The following unit deals with "Incoterms", a particular aspect in commercial business transactions.

In planning it I thought of a fourth class of an Istituto Tecnico Commerciale (I.G.E.A.), of about 20 pupils, average achievers, studying English as 1st language, at the beginning of the 2^nd school-term and this work is also the result of the previous 1^st school-term during which the students developed a fairly good knowledge of the language of commerce and its theory (International Business, Business Organisations, Banks, shipping agents, transportation and the rules of letter-writing (Enquiry, Reply to enquiries). Concerning General Objectives they should increase linguistic and commercial competence and locate main ideas, while concerning Specific Objectives the pupils will be able to ask and talk about terms of sale in international transaction. The lexis will be strictly pertaining to the above functions. As for the employed tools, I am going to specify them in introducing each exercise. However, a textbook, tapes and tape-recorder are instruments we cannot do without, since they provide us with realistic material, which help us to contextualize the otherwise sterile items of a syllabus. When speaking of teaching aids, I should also mention audio-visual aids, because watching a film makes it easier for students to understand what is said than merely reading a commercial text.

During these four lessons we will practise the four skills and we will improve taking notes, using a dictionary, answering questions and summarising information.

As regards teaching techniques I am following, as far as possible the principle of ecleticism, since it combines techniques and principles from various methods but it can be generally defined as communicative. The unit will last 4 lessons and will be divided into 3 main phases: a Presentation of the Incoterms through a letter of reply to enquiries, a Practise phase in which students will be helped to reflect on the new "labels", an Exploitation of the newly presented items to provide the students with the necessary practise . In the third phase the students will be given opportunities to use the language freely working on their own; this phase will comprise also testing. Would-be remedial work will be carried out in a supplementary lesson.

PRESENTATION

The primary goal of this phase which will take one lessons’ time is to set foundations to work on. By the end of this stage students should have learned what Incoterms are and seen several examples in which they can use them depending on the different situations.

As a warming-up activity I will present students this brief exercise (I have already written on the blackboard in capital INCOTERMS):

Ex. 1

Match the categories on the left to the examples on the right:

1. transportation costs a. ship, roll-on/roll-off ferry, container *

2. methods of transporting goods b. FOB, EXW, DDU *

3. stages in a deliveryc. commercial invoice, certificate of origin,*
4. Incotermsd. carriage, insurance, import duties*
5. Import/export documentse. collection, loading, transportation*

They will be given time, only a few minutes, to complete it and after correcting the exercise, I will write on the blackboard FOB, EXW, DDU.

I will ask the students to answer following questions: - Can you find in the word Incoterms other words you know? What does "Inco" could mean?

Ex. 2

Complete this T/F exercise

T F

Incoterms

1. Permission to cross the frontier with a delivery  

2. Electronic Data Interchange  

3. Standard terms, which buyer and seller can use in their contract of sale  

4. Contract guaranteeing compensation in the event of accidents at sea  

5. International commerce terms  

What is important is that the students begin to cooperate and share their ideas. I confirm my students that Incoterms (International commerce terms) are standard terms, which buyer and seller/ importer /exporter, can use in their contract of sale. It is a preparatory step to deal with this terms.

Ex. 3

Students will now be given a copy of a Reply to an enquiry, as this example:

…………. ………………………………………

Subj.: Your enquiry of 8^Th April

In reply to your letter, we are pleased to quote for the hotel furniture and fittings which interest you.

Prices: CIF Alexandria

Packing: one 40’ container

Payment: by L/C on our bank BNM Agenzia 4

Delivery: by the end of July as requested if order received before 20^th May

Etc. etc.

I will write CIF on the blackboard near the other three Incoterms and I will ask what does "Prices CIF Alexandria" could mean? What is CIF referred to? I will write the core words of their answers on the blackboard and after that I will draw on the blackboard a factory and a ship indicating a port. I will connect the factory to the final importer’s port by an arrow and I will do the same for the other three Incoterms presented.

