Session two:Learning and Learning Process
Monday, October 12, 2009
What is learning and what are the processes involved in it? This was the topic of the second session & I was in a great deal of eagerness regarding what novel and interesting points I will discover after studying the materials mentioned in the syllabus. One of the points which seemed of great importance was learning and the distinction between learning and acquisition. The difference between class learning & naturalistic learning was the other point that was put into consideration in Ellis' book. The major characteristics of good language learners were discussed in Nunnan's book & I reflected over these features in order to identify which features I, as a learner, can find in myself. The distinction which exists between communicative input and communicative output was the other point which was of great interest for me.
Preparation
Monday, October 12, 2009
What is learning and what are the processes involved in it? This was the topic of the second session & I was in a great deal of eagerness regarding what novel and interesting points I will discover after studying the materials mentioned in the syllabus. One of the points which seemed of great importance was learning and the distinction between learning and acquisition. The difference between class learning & naturalistic learning was the other point that was put into consideration in Ellis' book. The major characteristics of good language learners were discussed in Nunnan's book & I reflected over these features in order to identify which features I, as a learner, can find in myself. The distinction which exists between communicative input and communicative output was the other point which was of great interest for me.
Preparation
Assistance
One of the issues of overriding significance was regarding learning as a process. Learning doesn't mean only to get information. In the process of learning, there should be three stages of perceiving, exploring and retrieving. Nevertheless learning is considerably different from acquisition. Learning is a conscious process of getting information which will not lead to acquisition which is an unconscious process of getting. As a matter of fact, acquisition is pro-declarative knowledge which is procedural while learning is declarative and it is the ability to identify errors and rule violations. It is related to Krashan`s hypothesis of Acquisition-Learning. He believes in pro-dec processing of acquisition. The Krashan`s hypotheses were reviewed by the instructor: acquisition-learning hypothesis, natural order hypothesis, monitor hypothesis, input hypothesis and affective filter hypothesis.
According to Ellis we can discuss the difference between class learning & naturalistic learning from 3 perspectives: From the sociolinguistic view, the difference between classroom and natural learning can be discussed with reference to 4 factors:
a) Participants which are different in terms of their needs, their ages, their motivations & etc.
b) Topics which are in a great number in natural settings and are limited in classrooms.
c) Location which is artificial in class settings and everything is there to boost learning but in a natural setting, everything is there because it should be there.
d) Purpose in a natural setting differs from that of a class setting. Communication would be a goal in naturalistic situations but in classroom settings the goal is more language focused.
From the psycholinguistic view, the distinction between formal and informal learning is taken into account. And from an educationalistic aspect, the ideas of formal training and apprenticeship are distinguished. Formal training typically occurs in classrooms but apprenticeship involves learning by doing.
. One of the other questions raised by the instructor was that are we supposed to use the old and prescribed theories or not. Responses on the side of the students flew. After some brainstorming, the instructor said that there are three different ways to deal with such a kind of question:1- A teacher doesn't need new theories and the existing ones are good enough.2- A teacher can just imitate the process and follow the same procedure in L2 learning and teaching.
3- A teacher should search for the best theory based on his/her learners' needs. She should do both ethnographic and experiential research.
The other important discussion was about the teacher's role and the kind of competences that he/she is supposed to have. Overall, a teacher should have 2 kinds of competences of prime importance: pedagogical competence & personal competence.
Application
Seldom does a teacher have the two competences mentioned above, but in order to have them every teacher must endeavor. Not only must he/she try to enhance his/her knowledge, a topical and a pedagogical one, but also another kind of knowledge regarding to fully identify his/her learners and classrooms needs is demanded. I, as a teacher, would rather to apply the third answer to my teacher's question concerning whether to use the old theories or not. Regarding learning as a process, I must also try to help my students to learn through three phases of perception, restoration and retrieval.
With many thanks
Saeedeh Mohammadi
One of the issues of overriding significance was regarding learning as a process. Learning doesn't mean only to get information. In the process of learning, there should be three stages of perceiving, exploring and retrieving. Nevertheless learning is considerably different from acquisition. Learning is a conscious process of getting information which will not lead to acquisition which is an unconscious process of getting. As a matter of fact, acquisition is pro-declarative knowledge which is procedural while learning is declarative and it is the ability to identify errors and rule violations. It is related to Krashan`s hypothesis of Acquisition-Learning. He believes in pro-dec processing of acquisition. The Krashan`s hypotheses were reviewed by the instructor: acquisition-learning hypothesis, natural order hypothesis, monitor hypothesis, input hypothesis and affective filter hypothesis.
According to Ellis we can discuss the difference between class learning & naturalistic learning from 3 perspectives: From the sociolinguistic view, the difference between classroom and natural learning can be discussed with reference to 4 factors:
a) Participants which are different in terms of their needs, their ages, their motivations & etc.
b) Topics which are in a great number in natural settings and are limited in classrooms.
c) Location which is artificial in class settings and everything is there to boost learning but in a natural setting, everything is there because it should be there.
d) Purpose in a natural setting differs from that of a class setting. Communication would be a goal in naturalistic situations but in classroom settings the goal is more language focused.
From the psycholinguistic view, the distinction between formal and informal learning is taken into account. And from an educationalistic aspect, the ideas of formal training and apprenticeship are distinguished. Formal training typically occurs in classrooms but apprenticeship involves learning by doing.
. One of the other questions raised by the instructor was that are we supposed to use the old and prescribed theories or not. Responses on the side of the students flew. After some brainstorming, the instructor said that there are three different ways to deal with such a kind of question:1- A teacher doesn't need new theories and the existing ones are good enough.2- A teacher can just imitate the process and follow the same procedure in L2 learning and teaching.
3- A teacher should search for the best theory based on his/her learners' needs. She should do both ethnographic and experiential research.
The other important discussion was about the teacher's role and the kind of competences that he/she is supposed to have. Overall, a teacher should have 2 kinds of competences of prime importance: pedagogical competence & personal competence.
Application
Seldom does a teacher have the two competences mentioned above, but in order to have them every teacher must endeavor. Not only must he/she try to enhance his/her knowledge, a topical and a pedagogical one, but also another kind of knowledge regarding to fully identify his/her learners and classrooms needs is demanded. I, as a teacher, would rather to apply the third answer to my teacher's question concerning whether to use the old theories or not. Regarding learning as a process, I must also try to help my students to learn through three phases of perception, restoration and retrieval.
With many thanks
Saeedeh Mohammadi
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