Page 29 - ELG1911 Nov Issue 467

El•Gazette 467.qxp_El•Gazette 467 23/10/2019 13:10 Page 29

SPECIAL FEATURE

Clowning around: adding PIXABAY

spontaneity to training

Adrian Underhill and Alan Maley put
spontaneity on the training agenda

n our earlier, short article (EL Gazette Issue Once spontaneity
465, page 15), we raised the importance of becomes legitimised
putting spontaneity on the teacher training 2in the training
Iand development agenda. In this article, culture it provides both an
we address the practicalities of doing this. event to look out for in
It is indisputable that large areas of teaching practice, and
classroom interaction are unpredictable and something that is
thus call for a spontaneous response on the introduced into their Training in clowning has been shown to help teachers
part of teachers. But how is it possible to training. Sue Black (2018) to be more spontaneous in the classroom
prepare teachers for the unpredictable? We remarks that, “You cannot
suggest that something can be done both to train people for the unexpected, but you can (1989, 1999) and Poynton (2013). There is a
raise awareness of the issue, and to provide introduce the unexpected into their training.” lot of mileage, for example, in the first rule of
practical activities which help teachers Here are some ideas about how we might do Improv, which simply states “Accept the
become more ready for spontaneous responses this in our own context: For example: offer,” i.e. go with the unexpected event.
to the unpredictable. • Ask trainees to prepare a 10-minute Power
Point presentation. When the time comes, Another way to introduce spontaneity
Raising awareness disable the Power Point projector. How do is by offering training in clowning. This
they react? Followed by discussion. 5may seem fanciful, but the personal and
• Prepare slips of paper bearing a language professional development arising from
We could open up discussion to more point (eg. ought to/must/should). Trainees clowning training are well documented in
personal and wide-ranging, published draw lots. Each trainee then has just 5 Lutzker (2007). (See also, www.nosetonose.
1accounts of teaching experiences. For minutes to prepare to present/teach their info/uk for practical courses on clowning.)
example, Appel’s Diary of a Language Teacher point. Followed by discussion. In this article, we have tried to offer some
(1995), Frank McCourt’s Teacher Man (2006), • Trainees prepare a lesson plan to ‘teach’ a ways we could develop greater awareness of
Daniel Pennac’s School Blues (2010), Sylvia language point. When the time comes, they the need for spontaneous response in teacher
Ashton- Warner’s Teacher (1963) and Eva are told to exchange lesson plans with training and development, and some
Hoffman’s Lost in Translation (1989) all offer another trainee, and teach their lesson plan, suggestions for practical activities which
rich material to stimulate discussion of key with just 5 minutes to look at the plan. might help develop this capacity.
issues with multiple examples of • One trainee prepares a 15-minute
unpredictable situations and how they were presentation. Unknown to the presenter, REFERENCES
dealt with. you brief the rest of the ‘class’ to avoid eye n Appel, J. (1995) Diary of a Language Teacher.
contact, to remain silent if asked a London: Heinemann.
We could create space for discussion of question, never to smile. How does the Ashton-Warner, S. (1963) Teacher.
trainees’ own personal experiences, presenter deal with the unresponsive Harmondsworth: Penguin.
2histories, key turning- points, highs and ‘class’? This can then be followed by Black,S. (2019) All that Remains: A life in
lows, and their current areas of interest and discussion and feedback. death. London: Black Swan.
growth. Looking at the role of spontaneous, Hoffman, E. (1989) Lost in Translation.
unscripted moments in the trainees’ personal Use simulations involving spontaneous London: Vintage.
narratives opens up rich possibilities for reactions. Bafa-Bafa is a good example Johnson, K. (1989) Improv: Improvisation and
analysis and discussion. 3of a simulation which demands the Theatre. London: Methuen Drama.
spontaneous responses. It involves two Johnson, K. (1999) Improvisation for
We could screen videos of actual completely different cultural groups (e.g. two Storytellers. London: Faber and Faber.
classes, asking trainees to focus on halves of the same class). Both have (quite Lutzker, P. (2007) The Art of Foreign
3critical incidents and how they dealt simple) unspoken cultural practices assigned Language Teaching: Improvisation and drama in
with them on the wing. to them, and when the two groups meet, they teacher development and language learning.
have to try to work out, through trial and Tubingen and Basel: Francke Verlag.
Practical activities error, what the acceptable behaviours of the Maley, A. and A. Underhill. (2012) Expect
other group are. (For full details of the the unexpected. English Teaching Professional.
No. 82, Sept. 2012, 4-7.
simulation, see Bafa-Bafa (http://intercultural
Leading on from the last point, we can -learning.eu/portfolio-item/bafabafa.) McCourt, F. (2006) Teacher Man. New York:
ask trainees to make short videos of Harper Perennial.
1interactive phases of their own classes, Focusing in the importance of Nose-to-Nose. www.nosetonose.info.uk/
then to select moments in the video when the spontaneity and improvisation in Pennac, D. (2010) School Blues. London:
lesson goes “off plan”, and while viewing the 4teaching (Maley and Underhill, 2012; Maclehose Press.
video with their peers to comment aloud on Underhill, 2014) highlights the insufficiency Poynton, R. (2013) DO/IMPROVISE.
how they see themselves responding to the of preparation (planning) in dealing with London: The Do Book Company.
unexpected moment. This can be followed by unpredictability (preparedness). Work on Underhill, A. (2014) Training for the
peer discussion on alternative strategies for Improv activities is one way in to this whole unpredictable. The European Journal of Applied
meeting the unexpected, and thus a discourse area. There are some simple to use and highly Linguistics and TEFL. Vol. 13, Number 2: 59-
of spontaneity develops. effective Improv activities in Johnstone 69.
editorial@elgazette.com 29