Tek Handbook Unit 1

8/11/2019 Tek Handbook Unit 1

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The act of teaching is essentially a constant processing of options. At every point in

each lesson a teacher has a number of options available. He or she can decide to do

something, or to do something else, or not to do anything at all. In order to become

a better teacher it seems important to be aware of as many options as possible.

This may enable you to generate your own rules and guidelines as to what works

and what doesn't."(Jim Scrivener)

By Grace Bertolini


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- GAME: Getting to know each other P. 3

- Teaching Very Young Learners P. 4

- Language Acquisition vs. Language Learning P. 5

- The order of acquisition P. 5

- Guidelines for stimulating the Learning Process P. 6

- Communication skills. English pronunciation P. 7

- Motivation & Methodology P. 8

- Language Learning Methods and Approaches P. 9

- The Behaviorist Theory P. 9

- The Cognitive Theory P. 10

- Theories and Theorists P.12

- Comparison of Behaviorist and Constructivist Learning Methods P. 12

- An approacha methoda technique? P. 13

- A brief history of EFL P. 14

- The Audio Lingual Method P. 15

- CLL: Communicative Language Learning P. 16

- TPR: Total Physical Response P. 17

- The Natural Approach P. 18

- Krashens Natural Approach principles P. 19

- Communicative Approach P. 21

- Whole Language P. 23

- Task-based Approach P. 24

- VAK: Multisensory Learning P. 26

- Multiple Intelligences Theory P. 27

- The Lexical Approach P. 28

- Providing a natural environment for Young Learners P. 29

- English naturally P. 30

- Appropriate physical environment & materials P. 31

- Main principles of Foreign Language Teaching P. 32

- Main aim of language teaching at Kindergarten P. 33

- Always remember how kids learn! P. 33

- Childrens educational needs P. 36- HOME TASK p. 38


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ACTIVITY:PEOPLE TO PEOPLEGetting to know each other.

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Participants stand up and get into pairs2) They will introduce to each other (name, city, school) and talk during one minute

about :

My expectations about TEK COURSE3) The leader will give some commands: when the leader chants a body part

(Back to Back) the pairs will put those body parts together and will continuetalking.

4)

When the leader says: People to People, the pairs split up and everybody seeksa new partner and start talking again.

Suggestions: Back to back - Knee to knee - Foot to foot - Hand to hand - Elbow toelbow - Shoulder to shoulder.

AFTER THE ACTIVITY:

1) What was something interesting you found about someone?2) We learnt:

- What is important for others.- About diversity.

-

We can celebrate differences- To find what we have in common.- Everybody can participate/ nobody felt excluded.

3) This activity: Brings people together- Creates family- Builds Community.


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TEACHING VERY YOUNG LEARNERS:

Teaching a childcould be defined as instructing him in a certain area.Educating a child, however, is enabling him to develop mentally, morally, physically

and socially.

When 3, 4, 5 year-olds start school, he may never have been away from his mother forany length of time, may have had very little contact with children of his own age or, atthe most, have had contact with only a very small secure group.

Going to Kindergarten and Preschool is an enormous step and the first thing a child has

to do, is to become socialized in this environment. This means learning.- The Dos and Donts of getting on with others.

- How to be accepted by others and how to accept them.

- How to gradually become independent while taking part of the community.

It is our responsibility as teachers to help our students to develop and mature as well as

learn.

Teachers should:- Enjoy her students.

- Be as relaxed as possible.

- Be firm and consistent in her attitudes.

THE LANGUAGE LEARNING PROCESS:

LANGUAGE ACQUISITION & LANGUAGE LEARNING:

In the language learning process, the first language is acquired through experience andthe second language is learned through formal teaching.

LANGUAGE ACQUISITIONtakes place in a constantly stimulating environment:children are exposed to their first language from the very beginning and they areliterally bombarded with language all the time.


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LANGUAGE LEARNING:to facilitate learning, we should try to provide our

students with at least some of the stimuli which are present in Language Acquisition.

Learningis often confused with studying or memorizing. Because we, as adults,

have already acquiredLearning Strategies, we often confuse learning withstudying.

Studyingis a tool for learning: it is not learning in itself.

YOUNG CHILDREN have hardly begun developing these strategies and are,therefore, at a more elementary stage of the learning process than an adult or

adolescent.

Because children learn from experience, they do not distinguish learning situations from

non-learning ones: ALL SITUATIONS ARE LEARNING SITUATIONS FOR ACHILD.

THE ORDER OF ACQUISITION:1) LISTENING2) SPEAKING

3) READING4) WRITING

If we think of teaching as the other side of learning,

then by trying to understand better how children learn,

we will have more understanding of how to teach them

Learning for Young Children is still a question of

experiencingso we need to provide our students with the

possibility of experiencing to ensure successful learning

Teachers present the language orally the child listens

Teachers ask children to reproduce this

language

the child speaks

Teachers present the language in thewritten form

the child reads


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GUIDELINES FOR STIMULATING THE LEARNING PROCESS:

THE LEARNING PROCESS: Remember Young childrens L1 (their Mother Tongue) is their point of reference.

Teachers ask them to reproduce this

language in a written form

the child writes

Children experience language before reproducing it.

They experience the language in the oral form before the written form.

With Young Learners, teachers should concentrate

essentially on listening and speaking.

