Mikal Steinbacher
Instructor, ABE/ESL/English
Lake Washington Technical College



-----Original Message-----
From: englishlanguage-bounces at nifl.gov on behalf of Rosemary Dill
Sent: Tue 10/6/2009 5:19 PM
To: englishlanguage at nifl.gov
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 5044]  Using L1
 
The predominate L1 in my classes is Spanish,and I, too can speak Spanish. but I have students who speak many other languages.  Often they are the only ones in the class who do so.  I think it is rude to speak a language in class that all students do not understand.
 
Rosemary

--- On Tue, 10/6/09, englishlanguage-request at nifl.gov <englishlanguage-request at nifl.gov> wrote:


From: englishlanguage-request at nifl.gov <englishlanguage-request at nifl.gov>
Subject: EnglishLanguage Digest, Vol 49, Issue 6
To: englishlanguage at nifl.gov
Date: Tuesday, October 6, 2009, 12:00 PM


When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
than "Re: Contents of EnglishLanguage digest..."




Today's Topics:

   1. [EnglishLanguage 5037]  L1 as a teacher's aide (Paul Rogers)
   2. [EnglishLanguage 5038]  Using the L1 in the EFL Classroom
      -article (Paul Rogers)
   3. [EnglishLanguage 5039] Register now for Foundations of
      Teaching    Adult Numeracy (Kaye Beall)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2009 05:25:07 -0700 (PDT)
From: Paul Rogers <pumarosa21 at yahoo.com>
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 5037]  L1 as a teacher's aide
To: The Adult English Language Acquisition Discussion List
    <englishlanguage at nifl.gov>
Message-ID: <436212.6084.qm at web36905.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

Kearney hit the nail on the head:
L1 in the classroom is ?highly efficient? and one of the ?best tools? a teacher can use. With a little bit of imagination and flexibility a teacher can fairly easily manage a multi-level, multi-lingual class of 25 students. 
For some research articles, go to the Adult Biliteracy topic on
http://wiki.literacytent.org/index.php/Main_Page
Paul Rogers?
?
Kearney Lykins wrote:
Students routinely use L1-L2/L2-L1 dictionaries in and out of class. Using a fellow student as a L1-L2/L2-L1 resource to translate something is highly efficient, and immensely valuable for learners.? Why would you?prohibit a student from using one of the best tools he has (a classmate who speaks the same L1)?
?
?

Paul Rogers
805-258-3310
pumarosa21 at yahoo.com
PUMAROSA.COM

--- On Mon, 10/5/09, Kearney Lykins <kearney_lykins at yahoo.com> wrote:


From: Kearney Lykins <kearney_lykins at yahoo.com>
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 5028] Re: The level playing field
To: "The Adult English Language Acquisition Discussion List" <englishlanguage at nifl.gov>
Date: Monday, October 5, 2009, 7:52 AM







Lynne,
?
The purpose of education is not to create a level playing field. The purpose of education is to educate. 
?
Here are some practices that would create a level playing field in class:
?
1. If some students have untreatable astigmatism, require the rest of the?students to wear glasses that simulate the vision of their astigmatic classmates. This way all students are seeing equally.??
?
2. Require highly attentive students to listen to the Rolling Stones at a loud volume on ipods, so that non-attentive students have a better chance of equaling the scores of the attentive students on the next quiz.?
?
3. Confiscate all the money that students carry with them to class, put it?in a single pile, and distribute it in equal amounts to the students after class. 
?
?
Students routinely use L1-L2/L2-L1 dictionaries in and out of class. Using a fellow student as a L1-L2/L2-L1 resource to translate something is highly efficient, and immensely valuable for learners.? Why would you?prohibit a student from using one of the best tools he has (a classmate who speaks the same L1)?
?
Regards,
?
Kearney Lykins
?
?
Kearney_Lykins at yahoo.com
?






From: LYNNE KREISER <KREISERL at faytechcc.edu>
To: The Adult English Language Learners Discussion List <englishlanguage at nifl.gov>
Sent: Mon, October 5, 2009 9:49:02 AM
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 5024] Re: quitando la verg?enza

Paul:

In my experience ESL teachers do everything humanly possible to avoid
humiliating students.

Have you considered what it feels like to be a student in an ESL class
who speaks a language other than Spanish as L1? If teachers allow
students to use L1 in class, there will always be a student who is the
only one who speaks his or her L1. As a result, that student is then not
only struggling to learn English, but also dealing with the feeling of
isolation as others help each other out.

Insisting on English only creates a level playing field for ALL
students which is what every teacher should strive for.

