Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Discussion #7: Free Topic
This semester we have learned about the Foreign Language National Standards along with the five C's; three major language learning theories; different foreign language methods, including the important role of input, interaction and feedback. We also talked about how the best way is to teach L2 listening and reading for input comprehension, as well as speaking and writing skills. By interviewing language teachers, we learned about different perspectives of teaching the target culture. For this last blog, please post an entry of interest concerning the topics you have learned from this class. Be sure to write something unique for discussion.
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Don't be afraid to be great!
ReplyDeleteThose are some of the words that my mother used to tell me before games or special days. I would hear those words that she once heard from a movie, poet or God knows who and they always seemed to provide the confidence needed to just be me. Well not just be me, but be the best me I could be. That is what I intend to talk about in this post. We have spent all this time learning about how the material should be presented, in what way is best or better than the rest, what material is more important and how to adjust it all according to the level appropriate for your students. But what is really important is that you be the best you can be, you need to be at your best so that your students can reach theirs. They are still learning how to be the best person they can be and you have an incredible opportunity to help them do that!
How does all of this relate to the information we've discussed and tie back into teaching a foreign language or second language acquisition? Well, it starts with the ACTFL national standards and those pesky 5 Cs. C1 is Communication and C2 is Culture; these are extremely important, there is no question of that to be true, however what about the rest of the Cs? I personally believe that the one C if any that gets neglected the most is the key to unlocking so much potential in students' language production and comprehension, this C is Communities. Now you may say but I don't have a '(inset language) speaking community nearby' well then it is time for you to start trying to find one. This is where you cannot accept anything less than your best effort. It is up to you as the teacher and leader of your students' learning to provide them the opportunities necessary to expand their horizons and reach new limits. By finding students an opportunity to have a conversation hour with a native speaker once a week, bi-weekly, or even monthly I believe that the students will learn much faster and truly become immersed in the target language for one of the first times in their lives where they engage in meaningful and relevant conversations. This can also be done by using pen pals, however this is an ancient idea for students so maybe it is time to spice things up a little and create a new form of communication to help them get excited about the olden day way of communication and transfer it into the 21st century (Use social media or something to try and bridge this gap).
Communities is not an easy standard to hit and although it comes at the bottom of the list when providing a list of the 5Cs I think this is the one that is most neglected and possibly the most influential standard to take a good class to a great class or a good student to a great student. Another point to favor Communities, even though it may come at the bottom of the list, when looking at the chain of the 5 Cs that looks like a circle, the top three that are linked together and Communities, Communication and Culture.
So do not neglect Communities, make the extra effort to make your students great and it will be so worth your while in the end.
Tim,
DeleteTo comment on the beginning of your post, I agree that teachers should strive to “be the best that they can be” and I believe that, similar to my own post, teachers can accomplish this in one way by reevaluating their foreign language teaching methods and teaching styles. I would also agree with the notion that the “Communication” and “Cultures” C’s might be overly-emphasized by foreign language teachers at the expense of other C’s like “Communities.” After all, an important goal of foreign language teaching is for students to be able to apply what they’ve learned to communicate successfully with native speakers of the target language. I hope to guide my future students to engage in the “Communication” aspect of the Five C’s.
Tim,
DeleteOne thing I disagree with (mainly because it's the only thing I disagree with : ] ) is your view of pen pals. I personally see actual written pen pals as something that can never be replaced and is so timeless. It ties so well into Community, Communication, Culture, Comparisons, and Connections as an activity and learning tool where the student uses their knowledge and interest to interact on a real level. Everything today is so "digitalized" and distant, whereas, even though it is slow and cumbersome, written letters have so much more significance and authenticity to them than any online chat room or Epals system. Having that letter seems to me like it would be proof that we aren't learning this L2 for naught for students, and the value in having that connection is priceless.
Tim,
DeleteI identified with similar aspects in my post, and agree with your reflection. Communities is incredibly overlooked, but one of the most important. Having access to a community of native speakers will entirely shape a student's use of the target language, their acquisition and perception of linguistic and cultural principles, and of course, pronunciation. After working in three different school districts in the state, and being here at UNH, I think that language programs sometimes overlook this key aspect, or simply don't realize its importance with second language acquisition. I think that teachers and students need to make a wholehearted effort to connect students with some sort of native speaker community, whether that community is local or accessible through the use of technology. When I was in high school, I talked to my teacher about working outside of the school somewhere where I could use my Spanish and build on it; and she referred me to the Latin American Center in Manchester, where I worked for two years. I was a motivated student and I greatly benefitted from this experience. As you and I both know, all students aren't motivated like this and sometimes they need a little push in reaching out and getting involved. Whether a student goes somewhere local or utilizes a blog/chat forum on the internet; there are opportunities available that are not being accessed.
Considering everything that we’ve learned about this semester including the Foreign Language National Standards, the five C’s, language learning theories, foreign language teaching methods, and teaching target cultures as well as listening and reading comprehension, I’m interested in discussing the importance of not only understanding foreign language teaching theories and methods, but of being open to reconsidering what we’ve learned as time goes on.
ReplyDeleteAs many (if not all) of us would agree, one of the most unique aspects of languages and cultures is the fact that they change over time. I believe that a big misconception related to language learning is the notion that languages or cultures can be distilled into a set of concise and overly-simplified grammar definitions or generalized, stereotypical descriptions respectively. In contrast, I’m a proponent of the idea that language teaching should reflect uses of the target language in practice and by native speakers in addition to current representations of culture. That being said, both those ideas are difficult for any language teacher to incorporate into their classroom.
What does this mean for all of us? I think it means that while the Foreign Language National Standards, the five C’s, language learning theories, and language teaching methods provide us with a solid baseline on which to build our own informed teaching methods and styles, we must also reflect on how these foundations can be adapted to factors prone to changing (namely languages and cultures). The teaching profession is an uphill battle in the sense that every teacher, regardless of the discipline that they teach, should be reevaluating their teaching methods to continue to best address student needs and to improve the effectiveness of their overall teaching.
After this course, I feel that I have further refined my goals for teaching the Spanish language and the many Spanish-speaking cultures to my future students. My opinions in regards to foreign language teaching methods are grounded in national standards and in theory. I look forward to applying what we’ve learned in the classroom, to interacting and establishing relationships with colleagues who will serve as mentors and teach foreign languages in a variety of ways and, finally, to using what we’ve learned in our class to inspire my language learning students to connect with language and culture in some capacity and to be lifelong language learners.
Candance,
DeleteYou make a great point that languages are constantly changing. I love to say that languages are living and breathing organisms just as humans are. Languages are more than a form of communication, they are a people, a history and a shared culture. So too as they change so must we out teaching styles, methods and activities.
Although these methods learned in this class are extremely helpful and valuable, I absolutely agree with you that we need to be working without ceasing to find the most up to date and most effective teaching methods.
Tim,
DeleteI’m curious to know about whether or not your own foreign language teaching methods or teaching styles have changed as a result of you taking this class. Do you notice differences between the ways you teach French and the ways that you see other foreign language teachers teach a target language?
Candace & Tim,
DeleteI definitely on the same page as both of you. Obviously I have not had the experience of working with lesson writing and planning as you both have, but I definitely see my own style of thinking in regards to L2 Education has changed drastically to incorporate more of these concepts.
However, one thing I don't see changing in our mission to teach is the goal to teach students HOW to be successful students. This was a topic I was disappointed in after finishing the textbook and discussions. We focus so much on catering to the student, yet the student needs to understand how to meet half way. The one-sided-ness of this model of thinking is what makes me worry, as I know so many HS students who move on to college and have no clue how to be an independent learner, how to enjoy learning, and don't have a clue how they learn. That is something, as an everybody should learn an L2 (and L3 and L4 and so on!!) super-advocate, that I see as the most important. Because all of those skills and ideas that students acquire can be wasted and under used, or overused even. As we change, we need to remember to bring back the idea of be you and learn like you.
I have had many realizations in this class about teaching a foreign language and also and I think for me personally, these realizations cover teaching in a more general sense. I understand and recognize that this text book is not necessarily a philosophy of the principals of teaching (which seems like what I am more passionate about at this stage) as much as it is just simply an outline of suggestive methodologies that will provide effective ways to teach a foreign language to proficiency and competence. As I was pondering this blog discussion I re-read the preface of this book:
ReplyDeleteFrom the second page of the preface of our book while talking about the principles of the ACTFL guidelines, dice: “These principles represent some of my own assumptions about teaching and are offered as one way to look at the issues before us. But the set of hypotheses is not meant to be prescriptive. As Strasheim pointed out in 1976, we have moved out of the period of our professional history that was governed by absolutes…..Many practitioners reject the idea that one ‘true way’ can be found for all learners, who bring a wide variety of personalities, cognitive styles, and learning preferences to our classrooms” (Viii).
