Teaching English in Korea: Strategies That Work - Essay Example

Teaching English in Korea: Strategies That Work South Koreans have a deep desire to learn English and spend millions of dollars each year pursuing anEnglish education in and outside of Korea. Though many students in South Korea attend private schools, when compared to other Asian countries they hardly improve their skills in listening or speaking. This is in spite of the fact that many mothers are willing to go to any lengths to see their children fluently conversing in English. It is startling that teachers from native English speaking countries staff many of these private institutions that offer English classes. However, many students are still not able to become as fluent as would be expected. Though some people put the blame on the students, the teachers and schools should bear some of the burden. One famous Educator once remarked that in teaching, as in learning, what you teach is not as important as how you teach it. To become an English teacher in Korea, no type of teaching certification, experience, or relevant credentials are needed. The only requirement is that a foreign language instructor will be a native speaker of the language taught. Language instructors often find themselves in difficult situations. They may have no training in the culturally different teaching methods used in the host country. They may be professionals in other fields and fluent in the language, but are not trained as teachers. They may be graduate students who have extensive knowledge of the language, literature, and culture, but are not trained as language teachers. These instructors often begin their work in the classroom with little or no guidance to help them, and little appreciation for which methods work, and why. In response, they may fall back on an outdated model for understanding language teaching and language learning. One older model contends that language learning is a product of transmission. The teacher transmits the knowledge and the learner is the recipient. In this teacher-centered model the teacher is an active participant while the student is a passive listener. The teacher is responsible for transmitting all of the information to the students. The teacher-centered model may be attractive to new language instructors for several reasons. It may be the method that they have been taught. To them it makes sense that the teacher should be the focus of the classroom, since the teacher knows the language and the students do not. It requires little preparation since all the teacher needs to do is present the material that is outlined in the book. It also requires relatively little thought about student activities or the students individual needs. Experienced language instructors who reflect on their teaching practice have observed that the teacher-centered model has two major drawbacks. First, it involves only a minority of students in actual language learning. Secondly, it gives students a knowledge about the language, but does not necessarily enable them to use it for any meaningful purpose. To overcome these drawbacks, language teaching professionals in the United States and elsewhere have adopted a different model of teaching and learning. A newer model says that language learning is a process of discovery. The learner develops an ability to use the language for specific communication purposes. In this learner-centered model, both student and teacher are active participants who share responsibility for the students learning. The instructor and students work together to identify how students expect to use the language. The instructor corrects language use, while the students use real communication situations and practice activities that stimulate their interest. This joint engagement of students and teacher leads to a dynamic classroom environment in which teaching and learning become rewarding and enjoyable. Language instructors who have never experienced learner-centered instruction can find it daunting in several ways. To begin with the phrase learner centered makes it sound as though the instructor is not in control of the classroom. It also requires more preparation time, as instructors must consider students language learning goals, connect their goals to the textbook, and find real-world materials to accompany the learning process. It can also be unclear to the instructor on what to do to make a classroom learner centered. The instructor may feel like it isnt going to work, as students may be slow to participate as they assess the tasks and figure out classroom dynamics. The classroom becomes noisy and the instructor becomes uncomfortable with the idea that students may make mistakes that are not heard and corrected. The instructor must remember that they will not always the center of attention, but are still in control of the students learning activities. Language teaching in the United States is based on the idea that the goal of language acquisition is reaching the competence to use the language correctly and to accomplish communication goals. The desired outcome of the language learning process is the ability to communicate adequately, not the ability to use the language exactly as a native speaker does. Language competence is made up of four areas: linguistic, sociolinguistic, discourse, and strategic. Linguistic competence is knowing how to use the grammar, syntax, and vocabulary of a language. Sociolinguistic competence is knowing how to use and respond to language appropriately, given the setting, the topic, and the relationships among the people communicating. This is the culturally based communication where the listener and setting are considered. Discourse competence is knowing how to interpret the larger context and how to construct longer stretches of language so that the sentences and paragraphs make a coherent idea. Strategic competence is knowing how to recognize and repair communication breakdowns, how to work around gaps in one’s knowledge of the language, and how to learn more about the language and its context. In the early stages of language learning, instructors and students may want to keep in mind the goal of communicative efficiency: By using their current proficiency to the fullest, learners should be able to make themselves understood. They should try to avoid confusion in the message (due to faulty pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary), avoid offending communication partners (due to socially inappropriate style); and use strategies for recognizing and managing communication breakdowns. Read More