1)

LISTENING: Present language orally:

Children need to listen to language:

- On tapes/ CDs: as part of formal instruction.-

From the teacher: through informal communication in the classroom.Talk to children in English and use natural language.

2)

SPEAKING: Spend a good part of your class time getting your

students speaking:

- The purpose of language is communication.

3)

READING:- Young kids need to be exposed to the language.

- Provide visual support such as posters, labeling, etc- Let children play with letters and words as part of learning to

read.

4)

WRITING:

- Writing is the last and most complex skill that we develop in

language learning.- It cannot be performed successfully until the other 3 stages are

in place.- One of the reasons why Foreign Language Teaching is so often

unsuccessful, is that teachers spend too much time on writing

activities.


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Do not expect them to learn things in English which they have not already

mastered in L1.

If children are not proficient readers in L1, they cannot be expected to read in

English.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS:

- You cannot expect children to communicate in English in ways that they cannotcommunicate in their first language. If children are asked to read and write in Englishwhen they are not skilled or mature enough: learning to read the language becomes an

unpleasant task.

- So children should have good oral communication skills in English before they learn

how to read and write in English.

- They will also be able to read aloud with good pronunciation if they can identifythe words on the page, with language they have already heard.

-

If reading is enjoyable, they will feel encouraged to read more, and later, to write.- If they are able to express themselves, then writing will be a creative rather then a

mechanical task.

ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION:

- The fact that the connection between the way words are written and the way theyare pronounced is so apparently chaotic.

- Unlike many Latin-based languages, each letter in English does not have one

independent, unchanging sound.

- VOWELS:Most vowels can be pronounced in 2 or more ways and, broughttogether in different combinations, they form different sounds.

- There are 20 different vowels sounds in English, all produced by just 5 letters.

- CONSONANTS:There are many consonant combinations which producedifferent sounds: For example: thin think or in this.

- ACCENTS:English does not use accents to show where a word should be

stressed.- Correct pronunciation is only developed by listening to English and reproducing

the sounds.

LIST OF VOWEL SOUNDS:


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ENGLISH STRUCTURE:

When teaching Young Learners, we are usually concerned with simple structuressuch as:

- Verb Tenses.- Adjective/Noun combination.

- Prepositions.

Objectivesfor this stage, should be very limited and should be practiced and recycled

continually.

With children it is much better to demonstrate the language than to explain it. Languagelearners need to usestructures both formally (using the course materials) and

informally (through classroom communication).

Teachers should distinguish between the structures that they expect the children to be

able toproduceand those that they expect them only to understand.

When telling a story in the classroom, the text may contain complex structures, but kids

can follow the story from the non- linguistic supportsuch as pictures, sound effectsand gestures.

RememberThe ultimate aim in a Young Learners classroom is to teach

our students effective communication: children should be able to understand

and make themselves understood.

MOTIVATION & METHODOLOGY:

An important element of successful teaching is knowing how to motivate your students.This is a complex issue since different people are motivated by different things.

The main motivation for language learning has to be the desire to communicate.

For Young Children the central interest is themselves. They love to talk aboutthemselves, their possessions and their immediate surroundings.

Teaching a language is different from teaching other subjects as our aim is

communication. We cannot promote communication among children if they are all

sitting quietly doing individual work all the time.

- By varying the Group Dynamics in the classroom, we can provide students withdifferent types of interaction.

- Failure and fear of failure, demotivates the student and he can perceive himself as a

bad learner.- Careful planning of each class will ensure positive motivation.

__________________________________________________________________________________


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LANGUAGE LEARNING METHODS & APPROACHES

for EFL TEACHING:

How are Languages learnt?

What is the best way to teach them?

LANGUAGE LEARNING THEORIES

What is the relevance of language theoryto language teaching? Which method should we follow in order to teach English at school? Is there just one method or various?

Are some methods better than others?

LANGUAGE TEACHING THEORIES depend on the conception of what a languageis.

There are several theories explaining how the human being acquires language:

1)

THE BEHAVIORIST THEORY

General theory of learning by psychologist JOHN B. WATSON (1923).According to Behaviorists, All learning takes place through a process of habit

formation

FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING consists of learners receiving linguistic inputfrom speakers in their environment, imitating what they hear and developing habits in

the foreign language by routine practice.

Knowledge is the product of interaction with the environment

through stimulus-response conditioning

Problems with Behaviorist View:

- Imitation does not help the learner in real life situations.- Students must make sentences they have never previously seen.

- Pre-practiced sentences are not enough to carry on conversation.

THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD is the best example of the Behaviorist View.

- Learning can be controlled and measured.

- Teachers organize and transmit the information to students.- They strengthen the transmission through repetition and positive reinforcement or

rewards.- They use objective tests to measure learning.


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2) THE COGNITIVE THEORY: CONSTRUCTIVISM

The Cognitive theory is based on the work of psychologists. Piaget says that students

can learn things when they are developmentally ready to do so.Cognitive psychologists emphasized the importance of:

- Meaning-

Knowing- Understanding

- Meaningplays an important role in human learning. Learning is a meaningful

process of relating new events to already existing concepts.

- LEARNING A LANGUAGEis a holistic processwhere foreign language

learners:

1) Use their skills of cognition to figure out the L2 on their own.

2)Notice a pattern and construct their own rules accordingly.

3)

Benefit from their mistakes because they play an active role in the ForeignLanguage Learning process.

