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A. Felipe Vela Izquierdo

P E R U

Reciprocal
Teaching:
A USEFUL TOOL
IN
I NCREASING
STUDENT-TALKING TIME

R ECIPROCAL TEACHING (RT), A STRATEGY THAT ATTEMPTS TO ESTABLISH AN ACTIVE

and relatively expanded dialog between teacher and students and among stu-

dents themselves, is gaining importance in educational circles. Pioneer RT

researchers Palincsar and Brown (1984) developed this strategy to reinforce

comprehension in L1 and ESL reading classes. Because of its success, it soon

began to be applied to other areas of study. The purpose of this article is to

demonstrate how the principles underlying RT can be effectively used to

increase student-talking time in the L2 classroom, and thereby improve their

communicative competence in the target language.

When RT is used, the classroom is not a one-way street, in which the teacher

maintains strict control of the environment, but rather a two-way street that

allows active participation by students. In such a classroom, the teacher assumes

the role of facilitator and monitor, and students are encouraged to perform

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actively in cadence with the teacher and/or could simply say “Nothing!” Such a response
among themselves. Students are given a solid provides no details; it merely responds to the
opportunity to improve their communicative question in as brief a way as possible. Clearly,
competence in the target language because they teachers need to prompt students to produce
have the openings they need to talk in class. longer utterances if they are to be effective
Among the procedures that RT utilizes to communicators, and they need to help listen-
promote this desired teacher-student (T-S), ers get a clearer idea of what is expected of
student-teacher (S-T), and student-student them. They can do so by beckoning the stu-
(S-S) exchange are such well-known tactics as dent, by word or gesture, to give a long-turn
paraphrasing, reported speech, and question answer, such as: “Uh… I went to the movies
formation. In conjunction with these tactics, I with some friends. We saw a terrific movie and
refer in this article to a procedure called con- after the show, we had something to eat.”
cept-checking, which is not as well known, Producing long-turns is part and parcel of RT.
and provide examples of it. Of course, short-turn answers can also be
legitimate responses. However, from an instruc-
The vocabulary of RT tional point of view, they neither further com-
In RT theory the terms long-turn and short- municative competence nor allow the target
turn are often used. A short-turn, often language to become properly rooted in the stu-
referred to as language for informational purpos- dent’s mind. If students are to make progress in
es, is a markedly abbreviated exchange between a foreign language, they need to be trained to
persons. A long-turn, often referred to as lan- produce utterances that engage them in a con-
guage for transactional purposes, is an extended sistent fluent dialog. This requires effort and
conversation involving a series of exchanges. practice, but the results will be greater fluency
Brown and Yule (1983, 16–17) describe the and retention for the student.
distinction: “A short-turn consists of only one The next part of this paper focuses on the
or two utterances, a long-turn consists of a procedures that RT uses: paraphrasing, report-
string of utterances which may last as long as ed speech, question formation, and concept-
an hour’s lecture…. [W]hat is demanded of a checking.
speaker in a long-turn is considerably more.”
Paraphrasing
The researchers point out that the long-turn
speaker takes responsibility for creating a The ability to paraphrase is an alternative to
“structured sequence of utterances” that using direct quotations when you want to use
enable the listener to “create a coherent men- someone else’s ideas. When you paraphrase,
tal representation” of what the speaker is try- you state an author’s thoughts in your own
ing to say. Brown and Yule (1983, 19) stress words through the use of synonymous words
that training students to produce short-turns or equivalent phrases. In the language class-
“will not automatically yield students who can room this ability is practiced when the teacher
perform satisfactorily in long-turns.” The asks a student to paraphrase what a classmate
point is, teachers should do all they can to just said or what the teacher just explained.
encourage students to produce complete sen- From my experience as an EFL teacher, I have
tences rather than short utterances. learned that encouraging my students to para-
Through the use of paraphrasing, reported phrase is not an easy undertaking. However,
speech, question formation and concept-check- with practice, the students made notable
ing, students learn to find synonymous expres- progress. The following sample dialogue shows
sions or substitutes, practice relaying informa- how paraphrasing in RT can be used.
tion, and familiarize themselves with the Teacher: Let’s talk about holidays or festi-
structuring of questions. The teacher makes vals in our country. What’s an
certain that the instructions or concepts have important holiday or festival in
been understood. When the teacher asks a Peru, Karina?
question such as “Did you have a good week- Student: Well, for me it’s Independence
end?” students tend to give short responses, that Day.
is, a short-turn such as “Yes” or “No.” Likewise, Teacher: Tell us what you know about this
if a teacher asks, “What did you do?” a student holiday.

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Student: OK. July 28 is the day when Teacher: Carlos, what did I ask Elsa?
Peruvians celebrate Independence Carlos: You asked her what she was plan-
Day. On that day all houses have ning to do.
a flag on the roof, and many peo-
This sample dialogue shows how a one-on-
ple go out with their families to
one interchange can serve to involve other
visit historical spots such as the
members of the class. The use of reported
Main Square.
speech could present a problem for students in
Teacher: Thanks. Juan, can you say in a basic program, particularly if they were not
your own words what Karina just yet exposed to the needed structures. In such a
explained to the class? situation, the use of prompts on the board can
Student: Sure. On July 28 Peruvians help ease students into making acceptable
remember Independence Day. responses. For example:
On that day they have a flag on
Teacher: Where does your husband work,
the roof of their houses and fam-
Teresa?
ilies like to visit historical places,
for example, the Main Square. Teresa: He works in a bank.
Teacher: María, what did Teresa say about
This dialog demonstrates how the long- her husband?
turn facilitates T-S, S-T, and S-S exchanges.
Prompt on the chalkboard:
Student-talking time is increased. Someone
She just said that…
might claim that this is mere repetition. Far
from being so, paraphrasing requires students María: She just said that he works in a
to cope with vocabulary items and structural bank.
forms in order to present the same informa- Here, the student only had to repeat what
tion in a different way. It gives students the her classmate had said. True, this is an ele-
opportunity to participate actively and apply mentary example; however, any enterprising
their own personal touch. Since students first teacher can find ways to facilitate the use of
have to grasp what is expressed, listening com- more complex forms. Here is where the wise
prehension is also practiced. use of prompts, whatever their format or
source, can help ensure that the objective of a
Reported speech lesson is met.
Many teachers find that helping students
learn how to use reported speech is difficult; I Question formation
agree. It is not easy for students to change a Learning how to structure questions is a
direct statement, question, or command into complex endeavor because the word order that
an indirect one. Again, practice is the remedy, underlies questions has its own logic. This can
and RT gives students the practice they need to become a perplexing challenge for students. I
accomplish this. T-S, S-T, and S-S exchanges have discovered that RT has helped my stu-
provide immediate opportunities to practice dents deal with the complexity of question for-
reported speech. At any given moment, the mation by prodding them to form their own
teacher can ask a student to report to the class questions in long-turn discourse with their
what a fellow student or the teacher has just peers. A casual perusal of ESL/EFL classrooms
expressed. An example: reveals that it is the teacher who asks most of
Teacher: What are you planning to do on the questions, thereby unnecessarily increasing
teacher-talking time. As a result, students are
your vacation, Alcides?
deprived of the opportunity to become profi-
Alcides: I’m going to Cuzco with my
cient in question-making, a necessary real
friends.
world skill. Two examples show how this can
Teacher: What did Alcides say, Elsa? be done. The first is applicable to a basic class,
Elsa: He said that he was going to the second to an intermediate one.
Cuzco with his family. Course: Basic 1
Teacher: And what are you planning to do? Function: Asking for and giving information
Elsa: I’m staying in Lima. about age.

