Multilingual Learning:
The Teacher and The Learner
How do we learn best?
We are taught language skills from the day we are born. Even if we still have not learned how to talk, we learn how to listen, and this listening skill becomes one of the most valuable tools in life. All different kinds of people grow up learning different kinds of languages in many different ways. With my research, I have explored the connection between the student and the teacher in a multilingual setting, and how learning a language by being immersed in a culture is compared to learning it in a classroom. Using my research and specifically Bridget’s project 1 personal narrative and video on her experience being immersed in America as a native Chinese speaker, I have come to a new level of understanding between the different methods of learning a language.
**Feel free to press on each citation- It will take you to the online version of the source!
The Teacher and The Learner
How do we learn best?
We are taught language skills from the day we are born. Even if we still have not learned how to talk, we learn how to listen, and this listening skill becomes one of the most valuable tools in life. All different kinds of people grow up learning different kinds of languages in many different ways. With my research, I have explored the connection between the student and the teacher in a multilingual setting, and how learning a language by being immersed in a culture is compared to learning it in a classroom. Using my research and specifically Bridget’s project 1 personal narrative and video on her experience being immersed in America as a native Chinese speaker, I have come to a new level of understanding between the different methods of learning a language.
**Feel free to press on each citation- It will take you to the online version of the source!
Kinberg, Margot. Perspectives on foreign language immersion programs. Lewiston: E. Mellen Press, 2001. Print.
In this source, Margot Kinberg focuses on five different perspectives regarding foreign language immersion programs. She starts with a historical background of how and when immersion programs were created and then offers a view of the potential future that these programs can grow into. While narrating about different programs, she sheds light on the strengths, weaknesses, ideas, philosophies, and practices that have been exposed, experienced, and enlightened throughout the process of learning a second language. She focuses on teaching another language to native English speakers, and presents many strong ideas regarding cultural immersion programs and classroom learning techniques.
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In this source, Margot Kinberg focuses on five different perspectives regarding foreign language immersion programs. She starts with a historical background of how and when immersion programs were created and then offers a view of the potential future that these programs can grow into. While narrating about different programs, she sheds light on the strengths, weaknesses, ideas, philosophies, and practices that have been exposed, experienced, and enlightened throughout the process of learning a second language. She focuses on teaching another language to native English speakers, and presents many strong ideas regarding cultural immersion programs and classroom learning techniques.
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To learn more about Margot Kinberg herself, press on her picture!!
Robinson, Peter. "Chapter 1: Introduction." Individual Differences and Instructed Language Learning. Philadelphia: John Benjamins, 2002. 1-10. Print.
In this chapter, Robinson’s examines a topic different than Kinberg. He does research on the connection between the student learning the language and the situation in which the learning is taking place. Robinson conducted his own research in which he “use[d] intact classes to examine the interaction of individual difference variables with learning over extended periods of time in classrooms following different instructional programs”(1). In this chapter, he also mentions the difference between cognitive abilities, such as “intelligence, language learning aptitude, or working memory capacity and speed”, versus affective/conative factors, such as “anxiety, motivation, and emotion”(2). Robinson’s perspective about language learning is created in such a way in which he puts the emphasis on the learner, himself, and the emotional aspect of learning.
To read more about this source, press here:
In this chapter, Robinson’s examines a topic different than Kinberg. He does research on the connection between the student learning the language and the situation in which the learning is taking place. Robinson conducted his own research in which he “use[d] intact classes to examine the interaction of individual difference variables with learning over extended periods of time in classrooms following different instructional programs”(1). In this chapter, he also mentions the difference between cognitive abilities, such as “intelligence, language learning aptitude, or working memory capacity and speed”, versus affective/conative factors, such as “anxiety, motivation, and emotion”(2). Robinson’s perspective about language learning is created in such a way in which he puts the emphasis on the learner, himself, and the emotional aspect of learning.
To read more about this source, press here:
To learn more about Peter Robinson, press on his picture!!
Fortune, Tara Williams, and Diane J. Tedick. Pathways to Multilingualism: Evolving Perspectives on Immersion Education. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters, 2008. Print.
This is a very interesting source that provides many discussions on the different methods of becoming multilingual. As Fortune proves, there are multiple pathways to get there, and direct immersion is only one of them. This book discusses multilingual learning from an evolutionary perspective with research done on different teaching methods and finding the connection and balance between language and content. Fortune and Tedick put emphasis on the difference between one-way and two-way education. One-way education is when just a student is learning a foreign language, whereas two-way education is more like an immersion program, where learning occurs both ways, between the native and the foreigner.
To read more about this source, press here:
This is a very interesting source that provides many discussions on the different methods of becoming multilingual. As Fortune proves, there are multiple pathways to get there, and direct immersion is only one of them. This book discusses multilingual learning from an evolutionary perspective with research done on different teaching methods and finding the connection and balance between language and content. Fortune and Tedick put emphasis on the difference between one-way and two-way education. One-way education is when just a student is learning a foreign language, whereas two-way education is more like an immersion program, where learning occurs both ways, between the native and the foreigner.
To read more about this source, press here:
Conclusion:
Language acquisition is very important in a child’s life because it acts as the first form of communication amongst people. Learning a second language once a child gets older becomes a much more daunting task. The way our brains develop affects the facility to learn a new language therefore posing the question of what is the most effective way to do this type of multilingual learning. From the research I’ve gathered, the next step would be to look at the learner and the teacher with a more specific lens. Once the importance is placed on them, they can reveal more intimate information about the exchange of lingual information. There is a reason why these different forms of learning a language have been around for millions of years, but it is up to us to look into why one form didn’t supersede the other: both classroom and immersion learning still exist today.
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Language acquisition is very important in a child’s life because it acts as the first form of communication amongst people. Learning a second language once a child gets older becomes a much more daunting task. The way our brains develop affects the facility to learn a new language therefore posing the question of what is the most effective way to do this type of multilingual learning. From the research I’ve gathered, the next step would be to look at the learner and the teacher with a more specific lens. Once the importance is placed on them, they can reveal more intimate information about the exchange of lingual information. There is a reason why these different forms of learning a language have been around for millions of years, but it is up to us to look into why one form didn’t supersede the other: both classroom and immersion learning still exist today.
To see a complete works cited page, press here: