I’d like to discuss with you the best methods to teach adults (50 plus, mainly high-school graduates) who are true beginners (without previous contact with English whatsoever). The individual classes I teach require introducing elements of ESP from the very beginning. The aim of the course is to enable oral communication on professional level in routine situations. The problems I encounter most frequently are as follows:
• Insufficient knowledge of the language system (such terms as preposition, verb, infinitive remain incomprehensible both in Polish and English). However introducing grammar without any metalingual commentary is not effective and arises many questions that can be answered only by going into detail. This “discovery” shocked me, because so far I strongly believed, that cognitive capabilities and grammar sensitivity develop with age.
• Problems with getting reacquainted with the school routine. I noticed difficulties with taking notes or arranging handouts; many of my students don’t have the habit of writing down important lexical items without my explicit suggestion, although the words are written on the board
• Even though none of my students is hearing-impaired, the majority has problems with discriminating sounds. Students commonly misuse 13/30 Tuesday/Thursday live/leave and more worryingly - professional terms. Such mistakes can prove to be disastrous in their working life. I was taught during my studies that extensive oral repetition and pronunciation practice inhibit, in case of the mature students, the learning process. How am I supposed to practice oral skills during a mainly oral course without overwhelming my Ss?
• Inductive approach is a complete miss. Perhaps the reason for it is the previous school experience – each language book was organized in the same way: reading comprehension, vocabulary explanation, grammar explanation, grammar drills. The new course books seem to be less effective in case of mature Ls.
• Many repetitions are required for each new language item to be memorized.
So far I have been using bits and pieces of various methods: direct method, audiolingual method (one-slot and multiple-slot transformations, backward formation, restatements), CLT (role plays), CLL (human computer, self-correction). I must admit that the results are a bit disappointing. What would you suggest me to do? Have you ever thought mature learners? What are your observations?
I’d really appreciate your help because now I’m at my wits’ end.