Lynne Kreiser





>>> Paul Rogers <pumarosa21 at yahoo.com> 10/3/2009 11:00 AM >>>


A major factor contributing to adults'? English learning experience is
what I would call the "community attitude" toward immigrants, especially
Latinos.
When a student tells me of a particular negative encounter with an
English speaker in a store, at the DMV, etc., I use that experience as a
lesson.
I also explain that everyone feels a little timid (verg?enza) trying to
speak English due to the fact that English is difficult to pronounce in
the first place and in the second place there are many Americans who are
somewhat ... mean toward those who do not speak English.
Some ESL teachers contribute to the problem.
For example, students should have the right to speak their own language
in class under certain conditions, such as asking another student for a
translation. 
In one of my classes, a wife and her husband told me that they were
separated because she knew more English and had to explain things every
now and then to him. 
They were humiliated by the teacher and therefore dropped out of the
class.
In any case, when I teach, I explain to my students that I will try to
"quitar la verg?enza", to kick out timidity and feelings of inadequacy
as best as I can.
Creating a welcoming and supportive environment should be one of the
topics for a discussion, I think.
Paul Rogers
805-258-3310
pumarosa21 at yahoo.com 
PUMAROSA.COM


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Message: 2
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2009 05:56:44 -0700 (PDT)
From: Paul Rogers <pumarosa21 at yahoo.com>
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 5038]  Using the L1 in the EFL Classroom
    -article
To: The Adult English Language Learners Discussion List
    <englishlanguage at nifl.gov>
Message-ID: <78044.75012.qm at web36904.mail.mud.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"

I am sending this article with the permission of the author.
Paul Rogers
?
Using the L1 in the EFL Classroom 
Should you or shouldn?t you use the students? first language (L1) in the classroom? This is one of the questions which most divides EFL/ESL teachers ? whether they are for it or against it, there are few who don?t have a strong opinion about it.

The main argument against the use of the L1 in language teaching is that students will become dependent on it, and not even try to understand meaning from context and explanation, or express what they want to say within their limited command of the target language (L2) ? both of which are important skills which they will need to use when communicating in the real situation.

But there are other, historical reasons why the use of the students? mother tongue went out of favour. Initially it was part of a reaction against the Grammar-Translation method, which had dominated late 19th and early 20th century teaching, and which saw language learning as a means towards intellectual development rather than as being for utilitarian, communicative purposes. The Direct Method of the early 20th century reacted against this ? it aimed at oral/aural competence and believed languages were best learnt in a way that emulated the ?natural? language learning of the child ? ie with no analysis or translation. The move away from L1 use was later reinforced by Audiolingualism (1940s-1960s) which saw language as a matter of habit formation. The L1 was seen as a collection of already established linguistic habits which would ?interfere? with the establishment of the new set of linguistic habits that constituted the target language,
and was thus to be avoided at all costs.

This theoretical opposition to the use of the L1 was compounded by the development of the TEFL ?industry? ? there are now many situations in which the teacher simply doesn?t speak or even understand the students? language ? for instance, teachers who move from country to country every year or so, or who are teaching multi-lingual classes in their (the teachers?) own country.

In the last thirty years or so, there have continued to be some methodologies which avoid the use of the L1 ? Total Physical Response is one. But others, like Suggestopaedia and Counselling Language Learning, (1) have included it as an integral part of the methodology. Mainstream methodology, on the other hand, has had an ambivalent approach, coming down neither on one side nor the other but maintaining an ?it depends? attitude.

Depends on what? The risk of creating L1 dependence is obviously valid, but there are also strong arguments for using the L1 if the teacher is able to do so: 
???????????????????????????? It can prevent time being wasted on tortuous explanations and instructions, when it could be better spent on language practice. With beginners, it may even allow the teacher to use activities which would be impossible to explain otherwise. 
???????????????????????????? It can be used contrastively to point out problem areas of grammar, false cognates etc. Various coursebooks, like Headway, now encourage students to translate model sentences into their own language in order to compare and contrast the grammar. 
???????????????????????????? Students? receptive competence (their understanding) may be higher than their productive competence (their ability to use the language). In some circumstances the course objectives may even focus primarily on receptive competence, not expecting productive competence to reach an equivalent level ? for example reading skills courses for student doctors who have to understand medical textbooks and journals in English. One way of letting students demonstrate receptive competence is by allowing them to respond using the L1. I have already mentioned the use of bilingual conversations (2) in a previous article, but students can also demonstrate receptive competence by discussing their understanding of a text in their L1. I use this frequently with beginners classes. After reading or listening I ask them to tell me what they understood (based on the pre-set task) in the L1. Once I?m sure they?re on
the right lines I ask them to repeat what they said in English. In this way they don?t have to think about the answers themselves, and about how to formulate them in English, at the same time. 
???????????????????????????? It can be used with beginners for pre-lesson small talk which allows the teacher to get to know the students as people, and for discussions to explain the course methodology etc. In addition, beginners will be less tense if they know they can at least ask for, and possibly receive, explanation in the L1. 
???????????????????????????? When students are trying to say something but having difficulty, they can say it in their own language and the teacher can reformulate it for them (3), possibly rephrasing and simplifying to show them how they could have expressed themselves within the language they already know. 
???????????????????????????? If the teacher does not speak the students language, it can be useful for them (the students) to have a bilingual dictionary in the classroom so that they can double check their comprehension of lexical explanations. 
???????????????????????????? Some students need to combine the two languages ? for example those whose jobs involve translation and interpreting. Translation is a skill which needs to be taught. 
Sometimes then, the use of the L1 can be more productive than counter-productive. Whilst the aim should be to wean students off the L1 as soon as possible (I?ve talked previously about how this might be done when giving instructions (4)), it may still be extremely useful at certain stages.