THE CONSTRUCTIVISM VIEW:

Teachers should be facilitators who help students:- Construct their own understanding.

- Carry out challenging tasks.One problem with this view, is that cognition is not the only factor that

learners use to make assumptions about the language. Some errors learners make, arebased on rules of the Mother Tongue. They are influenced by these rules as opposed to

coming to conclusions based on their cognitive abilities.


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Theories Theorists

Learning Theorists and their theories.

Theory Summary of Theory

Robert GagneGagne created instructional techniques to enable teachers

to teach and assess students based on the principals of

information processing.

The technique was simplified into nine steps which include

1) Attention of students. 2) Inform all of objectives. 3)

Recalling previously learned information that correlates

with new information to be learned. 4) Teach new

material. 5) Assist with learning. 6) Encourage

performance. 7) Assess learned knowledge. 8) Check

mastery. 9) Ensure mastery

BEHAVIORIST

Skinner

Skinnerrefuted the theory that behavior was controlled

physiologically, but rather cognitively. He devised the

theory of operant conditioning which stated that actions

may be controlled by the penalty or reward of activities.

Positive reinforcement can encourage a good behavior by

adding a reward, where as negative reinforcement can also

encourage a good behavior but through adding a negative

consequence.

Punishment encourages the removal of a bad behavior

through a negative consequence. Reinforcements and

punishments are often used in educational facilities to

mold the behavior and performance of students.

CONSTRUCTIVIST

Jerome Bruner

Learning is cognitive:Jerome Brunerbelieved that there

would be growth through interaction with the environment.

The idea of discovery learning is largely attributed toJerome Bruner.

Discovery learning is an approach to instruction through

which students interact with their environment by

exploring and manipulating objects.

Children go through stages of cognitive development: -

Enactive Stage,

Iconic Stage,

and Symbolic Stage


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Jean Piaget

Learning is cognitive:Jean Piagetbelieved that there

would be growth through neurological and social

maturation.

When children confront unknowns it causesdisequilibrium, they respond with assimilation, fitting it

into their views, or accommodation, changing their views.

Children go through stages of cognitive development:

Sensor-motor Stage,

Preoperational Stage,

Concreter Operational Stage,

Formal Operations Stage

John Dewey Learning as social experience:

John Deweybelieved that curriculum should be flexible

and tailored to the needs and interests of each student.

The Curriculum should also be taught as integrated topics,

rather than isolated skills.

Education is a process of growth and a way of helping

individuals through social experiences.

Lev Vygotsky

Vygotskys theory on learning and cognitive development

is based on the idea of proximal development that children

learn through the world around them and build new

information upon previously learned ideas.

Those concepts already mastered are those within the

childs area of proximal development those not yet

mastered are beyond the childs and are on a more

advanced level.

Therefore it is important to build knowledge gradually with

the help of a teacher, someone who already has a mastery

of the information.


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Comparison of Behaviorist and Constructivist Learning Models


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AN APPROACH? ... A METHOD? ... A TECHNIQUE?

- The history of Foreign Language Teaching has been characterized by the search for

methods. Yet, the concept of method may be, in itself, confusing, because there aretwo other terms associated with it: approach and technique.

- In 1963, Edward Anthony defined the terms by building a hierarchy with the 3elements and he said that:

An Approach theory is a set of assumptions about the nature of languagelearning and teaching.

A methodis a plan for the systematic presentation of language, based on an

approach or theory of language learning.

A technique is a specific activity for the classroom that is consistent with amethod and in harmony with an approach or theory.

Sothere may be various methods that follow the same approach.

_____________________________________________________________________

A BRIEF HISTORY OF EFL:Historical context in which theories became methods:

- For centuries, there were almost no theoretical foundations of language learning

and teaching methodology.- Foreign language learning in schools was limited mostly to Greek and Latin.

These 2 languages were supposed to promote mental gymnastics, the method

used was called: Classical method

18th

Century: THE CLASSICAL METHOD/ GRAMMAR-TRANSLATION

METHOD: it focused on:- Grammatical rules.

- Memorization of vocabulary.

- Verb conjugation.

- Translation of texts.

At the turn of the century, a new method was popularized by Charles Berlitz: the

DIRECT METHOD.The premises were:

- The first Naturalistic Approach : simulate the natural way children learn.

- Lots of oral interaction.

-Spontaneous use of language.

- No translation.

- Little analysis of grammar rules.

Meaning was to be conveyed directly in the target language through

the use of demonstration and visual aids.

Berlitz schoolswere very successful with small groups, but were not suitable for large

groups and it needed native-speaker teachers with a strong cultural background.


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In 1930, most language schools returned to Grammar Translation Method

(reading approach).

When World War II broke out, the USA Army men needed to know the oral language

of the allies and of the enemy. They used THE ARMY METHOD.It emphasized:

- Aural / oral skills.

- Pattern skills.

- Conversation practice.

-

No translation.

Educational Institutions adopted this oral method and made it famous as THE

AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD

This method had a firm ground on linguistic and psychological theory (Behavioristpsychologists who advocated habit-formations model of learning). The methodincluded:

- Repetitive drills.

- Very controlled use of vocabulary.

- Correct pronunciation.

-

Error-free utterances by students- Almost no use of mother tongue.- Use of tapes and visual aids.

- Use of language laboratories.

