Jessica, I can empathize with your desire to help non-native English speaking students as I was one. Although I took four years of Spanish during high school, unlike your family, mine does not have a Spanish speaking background however I do acknowledge that Houston’s demographic has a considerable number of individuals who of Latinos or Hispanics descendant. I too think this class is especially important to take since I think many of us student teachers have had little experience working with ESL or LEP students. I was especially aware of how little I knew about the process these children go through when I was studying for my PPR this summer.
I think it is interesting that your parents decided not to use and teach Spanish to you as a young child despite speaking it amongst each other. Have they ever given a reason why they didn’t? Although English is your first language, it is my second, however, it is my dominant language rather than my first language, Vietnamese. Regardless, I wish I was a balanced bilingual speaker. However, “children who are equally competent in two languages (balanced bilinguals) and relatively rate” (Rowald, 2014, p. 176).
Hi Thanh, thank you for your comment. I agree that majority of Houston’s demographics are of Latino descent. Spanish is an important language to learn when it comes to teaching in our city. Yes, the fact that we do get to learn how to manage ESL or LEP children will benefit us immensely as well as our students. And to answer your question, I never got a chance to ask them why. But I believe they wanted me to not hear what they were saying to one another. I remember being in the car and hearing them speak Spanish a lot when I was like 8 or 9. It was so long ago, but I know they didn’t translate what they said to me. I also wish I was a bilingual speaker in general, learning a language now it much more difficult than learning as a child.
Jessica, thank you for sharing your wonderful journey with all of us! I also want to attain the basic understanding of second language acquisition and learn those strategies to meet my future students needs. It is so nice to hear how you want to learn Spanish to be able to help those who do not fluently speak English. I find it interesting that your parents' did not teach you Spanish being that you come from a Spanish heritage. But despite that it is similar to a bilingual student. According to Rowland, "However, it turns out that, just like monolingual children, bilingual children are affected by the amount of language that they hear. The more language a child hears, the quicker she will develop language" (p. 193). By this, I am saying regardless if your parents taught you Spanish or not, we are affected more by what we hear because that is how we are able to develop language. This is where your practicing Spanish and taking Spanish classes come in hand! I'm glad to hear that you are still pursuing to learn Spanish by having applications that help you like the one you mentioned in your blog. I also believe that it is important to know or pick up words to be able to help our future students. Alief ISD is a district that consist of many non- English speakers but I know that with your hard work in learning Spanish, you will achieve it! I really enjoyed your blog! I know you can do it!
Hi Claudia, thank you for your comment. Yes, it is surprising that my parents did not teach me enough Spanish. I only heard it when my parents spoke it, but it wasn’t enough to allow input to enter my brain like how Stephen Krashen mentioned in the first video. And thank you so much, I will do my best to practice utilizing the Spanish that I learn so I can put it to good use in the future!
One of the goals that you stated was to expand your basic knowledge of second language acquisition, and in your school you've notice many children acquiring English as a second language. According to Rowland, " If we want to learn how all children acquire language, we need to study multilingual children." (p. 175) In addition to studying multilingual children, one must take into consideration the circumstances of the child and the exposure of the additional language being learned. I have a similar experience with not retaining vocabulary that I have learned form Spanish in high school. According to the video assigned, when learning a language sequentially, it is important to be given time to observe and practice the language. I believe because of your limited amount of exposure that is less than 40 to 60 percent could be one of many reasons that you don't retain information learned.
Hello Laregilon, thank you for your comment. I hear many people mention that they hardly remember terms they learned in high school. The way we were taught it did not stick well into our minds. Or perhaps we did not practice speaking it to others in typical conversations. I sometimes wish there was a way to learn another language without having to take time to memorize vocabulary. Spanish is tricky with me because I tend to mess up conjugations and have trouble forming complete sounding sentences.
Thank you for sharing your video Jessica! I find it very interesting that your family decided to raise you only learning one language, despite your Hispanic heritage. I think it is amazing that you are working hard, even now that you have entered adolescence. According to Rowland (2014), not only does making the decision to learn a new language affect a person’s fluency in an additional language, but attitude, belief, and behavior also play an important role in the effectiveness of learning a new language. Rowland writes about a study where Welsh students seemed to learn English at almost the same level as their native language because they viewed English as dominant. Because you are taking the time to study Spanish and are valuing it for the opportunities it can provide or you, I believe you are more likely to become fluent in Spanish. Duolingual seems like a very effective program for recalling the basic. Just by starting off with those 10-15 minutes a day, you will start to see an improvement in your Spanish. Your positive attitude, you belief that Spanish is an important language to learn, and your behavior of practicing it every day will help your fluency for sure!
