While I was doing an internship in several English classes in a ‘Gymnasium’ in 2007, a teacher asked me to take a test in his class (8th grade) of the vocabulary of a certain unit in their textbook. I did so and graded the tests according to his requirements. Every incorrect word led to zero points regardless of how ‘wrong’ the word was. In one case the students were supposed to give the English word for “Süßigkeiten” which, of course, is “sweets”. While some simply gave no word, others gave solutions that were wrong, yet creative, for instance a circumlocution, “sweet things” or newly coined word, “sweetys”. It did not seem fair to me to disregard these solutions, as someone using them in a communicative situation would be able to better communicate his intention than by simply saying nothing. From this experience I got the idea for my B.A. thesis to deal with the topic of communication strategies , to which these examples belong, and to further examine their role in language learning.
This thesis is an attempt to inspect what CSs are and what their part in education could and should be, respectively actually is. In the beginning I will present a summary of the history of research in the field of CSs and I will give an overview of existing (and often varying) theories, definitions and taxonomies of CSs. After introducing this background knowledge I will examine the practical implications of CS research. By discussing studies and theories by various researchers I will prove that the employment of CSs in communication is useful and effective and that teaching CSs in school is both possible and sensible.
I will then go on in the empirical part to examine the curricula for ‘Sekundarstufe I and II’ of the ‘Gymnasium’ in North Rhine Westphalia with regard to CS teaching. I will also look at various school books to see to what degree results from CS research have been taken into consideration in their design, i.e. whether or not they teach CSs, and if so, how they do it. I will evaluate these results and make suggestions for possible improvements. In the conclusion I will sum up my results and make suggestions for further research. The appendix includes various material used for this thesis that is helpful and sometimes necessary to understand the text, such as taxonomies of CSs or charts showing results of my research. At the end of the thesis is a list explaining common abbreviations used in this thesis, as well as a glossary of ...
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- A Theoretical Introduction into Communication Strategies
- The History of Communication Strategies Research
- Communication Strategies: Approaches and Definitions
- Communication Strategies: Taxonomies and the Range of Strategies
- The Practical Implications
- The Effectiveness of the Use of Communication Strategies
- The Teachability of Communication Strategies
- Communication Strategies: Teaching Concepts
- Variables in the Choice of Communication Strategies
- The Empirical Part
- Examination and Evaluation of Communication Strategies in the Curriculum
- The Curriculum for ‘Sekundarstufe I’
- The Curriculum for 'Sekundarstufe II'
- Comments on the Findings in the Curricula
- Examination of Text Books
- Quantitative Examination
- Qualitative Examination
- Categories 1 and 2: Range, Frequency and Quality of CS Teaching
- Categories 3 and 4: Potentially Useful Teaching Material
- Evaluation of Results
- A Critique of the Corpus
- Suggestions for Improvements of the Curricula and the Teaching Situation
- Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This thesis aims to analyze the role of communication strategies (CSs) in language learning, particularly in the context of English education in German Gymnasium schools. It examines both the theoretical foundation and practical implications of CS research. The key themes explored in this thesis are:- The historical development and theoretical frameworks of communication strategy research
- The effectiveness and teachability of communication strategies in language learning
- The implementation of CS teaching in the German Gymnasium curriculum
- Analysis of English language textbooks for the Gymnasium to determine their incorporation of CS teaching
- Suggestions for improving CS teaching in the German Gymnasium setting
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
- Introduction: This chapter introduces the topic of communication strategies, inspired by an experience with student vocabulary testing. It outlines the thesis's objectives and structure.
- A Theoretical Introduction into Communication Strategies: This chapter delves into the history of communication strategy research, outlining its emergence in the 1970s. It discusses various approaches, definitions, and taxonomies of CSs, exploring their significance in language teaching and learning.
- The Empirical Part: This chapter examines the presence and application of CSs in the German Gymnasium curriculum for both 'Sekundarstufe I' and 'Sekundarstufe II'. It also analyzes various English language textbooks used in these levels, assessing their incorporation of CS teaching and the extent to which they reflect current research findings.
- Suggestions for Improvements of the Curricula and the Teaching Situation: This chapter offers practical recommendations for enhancing CS teaching in the German Gymnasium, drawing upon the findings of the empirical analysis.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
This thesis focuses on the key concepts of communication strategies, language learning, English education, German Gymnasium, curriculum analysis, textbook analysis, and pedagogical implications. The research aims to bridge the gap between theoretical research on communication strategies and their practical application in the classroom setting.- Arbeit zitieren
- Bachelor of Arts Holger Meier (Autor:in), 2009, The Teachability of Communication Strategies, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/184654
