School of Education and Professional Development Teacher’s Name:

TESOL Lesson Plan

Topic: Honeybee Democracy- What can we learn from bees? Date: Time: 90 mins
Approach: Task Based Learning

No. in group: 30 Level: C1

General aims  To further develop speaking skills when working in small groups and presenting information to the wider class
 To practice a range of reading comprehension strategies and skills

Predicted Speaking & Listening opportunities

learning  Actively listen to others and contribute towards discussion and debate in pairs, small groups and the wider class
opportunities  Consolidate and expand their current vocabulary in relation to the lexical field of developing a persuasive argument
 Notice and deepen their understanding of a range of useful expressions for expressing opinions
Students will:  Develop their speaking skills by expressing/ responding to opinions
 Develop critical thinking skills through justifying opinions
 Improve strategies for selecting words from a text for checking in a dictionary

Affective/ social learning opportunities

 Gain confidence in presenting work to a wider audience

Cognitive (non-linguistic) learning opportunities

 Develop strategies for evaluating the arguments of a writer

Skills-related learning opportunities

 Improve their reading skills: specifically reading a journal article about the democracy of bees for detail, meaning and gist
 Develop their writing skills: specifically note taking during reading and using key points from a written text to create a poster about
democracy

Metacognitive/ study-skills learning opportunities

 Develop their ability to infer the meaning of unfamiliar words from context.

1
  Develop strategies for paraphrasing unknown words
Class Profile  A class of Vietnamese students studying at a UK university, Strengths:
currently at undergraduate level.  Written English is of a high standard
 Students are in their 3rd year of a Behavioural Sciences BSc  Students appear to be attentive listeners. (Teacher to monitor
(Hons) degree and are currently completing a module on and assess throughout the session)
Work and Organisational Psychology. The module focuses on  Feedback from course tutors is positive. Learners are
the application of psychological expertise in work settings interested and engaged in their chosen specialism.
and the range of tasks psychologists are expected to
undertake when working in organisations. The students are Areas for development:
currently learning about evidence-based methods for  Some hesitance to use English as the main language medium
improving life at work. in the classroom.
 Their motivation is to further develop their reading  Willingness to ask questions and engage in group/ class
comprehension skills and to improve their informal and discussion.
formal communicative speaking skills to enable them to gain  Level of fluency in whole class situations
good grades and pass the course.  Confidence when speaking in larger groups.
 This lesson forms part of the students’ English for Academic
Purposes (EAP) programme.

Assumptions  Can understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts, and recognise implicit meaning. (CEFR C1)
 Can express him/herself fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. (CEFR C1)
 Can use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. (CEFR C1)
 Can produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, showing controlled use of organisational patterns, connectors
and cohesive devices (CEFR C1)
 Some knowledge of the concept of democracy
 Basic knowledge of bees as insects living in colonies etc.

Anticipated  Speaker anxiety/ lack of confidence: The use of TBLT may help less confident students as it is a communicative approach in which
problems & students spend a significant amount of time communicating with one another in pairs/ small groups. This provides a supportive
proposed scaffold leading to whole class reporting at the end of the session. Also a significant amount of the teacher’s time is spent encouraging
solutions students during group/ paired activities.
 Text too difficult/ not engaging: The original text has been edited to remove a limited amount of technical lexis specific to
beekeeping that is irrelevant to the session. If necessary teacher to make direct links to Behavioural Science and students’/ teachers’
own personal experiences to further engage the learners.
2
  Teacher unsure as to what the language focus might be: Teacher to monitor students throughout the session, noting good examples
of language use and examples for development. This will enable teacher to prepare some key points in advance of the language focus
session.
 Cultural differences- possible reluctance to express opinions & challenge the opinions of others: The choice of TBLT provides a
supportive climate in which students are likely to feel more able to express their views. Students are more likely to express opinions in
pairs and small groups. Presenting as a group to the whole class should instil more confidence in the learners.
 Cultural differences- knowledge of democracy: Handle with sensitivity if problematic. Teacher to link to UK democracy if students are
reluctant to engage. Monitor carefully throughout as part of ongoing Assessment for Learning (AfL) and take action where necessary
to steer the lesson according to students’ needs.

