ARTICLE OF IMPROVING SPEAKING ABILITY USING NUMBERED HEAD TOGETHER (NHT) MODEL

IMPROVING SPEAKING ABILITY USING

NUMBERED HEAD TOGETHER (NHT) MODEL

NUR ‘AYNI

Nusantara PGRI Kediri University

I.     ABSTRACT

The concept of numbered heads together is a cooperative learning strategy that holds each student accountable for learning the material to improve speaking ability.  Students are placed in groups and each person is given a number (from one to the maximum number in each group). The teacher poses a question and students "put their heads together" to figure out the answer. The teacher calls a specific number to respond as spokesperson for the group. By having students work together in a group, this strategy ensures that each member knows the answer to problems or questions asked by the teacher. Because no one knows which number will be called, all team members must be prepared.

This cooperative learning strategy promotes discussion and both individual and group accountability. This strategy is beneficial for reviewing and integrating subject matter. Students with special needs often benefit when this strategy is used. After direct instruction of the material, the group supports each member and provides opportunities for practice, rehearsal, and discussion of content material. Group learning methods encourage students to take greater responsibility for their own learning and to learn from one another, as well as from the instructor (Terenzini & Pascarella, 1994).

This paper bring a concept of numbered head together starting from definition, steps to apply this model, the benefit, and also the strategy of numbered head together to improve speaking ability of students in teaching learning process. We will discuss this theory and the signing for the students that they success to improve their speaking ability using  numbered head together .

II.     INTRODUCTION

Many language learners regard speaking ability as the measure of knowing a language. These learners define fluency as the ability to converse with others, much more than the ability to read, write, or comprehend oral language. They regard speaking as the most important skill they can acquire, and they assess their progress in terms of their accomplishments in spoken communication. The goal of teaching speaking skills is communicative efficiency. Learners should be able to make themselves understood, using their current proficiency to the fullest. They should try to avoid confusion in the message due to faulty pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, and to observe the social and cultural rules that apply in each communication situation.

One of cooperative learning model application is  numbered head together. This model is suitable to be applied for teaching speaking in order to improve speaking skill among the learners. The improvement of the students’ speaking skill includes accuracy (grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation) and fluency. Besides, the improvement of the students’ speaking skill can be seen from the improvement of the class situation when Numbered Heads Together was         applied in the teaching learning process.

Key Words :  Improving Speaking Ability,  Numbered  Head Together

III.     IMPROVING SPEAKING ABILITY

There are several ways to improve our speaking ability :

·      Speak in English

If you want to learn something, then you have to do it. You cannot learn a car by reading a book, you have to drive it yourself. Similarly you cannot become a master of great speaking ability in English just by reading something, you have to practice it consistently. Speak in English whenever and wherever you get a chance. Try to indulge in conversation with parents and friends in English.

·      Speak Confidently

Confidence is something that comes by practice. Many times our weaknesses are hidden by our confidence. Try to speak with confidence in English. It conveys the idea that you are very much familiar with the topic and can converse easily on it. Small fumbling in words are usually ignored in this case by the listener. The driving factor is our confidence. It's equivalent to saying that "Believe in yourself, if you want others to believe in you".

·      Are you fluent or are you accurate ?

Fluency and accuracy are the reverse of each other. It is like driving a car, the faster you drive, the more is the chance of an accident. Similarly if you think and then speak, then you would be more accurate and avoid accidents. On the other-hand speaking fluently demands a very high free flow of ideas in your mind, and chances are high that you can fumble in between. Good fluency comes by practice. Try to be fluent while maintaining accuracy. If you feel that accuracy is getting compromised, then start speaking a bit slowly.

·      Use a dictionary

Dictionary is your best companion, always keep one in your pocket. Whenever you encounter any new word, just make a note of it. Moreover the dictionary contains the phonemes before the meaning of the word. these phonemes are the way to pronounce the word correctly. This will help in getting the right pronunciation as well as meaning of words. It is an immense boost to your vocabulary also.

