Hello all! (-:
First of all, I would like to say that I have really
enjoyed taking this Second Language Acquisition class with you all! This course
has taught me so many amazing things in the little time allotted (this semester
went by so fast). I learned from my friend Albagir during his interview that his
young age made a huge difference in his acquisition to English. If he would not
have learned English between the ages 4 and 10, he said it would have been much
more difficult to learn. I also learned a lot from the interview with my cousin
Denise who mentions that as long as Second Language Learners are exposed to
meaningful and supportive instruction, they will be motivated and encouraged to
be successful. Reading the textbooks by Ortega and Gass as well as being a part
of these interviews has shown me that a lot of what we have read links up to
real world processes that English Language Learners as well as ESL teachers
must go through. Being motivated as a young child to learn a second language
must be difficult but I have seen it happen time and time again. If I had to
change anything about how this course could be more productive in the future
are very small, nit-picky things, such as: put an exact date on the syllabus of
when assignments are due (e.g. Sunday, 4/8/2018, by 11:59pm) and/or let
students know that there is a free pdf versions of the textbooks online before
they buy them so they can save some extra money.
Secondly, developing our blogs throughout the semester
was such a fun and interesting way to share our assignments so that not only Dr.
Avellaneda could see them, but my classmates could see them as well. I believe
these blogs played a huge role in the learning process for everyone because we
got to share our ideas and bounce off real world experiences that were connected
to the theories we’ve learned. I definitely learned so much more by creating
and sharing my blog entries because I got to see what my classmates thought about
my individual findings and I could compare mine to theirs. Especially because
this was an online class and we never saw each other face to face, this was a
great way to create a community with everyone in the class. It helped us to re-connect
with old friends as well as create new ones.
Lastly, this class has really helped me to open my
eyes and to realize that teachers play a huge role in a students’ second or
additional language acquisition. Teachers-in-formation, like you and me, might
not have realized before this class that English Language Learners depend on
their teachers for a lot, including motivation, a safe environment, a role
model, and the list can go on. As future teachers, it is our job to prepare
ourselves with this course in order to be ready for our students who are
learning a second language. This class has helped me to see that my professional
teaching philosophy will be aimed towards providing my students with meaningful
instruction that is differentiated towards their second language acquisition.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this class! Feel free to leave any comments! (-:
Hi Haley! Thank you for sharing your reflection and your blog in general. I learned a lot from your interview videos and blog entries throughout this semester. One interesting point that you had mentioned is about motivation. Ortega had mentioned, “Gardner (2001) asserted that exceptionally successful learners who attain native-like competence are likely to be integratively motivated individuals.” (Ortega, 2013, pg. 171). I couldn’t agree with you more about the difficulty to motivate young students in learn second language. But I believe in our passion and enthusiasm we will be able to help our students achieve high academic. I wish you best in your future career.
ReplyDeleteHi Quynh! (: Thank you for taking the time to watch and read my blog entries, and I am so glad that you learned from them as well. In my opinion, the most interesting topic that was brought up by Ortega (2013) was a student's motivation to learn a second language. As you mentioned before, students who have obtained native-like competence are most likely integratively motivated. This means that the student has been motivated by their "genuine desire to become more like members of the L2 group" (Ortega, 2013, p. 173). But, this desire to learn may not be present in some students as much as it is in other students. So, as teachers, it is our job to help motivate them. Good luck to you in your future career as well. Math teachers rule!! (-:
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DeleteHi Haley! According to Kaboody(2013), “Among the role that teachers play in L2 classes are initiator, facilitator, motivator, ideal model of the target language speaker, mentor, consultant, and mental supporter. These roles are assumed to influence each learner’s motivation” (p.45). I believe that our role as an educator is very important in the success of student’s acquisition a second language. I feel fortunate that I have the opportunity to study with you in this course.
