TLT - Book Review [Issue 26.9; September 2002]

Book Review by Kim Bradford-Watts

Creating Conversation in Class: Student-centered interaction

Book Information: Chris Sion. London: First Person Publishing/English Teaching Professional, 2001. pp. 96. £13.25. ISBN: 0-953309-88-6.

Looking for a resource book full of easily adaptable ideas for lead-ins and starters, breaking the ice, games, brainstorming, simulations, and discussions for the conversation classroom? Creating Conversation in Class does all this and more, focusing on fluency in the conversation classroom with ideas and tasks perfect for stand-alone lessons or to supplement existing course materials.
The book's strength lies in the versatility of the author's approach to communicating ideas to practicing teachers. Sion considers that 'our task as [conversation] teachers is to find the key that unlocks the student's need to communicate' (p. 8), fostering 'genuine interaction about a common interest' (p. 9), while 'balanc[ing] preparation and spontaneity' (p. 8). As with any 'recipe book,' the activities can be used as written, however, the way that Sion presents these materials encourages a great deal of creative design by the teachers who use them.
Since conversation classes vary enormously, Sion has included a comprehensive array of ways to tailor ideas to fit any teaching/learning situation in the 'Using this Book' section, which will be particularly valuable for those with less experience teaching conversation.
The classroom ideas are organized into six sections. 'Getting Started' comprises lists of 20 starters, questions, and lead-ins for use at the beginning of a lesson, which increase student motivation toward lesson content. 'Breaking the Ice' has seven tasks useful for students to get to know each other and the teacher. The nine activities in 'Talking to Each Other' have been designed 'to continue stimulating your students to keep talking in English as often as they can' (p. 36). 'Talking About People' has 11 activities 'to engage the student's interest through constant reference to their own lives and personal experience' (p. 52). 'Focusing on the Family' consists of eight activities based on brainstorming, simulations, and discussions. Sion notes in the introduction to 'Playing Games' that 'although [games] usually start with a basic framework of rules, they frequently go on to create a great deal of unstructured conversation' (p. 84). The ten games included in this section will be useful for many teachers.
At the end of each of section, Sion has added ideas for learner training to enable learners in such areas as 'Reflecting on Learning,' encouraging positive learning strategies; and 'Learning to Revise.'
I have used several of the ideas from this book in my own university, college, company, and private classes with great success. The icebreaker 'Hands Up!' (p. 30), in which learners first listen to statements true for the teacher and raise their hands if they are also true for themselves before creating their own statements for use in groups, worked very well in the low-level classes in which I used it. 'Topics from A-Z' (p. 43) and 'Show Me a Picture' (p. 57) have resulted in lively conversations in university, company, and private classes. I adapted the list of household chores in 'Housework' (p. 81) to a survey format for second-year university students to interview each other and report their findings back to the class, and then used the discussion questions with a number of my own. The students enjoyed the format and the entailing discussion was more thoughtful than I expected. I also used 'Thingamajigs' (p. 90) in first-year university classes to practice definitions. It was a challenging, fun way for students to practice communicating the need for an item in a shopping environment.
I recommend that you try some of the activities from this book. The elegance of the approach becomes clear with use. Creating Conversation in Class: Student-centered interaction is an excellent addition to any teacher's resource library.

Reviewed by Kim Bradford-Watts
Date and issue of publication: Issue 26.9; September 2002

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