While the drills in language teaching play a very significant role, exercise are no less important than drills in the context of language teaching. The same language corpus can form the basis for both drills and exercises. However a clear-cut distinction between drills and exercises needs -to be drawn and this may be broadly as follows:

While drills are orally administered, exercises are administered through writing. While the former enables the language learners to have more and more of practice to develop a mastery of the language, the latter are used for testing the knowledge f the learners. Apart from this while drills enable the learner to master the spoken skills, exercises are helpful for better acquisition of the written skills. Apart from the three way distinction made between drills and exercise above, there is not much difference between the two.

A large variety fo drills discussed in the previous sections can also be used as exercises. Broadly speaking exercises may be focused upon the following aspects of language.

1) Script

2) Vocabulary

3) Morphology

4) Morphophonemics

5) Syntax

a) Agreement

b) Case frames

c) Co-occurrence

(i) Infibitives
(ii) Adverbs
(iii) Adjectives
(iv) Complements

6) Selectional restrictions

a) On subject

b) On object

Various types of exercise relating to the six aspects mentioned above can be
prepared. Following are some important types of exercise:

1) Constant alternatives

2) Multiple choice

3) Matching

4) Rearrangement of items

5) Fill in the blank/completion

6) Formation exercise

7) Substitution

8) Transformation

9) Transformation

10) Conjoining

11) Constructing sentences

12) Simple questions

13) Long answer questions

14) Language games

15) Punctuation

16) Comprehension

17) Composition

18) Translation

19) Dictation

etc.

Hence each aspect could be taken care of in at least ten types of exercises.

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Script

The script exercises may be categorized and garded tentatively as follows:

1) Identification

2) Discrimination

1. Identification

This exercise involves oral answer. The teacher, by using a number of flash cards or by writing different characters on the blackboard will ask the learner to identify and indicate what the character is like and is expected to relate the character with the corresponding oral sound.

2. Discrimination

This can be administered in a number of ways.

a) Discrimination of letter Among Letters

Tamil - -   

Kannada  

Telugu - -

Hindi - -  

The learner is expected to look at the cue item and then mark off that item among the choices given against that item (the underlined item is correct and examinee is expected to mark off that item).

b) Letter Among Words

One letter is given as a cue item and against that, some words each of which
contain the cue letter are given. The learner is expected to mark off the cue letter in the word* given against each. The cue letter might appear either in the initial position of the word or the medial or the final positions.

Tamil - -

Telugu -

Hindi - -

c) Words Among Words

The third variety of visual discrimination exercises could be the word among words. In this type, the cue will be word and against the cue three or four resembling words are given, among which one will be exactly the same as the cue word. The learner is expected to mark off the cue word among the choices given against it.

Tamil - -  

Telugu - -

Hindi - -  

Kannada

d) Part of Word Among Word

In this type the learner is expected to look at the cue and mark off that portion among all the words given against it.

Tamil - -

Telugu -

Hindi - -

e) Words in Phrases, Clauses or Sentences

This type of exercise involve the making of the word in the clause or phrase or the sentence given against each. The learner has to very cautiously choose only that much portion and mark it off in the item given against it. It is possible that the word may appear more than once in the sentence given.

Tamil - -

Telugu -

Hindi - -

f) Pictures to Words

This king of exercise requires the identification of a printed word corresponding to a familiar picture. In such cases the learner must be familiar with the word indicated by the picture. At the same time the teacher must ensure that the learner is not familiar at all with the incorrect choices.

Telugu - a) illu 'house'

b) meed?a 'bungalow'

c) gud?ise 'hut'

Tamil - a) viit?u 'house'

b) kut?ice 'hut'

c) pankal?aa 'bungalow'

Hindi - a) ghar 'house'

b) makaan 'bungalow'

c) jhoo)pd?i 'hut'

The correct answer would be '(a).

g) The kind of test item described in (f) can be reversed and the learner may be asked to relate the spoken word to the printed words. In this type of exercise, the teacher will give an oral

cue and ask the learner to mark off that spoken word among the choices given on the printed page. This type of exercise is particularly justified as the spoken skills are taught first and naturally the teacher would like to measure the facility with which students can relate the spoken words to their corresponding written forms.

Telugu - pustakam

a) grantham
b) pustakam
c) kaagitam

Hindi - pustak

a) granth

b) pustak

c) kaagaj

Tamil - pustakam

a) nuul

b) puttakam

c) kaakitam

The correct responses would be '(b)'.

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Vocabulary

             Exercises on vocabulary can be of various types.

                        1) Synonyms or homonym

                        2) Antonyms

                        3) Analogies

1. Synonyms or Homonyms
 In this type of item a cue word is given against which three words are provided. Alternately, context defining the particularmeaning of the word may be provided, out of which only one is either exactly the same or nearest to the cue word. The learner is expected to mark off the closest or the identical item in the choices given.

            Telugu             -            parasuraamapriiti

a)      agnipramaadam
b)      naiveedyam
c)      parasuraama deevaalayam
d)      parasuraamud)i bhaarya

‘( a )’ is the correct answer.

            Tamil               -            kel,ampu (start)

a)      vaa (come)

b)      kel,appu (start transitive)

c)      purappatu (start)

d)      poo (go)

‘( c )’ is the correct answer.

            Hindi               -            sriiganes, karnaa

a)    mandhir mẽẽ sriiganees puuja karnaa

‘worshipping Sri Ganesh in (a) temple’

                                            b)  kisii subh kaarykaa praarambh karna

                                                            ‘beginning some good work’

                                           c) kisii subh kaary kii puurti karna

                                                            ‘completing some good work’

                                            ‘( b )’ is the correct answer,

2. Antonyms

 In this type of  time a cue word is given which is again followed by three or four words out of which only one is exactly the opposite to the cue word and the rest of the choices may or many not be related to the cue word.

                        Telugu             -            maamsaahaaram (non-vegetarian food)

a)      apakwaahaaram (unriped food)

b)      sækaahaaram (vegetarian food)

c)      palahaaram (snacks)

The correct answer would be ‘ (b) ‘

                        Tamil               -            arukil ( near )

a)      kat*aiciyil (at the end)

b)      tolaivil (far away)

c)      pakkattil (near)

The correct answer would be ‘ (b) ‘

                         Hindi               -            aa)khee)) lad) jaanaa (to fail in love with)

 a)    aa)khee)) caar hoo jaanaa (to love)
b) eek duusree see pyaar karnaa (to love each other)
c)eek duusree see lad)naa (to quarrel with each other)
The correct answer would be ‘ (b) ‘

3. Analogies
  In this type of items a pair of related words are given against which three or four pairs of words are given. One of the choices will have the same analogy as the pair of words given in the cue item. The learner is expected to mark off such an item in the choices leaving the rest of them aside

                        Telugu             -            bhaas,a     -    saahityam (language – literature)

 a)  nat*ana – nr,tyam (action – dance)

b)  swaram – sa*giitam (musical tone – music)

c)  banti –aat*a (ball –play)

d)  nadi –iita (river – swmming)

 ‘ (b) ‘ has exactly that type of relation as in the cue.

                        Tamil               -            moli            -   ilakkiyam (language – literature)

a)      nat*anam – aat*u (dance – dance [ verb ] )

b)      swaram – icai (musical tone – music)

c)      pantu – aat*t*am (ball – play)

d)      aaru – niiccal (river –swimming)

‘ (b) ‘ is the correct answer.

                        Hindi               -            bhaas,aa – saahitya (language – literature)

a)      naacnaa – naac (dancing – dance)

b)      swar – sangiit (musical tone – music)

c)   gee)d – kheel (ball – play)

d)nadii – tairna (river – swimming)

‘ (b) ‘ is the correct answer.