It was successful because students could repeat almost perfect extracts of conversation

with more than acceptable pronunciation. But it failed to promote long-termcommunicative proficiency.

THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD marked a turning point in the field offoreign language teaching methodology byshowing a way to teach a language.


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The 60sestablished another landmark: the beginning of research on how languages

are learned, studies on the structure of the language and of the nature of cognitive

processes.

The linguistNOAM CHOMSKY showed his opposition against the behavioristconception that the mind is a simple tabula rasa. He claimed that:

- the mind contains complex structures.- the language is developed when the person is placed in the appropriate

environment.- When learning a 2nd language, the brain resets the structures of the 1st

language.

- Although the brain during childhood can reset 1st language more easily than

when the learner is older, 2nd language acquisition is always possible if there isexposure.

The spirited 70s:

The decade of the 70s was fertile. There were many discussions on:- Linguistics and the development of language.

-

Second Language Teaching and Learning.- Innovative methods.

a) CLL: Community Language Learning.

b)SUGGESTOPEDIA.

c) THE SILENT WAY.

d)TPR: Total Physical Response.

a)

CLL : COMMUNITY LANGUAGE LEARNING:This method advised teachers to consider learners as whole persons (not only their

intellect but also their feelings, physical reactions and their desire to learn).

CLL identified 5 Stages that went from students depending on the teachers to mutualindependency. There was student-centered participation and anxiety-free climate in the

classroom. The teacher was a supporter, a counselor in the process of learning.

b)

SUGGESTOPEDIA:Geori Lozanov, a Bulgarian psychologist, considered that students mental powers

could be stimulated by creating a relaxed atmosphere with:- Baroque music.

- Comfortable seats.

- Colorful rooms.

Suggestopediasuggests that learning takes place on 2 different planes:- A conscious plane in which learners attend to the linguistic aspects of the

language.- A subconscious plane that suggests that learning is easy and pleasant.

c) THE SILENT WAY:Developed by Caleb Gattegno, the Silent way is a humanistic approachthat relies on

cognitive principles such as problem solving activities and discovery learning. Teachingis subordinated to learning and teachers act as stimulators and they remain silent most


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of the classroom time. They use sets of colored rods of words and sounds and colorful

wall charts.

Positive principles:

- Teachers talk is reduced.- Students work things on their own.

- Teachers let students construct their knowledge by discover learning.

Negative principles:- Teachers adopted a distant position.- They did not encourage a communicative atmosphere.

d)

TPR: TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE:TPR is a natural approachdeveloped by psychologist James Asher and based on the

observation that children learn in stress-free environments by responding to commandsbefore they start speaking.

James Asher says that for him there are no methods because the term method impliesa formula for teaching anything. He calls TPR an approach or tool. He looked at

early 1stlanguage acquisition for clues to a better way to teach foreign languages:a) Listening skills precede speaking: children are often able to comprehend many

complex utterances before they produce any intelligible speech.

b) Comprehension is 4 times as great as production: children may not be able to give

a linguistic response to instructions but they can give physical response.c) Through action and observation, the childs whole body is involved in decoding

the noise of speech into language.

Asher studied about brain lateralizationand trace memory. The brain has 2

hemispheres, each of which has specific tasks:

-

the left hemisphere is described as verbal, analytical and logical.- the right hemisphere is nonverbal (responds to touch and music), intuitive and

sensory.

Motor activity is a right-brain function that precedes left-brain language

processing. So, for Asher was quite logical that the starting point for teaching

another language is to structure the class especially for the right hemisphere. A

Foreign Language should be first presented with stress-free motor instructions.

TPRis also associated to trace memory: the kind of memory people use when learning

to ride a bike. (kinesthetic memory): memory is increased if it is stimulated or tracedthrough association with motor activities.

The use of kinesthetic intelligence and memory is important when teaching Young

Learners, because we know that they do not learn by thinking, but by doing

things.


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______________________________________________________________________

The 80s saw THE NATURAL APPROACH:

The linguistic Stephen Krashen claimed that language learning is a subconsciousprocess of acquisition.

Learners move through predictable and sequential series of developmental stages and

teachers can predict and accept a students stage while modifying their instruction toencourage progression to the next stage.

a)STAGE 1: THE SILENT / RECEPTIVE or PRE PRODUCTION-COMPREHENSION STAGE

Students have up to 500 receptive words (words they can understand, but may not becomfortable using)

This stage involves a Silent Periodin which students may not speak but can respondusing different strategies.

Pointing to an object. Pointing to a picture.

Pointing to a person. Performing an act (stand up/close the door).

Gesturing.

Nodding. Responding with a simple Yes or No.

Carrying out a command.

Teachers should not force students to speak until they are ready to do so.


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b) STAGE 2: THE EARLY PRODUCTION STAGE

This stage can last an additional six months after the initial stage.

Students have developed 1000 receptive/active words (words they are able tounderstand and use).

During this stage, learners can:- Respond with single-words utterances (holophrastic)

-

Speak in one or two-words phrases- Give short answers (Yes / No questions or Who / What / Where questions)

c) STAGE 3. THE SPEECH EMERGENCE STAGE

This stage can last up to another year.

Students have usually developed 3000 words and they:

- Can use short phrases and simple sentences to communicate.- Begin to use dialogue.

-

Can ask / answer simple questions (Can I go to the toilet, please?)- May produce longer sentences (often with grammatical errors)

d) STAGE 4: THE INTERMEDIATE LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY STAGE

This stage may take up to another year after Emergence Stage.

