VBlog 4: Course Reflection
This class, along with my experience as a student
teacher so far, has really opened my eyes to how impactful it is when it comes
to teaching English second language students. Wright (2015) says that it doesn’t
matter if you plan on just becoming a “regular teacher” or going on to
specialize, every teacher should see themselves as a language teacher. This
includes math and sciences teachers as well. Even if you do not teacher
reading, writing, and the English language specifically, you are still teaching
it indirectly through speaking to your students and having them complete their
work. You still impacted their language acquisition every day, even if you do
not realize it. This is something that really stuck with me and made me realize
how important it is to be trained in teaching ESL students. It has impacted my
teaching philosophy specifically, because now I do not plan to be teaching to
the class, but rather to each individual student and working with their needs.
The topic from this class that stuck out most to me
was “Promoting Oral Language Development in the Classroom”. I think that this
is so important, because every student needs to be able to adequately speak and
hold a conversation with someone, even if they are not speaking in their first
language. I specifically think the section about speaking and strategies to
develop their oral comprehension is very important and helpful. Wright (2015)
also states that when students are in situations where they must speak to
others, they become aware of gaps in their language development. Exercises where
they must verbally communicate with their peers allows for the students to
become comfortable talking in the new language, as well as noticing gaps in their
language development that they may not have realized if they hadn’t spoken or
listen to their peer speak to them. This allows for self-assessment and
self-correction, without embarrassing the student.
I think that both of these classes, acquisition and
methodology, were very important to my education and provided a vast amount of
knowledge and information I did not even think existed. I think that it was ideal
to have the two classes split, because if it was all one classes, it would have
been too much information to cover in one semester and we would not have been
able to go into depth on most of the topics discussed. The only down side to
the courses was that they were both during my student teaching period, making
the course load extremely challenging. I would have preferred to be to have
taken them early on in my college career when I had less responsibilities and
classes to worry about. I feel then I would have performed better in the
courses.
I found the video blogs to be very helpful. It
required me to go in depth on the content this course covers, and really
understand the material. It also required me to then apply that information to
the interviews and experiences of my interviewees as well as the interviews my
peers completed. While it was a lot of work, I do feel that because of the
video blogs I have a better understand and feel more prepared to have ESL
students in my class, and how I can help them success and feel confident in
this second language they are learning.
Reference:
Wright,
Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory,
Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second
Edition.
Hello Haylee! I enjoyed reading your reflection and there are many topics you spoke of that I agree with, particularly when you spoke about promoting oral language development in the classroom. When English language learners speak and hold a conversation with others, especially those who are proficient in English, there are great benefits for the English language learner to grow and learn. According to Wright (2015), "sociocultural theories also emphasize the need for students to have opportunities to speak, with scaffolding as needed, in order to learn to speak in a manner that others can understand" (p.168). Communication is a key factor that ELL students need during their English language learning journey.
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hi Rachel. Good point! Wright also mentions that the one of the best ways for ELL students to learn English effectively is through the interactions of people who's L1 is English. Which is another reason why cooperative learning is so important in the classroom. It allows for students to have the opportunity to speak to their classmates and learn through them.
DeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Rachel, thank you for your interest in my reflection. I do find it very important to allow students the opportunity to speak orally in class to develop their language proficiency. Wright (2015) stated that the most important and beneficial listening and speaking a student will do is through interactions with their teacher, fellow ELLs, and proficient English speaking peers. It is so important to me to encourage my students to speak and use their English and gain that confidence.
DeleteThank you for an exemplary entry. I enjoyed reading your reflection and I agree with you and it makes me really happy to see that you appreciate the knowledge you obtained in this class. I hope you become ESL certified. I, as you, am very concerned about how this class, the amount of work you had to do and how to delivery and assess the content in a way that is not so cumbersome. I have noticed that many of you take this class during your senior year when this class was intended to be taken during your junior year while you are doing your pre-teaching. Of course, we will have to discuss this with the Teacher Program Coordinator and decide who we can reduce the amount of work or how we guarantee that you are allowed time during the day to do your assignments for these courses. I do not feel like giving students a multiple choice test is the best way to measure their learning. I agree with Wright (2017, 119) when he states that "educators need to be aware of the heavy testing burden placed on ELLs and the impact test results can have on students' and teachers' lives." Similarly, I consider I need to be aware of the burden my class and my assessment can mean in my students' lives.
ReplyDeleteHello, Haylee!
ReplyDeleteI really like that you talked about promoting oral language. I learned English through communication and interaction with peers, so it is definitely something I want to promote in my future classroom. I wasn’t aware that verbal communication would also help students reflect on their language development, so thank you for mentioning that! Another method that I want to add is cooperative learning. Wright (2015) states that students might feel a lot more comfortable speaking in small groups rather than being called in front the class. Teachers might pair ELLs with students who are proficient in English to promote peer tutoring. There are many forms of cooperative learning that we can implement, such as roundtable and think-pair-share.
Wright, W.E. (2015). Foundations for teaching English language learners: Research, theory, policy and practice. (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Calson.
Hey Mia!
DeleteI love that you are able to give real example through your own personal experience. And I love how you always provide connections from our textbook to our discussions. It definitely makes it easier send me when re reading material to connect those examples in the textbook with what you discuss on our responses and comments.
Hello Mia, I agree with you as well. I was too an ELL student and peer interaction was one of the most beneficial ways to learn for me. I also believe you are right about cooperative learning. Wright states that “Cooperative learning is a form of scaffolding provided by classroom peers that contributes to the oral language development of ELLs in several ways” (Wright, p. 170, 2015). I believe this is true because with cooperative learning ELL students receive more support through the help of their peers which helps them to develop a faster English fluency.
DeleteHey Haylee!
