In second grade, I moved to America from South Korea due to my dad’s work. I started attending school without knowing any English, and the school placed me in an ESL program. The ESL program helped me become proficient in English in three years. One reason I was able to learn English in a couple of years was mainly due to the daily exposure I had to the language and culture. However, the way that my teacher ran the ESL class contributed to my English learning success. My ESL teacher created the class not based on our levels but based on our ages. Every year, I loved having the same group of classmates because we were comfortable with each other. Having the same classmates created a comfortable learning environment where I allowed myself to make mistakes without feeling embarrassed. I also enjoyed it when my teacher taught my class about the different holidays, celebrations, and traditions that Americans celebrate. Along with vocabulary and grammar rules, she made sure to teach us about the American culture through television shows, holiday movies, and interactive activities. I also enjoyed having the same ESL teacher every year because we created a positive teacher-student relationship as a result of working together for three years. Whenever I struggled with learning, I immediately went to her for help without feeling scared or embarrassed.
I also took Spanish classes for about five years, from middle school to high school. However, my Spanish learning experience differed from my English learning experience. The teachers consistently gave drills, textbook related worksheets, and task-oriented activities. Our classmates and teachers changed every year, and I did not feel comfortable participating because I was afraid people would judge me for my mistakes. Although I learned many different vocabulary and grammar rules, I never had the opportunity to improve my speaking and listening skills. Looking back on the five years I took Spanish language classes, I realized that the Spanish language course mainly focused on memorizing the rules and vocabulary rather than trying to learn. When learning a language, I think it should go beyond memorization and learning the new alphabet, vocabulary, and grammar. I did not enjoy how the Spanish learning course was textbook oriented and how it never focused on traditions and cultures. In my experience, learning about the American culture gave me different ways to express myself and allowed me to connect and communicate better with my classmates.
Looking back on my previous experiences as a language learner, I realized that I am an evaluative learner. I learned best in a safe and comfortable environment where encouragement exists within the classrooms. I enjoy the learning materials related to people’s lives, experiences, and stories because it makes it personal and meaningful compared to traditional textbook learning materials. In my Korean class this year, I hope to utilize language learning activities that suit me. I want to converse with my language partner about our daily lives, read stories or articles and watch videos on topics that I find interesting in Korean. I will also write diaries about my typical day and summaries about articles and stories I read. Because I am an audial learner, I could watch grammar videos to help improve my Korean. However, I should also find grammar practice and writing prompts to improve and practice my writing skills while also expanding my language learning activities outside of what I prefer. I also want to expand my vocabulary because I only know words that people commonly use every day. To expand my vocabulary, I will write down words that I do not understand from my readings, articles, and videos in my notebook.
Replies
Great post, Amy! I'd like to ask for qualification on the following statement: "I realized that the Spanish language course mainly focused on memorizing the rules and vocabulary rather than trying to learn." What was it exactly that you wanted to learn that may have been missing in your earlier curricular experiences?
In my Spanish classes, the teachers never gave us the opportunity to speak to each other. So, when we learned the different grammar rules and vocabulary, it felt like I was only memorizing the rules to pass the exams rather than putting what I learned into practice.