                        Exercises of general types may be given as follows:

            (1) Write down the words that go together

                                      Tamil            -            a) cuut*aana            ‘hot’                 a) van,t*i            ‘cart’

                                                 b) alakaana            ‘beautiful’        b) kaapi    ‘coffee’

                                                 c) palaya  ‘old’                 c) pon,n,u   ‘girl’

                                    The answer would be ‘a-b, b-c, c-a’.

             (2) Find the stranger

                         Tamil            -            puraa                kalutai              kili                    aantal

                                                          ‘dove’                ‘ass’              ‘parrot’               ‘owl’

                                     The stranger is ‘kalutai’

                         Telugu            -            cilaka               paavuram         hamsa               aawu

                                                             ‘parrot’            ‘dove’              ‘swan’              ‘cow’

                                     The stranger is ‘aawu’.

                         Hindi            -            suaa)             hams                kaag                 bakrii

                                                          ‘parrot’            ‘swan’              ‘crow’              ‘goat’

                                     The stranger is ‘bakrii’.

(3) This lesson has some adjectives. Pick them out and use them in sentences. Here are    some:

                  Tamil            -            palaya                                      ‘old’

                                                    putiya                                       ‘new’

                                                    alakaana                                  ‘beautiful’

            Telugu            -        mañci                                       ‘good’

                                           ced)d)a                                       ‘bad’

            Hindi            -           kaalaa                                      ‘black’

                                             acchaa                                      ‘good’

(4) Fill in the blanks to make suitable adjectives. Each blank stands for a missing letter.

            Tamil            -            nii_ _ na                                 paampu

                                              ‘long’                                       ‘snake’

                                            u _ _ _ na                                 cuvaru

                                             ‘high’                                        ‘wall’

            Telugu            -            te_ _ ni                                     hmasa

                                               ‘whitish’                                   ‘swan’

            Hindi            -            tha_ _ aa                                 caadnii

                                            ‘cool’                                       ‘moonlight’

(5) Prison – prisoner

            We added –er to a noun and made another one. Now make new ones as in the   model.

            Tamil            -            toot*t*am            ‘garden’            toot*t*akkaaran              ‘gardener’

                                                   nat*ippu            ‘action’            ____________           

                                                 camayal            ‘cooking’            ____________

                                                 paat*t*u               ‘song’               ____________

 (6) Complete the following sentences.

            Tamil            -            veet*t*ai aat*upavan ___________. (veet*t*aikkaaran)

                                               paat*t*u paat*upavan ___________. (paat*akan)

                                              van,t*i oot*t*upavan ____________. (oottunan)

 (7) Give the feminine form of the words given below. The first one  has been done for you.

            Tamil            -  Masculine                                                       Feminine

                                    maan,avan            ‘student’                                   maanavi

                                    arasan              ‘king                                         ________

                                    appaa               ‘father’                                     ________

            Telugu       -     abbaayi                                                            ammaayi

                                    amma                                                               ________

                                    tammud)u                                                          ________

            Hiindi        -    lar,kaa                  ‘boy’                                        lar,kii

                                    haathi                                                               ________

                                    baap                                                                 ________

                                    bhaaii                                                               ________

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 Morphology

 Tamil

             Fill in the blank with the resultant form of the items given in parentheses.

 a)      itu ____________ pustakam

this             book

                  (narasaiyya + possessive)

                   Narasayya

Ans : itu narasaiyyaavoot*e pustakam

         This Narasayya’s      book

          ‘this is Narasayya’s book’

b) naan paat*am _________

                             I       lesson

                                  (pat*i +  past)

                                  read

                           Ans : naan paat*am pat*icceen

                                    I       lesson    read

                                     ‘I read a lesson’

  Telugu

                     Substitute the verb given in parentheses after conjugation.

                         neenu ninna    mañci pustakan cadiwænu

                        I          yesterday good book      read-past

                                             (cuud)u  ‘see’)

                                            (konu   ‘buy)

                         The correct answers would be ‘cusænu, konnaanu’

                                                              saw        bought

             Hindi
                        mE) nee pustak par,hi

                        I           book   read

                                    (khariid     ‘buy’)

                         The correct answer would be ‘khariidii’  Bought

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Morphophonemics

Tamil

a)      Fill in the blank with resultant form of the items given in the parentheses.

itu ________ viit*u

this               house

                    (kamalaa+ oot*e)

                      Kamala’s

Ans : itu kamalaavoot*e viit*u    ‘this is Kamala’s house’

                        this Kamala’s      house
b)      Substitute the underlined item with the resultant form of the items given in the parentheses.

Tamil
            enkit*t*ee pattu pencilu*ka irukkutu

            with me   ten    pencils       are

             ‘I have ten pencils’

                                    (puttakam + *ka     ‘books’)

            Ans : The resultant form would be ‘puttaka*ka’

                                                                      Books

Telugu

            Rearrange the following to get a good sentence.

     iccæru ewaru d)abbu ewaru + ki?

                 gave    who    money who  + to

                        Ans : ewaru ewariki d)abbu iccæru?

                                 who    to whom money gave

                                  ‘who gave money to whom’

Hindi

            Substitute the underlined word with the word given in parentheses.

                        raam nee caar cinema dekhaa

                        Ram        four movie   saw

                                              (lar,kiyaa)+ koo ‘girls – to’)

                                     The answer would be ‘lar,kiyoo)koo’

                                                                         girls + object
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Syntax

 a) Agreement

     Tamil            -            Match ‘A’ with ‘B’

                           A                                                                     B

                         1) naan                                                           1) viit*t*ukku vantaan

                            I                                                                         house to came (he)

                         2) naa*ka                                                         2) pal,l,ikku poonaa*ka

                            we                                                          

                          A                                                                     B

                         3) nii                                                                 3) aval,e    paartteen

                            you (sg.)                                                                she (pbj.)    saw ( I )

                         4) nii*ka                                                          4) ennoot*u vantaa

                            you (pl. )                                                               me-with came(she)

                         5) avan                                                             5) pat*am paarttoom

                            she                                                                        movie saw (we)

                         6) ava                                                               6) e*kee poonee

                            she                                                                        where went (you)

                         7) ava*ka                                                          7) purppat*t*l,ii*ka

                            they                                                                      started (you pl.)

             Ans : 1-3, 2-5, 3-6, 4-7, 5-1, 6-4, 7-2.

 Telugu -            Match ‘A’ with ‘B’

                               A                                                                     B

                         1) neenu                                                   1) kaafii tagæru

                             I                                                                           coffee drank(he-hon.)

                         2) meemu                                                 2) cinimaa cusæd)u

                             we                                                                         movie    saw (he)

                         3) nuvvu                                                   3) pustakam cadiwindi

                             you (sg.)                                                                book        read(she)

                         4) miiru                                                 4) eemi oestunnavu

                             you (pl.)                                                                what are doing (you sg.)

                         5) vaad)u                                                   5) in,t*iki            vel,l,æru

                             he                                                                          house to      went

                         6) adi                                                               6) ad)ukun,t*unnamu

                            she                                                                        playing

                         7) vaaru                                                    7) uttaram raastunnaanu

                             he(hon.)                                                                 reply     are writing(I)

                   Ans : 1-7, 2-6, 3-4, 4-5, 5-2, 6-3, 7-1.

