Discussion topics
1. Well, yes, I use all these types of speaking activities. I like to start lessons with a short chat about informal issues and also to introduce a topic or comment pictures. I used "show and tell" at the beginning of this school year: Every 15 days three or four students had to talk for a short time about different aspects of the same topic and then the other students had to ask questions. The rest of the speaking activities of the day would be based on this same topic. I have mixed feelings about the results. Some sessions were quite good because the students had prepared their part well and/or with originality; other times the preparation was poor, or the student read from a paper the whole time, or the pronunciation was so bad that even I had trouble to understand what was being said. Some other times - depending on the class - I felt that the classmates did not pay much attention to what was being explained, which i found particularly sad. The problem is that I have very big groups (around 30) and it is hard to have everyone talk individually. I am quite fond of role play; it is important to suggest situations with which the students can identify - they love roles of people they have around, like their parents, teachers, other young people... -. I also like conversation in pairs or small groups, although some students tend to cheat and change to their language when I am not around. The idea of having debates in class is positive if very well organized and as a means to teach how to support one's point of view, how to respect other people's ideas and how to listen. It is easier with smaller groups.
3. Yes, I think I would like to teach this class. I like the idea of talking first and then reading, so that the students discover some of their own ideas there in the text. The choice of the topic is very important: they are more likely to know something about it if they have chosen it themselves. In the various stages the students have the opportunity to think, comment and share their view differently, so they will probably have more to say. I also believe that there must be a reason for talking, an agreement to reach , a problem to solve , in order to get them speaking. Competition - as here with the votes - is often motivating.