Over the course of my teaching career I have learned much from observation and experimentation with my students. I owe an eternal debt of gratitude for their willingness to cooperate with me over the years.
Thank you, dear students!
EFL Teachers: No matter how good a particular resource or lesson may be, in the end, there is no substitute for the teacher’s own judgement about what works and what doesn’t work with your students.. In this spirit, I recommend the activities for teaching the four skills contained within these pages.
Only recently did it dawn on me that an interview is more than what it appears to be on the surface: question and answer. I thank all my students, past, present and future, for their help in this realization.
The interview involves an act of imagination – an attempt to “see” the possible paths an interview might take, then guide it gently where you would like it to go.
The interview is an act of sophistication – an attempt to tease out the nuances of meaning, not just the explicit, but also the implicit, that which is unsaid, but there, waiting for the skilled interviewer to tease it out, or the interviewee to make it “come up” in the flow of conversation.
Imagination and sophistication in interviews can be studied in imagined interviews, interview reports, actual interviews, filmed interviews, and interview transcripts, among others.
In this book, all of these avenues will be explored, in the context of real interviews. As this happens, the genre of the interview, what it is, what to look for, what questions achieve what purposes, simplicity and complexity, all of these elements gradually come to light.
Each reader of this book will take away something new each time you read this book, for it is meant to be read several times. You, the reader, will find it useful in preparing for an interview, both as the interviewer and as the interviewee.
Amazon Author Page: Thomas Jerome Baker
Miley-Cyrus---Party-In-The-U_S_A_
207307076. Two hundred seven million, three hundred seven thousand, and seventy-six. To make the understatement of the year, that’s a lot of plays on YouTube. To be honest, it’s mind blowing, even if those numbers are even one tenth, that is 10%, generated by individuals like me, listening again, and again, and again.
What? 
OK. I admit it. This is my favourite music video on YouTube. I think I must be responsible for about a million of those plays that Miley has with this video. I know Miley appreciates my devotion. But let me try to explain what my motivation is with this song.
I decided a long time ago I wanted to work with this particular song, in a number of ways, to bring it into the classroom to facilitate English language learning, in a fun, enjoyable, engaging, and memorable way, for my students.
What?
OK, I admit it. I also want to have fun with this song.
So, after listening for about a million times, I’m now ready to begin.
Let me add, that I’m going to do what I call a, “Think-Aloud” procedure, to give you access to my thoughts as I work on this challenge. In this way, you will be able to spot areas not only where I am particularly brilliant, but more importantly, where you can have a better result, based on knowing what to avoid doing.
Firstly, let me consider my target audience: 9th and 10th graders. That’s students who are about 15 to 16 years old, in general. Their level of English is high-intermediate. Most have taken and passed the PET exam, and therefore need to be challenged.
Secondly, this particular song is dated, which increases the level of challenge. To make it relevant and attractive in the classroom, I’ll need to “find a hook” which my students can use to draw them into engagement with the song, rather than dismissing it as old anad outdated.
Let’s turn to Wikipedia for some background info:
Miley Cyrus
“The Time of Our Lives is the first extended play (EP) by American recording artist Miley Cyrus. The EP was released on August 28, 2009 by Hollywood Records, initially as a United States’ Wal-Mart exclusive. With alterations in artwork and track listing, an international edition was issued October 16, 2009.
The Time of Our Lives was conceived as a release to accompany Cyrus’ newly launched apparel line with Max Azria. The tracks on the EP were primarily composed by John Shanks and Dr. Luke, who also produced their respective cuts.
Cyrus co-wrote one out of seven songs on The Time of Our Lives; one is a cover and another is a live rendition. Musically, the uptempo tracks on the record are in the pop rock and dance-pop genres while ballads are largely soft rock. Lyrically, it explores the themes of romantic relationships, among other subjects.
The Time of Our Lives received generally positive reactions from critics, with some reviews suggesting that the EP was an effective step into adulthood for Cyrus. Some reviews were critical of the ballads which appear on the record, however. The EP was a commercial success, charting within the top ten in nine countries.
In the United States, The Time of Our Lives peaked at number two on the Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Moreover, the EP had success internationally, peaking at number three in Greece, number five in Austria, and number six in Spain.
Two singles were released from The Time of Our Lives. The lead single, “Party in the U.S.A.”, became Cyrus’ best-selling effort to date, peaking at number two in the Billboard Hot 100. It also became one of the best-selling singles in the United States and Hollywood Records’ best- and fastest-selling single.
The second and final single released from the EP was “When I Look at You”. It was used to promote the 2010 film The Last Song, which Cyrus starred in. Unable to match “Party in the U.S.A.”‘s success, the single appeared in the top twenty of charts in Australia and the United States. Cyrus performed songs from The Time of Our Lives live numerous times.
Her performance at the 2009 Teen Choice Awards caused a media uproar because of its sexuality. She embarked on her first world tour, the Wonder World Tour, to promote the EP in late 2009.” (End of Wikipedia quote) http://tinyurl.com/3gtlf59
***
OK. We are dealing with a song that was released on August 11, 2009 and has been played on YouTube hundreds of millions of times. The students are obviously going to be sick of this song. Now what?
It appears it would be best to drop this project, because there is a big hurdle to clear, namely, the real possibility that the students will reject this song from the outset as worthy of their time.
So here’s the question we must ask ourselves (me and you, as teachers): “Is there a way in?”
To answer, we must carefully consider the three stages of any receptive skills lesson:
1. Pre-Listening
2. While Listening
3. After Listening
If we are adept at using engaging activities, with the right amount of challenge and scaffolding given, the activity as a whole can be successful, or, on the other hand, be a disaster.
Yes, you know me quite well by now. I’m going to leave it up to you.
What would you do, based on the information you have already – no more – no less – than what you have already.
A: Drop the project as a probable failure. (Why take risks)?
B: Try your ideas out, hoping for a miracle. (You might get lucky).
C: Plan a path to success, highly flexible, adapting to the students in real-time, letting the students take the lesson where they want to take it, within the general framework you set for an acceptable outcome. (This is difficult – but not impossible).
So there you have it. You’ve got 4 options.
What? 4 options? I’ve only got 3, not 4 options.
Oh. I forgot to tell you about the fourth option.
Option number 4. You find another way, a creative way, your own way, the way nobody else has thought of before.
That’s option number 4.
Good luck.
Enjoy the video…
Best regards,
Thomas
profesorbaker