This activity will conclude the first lesson. Before leaving I will assign my students the following exercises as homework:

1. Look up in your textbook a good definition for Incoterms and study it.

SECOND LESSON

In the second lesson the students will be invited to expose the definition they found concerning Incoterms. After correcting their homework, I will add more information such as that Incoterms first published in 1936 by the ICC (International Chamber of Commerce), were updated in 1990. Incoterms show instantly how carriage and related costs are divided between exporter and importer and reflected as part of the invoice price. They indicate at which point in the journey the responsibility for arranging the transport of goods passes from the seller to the buyer.

Ex. 4 (material needed: a sheet). I am telling students to concentrate on the chart given. They can work in pairs to match the Incoterms with the appropriate description in Italian language. To do this I am handing out a sheet with two columns: on the right the Italian description and the left the corresponding Incoterms "labels":

1. EXW – Ex-works – Ex-Factory              a. Reso sdoganato
2. CIF – Cost Insurance and Freight            b. Franco lungo bordo
3. FOB- Free on board                                  c. Franco fabbrica
4. DDU –Delivered Duty Unpaid                 d. Franco Vettore
5. FCA- Free Carrier                                     e. Franco a bordo
6. CIP- Cost, Insurance Paid                         f. Costo e nolo
7. FAS- Free alongside ship                          g. Costo assicurazione e nolo
8. CFR- Cost and Freight                               h. Trasporto pagato fino a
9. CPT- Cost paid terminal                            i. Trasporto e assicurazione pagati fino a
10. DAF- Delivery at frontier                          l. Reso frontiera
11. DES- Delivery ex ship                                m. Reso non sdoganato
12. DEQ- Delivery ex quay                              n. Reso banchina
13. DDP- Delivery Duty paid                          o. Reso Ex ship

At this stage I do not mean my students to learn them, but just to understand them. Often books provide a list and the students could refer to it whenever needed. After discussing each Incoterms I devise this activity:

Ex.5 (material needed: chart) Divide the above given Incoterms into four columns from group E to group D, where E and D are the initials of each Incoterm.

Group E Group F Group C Group D

EXW-FCA-CFR-DAF-FAS -CIF-DES-FOB-CPT-DEQ-CIP-DDU-DDP

After doing this easy exercise, I will explain my students that they have to understand in which way the goods could be sent from the exporter to the importer and therefore quote the most convenient price for the exporter/importer (interdisciplinarity: Economic Geography because they will study the different and the most convenient means of transport according to the distance).

It is important to point out that each Incoterm states the amount of responsibility the exporter and the importer have regarding the risks involved in the transportation of goods.

Ex. 6 (material needed: chart and video)

In order to complete the above chart, according to exporter’s/importer’s responsibility, I will show them a short, but very interesting video, which explains the different ways to transport goods from seller to buyer and the paid and unpaid carriage corresponding to each Incoterms. I will play the video twice.

Ex. 7 (material needed: as above). Now students will be asked to work in pairs. They have to complete the chart as follows:

Group E –Departure – any mode of transport

Group F – Main carriage unpaid – FCA any mode of transport including air and rail transport

FAS and FOB – sea transport

Group C – Main carriage paid- CFR and CIF sea transport – CPT and CIP any mode of transport

Group D – Arrival –DAF-DDU-DDP any mode of transport – DES an DEQ sea transport

(the words in italics are completing the chart)

After seeing the video I will check if my students completed the chart in the correct way.

Now I am asking my students to open their textbook on page x….where they will find the meaning of the "labels" CIF (+name of port/airport of destination); FOB (+ name of port of shipment/point of departure) ect., so that they can read them more attentively. Student will be asked to read and to underline the most important information only of the first group of Incoterms given in exercise no.4. Of course new lexicon will be written on the blackboard and explained.

This is the last activity of this lesson. Before leaving I will assign this homework:

1.summarise the description of each Incoterms.