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Teacher: Oscar, how old are you? describe instructions that were given. Compre-
Oscar: I’m 15 years old. hension checks can take on different formats:
Teacher: Oscar, ask Sandra how old she is. students can repeat the information, summa-
rize it, or paraphrase it.
Oscar: How old are you, Sandra?
By using comprehension checks, we can be
Sandra: I’m 17 years old. sure that our instructions are understood and
Teacher: Choose another person, Sandra. at the same time give students added practice
Sandra: OK, how old are you, Pedro? in the use of effective language. For example,
Course: Intermediate 5 students can be asked to paraphrase or sum-
Function: Making recommendations. marize recent information about the differ-
ence between the simple past and the past
Teacher: Carmen, ask a classmate how
continuous in this manner: “Now that you
schools can be improved.
know the difference between the simple past
Carmen: José, how can schools be and the past continuous, and you have done
improved? some exercises, what is your understanding of
José: I think computers should be pur- the distinction between these two tenses?”
chased for all students. This procedure can be particularly profitable
Teacher: Gladys, ask José a follow-up when students are engaged in pair or group
question. work. Too often such work degenerates into a
Gladys: How will schools afford to buy feckless exercise. Monitoring student compre-
those computers? hension is an excellent way to remedy this. At
José: Schools ought to try to get fund- different intervals the teacher can ask: “What
ing from companies or the local are you doing now?” or “What did your part-
government. ner just tell you?” In fact, after the task is com-
pleted, the teacher can say: “Tell me what you
The examples above are brief, but they sug- have done.”
gest what can be done with RT. What is
important to note is that the students them- Axioms to teach by
selves structure the questions. The teacher sets It is useful to examine the role of the
up the conversation in such a way that ques- teacher in RT in greater detail. Below I enu-
tions have to be asked and responded to by the merate several axioms fundamental to the
students. The teacher remains the guiding and technique. Inherent in all of them is the
facilitating force, but the talking-time is the notion that the teacher plays the role of facili-
province of the students. To insure success, the tator and monitor, helping the students per-
level of the students must be taken into form their tasks and checking on the dynam-
account. A lesson should not be beyond the ics of their interactions.
competence of the students.
Axiom 1: Step back
Concept-checking Teachers have to keep in mind that the stu-
dents are to be given the control of the activi-
Students should be cognizant of the impli-
ties, but always under the teachers’ guidance
cations of the lesson and understand the instruc-
and supervision.
tions they are given to complete a task. Here is
where concept-checking becomes important Axiom 2: Say the whole sentence
in the language classroom. After giving and At least a complete sentence and preferably
modeling instructions, teachers can ask their an extended dialog (long-turn) should be
students to verbalize them. RT utilizes this sought on the part of the students. This will
routine to heighten the students’ attention better inure students with the language ele-
and comprehension. How many times have ments than would be the case with a short
we asked students if they understand a lesson answer (short-turn).
only to receive the invariable response, “Yes”? Axiom 3: Teach the language of the classroom
Our question should rather be: “What is it Learners need to become familiar with the
that you understand?” Students will then be language that the teacher uses and the lan-
expected to verbalize the content of a lesson or guage they can use as students. If the students

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are beginners, the necessary expressions can be This technique allows us to monitor levels of
written as prompts on the board or wall. For understanding of the task or procedure before
example, the teacher might use one or more of (“What do you have to do?”), during (“What
the following expressions: are you doing?”) and after an activity (“What
• Could you read the next question? have you done?”). Students also learn to listen
• Would you mind answering the question? to their neighbors attentively, learn reciprocal-
• Will you tell us what you think? ly, and become more active in the learning
process.
• Open your books to page ___.
Students are likely to find the following Possible reservations
expressions useful: Most teachers acknowledge that RT is a
• What does ____ mean? useful tool for increasing student-talking time.
• Please repeat your question, sir. However, some teachers object to all the time
• I didn’t understand the last point. spent on paraphrasing, reported speech, ques-
tion formation, and concept-checking and the
Of course, many more expressions could be energy they must expend to ensure that these
added on either side. Be aware that the natural techniques are executed properly. Teachers
tendency to use the native language is a danger may feel frustrated and dismayed by what they
that can plague a classroom. Teachers might perceive as inadequate responses from stu-
insist on the use of the target language for class- dents. In turn, students could lose confidence
room chatter, but they still need to provide stu- in themselves or feel threatened if they fail to
dents with facilitating cues when necessary. carry through on the instructions that are
Axiom 4: I teach you given. These are clearly undesirable sequels
At the beginning of a task, clarify the and should be countered.
objective of the activity or the procedure; then There is no doubt that RT can become
model the directions. time-consuming, but only if it is overused.
Axiom 5: You teach me Teachers should gradually and judiciously
When the students are instructed and introduce the technique into the classroom,
shown what to do, ensure comprehension of giving students a clear idea of the rationale
the procedures by asking different students to behind RT. Once students appreciate its
verbalize the information: importance, they are more likely to be willing
to engage in the exercises, particularly when
• “What is the objective of the activity?”
they see results. I use the word judiciously
• “Are you going to work in pairs or because teachers should be careful not to sig-
in groups?” nificantly exceed the current level of compe-
• “What do you have to do?” tence of the class. Krashen and Terrell’s (1983)
Teachers can also ask students to paraphrase “input + 1” dictum in their hypothesis on
questions they just answered and pose them to Comprehensible Input is decidedly valid in RT.
somebody else: “Now ask one of your neigh- Students should not feel overwhelmed or they
bors the same question.” They can also have will fail to communicate. Teachers must
students paraphrase definitions: “Now that I always make ready use of prompts. This tallies
have defined it for you, what’s the meaning of with the supportive role that they have as facil-
token?” The same can be done with explana- itators. The chalkboard is one visual aid that is
tions: “What are If clauses?” at the immediate service of the teacher. With
Axiom 6: We teach each other practice, students will become less dependent
Students can share our role by asking their on prompts. Indeed, practice cannot be
peers similar questions: neglected, since students perform in propor-
tion to the practice that is given.
• “What did the teacher explain to
the class?” Conclusion
• “What is your group’s conclusion?” It is important that student-talking time be
• “Are you finished, or do you need maximized and teacher-talking time be used
more time?” strategically to provide students with the open-

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ings they need to communicate with the conversational English. New York: Cambridge
teacher and among themselves with long-turn University Press.
utterances. Reciprocal Teaching has been engi- Krashen, S. and T. D. Terrell. 1983. The natural
neered specifically to accomplish such a goal. It approach. New York: Pergamon Press.
has proven to be an effective way to substan- Palincsar, A. S. and A. Brown. 1984. Reciprocal
teaching of comprehension-fostering and com-
tially increase student-talking time. It should
prehension-monitoring activities. Cognition
become a key tool in the teacher’s repertoire as
and Instruction, 1 (2):117–175.
a way to help students internalize language and
improve their communicative competence in
A. FELIPE VELA IZQUIERDO is an EFL teacher
the world outside the classroom.
at the Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamer-
References icano (ICPNA) in Lima, Peru. He has been
Brown, G. and G. Yule. 1983. Teaching the spoken teaching English for five years and has pub-
language: An approach based on the analysis of lished bilingual stories.

Ne a r - Pe e r Tu t o ri n g … | Kirson and Lee

continued from page 30

A P P E N D I X | T HE S ONG : READING
Near-Peer Tutoring in an ESOL Music Project • Tamara Kirson and Jung-Yoon Lee

Reading and reading, Reading and reading,

Time after time. Time after time.
Can you find the meaning To enrich your vocabulary
In what the author wrote? And speak so others understand.
(Reading is speaking!)
(Reading is meaning!)*
Reading and reading,
Reading and reading,
Time after time. And reading by yourself.
To have your mind wide open That is the perfect way
And learn what others know. To help your English and speak well.
That is the perfect way
(Reading is learning!)
To help your English and speak well.
Reading and reading, (We love English! We love New York!)
Time after time.
To enjoy so many worlds *Words in parentheses were choral speak-
And soar like a butterfly. ing, accompanied by gestures.
(Reading is exploring!)

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