jake
New Member
Posts: 10
|
Post by jake on Jul 6, 2020 16:31:51 GMT
I have been thinking about my variety/varieties of English, style and register lot recently. I have grown up exposed to two very different but very fixed varieties of English, one from each parent, and find that even now as an adult I carry two separate varieties myself rather than a merge of the two. I have quite a typical York variety, similar to that spoken by my father (and a large part of the population of where I’m from!), as well as a variety like the one spoken by my mother, which leans much more towards what would be called ‘Standard English’. There doesn’t seem to be much of a pattern of when I use each variety (aside from obvious accommodation/convergence in some contexts). Some days I simply wake up Yorkshire, other days I wake up less so. (Perhaps influenced by the last person I speak to/thing I read before bed, or by dreams?!). With this considered, as a teacher, I could be using either variety on any given day.
I have never noticed any difference in the “success” of my two varieties in the classroom. A lot of people would traditionally assume that my more standard English would be dominant in class and somehow provide a better teaching ‘quality’, but in my experience that isn’t the case at all. If I am following a course book, the grammar and style is somewhat controlled by that and therefore more standard, but in general I feel that neither variety lends itself to the task better than the other. I know that both of the varieties I mention would be considered native and British, but for me it goes towards demonstrating that standard varieties are given too much prestige and importance. I have worked with many teachers who speak non-native varieties of English, each as qualified and capable as myself. I think it would be great to see less of a demand for strictly native teachers in our industry. It would really help to keep promoting the different varieties of English and hopefully change the way people see the ‘ownership’ of the language.
On a separate note, as much as I would love to see class materials include more variety, I think style in particular is something which is hard to present in textbooks. Part of an English user’s style may be their use of specific words and phrases which are common at the time, especially in colloquial contexts. I’m only 27, but in my memory words like “wicked, mint, lush, sick, boss, legit, etc etc” have all come and gone like trends to mean “good” (in the UK). Despite this, if I saw the word ‘wicked’ in this context in a textbook today, I would probably dismiss it as being outdated, even though the vast majority of the language content remains relevant. Words and phrases that contribute to a speaker’s style tend to change much more quickly than the grammar and overall lexis that form the language in general. I suppose that by trying to appeal to and present different styles, textbooks run the risk of shortening their ‘lifespan’.
|
|
jake
New Member
Posts: 10
|
Post by jake on Jul 6, 2020 16:32:59 GMT
When someone's goal is to learn english with accuracy they usually think that only a native can give them what they want, even though non-native teachers could offer them different kind of experiences. I think you’re right that sometimes it may in fact help that the teacher has learned English themselves as a non-native user, or maybe at least has experience learning another language. I think a big part of language learning is problem solving, and having gone through a specific difficulty yourself might help you when it comes to guiding students through a similar problem. If a non-native teacher focused a lot on accuracy when learning English themselves, they might at times be more familiar with the specifics of grammar “rules” that native teachers have rarely considered.
|
|
|
Post by evarojo on Jul 7, 2020 16:18:35 GMT
As an English learner I tried to conform to native speakerism and felt embarrased many times when my English was not British enough, so I lived in Britain for a while to make my English more British. I have realized that, and this course has proved this right, my English was not better or worse than the standard Engish I hoped to achieve, it is my distinctive way of speaking it. If only I could have known this before, I would have been a more confident speaker and learner of English.
As an English teacher I incorporate all the different Englishes I can in my teaching through the different activities and materials for the lesson. My students are exposed to the different accents and varieties of English through listenings, videos, readings, literature, projects, presentations, etc. They need to become aware of the other Englishes around the global world as well as to become aware of their own English based on their own choices and preferences, not the native speakerism-how I like this new word!
|
|
mkhan
New Member
Posts: 7
|
Post by mkhan on Jul 13, 2020 9:24:22 GMT
My style is different from that of my student's. I try to help them with their language deficiencies.
|
|
|
Post by Amaryllis on Jul 17, 2020 22:56:58 GMT
Assessing Individual Grammars
I have been assessing students’ proficiency on General English courses in grammar, reading, writing, listening and speaking. I think that removing the grammar component completely from the final examination might be a way to make assessment more relevant and less stressful for the students. So I would continue to teach grammar (maybe with a Construction Grammar approach?), but not test it in isolation.
For final examinations, instead of having separate reading, writing, listening and speaking tests, the students could be set integrated skills tasks that are authentic. If the tasks are meaningful, interesting and relevant enough, hopefully this will then create space for each student’s individual grammar to express itself fully. Maybe students could be graded on how successfully they complete a task and not on how deficient they are in terms of grammatical accuracy. So if there are grammatical errors but the meaning is clear, they would not be penalised.
If I re-think the way I am assessing their grammar, I will need to encourage students to use their L1 as a resource and to be creative. I will need to become less of an examiner and more of a facilitator. Will need to give some more thought as to what could be helpful for the students, feasible for me and acceptable to the language centre!
|
|
|
Post by Amaryllis on Jul 18, 2020 11:01:04 GMT
-your own variety of English and the register or style(s) you use in your classes. When I was a student, I meet two different kind of teachers. One was a French teacher at the middle school, the other was an English teacher at the high school. Like day & night. The French one: she talked to us using the French language about the 90% of her words. Of course she talked Italian too, expecially when she wanted us to understand our mistakes or some difficult point, but she often used French in a practical way to us...the teacher instructions was in French, a lot of dialogue and communications skills. She taught us that the French language is not a planet, but a galaxy. In Europe, in Africa, in Asia, in America. I still remember one of her lesson about the president of Burkina Faso about the problem of Africa looting. (Nb I learned this difficult word=looting thanks to an email of a friend of mine, talking about the Usa situation about the problem in Minneapolis). The English one: a disaster. Italian teacher talkings in Italian language, 90% grammar, no English from outside, only the class book..what a pity! Thanks Andrea! Your former French teacher is a great example of how I can raise awareness of varieties around the world in simple yet effective ways – I have been exposing my students to only a few varieties. I am also fascinated by the IDEA dialects archive mentioned in the feedback for the activity in section 4.3, and would love to use some of the recordings in class.