Students have developed 6000 words and are beginning to:

- Make complex statements.- State opinions.

- Ask for clarification.

-

Share their thoughts.- Speak at greater length.

e) STAGE 5: THE ADVANCED LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY STAGE

Gaining advanced proficiency in a 2nd

/foreign language, can typically take 5 to 7 years.

Students have developed some specialized content-area vocabulary. They:

- Can participate in activities with extra support.- Can speak English using grammar and vocabulary comparable to that of same-

age native speakers.

Controversial aspects of the Natural Approach:

- Delay of oral production (Silent Period) until speech emerges.

- Heavy emphasis on comprehensible input.

- Managing students at different times of speech emergency.


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KRASHENS NATURAL APPROACH PRINCIPLES

Classroom activities based on the Natural Approach, are guided by certain principles:

1-COMPREHENSION PRECEDES PRODUCTION:

- It is impossible to connect meaning to form if the learner has no opportunity to hearthe new vocabulary in a meaningful context.

- Activities should introduce new vocabulary and grammar structures in communicativecontexts before students are expected to produce words.- Lessons generally start with input (comprehension) activities (brainstorming,

discussions, contextual guessing, TPR) before moving to output (production) activities.

2- SPEECH EMERGES IN 5 STAGES

3-SPEECH EMERGENCE IS CHARACTERIZED BY GRAMMATICALERRORS:

- When students start putting words together into sentences, they make errors, this is to

be expected.- Early speech errors that occur during the communication activities, do not usuallybecome permanent. Teachers should expand and rephrase the students responses in

grammatically correct sentences.

4- GROUP WORK ENCOURAGES INTERACTION AND CREATES

COMMUNITY:

As soon as students can produce, teachers should provide them with the opportunity to

begin working in pairs and small groups. Students enjoy interacting with others and feel

freer to express themselves in groups.Group workgives the teacher the opportunity to:

- move quickly from group to group,- make sure that the activity is going well,

- answer questions,- help individuals with pronunciation, grammar and usage.

5- STUDENTS ACQUIRE LANGUAGE ONLY IN A LOW-ANXIETY

ENVIRONMENT:

- Students should not be put on the defensive in a class.- There are a wide variety of techniques for keeping anxiety-levels low.

- Teachers should create a classroom atmosphere that is:- friendly,

- interesting,

- and that caters for enjoyable activities.Students must always feel that they can express their ideas without fear of interruptive

grammatical correction.


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6- SPEAKING HELPS LANGUAGE ACQUISITION:

The Natural Approach encourages student output in whole-class and group-work

situations.

Speaking helps language acquisition:- It encourages comprehensive input, via conversation.

- It gives students the feeling of participation, of real language use.- It prepares them for communicative interaction outside the classroom.

COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH

CLT-COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING:

the most recent method of language teaching

- British linguistics (Wilkins -1972 / Widdowson 1978) felt students were not

learning enough realistic language and did not know how to communicate using

appropriate social language.

-

In 1971,a group of experts began to investigate the possibility of developingLanguage Courses that proposed a functional or communicative syllabus.

-

THE GOAL OF THE NATURAL APPROACH IS

PROFICIENCY IN COMMUNICATION SKILLS.Students in a Natural Approach classroom are evaluated primarily

on their oral proficiency, on their ability to communicate specific messages

in particular situations,

rather than on the grammatical correctness of their spontaneous speech


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MAIN PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH:

- Authentic language (language as it is used in a real context) should be exploited

in the classroom.- Successful Guess-work: teachers should create situations in which learners will

be asked to guess the intentions of the writer.- Constant use of the target language.

-

Games should be exploited in class, because they have elements in common withauthentic communicative acts.

- Learners should be given every opportunity to express their ideas, emotions and

opinions.

- Errors are tolerated and are seen as a natural outcome of the development ofcommunication skills.

- Communicative interaction encourages cooperative relationships among learners.- Teachers act as advisers or facilitators during communicative activities.

- Controlled and freer practice is replaced by a more Task-based approach: learnersare given a communicative task which is monitored by the teacher.

-

Traditional grammatical approach is replaced by a more communicative focus,with basic introductions, requests and questions enabling learners tocommunicate in English from the very first lesson.

- Communicative classes for young children, can be enriched when teachers useThematic Unitsthat focus on content-area information.

- Visual, gestures, sounds and actions will help students understand new

vocabulary and structures.

THE WHOLE LANGUAGE APPROACH

THE COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH

Has allowed teachers to incorporate motivating and purposeful communicative

activities while retaining the best elements of other methods.

It has had a great impact en EFL, because it has meant adapting rather than

rejecting existing methods.


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WHOLE LANGUAGE is not a systemized approach, but rather a philosophy that

assumes that reading and general language competencies are acquired through

integrated use instead of through learning separate, finite skills, such as word attack,

comprehension, and vocabulary. It relies heavily on the use of literature and tradebooks, rather than basal readers, and usually involves integrated thematic studies and

the extended use of writing.

It is considered a method of teaching reading to children(also known as the "Look-Say" Method), in contrast to the Phonics Method. Phonics teaches the individual

components and sounds (or phonetic building blocks) which make up words, enablingthe student to then determine the correct pronunciation, and often the meaning, of most

words with relative ease. The whole language methodrequires the student to recognize

and learn new words as whole words, and rely on the context in which they appear,rather than on their phonetic building blocks, to determine their meanings.

