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INTEGRATED OTSM-TRIZ ENGLISH COURSE > Text Technology
(c) Alexander Sokol, Riga, 2000, contacts@thinking-approach.org
TEXT TECHNOLOGY

• Preliminary Points
• How to Choose a Text
• Functions of Tasks
• Types of Tasks
• Activities

• Texts Samples
• Tasks to the Texts
• Students’ Works

• Students' Responses
• References

Here you can get acquainted with some students' opinions submitted after a year's experience of learning English upon the experimental OTSM-TRIZ English Curriculum. All students have finished the 10thform of Riga Herder School, Latvia. They have formally studied English for 3 years, two of which included traditional language instruction centred around the textbook.

The questions below do not comprise the whole of the questionnaire offered to students. Some questions were rather specific and bound to the context of our lessons. The selection below is aimed at giving a general overview of students' responses.

QUESTIONNAIRES

(excerpts from students' responses)

• Are you satisfied with your progress in English during this year?

Christina Smetanina (Form 10) - CS1
Yes, I am. (CS)

Diana Ledkova (Form 10) - DA
Yes, I am. 1) My vocabulary has increased. 2) I've started to think in English. 3) I've learnt to talk about some new very smart topics. Moreover, I'd say I'm satisfied with my progress in English and my progress in general.

Mary Dobrovolska (Form 10) - MD
Well… of course, I'm not. During the second term I was too lazy, really. But generally I'm astonished. During this year I learned 220% more than during the past two years.

Vlada Trapeznikova (Form 10) - VT
I think (I know) that my English is now much-much better.

Anna Kozorovitska (Form 10) - AK
Actually, yes. Comparing with the 8thand 9thforms ( when I didn't have any progress and spent a lot of time for nothing) I have had a big progress this year. I feel that now it's easier for me to understand and to write.

Renata Kazaka (Form 10) - RK
Yes, I am. You know I like English very much, so I do everything that is connected with it.

• Do you think it is a good idea to develop thinking skills in addition to mastering language skills at your English lessons? Why?

Christina Smetanina (Form 10) - CS
Yes, you know, after English lessons I have such a habit to think in English. And I started looking at things (problems) in a new way and to solve them by means of your system (i.e. OTSM-TRIZ - A.S.).

Liya Arbuzova (Form 10) - LA
Yes, I think it is a good idea, because it's useful to develop thinking skills in all fields, also in language learning. Besides, I like working with problems, contradictions and so on.

Diana Ledkova (Form 10) - DA
It is a great idea!
1) It's very interesting and useful.
2) The standard method of mastering the language blunts our brain. I think we have had enough of this experience.

Mary Dobrovolska (Form 10) - MD
It's the greatest idea I've ever heard. Really. I thought of it for a long time - how to make lessons useful and interesting at the same time? And this is the best solution I could find, really! It's so easy - to teach languages indirectly, but it's much more productive. Well, that's my own point of view again.

Vlada Trapeznikova (Form 10) - VT
I think it's good, because if I don't understand something, I try to do all to understand this.

Anna Kozorovitska (Form 10) - AK
Being honest, in the first term I didn't like very much this addition of thinking skills, but in this term I like this idea, however I don't always understand the TRIZ-program. But these skills will help me not only in English, but in my 'out-of-school' life too.

Renata Kazaka (Form 10) - RK
Yes, I think it is a good idea. All these contradictions, IFR, searching for problems really develop our thinking. We don't just do the task, we also think about it.

• Evaluate the tasks you have done this term giving a mark out of 10 upon the following criteria (add your comments to the marks at the end of the questionnaire if you have any):

Tasks

Language development

Thinking development

Motivation

General development

Translation assessment and adaptation2

9 (CS)

8 (DA)

10 (MD)

9 (VT)

10 (AK)3

9 (RK)

8 (CS)

9 (DA)

10 (MD)

7 (VT)

10 (AK)4

9 (RK)

8 (CS)

8 (DA)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

9 (AK)5

8 (RK)

8 (CS)

8 (DA)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

8 (AK)

9 (RK)

Script writing

10 (CS)

9 (DA)

10 (MD)

9 (VT)

7-9 (AK)6

7 (RK)

9 (CS)

9 (DA)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

10 (AK)

9 (RK)

9 (CS)

8 (DA)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

8-10 (AK)7

8 (RK)

9 (CS)

8 (DA)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

9 (AK)

8 (RK)

Co-authoring (looking at sth from the author’s point of view)

9 (CS)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

8-9 (AK)

7 (RK)

9 (CS)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

10 (AK)

10 (RK)

9 (CS)

10 (MD)

9 (VT)

8 (AK)

7 (RK)

9 (CS)

10 (MD)

8 (VT)

8 (AK)

9 (RK)

Problem-solving

9 (CS)

8 (DA)

10 (MD)

7 (VT)

7 (AK)

7 (RK)

10 (CS)

9 (DA)

10 (MD)

10 (VT)

10 (AK)

9 (RK)

8 (CS)

9 (DA)

10 (MD)

10 (VT)

7-10 (AK)8

8 (RK)

9 (CS)

9 (DA)

10 (MD)

9 (VT)

10 (AK)

9 (RK)

• Evaluate the material you have used for learning English this term giving a mark out of 10. Add your comments if you have any.

The Little Prince by Antoine de Sent Exupery

    8 - the story (?) is interesting, but the search for problems and their analysis made me sad - people have so many problems. (CS)
    8 (DA)
    10 (MD) - it gave me a lot because I liked it a lot!
    10 (VT) - interesting. Not only the text, but also the tasks.
    10 (AK) - this was the first book (not 'one-page' text) which I'd read in English. It showed me that I can read an original English book, well… maybe the translation into English.
    9 (RK)

A Secret Slob (an excerpt from The Catcher in the Rye by J D Salinger)

    9 - interesting - the problem of two young people is topical. (CS)
    10 (DA)
    10 (MD) - I was interested in using it especially because I know the whole book by Salinger and it's one of my favourite ones.
    8-9 (VT)
    9 (AK) - it isn't connected with English, but 'Secret Slob' was the first step. After it I read the whole book. (In the Russian variant, though)
    9 (RK) - it was interesting to work with translation-adaptation

We are free…? (Part 2) (an excerpt from Illusions by Richard Bach)

    9 - this question has two answers and facts given to illustrate both opinions were interesting, too. (CS)
    10 (DA)
    10 (VT) - interesting. Not only the text, but also the tasks.
    7 (AK) - the text was interesting but it didn't give me something very useful for learning English.
    9 (RK) - I liked the extra task most of all.

How to be a messiah? - (an excerpt from Illusions by Richard Bach)

    8 - (CS)
    7 (DA)
    7-8 (VT)
    9 (AK) - I liked the task concerning 'Golden rules' because I had to work with my memories, knowledge of words, etc.
    7 (RK)

Psycho - a film by Alfred Hitchcock

    9 - The film was great. Now I know the work of Mr. Hitchcock. (CS)
    10 (DA)
    10 (MD) - I liked the film a lot.
    8 (VT)
    10 (AK) - the film was very useful not for learning English, but for learning watching films (especially, such as Hitchcock's films). Sure it was useful for learning English, too.
    7 (RK) - it was really hard for me to find problems of the director and solve them in 2 evenings. He must have spent much more time on that.

Vertigo - a film by Alfred Hitchcock

    10 (DA) - both films were very interesting!
    8-9 (MD) - I had problems with the search for the main idea of the film and that made my enthusiasm decrease.
    8 (VT)
    8 (AK) - I liked this film much more than Psycho but it gave me less than the previous one. I think it is because we didn't have enough time for Vertigo, and also because I watched Psycho myself and stopped every time when I saw something interesting or didn't understand something. I watched Vertigo only once (with the whole our group).

• Anything else you want to say to your English teacher?

Mary Dobrovolska (Form 10) - MD
THANKS A LOT FOR EVERYTHING YOU'VE DONE FOR US! You know, actually I already started thinking that all teachers don't care about students. But I wanted to change my point of view (as in this story by 'The Beatles"…) and I did it. Because of you. Well, you can't imagine how far your classes changed me. I myself can't imagine it.

Anna Kozorovitska (Form 10) - AK
Thank you for this questionnaire and for the fact that you are not a usual teacher, that you try to understand us.
And PLEASE DON'T CHANGE YOUR SYSTEM THAT YOU USE FOR TEACHING.
1 Here and further in the text initials are given instead of full names.
2 Types of tasks students were asked to evaluate coincide with training activities.
3 In this task we develop not only the English, but also the Russian language. It's very good for us - modern students - who forget their native tongue.
4 Our English lessons are almost the only ones where we earn to think. I like this very much.
5 It's always interesting to work with translations but it's very difficult for me, therefore I give the mark 9.
6 The development of the language depends on who performs the written part of the task in the group.
7 It depends on the material we write the script to.
8 It depends on whose problem I solve and if these problems are connected with my life.
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21 Nov 2000