esaay current issues in english language learning
Answers
Teaching English is not always easy; you have to engage students in the process of learning and motivate them to get the best results. A variety of methods have appeared in the field of grammar and vocabulary and old methods have disappeared with the pass of the time. During the last decades students were provided large lists of vocabulary, and they had to study them by repetition. This method of repetition resulted boring and not motivating for students because they didn’t do connection between words and ideas, and they didn’t interact with the rest of students. Students often feel anxious and bored when learning vocabulary, because they don’t feel part in the process of learning; they have a passive role when learning vocabulary and they forget it easily because interaction is not present.
There are lots of ways of learning vocabulary; many people improve their English vocabulary trough different methods such as reading interesting books or watching fun films in English. Games, in general, are designed to build vocabulary skills and to motivate students to learn without effort. Vocabulary can be taught by different games, such as; crossword puzzle, hangman, word search, bingo and so on… To engage students in the study of vocabulary, teachers have to apply games in class and have to make connections between words and ideas and also between words and pictures with youngest students. The use of games in class helps us to build vocabulary skills faster and more efficient.
In” Games for language learning” (2005) Wright, A., Betteridge, D., & Buckby, M. explain why to use games, and they establish that:
“Language learning is hard work. One must make an effort to understand, to repeat accurately, to adapt and to use newly understood language in conversation and in written composition. Effort is required at every moment and must be maintained over a long period of time. Games help and encourage many learners to sustain their interest and work”
I think that this extract summarizes clearly the importance of using games in the process of teaching English as a second language. The game that is going to be explained in this paper is the BINGO. With the use of games, relationships are created within the class, because all students interact together without taking into account their English level. I have chosen a Bingo game focused on job vocabulary and establishments to enlarge different fields of vocabulary.
When students are involved in the process of learning a foreign language, they must participate in communicative task-based activities which help students to improve their vocabulary making the process enjoyable.
In 1972, Dell Hymes introduced the concept of “Communicative competence” which focuses on giving students the opportunity to participate and interact in real life situations. Vocabulary games are useful to reach this concept, because students are involved in an atmosphere of communication and interaction all the time.
Explanation:
Among the current issues and trends in English language learning are:
- teaching in alignment with the core curriculum.
- teaching culture as well as language.
- promoting student engagement and critical-thinking skills.
- using technology in the classroom.