M d essay 6

LESTER BRENDAN CANAL LESTERC300@GMAIL.COM MASTERS DIPLOMA ASSIGNMENT: History of TESOL and Lamguage Learning ,barriers , problems MODULE: ESSAY 6 DATE OF SUBMISSION: REMARKS:

Language Learning

HISTORY OF TESOL

TESOL is an acronym which stands for "Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages�

1. TESOL as a professional organization 2. TESOL as a training program to teach English to speakers of other languages (in the US or abroad)

There are 2 forms of TESOL This was established in 1966 TESOL is an independent organization of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages. It has more than 13,000 members TESOL is a global education association 90 affiliates in over 120 countries TESOL's mission is to ensure excellence in English language teaching to speakers of other languages.

MISSION - It was created out of professional concern over the lack of a single, allinclusive professional organization Bring together teachers and administrators at all educational levels with an interest in teaching English to speakers of other Languages THE CREATION OF TESOL - TESOL was created to address 3 issues. The need for a professional organization permanently devoted to the problems of Teaching English to speakers of other languages, at all levels The need for a pedagogical journal. The need for a register of specialists of qualified personnel required for foundations, government agencies and universities train teachers or other professional how to teach English to speakers of other languages TESOL as Training Program.

Teaching English to adult learners can be both challenging and rewarding. Adult learners bring to the classroom a lot of issues that a teacher must address before creating a successful learning environment. As a teacher for adult students, you must be prepared to understand the needs of your students and be flexible enough to alter lessons when they’re proving to be ineffective in the classroom. To help you in your lessons, here are some ideas and techniques to make your classroom more effective and interesting.

1. The cultural background of adult English students can play a huge role in learning.

Adult students bring a lifetime worth of beliefs and even learning methods into the classroom which may vary from the culture they are learning in. Sometimes, students may act in ways that are acceptable in the student’s country of origin but may conflict with learning behaviour in their adopted country. You must be prepared to develop cultural skills and take into account each student’s country of origin to effectively teach English and foster an effective and positive classroom environment.

2. Adequate personal connection with each student is important and should be established before teaching any aspect of the language. Your students should want to communicate with you first before you can help them learn how to communicate in English. Learn your students’ names and ask them about their families. This will help foster a sense of community in the classroom.

3. Every adult learner that walks into the classroom, no matter their educational background, has his own individual knowledge regarding language. The teacher must be able to align the learning process for adult English language learners with daily life strengthens comprehension in English since students can associate their language knowledge and skills with the ability to function in the world. As a teacher, you need to develop lesson plans that will link daily activities that rely on the use of English to be accomplished.

4. Lessons should have attainable and measurable objectives. A specific objective will help adult students to understand their goals for learning during the lesson. This will also help you evaluate student performance and gauge if the lesson has sunk in with the students. Objectives also help students know if they have achieved the skills and knowledge needed to become successful. If there are unclear objectives for the students they maybe become frustrated and fall behind in the lesson.

5. Peer collaboration and team activities can spur language learning. Placing students in cooperative groups will give each student personal attention from their peers, a useful technique specially when providing focused personal attention to each student is difficult. This is also helpful when you need the students to be the focus of activities. Groups can create a community setting and help students learn from each other.

Compounded by the idea that the English language is one of the most complex languages in the world to master, passionate educators have shown that language is a barrier to learning, TESOL teacher’s goal is to work to decrease those barriers to learning.

The first step to accommodation is through mastering the language, in this case developing the English language into an instructional component so that those of ESOL (English Speakers of Other Languages) can learn, comprehend and apply

their new language skill sets. No other language is as unique and embedded with linguistic overtones, vocalized nuances and implied vocabulary that may represent several definitions that invoke different responses. Learning English is more than learning the pronunciation and definition of words, phases, and forming of paragraphs from sentence structures. There is the incorporation of multifaceted words in conversational models with clarity and comprehension.

Problems in Learning a Foreign Language "Learning a language is too difficult and I just can't do it." This is the excuse most people give for not learning a new language or giving up once they have begun.

People who have grown up with only one language often find it difficult to grasp the concept of what it takes to learn another language and feel that it is just plain to difficult to understand. Many people just do not expect the problems that arise while learning a language, and consequently give up.

Approach - One of the major obstacles is that they do not know how to learn a language. Many people approach it the same way they would learning anything else.

Getting hold of a new language is unlike learning anything else. You basically have to turn your thinking upside down.

Visual learners usually have the hardest time learning a new language, especially if they are older when they begin to learn. This is because they have learned that they do not do well in a classroom setting, so they often avoid sitting down to learn anything. They need to get their hands into what they are doing to understand. The problem when they try to learn a language is that they literally need to "see" it. Often you will see these types of people glancing upward as though searching for the word somewhere. This is actually what they are doing. They are trying to visualize that word. These people need to spend some time in a classroom setting learning, even if it is for just a few weeks, so they need to see what they are saying.

Pronunciation - One of the biggest problems for any new learner is simply learning to pay attention to how a word is said - pronunciation. One of the biggest confusions nationals say they have is the other speaker's accent or just that they did not say the word correctly. You need to not only take the time to listen to exactly how a word is said when someone else is pronouncing it, but also take the time to listen to yourself as you say it. This means speaking slowly. You may feel about two years old and completely stupid, but it is better to be understood and speak slowly than to speak quickly and face the humiliation of someone telling you that they had absolutely no idea what you just said.

Word Order - Pay attention to word placements. Often a meaning of a phrase is changed simply by where you place the word. For example, what is the difference between the phrases, "Only I like pizza," and "I only like pizza"? If you are trying to say that you are the only one who likes pizza, both phrases can be used, but the first phrase is much more direct and less confusing.