2. I know that many students have got a computer and Internet and that they can surf the line. As homework students will be asked to connect themselves to Internet, to ICE or to the Chamber of Commerce and to obtain a complete and updated list of Incoterms.

THIRD LESSON

The third lesson will start with the revision of the homework and students are very proud of obtaining the whole list of Incoterms by the Chamber of Commerce through Internet.

I will provide an oral assessment to test their ability in handling the learned items. I will ask students to rephrase briefly the description of the most common Incoterms, in order to understand if they have any other doubts concerning meanings and if they have understood who should bear the costs for transport the goods from seller to buyer.

Ex.8 Moreover they should do the following mapped dialogue:

An American exporter answered your enquiry (you of course an Italian customer) and quoting the prices he did not specify the Incoterm. Working with a partner, decide on your roles by filling in the grid and then act the conversation that will take place using the instructions given below:

Student A Student B

Answer phone giving Introduce yourself

name and number

Ask the reason for the call

Explain that you received the reply and thank for it.

Say  that theydidnot specify

Apologise for missing the Incoterm clarification

Ask for DDP

Say your prices are FOB

Insist on obtaining CIF and give reasons

Promise you will discuss it with chairman

Thank exporter. Say you wait for reply

Promise a reply Say it is very urgent

Assure your customer

Say goodbye Reply

The ability to speak is an extremely difficult skill to test. But I will establish the criteria for measuring it so that scoring becomes less subjective. I will give separate scores for fluency, grammar, accuracy, vocabulary and commercial structure. Language errors which interfere with successful communication will be penalized heavily, but not those which do not avoid communication.

This activity will help me to have a clearer idea of the student’s level of understanding and learning process as well as to determine the effectiveness of my teaching. Moreover this give me the possibility to revise the whole commercial language they studied so far. Students know that checking their skills is not a teacher’s cynical pleasure, but a necessary assessment to point out what has been understood and what has not. If any remedial work is needed some further activities will be carried out . Anyway, control will be continuous during the unit from the checking of comprehension to the checking of pronunciation by making the students read the Incoterms presented in class or analysed at home.

FOURTH LESSON

This lesson will be devoted to production. Now students are given the opportunity to use the commercial language they have learnt freely and they become aware that the new items are useful to them personally in their future job.

Working in 4 groups they have to answer these questions. Each group has a reader, a note-taker and a speaker.

1. Which Incoterms represent the minimum an maximum obligation for the supplier respectively?
2. Which Inconterms refer specifically to transport by sea?
3. What does the customer have to pay for under FOB terms?
4. At what point of a business transaction has the supplier fulfilled his/her obligations under FAS terms?
5. What is the main difference between FOB terms and DES terms?
6. Does the supplier bear more responsibility under CIF or CIP terms?
7. What expences are borne by the customer under DAF terms

What are the duties referred to in DDP and DDU terms?

When the production stage is finished I will provide a written formal assessment where the students are required to complete a schedule containing the most common Incoterms and they have to indicate the exporter’s and importer’s responsibility from departure to the final destination of the goods considering the way of transport.

The test is consistent with the activities which the class has been following and it is important both as assessment of my teaching and of the students’ learning.

Only the errors that the students cannot identify and correct by themselves will be corrected . The mistakes will be used as the basis for remedial teaching. It may take the form of an explanation, where this is felt to be sufficient, or of exercises, oral or written, designed to correct the mistake .

The unit I have proposed demonstrates how also language for specific purposes can be treated communicatively. It shows how a subject that in the past was mainly concerned with the learning by heart of definitions turns into a living thing. This is possible through activities that aim at giving to students effective tools for their future life and job.

(The end)

The first lesson of English in a first year class of biennio superiore

- PERIOD OF THE SCHOOL TERM: This is the first lesson (or the first to be carried out in English).

- APPROACH: The teacher will integrate the structural and the functional approaches.

