The Spanish-American Institute encourages ESL teachers to employ the standards of good practice endorsed and practiced by the ESL teaching profession. Institute textbooks such as NorthStar, WorldView, and the Next Generation TOEFL iBT embody these practices.

I. Older Vs. Modern Methods of Language Teaching.

ESL teachers must often unlearn ways of teaching based on how they were taught. Older forms of foreign language teaching evolved from the study of “dead” classical languages like Latin and Greek. They taught people to read and write (but not to hear or speak). The traditional “grammar/translation” method works well for learning “dead” unspoken and unheard languages; however, it does not work well in learning and applying a living language. Spanish-American Institute ESL texts like the NorthStar series use more modern and effective methods based on the most advanced knowledge we have about how people learn language.

The Lexical Approach to Language Learning. The Spanish-American Institute’s ESL curriculum and materials use a lexical approach to language learning.

The lexical approach is consistent with the natural way we learn language. We learn language by first hearing it, then by speaking it, then by reading it, and only then by writing it. The lexical approach fills in the gap between grammar and vocabulary left by the older tradition of language teaching.

Lexical Chunking. The lexical approach to language learning is based on the principle that people comprehend and produce connected language "chunks." These lexical chunks become the raw data (mental lexicon) through which students come to understand and use language patterns.

Lexical Collocations. The lexical approach pays particular attention to "collocations" or word partnerships. Linguists understand collocation to mean the way certain words occur together naturally in the language with more than random frequency. Advances in computer-based studies of language have provided huge databases of lexical frequency and collocations. ESL textbooks like NorthStar draw upon these computer databases to incorporate words, phrases, expressions, and other lexical chunks based on their frequency of use and frequency of connection to each other.

II. The Spanish-American Institute’s Language Learning Curriculum

The Spanish-American Institute offers English language instruction for every level of language learning from those in need of English Literacy to those preparing for the TOEFL.

English Literacy: English Literacy provides a basic introduction to English for adult students who:

· have had little or no prior school experience,

· have difficulty with the material and pace of a beginning ESL class, and/or

· come from a primary language background using a non-Roman alphabet and need to learn Roman script.

The course uses the Longman ESL Literacy text. Like all language learning materials used at the Institute, the textbook is supported with instructional resources such as reproducible flashcards, listening CDs, and practice activities. The practice activities develop “receptive skills” (listening and reading) before “productive skills” (speaking and writing). This approach helps students “receive” the language and internalize it before they are asked to “produce” it.

ESL 1: This first level ESL course introduces low beginner ESL students to basic vocabulary, spelling, grammar, conversation, pronunciation, and other ESL skills. ESL I uses Longman’s WorldView 1 text designed to build low beginner adult learner’s fluency using topics with an international perspective. The text includes a unique feature, 4 World of Music units. Like all language learning materials used at the Institute, WorldView uses modern active language learning methods referred to below as “The NorthStar Method.”

All Other ESL Levels: With the exception of TOEFL, all other Institute ESL courses use NorthStar, a five-level academic ESL series with Listening and Speaking and companion Reading and Writing texts. ESL 2-6 uses the Listening and Speaking texts which integrate listening and speaking skills with reading and writing. Business English and Advanced Reading and Writing (ARW) are ESL 5 and 6 level courses respectively. As explained below, they use the companion NorthStar Reading and Writing text which reinforce reading and writing skills with listening and speaking.

ESL 2 represents the first academic English level called Introductory in NorthStar.
ESL 3 represents the next academic English level called Basic/Low Intermediate.

ESL 4 represents the next academic level called Intermediate. The Intermediate level is the most critical level of language learning. It applies a much higher level of language and critical thinking skills than previous levels. This is the level where students begin to use language to compare and contrast, to combine dependent and independent clauses in longer more complex sentences, to use transition words, to use adverbial and prepositional phrases and clauses, and to use abstract language to convey shades of meaning.

Students must master Intermediate level English skills before they can expect to proceed successfully to the High Intermediate and Advanced levels. We encourage teachers to explain to students why ESL 4/Intermediate is a pivotal course that lays the foundation for the far more sophisticated application of academic English skills taught in more upper level courses.

See further Section VI, below, “NorthStar Level Changes: Critical Thinking and Higher Order Language Skills,” for more discussion of the several levels of Intermediate English learning.

ESL 5 and Business English represents the High Intermediate level. ESL 5 uses NorthStar High Intermediate Listening and Speaking; Business English uses the companion NorthStar High Intermediate Reading and Writing texts. Students who want to take the TOEFL course and who want to go to an American college should take both ESL 5 and Business English.

ESL 6 and Advanced Reading and Writing (ARW) represents the Advanced level. Advanced level students are nearly TOEFL ready, practicing the academic skills needed for the American college undergraduate classroom. ESL 6 uses NorthStar Advanced Listening and Speaking; ARW uses the companion NorthStar Advanced Reading and Writing texts. Students who want to take the TOEFL and who want to go to an American college should take both ESL 6 and ARW.

TOEFL: TOEFL is not a language learning course. It is a language application course. TOEFL students apply the academic language skills learned in ESL 6 and ARW to testing situations requiring integrated academic language skills at a level required in the American undergraduate classroom. (For further discussion about TOEFL, see Section XII, below.)