Teacher  Note students’ attitudes and responses towards the task

Assessment  Monitor use of target features (including new lexis) in language-related episodes
 Use of peer feedback
 Task outcomes (posters, presentations and feedback)
 Note levels of interaction in pairs, wider group and whole class
 Teacher observation notes
 Teacher’s use of key questions and answers
 Recordings of group presentations (if used)
 Homework- students self-assessment of learning during the session

3
Time Stage Aim Pattern of Teacher Activity Learner activity Resources
Interaction
1. Pre-task phase Powerpoint
Pre-reading presentation
activities (x2) Interactive
whiteboard
1 min Lead in activity 1 T-Sts Introduce the topic
Activation of prior Introduce the subject of bees. Show 1 min fast task in table groups- What do Seating:
knowledge/ pictures of bees, hives etc. the learners know about bees? How students seated
schemata St-St What do the learners know about bees? 1 many facts can they think of? Fast in 5 groups of 6.
min in small groups. Take fast feedback feedback from each table/ half of the
from each group (or each half of the room room.
Sts-T if students appear reluctant to Whiteboard &
contribute). Scribe words/ facts on the pens
whiteboard. Which is the winning group?

1 min Lead in activity 2 T-Sts Analyse the title of the text

Introduction of topic Look at title of the text. Highlight the word 2 min fast task in pairs/ groups- What do Text: Honeybee
and text St-St democracy. What is democracy? What the learners know about the concept of Democracy:
does it involve? Can the learners think of democracy? Fast feedback from around How Honeybees
Sts-T any key words associated with it? Take the room. Find a New
fast feedback and scribe words and Home
phrases on the board (if any). (Edited from
True
1 min Democracy:
T-Sts Explain that the text presents an argument Students listen to initial overview of the What We Can
which links known information about bee topic. Learn From
colonies to the behaviour of groups in Bees by Tony
Sts-T society. Make links to student’s current Ask questions where necessary. Harris. BBKA

4
 BSc Behavioural Science module on Work Journal article:
and Organisational Behaviour. Aug 2016)
Whiteboard &
5 mins Language extension T-Sts Introducing relevant vocabulary pens
Introduction of key Identify key lexis that is essential to the
lexis & useful text/ task and write on the board. Include Students notice key lexis on board and
phrases parts of speech so that students have a feedback meaning to teacher if known.
context for new words. Do the students
recognise any of the words? Can the
students work out the meaning? If so,
which strategies did they use?
Students work in pairs/ groups to find Students may
waggle (v.) T-Sts Ask the students to work in pairs/ small out the meaning of new words. Teacher select own
hive (n.) groups to discuss/ find out meanings of to monitor and encourage the students resources eg.
swarm (n) St-St/ featured words if necessary when reading. to work together to negotiate meaning mobile phones,
Sts-Sts of the text/ unfamiliar words. dictionaries if
colony (n.)
Recap strategies students can use for needed.
consensus(v.)
dealing with unknown words eg. read Teacher to monitor.
aggregate (v.) around the word, guess etc.
quorum (n.) Students can take notes of new words in
preparation for the task.

Photocopies of
2 min Task setting T-Sts Introduce the task the text
Outline task Explain that the students will complete a (x3 per group)
requirements task using information from the text they
are about to read. The task is to design
and create a poster that can be used to
help groups of people in society be more

5
 democratic when trying to work together
achieve a goal.
Students work in pairs to skim read the
text for gist then discuss the article in
10-15 mins Reading for gist Introduce the text their pairs/ group.
Focus on what is T-Sts Ask students to work in pairs, read the
being said text for gist and discuss. Encourage
students to rely on their own linguistic and
non-linguistic resources to establish and
Designed to provide negotiate meaning. Students make notes of the key points
learners with and discuss within their groups.
opportunities to use St-St/ Encourage them to make notes of key
communicative Sts-Sts points after reading then discuss those
language. points in groups.

