Spontaneous Communicative Activities

Abstract

I read with interest the article “Communicative Activities for the Classroom” in your recent September issue. A teacher of a weak set of pupils in the language in a Secondary School will certainly develop feelings of anxiety and despair particularly if her class is reluctant to talk and participate freely. One can succeed in getting Primary school pupils to communicate and get involved in the various tasks. But at Secondary level there seems to be some restraint; for I have seen language teachers at Form 3 level trying earnestly to get their pupils to communicate, but in vain. In this short article, I would like to share with teachers of Secondary Schools some communicative tasks that I’ve carried out, rather successfully I feel, with teacher-trainees in a Teacher-Training College in Kuala Lumpur. In fact, ever so often I discard the text and use communicative or group activities for my language classes.