Language Learning
Introduction
The process through which children learn their first language has fascinated people for centuries. These are several gruesome historical episodes in which unethical members of royalty from different cultures around the world exploited their power in vain attempts to discover the origins of language in children. Human beings possess a capacity to learn language that is specific to this species and no other. Language might be expected from the evolutionary process humans have undergone and that the basis for language might be transmitted genetically.
The children’s ability to learn as facilitated by those involved in the immediate community where they live is presumed to be enhanced. This is the primary basis of most of the learning theories that has been identified through time. The children learn several lessons as they start to interact with the community. They learn how to become part of the community. As they growl old, they learn to play a role in the community. These of course, are in addition to the basic lessons that they have to learn in school. That is, learn how to sing, write, perform arithmetic, and solve math problems and others.
There are certain arguments that involve in terms of the language development, It was been argued that language is a complex system consisting of a number of distinct, interacting, components, and that no single explanation for its development is likely to be adequate: but the evidence suggests, rather, that different factors predominate in the development of different parts of the system. In meaning, the language development is a critical factor in the stage development of a child. This paper will explore Willis argument that there are three essential conditions (exposure, use and motivation and one desirable condition for successful language learning.
View of Task-based Learning
One of the greatest challenges facing educators today is the need to customize instruction to meet the individual needs of each language learner. It is an undertaking that requires new knowledge and teaching skills. Many of the teaching and learning concepts are universal and can be used with all students since each learner is unique. Information exchanges, global prosperity, and an embracing of cultural sensitivity may be advanced if the complex process of language acquisition and language development is understood. Initially, language serves as the foundation for the establishing of lifelong literacy skills.
Children are growing up in a complex, highly competitive global economy in which our total knowledge is doubling every few years. We exist in a global society that requires extraordinary skills and talents as well as a pace of life never before experienced in human history. Our multilingual needs as a society are celebrated as our cultures are no longer separated by bodies of water or land but only by the limits we place on the appreciation of human diversity.
People are wired to learn languages, aptitude can speed up learning, some learners take on a different persona when speaking another language, some learners resist sounding and acting differently, some learners have a higher tolerance for ambiguity than others, learners who use learning strategies effectively are more successful, and learning in your preferred learning style increases motivation and effectiveness.
Motivation affects the time spent learning a language, learner attitudes affect motivation, if you expect to succeed—you will be more likely to succeed, if you have unreasonable expectations you may get discouraged, certain kinds of anxiety can interfere with your language learning, fear of making mistakes can inhibit your learning, too much correction or criticism can inhibit your learning, the more positive you feel about the speakers of a language, the more motivation you will have to learn it, if you want to communicate with speakers of a language, you will be more motivated to learn it, and if you need to use a language, you will be more motivated to learn it.
People learn better if their learning is encouraged by speakers of the language, People need to experience language used in context, if speakers of two languages really want to communicate, they can do a lot with a little, people have expectations about who speaks which language, communication tends to take the easiest path, people may resist speaking their language because they want to learn your language, people often modify their speech when speaking to foreigners, in traditional cultures there may be only one right way to do something, it may be culturally inappropriate to be too direct in what you say, and every culture has taboo topics.
Language acquisition is a developmental process, people learning a language build up their own systems, you need lots of comprehensible input, you can improve your sound discrimination, memory, and grammatical sensitivity skills, you can compensate for deficiencies in some skills, the sooner you can acquire the grammatical system of a language, the sooner you can use the language creatively, you need chances to negotiate meaning with native speakers, native speakers often highly value good pronunciation, repetition helps things stick, producing language that sounds too good can be misleading, the more meaningful exposure, the more you learn, you cannot rely on memorization alone, memorized material can give a false impression of your proficiency, your brain analyzes language whether you know it or not, knowing a language is different from knowing about a language, knowing about a language may help you learn it, body language, gestures, and your face communicate as much as words, learners build up an auditory image of what the language sounds like, language learners need to learn to understand and produce well-formed discourses, predictable scripts aid comprehension, language learners seem to hit plateaus, you need exposure to language in a variety of social settings, one language may interfere with another, the mind tends to filter out redundant material, productive skills are harder than receptive skills, comprehensible output can become comprehensible input, knowing the topic helps you interpret what you hear or read, linguistic context helps you understand the meaning of words, knowledge of a language may lie dormant, but be reactivated, multilingual people may associate languages with a particular setting or audience.