Appearing in the 60s and 70s, the movement gathered steam in the 80s. During the

1990s, and today, the issue has been politicized and the approach is criticized by many

conservatives who prefer the phonics method. Opponents argue that structure isnecessary, and that a child's learning to read, is too valuable to leave to chance andaccidental discovery. All children do not learn in the same way, therefore adhering to

one method only, is dangerous and may leave some children behind.

Many teachers today use a blended approach.They use some traditional methods, but

also weave in the use of literature, writing, and thematic studies into their plans. They

view teaching to read as a good coach teaches baseball: a team needs to spend time

practicing skills (phonics), but, if the team never gets to play an actual game (wholelanguage), the players loose the joy of the sport (reading).


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TASK-BASED APPROACH:

Students start by carrying out a communicative task with no help from the teacher. Oncethe task is completed, teachers may focus on language use as an aid to acquisition.

Task -based learningoffers an alternative for language teachers. In a task-based lesson

the teacher doesn't pre-determine what language will be studied, the lesson is based

around the completion of a central task and the language studied is determined by whathappens as the students complete it. The lesson follows certain stages.

1)PRE-TASK:The teacher introduces the topic and gives the students clear instructions on what they

will have to do at the task stage and might help the students to recall some language that

may be useful for the task. The pre-task stage can also often include playing a recordingof people doing the task. This gives the students a clear model of what will be expected

of them. The students can take notes and spend time preparing for the task.

2) TASK:The students complete a task in pairs or groups using the language resources that they

have as the teacher monitors and offers encouragement.

3) PLANNING:Students prepare a short oral or written report to tell the class what happened during

their task. They then practice what they are going to say in their groups. Meanwhile theteacher is available for the students to ask for advice to clear up any language questions

they may have.

4) REPORT:Students then report back to the class orally or read the written report. The teacher

chooses the order of when students will present their reports and may give the studentssome quick feedback on the content. At this stage the teacher may also play a recording

of others doing the same task for the students to compare.

5) ANALYSIS:The teacher then highlights relevant parts from the text of the recording for the students

to analyze. They may ask students to notice interesting features within this text. Theteacher can also highlight the language that the students used during the report phase for

analysis.

6) PRACTICE:Finally, the teacher selects language areas to practice based upon the needs of the

students and what emerged from the task and report phases. The students then dopractice activities to increase their confidence and make a note of useful language.


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TASK-BASED APPROACH:

_____________________________________________________________

MULTISENSORY LEARNING: VAK

Multisensory methods are also known as VAK Modalities: The three modalities oflearning styles have been summarized by the acronym VAK, for:

Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic:

1. Visual: That which you see.2. Auditory: That which you hear.

3. Kinesthetic: The tactile ... where the child touches and handles objects.

This teaching method suggests to involve the use of more of the childs senses,

especially the use of touch and movement (kinesthetic). This will give the childs braintactile and kinesthetic memories to hang on to, as well as the visual and auditory ones


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MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES THEORY:

Multiple Intelligence Theory was developed in 1983 by Dr. Howard Gardner,professor of education at Harvard University. It suggests that traditional ways of testing

for intelligence may be unfair to certain types of individuals.

The theory analyzes and better describes the concept of intelligence arguing that theconcept as traditionally defined in psychometrics (IQ tests) does not sufficiently

describe the wide variety of cognitive abilities humans display.

The original Multiple Intelligence theory was first published in his book, Frames ofMind.The book strongly suggests that everybody has a different mind, and no two

profiles of intelligence are the same.

Therefore, the traditional concept of measuring intelligence by I.Q Testing is far too

restricted. From the 8 primary intelligences, an individual may excel in one, two or

even three of these, but nobodys good at them all.

Howard Gardner's Multiple Intelligences Theory:

INTELLIGENCE

TYPE:CAPABILITY & PERCEPTION:

Linguistic Words and language.

Logical-Mathematical Logic and numbers.

Musical Music, sound, rhythm.

Bodily-Kinesthetic Body movement control.

Spatial-Visual Images and space.

Interpersonal Other people's feelings.

Intrapersonal Self-awareness.


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Gardner's suggested possible additional Intelligences:

INTELLIGENCE

TYPE:CAPABILITY & PERCEPTION:

Naturalist Natural environment.

Spiritual/Existential Religion and 'ultimate issues'.

Moral Ethics, humanity, value of life.

Recently Gardner has posited the existence of a 9th intelligence he calls "Existential".

Although Existential is positioned to be identified as an intelligence, at this timeGardner feels that there isn't any neurological evidence of a separately functioning

biological existential ability.

That is a central criterion in identifying an ability as an "intelligence.

THE LEXICAL APPROACH:

It began in the 80s with the arrival of corpuses: enormous databases of recordedexamples of spoken and written language.

It takes vocabulary as the main focus for syllabus design and classroom teaching.

It looks at word frequency and collocation (how words go together).As Corpus data becomes more available, the Lexical Approach is seen more in

contemporary teaching materials.

FinallyELT has grown out of methods We live now in a Post-methodcondition:teachers can choose the best practice from a variety of approaches,

selecting them and shaping them in ways which are appropriate to their own

classrooms. This has also been called an eclectic approach.Post-method pedagogycan be divided into three pedagogic parameters: particularity,

practicality, and possibility.

