The Good Language Learner

 

We know from research by Joan Rubin (1975) that the Good Language Learner:

1. is a willing and accurate guesser.
2. has a strong drive to communicate.
3. is often not inhibited.
4. is prepared to attend to form.
5. practises.
6. monitors his own speech and the speech of others, and
7. attends to meaning.

So what does this mean? Although this research is a bit dated and culture specific, we can still learn a few lessons from it.

 

If students do not feel the need for talking, for enquiring, for explaining… how can they learn a language to speak?

 

CHILDREN LEARNING ENGLISH

Enseñar a niños siempre es fascinante y todo un reto, es importante antes de comenzar a enseñar: observarles cómo actúan y lo que dicen, para enfocar la clase de acuerdo a su propia personalidad.

La principal preocupación del profesor no puede ser completar el programa o syllabus, lo prioritario es: motivar, divertir y entretener.

 

Hungry Planet: What the World Eats

Posted: 10 May 2013 08:27 AM PDT

 

   Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluision traveled the world exploring how the eating habits differ from country to country and presented their results in a photo album, called Hungry Planet: What the World Eats. The wife and husband’s team visited 24 different countries and 30 families to photograph them at home, at the market, and surrounded by their weekly food supplies.

   Apart from being interesting and educative, the project brings up some social issues. The exposed weekly grocery list provides information not only about dietary habits, but also about health, economy, lifestyle, etc. It also clearly shows the division between the first world and the developing countries. Interestingly, less affluent families eat more nutritious food than those who could actually afford it. On the contrary, more economically stable families eat more processed food, while fresh products constitute just a small part of their diet.

  Come to think of it, how much does your family spend on food per week and what kind of food do you eat?

Website: Peter Menzel, Book: What the World Eats

¿Quieres que tu hijo sea bilingüe?

Para que un alumno tenga un dominio de una lengua extranjera, por ej. Inglés, lo primero que debe hacer es escuchar y repetir, sobre todo canciones y rimas, así se consigue un buen acento y entonación. Para eso es importante utilizar un método apropiado para niños y que aprendan como si fuera su lengua materna.

TEACHING AND LEARNING ENGLISH

Enseñar un segundo idioma no lleva implícito necesariamente que el alumno este aprendiendo esos contenidos automáticamente por estar en una clase. Lo más probable es que el alumno retenga una parte de esos contenidos, pero algunas veces lo que realmente aprende es muy poco.

¿Por qué ocurre esto?