Johnson (1982b: 166) refers to this as the ‘information gap principle’. The feature that
differentiates this from what Nation (ibid) calls ‘split information’ is that in the latter
case each student withholds information which the other speaker needs. This makes
each participant responsible for the completion of the task. Bygate (1987: 65) refers to
this as a ‘two-way’ task stressing that it generates: “…more talk and more use of
negotiation procedures for precision of meaning.”
e. Challenges: These, according to Nation (1987: 27): “…are added to teaching
activities in order to make it more difficult (and as a result more interesting) for
learners to achieve the outcome of the activity.” Such challenges are what Nation
(1987: 27-28) calls ‘competition’, ‘limitation on time or quantity’, ‘memory’, and
‘hidden solutions’. However, West (2000, Unit 4: 20) warns that challenges should be
carefully prepared as they can have fatal consequences. This is the case when the
information giver has information which the information seeker needs in order to win.
When these two persons are opponents, it is evident that communication is
discouraged rather than encouraged.
1.4 An evaluation of the teaching of speaking according to the
criteria
The analysis of the criteria which should be involved in the teaching of
listening as they are referred to in the literature can help us attempt an evaluation of
the teaching of speaking to the target group of students which was defined in 1.1.1.
above. This evaluation refers to the input students are provided with, and the activities
which they are asked to complete.
1.4.1 The input material
The input material which students are provided with is inappropriate as the
language presented both in the tape and in the textbook lacks most of the features of
spoken language. The dialogues in the tape are well prepared and speakers speak
slowly and clearly without being provided with any kind of feedback on the part of
the listeners. Strategic competence is, therefore, completely ignored. The textbook
language on the other hand simulates to that of written language even when it presents
dialogues. What is more, texts focus on presenting students with new grammatical
forms and do not help them appreciate the communicative function of language. (for
an example of the textbook language see appendix I, p. i)
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