Exposure to language learning is a term not commonly used today, but it is an approach developed by British applied linguists in the 1930s to the 1960s, and which had an impact on language courses which survive in some still being used today. Structural view of language is the view behind the Oral Approach and Situational Language Teaching. Speech was viewed as the basis of language and structure as being at the heart of speaking ability. This was a view similar to American structuralists, such as Fries, but the notion of the British applied linguists, such as, that structures must be presented in situations in which they could be used, gave its distinctiveness to Situational language teaching.
According to (1982) the process through which children learn their first language has fascinated people for centuries. There are several gruesome historical episodes in which unethical members of royalty from different cultures around the world exploited their power in vain attempts to discover the origins of language in children (1976). (1964) believes that human beings possess a capacity to learn language that is specific to this species and no other. also suggested that language might be expected from the evolutionary process humans have undergone and that the basis for language might be transmitted genetically.
There are certain arguments that involve in terms of the language development, It was been argued that language is a complex system consisting of a number of distinct, interacting, components, and that no single explanation for its development is likely to be adequate: but the evidence suggests, rather, that different factors predominate in the development of different parts of the system. In meaning, the language development is a critical factor in the stage development of a child.
According to (1984) he explained that the normal child’s acquisition of language is recognized as one of the most impressive feats of childhood. In meaning, it is more remarkable still when we consider not only the complex grammar a typical child acquires in his first decade, but also the social rules for appropriate language use that requires mastery. However, the context for investigating the question has been one of controversy, pitting environmentalists against nativists, or mother against mind; as it were this is one factor that could relate the difference between the two developments of a child. In meaning there are certain studies involved that parent factor is considered to be a basis of development of a child. Now, after more than a decade of empirical research and theoretical discussion, it is clear that any adequate and specific answer to that question must be complex, involving descriptions of the information available in the environment, the nature of the child’s processing procedures for accessing that information, and the nature of the cognitive and/or linguistic constraints that assume the efficient development of a functional human communication system. It is better to understand how important communication stage development to a child.
Moreover, in the field of children’s language development is one that encompasses a range of distinct theoretical perspectives. The theoretical issue that has predominated over all the others in this area for the last thirty-five years or more is that of the extent to which children are pre-programmed for the specific task of language learning. One related issue is that of whether language is independent of other areas of cognition, or is it dependant upon more general cognitive abilities. A number of distinct theoretical positions have been identified (1986) who believes the child is born with specific linguistic knowledge while (1956) portrayed as believing that language is entirely a matter of conditioning; Piaget, who sees language development as an outgrowth of general cognitive development; and (1975) who emphasizes the importance of the social and interactional context in which language development takes place.
In the context view theory of (1983) it was noted to emphasizes the critical importance of the social and interactional context of language learning in the young child. In meaning, however he does not claim that language can be acquired solely on the basis of information derived from the social context in which it is experienced. Rather he describes this as a support system which backs up the child’s predisposition to acquire a language system (1975, 1983). The theory which Bruner developed in the mid-seventies made far reaching claims about the importance of the social context for the development of many areas of language. Furthermore, the essential claim was that language was experienced in the context of familiar routines it was shared activities which were repeated hundreds of times. It was the opportunities afforded to the child to map linguistic input onto these highly predictable activities that allowed the child to “crack the code” of language.
On the other hand, the other two theorists mentioned above with regards to the theory of Skinner and Piaget, on the theory of Skinner and Piaget, it may now be differentiated from both Chomsky and Bruner in that neither would see language as fundamentally distinct from other aspects of human behaviour (in ‘s terms) or cognition (in ‘s). In general, it only indicates that the development of language is may be categorized into two dimensions according to the theorist concerned. The first thing it could be emphasize on the place of the genetic component in determining the course development, and the second thing is that to the extent of which the view of language is a cognitive domain or a behavioural category. It was been viewed clearly that language development of child is a clear importance to the stage of development where there is an increasing number of perceived normal citation concerning the language development of a child. It was been understand that the early sign language development of a children suggests that the most important consideration is to get the child tuned in to the visual channel through which signs are transmitted. In the nature of language on the present evidence it was complex system that contains a number of distinct components.
Teaching and Task-Based Learning
A child’s ability in learning the language is determined by a lot of different factors. One of the most important among them is the learning environment. The learning environment is not only limited in the classroom but it extends to the whole community in which the child interacts.
First let us start with the classroom. The structure and the design of the classroom must be made in such a way that the children feel comfortable and it must be conducive to learning. It is important to note the phrase conducive to learning to differentiate it from a classroom where the children feel like playing all the time. The classroom must be a place where children are valued as individuals and where their needs for attention, approval, and affection are supported. They are also places where children can be helped to acquire a strong foundation in the knowledge and skills needed for school success. Taking the example in YCAL, the children should be into games and activities while learning their English lessons. The children’s learning capacity can be further enhanced through social involvement. Classroom activities and participation should be included in the learning process. This does not only develop the learners’ abilities but also make them more confident and independent. Their thinking skills will also be enhanced.
The child’s learning environment is not only confined in the four corners of the classroom. It is necessary that the child’s resources for learning must be extended in the outside world. For example, Internet facilities may be made available for them. This suggestion needs to be verified since the internet has lot information to offer. It should be the responsibility of the teacher to guide the children in surfing the internet. There must be a guideline as to which sites are particularly helpful in the child’s learning and education. The children must also be encouraged to visit the library more often. The different library materials and references could extend the child’s learning resources to further horizons. All this helps them learn more and more about their subjects of interest. It could also help the children decide on which particular field he may be interested in the future. This is vital in the proficiency development of the children in the language.
To better serve their diverse student groups, today’s classroom teachers need an understanding of the process of language acquisition. Learners will progress through three distinct stages of linguistic awareness. In each stage teachers will encounter learning events that equip them to formulate answers to the following essential questions:
1. Teacher as a Language Learner
2. Teacher as an Assessor & Evaluator
3. Teacher as a Curriculum Specialist & Language Facilitator
What responsibility do all educators have in addressing the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students? One must be cautious in one’s claims of effective learning characteristics and techniques. Learning a language well depends on so many different factors, and there is considerable variation among learners. Some learners may be more successful due to factors out of their control, like gender, intelligence, age, etc. But, to some degree, they do have control over what strategies they employ, although we still do not really know to what extent this has a positive impact. Also we do not really know yet if successful learners use certain strategies because they are successful learners (i.e. because they can), or as a result of using the strategies.
Successful language learners appear to use a wider range of strategies in a larger number of situations than weaker learners (, 1989). Some learners may not be aware of which strategies they use or which strategies are available to them. The teacher can therefore help these learners to recognize the power of using strategies by integrating learner-strategy training into the regular lesson, teaching them how to evaluate each strategy, and how and why to use them. It is important though that the individual language tasks, and the characteristics of each learner, are taken into account when doing such training. Some learners may be resistant to change, and the teacher will need to be creative to find ways to disguise the new strategies as old ones.
Schools should provide every child a learning-to-read program based on systematic phonics. Emphasis should at first be on sounds, letters and words, moving to meaning, comprehension and inference. Teachers should model and share the pleasure and utility of reading for communication, interest, discovery, excitement, fun and further learning.
Teachers must apply all the possible theories and concepts so that child learning is maximized. In other words, the children must learn as early as in the primary school the basic concepts and lessons that they need in order to grow and become part of the community. The teachers must also address the necessity of having the parents and the community involved in the learning process of the children. In the first place, it is in the child’s home where the learning process starts to take place. The school and the community are just secondary to the home. But it should not be the issue of whether who takes the responsibility first, each of them should have an effort of creating a better place for the child’s learning process.
