We had a good discussion in class today on the topic of learning styles and strategies. I might move up the readings on these topics earlier in the course next time.
Most of the students seem to be good at style shifting already, and many of them characterized themselves (as did I) as "a little bit of both" of each set of opposed styles. This make sense since all of us are "good language learners" and people who have learned more than one language already.
We brainstormed ways to motivate a learner who is struggling with the lack of feedback: having her give reports on specific things she has done, using checklists to monitor the completion of tasks and goals, giving feedback on each other's blogs, etc. And the students planned a social time when they will each work on their learning at the same time/place and then reward themselves afterwards with a drink or something. Whatever works!
We talked about a new research study that claims that learning new words causes the same pleasure in the brain as sex or chocolate and the students are all going to try to learn a certain number of new words in the next week and report back on this.
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Week eight diary
Today we discussed motivation, anxiety, and Myers-Brigg-type personality tests. The students seemed particularly interested in how their personalities play into their language learning. Their motivations vary considerably from one another and seem to be having a clear effect on their abilities to set goals and advance in their language learning, e.g. self-directed learning is difficult when you're used to being motivated by doing well on tests. The two students who have been working most regularly with language partners seem to be using this to keep their motivation levels high.
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Week seven diary
This week a fourth student (Er) joined our class. We had a great conversation about cognition and metacognition on Tuesday. I don't know if it was having an additional voice in the conversation or simply the topic, but it seemed like we all had more to say than we usually do and we were able to discuss the readings for almost the full two hours rather than ending early as we have in previous weeks.
The students seem to finally be grasping the degree of self-monitoring that is necessary to achieve success in self-directed learning. A few of them seem to be struggling with actually putting this self-monitoring into practice, perhaps because it clashes with their preferred learning styles or aptitudes.
The students seem to finally be grasping the degree of self-monitoring that is necessary to achieve success in self-directed learning. A few of them seem to be struggling with actually putting this self-monitoring into practice, perhaps because it clashes with their preferred learning styles or aptitudes.
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Week six diary
Today we were supposed to discuss working without a native speaker but ended up talking mostly about working with a native speaker. This was partly because the book chapters we read (6 and 7 in the Marshall book) are supposed to be about when you've exhausted the possibilities with your language partner but don't really get into that. (Although ch. 7 does talk about how to work outside of your target country.) N led our discussion and it was fruitful.
All three students have spent time in their target cultures and were able to reflect on what worked well for them in that context and what they might do differently in the future. Some good ideas were exchanged about how to integrate what they are doing on their own with what they are doing with their language partners.
E is considering creating a Swahili book discussion group, which I think would be great. Maybe I'll go too!
None of them seem frustrated with their language learning, so I take that as a good sign. N said she is practicing what she knows more than learning new things, but she seems okay with that.
I wonder if we need a slightly more structured way of reporting on their weekly progress. It feels a little like when I ask my 12-year-old how school was and he just says, "Good" and shrugs.
N and E reported back on the books I loaned them. It sounds like Lingo may not be helpful but the DIY guide might be. L borrowed the latter so I haven't had a chance to look at it yet, but based on E's feedback I might incorporate it into the course next time I teach it.
All three students have spent time in their target cultures and were able to reflect on what worked well for them in that context and what they might do differently in the future. Some good ideas were exchanged about how to integrate what they are doing on their own with what they are doing with their language partners.
E is considering creating a Swahili book discussion group, which I think would be great. Maybe I'll go too!
None of them seem frustrated with their language learning, so I take that as a good sign. N said she is practicing what she knows more than learning new things, but she seems okay with that.
I wonder if we need a slightly more structured way of reporting on their weekly progress. It feels a little like when I ask my 12-year-old how school was and he just says, "Good" and shrugs.
N and E reported back on the books I loaned them. It sounds like Lingo may not be helpful but the DIY guide might be. L borrowed the latter so I haven't had a chance to look at it yet, but based on E's feedback I might incorporate it into the course next time I teach it.
Wednesday, October 1, 2014
Week five diary
Yesterday L was sick so we had a small class.
Our topic was how to work with a language mentor. We read two chapters from the Peace Corps language guide and two from Marshall's book The Whole World Guide to Language Learning. Both are filled with concrete examples of how to design your own lessons and use them with a conversation partner, and also some suggestions on how to select one. I found them very useful but N and E didn't seem to get much out of them. Some of the focus on repetition seemed more applicable to the beginning level than to their needs (advanced plus). I wonder how they might be adapted to more advanced learners?
We talked about their progress this past week. N has found it hard to make a plan and stick to it and instead feels good just touching her Yoruba in some way each day; so far she has been working with videos made by a former students, Titilayo. She asked if I thought it would be better to have a more structured plan each day and I said yes. I suggested even having a small goal would be helpful—like learn five new words—because it would provide a way to test that you are actually learning something.
E is struggling to read a book that may be beyond her level and/or is just unrelated to her needs/interests. She has decided to talk about it with one of her contacts in East Africa as a way to motivate herself. I'd probably just switch to another book, but she is persistant!
I got two new books, Lingo!: How to Learn a Language and DIY Techniques for Language Learners. I haven't had a chance to read them yet, but I brought them to class for students to borrow. E and N each took one and will report back next week on whether they are useful or not.
Our topic was how to work with a language mentor. We read two chapters from the Peace Corps language guide and two from Marshall's book The Whole World Guide to Language Learning. Both are filled with concrete examples of how to design your own lessons and use them with a conversation partner, and also some suggestions on how to select one. I found them very useful but N and E didn't seem to get much out of them. Some of the focus on repetition seemed more applicable to the beginning level than to their needs (advanced plus). I wonder how they might be adapted to more advanced learners?
We talked about their progress this past week. N has found it hard to make a plan and stick to it and instead feels good just touching her Yoruba in some way each day; so far she has been working with videos made by a former students, Titilayo. She asked if I thought it would be better to have a more structured plan each day and I said yes. I suggested even having a small goal would be helpful—like learn five new words—because it would provide a way to test that you are actually learning something.
E is struggling to read a book that may be beyond her level and/or is just unrelated to her needs/interests. She has decided to talk about it with one of her contacts in East Africa as a way to motivate herself. I'd probably just switch to another book, but she is persistant!
I got two new books, Lingo!: How to Learn a Language and DIY Techniques for Language Learners. I haven't had a chance to read them yet, but I brought them to class for students to borrow. E and N each took one and will report back next week on whether they are useful or not.
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