This idea of professionalism without absolutes to govern our ways really resonates with me. I think a key reason I am interested in these ideas of almost less structure to learning is because of my experience this semester with teaching a few Spanish lessons to 7th graders (and just spending a lot of time with them). The very first thing that comes to mind and I want to discuss after this bit of field experience is the idea of engagement before everything. So many students today I believe have a very difficult time staying or even initially becoming engaged with the material. I think this is obviously due to many factors working on many different situations which completes my reasoning for being more interested in the no ‘one way’ idea. Each different situation is going to require a different stance and a different attitude from the teacher dealing with the situation. I recognize that I have strayed a bit from the essence of this class in my answer, but this is where I am at with this semester.
Throughout my visits to the middle school this semester (with 2 different teachers) I have realized that when kids are genuinely engaged in the material and subject matter, it makes learning and teaching a lot better for both parties, it is much less of a battle for everyone because the students are enjoying themselves and having fun while they are learning and therefore the teacher has less to worry about aside from executing the lesson. In a perfect world, right? Can we use foreign language as a tool to attract kids to school?
Max,
DeleteAbsolutely we can use this as a tool to attract students. I think a class you might enjoy is Philosophy of Education it talked a lot about the philosophy behind education and what it is supposed to be, or how it could be used. There is a way through which many teachers can use the material and connect their students to what they are doing in such a manner where they literally create interest. This process of creating interest in a subject matter is what you are describing. If a teacher is able to work in such a way that they can do this, then all that is necessary is to execute the lesson plan. The ultimate goal is to be the best teacher and retain students in our classes so that our language classes might grow so that they are not cut. So creating interest and allowing students to have an opportunity to identify with the material is very very crucial to the success of their overall education.
Max,
DeleteI’m also inclined to say that there are not as many “absolutes” within the teaching profession as some might think. Like you’ve said, every student will vary based on the environment they’ve been raised in (you’d probably also enjoy the discussions about student “microsystem” and “macrosystem” factors from the Educational Psychology course in addition to the philosophical backgrounds provided by the Philosophy of Education course mentioned by Tim). All that being said, you’re exactly right. Student motivators will vary significantly and, in my opinion, while the educational and theoretical components of certification programs are critical, teachers must have experience in the classroom to be truly prepared to address students. And, as you’ve indicated, the ways in which teachers teach in their classes vary as well. I am hopeful that, while the process will be challenging, I will be able to contextualize Spanish courses for my students such that, like Tim talked about, I create interest for them and help them to see how foreign languages are relevant to their lives.
Max and Candace,
DeleteRunning with what Candace mentioned, dealing with such a diverse and individual population of students will always be a challenge, and like you said Max, students who are interested in the subject matter are much easier to work with. From my perspective, the only way to deal with students who are, how you say, unpredictable, is to be just as random and chaotic within your organized plan. Diverse activity types, spontaneous moments in class, and sometimes leaving the direction of class up to student interests, is what can make the successful teacher. If I did nothing but stick to the pure methods expressed in this book, I would put them to sleep in 5.
Also Love the Spanglish : )
Max,
DeleteI think there is nothing "absolute" about teaching a foreign language, except for the grammar rules you will teach your students. After taking this class and after about three and a half years of collective teaching experience, teaching should NOT take on a "one-size-fits-all" type of approach. In any class- in an urban center or suburbia, an affluent community or the ghetto, university or grammar school- it is always going to be a mixed bag. No student is the same, everyone has their own personal philosophy, their own perspective, and their own different styles of preferred teaching and learning. I think you should look at what your teacher at Oyster River does because that is exactly the type of outside-the-box thinking that makes classes great successes versus standard and satisfactory. Your teacher's organic methodology yields results that I have never seen before in a foreign language classroom. I think the biggest problem that some teachers have is that they try to stick to theory and traditional methods too much. In the constant effort to follow what they learned in their classes or read in their textbooks, they don't remember that they need to create a fun and exciting environment in order to foster tremendous results. As I've already referenced in this post; your teacher's non-traditional methods and huge success serves as precedent that supports this statement. I think as long as you are creative and create a challenging and stimulating environment for all of your students where they are all on a level playing field, you will generally be successful with your efforts, and your students will genuinely enjoy you and your class.