Particularity is based on the assumption that the post-method pedagogic has to besensible to particular group of teachers teaching a particular group of learners, pursuing

a particular set of goals within a particular institutional context. It demands that teachers

develop skills in order to be able to monitor their own teaching effectiveness; by doingso, they are going to improve their own procedures, instead of reproducing theories.

Possibility is based on the studies of Paulo Freire, who argues that the importance ofacknowledging and highlighting students and teachers individual identity.


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ENGLISH NATURALLY: TEACHERS should:

Provide authentic English practice: students are able to see the relevance to the real

world of what they are learning.

Provide variety for students: they get out of the classroom and 'into' the

environment.

Integrate the 'four skills' of listening, speaking, reading and writing in a naturalway.

Promote learner autonomy and co-operation.

Provide a sensory rich learning experience:

-

Learning is enhanced when students see as well as listen (audiovisual)- They remember even more when they can also use their senses of touch,

smell and taste.

Provide practice in academic skillssuch as:- note making,- labeling,

- classifying,

- referencing, etc.

Promote learning in a natural and enjoyable setting.This helps to lower

emotional barriers which sometimes get in the way of effective learning.

ENGLISH NATURALLY: The importance of PLAY:

While they play, Young Learners use the new language patterns in everyday situations:

Play goes with other children, cooperatively.

Play is often structured by the childrens imagination

Their play become their workwork is found in their play.


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APPROPRIATE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT & MATERIALS:

- Appropriate arrangement of the physical environment in an early childhood

classroom is important.

- Children in the early education classroom have basic environmental needs, such

as furniture that is appropriately sized, sturdy and comfortable, as well as sinks

and bathrooms that are easily accessible.

- Young children learn best through sensory encounters with the world:

manipulating, exploring, and experimenting, so, physical environment should

provide manipulative, puzzles and other learning materials that are easily

accessible.

MAIN PRINCIPLES OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING

TO YOUNG CHILDREN:

Communicative interaction is possible and necessary among children

and teachers

English is best learn in English: teachers do not need to use their

Mother Tongue when teaching a 2nd

or Foreign Language

Active student involvement leads to a more effective acquisition

and learning

Daily lessons should have changes of activities and changes of pace

Beginners can understand a lot more than they can produce

Positive reinforcement and recycling of the language helps learning


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MAIN AIM OF LANGUAGE TEACHING IN KINDERGARTEN

AND EARLY PRIMARY GRADES:

From our main aim and principles, we infer that:

TEACHERS:

Teachers are Facilitators.

They become observers and they interact with their students.

Teachers should create a positive learning environment, surrounded by

foreign language print.

Language should be presented, practiced and reinforced in meaningful

situations, in a meaningful context

Topics, materials, resources and activities should relate to the interests

and development age of the group

Mistakes are a natural part of the language learning process

Language learning in more effective if it is enjoyable

Pleasant, gradual and effective acquisition and learning

of the English language through interaction and fun

in whole meaningful situations


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Expose students continuously to Englishand dont translate if it is not

necessary.

They demonstrate and model,using body language, gestures, mime, etc

They should provide timeaccording to students needs, interests, learning

styles: give time to listen, understand and participate.

Teachers should provide lots of learning opportunities:practical,

meaningful and purposeful. Give same opportunities to everybody.

Involve children in hands-on activities: children's minds are incredibly open

and they learn by absorbing ideas and concepts directly.

Children need to be actively involved: get students up and out of their chairs

and moving around.

Avoid talking for long periods of time: energy level of the classroom drops

lower and lower. Explain an activity quickly and then go to it!

Keep the energy moving:keep a few extra activities handy for this purpose.

Children need lots of stimulation all the time!

Use what is learned in different contexts.The more contexts used the better,

and the more concrete and 'real life' the contexts the better. Make it real for

students by talking about them and their lives.

The 3 Rs: Review, Reinforce, Recycle.New information is absorbed and has

meaning when it is related to information children have already learned.

Quickly review new concepts at the beginning of each class.

Praise, Praise, Praise!!Encourage and build students up in a natural way.

Learning occurs when students are motivated and feel good about themselves.

Give positive feedback and congratulate children on what they do, reinforcing

students confidence.

For their professional growth, teachers should:

- Read professional articles.

- Attend professional development workshops, seminars, conferences.

- Learn more about childrens literature.

- Form a local support of peers interested in sharing ideas (for example: through a

blog).


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ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW KIDS LEARN!!

CHILDREN:

Naturally acquire oral language by listening, imitating and repeating (like

babies do).

They learn in a global way:from the general to the specific, from the wholeto the part.

They need instruction in all modes of communication:listening, speaking,

reading, writing, observing, illustrating, experiencing, modeling: Children

learn by doing!

Children should be actively involved in meaningful functional language

experiences.

They progress through appropriate stages.

Children learn in different ways, at different rates: learning a language takes

time and practice!

They learn by active exploration, making discoveries.

Young students are free to experiment, make approximations and mistakes.

In each class you should try to offer:

1) SOMETHING OLD:to reinforce, to practice, to

recycle.

2) SOMETHING NEW:to present

3) SOMETHING FUN:a new song, a game, a chant,

a resource (a new puppet)


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They feel comfortable trying out, without fear of criticism: perfection is not

expected from them.

