DESCRIBING LEARNING AND TEACHING

When people is learning and teaching they are involved in a process that require a lot
of skills, methodologies, strategies and techniques, all this to take control and manage
the classroom in the best way possible; so, this process is defined by Banks (2000) as
a planned interaction that promotes behavioral change that is not a result of
maturation or coincidence.
Children and language
In the website The Linguistic List, the article called Child Language Acquisition (n.d.)
points out that children will come up with the most extraordinary things when they start
using language. Cute things, hilarious things and, sometimes, baffling things that may
start us wondering whether we should worry about their language development.
Also Perry (n.d.) in an internet article from Scholastic website called How Young
Children Learn Language says that there is no genetic code that leads a child to speak
English or Spanish or Japanese. Language is learned. We are born with the capacity to
make 40 sounds and our genetics allows our brain to make associations between
sounds and objects, actions, or ideas. The combination of these capabilities allows the
creation of language. Sounds come to have meaning. The babbling sound "ma - ma ma" of the infant becomes mama, and then mother. In the first years of life children
listen, practice, and learn. The amusing sounds of a young toddler practicing language
(in seemingly meaningless chatter) is really their modeling of the rhythm, tone, volume,
and non-verbal expressions they see in us.
Acquisition and learning
These two processes play a very important and essential role in the process of
education because each one have a meaning and each one is different as Haynes
(2005) in her article called Language Acquisition vs. Language Learning argues that
there is an important distinction made by linguists between language acquisition and

language learning. Children acquire language through a subconscious process during

which they are unaware of grammatical rules. This is similar to the way they acquire
their first language. They get a feel for what is and what isnt correct. In order to acquire
language, the learner needs a source of natural communication. The emphasis is on
the text of the communication and not on the form. Young students who are in the
process of acquiring English get plenty of on the job practice. They readily acquire the
language to communicate with classmates.
Language learning, on the other hand, is not communicative. It is the result of direct
instruction in the rules of language. And it certainly is not an age-appropriate activity for
your young learners. In language learning, students have conscious knowledge of the
new language and can talk about that knowledge. They can fill in the blanks on a
grammar page. Research has shown, however, that knowing grammar rules does not
necessarily result in good speaking or writing. A student who has memorized the rules
of the language may be able to succeed on a standardized test of English language but
may not be able to speak or write correctly. (Haynes, 2005)
Different time different methods to teach English as a second language
For centuries, people have attempted to learn foreign/second languages through formal
education. The methods and approaches employed have changed through the years,
having been impacted by advancements in the theories and psychology of learning.
Basic assumptions about why and how people learn, shape the way in which
languages have been taught. (Zainuddin, Yahya, Morales-Jones, Whelan, 2011)
The book of Kendall Hunt Publishing Company called Fundamentals of Teaching
English to Speakers of Other Languages in K12 Mainstream Classrooms (2011)
contains in the chapter 11 Methods/Approaches of Teaching ESOL some of the
different methods that make essay the teaching learning process in a second language
that are going to be cited here:

The Grammar-Translation Method

The grammar-translation method (also known as the classical method) was based on
the belief that different kinds of knowledge were located in separate sections of the
brain. The main goal for learning a language was not for speaking and/or
communication. The driving force was to exercise the mind and at the same time to be
able to read in that language. The name of the method, grammar-translation, captures
the main emphases of this method (i.e., the study of grammatical aspects of language
and the use of translation as a means of ascertaining comprehension).
The Direct Method
The direct method was a complete departure from the grammar-translation method.
This method dates back to 1884 when the German scholar and psychologist F. Frankle
provided a theoretical justication for the method by writing about the direct association
between forms and meaning in the target language. It is also based on the work of
Gouin, who in the 1880s observed children learning language in natural settings.
The emphasis is on the direct associations the student makes between objects and
concepts and the corresponding words in the target language. In this method, the
primary goals are for students to think and speak the language; thus, no use of the
native language is allowed. Teachers employ objects, visuals, and realia to make the
input comprehensible. Instruction revolves around specic topics.
Audio-Lingual Method (ALM)
The United States involvement in World War II brought a significant change in the
teaching of languages in U.S. schools. It quickly became apparent that the grammartranslation method had not produced people who were able to speak the foreign
languages they had studied. The U.S. government asked the universities to develop

