⏱ 5 Minutes · Teacher Training
📖 From Experience
I made errors in French every day for three years. The best teachers let me talk first and corrected me after. The worst interrupted mid-sentence and I’d lose the word, the idea, and the confidence. Error correction is a skill. Knowing when NOT to correct is half of it.
📚 Two Moments to Correct
| Type | When | How |
|---|---|---|
| On-the-spot (immediate) | Accuracy focus tasks (drilling, controlled practice) | Reformulation: repeat the correct version with a questioning tone. Prompting: ‘Really? He go?’ [pause] |
| Delayed (after) | Fluency tasks (discussion, roleplay, storytelling) | Note errors during activity. Feedback stage: write on board anonymously. Learners self-correct. |
📚 Correction Techniques
- Reformulation: ‘I go yesterday.’ → ‘You went yesterday?’ (natural, not harsh)
- Finger correction: hold up fingers for each word; point to the finger with the error
- Facial expression: raised eyebrow invites self-correction
- Echo question: ‘I go?’ [questioning tone] → student self-corrects
✏️ Your Turn
What correction technique would you use?
- During a speaking game, a student says: ‘I have went to Paris last year.’
- During a drilling activity, a student says: ‘She don’t like it.’
- A student’s written paragraph has five errors of article use.
💡 Check Answers
- Delayed correction — note the error, raise it anonymously in the feedback stage. Don’t interrupt fluency.
- On-the-spot: raise an eyebrow, echo ‘She don’t?’ — pause for self-correction. If no self-correction, prompt: ‘She ___?’
- Written correction: underline the errors with a code (ART = article error) and ask them to self-correct before you explain.
Independent project — not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Confers no qualification.
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