Hey Jessica, thank you for your comment. I appreciate your compliments. It would be amazing if I could become fluent in Spanish. It is actually a long-term goal of mine to be able to speak Spanish fluently. I will be sure to keep a positive attitude and an open mind ready for that input to soak in and my Spanish skills to grow each time I practice.
Jessica, thank you for sharing your journey with us! I think it is amazing how you want to learn Spanish in order to help those students who do not speak fluent English. I can somewhat relate to your journey, because I began speaking English only at home later which made me forget my mother tongue. Did you ever wish your parents introduced you to Spanish during your childhood? According to Rowland (2014) states, one factor that has a major effect on multilingual language development is “the type and amount of input that the children are receiving” (p. 175). Without the constant teaching and practice using the language it was natural you would start to forget everything they taught you in school. I am glad to see you have not given up on learning Spanish. I also believe it is important to pick up some words and phrases to help out your future students. Having some Spanish under your belt will come in handy in the future since Spanish is the second most spoken language in Texas! Keep up the good work, I know you will be a great teacher!
Hello Stephen, thank you for your comment. To answer your question, yes, I wish my parents taught me Spanish when I was younger. I think they tried teaching me several words, but I was never prompted to speak to them in Spanish. Thus, my Spanish dwindled as I got older. I know so many bilingual speakers and when I tell them that I barely speak it, they look at me like I’m crazy. Did your parents ever make you try computer programs that taught you Vietnamese? I did do some computer games before that taught Spanish, but I as I grew older I stopped playing them.
Hello, Jessica, thank you for replying. My parents never made me try any computer programs. They are very old fashioned and prefer hands on and one on one practice. However, due to the lack of practice growing up I know longer speak any Vietnamese. My parents reacted the same way thinking that there is something wrong with me, since I do not speak or understand any Vietnamese.
Jessica, I can empathize with your desire to help non-native English speaking students as I was one. Although I took four years of Spanish during high school, unlike your family, mine does not have a Spanish speaking background however I do acknowledge that Houston’s demographic has a considerable number of individuals who of Latinos or Hispanics descendant. I too think this class is especially important to take since I think many of us student teachers have had little experience working with ESL or LEP students. I was especially aware of how little I knew about the process these children go through when I was studying for my PPR this summer.
ReplyDeleteI think it is interesting that your parents decided not to use and teach Spanish to you as a young child despite speaking it amongst each other. Have they ever given a reason why they didn’t? Although English is your first language, it is my second, however, it is my dominant language rather than my first language, Vietnamese. Regardless, I wish I was a balanced bilingual speaker. However, “children who are equally competent in two languages (balanced bilinguals) and relatively rate” (Rowald, 2014, p. 176).
Hi Thanh, thank you for your comment. I agree that majority of Houston’s demographics are of Latino descent. Spanish is an important language to learn when it comes to teaching in our city. Yes, the fact that we do get to learn how to manage ESL or LEP children will benefit us immensely as well as our students. And to answer your question, I never got a chance to ask them why. But I believe they wanted me to not hear what they were saying to one another. I remember being in the car and hearing them speak Spanish a lot when I was like 8 or 9. It was so long ago, but I know they didn’t translate what they said to me. I also wish I was a bilingual speaker in general, learning a language now it much more difficult than learning as a child.
DeleteJessica, thank you for sharing your wonderful journey with all of us! I also want to attain the basic understanding of second language acquisition and learn those strategies to meet my future students needs. It is so nice to hear how you want to learn Spanish to be able to help those who do not fluently speak English. I find it interesting that your parents' did not teach you Spanish being that you come from a Spanish heritage. But despite that it is similar to a bilingual student. According to Rowland, "However, it turns out that, just like monolingual children, bilingual children are affected by the amount of language that they hear. The more language a child hears, the quicker she will develop language" (p. 193). By this, I am saying regardless if your parents taught you Spanish or not, we are affected more by what we hear because that is how we are able to develop language. This is where your practicing Spanish and taking Spanish classes come in hand! I'm glad to hear that you are still pursuing to learn Spanish by having applications that help you like the one you mentioned in your blog. I also believe that it is important to know or pick up words to be able to help our future students. Alief ISD is a district that consist of many non- English speakers but I know that with your hard work in learning Spanish, you will achieve it! I really enjoyed your blog! I know you can do it!