·      Choose the right words

In communication, choice of correct words is essential. If you want to express some idea, then choosing a limited right words can convey the meaning much more effectively. Many times people use too many words and sentences to describe even a small topic. This is not a good practice. Try to speak correctly and to the point. This makes a great impression on the listener, and he can understand the information in much less words. Many sentences can often lead to confusion.

·      Don't be afraid to make mistakes

Can a child learn to walk without falling? And if the child is afraid of falling, then can he ever learn to walk? The point is clear that you cannot learn something without making mistakes. Learn from a child, he falls so many times, but every-time he gets up and starts again. This is called true dedication. We all have it, since we all had learned to walk the same way. So where is this dedication right now? Gather your courage, don't be afraid to make mistakes. Learn from your mistakes and improve yourself.

·      Talk to yourself in English

Talking to yourself one of the most effective way of improving spoken English. This is one exercise that I still do today. There are many advantages of this. First you do not need any one to talk, so no issues of anyone laughing at your mistakes. Second you can practice at any time as per your comfort. I talk a lot at night, as I discuss my thoughts with myself in English. Third is that you start to think in English, this is the most important advantage of this activity. When we think in English, then we are able to communicate better since we need not translate it to our native languages every-time.

·      Make a sentence from any word you learn

Try to make a sentence from any word that you find as new or difficult. This helps in better remembering the word. When you make a sentence, then actually your brain works to think over the meaning of that word and how it fits into a sentence. You also get accustomed to using new words into sentences.

·      Record your voice and listen again

Now this one is an interesting tip to improve spoken English. It requires you to record your voice using any tape recorder or even a mobile, and then listen to it again. When first time I tried this activity, I was shocked, I never knew that I sound so unclear. This is like a feedback to you, so as to judge your voice yourself. It's like a closed loop system, where you give the output, take some part of it back and use that feedback to correct yourself for further output. A very effective way to analyze yourself from time to time.

·      Avoid using same words again and again

Using same words again and again makes the listener think that you don't have a good vocabulary and that you are not good in spoken skills. Try to vary words among sentences. This helps to keep the listener involved and interested. I hope you all must be having televisions in your home. Just have a look at the news channel when they show the flashy "Breaking News". There they repeat the same news for more that an hour showing the same video clipping, but always use different words to express the opinion. This variation of words is the key factor which involves the listener.

·      Involve the listener by asking questions in between

A communication is always two sided. If you are giving a seminar or presentation or even talking to someone, keep asking small questions to them. This ensures that they are paying attention to what you are saying, secondly this also insures that they are interested in your speech or not. The listeners are automatically involved in the communication process and the session becomes more lively.

·      Be a good listener

If you want to be a good speaker then listening is very important. Have you ever though that why is it that all people who are deaf by birth are also dumb, though the reverse is not true. It is simply because if a person is deaf by birth, then he has not listened to any voice since he was born. Ultimately his brain did not know what sound is, and is therefore unable to speak. For speaking we must be aware of the correct sounds, phonemes and pronunciation of words. Being a good listener helps us to attain this. It has many other advantages like, it encourages the other person to converse more. It is also a sign that you are interested in what the other person is saying.

·      Don't use accent, just sound natural

Many movies show there stars using some or the other accent. In practical life this sounds really bad. Don't spoil your voice by putting any unnecessary accent. Just try to remain natural. Natural speech and sound is the best form to communicate.

·      Speak Slowly

Have you ever noticed that most of the politicians speak slowly, and yet they are very powerful speakers. Speaking slowly gives the listener time to understand what you have said, so he is better prepared for the coming words and can relate to them. Moreover speaking slowly gives you time to think over your own words. You get extra time to properly rephrase your sentence so as to make the best impact. The choice of words is usually much better when we speak slowly.