foreign language programs that produced students who could communicate effectively
in those languages.
In the audio-lingual method, the emphasis was on the memorization of a series of
dialogues and the rote practice of language structures. The basic premises on which
the method was based were that language is speech, not writing, and language is a set
of habits. Thus, the method was not successful at accomplishing the main goal. It was
too prescriptive; there was no opportunity provided for true communication to take
place in the ALM classroom. Students had been taught a script, and people do not
speak following a particular script.
Suggestopedia
Suggestopedia was developed by Bulgarian psychiatristeducator Georgi Lozanov
(1982), who wanted to eliminate the psychological barriers that people have to
learning. It uses drama, art, physical exercise, and desuggestivesuggestive
communicative psychotherapy as well as the traditional modes of listening, speaking,
reading, and writing to teach a second language. In this method, the classroom
atmosphere is crucial. Creating a relaxed, nonthreatening learning environment is
essential for its success. The goal is that students will assimilate the content of the lessons without feeling any type of stress or fatigue.
Classrooms are equipped with comfortable seating arrangements and dim lighting in an
effort to provide an inviting and appealing environment. Soothing music is employed to
invite relaxation and allow students to feel comfortable in the language classroom. The
use of the native language is also allowed, especially to give directions and to create
that welcoming atmosphere. Based on the belief that how students feel about learning
will make a difference in the learning process, Suggestopedia takes into consideration
the affective domain.

The Silent Way

Developed by Caleb Gattegno, the Silent Way re- quires that the teachers remain silent
much of the time, thus its name. In this method, students are responsible for their own
learning. Based on the belief that students are initiators of learning and capable of
independently acquiring language, the Silent Way provides a classroom environment in
which this can take place. The teacher models once, and the students are then given
the opportunity to work together to try to reproduce what has been modeled.
The Silent Way is a fairly complex method that requires the teacher to receive
extensive training in the use of the methodology. Students also need to be well versed
in the use of the charts and the rods to participate effectively in the lessons.
Total Physical Response (TPR)
The total physical response (TPR) method was developed by psychologist James
Asher (1974). This method is based on the principle that people learn better when they
are involved physically as well as mentally. In TPR, students are required to respond
nonverbally (physically) to a series of commands. As the teacher gives a command and
the students respond physically, the teacher ascertains students comprehension of the
command.
Once the students have practiced a number of times, the teacher simply gives the
command and the students respond. Eventually the students will give the commands,
thus developing oral proficiency. In TPR, teachers can employ pictures, objects, and
realia for students to manipulate as they respond nonverbally.
The Natural Approach
Tracy Terrell (1977, 1981) developed the natural approach based on Krashens monitor
model. The main goal of this method is to develop immediate communicative
competency. This method is based on Krashens monitor model, so it should be easy

to understand why the emphasis would be on providing the students with the
opportunity to acquire language rather than forcing them to learn it, by emphasizing
language form. In this method, the key to comprehension and oral production is the
acquisition of vocabulary.
The natural approach bases language acquisition on the natural order of native
language development. Because native language development follows a progression,
during the silent period, students would be allowed to respond in their native language.
The emphasis is on listening comprehension, so if students respond in their native
language, they are demonstrating comprehension. At the same time, students can be
exposed to a wide variety of topics and still be comfortable in the communication
process.
The Communicative Approach
The communicative approach to language teaching is based on several theoretical
premises:
1.

The communication principle: Activities that involve communication promote the

acquisition of language.
2.

The task-principle: Activities that engage students in the completion of real-world

tasks promote language acquisition.

3.

The meaningfulness principle: Learners are engaged in activities that promote

authentic and meaningful use of language.

The main goal in this approach is for the learner to become communicatively
competent. The learner develops competency in using the language appro- priately in
given social contexts. Much emphasis is given to activities that allow the second
language learner to negotiate meaning in activities that require oral communication in

the second language. In the communicative approach, it is important to create an

information gap between speakers.
Element for successful language Learning, ESA sequence.
An internet blog from Blogspot.com define the three main elements for develop the
language learning in this way:
Engage: This is the point in a teaching sequence where teachers try to arouse the
students interest, thus involving their emotions. Most people can remember lessons at
school which were uninvolving and where they switched off from what was being
taught them. Frequently, this was because they were bored, because they were not
emotionally engaged with was going on. Such lessons can be contrasted with lessons
where they were amused, moved, stimulated or challenged. It seems quite clear that
those lessons involved not only more fun, but also better learning.
Study: Study activities are those where the students are asked to focus in on language
(or information) and how it is constructed. They range from the study and practice of a
single sound to an investigation of how a writer achieves a particular effect in a long
text.
Students can study in a variety of different styles: the teacher can explain grammar,
they can study language evidence to discover grammar for themselves, and they can
work in groups studying a reading text or vocabulary. But whatever the style, study
means any stage at which the construction of language is the main focus.
Activate: This element describes exercises and activities which are designed to get
the students using language as freely and communicatively as they can. The objective
for the students is not to focus on language construction and/or practice specific bits of
language(grammar patterns, particular vocabulary items or functions) but for them to
use all and any language which may be appropriate for a given situation or topic.