Lessons in Your Inbox 3 Inclusivity

Lessons in
Your Inbox
Inclusive classes online
Contents
3
Ten tips for teaching online 15
10 vocabulary practices that students
Teaching English: Best Practices with dyslexia hate
for Blended Learning ETpedia Vocabulary
Pete Sharma and Barney Barrett Stacey H. Hughes, Fiona Mauchline
4
Learners with special needs: and Julie Moore
teaching those who need more help 18
Phonics chart
English Teaching professional (118) ETpedia Vocabulary
Damian Cunniffe Stacey H. Hughes, Fiona Mauchline
6
Equal opportunities and Julie Moore
English Teaching professional (41) 20
10 tips for teaching vocabulary to
Ruth Shuter students who are hard of hearing
8
Five things you always wanted to ETpedia Vocabulary
know about using technology and Stacey H. Hughes, Fiona Mauchline
special educational needs and Julie Moore
English Teaching professional (104) 23
10 tips for teaching students who are
Nicky Hockly colour-blind or who are partially sighted
9
10 things to know about SEN students ETpedia Vocabulary
and technology Stacey H. Hughes, Fiona Mauchline
ETpedia Technology and Julie Moore
Nicky Hockly 26
Collaborative maps
12
10 thoughts on instructions ETpedia Vocabulary
ETpedia Young Learners Stacey H. Hughes, Fiona Mauchline
Vanessa Reis Esteves and Julie Moore
14
Common classroom instructions 27
The dangers of differentiation
ETpedia Young Learners English Teaching Professional (112)
Vanessa Reis Esteves Adrian Tennant
This collection contains articles, chapters, and units from Pavilion ELT publications available to
purchase at www.pavpub.com/pavilion-elt
Visit Pavilion ELT at www.pavpub.com/pavilion-elt today.

Te a c h i n g E n g l i s h
Best Practices for
Blended Learning
Pete Sharma and Barney Barrett
Ten tips for teaching online:

1. G
o up to the platform well in advance of the lesson, to check that the technology is working
smoothly.
2. G
reet students by name as they arrive; be ready to make small-talk at the start of a lesson,
in case someone is late.
3. M
ake students feel relaxed and comfortable with the platform, especially in the early lessons.
It may be necessary to give simple technical instructions to help students activate their
microphone, etc.
4. T
each a list of phrases which will be useful in online communication, e.g. “Sorry to interrupt
you,..”/“That’s a good point, Katherine.”
5. Use praise and encouragement liberally.
6. S
tart each lesson with a review – you can recycle materials prepared previously and adapt
them (e.g. delete words, and ask the students if they remember them).
7. U
se the chat box. Students can type in a response and send it everyone. Ideas for use in the
chat box include: How do you spell it? Note: you may need to explain to students about the
drop-down menu, so they can send a message to ‘Everyone’ rather than a private message to
an individual.
8. Set up a poll where participants vote by typing in: Yes/No/Not sure.
9. Signal turn-taking. Use the students’ names to designate speaking tasks.
10. Incorporate ‘interactivity’ into tasks. This is critical. Students should not be merely ‘following’
a lesson, but should be actively engaged through speaking or writing.
Visit Pavilion ELT at www.pavpub.com/pavilion-elt today. 3

SEN issues
When it comes to SEN, teachers are often met with little
more than a litany of things not to do, but with very little
practical advice as to what they should do. Teachers are
familiar with mantras such as Don’t put people in a box,
Don’t treat SEN learners differently and Don’t alter your
routine, but make it inclusive. As well-meaning as these
platitudes are, they have no practical value when it comes to
performing the day-to-day operations of teaching and, as a
result, teachers are left at a loss as to what the actual ‘dos’
are when it comes to SEN.
SEN recognition
Sometimes, learners with SEN can quickly be identified,
even if no prior information has been forwarded to the
schools. Ireland’s Education for Persons with Special
Educational Needs Act of 2004 (EPSEN) identifies four
main areas of disability:
■■ Physical
Learners
■■ Sensory
■■ Mental health
■■ Learning disability
with special
It could be argued that physical and sensory disabilities are
more easily identified by institutions, because of the often
observable nature of these disabilities. Mental health issues and
learning disabilities, on the other hand, may not become
needs
apparent until a learner has entered the classroom. As a
consequence, it is left to the teacher to make an assessment of
the learner’s needs, according to either their own experience or
instincts – neither of which is a very scientific approach, but
Damian Cunniffe offers a practical approach to both are called upon more often than institutions would like to
admit. So what should a teacher presented with a learner with
teaching those who need a little more help. no officially diagnosed or disclosed special need do?
A
large proportion of teachers in ELT will have had, First steps
or suspected they have had, learners with special
When teachers feel they have a learner with SEN in their
education needs (SEN) in their classrooms. In
classroom, they should first inform their institution of their
mainstream primary and post-primary schools in
concerns. A united front, even late in the day, is essential to
Ireland, tried and tested safeguards have long existed
enable the learner to have a fulfilling experience in the school.
for such learners. Processes for diagnosing their difficulties and
All queries related to a learner’s needs should be addressed to
meeting their needs are aided by external agencies, and support for
the parents, carers or leaders, as appropriate. Ideally, adult
teachers, involving direct institutional participation and assistance
learners should be spoken to directly, usually by a student
from trained SEN professionals, are the norm.
liaison officer or a suitably qualified individual. I have had
In private language schools in Ireland and elsewhere, experiences where learners with SEN have come to class and
however, this multi-layered approach is often unavailable for suffered adverse effects related to the stresses and strains of
reasons of practicality (learners are only present for short trying to fit in; they didn’t say anything in advance because they
periods, thus rendering the application of strong SEN policies felt that disclosure of their particular needs might not be
problematic) or for economic reasons (institutions do not see the viewed sympathetically. It is essential that learners are reassured
necessity of having expensive trained SEN professionals on site). that the school is there to help and support. Speaking to
Furthermore, information related to a learner’s SEN is not learners about their needs, in order to ascertain what would be
always supplied to a school prior to their arrival, and these best for them during their school day, often serves to relieve
learners are often not flagged as a concern until they are that stress and allows the student to enjoy their educational
already in the classroom. Moreover, a lack of substantive experience. Essentially, ignoring an apparent need in a learner
training in SEN in the ELT sector frequently leads to confusion places undue pressure on both teacher and learner alike. Using
as to what approach teachers should take when they discover a direct approach, tempered with sensitivity, understanding and
or suspect that a learner has SEN. the offer of support, reaps its own rewards for all concerned.

