Beyond the Gap Fill: Dynamic Activities for Song in the EFL Classroom.

Abstract

Many teachers like to use music and song in the English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom. Good motivational tools, music and song are fun and relaxing, and they provide a class with variety and a break from textbook study. Particularly with younger learners, songs and chants are often used to teach new vocabulary in a nonthreatening, naturalistic manner. Older students and advanced learners can analyze lyrics and explore a songwriter’s language choice and usage, along with cultural elements such as social values, human relationships, spirituality, patriotism, and dissent (Murphey 1992). Despite the rich potential of songs as authentic and stimulating texts, when it comes to designing a listening activity for a song, teachers tend to rely upon the Gap Fill as the sole activity: “Listen and fill in the blanks ... listen again ... check and move on to the next activity” is almost a mantra. Yet songs can be utilized in more variable and stimulating ways to challenge students to learn and think about language, and songs can provide opportunities for integrated skills practice as well as cultural and intercultural analysis. This article will describe how to make the most of the natural advantages that songs bring, extending and transcending the basic techniques to entice students and make them aware of and connected with the language as they engage in the inherently captivating activity that is song.

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