 Hindi   -            Match ‘A’ with ‘B’

                            A                                                                     B

                         1) mE)                                                             1) jaatee hoo

                         2) tuu                                                               2) jaatee hε

                             A                                                                     B

                         3) tum                                                              3) jaatee hE)

                        4) aap                                                              4) jaatee hoo

                        5) vah                                                               5) jatii hE)

                        6) yah                                                               6) jaatee hE)

                        7) vee                                                               7) jaataa hE)

                        8) yee                                                               8) jaataa hūū

                                                                                                9) jaataa hE)

                                                                                                10) jaatii hE)

               Ans : 1-8, 2-7, 3-4, 4-6, 5-2, 6-9, 7-3, 8-2.

b) Case Frames

            Fill in the blanks with the words given in parentheses after adding appropriate case markers.

            Tamil

    naan _____ ______ kot*utteen

                        I    gave

                                                (avan, oru pat*am)

                                                  he      one picture

                     Ans : naan avanukku oru pat*ate kot*utteen

                              I        him-to      one picture gave

                               ‘I gave him one picture’

             Telugu

                         neenu ______ ______ vel,taanu

                                                                   go

                                                 (padigan,t*alu, skuulu)

                                                  ten O’ clock school

                     Ans : neenu padigan,t*alaku shuuluku vel,taanu

                              I         ten   O’ clock at school to go will

                                ‘I will go to school at ten O’clock’

c) Co - occurrence

(i) Infinitives

    Choose the appropriate form of the verb and fill in the blank.

            Tamil                       

                        naan cinimaa ______ pooneen

                        I        cinema              went

                                            i) paarkaa            ‘to see’

                                            ii) paarpatu            ‘what ( I ) see’

                                            iii) paartta  ‘what ( I ) saw’

                        First one is the appropriate word.

            Telugu

                        neenu ______ pustakaalu konnaanu

                        I                       books         brought

                                              i) pad)hnaa            ‘reading’

                                              ii) karnaa            ‘doing’

                                              iii) jaanaa            ‘going’

                      First one is the appropriate word.

(ii) Adverbs

            Substitute the underlined word with the adverbial form of the noun given in parentheses.

            Tamil

                        avan veekamaa peecinaan

                        he     fast           said

                         ‘he said it fast’

                         (alaku            ‘beauty’)

                          ‘alakaa’            is the correct form.

                             beautiful

             Ans : avan alakaa            peecinaan

                      he     beautifully said

                       ‘he said it beautifully’

            Telugu

                        raamud)u tondaragaa parigettæd)u

                        Rama      quickly      ran

                         ‘Rama ran fast’ (nemmadi     ‘slow’)

                           ‘nemmadigaa’ is the correct form.   slowly

  Hindi

                        laks,mii acchii lar,kii hε

                        Lakshmi good girl     is

                         ‘Lakshmi is a good girl’

                ( sundartaa            ‘beauty’)

             ‘sundar’        is  the correct form.

             beautiful

  Ans : laks,mii sundar        lar,kii hε

                      Lakshmi beautiful  girl     is

                        ‘Lakshmi is a beautiful girl’

(iii) Adjectives

            Fill in the blank with the adjectival form of the noun given in parentheses.

            Tamil

                        anta ______ aal,um ______ pen,n,um tiruman,am caytukit*t*aa*ka

                        that                man               girl         marriage    do (past)

                                                (curucuruppu         ‘active’, al,aku          ‘beauty)’

                    The adjectival forum would be (curucuruppaana   ‘active) and

                       ( ‘alakaana         ‘beauty’)

                     Ans : anta curucuruppaana aal,um alakaana pen,n,um tiruman,am

                               that active                   man     beautiful  girl        marriage

                                ceytukit*t*aa*ka

                                do (past)

                                 ‘the active man and the beautiful girl married’

   Telugu

                         weedi kaafii taagakuud)adu

                         hot      coffee drink sholdn’t

                          ‘hot coffee should not be drunk’

                              (tiipi            ‘sweet’)

            The adjectival form is ‘tiyyani’.

  Ans : tiyyani kaafii taagakuud)adu

                      sweet   coffee drink shouldn’t

                       ‘sweet coffee shouldn’t be drunk’

(iv) Complements

                 Tamil

   Combine the following sentences using the omplementizer - n,n,u.

                                         i) naan avarukit*t*ee conneen

                                             I       him               told

                                              ‘ I told him’

                                      ii) naan naal,e            varuveen

                                           I       tomorrow come-fut.

                                            ‘I will go tomorrow’

Ans : naan naal,e            varuveen ‘n,n,u           avarukit*t*ee conneen

                                  I       tomorrow come-fut,    that        him               told

                                    ‘I told him that I would go tomorrow’

 Telugu

                  Combine the following two sentences using the complementizer

-ani.

                                     i) kis,oor in,t*iki vel,l,æd)u

                                       Kishore house-to went

                                        ‘Kishore went to home’

                                    ii) kis,oor naatoo ceppæd)u

                                        Kishore me       told

                                        ‘Kishore told me’

     Ans : kis,oor in,t*iki            vel,l,ænani          naatoo ceppæd)u

                                 Kishore house-to went-that        me       told

                                  ‘Kishore told me that he went home’

  Hindi

                  Combine the following two sentences using the complementizer

-ki.

                        i) laks,mii kal                    aayii

                            Lakshmi yesterday came

                             ‘Lakshmi came yesterday’

                        ii) raam ne mujhse kahaa

                             Ram      me with told

                              ‘Ram told me’

             Ans : raam ne mujse kahaa ki                       laks,mii kal                    aayii

                      Ram      me with told that          Lakshmi yesterday     came

                    ‘Ram told me that Lakshmi came yesterday’     

TOP              

Selectional Restrictions

a) On Subject
Select one of the nouns given in parentheses and fill in the first blank. Make the necessary changes in the form of the verb given and fill in the second blank.

            Tamil            -            ______ paat*am pat*i ______

                                                 lesson to read

                                                         (maat*u, kora*ku, avan)

                                                           ox        monkey   he

                        The correct sentence would be

                                avan paat*am pat*iccaan

                                he     lesson   read

                                 ‘he read the lesson’

Telugu            -            ______ sinimaa cuud)u ______

                                                 cinema  to see

                                              (vaadu, ceppa, aavu)

                                                   he       tell      cow)

                        The correct sentence would be

                                 vaad)u sinimaa cuuśædu

                                he       movie    saw

                                 ‘he saw the movie’

b) On Object
Select the appropriate nun from the three nouns given is parentheses and fill in the blank for the object. If necessary add the case marker also.

            Tamil            -            naantaan anta ______ ­­­­­­ ut*ecceen

                                                       (kampu, kan,n,aad)i, puttakam)

                        The second one is the correct answer.

            Telugu            -            neenu ______ pagala kot*t*ænu

                                    I                      break   (past)

                                                          (addam, pennu, kurci)

                                                            mirror, pen,     chair

                                    First one is the correct answer.

                                    Ans : neenu addam pagala kot*t*ænu

                                              I         mirror break   (past)

                                                ‘I broke the mirror’

            Hindi            -            raam ne ______ tood) diyaa

                                                Ram            break did

                                                            (kaagaz, kursii, mithaayii)

                                                              paper,   chair,  sweet

Ans : raam ne kursii tood dii

                                  Ram      chair  break (past)

                                   ‘Ram broke the chair’

            The design and construction of various types of exercises are given in the following Table (adopted from Narasimha Rao, 1980. For more details refer that book).

  Type-1 : Constant Alternatives.

Design:
The learner is required to choose an answer from two or more alternatives that remain the same for a series of items. Statements will be provided in terms of True/False, or Yes/No or Agree/Disagree etc. This may, sometimes, follow a passage involving comprehension.

Construction:

a)      The number of True/False items in the series is approximately equal.

b)      Statement should be definitely True/False.

c)      Statements should not be normally adjusted from textbooks.

d)      It is recommended to use simple sentences to the extent possible.