Cultural issues For learners with ASD (autism spectrum disorder)
As in all things, there are pitfalls. The multicultural makeup of Does the teacher allow for free movement in the classroom?
many ELT classes means that cultural differences with regard Is the space employed practical?
to SEN can become apparent and must be dealt with in an
Is there an option for the learner to exclude themselves from
appropriate manner. Whatever the belief system of a learner,
the classroom, should sensory overload or other issues
the core goal must be to allow them to access a good education
become apparent?
while in the institution of their choice. An acceptance of
cultural differences is essential and, though teachers may not be Is the classroom in an area where it is safe for the learner to
politicians, diplomacy often has to be one of their strengths. leave and return?
On discussing the issue of the cultural divide in attitudes to The above are some, but not all, of the questions that teachers
SEN with a teacher who had taught for many years in a might consider, to ensure that they have the best hold on the
Middle-Eastern school, I was informed that difficulties eventualities that may crop up when their class contains a
sometimes arose when a learner came to class with an learner with SEN.
undisclosed special need, but that in the majority of cases, when
the parents were approached with options and suggestions to SEN teaching
help their child learn, the interaction was usually positive. Of
course, there are exceptions to every rule but, generally, the The main thing to remember is that, when teaching learners
perceived intransigence of certain cultures to the suggestion that with SEN, the teacher must be organised, possibly even more
a learner might have special needs is, in the main, overstated. The than they would normally be. Being decisive in reporting their
key is not to make the special need the overriding force but, concerns to management is a key initial step, but it is just the
rather, to suggest ways for the learner to learn. This, in a way, is a beginning. Even with all the support in the world, the teacher
key consideration in the ethos of inclusive learning. needs to take steps to personalise their lessons on an individual
basis, depending on who their learners are.
Practical applications SEN teaching is extremely rewarding, but it would be
In the end, whether or not supports are in place, once the door facetious to suggest that it is not challenging. In many ways,
closes on the classroom, it is down to the teacher to make a success the teacher’s abilities are tested beyond the simple skill of
of their lessons, regardless of the makeup of the class. Teachers imparting information. The teacher must also be able to
need to take an analytical view of their lessons, searching for adapt, sometimes daily, often from lesson to lesson. This may
sameness as much as recognising difference. The physical makeup sound daunting, but the rewards definitely outweigh the
of the classroom can often be as crucial as the lessons themselves. downsides. The ability to fail and to return and insist on
Here are some of the questions teachers could consider: improving are the benefits of SEN teaching. SEN learners
often teach us as much as we teach them.
For learners with visual impairment
Has the teacher ensured that the way in and out of the t t t
classroom is free from obstruction?
Does the lesson include sufficient listening material? SEN teaching can make for better teachers if we allow it to. It
questions ability, which is always a good thing, and improves
Does the teacher employ clear verbal instructions, so that
performance, which is even better. SEN teaching is certainly
the learner can follow the lesson?
challenging but, conversely, the challenge for committed
Does the learner use transcription technology? teachers can also be the reward. n
Is the learner proficient in Braille, etc?
Suggested reading
For learners with aural impairment Carpenter, B ‘Early intervention and identification: finding the family’
Are there sufficient sight words/visual cues on display? Children & Society 11 (3) 1978
Is the lesson accessible for visual learners? Delaney, M Special Educational Needs OUP 2016
Is the teacher employing expression and gesture in order Skidmore, D Inclusion Open University Press 2004
to get a message or instruction across? Towle, P The Early Identification of Autism Spectrum Disorders
Jessica Kingsley Publishers 2013
Does the learner have clear sight of the board?
Is the classroom sufficiently well-lit?
Damian Cunniffe is a Cambridge Delta Tutor,
For learners with ADHD (attention deficit teacher, writer and researcher. He is a
passionate advocate of inclusive learning and
hyperactivity disorder) SEN teaching. He lives in Galway in the west
Does the teacher employ a set of guidelines or class rules of Ireland with his family.
in agreement with the parents or learners themselves? damian.cunniffe@teachers.atlantic.ac
Does the teacher employ a rewards system?
Is the lesson goal-driven, and are the goals achievable without
too many hurdles to clear?

Equal opportunities
Ruth Shuter discusses special arrangements for students with special requirements.
L
anguage exams can represent an incentive for learning, Modifications
particularly where they are used as part of university Modifications to exam papers are designed to make it possible
admissions and job recruitment procedures. It is, for candidates with, for example, visual difficulties, to read exam
therefore, important that the assessment tools used in material; or for candidates with severe hearing difficulties to take
exams do not prevent candidates who have special listening tests. This may involve the production of papers in
requirements from showing their ability in an exam. There is Braille or enlarged print, plus some modifications to the format
also a growing legal obligation in many countries to protect and layout; or the production of lip-reading versions of the
people from discrimination on the grounds of disability. listening test.
In this article I shall refer specifically to arrangements for
candidates taking the Cambridge ESOL exams. However, I Combinations
recognise that ETp readers teach in a wide variety of contexts
Although the number of provisions is essentially fixed, the
and I hope that I will persuade you of the need to think about
combination of provisions required by the candidate is worked
integration of students with special requirements in all types of
out on a case by case basis. A blind candidate, for example,
assessment and in all aspects of education.
would typically need the following:
Setting goals ■■ Braille papers;
■■ extra time;
It should be possible to make special arrangements for such
candidates which, as far as possible, meet the following criteria: ■■ a special version of the listening test, where the tape is stopped
periodically to allow time for the questions to be read, and
■■ removal, as far as possible, of the effects of any given disability
answers written and checked;
on the candidate’s ability to demonstrate their true level of
attainment in relation to the assessment objectives; ■■ a special version of the speaking test, in which any visual
prompt material is presented as a written description;
■■ protection of the integrity of the assessment – a test must still
test what it claims to test – and protection of the validity of the ■■ some kind of arrangement to record the answers, such as an
certificate in certified assessments, so that the user of a certificate amanuensis, the use of a computer with appropriate software
will not be misled about the candidate’s level of attainment; or the use of a Braille typewriter.
■■ protection of the rights of other candidates by not allowing
candidates with special arrangements to gain an unfair Protecting exam integrity
advantage. As far as possible, a candidate taking the test with special
arrangements should take the same test as any other candidate.
Removing barriers Any modified test material should be based on the standard
material.
Based on the example of the provisions and procedures used
by University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations for its If possible, the only changes should be to the format, with
English language assessments, special arrangements the content being left unchanged. Examples of format changes
provisions can be thought of as falling into two main would be to split enlarged print or Braille versions of reading
groups: those which are administrative, and those which papers into a question booklet and a text booklet, so texts and
involve the modification of exam material. questions can be referred to side by side. Visually impaired and
blind candidates are likely to be unable to look at the whole page
Administrative arrangements at once, so it is also necessary to add extra ‘signposts’ to rubrics
and elsewhere in order to tell candidates where they will find the
Administrative special arrangements would include provisions
different parts of tasks.
such as:
With some material, a change to the test content may be
■■ extra time for candidates with dyslexia or with visual difficulties,
necessary (for example with a task based on a map or graph,
who would take longer than usual to read or write;
the information would need to be presented as text for a blind
■■ the use of a scribe, or amanuensis, by candidates with writing candidate), but such changes should be limited to what is
difficulties; absolutely essential. Also, some tasks would be totally
■■ supervised breaks for candidates with conditions which result inappropriate for some candidates. For example, a writing task
in difficulties with concentrating or writing for long periods, asking candidates to describe a favourite picture would need to
for example. be replaced for a blind candidate.

Ensuring fairness which might range from 25 per cent to 100 per cent extra time,
Guaranteeing equality involves two elements: ensuring that depending on the severity of the problem – and which could
special arrangements are really justified, and ensuring that even vary from day to day according to the type of condition.
candidates are given an appropriate level of provision. Some In this case the exam board would need to make a
provisions, such as extra time, could be an advantage to any recommendation, reached in consultation with the centre
candidate, so it is important to have systems in place to ensure administering the exam, as to the amount of extra time to be
that the system of allowing special arrangements is not abused. given, but then a certain amount of flexibility might be required
These systems are based on the requirement for the on the day. One factor which needs to be taken into account by
candidate to provide satisfactory medical evidence of the both the candidate and the centre is that too much extra time can
condition requiring the special arrangements. make the candidate very tired, and there may also be the risk of
over-correction.
This is not always as straightforward as one might expect.
The assessment of dyslexia, for example, involves establishing
whether any difficulties observed are due to a specific learning
Working together
difficulty or difficulties in literacy. Where the testing is carried The important area of how to prevent discrimination against
out in the country of the target language, it may not always be disabled people is one which has been receiving increased
clear which problems with spelling, for example, are due to attention in recent years (for example, the 2003 European Year
dyslexia, and which are due to the fact that the language used of Disability). With exam boards, centres and candidates
in the tests may not be the candidate’s mother tongue. working together, we can all help to increase equality of
There is also the issue of the need for candidates to disclose opportunity for disabled people in exams, including exams in
that they have a disability, which may, in some cases and in additional languages. n
some cultures, not be easy. It is worth mentioning the fact that,
Ruth Shuter has been with Cambridge
having disclosed a disability to an exam board, the candidate ESOL since 1995, and for much of that time
has a right to expect confidentiality to be respected. has had an interest in the area of candidates
Having established that special arrangements are justified, with special requirements.
the next requirement is to determine what levels of provision are
needed. Obviously, this will vary considerably from individual to
individual.
One example of this would be in the case of a visually
impaired candidate where the medical evidence indicates that
the candidate will need extra time. The evidence would usually
contain a description of the nature and cause of the If you would like to find out more about specialarrangements at
impairment. It would, however, be unlikely to make a specific Cambridge ESOL, please seewww.cambridgeesol.org or
recommendation as to the amount of extra time needed, contactESOLHelpdesk@cambridgeassessment.org.uk.

Five things you always wanted to know about In this series, Nicky Hockly
explains aspects of technology
using technology and which some people may be

embarrassed to confess that
they don’t really understand.
special educational needs In this article, she discusses

how technology can support
learners with special
(but were too afraid to ask) educational needs (SEN).
1What are special educational needs? can have audio content transcribed into text by activating closed captions
(subtitles not visible unless activated by the viewer) for video content on a
The term ‘special educational needs’ – SEN for short – is imprecise at best.
tablet. The font and size of these subtitles can be changed, so that
It is used to refer to learners with a wide range of needs, from students
learners with visual impairments can easily read them. For students who
with cognitive and learning challenges like mild dyslexia and mild
may have better hearing in one ear, many tablets include a mono option in
intellectual disability at one end of the spectrum, through to severe learning
the sound settings; and hearing aids can be connected to some tablets
difficulties and autism at the other. It includes learners with behavioural
via Bluetooth. For learners with motor-skill challenges, tactile screen
challenges such as ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), or other
settings can be changed from swipe movements to tapping movements,
social or emotional difficulties. It also includes those with physical
which are easier to control; also, the screen display on mobile devices can
challenges like visual or hearing impairments and mobility issues, including
be locked into one position so that screen movement for these learners is
restricted movement and limited motor skills. Clearly, these very different
reduced. Finally, some tablets include an ‘assistive touch’ feature that
needs require differing levels and types of support with learning.
allows teachers to guide the students around the screen as they read.
2 Wclassroom?
hy might I have SEN learners in my language
Unsurprisingly, there is also a wide range of educational apps
available for SEN learners, including those learning a second or foreign
language. For example, for dyslexic learners, there are writing apps
There are two main approaches to dealing with SEN learners in that can help them learn to spell letters by tracing them on a touch
education. On the one hand, we have what we might call a ‘deficit’ screen. Learners who find writing challenging can use text-to-speech
model. In this model, SEN learners are perceived to have a ‘problem’ apps that deliver written texts in audio format. Learners with hearing
which education should try to put right through special learning disabilities can use speech-to-text apps that can provide written
programmes in separate schools. This corresponds to a medical or transcripts of audio texts. More sophisticated apps can enable
clinical approach to SEN. On the other hand, we have a social, or teachers to create video scenarios in order to help learners with autism
inclusive, approach, in which SEN learners are considered to be unique or behavioural challenges to develop empathy and social skills.
5 WSENherelearners?
individuals with their own strengths and weaknesses. In this model, SEN
learners are integrated into mainstream schools, with specialists like
can I find out more about supporting
educational psychologists helping teachers develop strategies and
materials to support these learners in the classroom. Depending on the
educational views and strategies for dealing with SEN that are prevalent Where can I find out more about supporting SEN learners?
in your context, you may well have learners with disabilities such as The OUP English Language Teaching Global Blog:
dyslexia, ADHD and mild-to-moderate intellectual disabilities, as well as Five myths about teaching learners with SEN: http://goo.gl/RKADjY
physical special needs, integrated into your language classes. eaching students with attention, concentration and hyperactivity
T
3 Wandhat’stechnology?
the connection between SEN learners
difficulties: http://goo.gl/w1Se3R
Dyslexia – a problem or a gift? http://goo.gl/F415dY
Help organisations:
Technologies have been used to support SEN learners in general Dyslexia Help: http://dyslexiahelp.umich.edu/tools/software-assistive-
education for decades. For example, tape recorders were originally technology
used to provide learners with audio prompts to help them understand Languages without Limits: www.languageswithoutlimits.co.uk
and/or produce language. Later, MP3 players and portable DVD
players could be used to deliver audio and video prompts, with the
added advantage that SEN learners could carry these smaller Nicky Hockly has been involved in EFL
teaching and teacher training since 1987.
technologies around with them, for support outside the classroom and She is Director of Pedagogy of The
in their daily lives. More recently, mobile devices such as tablet Consultants-E, an online teacher training and
computers have been enthusiastically taken up by SEN educators, development consultancy. She is the
because of their assistive features – more on which below. prize-winning author of several books about
language teaching and technology, most
4 What are assistive technologies? recently Focus on Learning Technologies

(OUP) and ETpedia Technology (Pavilion).
Her company, The Consultants-E, offers the
Mobile devices, especially tablet computers, include a range of assistive
online training course ‘Teaching Live Online’
features that can support SEN language learners. For example, dyslexic
for English language teachers (see https://goo.gl/HDffQ3).
learners can listen to, rather than read, an English text by activating a
nicky.hockly@theconsultants-e.com
tablet’s audio capabilities. Conversely, learners with hearing impairments

ETpedia ETpedia TM
Technology
Nicky Hockly
10 things to know about SEN

students and technology
The term ‘special educational needs’ – SEN for short – is used to refer to learners with a wide range
of needs that require special support in the language classroom. There is increasing support available
for both teachers and SEN students. As well as more attention being paid to effective classroom
management strategies and a variety of approaches and activities, we are also seeing an increasing
number of technologies that can support SEN students in the classroom. In this unit we focus on
mobile devices, and particularly on tablet computers. Tablets have a range of assistive features that
are particularly suited to SEN students, and we explore these below.
1. What does SEN refer to?

The term SEN covers a range of needs. These can include, at one end of the spectrum, cognitive
and learning challenges like mild dyslexia and mild intellectual disability, and at the other, severe
learning difficulties and autism. It includes learners with behavioural challenges such as ADHD
(attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), or other social or emotional challenges. It includes learners
with physical challenges like visual or hearing impairments, and those with mobility issues, including
restricted movement and motor-skills challenges. These very different needs require differing levels
and types of support with learning.
2. The clinical approach

One approach to dealing with SEN students in education is what we might call a ‘deficit’ model. In
this model, SEN students are perceived to have a ‘problem’, which education should try to put right
through special learning programmes in separate schools. This corresponds to a medical or clinical
approach to SEN.
3. The inclusive approach

The social or inclusive approach involves considering SEN students as unique individuals with
their own strengths and weaknesses. In this model, SEN students are integrated into mainstream
schools, with specialists (such as educational psychologists) helping teachers to develop strategies
and materials to support these learners in the classroom. Depending on the educational views and
strategies for dealing with SEN that are prevalent in your context, you may well have students with
disabilities such as dyslexia, ADHD and mild-to-moderate intellectual disabilities, as well as those with
physical special needs, integrated into your language classes.
4. SEN learners and technology

Technologies have been used to support SEN students in general education for decades. For
example, tape recorders were initially used to provide learners with audio prompts to help them
understand and/or produce language. Later, MP3 players and portable DVD players could be used
to deliver audio and video prompts, with the added advantage that SEN students could carry these
smaller technologies around with them for support outside the classroom and in their daily lives.
More recently, mobile devices such as tablet computers have been enthusiastically taken up by SEN
educators because of their assistive features (see ‘Assistive technologies’ below).

ETpedia ETpedia TM
Technology
Nicky Hockly
5. Assistive technologies
Mobile devices, especially tablet computers, include a range of built-in assistive features that
can support SEN language students. These are features that can be turned on in the settings
for a mobile phone or tablet. Assistive features include text to speech (which turns a typed text
into audio), speech to text (which turns audio or video into written speech), as well as a range of
hearing, visual and tactile features to help students with these disabilities. These assistive features
are explored further in the points below.
6. Dyslexic students
Dyslexia is a neural condition that makes it difficult for those affected to process information, typically
resulting in issues with reading, writing and spelling. Dyslexic students frequently have problems
linking sounds to the corresponding written words, with the process of reading (letters seem to
change and move around the page for them as they read), and with short-term memory, which
means they find it difficult to remember something that has just been said. Additional challenges
for dyslexic students include sequencing and organisation, and numerical skills. Dyslexia is arguably
the most common type of SEN that you will come across in your English language classroom, so it
is encouraging to know that several of the assistive features of mobile devices can support these
learners. For example, activating text to speech in a mobile device’s settings is recommended
for dyslexic students. Because dyslexic students have challenges with reading, they can listen to
rather than read an English text; in this way a written text is, in effect, ‘read aloud’ by the device. In
addition, dyslexic students can audio-record what the teacher says on a mobile device, which can
help them overcome problems with taking notes or remembering what the teacher says in class. Using
graphic organisers such as mind maps (see Unit 10 and Unit 13) can also help dyslexic students with
sequencing and organisation by displaying information in a more visual format.
7. Support for hearing and visual impairment

Mobile devices frequently include a built-in assistive speech-to-text feature that enables the device to
transcribe an audio text into written text. This means that students with hearing impairments can read,
rather than listen to, content. They can also have audio content transcribed into text by activating
closed captions and subtitles for video content on a tablet, for example. For students who may have
better hearing in one ear, many tablets include a mono option in the sound settings; and hearing aids
can be connected to some tablets via Bluetooth. Learners with visual impairments can change the font
and size of the text displayed on a mobile device to make it easier to read. The background colour of
a tablet or phone can also be changed, so that text appears as a white on a black or dark background;
this can help some students with visual impairments.
8. Support for motor skills challenges

For learners with motor skills challenges, tactile screen settings can be changed from swipe
movements to tapping movements, which are easier to control. The tactile interface can also help
learners with motor skills challenges to write more easily, using a finger on the screen rather than a
pen on paper; this method can even improve their writing motor skills over time. Note that the screen
display on mobile devices can be locked into one position so that screen movement for these learners
is reduced. Finally, some tablets include an ‘assistive touch’ feature, which allows teachers to guide
students around the screen as they read by highlighting the screen area to focus on.

