demonstration was a defining technique of the Direct Method.

Another technique was that of the Total Physical Response which promotes initial
immersion in a high quantity of comprehensible input. In making use of the immediate
environment of the classroom, and of the things that can be brought in the classroom, the
intention is to replicate the experience of learning one’s mother tongue. A TPR lesson
typically involves the teacher demonstrating actions, using real objects, and then getting the
learners to perform the same or similar actions in response to commands.

5.8. HOW TO EXPLAIN MEANING?

It is obvious that reliance on real objects, illustration or demonstration is limited. Words
frequently come up incidentally, words for which the teacher will not have visual aids or
realia at hand. An alternative way of conveying the meaning of a new word is simply to use
words - other words. This is the principle behind dictionary definitions.

Non-visual, verbal means of clarifying meaning include: providing an example situation,

giving several example sentences, giving synonyms, antonyms, or superordinate terms and
giving a full definition. It is important when using words in order to define other words, that
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the defining words themselves are within the learners’ current range. A situational
presentation involves providing a scenario which clearly contextualises the target word (or
words). Reinforcing a situational presentation with pictures, board drawings, or gesture
makes it more intelligible, and perhaps more memorable. Even more memorable is the
situation that comes directly from the experience of the people in the room – whether the
teacher or the students. An alternative to the situational approach is to provide students with
an example sentence, each one being a typical instance of the target word in context. From
the cumulative effect of the sentences the students should be able to hypothesise the
meaning of the target word – using induction: the mental process of hypothesising from
examples.

5.9. HOW TO INVOLVE THE LEARNERS?

The word ‘presentation’ has connotations of teacher as transmitter, and learners as passive
recipients of language facts. However, students need to be actively involved in the learning
of words. One technique is elicitation. A standard elicitation procedure is for the teacher to
present the meaning of a word (e.g. by showing a picture) and asking learners to supply the
form. Alternatively, the teacher can supply the word, and elicit a definition, synonym or
example. This second procedure is typical of text-based vocabulary work. It also occurs
when words come up naturally in classroom talk. The rationale underlying elicitation is that:

o it actively involves the learners in the lesson

o it maximises speaking opportunities
o it keeps the learners alert and attentive
o it challenges better learners who might otherwise ‘turn off’
o it acts as a way of checking the learners’ developing understanding
o in the case of form-first presentations it encourages learners to use contextual clues
Prolonged elicitation sequences can end up being very frustrating for learners if they simply
do not know the answers the teacher is seeking – a cross between a quiz and a police
interrogation.

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Another important way of involving learners is to have them personalise the new words.
Personalisation is simply the process of using the new word in a context that is real for the
learner personally. Activities like these involve asking the learners to write a true sentence
using the new word, preferably applying it to themselves or someone they know; learners
writing questions for other learners, incorporating the new word; asking students to make an
association network centred on the new word. That is, they connect the word to other words
that they associate with it.

An alternative to teacher presentation is peer teaching, that is learners teaching each other
vocabulary. One way of doing this is with the help of an information gap activity. This is an
activity in which information is distributed between students in pairs or small groups. In
order to complete a task, students must exchange information in order to ‘fill the information
gap.’ If the information also includes words whose meaning is known only to individual
members of the group, the information exchange will require members to teach each other
those words. Other ways of setting up peer teaching tasks include the following scenario:
-each student in a group is given a card (or cards) with a different word on it, the meaning of
the word being provided in the form, for example, of a translation, synonym or picture.
Students have to study their card(s) silently and learn their words. Then, the group is given a
task which involves using the words. For example, it might be a story - construction activity,
in which students have to order sentences each of which contains one of the targeted words.

To do the task, each student would have to explain to the other members of the group the
words they have just studied. Alternatively, they are asked to categorise the words on the
cards into groups, or to rank them according to some criteria. They might, for example, be
objects which are ranked according to their usefulness on a desert island. In order to do this
task, students will first need to teach each other the words they have learnt individually.

5.10. HOW TO PUT WORDS TO WORK?

New knowledge, that is new words, has to be integrated into existing knowledge, that is the
learners’ existing network of word associations. To ensure long-term retention and recall,

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words need to be ‘put to work’. They need to be placed in working memory, and subjected
to different operations. Such operations might include: being taken apart and put together
again, being compared, combined, matched, sorted, visualised and re-shuffled, as well as
being repeatedly filed away and recalled (since the more often a word is recalled, the easier
recall becomes). There are many different kinds of tasks that teachers can set learners in
order to help move words into long-term memory. Some of these tasks will require more
brain work than others. In other words, they will be more demanding. Tasks in which
learners make decisions about words can be divided into:
o identifying
o selecting
o matching
o sorting
o ranking and sequencing

Identifying words means finding them where they may otherwise be hidden, such as texts.
Listening out for particular words in a spoken or recorded text is also a form of
identification activity. Identification is also the process learners apply in tasks in which they
have to unscramble anagrams or when they have to search for words in crosswords.
Selecting tasks are cognitively more complex than identification tasks, since they involve
both recognising words and making choices among them. This may take the form of
choosing the ‘odd one out’. With this kind of activity there is no ‘right’ answer necessarily.
What is important is that learners are able to justify their choice, whatever their answer. It is
cognitive work that counts - not getting the right answer.
A matching task involves first recognising words and then pairing them with a visual
representation, a translation, a synonym, an antonym, a definition, or a collocate.
Pelmanism is a memory game which involves nothing but matching. Word pairs (or picture
– word matches) are printed on individual cards which are placed face down in a random
distribution. Players take turns to pick up a card and then search for its partners. If they
correctly locate the partner (initially by guesswork, but, as the game progresses, by
remembering where individual cards are located), they keep the pair, and have another turn.

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If not, they lay the cards face down where they found them, and the next player has a turn.
The player with the most pairs at the end of the game is the winner.
Sorting activities require learners to sort words into different categories. These categories
can either be given, or guessed.
Ranking and sequencing activities require learners to put the words into some kind of
order, or learners may be asked to rank them according to preference.

The decision-making tasks mentioned above are mainly receptive: learners make
judgements about words, but not necessarily produce them. However, tasks that are
productive from the outset are those in which the learners are required to incorporate the
newly studied words into some kind of speaking or writing activity. These can be classified
as being of two types:
- completion – of sentences and texts
- creation – of sentences and texts
Sentence and text completion tasks are what are generally known as gap-fills. They have
different formats, but a different distinction can be made between open and closed gap-fills.
The open type is where the learner fills the gaps by drawing on their mental lexicon. (There
may be a clue, though, such as the first letter of the word.) In a closed gap-fill, on the other
hand, the words are provided, in the form of a list at the beginning of the exercise, for
example. It is simply a matter of deciding which word goes in which gap.In completion
tasks, the context is provided, and it is simply a matter of slotting the right word in.
Sentence and text creation tasks, however, require learners to create the contexts for given
words. Some typical task instructions might be:
 Use each of these words to make a sentence which clearly shows the meaning of the
word.
 Choose six words from the list and write a sentence using each one.
 Use each of these words to write true sentence about yourself or someone you know.
 Write a short narrative (or dialogue) which includes at least five words from the list.
Tasks such as these lead naturally into speaking activities – either reading aloud or
performing dialogues to the class, or comparing and explaining sentences in pairs or small

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groups. These activities involve many of the processes that serve to promote retention in
long-term memory, such as rehearsal, repetition and explanation.

Games are another way to learn vocabulary. Useful games are those that encourage learners
to recall words and, preferably, at speed. One such game is called categories. In this game,
learners work in pairs or small groups. On a piece of paper, they draw up a number of
columns, according to a model on the blackboard, each column being labelled with the name
of a lexical set: e.g. fruit, transport, clothes, animals, sports. The teacher calls out a letter of
the alphabet (e.g. B!), and to a time limit (e.g. 3 min), students write down as many words as
they can beginning with that letter, in separate columns (banana, berry; bus; blouse; bear,
bat; baseball, basketball …). The group with the most (correct) words wins. Games that
draw attention to newly learned words often encourage recall through guessing and
categorising. Another useful speaking game is called Angry Cat. Players have to sit in a
circle and they take turns in speaking. The first player says ‘I’ve got an angry cat.’ The
second player thinks of an adjective beginning with b and says ‘I’ve got an angry (e.g.
beautiful) cat.’ The game continues this way with players taking turns to speak. Each player
repeats the previous sentence and adds a new adjective (in alphabetical order). If a player
makes a mistake or cannot think of a new adjective, he/ she is out. The game continues until
one player (the winner) remains.
Buzz is another speaking game in which players sit in a circle and take turns to speak. The
first player starts by saying one. The second one (in a clockwise direction) says two. The
game continues in this way, with players taking turns to count. Players cannot say the
number seven or any number containing seven or multiples of seven, instead they have to
say buzz!. When a player says ‘buzz!’ the game continues, but players change direction
(anticlockwise). When a player makes a mistake, he/she is out. The game continues until one
player (the winner) remains.

5.11. HOW TO TEST VOCABULARY?

Why test anything? The obvious answer is that, without testing, there is no reliable means of
knowing how effective a teaching sequence has been. Testing provides a form of feedback,
both for learners and teachers. If learners know they are going to be tested on their

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vocabulary learning, they may take vocabulary learning seriously. Testing motivates
learners to review vocabulary in preparation for a test.

Testing needs to take account of factors such as:

 validity – are you testing what you want to test?
 reliability – will the test give consistent results?
 practicability – is it easy to administer and mark?
 face validity – will the learners take it seriously?
There is bound to be a trade-off between issues of validity, of practicability and of
backwash. Also at issue is the question of the test’s reliability.

It has already been mentioned that knowing a word means knowing:

 the word’s form – both spoken and written
 the word’s meaning (or meanings)
 any connotations the word might have
 whether the word is specific to a certain register or style
 the word’s grammatical characteristics – e.g. part of speech
 the word’s common collocations
 the word’s derivations
 the word’s relative frequency
All these aspects of word knowledge can be realised receptively (in listening and reading) or
productively (in speaking and writing). Any vocabulary test, therefore, needs to take into
account the multi-dimensional character of word - knowledge. Most vocabulary tests target
only one or two aspects of word knowledge. Good tests have a positive backwash effect –
for example, they encourage good learning strategies. Testing can be both informal (as in
regular progress tests) or formal (as in end – of - course achievement tests). Sometimes, e.g.
for placement tests, it is useful to test for vocabulary size.

Vocabulary knowledge can be assessed qualitatively – by using assessment scales and an

alternative approach is to evaluate the data quantitatively – that is, using objective and

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measurable criteria. Three aspects of vocabulary knowledge that are measurable
quantitatively are:
 Lexical density is a measure of the proportion of content words in a text. Content
words – as opposed to function words – are words that carry a high information load,
such as nouns, adjectives and verbs. A written text that contains a high proportion of
such words is characteristic of proficient writers.
 Lexical variety, on the other hand, is a measure of the different words in the text.
Again, a high proportion of different words is an indicator of an extensive
vocabulary knowledge – what is often called range.
 Lexical sophistication is assessed by counting the number of relatively infrequent
words in a text – such as the number of words that fall outside of a list of the top
2000 most frequent words.

5.12. HOW TO TRAIN GOOD VOCABULARY LEARNERS?

Wilga Rivers wrote at a certain moment:
Vocabulary cannot be taught. It can be presented, explained, included in all
kinds of activities, and experienced in all manner of association…but
ultimately it is learnt by the individual. As language teachers, we must arouse
interest in words and a certain excitement in personal development in this
area…We can help our students by giving them ideas on how to learn, but
each will finally learn a very personal selection of items, organised into
relationships in an individual way. (qtd. in Thornbury 144)

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The teacher can play a major role in motivating learners to take vocabulary seriously, and in
giving them ideas on how to learn. Good learners do the following things when learning
vocabulary:
 They pay attention to form – which, in vocabulary terms, means paying attention to
the constituents of words, to their spelling, to their pronunciation and to the way they
are stressed.
 They pay attention to meaning – which means they pay attention to the way words
are similar or different in meaning, to the connotations of words, to their style and to
their associations.
 They are good guessers – which means they work out the meanings of unfamiliar
words from their form and from contextual clues.
 They take risks and are not afraid of making mistakes – which means they make
the most of limited resources, and they adopt strategies to cope when the right words
simply do not come forth.
 They know how to organise their own learning – by, for example, keeping a
systematic record of new words, using dictionaries and other study aids
resourcefully, using memorising techniques, and putting time aside for the ’spade
work’ in language learning, such as repetitive practice.
This last point suggests that good language learners have achieved a measure of autonomy
and have developed their own techniques – that they do not need to be trained how to learn.
Nevertheless, less self-directed learners might benefit from guidance – by, for example,
being shown a range of vocabulary learning techniques, and choosing those which best suit
their preferred learning style. Techniques for remembering things are called mnemonics.
The best-known mnemonic technique is called the keyword technique. This involves
devising an image that typically connects the pronunciation of the second language word
with the meaning of a first language word.

When teaching new vocabulary items, it may be a good idea to allow learners a few minutes
to silently and individually devise keywords. Then, if they are asked to tell their neighbours
about their keywords, it will not reinforce them, but it may help train learners who are

55
having trouble adopting this technique. Apart from the keyword technique, there is probably
no vocabulary learning technique more rewarding than the use of word cards. No matter
how many words learners acquire, they will always be coming across unfamiliar words in
their reading and listening. This is why they will always need to be able to make intelligent
guesses as to the meaning of unknown words.

Guessing from context is probably one of the most useful skills learners can acquire and
apply both inside and outside the classroom. What is more, it seems to be the one that can be
taught and implemented relatively easily. It is also one that we already use – perhaps
unconsciously – when reading and listening in our mother tongue. So, it is probably less a
case of learning a new skill than transferring an existing one. The problem for most learners
when guessing the meaning of words in a second language is that they are less confident
about their understanding of the context than they would be in their L1. They therefore tend
to rely on the context less. For this reason, vocabulary ‘guesswork’ should be integrated as
often as possible into text-based activities, such as reading and listening for comprehension,
and will be most effective after a global or gist understanding of the text has been
established.

Guessing the meaning of unknown words from context is a strategy that helps learners cope
when reading and listening. The important question that arises is how they can make up for
gaps in their word knowledge when speaking or writing? And do coping strategies exist for
production? Even in our first language we use strategies to get round the problem of not
knowing a word, or not being able to recall it in time. Some ways of getting round gaps in
vocabulary knowledge include:
o paraphrasing
o describing
o using a rough synonym (e.g. the car is broken for the car won’t start)
o foreignising the equivalent L1 word
o using gesture and mime
o using the L1 word

56
Dictionaries can be used as a last resort when guessing from context strategies fail. But they
can also be used productively, both for generating text and as resources for vocabulary
acquisition. Their usefulness depends on learners being able to access the information they
contain both speedily and accurately. Training learners in effective dictionary use is
important, since many learners might not be familiar with dictionary conventions, even in
their own language. Such training can provide them with the means to continue vocabulary
acquisition long after their course of formal study has been completed. Key skills involved
in effective dictionary use might be the following:
 Recognising features of dictionary layout, such as use of alphabetical order,
headwords, grammar and pronunciation information, definitions etc.
 Understanding the way dictionary entries are coded – particularly the use of
abbreviations
 Discriminating between the different meanings of a word, especially words that are
homonyms or homographs
 Cross-checking that the translation equivalent that is offered is the best choice for the
meaning that is required
 Using synonyms, antonyms and other information to narrow the choice of best word
for the meaning intended
 Inferring the spelling of unfamiliar word from only having heard it, in order to check
its meaning in the dictionary.

It is not easy to teach vocabulary since it is extremely important for the teachers to arise
interest in words. One way to do it is to timetable plenty of time for vocabulary focused
activities. Recent research suggests that a heavy concentration on vocabulary acquisition,
especially in the early stages of learning, is a prerequisite for later proficiency in the
language. It is also important not to short - change learners by depriving them of vocabulary
learning activities that might arise during the lesson, even if these might seem peripheral to
the main focus of the lesson. A lot of the vocabulary that surfaces during teacher – student,
and student – student conversation may in fact be more useful – and more memorable –
simply because it has arisen out of the students’ own needs and interests. Similarly,
classroom texts, whether in the textbook or prepared by the teacher, offer a rich source of

57
words. A teacher should always share his sense of excitement and fascination of words with
the students. Vocabulary learning never stops, even long after the grammar system is firmly
in place. New words are being coined daily, and old words are assuming new meanings.

All research shows that we learn by doing that is, by applying what we have learnt. This
makes learners process the information and make their own sense of it. Active learning
makes students form their own meaning of the material and come to their own
understanding of it. Active methods create deeper learning and higher achievement, create
better recall by students, develop high order reasoning skills in students. However, we
should not confuse good explaining with good learning. The delivery of content does not
guarantee its arrival. In the end it is perhaps no surprise that students only get good at doing
it – by doing it!

PART II: PRACTICAL OVERVIEW

VI. THE RESEARCH OBJECTIVES AND
METHODOLOGY
Motto:
Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts
can be counted.

58
 A. Einstein

6.1. The research objectives

During the research, the intention was to discover the measure in which the frequent use of
active and interactive group methods and techniques influences the students’ knowledge of
vocabulary, by stimulating and facilitating the learning of new words. In this respect, the
present paper is designed to create some pedagogic situations, by the use of active and
interactive group methods and techniques which are meant:
 to stimulate the learning activity of the students in terms of vocabulary and to
determine thus an increase of their performance.
 to improve communication at the level of the class, increasing thus the degree of
group cohesion and ensuring a high socialising level for the students.

6.2. The research hypotheses

The present research started from a fact observed during teaching students, that a well
managed team work activity increases significantly the focus on the task and develops both
specific skills for learning vocabulary and essential communication and social skills. The
main hypothesis is that, if mostly active and interactive group methods and techniques are
used in the teaching – learning activities, then the students will have better results in
English. From this hypothesis, a secondary one derives and that is, if students are
encouraged to solve certain tasks in teams, then the premises of improved communication
are ensured, the degree of group cohesion being consequently increased.

