УДК-37  FORMATION OF АBILITIES TO CONDUCT GROUP CONVERSATIONS

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members who sit in rows. Even members positions within a circular pattern influence interaction 
patterns. Members who sit across from each other, for example, have an easier time 
communicating than do members on the same side of a circle who are separated by one or two 
members. 
Because circular seating arrangements promote face – to – face interaction, they are often 
preferred to other arrangements. There may be times, however, when the group leader prefers a 
different arrangement. The Leader may also wish to seat a particularly important member in close
proximity. In an a educational group, a leader may choose to stand before a group seated in rows, an 
arrangement that facilitates members communications with the leader and tends to minimize 
interactions among members of the group [2, 16]. 
Physical arrangements can also be used to help asses relationships among members and 
potential problems in group interaction. For example, members who are fond of each other often sit 
next to each other and as far away as possible from members they do not like. Similarly, members 
who pull chairs out from a circle, or sit behind other members, may be expressing their lack of 
investment in the group. 
An interesting physical arrangement that often occurs in groups results from members 
tendency to sit in the same seat from meeting. This physical arrangement persists because members 
feel secure in «their own» seat near familiar members. When seating arrangements are modified by 
the leader, or by circumstance, communication patterns are often affected. 
Before entering in academic conversations, students have to agree on some basic “rules for 
engagement”: listening to each other courteously; listening actively by clarifying meaning and 
asking for examples; advancing one’s own opinions clearly and politely while considering the 
audience, etc. Most students will really know these rules already from their first languages—there 
are probably some cultural universals in politeness—and can usually help in brainstorming five or 
so rules to be displayed prominently in the class. More than five will likely be too many to focus on 
and be useful.
Some teachers assign conversational partners or groups for the term, and this has advantages, 
such as students get to know each other better this way, and they can quickly get into their groups 
when asked to, easing transitions. However, there also are advantages to occasionally rotating 
partners or groups, perhaps every few weeks. In this way, students get to know more of their peers 
and get exposed to more ideas while still having the structure provided by having a stable group for 
a period of time. 
But it has also disadvantages. Teacher can not control all students during their discussion.
Too often conversations even between native speakers fall flat because the participants don’t 
know conversation strategies. In addition, there is a difference between an everyday conversation 
and an academic conversation. Many if not all of our students can carry on an everyday 
conversation without much difficulty: “What would you like for dinner?” “I don’t know. Pizza? 
Chicken? What do you want?” Much of our day-to-day “conversation” goes on in exchanges like 
this and requires few strategies. But to have a real “conversation” on the topic of food choices, for 
example, the conversational partners will have to know different strategies for introducing the topic, 
drawing each other out, asking for opinions, advancing their own, using examples, and so forth [3, 
21-22]. 
It seems elementary, but it is often forgotten that students may not be participating because 
they simply don’t have the vocabulary to enter a specific conversation. Introducing some key 
phrases and words related to the topic will help this. For example, on the topic of different types of 
vacations today, students should learn words like “
condo
,” “
time share
,” “
hotel
,” “
motel
,” 
“
extended stay
,” “
business class
,” and “
coach
.” 
There are specific strategies for entering, extending, and ending conversations both formally 
and informally. For example, with “Hey, Diana! How was your vacation to Hawaii?” I am signaling 
to Diana that I’d like to open an informal and probably brief conversation on the topic of her 
vacation that might extend a little into my vacation and vacations in general. However, with “What 
do you think about how we vacation today? Hasn’t it changed quite a bit from even ten years ago?” 

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I am signaling a different kind of conversation—more in-depth and analytical as the conversation 
participants consider different types of vacations, and more academic. Knowing these strategies for 
different types of conversations will help students avoid confusion and even annoyance and gain 
experience in different types of conversations. Because the focus of instruction, and of conversation 
itself, is on communicating meaning rather than on correctness, students should be assessed mostly 
informally. The instructor can walk around the class, sit in on conversations, and get an idea this 
way on the degree of participation of each student. Students can also be asked to hold a 
conversation in front of the teacher or class and be assessed by a rubric on the degree of responding 
to and advancing topics, on use of strategies and vocabulary, and so forth. Finally, more formal 
quizzes and tests can also be given in the form of listening to taped conversations and answering 
questions about topic, vocabulary, responses, strategies, and so on. 
Start by putting students to work in pairs as the shy ones will feel much more comfortable in 
this situation. Avoid pairing them up with their most outgoing or dominant fellow students as they 
may allow themselves to be pushed into the background by these individuals. Be sure to praise their 
efforts and achievements to reinforce the idea that they can achieve much more by working with a 

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