Comment :

a)      Wide range of syllabus.
b)      Highly objective and reliable.
c)      Difficult to construct good True/False items.
d)      May have to correct scores for guessing.
e)      Probability is 0.5.                       
f)        This item type will be highly useful for script and vocabulary.

Type-2 : Multiple Choice.

 Design:

            The learner is required to select the correct answer from the given group of alternatives.

Construction :

a)      The stem may be a direct question or an incomplete statement.

b) Distractors must be plausible. They must be real distractors to higher ability learners and attractors to lower ability learners.

c)      Length and precision of the correct answer should not provide a clue.

d)      Correct answers should be randomly arranged.

Comment :

a)      Highly objective and reliable.

b)      A wide range of abilities.

c)      Wide coverage of syllabus.

d)      Difficult to construct.

e)      Probability of guessing depends upon the number of choices provided.

f)        This may be used in exercise given at all levels of language.

Type-3 : Matching Items.

Design :
Usually consists of two lists called ‘Premises’ and ‘Responses’. The learner is expected to match each premise with one of the responses (simple matching). In compound matching it may be necessary to match each premise with two or more responses. This is a kind of multiple choice in the responses section.

Construction : 

a)      The basis pf matching should be explicit.

b)      Number of responses should be more than the number of premises.

Comment :

a)      Highly objective and reliable.

b)      Relatively easy to construct.

c)      Chance of guessing is reduced.

d)      Useful for vocabulary, matching parts of sentences, clauses, etc.

Type-4 : Rearrangement of items.

Design :
The learners are expected to put the randomly presented material into a meaningful related order.

Construction :
Words are provided in a haphazard manner or without a sequence.

Comment :
This will enable the learners to know the word order and grammatical category of the words given.

Type-5 : Completion. 

Design : The learners are expected to fill in the blank with a word or a phrase. 

Construction :

 a)      Elicits short clear-cut answers.

b)      Decision needs to be taken as to whether orthographic or spelling mistakes need to be penalized.

c)      Use of textual expressions should be minimized.

d) This may be constructed in the following ways:

1)      Simple filling in where the cue needs a change.

2)      The cue needs some change according to the syntax of the sentence   given.

3)      By using the cue the sentence may need some change.

4)      Selecting the cue from the multiple choice.

5)      No cue is given, which may be textual.

6)      Visual cue (picture) may be given.

Comment :

a)      No chance of guessing.

b)      Easy to prepare.

c)      Scoring not completely objective and therefore less reliable.

d)      This is useful to give exercise in all levels of language.

1)      Vocabulary learning.

2) It enables the learner to know the morphology and syntax of the language.

3) Syntax of the sentence.

4) Appropriate vocabulary which enables to build up vocabulalry and syntax.

5) Memory power.

7)      Correlation of visual with vocabulary.

Type-6 : Formation.

Designe : The learner is expected to make sentences using the vocabulary given in slot boxes.

Construction :

a)      Keeping some slots same, the others may be multiplied.

b)      The words in some slots may need some change according to the syntax.

Comment :

a)      This enables the learner to know that by changing some slots new sentences might be created.

b)      The morphology and syntax of the language.

Type-7 : Substitution.

Design :The learner has to substitute a word of the particular slot changing the cue/by Changing a word in another slot.

Construction :

a)      Simple substitution.

b)      Substitution in various slots.

c)      Substitution that forces a change in the structure.

d)      Substitution that calls for a change in the cue.

e)      Multiple slot substitution.

f)        Progressive slot substitution.

Comment :This exercise is useful to enable the learner to overcome the difficulty of being able to write only a set of sentences. (See, substitution drill for details).

Type-8 : Transformation.

Design :
The learner has to transform the given sentence into other types, like question, negative, etc., and the mood, tense, aspect, etc.

Construction :

a)      This exercise is based on the principle of opposition, i.e., change in the paradigmatic axis.

b)      All the possible transformations of sentences.

 Comment :This exercise enables the learner to increase his creativity.

Type-9 : Conjoining.

Design :
  The learner is expected to join the given sentences by using sentence connectors or by transforming one sentence into the appropriate form (as instructed) and join with the other.

Construction:
a)      Sentence and sentence connectors may be given, like (Tamil) aanaal ‘but’, atanaal ‘so’, etc.

b)      The learner may be asked to transform the first sentence into relative

participate or verbal participate or conditional, etc., and conjoin with the second one.

Comment :

a)      This enables the learner to know how compound and complex sentences are made.

b)      It enables the learner to know the morphology and syntax of the language.

Type-10 : Constructing Sentences.

Design:
The learner has to make use of the given words or grammatical forms, such as Relative participle, Verbal participle, etc., in sentences.

Construction :

a)      Words will be given, the grammatical category of which should not be changed.

b)      Phrases may also be given.

c)      Proverbs, etc., may also be given.

d)      The learner may be asked to change the grammatical category of the word given and use in sentence.

Comment :

a)      The creative use of parts of sentences in full sentence.

b)      Cultural usages of the proverbs.

c)      Morphology and syntax.

Type-11 : Simple Question.
Design:
A direct question or a specific direction or a stimulus produces a word, number, phrase or a sentence as response.

Construction :

a)      Elicits short clear-cut answers.

b) A decision has to be taken whether orthographic or spelling mistakes are to be penalized.

            c) Use of expressions from the textbooks should be minimized.

d)      A direct question.

e)      Inference question.

Comment :

a)      No chance of guessing.

b)      Easy to prepare.

c)      Scoring not completely objective and less reliability.

Type-12 : Short Answer (Notes).

Design:
   A direct question or a specific direction or a stimulus which expects a few sentences or a small paragraph as response.

Construction :

a)      Expression like ‘briefly’ or ‘what all you know’, etc., should be avoided in the

question.

b)      Action oriented and precise verbs should be used as far as possible.

c)      Ask a clearly defined task.

Comment :

a)      Natural form of a question.

b)      Normally used for testing of comprehension, application, etc.,

c)      Less objective and hence less reliable.

Type-13 : Long Answer.

Design :

            Quite open for the answer.

Construction :

a)      Less reliable.

b)      Good scope for free expression on the part of the learner.

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Comment :

            Suitable for creativity, style, etc.

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Type-14 : Langauge Games.

Design :

            The learner is expected to form words, sentences using cross word puzzle or riddle, picture connectives, etc.

Construction :

a)      Cross word puzzle.

b)      Riddle, answering as well as constructing on the model.

c)      Pictures and words.

d)      Finding the stranger among the group of words or sentences.

Comment :

a)      Helps in vocabulary building.

b)      The mystery play of sentence riddles.

c)      Play, cues learning hence useful for children.

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Type-15 : Punctuation.

Design :

            The learner has to separate clauses, sentences, etc., by placing proper punction.

Construction :

            Only sentences will be given as a single paragraph/passage.

Comment :

            Useful to know the sentence and paragraph structures.

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

Type-16 : Comprehension.

Design :

 

            The leaner has to read/listen to the passage and answer the questions given.

Constructuion :

 

a)      May be given as listening/reading comprehension.

b)      The question may be objective or open ended.

Comment :

 

a)      The learner should use textual sentences to the minimum.

b)      Also see page No.129-130.

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Type-17 : Composition.

Design :

            The learner is expected to write creatively.

Construction :

a)      Guided composition.

b)      Comprehension-cum-composition.

c)      Free composition.

Comment:

a)      Develops creative use of language and creative writing.

b)      Also see page No. 130-131.

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Type-18 : Translation.

Design :

            The learner is expected to retain the meaning and to express

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

it in the mother tongue and vice versa.

Construction :

a)      From mother tongue to target language.

b)      From target language to mother tongue.

c)      Sentence level.

d)      Passage.