ETpedia ETpedia TM
Technology
Nicky Hockly
9. Apps
There is a wide range of educational apps available for SEN learners, including those learning a
second or foreign language. For example, for dyslexic learners, there are writing apps that can help
them learn to write letters by tracing them on a touch screen. As we saw above, SEN learners who
find reading challenging can use text-to-speech apps that deliver written texts in audio format.
Similarly, learners with hearing disabilities can use speech-to-text apps that provide written transcripts
of audio texts. SEN learners with communication challenges can benefit from apps that support
communication, including those that predict sentence completion (eg Assistive Express) and those
that enable students to simply answer yes or no to questions.
10. Resources for teachers

With the move towards more inclusive approaches to SEN, there is now a lot more material available
to help English language teachers support their SEN learners, both with and without technology.
There are books, blogs and websites where you can find practical classroom tips and ideas on how
to support learners with a range of SENs. For example, Special Educational Needs (Oxford University
Press, 2016), by Marie Delaney, provides practical tips and strategies for English language teachers,
including a section on technology and SEN. The English Language Teaching Global Blog from
Oxford University Press (oupeltglobalblog.com) has several helpful posts about SEN. There are also
organisations that provide descriptions of software and apps that can support SEN learners, as well as
documentation and lesson plans to help teachers. Examples of these organisations are: Dyslexia Help
(http://dyslexiahelp.umich.edu/tools/software-assistive-technology), Understood (understood.org) and
Languages without Limits (languageswithoutlimits.co.uk).
“Technology is excellent for supporting language

learners with special educational needs. An important
principle is to focus on learning needs starting from
what somebody can do rather than what they can’t
do. A good inclusive practice approach is through
accessible tools supporting engagement with learning
– the University of Kent have a really useful free
resource supporting this approach.” See: https://www.
kent.ac.uk/studentsupport/accessibility/productivity
Phil Dexter, British Council Teacher Development and Special Educational Needs
Adviser. To find out more about using inclusive practices visit https://www.
teachingenglish.org.uk/teacher-development/continuing-professional-development/
using-inclusive-practices

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Vanessa Reis Esteves
10 thoughts on instructions
Instructions can make or break a lesson. If children understand what you want them to do, they will
be able to meet your expectations and the lesson will run smoothly. However, if instructions are
confusing, chaos and confusion may ensue, requiring a lot of your time and effort to get things back
under control.
See Appendix (page 147) for some common and useful classroom instructions for use in
particular situations. To get some ideas on how to give effective instructions, have a look at the
10 tips below.
1. Plan instructions
Instructions are fundamental in the classroom, so spend time carefully planning the instructions
that you give. As you plan the activities for your lesson, think of and plan the corresponding
instructions that you will need for a particular activity. This may initially appear time-consuming, but it
will save you and the children a lot of stress in the classroom. See the Appendix for a list of useful
classroom instructions (pages 147–148).
2. Keep instructions short and simple

Keep your instructions short, simple and to the point. Remember that children have a short attention
span and are eager to get going on a task. So, if your instructions are long and complicated, they are
likely to switch off or forget everything that you have said, even before they start doing anything.
3. Word instructions positively

Make sure that your instructions tell the children what you want them to do rather than what you
don’t want them to do. They should be in the affirmative form. For example, instead of saying, ‘Don’t
shout!’, try saying, ‘Speak quietly – use volume 5.’ (You will have to have agreed on what volume 5 is
with the children.)
4. Sequence instructions
Give instructions in a sequenced manner. Follow a 1-2-3 approach to giving instructions: First open
your books, then read the story, and finally do Exercise 1. Write this on the board in three steps,
numbered 1, 2 and 3, so that the children can go back to the instructions if they forget them as they
become immersed in the activity.
5. Repeat instructions
Make sure you give instructions more than once. Children have different learning rhythms and
language levels, which will mean that they don’t all understand you at the same time. Some children
may need to hear an instruction several times before they understand what you want them to do.
6. Demonstrate instructions
Remember that young learners still have a very basic command of English. To avoid misunderstandings,
give children instructions while demonstrating exactly what you want them to do. Think of yourself as a
mirror, constantly reflecting what you want the children to do.

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7. Check understanding
Once you have given an instruction, take the time to check whether the children have understood.
Don’t limit yourself to asking, ‘Do you understand?’ The natural answer to this question tends to be
‘Yes’. Try getting the children to repeat the instruction back to you like a parrot or in a parrot voice.
This will allow them to have fun and stay on track at the same time.
8. Give instructions in English

Avoid using the children’s first language to give instructions. Instructions are a natural and
communicative opportunity for children to pick up and learn new language. Remember that children
need as much exposure to English as they can get.
9. Make instructions visual

Children respond well to visual stimuli. This means that they tend to remember what they see rather
than what they hear or are told to do. Make cards with an instruction and an illustrative image on
each. Show the children these cards as you give them the instructions.
10. Give instructions on a need-to-know basis

Avoid bombarding children with a long list of instructions. By the time you get to the end, they will
probably have forgotten what you wanted them to do first. Instead, give them instructions for a
particular activity on a need-to-know basis. This means that the children are given time to complete
each task before being given the next instruction.
‘I always try to keep instructions simple,

use short and clear sentences and
support my instructions with pictures,
gestures, intonation or even miming.
I make sure everyone understands
them by asking simple questions.’
Rosa Maria Figueiroa, Spain

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Unit 14: Common classroom instructions

Checking understanding Giving encouragement
• re you going to … or are you going to …?
A • Excellent!/Well done!
• What do we do next? • That’s it! Keep on trying.
• Show me … / Point to … • Good try! High five!
• Clap your hands if you think this is correct and • Congratulations!
stamp your feet if you think that is wrong. • Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy (to show that
something is really easy).
Setting homework Ending the lesson

• or homework please do Exercise …
F • lease put your books away. It’s time to tidy up.
P
on page …. • Well done, everyone! I’m so proud of you.
• What’s your homework? • See you tomorrow/next time.
• What page is your homework on? • Let’s sing the Goodbye Song.
• What do you have to do in Exercise 1?
Unit 15, point 4: Challenge of the day: riddles

Riddle Answer
What goes up when rain comes down? An umbrella.
What can you catch but not throw? A cold.
What kind of tree can you carry in your hand? A palm.
What has one eye but cannot see? A needle.
How many months have 28 days? All the months (they all have at least 28 days).
What goes up but never comes down? Your age.
What is at the end of a rainbow? The letter W.
What is always coming but never arrives? Tomorrow.
What has a neck but no head? A bottle.
What can you hear but not touch or see? Your voice.
Appendix

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Stacey H. Hughes, Fiona Mauchline and Julie Moore
10 vocabulary practices that students with

dyslexia hate
Students with dyslexia typically have difficulty with organising learning, reading, writing and short-term
memory. Dyslexia affects individuals in different ways and to different degrees – some students will only
be affected by mild dyslexia (which may go undiagnosed), while others may be more severely affected.
Commonly, people with dyslexia struggle with reading and spelling, and many have problems with
handwriting. Dyslexia is not classed as a disability; instead it is often referred to as a specific ‘learning
difficulty’. However, despite being considered as a difficulty, it actually brings many advantages, including
high levels of creativity, good global visual processing, and the ability to ‘think outside of the box’ to solve
problems. It’s worth noting that there isn’t one strategy that works well for everyone with dyslexia, so you’ll
need to find out what works for each individual student. Below are 10 practices that students with dyslexia
hate, with suggestions for making them more dyslexia-friendly. It’s worth noting that all students will
benefit from many of the dyslexia-friendly tips below.
1. Black text on a white background

