CoRT 5 - INFORMATION & FEELING

ONE

Introduce the TOOL or SUBJECT of the lesson using the student’s notes (A).

TWO

Carry out an open-class example by setting a task and asking for individual responses. Repeat the tool as often as you can. Make sure it is seen as a TOOL or OPERATION .

THREE

Divide the class into groups of 4, 5 or 6. Choose a practice item from the student’s notes (B). Allow about three minutes.

FOUR

Get feedback from the groups, for example by getting one suggestion from each of the groups.

FIVE

Repeat the process with another item. Repeat practice items in this manner.SIX

Use the Operation points in the student’s notes to reinforce the process.SEVENIf it is customary to give homework, then use one of the project items for this purpose.

AN EXAMPLE

We can take the example from the first CoRT 5 lesson: Information: Fl & FO

TEACHER: John will you stand up please?

STUDENT: Which John do you mean?

TEACHER: I meant John Smith - but I left out his surname, didn't l? Now, John Smith, I want you to give me verbal instructions on how to get from this classroom to the front entrance of the school. Suppose I were a stranger and did not know the way. I want the rest of you to listen carefully and see if he leaves anything out.

STUDENT: You go out of the door and then you turn right and go down the corridor until...

TEACHER: Has he left anything out? Anyone?

(It then transpires that he has or has not left anything out. If he has not, the teacher might repeat the exercise with a different student giving instructions to a blind man.)

TEACHER: When we give instructions we have to be sure to put in all the information that is needed. That is what this lesson is about. We look at something and we try to find all the information that is given. Then we try to find all the information that has been left out. For convenience we call the information that is given FI and the information that is left out FO. So if I ask you to do an FI & FO it just means make a list of all the information that is given and all the information that has been left out. Now turn to your workcards. Look at the drawing. The fellow is reading a heavy book full of knowledge and information. But his task is rather difficult because some of the information is missing - the mouse you see in the corner has chewed it out. If you were to read the book some of the information would be there and some would be missing or left out. It does not matter how or why the information is not there. The important thing is that you don't have it, you are not given it, it is missing, it is left out.

(Depending on the age of the students the teacher would ask them to read through the first section by themselves or would go through it with them. This should not take very long.)

TEACHER: We now have an example. There is the message: "I shall catch the 9 a.m. flight to Chicago on Monday. Please meet me at the airport." Suppose a detective or a spy overheard this telephone conversation. What could he/she do about it? First we go through all the things that are given in the message, the information that is in, or FI.

(The teacher then goes through the list and asks if any student wants to add anything, e.g., that the voice is male or female.)

Next we do an FO. We list all the information that we would like to know but which seems to have been left out.

(The teacher then goes through this list and again asks students for any further suggestions.)

Now the FO list could be reduced in two ways. If we already knew something about the person that should reduce it. We could also find some things out by checking airline schedules, etc. as a detective would. Are there any other ways we could reduce the FO list?

(Accepts suggestions.)

(The teacher now divides the class into groups and moves on to the practice items, choosing two or three from the list according to the class and the time available).

Comment

The two initial illustrations used here are intended only as examples of what teachers might themselves use. The illustrations should be simple and direct and should involve something immediate and local.