DeleteHi Haley!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing. I agree that ELL students rely on their teachers for a lot. I think when we learn the process we learn how we can best help in our students success. If we understand the process we can better facilitate their academic discourse throughout their learning journey. One of the big take-aways in this course was the effects of the age of acquisition. I find it very fascinating that you mentioned the exact age range of 4 and 10 for when he learned the second language. According to Gass, between the ages of 5 and 9 are when "primary language is mostly settled and before the effects from a critical or sensitive period" (p.124 2012). This aligns perfectly with what he remembers from his childhood and the age of acquisition.
Hi Norah! (-: I also thought it was interesting that age has a huge effect on second language acquisition. My friend Albagir's story was practically on point with the ideas and theories that we have learned in this class! Albagir learned English from the ages 4 through 10 and Gass (2012) mentions that the critical period is ages 5 through 9. That is no coincidence! On the other hand, some cases actually do not match the theory of a critical learning period. Ortega (2013) mentions there will always be doubts as to whether this period exists because some studies "show that there is no sharp drop in grammatical intuitions after some supposedly critical age" (p. 20). All in all, I find it interesting that my friend's story actually does match the theory and that age does have something to do with SLA.
DeleteHi Haley! Before I even read your reflection, the format of your entry really caught my eye. All the colors you used for your font, the smiley faces, the exclamation marks, and the way you organized each paragraph made your entry more appealing and interesting to view. It was a great way to express your enthusiasm and spread that enthusiasm to those reading your blog. This is something I wish I did with my blog, and it made me think of the importance of colors and visuals when it comes to learning. I’m sure you’ll be great at incorporating pictures and colors when teaching your students. It’ll help them stay engaged and comprehend your lessons.
ReplyDeleteI’m glad you were able to re-connect with old friends and make new ones through the blogging experience. By communicating with peers online, second language learners are also benefitted. These benefits include the development of cultural knowledge of the L2, the expansion of L2 sociolinguistic repertoires, the increase of cultural self-awareness (Ortega, 2013, pg. 248). I’m not skilled at activities involving technology, so this course made me aware of my need to learn more about recent technological advances that teachers take advantage of in classrooms.
Hi Yae Ji! (-: Thank you so much for your friendly comment, it made my day! I am so glad to hear that my blog was appealing to my classmates. I love incorporating colors and pictures into my presentations and such in order to catch my audience's eye. Also, thank you for taking the time to read my reflection. I definitely agree that second language learners benefit from online technology, especially because everyone nowadays uses technology to communicate and network with others. Ortega (2013) mentions that using technology as a medium "creates 'sites for interpersonal communication, multimedia publication, distance learning, community participation, and identity formation'" (p. 248). All things considered, technology has come a long way and is a huge aid in learning anything, especially a second language.
DeleteHello Haley. I enjoyed reading your reflection. I really loved how you talked about meaningful differentiated instruction. In this course, we learned about motivation and its importance in the students’ learning. In order for students to be motivated, they have to be able to process the content they are learning. With differentiated instruction, you are definitely setting up you kiddos for success. Success is a co-effort from both student and teacher. According to Ortega, “it is important to remember that both expert and novice contributions are always co-constructed, not predetermined, and that their success or failure is also co-shared, rather than located in one or the other participant alone” (Ortega, 2011, pg. 239).
ReplyDeleteHi Isabel! Thank you for reading my reflection. Yes, my cousin talked a lot about meaningful instruction. As a teacher, when you provide purposeful and relevant instruction to your students, they will automatically be set up for success in your class as well as when learning a second language. Not only does the student have to try to find motivation within themselves, but as teachers we must try our hardest to motivate our students as well. Assigning partners in class can also motivate students who don't have as much drive to learn as others. Ortega (2013) mentions that "a highly motivated partner may boost the other student's willingness to interact and engage with a given oral task" (p. 77). All in all, there are many different ways to motivate students. So, if one way doesn't work, then there is always another to try out!
DeleteHello Isabel,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that students need to be motivated to learn a new language. In order to learn something new the person has to be motivated because if they are not then they will not learn as much as they would. It is our role as teachers to motivate our students so that they can learn.