Our last class was very interesting.

Marya's presentation was very focused and task-based.

Placing us in a situation where we had to argue for a philosphy was a good way to help us think about the pros and cons of the different methods.

Voting for the best method as a large group at the end was a way that we could express our real views rather than the ones we were asssigned to represent.

Observeing the Korean teacher video was interesting and instructive.

It was interesting to hear what others thought about the teacher and his methods.

I was surprised that more people did not pick up the spelling mistake on the board.

My daughter had an English teacher that could not spell. It was disturbing.

My daughter and several of her friends were studying at our home and several of the sudents had the same (several) spelling mistakes in their notes - because they copied the teacher's notes right off the board.

I really wasn't too concerned about spelling - after all it is only a truly uncreative person who cant' think of more than one way to spell a word.......

It was that she was a poor writer, a mediocre speaker, and a very uncritical reader - in addition to not exhibiting an inability to control the class.

... I digress


I do think that just a 10 minute clip is a really short observation to judge someone on.

On the other hand there are things that we all do that we do all the time.

I think that it is important to be able to give people feedback both positive and negative.

I was at a conference on Saturday and the speaker chose not to use the microphone. He could be heard well at the start of his commentary but then was lowering his voice at the end of his statements. Some people were could not hear. Several of them were wondering if they should say anthing and if so what.

They did not want to hurt his feelings.

So the suggestion was made that they should start out by saying they were really interested in what he said and did not want to miss any of it - could he use the mic or speak louder

This was very difficult for these adults to do. (at a seminar that they paid for and gave up a Saturday with friends and family to attend)

Learning to give and take feedback is a very important skill in the classroom and in life.

Lexical Help

As I read the book I kept thinking about the graduate student who comes here to do a master's degree - grammar is good general vocab OK

or the adult who is working in a technical field, who knows the field but not the English



CALP

How can we help with getting them familar with conventions of their chosen discipline?

Is the most helpful thing to help their teacher/co worker/partner/colleague help them?

How familar are we with specific disciplines?

--------------------

On a more practical level

I went to a writing workshop once where we took passages from great writers. We looked at

secific parts of speech,
function in the discourse,
grammar,
puctiation ,
sentence construction,
word length
word level....

and then wrote a parallel passage.

It was very tedious.

It was also very helpful.

Official Language?

In an ideal world teachers would team teach and Nests and non-Nests would team together, each reenforcing the strengths of the other.

All this talk about Nests and nonNests made me think about where is English an official language.

Although there have been attempts to make English the official language of the United States - none has ever passed through Congress.

Several states have laws designating English as the official language. Minnesota is not one of them.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the 2000 Executive Order No. 13166 require that public entities receiving federal funds must have all vital documents available in every language that their clients speak

The original official languages of the United Nations were English, Chinese, French, and Russian. Spanish and Arabic were added in 1973.

Most spoken languages in the U.S.The list below is based on the 2000 US census. It shows 20 most populous languages spoken in the U.S. No indigenous language made the top 20 list. As of January 2007, the US population was 301,029,225, so the figures above will need to be adjusted upwards.

