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Making Young Learners Independent the LEGO method
- 1. L.E.G.O.- Reflective Tools for TEYL Independent Learning Nettie Boivin Qatar University TESOL Boston 2010 [email_address]
- 2. ENGAGEMENT!!!!!!! BEFORE WE START: Turn to your neighbour. Introduce yourself Tell them one moment of “engagement” in your life! After we will discuss
- 3. AGENDA 10 Inherent TEYL truths. Lower/upper primary differences including BICS and CALP (social and cognitive academic language). Learning strategies differences. L.E.G.O. – unspoken constraints of the language ecology. Using reflective tools to overcome constraints.
- 4. TEN TEYL TRUTHS 1) Difference between lower and upper primary students . 2) Social language (BICS) versus cognitive academic language proficiency (CALP). 3) Teachers must engage the student .
- 5. 4) Motivation and attitudes. 5) Noticing is effective. 6) Scaffolding and modelling .
- 7. ASSESSMENT ACTIVITY Using the 10 truths assess the differences between creating a lesson for an adult class versus a young learner class and give examples. ADULT CLASS YOUNG LEARNER Give kids a text message version of the postcard- Uses pictures with some form of vocab. writing Model the “I do” – “we do” Bring in pictures- cut and paste Preview by discussing a vacation Working collaboratively- holiday places. Mail a real postcard Role-playing
- 8. Young learner (YL) refers to the ages 9-11 (grades 4-6). Child learners (CL) refers to children age 5-8 years old (grades K-3). (Piaget,1967; Gibson, 1988; Case, 1985; Owens, 1996; Macaro, 2001; Chamot, 1996; Bruner,1990; Flavell & Miller, 1993; Brown,1976; Tomasello, 2003)
- 9. TYPES OF COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT
- 10. COGNITIVE DIFFERENCES -YL & CL Focused and selective attention. Analyze, make inferences, predictions, hypothesize, and classify. Relies on their relations not simply a self-referential process. CL- literal word BUT do not always comprehend the pragmatic meaning.
- 11. EMOTIONAL DIFFERENCES YLs -socially and emotionally and are developing a greater social awareness. Recursive thought, self-reflective role taking, and mutual role. YL- accept other points of view –enables them to solve their own problems
- 12. SOCIAL DIFFERENCES CLs have immature relationships with peers and other groups. YL friendships expanding and gaining in meaning. YLs occurs in a social interactive context. YL -pragmatics operating within the various types of social domains.
- 13. CHANGES UP & DOWN You are given a lesson. In groups alter the lesson to fit the developmental differences. GROUP A is child learner- 20 students, English class once a week in a TEFL setting. GROUP B is young learner- 18 students, English class once a week in a TEFL setting. Classroom dynamics- Middle class, immigrant families, mixed ethnicities, low crime rate. Reading lesson with introduction of new conceptual vocabulary.
- 14. Can have BICS without CALP BUT Not CALP without BICS
- 15. Parallel Between Cognitive Development & BICS-CALP BICS contextual social language used both outside and inside the classroom BICS Skills Knowledge Comprehension Application Pronunciation Vocabulary Grammar structure (Baker, 2001; Cummins; 2001;MacKay 2006). CALP is decontextualized and embedded CALP Skills Deciphering semantic meaning Functional meaning Analysis Synthesis Evaluation
- 16. ORGANIZATIONAL & PRAGMATIC KNOWLEDGE Organizational Grammatical- decode letters and words Textual- variety of text for different purposes Pragmatic Functional – comprehend purpose Sociolinguistic – exposure to schema of TL culture (Bachman and Palmer, 1996)
- 17. STEPS FOR STRATEGY BASED INSTRUCTION Think-aloud, modeling Discussing in a group and using visual aids helps in reinforcing the strategy. Extensive practice. Collaboration, problem-solving, inquiry, role-playing, and experiential learning ( Cohen & Macaro, 2007 ).
- 18. STRATEGIES - CAN KIDS LEARN? 3 Kinds of Strategies are?
- 19. Learning Strategies What types of learning strategies (LS) are there? Working to create materials to suit each type. Which best suit what age?