Private speech in Encourage and monitor students

pairs/ groups. throughout the task cycle.

20-25 mins 2.Task Cycle Sts-Sts Clarify instructions for the task and the Students work together to plan and Large sheets of
required outcome using information create a poster that uses the key points tempera paper
Planning checking questions (ICQs) eg. of the text (eg. shared interests of the
group; mutual respect; minimising Coloured
Private speech in What type of article do you need to leader’s influence on the group; marker pens
pairs/ groups. produce? Who is your audience? What is aggregate the group’s knowledge
your time scale? through debate; using quorum responses
Negotiation of for swift decision making etc.) to give
meaning within Answer any questions related to advice to groups of students or other
pairs/ groups. understanding of the task. groups in society who are trying to be
more democratic when attempting to
Monitor, assess and encourage students complete a task or achieve a goal
Planning and throughout task cycle. Make notes of
preparation of a errors and misconceptions, language use, The poster should promote the key

6
 poster and brief areas for language development etc. things that groups can learn from the
feedback ways in which bees work

Students rehearse their presentation if

time allows.
25 mins Reporting Sts-Sts & T Whole class reporting Groups take turns to present their poster Completed
Public use of Teacher decides on order of groups to to the rest of the class and give feedback posters
language present. on the group task.
Offer constructive feedback after each
Presenting work to presentation if time allows. Collate main Students offer support, encouragement Teacher’s
rest of the class points (strengths, key language points and feedback to peers. annotations
etc.) on the board.
Consider recording the presentations for IPad or other
future use in follow up sessions. (Assess recording
willingness/ confidence before suggesting equipment if
this and as for student consent prior to required.
recording).
10 mins 3.Language focus Sts-Sts & T Highlight language used during the Students watch recordings or listen to Teacher’s
planning and reporting stages for feedback from the teacher/ other annotations
Analyse analysis. groups.
Analysis of selected
language features Select relevant language points eg. lexical
from written text/ phases, collocations, patterns, vocabulary
posters and/ or etc. from notes on the board.
presentations
(Form and meaning) T-Sts Write down 5 good phrases/ sentences/ Students work in pairs to discuss the Student
language points used by the students meaning/ form/ use of selected points comments &
during the task and 5 that need and how to improve use of language. questions
developing. Students rehearse appropriate forms in
Practice pairs.
10 mins Practice of language T-Sts Choose which language points to practise
features from St-St based on needs of the students and task &
written text and reporting outcomes. Teach relevant points

7
 posters as necessary. Discuss what improvements
(Use of language) can be made and the reasons why.

Homework T-Sts Set homework as part of student self- Students complete self-assessment after Homework PPT
assessment. class. slide

The Honeybee Democracy: How Honeybees Find a New Home*

Honeybees make decisions collectively- and democratically. Every year, faced with the life-or-death problem of choosing and
travelling to a new home, honeybees stake everything on a process that includes collective fact-finding, vigorous debate, and
licensed under CC BY-SA-NC
consensus building. In fact, these incredible insects have much to teach us when it comes to collective wisdom and effective decision making.

In the late spring and early summer, as a bee colony becomes overcrowded, a third of the hive stays behind and rears a new queen, while a swarm of
thousands departs with the old queen to set up a new home and produce a new colony. Honeybees evaluate potential new sites, advertise their discoveries
to one another, engage in open deliberation, choose a final site and navigate together- a swirling cloud of bees- to their new home.

What works well for bees can also work well for people: any decision-making group should consist of individuals with shared interests and mutual
respect, a leader’s influence should be minimised, debate should be relied upon, diverse solutions should be sought and the majority should be counted on
for a dependable resolution. An impressive exploration of animal behaviour, the honeybee democracy shows that decision- making groups, whether
honeybee or human, can be smarter than even the smartest individuals in them. So what lessons can human groups learn from honeybees?

Lesson 1 is to populate the decision-making group with individuals who have shared interests and mutual respect. This might seem easy to do, but the
mutual respect part of it is not so easy as one wrong word can upset a fellow member and any ill-feeling can grow into a monster of insurmountable

8
proportion. The house-hunting bees exemplify a group with shared interests as the genetic success of each bee depends on the fate of the entire colony and
no individual succeeds unless the whole colony survives and reproduces.

Lesson 2 is to minimise the leader’s influence on group thinking. This is a difficult one for us humans because it goes against the belief that the leader
is in charge, but a domineering leader can be one of the greatest threats to good decision-making in groups. The bees choose their new home without a
leader telling them what to do. When a scout bee who is sent out to find a new home finds a potential site, she has her say by performing a waggle dance to
the other bees. Other scout bees then take a look and if they agree that the new site is suitable they too perform the waggle dance to influence more bees.
This continues until all the scout bees agree on a new home and every opinion is taken into consideration.

Lesson 3 is to seek diverse solutions to the problem. The house-hunting bees demonstrate the effectiveness of this by having a large and diverse
search committee with hundreds of individual scout bees exploring an area of up to 5 kilometres looking for their new home. When potential nest sites are
found the scout bees return to the hive and report their individual discoveries with the waggle dance to persuade other bees that the site they have found is
the best. When we relate this to humans it is the same as putting another option on the table for further discussion.

Lesson 4 is to aggregate the group’s knowledge through debate. Arguably the greatest challenge faced by a group that makes decisions democratically
is to know how to turn the knowledge and opinions of many members into a single choice for their group. How do the honeybees reach consensus?
Whichever group of scout bees first attracts a quorum of supporters wins the competition and when they eventually leave for their new home, the bees are
in complete agreement about where to go. When holding meetings, debate for humans is important and group members should be encouraged to form their
own opinions. This could be done by secret ballot to ensure there is freedom from peer pressure that could influence opinion.

9
 Lesson 5 is to use quorum responses for cohesion, accuracy and speed. The house-hunting bees show us a clever way to make an accurate consensus
decision while also saving some time. They do this by the scout bees making quick changes to their behaviour when a threshold number or majority support
one of the new sites. Scout bees pipe signals to other bees to encourage them to warm up their flight muscles in preparation for the flight to their new home
once a consensus has been agreed. When enough bees have warmed up they are ready to move into their new home!

*The original text was edited and abridged for this lesson from two authentic sources: Seeley, T.D. (2010). Honeybee Democracy. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Harris, T. (2016). True Democracy and What We Can Learn From Bees. BBKA News No.223. August 2016

References

Anderson, J.R. (1995). Learning and Memory: An Integrated Approach. New York: Wiley.

Bax, S. (2003). The End of CLT: A Context Approach to Language Teaching. In ELT Journal vol. 57, issue 3, 1st July 2003.

Krashen, S. (1982). Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Pergammon.

Johnson, K. (2017). An Introduction to Foreign Language Learning and Teaching

Lightbown, P.M. & Spada, N. (2018) How Languages are Learned. (4th Ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Nuttall, C. (1996). Teaching Reading Skills in a Foreign Language. Oxford: Macmillan.

Rea-Dickins, P. (2004). Understanding teachers as agents of assessment. Language Testing 21 (3) pp.249-258. 10.11.91/02655322c4lt283ed.

Tomlinson, B. (2011) (Ed.) Materials Development in Language Teaching (2nd Ed.) . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
10
Willis, D. & Willis, J. (2007). Doing Task Based Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Introductory Guide to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for English Language Teachers (2001). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

11