·      Stress on punctuations

Punctuations can change the meaning of sentences. Many people speak sentences in a flow, and they don't even bother to stress the correct punctuations. The listener usually gets a confused or wrong information in this case. These scenarios could be avoided by giving due respect to the punctuations. Just have look at the example below:

    The gangster dropped the bullet in his head.

    The gangster dropped, the bullet in his head.

·      Pronounce the beginning and ending of words correctly

It is a crucial tip for English communication. If you speak the starting and ending of any word correctly, then your words will be very clear to the listener. Most of the time we speak the starting of the word correctly, but jumps over the ending part of the word. This make the pronunciation a bit tricky and the listener is unable to clearly understand our words. Just notice that how the good speakers pronounce each and every word so clearly. It is this beauty of clarity that makes them excellent orators.

·      Think in English

This is the basic rule to converse in English. Thinking in English helps to avoid translating thoughts from native language to English and vice verse while communicating. Our thoughts must come in English just as they come in our native language. It is in fact the most important tip of all the tips mentioned. The best part is that we listen think and then speak. If the listening and speaking are in English, then thinking in native language requires translation. This slows the communication process, and forces us to fill gap words like "hmmmmm", "errrrr", etc. If the thinking process is also in English then the complete cycle is in English and in fact is very fast.

listen--------------->think--------------->speak

·      Read newspaper loudly

Reading of English newspapers helps improve grammar and vocabulary, but reading them loudly helps in improving spoken English. The aim is to stretch our mouth muscles so they get used to speaking English words. Moreover our mind gets trained that yes we can speak these words with confidence.

·      Keep checking Internet for more information

Keep checking online for more information and material on the internet. It might happen that you are able to get some good audios, or tutorials to Improve Spoken English. Most of the material online is free, so no need to pay for anything. Just practice at the leisure of your home, but be consistent.

·      How to improve vocabulary

Vocabulary plays a vital role in any communication. A limited or small vocabulary forces the speaker to use the same words again and again. A good vocabulary helps the orator to vary the words among sentences so as to keep the listener interested. Building vocabulary is a bit hard. The way I had improved my vocabulary is discussed in detail in this article. Just check the link for more information on it. I actually used the Brute Force approach, that is to learn an entire dictionary by heart. I managed this by picking a small dictionary of around 2000 words. Regular practice and consistency helped me improve my vocabulary massively. Later a time came when my friends used to refer me for any word they encounter. They started calling me human dictionary. The respect you get after any achievement is enough to keep you motivated.

·      Join a personality development program

PDP or personality development programs are very common in almost every city. Consider joining them if you need a class of learners and teacher's guidance. PDP courses help in grooming the overall personality including spoken skills. These programs work on confidence building, how to present yourself, oral communication, etc. So overall they provide good service for the money that you pay to them. You may check in your area for a reputed course provider.

·      Listen English Songs

English songs are a great source of good English audios. Do listen to English songs for getting more and more accustomed to the way English words are pronounced. The more songs you listen and understand the lines, the better would be your understanding of the language. Try to get the lyrics of songs also, so that you can understand any word in case of discrepancy.

·      Sing English songs loudly

Singing songs is a pass time that we do occasionally. It is so natural that most of the time we don't even know that we are singing songs. We may utilize this pass time to improve our communication. Try singing English songs loudly. One activity multiple advantages. For singing you must know the song. Knowing the song implies that you are able to pronounce the words in the sentences of that song. It automatically implies a clear understanding of the song. Singling it loudly is again a brain tuning exercise by which we help our brains gain confidence in speaking English words and sentences.

·      Grammar is important

While speaking in English, sometimes grammar can be avoided. But if you want to make a real good impression, then work on your grammar. Grammar is very important for written communication, and should be correctly used while speaking. Poor grammar depicts poor usage of the language and magnifies your weakness in the language. Get a good English grammar book. We used to study from "Wren and Martin for English Grammar". You may get anyone that suits you. Remember that no one can learn all the grammar rules by heart. Just try to gain a comfort level so that you do not face issues in normal conversations.