So after a semester of covering a wide and diverse set of L2 teaching concepts, there is a lingering question that I still find myself confused about. That question is in regards to non-native speaking teachers and their use of input. Obviously the idea of using authentic sound and speech patterns to support the L2 learning process is the ideal, but there is the issue that these tools and sources are in fact limited. The internet, local speaking community, and other resources are vast in total, but to find specific pieces of material for particular lessons can be a huge challenge. So the question stands, when and if it is appropriate to supply the material from one's own speaking (as a non-native speaker)?
ReplyDeleteExposure to non-native target language in the absence of native examples is something that needs to be carefully considered, from my point of view. Just like teaching in target language, the understanding has to be made that students consider and take on the speech nuances and all of the mistakes that you make as a non-native speaker. To me it seems that the biggest risk of doing say, a recording of speech in lieu of any native speaker, is that with the increased focus on listening and taking in the information by the students, there is a higher chance of negative impacts for any incorrect speech patterns, sounds, unauthentic pronunciations, grammatical issues, or the like. I feel that to be safe in using this method of L2 reinforcement, for say a PACE model, an educator should have a minimum advanced high level of speaking (based on OPI standards). Otherwise it would make me nervous to supply a group of L2 learners with insufficiently authentic/correct speaking sources.
That being said, there is a value in the risk of creating your own material, in that the only limit to context, although it may lack certain authenticity achieved by a native-speaker, is what you can't literally say or don't know. Grammar points and very specific lessons could be made ten times more effective if the material EXACTLY lines up with your lesson (value in creating your own), whereas other materials may only partially achieve what you are hoping to do in the lesson.
Does anyone else have an ideas about this? What other implications come with this kind of material creation?
Morgan,
DeleteUnderstandably that there is worth in having a lesson plan reflected by the perfectly crafted and manipulated material, it is also very important to avoid instilling your own human error unto your students. Pronunciation, grammatical error, and spelling error are all possible consequences to relying solely on your own material. The lack of fact checking, grammar checking and so on that goes into published material that is in target language could actually cause some issues, yet I do understand where you are coming from.
All the same I think we are splitting hairs, as a non-native target language teacher, I do not believe students will have the same experience as if taught by a native. There is something about being taught by a native that just changes things. But I do believe that there will not be significant difference between a student taught by a non-native and one taught by a native of the target language if taught well.
Morgan and Tim,
DeleteI agree with Tim’s comment that students taught by non-native foreign language teachers have the potential to be just as proficient in the target language as students taught a foreign language by a native speaker of that language. While the language proficiency level of the teacher is important if they aren’t a native speaker, it is my opinion that the impacts of teacher preparation programs are significant as well. If a native speaker, for example, hasn’t gone through a teacher preparation program, are they qualified to teach based on the fact that they speak the target language fluently? I think that they’d be missing a critical knowledgebase and that, in this sense, they might not be as effective at teaching as a non-native speaker who did go through a teacher preparation program and has experience in classrooms. Teaching involves a unique skillset combined with classroom experience and in addition to the knowledge that a given teacher has about the discipline that they teach.
To attempt to answer your question about what other implications come with the creation of your own material: It makes me think, and reinforce the thought that every situation is different, every classroom dynamic is different due to what level the kids are at, what socioeconomic status they come from, where they are regionally geographically coming from and how they have been specifically conditioned by their own environment. I think that these concepts are vastly overlooked and neglected in determining teaching methods. It is hard to speak about teaching on a standardized, general level.
DeleteMorgan,
DeleteYou raise an interesting point about the implications associated with using your own material. In my experience, and the experience of many teachers I know, encounter this situation every now and then, but huge problems don't come with it. I think that one has to use their own material every now and then, but for me, the best thing has been to not make the task too complicated and not attempt to overdo things. At least in my own experience, I have only had to use my own material a few times, but I made sure that the activity was very straight forward.
What will language classrooms look like twenty-five years from now? Will accessible technology change how students are able to interact with the language?
ReplyDeleteThese are some the questions that ran through my mind while Lina showed our class the OPI alternative testing that was being tested by high school students and their reactions to it. It blew me away. I thought it was awesome. I was almost shocked that it never occurred to me that with the technological resources available to us today, that someone could create an avatar interface to gauge students’ oral proficiency.
My other thought was why in the world hasn’t someone made these kinds of materials more accessible for students to practice with yet? This interface provided excellent authentic input; it allowed the students to break that proverbial wall and feel comfortable in using the target language. Which for me personally is the most important component of learning a language, confidence. It may not be one of the five C’s but for me personally I think it’s just as important. We all learn differently; but without confidence in our abilities to learn how can a student be open to learning? What are some of your thoughts on this from a student’s perspective?
