POPULAR IDEAS ABOUT LANGUAGE LEARNING REVISITED
1- ) Languages are learned mainly through imitation
Imitation is an individual learning strategy and important process of learning; however, it is not universal characteristic of language learners to learn language. The children imitate certain words or structures while they are learning the language. Some learners do not internalize a great list of imitated and memorized sentences. Some students learn more easily than the others when they imitate the teacher; but, there is a possibility of forgetting these things if they do not use them continuously in meaningful interaction in their social lives. Imitation can be useful and suitable for advanced learners who are determined to improve their pronunciation, intonation and careful listening skills. Also, imitation can be implemented in the lessons in which audio-lingual approaches are used.
2- ) Parents usually correct young children when they make grammatical errors
Most parents tend to correct their children’s speech and this kind of correction depends on children’s age and partly parents’ social, linguistic and educational backgrounds. The age of the children can affect the type of the correction; for example, the parents’ of young children rarely comment on grammatical errors. They neglect the form. However, the children are getting older; the parents correct the non-standard speech of their children. Parents usually focus on meaning rather than form, which is not suitable for the development of children’s speech. It is not necessary to correct children to learn the basic structure. They can acquire the adult form of the language without explicit feedback. To me, parents should correct their errors or mistakes if necessary; because, second language learners may develop fossilized words/forms without any corrective feedback or guidance.
3- ) Highly intelligent people are good language learners
In my opinion, there is not any important connection between the ability to learn a language and being the highly intelligent people. People with high IQ may not be good language learners because language learning is not only evaluated with one’s knowledge about grammar rules or items of language believed to be tested quantitatively. In fact, language learning gives emphasis on the oral communication skills of the learner which cannot be measured in a test of IQ. If people are interested in learning something like foreign language and its items, they can be successful as a good language learner. As far as I see and experience, these people who are successful in language learning are the social and entertaining people that is not a characteristic which cannot be measured in IQ test.
4- ) The best predictor of success in second language acquisition is motivation
Motivation has been one of the most controversial issues for a long time. Motivation is necessary, but there are also many other factors. Changes that come with age and individual differences affect the motivation. Teachers should know the students’ different levels and s/he tries to motivate them. Apart from motivation; age, interests, cultural backgrounds are important issues which affect language success. I think that motivation increases success; but success also increases motivation. Although the teachers have no influence over learners’ intrinsic motivation for learning a second language, they try to create a supportive environment in which the students engage in activities, have self-confidence and interact with each other freely in the classroom. Teachers should pay attention to these differences to influence learners’ motivation.
5- ) The earlier a second language is introduced in school programs, the greater the likelihood of success in learning
If the aim is native-like performance in the second language, it is reasonable to begin exposure as early as possible. However, if the aim is native-like proficiency, early start for second language learning has disadvantages; because, if the students start to learn the second language in the early ages, they may not develop their first language skills. Yet, it is known that the starting earlier may lead to more native-like acquisition especially for pronunciation, but the children who start later can catch up quickly. Children from minority language backgrounds can develop their success with programs both at home and at school. In other words, the success of the students who develop their language skills depends on the objectives of the program and the amount of time they spent.
6- ) Most of the mistakes that second language learners make are due to interference from their first language
In a classroom setting, it is observed that many errors of the students are available and there are many causes of them; but, the most important and well-known one is “L1 interference to the L2”. Learners with different L1s make the same errors when learning a particular L2. Especially, Turkish students make such kind of mistakes while learning a particular the second language. If the teachers provide the students for the basic differences between the target language and the mother tongue, the students develop their language skills and they try to think about those differences.
7- ) The best way to learn new vocabulary is through reading
The teachers and the students give importance to the reading skills. While learning new vocabulary structures, reading is the most well-known strategy. The teachers claim that the more books you read, the more vocabulary you develop and they want the students to reading in the target language or in the mother tongue. Second language learners benefit from opportunities to read material which s interesting and important to them. In my opinion, the students develop their own skills while learning vocabulary because some of the students learn new items by hearing or reading the books step by step. There are different kinds of levels for each book and they should start reading from the easiest to the hardest one.
8- ) It is essential for learners to be able to pronounce all the individual sounds in the second language
Producing all the individual sounds needs a great deal of exposure to the language. If the students have a chance to hear the words and the correct sounds outside the classroom, they can easily develop their pronunciation skills. The first language effect on the second language appears in the pronunciation of the target language sounds. As an example, in Turkey, while the students can produce some sounds easily, they cannot articulate some. When they pronounce “w, q, th” sounds, they may face with some problems because of their first language influence. In Turkish, we do not have such sounds. When I am teacher, I will try to do my best for my learners to make them produce these sounds correctly. I think if they communicate with an interlocutor in a clear and understandable way, there are not any important problems for them.
9- ) Once learners know roughly 1.000 words and the basic structure of a second language, they can easily participate in conversations with native speakers
Most conversational language involves a relatively limited number of words and sentence types. If the learners have an understanding of some of the pragmatic features of the new language, they will find it easier to understand and negotiate. The students should also know the cultural these differences can lead to communication breakdown even when the structures are correct.
10- ) Teachers should present grammar rules one at a time, and learners should practice examples of each one before going on to another
Language development is a process of integrating new language forms and patterns into an existing interlanguage, readjusting and restructuring until all the pieces fit. Teachers use course books in the lesson and we see the contents at the beginning of these books. There are some units and each unit, there are some subsequent units. After the students learn the first unit, they practice it through the subsequent units and exercises and they move on the next chapter. The teachers should use some other techniques such as visual and audio aids and the students should use what they have learned throughout each lesson due to the fact that the language features learned in the first unit may be forgotten long before the last.
11- ) Teachers should teach simple language simple language structures before complex ones
There is a natural order in acquiring a language and no mater how language is presented; certain structures are acquired before others. The teachers should start from the most well-known structures to make the students be aware of the language. Also, they should move on step by step not making the students afraid of the target language. They should provide comprehensible input which is meaningful for the learners, but also contains some new words and structures. I think I will pay attention to these points.
12- ) Learners’ errors should be corrected as soon as they are made in order to prevent the formation of bad habits
Errors are natural indicator of language learning process and sometimes making errors means that students try to learn the language and do something good. In my opinion, if the students make error, the teachers should correct it indirectly. Immediate and excessive feedbacks may give a negative effect on the students. As the teachers of the future, we have to consider that correction may only be useful when the learner is ready for it. When I am a teacher, I will not use too many error corrections because it can have a negative effect on the students’ motivation, but certainly, I will use necessary correction types not fossilize errors in the classroom.
13- ) Teachers should use materials that expose students only to language structures they have already been taught
Learners can grasp the general meaning of many forms they have not learned completely. Students needed to be challenged; otherwise, they move lose their motivation. The students can prepare some real or authentic materials outside the classroom with the help of the teachers. The students are supposed to cope with real language, not just artificial classroom language. If the teachers want the students to learn a new structure they have not mastered, they can use “narrow-focus” materials which isolate the new form in a context where other things are seemed easily.
14- ) When learners are allowed to interact freely (for example, in group or pair activities), they copy each other’s mistakes
Group and pair work activities are very useful for the learners to make them encourage and promote second language development. If the activities are well-designed and used in combination with individual work and teacher-centered activities, it will contribute to language teaching and learning like speaking abilities of the students. Group and pair work activities can give students more chances to produce meaningful language. When I am a teacher, I will use group and pair work activities in almost each lesson; because, the students can give useful feedback to each other and they learn better than the individual work.
15- ) Students learn what they are taught
While the students can only learn the language they are exposed to, they do not learn everything they are taught. Sometimes, they learn a lot of language items that they are not taught. Although there are some teaching methods which give learners the opportunity to learn only a restricted number of words and some sentences types, these teaching methods should be suitable for the learners’ age, interests, needs, experiences and learning styles. If the language taught is appropriate for the students’ levels, learning and teaching process can be successful. We should note that in a typical lesson, students learn lots of things than we have expected from them.
16- ) Teachers should respond to the students’ errors by correctly rephrasing what they have said rather than by explicitly pointing out the error
This type of correction is called “recasts” in English Language Teaching. It is preferred in all kinds of teaching methods. The teachers correct the students’ errors politely and indirectly. When the teacher understands the child’s error, s/he gives an expression to the student as “I think I understand what you are saying and I will help you how you can say better”. The students should not be afraid of making mistakes and they should trust the teachers even if they make mistakes. Surely, I will benefit from it in the future.
17- ) Students can learn both language and academic content (for example science and history) simultaneously in classes where the subject matter is taught in their second language
Content Based Instruction has more advantages for the language learners. For instance, it motivates the students when the material is used for language teaching and it creates an immediate and genuine need to learn the language. However, the ability to understand the content and to use in a classroom interaction does not mean that students can develop themselves in the areas of accuracy on the language features. If the students take help and guidance from their teachers, they will improve themselves in these areas as well. Also, if the students want to achieve a high degree in language learning, they will be successful in learning both the language and the academic content at the same time.
CONCLUSION
As we have seen, language learning is affected by many factors. A better understanding of them will allow teachers and learners to make the most of the time they spend together in the processes of teaching and learning a second language.
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