Interactions 2-Listening/Speaking, Silver Edition is a member of an 18-book series published by McGraw Hill for use with ESOL or EFL students. The series contains books ranging from beginner to advanced English proficiency across all four domains of language, with this particular text targeting specifically listening and speaking skills in the intermediate range. The text is designed to strengthen academic language skills required to effectively engage in studies at the university level, making it ideal for students transitioning into institutions of higher learning for both undergraduate and graduate studies in programs requiring English proficiency.
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There is consistency across the chapters in terms of the various types of activities, allowing ELLs to develop familiarity with expectations for completion. In the Conversation section of each chapter, introduces students to to relevant vocabulary, including some idiomatic and expressive terms used in less formal oral speech. Typically, an audio clip of an interpersonal conversation follows with comprehension questions. In many chapters, informal dialogue is used as the basis of more targeted listening activities that focus on stress patterns or pronunciation issues. The second portion of each chapter is based on a short, academic lecture that relates back to the central theme of the chapter. Note-taking is emphasized during this portion of the book, which each lesson building on the previous one, which scaffolds this critical skill nicely for ELL students. Key academic strategies, like the use of graphic organizers, are incorporated throughout these exercises. Strategies for better listening and speaking skills comprise the third section of each chapter, with helpful hints related to tone, context clues and intonation. There is also a small exercise in each chapter that provides TOEFL practice and tips. The final portion of each chapter requires that the student apply the concepts and vocabulary to everyday situations, like reading a map and providing directions.
ESOL/EFL instructors might choose to work with Interactions 2-Listening/Speaking because it emphasizes research-based best practices for ELLs. Purposeful incorporation of academic vocabulary arranged around relevant themes provides ELLs the exposure to academic vocabulary that is more difficult to master than contextualized interpersonal communication (Cummins, 1979). In addition, many of the exercises incorporate activities, like discussions with peers and vocabulary previews, that are designed to activate prior knowledge that is thought to increase learning outcomes for ELLs (Echevarria, Vogt, & Short, 2008). Most importantly, perhaps, for developing speaking and listening skills among students learning a second language are the myriad of activities that require students to interact with one another as well as suggestions for collaborative projects and presentations. 2ff7e9595c