As some of you know this is my first class that I have taken in the field of education. After the time spent in observing and participating with other students in a classroom setting, I have realized that I am not ready at all to teach. Once I develop my language skills and overall knowledge of education practices I will more adequate to teach. As of now I may be able to tutor students in a second language but from taking this course and learning about the three language teaching methods and all of foreign language methods it has helped me to think more about my own future. And the future of teaching.
My point of focus for this blog post is mostly about the future uses of technology in language teaching. I’m more interested in thinking about what potential resources can become accessible to language students at every level of education. I am not making predictions about what will be made or exactly how it can change, I am not a “tech savvy” person. I’m more curious to know what you all think about the uses of technology and if they can affect the theories and methods that exist. If there is a version of this interface for students to use would it be beneficial? How can new developments in using social media be tied into a teacher’s curricula? Do you think that new and accessible technology will affect how languages are being taught? How students will learn? Languages are always changing so wouldn’t that mean how we teach it should change as well? Personally, I think new accessible technology is the variable that can bring about change; it’s the degree of its significance that is yet to be determined. I look forward to the day I become certified as a second language teacher and see what has become of the language-learning world.
Kevin,
DeleteAfter taking this course, I’m also surprised by the advances in technology and by how foreign language teachers can take advantage of these technological advances in their classrooms – I hadn’t given it too much thought before! I think the example that we reviewed in class where high school students were being tested online with the recording of the native speaker is great. Additionally, I agree with your point about this type of testing having the ability to increase student confidence. Like you’ve talked about in your post, getting students to feel comfortable with the target language can be difficult, but it inevitably allows students to develop their target language skills.
As far as your comment about the teaching profession goes, I’ll admit that sometimes all of the theories and methodology overwhelm me. There’s a lot of information out there and, as prospective or current teachers, we’re all tasked with trying to sort out how to implement what we learn about teaching into our classrooms. I’m excited to take on the challenge of entering the teaching profession and striving to positively affect the target language skills of my students with the help of technological advances (like the interactive testing) and the theories and methodologies we’ve gone over in our class.
Kevin and Candace,
DeleteI completely agree with both of you on these matters. Given the time that we live in today, where technology practically governs our every move, it is surprising how little is being used to boost the foreign language process. That being said teachers in our generation are growing up around this technology, and I don't stop to think about all of the amazing tools we have to use as teachers of foreign language.
The one comment I want to say in regards to how you both are feeling about teaching methodologies, is that I know the feeling you have. Reading about these theories and outline types seem so intimidating and make everything we do feel so confined. What I have to retell myself is that we are in this class to see perspectives on L2 teaching, and all of these methodologies and techniques are built around innovation and idea, and are just popular theories. We as teachers have to be the ones adapting and changing these models to fit what our classes need. They give us a starting point from where we can move onward and make our classroom our own.
Yes I have also had the thought that neither am I sufficiently technologically savvy nor at all ready for the amount of work load that comes with teaching. Your comment reinforces my realization that to teach a great lesson you have to put in lots of work, and if you want to be a great teacher, that means you need a great lesson every single lesson and well, that is a ton of work. It also makes me think about hwo many times teachers probably do not live up to this "great" expectation. Probably for various reasons, like not enough pay for the amount of work they pay in, or not enough creative, authentic thinking.
DeleteGreat post, Kevin! I agree with you about the implementation of technology. As a matter of fact, I think the way that the use of technology is affecting the existing theories is that technology is rewriting the book on education theory. It is still a relatively new method that is being used on a wide scale. Just think; about 12-15 years ago when I was in high school, there was 0% use of technology with our learning. Of course we wrote papers using a computer and utilized the internet when researching something, but in the classroom, all of our classwork and homework was done with pencil, paper and worksheets. There were no interactive modules that teachers were using; it just didn't exist. I think today, the rampant and widespread use of technology is challenging a lot of the education theories that exist. When looking at the learning of a foreign language, for example, technology allows students to access a community of native speakers that is at their fingertips- pretty powerful.
DeleteThis semester we have covered so many important aspects of teaching. From national standards to teaching theories to the five C's there is so much to being a good teacher. This semester we covered lot and I feel like there are still more topics that would be important to being a good teacher.