Comment :

            a) Mother tongue to target language should be given more to enable writing in the target language.

            b) No structural translations.

c)      Also see page No. 131-132.

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Type-19 : Dictation.                                      

Design :

            The learner is expected to write what he hears.

Construction :

            See page No. 132-138.

________________________________________________________________________

                                   

            After having discussed about the techniques for the construction of various item types for different kinds of language exercise, from language like Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Hindi, etc.

Multiple Choice

(a)    Following is a word followed by a series of three words. Only one out of the

three is exactly the opposite of the word

given. Mark the correct answer.

            Telugu            -            samardhiñ,cu    ‘to support’

                                            a) vijr,mbhiñcu                   ‘to become more furious’

                                            b) sæntincu                       ‘to cool down’

                                            c) vyatireekiñcu                ‘to oppose’

                                    The correct response would be ‘ ( c) ‘

            Hindi            -            inpam ‘pleasure’

                                                a) koopam                        ‘anger’

                                                b) makilci              ‘joy’

                                                c) tunpam             ‘sufferings’

                                    The correct response would be ‘ ( c )’

(b)   Three answers are given to the question. Underline the the correct one.

Tamil

            naan paat*am pat*ikkat*t*umaa?

            I       lesson    read-shall

            ‘shall I read the lesson’

                 

a)      nii*ka pat*iyu*ka ‘you read (imperative)’

 

b) nii*ka pat*ikkurii*ka        ‘you are reading’

     you     read-present

c) nii*ka pat*ippi*ka        ‘you will read’

    you     read-fut.

The correct answer would be ‘ ( a )’

            Malayalam

                        ñi**al, eppool naat*t*il            pookunnu?

                        you      when     to native place go-are

                        ‘when are you going to your native place?’

                            a) naal,e pooyi            ‘tomorrow went’

                            b) naal,e pookum            ‘tomorrow, will go’

                            c) naal,e pookaam            ‘tomorrow shall go’

                       

                           The correct answer would be ‘( b )’

            Telugu

                        vijaya eem            ceestoondi?

                        Vijaya what doing

                        ‘what is Vijaya doing?’

                                    a) nidra pōindi               ‘went to sleep’

                                        sleep went

                                    b) nidra pootundi            ‘will go to sleep’

                                         sleep will go

                       

                                    c) nidra pootoondi            ‘is sleeping’

                                        sleep going

                        The correct answer is ‘ ( c )’

            Hindi

                        sriraamulu t*aanzaania kab gaye?

                       Sriramulu    Tanzania    when went

                        ‘when did Sriramulu go to Tanzania’

                              a) pichlee saal gaye     ‘(he) went last year’

                                  last        year went

                              b) aglee saal gaye     ‘(he) went next year’

                                   next  year went

                              c) pichlee saal jaaegaa ‘(he) will go last year’

                                 last       year will go

                        The correct answer is ‘( a )’

Matching Items

 

                Match the items under ‘A’ with those under ‘B’ and rewrite the full sentence.

Tamil                           A                                                                     B

                        1) mokalaayamannar                               1) mahaalekat*t*unaaru

                             ‘mogal king’                                  built the mahal’

                        2) tirumalenaayakkaru                 2) miinaakshi kooyile kat*t*unaaru

                             ‘Thirumalai Naicker’                            ‘built Meenakshi temple’

                        3) cuntarapaan,t*iyan                                  3) taajmahaale kat*t*unaaru

                             ‘Sundarapandiyan’                                    ‘build Taj Mahal’

                                    Ans : 1-3, 2-1 and 3-2.

Telugu

                                    A                                                                     B

                        1) manadeesam raajadhaani                   1) pot*t*i sriiraamulu garu

                        2) haidraabaaduku maroka peeru            2) aagas,t*u padiheenu

                        3) swaatantrya dinootsavam                 3) aandhra keesari

                        4) t*angut*uuri prakaasam gaari                 4) bhaagyanagaram

                        5) aaandhra raas,h$traavataranaaniki  5) kott d)hillii

                            kaarakulu

Rearrangement of Items

            Rearrange the words given to get a correct sentence.

Tamil

            pat*aiyet*uttu nookki            tennaat*t*e musliimkal, vanta*ka

            with army      towords the South Muslims       came

            Ans : musliimka tennaat*t*e nookki pat*eyet*uttu vantaa*ka

                      Muslims    the South  towards came (with army)

                      ‘Muslims came towards the South (with army)’

Telugu

            iccæd)u            d)abbu dhanikud)iki kamsaali

            gave      money richman to goldsmith

            Ans : kamsaali dhanikud)iki d)abu iccæd)u

                     goldsmith richman to money gave

                     ‘the goldsmith gave money to the richman’

Completion

Tamil

a)      Fill in the blank using the proper form of the cue given.

   taamare puu      paati ______ irukkum

   lotus      flower   half           be

                  (malar ‘blossom’)

   taamare puu      paati malarntu irukkum

   lotus    flower     half   blossom-fut.

   ‘lotus will be half blossomed’

b)      Fill in the blank using the appropriate word from the given words.

en nan,parukku ______ poral,u*ka ellam pit*ikkum

my friend-to                 things         all      like-s

                     (alakaa,            alakaana, alaku)

                      ‘beautifully’  beautiful, beauty’

                                    Second is the appropriate word.

            Malayalam

                        Fill in the blank using the cue given below.

                              ñaan naal,e                    tiruvanannapurattu ______

                               I       tomorrow     Trivandrum

                                                            (poo            ‘to go’)

                                   

‘I am going to Trivandrum tomorrow’

    Ans : ‘pōkunnu’

Kannada

            Fill in the blank using the appropriate word from the three words given.

                        naanu sit*iige ______ illi bande

                        I         city-to               here came

                                                (hoogu, hoogi,               hoodree)

                                                ‘to go,   after going,     if I go’

                                    Second one is the correct answer.

Telugu

Fill in the blank by choosing the appropriate word from the choices given in the  paranthesis.

            maadhavi paalu ______ pad)ukundi

            Madhavi   milk               slept

                                        (taagu,            taagāli,          taagi)

                                         ‘to drink, should drink, having drunk’

            The third choice is correct.

            Ans : madhavi paalu taagi pad)ukundi

                      Madhavi milk having drunk slept

                      ‘Having drunk milk, Madhavi slept’

Hindi

Fill in the blank by choosing the appropriate word from the choices given in brackets.               

                        raam  khaanaa ______ skuul gaya

                        Ram   food                 school went

                        ‘Having eaten food, Ram went to school’

Formation

            Construct as many sentences as you can using the words given in the Table (use past tense).

            Tamil

                        ____________________________________________________________

                       

                        avan                                                                 metuvaa

                        ‘he’                                                                  ‘slowly’

                        ava                               pal,l,i                              veekamaa                     poo

                        ‘she’                             ‘school’                       ‘speedily’                     ‘go’

                        ava*ka                                                             ciikkiramaa

                        ‘they’                                                               ‘quickly’

                        ____________________________________________________________

            Example :

                        avan pal,l,ikku metuvaa poonaan

                        ‘he went to school slowly’

            Telugu

                        ____________________________________________________________

                         neenu                                                               vaal,l,u

                         ‘I’                                                                    ‘they’

                         laks,hmi             sinimā                           amma                           cuud)u

                        ‘Lakshmi’                   ‘movie’             ‘mother’                       ‘see’    

                         vasanta                                                 pedanaanna

                        ‘Vasanta’                                                         ‘uncle’

                        meemu

                        ‘we’

                        ____________________________________________________________

                  Example :        

                        vasanta sinimaa pedanaannatoo cūsindi

                        Vasanta movie   uncle with        saw

                                                    (father’s

                                                      elder

                                                      brother)

                        ‘Vasanta saw a movie with uncle’

                        Hindi

     _____________________________________________________________________

            vah                                                       aap

            ‘he’                                                      ‘you (hon.)’

            vee                   sinemaa                        vah                               saath                deekh

            ‘they’               ‘movie’             ‘he’                              ‘with’               ‘see’

            mẽ                                                        tum

            ‘I’                                                        ‘you’

     _____________________________________________________________________

Example :

      mẽ nee sinemaa uskee saath deekhaa

      I            movie    him with     saw

      ‘I saw a movie with him’

Substitution

            Substitute the underlined word with the word given in parentheses making necessary changes.

