International Teacher Education Conference 2014 1

International Teacher Education Conference 2014
implementation of one activity centered around using model combustion engines (ICEs) to teach vocabulary,
communication and writing skills. The engineering workplace activities specifically addressed are:
• describing technical systems and components,
• giving and reacting to oral instructions,
• documenting a step-by-step (assembly) process and
• writing instructions.
Design and Implementation of Activity
The activity was devised to be run by two instructors in a team-teaching set up. The instructors led the
participants through a series of warm-up activities and were on hand to provide assistance (both language and
technical) to the students while monitoring and recording student interaction. Due to the complexity of the
model and the time required to build it, an intensive workshop consisting of a block of three 45-minute sessions
per day over three consecutive days was created.
The early part of Day 1 served to gauge the students’ existing knowledge of the relevant technical
background and vocabulary through a series of short warm-up activities, including brief impromptu
presentations, given in groups of three or four, on the components and/or working principles of engines as well
as other related vehicle systems. Not only did these presentations show the range in levels of technical
background knowledge amongst the students, but also highlighted areas, both in terms of vocabulary and
pronunciation, where they clearly needed input. This kind of “deep-end approach”, as described by Dudley-
Evans and St John (1998, p.119), is frequently employed in ESP instruction and places the students somewhat
out of their depth to see how much they know of what is required of them so that instructors can step in where
specific weaknesses and gaps in knowledge become apparent (Orr, 2001).
In the same session, students were given the ICE model kits, without the assembly manual or the necessary
tools, and with some parts removed. The rationale behind removing parts was, firstly, to ensure documentation
(including photo documentation) and comparison to the original parts’ list with the intention of engaging
students with the target lexical terms in a kinesthetic way. The second reason was more practical – by removing
certain essential parts, it became possible to control the lesson stages more easily and prevent students from
moving straight into the linguistically ‘thin’ stage of building the engine, thereby skipping the desired language
engagement. It created a situation which forced communicative acts, which otherwise may have been
significantly shortened or even avoided altogether. Figure 1 shows a group of students checking and cataloguing
the engine parts on the first day.
Figure 1: Students cataloguing engine parts on Day 1 of the workshop.
Day 2 consisted of the actual engine build itself, where students were given the manufacturer’s assembly
manual, the necessary tools and additional equipment (including vegetable oil for lubrication and batteries) they
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