INTRODUCTION

          INTRODUCCTION:

WE, AS FUTURE TEACHERS, SHOULD HAVE IN MIND THE IMPORTANCE OF THE USE OF DIFFERENT EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS TO ACHIEVE A SIGNIFICANT LEARNING IN OUR STUDENTS.

WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MATERIALS, WE ARE TALKIN ABOUT  ALL THOSE RESOURCES THAT IN ONE WAY OR OTHER FACILITATE LEARNING, THROUGH THESE BOTH STUDENTS AND TEACHERS CAN CREATE DIFFERENT SKILLS; IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT A BOOK IS NOT ALWAYS A DIDACTICAL MATERIAL AND FOR THAT REASON OTHER TOOLS MUST BE USED, WHICH NOT ONLY HELP COMPREHENSION BUT ALSO BE OF THE PLEASURE OF PUPILS, THUS PREVENTING BOREDOM IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CLASSES.

CURRENTLY THERE ARE MANY RESOURCES AT OUR SCOPE FOR EXAMPLE: PRINTED, AUDIOVISUAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL RESOURCES, BUT IT IS ALSO NECESSARY FOR THE TEACHER TO DESIGN THEIR OWN MATERIALS TO THE EXTENT THAT HE OBSERVES THE NEEDS OF LEARNING IN HIS STUDENTS, THIS HELPS TO DEVELOPMENT A GOOD TEACHING WORK.

NOW WE ARE GOING TO TALK ABOUT SOME MATERIALS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF THEIR UTILITY IN THE CLASSROOM.

THE BOARD

- Write legibly and neatly.

- Don't start your lesson with the remains of someone else's still up.

- Don't write in capitals.

- Don't make the mistake of using a pen which can't be wiped off.

- Clean it periodically to keep it neat and consider other ways of displaying more permanent information-a cork board or the walls of the classroom-in order to keep the board looking uncluttered.

What sort of things will be put on the board?

• In low-level classes you may wish to put up the day and the date at the beginning of the lesson; it is a good way of helping the students learn the days of the week and the dates.
• You would expect most, if not all, the words in this section to be copied into the students' notebooks at some stage in the lesson. By putting such words into this section you are signifying their importance.

How can you make the best use of the board? .

Don't put everything on the board-only the essential - and immediately ruboff anything which is no longer needed.

Involve the students in the writing process by eliciting what you are going to put up, the spelling of difficult words, and so on. This will keep up their level of attention and concentration. 

Make it clear to students when they need to copy something from the board and when it isn't necessary.

-Observe a fellow trainee teaching a lesson and make a note of his or her use of

the board. You can consider the following points: overall tidiness and attractiveness; legibility: helpfulness to the students.

THE OVERHEAD PROJECTOR

What are the advantages?

• You can write on an OHP without turning your back on the class. 

• The results of groupwork can easily be shared using this technique. 

What are the disadvantages?

• OHPs are cumbersome and can be difficult to move around.

•  However, if you use erasable or washable pens the OHTs can be washed and re-used.

• Practise using the machine before trying it out with a class.

VISUALS

VISUALS: hey have a variety of uses: for example, the illustration of colours; placed in, on, under, behind an object such as a box they can demonstrate the meaning of prepositions; they can be used to show word stress - one rod for each

syllable in the word with a taller, different coloured rod to mark the stressed syllable.

They often illustrate meaning more directly and quickly than through verbal

explanation-they cut down unnecessary teacher talking time.

They attract the students' attention and aid concentration.

• stimulate discussion                                                                      

Finding and storing visuals It is never too early to start collecting material that you think might be useful to show in class.

• You can spend some time preparing visuals to keep and use again and you can also make effective use of quick board sketches. You can ask the students to find visuals as part of their homework. They can be asked to bring in a photo of themselves when little or a member of their family, an advertisement they find interesting, even a favourite object. 
• Showing visuals When showing a visual make sure that: . it is big enough to be seen.
• you display a visual by sticking it to the board, on the wall or on a notice board.

WORKSHEETS AND WORKCARDS

Worksheets and workcards:

classroom there are times when you will want to make your own worksheets to give to students to use in class or out of class for homework. These can take a number of forms: sheets of paper photocopied from a master you have produced. cue cards or role cards to use in pairwork and groupwork, or even home-made games.

Making a worksheet or workcard Many teachers have ready access to photocopiers so worksheets can be easily produced.

Take care to make the worksheet as professional looking and as attractive as possible: . If you write by hand make sure the writing is legible and neat. . If you use a typewriter or word-processor check for typing errors. .

If you want to re-use cards, perhaps as part of a home-made game, it may be worth covering them in plastic or putting them in plastic wallets.

THE CASSETTE RECORDER

The cassette recorder:

 The cassette recorder is one of the language teacher's most useful tools. 

In addition, many teachers have access to authentic audio material that can be brought into the classroom - most notably recordings made from the radio, and songs.

Listen to the whole of the excerpt you want to use to make sure that it is complete and clear throughout.

Recording your own tapes If professionally produced tapes do not suit your needs or are not available when you want them, you may have to make your own. It is fairly straightforward to record something off-air-perhaps a topical news item-if you have the right equipment.

Stand the machine on a soft surface to reduce the amount of noise it makes. 

VIDEO

VIDEO:

Although video cassettes are not quite as common as audio cassettes in the classroom they are generally very popular with students and can add variety and a welcome change of focus in a lesson.

Video is much easier to understand; the facial expressions, the gestures and the physical background all give additional information. The visual element is attractive and commands the attention better than audio alone. 

As with language laboratories you need to become fully familiar with the equipment in the institution where you are doing TP before you can use video-making equipment with students. Although you can make your own videos for viewing in class it is a very time-consuming business. 

Video is an excellent method of providing feedback on student performance. 

Aim To practise recording off-air and creating an accompanying worksheet.
Procedure - Record a five-minute extract off-air (from either the radio or the television) -perhaps a short news bulletin.