- OBJECTIVES: The students will be able to master the following

1) FUNCTIONS: Introducing oneself, greeting, Asking for and giving

personal information.

2) STRUCTURES: To Be - Present Simple 1st, 2nd, 3rd person

singular; first introduction of possessive adjectives; short answers

3) VOCABULARY: terms concerning personal information

- PERFORMANCE: the students will be able to introduce themselves, to ask for and give personal information.

- KNOWLEDGE: The students will know the above described functions, structures and vocabulary in order to give and ask for personal information.

- PRE-REQUISITES: As this should be the first lesson, the students needn’t any particular pre-requisites ( after three years of "Scuola Media", most of them are ‘false beginners’).

- ACTIVITIES AND MODALITIES: Pair work, Group work, guided dialogue, Role play, Flash cards.

- LINGUISTIC SKILLS: The students will practise the four linguistic skills of LISTENING, SPEAKING, READING and WRITING.

- STUDY SKILLS: The students will use several study skills, above all taking notes, matching, interviewing and reporting.

- MATERIALS: The text book, class cassettes and authentic materials ( i. e. pictures from magazines).

- APPROXIMATE REQUIRED TIME: Four time-units

PRE-LISTENING ACTIVITIES: After showing the pictures of the book to the students ( in our case, there are some students in the hall of a school), the teacher asks the students to imagine what the situation might be. The teacher will write some easy questions on the blackboard such as:

Ex. Where are the characters? In a cinema? In a school?

Who are they?

If the class is made up mostly by false beginners the teacher will ask to cover the text before playing the tape. This will help them to concentrate on language.

John: Is that the new student?

Mary: I think so.

John: She’s very pretty.

Mary: Yes, she’s nice.

John: What’s her name?

Mary: I don’t know.

--------------------------------

John: Hello! My name is Peter. What’s your name?

Alice: It’s Alice. Hello.

John: This is Mary, this is George and this is Angela.

George, Mary and Angela: Hi, Alice!

John: And that is Barbara, the secretary, over there.

---------------------

Barbara: Are you Alice?

Alice: Yes, I am.

Barbara: Hello, I’m Barbara.

____________________________________________________________________

After the first listening, students can try to answer the questions written on the blackboard. Then the teacher can play the tape another time. After this second listening, the students can answer some more detailed questions such as:

Ex. Who are the boys and the girls?

Are they friends/ schoolmates?

Who is Alice? Who is Barbara?

At this point, some key words can be translated into Italian, especially if there are some absolute beginners in the class.

The teacher now will divide the class in pairs : the exercise will consist in matching the questions and the answers.

Ex. 1. Are you Alice? a. I think so.

2. What’s your name? b. Yes, I am.

3. What’s her name? c. I don’t know.

4. Is that the new student? d. It’s Alice.

( 1-b, 2-d, 3-c, 4-a)

The two structures ‘I don’t know’ and ‘I think so’ can be useful to the students for classroom English and for further activities.

After that, the teacher will divide the class into groups of four people and elicit them to introduce themselves as follows:

Ex. 1. a) Hello! My name is ..........

What’s your name?

b) It’s ............... and

2. c) Hi! I’m ....................

d) Hi! I’m ................

This exercise will focus the students’ attention on informal ways of introducing oneself. The teacher can also hint that "Hi" is a typical American form which is now very common also in England.( If the class seems to be interested, the teacher can ask if the students know other words which are different in BE and AE, or just explain that there are differents ways to spell the same word).

As homework, the teacher will ask the students, previously divided into groups, to memorize the words of a character so that the following lesson the dialogue will be acted by the student themselves.

_______________________________________________End of Ist time-unit_____

DRAMATIZATION of the dialogue: at this point the students will know the dialogue by heart and they can act it in the classroom. The teacher can correct some mis-pronounciation but will leave the students quite free to express themselves.

After their personal dramatization, the teacher will play the cassette again so that students will be able to check their pronounciation once more.

