Graphic Organizers

Concept map, pictorial map, relationship chart, or more commonly known as graphic organizer is a great tool that can be used for effective learning. It helps organize the thoughts of the teacher as well as students. It can make a seemingly complicated topic to a much simpler presentation of ideas. It comes handy when brainstorming and visualizing ideas. It also aid in helping the student remember the important details as well as the entire process involved in a topic.

For example, a Venn diagram is  a great tool for comparing ideas and concepts. It can also be used as pre-writing activity.

There are a tons of ready-made, editable and printable graphic organizers available online. Here are some of my favorite sites:

Enchanted Learning
edHelper
TeacherVision
Super Teacher Worksheet
Education Oasis
Thinkport
Education Place
Hot Interactive Graphic Organizer
Vermilion Parish Interactives
Read Write Think

With the aid of office tools such as power point, I can present my graphic organizer or concept map in a more attractive way such as the sample below.

Second Language Acquisition

Prior to reading  a chapter on the different theories of learning second language acquisition, I already have a pre-conceived idea on how people learn new languages. Surprisingly, some of my ideas coincide with some of the theories discussed in the book but I was not aware of the specific terms use to describe them or specific theories. Nonetheless, there were many other ideas which I came to know for the first time. One of which is that of Chomky’s theory dealing of Language Universals and Marked Features. It is helpful to know that students must reset the parameters of their first language to achieve the features of the new language.

What language learning experiences especially contributed to your personal second language development?

The experience that contributed to my personal second language development would be a combination of formal language learning by attending a language course and engaging in a conversation using the second language on a daily basis.

What specific social, economic, and/or political factors influenced your own language learning?

The primary factor that influenced my own language learning is more of social. The English language is the universal language spoken by the people that I usually associate with. Also, English language is usually involved in almost all transaction that I get into.

Do you experience interference from your first language when you speak in a second language? Is the interference in the area of phonology (Sound) or syntax (grammar)?

It is hard to do away with the first language interference.  Based on my experience and observation, interference from the first language is unavoidable either as to the area of phonology as well as grammar if the person is constantly using the first language and second language interchangeably. But the more blatant interference is on phonology because it involves oral participation. Most second language learners that I have known have excellent skills in grammar but cannot pronounce the world correctly or have different accent which makes it harder for the listener to understand.

Which SLA theory(ies) most closely coincides with your own beliefs about language learning?

I share the same thinking with that of attention theory combine with that of experience theory. It is my belief that everybody grew up with their scheme to which they associate their learning. However, in the process of growing up, new knowledge or input comes in. The schema is enriched because of new knowledge which is not necessarily obtained through formal learning but mostly through experience. That is also why I share with the long-standing principle which says that experience is still the best teacher. But of course, experience may be the best teacher but to ensure effective learning, the learner should be properly guided.

Does eclectic language teaching mean that language teachers should teach in any way they want?

Eclectic language teaching does not necessarily mean that teachers are in absolute freedom to choose whatever method they feel like applying in their method of teaching. While it may be true that eclecticism involves the use of a number of language learning activities, it does not mean random choice or mixing up of different approaches randomly. The use of eclecticism should be viewed as the solution on how to complement the weaknesses of single theory.

What questions do you still have about how people learn languages?

Why is it that some ESL students learn much quickly than others? Does it have something to do with the type of approach of teaching used by the teachers or more of the ability of the students to learn?

           

English as Second Language (ESL)

Successful learning of the second language depends on several factors that surround the individual learner, which include (i) affective or emotional factors, (ii) cognitive factors, and (iii) metacognition factors. While all these three are equally important to consider, possessing a strong cognitive characteristic is critical to successful second language learning. Cognitive learners have their own style of learning such as visual, auditory, tactile or kinesthetic. As such, the learning style of a particular learner would greatly influence the teaching method to be used by the teacher to be effective. Learners could also either be field dependent learners or field independent learners. With that, the teaching method to be used should cater to such ability of the learner to effectively learn. 

Learning a second language takes time and a lot of dedication. Truly, learning a new language is like living a new life. One has to live the language. In my country, English language is use as a medium of instruction in all schools at all levels. Our books are written in English and are mostly authored by foreign writers. No wonder why students can compose a very good composition in English. However, speaking the language is not as successful as writing it. Although, many emerged as excellent and good English speakers, especially the highly-educated ones, majority of the people can understand the language but are not fluent speakers. This is because bulk of the population does not speak the language in everyday conversation. Of course, they use the native language in everyday life. Now compare this to those who never use nor have spoken the English language, or may have been exposed but only at a minimal level.

It has been a major focus of educators to increase the English language proficiency of students who are newcomers or are not native English speakers. As such, they have developed several strategies in order to carry out this goal. However, these strategies did not just pop out into their minds. They are carefully developed through time and several studies. Through these various methods and strategies, teaching becomes more effective and learning becomes easier. It also goes by saying that language learning strategies now focus not on the teachers but on the learners. The learner’s characteristics signal what type of strategy the teacher would use in teaching the new language. It goes by saying that learner’s characteristics would definitely be helpful in different language learning settings.

Knowing the different learners’ characteristics would certainly play important role in determining the strategy to be used by the learners themselves as well as the teaching methods to be used by the teachers. For example, affective learners who are instrumentally motivated learners who wanted to learn the language to get to know the people and their culture would certainly consider second language acquisition by learning the language where it is spoken. They know for themselves that this is an effective way of learning the new language. To further emphasize my point, a cognitive learner with a sensory mode preference learning style would most likely become effective learner in a second language acquisition setting. Kinesthetic learners would certainly become ineffective if learning will take place in a second language learning setting since these are the learners who would most likely become effective as doers or participants than merely listeners or watchers

Assimilation vs. Accommodation

As an educator, we  are familiar with the most intriguing part of Piaget's theories and studies. His theory on assimilation and accommodation came about through his studies of children and how they learn, think and understand things around them. Below is a differentiation of the two concepts for clearer understanding.

Math Mini Lesson

In planning my mini lesson, I considered the time and the number of students I could work with effectively. However, the primary consideration was the time, as the students are available only for about 30 minutes. I chose ratio to teach them with the goal that I could help them approach the topic in the most simple and practical way. 

I understand that some students are visual learners but some are not. This is important for me to know as math is mostly abstract, but could also be visual with the use of proper strategy and innovation. To determine whether who is visual and who is not, I asked the students a question, “pretend we are in a big bird cage where there were a total of 20 birds and we were to determine ratio of birds to another bird, how will we do it?”  The students did not know what to do, how to start and what to start with. Then, I directed their attention to a group of students in the hallway and asked them, “what is the ratio of girls to boys in that group?” They were quick to respond. Thus, I figured out that they were visual learners.

Having identified the students’ best learning strategy, I brought out my lesson plan and materials. The lesson was delivered informally and I made clear to my students that mistakes may be expected but are respected. I also made sure that we will address the mistake to correct it. They showed a sigh of relief and became more open to the activity and discussion. Most of the students displayed understanding of the topic through the activities. They showed enthusiasm all throughout the lesson. I attribute this to: first, the learning environment since we decided to hold the activity outside the classroom; second, the use of drawings and illustrations; third, practical application.    

At the end of the day, I felt happy about what we have done. I felt proud of myself knowing that my students understood the lesson and enjoyed the entire activity. This is my goal as a teacher. I do not want the students to be forced to study and learn. I want them to develop the interest to learn and discover things on their own initiative. I am here as a teacher to help motivate them, give them proper instruction and guide them through out their learning.

Web-Based Inquiry

In Science, approach in teaching has now focused it's attention to the use of the web especially in inquiries and research.

Web-based Inquiry could either be material-directed or Learner-directed Inquiries. However, the openness of the inquiry depends upon the goal it is trying to achieve or how the material developer perceived how students learn in the context of classroom.