|
|
|
Post by Ulla on Jul 27, 2020 10:40:42 GMT
I agree with the idea of recruiting more non-native teacher because the students can learn that they do not have to imitate native teachers to be perfect. the teacher is not the only source of language to the students. They can hear different accents in class including native and non-native accents. They should know that coming from different cultures is a good thing. In my experience, students enjoy exploring different varieties of English (different accents in particular), and if the teacher encourages this, it can send a very positive message!
|
|
|
Post by Ulla on Jul 27, 2020 10:45:28 GMT
As language facilitators we have to help our learners understand that they are already users, that their English is valid and that they certainly don't need accent reduction classes, for instance. Figuring out their goal is essential but also teaching them how realistic that goal is, without discouraging them from wanting to pursue language improvement. Maybe redefining what that means? I think this is a very interesting comment. 'Sounding like a native speaker' is a clear goal, and even if it is maybe only realistic for a small minority of learners, it is probably motivating for many learners. I think 'proficiency' needs to be defined very carefully as a goal, otherwise we might end up suggesting to our students that they are already good enough and there is no point working on their language skills anymore. We want them to feel both - that they are already successful users of English, but also that there is a lot still left to explaore!
|
|
tony
New Member
Posts: 15
|
Post by tony on Aug 3, 2020 4:27:20 GMT
When thinking about the roles that teachers, students, and textbooks take on in a classroom, I came up with the following metaphor: imagine a ship on the sea. The ship’s name is ‘English’, and the ship itself represents a classroom. Its captain is an ESL teacher, and its crew are language learners, whereas the compass in the captain’s hand is a textbook. The Compass shows the direction to the Isles of Proficiency. How close the Ship gets to the Isles depends solely on the Crew’s performance. Thus, it becomes fairly clear that unless the Crew follow the instructions of their Captain, and move in the right direction according to the arrow of the Compass, they will be bound to fail to reach the coasts of the Isles of Proficiency, thus having their goals unfulfilled. To sum up, textbooks serve as guidelines to attain a required level of English, and teachers are ‘seasoned’ facilitators that have knowledge of decoding what is presented in textbooks, and transforming such information into an applicable language resource.
|
|
|
Post by miabae on Aug 7, 2020 21:08:28 GMT
All of the students I'm teaching at the moment are adults and they had monolithic-approach classes at school and university, so it's a given. Whenever possible I point out different options (that I myself am aware of). E.g. when broaching Present Perfect, I might mention that the American variety tends to wider use of Past Simple here. But all in all, their background and the current teaching framework (the school curriculum) make us check our progress against the set standards.
|
|
|
Post by beatrizguerra on Aug 21, 2020 21:27:55 GMT
My variety of English is similar to my students since we are all from the same region in Brazil. Due to it, our cultural background, L1, and even the regional variety of our L1 are very much alike. However, is very common here in Brazil for courses to hire native speakers of English to teach, even though they do not have a master's to teach it. That indicates how there is such high praise in sounding native-like, and not on effective communication. After I graduated my vision of language learning changed a lot. When I had my English classes during school I always tried to sound like a native, and it would sometimes hinder communication since I was always too focused on how I sounded like. Even though I don't agree, the books provided by the course I teach at, focus a lot on 'native fluency' rather than negotiation meaning. Being that, I try to teach my students what learning English is, which is nothing but negotiating meaning with different people.
|
|
|
Post by Rachel Dry on Aug 24, 2020 15:09:17 GMT
I completely agree with Monica RP and Marian in the above post.
As you become more confident as a teacher and adapt to the needs of your student you realise what it is that your students need to get from your teaching. We cannot simply impart everything there is to know about English to our students. We must select the content and skills that our students need for their current use of English and their learning aims for the future. This will consequently shape the style of lessons you teach and the ability you have to include wider 'Englishes'. As Marian said, learning another language yourself is hugely helpful. When I truly put myself in the shoes of my students, learning a language in a new country it is truly terrifying. As i have said before, I am always in awe of my students and their ability to adapt and learn, especially as young children/teens.
I think it is important to encourage and identify your students 'own English' and celebrate students' ability to communicate effectively, therefore assessing their ability to accomplish functions using the L2 rather than completing gap fill exercises etc.
|
|
|
Post by Anita on Sept 8, 2020 10:47:09 GMT
I come from a mixed background of British and Indian ancestry called as Anglo Indians. I teach in an Arab country where English is only a foreign language. Therefore, registers vary between all of us including students and staff. However, to maintain consistency the register mentioned in the course book is followed.
|
|
|
Post by Anita on Sept 8, 2020 11:24:20 GMT
I come from a mixed background of British and Indian ancestry called as Anglo Indians. I teach in an Arab country where English is only a foreign language. Therefore, registers vary between all of us including students and staff. However, to maintain consistency the register mentioned in the course book is followed.
|
|
|
Post by Dauda Pikawi on Dec 28, 2020 17:54:42 GMT
We all have our individual registers or idiolects as it is. We can't say that the standard English must be what every individual learner and teachers use, in my classes I try so much to use the plurilithic methods although in many occasions there are clashes with the policy makers and the supervisors coupled with the fact that many of the tests are standard tests derived from the text books. But classroom communication is always done using our own Englishes.
|
|