Power of Language

Tiffani Knox

Los Angeles Pacific University

ENGL 420 Principle of Language

Lesley Gonzalez

April 25, 2021

 The power of language is more than just learning English in school. It is a very crucial

skill for every student to have, especially in the world we live in today. Every teacher has

different ways of making sure these skills get embedded into the minds of their students, but

some ways are almost essential for teachers to use. I plan to use specific skills and techniques to

help the students of the 21st century, acquire these skills and also use them on a day to day basis.

Why is the power of language so important? Serendip studio writes, “Language is

powerful and a virtue to self-reflection because we use it to communicate in writing, speaking,

and even visually. Language is valuable to express and share how we feel, as close as we can put

into words. We praise the influence and value of language so much that we encourage

individuals to be multilingual.” Language is what we use on a daily basis to not only speak to

each other, but to write, using facial expressions, etc. Our worlds revolve around language. With

as much slang and new terms kids in the 21st century use, it may be hard for them to properly

learn such a crucial skill to get by in life. Many people struggle with knowing proper grammar

and can easily mistake one phrase for meaning something different. If one does not know the ins

and outs of language, they can easily have a fall back in life, like many of us in class have stated.

In order for these students to be well educated, they must know proper language skills. Without

those skills, some may not be accepted to Universities of their choice, or can also not get the job

they have been choosing to go for.

Teachers play many different significant roles inside the classroom. Many of them have

been there to help, to guide and teach, and to support them. Education.gov states, “Teachers play

vital roles in the lives of the students in their classrooms. ... Beyond that, teachers serve many

other roles in the classroom. Teachers set the tone of their classrooms, build a warm

environment, mentor and nurture students, become role models, and listen and look for signs of
trouble.” Teachers main priority should be to teach their students, but at times it is not always

easy. Each individual has their own unique way of learning and many struggle with the learning

of language. Edutopia lists nine different strategies to help students in English Language Arts.

They state the following, “1. Encourage independent reading 2. Design product-driven reading

and writing instruction 3. Pre-reading and pre-writing strategies 4. Making meaning 5. Text

annotation 6. Ask text-based evidence questions 7. Immerse students in the genre 8. Provide

options for writing 9. Analyze and interpret” Each one of these steps can help make the child's

learning much easier than just handing them the assignment and having them do it on their own

or even following along. Every teacher should make a full week's lesson and do some work on it

every day. For example, day one you can have them read the text and before doing it you can

give them tips on reading it or key points in reading it. Day two you can help them make

meaning of it and ask them questions that they can find directly in the book, and so on and so

forth. Each day you help them will push them closer and closer to getting the hang of it. You can

even use some of the terms they use to get the point across to them. Some of these techniques I

plan to use in my future classroom.

As I sit here and think about different ways I can help my future students learn language

and why it is so important, I somewhat struggle. I look at ways my teachers have tried to help me

and some of them never helped, they actually made it harder. I want to be able to have different

ways of presenting the information to these kids. With each student having such a unique

learning technique, it would be beneficial to both myself and my students to have multiple levels.

One being easier, maybe a lower level lesson, the next being medium level, and the last one

being a harder level. This will allow these students to have something a little challenging but not

something that will be too hard and make them struggle. I want to be able to use some of their
terms to make this learning experience more fun for them, but to also teach them that what they

are saying, can mean something significantly different to someone who is much older than them.

Those of older age may take offense to something that kids in the 21st century are saying. This is

why it is very important to teach proper language skills and how it can affect individuals.

The power of language is worth so much in school, but is also often not taken seriously.

Its importance is very well overlooked, especially in the 21st century. Each teacher has different

ways of teaching, but many things on English should be close to the same to ensure that they all

get the same learning. I plan to use specific lessons and work to make sure that all my students

get a well rounded education and good understanding of what language and the power of it can

be.
 References

Mansaray, H. (2013, May 22). Nine Strategies for Reaching All Learners in English Language

Arts. Retrieved from

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/stw-expanded-learning-time-individualized-learning-hassan

-mansaray

Schnorr, S. (2018, November 21). Why language skills are so important. Retrieved from

https://www.hrzone.com/community/blogs/sabineschnorr/why-language-skills-are-so-imp

ortant

Stephney, S. (2015, July 22). Roles of a Teacher in the Classroom. Retrieved from

https://www.education.gov.gy/web/index.php/teachers/tips-for-teaching/item/1603-roles-of

-a-teacher-in-the-classroom

The Importance and Power of Language. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://serendipstudio.org/exchange/eco-literacy-2014/jessica-bernal/importance-and-powe

r-language

Yule, G. (2020). The study of language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.