ReplyDeleteThe topic of integrating technology was also discussed in this class. I am taking another education course completely dedicated to integrating technology in a classroom. If it is a language classroom, music classroom, science, or history is doesn't matter technology is still very important to integrate in the classroom. Depending on the subject there are different resources out there that can be used in the classroom. Technology is more then just using websites to get ideas or creating a power point with a computer. Technology can be programs students can access at home or in language labs. There are programs to help students develop language skill when they are not able to be exposed to native speakers. The community side of the 5 C's can be hard for a teacher to achieve, this is often something that the teacher can not change. If there is not a community of native speakers around the classroom then using technology programs to connect communities is the best way to expose students to native speakers. Technology can also be used in school to help exceptional learners or students with a disability. Disabilities can range and there is technology that is just as diverse. For students who have trouble with reading there are programs that can read the information out loud. There are also programs that can write for the students. A program called Dragon can be very useful in this manner, but there are many more.
Although the use of technology in a classroom has been the thing I feel has changed how I look at teaching the most, there is so much that I have learnt from this class that I dont think it can be summarized. The theories we learnt exposed all of us to new ideas and views that we hadnt previously considered. I think that as future teachers what we should take away from this course is more then simply the material we have learnt. We should take away that a good teacher needs to be open minded and be able to look at teaching theories, methods and uses of techniques and see the pro's and con's of each. Research is always being done and new theories will always be being presented.
Teachers need to stay on top of the latest research. We need to not be scared to learn about new ways of teaching or new technological advances that can be useful to teachers. Just as foreign language and culture is always growing and changing so is the field of education, future teachers need to embrace it.
Community and Culture! Looking at the five C's this semester is something that I never even knew existed, in terms of being part of a crucial method in teaching a foreign language. Even though I am very satisfied with many incredible things that I learned in this class this semester, it does come with regret, however, that I was not aware of the importance of these two aspects while I was teaching SPAN 401 and 402 last year here at UNH. Access to native speakers is something that I have always believed in when learning and acquiring a foreign language. In high school I took part in volunteer work for two years where I was working with native Spanish speakers, and then later on I moved to Spain for two years. With that said, I believe that subconsciously I have always appreciated access to native speakers and thought of it as an important tool for learning a language. This class this semester drove the emphasis home about the tremendous importance of access to native speakers. I believe that constant access to a group of native speakers, whether it is through the use of technology or the prospect of study abroad, can have a lasting effect on a student's ability to acquire a foreign language. We saw this during the semester in our class through readings and discussions. It is important for me to note that if I could teach Spanish 401 and 402 over again, I would change so much in my class. One of the first things I would adjust would be students' ability to practice the language outside of the classroom, in a manner where it is productive and practical. With the advent of technology today, this is certainly a reality. The access to a community of native speakers has shown us that learners are able to receive that direct feedback that is absolutely crucial for advancement, and most importantly, students can have 'uptake' in their learning process of the target language.
ReplyDeleteCulture is another aspect that I really identified with during the course of the class as being a substantial portion of a student's learning experience. The teaching of culture had been somewhat of an issue for me last year in my class, especially towards the beginning. The content we were required to use in the textbook was very dry, and students often times did not enjoy the lessons. In this class I have learned that the implementation of culture does not have to be cutting-edge, and in fact, can be done with the simplest form of material. I believe that last year in my class I would always overthink the culture lessons and put too much into it, using a mundane topic. What this class has shown me is that not only culture, but grammar, as well, can be taught very effectively through the use of authentic material. The resounding thing that I take away from Culture is the use of authentic material. This was overlooked last year in my culture lessons, and I truly believe that if I had resorted to the use of authentic material it would have changed the dynamic of the lessons, and students would have been more drawn in. My advice for anyone that will be a teacher in the future is that when teaching culture, do not overthink it and do not try and go too big. Culture and grammar can be paired together in the same lesson through the use of a song, poem, newspaper article, brochure, etc.
Lastly, I think the most important lesson I have taken away from this class, that goes off of my last point, is the art of simplifying the lessons. Having great ideas and a creative imagination is absolutely necessary for teaching, but also, a realistic perspective on YOUR methodology is equally important, if not more important. The ability to simplify a lesson and combine learning material is an art that I find to be crucial when working as a teacher. Using authentic material to introduce and build on a new grammar topic, in addition to giving your students some cultural enrichment, is the most effective strategy in my experience. If I could redo my Spanish 401 and 402 class, another thing I would change is the presentation of grammar material. I would have spent a lot less time drawing verb conjugations and grammar rules on the board, and instead, used authentic material to show how it actually works, in an authentic context.
Delete