Tamil

                        avan  veekamaa viit*t*ukku vantaan

                        he       quickly     house in   came

                                                     (pal,l,i            ‘school’)

                        ‘he came home quickly’

                         ‘viit*t*ukku is substituted by ‘pal,likku’

            If the cue is ava, the verb needs a change in agreement.

             Vantaa is the answer.

Telugu

                           neenu reepu                 ee            pustakam testaanoo naakee

                           I          tomorrow     which    book        bring (fut.) me to

                                                                                                            Itself

                          teliidu

                          known-not

                                                            (miiru            ‘you’)

                        I’ do not know myself as to which book I’ll bring tomorrow’

                       

          Ans : miiru reepu ee pustakam testaaroo

                                  you    tomorrow which  book         bring(fut.)?

                                   miikee              teliidu

                                    you(yourself)   known-not

                                    ‘you do not know yourself as to which book

                                     you’ll bring tomorrow’

Transformation

            Transform the following into negative.

            Tamil            -            ava neerru   vantaa

                                    she  yesterday  came

                                    ‘she came yesterday’

                        Ans : ava neerru            varale

                                  she  yesterday    came-not

                                    ‘she didn’t come yeaterday’

            Telugu            -            neenu ninna        cadiwænu

                                    I         yesterday   read

                                    ‘I read yesterday’

                        Ans : neenu ninna            cadawaleedu

                                  I         yesterday read-not

                                   ‘I didn’t read yesterday’

            Hindi            -            maadhavi kal            cæmund)i pahar, par gayii

                                    Madhavi  yesterday Chamundi hill on went

                                    ‘Madhavi went to Chamundi Hill yesterday’

                        Ans : maadhavi kal            cæmund)i pahar par nah*

                                  Madhavi  yesterday Chamundi hill on not

                                  gayi

                                  went

                                   ‘Madhavi did not go to Chamundi Hill yesterday’

Conjoining

            Transform the first sentence into verbal participate and conjoin it with the second one.

            Tamil     

a)      naan cinimaavukku pooneen

I       movie-to          went

‘I went to a movie’

b)      naan viit*t*ukku vanteen

I        hom-to      came

‘I came home’

                 Ans : naan cinimaavukku pooy      viit*t*ukku vanteen

                           I       movie-to          having   gone home to came

                            ‘having gone to a movie, I came home’

            Telugu

                        a) neenu sinimā cuusænu

                             I         picture saw

                             ‘I saw the picture’

                        b) neenu in,t*iki vaccænu

                             I         in,t*iki came

                              ‘I came home’

            Ans : neenu sinimā cuusi     in,t*iki vaccænu

                      I         picture having seen house-to came

                      ‘having seen the picture, I came home’

            Hindi

           

                        a) naaganan,i mujse milii

                            Nagamani me with met

                             ‘Nagamani met me’

                        b) naaganan,i ghar gayi

                             Nagamani house went

                              ‘Nagamani went home’

            Ans : mujse milkar                 naagaman,i ghar gayii

                      me  with meeting after Nagamani home went

                         ‘after meeting me, Nagamani went home’

            ( ‘naagaman,i mujse milkar ghar gayi’ is also possible)

Constructing Sentences

            Use the following words in your own sentences.

            Tamil            -            alaku                            ‘beauty’

                                    vantu                            ‘having come’

                                    poora                           ‘which goes’

                                    veekamaa                     ‘quickly’

            Telugu            -            aat*a                              ‘play’

                                    cuud)u                           ‘to see’

                                    reepu                            ‘tomorrow’

                                    ceesinaa                      ‘may do’

Answering Questions

            These may be constructed based on the text, i.e., textual questions. The elicitation may contain one word/one sentence answer, or may contain four or five sentences or a short paragraph, or it may be a full page answer or a prescribed number of sentences.

Language Games

            In the context of language teaching and in particular second/foreign language teaching different types of language games are talked about. They play a significant role in providing opportunities about. They play a significant role in providing opportunity for the language learners to apply and practice the language mastered by them. This provision enables the language learners in becoming more and more perfect in the use of language that they have learnt. The significance of language games is no less as compared to that of drills and exercises. Drills and exercises may result in monotony being developed among the language learners in spite of the fact that a large variety of drills and exercises are made use of. On the other hand the language games would help

the learners in maintaining their motivation in learning while its being instrumental in their achieving a better performance.

            As in the case of language drills and exercise language games are also of a very wide variety and only a selected few of them which are considered useful in the context of the teaching of Indian languages are discussed here with suitable examples,

            Word building, puzzle, crossword puzzle, riddle, constructing sentences with word/picture cues, etc., may be used. Only known vocabulary should be made use of.

            Tamil

                        What am I? ­______ t*a ______

                        my first letter is in paal and not in vaal

                        my last letter is in kat*am and not in kat*al

 

            Ans : ‘paat*am’

            Telugu

                        What am I? _______ paa ________

                        my first letter is in paat*a and not in aat*a

 

                        my last letter is both in abbaayi and paapaayi

 

            Ans : ‘paapaayi’

            Hindi

                        What am I? ________ ma _______

                        my first letter is in  kal and not in pal

                                my last letter is in both

            Ans : ‘kamal (lotus)’

            Many other games can be thought of in the context of language learning/teaching.

1)      One possibility is that a few objects are taken, the names of which have been already taught to the group of learners. They are put in a place fully covered. For half a minute or so the items are uncovered and the batch of learners divided into two groups are asked to carefully observe the objects and name each object by turn. Such a game provides an opportunity for the learners to make use of the names of the items. Such expressions could also be elicited in sentence patterns that are familiar to the learners. This is parallel to ‘kings game’.

2)      Riddles are interesting language games particularly for the children and also for the adults. Describing an object is one way of assessing the association of ideas about an object. For instance

Telugu

Tan,d)ri gara gara, talli piicu piicu

bid)d)alu ratna maan,ikyaalu

manumala bommaraal,l,u

(father very rough, mother layers, children diamonds,

grand children fine stones. Refers to jack fruit.

The expected answer is ‘jack fruit’).

Tamil

appan coriyan aattaa cat*aicci pillaikal, ellaam

cakkarai kat*t*ikal, atu enna

(father rough, mother fibres, children sweet pieces,

what is that?)

The answer is palaapalam ‘jack fruit’.

Some of the language games could be devised depending upon

the target language culture. The types of language games mentioned at the beginning of the section may be adopted for any language learning situation.

            Among the writing games the magicians game may be made use of in any language situation. In this game, the learner is given a problem of making another word by changing only one letter at a time in the word originally given as stimulus, for example

            Telugu            -            aavu                             ‘cow’

                                    aalu                              ‘wife’

                                    paalu                            ‘milk’

                                    paaya                           ‘branch’

                                    aaya                             ‘attendant’

            Tamil            -            kal                                ‘stone’

                                    vil                                 ‘bow’

                                    kal,                                ‘toddy’

                                    kaal                              ‘leg’

                                    vaal                              ‘tail’

            The following games may also be thought of.

(1) Here are some words that look very strange together.                                  

