Teaching Methodology — Lecture 5

Built from the three photographed past papers (Aleppo University, Dept. of English, English Language Teaching, 4th year — examiners Dr. Mais Ajjan & Mr. Mohammed Shahood; July 2024 Type B and two further sets). Every question in this bank is written to imitate these moulds.

The paper at a glance

• 50 items, four options A–D, machine-marked (“automated as usual”). No negative marking is mentioned — never leave a blank.
• Roughly the last 8–18 items sit under a heading “Seminar:” and come from seminar material (portfolio assessment, teacher roles, burnout, motivation, autonomy, ELT/TTT/PPP acronyms, Kachru, General English).
• Question order broadly tracks the lecture order, but the two halves are frequently swapped between paper types (Type A / Type B), so learn content, not position.

The seven question moulds he reuses

• 1. Acronym expansion. TEFL, TESL, ELT, EAP, ESP, ESL, EFL, CEFR, CLT, TPR, ALM, GT, TTT, PPP, ELF, L1/L2. Distractors are near-miss expansions with exactly one word swapped — English for Academic Production / Practice / Applied Purposes against the true Academic Purposes. Learn the expansions letter-perfect.
• 2. Classroom scenario → name the method. Two or three sentences describing a real lesson, then “This is…”. Eight to ten of these per paper. The giveaways: physical movement/commands → TPR; information gap, groups, real tasks, surveys → CLT; repetition of model sentences + reinforcement → Audio-Lingual; L1 word lists and translation tests → Grammar-Translation; music, comfort, relaxed armchairs → Suggestopedia; situational sequence rehearsed then used outside → Oral/Situational Approach.
• 3. Definition ↔ term. He gives a textbook definition verbatim and asks for the label (approach / method / technique / procedure / syllabus), or gives the label and asks for the definition. The approach > method > technique hierarchy is asked in three different shapes: definition→term, term→definition, and “put these in hierarchical order”.
• 4. Teacher-role identification. A described behaviour → the role name: register/information → controller / manager; encouraging learners to continue → prompter; one-to-one work → tutor; walking round collecting evidence → monitor / observer & evidence gatherer; supplying language when asked → resource; marking → assessor.
• 5. Testing terminology. validity vs reliability vs transparency vs practicality; construct / content / criterion / face validity; placement vs progress vs achievement vs proficiency; formative vs summative; portfolio advantages and disadvantages. This block is the single most repeated part of the whole paper.
• 6. NOT / EXCEPT items. “Which is NOT true of Grammar-Translation?”, “Which is NOT a quality of a good teacher?” (physical strength), “Which is NOT a CEFR level?” (B3), “Which country is NOT in the Inner Circle?” (Brazil / Mexico). He does not bold or capitalise the negative reliably — read every stem twice.
• 7. Statement + True/False as an MCQ. e.g. “A procedure is bigger than a method and smaller than a technique. A) True B) False”. The statement is usually a deliberately reversed version of the real relationship, so the answer is normally False.

The distractor tricks — how he makes you lose marks

• The absolute-word trap. A distractor is made wrong only by only, always, never, solely, exclusively, all, every. “English used only for tourism”, “Students always copy teacher talk”. If an option contains an absolute, it is wrong far more often than not.
• The adjacent-term swap. The three or four wrong options are the sibling terms from the same family — transparency / validity / reliability / fairness, or approach / method / technique / syllabus. He is testing whether you can separate members of one set, not whether you know the topic.
• “Both A & C” / “All of the above” is frequently the key. Do not treat combined options as filler. Confirmed keys include portfolio disadvantages = both students’ compilation time and teachers’ evaluation time; proficiency tests = both jobs and certificates/admission; monitors = both gather evidence and check learners are on task.
• “None of the above” when the real answer was deliberately left out. He removes the correct term from the list on purpose. In one paper the answer to “exercises/activities/devices used to realise lesson objectives” was none of the above, because technique had been withheld; in another the same question listed technique and it was the key. Always check whether the true answer is actually present before rejecting D.
• The same stem, a different key. “A common feeling experienced by new teachers” keys to enthusiasm in one paper and fear in another, because the option sets differ. Never answer from memory of a past paper — answer from the options in front of you.
• One absurd option per item. Most items contain one obviously silly choice (“a forbidden colonial relic”, “physical strength”, “a lack of interest in money”) to make the item a genuine 3-way choice. Eliminate it instantly and spend your time on the two plausible ones.
• Paraphrase, not quotation. Options are rewordings of the handout, not copies of it. Memorising sentences will not save you; you must recognise the idea under new wording.
• Ordering / hierarchy items. Where a sequence exists (approach→method→technique, PPP, Kachru circles), expect at least one item asking for the order, with all four options containing the same words in different sequences.

What he comes back to every single year

• Validity (esp. content validity via the “writing test that needs physics/biology” item), reliability via clear instructions, transparency, and the four test types.
• Portfolio assessment — purpose (tracking development over time) and its double time cost.
• Grammar-Translation: L1 medium, reading & writing, isolated word lists, pronunciation neglected — plus “which method reacted against it?” (Direct Method).
• CLT: meaningful interaction, meaning over form, authentic material, 1970s, fluency-over-accuracy critique.
• TPR: commands, listening & performing, roles reversed.
• Kachru’s three circles with a country as the odd one out.
• Teacher roles, comprehensible input, and “who do students hear speaking English most?” (their teacher).
• Rapport (definition + “fragile”), burnout, new-teacher emotions, intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation, learner autonomy.
• Closers: “learning a foreign language requires above all → practice”, “effective learning happens when learners are → engaged / interactive”.

Exam-room tactics that follow from all this

• Sit the ★ Exam-tagged and High items first; they alone cover the majority of a typical paper.
• On a scenario item, find the single physical clue (movement, repetition, translation, group task, music) before reading the options.
• On a terminology item, decide the answer before looking at A–D so the sibling terms cannot pull you.
• Cross out any option containing an absolute; then choose between what remains.
• If the term you want is missing from A–C, D (“none of the above”) is probably the key.