English 215,423,555 82.10%

Spanish 28,100,725 10.71%

French 1,606,790 0.61%

Mandarin 1,499,635 0.57%

German 1,382. 610 0.52%

Tagalog 1,224,245 0.46%

Vietnamese 1,009,625 0.38%

Italian 1,008,370 0.38%

Korean 894,065 0.34%

Russian 706,240 0.26%

Polish 667,415 0.25%
Arabic 614,580 0.23%

Portuguese 563,830 0.21%

Japanese 478,000 0.18%

French Creole 453,365 0.17%

Greek 365,440 0.13%

Hindi 317,055 0.12%

Persian 312,080 0.11%

Urdu 262,895 0.10%

Cantonese 259,745 0.9%

http://www.nvtc.gov/lotw/months/november/USlanguages.html


State Official English Laws
Alabama (1990) – constitutional amendment adopted by voter initiative
Alaska (1998) – initiative statute; ruled unconstitutional in state superior court, March 22, 2002; full text of ruling
Arizona (2006) – constitutional amendment adopted by voter initiative. A more restrictive measure, approved by voters in 1988, was ruled unconstitutional by federal district and appellate courts, decisions vacated on March 3, 1997 by the U.S. Supreme Court; then overturned as unconstitutional by the Arizona Supreme Court on April 28, 1998; U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear English-only proponents' final appeal on January 11, 1999
Arkansas (1987) – statute
California (1986) – constitutional amendment adopted by voter initiative
Colorado (1988) – constitutional amendment adopted by voter initiative
Florida (1988) – constitutional amendment adopted by voter initiative
Georgia (1996) – statute
Hawai`i (1978) – constitutional amendment declaring the state officially bilingual – recognizing English and Native Hawaiian as official languages
Idaho (2007) – statute
Iowa (2002) – statute
Illinois (1969) – statute repealing a 1923 declaration of "American" as the official state language and adopting English
Indiana (1984) – statute
Kansas (2007) – statute
Kentucky (1984) – statute
Mississippi (1987) – statute
Missouri (1998) – statute
Montana (1995) – statute
Nebraska (1923) – constitutional amendment
New Hampshire (1995) – statute
North Carolina (1987) – statute
North Dakota (1987) – statute
South Carolina (1987) – statute
South Dakota (1995) – statute
Tennessee (1984) – statute
Utah (2000) – initiative statute; appeal by ACLU dropped
Virginia (1981) – statute, revised in 1996
Wyoming (1996) – statute English Plus Resolutions
New Mexico (1989)
Oregon (1989)
Rhode Island (1992)
Washington (1989)
NOTE: Thanks to email correspondents who have alerted me to late developments in several states. If anyone else has information on pending language legislation not listed here, I would appreciate hearing from you at jwcrawford@compuserve.com.
Copyright © 2003 by James Crawford. Permission is hereby granted to reproduce this page for free, noncommercial distribution, provided that credit is given and this notice is included. Requests for permission to reproduce in any other form should be emailed to jwcrawford@compuserve.com.

Last updated on 24 June 2008

Presidential Campaign

I am glad to see that Langauge learning is a campaign issue.

I do think that it is time for People from the US to stop thinking that everyone in the world should speak English. We do need to get serious about teaching second and third langauages here.


Checkpoint
The Candidates Speak Off the Cuff, and Trouble Quickly Follows
Larry Richter
New York Times
July 11, 2008'



"Start with Mr. Obama. Answering a question that touched on bilingualism at one such forum in Powder Springs, Ga., on Tuesday, he said, “I agree that immigrants should learn English.” But then he went on to poke fun at those who argue that “we need English only” and Americans who “go over to Europe, and all we can say is ‘merci beaucoup.’ ”


“Instead of worrying about whether immigrants can learn English — they’ll learn English — you need to make sure your child can speak Spanish,” he said. “You should be thinking about how can your child become bilingual. We should have every child speaking more than one language.”
Mr. Obama’s comments were a slight variation on a theme that he regularly sounds in his stump speech: the need for young Americans to be able to compete in a globalized economy with their counterparts around the world. He often accompanies that with criticism of school districts that have reduced or eliminated elective offerings, like foreign language instruction, because of budget constraints."

After doing the reading for today. I would say there is no lack of opportunity for reasearch concerning second language learning.

As I think about my teaching I think about written or mental check lists about what I need to be thinking about as I plan lessons

The only absolute is that Adolescense seems to be the optimal age for second language learning.

ACTFL uses 6 domains to evalute language level:

Comprehensibility (Can people understand you?),
Comprehension ( Can you understand others?)
Language Control ( Is your langauge accurate and appropriate?)
Vocabulary
Cultural Awareness
Communication Stategy

These are for elementary schools, but could apply to any level program witha few modifications.

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Langauges site lists :

Characteristics of Effective Elementary School Foreign Language Programs

1. Access and Equity for All students, regardless of learning styles, achievement levels, race/ethnic origin, socioeconomic status, home language, or future academic goals, have opportunities for language study.

2. Program Goals and Program IntensityProgram goals are consistent with the amount of time actually provided for instruction. The desired program outcomes determine time allocations for elementary school programs. There are three types of programs at the K-8 level:

.

FLES programs are designed to provide a sequential language learning experience aiming for some degree of language proficiency.

Immersion programs combine foreign language instruction with content learning from the regular curriculum.

FLEX programs are designed to provide limited exposure to one or more foreign languages for presecondary students

3. Extended SequenceElementary and middle/junior high school foreign language programs are the foundation for a long, well-articulated sequence of carefully developed curricula that extend through grade 12. Students in such programs can develop increased language proficiency and cultural competence.

4. ArticulationArticulation of the extended sequence is both vertical and horizontal, including the elementary school, the middle/junior high school, and the high school. This articulation is the result of consensus, careful planning, and monitoring among language teachers, administrators, and parents at all levels. Students in these programs achieve outcomes that are consistent across grade levels

5. Curriculum Human, fiscal and time resources are available for systematic curriculum development. The curriculum review cycle provides for assessment

6. InstructionInstruction is appropriate to the developmental level of the students and consistent with program outcomes and current professional practices

7. MaterialsMaterials appropriate for students' developmental level, rich in authentic culture and language, and related to the curriculum are key components in elementary school foreign language programs. The main focus of all materials, both print and non-print, is the teaching of communication

8. EvaluationProcesses for evaluating both student achievement and program success are in use. Evaluation processes are appropriate to the goals, objectives, and teaching strategies of elementary school foreign language programs, as well as to the developmental level of children.

9. StaffingPrograms are staffed by certified teachers who have completed preparation in methods and materials for elementary school foreign language instruction, developmental characteristics of the elementary school learner, and the nature of the elementary school curriculum. Modern foreign language teachers should have a high level of language and cultural competence. Based on the ACTFL/ETS proficiency scale, a teacher's oral proficiency in a foreign language should be "Advanced."

10. Professional DevelopmentAn ongoing program of professional development should allow teachers to advance in their levels of language, culture, and instruction.

11. School and Community Support and Development The foreign language teachers work with the entire school community to integrate the foreign language curriculum into the school educational program. The elementary school foreign language program shows responsibility for and makes effective use of parent and community resources and of school board and administrative staff
.
12. CultureThe connection between language and culture is made explicit, and foreign language instruction is implemented within a cultural context. Cultural awareness and understanding are explicit goals of the program. The program collaborates with other cultures and countries (exchange programs, pen pals, etc.) to assure language learning within a context of cultural experiences.


These characteristics are based on work begun at the 1989 ACTFL Priorities Conference and continued at the 1990 ACTFL Annual Meeting. A summary statement from the Elementary School Foreign Language Strand of the Priorities Conference is contained in the ACTFL Newsletter (Summer 1990, 2(4)). The complete paper by Myriam Met, Montgomery County Public Schools (MD), and Nancy Rhodes, Center for Applied Linguistics (1990) is contained in "Foreign Language Annals, 23(5)," 433-443.

At a time of budget when school budgets are decreasing I wonder how many programs meet thses guidelines.


Learning a second language at an early age...

Has a positive effect on intellectual growth.

Enriches and enhances a child's mental development.

Leaves students with more flexibility in thinking, greater sensitivity to language, and a better ear for listening.

Improves a child's understanding of his/her native language.

Gives a child the ability to communicate with people s/he would otherwise not have the chance to know.

Opens the door to other cultures and helps a child understand and appreciate people from other countries.

Gives a student a head start in language requirements for college.

Increases job opportunities in many careers where knowing another language is a real asset.

The site has several studies which support this assertions.

Week 5

I wanted to compare Brown and Scovel:

Tom Scovel's Learning New Languages: A Guide to Second Language Acquisition
(2000)Boston: Heinle & HeinlePp. 158.ISBN: 0-8384-67-7 (paper)US $21.56
People
Language
Attention
Cognition
Emotions
People the role social factors play in the learning of a second language and the various psychological models of human behavior that have been developed to explain language learning
Models of first language acquisition:
Behavioral
Innatist,
Social interactionist
Schumann's acculturation
Acton's perceived social distance
Giles's speech accommodation.
Language planning and
Kachru's trinary categorization of 'World Englishes
bilingual education,

Language analysis of how one's mother language influences the learning of a second language
Interference
Intraference
Interlanguage
Mistakes
Errors
Avoidance is "the tendency for L2 learners not to use grammatical structures that would normally be used by native speakers in that context because those L2 structures contrast significantly with the grammar of their mother tongue" (p. 57)


Attention centerpiece of the entire learning process because it "frames our entire experience . . . it represents the gateway between the outside world of people and linguistic input, and the internal realm of thoughts and feelings, it is a construct that affects and is affected by almost every aspect of language learning" (pp. 71, 89).
Attention and neuropsychology
Memory
Perception
Linguistic input and form
Tomlin and Villa's attention model.
McLaughlin's attention model.
Cognition defines, refines, and confines every aspect of our social, linguistic, attentional and emotional behavior" (p. 91).
Content discourse schemata
Processes
Strategies
Styles
Memory
Cognitive styles
Language learning strategies
Critical period hypothesis
Relationship between age and SLA.
Emotions
Motivation
Anxiety
Empathy
Extroversion and introversion
Risk-taking,
Self-esteem.

Source:
Ronald Gray Beijing Language and Culture University, Beijing, China
TESL EJ
Vol. 5. No. 2
R-12
September 2001
http://tesl-ej.org/ej18/r12.html

L&S 4 brought up a very interesting question

Is intelligibility or native like ability the goal to strive for in pronunciation?

When I study an L2 my personal goal is intelligibility.

I think speaking like a native is more easily picked up by young children and pre teens. I believe the evidence bears this out. I am curious to know more about why this is.

At 55 If I am understood I am happy.

As a teacher I think knowing students goals will help us decide what activities deserve most attention.

----------------------------------------------------

I have been thinking a lot about how to grade writing in a way that uses constructive criticism to promote improvement. I spoke with a friend of mine that teaches high school writing. I will attemp to scan in the rubric she shared with me, and would be very interested to see others.

When thinking about writing mistakes, I found that the Korean high school ( summer program 2005) students' mistakes were in some ways similar to the type of mistakes that native English speakers their own age made as well as some unique mistakes with verb forms.

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