Blog Entry 4: Course Reflection
The Course
This course thus far has surprised me in many ways. Prior to starting this course, I was not sure of what to expect. However, once I begin the course, my insight into second language acquisition grew immensely. I was not aware of the countless research that goes into how people acquire a second language or various languages. This course has better equipped me with knowledge pertaining to how to relate to my future ELL students. As a future educator, I want to provide my students with the best education possible, and that means relating and meeting their needs. By using skills such as motivation, to initiate a child's learning of L2 or second language, their efforts to sustain the language learned would be heighten (Ortega, 2011). I also believe that the content taught in this course has widen my perspective in ways to better prepare myself for when I enter the classroom. Ortega states, an individual’s communicative confidence in the L2 greatly contributes to her or his willingness to communicate(Ortega,2011). Creating an environment where students confidence is increase and child-oriented curriculum is encourage, I hope to make the language learning experience pleasurable and insightful.
Like many things, I do feel like that there could be room for improvement within the course. The first thing I’d suggest is modifying the time frame for tests. I felt that the allotted time could have been extended due to the amount of questions on the test. Another thing that I thought would be beneficially to the course is incorporating quizzes as a mean to uphold weekly readings.
The Blog
The blogs, by far, were my absolute favorite. I felt that it was a great mechanism, not only to keep classmates on top of their assignments, but a way to promote peer interaction. They also allowed us the chance to really acquaint ourselves with the text. I thought that the interviews were very assuring in getting us to truly see how SLA differed from various perspectives. I would have never known that, since I am monolingual, the challenges multilinguals and bilinguals encounter could be so distinct. I also like how the blog created a sense of community with my fellow classmates and a haven to where our different thoughts could be appreciated. I would defiantly encourage the use of blogs to 5th and 6th grade students, to have a more child-oriented atmosphere.
Teaching Philosophy
My teaching philosophy has greatly evolved from the knowledge I’ve learned about second language acquisition. My awareness of my ELL students struggles and challenges only inspires me to help them on their academic journey. During my student teaching, I plan to truly aquaint myself with my students and know them as individuals. With that in mind, I’m able to cater to their various needs and learning styles and accommodate for them. I’d also love to This course has truly prepared my for my future as a teacher and. I can’t wait to utilize in the classroom.
Hello Celester, thank you for sharing your thoughts over this course and teaching English as a second language. I agree with your comments about the contents of this course widening our perspectives because is so much to be gained as a future educator. “What matters in the linguistic environment is not simply ‘what’s out there’ physically or even socially surrounding learners, but rather what learners make of it, how they process (or not) the linguistic data and how they live and experience that environment” (Ortega). Every student is different which means there are multiple aspects learning a second language that could affect a student’s learning capabilities. I also agreed on your comments about extending the time for tests and having quizzes that align with the assigned reading and videos.
ReplyDeleteOrtega, L. (2011). Understanding second language acquisition. London and New York: Routledge.
Hi Bryan,
DeleteThank you for your feedback. I know that going into this course, I had some mixed feelings. However, as time progress, we were able to acclimate to the class, similar to how students do in the elementary classroom. Once students begin to grasp ideas and concepts, "highly motivated partner may boost the other student’s willingness to interact and engage with a given oral task" (Ortega, 2011 pg. 77). With students being able to relate in a comforting environment, they are willing to interact and communicate with their second language.
Ortega, L. (2011). Understanding second language acquisition. London and New York: Routledge.
Celester,
ReplyDeleteI too want to acquaint myself with my students and know them as individuals, therefore I know what motivates them. From this course I understand that motivation is so vital when learning a second language. According to Ortega, highly motivated students are in favor of increasing investment of material and human resources for the improvement of second and foreign language education” (Ortega, L. 2011). Instead of causing burnout, I want to really light a fire in the bellies of my students. With our words, our actions and our strong belief in our students, we can bulk up their self-belief and spark a mental transformation that will make them unstoppable in learning any language.
Hi Aundria,
DeleteI couldn't agree more with your comment. I realize that many teachers tend to be repetitive when teaching, therefore hindering children's ability to expand their knowledge, especially with acquiring a second language. Just giving worksheets and definitions is no effective enough to truly have students learn a second language. According to Gass, most successful learners use various modalities to learn which allows for accomodations for modes of information to be processed. (Gass, 2013 Pg. 437) As teachers we have to provide different learning techniques to different styles our student at equipped with.
Susan Gass, Second Language Acquisition: An Introductory Course, New York, Routledge, 2013
Hi Celester,
ReplyDeleteThis course definitely surprised me as well. Ortega said, “We all tend to think that children pick up languages speedily and effortlessly” (16). These are misconceptions that many people have. I never knew how much research had been done regarding second language acquisition. As you said in your blog, this class has prepared me to be a better teacher in the future. The blog was my favorite part of the course too. Since we are not a face-to-face class, it was a great way to communicate with my peers. I also wish that blogs were used more in schools. It is an easy and effective way for students to share ideas with each other.
Ortega, L. Understanding second language acquisition. London and New York: Routledge, 2011.
Hi Almira,
DeleteThank you for your comment. I thought that the blogs were a great addition to the course and agree that it should be implemented in schools throughout various grades. By offering means of communication other than in person, it allows for the students to build a relationship among themselves. According to Ortega, the orientation of learning a language helps foster general friendships with members of that target language. (Ortega, 2011 Pg. 173). This helps students communicate with their classmates and establish socialization skills independently.
Ortega, L. Understanding second language acquisition. London and New York: Routledge, 2011.
Hello Celester,
ReplyDeleteTo start off, I like how you broke down your review of the class into sections. It made it easier to see each of your sub topics. With that being said, I completely agree with you how surprising it was to see all of the content we would be learning about language acquisition. I think that the most interesting part about all of the research has been how relatively new are all of the findings.
I completely agree with your that the knowledge we have learned in this class will only help in our future classrooms to cultivate an environment that is conducive for ELLs to learn. As Rowland says so eloquently, "...both nature and nurture contribute to language acquisition" (Rowland, 2014, p.13). A student's motivation to learn a new language may come easily, but it is necessary for us as educators to set them up for success.