·      Watch English Movies

If you like to watch movies, then you will like this tip. Get some good English DVD's with English subtitles. Play the movie along with friends or family. Keep a tab on the subtitles and how the actors pronounce them. It helps us to get the right pronunciation of words and also there usage in sentences.

·      Watch English channels on television

English channels like Discovery, National Geographic, Star World, BBC, etc. are good sources of English conversation. Particularly I like the way the speakers communicate in the Discovery channel. There voice is very clear. They speak slowly so that we get enough time to understand, and also they use very good English to communicate. On the other hand BBC is more likely for advanced users. The speaks on BBC are very fluent in English. Television is a great source, utilize it.

·      Read a lot of English material

Read as much you can in English. Try English magazines, novels, comics newspaper anything that draws your interest. The more we read in English, the better our grammar, vocabulary and thinking process in English becomes. The more we read, the more we think over it. Try to understand and read, don't just read for the sake of reading. The meaning of words and sentences must be clear, otherwise this exercise will be wasted.

·      Write a diary

A very nice way to build thinking in English capability is to start writing a diary. Just start a diary and write down all the thoughts that come to your mind. The topic is not important, but you must think in English only. Initially the process will be slow, but slowly it catches speed and you will be able to think much faster in English.

·      Don't be shy to ask for help

I heard somewhere that asking for help is a sign of strength and not weakness. A person needs courage to ask for help, and only the strong are able to ask someone for help. The weak ones are too shy to come forward. So don't be shy to ask for help. Almost everyone will come forward to help you. Our teachers, parents and friends all care for us, and they do help us whenever we ask them for.

·      Do not translate while speaking

Translation slows the communication. We have a habit of translating everything from English to our native language. The earlier we get rid of this habit, the better it is for us. Avoid translating while speaking as this creates a very bad impression on the other person. It becomes clear to the other person that you are translating and then replying, it implies that you are not good in spoken English.

·      Watch English Programs on TV

Television is a great source of help for Oral communication improvement. There are multiple English programs coming round the clock. I used to watch "Mind Your Language", "Friends", etc. All these programs are a great source of quality English audios and videos, and you get them for almost free(just the amount of cable fee). Utilize these resources to your advantage and try to understand what the speakers are saying, how they pronounce sentences and words.

·      Avoid bluffing sites and material

Internet is vast and deep. You will get plenty of material online. Don't be bluffed with sites that show you conversation between two people and claim that your spoken English will be improved by this. It's as simple as telling someone who wants to learn car driving to read a car manual to learn how to drive it. You need to listen proper English for getting proper pronunciation. These bluffing sites can hamper your growth process as they misdirect the learning process. Get a hold of some good English audios and videos, enjoy them with your family.

·      Test yourself from time to time

It's hard to test our-self, but is very essential to analyze our-self. Participate in English quizzes, Seminars, presentations whenever possible. Take these challenges and they will show you your confidence level in speaking. If you are still scared in giving a presentation in English, it means that your confidence level is low and needs to be improved. Try some exercise like borrow money from someone in English. Borrowing money requires good communication and convincing skills. Just try it with your friends or parents and see the results yourself.

·      Don't expect to see results instantaneously

It will take some time for the improvements to show in your speech. Don't expect to become a great speaker by the end of 3rd day. It's a long process and requires continuous efforts. Many people start the improvement activity for English communication with full force, but their energy levels are gone by the end of 2nd or 3rd day. Be consistent, and allow your English to improve. A baby also takes time to grow up, you don't expect it to start going to office when it is one year old. Everything need time to improve and grow. Allow the spoken English skills to grow inside you.