6.3. The research group

The research group consisted of two parallel classes, one being the experimental group and
the other, the control group. This strategy was chosen as a consequence of the need to
compare the results obtained while using interactive methods, with the results obtained
while using traditional methods of teaching vocabulary. The research group was represented
by students from Liceul Teoretic Mihail Săulescu, Predeal, Braşov, specifically the students
from 7th A (the experimental group) and 7th B (the control group). The study was carried

59
during one school year (2010-2011) and the data collected is presented in the 2 diagrams and
tables below:

Distribution of students

The experimental group The control group

14 13 12 11

12 10
9 8
10 8

Number of students
Number of students

8 Boys Boys
6
6 Girls Girls
4
4

2 2

0 0
Gender Gender

60
 The experimental group

Nr. Student Age at Commuter/ Help with the English average Learning Obs.
Crt. initials 15.09.201 Non-commuter homework in style¹
0 the 6th grade
1. A.A.M. ♀ 13 Commuter no one 7.50 auditory
2. B.M.S. ♂ 13 Commuter no one 5.50 visual
3. B.W.A. ♂ 13 Commuter no one 8 practical
4. B.R.M. ♀ 13 Non-commuter no one 9 practical
5. B.A.M. ♀ 13 Non-commuter mother 7 visual
6. C.V.F. ♂ 14 Non-commuter no one 5 auditory
7. C.B.G. ♂ 13 Non-commuter no one 10 auditory
8. F.L.I. ♀ 13 Non-commuter no one 10 visual
9. G.D.G. ♀ 12 Commuter no one 8.50 visual-auditory
10. G.A.M. ♂ 14 Commuter no one 5 auditory
11. J.R.G. ♂ 13 Non-commuter mother 6 practical
12. M.R.G. ♀ 13 Non-commuter no one 9.50 visual-practical
13. N.L.P. ♀ 13 Non-commuter mother 9 auditory
14. O.I.P. ♀ 13 Non-commuter father 9 auditory
15. P.C. ♀ 14 Commuter no one 5.50 auditory-practical
16. P.G.M. ♂ 15 Commuter no one 5 practical
17. P.C.M. ♂ 13 Non-commuter no one 6 auditory
18. P.A.M. ♀ 12 Non-commuter mother 9 auditory
19. R.I.M.♂ 13 Non-commuter no one 9 auditory
20. S.D.A. ♀ 13 Non-commuter no one 8.50 auditory
21. S.D.G. ♀ 13 Non-commuter no one 9.50 auditory
22. T.B.M. ♀ 13 Commuter uncle 10 auditory

1. according to a questionnaire of learning styles (Annexe 1)

61
 The control group

Nr. Student Age at Commuter/ Help with the English average in Learning Obs.
Crt. initials 15.09.201 Non-commuter homework the 6th grade style¹
0
1. A.A.M. ♀ 13 Non-commuter sister 8 auditory
2. B.G.N. ♂ 14 Commuter no one 5 practical
3. C.A. ♀ 12 Non-commuter no one 7.50 visual
4. C.G.A. ♀ 13 Non-commuter father 6 visual-auditory
5. C.S.R. ♀ 13 Non-commuter father 9.50 auditory
6. C.L.G. ♂ 14 Non-commuter no one 5.50 practical
7. C.M.G. ♀ 14 Non-commuter aunt 5 auditory
8. D.N.M. ♀ 12 Commuter mother 9 auditory
9. F.A.M. ♀ 13 Non-commuter brother 5 practical
10. G.B.A. ♀ 13 Commuter no one 9 auditory-practical
11. H.V.M. ♀ 13 Commuter no one 5 auditory-practical
12. K.A.J. ♂ 12 Commuter mother 9 auditory-practical
13. M.R.M. ♂ 13 Commuter no one 9.50 auditory
14. P.V. ♂ 12 Non-commuter brother 8 auditory
15. S.R. ♂ 13 Commuter sister 8 visual-auditory
16. S.A.F. ♀ 13 Non-commuter mother 10 auditory
17. S.A.A. ♀ 13 Commuter no one 5.50 auditory
18. T.R.F. ♂ 14 Non-commuter brother 5 auditory
19. U.I.D. ♂ 13 Non-commuter mother 5 practical

1. according to a questionnaire of learning styles (Annexe 1)

62
6.4. Research methods and instruments

Along the research developed during the school year of 2010-2011, the following steps were
followed:
1. I did a thorough bibliographic informing. I respected the requests of an authentic
documentation, with a critical sprit.
2. I continued the research with the formulation of objectives and hypotheses in accordance with
my observations during the instructive – educational process and with the theoretical information
obtained during consulting the specialised bibliography.
3. I chose the working groups – one being the experimental group and the other being the control
group.
4. I established the research phases and the research methods appropriate for each of them. These
include the prior phase to the introduction of the experimental factor, the phase of the use of the
experimental factor and the phase of testing the group after the use of the experimental factor and
the recording of results.
5. I collected and interpreted the data.
6. I formulated the conclusions.

6.5. Methods of collecting the research data

During the research, I used those methods which allow the proper collection of representative
data. The observation method was the one which I used throughout the research, being focused
on the educational aspects as they progressed in their normal, usual existence. The observation
was done in accordance with the objectives of the research, with the research objectives and the
observation indicators which took the form of personal documents in which, at the end of the
performed activities, I recorded students’ reaction towards solving tasks by collaboration in
groups established on the spot, students’ involvement in solving group tasks and communication
within the group. One important element that needs to be stated is that this kind of observation is
a highly subjective method of observation and it is strongly influenced by the personality of the
observer.

63
The teaching experiment was used in order to check the research hypotheses. This method
involves the production or the voluntary change of an educational phenomena with a view to
studying it and identifying, observing, quantifying and assessing the factors that influence or
determine it. Therefore, the experiment is a provoked observation. It is considered one of the
most rigorous psycho – pedagogic method of investigation, since it is based on a precise working
strategy and it involves the creation of a structure of relations between variables in the form of
the experimental model. Usually, in a teaching experiment, we deal with three categories of
variables: independent variables, dependent variables and intermediate variables. Independent
variables are exactly those changes that were introduced and that will influence the development
of the experiment. Dependent variables consist of all the changes that have appeared, which then
have to be measured and explained. Intermediate variables are those that facilitate the
relationships between the two variables, consisting of social and mental factors.

Starting from the problem stated in the hypothesis, that is the fact that the use of active and
interactive group methods and techniques of teaching leads to higher results as compared to the
situations in which these methods were not used, I organised the experimental design in 3 stages:
1. The initial stage: it is the stage prior to the use of the experimental factor. The content of
this stage includes different actions like: establishing the background of the investigation,
formulating the hypotheses, choosing the participants, choosing and designing the
experimenting methods and techniques, recording the data concerning variables before
experimentation, stating the experimenting factor, establishing the strategy of the
experiment.
2. The experimental stage: it actually represents the stage of the administration of the
experimental factor. At this stage, the experimental group is subjected to an action which
is different from what happens to the control group. In terms of time, it is the longest.
Different techniques are administered, the evolution of phenomena is under supervision,
measurements are made.
3. The final stage: it is the stage of recording results and testing dependent variables as a
follow-up to the introduction of the experimental factor, and it consists of establishing the
differences between the two groups, after prior to that, differences within each group

64
 have been established, between data recorded in the initial stage and data recorded after
the use of the experimental factor.

With the experimental group, I have used different interactive group methods and techniques in
teaching – learning vocabulary; with the control group, these methods were not used, the
teaching – learning process being done in the traditional way. The quality of the teaching effect
was being observed by comparing results in the final stage between the experimental group and
the control group, and by comparing results of the experimental group from the initial stage with
those from the final stage.

The advantages of the experiment method are obvious. This leads to significant theoretical and
practical results. However, the teaching experiment bears some limits. It is difficult to maintain
silence during the classes in which these methods are used. Students need to move, they need to
talk to one another and the result of these could be disrupting the other students learning in the
nearby classrooms. It is also difficult to move the furniture so as to make students have access
more easily to one another. The organisation of such activities takes time, a lot of effort and lots
of material resources. Another limit is the fact that English is taught for 2 classes per week, each
lesson lasts 45 minutes and not 50 minutes (due to the fact that some students and teachers
commute) and in some cases an activity cannot be finished in only one class, but has to be
continued in another class which does not take place during the same day or during the same
week. Another aspect that needs to be mentioned here is the fact that with the experimental
group the 2 English classes were set either as the 5 th or the last class of the day and at times
students were very tired and had difficulty in concentrating. One last limit is the fact that in the
experimental group there are 5 students who practise skiing professionally and they missed a lot
of school due to national and international competitions, this making the group work difficult.
The activities had to take place when all the students were present. In both groups there students
who just skipped classes.

The method of research of curricular and school documents facilitated the selection and
organisation of the most relevant information which was analysed and interpreted in the present
paper. In terms of this aspect, class registers, textbooks, school curriculum were used.

65
The method of questionnaires allowed me to find out useful information and feed-back from
the students as far as the activities used were concerned.
The method of tests allowed me to gain valuable information about the level of knowledge of
the students in both groups. The tests applied to both groups were designed by the teacher
conducting the research and they offered qualitative and quantitative information concerning the
phenomenon under research.
The method of sociometry, through its instruments and techniques (the sociometric test, the
sociometric matrix), allowed me to analyse the nature, configuration and intensity of
interpersonal relationships within the experimental group, but also the phenomena that appear
based on them: communication, influence, collaboration, competition, tension that are so present
in interactive learning. By using this method, both in the initial stage and in the final stage, I
wanted to detect the evolution of the relationships of the group and to compare the results. It is
essential to state the fact that retaking the test too soon would have diminished its efficiency,
since the subjects would have remembered their previous answers and chosen the same people
instead of choosing based on what they feel at the moment of taking the test. The information
provided by the sociometric test is very important for the teacher. Based on it, the teacher can
accomplish a positive orientation of the relationships among the members of the group, he/she
can explain the passive or active tensions between them and can change the negative
relationships into positive ones with educative – formative features.

6.6. Methods of organising, presenting and statistic interpretation of

the research data

The quantitative information obtained in the stage of collecting the data was measured by being
numbered, that is by noting the presence or absence of some particularities of the research
subjects and compared in relation to the sample considered as hundred, operating thus with
percentages for each numbered value. The statistic techniques used for this purpose were
changed into tables with results and graphical representations in order to give a visual and
synthetic image of the data. The synthetic tables represent the correlation values between
different indicators analysed. The graphics presented as comparison diagrams contain the
research results comprised in a system of axes: - the ordinate on which the frequency of values

66
was noted and the abscissa – on which the values were placed equally from zero to the point of
axial intersection.

6.7. The organisation and development of the pedagogical research

Based on the purpose and the problems under discussion, there are two main types of research to
be considered within the psycho – pedagogical research: the theoretical research and the practical
research. The inquiry I realised was a practical one being focused on problems of practical
interest. The practical type of research takes place within the parametres of the instructive –
educational activity and it consists of short–term inquiries which focus on improving school
practice.

The present research was carried out at Liceul Teoretic Mihail Saulescu, Predeal, Brasov, during
the school year of 2010-2011 and it is an experimental – ameliorating type of research, that being
the reason for which it was structured into 3 main stages:
 the first stage which could be called the initial stage
 the second stage of the practical introduction of the experimental technique (the
experimental – ameliorating stage)
 the third stage – the evaluating stage

The initial stage

The initial (stating) stage represents the stage prior to the introduction of the experimental factor.
It is the stage which has as main objective the identification of the existing level at the moment
of the initiation of the pedagogic experiment, both with the experimental group and the control
group. This stage is absolutely necessary with every didactic experiment and consists in
identifying the characteristics of the subjects prior to the pedagogic intervention. Such
characteristics include the age of the students, whether they commute or not to school, if they are
helped with their homework, their average in English in the 6 th grade, their learning style – data
already mentioned in the tables above.

67
The sociometric test is an instrument which determines the status of a student within the field of
interpersonal relationships (leader, popular, isolated, ignored, rejected), the global psychological
structure of the group, different centres of influence, the group perception towards a certain
member, group cohesion. The sociometric test involves several stages:
1. The preparation stage in which the application of the test is motivated, confidentiality is
ensured and the number of answers is limited.
2. The application stage: students express in writing, according to a scale of preferences,
their attitudes of attraction, rejection or indifference towards the other members of the
group. The questionnaire was applied to 22 students from the experimental group (13
girls and 9 boys) and it consisted of two questions (Annexe 2) Each question required 4
answers since groups are generally made of 4-5 people. The attractions (positive
nominations) were marked with ,+’, with the order +1,+2,+3,+4 and the rejections
(negative nominations) with ,–‘, with the order -1,-2,-3,-4.(Annexe 3)
3. The sociometric matrix: the options were written in a table with double entry where the
members are noted horizontally and vertically and the relationships between them with +
and -.(Annexe 4)
4. The group sociogram which consists of:
- the positive nomination sociograms (Annexes 5,6) from where we notice:
 6 subgroups among F.L.I.↔T.B.M.↔N.L.P., G.D.G.↔S.D.A.↔M.R.G.,
B.R.M.↔G.D.G.↔T.B.M., T.B.M.↔S.D.G.↔M.R.G.,
S.D.G.↔C.B.G.↔R.I.M., S.D.G.↔F.L.I.↔G.D.G.
 16 mutual positive nominations among: F.L.I.↔S.D.G., F.L.I.↔G.D.G.,
F.L.I.↔T.B.M., F.L.I.↔A.A.M., C.B.G.↔R.I.M., C.B.G.↔S.D.G.,
S.D.G.↔T.B.M., S.D.G.↔M.R.G., G.D.G.↔S.D.A., G.D.G.↔B.R.M.,
G.D.G.↔T.B.M, M.R.G.↔S.D.A., T.B.M.↔N.L.P., G.A.M.↔P.C.M.,
B.W.A.↔C.V.F., O.I.L.↔P.A.M.
 56 individual positive nominations
- the negative nomination sociogram (Annexes 7,8) from where we notice that there
are:
o 17 negative nominations for B.M.S.
o 16 negative nominations for P.G.M.

68
 o 14 negative nominations for P.C.
o 7 negative nominations for P.C.M.
o 5 negative nominations for B.W.A.
o 4 negative nominations for B.A.M.
o 3 negative nominations for G.A.M., J.R.G., S.D.G.
o 2 negative nominations for F.L.I., G.D.G., O.I.L., P.A.M., T.B.M
o 1 negative nominations for B.R.M., C.VF., C.B.G., R.I.M., S.D.A.
o 0 negative nominations for M.R.G., N.L.P., A.A.M.
5. The calculus of the sociometric coefficients to know what the position of each member is
in the group:
 The Coefficient of Sociometric Status (CSS) shows the position of a person
within a group and is calculated as follows: CSS= n/(N-1) - where n = the number
of positive nominations received by that person and N = the number of the
members of the group
Based on the CSS, the collective and the positive nomination sociograms can be
done. The subjects with the highest number of nominations will be placed in the
centre. The other members will be placed around them, farther and farther,
according to the nominations. Therefore, the following situation appears:
CSS (8) = 0,61
CSS (7,21) = 0,42
CSS (9) = 0,38
CSS (4,12,19,22) = 0,28
CSS (1) = 0,23
CSS (20) = 0,19
CSS (10,11) = 0,14
CSS (3,13,14) = 0,09
CSS (2,6,17,18) = 0,04
CSS (5,15,16) = 0
As far as interpersonal relationships are concerned, from the table below it can be noticed who is
the leader, who are the popular, accepted, indifferent, isolated and rejected subjects.

69
 The Coefficient of Preference Status table
Number of Number of subjects Coefficient of Psycho – social
preferences with the same Preference Status value of preference
preference
11 1 0,52 leader
8 1 0,38 popular
6 3 0,28
5 3 0,23 accepted
3 2 0,14
2 1 0,09
0 3 0 indifferent
-1 1 -0,04 isolated
-3 1 -0,14
-4 1 -0,19
-6 1 -0,28
-14 1 -0,66 rejected
-16 2 -0,76

 The Coefficient of Preference Status (CPS) is calculated for each student as follows:
N p− N n
CPS=
N −1
and it is observed in the sociometric matrix - where
Np= is the number of positive nominations and Nn= is the number of negative nominations
 The Coefficient of Emotional Expansiveness (CEE) is calculated for each student as
follows:
Nr . of expressed positive nomin ations
CEE=
Nr . of expressed negative no min ations
and it is observed in the sociometric matrix
 The Coefficient of Sociometric Expansiveness (CSE) allows the quantitative
determination of the individual orientation towards the group members by taking into
account both the positive and negative expansiveness:
CSE = (E+)+(E-) = [(n-1) / (N-1)] + [(n-) / (N-1)]
where (n+) = the number of given positive nominations
(n-) = the number of given negative nominations
N = the number of group members

70
  The Coefficient of Group Cohesion (CGC) expresses the quality of sociometric
relationships within the group, the higher the value, the more cohesive the group is.
CGC = M*q / I*p
where M = mutual positive nominations
I = individual positive nominations
p = k / (N-1)
k = number of positive nominations allowed
N = number of group members
q = 1- p
M = 16
I = 56
4 4
p= =
22−1 21
4 4 17
q=1− =1− =
22−1 21 21
CGC = (16*17) / 21 * (56*4) / 21 = 272 / 224 = 1,21
The coefficient of group cohesion is 1.21 which does not show a high degree of group cohesion.

CONCLUSIONS
Based on the socimetric matrix, the table of scores and sociograms presented above, appropriate
interpretations can be made and conclusions about the system of relationships within the
experimental group can be drawn.

It seems that F.L.I. is the informal leader of the group, it has 13 positive nominations, being the
first choice for 4 students and the second choice for 7 students, and 2 negative nominations.
What is interesting is the fact that A.A.M. has no negative nominations together with M.R.G.
Among the popular students we have C.B.G., S.D.G., G.D.G. and M.R.G. with an CPS of 0,38
and 0,28. There are six students who are accepted by the group and they are: R.I.M., T.B.M.,
B.R.M., A.A.M., S.D.A. and N.L.P. There are 3 students who are indifferent to others (G.A.M.,
J.R.G.,O.I.L.). There are 4 isolated students (B.W.A., P.C.M., P.A.M., B.A.M.) and 3 rejected
students (B.M.S., P.C., P.G.M.). B.M.S. has only one positive nomination, being the second

71
choice for P.G.M. and 17 negative nominations whereas P.C. and P.G.M. did not have any
positive nominations; they have a low attendance in school and are repeating the school year and
that could be a possible reason for which they did not have any positive nominations. There are
some students who have a similar number of positive and negative nominations (G.A.M., J.R.G.
and O.I.L.). R.I.M. has an interesting position as well since he was the first choice for 4 students,
having 6 positive nominations and only 1 negative nomination. The coefficient of cohesion is not
very high, it is 1,21 and there are 6 subgroups, 5 of these subgroups being formed of girls only:
F.L.I.↔T.B.M.↔N.L.P.
G.D.G.↔S.D.A.↔M.R.G.
B.R.M.↔G.D.G.↔T.B.M.
S.D.G.↔C.B.G.↔R.I.M.
S.D.G.↔F.L.I.↔G.D.G.

The initial test

In order to test the level of knowledge in English at the beginning of the research, an initial test
was designed and applied to both groups. It tested knowledge acquired in the 6 th grade.
(vocabulary related to family relationships, nationality, free-time activities, describing people,
speaking about a past event, past simple of regular and irregular verbs). The test had clear
objectives and precise tasks, meant to test students’ skills in dealing with vocabulary and
grammar acquired until that moment. It was applied at the beginning of the 7th grade, during the
planned revision period. It consisted of 5 items: 3 objective , close-ended items (chart
completion, fill in) and 2 subjective, open-ended items (answering questions, writing sentences).
(Annexe 9)

72
 TABLE OF RESULTS AT THE INITIAL TEST

3.5
3 3 3 3 Grade 1
3
Grade 2
2.5 Grade 3
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Grade 4
2 Grade 5

1.5 Grade 6
1 1 1 1 1 1 Grade 7
1 Grade 8

0.5 Grade 9
Grade 10
0
The experimental group The control group

Both groups had difficulty with the open-ended items in which they had to come up with their
own answers. The mistakes were not only related to the misuse of regular / irregular verbs in the
past, but also to a poor vocabulary which made it impossible for some students to write anything.

The first conclusions of the initial stage suggest the fact that, based on the variables taken into
account, the experimental group has higher values as compared to the control group in terms of
grades, but the purpose of this research is to see whether the introduction and use of active and
interactive group activities, in other words, of didactic strategies that promote learning by
cooperation and active learning, will determine a change with the students’ results in English,
with the focus on enriching vocabulary knowledge.

The experimental – ameliorating stage

This stage represents the phase of the practical use of experimental instruments and procedures,
that is of the anticipated changes of the new working strategy and it was developed during
November 2010 – May 2011, when both groups were in the 7th grade.

School, as an active factor of progress is demanded to use during the educational process, the
most varied methods and techniques, which should ensure and stimulate, at the same time, the
increasing of learning skills and the practical use of what was learnt in various social contexts. It
is important for students to have a rich vocabulary in English, which together with a proper

73
grammar basis can help them communicate better and it can also contribute to their self-
confidence, as they will gain courage to express themselves and to build a convincing discourse
in English. This is the reason for which I chose to use active and interactive methods that I
combined with classical teaching – learning strategies, taking into account the objectives, the
learning contents and the resources available.

