Brown Ch. 6,7,8

Brown Ch.6

Between the behaviorist and cognitive definitions of motivation, I would lean more to the cognitive side. The cognitive definition of motivation says that rewards are a part of the whole picture but motivation lies in yourself and self rewards. I believe that there is nothing wrong with encouraging students or saying “good job!” or even giving stickers but when the extrinsic motivation is extreme the students are learning for all the wrong reasons. The comment that Brown uses comparing learners to a horse running after a carrot (85) threw me off, that is not how I want my students to be encouraged. As a future teacher I want my students to be interested in what they are learning, I want them to realize that the knowledge they are gaining will give them a stronger sense of self. I would not want my students to be compared to a horse chasing after material rewards. The dive theory, hierarchy of needs theory, self control theory and constructivist theory all agree that the learner has to be interested in their learning and make their own decisions about their learning because that is when their knowledge and understanding becomes richer. Intrinsic motivation makes learning more centered toward the students because the students are applying the knowledge to themselves, they are not doing the  activity to get an extrinsic reward they are doing it to make themselves better learners. This type of learning results in better long-term knowledge which makes sense because what they are learning is of importance to them, not the materials they are being rewarded with. I see nothing wrong with telling a child “good job!” but when the child gets to the point that he/she is not interested in learning without rewards is where extrinsic motivation is too much. Having students (either working together or separate) have goals in the classroom and complete these goals is a great example of intrinsic motivation working.

Brown Ch. 7

Teaching children and teaching adults are obviously extremely different in how you teach, not necessarily what you teach. Both children and adults can be successful at acquiring a second language. For children teachers have to take into consideration how they speak to the child, what words and lessons they choose. With children teachers should be concrete and remember the language and cognitive limitations, for example children need repetition and patterns when learning a difficult concept. Teachers also have to take children’s attention spans into concern because that is a big difference between children and adults. It is important to have variety in lessons to keep the students attention and interest as well as having energy, if the teacher seems bored there is no way a child is going to want to pay attention and learn. This goes along with sensory input, adults have the capabilities to sit through a lesson and actually learn but children need to move and have hands on activities. When teaching children, more than adults, you need to make sure to build self esteem and give them plenty of opportunities to participate.

Brown Ch. 8

Beginning language learners are the most challenging to teach because they do not have any prior knowledge of the target language. It is scary to think that you are the one that is introducing the student to the language and culture of the language. The first few days may be difficult but I like when Brown said to place meaning in the language and make it meaningful. Because the students are so new to the language they are dependent on the teacher so it would be smart to have some class time be teacher fronted and have the teacher take control most of the class time. The pressure is on the teacher to be clearly articulate and to stay natural and authentic to the target language. When the language the teacher uses in class loses authenticity the students are not getting the full experience of the language. If the teacher does not model correct language use of the language it would be difficult for the students to become efficient, fluent and accurate in the language. Just like teaching children teachers should encourage students to be creative and have short to the point lessons to keep attentions flowing. It is frustrating learning a new language from scratch and the teacher should be sensitive to this. The students have so much to learn including listening skills, reading and writing, grammar, fluency and accuracy and a teacher should keep this in mind. Teaching students who have a history with the target language takes the pressure off of the teacher because they are not teaching language from the beginning. As future teachers we have to make sure that our language is natural and authentic for these students because that is what these students are concerned about for themselves. Students at this level should be more active in their language learning and teachers should step back and let student/student interactions take place. Encouraging creativity as well as the core subjects in language is important for this group because they are at the stage where they can express themselves through this new language and a teacher should always encourage this. With advance learners the teacher’s main job is to keep the class on track and keep the students focused. Since these students have the capability to speak freely the teachers need to take reigns of the class and make sure the discussions are meaningful and on task.