Before We Get Down to Business: Acquiring Conversational Skills in a Foreign Language.

Autor/inn/en	Kaplan, Marsha A.; Stefanopoulos, Lydie
Titel	Before We Get Down to Business: Acquiring Conversational Skills in a Foreign Language.
Quelle	(1994), (7 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
Schlagwörter	Leitfaden; Unterricht; Lehrer; Business Communication; Class Activities; Classroom Techniques; Conversational Language Courses; French; Government Employees; Higher Education; Intercultural Communication; International Relations; Interpersonal Communication; Native Speakers; Professional Training; Second Language Instruction; Second Languages; Social Behavior + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Lesson concept; Instruction; Unterrichtsentwurf; Unterrichtsprozess; Teacher; Teachers; Lehrerin; Lehrende; Unternehmenskommunikation; Klassenführung; Französisch; Hochschulbildung; Hochschulsystem; Hochschulwesen; Interkulturelle Kommunikation; Internationale Beziehungen; Interpersonale Kommunikation; Muttersprachler; Berufliche Fachbildung; Berufliche Fortbildung; Fremdsprachenunterricht; Second language; Zweitsprache; Social behaviour; Soziales Verhalten
Abstract	Because conventional foreign language classroom interaction is not amenable to, and can even undermine, learning of social conversational skills, the Department of State's Foreign Service Institute has created an activity to develop these skills. It involves preparation for and realization of a single event, a party hosted by State Department employees anticipating French-speaking posts abroad and interested in establishing contact with native French-speakers in the Washington, D.C. area. The activity has four parts: (1) students' analysis of their tasks as co-hosts for a multicultural party; (2) practice of interactive listening skills and conversation management devices, and establishment of a personal stock of topics and pertinent comments; (3) the party; and (4) debriefing. In the last phase, immediately after the party, teachers meet with guests to learn their perceptions of the experience and the students' skills. The next day, students discuss their experiences and complete a self-evaluation and exercise assessment questionnaire to determine needed followup skill development activities. The exercise has shown that students benefit from the preparation, everyone was able to participate despite ability differences, grammar was not a major impediment, dependence on the teacher was abandoned, the practice reflected real job responsibilities, and students were required to follow a conversation carefully. (MSE)
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC