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Lesson Plan Framework

Lesson Framework for Video-Based Pragmatics Instruction
Focus: Refusing Invitations


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Materials

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Warm-up/ Schema building

Tell students that you have organized a Campus Cleanup Day this Sunday starting at 8AM, and that they are all invited to join you. Ask individual Ss whether they are coming. If they say no, insist by saying: “Oh, come on, [Ss name], it will be so much fun! And you get to do something good for your school”.

Write their responses on a piece of paper (you’ll write them on the board later for the students to analyze and re-write, using the refusal strategies they’ve learned)

**Note: Here you may choose to transition into Cycle 1, by simply telling students that you will look at how we usually say “No” in English speaking contexts.

** Note: Alternatively, you may prefer to begin raising their awareness of the characteristics and functions of refusals in the L2 and in the students’ L1 before you transition into the main lesson. This could be done, for instance, by conducting a brief class discussion about students’ experiences with refusals in both cultural contexts, and noting their responses on the board in a chart similar to the one below:

Situation Participants/ Relationship Age What was said
       
       

CYCLE 1 – Language Input and Awareness Raising of Refusals (Non-normative)

  1. View video still frame and title: “Student Refuses an Invitation from a Professor – ‘I’m not into that stuff’- Scene 01”
    1. Students make predictions regarding the context/ participants / what will be said
  2. First viewing with basic discussion (gist)
    1. Check initial predictions: Ask Ss what happened / who the participants were /how the professor may have felt after the students’ response
  3. Second viewing with cloze script (Handout)
    1. Ss fill in the blanks during/after second viewing
    2. Address clarity / comprehension gaps / vocabulary
    3. Third viewing with correct script to check responses
  4. Awareness raising of context / participants / L1 & L2 pragmatics
    1. Discuss with Ss possible consequences of the refusal in “Scene 01”
    2. Ss L1 pragmatic awareness: What would be an appropriate response in your country/culture in this situation?
      1. Write Ss responses on the board, under “country” category
      2. Invite students to role-play the dialogue in the video as it would unfold in their cultures
    3. Students rewrite script to reflect a more polite refusal
    4. Rule & Pragmatic language presentation (Part 1: Basics) (Handout: “Saying ‘No’ to Invitations in Am. English”)
      1. Presentation of basic functions and strategies
    5. Teacher writes Ss refusals (from warm-up activity at the beginning of the session) on the board.
      1. Ss rewrite them to make them more polite, adding the strategies learned throughout the session. Instruct them to underline and label these strategies.
    6. Revise video script using strategies learned
      1. Ask Ss to check which (if any) were applied in their responses in the L1 in (b.) above
  5. Controlled Practice
    1. Role-play re-scripted dialogue
    2. Debrief as needed
  6. Further Rule & Pragmatic language presentation (Part 2) (Handout: Classification of refusals in American English)
  7. Pair Work: Rewriting direct refusals in different situations (Worksheet: Direct refusals dialogue & Refusal Strategies Flashcards)
    1. Give each pair a flashcard with 2 refusal strategies written on it.
    2. Ss rewrite the dialogue provided the strategies listed on the card, but they cannot repeat the examples given.

CYCLE 2 – Language Input for Normative Refusals in Formal Contexts

  1. View video still frame and title “Student Refuses an Invitation from a Professor – Scene 02A”
    1. a. Students predict “Which strategies will Julie use?” – Refer to list on handout
  2. First viewing with basic discussion (gist)
  3. Second viewing with cloze script (handout)
    1. a. Ss fill in the blanks during/after second viewing
    2. Third viewing with correct script to check responses / clarify comprehension / vocabulary
    3. Ask Ss: “Which of these strategies did Julie use?” – Point to students’ predictions on board and place checkmark next to correct ones.
  4. Identify/ Classify strategies used (Worksheet: Julie’s strategies for refusing)
  5. [Optional] - View “Student Refuses an Invitation from a Professor – Scene 02B”, in which Julie uses different strategies
    1. a. students compare strategies

CYCLE 3 – Awareness raising of different refusal situations & Controlled / Guided practice

  1. View video “Student refuses an invitation from a classmate - Scene 03”
    1. Compare with previous videos and discuss (Cloze script optional)
      1. What is different about this situation? Was the refusal appropriate for the context and the participants? Was Amanda upset? Would you be?
      2. L1’s pragmatics check: What would be an appropriate response in your country/culture?
      3. (Optional) Write Ss responses on the board, under “country” category
      4. (Optional) Invite students to role-play the dialogue as it would unfold in their cultures
    2. Distribute script – Ss rewrite script and role-play it - switch roles and role play again

CYCLE 4 – Language production through communicative practice

OPTION A (for lower-levels): Script-writing role-play activity using pre-set roles described in flashcards (Role-Play Flashcards).

  1. Students are divided in pairs and are each given a flashcard describing a specific role and communicative intent (person who does the invitation, and the person who refuses it) , as well as the specific refusal strategies they are required to use. (For a less scaffolded version, a list of strategies can be provided, from which the student chooses those s/he wants to use)
  2. Pairs script a dialogue together, using the strategies given/suggested
  3. Pairs role-play their dialogue together
  4. Volunteers perform role-play for the class (and get feedback)

OPTION B (for more advanced levels):

  1. Students are divided in pairs and are each given a flashcard describing a role (role A, the person who does the invitation, and B, the person who refuses it) that they will perform in a non-scripted conversation.
  2. Students will be instructed to use the refusal strategies they have learned in order to refuse politely, but will not be given a list to choose from. They will also be instructed to pay attention to the contextual cues provided in the flashcard, which will dictate the type of expressions they will use. (For additional practice, students may switch roles after performing the role play once).
  3. The pairs can then exchange their flashcards with other pairs (each pair has been given a different contextual situation), and perform the new role-play. This time, however, the student who made the request in the previous turn will be the one making the refusal.
  4. Volunteers are asked to perform their conversation for the class, and receive feedback from both the classmates and the instructor.

Noticing-the-gap Assignment:

The teacher can also video-record all the role-plays, and then guide learners through a “notice-the-gap” activity, in which they watch their own role-play and then evaluate it (at home or in class if sufficient computers are available), according to a rubric the teacher provides. This activity may raise students’ awareness to the language features they still need to improve.

Homework field observation assignment:

Field observations: Ss try to listen to conversations at school, at work, at the supermarket, on TV, and note when someone refuses an invitation. They should write down their responses in as much detail as possible, and notice if the speakers use any of the strategies they learned in class.

Optional Activities