- 20. Learning Strategies What (LS) would be difficult to instruct to CLs? Oral stories aid in instruction of grammar acquisition and socio-linguistic concept transfer. Oral story affords children learning input possibilities How would this be different for YLs?
- 21. STRATEGY LESSON Using this premade worksheet find ways to alter it to include strategy instruction. What is the best way to introduce and continue strategy use? Altering Worksheets Introduce and Continue Use
- 22. L Literacy skills affected by socio-cultural differences Language learning cultural strategy differences E Extensive socio-cultural knowledge for learning Environmental factors effecting language learning G Group interaction and attitudes Group/classroom collaboration O Optimum integration of ownership between all the shareholders in the language ecology L.E.G.O.
- 23. Independent Language Learning LEGO Model Literacy skills Language learning strategies
- 24. Environmental Concerns Extensive socio-cultural knowledge for learning Environmental factors effecting language learning
- 25. GROUP DYNAMICS Group interaction Group/classroom collaboration
- 26. Optimum Processing of Language Learning Optimum integration of ownership by all the shareholders of the language ecology.
- 27. Reflective Tools for All Parties Involved Classroom Profile Materials Reflective Checklist Language Ecology Reflective Checklist CIMS (Critical Interaction Moments)- Using analysis of CIM observation moments for appraisal
- 28. QUESTIONS FOR THE PARTICIPANTS How do these tasks address the above TEYL or language learning issues? What kinds of games/worksheets could aid in the practice of these language targets? What age group would best use these and why? How could they aid in delivering all the skills needed? How could these be altered for lower primary or upper primary?
- 29. CONCLUSION As educators we must not hold the pedagogy higher than the students needs and constraints. Not all students learn and process language the same way. ` There are external factors that the educator can’t control however it is important to not to ignore these factors. Thank you for your time and energy.
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Editor's Notes
- #4: BEFORE I reveal the 10 truths does anyone have an idea what might be an important truth??
- #5: 2 ASSUMPTIONS I will admit to 1) that the classroom will be somewhat communicative and 2) The classroom will be learner centered. WHAT is social language? What is CALP ? There are 4 types of engagement- Brian Tomlinson talks about kinaesthetic, cognitive, emotional and social engagement of a class or task. TALK about social language Talk about Tomlinson's 4 kinds of engagement
- #6: -TALK about upper primary needing a worthwhile task not just a fun task- What is the difference between motivation for the child learner and the upper primary learner? Talk about the various layering ways to help the child notice- how can you affect noticing What kinds of modelling should and can be employed in a classroom. enable or constrain the learning process -means for language acquisition . - are effective in facilitating language learning
- #7: SBI must become explicit and labelled as they transfer from CL to YL -Strategies are culturally bound _Rote learning is a cultural way of learning that shouldn't be excluded -literacy reading and writing has 2 levels the discrete phonological level and the decontextual culturally bound level -Both are needed for understanding. Some YL excel at one and must work at the other. Learning styles are also culturally bound. The cultural how tos ORAL learning etc is important to understand-talk about the INNUIT situation Talk about Thai’s learning as tied to cultural strategies in reading
- #8: Lesson has 10 students mixed gender, it is a TEFL class therefore the lesson is integrated not just one skill. The topic is either shopping, daily activities or family. Both adult and child class are beginners.
- #9: Puckett & Black (2000) standards, until around the age of the YL (8-11). The concepts of knowledge types of language required for literacy and environmental print speaks of the deficiencies that must be overcome for the TEYL/EFL YL (8-11 years old) (Hudelson, 2006). I will not talk to a group of teachers regarding the differences in cognitive and social processing between upper and lower primary however I will point out a few materials that I have seen on the market and lets work to see a) what age group/grade level they would best serve and what would be best altered to have them conform to parameters for either upper or lower primary. -cannot occur
- #10: They can be viewed separately and as integrated. The emotional level must be meta-cognitively assessed as well as the cognitive development. ****At the lower primary these are developing. However at the upper primary these have developed and a 4 th type- metacognition is emerging!!
- #11: produce accurate estimates of memory span, produce organizational strategies for memory, and appreciate concepts of logical necessity. These are cognitive developments that enable the student to process academic language components such as; problem solving, meta-cognition, literacy, and enable the student to access language that becomes more content-reduced, a developmental feature which is especially important in the EFL language setting, which is more socio-culturally embedded.
- #12: This developmental path is parallel by the curricular path, whereby they move they move into upper primary school and transition into academic knowledge (Halliday, 1993). Socialization for the YL expands from peer experiential learning to group and external factors in aiding the learning process.
- #13: Also CLs have little understanding or acceptance of outside ideas. McKay (2006) points out that “children are also growing socially and emotionally as they are learning language in their elementary school years. They are gradually developing from a main interest in self towards greater social awareness” (p.8). , due to their gain in sophistication in peer and outside relations, , aged 6-7, while they Social conventions and pragmatics often involve learning subtle nuanced messages from parents or teachers.
- #16: -Social language refers to the language that students need for daily communication in a social setting -paralinguistic features such as tone of voice, gestures, in face-to-face interaction as kinds of contextual messages The younger primary (CL) students’ world exists of teachers instructing through modeling, scaffolding, tone of voice, puppets, visual aids, etc. whereas upper primary (YL) face tasks requiring higher order thinking skills, abstract concepts, and more analysis is expected of them As the students begins to become more independent in their literacy skills language learning alters.
- #17: Puckett & Black (2000) standards, until around the age of the YL (8-11). The concepts of knowledge types of language required for literacy and environmental print speaks of the deficiencies that must be overcome for the TEYL/EFL YL (8-11 years old) (Hudelson, 2006). I will not talk to a group of teachers regarding the differences in cognitive and social processing between upper and lower primary however I will point out a few materials that I have seen on the market and lets work to see a) what age group/grade level they would best serve and what would be best altered to have them conform to parameters for either upper or lower primary. -cannot occur
- #18: TALK about how to access and problem solve from cl to yl using strategies. Break down into components, explain each section, Discuss the steps of guessing the topic, relating it to personal experience, making predictions, using context to make inferences about the meaning. - vocabulary, grammar, culturally-encoded story structure, morality, paralinguistics, and intonation Taking simple material for example a story. Have 2 groups create a step by step series of materials (jigsaw- -have various materials that the groups will be asked to get from another group to finish a material design. Ask the group to present which it is for CL or Yl and why). What strategies do the materials practice and enable students to attain? Later as a large group we will change both materials to be able to suit a different age group
- #19: Children can do think-alouds, upper primary better than lower primary Chamot & El-Dinary (1999, p.331) “ students as young as grade 1 were often able to describe their thinking in rich detail” -which comes last? Why? Gu, Hu, & Zhang (2005): yes, but need intensive probing and immediate clarifications
- #20: vocabulary, grammar, culturally-encoded story structure, morality, paralinguistics, and intonation Taking simple material for example a story. Have 2 groups create a step by step series of materials (jigsaw- -have various materials that the groups will be asked to get from another group to finish a material design. Ask the group to present which it is for CL or Yl and why). What strategies do the materials practice and enable students to attain? Later as a large group we will change both materials to be able to suit a different age group
- #21: More visual aids and puppets with cl whereas yl have ability to read alittle. They need contextual help as language alters. For example “I do so like green eggs and ham” is tied to the literal meaning of the words. However, “I flung myself on the sofa and collapsed into a ball” can be confusing as how does one throw oneself onto the sofa. The meaning is the person quickly sat on the sofa and sat due to tiredness.
- #22: SHOW example by reading aloud and brainstorming asking questions- REMEMBER not all strategies can be accessed at all the ages. So careful when introducing them. HOW to introduce them is key.
- #24: What is LEGO
- #27: Even though not all aspects of the language ecology can be altered with reflection then the road bumps can be avoided.
- #28: Hand out tools. Have teachers in instruct how each is to be used. In separate groups have the 4 groups assess and analyse the tools. Give feedback and get them to fill in a questionnaire.