The main objectives of this stage of research were:

 to create pedagogical situations through the use of active and interactive group methods
and techniques meant to:
a) stimulate students’ learning activity of the English vocabulary and consequently
contributing to an increased performance in this subject
b) to improve communication in class, increasing thus the cohesion level of the group
and ensuring a high level of socialisation among students.
 to interpret quantitatively and qualitatively the results of the students from the
experimental group as compared to those of the control group.
Of an entire collection of active and interactive group methods, I chose to use those methods and
techniques that could be adapted to the class and to the students’ age and characteristics:

74
Method 1: The cube

Purpose: to explore thematic vocabulary through different cognitive perspectives

Learning unit: Clothes – items of clothing, clothes worn by men / women, clothes worn in
different seasons.
In the experimental group, students were divided into groups with the help of playing cards, each
student chose a card and all 4 or, in two cases, 5 students having the same number on their card
formed a group. Five groups were formed this way and this grouping was used for several
activities: GROUP 1:B.W.A. – C.V.F. – G.D.G. – S.D.A.
2:B.A.M. – C.B.G. – F.L.I. – P.A.M.
3: B.R.M. – J.R.G. - O.I.L. – R.I.M.
4: G.A.M. – N.L.P. – S.D.G. – T.B.M. – A.A.M.
5: B.M.S. – M.R.G. – P.C. – P.G.M. – P.C.M.
Prior to using the cube method, students in the groups mentioned above, had to brainstorm for
items they know related to clothing. Then, they had to divide them into several categories.
(Annexe 11) In groups, students then had to choose a member of their group, describe his/ her
clothes and the other groups had to guess the person. This activity was enjoyed by the students,
they were very enthusiastic about it, but very noisy at the same time. At the end a game was
played: all the students stood in a circle and each one had to complete a sentence initiated by the
first student by adding details: e.g. I have a skirt.→ I have a brown skirt….. and so on. The
person who did not know how to continue was out of the game. (Annexe 10)

The activities continued in a second class when students picked cards with colours on them and
based on their choices, they made new groups of 3 or 4 students. They were asked to throw a
cube and based on the process they chose they had to work in their team to come up with an
answer to their task (Annexes 13,14):
- the group formed by B.R.M.-R.I.M.-B.A.M. had to describe clothes
- the group formed by S.D.A.- P.A.M.- C.V.F. had to compare clothes
- the group formed by S.D.G. – P.C.M.- B.W.A. had to analyse clothes (what they
are made of)

75
 - the group formed by F.L.I. – M.R.G. – A.A.M. had to associate clothes
- the group formed by G.D.G. – G.A.M. – B.M.S. had to apply – what clothes are
used for
- the group formed by C.B.G. – O.I.L. – T.B.M. had to give arguments for or
against clothes
At the end, the answers were read and written on the blackboard, so that the students have a clear
picture of the activity.(Annexe15) The team formed by F.L.I.- M.R.G.- A.A.M. did an excellent
job, they had interesting ideas and even contributed more by helping teams that had difficulty in
coming up with answers. M.R.G. helped P.A.M.- S.D.G - C.V.F. and F.L.I. helped B.M.S. –
G.D.G. – G.A.M.

One negative aspect was that students forgot to bring their dictionaries and this made the activity
too difficult for some students. As a reward for their excellent work students played the game
Buzz! - they stood in a circle, each student had to say a word connected with clothes. If they
could not come up with a word, they would say Buzz!, if they repeated the word, they were out.
(Annexe 12)

The control group dealt with the same topic, but they worked individually, being given
individual worksheets with words (Annexe 17). They had to unscramble letters to find the
missing words, to find words in a wordsquare and to solve a crossword. The unknown words
were written on the blackboard and given the Romanian translation. They also had to write
sentences with the unknown words. (Annexe 16 )

76
Method 2: Group Creative Writing

Purpose: to explore thematic vocabulary through the use of writing in a creative way
Learning unit: vocabulary related to Valentine’s Day
In groups of 4 organised as it has already been mentioned students from the experimental group
had a project to work on. (Annexe 18) The first part consisted of students gathering information
related to the topic of Valentine’s Day. They had 3 questions to answer, they looked for
information on the Internet and they presented what they found out to the class – stating as well
how they divided their work. (Annexe19). Before presenting their work, students were informed
about the criteria that would count for their assessment. (Annexe 20) The second part of the
project consisted in a vocabulary exercise meant to introduce vocabulary related to the theme of
Valentine’s Day. They had to match pieces of words (split syllables) that fit together in order to
discover vocabulary related to the topic. (Annexe 21) Then, they had to use some of these words
in order to write a story connected with the topic. They were explained clearly what criteria
mattered in their assessment and they were allowed to work with dictionary. (Annexes 22,23)

Despite working with the dictionary, some groups had a lot of spelling mistakes, but they were
praised for their effort to come up with the requested product. Each group received a grade that
was the same for everyone in the group and included the assessment of both parts of the project.
The grades ranged from 7 to 10.

The control group received a story on Valentine’s Day (Annexes 24,25), the story was read,
translated into Romanian, students answered questions related to the text. They had some
vocabulary exercises that they had to solve individually: they had to unscramble letters to
discover hidden words and they had to write sentences with these words. (Annexe 26) They
received grades individually on answering questions related to the text, translating paragraphs
from the text into Romanian and the written sentences. They received grades ranging from 3 to
10.

77
The summative test
The summative test that was applies to both groups consisted of 4 items: 2 objective, close-ended
items (word order, chart completion) and 2 subjective, open-ended items (writing sentences,
answering questions) (Annexe 27)

TABLE OF RESULTS AT THE SUMMATIVE TEST

6
5 5
5 Grade 3
Grade 4
4 Grade 5
3 3 3 3 3 3 Grade 6
3
Grade 7
2 2 2 2 2
2 Grade 8
Grade 9
1 1 1
1 Grade 10

0
The experimental group The control group

Both groups still had difficulty with the open-ended items in which they had to come up with
their own answers. The mistakes were not related to the misuse of verbs, but also to a lack of rich
vocabulary which made it impossible for some students to write anything.

78
Method 3: Diagrams

Purpose: to explore thematic vocabulary through the use of various means of organizing
information
Learning unit: vocabulary related to food, jobs
In groups students from the experimental group have to categorise words related to food, write
sentences about common likes and dislikes, distinguish between facts and opinions, giving
opinions by using the comparatives. (Annexes 28,29) They also have to search for words related
to food and then categorise them. (Annexe 33) The control group received worksheets with
multiple choice exercises and a crossword working individually. (Annexes 33,34)

Diagrams were also used to introduce vocabulary related to jobs. Brainstorming was used with
students from the experimental group who were asked in their groups to come up with as many
words related to the topic as possible. Then they were asked to organise them in: done by men
mostly, being dangerous, being well - paid, short - term jobs. (Annexe 30) A job word puzzle
was provided as well and students had to complete it by answering questions. (Annexe 31) The
control group was asked to remember as many words as possible connected with the topic of
jobs; other words were introduced as a list written on the blackboard together with the Romanian
translation. Students were asked to write as homework a paragraph about a job they would like to
have in the future. (Annexe 32)

79
Method 4: Crosswords

Purpose: to explore thematic vocabulary through different congnitive perspectives

Learning unit: vocabulary related to clothes, Valentine’s Day, food, jobs, body parts
In the experimental group, students in groups of 3, organised based on a choice they made
(written colours on cards) have to look for words on different topics - clothes, Valentine’s Day,
food, jobs, body parts. (Annexes 17, 26, 33, 35, 36) Students organised, as mentioned above, did
not enjoy the crosswords very much. Surprisingly, students from the control group were very
enthusiastic about such activities, this being one of the reasons for which, in most vocabulary
activities, they were given handouts with crosswords. Even the students who are poor in English
enjoyed the activity and even if they needed more time to do the activity, they managed to do it
successfully. As far as body parts are concerned, the other 2 activities (Annexe 36) – the split
word and the unscrambled word activities were solved in groups of 3 (in the experimental group)
and individually (in the control group).

Method 5: Stories

Purpose: to explore thematic vocabulary with the help of longer written texts
Learning unit: vocabulary related to jobs, feelings
Three stories were used with both groups and different activities were used for each of them in
order to allow students to practise the use of various vocabulary activities. ‘Jimmy’s Treasure’
(Annexes 37, 38) is the name of the first story; in the experimental group, students in their
groups read the story, translated it with the help of dictionaries, answered questions and each
group used the cube method (Annexe 39) by choosing one question from each side of the cube;
they answered it and at the end, the main elements of the story were written on the blackboard,
so that all the students have a complete image of the story. This cube method enables students to

80
learn to communicate, to share ideas, to compromise, to negotiate, to be tolerant and patient, so
as to take into account every student’s opinion. The control group was presented the same story
using the classical method of reading the story individually, writing unknown words on the
blackboard, translating them and answering text - based questions.

‘Surprise Party’(Annexes 40, 41, 42) is the name of the second story presented to both groups.
With the experimental group, students in their groups had to read the story, answer questions,
match words to definitions and had to summarise the story. Then, each group presented their
summary and at the end, all the students had to decide which were the most appropriate ideas
meant to highlight the important elements of the story. One student came to the blackboard and
wrote what the others decided to be essential to the story. The control group read the story,
translated it and then, individually solved the vocabulary exercises. The summary was their
homework.

‘The Diary of a Dancer’ was the third story used. (Annexes 43, 44) The story was cut into 10
different pieces that were scrambled, students had to re-organise them, glue them together, so as
to recompose the story. This was the activity that the students from the experimental group liked
very much, they enjoyed the fact that they had to work it out on their own. They had fun and they
shared their responsibilities equally. They solved the vocabulary exercises together and they
completed the diagram of the story. (Annexe 45) The control group had the same amount of fun
since they received the story mixed, but they worked individually at putting it right. There were
some students who needed help, but in the end everyone had the complete story. They read it,
translated it and solved the vocabulary exercises.

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Method 6: Riddles and analogies

Purpose: to explore thematic vocabulary through different cognitive perspectives

Learning unit: vocabulary related to food, jobs, feelings
In groups of 3, students were given riddles and analogies (Annexes 46, 47) that they were asked
to solve by making use of their logics and imagination. They worked with the dictionary and
they had fun trying to guess the answers. These activities were chosen because they do not imply
writing too much, they caught the attention of all the students, though at times, they were
tempted to speak more in Romanian than in English. The risk with such activities is that, since
students are requested to communicate more than to write, they tend to become noisy and use
more their L1. The teacher has the difficult task to supervise all the teams, to make sure they
understood the task and to maintain an appropriate level of discussion. The same activities were
used with the control group, they worked in pairs, but they were noisy as well.

There are many more methods and techniques to be used when working with groups in English
classes. However, considering the students’ level of performance and their characteristics, the
methods mentioned above were the most appropriate to use with the students of the 7 th grade.
There were problems when using some of the activities, since in each of the two classes, there
are students with a very low level of English, but if they are given simple tasks, like looking for
words in the dictionary, writing the answers given by others, copying information, they feel
important for the progress of their own team and they gain self-confidence. Another problem was
the fact that with both classes involved in the research, the English classes were scheduled at the
end of their timetable and some activities had to be postponed, due to the students being too tired
after P.E. classes or having passed some test papers in other subjects.

Attendance was another problem, since in both classes there were students who skipped classes
very much. Due to their low attendance, two students from the experimental group and one
student from the control group could not finish their school year and they will have to repeat the
school year.

82
The students from the experimental group received a questionnaire about their working groups
(Annexe 48) and a self-assessment worksheet in which they had to evaluate their personal
activity. (Annexe 49), their answers are interpreted in chapter VII.

The final stage

This final stage took place towards the end of the school year of 2010-2011 and the final test that
was applied to both groups consisted of 4 close-ended, objective items (chart completion,
matching, odd one out) and 1 open-ended, subjective item (answering questions). (Annexe 50)

TABLE OF RESULTS AT THE FINAL STAGE

7
6 6
6
Grade 4
5 Grade 5
4 4
4 Grade 6
3 3 Grade 7
3 Grade 8
2 2 2 2 2
2 Grade 9
1 1 Grade 10
1
0
0
The experimental group The control group

The control group still had difficulties with the open-ended items in which they had to come up
with their own answers. The mistakes were not related to the misuse of verbs, but also to a lack
of rich vocabulary which made it impossible for some students to write anything.

83
As far as the results at tests are concerned the situation with both groups is as it follows:

THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP

Student Grade Grade Grade

initials initial test summative test final test
A.A.M. 7 9 10
B.M.S. - 5 6
B.W.A. 8 9 10
B.R.M. 3 7 8
B.A.M. 2 5 7
C.V.F. 1 4 6
C.B.G. 9 8 10
F.L.I. 10 10 10
G.D.G. 5 7 9
G.A.M. 3 5 7
J.R.G. 2 5 6
M.R.G. 6 8 9
N.L.P. 6 7 9
O.I.L. 5 7 7
P.C. - 4 -
P.G.M. - 4 -
P.C.M. 2 5 6
P.A.M. 4 7 9
R.I.M. 7 8 10
S.D.A. 7 7 9
S.D.G. 9 10 9
T.B.M. 8 9 10

84
 THE CONTROL GROUP

Student Grade Grade Grade

initials initial test summative test final test
A.A.M. 4 8 9
B.G.N. 1 3 4
C.A. 5 9 10
C.G.A 5 7 7
C.S.R. 9 9 10
C.L.G. 2 3 5
C.M.G. 1 4 -
D.N.M. 7 8 10
F.A.M. 2 4 5
G.B.A. 7 9 10
H.V.M. 3 3 5
K.A.J. 6 7 8
M.R.M. 10 10 10
P.V. 6 8 8
S.R. 7 7 9
S.A.F. 8 9 10
S.A.A. 4 5 6
T.R.F. 3 4 5
U.I.D. 4 5 6

85
As far as averages in English are concerned the situation with both groups is as it follows:

THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP

Student 1st semester 2nd semester 7th grade 6th grade

initials average average average average
A.A.M. 7 10 8.50 7.50
B.M.S. 5 6 5.50 5.50
B.W.A. 8 9 8.50 8
B.R.M. 7 9 8 9
B.A.M. 6 7 6.50 7
C.V.F. 5 6 5.50 5
C.B.G. 10 10 10 10
F.L.I. 10 10 10 10
G.D.G. 7 9 8 8.50
G.A.M. 6 7 6.50 5
J.R.G. 6 6 6 6
M.R.G. 9 10 9.50 9.50
N.L.P. 8 10 9 9
O.I.L. 6 8 7 9
P.C. 5 - - 5.50
P.G.M. 5 - - 5
P.C.M. 6 7 6.50 6
P.A.M. 8 10 9 9
R.I.M. 9 10 9.50 9
S.D.A. 9 9 9 8.50
S.D.G. 10 10 10 9.50
T.B.M. 10 10 10 10

86
 THE CONTROL GROUP

Student 1st semester 2nd semester 7th grade 6th grade

initials average average average average
A.A.M. 7 9 8 8
B.G.N. 5 5 5 5
C.A. 6 9 7.50 7.50
C.G.A. 6 7 6.50 6
C.S.R. 10 10 10 9.50
C.L.G. 5 5 5 5.50
C.M.G. 5 - - 5
D.N.M. 8 10 9 9
F.A.M. 5 5 5 5
G.B.A. 9 10 9.50 9
H.V.M. 5 5 5 5
K.A.J. 7 8 7.50 9
M.R.M. 10 10 10 9.50
P.V. 7 9 8 8
S.R. 7 9 8 8
S.A.F. 10 10 10 10
S.A.A. 5 5 5 5.50
T.R.F. 5 5 5 5
U.I.D. 6 5 5.50 5

The sociometric test was repeated with the purpose to observe the presence of changes
concerning the group structure of relationships as a result of using the experiment and to see if
these changes determined an increase of the level of cohesion. The sociometric test involves
several stages:
1. The preparation stage in which the application of the test is motivated, confidentiality is
ensured and the number of answers is limited.
2. The application stage: students express in writing, according to a scale of preferences,
their attitudes of attraction, rejection or indifference towards the other members of the
group. The questionnaire was applied to 22 students from the experimental group (13
girls and 9 boys) and it consisted of two questions (Annexe 2) Each question required 4
answers since groups are generally made of 4-5 people. The attractions (positive
nominations) were marked with ,+’, with the order +1,+2,+3,+4 and the rejections
(negative nominations) with ,–‘, with the order -1,-2,-3,-4.(Annexe 51)

87
3. The sociometric matrix: the options were written in a table with double entry where the
members are noted horizontally and vertically and the relationships between them with +
and -.(Annexe 52)
4. The group sociogram which consists of:
- the positive nomination sociogram (Annexes 53,54) from where we notice:
 4 subgroups among N.L.P.↔S.D.G.↔T.B.M.↔A.A.M.,
G.D.G.↔F.L.I.↔G.A.M.↔S.D.G., G.A.M.↔C.V.F.↔R.I.M.↔B.W.A.
 18 mutual positive nominations among: A.A.M.↔N.L.P.,
A.A.M.↔T.B.M., A.A.M.↔B.R.M., B.W.A.↔R.I.M., B.W.A.↔C.V.F.,
C.V.F.↔G.A.M, C.V.F.↔R.I.M., F.L.I.↔G.D.G., F.L.I.↔S.D.G.,
F.L.I.↔T.B.M., F.L.I.↔G.A.M, G.D.G.↔G.A.M., G.A.M.↔S.D.G.,
M.R.G.↔S.D.A., N.L.P.↔S.D.G., T.B.M.↔N.L.P., O.I.L.↔P.A.M,
S.D.G.↔T.B.M
 52 individual positive nominations
- the negative nomination sociogram (Annexes 55,56) from where we notice that
there are:
o 15 negative nominations for B.M.S.
o 14 negative nominations for P.C.
o 9 negative nominations for P.G.M.
o 7 negative nominations for P.C.M.
o 6 negative nominations for B.R.M., C.V.F., P.C.M.
o 5 negative nominations for B.A.M., P.A.M.
o 3 negative nominations for O.I.L., T.B.M.
o 2 negative nominations for B.W.A., C.B.G., G.A.M., J.R.G.,
N.L.P.
o 1 negative nominations for A.A.M., F.L.I., R.I.M., S.D.A., S.D.G.
o 0 negative nominations for M.R.G., G.D.G.
5. The calculus of the sociometric coefficients to know what the position of each member is
in the group:

88
  The Coefficient of Sociometric Status (CSS) shows the position of a person within a
group and is calculated as follows: CSS = n/(N-1) - where n= the number of positive
nominations received by that person and N = the number of the members of the group
Based on the CSS, the collective and the positive nomination sociograms can be
done. The subjects with the highest number of nominations will be placed in the
centre. The other members will be placed around them, farther and farther,
according to the nominations. Therefore, the following situation appears:
CSS (8) = 0,57
CSS (10, 21) = 0,47
CSS (13) = 0,38
CSS (12, 22) = 0,28
CSS (4, 9) = 0,23
CSS (1) = 0,19
CSS (3, 6, 18, 19, 20) = 0,14
CSS (7, 17) = 0,09
CSS (2, 14) = 0,04
CSS (5, 11, 15, 16) = 0
As far as interpersonal relationships are concerned, from the table below it can be noticed who is
the leader, who are the popular, accepted, indifferent, isolated and rejected subjects.

89
 The coefficient of Preference Status Table
Number of Number of subjects Coefficient of Psycho – social
preferences with the same Preference Status value of preference
preference
11 1 0,52 leader
9 1 0,42 popular
8 1 0,38
6 2 0,28
5 1 0,23
3 2 0,14 accepted
2 2 0,09
1 1 0,04
0 1 0 indifferent
-1 1 -0,04 isolated
-2 3 -0,09
-3 1 -0,14
-4 1 -0,19
-6 1 -0,23
-9 1 -0,43 rejected
-14 2 -0,66

 The Coefficient of Preference Status (CPS) is calculated for each student as it follows:
N p− N n
CPS=
N −1
and it is observed in the sociometric matrix - where
Np= is the number of positive nominations and
Nn= is the number of negative nominations
 The Coefficient of Emotional Expansiveness (CEE) is calculated for each student as
follows:
Nr . of expressed positive nomin ations
CEE=
Nr . of exp ressed negative no min ations
and it is observed in the sociometric matrix
 The Coefficient of Sociometric Expansiveness (CSE) allows the quantitative
determination of the individual orientation towards the group members by taking into
account both the positive and negative expansiveness:
CSE = (E+)+(E-) = [(n-1) / (N-1)] + [(n-) / (N-1)]

90
 where (n+) = the number of given positive nominations
(n-) = the number of given negative nominations
N = the number of group members
 The Coefficient of Group Cohesion (CGC) expresses the quality of sociometric
relationships within the group, the higher the value, the more cohesive the group is.
CGC = M*q / I*p
where M = mutual positive nominations
I = individual positive nominations
p = k / (N-1)
k = number of positive nominations allowed
N = number of group members
q = 1- p
M = 18
I = 52
4 4
p= =
22−1 21
4 4 17
q=1− =1− =
22−1 21 21
CGC = (18*17) / 21 * (52*4) / 21 = 306 / 208 = 1,47
The coefficient of group cohesion is 1,47 which is higher than in the initial stage.

CONCLUSIONS
Based on the socimetric matrix, the table of scores and sociograms presented above, appropriate
interpretations can be made and conclusions can be drawn about the system of relationships
within the experimental group.

