TEMA 22: Variables to be taken into consideration in the
(Se trata del tema 22 del temario específico de la especialidad de lengua extranjera)
TEMA 22: Variables to be taken into consideration in the
organization of the foreign language classroom. Pupils grouping,
space and time management, methodology selection, teachers' role,
. . .
1.- General Factors
1.1.- Age
Generally speaking, it is said that children learn more
quickly than adults but this is not so clear. Children learn more
quickly because of their innate abilities of acquisition in
primary levels. Children, because of their motivation to become a
communicator, develop a better pronunciation than adults, but
adults will acquire primary levels more rapidly because of their
greater cognitive abilities and strategies.
1.2.- Sex
It has been found that girls and boys use different
strategies when they are learning a language. Girls tends to be
mere communicative than boys.
1.3.- Motivation and attitudes.
Gardner and Lamberer stabled two main kinds of motivation:
-Integrative: The learner has a genuine interest in the
second language community
-Instrumental: His interest is in how the second language
can be useful towards furthering others goals.
It is clear that this is not enough to be highly motivated,
It must be acompained by others factors such as useful
strategies.
1.4.- Aptitude and intelligence
Learning a second language in a classroom involves two sets
of intellectual abilities:
- A general academic or reasoning ability called
intelligence
- Specifics cognitive qualities needed for second language
acquisition called aptitude
There are several problems to stablish the difference of
influence of both in the second language acquisition.
1.5.- Personality
Krashen argues that extroverted learners will find easier to
make contact with other users of the second language and
therefore will obtain more input.
Also Characteristics such as extroversion assertiveness and
adventuresomeness are predictable to be positive for learning
Social Skills. Allow the students to be related to the world and
culture of the country.
Other factors we have to consider are inhibition and axiety.
A teacher who reduces both in the whole learning process will
make students increase confidence when producing a language.
1.6.- Learning Styles
According to Ausubel, learning styles are define as "self-
consistent and enduring individual differences in cognitive
organization and functioning".
It can be inductive or deductive; dependent or independent;
holistic or analytic; ...
These cognitive learning stiles will be developed in the
chapter of learning strategies.
Age, sex, motivation, aptitude, intelligence, personality and
learning style stablish individual differences in the way or
second language acquisition. So we should consider them to
stablish
the most effective way to teach them
2.-"The good language learner" (Ellis) and the unsuccessful
learner
a)Ellis characteristics of a good language learner
*Be able to respond to the group dynamics of the learning
situations
*Seek out all opportunities to use the target language
*make maximum use of the opportunities to practice the
second language
*Supplement the learning that derive from the direct contact
with speakers of the second language
*Be an adolescent or an adult rather a young child
*Possess sufficient analytic skills to perceive categorize
and store the linguistic features of the second
language and also to monitor errors
*Possess a strong reason for learning the second language
and also develop a strong task motivation
*Be prepared to experiment by taking risk
*Be capable of adapting to different learning conditions
b) Characteristics of an unsuccessful language learner
*tendency toward a history of faliture
*Lack of confidence
*No risk taking
*Low self-steam
*Negative attributions
*Poor study habits and learning strategies
*Full of surprises
3.-Learner involvement: Strategies
For a successful learner-centred-comunicative methodology,
the teacher must be no more the "controller"
or the "conductor". S/he must help the learner to be
self-autonomous and aware with the global learning.
According to Hutchinson these are the characteristics that
should be enhanced with the classroom:
3.1.- Positive attitudes
To develop affectivity in the language, the learner and the
teacher have to work together.
The teacher role is to turn into a productive ingredient in
the learning pot. He is going to decide how
to conduct the process, materials, . . . He also should teach
attitudes, strategies, abilities, skills and other concepts
now included in the syllabus design. Positive attitudes are those
concerned with culture awareness.
3.2.- Awareness raising
Teacher must apply global contents. S/he must provide the
learner the strategies to become responsible.
The strategies included here are those affective ones.
3.3.-Skill development
The skills are directed toward cognitive and metacognitive
strategies.
Metacognive strategy is a learning strategy that involves
thinking about our knowledge of the learning
process.
Cognitive strategy is a strategy that involves mental
manipulation or transformation of materials or
tasks and is intended to enhance comprehension, acquisition or
retention.
Both are concerned with the "learning to learn".