Reflection of Teacher
Understanding the contexts that surround children is a challenging yet critical step that enables us to describe and deliver appropriate and effective developmental supports for any outcome especially learning. Children develop and learn in a varied milieu of natural environments ranging from the immediate family to the broader aspects of a particular culture (, 1979). The broader aspect includes the immediate society in which the child lives and of course the school. Once the child is already enrolled in the school, his learning ability depends mostly on the way by which learning in school is facilitated. It is therefore important that during this stage in the child’s life, his ability to learn is enhanced as well as nurtured by the school teacher, the people in the society and the parents.
The children’s ability to learn as facilitated by those involved in the immediate community where they live is presumed to be enhanced. This is the primary basis of most of the learning theories that has been identified through time. The children learn several lessons as they start to interact with the community. They learn how to become part of the community. As they growl old, they learn to play a role in the community. These of course, are in addition to the basic lessons that they have to learn in school. That is, learn how to sing, write, perform arithmetic, and solve math problems and others.
Like all kinds of learnings, learning how to read, write and speak a certain language is one that involves phases or a step by step process. A student, for example, has to learn the alphabet first. Soon, he will be able to form words out of the letters. At this point, it won’t be long until he is able to construct sentences himself, speak the language fluently and read written text with ease.
Being a teacher by profession, one needs to demonstrate objectivity at all times. That is, a teacher needs to apply almost every available theory in practice. That was what I have been doing since I started my career as a teacher. I have utilized these theories in my practice in pursuit of becoming an effective teacher. Since I have been teaching primary school students, I choose to use the example of child learning in this particular paper.
The example that I have listed above are directly related to my personal experiences as a teacher. As a teacher I have known for a fact that the children’s learning process is a continuous process and it takes time. It also needs to be the concern not just of the teachers but of the parents as well as the people in the immediate community where the child lives. This process also needs to be facilitated with several factors related to the community.
Teaching children in a community where everyone is participating in the learning process of the child is much easier. For instance, if the parents are very much cooperative especially in discussing their children’s homework, it would be much easier for me to make the children comprehend the lessons in school. That is because the parents may have already given their child a background on what the lesson is all about. In addition, the learning ability of the children is also enhanced if the community offers several facilities that are helpful in the children’s learning process.
One of the most important among them is the learning environment. The learning environment is not only limited in the classroom but it extends to the whole community in which the child interacts.
The structure and the design of the classroom must be made in such a way that the children feel comfortable and it must be conducive to learning. It is important to note the phrase conducive to learning to differentiate it from a classroom where the children feel like playing all the time. The classroom must be a place where children are valued as individuals and where their needs for attention, approval, and affection are supported.
The children’s learning capacity can be further enhanced through social involvement. Classroom activities and participation should be included in the learning process. This does not only develop the learners’ abilities but also make them more confident and independent. Their thinking skills will also be enhanced.
The child’s learning environment is not only confined in the four corners of the classroom. It is necessary that the child’s resources for learning must be extended in the outside world. For example, Internet facilities may be made available for them. This suggestion needs to be verified since the internet has lot information to offer. It should be the responsibility of the teacher to guide the children in surfing the internet. There must be a guideline as to which sites are particularly helpful in the child’s learning and education. The children must also be encouraged to visit the library more often. The different library materials and references could extend the child’s learning resources to further horizons. All this helps them learn more and more about their subjects of interest. It could also help the children decide on which particular field he may be interested in the future. This is vital in the proficiency development of the children in language.
In conclusion, language learning should be taken in a holistic approach. All factors that should encompass learning such as the learning environment, the strategy, facilities and tools, parental support and motivation should be present. Thus, the application of a learning theory in teaching the language for instance, should not work on its own. It is then recommended that the learning process should be taken into levels and steps. Class involvement and the fun in learning should also be taken into consideration.
References
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment