Sherylll
- 1. From Theory to Practice for Teachers of English Learners Teaching and learning English in the US are complex processes that are not explained by language theories or methods alone. Concepts such as the relationship between language majority groups and language minority groups, language status, immigration, economics, language planning, and policies add to the complexity of languagelearning situations. Effective teachers for the more than 5 million English learners (ELs) in kindergarten through 12th grades require unique knowledge, skills, and dispositions. This article provides a review of the language, learning, and language learning theories and practices for second language teaching, focusing on sociocultural theories and practices. T his article provides an overview of theories, approaches, and practices in teaching children who speak languages other than English in K-12 schools in the US. Building from a synthesis of the literature on teaching English as a second language, I conclude by noting the pedagogical knowledge and skills teachers in K-12 settings must have to appropriately meet the needs of this growing population. An additive and culturally responsive approach is taken in addressing the educational needs of English learners (ELs), namely that using children’s languages and cultural backgrounds should be viewed as resources in helping them succeed academically (Kloss, 1998). The education of the nation’s more than 5 million English learners (Goldberg, 2008) depends on the delivery of academically rigorous and linguistically appropriate instruction by their teachers. While the need to provide this type of instruction for all English learners is critical, it is imperative for English learners at the K-12 level. K-12 English learners have the dual urgency to acquire English proficiency while simultaneously mastering the increasingly complex requirements for high school graduation. As such, it limits the review of instructional practices to those that have been most influential in the development of second language teaching as it is practiced today. The review includes a synthesis of the history of second language teaching with a focus on the relationships between language learning and language teaching. Language teaching methods, along with the learning theories that guide those methods, will help inform the recommendations for effective beginning MAGALY LAVADENZ Loyola Marymount University Summary of Language Theories Theories of language focus the understanding of the key constructs that provide the foundation for second language learning theories. Consequently, specific methods proceed from combinations of theories of learning and theories of language. The next section provides a brief chronological review of language teaching methods, which are categorized according to the theories of language (structural, functional, and interactive). Included in the descriptions of second/foreign language teaching methods are: (a) the learning theory (ies), and (b) the key instructional practices for each specific method. Communicative Language Teaching. Drawing from notional-functional language theorists such as Wilkens (1972), Halliday (1975), and Hymes (1967/1974), communicative language teaching (CLT) focuses on learning language to communicative notions of language (time, sequence, quantity, location, and frequency) for specific functions (requests, denials, offers, complaints). Baco Finocchiaro and Brumfit (1983) point to the complementary nature of the approaches. Thus, communication as the ultimate goal of language learning is achieved through interaction with others. Because of this blend, CLT is classified here as following the interactionist theory of learning and is now considered to be essential for effective second language teaching. Communicative competence, defined initially by Del Hymes (1967/1974), is a central tenet of CLT. Expanding on Chomsky’s notions of language competence to include pragmatic and sociolinguistic aspects of language (CelceMurcia & Olshtain, 2001), and elaborated upon originally by Canale and Swain (1980), communicative competence underscores the importance of “discourseconnected thoughts”—orally or in writing—in four critical areas: 1. Strategic competence—engages other competencies in order to promote production; 2. Sociolinguistic competence—includes cultural knowledge as it informs ways to use languages appropriately in terms of formality, politeness, turn taking, interrupting, asking questions, and so on;