·      Use Divide and rule approach

Don't burden yourself with too heavy targets. Make realistic goals which you can achieve in some time duration. Divide the time for the sub-tasks involved in achieving your goal. The key is to make a large task appear small, by dividing it into small and easy tasks. Take one step at a time, don't try to run in the beginning.

·      Enjoy whatever you do

Try to enjoy the learning process. If you take it as a burden, then it will be a very boring activity for you. Make it your passion, and you will automatically become a very fluent English speaker. You like to play games, then you will be a good gamer. You like to cook food, the you will be a good chef. You like to improve your spoken English, then you will definitely be a good speaker.

·      Be consistent

I kept this tip last, because this is the baseline of Improving Spoken English skills. Try to be consistent in the learning process. We need food daily for our stomach and body. The learning process is the food for our brains. Maintain consistency to get the best results from your brain.

IV.     TEACHER STRATEGIES TO  DEVELOPING STUDENTS SPEAKING SKILLS

Students often think that the ability to speak a language is the product of language learning, but speaking is also a crucial part of the language learning process. Effective instructors teach students speaking strategies using minimal responses, recognizing scripts, and using language to talk about language that they can use to help themselves expand their knowledge of the language and their confidence in using it.

These instructors help students learn to speak so that the students can use speaking to learn.

1.    Using minimal responses

Language learners who lack confidence in their ability to participate successfully in oral interaction often listen in silence while others do the talking. One way to encourage such learners to begin to participate is to help them build up a stock of minimal responses that they can use in different types of exchanges. Such responses can be especially useful for beginners.

Minimal responses are predictable, often idiomatic phrases that conversation participants use to indicate understanding, agreement, doubt, and other responses to what another speaker is saying. Having a stock of such responses enables a learner to focus on what the other participant is saying, without having to simultaneously plan a response.

2.    Recognizing scripts

Some communication situations are associated with a predictable set of spoken exchanges a script. Greetings, apologies, compliments, invitations, and other functions that are influenced by social and cultural norms often follow patterns or scripts. So do the transactional exchanges involved in activities such as obtaining information and making a purchase. In these scripts, the relationship between a speaker's turn and the one that follows it can often be anticipated.

Instructors can help students develop speaking ability by making them aware of the scripts for different situations so that they can predict what they will hear and what they will need to say in response. Through interactive activities, instructors can give students practice in managing and varying the language that different scripts contain.

3.    Using language to talk about language

Language learners are often too embarrassed or shy to say anything when they do not understand another speaker or when they realize that a conversation partner has not understood them. Instructors can help students overcome this reticence by assuring them that misunderstanding and the need for clarification can occur in any type of interaction, whatever the participants' language skill levels. Instructors can also give students strategies and phrases to use for clarification and comprehension check.

By encouraging students to use clarification phrases in class when misunderstanding occurs, and by responding positively when they do, instructors can create an authentic practice environment within the classroom itself. As they develop control of various clarification strategies, students will gain confidence in their ability to manage the various communication situations that they may encounter outside the classroom.

  V.     NUMBERED HEADS TOGETHER

Numbered head together is a cooperative learning strategy that holds each student accountable for learning the material. In this technique each student of group gets the number and their own tasks, but they should decide the best and the appropriate answer for the group by considering each answer of the members of the group. Number Head Together developed first by Spencer Kagan (1993) to involve more student in learning material which consist in a lesson and to know their knowledge about the material given. Students are placed in a groups and each person is given a number (from one to the maximum number in each group). The teacher poses a question and students “put their heads together” to figure out the answer. The teacher calls a specific number to respond as spokesperson to the group. By having students work together in a group, this strategy ensures that each member knows the answer to problems or questions asked by the teacher. Because no one knows which number will be called, all team members must be prepared.

The structure of Numbered Heads Together is derived from the work of Spencer Kagan. There are a number of variations on the method, some very simple and others with a greater degree of complexity. This structure can be used in conjunction with ‘Think, Pair, Share’ early in the development of the Co-operative Classroom. learning with spellings.