F.L.I. is once again confirmed as the informal leader of the group, it has 12 positive nominations,
being the first choice for 4 students and the second choice for 6 students, and 1 negative
nomination. What is interesting is the fact that M.R.G and G.D.G. have no negative nomination.
Among the popular students we have S.D.G., G.A.M., N.L.P., M.R.G. and G.D.G. There are 5
students who are accepted by the group and they are: A.A.M., T.B.M., R.I.M., S.D.A. and

91
B.W.A. There is 1 student considered now indifferent to others C.B.G. There are 7 isolated
students: B.R.M.., J.R.G., O.I.L, P.A.M., C.V.F., P.C.M, B.A.M. There are 3 rejected students in
this stage (B.M.S., P.C., P.G.M.). B.M.S. had only one positive nomination, being the first
choice for P.G.M. and 17 whereas P.C. and P.G.M. did not have any positive nominations. F.L.I.
received only one negative nomination. G.A.M. has an interesting position advancing from a
CSS of 0,14 to 0,47 and N.L.P. has the same interesting position advancing from 0,09 to 0,38.
These changes show that working in a group can bring about different relationships within the
group. B.M.S. still continues to be rejected by most students. (15 negative nominations)
The coefficient of group cohesion is 1,47 and it is a little bit higher that the initial stage when it
was 1,21.

92
 VII. THE RESEARCH RESULTS
From the study of school documents available (school registers), in the initial stage I extracted
important data concerning the characteristics of the two groups involved in the research. Thus, I
discovered the following:

Distribution of Students

The experimental group

14 13
Num ber of students

12
10 9

8 Boys
6 Girls

4
2
0
Gender

The control group

12 11
Number of students

10
8
8
Boys
6
Girls
4

0
Gender

In terms of the number of students involved in the research, there are more students in the
experimental group (22 students) as compared to the control group where there are 19 students.
In both groups there are more girls than boys.

93
Help with the Homework

Help with the homework

18 16
16
14 12
12
10 No one
8 7 A member of their family
6
6
4
2
0
The experimental group The control group

When it comes to dealing with homework, 72.22% of the students in the experimental group do
their English homework on their own and 27.27% are helped by some member of their family. In
the control group, 36.84% do their homework alone and 63.15% are helped by someone in their
family. In the control group more students need the help of parents when doing their homework.

Age Characteristics

16
14
12
10
8 The experimental group
6 The control group
4
2
0
12 13 14 15

As far as the age of the students is concerned, it can be noticed that the age average is higher
with the experimental group (13,13 years old) where there is a 15 year old student, than with the
control group where the average is 13 years old.

94
Commuting Characteristics

Commuting characteristics

16
14
14
The control group

12 11
10 8 8 The experim group
8
The control group
6
4
2
0
Commuters Non-commuters
The experimental group

Some students commute to school and as far as the two groups are concerned, there are not
considerable differences, since 8 students from each group commute to school (the experimental
group 36.36% / the control group 42.10%), whereas 14 students from the experimental group do
not commute (63.63%) and 11 students from the control group (57.89%) share the same
characteristic.

6th Grade Averages

3 The experimental group

The control group
2

0
5 5.5 6 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10

The English average in the 6th grade for the experimental group was 7.79, whereas for the control
group it was 7.07. The experimental group had the same English teacher starting with the 5 th

95
grade whereas with the control group, I started working in the 7 th grade. The experimental group
had better results in English in the 6th grade.

Learning Styles

12

10

6 The experimental group

The control group
4

0
Al s Pls Vls A-V l s A-P l s P-V l s

Obs.:
A l s – Auditory learnins style
P l s – Practical learning style
V l s – Visual learning style
A-V l s – Auditory – Visual learning style
A- P l s – Auditory – Practical learning style
P- V l s – Practical – Visual learning style

In terms of learning styles, there do not seem to be considerable differences between the two
groups. The auditory style is the predominant style with 54.54% in the experimental group and
47.36% in the control group. Students with an auditory learning style are characterised by the
fact that they:
- speak frequently during class
- learn more easily with the help of oral presentations rather than written
instructions
- prefer to do oral presentations rather than written ones
- enjoy conversations and oral debates
- benefit from reading aloud
96
 - are frequently good at foreign languages
- benefit from study groups

The practical style comes next with 18.18% in the experimental group and 21.05% in the
control group. Students with a practical learning style are characterised by the fact that they:
- acquire skills by practice and imitation
- enjoy actions, experiences, discoveries
- remember better by doing things
- are good at sports
- enjoy the demonstration of concepts
- learn better when they are able to move around freely
- learn better when they play with objects

The visual style is represented with 13.63% in the experimental group and with 5.26% in the
control group. Students with a practical learning style are characterised by the fact that they:
- learn better from graphics, maps, diagrams, tables, notes
- have good photographic memory
- are oriented towards details
- are more organised
- focus better on visual means

There are also students with a combined learning style: 13.63% in the experimental group and
26.31% in the control group.

97
Attendance for 1st and 2nd Semester of the 7th Grade
During the 7th grade the attendance percentages were the following:
The experimental group:
Nr. Student 1st semester 2nd semester
Crt. initials attendance attendance
1. A.A.M. 100% 80.55%
2. B.M.S. 100% 80.55%
3. B.W.A. 97.22% 83.33%
4. B.R.M. 86.11% 94.44%
5. B.A.M. 100% 100%
6. C.V.F. 88.88% 83.33%
7. C.B.G. 86.11% 75%
8. F.L.I. 88.88% 66.66%
9. G.D.G. 100% 94.44%
10. G.A.M. 91.66% 80.55%
11. J.R.G. 83.33% 69.44%
12. M.R.G. 86.11% 75%
13. N.L.P. 72.22% 47.22%
14. O.I.L. 100% 94.44%
15. P.C. 33.33% 13.88%
16. P.G.M. 33.33% 13.88%
17. P.C.M. 88.88% 97.22%
18. P.A.M. 97.22% 100%
19. R.I.M. 100% 97.22%
20. S.D.A. 86.11% 69.44%
21. S.D.G. 100% 63.88%
22. T.B.M. 100% 97.22%

The control group:

Nr. Student 1st semester 2nd semester
Crt. initials attendance attendance
1. A.A.M. 100% 97.22%
2. B.G.N. 88.88% 83.33%
3. C.A. 86.11% 97.22%
4. C.G.A. 100% 100%
5. C.S.R. 100% 97.22%
6. C.L.G. 66.66% 41.66%
7. C.M.G. 66.11% 38.88%
8. D.N.M. 97.22% 97.22%
9. F.A.M. 47.22% 50%
10. G.B.A. 100% 94.44%
11. H.V.M. 75% 69.44%
12. K.A.J. 100% 91.66%
13. M.R.M. 97.22% 94.44%
14. P.V. 97.22% 94.44%
15. S.R. 94.44% 94.44%
16. S.A.F. 97.22% 72.22%
17. S.A.A. 88.88.% 75%
18. T.R.F. 91.66% 97.22%

98
 19. U.I.D. 91.66% 75%

The experimental group

6 100%
99.99%-90%
4
89.99%-80%

2 79.99%-70%
below
0
1st sem ester attendance 2nd sem ester attendance

The control group

10

8 100%
6 99.99%-90%
4 89.99%-80%
79.99%-70%
2
below
0
1st sem ester attendance 2nd sem ester attendance

The attendance was lower in the 2nd semester if we consider the fact in the 1 st semester there 8
students in the experimental group who had 100% attendance in the English classes and only 2
students had the same attendance percentage in the 2nd semester. With the control group the
situation was the same, since in the 1 st semester there were 5 students with 100% attendace in
English as compared to the 2nd semester when there was only 1 student with the same percentage.
For 2 students in the experimental group and 1 student in the control group the low attendance
was such a serious problem that it made it impossible for them to advance to the next grade.

Results in the initial test

99
 3.5
3 3 3 3 Grade 1
3
Grade 2
2.5 Grade 3
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 Grade 4
2 Grade 5
1.5 Grade 6
1 1 1 1 1 1 Grade 7
1 Grade 8

0.5 Grade 9
Grade 10
0
The experimental group The control group

As a result of applying the test, it was discovered that within the experimental group 63.15% of
the students had passing grades between 5 and 10, whereas within the control group 56.23% of
the students had the same passing grades. The total average for the experimental group was 5.47,
whereas for the control group it was 4.94. Both groups had difficulty with the open-ended items
in which they had to come up with their own answers. The mistakes were not only related to the
misuse of regular / irregular verbs in the past, but also to a poor vocabulary which made it
impossible for some students to write anything.

Results in the summative test

6
5 5
5 Grade 3
Grade 4
4 Grade 5
3 3 3 3 3 3 Grade 6
3
Grade 7
2 2 2 2 2
2 Grade 8
Grade 9
1 1 1
1 Grade 10

0
The experimental group The control group

As a result of applying the test, it was discovered that within the experimental group 81,81% of
the students had passing grades between 5 and 10, whereas within the control group 57,89% of
the students has the same passing grades. The total score for the experimental group was 6.50

100
whereas for the control group it was 5.42. Both groups still had difficulty with the open-ended
items in which they had to come up with their own answers. The mistakes were not related to the
misuse of verbs, but also to a lack of rich vocabulary which made it impossible for some students
to write anything.

1st Semester Average in English

7
6
5
4
The experimental group
3
The control group
2
1
0
5 6 7 8 9 10

At the end of the 1st semester of the 7th grade the total average in English for the experimental
group was 7.36, whereas in the control group it was 6.73.

When asked about their working groups (Annexe 48), students from the experimental group
found it to be a good and useful idea, they felt very well in their team (40.90%), well (40.90%)
and 9.09% of the students felt wronged. Most students felt they got closer to their colleagues and
only few students felt no difference in their relationship with their peers. Among the things
mentioned as being liked when working in their team there were the fact that they worked
together, they wrote down everyone’s ideas, they helped each other, they had fun. What they did
not like were the fact that they contradicted at times and it was sometimes difficult to make the
right decision.The questionnaire that was answered by the students from the experimental group
was designed in order to have a feedback from the students concerning this group working
technique that they were not used to in the English classes.

101
The students from the experimental group also received a self-assessment worksheet in which
they had to evaluate their personal activity. (Annexe 49) The students gave honest answers,
being encouraged to do so and the 7 questions were answered by all the students.
The two major things they learned in English were to read / write correctly and to work in
groups. They were surprised to work in groups, to use interesting worksheets and to discover that
in their teams, the other members appreciated their work. The easiest thing for them was to work
with the dictionary. They enjoyed most working with interesting worksheets that help them
develop their thinking and learning new words that they were able to use later on. They had
difficulty in naming problems that they encountered in their English classes, not because they
were not considering the questionnaire seriously, but because their enthusiasm prevented them
from insisting on the negative aspects. However, some students felt that at times communication
in their group could have been improved. Most students assessed their activity in English as good
and they felt appreciated by the others; all of them expressed their intention to learn more and to
help one another.

From the answers summarised above, it is obvious students that showed a lot of interest towards
the use of group activities since they were not used to working in this way. They felt the
atmosphere was more relaxed and encouraged them to be creative, positive and efficient. Modern
pedagogy allows teachers to choose from a wide variety of methods of teaching – learning –
assessing and it does not try to impose any rigid strategy. On the contrary, it considers that the
rigidity of methods, the conservative attitude of teachers, the rigidity of methods, excessive
routine represent obstacles in the effort of recreating the Romanian system of education. It is not
opposed in any way to initiative, to individual or collective originality of rethinking and
reconsidering creatively any aspects that concern the modernising of educational methodology at
all levels. With this experimental research, I wanted to prove that interactive group methods
bring great advantages to students and improve their results in this subject.

102
Results in the final test

7
6 6
6
Grade 4
5 Grade 5
4 4
4 Grade 6
3 3 Grade 7
3 Grade 8
2 2 2 2 2
2 Grade 9
1 1 Grade 10
1
0
0
The experimental group The control group

At the final test, the results of the experimental group were higher with a total average of 8.25
(all the students taking the test had passing grades) whereas with the control group the total
average was 6.94 (4 students could not get passing grades). One aspect has to be mentioned here:
there are 2 students in the experimental group and 1 student in the control group who could not
take the final test because they missed

2nd Semester Average in English

9
8
7
6
5
The experimental group
4
The control group
3
2
1
0
5 6 7 8 9 10

As far as the 2nd semester of the 7th grade is concerned, the total average in English for the
experimental group (20 students) is 8,65 whereas for the control group is 7,55.(18 students)

103
7th Grade Averages in English

3 The experimental group

The control group
2

0
5 5.5 6 6.5 7 7.5 8 8.5 9 9.5 10

As far as the 7th grade as a whole is concerned, the total average in English for the experimental
group (20 students) is 8,12 whereas for the control group is 7,19.(18 students)

Comparison of results between the initial and final tests

18 17

16
14
12
Progress
10
No change
8
Unclear status
6
4 3
2
2
0
The experimental group

18 17

16
14
12
Progress
10
No change
8
Unclear status
6
4
2 1 1

0
The control group

104
There is considerable progress with the results between the initial and final tests with both
groups, however an aspect has to be mentioned as far as the control group is concerned - though
there is an increase in their results, their total averages are lower than that of the experimental
group. As far as typical mistakes are concerned, they are related to the open-ended items in
which students have to provide their own answers. The remedy would consist in insisting on
such activities providing some examples that the students shoud use as inspiration for their
personal production.

Comparison between the averages in English of the 7th and 6th grades

10
9
9
8
8
7
6 Progress
5 No change
4 Regress
3
3
2
1
0
The experimental group

12
10
10

8
Progress
6 5 No change
Regress
4 3

0
The control group

As far as the averages in the 7th and 6th grades are concerned, there is an increase in the English
average with the experimental group, whereas with the control group there is an increase with the
number of averages which did not change.There is a great number of averages which did ont
change in the experimental group as well; however with the experimental group there are 6

105
averages between 9 and 10 which did not change, whereas with the control group there are only
2 similar averages.

Based on the variables taken into account, the experimental group has higher values as compared
to the control group in terms of grades and averages. Taking these differences into account, it is
obvious that the introduction and use of active and interactive group activities, in other words, of
didactic strategies that promote learning by cooperation and active learning determines a change
with the students’ results in English, with the focus on enriching vocabulary knowledge.

Comparative Analysis of Results in the Sociometric Test

The initial stage The final stage

-the positive nomination sociogram from -the positive nomination sociogram from
where we notice: where we notice:
-6 subgroups among -4 subgroups among
F.L.I.↔T.B.M.↔N.L.P., N.L.P.↔S.D.G.↔T.B.M.↔A.A.M.,
G.D.G.↔S.D.A.↔M.R.G., G.D.G.↔F.L.I.↔G.A.M.↔S.D.G.,
B.R.M.↔G.D.G.↔T.B.M., G.A.M.↔C.V.F.↔R.I.M.↔B.W.A.
T.B.M.↔S.D.G.↔M.R.G.,
S.D.G.↔C.B.G.↔R.I.M.,
S.D.G.↔F.L.I.↔G.D.G.
-18 mutual positive nominations among:
-16 mutual positive nominations among:
A.A.M.↔N.L.P., A.A.M.↔T.B.M.,
F.L.I.↔S.D.G., F.L.I.↔G.D.G.,
A.A.M.↔B.R.M., B.W.A.↔R.I.M.,
F.L.I.↔T.B.M., F.L.I.↔A.A.M.,
B.W.A.↔C.V.F., C.V.F.↔G.A.M,
C.B.G.↔R.I.M., C.B.G.↔S.D.G.,
C.V.F.↔R.I.M., F.L.I.↔G.D.G.,
S.D.G.↔T.B.M., S.D.G.↔M.R.G.,
F.L.I.↔S.D.G., F.L.I.↔T.B.M.,
G.D.G.↔S.D.A., G.D.G.↔B.R.M.,
F.L.I.↔G.A.M, G.D.G.↔G.A.M.,
G.D.G.↔T.B.M, M.R.G.↔S.D.A.,
G.A.M.↔S.D.G., M.R.G.↔S.D.A.,
T.B.M.↔N.L.P., G.A.M.↔P.C.M.,
N.L.P.↔S.D.G., T.B.M.↔N.L.P.,
B.W.A.↔C.V.F., O.I.L.↔P.A.M.
O.I.L.↔P.A.M, S.D.G.↔T.B.M

-56 individual positive nominations

106
 -52 individual positive nominations

-the negative nomination sociogram from -the negative nomination sociogram from
where we notice that there are: where we notice that there are:
17 negative nominations for B.M.S. 15 negative nominations for B.M.S.
16 negative nominations for P.G.M. 14 negative nominations for P.C.
14 negative nominations for P.C. 9 negative nominations for P.G.M.
7 negative nominations for P.C.M. 7 negative nominations for P.C.M.
5 negative nominations for B.W.A. 6 negative nominations for B.R.M., C.V.F.,
4 negative nominations for B.A.M. P.C.M.
3 negative nominations for G.A.M., J.R.G., 5 negative nominations for B.A.M., P.A.M.
S.D.G. 3 negative nominations for O.I.L., T.B.M.
2 negative nominations for F.L.I., G.D.G., 2 negative nominations for B.W.A., C.B.G.,
O.I.L., P.A.M., T.B.M G.A.M., J.R.G., N.L.P.
1 negative nominations for B.R.M., C.VF., 1 negative nominations for A.A.M., F.L.I.,
C.B.G., R.I.M., S.D.A. R.I.M., S.D.A., S.D.G.
0 negative nominations for M.R.G., N.L.P., 0 negative nominations for M.R.G., G.D.G.
A.A.M.

-B.M.S. has the highest number of negative

-B.M.S. has the highest number of negative
nominations
nominations

The coefficient of sociometric status The coefficient of sociometric status shows:

shows: CSS (8) = 0,57
CSS (8) = 0,61 CSS (10, 21) = 0,47
CSS (7,21) = 0,42 CSS (13) = 0,38
CSS (9) = 0,38 CSS (12, 22) = 0,28
CSS (4,12,19,22) = 0,28 CSS (4, 9) = 0,23
CSS (1) = 0,23 CSS (1) = 0,19
CSS (20) = 0,19 CSS (3, 6, 18, 19, 20) = 0,14
CSS (10,11) = 0,14 CSS (7, 17) = 0,09

107
CSS (3,13,14) = 0,09 CSS (2, 14) = 0,04
CSS (2,6,17,18) = 0,04 CSS (5, 11, 15, 16) = 0
CSS (5,15,16) = 0

The coefficient of preference status shows: The coefficient of preference status shows:
CPS -0,52 LEADER (1 student) CPS -0,52 LEADER (1 student)
CPS -0,42 POPULAR (4 students) CPS -0,42 POPULAR (5 students)
0,38 0,38
0,28
0,23
CPS - 0,23 ACCEPTED (6 students) CPS - 0,14 ACCEPTED ( 5 students)
0,14 0,09
0,09 0,04
CPS – 0 INDIFFERENT (3 students) CPS – 0 INDIFFERENT (1 student)
CPS - -0,04 ISOLATED (4 students) CPS - -0,04 ISOLATED ( 7 students)
-0,14 -0,09
-0,19 -0,14
-0,28 -0,19
-0,23
CPS - -0,66 REJECTED (3 students) CPS - -0,43 REJECTED
-0,76 -0,66
The coefficient of group cohesion is 1,21 The coefficient of group cohesion is 1,47

108
Comparative Analysis of the Table of Scores

Student Scores obtained in the initial stage Scores obtained in the final stage
initials
+ - Total + - Total
A.A.M. 9 0 9 10 1 9
B.M.S. 3 50 -47 4 44 -40
B.W.A. 2 9 -7 10 2 8
B.R.M. 16 1 15 10 12 -2
B.A.M. 0 8 -8 0 11 -11
C.V.F. 3 4 -1 6 12 -6
C.B.G. 22 1 21 3 5 -2
F.L.I. 40 7 33 37 4 33
G.D.G. 15 6 9 13 0 13
G.A.M. 9 5 4 24 5 19
J.R.G. 8 6 2 0 -3 -3
M.R.G. 14 0 14 12 0 12
N.L.P. 4 0 4 17 5 12
O.I.L. 5 2 3 2 6 -4
P.C. 0 35 -35 0 42 -42
P.G.M. 0 46 -46 0 21 -21
P.C.M. 2 13 -11 3 13 -10
P.A.M. 4 7 -3 12 14 -2
R.I.M. 21 2 19 9 4 5
S.D.A. 10 1 9 6 3 3
S.D.G. 18 7 11 31 1 30
T.B.M. 15 10 5 10 10 0

Based on the socimetric matrix , the table of scores and sociograms, appropriate interpretations
can be made and conclusions about the system of relationships within the experimental group
can be drawn.