            Example : brother and saucers

                              cups and sisters

            The first pair should be brothers and sisters and the second pair should be cups and saucers. Now put the words below into correct pairs.

            coconut                        cart                  flower

            river                             tree                  fishing

            temple                          net                    bell

            bullock                         garland             bank

(2) The umbrella has eight letters in it. Using these letter make as many words as you can.

            Example :  lamb, bell, etc.

(3) Look at the picture cues below and make long words. The first one has been dooone for you.

            Picture of

                        Bed and Room                    =            bedroom

                         Watch and Man            =            W______

(4) Look at the picture below and put in the missing letters.

(5) Find rhyming words for these words in the poem. There are cues to help you.

            piece            - -            n _ e _ _ (sister or brother’s daughter)

(6) There are three pictures on the right and three on he left. Pair them so that the picture in each pair have the same name.

A

 

Comprehension

            Comprehension in the context of language teaching may be thought of under two categories, viz., listening comprehension and reading comprehension. The only difference between these two categories is that in the case of the former the material for comprehension is administered to the learners orally either in the classroom or through the language laboratory following which a set of questions relating to the material listened to will be given for which the learners have to provide suitable answers. These questions aim at eliciting facts from the passage listened to by the learners and also deriving grammatically acceptable responses. Such responses in the case of listening comprehension may be either oral or written.

            The second kind of comprehension, viz., reading comprehension involves the reading of a passage by the learners after which they have to answer the comprehension questions relating to the passage read. These questions are also exactly the same in nature as the comprehension questions in the case of listening comprehension except that the learners are called upon to provide written answers for he comprehension questions in this case. While the oral answers will provide an opportunity for the teacher to examine the pronunciation aspects of the language, their written answers will enable the teacher to take care of the spelling and other related aspects of orthography.

            Both listening and reading comprehension passages are generally timed. The language learners would be able to listen to or read the passage at least twice during the fixed time.

Composition

            Composition in the context of language learning may be either oral or written. Boradly speaking, composition may be classified into three categories, viz., guided composition, comprehension-

            Guided compositioin demands the provision of a sequence of thoughts or ideas and also a brief list of vocabulary items related to the topic which should be made use of by the learners of develop the composition in the given sequence. Thus the language learners are expected to develop a connected passage making use of the vocabulary items given and also adhering to the thoughts or ideas relating to the topic given. The provision of cues may be in the form of pictures or flash cards and the arrangement of such pictures or flash cards is based upon the logical sequencing of ideas about the topic. Those pictures and flash cards could also be made use of in guided composition.

            Comprehension-cum-somposition is very much like the comprehension. In this case the comprehension questions relating to the passage are arranged in such a way that the answers to these questions written in the same order forms the gist of the passage in a logically sequenced manner. It is for this reason that this is called comprehension-sum-composition.

            As the very label indicates, free composition does not involves provision of cues or tips for the language learner. The learners are expected to develop a narration about the topic making use of the vocabulary and structures under their control. Such narration is expected to consist of logically sequenced and connected sentences relating to the topic. As already pointed out, composition could be either oral or written depending upon the skills emphasized.

Translation

Some scholars have advocated the use of translation as an exercise. Such exercise consist of the sentences or paragraphsor passage from the source language which are required to be translated into the target language. The preparation of such exercises is no doubt easier, but their validity has been questioned particularly in the recent past. Translation may indicate the range of vocabulary that a learner possesses in the target language. In case the learner is unable to recall the target language equivalents of the words in the source language, he will fail to demonstrate his ability to use the structures of the target language.

  In the case of advanced learners who are fairly familiar with the vocabulary and structures in the target language, to the target language becomes an exercise. Therefore, translation becomes more balid and reliable in the case of advanced language learners. Translation exercise can be made more valid and reliable by avoiding the comlex structures and vocabulary that present difficulty to the learners.

Dictation

  Dictation involves the relation of the written symbol to the spoken sound. Thus while taking down the dictation in the target language, the student has to associate the sounds of that language to the corresponding written form. Though there is a controversy over the merits and demerits of it, most of the language techers are convincd that more the dictation work is, the better the terminal achievement of the learner would be.

            Following are some types of dictation (Narasimha Rao, 1980) :

1) Partial or spot dictation

2) Prepared dictation

                        3) Paraphrased dictation

                        4) Dictation of unfamiliar material

                        5) Partial sentences

1. Partial or Spot Dictation

            The student is given a copy of a passage in which function words and/or prefixes and endings are left out. While the passage is read by the teacher the student has to fill in the blanks. Although this demands advanced preparation, they have some advantages like:

                        a) They can be administered quickly and te scoring can be more objective.

                        b) The examiner or the teacher can test only the problem areas.

c) The learners need not waste time in writing words, phrases, etc., that they have already mastered.

2. Prepared Dictation
Prepared dictation is nothing but dictating a familiar or a known passage. These kinds of dictations are normally recommended in the initial stages of introducing the writing skill. However, one point should be kept in mind that the sentene should be read only once and at the normal speed.

3. Paraphrased Dictation
In this type of exercise, the material for dictation would be nothing but a gist of a dialogue or a selection that the learner is already familiar with. However, the dictated passage will contain only familiar patterns and vocabulary that the learner possesses. The validity of the exercise and its results would be greater in assessing the learners, language achievement than the prepared dictation.

4. Dictation of Unfaliliar Materials

            The dictation of a material unfamiliar to the learner is usually preferred to the other types of dictation at the intermediate and advanced levels.

            The following procedures are followed in giving such dictation:

            The whole passage is read first at normal speed. The learners listen to it carefully. The passage is read for the second time phrase by phrase giving sufficient time for the learners to write it down. The second dictation should be consistent and the teacher may read each phrase once or twice. After the dictation of the passage is over, it is read finally again at a normal speed and the learners are given a few minutes time for the final revision.

            The teacher must not read any part of the passage at the request of the learner.

            In order to ensure consistency in reading and save the teacher’s time such dictation are recommended to be given through language laboratory where such facilities are available.

5. Partial Sentences

Partial sentence item necessitates the learner to complete the phrase given in then exercise. These items differ from the usual ‘fill in the blank’ type of items in the following ways:

  The dictation of partial sentences may contain the use of both the target as well as the source language (SL), whereas the fill in the blank type of items do not contain the use of both the languages.

            Telugu

                        neenu padi gantalaku       skuuluku ______

                        I         ten    O’clock-at     school-to

                                                [jaataa hµ) - Hindi (SL)]

                                                 ‘go’

        The learner is expected to fill in the blank by

using vel,taanu in Telugu.

            Tamil

                        naan palkalekalakattule ______

                        I       university-at

                                                [par,htaa hµ) - Hindi (SL)]

                                                ‘read’

                        The learner is expected to fill in the blank by using

pat*ikkureen in Tamil.

            In the initial stages  of language instruction it is desirable to administer it by giving them infinitive forms of the verb in             target language.

            Telugu

                        neenu reepu    kaafii ______ . (tagu)

                        I         tomorrow coffee             ‘to drink’

                     The learner is expected to fill in the blank after

                        conjugating the verb. Here the learner will write

                        taagutaanu ‘will drink’.

            Tamil

                        naan naal,e    paat*am ______ (pat*ikka)

                        I       tomorrow lesson     ‘to read’

                    The learner will write pat*ippeen (will read).

  (The infinitive form of the verb is given to facilitate the learner to know whether the given verb is strong or
  weak. However, in the letter stage only the verb root may be given).

            Following are some of the possible types of partial sentence dictation:

            1) One of the ways in which this could be used is to leave a blank for a part of the word, generally in the case of the verbs and ask the learners to fill in with appropriate parts of words.

