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Second language proficiency and academic achievement can be challenging to develop simultaneously. Krashen's (2010) work illustrates the various systems of learning, including the learning that takes place subconsciously and the learning that takes place more by rote methods. Likewise, Gottlieb (2006) differentiates between social and academic language proficiency and academic achievement for students. The acquisition of the language entails different cognitive processes than the acquisition of subject-specific knowledge. Educators armed with a more thorough understanding of academic versus language proficiency can better help their students succeed on both levels.
Krashen (2010) points out that each human being learns language in the same way. Individual differences may be important for current scientific paradigms, but for educators, a more universal approach will be far more helpful in creating a classroom environment and pedagogical approach that will be effective. After all, human biology is universal; so, too are the cognitive processes involved in language acquisition. According to Gottlieb (2006), second language acquisition occurs along a "predictable" set of developmental stages (p. 26). Those developmental stages occur along a continuum. Educators can "arbitrarily" divide the continuum into levels for the express purpose of crafting classroom exercises. Given the vast increase in ELLs in Nebraska...
When educators use demonstrative actions or images while teaching, they provide the bridge between academic achievement and language proficiency. Educators are responsible for providing the comprehensible inputs that are the common grounds of human knowledge. If a teacher uses examples that are incomprehensible, the students will fail to make the connection between the meaning of the item and the language used to describe it. As Krashen (2010) points out, several psychological variables are critical for language acquisition. In particular, motivation, self-esteem, and a low level of anxiety are important for language acquisition. Educators should therefore be cognizant of how to create an environment that stimulates motivation and self-esteem while minimizing or eliminating anxiety. To accomplish this goal, educators may use specific classroom management strategies such as not calling on students who are "silent," but instead allowing all students to speak at their own…
References
Gottlieb, M. (2006). Assessing English Language Learners. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Krashen, S. (2010). On language acquisition. Retrieved online: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiTsduRreug
"Nebraska: ELL Resources," (n.d.). Colorin Colorado. Retrieved online: http://www.colorincolorado.org/ell-basics/resources-state/nebraska
A good starting point is identifying the factors that influence ELL student performance. According to Mitsutomi & McDonald, these factors include motivation, linguistic and cultural identity, study strategies, tolerance for ambiguity, and sociocultural support. Although these factors provide a generic indication of the difficulties faced by ELL students, it is also recognized that each student is an individual, and enters the school system under widely varying circumstances and with differing
The environment that language acquisition occurs in, whether it is a first or a second language being acquired, is also hugely influential on the development of that language. It is only in context that a language with inherent ambiguities can be understood at a level of fluency, and if the environment surrounding the language learner does not help to reinforce the rules and/or vocabulary of that language, then language acquisition
These people are also, reportedly, more creative, and also excellent at problem solving. One Moroccan individual was injured in an accident, she was a bi-lingual, and she could speak both French and Arabic before the accident. During her recovery, she found to her amazement, tat she could speak French one day but not Arabic, and one day, Arabic and not French. After three months, she could speak both fluently. Today,
Linguistics, Language Acquisition, & Pronoun Errors in Children The acquisition of language is not a seamless process. All humans encounter errors as part of their linguistic development and practice. Humans around the world and across languages encounter similar behavior patterns as they grow into adults and gain linguistic fluency in their native languages. One such repeating phenomenon in English of note is the act of young children to misuse pronouns, using
Language Acquisition" by J. Crawford, covers how people acquire a second language, and some "persistent problems" with how we teach a second language in America today. The author briefly covers a history of language acquisition, and how early Romans used "conversational dialogues" to help teach children many other languages, and how that method gradually altered throughout history, to the "grammar-translation approach" we tend to lean toward today. He also
" (Collier, 1995) Academic work through the progression of each grade brings expansion to the vocabulary, sociolinguistic, and discourse dimensions to the language higher cognition. Academic knowledge and development "transfer from the first language to the second language" (Collier, 1994) making it more efficient that academic work is developed through the first language of the student with teaching of the second language occurring during other times of the school day