Accuracy and fluency in the course of the lesson

There are many criteria that govern organising a lesson. Two of them are accuracy and fluency. During my teaching practice I have learnt that there is a need for them both. New approaches towards language teaching such as The Communicative Approach focuses on general intelligibility and promoting fluency rather than accuracy. But being fluent does not have to mean being incorrect at the same time. Controlled practice associated with gruelling drills is frowned upon by students. I have made an attempt to prove this fallacy wrong. Students can learn and have fun during accuracy practice, especially when they work in pairs and small groups. The same applies to fluency activities.

In the following article I would like to focus on what accuracy and fluency is and their importance in the language classroom. I would also like to present some guidelines as far as working in pairs and groups are concerned when administering accuracy and fluency tasks and potential problems that may occur. There are also other vital points involving accuracy and fluency practice - feedback and error treatment, to which a little attention need to be devoted as well.

WHAT IS ACCURACY?
Accuracy is the quality of language produced in either spoken or written form. The quality implies language correctness. Accuracy focuses on structure rather than meaning. It is influenced by correct habit formation. As a result, according to Byrne, the purpose of accuracy is " to make sure that students get something right " (1987:7). Something means e.g. grammar structure, vocabulary, troublesome area of pronunciation.

WHAT IS FLUENCY?
Fluency is the ability to present the language in such a way that it is meaningful and spontaneous regarding the context (Brumfit 1984). Fluency focuses on meaning rather than form. Therefore, a language learner should aim at " communicative efficiency " (Harmer 1991). It constitutes using the language as a vehicle for successful and fruitful interaction from which the parties involved contribute equally.

ACCURACY AND FLUENCY PRACTICE IN THE COURSE OF THE LESSON.
How much time a teacher should devote to accuracy and fluency practice during the lesson depends entirely on students' performance. Byrne ascribes accuracy activities to practice stage of the lesson (1987). With lower levels, e.g. elementary level students need more controlled activities to " build up the ... knowledge of grammar and vocabulary as quickly as possible " (Byrne 1987:12). The students should feel secure about the input of the lesson before they start to work independently. However, the place of fluency at the early stages of teaching - learning process should not be undermined. Students need to check their abilities to use the language they know with limited attention to correctness. Fluency practice, regarded by Byrne as production stage, gives students opportunities to foster genuine target language usage (1987). Otherwise the lack of balance between accuracy and fluency " will impede successful language development " (Brumfit 1984:52). The rule applies as well to more advanced levels. However, focus from accuracy should shift to fluency, since using the language in the classroom imitates the language outside the classroom. The teacher should maintain balanced approach and adjust the type of activities to students' capabilities and needs as well as interest.

GUIDELINES FOR PAIR WORK AND GROUP WORK AND SOME PROBLEMS THAT MAY OCCUR.

When pair work and group work are used for the first time, it is advisable that students know the reason for the arrangement e.g. increased participation

Tell the class how long the activity will last and set a signal for stopping

The task need to be explained carefully and distribution of materials taken care of before students divide into pairs and groups

Before starting the actual activity check the understanding of instructions by designating students and asking them to repeat the task

The number of participants higher than 6 (in a group) becomes less effective. In consequence " groups' larger intimacy decreases, sub - groups are formed, tension increases " (Todd 1997:44)

The level of the activities need to be within students` language capabilities otherwise the learners will feel discouraged and use L1

Each group should appoint a leader to control the work and be ready to report the results to the class

Students working in mixed ability groups can prove advantageous to weaker students - students learn from each other ; on the other hand, weaker students can feel reluctant to participate in order not to be ridiculed by more fluent students

Do not always depend on fixed pairs only because the sitting arrangement in class is inflexible; provide students with milling activities that give students a chance to move around the class to break the sitting pattern

Some teachers fear that pair work and group work are associated with too much noise in the class; students do not realise that when they are involved in the activity; however, it becomes a problem if the noise disturbs neighbouring classes ; you can stop the activity and ask students to lower their voices; if it does not work, the change of activity could help to calm the students down

It is inevitable that students make mistakes; they are frowned upon during accuracy practice; before students start to work in smaller groups make sure that students have received enough practice to be allowed to work on their own

Monitor the class and be ready to serve as a reference; you may wish to take notes which could be used later in a feedback session

Although pair work and group work is a valuable aid in language teaching and learning it should not be overused; in the first week of a new class, students enjoy personalised activities in which they find out one another's likes and dislikes, interests, opinions; this motivation may fade once students have learned all there is to know about one another

FEEDBACK AND ERROR TREATMENT
Feedback is of paramount importance when students work in pairs or groups. It gives the teacher information on students' performance. According to Penny Ur feedback constitutes evaluation and error treatment (1996:242). Evaluation marks the quality of students` responses. Most importantly it reinforces learning by showing how much progress has been made through both accuracy and fluency practice. R.W. Todd suggests some strategies that a teacher can use to give feedback. The following list is based on Richards and Lockhart (1994:189)
1.Acknowledging a correct answer or indicating an incorrect answer
2.Praising or criticising the utterance
3.Repeating the student utterance
4.Expanding or modifying the utterance
5.Asking follow - up questions
6.Summarising

The decision about which one is most effective will be determined by the content and context of the performance. But as some resources indicate (e.g. Ur, Todd) the main attention the teacher should focus on is " positive feedback " where students become aware of what they have done right. The aspect refers especially to accurate practice. Even if students make errors, they need reassurance that there was at least something they completed successfully.

During fluency practice, which is aimed at free language, the teacher should refrain from correcting errors immediately. Todd advises " delayed error treatment " so that students will not feel discouraged to continue with the activity (1997:95). The aim of error treatment is to improve accuracy. Making errors is part of the learning process: by receiving adequate feedback students gradually learn the difference between correct and incorrect language. According to Lang there is a six stage model for dealing with errors:
1. A student makes an error
2. Does the teacher notice the error?
3. Does the teacher decide to treat the error?
If errors are treated too frequently students will not participate freely. But if the teacher neglects to deal with errors, students will recognise them as appropriate forms.
4.When is the error treated?
5.Who treats the error?
The ultimate answer to the question is - the teacher. It is true that he should be the person in charge. However, students can try to do it under the teacher's supervision
6.How is the error treated?
There are various ways of treating errors, e.g. showing incorrectness, or guiding students to it, referring the treatment to peers or giving the correction. The feedback must not impede the pace of the lesson so to reduce that likelihood, students should be involved as much as possible by increasing their responsibility for language learning.

Opracowanie:
Anna Dyl

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