This can cause words to appear to move around or jump about on the page. Where possible, choose
pale-coloured paper and a dark font (dark blue text on a pale cream background is suitable for many).
If you are using a coursebook, ask students to use a pale highlighter to highlight key words in a text.
Another option is to provide students with a reading ruler. This is a coloured transparent ruler that can
be placed over a word to make it easier to read. Some students may prefer coloured glasses. Different
colours work better with different students, so if possible try printing on different-coloured paper and
have a set of different-coloured reading rulers on hand to see which is preferable to your students.
2. Ignoring phonics
Phonics training helps with both sides of word recognition – it allows learners to work out how
to pronounce a word they see, and it also allows them to work out how to write a word they
hear. Like all students, those with dyslexia will benefit from direct instruction of sound–letter
correspondence. This includes teaching students how letters and letter combinations sound (e.g. igh
sounds like /aɪ/, as in high; ou sounds like /əʊ/, as in though or /aʊ/, as in ouch), and how letter
sounds can change in combination with other letters (e.g. c sounds like /s/ before e or i, as in palace
and circus). Encourage students to keep charts in their vocabulary notebooks to record words
according to phonetic patterns. You can also display charts and word clouds around the walls for
reference. (See the phonic table on page 237 of the Appendix for an example.)
3. Being rushed
Students with dyslexia need extra time to process information, so avoid rushing them. Give students
time to complete written exercises and, when introducing new vocabulary, give them maximum mental
processing time. For vocabulary dictation exercises, allow extra time or provide scaffolding by giving
students part of the word with gaps to fill in for each letter. Give students plenty of time to write out or
type words to make use of muscle memory.
4. Spelling aloud and spelling tests

Spelling poses a problem for dyslexic students because they think visually instead of verbally.
Therefore, spelling aloud and spelling tests cause anxiety. However, this does not mean dyslexic
students cannot learn to spell. When introducing words, pronounce them slowly as you write them
on the board so that students can see the letter–sound relationships. Invite students to say the words

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as they write or type them. Encourage students to use colours or larger fonts to highlight patterns
in words (e.g. words with ea that sound like /e/ (e.g. deaf) and those that sound like /i:/ (e.g. meat);
words with ough that sound like /ʌf/ (e.g. enough) and those that sound like /əʊ/ (e.g. although), etc).
In writing, focus on students’ ability to communicate ideas rather than on perfect spelling.
5. Ignoring the senses

Multi-sensory approaches – those that make use of multiple senses and involve a mixture of reading,
writing, listening and speaking – aid processing of information, not just for students with dyslexia, but
for all students. Here are some ideas for using a multi-sensory approach:
XX When introducing new vocabulary, use pictures, objects or video (using an app such as Adobe
Voice) or introduce words using movement and mime.
XX To help students with word recognition, write the word on the board and say it several times.
Then ask students to repeat.
XX Ask students to write the word down or type it out while saying or sounding it out.
XX Suggest they use the predictive text function on their phones: they say the word and the phone
types it for them to see.
XX Ask everyone to tap out syllables as you say the word.
XX Play sound-matching games: For example, say, ‘How many words can you think of that start with /
str/?’ (strength, strong, etc.).
XX Give students Scrabble letters that they can move around for spelling activities, or create your own set
using words broken up into syllables, prefixes and suffixes or common patterns like the ones below.
str ee t im pr ove qu a l ify
6. Dealing with long words

Reading long words is challenging, especially as they tend to refer to abstract concepts, giving
dyslexic students nothing concrete to visualise. Introduce words orally first and drill them chorally.
Show how to break long words down into more manageable chunks with a focus on how they sound.
Include visual illustrations where possible.
e.g.
a|stro|no|mer
ə | strɒ | nə | mə
7. Not adapting coursebook materials

There are many activity types in coursebooks that cause problems for students with dyslexia. For
example, scanning a text to find words is difficult if the words keep moving on the page. Another is
matching words to definitions due to difficulties with working memory. As an alternative, use direct
instruction to teach new words, and present sentence-level contexts rather than large chunks of text.
Make matching activities multi-modal through the use of cards that students can physically match
together. Introduce words orally, then write them on the board and say them again before asking
students to complete vocabulary exercises in the book. This will give students some contact with the
word before having to deal with it in the text.

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8. Too many words to learn

Remember that for students with dyslexia, learning vocabulary brings with it a heavy cognitive load.
Reduce the number of words you introduce, and revise frequently.
9. Ignoring technology
Technology gives students with dyslexia a range of useful tools, including accessibility tools on
computers and laptops, and assistive technology for web browsing. Here are some ways to use
technological tools:
XX Allow students to type (or dictate) their work and to use the spellchecker. Show them how to
right-click on a misspelled word to find a list of possible spellings. Another alternative is assistive
technology such as Ghotit, which is especially designed to help people with dyslexia with their
spelling.
XX Use an online dictionary with audio so that students can both see and hear the word.
XX Encourage students to use apps such as Mental Note for iPad to create a multi-sensory digital
notebook which can include text (including speech-to-text functionality), audio, pictures and
sketches.
XX Upload worksheets into an app such as SnapType Pro so that students can complete them without
having to write answers by hand.
For more information on useful apps, search for ‘dyslexia apps for adults’ in your web browser.
10. Unhelpful fonts and crowded pages

When writing on the board, write clearly in large letters. Avoid cursive writing or letters with fancy
‘tails’ and ‘curls’ (e.g. thank you). Avoid crowding the board with lots of words, and use boxes, arrows,
headings and bullet points to help anchor words and phrases. Use dyslexia-friendly (sans-serif) fonts
such as Arial, Open Sans or Calibri when creating vocabulary worksheets and handouts (using cream-
coloured paper where possible) and break up large amounts of text with graphics. These are all
simple changes that can be made without other students noticing.

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Unit 38.2 Phonics chart

Say the words in each row to help you remember the sounds and add your own words.
Sounds Words with these sounds Your words with these sounds
/ɪ/ this, symbol, dish
/iː/ eat, feel, three

/æ/ cat, fat, at
/ɑː/ far, car, barbecue
/ɒ/ hot, not, dot
/ɔː/ or, pour, law
/ʌ/ up, cut, shut
/ʊ/ book, should, dull
/uː/ shoe, moon, new

/e/ head, desk, said
/ə/ banana, hotter, compute
/ɜː/ nurse, earn, her,
/ɪə/ hear, here, peer
/eɪ/ may, cake, neighbour
/ʊə/ pure, fewer, tourist
/ɔɪ/ boy, voice, horse
/əʊ/ phone, moan, sewn
/eə/ care, hair, where
/aɪ/ my, bike, eye
/aʊ/ towel, owl, foul

/p/ apple, pen, up
/b/ above, rabbit, stab
/t/ tin, attend, danced
/d/ dive, aid, played
/ʧ/ chair, watch, picture
Appendix

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/ʤ/ vision, courgette, measure

/k/ key, baked, fact
/g/ go, bag, burger
/f/ fly, off, surfer
/v/ van, drove, ever
/θ/ thought, thank, with

/ð/ this, mother, then
/s/ see, circus, glass
/z/ zoo, buzzer, squeeze
/ʃ/ ship, show, tension
/ʒ/ television, pleasure, leisure

/m/ man, lemon, dam
/n/ nice, anagram, done
/ŋ/ ring, uncle, sang

/h/ help, misheard, home
/l/ long, rely, well
/r/ read, horrible, hairy
/w/ wise, window, rewind
/j/ yellow, yak, York
/ks/ fox, socks, boxes
Appendix

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10 tips for teaching vocabulary to students who are

hard of hearing
A teacher of students who are profoundly deaf will need to be fluent in sign language, both in the target
language and in their students’ own language, and will also need specific training in teaching the deaf.
However, many teachers who are not trained in this area will encounter individual students who are hard
of hearing or who were born deaf but have cochlear implants (CIs) to assist their hearing. The likelihood
of teaching students who are hard of hearing is increasing as the number of seniors (learners over 60)
increases, so it is useful to be ready with a few techniques for teaching vocabulary in order to be able to
support these students fully.
1. Remember the practicalities