F.L.I. is confirmed as the informal leader of the group, it has the highest number of positive
nominations. What is interesting is the fact that M.R.G has no negative nominations. Among the
popular students we have S.D.G., M.R.G. and G.D.G. There are 5 students who are accepted by
the group A.A.M., T.B.M., R.I.M., S.D.A. There are some interesting changes of status with
C.B.G. who turned from popular to indifferent, and G.A.M., N.L.P.turned from accepted to
popular.

109
There are 3 isolated students P.C.M, P.A.M., B.A.M. and 3 rejected students B.M.S., P.C.,
P.G.M. These students will have to be under observation in the future so as to try to find
solutions for their proper integration in the group.

The coefficient of group cohesion changed from 1.21 to 1.47. The difference is not very
considerable, but it shows the direction in which the group evolves. Although the results of the
sociometric test are not significant, there is an increase tendency of the cohesion coefficient
which constitutes the basis for a future amelioration.

110
 VIII. CONCLUSIONS
The present paper represents the result of a permanent and thorough study with a view to
discovering, adapting and applying the most efficient active and interactive methods in teaching
vocabulary

The modern curricular model, characterised by multiple adaptability, general and specific
creativity, determines a change of focus from qualitative accumulation of information to forming
mental and practical skills. One of the most appropriate approach is offered by the cognitivist
view on learning which claims that in school it is necessary to offer students favourale
opportunities to acquire multi – disciplinary skills. The new curriculum brings variety and
diversity in terms of teaching – learning methods, of ways and forms of lesson organisation, of
learning situations. Students love action, group discussions, they like producing something, they
enjoy proving their creativity. The more active and involved they are, the more they like what
they are doing.

In my English classes I have used a variety of methods which increased the attention and interest
of my students. Thus, the teaching – learning lesson has become an adventure of knowledge to
which the students participated actively, according to their own efforts, coming across difficult
problems and situations. The student was involved both in the teaching process and the learning
and assessing processes and the increase of interest was ensured by the satisfaction of
cooperation. Active and interactive group methods were chosen in accordance with the intended
objectives, the teaching content, the spontaneity of the teacher, but also in accordance with the
reason of permanent activism of students which involved favouring an interactive, exciting and
dynamic learning environment. The examples offered in this paper constitute didactic strategies
and means of making students active in the English classes. They illustrate the way in which to
work with students so that this activity is attractive, accessible and efficient.

The present research showed that by combining traditional methods with active and interactive
ones, students mange to obtain better results in English, the cognitive conflict favouring the
cognitive progress, an opportunity which offers to everyone the possibility to actively participate

111
in giving the collective answer. There were also situations of simply accepting the answers, of
imitation or of a slow activity, or of students having no intention of solving the group problem,
but these cases did not repeat systematically. Another aspect confirmed by the present paper is
the fact that students’ involvement in solving group tasks improves communication, isolated
students being well on the way of integration in the group. Summarising these conclusions, I can
state the fact that the hypotheses have a high level of plausibility.

During the research I have come across some difficulties which at times made working on this
research challenging. Among the limits, there could be the fact that if the English classes were
set at the beginning of the timetable, the activities could not have prolonged too much and some
students would have been more involved in the activity. The attendance of some students was a
problem since they missed school (some of them due to their national / international sport
competitions, whereas some other students skipped school in general). Another limit could be the
fact that as far as group cohesion was concerned, the time allotted to it did not turn out to be
enough, since the group cohesion level did not increase considerably.

Starting from this research and the results obtained by the students, I would recommend other
teachers to use in their classes different teaching methods, because this is the only way in which
we can develop different skills in our students. The variety of teaching – learning methods
stimulate the work of teachers and make it more pleasant. We cannot use every method, but it is
necessary to learn, to adapt and to improve.

In conclusion, I think that the use of active and interactive group methods in teaching vocabulary
can contribute to the improvement of school results and to a better communication within the
class.

112
ANNEXES:
ANNEXE 1
CHESTIONAR REFERITOR LA STILURILE DE ÎNVĂŢARE
NUME........................
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mult dezaprobaţi enunţul respectiv, şi răspundeţi prin DA sau NU.

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colorate, etc?
5. Când notaţi anumite informaţii preferaţi să nu lauţi notiţe, ci să DA NU □
desenaţi diagrame, imagini reprezentative?
6. Când jucaţi ‘X şi 0’sau dame puteţi să vă imaginaţi semnele ‚X’ sau DA NU ♦
‚=’în diferite poziţii?
7. Vă place să desfaceţi în părţi componente anumite obiecte şi să reparaţi DA NU □
anumite lucruri? De exemplu bicicleta dvs., motorul maşinii dvs., etc.
8. Când încercaţi să vă amintiţi ortografia unui cuvânt, aveţi tendinţa de a DA NU ♦
scrie cuvântul respectiv de câteva ori pe o bucată de hârtie până când
găsiţi o ortografie care arată corect?
9. Când încercaţi ceva nou, vă plac instrucţiunile citite cu voce tare, DA NU ■
discuţiile sau / şi cursurile orale?
10 Vă place să asamblaţi diverse lucruri? DA NU □
.
11 La utilizarea calculatorului consideraţi că este util ca sunetele emise să DA NU ■
. avertizeze utilizatorul asupra unei greşeli făcute sau asupra terminării
unui moment de lucru?
12 Când recapitulaţi studiaţi sau învăţaţi ceva nu vă place să utilizaţi DA NU ♦
. diagrame si / sau imagini?
13 Aveţi rapiditate şi eficienţă la copierea pe hârtie a unor informaţii? DA NU ♦
.
14 Dacă vi se spune ceva, vă amintiţi ce vi s-a spus, fără necesitatea DA NU ■
. repetării acelei informaţii?

113
15 Vă place să efectuaţi activităţi fizice în timpul liber? De exemplu: DA NU □
. sport, grădinărit, plimbări etc.
16 Vă place să ascultaţi muzică când aveţi timp liber? DA NU ■
.
17 Când vizitaţi o galerie sau o expoziţie, sau când vă uitaţi la vitrinele DA NU ♦
. magazinelor, vă place să priviţi singur(ă), în linişte?
18 Găsiţi că vă este mai uşor să vă amintiţi numele oamenilor decât feţele DA NU ■
. lor?
19 Când fotografiaţi un cuvânt, scrieţi cuvântul pe hârtie înainte? DA NU □
.
20 Vă place să vă mişcaţi în voie când lucraţi? DA NU □
.
21 Învăţaţi să ortografiaţi un cuvânt prin pronunţarea acestuia? DA NU ■
.
22 Când descrieţi o vacanţă / o petrecere unui prieten, vorbiţi despre cum DA NU ♦
. arătau oamenii, despre hainele lor şi despre culorile acestora?
23 Când începeţi o sarcină nouă, vă place să începeţi imediat şi să DA NU □
. rezolvaţi ceva atunci, pe loc?
24 Învăţaţi mai bine dacă asistaţi la demonstrarea practică a unei abilităţi DA NU ♦
. anume?
25 Găsiţi că vă este mai uşor să vă amintiţi feţele oamenilor decât numele DA NU ♦
. lor?
26 Pronunţarea cu voce tare a unor lucruri vă ajută să învăţaţi mai bine? DA NU ■
.
27 Vă place să demonstraţi si să arătaţi altora diverse lucruri? DA NU ♦
.
28 Vă plac discuţiile şi vă place să ascultaţi opiniile altora? DA NU ■
.
29 La îndeplinirea unor sarcini urmaţi anumite diagrame? DA NU ♦
.
30 Vă place să jucaţi diverse roluri? DA NU □
.
31 Preferaţi să mergeţi ‘pe teren’ şi să aflaţi singuri informaţii, decât să vă DA NU □
. petreceţi timpul singur(ă) într-o bibliotecă?
32 Când vizitaţi o galerie sau o expoziţie, sau când vă uitaţi la vitrinele DA NU ■
. magazinelor, vă place să vorbiţi despre articolele expuse şi să ascultaţi
comentariile celorlalţi ?
33 Urmăriţi uşor un drum pe hartă? DA NU ♦
.
34 Credeţi că unul dintre cele mai bune moduri de apreciere a unui DA NU □
. exponat sau a unei sculpturi este să îl / o ajuţi?
35 Când citiţi o poveste sau un articol dintr-o revistă, vă imaginaţi scenele DA NU ♦
. descrise în text?
36 Când îndepliniţi diferite sarcini, aveţi tendinţa de a fredona în surdină DA NU ■
. un cântec sau de a vorbi cu dvs. înşivă?
37 Vă uitaţi la imaginile dintr-o revistă înainte de a decide ce să DA NU ♦
114
 . îmbrăcaţi?
38 Când planificaţi o călătorie nouă, vă place să vă sfătuiţi cu cineva în DA NU ■
. legătură cu locul destinaţiei?
39 V-a fost întotdeauna dificil să staţi liniştit mult timp, şi să preferaţi să DA NU □
. fiţi activi aproape tot timpul?

Aflaţi care este stilul dvs. de învăţare:

Încercuiţi numai numărul întrebărilor la care aţi Acum marcaţi pe grafic numărul total pentru
răspuns cu DA fiecare stil de învăţare
♦ ■ □ 13. 13.
4,6,8,12,13, 1,3,9,11,14, 2,5,7,10,15,19, 12. 12.
17,22,24,25, 16,18,21,26, 20,23,27,30,31, 11. 11.
29,33,35,37 28,32,36,38 34,39 10. 10.
Total Total Total 9. 9.
întrebări întrebări întrebări 8. 8.
încercuite încercuite încercuite 7. 7.
___________ ___________ ___________ 6. 6.
5. 5.
VIZUAL AUDITIV PRACTIC 4. 4.
3. 3.
2. 2.
1. 1.
0. 0.
VIZUAL AUDITIV PRACTIC

Obs. Cea mai înaltă curbă de pe grafic arată stilul dvs. de învăţare preferat. Dacă curba are o
evoluţie aproximativ egală înseamnă că vă place să utilizaţi toate stilurile de învăţare.

115
ANNEXE 2
TEST SOCIOMETRIC

Numele şi prenumele:...........................................................................................
Clasa:...................................................................................................................
Şcoala:..................................................................................................................
Data:.....................................................................................................................

1. Cu care din colegii tăi ai prefera să înveţi/lucrezi împreună?

a.................................................................................
b.................................................................................
c..................................................................................
d..................................................................................
2. Cu care din colegii tăi nu ai dori să lucrezi/înveţi împreună?
a................................................................................
b.................................................................................
c..................................................................................
d..................................................................................

116
ANNEXE 3

TABLE OF SCORES

Student Positive nominations Negative nominations Scores

initials
+1=4 +2=3 +3=2 +4=1 -1=4p -2=3p -3=2p -4=1p + - Total
p p p p
A.A.M. T.B.M. N.L.P. F.L.I. S.D.G. B.A.M. B.M.S. R.I.M. O.I.L. 9 0 9
B.M.S. F.L.I. C.B.G. G.D.G. M.R.G. P.A.M. S.D.G. P.C.M. B.W.A. 3 50 -47
B.W.A. R.I.M. C.V.F. J.R.G. C.B.G. P.C.M. G.A.M. B.M.S. P.G.M. 2 9 -7
B.R.M. G.D.G. A.A.M. M.R.G. S.D.A. P.G.M. P.C. B.M.S. G.A.M. 16 1 15
B.A.M. B.R.M. F.L.I. S.D.G. G.D.G. P.C. P.G.M. B.W.A. O.I.L. 0 8 -8
C.V.F. G.A.M. R.I.M. C.B.G. B.W.A. P.G.M. B.M.S. P.C.M. P.C. 3 4 -1
C.B.G. R.I.M. F.L.I. A.A.M. S.D.G. B.M.S. B.W.A. P.G.M. P.C. 22 1 21
F.L.I. S.D.G. G.D.G. T.B.M. A.A.M. C.V.F. P.G.M. B.M.S. B.R.M. 40 7 33
G.D.G. F.L.I. S.D.A. B.R.M. T.B.M. B.M.S. P.C. P.G.M. J.R.G. 15 6 9
G.A.M. C.B.G. F.L.I. P.C.M. S.D.G. B.M.S. P.G.M. P.C. B.W.A. 9 5 4
J.R.G. R.I.M. C.B.G. B.R.M. O.I.L. B.M.S. P.G.M. P.C. G.A.M. 8 6 2
M.R.G. S.D.A. F.L.I. S.D.G. A.A.M. B.M.S. P.C. P.G.M. J.R.G. 14 0 14
N.L.P. F.L.I. T.B.M. S.D.G. C.B.G. P.G.M. P.C. G.D.G. P.C.M. 4 0 4
O.I.L. P.A.M. M.R.G. R.I.M. G.D.G. F.L.I. T.B.M. S.D.G. S.D.A. 5 2 3
P.C. B.R.M. M.R.G. S.D.A. F.L.I. G.D.G. P.A.M. S.D.G. B.M.S. 0 35 -35
P.G.M. G.A.M. B.M.S. B.R.M. B.W.A. T.B.M. F.L.I. B.A.M. C.B.G. 0 46 -46
P.C.M. R.I.M. J.R.G. C.B.G. G.A.M. B.M.S. P.G.M. B.W.A. P.C. 2 13 -11
P.A.M. O.I.L. J.R.G. B.R.M. G.D.G. B.M.S. T.B.M. P.C.M. B.A.M. 4 7 -3
R.I.M. C.B.G. F.L.I. S.D.G. T.B.M. P.G.M. P.C. B.M.S. B.A.M. 21 2 19
S.D.A. M.R.G. F.L.I. A.A.M. G.D.G. J.R.G. P.C. P.G.M. B.M.S. 10 1 9
S.D.G. T.B.M. F.L.I. C.B.G. M.R.G. P.C. P.G.M. B.M.S. P.C.M. 18 7 11
T.B.M. F.L.I. S.D.G. G.D.G. N.L.P. B.M.S. P.G.M. P.C. P.C.M. 15 10 5

LEGEND:
+/-1 =4 p………….……position 1 with 4 points
+/-2 =3 p……………….position 2 with 3 points

117
+/-3 =2 p……………….position 3 with 2 points
+/- 4 =1 p……………… position 4 with 1 point

118
 ANNEXE 4
THE SOCIOMATRIC MATRIX (FOR POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE NOMINATIONS)

Students A. B. B. B. B. C. C. F. G. G. J. M. N. O. P. P. P. P. R. S. S. T. C C
A. M. W. R. A. V. B. L. D. A. R. R. L. I. C. G. C. A. I. D. D. B. E S
M. S. A. M. M. F. G. I. G. M. G. G. P. L. M. M. M. M. A. G. M. E¹ E²
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
A.A.M. 1 -3 -4 +2 +3 -1 -2 +1 +4 1 0,38
B.M.S. 2 -1 +3 +4 +2 +1 -2 -4 -3 1 0,38
B.W.A. 3 -2 +3 +1 -3 +2 -1 -4 +4 1 0,38
B.R.M. 4 +3 -2 +4 -1 +2 -3 -4 +1 1 0,38
B.A.M. 5 -2 +4 +3 +1 -1 -4 -3 +2 1 0,38
C.V.F. 6 -3 +1 +2 +4 -1 -4 -2 +3 1 0,38
C.B.G. 7 +2 -4 -3 +3 -1 -2 +4 +1 1 0,38
F.L.I. 8 +1 -2 -1 -4 +3 -3 +4 +2 1 0,38
G.D.G. 9 -4 +2 +4 -1 -3 -2 +3 +1 1 0,38
G.A.M. 10 -4 -1 +4 +3 -2 -3 +2 +1 1 0,38
J.R.G. 11 -4 +2 +3 -1 +1 -2 -3 +4 1 0,38
M.R.G. 12 +1 -4 +3 -1 -3 -2 +4 +2 1 0,38
N.L.P. 13 +1 +4 -2 -3 -4 -1 +2 +3 1 0,38
O.I.L. 14 -4 +1 +3 +4 +2 -1 -2 -3 1 0,38
P.C. 15 -1 +4 +1 -4 +3 -3 +2 -2 1 0,38
P.G.M. 16 +3 +1 +2 -2 -1 -3 +4 -4 1 0,38
P.C.M. 17 -4 -2 +2 +1 +3 -1 -3 +4 1 0,38
P.A.M. 18 -4 +2 -1 +1 +3 +4 -2 -3 1 0,38
R.I.M. 19 -2 -1 +4 +3 -3 -4 +2 +1 1 0,38
S.D.A. 20 +2 -1 +3 +1 -4 +4 -3 -2 1 0,38
S.D.G. 21 -2 +2 +3 +1 -4 -3 -1 +4 1 0,38
T.B.M. 22 -4 +4 +2 +1 -2 -3 -1 +3 1 0,38
Nr. of positive/
negative P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N
nominations 5/0 1/17 2/5 6/1 0/4 1/1 9/1 13/2 8/2 3/3 3/3 6/0 2/0 2/2 0/14 0/16 1/7 1/2 6/1 4/1 9/3 6/3

CSS³ 0,23 0,04 0,09 0,28 0 0,04 0,42 0,61 0,38 0,14 0,14 0,28 0,09 0,09 0 0 0,04 0,0 0,28 0,19 0,42 0,2
4 8

CPS4 5/21 -16/ -3/ 5/21 -4/ 0/21 8/21 11/ 6/21 0/21 0/21 6/21 2/21 0/21 -14/ -16/ -6/ -1/ 5/21 3/21 6/21 3/
21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21

1. The Coefficient of Emotional Expansiveness

2. The Coefficient of Sociometric Expansiveness
3. The Coefficient of Sociometric Status
4. The Coefficient of Preference Status

119
 BAM
ANNEXE 5
Sociogram of positive nominations Mutual positive nominations
BWA
BMS
CVF
GAM
SDA
AAM

MRG
GDG
SDG

TBM
FLI

CBG

RIM BRM

PC
PAM
OIL
JRG NLP

PCM

PGM

120
 BAM
ANNEXE 6
Sociogram of positive nominations Individual positive nominations
BWA
BMS
CVF
GAM
SDA
AAM

MRG
GDG
SDG

TBM
FLI

CBG

RIM BRM

PC
PAM
OIL
JRG NLP

PCM

PGM

121
 BAM
ANNEXE 7
Sociogram of negative nominations Mutual negative nominations
BWA
BMS
CVF
GAM
SDA
AAM

MRG
GDG
SDG

TBM
FLI

CBG

RIM BRM

PC
PAM
OIL
JRG NLP

PCM

PGM

122
 BAM
ANNEXE 8
Sociogram of negative nominations Individual negative nominations
BWA
BMS
CVF
GAM
SDA
AAM

MRG
GDG
SDG

TBM
FLI

CBG

RIM BRM

PC
PAM
OIL
JRG NLP

PCM

PGM

123
ANNEXE 9
NAME:
CLASS:
TEST PAPER
I. Put the following words in the correct box: (2 points)
-lamp-swimming-handsome-cycling-desk-interesting-bookcase-dancing-young-lazy-
mirror-running-kind-reading-wardrobe-shy
Items in the house Free-time activities Describing people

II. Write the missing feminine correspondent for the following family members: (2
points)
husband =
father =
son =
uncle =
grandfather =
brother =

III. Complete this table of countries and nationalities: (1 point)

Country Nationality
Spain
the USA
Canadian
German
Greece
Italy
Portugal
Turkish
Argentinian
Polish

IV. Answer the following questions: (2 points)

1. What time did you finish school yesterday?

2. What did you do yesterday evening?

3. What time did you come to school this morning?

4. What was your first class this morning?

V. Write sentences with the following words: (2 points)

better –
nice –
more beautiful –
the smartest –
GOOD LUCK!