Notice that not all the uses of the L1 listed above may involve the teacher in actually speaking the language. Some, like reformulation, only need her to understand. This can provide a sort of ?middle way?. The students are re-assured by the fact that they can ask questions etc in their own language, but they are still stimulated to try and understand the teacher who is speaking only English. It can also be a useful approach for those teachers who have recently moved to a country and are starting to learn the language, but don?t yet feel fully confident in using it (which should make them appreciate how their students feel!)

What about the teacher with multi-lingual students who speaks some but not all the languages of her students? Should she ever use, or allow those students to use, the L1?

Again, there are strong arguments against it, the main one being that it could cause resentment amongst the others, who might see the teacher as giving extra help to her ?favourites?. Two situations spring to mind where it could be useful, however. Firstly, if one of the students was particularly weak and tended to hold the class up. In this situation, while the rest of the class were working on a task, the teacher might check with that student that he had really understood the grammar, what he had to do, or whatever. The second possibility would be to explain activities which needed instructions above the current receptive competence of the students. In this case the teacher might explain the activity in the L1 of the students whose language she spoke, and then get those students to demonstrate the activity to the others. Used in this way, the students should appreciate that the teacher?s ?special attention? was actually for the benefit of the
whole class, and would be less likely to react negatively against it. 
Sue Swift
http://eltnotebook.blogspot.com/2006/11/using-l1-in-efl-classroom.html
reprinted with permission

Paul Rogers
805-258-3310
pumarosa21 at yahoo.com
PUMAROSA.COM


      
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Message: 3
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2009 10:11:01 -0500
From: "Kaye Beall" <kabeall at comcast.net>
Subject: [EnglishLanguage 5039] Register now for Foundations of
    Teaching    Adult Numeracy
To: <englishlanguage at nifl.gov>
Message-ID: <13A03FBC4E294655A3B67E9520F449C8 at D14J7YD1>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Register now for Foundations of Teaching Adult Numeracy, a new, online,
professional development course from ProfessionalStudiesAE.org. The course
dates are October 19-December 7, 2009.  The instructor is Barbara Goodridge,
Lowell Adult Education Center, Lowell, MA. 



Course Description

What is numeracy? Is numeracy just another word for math? How should you
approach numeracy with adult students? In this foundational course you'll
learn how to keep students at the center of numeracy instruction. You'll
explore the context, content, and cognitive and affective components of
numeracy, how to address the needs of students with learning gaps, how
students' styles of learning math and levels of math knowledge affect their
math skills, and ways to build student's success in learning math. You'll
plan classroom activities, test them with your students, and share your
experiences with fellow teachers.

Course Topics 

*    Components of Numeracy 
*    Reasons for Students' Learning Gaps 
*    Math Anxiety 
*    Learning Disabilities and Language Issues 
*    Cultural and Language Barriers 
*    Mathematical Problems in Context 
*    Math Learning Styles 
*    Constructivism 
*    Levels of Knowing Math 
*    Open and Closed Problems 
*    Analyzing and Assessing Students' Mathematical Thinking 
*    Using Facilitation Questions in the Classroom 

This course is the first in a six-part series of online courses focused on
effective adult numeracy instruction. 



For more information and to register: www.professionalstudiesae.org
<http://www.professionalstudiesae.org/>  and scroll down to Numeracy



Questions? Please call 888.528.2224 ext. 283 or e-mail
prodev at proliteracy.org.



Looking forward to seeing you online,

Kaye





Kaye Beall

Project Director

World Education

kaye_beall at worlded.org

www.worlded.org





I totally agree.  That's the same reason that I disagree with bilingual education, unless the school can provide bilingual education for all ESL language groups in the school. I doubt that there are many parts of the country where there is only only one second language represented.


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