ACTIVITY IN CLASS: GUESS THE NAME. The teacher will show the students the pictures of some famous characters (i.e. actors, actresses, sportsmen...) and ask:

Ex. What’s his/her name? or Is she/he ....(name of the character)?

The students will answer in turn:

Ex. Her/his name is ....... or Yes, she/he is No, he/she isn’t.

The teacher must be sure to see if students infer the distinction between ‘his’ and ‘her’.Then students can work in pairs. Each pair is given a number: at the end, the teacher can say a number and have two students do their pair-work in front of the class.

_________________________________________________End of 2nd time-unit

LANGUAGE AWARENESS AND INDIVIDUAL PRODUCTION: The teacher asks the students to read the dialogue silently and to underline all the forms of the verb To be they can find.

The teacher will write some sentences on the blackboard in order to focus on the main grammar structures of the dialogue:

Ex. I am Janet My name is Janet

That is Barbara ( or ‘she is Barbara’) Her name is Barbara

This is John ( or ‘he is John’) His name is John

The teacher will explain that the contracted forms of the verb To Be for the simple present are very common in spoken English, so she/he can write on the blackboard:

Ex. I AM = I’m you ARE = you’re he/she IS = he/she’s

The teacher will also explain that ‘his’ is the possessive adjective related to the subject pronoun ‘he’, and ‘her’ the one related to the subject pronoun ‘she’. The students will be asked to write down three sentences following the model written on the blackboard..

To be sure that students have understood the forms of the verb To Be, the teacher can suggest an exercise as follows:

Ex. FILL IN THE BLANKS with ‘am’, ‘is’, ‘are’

1) I ......John and this ..... Alice.

2) ......your name Carlo? Yes, it .......

3) ...... you American? No, I ..........

An exercise on the possessive adjectives could be as follows:

Ex. 1) What’s .......name? My name is Carlo.

2) .........name is Ellen.

3)..........name is john.

If there is time left, the teacher can also devote some time to the concept of ‘short answers’. The teacher may write:

Ex. Are you English? Yes, I am and No, I’m not

and then ask the students, in turns, to ask and answer some short questions/answers.

Homework: Some exercise as those already made up in class, such as ‘Fill in the blanks’ or matching questions and answers:

Ex. 1) Hello, .............. a) my name is John.

2) What’s your name? b) Yes, I am

3) Are you Barbara? c) It’s Peter.

(1-a, 2-c, 3-b)

__________________________________________________End of 3rd time-unit

REVISION: The teacher will revise the most important concepts (Simple present of the verb To Be, the subject pronouns I / you / he / she, the possessive adjectives my / your / his / her, the short answers), by using some exercises from the book and encouraging questions on the part of the students.(The teacher should always encourage questions on the part of the students). If necessary, some new exercises (previously prepared by the teacher) can be done in class.

___________________________________________________End of 4th time-unit

TESTING: For oral testing the teacher can use several forms such as the immediate translation of mini dialogues:

Ex. Come ti chiami? Mi chiamo John.

Or, pointing to a girl in the class: Come si chiama? Si chiama (Giulia)

Another kind of exercise could be an OPEN DIALOGUE between the teacher and a student:

Ex. Teacher: Hello! What’s your name?

Student: My name is ....

Teacher: Are you Italian?

Student: Yes, I am.

For written testing the teacher will provide some exercises similar to those already studied in class, i. e. ‘Fill in the blanks’, or ’build the dialogue following the instructions’:

Ex. - Ask a friend if the girl overt here is the new pupil.

- Answer you think so.

- Ask him/her what her name is.

- Answer you don’t know.

- Say she is nice

- Answer yes, she is nice.

REMEDIAL WORK:, After testing the class, if there are any problems with some structures, the teacher will provide further grammatical explanation ( even in Italian, if there are absolute beginners) and support it with other specific exercises, following the above described models.

(the end)