DELTA Module Three key terms

Temporary support a teacher provides so a learner can complete a task just beyond their current ability; it is gradually withdrawn as competence grows, leaving the learner able to work independently.

The gap between what a learner can do alone and what they can do with help from a more capable person. Instruction is most effective when aimed inside this gap rather than at what is already mastered.

An approach in which learners respond to spoken instructions with physical movement before being required to speak, linking language to action and reducing early performance pressure, especially with young beginners.

Predictable sequences of activity and language, such as a daily greeting or story time, repeated across lessons. They give young learners security, recycle language naturally, and free attention for new content.

The organisation of space, time, grouping, and behaviour so that learning can proceed. It includes giving instructions, signalling transitions, and establishing expectations rather than only reacting to disruption.

The deliberate arrangement of learners into pairs, small groups, whole-class, or individual work for a task. The choice affects talking time, peer support, and how much language each learner produces.

Learners working together on a task so that they pool ideas and language, explain to each other, and negotiate meaning. It supports development when tasks are structured and roles are clear.

The capacity of learners to take charge of their own learning: setting goals, choosing strategies, monitoring progress, and evaluating outcomes with decreasing dependence on the teacher.

A set of principles about adult learning, stressing that adults bring experience, prefer problem-centred relevance, expect some control over what and how they learn, and are motivated by internal goals.

A metaphor for the emotional and motivational block that can prevent learners from taking in available language input. Anxiety, low self-esteem, and embarrassment raise the filter; a supportive climate lowers it.

Systematic gathering of information about what learners need to do with English, their current abilities, and their constraints, used to decide objectives, syllabus, and tasks. It may be repeated during a course.

A form of needs analysis that describes the real situations in which learners will use English, including the tasks, participants, settings, and communication demands those situations involve.

Study of the recurring structure and language conventions of a text type, such as a laboratory report or a complaint email, so that learners can recognise and reproduce its moves and typical phrasing.

A group sharing goals, conventions, and specialist vocabulary, such as nurses, engineers, or academic researchers. Membership involves learning how the group communicates, not only its technical words.

Words and phrases specific to a field, such as 'torque', 'dosage', or 'plaintiff'. Such items are often best taught through context and tasks rather than as isolated lists.

Texts and recordings produced for real communication rather than for language teaching, such as manuals, podcasts, or meeting agendas. They offer realistic language but may need task adaptation.

A syllabus organised around meaningful tasks rather than language items. Learners complete the task, then attention is drawn to language that emerged, with the teacher responding to observed needs.

A course design combining face-to-face sessions with online study, where each mode has a distinct and planned role rather than the online part being an optional extra.

A model in which learners encounter new content, often through video or reading, before class, so that contact time is used for discussion, practice, and feedback rather than first presentation.

An online platform that hosts course materials, activities, submissions, and grades, and tracks learner participation. It structures how a digital course is delivered and monitored.

The collection and interpretation of data about learner activity, such as logins, task completion, and scores, to identify patterns, spot learners at risk, and inform teaching decisions.

The skills needed to find, evaluate, create, and communicate information using digital tools, including judging source reliability and behaving appropriately online. Both teachers and learners need it.

Interaction that happens in real time, such as a live video class or chat, allowing immediate feedback. It contrasts with asynchronous modes where participants contribute at different times.

Interaction in which participants do not need to be online at the same time, such as discussion forums, email, or recorded feedback. It offers flexibility but delays response and can reduce immediacy.

The presence of more than one language in a learner's repertoire or in a classroom. It treats other languages as resources for learning rather than as interference to be suppressed.

The flexible use of a learner's full language repertoire to make meaning, for example discussing a concept in one language and then producing the task in English. It is a planned or spontaneous resource.

Deliberate or incidental employment of learners' shared or individual first languages in class, for example to check understanding, manage tasks, or build confidence before English production.

Moving between languages within a conversation or utterance, often to signal identity, fill a gap, or manage a specific communicative purpose. It can be systematic rather than a sign of weakness.

The ability to draw on knowledge of several languages and cultures, and to move between them, as a single integrated resource rather than as separate monolingual abilities kept apart.

A learner's evolving internal language system, which has its own rules, changes over time, and shows features influenced by the first language and by developing second language knowledge.

Feedback on inaccurate language. Decisions include what to correct, when, and how, weighing accuracy gains against fluency and confidence, particularly with anxious or young learners.

Deliberate techniques learners use to understand, remember, and use language, such as guessing from context, note-making, or planning a spoken turn. They can be taught and practised explicitly.

Learners judging their own performance against clear criteria, such as a checklist or model. It develops awareness of strengths and gaps and supports autonomy when criteria are explicit.

Demonstrating the target language, task, or behaviour so learners can see what is expected before attempting it themselves. Clear modelling reduces confusion and supports learners who need concrete examples.

Using evidence from ongoing classroom activity, such as questioning and peer feedback, to adjust teaching while learning is happening, rather than only to grade learners at the end.