This cooperative learning strategy promotes discussion and both individual and group accountability. This strategy is beneficial for reviewing and integrating subject matter. Students with special needs often benefit when this strategy is used. After direct instruction of the material, the group supports each member and provides opportunities for practice, rehearsal, and discussion of content material.

v Purpose

Processing information, communication, developing thinking, review of material, checking prior knowledge.

v Relevant Skills

Sharing information, listening, asking questions, summarizing others’ ideas, talking quietly.

1.      Numbered  Head Together as Method in Teaching Speaking

Numbered head together model is suitable to be applied for teaching speaking class. The teacher use four phase structure to asking the question for student in the class, they are:

a.    Phase I: Numbering

In the phase the teacher divide the student into some groups consist of 3 to 5 person  and each member of groups given number from 1 to 5

b.    Phase II: Asking Question

Pose a question or a problem to the class and give the groups fifteen minutes of “Head Together

c.    Phase III: Heads Together

The student put their head together to the decide one appropriate answer making sure that every group member know the agreed upon answer.

d.   Phase IV: Answering the Question

The teacher calls a member at random and only student with the member respond to the question.

2.      Advantages of Numbered Head Together

This cooperative learning strategy promotes discussion and both individual and group accountability. This strategy is beneficial for reviewing and integrating subject matter. Students with special needs often benefit when this strategy is used. After direct instruction of the material, the group supports each member and provides opportunities for practice, rehearsal, and discussion of content material.

Group learning methods encourage students to take greater responsibility for their own learning and to learn from one another, as well as from the instructor (Terenzini & Pascarella, 1994). The advantages of Numbered head Together (NHT) are:

1.    Positive interdependence

The students are able to learn from each other. They must also work together to ensure there is one product to their learning. They must check that everyone can understand and answer the question.

2.    Individual accountability

Students are accountable to each other for sharing ideas. The student may also be required to share their partner’s ideas to another pair or whole group. Every student must be able to give the group response to the question.

3.    Equal participation

Each student within the group has an equal opportunity to share. It is possible that one student may try to dominate. The teacher can check this does not happen.

4.    Simultaneous interaction

High degrees of interaction at any one moment all of the students will be actively engaged in purposeful speaking and listening

5.    Multilevel

This kind learning can be used in any kinds of level, but of course it has to be adjusted with the material given.

3.      The disadvantages of Numbered Head Together (NHT)

Some disadvantages of numbered head together (NHT) are :

1.  The smart student will tend to dominate so that it can make the weak  students have interior and passive attitude.

2.  The discussion process can go smoothly if there are students just simply copy the work of smart students without having an adequate understanding.

3. If there are homogenous group so it will be unfair for the group contained of weak students.

4. Likelihood that number is called, called again by the teacher, means that not all members of the group called by the teacher.

VI.     CONCLUSION

Numbered head together is one of cooperative learning model application. This model is suitable to be applied in teaching speaking class to develop speaking skill among the learners. The improvement of the students’ speaking skill can be seen from situation of speaking class is  more active among the students by applied of Numbered Heads Together. It can be seen that students in joining the lesson when Numbered Heads Together was applied in the teaching learning process is as follows:

1) The students became more active in speaking class

2) The students were more serious when working together with their friends to discuss   the answers

3)  The students were more motivated when Numbered Heads Together technique was applied in teaching learning process

REFERENCES

Eazhull.2006.Numbered Heads Together.www.eazhull.org.uk/nlc/

Teachervision.2010.Numbered Head Together. Cooperative Learning Strategy.www. teachervision.fen.com

Gangsar Basuki. 2013. http://gangsarbasuki.blogspot.com/2013/04/numbered-head-together.html

Amit Beriwal. 2010.http://improve-English-spoken.blogspot.com/

Asian EFL Journal. 2011. http://asian-efl-journal.com/teaching-speaking-in-the-language-classroom/