Return-Path: <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov> Received: from literacy (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by literacy.nifl.gov (8.10.2/8.10.2) with SMTP id h67HuNC08414; Mon, 7 Jul 2003 13:56:23 -0400 (EDT) Date: Mon, 7 Jul 2003 13:56:23 -0400 (EDT) Message-Id: <01f401c344af$c996ba90$9865fea9@TommyCompaq> Errors-To: listowner@literacy.nifl.gov Reply-To: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov Originator: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov Sender: nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov Precedence: bulk From: "Tommy B. McDonell" <tommy.mcdonell@nyu.edu> To: Multiple recipients of list <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov> Subject: [NIFL-ESL:9115] Re: Results from Context Question X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2720.3000 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; Status: O Content-Length: 2950 Lines: 69 Hi. I tend to think of content and context being completely different things. You may have the content of History but the context to me has to do with what you are reading, hence the idea of contextual clues. This may be though because my dissertation is on reading. T Tommy B. McDonell Adjunct Instructor, Marymount Manhattan College Doctoral Candidate in TESOL-NYU tommy.mcdonell@nyu.edu 212-414-8513 home before 10PM 212-414-1293 fax ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jennifer Morrow" <jmorrow@jcplin.org> To: "Multiple recipients of list" <nifl-esl@literacy.nifl.gov> Sent: Monday, July 07, 2003 1:26 PM Subject: [NIFL-ESL:9114] Results from Context Question > Fellow Listers, > I recently posted a question to the list asking for context-based ESL lessons. I received several great responses and ideas. Thanks to all of you! I wanted to summarize the responses for you. > > These ideas were posted in response... > -Ask students about their context and build lessons from that conversation. (i.e. the grocery store) > -Involve the students and find a consensus about what context to use for lessons. > -Let the students plan their own lessons (from their own context.) > -Use the newspaper as a teaching tool and context. > -Use activities from http://daveseslcafe.com > -Use activities from http://www.onestopenglish.com > -Avoid teaching from textbooks for great lengths of time. > -Teach lessons based on student interest, background, and needs. > -Teach lessons in a creative way. > -Review the book Content-Based College ESL Instruction > -Use materials produced by the Tacoma Community House Volunteer Training Project. > > I found the One Stop English website particularly good and the lessons there easy to adapt for my one-on-one program. > > One thing kept repeating itself during this process. I got the feeling that a lot of the postings and resources interchanged the terms 'context' and 'content.' To me, they are very different things. Then I started to think about it more deeply. They can be confusing terms. I think they can be the same thing especially for college students, etc. Their context and content can be the same: grammar, history, composition, etc. Most of my ESL students are here for reasons other than education. With them, I view context and content as very different things: content may be vocabulary or conversation but their context may be their job, shopping in stores, their child's school, a doctor's office, or any number of contexts specific to them. I guess I was thinking more of life situations as contexts, not school situations. How would you define context and content? Do you think they are the same or different? What contexts do your students learn content through? I would appr! > eciate your input as I am still wrestling with the definitions myself. > > Jennifer Morrow > Johnson County Public Library > Adult Learning Center > (317) 738-4677 > jmorrow@jcplin.org > >
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