124
ANSWERS AND MARKING SCHEME FOR INITIAL TESTING:

I. 16 items*0,12 p = 2 points
Correct answers: Items in the house: lamp, wardrobe, desk, bookcase, mirror
Free-time activities: swimming, reading, cycling, dancing, running
Describing people: handsome, kind, interesting, shy, young, lazy
II. 6 items* 0,33 p = 2 points
Correct answers: husband ≠ wife
father ≠ mother
son ≠ daughter
uncle ≠ aunt
grandfather ≠ grandmother
brother ≠ sister
III. 10 items*0,1 p = 1 point
Correct answers: Spain – Spanish
The USA – American
Canada – Canadian
Germany – German
Greece – Greek
Italy – Italian
Portugal – Portuguese
Turkey – Turkish
Argentina – Argentinian
Poland - Polish
IV. 4 items*0,50 p = 2 points
Criteria for marking:
-task achievement – 0,10 points
-coherent and logical stream of ideas – 0,10 points
-language accuracy and variety – 0,10 points
-appropriate vocabulary – 0,20 points
V. 4 items*0,50 p = 2 points
Criteria for marking:
-task achievement – 0,10 points
-coherent and logical stream of ideas – 0,10 points
-language accuracy and variety – 0,10 points
-appropriate vocabulary – 0,20 points

125
ANNEXE 10
LESSON PLAN – Clothes

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

Time: 45 minutes
School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Clothes
Type of lesson: communication of new knowledge
Class: 7th A
Number of students: 22

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich their vocabulary with elements related to clothing
- to enable students to revise previously taught vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to become familiar with working in a group, sharing ideas and
making decisions
- to enable students to improve their skills of communicating in English
- to give students the chance to have some fun while learning English with the help
of game

Materials: the blackboard, chalk, the textbook, cards with numbers, worksheets,
dictionaries
Types of activities: T-Ss, S-Ss, Ss-S, S-S
Techniques: explanation, conversation, group work, game
Anticipated problems:
- students might feel reluctant to working in a group
- students might get very noisy
- students might not use English when working together
- students might have problems in understanding the rules of the game

Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids

activity activity
3’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
126
 checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
Correct it if
necessary
1’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the
blackboard lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
4’ Group Asks the Ss Choose a To set the Explanation Playing
organisation to choose a card Look for groups cards
card their partners
12’ Vocabulary Explains Brainstorm To check Brainstorming Worksheets
practice the purpose for words previous Explanation
Asks the Ss Divide words knowledge Speaking
to write into worn by To
down men / women introduce
words they summer / new
know winter vocabulary
connected
with
clothes
15’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Choose a To Explanation Worksheets
practice in each person from consolidate Discussion
group to their group to vocabulary
choose one describe
person to Guess the
describe person
his, her described
clothes
8’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Complete a To Explanation
practice - to sit in a short consolidate Speaking
game circle, sentence by vocabulary
complete adding a new To allow
an initial item each students to
short time have fun
sentence
4’ Homework Sets the Write a To practise Explanation Students’
and homework paragraph the new Written notebooks
evaluation Gives describing vocabulary assignment
students the clothes To give
feedback they wore feedback
on their that day on Ss’
work work

ANNEXE 11

127
ANNEXE 12
LESSON PLAN –The cube method

128
Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc
Time: 45 minutes
School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Clothes
Type of lesson: consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7th A
Number of students: 22

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich their vocabulary with elements related to clothing
- to enable students to revise previously taught vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to become familiar with working in a group, sharing ideas and
making decisions
- to enable students to improve their skills of communicating in English
- to give students the chance to have some fun while learning English with the help
of games

Materials: the blackboard, chalk, the textbook, cards with numbers, worksheets,
dictionaries
Types of activities: T-Ss, S-Ss, Ss-S, S-S
Techniques: explanation, conversation, group work, game
Anticipated problems:
- students might feel reluctant to working in a group
- students might get very noisy
- students might not use English when working together
- students might have problems in understanding the rules of the game

Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids

129
 activity activity
3’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
Correct it if
necessary
1’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the
blackboard lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
2’ Group Asks the Ss Choose a To set the Explanation Cards
organization to choose a card Look for groups
card their partners
Explains
the purpose
25’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Solve the To practise Brainstorming A cube
practice – the in each question vocabulary Explanation Worksheets
cube group to written on the To practise Speaking
throw the cube side working in
cube, read they chose a team
the task,
solve it
7’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Sit in a circle To Explanation
practice to sit in a Say a word consolidate Game
Buzz! circle connected vocabulary
Gives with clothes To allow
instructions Say Buzz! students to
When they have fun
do not know
a word
3’ Homework Sets the Write a To practise Explanation Students’
and homework paragraph the new Written notebooks
evaluation Gives describing vocabulary assignment
students the clothes To give
feedback their feedback
on their deskmate on Ss’
work wore that day work

ANNEXE 13
130
CUBE – CLOTHES
Step 1: Cut out the shape.
Step 2: Fold along the lines.
Step 3: Tuck and glue the

gray tabs inside the cube.

DESCRIBE

COMPARE ANALYSE ASSOCIATE

APPLY

GIVE
ARGUMENTS
FOR/AGAINST

131
ANNEXE 14

CLOTHES
DESCRIBE: colours, shape, size
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………..
Group:
COMPARE: what is similar, what is different
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Group:
ANALYSE: what are they made of
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Group:
ASSOCIATE: what do they make you think of
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Group:
APPLY: what are they used for? What can you do with them?
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Group:
GIVE ARGUMENTS: for or against and give reasons for your choices
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Group:

132
ANNEXE 15
CLOTHES

DESCRIBE: small, different colours, different shapes, essential

COMPARE: we wear clothes to keep warm, we wear shoes to protect ourselves

against bad weather

ANALYSE: made of cotton, wool, leather, synthetic materials

ASSOCIATE: we think of fashion, colours, shopping, going out, dating

APPLY: we use them for gifts, make / design clothes

GIVE ARGUMENTS FOR / AGAINST: - good for different seasons; if we want to

look good
- expensive, might not fit

133
ANNEXE 16

LESSON PLAN –Clothes

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

Time: 90 minutes
School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Clothes
Type of lesson: communication /consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7th B
Number of students: 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich their vocabulary with elements related to clothing
- to enable students to revise previously taught vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to improve their skills of communicating in English
- to enable students to improve their writing skills

Materials: the blackboard, chalk, the textbook, worksheets

Types of activities: T-Ss, S-T
Techniques: explanation, conversation, crosswords
Anticipated problems:
- students might get very noisy
- students might fin the crosswords difficult
- some students might have problems writing sentences in English

134
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
3’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
2’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the
blackboard lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
13’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Look for To check Explanation Worksheets
practice to look for words previous Translation The
words Write knowledge blackboard
connected unknown To Students’
with words introduce notebooks
clothes in a Ask the new
wordsquare teacher for vocabulary
Gives the translation
Romanian
translation
20’ Written Asks the Ss Write a To Explanation Students’
practice to write paragraph consolidate Discussion notebooks
sentences describing vocabulary
with what their clothes
they are
wearing
that day
5’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Write from To Explanation Students’
practice to write a memory the consolidate notebooks
list of new words vocabulary
words connected to
related to clothes and
the topic parts of
clothes
Write the
Romanian
translation
2’ Homework Sets the Choose 10 To practise Explanation Students’
and homework new words to the new Written notebooks
evaluation Gives write vocabulary assignment
students sentences To give
feedback with feedback
on their on Ss’
work work

135
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
4’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
Correct it if
necessary
2’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the
blackboard lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
12’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Draw a chart To Explanation Students’
practice To divide write and consolidate notebooks
vocabulary categorise vocabulary
into clothes words To practise
worn by using the
men, new
women, in vocabulary
summer, in
winter
25’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Solve To practise Explanation Worksheets
practice to solve a individually a the new Crosswords
clothes crossword vocabulary
crossword, and a puzzle
a clothes
puzzle
2’ Homework Sets the Write a To improve Explanation Students’
and homework paragraph writing Written notebooks
evaluation Gives describing skills assignment
students the clothes To give
feedback their feedback
on their deskmate on Ss’
work wore that day work

136
ANNEXE 17

Find in the wordsquare words related to clothing items:

S H I R T O S I
J A C K E T H L
A T C J N J O T
T R O U S E R S
I D A M W A T H
E X T P U N S I
O D R E S S J R
S K I R T U P T
S U S U I T J E

Unscramble letters to find the correct items of clothing:

NAEJS
IRKTS
SERTUSRO
ETI
KSSOC

Choose the odd one out:

1. trousers socks jeans T-shirt
2. blouse skirt tie dress
3. T-shirt suit shorts trainers

NAME:
WHAT AM I WEARING TODAY?
Today I am wearing .……………………..
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………

137
Clothes Word Search Puzzle

Bl_ _ se

C__t

Dr _ s _

H_t

J_ ck _ t

J_an _

P_ nt_

Shi_ t

Sh_e _

Sh_ rt_

Sne_k _ rs

138
S_ ck _

S_ ngl_s_e _

Sw_at _r

139
140
ANNEXE 18

LESSON PLAN – Valentine’s Day

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

Time: 2 weeks
School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Valentine’s Day
Type of lesson: communication /consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7th A
Number of students: 22

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich their vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to find information on their own
- to enable students to select the information that they needed for their project
- to allow students to divide their responsibilities within the group
- to motivate students to get involved and get a higher mark for their project

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, dictionaries, Internet, magazines

Types of activities: T-Ss, S-Ss, Ss-S, Ss-T, S-T
Techniques: explanation, conversation, group work, presentation, project
Problems:
- some students from the experimental group missed some classes because they
were on competitions and in some cases the projects took longer than anticipated

141
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
2’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Listening The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the lesson
blackboard
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
2 Project Sets the Look for To allow Explanation Worksheets
classe presentation task information students to look Speaking Magazines
s Gives about the for relevant Presentation Internet
instructions topic information Dictionary
Presents Present their To allow
project project students to
assessment share
criteria responsibilities
Asks each
group to
present
their
information
Asks each
group to
explain
their
division of
tasks

142
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
2’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Listening The
title of the Pay attention students’ Speaking blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the
blackboard lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
Sets the
criteria of
assessment
for writing
a story
7’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Match split To Explanation Worksheets
practice in groups syllables introduce Discussion
to match new
split halves vocabulary
of words To
connected consolidate
with the vocabulary
topic
2 Project Asks the Ss Write a story in To practise Explanation Worksheets
classe presentation to write a their group new Project
s story using vocabulary
words from To improve
the writing
previous skills
exercise
Evaluation Listens to Read the story To improve Presentation Worksheets
the projects Explain how speaking Discussion
Assesses they divided and reading
the projects their skills
responsibilities

143
ANNEXE 19

Do The Research!

Valentine's Day
Directions: Research the topic indicated to the right and answer the questions below
based on that topic.

______________________________________

______________________________________
1. Who celebrates
Valentine's Day?
______________________________________

______________________________________

______________________________________
2. How is Valentine's Day
celebrated? Describe its ______________________________________
traditions.
______________________________________
 
______________________________________

______________________________________
3. Why is this holiday
celebrated? Describe its ______________________________________
origin.
______________________________________
 
__________________________

Name ________________________
Date ____________________

144
ANNEXE 20
VALENTINE DAY’S PROJECT CRITERIA

20 POINTS –task achievement

20 POINTS – correct grammar

20 POINTS – varied vocabulary

20 POINTS – equal participation of all members in the project

20POINTS – originality

Nr. Task Correct Varied Equal Originality

Crt achievement grammar vocabulary participation
20 points 20 points 20 points 20 points 20 points
GROUP 1

GROUP 2

GROUP 3

GROUP 4

GROUP 5

145
ANNEXE 21
VALENTINE'S DAY CHOP WORKSHEET

Directions: The table below contains words that have been chopped in half. Find the
pieces that fit together and write them in the answer area below.

heart arm dles wers

Pa Vale eet ndy
end Sweet He mise
ft For oy ntine
pe Ca rd Ho
pid rty iday Ca
Fri ever Flo J
Pro Cu art Lo
Ch ity Li olate
Gi Choc ve ke
Sw Hol Un Rid

Answers:

……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
………………………………………

Name _______________
Date _____________

146
ANNEXE 22

Valentine's Day Group Creative Writing

Directions: As a group, you have 25 minutes to write a brief story using the words or
variations of the words below.

Candy Flowers Joy Valentine

Card Forever Like Sweetheart

Charm Friend Love Unity

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

147
ANNEXE 23

VALENTINE DAY’S STORY CRITERIA

20 POINTS –task achievement

20 POINTS- text organization

20 POINTS – correct grammar and varied vocabulary

20 POINTS – equal participation of all members in the project

20 POINTS – originality

Nr. Task Text Correct Equal Originality

Crt achievement organisatio grammar/ participation
20 points n varied 20 points 20 points
20 points vocabulary
20 points
GROUP
1

GROUP
2

GROUP
3

GROUP
4

GROUP
5

148
ANNEXE 24

LESSON PLAN –Valentine’s Day

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Title of the leson: Valentine’s Day
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7th B
Time: 90 minutes
Number of students: 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to improve their reading and speaking skills
- to enable students to improve their writing skills

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, dictionaries

Types of activities: T-Ss, S-T, Ss-T, S-T
Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion, translation
Anticipated problems:
- the story might not interest some students due to possibly too many unknown words

149
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
3’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
Correct it if
necessary
2’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on the attention Chalk
blackboard to the lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
15’ Text reading Asks the Ss Read the To improve Reading Worksheets
to read a story reading skills Translation The
story about Write To introduce blackboard
Valentine’s unknown new vocabulary Students’
day words notebooks
Gives the Ask the
Romanian teacher for
translation translation
10’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Translate the To check Translation Students’
practice to translate text reading Discussion notebooks
(text the text into comprehension
translation) Romanian
10’ Reading Asks the Write To check Discussion Worksheet
comprehension students to individually reading
Vocabulary write answers answers to comprehension
practice to questions questions
related to the
text
5’ Homework Sets the Choose 10 To consolidate Explanation Students’
and evaluation homework words from vocabulary Written notebooks
Gives the reading assignment
students text to write
feedback on sentences
their work

150
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
8’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
Correct it if
necessary
1’ Focus on Writes the Write the To catch Speaking The
title of the title students’ blackboard
lesson on the Pay attention Chalk
blackboard attention to the lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
30’ Reading Asks the Ss Ss answer, To assess Question- Students’
comprehension questions translate, Reading Answer notebooks
assessment about the text summarise comprehension Explanation
Asks Ss to the reading Translation
translate text Summary
paragraphs
from the text
4’ Vocabulary Asks Ss to Solve tasks To consolidate Explanation Worksheets
practice unscramble vocabulary
letters to find
missing
words; match
split syllables
2’ Homework and Sets the Write a few To improve Explanation Students’
evaluation homework sentences writing skills Written notebooks
Gives motivating To give assignment
students whether feedback
feedback on they like or on Ss’ work
their work not
Valentine’s
Day

151
ANNEXE 25

Reading Comprehension Worksheet - Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day was probably imported into North America in the 19th century by
British settlers. In the United States, the first mass-produced valentines of embossed
paper lace were produced and sold shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland (1828-1904)
of Worcester, Massachusetts. Her father operated a large book and stationery store, and
she took her inspiration from an English valentine she had received. Since 2001, the
Greeting Card Association has been giving an annual "Esther Howland Award for a
Greeting Card Visionary".

In the second half of the 20th century, the practice of exchanging cards was extended to
all manners of gifts in the United States, usually from a man to a woman. Such gifts
typically include roses and chocolates. In the 1980s, the diamond industry began to
promote Valentine's Day as an occasion for giving jewelry.

In some North American elementary schools, students are asked to give a Valentine card
or small gift to everyone in the class. The greeting cards of these students often mention
what they appreciate about each other. Though this practice has been criticized for
possibly being irrelevant or inappropriate, it has continued for decades.

1. Which country is credited for importing the Valentine's Day tradition to North
America?
…………………………………………………………………………………………
2. In which time period did people start exchanging more than just greeting cards for
Valentine's Day? (Circle one.)

1750 - 1800, 1801- 1850,1851 - 1900, 1901 - 1950,1951 - 2000, 2000 on

152
3. What gifts, besides cards, are commonly exchanged during Valentine's Day?
…………………………………………………………………………………………..
4. What will you write on your greeting card to your best friend?
………………………………………………………………………………………

ANNEXE 26

Valentine's Day: Word Scramble Worksheet 

Unscramble the words below:

1) ayCdn __________________________

2) arCd __________________________

3) hrmCa __________________________

4) hacoltoCe __________________________

5) uipCd __________________________

6) Ferlwos __________________________

7) veroerF __________________________

8) inFedr __________________________

9) tGif __________________________

10) eartH __________________________

11) Hadloiy __________________________

12) peHo __________________________

13) oJy __________________________

14) kiLe __________________________

15) veoL __________________________

16) raPyt __________________________

17) Prmosei __________________________

18) iddslRe __________________________

153
19) Seetw __________________________

20) eehttwaeSr __________________________

21) inUty __________________________

22) nalnetVei __________________________

Valentine's Day Word Search Worksheet 

Directions: All words are positioned left to right.

L T BML HY P F R I E ND N
Q I WK F O B S E L D D I R P
T P K Y A P S E S I MO R P N
F T R E B E V Z F L OW E R S
MYC F OR EVERUAZN B
L Z C H O C O L A T E A AM R
X WW Y M Q O K R G Y W A P X
V P L K U R F U H P Q T WC G
S XHOD E OAOBA L Z O I
B N E Y V T UWL Q U R MO F
Q CAYKE T E I EKXTB T
M P R Y P U M Q DWX P J Y K
Z C T I SWF J AR S XOH U
W R N A W Y X Y Y L MW Y B G
C U P I D J R CHGNG J V Z

Chocolate Friend Hope Party

Cupid Gift Joy Promise

Flowers Heart Like  

Forever Holiday Love  

ANNEXE 27
NAME:
CLASS:
DATE:
TEST PAPER

I. Rearrange the words in the correct order: (2 points)

1. expensive/ not/ my/ very/ clothes/ are.

2. a/ green/ I / bought/ jacket/ have

154
3. the/ my/ is/ table/ father’s/ under/ hat

4. blue/ my/ wearing/ trousers/ sister/ is

II. Write a sentence in English with the following words: (3 points)

Gift:
Flowers:
Chocolate:
Heart:
Love:
Happy:
III. Put the following words in the correct box: (2 points)
Shoes, blouse, gloves, pullover, trousers, hat, T-shirt, shirt, skirt, dress, jeans, trainers,
socks, jacket, coat, sunglasses, cap, suit, shorts, boots

ONE ITEM A PAIR

IV. Answer the following questions in a full sentence: (3 points)

1. What do your wear on your hands when it is cold outside?

2. What do women wear at a wedding?

3. What does an old man wear on the head?

4. What kind of shoes do you wear when you go jogging?

5. What does a man wear at a wedding with his suit and shirt/

6. What do you wear when you walk in mud and it is raining outside?
ANSWERS AND MARKING SCHEME FOR SUMMATIVE TESTING:

I. 4 items*0,5 p = 2 points
Correct answers: 1. My clothes are not very expensive.
2. I have bought a green jacket.
3. My father’s hat is under the table.
4. My sister is wearing blue trousers.

