Since the 1940s, new solutions to successful English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction have been discovered many times. Like bestseller novels, the latest hit pop songs, and blockbuster films, second-language theories and methodologies enjoy a few months or years in the spotlight and then fade away into oblivion due to many instructors not taking the chance to truly experiment with these instructional methods. There was always a “tried-and-true” methodology from an expert theorist, who may or may not have had first-hand experience learning a second language, to fall on. Douglas Brown, a renowned professor of San Francisco State University, notes that languages were “not being taught primarily to learn oral communication, but to learn for the sake of being ‘scholarly’ or…for reading proficiency” (15). Theories of second-language acquisition did not start to pop up until the instructional objective became oral competence and comprehension. New and effective methodologies of ESL classrooms are necessary in order for learners to obtain and understand the language and its culture; teachers need to consider their teaching style, each student’s learning style, and the classroom behavior, interests, and culture. Before the late nineteenth century, second-language instruction mirrored the old method of teaching the Latin and Greek languages; lessons were based on more mentally tasking exercises like repetition drills and vocab exercises as well as lots of reading and translating of the ancient texts. These methods were proven successful for a dead language and have been proven successful in many subject areas such as learning formulas in Math, or learning terms and definitions in Science, but have no real value in a language that is ... ... middle of paper ... ...n is often a welcome relief from guided conversation in the foreign language; and a five-minute session of English only can give students a sense of true accomplishment. Many teachers believe that they only need to make sure the kids are having fun in language class, as though having fun were the one and only criteria for success in ESL. On the other end of the method spectrum, there are language classes whose teachers demean students who do not respond to their textbook approach to language instruction. Neither extreme, fun or misery, is truly effective. The LLS approach takes the best that ESL theorists have to offer and incorporates it with techniques that work in the classroom. In the end, teachers have a huge challenge in teaching their students all the components of English so that they may be formidably competent on all levels in their newly acquired language.
racie Allen of the comedy team of Burns and Allen was once asked how one should speak French. She replied, “Well, you speak it the same way you speak English; you just use different words.” When trying to assist in instructing English language learners, they usually have many concepts and language abilities that they need to master, as do the teachers that are trying to teach them. With the incorporation of the concepts and approaches to identify and assess the issues and concerns that we have learned in our classroom instruction, such as lesson preparation, building background, and comprehensible input, we can indeed teach our future English language learners all the right moves with all the right words.
English Language Learners range from Newcomers learning survival English and developing foundational literacy skills to Long-Term English Learners who have had 6 years or more of their education in English yet continue have significant language gaps. These students may speak English with little or no accent and still lack the vocabulary, grammar and grade level literacy to be successful in school. English language learners may remain silent in the classroom as they adjust to a new school, environment, and culture unless he is a native language comrade to interact with. The English language learners are concerned about decoding verbal and non- verbal communication as well as understanding the social culture framework of the school. Most of the time English language learners are observing during instruction, trying to repeat words used by others, memorizing simple phrases and sentences, tired by midday or be frustrated attending long lectures unaccompanied by visual and gestures, relying on first language translation used peer translation or bilingual dictionary, as the students begin to learner they become more involved in the classroom, they can respond non-verbally to commands, statements, and questions in simple form. As their oral comprehension increases, they begin to use simple word and phrases and may use English spontaneously. They can understand short conversation on a simple topic when reading students can understand a narrative text and authentic materials, although they will be below
In the twentieth century, the avoidance of the using L1 in classrooms dominated teachers’ minds; as well it was implemented in many policies and guidelines of language teaching (Cook, 2001). Thornbury (2010) listed a set of arguments against using L1 in L2 classrooms mainly for that the translation of L2 into another language will play negative effects on students’ learning process. He pointed out that the use of L1 will result learners to have a cognitive dependence on their mother tongue at the expense of developing independence TL learning. Although the two language systems are not equivalent in many aspects, students may have an awareness of the notion of equivalence of the two languages if translation serves to convey meanings. Some argue that the use of translation to convey the meaning of the TL is more efficient and more memorable. However, Thornbury (2010) sees the opposite. He stated that the simple and direct way of translation will make L2 knowledge less memorable since the process lacks mental efforts in working out meanings.
For decades, foreign language teachers wandered in a scientific abyss. Until 1983, there had been little real research dealing with the ways in which someone acquires a second language. Teachers mostly used the audiolingual classroom model that had been in place for the past twenty years (or, even worse, the literally ancient grammatical translation model that had been used by civilizations millennia old). Clearly, language teaching methodology was in a poor situation. In 1983, however, Krashen published the results of an unprecedented body of research and paved the way for a revolution in our field. His five-point hypothesis focused on the difference between the acquisition of and the learning of a second language. Krashen has his detractors, of course, not the least of whom are American school districts, which have been reluctant to implement his teachings. Most experts agree, however, that his ideas are the most meritorious of the theories in circulation now, and schools that refuse to incorporate them are doing their students a disservice.
Teaching students a language that is foreign can really be challenging for students as well as for the teachers. The dynamic rule for implementing instructing in a diverse class to English-learners is to use resourceful life skills such as diligence, hard work and patience. There are also methods that are involved in teaching English as a second language that can be creative for the teacher, yet beneficial to the student. First building a strong foundation that is essential to English learners will promote the language acquisition process. To do this teacher’s should always start with preparation. Advance preparation is essential in order to provide necessary adaptations in content area instruction and to make content information accessible for second language lear...
