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The Language Teacher | |
I had gone mountain-climbing once before, 20 years ago. It hadn't become a passion. I missed the wide-angle focus of mountain vistas; the searching for holds felt confining. Still, I chose to revisit this sport recently, as a challenge, as a form of entertainment, as a means of exercise, and unexpectedly, as a lesson in language teaching, specifically relating to the role of reading in the language classroom. Rock Climbing 101(1) In an introductory talk, your guide will map out the sequence of your lesson. You'll be introduced and fitted to the equipment. As I embarked on this somewhat risky (in my mind) undertaking, learning to climb mountains, I went to the class with faith in and expectations about the instructor's skill. He earned my trust by giving me a sense of direction and a sense of the "tools" of this new endeavor. Likewise, students come to language classes with expectations of us, their teachers. They trust that we have a sense of direction, that we know why we are choosing specific tasks and activities. Teachers do not need to be researchers. However, as practitioners, we need to be aware of the theory and research that underlie our actions and plans (and those of our textbooks). Our "tools" are not only our texts, but also the activities and opportunities for language use we create, our responses to questions, our explanations, our sequencing of activities, and our facilitation of groups. Different theories and philosophies about reading (whether our own or that of our texts) determine the scope and sequence of our lessons. Our present understanding of reading stresses the interactive nature of the reading process. According to Day & Bamford (1998, p. 15), "the most widely accepted cognitive model of fluent reading emphasizes the importance of accurate, automatic word recognition; this process is the precursor of a number of other interactive, concurrent processes that, together with high-level cognitive reasoning, result in the construction of meaning." Some researchers (e.g., Krashen, 1989) suggest that language acquisition occurs automatically when messages are understood (i.e., comprehensible input) and that extensive reading provides the input necessary for acquisition. Others (e.g., Eskey & Grabe, 1988) argue that extensive reading alone is insufficient; guidance and practice in useful reading strategies is also necessary. Ultimately, awareness of theories and research should drive our decisions about what we do in the classroom. (2) Your guide will set an anchor or explain to you where and how it is set. Though climbers vary in their degree of dependence on mechanical aids to climbing, the concept of "anchors" is universal. At issue is what grounds the climber, what provides a sense of balance and security, what protects in case of a fall. For many climbers, the anchor is a rope that has been securely mounted. For others, the anchor is an internal sense of balance and trust in their skills and knowledge. What grounds our students in language learning? What is their anchor? How can teachers help students use external anchors and develop internal ones? Texts can serve well as anchors for multiskill development. An anchor is something that provides security or stability; similarly, texts can anchor students' language explorations by offering lasting, visual, meaningful, and correct target language representation and provide the foundation (and the security) for exploration into other skill areas. As with any anchor, there is a danger of being weighed down. Texts and reading activities taught and practiced appropriately can serve as pivots to exploration. Conversely, texts and reading activities practiced inappropriately can burden students with too much detail, too much explanation, and too little joy. When the anchor is too restrictive, texts become weights with short chains. In such cases, the texts are written primarily to exemplify grammar or practice vocabulary rather than to stimulate activities or student interest. Activities stemming from these types of texts primarily test comprehension and reading skills application rather than create a desire to communicate about the text. Imagine classes where texts serve positively as anchors or pivots. The text anchors students with concrete examples of language used to communicate a message. Activities emphasize appreciation and the meaning of the text, resulting in ideal comprehensible input. The text doesn't replace oral and aural language practice, but complements it. Meaningful texts can lead to discussions (providing opportunities to recycle vocabulary from the text naturally); text-based activities that involve information-gaps result in real communication. Opportunities abound to appeal to different learning styles. Certain texts lend themselves to oral readings or symbolic representations; other texts lend themselves to activities which require movement, perhaps the acting out of the text. In all cases, the text is interesting in itself, whether through humor, through the information conveyed, through the characters. Texts provide natural access to other skills. In a synergistic way, classroom activities linking reading and writing reinforce and strengthen the other (Carson & Leki, 1993). Vocabulary development takes place incidentally through exposure to new words in meaningful contexts (Day, Omura, & Hiramatsu, 1991). According to Krashen (1989), pleasure reading contributes to improved spelling skills and overall language competence. Studies by Hafiz & Tudor (1989) demonstrate increases in general linguistic competence brought about by extensive reading. Yong & Idamban (1997) report that reading aloud to students resulted in an increase in overall language proficiency, including listening comprehension. (3) After warm-ups and stretching, you'll practice free climbing moves just a few feet off the ground. The guide knew pre-climbing warm-up activities would reduce the possibility of muscle strain and allow us to appreciate climbing more. Similarly, most reading requires some preparation, prereading, so that students can activate background knowledge and come to the text with expectations and, ideally, enthusiasm and curiosity about the subject matter. In addition, prereading activities can lighten students' cognitive burden while reading because prior discussions will have incorporated some key vocabulary and ideas in context. Our guide could have talked endlessly and tediously about how to climb. Instead, after a bit of stretching, he challenged us to practice our moves on rocks just a few feet off the ground. He judged what we could handle; he pushed our limits to a reasonable degree. Our first rock-climbing task was quite realistic in that we touched the rocks, balanced ourselves, climbed. However, it is not what one would typically think of when imagining rock-climbing. In language teaching, there have been similar aspirations to authenticity, leading to considerable disagreement about what, in fact, constitutes that authenticity. There are those who argue that authentic texts must have been written for a native audience; others argue that texts which have the qualities of natural speech or writing meet the definition; still others suggest that authenticity is not in the text, but rather, in the authentic intent to communicate. (See Day & Bamford, 1988 for a full discussion of this issue.) As teachers, we need to consider what level or type of authenticity is truly appropriate for our students. (4) You'll learn how to handle harnesses and basic belay techniques. (5) You'll start on easy routes on non-vertical rock. (6) You'll climb harder routes on increasingly vertical rock faces. We didn't learn about all the equipment at the beginning. Our guide gave us more new information as we were ready for it. Once we had been on the rock, we could understand the new information better. Teachers judge how much learners are ready to handle: how much vocabulary is needed and when, what structures to ignore, what structures to highlight, how much detail readers should be expected to get, whether just getting the main idea of some texts is sufficient. We dole out corrections and information to the degree that learners can accept and make use of them. We adapt our teaching and our expectations to our reading audience. (7)The lesson review will help you focus on what you liked or didn't like about the lesson, put you in touch with your personal strengths and weaknesses as a climber, help you set future climbing goals. Though a novice, I had some sense of what worked for me and what didn't, where I excelled and where I didn't. The guide assisted me in further clarifying my strengths and weaknesses and helped me envision my next realistic steps and provided information to help me contact other climbers. Our students need to be actively involved and aware of their reading strengths and weaknesses through discussions or self-evaluations of reading strategies. In addition, students may need assistance in setting up reading goals. Teachers can provide support by making interesting and comprehensible texts available to students, by encouraging out-of-class extensive reading, by facilitating projects in which students communicate through reading and writing to people outside of the classroom, possibly through the Internet. My initial climbing lessons are over. Whether I continue climbing or not, I'm aware that my guide prepared me well, with lessons extending beyond the rocks and into the language classroom.
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