ReplyDeleteI completely agreed with your statement that every student needs to be able to adequately speak and hold a conversation with someone, even if they are not speaking in their first language. And also that you think the section about speaking and strategies to develop their oral comprehension is very important and helpful. (Wright, 2015)
I am in the same boat as you when it comes to taking these Second Language courses. Although these courses have been very helpful and eye opening for me, having taken them prior tp this semester would definitely have also helped me perform better in the courses.
It at least would have been easier to make our assignments due on the weekend instead of the middle of the week when we are extremely busy with student teaching.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Hi! I agree with the last point you made. I as well struggled with keeping up with the assignments for this course during the semester. I would encourage most to not save this class for the last semester and take it in the summer as well. I loved the content in the course, but I do wish I had more time to have been able to properly learn everything.
DeleteHello Aleena!
DeleteYes, I definitely tried to take it over the summer but the slots for the class were filled up and our supervisor emailed me saying that I would have to take it during the fall semester. It is definitely a very helpful class. although 5 classes is a lot to handle, I do enjoy taking this class during semester as opposed to over the summer because there are many assignments such as doing observations in a bilingual classroom that we would not be able to do if we had taken this course over the summer break.
There are pros and cons to taking the class over the summer and taking it during the semester.
Ami, thank you for your comment. While I do think that it is very important for students to have that oral language development, one of our peers pointed out to me the need to also get to know our students and the diverse backgrounds they come from. Wright (2015) informs us of all the factors that could influence a students ability to learn a language such as first language literacy, prior schooling, and cultural background to name a few. All of these factors influence how well a person can learn a language, and it is our job to recognize these influences by getting to know our students.
DeleteHi Haylee,
ReplyDeleteI liked how you mentioned how promoting Oral Language Development is important in general no matter which language the student is speaking. It should remind us as teachers that we do not just want our students to be speaking English properly, however help them with the necessary skills to speak any language properly. Also, you mentioned how students realize mistakes they make when speaking to their peers because it allows for self-reflection/correction. This would be an example of Cooperative learning and is one reason why cooperative learning is so important for ELL's. Like you said, our ELL's will feel less embarrassed to speak to their peers because it is a safer setting.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015, Print. Second Edition
Aleena, thank you for your interest in my reflection. I too think cooperative learning is essential in the classroom, especially a classroom with ESL/ELL students. Wright (2015) states that through the socialcultural perspective, learning takes place through interactions during the zone of proximal development with the teacher and more competent peers. It is during this cooperative learning and social interaction that the students learn to use the language the most. If you take away that interaction, and just try to teach how to speak the language, then the students will not learn anything.
DeleteHello Haylee,
ReplyDeleteI think what you feel that you got from this class is virtually universal to the students who have taken the Second Language Methodology course. I also agree with you that “Promoting Oral Language” is a very significant concept for teachers who have students who are learning English as a second language. Without the ability to orally speak and communicate with teachers and peers, English language learners can become isolated and begin to grow a deficit in social, cognitive, and oral skills. According to Wright (2015), students are able to distinguish their skills and weaknesses when orally communicating. I also agree that the use and composition of video blogs which required interaction among the ELL community helped with application of new concepts learned during this course.
Wright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition.
Alyssa, thank you for your interest in my reflection. I agree with your observation that most of our peers have noticed the need to promote oral language competancy. One thing one of our peers pointed out that stuck with me was getting to know our diverse student backgrounds. Wright (2015) states, “Although current accountability requirements do not mandate collecting data on students prior schooling, home language and literacy practices, or cultural backgrounds, teachers of ELLs should have this critical information to address the needs of this diverse population.” We tend to get stuck on the how we teach these students and forget about where they came from and who they are. To me that is just as essential, if not more essential that the “how”.
DeleteHey Haylee, first of all I loved your post. I'm glad I'm not the only one who wasn't thinking so far into ELLs I never understood that even if I wasn’t going to be an ELL teacher, I would need this. Like wright states, “says that it doesn’t matter if you plan on just becoming a “regular teacher” or going on to specialize, every teacher should see themselves as a language teacher.”(wright,2015) and I never really thought of that until now. I haven't taken the at acquisition class yet but hopefully it will help me even more. And I'm glad the video blogs helped you so much!
ReplyDeleteHi Kate-Lynn!
DeleteI'm glad that you see that we do need classes like this to help understand the importance of communication and learning the English language whether you are a first Language or second language learner of English.
Of course it is very important God all students have the ability to orally speak and communicate with teachers and peers so that there not deficit in any aspect of their social, cognitive, or oral skills.
Kate-lynn, thank you so much for your interest in my blog this semester. I found your comments very insightful. I too thought it was very eye-opening to see myself as an ESL teach, even if I do not become certified. Wright (2015) says in schools where there is no designated language teacher, it is essential that content teachers provided the type of instruction an ELL or ESL student may need. We are all assuming that there will the language specialists on our campus, but that might not be the case for some of us, and we need to ensure we are capable of providing a proper education for those students.
DeleteHi Haylee! I've enjoyed reading your blog this semester and I can tell how much of an impact this course has had on you. What you said about teaching each individual student and meeting their needs really resonated with me and I think that's the kind of attitude that every teacher should have and KEEP throughout their career. I also agree that promoting oral language development in the classroom is very important and I think that Wright gave a lot of strategies and methods to use and implement in order to do so. According to Wright (2015), "...when students are in situations where they must communicate with others and create comprehensible output, they may become aware of gaps in their developing language and may be pushed to pay more attention to input containing what they need to successfully communicate with others." He talks about doing this through oral retellings, songs and chants, oral presentations, and minimal pairs. I think that these are all great strategies to use in your classroom in order to promote oral language development.
ReplyDeleteWright, Wayne. Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy, and Practice. Philadelphia, PA: Caslon, 2015. Print. Second Edition