Community Language Learning and Style & Strategies

EDUC 409 Ali Segel Erica Chae Elana Landau

Community Language Learning (CLL)

Psychologists begin to recognize the

fundamentally affective and interpersonal nature of all learning Perceived importance of psychological factors in language learners success Counseling Learning

Counseling Learning
Valuing and prizing individuals Low defense and low anxiety Teacher is counselor instead of

authority figure Supportive community Like the video we watched in class

Example of CLL
A student says a statement in their

native language and the counselor translates the statement back to the learner in the second language. The learner then repeats the statement in the second language as accurately as possible. The cycle continues with the other students.

Advantages and Disadvantages of CLL

Advantages Lowers learners anxiety Supportive group allows students to initiate language Point learners to autonomous learning Disadvantages Counselor/teacher can be too non-directive Can be benefited from directive deductive learning, a.k.a. being told

Styles and Strategies

Chapter 5: cognitive variations in

learning a second language i.e. variations in learning styles that differ across individuals and in strategies employed by individuals to attack particular problems in particular contexts

Key Terms
Process: Any number of behaviors, types of

learning, needs, neural connections, and emotional sets universally characteristic of all human beings Style: Consistent and enduring tendencies or preferences within an individual; general characteristics of intellectual and emotional functioning that are individual Strategies: Specific methods of approaching a problem or task, modes of operation for achieving a particular end.

Learning Styles
A general predisposition, voluntary or not, toward

processing information in a particular way. Nine styles of Second Language Acquisition:

Field independence/dependence Random vs. Sequential Global vs. Particular Inductive vs. Deductive Synthetic vs. Analytic Analog vs. Digital Concrete vs. Abstract Leveling vs. Sharpening Impulsive vs. Reflective

Five Other Styles Relevant to Teaching

Field independence Left/right brain dominance Ambiguity tolerance Reflectivity and impulsivity Visual, auditory, and kinesthetic

Field Independence and Dependence (FID)

Field Independence Style: The ability

to perceive a particular, relevant item or factor in a field of distracting items Field Dependence/Sensitivity: The tendency to be dependent on the total field so that the parts embedded within the field are not easily perceived

Field Independence (FI)

Increases as a child matures to adulthood Democratic, industrialized, competitive

society tends to produce more FI persons (evidence of nurture) FI tend to be more independent, competitive, and self-confident Closely related to classroom learning that involves analysis, attention to details, and mastering of exercises, drills, and other focused activities

Field Dependence (FD)

The tendency to be dependent on the total field so that the

parts embedded within the field are not easily perceived Development of a FD style has positive effects: perceive the whole picture, the larger view, and the general configuration of a problem, idea, or event Authoritarian societies, which are usually highly socialized and utilize strict rearing practices tend to produce more FD FD persons tend to be more socialized and derive their selfidentity from persons around them FD style will by virtue of its association with empathy, social outreach, and perception of other people yield successful learning of a communicative aspects of a second language

Left/Right Brain Dominance

Left hemisphere associated with logical,

analytical, mathematical, and linear thought Right hemisphere perceives and remembers visual, tactile, and auditory images. It is more efficient in processing holistic and emotional information. Left brain dominant second language learners prefer a deductive style of teaching, while right brain learners prefer inductive styles

Ambiguity Tolerance
Concerns the degree to which you are cognitively

willing to tolerate ideas that run counter to your own belief system or structure of knowledge In L2 learning, a great amount of apparently contradictory information is encountered: words that differ from L1, rules that differ/are inconsistent, and sometimes a whole cultural system Chapelle and Roberts found that learners with a high tolerance for ambiguity were more successful in certain language tasks

Reflectivity and Impulsivity

Impulsive: Quick or gambling guess at

an answer Reflective: Slower, more calculated responses Children who are reflective make fewer errors in reading. However, impulsive persons are faster readers. Reflective students are slower but more accurate

 Visual learners prefer reading, studying charts,

Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic

drawings, graphic information Auditory learners prefer listening to lecture Kinesthetic learners prefer demonstration and physical activity Learner styles represent preferred approaches, rather than immutable, stable traits, which means learners can adapt (evidence of NURTURE) Preference is usually cross-cultural
Ex. Korean students are visually oriented. Chinese are auditory.

Autonomy, Awareness, and Action

Learner autonomy allows learners to do

things like initiate oral production, solve problems in small groups, practice language in pairs, use language outside classroom Learners must become aware of the process of their own learning Once learners become aware of their styles, strengths, and their weaknesses, they can take appropriate action in terms of strategy

Strategies
Strategies are specific attacks that we take

on a given problem and they vary individually They are conscious and goal driven Two types of strategies:
Learning strategies
Processing, storage, and retrieval

Communication strategies
Production and expression

Learning Strategies
Metacognitive: indicates an executive function

and strategies that involve planning for learning, thinking, monitoring production, and evaluating
Direct attention and self-evaluation

Cognitive: limited to specific learning tasks and

involve direct manipulation

Repetition and note-taking

Socioaffective: social-mediating activity and

interacting with others (also a communication strategy)

Cooperation and questions for clarification

Avoidance
Lexical avoidance Where you replace an unknown word with one that seems appropriate but doesnt make perfect sense. Ex: I lost my road. (I lost my way) Phonological avoidance Dismissing certain words because of phonological difficulty. Ex: Japanese avoiding the word rally by saying hit the ball Topic avoidance A whole topic of conversation is avoided. Ex: Might not talk about yesterday because past tense is unfamiliar

Compensatory Strategies
Involves compensation for missing knowledge Pre-fabricated patterns: memorize chunks of

knowledge often found in pocket bilingual phrase books

Ex: Where is the toilet? I dont speak English.

Code-Switching: the use of the 1st or 3rd

language within a stream in the 2nd language, often subconscious between two advanced learners Appeal to Authority: directly ask a proficient speaker for the form

Classroom Activity
Learning strategies are the key to

learner autonomy and one of the most important goals of language teaching should be the facilitation of autonomy Are you left-brain or right-brain dominant?
Mark on the handout which qualities apply to you.