3.4.- Basic tools for learning: Techniques
*Sound acquisition
-repeating aloud
-Listening carefully and talking aloud
*Grammar
-Following rules
-Inferring grammar rules
-Comparing L1 and L2
-Memorizing structures and using them
*Vocabulary
-Making up charts
-Learning words in context
-Learning words that are associated
-Using new words in phrases
-Using a dictionary
*Listening comprehension
-Listening to the radio
-Exposing oneself to different accents and registers
*Learning to talk
- Not being afraid to make mistakes
- Making contact with native speakers
- Asking for correction
*Learning to write
-Having penpals
-Writing frequently
-Frecuent reading of what you expect to write
*Learning to read
-Reading something everyday
-Reading things that are familiar
-Reading texts at the beginners level
-looking for meaning from the context
3.5.-Learner syllabus design (loopback)
The contents that a task based syllabus, like the Spanish
reform one, Should be divided into:
a)Contents which develop the oral communicatively abilities
b)Contents which develop the written communicatively
abilities
c)Sociocultural contents
These contents must include the strategies above mentioned.
These strategies will achieve the specific and the general aims.
A progresive evaluation will be considered during the academic
year. And one of the most important things included in the
syllabus is the selection of a methodology.
In summary, we are clamming a task based approach focused in
the process where evaluation and methodology are included in the
learning contents.
4.-Class management. Pupils grouping
| |LOCK-STEP |PAIR WORK |GROUP WORK |INDIVIDUAL STUDY |
|A |*Anyone can |*Increases the pupils practice |*Increases the amount of pupils talking |*Child relax from |
|D |hear what |*Motivation to learn with others |time |outside pressure |
|V |is |*Important for our youngest pupils |*Gives them opportunities to use the |*Child internalize what s/he is |
|A |being said | |language to communicate |learning |
|N |*We get a | |*They learn and teach |*Permit our pupils |
|T |good | |exhibiting a degree of self-reliance |select between |
|A |language | |which |diferent activities |
|G |model | |is absent from teaching controlled | |
|E |*We can | |activities | |
|S | | |*more dynamic | |
| |move | |*Need a communication | |
| |the lass at | |more important | |
| |a | |*more relax than | |
| |fast pace | |pair work | |
| |*Is not | | | |
| |very | | | |
| |stressing | | | |
|D |*Children |*Noise problems |*Use of Spanish | |
|I |does not |*How to group our pupils |*Incorrectness | |
|S |practice |*Some pupils do not like to work in |*Noise | |
|A |very much |pairs |*Motivated clearly | |
|D |*lack of |*To motivate them |defined goals are | |
|V |heterogeneity |we have to tell them what the reason |the solution | |
|A |*lack of |for the activity is |*Selection of group members | |
|N |effectiveness |*Use of Spanish | | |
|T |for a | | | |
|A |communication | | | |
|G |work | | | |
|E | | | | |
|TE|*controller |*Assessors |*Provides assistance | |
|AC|*assessors |*Prompters |*Checks the task | |
|H | |*resources |is carried out satisfactorily | |
|ER| | | | |
|Sï| | | | |
|RO| | | | |
|LE| | | | |
|K | |*OPEN PAIRS |*STRONG & WEAK TOGETHER | |
|I | |Who are not Side by side perform a |Usually good for | |
|N | |task. The rest listen them |Both | |
|D | |*CLOSED PAIRS |*GROUPS OF STRONG/WEAK | |
|S | |The class is divided into pairs and |They could work different materials at | |
| | |working at the same |The same time | |
| | |Time |* Biggest size for a group is half class | |
| | |*CLOSED & OPEN |and only for competitive activities. | |
| | |Form new ones during the activity |*Smallest group | |
| | |*COOPERATIVE |(6 more or less) | |
| | |Our two pupils have to help each other |*Flexible groups | |
| | |to |As the activity progress the group split | |
| | |complete the activities |up and reform | |
| | | |*fixed groups for | |
| | | |all the year you can have group leaders | |
| | | |who make of group | |
| | | |organizer and | |
| | | |mini-teacher | |
5.-Space and time management
The teacher should consider this options:
5.1.-The physical enviroment
-Seating
-Voice proyection
-Blackboard
5.2.-Rapport between teacher and student
-physical position
-eye contact
-Using students names
-Personal involvement/enjoyment
-Encouragement
-Self-confidence
-Clarity
5.3.-Students' individual sense of belonging to a group
-teacher involving all equality
-Expressing their own personalities
-Constitution of groups in the class
5.4.-Classroom organization and lay out
-In most cases we do not have total freedom to organize
the classroom. Brewster underlines Six points to consider:
1.- A grid plan made to scale is useful if we have a large
class squeezed into a small area
2.- We must think about sitting our pupils in rows or groups
3.- Pupils who is closed to the teacher Concentrate more and
work harder
4.- A small classroom library colour coded acording to
difficulty
5.- Areas where our pupils can display their work
6.- Corners
5.4.1.- Classroom display
We must encourage them to display their work when setting a
display we must keep several points in mind:
1.-try to keep the work at our pupils eye level
2.-We may include related words pictures or a tape which may
tell a story which is described visually in a display
3.-As they must be eye catching, the titles and lettering
should be large and attractive
4.- We must ensure that the pupils' names are on their work
and above all, that all our pupils have something on display
5.5.-Time management
The differents groups can go at a different speed and what
we have planed could be good for one but not for the others. We
have to plot realistic timings for the complection of certain
activities.
