Teaching languages is a challenging task in which the teacher should consider many variables that have significant effects on learning outcomes. One of the main dilemmas for teachers giving conversation groups is error correction. It’s always tricky to know when and if to correct students and how to go about it. The danger of over-correcting is that students will lose motivation and you may even destroy the flow of the class or the activity by butting in and correcting every single mistake. The other extreme is to let the conversation flow and not to correct any mistakes. There are times when this is appropriate but most students do want to have some of their mistakes corrected as it gives them a basis for improvement.

One important point that is needed to be mentioned here is that errors are natural parts of acquisition. Learners might make mistakes at all stages and this happens no matter how able or perseverant the teacher is [2, p.87]. Therefore, it should be kept in mind that learners’ making errors is an inevitable part of language learning. However, this does not tell us that errors can be ignored; instead it tells us that approaches toward error correction is supposed to consider this basic fact. After internalizing this, teachers have to focus on some other issues about error correction. That is to say, just spotting the error and correcting it directly will not help much. Firstly, teacher has to classify the error (grammar error, pronunciation error etc.). Secondly, s/he has to decide whether to handle it or not. Thirdly, teacher should decide when to correct the error (immediate-delayed). And finally, s/he should determine the appropriate technique to correct the error made [3].

So, the question is: When and how should you correct your students?

Every teacher will have different views on this and different ways of correcting their students and it’s a case of finding out what both you and your students feel comfortable with. We would like to offer several ideas of how to go about it.

Ask the students how they want to be corrected. This sounds obvious but it can be easily overlooked. Talk to your students about error correction and to find out from them how they like to be corrected. Often students have clear ideas about how they would like you to correct them. With large groups you may have to go with the majority, but if you have a small group you can cater for individual needs.

One way to give students a choice on how much they want to be corrected in a particular class or activity is for them to make a traffic light to put on their desk. A strip of card with three circles (one red, one orange and one green) folded into a triangle with a bit of sellotape does the trick. Students point the circle towards you to indicate whether or not they want correction: Red = don’t correct me at all (they may have had a rough day or be tired!) Orange = correct things which are really important or things I should know. Green = correct as much as you can, please.

Are you working on accuracy or fluency? Before you begin an activity, bear in mind whether you are concentrating on accuracy or fluency. For a class discussion for example, fluency would be appropriate. The important thing is that students are expressing themselves and thinking on their feet [1]. However if students have had time to prepare a role-play and are then going to perform it you may want to encourage accuracy. Be clear of the aims of the task and make sure students are aware of what you expect from them. Don’t present an activity as a fluency task and then pick them up on every single mistake.

During the first portion of the lesson time gets devoted to the target language. The teacher presents the material and follows up with drills for the students. The drills make the level familiar and automatic. If the teacher leaves a mistake uncorrected here, then students could establish the wrong pattern. In the future, it will become more difficult to break the habit [3].

The teacher should follow controlled activities with the chance to practice the language in a semi-controlled manner. Mistakes might pop up with the new material, as well as with English studied from past lessons. The majority of mistakes with the target language should be covered because the teacher wants to reinforce the correct language pattern. As for other mistakes, the more frequent ones may also be addressed. Any errors that require a minimal detour from the target language and/or purpose of the lesson are okay for correction too.

The standard blueprint seems to be: (1) see if the learners can correct their own mistake; (2) invite other learners to try and correct it; and only if neither succeeds, (3) correct the mistake yourself, at which point you might want to write the corrected sentence on the board for reinforcement, and even drill it if necessary.

New teachers are particularly challenged by the "how" and "when" of error correction because effective correction of errors draws together a number of skills all at once. You need to be a linguist to recognize the language problem and to understand why a learner with a particular language background may have difficulty. You need a selection of techniques at hand to help you decide "how" you are going to correct in a certain situation. And finally, you need the empathy of a counselor to recognize the best time to apply the remedy.

During the first portion of the lesson the teacher should follow controlled activities with the chance to practice the language in a semi-controlled manner. Mistakes might pop up with the new material, as well as with English studied from past lessons. The majority of mistakes with the target language should be covered because the teacher wants to reinforce the correct language pattern.

The first step is learning whether to correct or not. A key to developing this skill is to understand the difference between ‘errors’ and ‘mistakes’.

A mistake is a slip up: you know the correct thing to say, but by accident said the wrong thing. Often mistakes result in fun statements and students can get a kick out of them. If you identify that it was a simple mistake, let it go. If it is repeated too often, it has become an error. Errors are when the student does not know the correct form, term, or usage. Errors need to be corrected for students to develop their skills and to avoid developing bad habits [1].

Once an error has been identified, teachers need to consider the type of error and how best to deal with it.

On the spot can be dangerous to your students’ confidence. Do so with caution and not too often, and choose an appropriate technique that doesn’t slow down the pace too much. Be careful not to ‘jump’ on one student for making a mistake.

