ELT365 · Day 176 — Discourse Markers as Listening Anchors

Idea — Discourse markers — “however,” “the key point is,” “moving on” — signal shifts in topic, contrast, and emphasis. Training learners to hear them reveals text structure in real time.

Example — A lecturer says “Now, this is crucial.” Trained listeners stop and attend; untrained listeners miss the signal and the content that follows.

Try — Give learners a list of ten discourse markers before a clip plays. They tick each one they hear. Debrief: what follows each marker?

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