Principles, SBI, & Learning Opportunities

Chapter 4 in Brown’s book was an overview of cognitive, socioaffective, and linguistic principles that are the foundation of teaching practice. Two principles particularly stuck out to me: the anticipation of reward and the language-culture connection. I completely support the anticipation of reward. I have read articles that state that teachers should not praise at all. For example, when a student correctly completes a task, the teacher should say “I see just what you did,” according to the articles. I believe that the student can and should receive positive reinforcement. I understand that if a teacher is too generous in giving praise, the student can become reliant on the praise, but I see nothing wrong in telling the student they did a good job. Enthusiasm is also included in that principle. It says that the teacher needs to be full of life and that attitude is contagious. The language-culture principle is another one I feel is important and yet not stressed enough in the classroom. Language is a large part of culture. Therefore, when students are learning a language, they need to learn the culture along with it. All of these principles helped me better understand how I should approach teaching and what I should consider before planning classroom activities. What principles are especially important to you and how can you utilize them in the classroom?

Chapter 16 is about Strategies-Based Instruction. How a teacher’s classroom techniques encourage, build, and maintain effective language-learning strategies is what encompasses strategies-based instruction. The chapter discusses how important it is to get the students strategically invested in their language-learning journey. Sometimes the students are intrinsically motivated on their own, but many times the teachers need to set the fire under them to get them motivated. By allowing students to develop their own strategies, they become more motivated to learn English. If students dedicate time and energy to learning English, they will feel more of a connection to be responsible for their learning. The principles in chapter 4 play a large part in strategies-based instruction. They are relevant to the success of learners. Strategies are the students’ techniques for “capitalizing on the principles of successful learning” (258).

“Maximizing Learning Opportunities” is the title of chapter 3 in Kuma’s book and also the duty of teachers. The reason that the chapter is titled so is because this is the only way that teachers can facilitate learning for students. Teachers cannot force students to learn because learning is a personal task controlled by the learner. Learning is an individual task. What a learner takes from an opportunity relies on what the learner brings to the experience. A teacher can only do so much, but it is up to the learner to come away from a situation with new material. Teachers and learners need to work together to create learning opportunities and take the most from them that a person can. What are some ways in which the teacher can create authentic learning opportunities?