When the English as a second language learner (ESL) or the English language learner (ELL) students have achieved English proficiency, it helps students to develop their understanding of mathematics. Students then effectively use mathematical tools, charts, patterns and other strategies, as well as their prior learning experiences to make connections to solve related problems. The majority are able to transfer their manipulative exploration to solving problems with pencil and paper. Students use multiple solutions and strategies when they solve problems. They express their mathematical thinking through drawing, writing, and speaking. Students socialize their intelligence through playing games and taking part in opportunities for team or pair work, when they explain their thinking. Upper grade students often find it difficult to discuss or write in mathematical terms, even after they have been given multiple opportunities to investigate.
Experiencing those days where people would laugh at other for the broken English; the grammar and pronunciation are the toughest parts of the language. People with English as a second language always stumble upon difficulties; however, the determination of learning a new language do not decrease easily as the motivation is still surrounding one’s mind. Today, English has become an international communication; even the teaching and learning of the language has already spread throughout the world. English is known as one of the most common use language and has been offering classes everywhere for years especially around Asia; additionally, the world common language has now become the number one language uses in every fields of career that is being offer everywhere. Non-American students should be required to take English class as a second language in school
According to most linguists, language starts from the womb before birth. It is not taught but rather a natural occurrence that happens very fast; while phonological learning start right from birth, between 0 month to thirty six months, an infant is quite able to understand most of the basis of speech like phonemes, morphemes, parts of speech, phrases and order of phrases. According to behaviorist, first language acquisition is systematic, but for the nativist it is innate. At birth, a child has universal grammar which is a language acquisition device in the brain that is adapt for learning and acquire language. The phenomenon of first language acquisition, that is only attributes to human, takes place not by the intervention of teaching
Culture is slowly growing all over the world, as well as language. As culture continues to grow, the need for multilingual employees increases. Learning a new language, then becomes an ideal ability employers look for. There are many organizations that require their employees to be multilingual due to the fact that they are more empathetic and they can communicate with foreign people. Learning a new language can be overwhelming and time consuming, but there are many benefits and opportunities that accompany it.
The United States is a melting pot of cultures. There is not one universal language, and for this reason, in order to communicate with others, we need to learn the language of others. In other countries, such as Germany, London and India, it is required that students learn English as a second language in their schools. I believe that speaking a foreign language is an important skill to have because it can be helpful in so many different areas. Given the decreasing number of English speaking people who live in the United States, there should be a foreign language requirement for elementary through high schools in America.
Many people don’t have the opportunity available to spend time in learning a second language. Although, the benefits outweigh the costs. Just five minutes a day spent learning is enough to create an informed, perceptive person. The benefits are the sense of accomplishment that comes from mastering a second language and the ability to communicate with people in a different culture. Schools and business will always need translators and teachers, therefore, it should encourage its students and workers to pick up a second language and create opportunities. The act of studying a foreign language improves the lives of people in their day-to-day exchanges, intelligence, and creates more chances of landing a job. There are infinite reasons to learn a foreign
This will increase learner motivation and make learning meaningful. I strive to make connections between my teaching and my students’ lives by encouraging them to discuss their experiences, express opinions, and by choosing materials that are genuinely interesting to them. My goal is to demonstrate to my learners that the second language can be their means of self-expression rather than a set of discrete grammar points and lists of vocabulary words. To put it another way, I stress that learning about the language is not sufficient for successful communication in it and encourage students to use English purposefully and meaningfully. For example, I recommend that they find language exchange partners, attend English-speaking clubs, or watch their favorite movies in English. I show them ways to integrate English in their daily lives and let them decide what appeals to them. As a result, learners become more engaged, motivated and autonomous since the teacher is no longer the only source of knowledge for
According to Hitchcock (1927), language instruction is best accomplished if student is constantly placed in situations where he/she needs to communicate with others through writing or speaking in order to accomplish his/her goal. DiPierto (1987) explains second language acquisition as an inherent ability in humans, which requires interac...
Education is an engine for the growth and progress of any society. It not only imparts knowledge, skills and inculcates values, but is also responsible for building human capital which breeds, drives and sets technological innovation and economic growth. English, the official language of the entire world is a very tricky language to teach. In fact every language varies to teach. English is a very old language and has undergone many forms changes from Proto English derived from the Latin and the German culture to the Modern English which was established after in the post Renaissance period. Each version was simpler than its previous. Present
Each component carries sufficient weight in imparting English language instructional system. Among the resources, teacher is the most influential one as s/he has the persuasive powers to help students acquire the language skills at stress-free and cozy atmosphere. Teacher with a smile would be the welcoming milestone. Teacher’s proficiency over the English language and knowledge over student psychology would profoundly contribute towards better language skill acquisition, as it involves two major components teaching and learning. Teaching English is different from teaching other subjects. The notion of treating teaching English and other subjects equally needs modification as language acquisition is not merely an understanding of a pack of information. English is a set of discourses that involve a learner to use the same for expression and communication. In the ESL classroom the teacher’s part is bit much challenging in involving a learner’s participation in language