            Kannada

                        raama pustakavannu oodu ______

                        Rama book              read

                  The learner is expected to write oodutiddaane

                                                                  ‘is reading’

            Tamil

                        ava viit*t*ule pat*i ______

                        she house-in read

                     The learner is expected to write pat*ikkuraal

                                                                         ‘reads’

(The tense and other necessary instructions for the conju-gation will be given to the learners before the exercise).

            Telugu

                        laks,mi annam ______. (tinu)

                        Lakshmi food                 ‘eat’

                      The learner is expected to write tin,t*ōndi

                                                           ‘is eating’

                        or tindi ‘ate’ or tin,t*undi ‘will eat’

            Hindi

                        larki saaikil                           ______ hε. (calaa)

                        girl   cycle (pres. cont.)                      ‘to ride’

                    The learner should write calaa rahii

                                                            ‘is riding’

            2) Instead of leaving a part of a word blank, it is also

possible to give blanks for the whole word. The learner is expecte to fill in the appropriate word.

            Telugu

                        ______ sinimaa cuustaanu.

                                     movie    saw (I pers. sg.)   ‘saw a movie’

                        The learner is expected to fill in the blank with

                        neenu ‘I’.

            Tamil

                        ______ paat*am pat*ikkuraa*ka

                                     lesson studying (III pers. hon./pl.)

                        ‘are studying the leasson’

                   The learner is expected to fillin the blank with

                   ava*ka ‘they’.

            Hindi

                        ______ bazaar jaataa hµ)

                                     market going (I per.)

                        The learner is expected to fill in the blank with mE) ‘I’.

            3) It is possible to give the completion items leaving a phrase or a clause blank and providing cue words, by making use of which the learners can make out the phrase or clause that can fit into the blank.

            Telugu

                        neenu ______ caalaa khariidainadi

                        I                      very    costly
                                            (caduwu, manic pustakam)

                 The learner fills in with

                  cadiwina manñci pustakam and the resultant sentence

                  read          good     book

                        would be

                        neenu cadiwina manic pustakam caala khariidainadi

                        I         read         good   book        very  costly

                        ‘the good book that I read is very costly’

Tamil

                        naan ______ rompa nallā iruntatu

                        I                     very    good be

                                                 (paar, pat*am)

                                                      see, movie

                         The learner fills in with paartta paãam and the resultant

                                                       see         movie

                        sentence would be

                        naan paartta pat*am rompa nallā iruntatu

                        I       saw      movie  very    good be

                         ‘the movie which I saw was very good’

  Hindi
                        meeri ______ ______ acchii hε

                        my                               good   is

                                                (par,h, kitaab)

                                                read,   book

                 the blank should be filled in with par,hii hui kitaab and

                                                                     Read          book

                  the resultant sentence would be

                  meerii par,hii hui kitaab acchii hε

                  my      read          book   good   is

                  ‘the book that I read is good’

From the discussion made above regarding different types of exercises to be made use of in developing the language proficiency, it may be seen that such exercises have to be administered taking care of the four major language skills, viz., listening, speaking, reading and writing.

            An exercise when used as a language proficiency test consisting of the four language skills will indicate the following:

            1) The general language competence of a language learner is must prominently measured by the reading and writing exercises. The other exercise, viz., exercise for listening and speaking also enable the examiner to measure the general language competence to some extent. The performance in reading and writing represents the extent to which the learner has an accurate knowledge of the structure and vocabulary of the target language particularly in its written form.

            2) Reading and writing fluency factors which are measured by the comprehension exercise enable the examiner to evaluate the extent to which the learner has an accurate knowledge of the structure and vocabulary of the target language particularly in its written form.

            3)  The spoken language competence of a learner is measured mainly through pronunciation and listening and also to some extent by oral reading. They represent the extent to which the learner’s competence in the phonology of the target language enables him to perform well on tests requiring him to produce the target language with accurate pronunciation and also help in comprehending the spoken target language.

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Brief Note on Switchover from Colloquial/Spoken Language to Written Langauge in Language Teaching

   Tamil is a diglossic language (Ferguson, 1959). Variation in the language can be pre-supposed in all the following levels:

1) Diglossia

2)      Standard Vs. Non-standard (dialects)

3)      Regional Vs. Caste

4)      Register Vs. Slang

The classic case of variety differentiation is diglossia. The Tamil society, here for example, recognizes two distinct varieties each of which is appropriate to different communicative functions. There exist a number of different dialects also. Though the speakers are separated both by region and caste, a standard spoken variety and the written variety unite these linguistically varied communities.

            In the case of Telugu, it is claimed that there exist at least 4 varieties, viz.,

                        - vyāvahārika (spoken)

                        - sis,t*a vyāvahārika (educated/standard spoken).

                        - granthika (literary), and

                        - sarala granthika (simplified literary/written).

In this case the language teachers and linguists recommended that LT/LF instruction may start from sis,ta vyavaharaik (educated/standard spoken variety) to begin with and a gradual switchover is made towards sarala granthika. Look at the following example:

                        Standard spoken                    Simple written

                        kis,oroccæd)u         - - - - - - -    kis,or vaccæd)u

The best recommended way of such switchover is perhaps repetition drills and provind grammatical explanations wherever necessary.

            This phenomena is true of almost all languages. A so-called standard variety of language has been established and this is the variety of language that is recommended to be taught in LT/LF situation.

            Any second/foreign language teaching programme, particularly in Tamil, should impart competence in both the spoken and written varieties. A standard is defined as a socially accepte variety of that language established by a codified norm of correctness. Non-standard language is defined as any variety of that language which differs from the established norm (Wolfram, 1966).

            As far as Tamil is concerned speaking of a standard spoken variety is a state, yet to be established. No one speaks a standard variety. Even the one considered as the standard spoken variety –  the educated Tamil speaker’s variety – is a heterogeneous one. So what is considered as standard variety – is changeable, but every one agrees that the so-called standard spoken is nearer to the written variety. Hence the spoken variety has to be taught first, since ‘speech is primary, writing secondary’ (Lado, 1962). A standard variety as represented in ‘An Intensive Course in Tamil’ (Rajaram, 1979) may be taught. In the Intermeiate Courses which bridges the spoken and written varieties, conversion rules may be taught. Some rules are given in Sthupillai (1974), Nadarajapillai (1986), which may be utilized for the conversion of Tamil examples given in this book also.

            The following sentences both in the standard spoken and its equivalent written would exe,plify the situation.

Tamil
         Spoken                        :            ava*ka enkit*t*e collikkit*t*u

                                                 uurukku kel,ampunaa*ka

            Written                        :            avarkal, ennit*am collikkon,t*t*u

                                                 uurukku kil,ampinaarkal,

                                                ‘having told me, they started to their village’

           The changes may be analyzed as follows:

                        III person plural pronoun                        ava*ka      - -    avarkal,

                        Locative case marker                           -kit*t*e-        - -         -it*am-

                          ( + Animativea)

                        Verbal participle form of the

                           reflexive auxiliary                                    -kit*t*u-        - -        -kon,t*u-

                        Past tense marker                             -n-            - -        -n-

                        I I I person agreement                                 -aanka-                - -     -aarkal,

                        Initial vowel                                       e-             - -        i –

                                                                                    (kel,ampu - -   kil,ampu)

Diglossic situation is perhaps not alien to any language. Prof. H. M. Nayak has maintained that diglossia is a clear phenomena in case of Kannada (Nayak, 1967) and Prof. De Silva (1978) has maintained that Telugu also exhibits a clear case of diglossia. This being the cse, the question of conversation or switchover from the spoken to the written variety of language doea exist in case of almost all the languages and the same solution as suggested above may be true.The one point that is worth mentioning is that different languages exhibit different degrees of difference between the spoken and written varieties.

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