The main thing to remember is your physical presentation. Learners who are hard of hearing rely on
their eyes, so be sure never to have anything in front of your face when you say vocabulary items, and
always face the front when you’re speaking. Although learning to actually produce the spoken items
may not be of interest to the more profoundly deaf, all deaf or hard of hearing students will want to
learn to recognise what vocabulary items look like when spoken, as this facilitates lip-reading. One
activity you can try, particularly if you have a hard of hearing student in a class of hearing students, is a
game whereby you mouth the day’s vocabulary for pairs to guess and write down. If you also then ask
pairs to mouth words for each other to guess, you will train them to be aware of articulating words for
lip-reading purposes too. This additionally helps with empathy and awareness.
2. Use flashcards
Flashcards are key teaching aids for supporting learners who are hard of hearing. The problem with
referring to pictures in a coursebook is that it tends to be a heads-down activity, which detaches
the experience of seeing the visual from that of seeing the word being produced. Using flashcards
allows the teacher to have the image near their face when they say the word, thereby supporting
lip-reading; it can also be either held near a wordcard (a card with a single word or phrase written
on it) or stuck on the board next to the written form. In review lessons, you can use flashcards drawn
by the students. The act of producing cards is motivating for students; it also reinforces associations,
as the memory of drawing may trigger retrieval of the item.
3. Get students to draw for comprehension

Teachers often check comprehension by asking a student what a word means, but in many classrooms
learners can’t see the face of the classmate giving the answer (for example, because the person
speaking is behind or in front of them). This can be frustrating for learners who are hard of hearing.
One way to avoid this involves drawing, which is particularly useful for action verbs (e.g. jump, sleep,
dance) and common nouns (e.g. hammer, key, vase). Using wordcards, flash a series of four or five
words one by one at the class and ask students to draw the things quickly on paper in the same order
(stick-people will do). Pairs then compare drawings to see if they have the same things in the same
order. Display the words on the board in a different order and ask a volunteer to come to the front
and correct the order while referring to their own pictures.

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4. Miming games
Charades builds associations with words either through watching classmates miming and relating
the actions to vocabulary items, or through the physicality of doing the mime itself. Write the day’s
vocabulary on slips of paper and invite a student to the front to take one and look without showing it.
The student then mimes the word silently for the class to guess. The student who guesses the word
correctly comes to the front and mimes the next word, or nominates someone to do it.
5. Back up your instructions

An obvious but simple tip is to keep all instructions simple, and back them up with written versions on
slides or as a numbered handout for the hard of hearing.
6. Keep concepts in mind

Some areas of vocabulary will be conceptually unknown to students who were born deaf, and will be
irrelevant to others (e.g. whisper, shout, howl, roar), so be sensitive. Deaf people may also ask about
concepts that don’t exist in hearing people’s English. A sign language can be a first language just
like any other, and learners may ask for vocabulary to express concepts that aren’t found in spoken
English, just as an astronaut might have vocabulary related to weightlessness that we don’t know.
Rather than worry about this, just deal with it in the same way as you would deal with a student of any
other L1 asking for a word that doesn’t have a direct translation in English.
7. Be aware of words that look alike

Learners who were born deaf but have CIs, or those born hard of hearing, rarely confuse homophones
(right/write) but they may confuse pairs of words that look similar, such as like and kite. This is because
they learn words much as Chinese words are learnt – as ‘pictures’ (logograms). Consequently, when
you’re preparing vocabulary, flashcards, etc. you need to remember to see words as pictures, since
pairs of visually similar words might need more spelling training. One game that can help is ‘Spot the
odd one out’, which can also help deaf students focus on vocabulary ‘shape’ or spelling, too. Prepare
trios of words, with one that is spelt differently but could be confused, e.g. like kite bike / late gate
tiger / blue label due. Students identify the different word, and then use it in a sentence, to reinforce
the association between form and meaning.
8. Use anagrams
Some hearing students, particularly adults, find solving anagrams tricky and don’t enjoy them (enger?
erd? loyewl?*). Students who were born deaf but have CIs or are hard of hearing are often much better
at these than hearing students are. This means that solving anagrams is a particularly useful, motivating
activity for reviewing, memorising or practising vocabulary, or to be used as a vocabulary warmer. The
activity constitutes an achievable challenge that plays to their strengths and offers a sense of reward.
(*green, red, yellow)
9. Should I learn sign language?

If you are concerned about learning some kind of signing to help deaf students, finger-spelling is a
useful technique. However, remember that signing is not an international language; there are around
40 different sign languages, so as well as learning both the students’ first language and the target
language, you need to remember that the signed words would also be new to your learners. Also,
bear in mind that American, Irish and British finger-spelling systems are also different.

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10. Present in various ways

All students benefit from meeting new words in different ways. Hearing students see written words,
hear the spoken form and associate the items with pictures, which helps form as many associations
as possible. Deaf students also need to meet new words in different ways, so if you do learn signing
or finger-spelling, don’t limit yourself to using it as the only way of presenting items. Back it up with
pictures and the written form.
“When we talk about learners with other

learning differences, it is important to
remember that they have strengths
too! Some of them are visual learners,
critical thinkers, artists... I think we
should focus more on these strengths
to support them in the process of
learning a foreign language.’
Michele Daloiso, University of Parma, Italy

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10 tips for teaching students who are colour‑blind

or who are partially sighted
Around one in 12 males and one in 200 females are colour-blind, so the chances are high that in any
given class there is going to be at least one student with the condition. Colour-blindness or sight loss may
be things that some students are sensitive about and wish to keep from their classmates. This means it’s
helpful to use techniques that take these circumstances into account in all classes from day one. In this
way, if you then become aware of any existing sight issues, you’ll have already been working to support
the students in question.
Working exclusively with blind students needs specific techniques on the part of the teacher at all times;
however, in more general classes, always incorporating activities that play to such students’ strengths, rather
than occasionally planning ‘special’ activities, really evens out everyone’s chances of learning vocabulary.
1. Prepare visuals for colour-blind students

When you prepare a visual such as an image or a wordcloud (that is, a visual representation of a set of
lexical items in the shape of a colourful ‘cloud’), take care to select colours that colour-blind students
can distinguish easily. Most colour-blind people have difficulties with the red-brown-green part of the
spectrum, but blue-black-grey can also present problems. Memory games and ‘spot-the-difference’
pictures for practising dynamic verbs are also areas for attention. Questions like What’s the man in the
red shorts doing? and Where is the boy in blue standing? can easily be replaced with What’s the man
with glasses doing? and What’s the smallest boy doing?. Prepare lessons by looking at the visuals in
black and white: can you still identify the elements?
2. Even the field with odd images

Use cropped photos, abstract art and badly-drawn, strange or out-of-focus images to get students to
speculate. This evens the field for students with milder degrees of sight loss. Cropped images of, say,
animals generate plenty of animal nouns as well as modals of hypothesis (e.g. It might be a cat or a
lion. It could also be a horse.). Images such as those at museumofbadart.org (try the ‘Unseen forces’
collection) make interpreting fun. There are written interpretations with them for added amusement. Use
this kind of distorted image with all your students to elicit plenty of ideas and vocabulary, particularly
if you want to practise verbs such as guess, reckon, be supposed to (be), or adjectives of opinion like
terrible, funny, weird, wonderful and so on, without drawing attention to varying degrees of sightedness.
3. Use a touchy-feely bag with all ages

‘What can you see in the picture?’ activities can be substituted by tapping into the other senses,
to play to sight-impaired students’ strengths. The touchy-feely bag is a frequent prop in young
learner classrooms, but can be effective with teens or adults too. Collect small items related to your
topic (e.g. for the topic of cooking/food, you could have a teaspoon, a pepper mill and a grape
amongst other things) and put them in a bag. Ask students to put their hand in, feel the objects
and identify them. You can use this to present a topic by asking students to guess the link between
the objects once they’ve felt two or three of them. You can then ask them to predict what else is in
the bag. Students then work in pairs to create as long a list as possible of items they would add to
the collection. You can also play a memory game: after students have felt all the items, put the bag
behind your back and remove one or two things. Ask them to feel everything again and tell you
what’s missing.

