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Glossary

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P

Passive Voice

A sentence where the subject is receiving the action. This is contrasted with the active voice, where the subject is doing the action. To form the passive voice you use the verb “to be” plus the past participle.

The Merchant of Venice was written by Shakespeare.

A man was taken to the police station.


PBL

Project-Based Learning. A teaching approach that consists of using projects – usually research projects – to further learning in the classroom.

Phoneme

The smallest sound that can make a difference in meaning. For example, the word sheep has five letters but only three phonemes (“sh,” “ee,” and “p”).

Phonology

The study of phonemes (sounds), intonation, word stress, sentence stress, rhythm, and connected speech.

Phrasal Verb

Two- or three-part verbs, usually with prepositions, that take on a different meaning than their separate parts suggest. Some examples include:

to go out with = to date  /  to bring up = to raise a topic in conversation  / to look after = to watch                                                                                                                                             

Placement Tests

An assessment instrument or procedure used to determine a student’s language skills relative to the levels of a particular program he or she is about to enter.

Positive Feedback

Praise for correct or well-spoken utterances or speech, something that can be motivating for learners. Positive feedback is more effective when it is more specific and might include something like highlighting correct grammar or improvement in pronunciation.

PPP

Presentation, Practice, Production. A method or model to teaching and lesson planning based on the idea of giving (presenting) small items of language to students, providing them with opportunities to use it in controlled ways (practice), and finally integrating it with other known language in order to communicate (production).

Practice

A stage in a lesson during which students and the teacher (or teaching materials, such as a reading text) use the presented language in controlled and monitored activities. During this stage students get additional practice forming sentences with the new language structure. For example, students complete a text with new words or students answer teacher’s questions using a new structure.

Pragmatics

Understanding when language is appropriate to use according to the context or situation surrounding it, which is often a question of formality.

Prefix

A bound morpheme placed at the beginning of a word that alters the meaning of the word or root it is attached to (e.g., the prefix “un” in unmoved means “not.”).

Presentation

A stage in a lesson during which the teacher gives or presents new language – new vocabulary or a new grammar structure – to the students.

Production

A stage in a lesson during which students use the newly introduced and practiced language in an open-ended structure in their own speech or writing. For example, students write a story with the new words and phrases.

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