Don’t make student’s feel bad about their errors; they often don’t know the correct thing to say. Don’t want to embarrass students.

Don’t forget the first port of call when correcting can be the students themselves. Students can often correct themselves when they realize they’ve made a mistake. Sometimes the mistake is simply a ‘slip’ and they are aware of the correct version. Give students a chance, and time, to correct themselves. Often by just raising your eyebrows or repeating the mistake students will know what you mean and back track to correct the error themselves. Some teachers create all sorts of hand signals to indicate the type of error. Pointing behind you is a classic to indicate to students that they should have used a past tense. If these work for you and your students, go ahead and create your own correction indicators.

Teacher's feedback techniques are the following: explicit correction (clearly indicating that the student's utterance was incorrect, the teacher provides the correct form), recast (without directly indicating that the student's utterance was incorrect, the teacher implicitly reformulates the student's error, or provides the correction),clarification request (by using phrases like "Excuse me?" or "I don't understand," the teacher indicates that the message has not been understood or that the student's utterance contained some kind of mistake and that a repetition or a reformulation is required), metalinguistic clues (without providing the correct form, the teacher poses questions or provides comments or information related to the formation of the student's utterance (for example, "Do we say it like that?" "That's not how you say it in English"), elicitation (the teacher directly elicits the correct form from the student by asking questions (e.g., "How do we say that in English?"), by pausing to allow the student to complete the teacher's utterance (e.g., "It's a....") or by asking students to reformulate the utterance (e.g., "Say that again."). Elicitation questions differ from questions that are defined as metalinguistic clues in that they require more than a yes/no response), repetition (the teacher repeats the student's error and adjusts intonation to draw student's attention to it) [4, p.37].

Students can also correct one another. Peer correction often helps to create a positive class atmosphere as students realize you are not the only source of error correction and they can learn a lot from one another.

One way to focus on students’ mistakes is to take ‘time out’ of an activity and look at mistakes as a group. When students are doing a speaking task in pairs or groups I often monitor the students and listen in on what they’re saying. Students will get used to you hovering around them although if it’s not your usual monitoring style they may wonder what you’re up to at first! It is better when teachermakes a note of the mistakes that s/he hears; whether they are pronunciation, grammatical or lexical. Teacher collects a selection of their errors and then stops the activity. Then teacher writes a selection of the mistakes on the board and asks students to correct them. If students are working in pairs and you have a left over student, why not assign them the role of assistant teacher? They can have a notebook and pen and make notes of mistakes they hear. If they do their job well they could even run the correction slot with their mistakes instead of you. Usually most of the mistakes can by corrected by the students themselves [4, p.49].

Correcting mistakes the second they are made has the advantage that you don’t have to bring the activity to a stop as is the case with a correction slot. Students often appreciate instant correction. Think about what type of activity it is before deciding whether or not it’s appropriate to correct on the spot. You don’t want to destroy the flow of the task by butting in. Students can also be responsible for on the spot correction if they are encouraged to pick up on each other’s mistakes.

Teacher should always remind students that if they are always making new mistakes it’s okay. New mistakes are usually a sign that they are exploring new uses of language or experimenting with new vocabulary but if they are always repeating the same mistakes it’s not such a good sign! By noting their mistakes students have a record of their progress and can avoid repeating the same mistakes time and time again. It’s a good idea to have a set space in their notebooks to write down their errors and the correct version [2, p.95].

Sometimes it’s a good idea to have little tests based on the classic mistakes students make in class. It encourages students to look over their notes and try to learn from them.

Whichever way you go about correcting your students, try to keep the experience positive for the learner. Being corrected constantly can be a really de-motivating, as every language learner knows. As you are listening out for your students’ errors, make sure you also listen out for really good uses of language and highlight these to the group too. In the case of language learning teacher really does believe the classic saying, ‘you learn from your mistakes’.

Remember error correction is the most powerful tool for bringing up the best but motivation is also at risk, if the error correction rules are too stringent. The most important thing to focus in this context is the identification of dimensions, i.e. you're considering fluency or accuracy. The former is much involved in spoken concerns, while later in written. Identification of dimension clears a way to correct the errors that doesn't lessen the level of motivation in students. So prepare more and more written activities, if accuracy is the matter else spoken activities.

References:

1. Error Correction [Electronic resource] / Jo Budden. – October 20, 2010 – Available at: http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/language-assistant/teaching-tips/error-correction

2. JimScrivener Learning Teaching (The Teacher Development Series).–Macmillan, 2005. –431 р.

3. Mistakes, Errors, and Correction[Electronic resource] / Chris Cotter. –Available at: http://www.headsupenglish.com/index.php/esl-articles/feedback-and-correction/315-mistakes-errors-correction

4. Scott Thornbury How to Teach Grammar.–Harlow:Longman, 1999.– 192 p.