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4. Use mime to trigger the imagination

This technique triggers sensations and associations that not only generate vocabulary, but that also
help students remember it. Pairs imagine they have a large box. One student in each pair mimes
taking things out of it and handing them to their partner, saying, Oh look/wow, it’s a …! each time.
They need to work quickly, so that the imagination takes over and is triggered by their own hands;
for example, using two fists, they might say Oh, here are some maracas! or with hands wide apart,
they might say … and here’s a baby elephant! If they don’t know the word, they can use their first
language and find out the word after the activity. The other student mimes taking the objects and
putting them somewhere. They should allow their mind to ‘feel’ the item as they take it and work out
how to hold it. This activation aids memory. After a few minutes, they swap roles. Finally, they try to
remember all the items they handed each other, naming everything in English.
5. Use touch to practise or learn adjectives

You can use pairs of simple objects that are similar yet very different in one or more ways to
generate lots of adjectives, e.g. two pebbles or shells. Ask a student to sit with their eyes closed and
their cupped hands out in front of them. Put one object in each of the student’s hands and allow the
student to run their fingers over them for a moment. Then ask the student to describe the objects
in great detail, telling you what they think they look like. Ask them to tell you about any memories
the objects trigger (without looking at them). Some students will even be able to tell you what the
objects smell like. Also, what generally happens is that after watching a classmate doing this and
coming up with lots of words, other students want a go, too. So be sure to have two or three pairs
of items with you.
6. Draw on each other’s hands or backs

This tried-and-tested vocabulary review activity is a good drawing substitute for partially sighted
students (but not blind students). As it involves touching each other, be sure to check that students
are comfortable with that. Ask them to work in pairs to ‘draw’ items on each other’s palms or
(clothed) backs using a finger. Drawing on a forearm also works. For example, they could draw an
eye, a nose or a mouth; a car, a van or a bus. They could also try drawing emotions in the form
of emojis, e.g. happy, puzzled, angry, or stick-people doing actions. The partner who is being
drawn on has to guess what the drawing is. Use this for comparisons, too, to generate or review
vocabulary: students draw two images with small differences and their partner ‘feels’ and identifies
the difference, e.g. The second runner has bigger feet. The first runner was wearing a cap.
7. Build collaborative maps in the mind

To practise items like left, right, straight ahead, create a simple street map on paper (or use
the photocopiable map on page 239 of the Appendix). Students work in A/B pairs. Student A
closes their eyes. In one hand Student A holds some small objects, such as paperclips or coins, and
with the other hand he or she places an index finger anywhere on the map. Student B starts to give
directions around the town and Student A follows the directions with an index finger. As Student B
gives directions, he or she occasionally tells Student A to ‘Stop’ and to place an object on a
particular building. For example, Student B might decide that one of the buildings is the post office,
and so could say, Turn left and the post office is on your right. Student A then places a small object
on that square to represent the post office. When they have finished putting different objects on the
map to represent different buildings, Student A can look and see if the final map is how he or she
imagined it. Then the pair try to remember and describe what buildings are represented by the
objects on the map.

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8. Use visualisation techniques

Using your voice and music for visualisation is effective when working with students who are blind
or who have very low vision. As visualisation is a relaxing technique that is good for stimulating the
imagination and memory, it works well with other students too. Ask students to imagine a setting, and
then ask what they hear (voices, the wind, traffic …), what they can smell (flowers, food, suntan lotion
…), how they feel – in both a tactile and an emotional sense – (soft/wet/warm sand, pebbles; hungry,
relaxed, intrigued ...), how the air tastes (salty, fresh), and what they can sense behind them (houses,
mountains, people...). Take it slowly and allow a moment after each question for students to fully
visualise and notice these different elements. They can think of words in their first language and then
find out how to say them afterwards. They then tell their classmates what they felt, smelt, heard, etc.
You can do a similar activity using music to prompt visualisation, too.
9. Use spelling and memory games

When we write vocabulary on the board or point it out in coursebooks, the shape of the word
is transferred to a student’s memory. For students with low vision, this is either more laborious
or doesn’t happen at all. You can compensate for this by incorporating as many memory and
spelling games into your classes as possible. Try a classic Spelling Bee team game, where you
give teams words to define and spell; this works well with higher levels as well as lower ones.
You can also add a spelling element to other games, such as the back-drawing game above.
Remember that any work done to reinforce memorising vocabulary rather than writing it down
will support learners with low vision.
10. Record, record, record

Blind students or students with low vision will benefit from having vocabulary lists audio‑recorded
so they can listen to them anytime and anywhere. Make recordings of unit vocabulary each week
or month and give the recordings to your students. Remember: it’s better to record vocabulary
in a context such as a sentence. You can also leave five to ten minutes at the end of a lesson for
reviewing and recording vocabulary. Students work in small groups to try and remember all the
words from the day or week, or to play a guessing game where they write definitions and the others
try to guess the word (see pages 31-32). Then they voice-record the list onto their phones while
their partner listens. (Listening to each other’s voices also helps memorisation.) They can listen to the
recordings in their free time to revise vocabulary.
‘It is very difficult to give general advice because there

are very big differences between the diagnoses, e.g.
partially-sighted, blind, etc. But in general, pupils
and students have to really repeat a lot, memorize
everything. For younger kids (age 5–10), it is very useful
to use a tactile alphabet; I mean creating separate
letters using different types of material (e.g. paper or
card, and you can stick on some textiles with different
textures). They can touch and slowly explore the shape
of the letters and then the whole word or expression.’
Radka Machálková, teacher, Czech Republic

ETpedia ETpedia
TM
Vocabulary
Unit 40.7 Collaborative maps

Choose some of the squares marked on the map to place your objects. Decide what you want them to be
but do not write on the map.
Give directions to your partner to help them build your town.
Park R
ow
College Street
Main Street
Grey’s Lane Long Lane

Exeter Road
Short Street
L ane
Old
Appendix You may photocopy this page.

The
dangers
of
differentiation
Adrian Tennant dares to differ.
B
efore explaining what I mean by the ‘dangers’ of Content
differentiation, I think it is important to define what ■■ Providing reading texts at varying levels.
is meant by the term differentiation. At its most basic
level, differentiation consists of the efforts of teachers
■■ Providing vocabulary lists with definitions for weaker learners.
to respond to differences among and between learners ■■ Having a variety of comprehension questions for a listening
in the classroom. This may be at the level of the individual or or reading task, eg from closed yes/no questions to more
small groups, and differentiation may be achieved by using a complex inference questions.
variety of activities and strategies throughout a lesson.
Process
Using activities that require reaching the same understanding
Theory ■■
and skills, but which have different levels of support,
Differentiation can be applied to four areas: the content – what challenge or complexity.
the learners are learning; the process – how they are learning; ■■ Grouping the learners according to level or ability.
the product – what they produce; and the learning environment
– the way the classroom works and feels. ■■ Varying the length of time a learner may be given to
complete a task, providing additional support for a
Teachers may well make decisions about differentiation
struggling learner or encouraging an advanced learner to
based on a number of factors connected to the learners. These
look at a topic in greater depth.
could include the readiness of the learners, their perceived
abilities and/or needs, their interests and their learning profiles. Product
Let’s take a closer look at each of these four areas, to gain a ■■ Asking the learners to produce different pieces of work. For
better idea of what this could mean. example, some learners could be asked to answer as many