II. 4 items*0,50 p = 2 points

Criteria for marking:
-task achievement – 0,10 points

155
-coherent and logical stream of ideas – 0,10 points
-language accuracy and variety – 0,10 points
-appropriate vocabulary – 0,20 points

III. 20 items*0,1 p = 2 points

Correct answers: One item: blouse, pullover, hat, T-shirt, shirt, skirt, dress, jacket, coat,
cap, suit
A pair: shoes, gloves, trousers, jeans, trainers, socks, sunglasses,
shorts, boots

IV. 4 items*0,50 p = 2 points

Criteria for marking:
-task achievement – 0,10 points
-coherent and logical stream of ideas – 0,10 points
-language accuracy and variety – 0,10 points
-appropriate vocabulary – 0,20 points

ANNEXE 28

LESSON PLAN –Food / Jobs

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Title of the leson: Food / Jobs
Textbook: Snapshot Pre- Intermediate
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge

156
Class: 7th A
Time: 45 minutes
Number of students: 22

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to practise working in groups
- to enable students to improve their writing skills

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, dictionaries

Types of activities: T-Ss, S-Ss, Ss-S, Ss-T
Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion, puzzle, group work
Obs.: a similar plan was used for the vocabulary concerning body parts (worksheets are
in Annexe 36)

Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids

activity activity
2’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
1’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on the attention Chalk
blackboard to the lesson
and
announces

157
 the aims of
the lesson
15’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Ss in groups To introduce Explanation Worksheets
practice to categorise categorise new Brainstorming The
words words vocabulary Discussion blackboard
connected Connected with To practise Students’
with food / food / jobs working with notebooks
Asks students Brainstorm for the new
to brainstorm words vocabulary
for words connected with
connected jobs
with jobs,
categorise
them
25’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Ss match To practise Exercises Worksheets
practice to categorise sentences to topic related Puzzle
sentences by facts or vocabulary
whether they opinions
fact or Students write
opinion sentences using
Asks Ss to the
use the comparative
comparative Ss in groups
Asks the Ss answer
to work on a questions to
job puzzle complete a
puzzle
2’ Homework Sets the Ss categorise To Explanation Students’
and homework words into consolidate Written notebooks
evaluation Gives healthy / the new assignment
students unhealthy food, vocabulary
feedback on hot / cold To improve
their work Write a writing skills
paragraph
about their
future job

ANNEXE 29

158
 FACTS OR OPINIONS?
It is important to be able to tell if a text is giving
Taste Colour Origin facts (information that is true) or opinions (that is what
Shape Texture a person thinks but which may or may not be true).
Opinion The importance comes from how a person can be
Factual description persuaded to embrace one part or another

1. Complete the diagram with food adjectives. Use the words below:
- sweet, sour, creamy, delicious, green, crunchy, cylindrical, round, spicy, hot, cold, warm, oval, soft,
crumbly, oily, crispy, hard, fluffy, chewy, disgusting, healthy, salty, bitter, fattening, fizzy, juicy,
tasty, stale, sticky.

TASTE COLOUR ORIGIN

SHAPE TEXTURE
FOOD

FACTS OPINION

Write at least five foods or drinks you like Write at least five foods or drinks you dislike
and justify your choice using food adjectives. and justify your choice using food adjectives.
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_______________________________________ _______________________________________
_________ __________ D
L I
I S
K L
E I
S K
E

159
1.Read the sentences and decide if they express a fact or 2.The following adjectives describe food.
an opinion. Mark them “F”(fact) or “O” (opinion). Write the names of at least two foods or
drinks next to the adjectives that could
- A pear is a fruit. Pears are often juicy and describe them. You can use the words in
sweet. They can be yellow, green or pinky. the box more than once.
- I think that melons are sweeter than honey crisps tomato potato coffee tea
oranges. sausages orange cola pizza chocolate
- White chocolate is the most tasty snack milkj lemon peppers ice-cream carrots
ever invented. chilli onion lemonade
- Chocolate is made from cocoa beans and Sweet ______________________________
milk. Sour _______________________________
- Crisps are thin slices of potato fried in oil. Bitter ______________________________
- I think milk is the most disgusting drink Tasty ______________________________
Spicy _______________________________
on Earth. Fizzy _______________________________
- There is no other more fattening food than Crunchy ____________________________
cakes in the world. Crispy ______________________________
- Tomato is a vegetable. When ripe it’s red Salty _______________________________
or yellow and it tastes slightly sweet. It’s Fattening ___________________________
also very juicy. Healthy _____________________________
Appetising __________________________

3.What do you think of these foods? Write sentences using “too”, “very” and “(not) enough”. Use
food adjectives to express your opinion.

coffee without sugar, cream, honey, lemons, chocolate, yoghurt, lemonade, green tea

______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
_______________________________

160
4. Give your opinion about the following pairs of foods or drinks.

crisps/biscuit Sausages/pizza
s salty

cola/lemonade
sweet chilli/pepp
er
hot

cream/youghurt honey/ja
sour m
sweet

milk/coffee
filling
Crisps are saltier than pizza.
Sausages are not as salty as crisps.
Crisps are the saltiest food here.
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………………………
5. Rewrite the sentences so they have the same meaning. Write if you agree or you
disagree with these statements.
Cocoa is worse for you than tea.
______________________________________________
Cars are safer for you than bikes.
______________________________________________
Watching TV is more relaxing than walking.
______________________________________________
Riding a race car is more exciting than riding a bike.
______________________________________________
Dresses are nicer than skirts.
______________________________________________
Comics are more interesting than books.
______________________________________________
Ham is father than sausages.
______________________________________________
Honey is more expensive than peanut butter.

161
ANNEXE 30

162
ANNEXE 31

163
ANNEXE 32

LESSON PLAN –Food / Jobs

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: I’m here to work / You ought to try them
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7th B
Time: 45 minutes
Number of students: 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary related to the topic
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to improve their reading skills
- to enable students to improve their writing skills
- to enable students to select relevant information
- to enable students to have fun solving puzzles

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, the textbook

Types of activities: T-Ss, Ss-T, S-T, T-S
Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion, discovery, translation, puzzle
Obs.: a similar lesson plan was used used for the vocabulary concerning body parts
(worksheets are in Annexe 36)

164
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
2’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
1’ Focus on Writes the title Write the title To catch Speaking The
of the lesson Pay attention students’ blackboard
on the attention Chalk
blackboard and to the lesson
announces the
aims of the
lesson
10’ Text reading Asks Ss to read Read the text To introduce Explanation The
a text related to Write new vocabulary Discussion textbook
food / jobs unknown To improve The
Gives the words reading skills blackboard
Romanian Students’
translation of notebooks
unknown
words
15’ Reading Asks the Ss Ss translate To check Explanation The
comprehension To translate the the text reading Translation textbook
text Answer comprehension
Asks the Ss to questions
answer
questions about
the text
15’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss to Categorise/ To consolidate Discussion Worksheets
practice solve a food Choose the new Discovery
crossword, to Solve vocabulary
categorise / crosswords
choose food
related words
Asks the Ss to
solve a job
puzzle
2’ Homework and Sets the Write a To improve Explanation Students’
evaluation homework paragraph writing skills Written notebooks
Gives students about their assignment
feedback on future job
their work

165
ANNEXE 33
FOOD SEARCH/WORD ASSOCIATION

K E K O F C U R A E P E S E E H C B Y V S N D W N W F W B U T T
E R E Y V O I X H O N G N I B O R O Z H C L K L I M L O X Z N O
X C A S A E H N A M A E M P M P X N W B M M R C T G A E M E W U
E Q E G G S J E A I U P O R L C L A R K E F A P K E U I S O E O
R P S Y C D O V O N P R Q Q K T N G B U B I U N D S S C F I S H
A A Q N A G H A I U C E W R W W H W S T W A N C R O R Q G O A M
I V T B T O B M A B N I Z A X T Q Q O C Z O U E E X N S A K S G
S W R E G K M N X S E D A N G U R F R E R D H A G P A K F A T J
A C A Q C N A P T B E A N S C A B S C I I U M Y Z O D A I Z B T
F

Find these words in the puzzle and put them under the right table below.

banana
fish
peas
beans
ham
pear
beef
lemon
plum
butter
mango
potatoes
carrots
melon
sausages
cheese
milk
star fruit
chicken
onions
tomato
durian
peach

166
watermelon

Fruits
Vegetables
Dairy
Meat

1. Banana 1. Carrots 1. Milk

1. Sausage

167
ANNEXE 34

Test Your Vocabulary Skills

Food

Put a tick next to the item of food. Use a dictionary to find words that you don't know

1. a) cake b) Argentina c) football d) read

2. a) lesson b) biscuit c) trumpet d) James

3. a) foot b) Manchester United c) nurse d) spaghetti

4. a) boy b) ice-cream c) really d) fog

5. a) taxi b) banana c) next week d) actor

6. a) toast b) helpful c) jacket d) obvious

7. a) today b) fish c) nice d) pavement

8. a) snowman b) feel c) crisps d) daughter

9. a) potato b) swim c) fair d) blue

168
10. a) happy b) eat c) sausage d) washing up liquid

ANNEXE 35

JOBS / PLACES / VEHICLES SEARCH

N U E N T S I T N E D B Z H G
I B K J V G O O N P Q V O T P
T T I M P H O S P I T A L O I
S H B O O L O O H C S F S W T
Q H R N S T F C B Y A T R A N
L A O U T O Q I R O O Y X H W
W I T R A L V A R F O I A C P
Y R O S L I C T F E D J L J O
Z G M E W P F I Q R T I B V S
A Z H L O E C D I Z N R V R P
Z H T M R E Y V B I D U U L V
T Q W I K Q E L C K O C A C O
W F A K E R X O M U F N Q F K
P F N D R N M B C W E D E U B

169
 L O M H E L I C O P T E R H P
Car clinic dentist pilot
Fire truck helicopter hospital plane
Motorbike motorbike nurse postal worker
Post office school taxi driver

JOBS PLACES VEHICLES

ANNEXE 36

Human Body Word Chop Worksheet

Directions: The table below contains words that have been chopped in half. Find the
pieces that fit together and write them in the answer area below.

ne eg kn fa

fo a ye ch

shou rm nd e

ck he ba ce

l ee uth e

ot mo ha est

ad ck ar no

lder se

Answers:

________________________ ________________________

170
 ________________________ ________________________
________________________ ________________________
________________________ ________________________
________________________ ________________________
________________________ ________________________
________________________ ________________________
________________________ ________________________

Name ________________________

Date ____________________
 

Human Body Word Scramble

 
Unscramble the words below:

1. odlbo________________

2. uklls________________

3. snipe________________

4. bone________________

5. mcusle________________

6. iskn________________

7. arhi________________

8. teteh________________

9. eldshrou________________

10. tghhi________________

Name _______________

171
Date _____________
 

Human Body Word Search Worksheet

 
Directions: All words are positioned left to right, right to left, and diagonally.

BKQAMRHEADGCRHPPRVVJ J I B
LLSLHNZGEFEXBTQKI GAYDUI
BI NFVLTWPYYKYUBWYI I CTYH
BETPYHXRHWEEROI UECUYBI L
RQGVVKZFKFAQEMFNLNZFQOI
CYKWKGUCVRABZCTTTSOXEKO
KJDQUHPVENPESODMHOEHI P J
MMKGALVEI COEQFPOTI VWEVG
QQSWEXCNJ ESSZLUYBCLCYRQ
CHEGHANDWROFELPMWAVJ PPV
GJSOFSHBLKQFDUXNI RMWYWY
LHZEYXYWKSMEORQCCRGMWQY
MNUVOYVHFORIGMZMNJZNOLA
AGLMMXZBYOSELNSTI BXBDGQ
ZZJFBFCHESTEMHESDQEZQKJ
QKEGJ PBACKHRSGYCATKI ZNO
KNEEI KYTGEAHKSKMKHOI SZA
VCNUWZCSYMLVSZPQI KI HSGV

KNEE EAR ARM MOUTH

SHOULDER CHEST LEG NOSE
BACK FOOT NECK HAND

172
 FACE EYE HEAD  

ANNEXE 37

LESSON PLAN – Jimmy’s Treasure

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Jimmy’s Treasure
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7thA / B
Time: 45 minutes
Number of students: 22 / 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to improve their reading skills
- to enable students to improve their writing skills
- to enable students to improve speaking skills

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, a cube

Types of activities: T-Ss, Ss-T, S-T, T-S
Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion, translation, group work
Obs.: the same activities and worksheets were used with both groups with the difference
that the control group solved the activities individually and they looked for unknown
words for which the teacher gave the Romanian translation ; as far as the cube method is
concerned, the control group had the information from the cube sides written on the
blackboard

173
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
5’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
1’ Focus on Writes the Correct it if To catch Speaking The blackboard
title of the necessary students’ Chalk
lesson on the Write the title attention
blackboard Pay attention to the lesson
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
10’ Text reading Asks Ss to Read the text To introduce Explanation Worksheets
read the Write new vocabulary Discussion Students’
story; to look unknown To improve notebooks
for unknown words reading skills
words
10’ Reading Asks the Ss Ss translate To check Explanation Worksheets
comprehension to translate the text reading Translation
the text comprehension
5’ Reading Asks the Ss Answer To check Discussion Worksheets
comprehension to answer questions reading
questions Solve comprehension
about the text vocabulary
exercises
12’ Reading Asks the Ss Throw the To improve Explanation A cube
comprehension to throw the cube speaking skills Discussion Worksheets
cube and Answer the
answer a question
question
2’ Homework and Sets the Write a To improve Explanation Students’
evaluation homework paragraph writing skills Written notebooks
Gives about assignment
students whether they
feedback on liked the
their work story or not

174
ANNEXE 38

Name:_______________________

Jimmy's Treasure

One night Jimmy fell asleep and had a

dream about a treasure. In his dream, he saw a big
box of gold coins buried near the bushes in his
backyard. The dream seemed so real to Jimmy. He
began to think that maybe there really was a
treasure in his backyard, near the bushes.

The next morning Jimmy woke up and began to dig a hole. He kept digging.
The hole got deeper. The pile of dirt became higher.

Then Jimmy got tired. He could not dig anymore. Then he saw something. It was
a dog bone. Jimmy was very sad because he did not find a treasure. For all his hard
work, he had found only a dog bone.

But then, Jimmy’s mother came. She saw what Jimmy had done. She wanted to
plant a rose bush in the backyard. The hole Jimmy dug was in the perfect place. She
was very happy. She gave him five dollars for digging the hole. Jimmy smiled. He did
get a treasure after all.

175
Name:_______________________

Jimmy's Treasure

1. Why did Jimmy think there was real treasure in

his backyard?

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

2. What did Jimmy find in the dirt?

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

3. How did Jimmy's mother feel when she found out that Jimmy dug a hole in the
backyard? Why did she feel this way?

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

4. What did Jimmy's mom give him at the end of the story?

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

176
ANNEXE 39

Story Cube
Step 1: Cut out the shape.
Step 2: Fold along the lines.
Step 3: Tuck and glue the

gray tabs inside the cube.

Who are the
main characters
in this story?

Which
What is character is the What is the
the main most like setting of
problem in yourself? this story?
this story? Why?

177
Was this story funny,serious, scary, or sad, orhappy?
Why?

What is your favourite part of this story?

Why?

178
 ANNEXE 40

LESSON PLAN –Surprise Party

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Surprise Party
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7thA / B
Time: 45 minutes
Number of students: 22 / 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary related to expressing feelings
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to improve their reading skills
- to enable students to improve their writing skills
- to enable students to improve speaking skills
- to familiarise students to working with a dictionary
- to allow students to select relevant information

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, dictionaries

Types of activities: T-Ss, S-Ss, Ss-S,Ss-T, S-T, T-S

Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion, translation, group work

Obs.: the same activities and worksheets were used with both groups with the difference that
the control group solved the activities individually and they looked for unknown words for which
the teacher gave the Romanian translation

Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids

179
 activity activity
2’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
Correct it if
necessary
1’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The blackboard
title of the Pay attention students’ Chalk
lesson on attention
the to the lesson
blackboard
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
5’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Divide adjectives To introduce new Explanation Worksheets
practice to categorise into positive and vocabulary
adjectives negative
expressing
feelings
10’ Text reading Asks Ss to Read the text To improve Explanation Worksheets
read the Underline reading skills Discussion Students’
story; to positive / To familiarise Ss notebooks
underline negative to working with
positive / adjectives the dictionary
negative Write unknown
adjectives to words
look for
unknown
words
10’ Reading Asks the Ss Ss translate the To check reading Translation Worksheets
comprehension to translate text; answer comprehension Discussion
the text; to questions
answer
questions
15’ Reading Asks the Ss Summarise the To select relevant Explanation Students’
comprehension to write the text information Discussion notebooks
summary; to Present it To improve
present it Choose the best speaking skills
one
2’ Homework and Sets the Write a To improve Explanation Students’
evaluation homework paragraph writing skills Written notebooks
Gives describing assignment
students themselves using
feedback on both positive ang
their work negative
adjectives

180
ANNEXE 41
Test Your Vocabulary Skills

Positive & Negative Words 2

Look at each word below and write P next to it if you think the meaning is positive and N if
you think the meaning is negative:

good
sad

unfortunate
love

poor
unkind
terrible
awful
pleasant
worst
weak
interesting
nasty
excellent
not
bad

disappointing
better

happy
clever
patient
tidy
strong

broad-minded
bad
unwell

181
ANNEXE 42

Name: __________________________________

Surprise Party
by Kelly Hashwa

Emma hung the streamers, not really paying attention to where she was
placing them. She was too disappointed to focus. After all, it was her
birthday too and no one in

her class had even said happy birthday. They were all busy planning the
surprise party for Mr. Stinton, the custodian.
Sure Mr. Stinton was great. He knew everyone’s birthday and made cards
and cookies for them. He high-fived you when you got an A on a test, and
he offered encouragement when you didn’t do as well as you’d wanted. Emma knew Mr. Stinton
deserved a surprise party, but she wished just one person would have remembered it was her
birthday too.
Emma glanced at the giant card the class had made. It was the length of the blackboard. Mr.
Stinton wouldn’t like it if they bought presents for him, so Emma had suggested the class make a
card and bake goodies just like he did for them. She’d spent a lot of time planning the surprise
party. She wanted Mr. Stinton to feel special.

182
“I’m going to call Mr. Stinton now,” Mrs. Bowman said. “Emma will you turn off the lights please?”

Mrs. Bowman called Mr. Stinton saying the lights in the classroom had gone out. As soon as Mrs.
Bowman hung up, Emma took one last look around the room and turned the lights off with a sigh.

Emma heard Mr. Stinton’s boots thumping down the hallway. The doorknob turned and Emma flicked
on the light. Everyone yelled, “Surprise!”

Mr. Stinton was surprised, but so was Emma. Mr. Stinton was carrying a bunch of balloons and a tray
of cookies.

“A surprise party for me?” Mr. Stinton said. He walked over to the giant card. “This is the most
beautiful card I’ve ever seen.” He turned to Emma and handed her a card. “It makes my birthday card
for you look kind of small.” He gave Emma the balloons and the tray of cookies. “Happy birthday,
Emma. I was so excited when I found out we have the same birthday.”

“Happy birthday, Emma,” her classmates said.

“I’m glad we share the same birthday, too,” Emma said, smiling at Mr. Stinton.

183
Name: _________________________________

Surprise Party
by Kelly Hashway

1. Why was Emma disappointed in

the beginning
of the story?
__________________________________
_____________

__________________________________
_____________

2.

Three Reasons Why

Everyone In The Class
Liked Mr.Stinton

3. Approximately how large was

Mr. Stinton's card?

a.
about two feet long
184
b.
about fifteen feet long
c.
about seventy feet long
d.
about twenty yards long

What is the author's purpose for

writing this story?

to teach readers how to throw a surprise

party

to persuade readers to throw surprise

parties for school custodians

to entertain us with a story about two

people that share a birthday

185
______________

Surprise Party
Vocabulary

Part 1: Reread “Surprise Party” by

Kelly Hashway.

As you read highlight the following

vocabulary words in the story.

streamers custodian encouragement

flicked
deserved glanced sigh

Part 2: Match each vocabulary word

on the left with its definition on the
right.

_______ 1.
streamers
a. positive, supportive words
_______ 2.
custodian
b. turned a switch on or off
_______ 3.
encouragement
c. breathe deeply and heavily
_______ 4.
deserved
d. party decorations made from paper
_______ 5.
glanced
e. looked quickly
_______ 6.
sigh
f. person who takes care of a building
_______ 7.

186
flicked
g. was worthy of

Part 3: Use a vocabulary word from

the list to complete each sentence.

Shannon _________________________
at her watch every few minutes.

The school
_________________________ fixed the
squeaky door.

Alex hung
_________________________ in the
house on his sister's birthday.

