My Philosophy of Language Teaching and Learning



My Philosophy of Language Teaching and Learning

Jennifer B. Miller

4/9/09

Some of my philosophies of language teaching and learning I have naturally adopted over the past five years, without even realizing it. Things like: making teaching learner-centered, focusing on communicative language teaching, teaching with realia, having lessons be interesting and worthwhile for students to learn, getting to know students’ needs, goals and desires, noticing and using the knowledge that students bring with them to the classroom, and much more. However, when I decided to write about my philosophy of teaching, I felt I needed a comprehensive document that summed up current language teaching and learning theories. I found a document on the internet that helped jog my memory about these theories. It is cited at the bottom of this paper.

One of the major theories of language development is the continuum of learning that takes place. I agree with this concept, as it is pretty evident in the students I have worked with. There are five stages, ranging from the Silent/Receptive (Preproduction) Stage to the Advanced Language Proficiency Stage. Even if a student reaches the Advanced stage, they may only have one “type” of language. Jim Cummins has theorized that there are two types of language: basic interpersonal communication skills, and cognitive academic language proficiency. While a student may become conversationally fluent in two to five years, academic and technical language fluency can take quite a bit longer.

Cummins has also conceptualized two types of communication, which depend on the context in which they occur. These are: context-embedded communication, and context-reduced communication. Context-embedded communication is based on supportive clues that help the learner understand what they are trying to learn (like gestures, objects, etc.). Context-reduced communication, on the other hand, gives fewer supportive clues, which makes it harder for the learner to comprehend what is being communicated. This is often the case in phone conversations, which I have been told are one of the hardest ways to communicate in one’s second language. Additionally, Cummins has proposed a difference between the cognitive demands placed on learners. Some communication types are cognitively undemanding, and other types are cognitively demanding. The main difference is how much abstract or critical thinking is required of the learner.

Throughout my MA TESL program I have learned about the concept of Scaffolding instruction, where a teacher teaches the students just slightly beyond their current level of knowledge, challenging them to develop further. This concept goes along with Stephen Krashen’s “comprehensible input” hypothesis, and similarly, Merrill Swain’s concept of “comprehensible output.” Both of these concepts are vital in the second language learning process. The students need to be challenged with input that’s slightly beyond their competence level, and likewise, they need to be challenged to produce output which is slightly beyond their competence level. This helps the learning process to grow and develop gradually, building the students’ knowledge, block upon block.

I discovered Krashen’s Affective Filter Hypothesis while researching the use of music in the teaching of ESL. This hypothesis states that a learner’s emotions can directly cause positive or negative effects on their language learning process. It is understandable that many emotions can come along with learning a new language, especially if it is forced upon the student. The literature I have studied about using music to teach ESL has proposed that music helps alleviate some of the negative emotions learners may have about language learning, thus helping them to concentrate and learn the new language more readily. I believe this is especially true when the teacher honors and respects the students’ first languages and cultures (through music or other forms), thus giving their students a sense of validation about their ethnicity and all that it encompasses.

There are many approaches to teaching second language learners. I favor Total Physical Response (TPR), especially for beginners, as well as Dictated Stories, Dialogue Journals, and Culture Studies. I believe it is important for international students, as well as their American peers, to learn about and experience each other’s cultures. This helps to avoid prejudice and discrimination, which is often based on ignorance. Exploring each other’s cultures is a great learning tool, and can be incorporated into many projects, including authentic assessments (which are my preferred type of assessment).

In sum, I am amazed at how much I have learned, grown, and developed as a teacher and as a student during my time in Penn State’s MA TESL program. However, I am also amazed at how much I still need to learn, in order to become the teacher I hope to someday be. I suppose that can be said about knowledge in general; “the more you know, the more you realize you don’t know.” Life is a journey of learning, experimenting, stumbling, stabilizing, and growing. My greatest goal is to be a lifelong learner as long as I live, learning from my students, as they learn from me.

Reference: Strategies and Resources for Mainstream Teachers of English Language Learners. Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory, May 2003.

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