Correcting Errors in the EFL Classroom
Basic Concepts:
When and how
to correct students errors in the EFL classroom is an
issue of concern for every EFL teacher. What should we
correct, when should we correct it, and how should it be
corrected?
How
do we give students the feedback they need and want to
improve, without damaging fluency and motivation?
Research tends to indicate that three types of errors
should be addressed: high frequency errors, stigmatizing
errors, and errors that block meaning or the
understanding by the listener. We might add another -
errors in using the target language of the lesson.
When and how should these errors be corrected? There
is, unfortunately, no conclusive evidence/research about
these issues.
Research seems to indicate that the most effective ways
to deal with errors and offer corrections seem to
include:
When hearing an error - speak the corrected statement
Listen for errors - and make a general review of then at
the end of the activity segment
Encourage peer correction
Correct the student personally (use this less than the
other methods)
EFL
teachers always need to be careful of the balance
between fluency (ability to speak quickly and smoothly
without much thought) and accuracy (ability to speak in
a grammatically correct manner). There is a tension
between fluency and accuracy - where too much desire or
struggle for accuracy denies a student fluency. And too
much emphasis on fluency, can result in spoken gibberish
that follows no rules at all.
Teachers need to stay tuned in to how their students are
doing and attempt to keep a good balance of fluency vs.
accuracy in the classroom. Not an easy task - but
generally, in a speaking or conversation class, error on
the side of fluency.
Expanded
Concepts:
Error Correction and Language Improvement - Read all
three pages - good explanation of methods for
correction.