questions as they can in five minutes (rather than answering Let’s look at another example, but this time with process
all the questions). When asked to produce a piece of writing, differentiation. One of the most common techniques used is
some learners could be expected to produce 100 words, while differentiated grouping. Almost every time I have seen this
for others it might be 250. happening in the classroom, two things have happened.
■■ Giving the learners options of what to produce from the Firstly, it has been the teacher who has decided who goes in
same input, eg a poster, a descriptive essay, a short summary, each group and, secondly, it has been the teacher deciding on
a drawing illustrating the meaning of a vocabulary item, a the abilities of each of the learners. To my mind, this isn’t
written definition, etc. differentiation – it’s discrimination! So, what should we be
doing instead?
Learning environment
■■ Allowing the learners to decide whether they work An inclusive classroom
individually, in pairs or in groups on a certain task. I would argue that we should be trying to create an inclusive
■■ Setting out clear guidelines for independent work that classroom. Inclusion doesn’t ignore differences between
matches individual needs. learners, but it also doesn’t make a big deal out of them.
■■ Setting up the room with areas designated for quiet work, Inclusive classrooms:
groupwork, etc. ■■ celebrate and value differences;
■■ show that everyone has something to offer;
Practice ■■ allow learners to make their own decisions and choices;
In theory, this all sounds quite good, but one of the major ■■ promote and facilitate collaborative learning;
issues is what happens in practice.
■■ focus on processes and not just products.
Quite a few times, I have seen teachers designing different
sets of worksheets for different groups of learners in one class. As motivational speaker Alexander Den Heijer says: ‘When a
An example of this might be a gap-fill activity with three levels flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not
of complexity: the flower.’ While he was actually talking about managers and
leaders, I still think this quote has relevance in the context of
teaching and learning. The way I read it is that the focus should
Version A be on helping our learners to grow, by supporting and making
Choose one word to ________ the gap. Make sure the word is their learning conditions better, not trying to adjust or ‘fix’ the
grammatically ________ and fits the ________. learners themselves. To my mind, in the way differentiation is
Version B usually practised, the onus is placed on the learner: it is the
learner who has a problem which needs to be fixed, rather than
Choose one word to c_______ the gap. Make sure the word is
the (educational) system itself. So, if we are to tackle the learning
grammatically c_______ and fits the c_______.
environment, how does this work on a practical level?
Version C
correct context complete Well, let’s revisit our gap-fill activity and see what we might
do in an inclusive classroom. At a basic level, we might simply
Choose one word to ________ the gap. Make sure the word is
take Version A of the activity, put the learners in mixed-ability
grammatically ________ and fits the ________.
groups and ask them to work together and help each other to
complete the task. In order to prevent the more able learners
There are a number of issues with this. While it might appear from dominating, it would probably be useful to have spent
that all the learners in the class have the same learning time on how collaborative learning should work, ie through
outcomes, ie they have all completed the gaps in the text discussion, openness, focusing on the process, etc.
with the correct words, we need to look at the process – Another approach might be to start by focusing on the actual
particularly the cognitive process – that is going on, or that process which we want the learners to use and to learn and adopt
is required. Learners completing Version C may well end up for the future. Let’s go back and look at the gap-fill task again
with the same text at the end of the lesson, but what they are and ask ourselves why we are asking our learners to do this.
actually learning, and the processes they are undertaking,
are very different. What differentiation has done here is not
Choose one word to ________ the gap. Make sure the word is
to help different learners reach the same outcomes, but to
grammatically ________ and fits the ________.
exclude some learners from having the opportunity to learn
something key.
Is it so they end up with a completed text? No, that is the
Now, one thing we may well ask ourselves is whether it is
product, but it is not the purpose of the activity. If it was, we
actually possible for all the learners in a class to attain the same
may as well give the learners the finished text. Looking closely,
level. In other words, should we expect everyone to have the
it is clear that the focus is on collocations, colligation and
same outcomes, reach the same standards, etc. Well, probably
contextual meaning. Therefore, what we need to do is to decide
not, but what we shouldn’t do is prevent them from having the
how best to help the learners ‘notice’ this. We need to spend
opportunity to stretch themselves, by differentiating the tasks
time after the learners complete the text discussing why they
we give them and what we require of them.

situations I have come across it is the teacher (or school system,
chose certain words and focus on how and why they reached
by way of streaming) that is labelling certain learners as less (or
their answers, rather than on what the answer is.
in some cases more) able, rather than the learners making such
decisions for themselves.
An inclusive differentiation
In other words, I can see a place for self-differentiation,
Another important aspect of an inclusive classroom is
where the learners actively decide for themselves what level of
variety. We need to ensure that we use a variety of task types
challenge, engagement, etc they want, and choose accordingly.
that cater for and practise a range of learning styles and
After all, do we all always want or need the same level of
learning strategies. This doesn’t mean we have different
challenge for everything we do? Also, is the only factor what we
versions of the same activity, but that over the course of a
are doing or are there other factors at play? For example, I
lesson there is variation.
might be better at some things in the morning than in the
Again, it might be useful to look into a typical classroom to afternoon. I may not be in the right mood; something may have
get an idea of the kind of things that often happen. For this, I’d happened which means I can’t focus or concentrate … does
like to look at the giving of instructions for setting up activities. ‘imposed’ differentiation allow for these variations? Again, I
The reason I have picked this is because it’s a great example of can remember watching a learner struggling with a task and the
the gap between rhetoric and reality. When I talk to teachers in teacher coming over and saying to me: ‘I don’t know what’s
workshops and training sessions, or before and after happened. He’s normally much better than this.’
observations, they often claim to use a variety of techniques
In other words, inclusion doesn’t mean teaching everyone
when giving instructions, in order to cater for different learning
the same things and in the same way. It means using
styles. However, when I have observed these same teachers in
collaboration to ‘enable’ learning and help everyone improve
the classroom, the vast majority of the instructions they have
and reach their potential and their expectations. In some ways,
given have been verbal. Teachers may give a demonstration, use
this reflects the ideas behind ‘Demand-high ELT’, with its
body language, etc, but the main mode is by telling learners
emphasis on challenging learners to reach their potential and
what they will do. In my classes, I (almost always) write the
not accepting ‘good enough’ lessons. In addition, inclusion is
instructions up on the board as well, so that those learners who
about working with the strengths that learners bring with them
would prefer to read them, can. This also means that there is a
and what they can do. In contrast, the premise behind
record for the learners to refer to during the activity. However,
differentiation appears (at least in practice) to be based on a
in my experience, most teachers, even those who claim to take
deficit model: what the learners can’t do.
learning styles into account, don’t do this – and it’s simple!
Another key component of an inclusive classroom is the
t t t
learners themselves. In many classrooms where differentiation is
practised, it is the teacher who decides on the different task types, I would argue, then, that the way in which differentiation is
prepares the materials and sets the agenda (along with the often implemented in class leads to exclusion – ‘You can’t do
curriculum and the textbook). In an inclusive classroom, the this level of task because it’s too difficult for you’ – or makes a
learners are included in all these aspects. That isn’t to say that the mixed-ability class even more mixed by giving tasks with
teacher doesn’t have a role, but that role is as an equal participant. different levels of complexity to different learners and giving
An inclusive classroom includes: extension tasks to fast-finishers, thus basically widening the gap
■■ the creation of a ‘safe’ environment; between the learners. To my mind, inclusion rather than
■■ a range of and flexibility in the ways in which the learners exclusion makes much more sense. Getting our learners to
can demonstrate their knowledge and in how their knowledge collaborate, to explore what each person has to offer, build up
is assessed, eg the teacher might incorporate a blend of trust and understand and empathise with how we are all
collaborative and individual assignments, or allow choice in different and can also be individually different from day-to-day
tasks and get the learners to determine the importance of or moment-to-moment will help both them and us learn far
each one; more, not only about a particular subject or language, but also
about ourselves and others as human beings. n
■■ an understanding that all the learners are valued, that
everyone has strengths and weakness and that everyone has
something to offer their group or the class as a whole. Den Heijer, A www.alexanderdenheijer.com/quotes
Self-differentiation Adrian Tennant is a freelance teacher trainer,

I’d like to return to the issue of differentiation, and in writer and consultant with over 25 years’
particular differentiated activities. I think my biggest bone of experience in ELT. He has written materials for a
variety of publishers and run training courses
contention is not the existence of such strategies and activities, and workshops in over 35 countries. His
but the question of who makes the choices. One argument in interests include swimming, Icelandic crime
favour of differentiation is that it is important not to see a class books and cooking.
of learners as a homogeneous mass. Inclusion doesn’t mean adrian.tennant@ntlworld.com
that everyone is treated the same, it simply means that everyone
is afforded the same opportunities. Again, in most of the

ractical and research-based
P
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Lessons in Your Inbox 3 Inclusivity

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Lessons in

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Ten tips for teaching online:

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using technology and which some people may be

special educational needs In this article, she discusses

(but were too afraid to ask) educational needs (SEN).

4 What are assistive technologies? recently Focus on Learning Technologies

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10 things to know about SEN

1. What does SEN refer to?

2. The clinical approach

3. The inclusive approach

4. SEN learners and technology

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7. Support for hearing and visual impairment

8. Support for motor skills challenges

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10. Resources for teachers

“Technology is excellent for supporting language

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2. Keep instructions short and simple

3. Word instructions positively

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8. Give instructions in English

9. Make instructions visual

10. Give instructions on a need-to-know basis

‘I always try to keep instructions simple,

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Unit 14: Common classroom instructions

Setting homework Ending the lesson

Unit 15, point 4: Challenge of the day: riddles

What goes up when rain comes down? An umbrella.

What can you catch but not throw? A cold.

What kind of tree can you carry in your hand? A palm.

What has one eye but cannot see? A needle.

What goes up but never comes down? Your age.

What is at the end of a rainbow? The letter W.

What is always coming but never arrives? Tomorrow.

What has a neck but no head? A bottle.

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10 vocabulary practices that students with

1. Black text on a white background

4. Spelling aloud and spelling tests

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5. Ignoring the senses

str ee t im pr ove qu a l ify

6. Dealing with long words

7. Not adapting coursebook materials

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8. Too many words to learn

10. Unhelpful fonts and crowded pages

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Unit 38.2 Phonics chart