We may be left with time to spare at the end of our lesson;
In these cases we need to have some activities reserved
6.-Selecting a methodology
Our curriculum established that the main aim of teaching a
foreign language in primary education is to enable our pupils to
reach communicative competence and its main subcomponents:
Grammar competence: Domain of grammar and lexical
capabilities
Discourse competence: written or speaking discourses with
coherence and cohesion.
Socio-linguistic competence: Understand the social context in
which the conversation takes place
Socio-cultural competence: Knowledge of cultural aspects of
the target language speaking countries
6.1.- Communication in the classroom
We can stablish a continuum where communicative and non
communicative activities are the extremes. In the classroom we
divide the work into 3 major activities depending on the point of
the continuum we are placed:
Presentation
Practice
Production
6.2.- Integrated Skills
Our activities will sometimes have to concentrate on one
single skill to reach our aims but we have to use that to
practicing others.
6.4.- Assessment
Continuous assessment is now the more wide spread method of
assessment in our schools. This assessment have to show our pupils
level of attainment, the effectiveness and efficiency of our
methods and it start with an initial diagnosis.
7.-A common working environment: Teachers' role
7.1.- Teaching style
Teaching style is a complex amalgam of beliefs, attitudes,
strategies, techniques, personality and control which lies at the
heart of the interpersonal relationship between teacher and
learner.
7.2.- Motivation
A primary function of the teacher management roe is to
motivate the learners who are demotivated. There are several
ways:
-Adopting a positive attitude towards the learner.
-Giving pupils meaningful relevant and interesting task to
do.
-Maintaining discipline to be extent that a reasonable
working atmosphere is stablish
-Being motivated and interested themselves
-Involving the learner more actively in the classroom
process and activities that demand inter-student communication and
cooperative efforts
-Introducing learners to the concepts of self apprassial and
self-evaluation
-Giving positive feedback or written assignments
-Encouraging pride in achievement by allowing learners to
display their work on the classroom.
7.3.- Main types of teachers
We are going to analyze the six main roles that Hammer
distinguishes:
CONTROLLER. We are totally in charge of the class. It is use
in presentation stage. It is only adequate during the
reproducction stage, being wholly inappropriate at the production
stage.
ASSESOR. During the presentation stage we also correct our
pupils' error and mistakes but without making our pupils ashamed
of their errors.
Organizing feedback is a major part of assessing our pupils
performance. The teacher waits until an activity or task has been
completed and he tells pupils how they did.
ORGANIZER. is to tell our pupils what is our topic and what
re the tasks. We must also get the activity going, solving
initial problems and finally organize feedback.
Prompter. We sometimes need to help our students where there
is a silence or our pupils are confused. We should help only when
it is necessary
PARTICIPANT. In simulations is interesting to participate
with our pupils.
RESOURCE.In communicative activity it's important to keep our
roles as assessors and to be a kind of resource center.
7.4.- Comunication patterns: "formal" or "informal"?
If we allow greater freedom of participation from the
learner, we will develop a less formal communication pattern. The
learners will be more ready to share meanings and values. This
will enrich the contents of learning.
7.5.-Attitude towards errors in the learning process.
The mistakes are caused by an overgeneralization of the
second language or by the interference of the mother tongue. As
educators, our porpoise is to encourage risk-takers.
The mistakes takes part in the learning process and they
assure the stage of the students' acknoledgement. Only if obstruct
the comunication are to be corrected.
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