ReplyDeleteHi Claudia, thank you for your comment. Yes, it is surprising that my parents did not teach me enough Spanish. I only heard it when my parents spoke it, but it wasn’t enough to allow input to enter my brain like how Stephen Krashen mentioned in the first video. And thank you so much, I will do my best to practice utilizing the Spanish that I learn so I can put it to good use in the future!
DeleteOne of the goals that you stated was to expand your basic knowledge of second language acquisition, and in your school you've notice many children acquiring English as a second language. According to Rowland, " If we want to learn how all children acquire language, we need to study multilingual children." (p. 175) In addition to studying multilingual children, one must take into consideration the circumstances of the child and the exposure of the additional language being learned. I have a similar experience with not retaining vocabulary that I have learned form Spanish in high school. According to the video assigned, when learning a language sequentially, it is important to be given time to observe and practice the language. I believe because of your limited amount of exposure that is less than 40 to 60 percent could be one of many reasons that you don't retain information learned.
ReplyDeleteHello Laregilon, thank you for your comment. I hear many people mention that they hardly remember terms they learned in high school. The way we were taught it did not stick well into our minds. Or perhaps we did not practice speaking it to others in typical conversations. I sometimes wish there was a way to learn another language without having to take time to memorize vocabulary. Spanish is tricky with me because I tend to mess up conjugations and have trouble forming complete sounding sentences.
DeleteThank you for sharing your video Jessica! I find it very interesting that your family decided to raise you only learning one language, despite your Hispanic heritage. I think it is amazing that you are working hard, even now that you have entered adolescence. According to Rowland (2014), not only does making the decision to learn a new language affect a person’s fluency in an additional language, but attitude, belief, and behavior also play an important role in the effectiveness of learning a new language. Rowland writes about a study where Welsh students seemed to learn English at almost the same level as their native language because they viewed English as dominant. Because you are taking the time to study Spanish and are valuing it for the opportunities it can provide or you, I believe you are more likely to become fluent in Spanish. Duolingual seems like a very effective program for recalling the basic. Just by starting off with those 10-15 minutes a day, you will start to see an improvement in your Spanish. Your positive attitude, you belief that Spanish is an important language to learn, and your behavior of practicing it every day will help your fluency for sure!
ReplyDeleteHey Jessica, thank you for your comment. I appreciate your compliments. It would be amazing if I could become fluent in Spanish. It is actually a long-term goal of mine to be able to speak Spanish fluently. I will be sure to keep a positive attitude and an open mind ready for that input to soak in and my Spanish skills to grow each time I practice.
Delete
ReplyDeleteJessica, thank you for sharing your journey with us! I think it is amazing how you want to learn Spanish in order to help those students who do not speak fluent English. I can somewhat relate to your journey, because I began speaking English only at home later which made me forget my mother tongue. Did you ever wish your parents introduced you to Spanish during your childhood? According to Rowland (2014) states, one factor that has a major effect on multilingual language development is “the type and amount of input that the children are receiving” (p. 175). Without the constant teaching and practice using the language it was natural you would start to forget everything they taught you in school. I am glad to see you have not given up on learning Spanish. I also believe it is important to pick up some words and phrases to help out your future students. Having some Spanish under your belt will come in handy in the future since Spanish is the second most spoken language in Texas! Keep up the good work, I know you will be a great teacher!
Hello Stephen, thank you for your comment. To answer your question, yes, I wish my parents taught me Spanish when I was younger. I think they tried teaching me several words, but I was never prompted to speak to them in Spanish. Thus, my Spanish dwindled as I got older. I know so many bilingual speakers and when I tell them that I barely speak it, they look at me like I’m crazy. Did your parents ever make you try computer programs that taught you Vietnamese? I did do some computer games before that taught Spanish, but I as I grew older I stopped playing them.
Delete
DeleteHello, Jessica, thank you for replying. My parents never made me try any computer programs. They are very old fashioned and prefer hands on and one on one practice. However, due to the lack of practice growing up I know longer speak any Vietnamese. My parents reacted the same way thinking that there is something wrong with me, since I do not speak or understand any Vietnamese.