187
ANNEXE 43

LESSON PLAN –Diary of a Dancer

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Diary of a dancer
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7thA / B
Time: 45 minutes
Number of students: 22 / 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to improve their reading skills
- to enable students to improve their writing skills
- to enable students to improve speaking skills
- to familiarise students to working with a dictionary
- to allow students to select relevant information

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, dictionaries, glue, staplers, staples

Types of activities: T-Ss, Ss-T, S-T, T-S
Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion, translation, group work, puzzle
Obs.: the same activities and worksheets were used with both groups with the difference
that the control group solved the activities individually and they looked for
unknown words for which the teacher gave the Romanian translation

188
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
2’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
1’ Focus on Writes the Write the To catch Speaking The
title of the title students’ blackboard
lesson on Pay attention Chalk
the attention to the lesson
blackboard
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
10’ Reading Asks the Ss Reorder the To check Explanation Worksheets
comprehension to reorder 10 reading Puzzle Glue
the story fragments comprehension Staplers
which was of the story Staples
scrambled
10’ Text reading Asks Ss to Read the To improve Explanation Worksheets
read the text reading skills Discussion Students’
story; to Write To familiarise notebooks
look for unknown Ss to working
unknown words with the
words dictionary
7’ Reading Asks the Ss Ss translate To check Translation Worksheets
comprehension to translate the text reading Discussion
the text comprehension
8’ Reading Asks the Ss Ss answer To check Explanation Worksheets
comprehension to answer questions reading Discussion
questions; comprehension
to solve
vocabulary
exercises
5’ Reading Asks the Ss Complete a To improve Explanation Students’
comprehension to complete diagram of speaking skills Discussion notebooks
a diagram the story Worksheets
of the story
2’ Homework and Sets the Write the To improve Explanation Students’
evaluation homework summary of writing skills Written notebooks
Gives the story assignment
students
feedback
on their
work

189
ANNEXE 44
Name: __________________________________

Diary of a Dancer
by Kelly Hashway

Alicia carried the box to the attic and placed it next to all the other moving boxes. She couldn’t
believe how much stuff her grandparents had accumulated over the years. And they insisted on
bringing it all to their new house.

Alicia walked to the window and

peered down at the street below. The town was very quiet. Alicia’s grandparents’ had a pool at their
last house. This house was much smaller and the yard couldn’t fit a pool. But the attic was
interesting. It was a full room with a low ceiling. Alicia figured she could ask her grandparents if
she could put a chair up here and maybe a table, too. It wouldn’t be a bad place to hang out.

She saw a trunk in the corner and a book resting on the floor in front of it. Alicia picked up the
book. The cover was blank, so she flipped through the pages.

“A diary!” Alicia said. She sat down and started to read. The girl in the diary was amazing. She was
a dancer. Alicia had always wanted to take dance classes, but she wasn’t the most graceful person.
She worried she’d embarrass herself.

190
Alicia read the diary for a long time, until her grandmother walked into the attic room.

“What do you have there?” Grandma Maggie asked.

Alicia held up the diary. “I found this diary on top of the trunk. I think it belonged to the girl who used to
live here.”

Grandma Maggie shook her head. “No, sweetie. That’s my old diary, from when I was about your age.”

Alicia’s eyes widen. “You’re the girl in the diary? But she was a dancer.”

Grandma Maggie twirled across the attic. “Yes, I was. Looks like I still remember a few things, too.”

Alicia smiled. “I wish I knew how to dance.”

Grandma Maggie looked around the attic. “I think there will be enough room for a dance studio up here
after we go through all these boxes. What do you say you help me sort through all this stuff, and then I’ll
teach you a few things about dance?”

“That would be great!” Alicia said, opening the box closest to her.

191
 Name: ___________________________

Diary of a Dancer
by Kelly Hashway

What was Alicia doing at the beginning

of this story?
__________________________________
__________________________________
_________
__________________________________
__________________________________
_________

When Alicia began reading the diary, to

whom did she think it belonged?

a. her mother b. her aunt

c. her grandmother d. a girl she'd

never met

Where does this story take place?

in the attic of the home her grandparents

are moving away from

in the attic of the home her grandparents

are moving into

in the attic of Alicia's new home

in the studio where Alicia had learned to

dance

List the correct order of these events.

Write 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, ad 5th on the
lines.

__________ Alicia discovers that the

book was written by a dancer.

__________ Grandma Maggie offers to

teach her about dance.

192
__________ Alicia saw a book on the
floor.

__________ Grandma Maggie notices

Alicia reading the book.

__________ Alicia realizes the book is a

diary.

What type of story is this?

a.
non-fiction
b.
folk tale
c.
realistic fiction
d.
science fiction

193
Name: __________________________________

Diary of a Dancer
Vocabulary

Find a word from the story to match

each definition.

1. Meaning: collected over a long

period of time

Clues: 11 letters - second letter is

c - past tense verb

Answer: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

___ ___ ___ ___ ___

2. Meaning: looked

Clues: 6 letters - contains the long e

sound - past tense verb

Answer: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

Meaning: wouldn't take no for an

answer

Clues: 8 letters - begins with a short i

sound - past tense verb

Answer: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

___

Meaning: spun around and around

Clues: 7 letters - contains a letter w -

past tense verb

Answer: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

194
Meaning: place where an artist or dancer
works or learns

Clues: 6 letters - last two letters are

vowels - noun

Answer: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

ANNEXE 45
Name:
__________________________________
_____

Story:

__________________________________
________________

Author:
__________________________________
________________

Setting
Main Characters
Time: _______________________
____________________________
_______________________
____________________________
Place: _______________________
____________________________
_______________________
____________________________

195
ANNEXE 46

LESSON PLAN –Riddles / Analogies

Teacher: Ana-Maria Şendruc

School: Liceul Teor. M. Săulescu
Textbook: Snapshot Pre-Intermediate
Title of the lesson: Riddles / Analogies
Type of lesson: communication / consolidation of new knowledge
Class: 7thA / B
Time: 45 minutes
Number of students: 22 / 19

Aims of the lesson:

- to enable students to enrich vocabulary
- to enable students to consolidate the new vocabulary
- to enable students to improve their reading skills
- to enable students to improve their writing skills
- to enable students to improve speaking skills
- to stimulate students’ imagination

Materials: the blackboard, chalk,worksheets, dictionaries

Types of activities: T-Ss, Ss-T, S-T, T-S

Techniques: explanation, conversation, discussion,group work, riddles

Obs.: the same activities and worksheets were used with both groups with the difference
that the control group solved the activities individually and they looked for unknown words
for which the teacher gave the Romanian translation

196
Time Lesson stage Teacher’s Students’ Aim Technique Aids
activity activity
5’ Greeting and Greets the Answer the To check Reading Students’
homework students, teacher’s previously Checking notebooks
checking checks the greetings acquired
homework Read their knowledge
homework
2’ Focus on Writes the Write the title To catch Speaking The
title of the Pay attention students’ blackboard
lesson on attention Chalk
the to the lesson
blackboard
and
announces
the aims of
the lesson
15’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Solve the To stimulate Explanation Worksheets
practice In groups riddles in Ss’ imagination Riddles
(riddles) of 3 to read their groups
and solve
riddles
5’ Vocabulary Asks Ss to Choose the To improve Explanation Worksheets
practice choose the funniest / speaking skills Discussion Students’
funniest / strangest notebooks
strangest riddle
riddle Motivate
their choice
15’ Vocabulary Asks the Ss Complete To check Explanation Worksheets
practice to complete sentences reading Discussion
(analogies) sentences; Motivate comprehension
to motivate their choices
their choice
2’ Homework Sets the Look for To improve Explanation Students’
and homework riddles / writing skills Written notebooks
evaluation Gives analogies in assignment
students English
feedback
on their
work

197
Name: ____________________________

Riddles to Ponder

Directions: Can you figure out the answers to the riddles?

1.
I come one in a minute,

198
Twice in a moment,
1.

But never in a thousand years.

________________________

2.
I always run, but never walk.

I have a bed, but I don't sleep.

2.

I have a mouth, but I don't eat.

________________________

When you put this in a heavy wooden box, the box will

become lighter.
3.
________________________

4.
You hear my sound,

You feel me when I move,

4.

But see me you never will.

________________________

199
I follow you all day long,

But when the night or rain comes,

I am all gone.
5.
________________________

6.
The more I dry,
6.

The wetter I get.

________________________

7.
I am very heavy, but backwards
7.

But backwards, I'm not.

________________________

8.
A cowboy rides into town on Friday.

He stays two days, then leaves on

8.

Saturday. How can this be?

________________________

200
Name: ____________________________

Analogies
Directions: Complete each analogy by writing the correct word on the blank line. Then,
tell why you chose each word.

1. Happy is to sad as hot is to _________________.

(cold, warm, mad)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

2. Wealthy is to rich as poor is to _________________.

(broke, hungry, cold)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

3. Shoe box is to cardboard as dollar bill is to _________________.

(rich, money, paper)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

4. Kitchen is to cooking as bedroom is to ___________________.

(sleeping, eating, cleaning)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

5. Pear is to fruit as steak is to _________________.

(vegetable, dinner, meat)

201
Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

202
Name: ____________________________

Analogies Continued

6. Swimming is to pool as cooking is to ___________________.

(kitchen, breakfast, prepare)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

7. Tears is to salty as sugar is to ___________________.

(sour, white, sweet)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

8. Teacher is to school as doctor is to ___________________.

(healing, hospital, medicine)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

9. Painting is to eyes as song is to ___________________.

(ears, listen, music)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

________________________________________________

10. Think is to thought as give is to ___________________.

(gift, friend, gave)

Why did you choose this word? ______________________

203
________________________________________________

204
ANNEXE 48

NUME:

Completaţi frazele/ alegeţi răspunsul care vi se potriveşte cel mai bine:

1. Lucrul pe grupe mi se pare.............................

2. In grupa mea, mă simt:

- foarte bine
- bine
- neluat/ă în seamă
- nedreptăţit/ă
- altfel:..........................................

3. Simt că m-am apropiat de colegii mei din grupă:

- mult
- putin
- deloc
- nu e nicio diferenţă în ceea ce priveşte relaţia mea cu ei

4. Când lucrez în grupa mea, cel mai mult:

- îmi
place ..................................................................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................................................

- nu îmi
place ..................................................................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................................................

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ANNEXE 49
NUME:

FISA DE AUTOEVALUARE

La orele de engleză:

1. Am invăţat…………………………………………………………..

2. Am fost surprins/ă de faptul că…………………………………………………….

3. Cel mai uşor a fost să……………………………………………………………..

4. Cel mai mult mi-a plăcut să..................................pentru că.....................................

5. Am întâmpinat următoarele dificultaţi.....................................................................

6. Consider că activitatea mea a fost...........................................................................

7. Îmi propun să.............................................................................................................

206
ANNEXE 50
CLASS:
NAME:
TEST PAPER

I. Put the following words in the right column: (2 points)

-knee-nurse-beans-skirt-shoulder-ear-melon-peach-foot-pilot-shorts-peas-onion-dress-dentist-
mouth-chest-driver-shirt-arm
CLOTHES FRUIT JOBS VEGETABLES BODY PARTS

II. Look at each of the following words below and write P next to it if you think the
meaning is positive and N if you think the meaning is negative: (1 point)
Kind
Sad
Boring
Clever
Impossible
Nice
Worried
Patient
Untidy
Strong

III. Match these sentences to their logical endings: (2 points)

1. Jane was sad when A. someone stole her money.
2. I was very proud when B. he sent her a birthday card on the wrong day.
3. He felt frightened when C. I saw my Dad on TV.
4. He felt jealous when D. she heard her aunt had passed away.
5. Tina was angry when E. she kissed his best friend on the cheek.
6. Tom felt embarrassed when F. someone shouted in the dark.

IV. Circle the odd one out: (2 points)

a. arm leg dress foot
b. firefighter restaurant doctor actor
c. skirt shoes hat lemon
d. angry arm sad worried
e. sweet salty sour tie
f. onion tomato pear carrot

V. What do you want to be in the future? Why? (2 points)

207
ANSWERS AND MARKING SCHEME FOR SUMMATIVE TESTING:

I. 20 items*0,1 p = 2 points
Correct answers: Clothes – skirt, shorts, dress, shirt,
Fruit – melon, peach
Jobs – nurse, pilot, dentist, driver
Vegetables – beans, peas, onion
Body parts – knee, shoulder, ear, foot, mouth, chest

II. 10 items*0,1 p = 1 point

Correct answers: Positive – kind, clever, nice, patient, strong
Negative – sad, boring, impossible, worried, untidy

III. 6 items*0,33 p = 2 points

Correct answers: 1.-D, 2.-C, 3.-F, 4.-E, 5.-A, 6.-B

IV. 6 items*0,33 p = 2 points

Correct answers: dress, restaurant, lemon, arm, tie, pear

V. 2 points
Criteria for marking:
-task achievement – 0,50 points
-coherent and logical stream of ideas – 0,50 points
-language accuracy and variety – 0,50 points
-appropriate vocabulary – 0,50 points

208
ANNEXE 51

TABLE OF SCORES

Student Positive nominations Negative nominations Scores

initials
+1=4 +2=3 +3=2 +4=1 -1=4p -2=3p -3=2p -4=1p + - Total
p p p p
A.A.M. N.L.P. T.B.M. S.D.G. B.R.M. B.M.S. P.C. O.I.L. P.A.M. 10 1 9
B.M.S. G.D.G. B.W.A. N.L.P. G.A.M. T.B.M. P.A.M. B.R.M. C.V.F. 4 44 -40
B.W.A. R.I.M. C.V.F. P.C.M. G.A.M. B.M.S. P.C. P.G.M. C.B.G. 10 2 8
B.R.M. A.A.M. S.D.G. T.B.M. N.L.P. B.M.S. P.C. P.G.M. P.C.M. 10 12 -2
B.A.M. P.A.M. N.L.P. M.R.G. S.D.A. P.C. B.M.S. G.A.M. C.V.F. 0 11 -11
C.V.F. G.A.M. B.W.A. R.I.M. P.C.M. C.B.G. B.A.M. P.C. P.G.M. 6 12 -6
C.B.G. S.D.G. F.L.I. G.A.M. N.L.P. P.A.M. B.A.M. B.R.M. C.V.F. 3 5 -2
F.L.I. G.D.G. S.D.G. T.B.M. G.A.M. N.L.P. P.C.M. B.R.M. A.A.M. 37 4 33
G.D.G. F.L.I. G.A.M. S.D.G. T.B.M. P.C. B.M.S. O.I.L. B.R.M. 13 0 13
G.A.M. F.L.I. S.D.G. G.D.G. C.V.F. P.G.M. P.C. O.I.L. B.M.S. 24 5 19
J.R.G. P.A.M. R.I.M. B.R.M. F.L.I. P.C. P.G.M. B.M.S. B.A.M. 0 3 -3
M.R.G. F.L.I. S.D.G. C.B.G. S.D.A. C.V.F. G.A.M. B.M.S. P.C. 12 0 12
N.L.P. S.D.G. A.A.M. G.A.M. T.B.M. F.L.I. C.V.F. 17 5 12
O.I.L. P.A.M. F.L.I. M.R.G. G.D.G. T.B.M. S.D.A. P.C.M. S.D.G. 2 6 -4
P.C. B.R.M. N.L.P. F.L.I. A.A.M. B.M.S. B.A.M. P.A.M. P.C.M. 0 42 -42
P.G.M. B.M.S. G.A.M. B.R.M. M.R.G. P.A.M. P.C.M. T.B.M. B.W.A. 0 21 -21
P.C.M. F.L.I. S.D.G. M.R.G. B.R.M. R.I.M. B.M.S. P.C. P.G.M. 3 13 -10
P.A.M. S.D.A. F.L.I. O.I.L. M.R.G. B.R.M. B.M.S. C.V.F. B.A.M. 12 14 -2
R.I.M. B.W.A. G.A.M. C.V.F. C.B.G. P.C. P.G.M. B.M.S. B.R.M. 9 4 5
S.D.A. M.R.G. F.L.I. G.D.G. N.L.P. P.C. B.M.S. P.G.M. J.R.G. 6 3 3
S.D.G. G.A.M. F.L.I. N.L.P. T.B.M. P.C. P.G.M. B.M.S. B.W.A. 31 1 30
T.B.M. S.D.G. F.L.I. A.A.M N.L.P. B.M.S. P.C.M. J.R.G. P.C. 10 10 0

LEGEND:
+/-1 =4 p………….……position 1 with 4 points
+/-2 =3 p……………….position 2 with 3 points
+/-3 =2 p……………….position 3 with 2 points
+/- 4 =1 p……………… position 4 with 1 point

209
210
 ANNEXE 52
THE SOCIOMATRIC MATRIX (FOR POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE NOMINATIONS)

Students A. B. B. B. B. C. C. F. G. G. J. M. N. O. P. P. P. P. R. S. S. T. C C
A. M. W. R. A. V. B. L. D. A. R. R. L. I. C. G. C. A. I. D. D. B. E S
M. S. A. M. M. F. G. I. G. M. G. G. P. L. M. M. M. M. A. G. M. E¹ E²
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22
A.A.M. 1 -4 +1 +4 -2 -3 -1 +2 +3 1 0,38
B.M.S. 2 +3 -2 -1 +4 +1 +2 -3 -4 1 0,38
B.W.A. 3 -4 +3 -1 +1 -3 -2 +2 +4 1 0,38
B.R.M. 4 +4 -4 +1 -3 -2 -1 +3 +2 1 0,38
B.A.M. 5 -3 -1 -2 +2 +3 -4 +4 +1 1 0,38
C.V.F. 6 +3 -3 -4 +4 -2 -1 +1 +2 1 0,38
C.B.G. 7 -2 -3 -1 +3 +2 +1 -4 +4 1 0,38
F.L.I. 8 -1 -2 +4 +1 -4 -3 +3 +2 1 0,38
G.D.G. 9 -3 -1 +4 +3 -2 -4 +2 +1 1 0,38
G.A.M. 10 -1 +1 +4 +2 -2 -3 -4 +3 1 0,38
J.R.G. 11 -2 +2 -1 +1 -4 -3 +4 +3 1 0,38
M.R.G. 12 -2 -4 +2 +4 -3 -1 +1 +3 1 0,38
N.L.P. 13 +3 -3 -4 +2 +4 +1 2 0,28
O.I.L. 14 +3 +1 +2 -2 +4 -3 -1 -4 1 0,38
P.C. 15 +1 -4 +4 -3 +2 +3 -1 -2 1 0,38
P.G.M. 16 +4 -1 +2 +3 +1 -3 -4 -2 1 0,38
P.C.M. 17 -3 +1 +4 +2 -2 -1 -4 +3 1 0,38
P.A.M. 18 -3 -4 -1 -2 +3 +1 +2 +4 1 0,38
R.I.M. 19 -2 +4 -1 +2 +1 +3 -4 -3 1 0,38
S.D.A. 20 -3 +3 +2 -1 +4 -1 -4 -2 1 0,38
S.D.G. 21 -2 -1 +3 +4 +2 -4 -3 +1 1 0,38
T.B.M. 22 +2 -4 +3 -2 +1 -1 -3 +4 1 0,38
Nr. of positive/
negative P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N P/N
nominations 4/1 1/15 3/2 5/6 0/5 3/6 2/2 12/1 5/0 10/2 0/2 6/0 8/2 1/3 0/14 0/9 2/6 3/5 3/1 3/1 10/1 6/3

CSS³ 0,19 0,04 0,14 0,23 0 0,14 0,09 0,05 0,23 0,47 0 0,28 0,38 0,04 0 0 0,09 0,1 0,14 0,14 0,47 0,2
7 4 8

CPS4 3/21 -14/ 1/ -1 -5/ -3 0/21 11/ 5/21 8/21 -2 6/21 6/21 -2 -14/ -9/ -4/ -2/ 2/21 2/21 9/21 3/
21 21 /21 21 /21 21 /21 /21 21 21 21 21 21

1. The Coefficient of Emotional Expansiveness

2. The Coefficient of Sociometric Expansiveness
3. The Coefficient of Sociometric Status
4. The Coefficient of Preference Status

211
 JRG
ANNEXE 53
Sociogram of positive nominations OIL Mutual positive nominations
PGM CBG
BWA
CVF SDA
AAM

MRG
NLP
SDG
GDG
TBM
FLI

BRM
GAM

RIM PAM

BMS PCM

BAM
PC

212
 JRG
ANNEXE 54
Sociogram of positive nominations Individual positive nominations
OIL
PGM CBG
BWA
CVF SDA
AAM

MRG
NLP
SDG
GDG
TBM
FLI

GAM BRM

RIM PAM

BMS PCM

BAM
PC

213
 JRG
ANNEXE 55
Sociogram of negative nominations OIL Mutual negative nominations
PGM CBG
BWA
CVF SDA
AAM

MRG
NLP
SDG
GDG
TBM
FLI

BRM
GAM

RIM PAM

BMS PCM

BAM
PC

214
 JRG
ANNEXE 56 Individual
Sociogram of negative nominations OIL negative nominations
PGM CBG
BWA
CVF SDA
AAM

MRG
NLP
SDG
GDG
TBM
FLI

BRM
GAM

RIM PAM

BMS PCM

BAM
PC

215
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