Group Work and Pair Work is very effective teaching strategy for teaching a foreign language, as students improve their spoken skills and overcome shyness.It is also an important method to generate new ideas .It maintains students' interest as they remain focused on the task.No doubt that it increases the work load for teacher as he/she has to prepare the topic very carefully in advance and remain alert during the class to provide suitable feedback at the right time.
In fact all-class teaching is often undervalued as a method. It is very valuable in developing a sense of unity and ensuring that nobody is left behind; it also helps learners stay focused on the task if they know they are likely to be asked a question in the open class. However, working in pairs or small groups is the best way to ensure that projects are discussed thoroughly and that people who might be reluctant to speak in front of the whole class get a chance to contribute. For some subjects such as foreign languages, it's the only way to make sure that students get the practice they need. More generally, groupwork fosters negotiation and co-operative skills, especially if the grouos are changed regularly. They can also help provide motivation; students will often work hard on a group project or performance which they know is going to be seen by the whole class.
Group Work is very effective for teaching foreign languages as all the students try to speak in the target language.This strategy is especially effective for those students who try to remain quiet in the class and tend to be ignored most of the time by the class and the teacher. It has been observed that the quiet student wants to participate in class activities but remains quiet due to lack of courage,s/he is forced to open up in group activities and gradually learns to participate in discussions.