Prepositions - Take a day to really study those pesky words called prepositions. They are a headache in any language, but completely necessary. Saying I am waiting "at" the store and I am waiting "in" the store can make a big difference to someone looking for you.

Reading bill boards and advertisements is a great way to learn basic phrases and expressions. They are usually kept simple and direct so that people can read them

quickly in passing.

Visual Reinforcement - Visual reinforcement is absolutely necessary in learning a language. Often you think you hear something one way, and when you see it you realize, "Oh, so that's what they were saying! No wonder nobody understood me when I tried to say that."

Speak it! - Don't be afraid to speak up. Trust me; they already know you don't speak their language, so it will be no surprise to them. But most people really are patient and very appreciative with others taking the initiative. They often love to help you say it correctly or will give you an easier phrase to use next time. Don't be afraid to make mistakes and to laugh at yourself when you do. Allowing yourself to laugh releases the pressure of being afraid, and it communicates to others that you realize you didn't do it right and it probably sounded pretty funny. This opens the door to help others feel more relaxed too and reach out to help you.

English as a second language (ESL) is the use or study of English by speakers with different native languages.

English is a language which has great reach and influence; it is taught all over the world under many different circumstances. In English-speaking countries, English language teaching has essentially evolved in two broad directions: instruction for people who intend to live there and for those who do not. These divisions have grown firmer as the instructors of these two "industries" have used different terminology, followed distinct training qualifications, formed separate professional associations, and so on. Crucially, these two arms have very different funding structures, public in the former and private in the latter, and to some extent this influences the way schools are established and classes are held. Matters are further complicated by the fact that the United States and the United Kingdom, both major engines of the language, describe these categories in different terms: as many British observers have had attributed to them,[1] the saying goes that "England and America are two countries divided by a common language."

Difficulties for learners Language teaching practice often assumes that most of the difficulties that learners face in the study of English are a consequence of the degree to which their native language differs from English (a contrastive analysis approach). A native speaker of Chinese, for example, may face many more difficulties than a native speaker of German, because German is more closely related to English than Chinese is. This may be true for anyone of any mother tongue (also called first language, normally abbreviated L1) setting out to learn any other language (called a target language, second language or L2)..

Language learners often produce errors of syntax, vocabulary, and pronunciation thought to result from the influence of their L1, such as mapping its grammatical patterns inappropriately onto the L2, pronouncing certain sounds incorrectly or with difficulty, and confusing items of vocabulary known as false friends. This is known as L1 transfer or "language interference". However, these transfer effects are typically stronger for beginners' language production, and SLA research has highlighted many errors which cannot be attributed to the L1, as they are attested in learners of many language backgrounds (for example, failure to apply 3rd person present singular -s to verbs, as in 'he make' not 'he makes').

Some students may have very different cultural perceptions in the classroom as far as learning a second language is concerned. Cultural differences in communication styles and preferences are also significant. For example, a study looked at Chinese ESL students and British teachers and found that the Chinese learners did not see classroom discussion and interaction as important but placed a heavy emphasis on teacher-directed lectures.

Teaching English therefore involves not only helping the student to use the form of English most suitable for their purposes, but also exposure to regional forms and cultural styles so that the student will be able to discern meaning even when the words, grammar, or pronunciation are different from the form of English they are being taught to speak. Some professionals in the field have recommended incorporating information about non-standard forms of English in ESL programs.

Barriers to Language Learning and Acquisition Learning a second language isn’t easy. There is a lot that can get in the way. It isn’t as automatic or sure as we’d suppose. Depending on the person, there can be some high barriers to learning another language. Listed below are some which I believe are important: 1. Social (a) peer group (b) socio-economic status (c) parental/family support 2.Psycho / Emotional (a) motivation (low intrinsic and extrinsic forces) (b) attitude towards language and learning (c) social disposition / character 3. Biological (a) physical impairments (deaf, blind etc…) (b) psychological fitness (c) age and health 4. Pedagogical (a) type and method of instruction (b) improper materials and curriculum (c) school and classroom culture (d) teacher/student relationship 5. Cultural (a) Cultural values regarding risk taking, openness (b)government policy and investment, (c)dislocation, movement, war

Conclusion So, is English really an easy language? Certainly, many people hold the view that it is. Indeed, the author of a popular book on the history of English* says that English".. has a grammar of great simplicity". But if you have read the preceding articles in this series, it will be clear that I have a different opinion. My intention has been to show, not always so seriously, that English is in fact full of difficulties to the non-native speaker. Indeed, the biggest book of English grammar** contains 1800 pages and weighs 3 kilos, which doesn't necessarily prove that English grammar is difficult, but it does show that there is a lot of it!

So who is right? Is English an easy language or is it difficult? Obviously, to prove the case either way, it is necessary to compare English with other languages. English can be said to be difficult only if we can point to many other languages that are easier. But already we run into problems, because English, like every language, is a hugely complex system consisting of many aspects. It may be that some aspects of the language system are easier in English than in another language but other aspects are more difficult. It is certainly true, for example, that English spelling is more difficult than German spelling, but on the other hand adjectives are easier to use in English because they do not change their endings as they do in German.

A further complication is introduced when we try to decide at what point in learning a new language we should make the judgement as to the difficulty of that language. It seems that some languages are easier at the beginning but get progressively harder, while for other languages the opposite is true. I remember struggling terribly in my first few years of learning German to come to terms with the interaction of articles, case, gender and word order However, once I had mastered this aspect of grammar, nothing else seemed very difficult in learning German. On the other hand, I have the feeling that English gets more and more difficult the further the learner advances.

References / Sources: www.edu books journals various internet sources on learning a foreign language.