III. The NorthStar Method

The Spanish-American Institute uses the five-level NorthStar series in ESL 2-6, Business English, and ARW. NorthStar employs the ESL teaching profession’s model of best practices which the Institute promotes in all its ESL classes. Each NorthStar unit integrates reading/writing with listening/speaking to help students build language competence while encouraging personal expression.

The NorthStar Method incorporates the following:

1. Respect for Students. NorthStar assumes that students are mature, intelligent people who have something to say, even when not fluent in English.

2. Critical Thinking/Higher Order Thinking Skills. Each NorthStar unit leads students through exercises of increasing detail and complexity. "Thinking" with a language develops neural pathways in the brain. These neural pathways are not developed by passive drills such as grammar exercises. We do not speak grammar. When students think with or create with language, they begin to make it theirs own because the languages patterns become imprinted in their brains.

3. Vocabulary Comprehension Learned From Context. The purpose of NorthStar's “vocabulary” work is not to teach words. Words are not ends in themselves. NorhStar’s vocabulary and other word-work integrates several language skills at once. “Vocabulary” in NorthStar requires reading, thinking, writing, etc. Sections called “Vocabulary” or “Focus on Words” provide practice in the use of words within larger contexts. “Words” are the variable raw material that develop the target reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills.

4.a. Grammar Learned From Context and Application. NorthStar’s formal grammar unit comes near the end of the unit. This is deliberate. We do not speak grammar. We certainly do not learn to listen or speak by learning grammar. In NorthStar, by the time students get to the formal “grammar” section, they have had considerable experience using the unit’s target grammar. They have already:

· heard the grammar forms many times,

· spoken the grammar forms many times,

· read the grammar forms many times, and

· written them (to the extent that the teacher has provided students with writing opportunities based on the Unit’s activities).

4.b. Student Questions About Grammar. Students often tell teachers that

they want to learn grammar. What do students mean by this? Often, it means that they are more comfortable doing passive grammar then doing the harder work of really using a new language. Good teachers will explain to them why they will learn more English by actively using it then by doing grammar drills.

Just as often, students who say they want more grammar really mean that they want more work in writing. Most of the international students at the Spanish-American Institute want to attend an American college or university. They know that they need more work in the academic application of English. And they know they will need to pass the TOEFL text which requires a lot of writing.

Please explain to students that NorthStar requires students to actively use English in an integrated fashion. Teachers in ESL 1-6 should explain to students that Educational Testing Service (ETS), the authors of the TOEFL exam, have stated that NorthStar is the best preparation for the TOEFL exam. It is the best preparation for the TOEFL because NorthStar requires students to use English in reading, writing, speaking, and listening in the integrated ways tested by the TOEFL.

5. Activities. NorthStar uses connected “activities” instead of “exercises.” Students participate in “activities” through which they actively learn to create with language.

6. Style. NorthStar’s "Style" section teaches the cultural and social uses of English in everyday life, in the workplace, and in the American classroom. Examples include: how to answer the telephone in home and business settings, how to disagree with someone, or how to get someone's attention without making them angry. These are culture-bound activities that differ from one culture to another.

7. Research/Fieldwork. At the end of each NorthStar unit, students engage in highly structured guided activity based on the Unit's theme. The activity typically requires that they observe something "in the field" or do research on the Internet or elsewhere and then share their observations with a group or with the class. Again, NorthStar never asks students to do something for which they are not prepared. Notice how NorthStar always provides students with a “safety net” (see item 8, below) such as an outline to follow or a set of guiding questions. Please spend as much time as it takes on this important textbook component, since it allows students to employ everything they have learned in the Unit, creating with language.

8. Safety Nets. NorthStar has built-in safety nets. Each exercise or activity builds upon the skills of the previous one(s). The textbook never asks students to do something without previously having given them the material and guidance they need to do it. The safety net assumes that teachers will recognize when they need to return to a previous activity and repeat it. If students have difficulty with a new activity, they obviously have not mastered the skills of previous activities needed to do the new work. This cues the teacher that he/she should go back to previous learning activities and repeat them until students have mastered them.

IV. NorthStar Listening and Speaking Unit Organization

NorthStar is organized around a carefully developed sequence of activities. Each NorthStar activity is there for a reason. Each unit leads students from a more limited or more controlled practice of English to a more independent practice.

In NorthStar, everything is there for a reason. The Spanish-American Institute encourages teachers to spend up to three weeks if not more on each NorthStar Unit. Do not rush through the activities. Do not skip around. Do not skip any activity. The student’s ability to understand the next activity such as listening passages and then to understand the more complex activities that come after listening depends on mastery of the earlier activities. .

“Predicting.” Spend at least one class period on “predicting.” "Predicting" provides a relaxed introduction to the Unit’s theme that gives students an opportunity to share what they know in English in a relaxed fashion. Typically, “Predicting” asks students to react to a visual image, then respond to general questions and share opinions. Most important, “Predicting” also gives teachers some insight into students’ actual command of the language before beginning a new Unit. In this sense, “Predicting” is there as much for the teacher as it is for the student.

Implementing “Predicting.” In “Predicting,” encourage students to speak as much as they can without correcting them. Before asking the questions in the text beneath the graphic,. ask students to describe what they see in the graphic. If necessary, ask them simple detailed questions about the graphic (e.g., how many people do you see in the picture? what are they doing?). Gradually move the discussion to the meaning of the unit’s title and theme. Do not attempt the printed questions until you have done the previous activities. Encourage students to speak freely as best they can without correction. Respect their ideas and opinions about the topic, even if they do not express themselves very well.

“Sharing Information.” In “Sharing Information,” students typically respond to questions by entering simple information on a chart. The questions to which they respond are more specific and focused that those in “Predicting.” After students enter their information, they share it orally with one or more students. The purpose of “Sharing Information,” is to get students talking about the theme in response to simple but focused questions that contain the introduction to the Unit’s theme, language patterns, vocabulary, etc.

Implementing “Sharing Information.” Like “Predicting,” “Sharing Information”

should take at least a full classroom period and may require more than one day of class time.

Remember that NorthStar designs every activity to prepare students for the next, more demanding activity. It is, therefore, imperative that teachers spend enough time on each activity for students to master its content.

In “Sharing Information,” students will initially “fill in” sentence blanks or chart columns. However, the Spanish-American Institute expects teachers to go beyond the “fill in” answer mode that requires only bits of answers. Teachers should require students:

· to speak in complete sentences when answering the questions,

· to copy the complete sentence with the correct answer, and/or

· to write out the complete question’s answer during a portion of class time or as homework.

In other words, in “Sharing Information,” as in other Unit activities, help students integrate the four language skills in an integrated fashion as they hear, speak, read, and write, in preparation for the progressively more challenging activities to come.

If students have difficulty with the next section, “Preparing to Listen—Vocabulary for Comprehension,” they have not mastered “Sharing Information.” If so, please return to “Sharing Information,” perhaps asking students to do something more with it than they did previously (such as write out complete sentence answers or combine sentence answers in a short paragraph.)

“Preparing to Listen --Vocabulary for Comprehension.” In this section, students work with words, expressions, and grammatical patterns selected to help with listening comprehension. The emphasis is not on learning “words.” The purpose is to develop comprehension skills from context.

“Vocabulary for Comprehension” may be the most important activity in the Unit. It introduces students to the language patterns and thematic emphases of the upcoming Listening activities and beyond.

Implementing “Vocabulary for Comprehension.” Spend one to two days on this section. Use “Vocabulary for Comprehension” to generate reading, writing, and speaking. Again, ask students to do more than merely pick the right answer to questions from a multiple choice list. Unless students can fluently read, write, and speak in response to “Vocabulary for Comprehension” activity, they will have great difficulty with the rest of the unit, especially its “Background” reading, listening, and writing sections.

“Preparing to Listen—Background.” This section introduces students to information and language that will help them comprehend the upcoming listening passages. Teachers may need to return to the previous “Vocabulary for Comprehension” activity for more extensive work if students have difficulty with the “Background” reading passages and questions.

As in all NorthStar activities, maximize the activity as much as possible by:

· requiring full sentence oral responses from students and

· requiring full sentence or paragraph writing generated from the reading questions.

“Listening One.” NorthStar always divides Listening One into several listening sections. Listening One’s various listening activities move students from lower to higher order thinking/language skills in steps taking them through—

· prediction,

· comprehension of main ideas,

· comprehension of details, and

· inference (implied meaning).

“Listening Two.” In “Two,” NorthStar presents students with new recorded material that builds on ideas from Listening One. Listening Two delivers the material at a much faster pace. If they have mastered all of the preceding Unit material, students should have the skills needed to understand Listening Two. If they do not understand Listening Two, return to preceding activities to reinforce the needed skills.

“Linking Listening One and Two/Reacting to the Listening.” This section asks students to employ much more sophisticated higher order language skills in order:

· to relate Listening One and Listening Two,

· to consider consequences, and

· to distinguish points of view.

Again, if students cannot do this activity, return to earlier Unit activities to assure enough mastery to respond to the “Linking” activity.

“Reviewing Language”/”Focus on Vocabulary.” NorthStar Introductory calls this section "Reviewing Language," a good description of its purpose. The activity emphasizes the employment of language, not words. Language consists of patterns. Words are the variables that students fit into the patterns.

Other NorthStar levels call this section “Focus on Vocabulary.” As in the earlier Activity “Vocabulary for Comprehension,” work, students do not study words. They work with them. These Activities help students explore, review, and play with language from the listening selection, while building reading, writing, and speaking skills.

“Pronunciation.” Every unit focuses on a specific pronunciation element supported by recordings.

“Style.” "Style" helps students use language appropriate to different settings, such as everyday life, business, academic environments, etc. The section helps students practice the North American cultural and social use of language which may differs from their cultures.

“Grammar.” Near the end of the unit, “Grammar” provides students with the formal rules of grammar used in the unit and reinforces the grammar through additional speaking exercises as well as reading and writing.

“Speaking Topics/Focus on Speaking.” NorthStar leads students in each unit from a more controlled to a more independent practice of language. (NorthStar Introductory” includes “Speaking Topics/Focus on Speaking” in a section called "On Your Own,” a good description of its purpose in allowing students to apply everything learned so far to a more independent use of language, “on their own.”)

“Fieldwork/Research Topics.” NorthStar Introductory included “Research” in “On Your Own" to emphasize its purpose in asking students to create with language based on everything learned so far. In "Research" or “Fieldwork,” students go outside the classroom “on their own” to gather data from personal observations, from interviews, from conversations, from the Internet, etc. The activity provides guided questions and directions to help them structure their oral and written reports, part of NorthStar’s “safety net” that never asks students to do more than they were prepared for.

NorthStar Listening and Speaking Distribution Model

NorthStar unit is a tightly knit sequence of interrelated material. The material engages students by organizing language study thematically. Students learn language in context. Each section of each unit prepares students for the next section, and so forth. In each NorthStar unit, students are led from a more controlled to a more free practice of language.

Rule #1. NorthStar is a method. Do not skip around in a unit. Each activity has a purpose. Do every activity and do it in the order presented in the unit.

Rule #2. Do not rush. Spend as much time as needed. It is not unusual for teacher's to spend one or two class periods on one page. It should take at least two weeks and up to three weeks or more to complete each unit. Most teachers take three weeks or more.

V. Supplementary Instructional Resources

NorthStar provides the following supplementary instructional materials. Teachers can check these most of these materials out from the Bookstore.

1. A "Scope and Sequence" section at the beginning of each book that summarizes each unit's learning objectives, including critical thinking objectives.

2. A CD with recorded listening passage instead of cassettes.

3. A Teacher's Manual with testing material, including listening passages.

4. A DVD with video segments keyed to each unit.

5. A Teacher’s Guide for each DVD Video Unit with the audio script, key vocabulary, guiding questions, etc.

6. Student Activity Worksheets, one for each DVD video segment, that provide 1-3 days work of comprehension, discussion, and writing based on the DVD video material for each unit.

On-Line Teaching Resources.: Longmans also offers on-line resources for teachers and students keyed to each unit such as Vocabulary Exercises, Crossword Puzzles, and Internet-based activities.

For NorthStar 2^nd edition texts, go to: http://www.pearsonlongman.com/ae/northstar2e/northstar2e/index.html. Select "Companion Websites" from under the appropriate textbook. On the "Companion Websites" page, find the listing for "Grammar and Skills" and select "NorthStar." Click on the title of the NorthStar text you are using. On the menu to the left, select "Teacher" or "Student" Resources.

For NorthStar 3^rd edition texts, go to: http://www.pearsonlongman.com/ae/northstar3e/index.html. Select from the menu on the left. Note that this menu also includes the DVD Video Worksheets for the 3^rd edition.

VI. NorthStar Level Changes: Critical Thinking and Higher Order Language Skills

Students who found NorthStar Introductory for ESL 2 difficult may find the Basic/Low Intermediate for ESL 3 text easy by comparison. This is deliberate and natural.

Second language learners tend to plateau at the Intermediate level after Beginning courses. NorthStar responds to this by teaching to three different Intermediate language levels—Basic/Low Intermediate (our ESL 3), Intermediate (our ESL 4), and High Intermediate (our ESL 5 and Business English).

For example, NorthStar Basic/Low Intermediate for ESL 3 repeats many of the grammar and structure elements found in NorthStar Introductory for ESL 2 such as the present tense. However, the ESL 3 text employs elements like the present tense at an increasingly more sophisticated language level. At the higher level, students will still use the present tense but they will have to develop longer, more complex sentences, select answers from a wider range of choices, listen to longer passages with more speakers, etc.

"How" and "Why" Questions (Critical Thinking, Higher Order Thinking Skills, and Higher Order Language Skills).

The chart below focuses on some of the ways that the NorthStar’s texts used in ESL 2, 3, and 4 texts reflect different levels of language use.

The ESL 2 Introductory text asks a lot of “what" questions requiring answers that use only simple sentences.

The ESL 3 Low Intermediate text asks more "how" than "what" questions. Why? Answers to "how" questions often require adverbial and prepositional phrases and clauses. Adverbial and prepositional phrases add complexity to sentence structure because they reflect more thinking about relationships such as the main idea to its time, place, emotional context, etc. For example, look at the relationships of time, place, and means that students must establish in a sentence like: "I took the bus to the movie on Main Street in the afternoon.

The ESL 4 Intermediate text asks more "why" questions requiring answers that use complex sentences. Complex sentences require subordinate (dependent) clauses. They reflect a very high level of critical thinking, since the speaker or writer must communicate how one idea depends upon or relates to another (is subordinate to the other).

Language Complexity and Critical Thinking Comparison in ESL 2, 3, and 4.
	ESL 2	ESL 3	ESL 4
"Wh" questions	More "what" than "how/why."	More "how" and "why."	More "why."
Sentence structure	Simple sentences.	More simple sentence complexity (e.g., adjectival, prepositional, and adverbial phrases and clauses).	Longer and more complex sentences with dependent (subordinate) clauses.
Structures that help communicate relationship, inference, assumptions, analysis, synthesis, evaluation, etc. (higher order skills)	"Should"	Descriptive & comparative adjectives. Verbs + gerunds and infinitives. "Can, should, ought to, have"	Modals of preference, ability, and possibility. Equatives and comparatives. Infinitives of purpose.
Pair and group work	More pair than small group work—communication usually between 2 people.	More small group work—communication usually between 3 or more people.	Larger groups and more group work—communication usually between 3 or more people.
Sharing, linking, comparing	Using one or two sets of information.	Using two or three sets of information.	Using three or more sets of information.
Interpreting graphs, charts, tables, etc.	Interpretation limited to a limited number of simple illustrations.	Graphical illustrations more complex than ESL 2 text.	Graphical illustrations more complex than ESL 3.
Style (cultural/social use of language)	Situations drawn from culture of daily life (e.g., telephone talk, asking questions).	More emphasis on expressing difference and emotion. Communication “style” skills used in workplace or academic life (e.g., providing examples to support statements).	More situations drawn from workplace and academic life (e.g., leading group discussions or asking for clarification).

VII. Using NorthStar Video DVDs

NorthStar Video DVD. Each NorthStar unit has companion video material in DVD format. The Listening and Speaking and Reading and Writing texts share the same Unit themes and therefore the same video segments. Directions for using the video material are found in the Teachers Video DVD Guide available to teachers through the Bookstore. The Guide also contains the background, vocabulary, and audio-script for each video segment.

Video Companion Activity Worksheets. The video is never the lesson! Each unit video segment has a companion Student Activity Worksheet. Students should do all of the worksheet exercises. Worksheet questions and exercises can either be written on the board or dictated

In keeping with the NorthStar method, students move from lower level critical thinking to higher order thinking and language skills in the video activities. Consequently, each video worksheet is divided into the following sections: Predict, Focus, Comprehension, Discussion, and Writing. Students also move from more controlled to more free exercises. For example, at the beginning, they merely identify the topic on the video worksheets. At the end, they write independently about the topic.

VIII. Teaching ESL Reading

Observe the following principles in teaching reading to ESL students.

Oral Reading Readiness--Silent vs. Oral Reading. In the case of ESL students, reading aloud often does more harm than good. For this reason, it is simply not considered good practice in ESL teaching. ESL students should never read aloud until completely ready.

Never, never ask students to read aloud until they are fully able to communicate understanding and meaning by their oral delivery. This means that students will rarely read aloud until they have done all the other work required in the reading sections.

Oral reading readiness means that students fully understand everything they read and can deliver the print text orally in ways that communicate meaning though intonation, enunciation, and other oral delivery skills. That said, students should ever read aloud?

Should Students Ever Read Aloud? Generally, no! We seldom read aloud in real life. Reading is, by definition, a much more private experience than speaking, writing, or listening. It is, therefore, illogical to ask students to read aloud in class, especially before they really understand what they are reading.

When Might Students Read Aloud? The only reason students might rarely read aloud in an ESL class is for oral interpretation, i.e., for dramatic effect. That means being fully able to use English oral production to communicate meaning through correct intonation, enunciation, and other oral English language delivery skills.

Should Teachers Correct Pronunciation? Teachers who correct student pronunciation in mid-sentence or mid-passage are not teaching pronunciation—they are interrupting the reading process. Do so very sparingly, if at all.

Should Students Use Dictionaries in Class? Seldom if ever. Discourage dictionary use when reading silently. NorthStar helps students develop reading skills by figuring out meaning from context and from the notes provided in the text, not by looking up the meaning of words.

IX. NorthStar Reading and Writing Texts for Business English and ARW

The Spanish-American Institute uses NorthStar Reading and Writing: High Intermediate in Business English and NorthStar Reading and Writing: Advanced in Advanced Reading and Writing. These are companion textbooks to NorthStar High Intermediate Listening and Speaking used in ESL 5 and to Advanced Listening and Speaking used in ESL 6. Each Reading and Writing unit will use the same theme as but different material than parallel unit in Listening and Speaking. For this reason, please counsel students to take ESL 5 before Business English and ESL 6 before ARW.

ESL 5, ESL 6, Business English, and ARW Course Sequencing. Since both ESL 5 and Business English parallel High Intermediate texts, teachers and staff should encourage students to take Business English after ESL 5. (Very well-prepared students may take the two courses simultaneously.) Likewise, since both ESL 6 and ARW use parallel Advanced texts, teachers and staff should encourage students to take ARW after ESL 6. (Very well-prepared students may take the two courses simultaneously.) In all cases, students should complete these four courses before TOEFL.

The NorthStar Reading and Writing Method. All NorthStar texts integrate reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. However, the Reading and Writing series places a greater emphasis on reading and writing. In addition, the Reading and Writing series emphasize all aspects of the writing process with greater attention to formal writing such as essays and reports.

The Reading and Writing method and organization parallels that of the Listening and Speaking texts. Students move from more structured to more independent reading and writing skills through carefully sequenced activities.

As always, teachers should:

· do all activities in sequence;

· repeat a preceding activity, if necessary; and

· never jump around in a unit or skip any activity.

Reading Passages. Instead of Listening selections, students prepare to read extensive Reading passages. Reading selections will most often be 2-3 pages each.

Formal Writing. Students will also do a great deal more writing than they did with the LS texts. Each R&W unit leads up to a formal writing requirement, usually an essay.

Professionally Recorded Audio CDs. NorthStar Reading and Writing texts come with audio CDs. The audio CDs contain professionally recorded oral readings of the reading passages.

Please make use of the professionally recorded audio CDs. The professionally recorded reading passages serve three important purposes:

· They provide NorthStar Reading and Writing students with a listening experience to complement their silent reading attempts to understand the printed text.

· They help them hear correct pronunciation and intonation.

· They help them understand how the voice is used to communicate meaning.

Unlike the Listening and Speaking texts, the Reading and Writing texts do not come with icons that tell teachers when or how to use the recorded reading passages. Therefore, teachers must decide when and how to best incorporate the professionally recorded reading selections. However, the L&S texts provide a good model for using listening CDs with the R& W texts. Suggestions for incorporating the audio CDs are provided in the sample lesson plan in the table below.

Teaching Writing. Although NorthStar Reading and Writing texts focus more on reading and writing than do the Listening and Speaking texts, they still share the emphasis upon integrating the four language skills in every lesson. Whether in LS or in RW, students should write every day, in class and for homework. The following are important principles for teaching writing using NS materials.

Extend writing. Teachers can and should extend writing from most every NorthStar activity by adapting it to a writing activity.

Think about each unit's formal writing requirement. Each unit requires a formal essay or report (Section 4, Activity C, "Writing Topics"). Before starting a unit, review the Writing Topics section to see how the unit develops the skills needed for the essay.

Consult the Writing Activity Book and Teacher's Manuals. The Writing Activity Book provides invaluable assistance to teachers in helping guide students through the essay writing process. The Teacher's Manual provides useful writing ideas.

Academic Writing in Advanced Reading and Writing. ARW focuses on the writing process and the production of formal writing at levels required by the TOEFL test and in beginning American college courses.

Students should exit the Advanced Reading and Writing course knowing how to write formal essays and reports. They should also know how to apply the writing process (prewriting, organizing, reviewing, and editing) to formal writing tasks. Formal writing tasks include:

· summaries

· reports summarizing data

· statements of opinion

· short articles

· cause-and-effect essays

· compare-and-contrast essays

· definition essays

· advantages-disadvantages essays

· descriptive essays

· argumentative essays.

X. NorthStar Reading and Writing Instructional Resources

The Institute provides the following additional instructional resources for teachers using the NorthStar Reading and Writing texts. Borrow from the Bookstore.:

Writing Activity Book. The Writing Activity Book provides ideas for:

· reviewing each unit's skills and vocabulary and

· assisting students with the process of prewriting, organizing, revising, and editing.

Reading and Writing Teacher's Manual and Achievement Tests. The Teacher's Manual provides---

· suggestions for teaching each part of each unit and

· Achievement Tests that can be used at the end of each unit.

Reading and Writing Audio CDs. The Audio program includes oral readings of Readings One and Two from each unit. Use the oral readings to reinforce reading comprehension and listening skills.

NorthStar Video, DVD Video Guide, and Video Activity Worksheets. Because the LS and RW text share similar unit themes, the same DVD video material is used with the RW texts. Every unit has a short companion video selection and every video selection a Video Activity Worksheet. Please consult the DVD Video Activity Guide and use the Video Activity Worksheets appended to the Guide. The video viewing and worksheet activities are designed to be completed in one class session or one class session plus homework (the writing activity).

TestGenerators. NorthStar RW teachers manuals have companion test generators on CD. TestGenerators enable teachers to generate their own tests for NorthStar units, selecting from material on the TestGenerator CDs.

XI. Dictionaries for ESL 5 and Above

While teachers should discourage students from using dictionaries in class, students should be encouraged to have good dictionary resources.

Please encourage Level 5 students and above to purchase Longman’s Dictionary of American English . . . with Thesaurus and Interactive CD-ROM available in the Bookstore.

Longman’s Dictionary of American English is a desk dictionary designed for intermediate to advanced students. It contains 52,000 words and phrases, including all words on the Academic Wordlist (critical for TOEFL students). It has 35,000 examples, 2,500 Thesaurus boxes, and much much more. It provides a useful resource to ESL students studying from ESL 5 and ESL 6 to the TOEFL and through college level academic work

The Dictionary’s companion CD alone is worth the price. The CD contains all the example sentences pronounced, as well as an integrated thesaurus, an extensive exercise bank, photos, and videos illustrating words. Hundreds of interactive exercises include grammar, vocabulary, and dictation practice intended to help high intermediate, advanced, and TOEFL ESL students.

To promote student purchase and use, please:

· show students the Dictionary in class (borrow from the Bookstore),

· encourage students to buy it and use it, and

· assign homework in the dictionary from time to time.

XII. TOEFL NextGeneration iBT

TOEFL is not a language-learning course. It is a language application course.

ESL Preparation Before TOEFL. The Institute teaches the English language skills that students need for the iBT TOEFL in NorthStar-based ESL 5, 6, Business English, and ARW courses. All four courses are critical to student preparation before TOEFL. Without these four courses, students will not have the language skills they will need for the TOEFL course and test.

Computer Skills Needed for the TOEFL iBT. The iBT test is done completely by computer. This includes word processing the two essays. Test takers may no longer submit handwritten essays. Test takers also have to have elementary word processing skills to cut, to paste, and to move items in answering certain questions. There are no computer tutorials. Therefore, in addition to having the necessary language skills, TOEFL test takers will also need to be proficient in keyboarding and elementary word processing.

Institute ESL students may also register for Keyboarding and/or Word classes. TOEFL teachers should encourage students without these skills to do so.

TOEFL iBT Skills Integration. Although the TOEFL text is divided into Listening, Reading, Speaking, and Writing sections, the TOEFL iBT tests the four language skills in an integrated fashion. For example, the Speaking section of the iBT requires students to listen and to read before orally answering questions.

TOEFL teachers are expected to include all four skills in almost every class session as a matter of course within their assigned section of the textbook. For example, while working with the Reading section, teachers should also require students to write, listen, and speak at the TOEFL level. The opportunities to do so are almost unlimited.

Some examples follow. They are only a few of the possible strategies that can be used to do some reading, some writing, some speaking, and some listening at the TOEFL level each class session:

Integrating skills.

· Require oral and/or written explanations for the choice of correct answer. Do this for every question.

· Require students to speak in complete sentences (no little bits of answers).

· Require oral and/or written explanations for wrong answers as well. Do this for several if not all questions.

· Have more than one student participate in explaining each right or wrong answer.

· Have students frame oral and/or written questions about a reading or listening passage.

· Require oral and/or written paraphrasing of selected sentences or passages.

· Require written explanations for at least one correct and/or incorrect answer per class session.

· Require written paraphrasing of selected sentences or passages. This is a good homework exercise that can be reviewed the next class session to create continuity and links between class sessions.

· Ask students to summarize reading selections both orally and in writing.

XIII. Good ESL Testing Practices

Ask the following questions in developing bi-monthly and other exams:

· Do the exams correlate to the textbook and other teaching material?

· Do they make use of the publishers’ testing materials, especially for WorldView and NorthStar, as well as any additional material you have developed?

· Do the exams reflect principles of good practice and up-to-date language teaching

· methods?

· Do the exams test all four language skills—reading, writing, listening, and speaking,

· especially the first three of these skills?

· Do the exams reflect the objectives of their ESL levels? Are advanced students, for

· example, being asked to demonstrate an advanced command of English?

· Do the exams make full use of the publishers’ testing materials keyed to the unit(s) of

· student study?

Avoid questionable testing practices like the following:

1. Avoid Passive Grammar Testing. The Institute discourages grammar testing except though application in writing and speaking. Grammar is not one of the four language skills. Its use is tested through its application in one or more of the four language skills—reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

2. Avoid Fill-in-the-Blanks and Sentence Completion Testing. Tests should rarely if ever ask students to complete sentences. Asking students to complete sentences, especially a series of disconnected sentences, is contrary to all of the principles of good language teaching practice employed by NorthStar, WorldView, the TOEFL iBT test, etc.

Tests should not ask students to merely fill in the blanks, except, perhaps, in a Cloze activity that simultaneously requires reading comprehension and structure or other language choices to fill in the missing material.

3. Avoid Testing at Too Low or Too High an ESL level. Tests should challenge students to create with language consistent with their ESL placement level. The Institute encourages teachers to use the publishers’ tests that come with textbook material, in addition to one or more essays

Addenda

A. Transition to NS3: Advanced Reading and Writing (2/9/10)

To: All Faculty and Staff

From: Carolyn Prager, Dean of Academic Affairs

Re: Transition to NorthStar 3^rd. ed: Advanced Level Reading and Writing

Date: Revised, February 9, 2010 (See Especially Items In Italics)

In the transition to NorthStar, 3^rd.ed. for Advanced Reading and Writing (ARW) students will be coming to class with both the 2^nd and 3^rd edition texts.

Much remains the same in the 3^rd edition. However, much is also different. For example, the 3^rd edition texts are now called NorthStar 5 (not Advanced).

The major difference is in emphasis—the 3^rd edition overall is more academic, more focused on preparing students with the academic skills needed for college work.

The following is a brief overview of major differences.

Emphasis: To quote from the 3^rd edition introduction, its emphasis is upon “more purposeful integration” of critical thinking and academic skills such as:

inferencing,
synthesizing,
note taking, and
test taking.

This involves more and longer writing and more and longer reading, including reading from college textbooks.

Using both editions in class provides certain teaching advantages. For example, students with different readings on the same topic can orally summarize their readings in class and share the different perspectives the different readings provide on the same topic.

Organization: The 3^rd edition retains the unit major divisions of Focus on the Topic, Focus on Reading, and Focus on Writing. However, many of the separate activities have been merged into longer but more cohesive ones. And there is much more emphasis on writing organization, preparation, and revision.

It might be a good idea to keep the 2^nd edition text when using the 3^rd edition as a reference for lesson planning. The 2^nd edition text sometimes breaks down some of the 3^rd edition activities into smaller segments.

Crosswalk: The following summarizes the major differences in topics and readings between the 2nd and 3^rd editions. Major changes in topics and readings are indicated in boldface in the NS5 column. See the next section for implementation suggestions. .

NS Advanced R&W Units, 2nd ed.	NS 5 R&W Units, 3^rd ed.
1 Mickey’s Team	1 Reading 2 different (excerpt from a college psychology text)
2 Season in Utopia	2 Lies and Truth—new theme with different readings
3 Road to Success	3
4 Silent Spring	4
5 Lost in Translation	5
6 Landscape of Faith	6 Reading 2 different (encyclopedia excerpt)
7 Going Into Business	7 In Business, Size Matters—revised theme and 2 new readings (one from a business college text)
8 When Soldiers Are Women	8 2 new readings
9 Cellist of Sarajevo	9 Reading 2 different (excerpt from a novel)
10 Right to Read	10 End of Poverty—new theme with different readings

Implementation Suggestions: Walking Back and Forth With the Texts in Class

Continue to emphasize that NS is the best preparation for the TOEFL. Advanced/Level 5 teaches skills similar to those required for beginning college course work in the United States. These are the skills tested by the TOEFL

Take advantage of the differences between the two editions to have them share them with each other. And point out to students the importance of advanced reading and writing skills to college admissions and success.

Have students with different editions share texts in class for different practice on common skill sets. Move back and forth between texts to show how they contain similar skills but provide different activities for each skill set.

In units with the same topics but different readings, assign different readings to students with different editions. However, make sure to discuss both editions’ readings in class. Students with different readings might also be asked to give oral summaries of their reading.

In units with completely different unit topics, follow the implementation suggestions for 2, above. However, take more time in class for students to give oral summaries of their respective topics, readings, and activities.

B. Crosswalk Between NS2 and NS3 for ESL4 (12/12/09)

To: Faculty and Staff

From: Carolyn Prager, Dean of Academic Affairs

Re: Crosswalk Between NorthStar 2^nd and 3^rd Editions For ESL 4

Date: December 12, 2009

The following will help compare NorthStar’s 2^nd and 3^rd editions for the Institute’s ESL 4 course.

Please remember that the Institute’s ESL 4 course is taught at the Intermediate level, the most critical level for language learning. The 3rd edition of NS reflects the importance of acquiring and using language at the higher level of critical thinking expected of Intermediate level students.

Much remains the same in the 3^rd edition but much is also different. For example, the 3^rd edition for ESL 4 is now called Level 3 (not Intermediate). The major difference is in emphasis—the 3^rd edition’s overall focus in on preparing students with the academic skills needed for college work.

Emphasis: To quote from the 3^rd edition introduction, its emphasis is upon “more purposeful integration” of critical thinking and academic skills such as:

inferencing,
synthesizing,
note taking, and
test taking.

Therefore, the 3^rd edition uses more listening passages from college settings and more comprehensive student speaking tasks. In other words, students will be asked to listen and speak at a higher level of critical thinking using higher order language skills.

Organization: The 3^rd edition retains the major unit divisions of Focus on the Topic, Focus on Listening, and Focus on Speaking. However, many of the separate activities in the 2^nd edition have been merged into longer but more cohesive activities in the 3^rd ed. And there is much more emphasis on the organization, preparation, and delivery of speaking tasks.

Students often found the move from 2^nd edition Listening 2 and Listening 3 passages too abrupt and too challenging. The 3^rd edition provides students with more preparation to ease the transition from Listening 1 and Listening 2 than in the 2^nd ed. as well as more preparation for the challenging Linking Listening1 and 2 activities.

Crosswalk: The following summarizes the major differences in topics and listenings between the 2nd and 3^rd editions. See the October 6, 2009 memo on NS 3 for ARW for implementation suggestions.

Major changes in topics and readings are indicated in boldface in the NS3rd ed, column.

NS L&S Units, Intermediate 2nd ed.	NS L&S Units, Level 3 3^rd ed. changes in bold * indicates new topic and content
1 Advertising On the Air (Advertising)	1. Advertising On the Air (Advertising L1: Advertising on the Air (classroom lecture) L2: Negative Appeals (radio ads, may be the same as in NS2)
2. Pushing the Limit (Extreme Sports) [will become unit 3 in NS3]	2. Identity Theft Theme:* Fraud [NS2 unit 3] L1: Lily’s Story L2: Public Service Announcements
3. Too Good To Be True (Fraud) [replaced by Identity Theft, unit 2, in NS3]	3. Endurance Test [NS 2 unit 2] *Theme:* Extreme Sports L1: Ultrarunner . . . (radio interview) L2: Sports Psychology (college lecture)
4. Art of Storytelling (Storytelling) [will become unit 4, NS3)	4. Separated By the Same Language [NS 2 unit 5] L1: Accent and Identity (interview) L2: Code Switching (college linguistics lecture)
5. Separated By the Same Language (Language) [will become unit 4, NS3]	5. Culture and Commerce (Tourism) [NS2, unit 6] L1: Tourist Attractions or Human Zoo? L2: Town Hall Meeting in Cape Cod
6. Culture and Commerce (Tourism)	6. The Art of Storytelling [NS2, unit 4] L1: Lavender (story) L2: How to tell a story [may be different than NS2]
7. Joking Around (Humor)	7. Voluntary Simplicity (Simple Life) L1: Urban Homesteaders (radio report)* L2: Simple Gifts (traditional folk song)
8. Traditional or Trendy? (Fashion)	8. Before You Say “I Do” (Marriage) [NS2 unit 10] L1: Prenuptial Agreement (talk show) L2: Reactions to Prenuptial Agreements (recording of opinions)
9. To Spank or Not to Spank (Punishment/Parenting) [will be NS3 unit 10]	9. Personal Carbon Footprint (Climate Change) L1: Personal Carbon Footprint (radio report)* L2: A Call to Action (speech)
10. Before You Say “I Do” (Marriage) [will become unit 8, NS3]	10. To Spank or Not to Spank (Punishment/Parenting) [NS2 unit 9] L1: The Spanking Debate (radio report, may be different than NS2) L2: Parents’ Rights Vs. Children’s Rights (university lecture)