Information collection & exchange

Author's Note 
T
and the Tiger," by Frank R. Stockto
appear
n an examin
Mo Strangeman
gure 1.3 continues 
and th
al exams will reassure your 
You can demonstrate this
how to explain simply and 
ing examination strategies, by holding mock exams, and by 
s. (Chapter Eight presents further guidelines for testing.) 
ticking to a rigid curriculum leaves you feeling frustrated, an out-of-class English club could provide a 
outlet for your creativity. A play can be produced and presented to the school or even to other schools 
the area. Debating teams within the school could challenge each other. Or you may be able to work with 
ther TEFL Volunteers to set up series of debates with teams travelling from school to school. If you have 
e connections with schools in the United States, an international pen-pal club can also be a popular 
ddition to extracurricular activities. 
ited hours and low motivation for English instruction 
countries where English is taught as a foreign language, as opposed to a second language, some 
the science or technical sections, are allocated as little as one hour of English 
Fi
Showing that you are familiar with the curriculum
students of your seriousness. 
e format of the nation
familiarity by knowing
clearly the rules of English grammar, by teach
giving feedback on performances in these exam
If s
good 
in
o
th
a
 L
im
In
classes? particularly those in 

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a week. This is typically the case in countries in Francophone Africa. Providing meaningful lessons and 
be going on to university or college will find that especially in the sciences, many of 
e textbooks and articles they will be asked to read will be in English. If possible, you could try to invite 
ection 1
When we want people to do things. we use 
ifferent 
ays. Spoken instructions can be very direct. for 
exa
Open the window: Close the door.
sing this table Make sure the instructions are 
llowed correctly Make up some instructions of 
stimulating motivation in this context is a challenge. 
But it is important that you should help your students understand the necessity of learning English. Those of 
your students who will 
th
outside speakers, such as a librarian or science teacher from a local University. Their testimony should go a 
long way toward convincing your students that learning English could be very beneficial. 
Remember that in classes with such severe time constraints, your emphasis is likely to be on reading or 
listening comprehension. The opportunity for developing speaking or writing skills in approximately thirty 
hours of English a year is very limited. 
In teaching classes with limited hours and low motivation, a good strategy is to work closely with the science 
teacher to develop simple materials which mirror the materials covered in the science class. Textbooks such 
as Basic English for Science by Peter Donovan, provide a model of how you can do so. An example of an 
activity from that book is shown in Figure 1.4. 
 
 Figure 1.4 From Basic English for Science by Peter Donovan. Oxford University Press, 1978.