Unit 1 Language and Language Learning

Unit 1 Language and Language Learning

1.1 How do we learn English?

Step 1 Interview 3 students about how they learn English.

Step 2 Conclusions that may drawn:

1)Starting learning English at different ages

2)Different feelings and opinions towards English learning

3)Learning for different reasons

4)Learning in different ways

5)Different capabilities in language learning

6)Learning can be affected by the ways of teaching

1.2Views on language

1)The structural view

The structural view sees language as a linguistic system.

The system of language = the system of sounds + the system of words + the system of grammar

2)The functional view

The functional view sees language as a linguistic system and as a means for doing things

3)The interactional view

The interactional view sees language as a communicative tool (to build up and maintain relations between people).

a)The interactional view sees language primarily as means for establishing and maintaining

interpersonal relationships and for performing transactions between individuals.

b)The target of language learning is learning to initiate and maintain conversation with other

people

Two things are needed for communication

a)Rules of language form (grammar & vocabulary)

b)Rules of language use in a context (Is it appropriate to use this language item in this

context?)

1.3 Views on language learning

1)Behaviorist theory (Skinner)

Three basic behaviorist ideas about learning

a)Conditioning (Watson and Raynor): learning is seen as a question of developing

connections (known as stimulus-response bonds) between events.

b)Habit formation (Skinner)

c)The importance of the environment (an event, a situation or another person (teacher or

parent))

2)Cognitive theory(Chomsky)

a)Language is not a form of behaviour. It is an intricate (complicated) rule-based system.

(Language is rule-governed.)

b)There are a finite number of grammatical rules in the system and with knowledge of these

rules an infinite number of sentences can be produced. (Language is generative.)

c)Students should be asked to think rather than simply repeat.

3)Constructivist theory

a)Learning is a process in which the learner construct meaning based on his/her own

experiences and what he/she already knows.

b)Constructivism is a broad term used by philosophers, curriculum designers, psychologists,

educators, and others.

4)Socio-constructivist theory(Vygotsky)

a)Learning is best achieved through the dynamic interaction between the teacher and the

learner and between learners.

b)Emphasis on interaction and engagement in a social context

c)Vygotsky’ concept of the zone of proximal development: a child can solve a problem

with the help (scaffolding) of an adult or more able peer.

d)Vygotsky’s work formed the basis for th e cooperative learning programs. He even

recommended pairing more competent students with less competent students to elevate the latter’s competence.

e)Scaffolding: the technique of changing the level of support over the course of a teaching

session; a more-skilled person (teacher or more-advanced peer of the child) adjusts the amount of guidance to fit the st udent’s current performance. When the task the student is learning is new, the teacher might use direct instruction. As the student’s competence

increases, less guidance is provided.

f)Think of scaffolding in learning like the scaffolding used to construct a building. The

scaffolding provides support when needed, but it is adjusted and gradually removed as the building approaches completion. Researchers found that when scaffolding is used by teachers and peers in collaborative learning, students’ learning be nefits.

1.4 What makes a good language teacher?

Elements that contribute to the qualities of a good language teacher can be categorized into three groups: ethic devotion, professional qualities and personal styles.

1.5 How can one become a good language teacher?

The most important and most difficult part of the making a good language teacher is the development of professional competence, which is the state or quality of being adequately qualified for the profession, and armed with a specific range of skills, strategies, knowledge, and ability.

Stages involving in the development of professional competence:

Stage 1 language development (command of English)

Stage 2 learning(others’experience, received knowledge and own experience), practice, reflection.

Goal: professional competence