They learn to take risks and make decisions.

They learn to develop a positive attitude to school.

Children are involved in social interaction:they learn by interacting with

each other and with the teacher.Try to talk to each child individually each

class. Whenever possible, have children working in groups and in pairs.

THE NEEDS OF YOUNG KIDS:

Teachers should encourage children to explore and exercise all of their natural

intelligences: Linguistic, Kinesthetic, Logical-Mathematical, Visual, Spatial,

Musical, Intrapersonal, Interpersonal and Natural.

CHILDREN:

Learn by doing: through imitation and repetition.

Learn by having fun. The more fun it is to learn a language, the

more a child will want to stay with it. Learn with music and rhythms. Music is one way to use the whole

brain. Words combined with music are easier to learn.

Learn with movement. Children are kinesthetic learners. They like

to imitate and act out.

Learn by reflecting.First children absorb the language, later theybegin to speak.

YOUNG CHILDREN are spontaneous, active and enthusiastic

THEY LEARN VERY QUICKLYbut they:

- Forget things very easily!!

- Get bored very easily!!

- Have very short attention span!!


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CHILDREN EDUCATIONAL NEEDS:

As teachers and educators, we can say that a student is an entire

self we have in our hands, with his/her own physical, intellectual,

emotional and social needs such as:

1)

Personal security, happiness and success.

2)To make personal decisions and so to become less dependent

upon others.

3)To interact with other people cooperatively.

4)To be accepted by others.

5)To develop the use of language through the skills of listening and

talking.

6)To express creative ideas.

7)To acquire:

- Positive attitudes towards learning.

- The ability to reason logically.

- Moral values.

-

Everyday knowledge.

___________________________________________________________

UNIT 1: CONCLUSIONS:

Children learn new languages best when:

a)Instruction is conducted in the Target Language with minimal use

of their Native Language.

b)

Their teacher recognizes learners as active constructors of

meaning rather than passive receivers of vocabulary and

information.


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c)Learning occurs in meaningful, communicative contexts:Social

and cultural situations through games, stories, rhymes and chants,

experiences with arts and crafts, role- plays and dramatizations.

d)Learning is organized in terms of concrete experiences using

visual, aids, props, realia and hands-on activities.

e)Comprehension is emphasized rather than speaking at beginning

stages.

f) Assessment of learning is frequent, regular and on going.

g)Planning is organized around a thematic center, establishing a

balance among: Goals of culture, Subject content, Language in

use.

h)Annual Curriculum is organized according to a communicative

syllabus, rather than a grammatical syllabus.

i) Contents are designed taking into account learners:

- needs,

- interests,

-

developmental stages,

- experiential background,

- learning styles.


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1) WHEN I LEARNT ENGLISH: Think back to when you went to school.

- What do you remember about those years?

- Do you remember-

The teachers?

- The teaching?- The sounds?

- The physical surroundings?

- Other students?

2) MY OWN LEARNING DAYS:

- Was it good or bad learning a foreign language?

- Why?

- After analyzing Unit 1, what you should, should not do when teaching English asa Foreign Language?

3) LANGUAGE TEACHING THEORIES:

- Mention the 2 Theories and their Theorists.

4) SOME PRINCIPLES OF THE COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH:

-

-

-

5) FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING:

- Can you mention some principles to teach a foreign language to Young Learners?

- How do young kids learn a language?

6) PROVIDING A NATURAL ENVIRONMENT:

- How can you create a natural environment in a Kindergarten class?

--

7) Can you tell the difference between an Approach, a Method and a Technique?- AN APPROACH:

- A METHOD:- A TECHNIQUE:


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REFERENCES:

We are grateful for permission to reproduce material from:

-

Roth, Genevieve. Teaching Very Young Children- Pre-school and Early Primary.Richmond

Publishing.- House, Susan.An introduction to Teaching English to children.Richmond Publishing.

- Curtain and Pesola.Languages and children making the match. Longman.

-

Clandfield, Lindsay and Foord, Duncan. The language teachers Survival Handbook.SBS

Publishing.

- Richards, Jack C. and Rodgers, Theodore S.Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching.

Cambridge University Press. 2ndedition, 2001.

-

Thornbury, Scott.How to teach Grammar.Longman, 1999.

- Lewis, Michael.Implementing the Lexical Approach: Putting Theory into practice.Language

Teaching Publications, 1999.

-

Willis, Jane.A framework for Task-Based Learning.Longman, 1996.

- Amstrong, Thomas.The Multiple Intelligences of Reading and Writing: Making the Words

Come Alive.

-

Amstrong, Thomas.Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom, 3rd Ed.

ENJOY YOUR TEACHING

Grace B.

[email protected] www.gracebertolini.com.ar

Teachers should make a difference in the lives of children

Tell me and I forget...

Teach me and I remember...

Involve me and I learn !

Benjamin Franklin.

To teach is to touch a soul forever

TEK COURSE: Teaching English at Kindergarten, Preschool and Early Primary Grades

Copyright 2011 By Graciela Bertoliniwww.gracebertolini.com.ar

All rights reserved. No part of this course/ publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any

form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording,

computer bulletin board (BBS), Internet, or by any information storage retrieval system, without

written permission of the author. This legal protection not only applies to the name but also to the

f d f hi i i il / h db k ill b b h

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Tek Handbook Unit 1

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