!"#$%&'()*%&+,-,.%/) 01)23(,!

4!

! To teach is to touch lives forever. This phrase has always reminded me of the great privilege it is to guide and accompany someone on the path to learn a second language, but it also reminds me of the responsibility behind this privilege. My undergraduate and graduate education as a language instructor has helped me gain knowledge of perspectives and theories of how languages are learned, methods and techniques in teaching, lesson planning, assessment, etc.; however, learning other languages myself such as English and French has provided me with better insight of what works best when it comes to language learning.

The combination of my education, my teaching experience as well as the process I have gone through by learning a second and a third language myself has helped me conclude that learning a second language cannot be explained by only one language learning theory or perspective; therefore, I am convinced that the learning of a second language relies on different theories, hypothesis, approaches, and perspectives. That is why I can describe my approach to language teaching as eclectic.

Because each student in a class learns in different ways (Gardner, 1993), because each one has a preferred system of absorbing, retaining and processing new information and skills (Reid, 1995); and because each course has a different objective to be attained, I center my teaching on the learners, their needs and the objectives to be achieved. I try to design my classes in a way that each activity suits each type of learner, so everyone can benefit from the instruction. When designing lessons, I try to choose interesting contents that fit my learners age and competence level. I also establish challenging, but attainable goals to create a comfortable atmosphere that encourages learning (Lightbrown & Spada 2013).

5) !

!"#$%&'()*%&+,-.%/) 01)23(,

In my eyes, to learn a language is not limited to the understanding of its mechanics. Even when I consider important to learn the appropriate structures that rules a language, but it would be of little use if learners were not able to use it in practical situations as to convey their ideas and feelings or to use the target language to solve problems. For this reason I support the theory that languages are learned and acquired by social interaction (Vygotsky,1978); therefore, I try to incorporate tasks where students are able to use the language, co-construct and negotiate meaning in order to attain an objective. In my practice, I have noticed that these types of tasks keep students motivated; besides these tasks provide the opportunity to recycle and reuse language previously learned, not only once, but several times so they are able to internalize language they have already been exposed to. (Ellis 2002)

My support to social interaction does not mean I diminish the importance of grammar. I consider it as a key element in order to communicate, either in spoken or written ways properly, but I prefer to present new structures in a deductive way, designing activities based on noticing hypotheses. By letting them discover the form and function of new linguistic features, I will let my students develop analysis skills that will help them later in their learning process (Schmidt 1990, 2001).

The use of technology in my classroom is vital to maintain a fresh and innovative environment. The use of social media, on line games and other different sites on the Internet has given me the possibility to give life to the target language. To be able to incorporate several types of technology in a class such as audios, videos, Internet, digital libraries, etc. is challenging, but it is worthy when students can see the practical use of what they are learning

! ) )

"#$%&'()!*+,*-.!

) )

!"#$%&'()*%&+,-,.%/) 01)23(,!

6!

! through authentic material. I also make use of Blackboard or WebCT as efficient as possible for the benefit of my students. Some of the tools I use very often are on-line journals and portfolios, discussion boards and blogs and even Google Maps to take my students to a virtual tour of a city.

I evaluate my students learning process in a comprehensive way, even when the institutions where I have worked for still have a traditional view of evaluation. Along the semester, I assign different types of tasks to assess, from short presentations, group projects, sample writings, short sketches, blackboard postings, etc. (Shrum 1991). I use rubrics to assess their written or oral work and sometimes I involve my own students in the designing of the rubric. Giving the students the opportunity to co-construct the evaluation criteria helps them reduce anxiety towards the task and help them concentrate on the objectives, rather than the grade.

The learning of teaching is an on-going process constructed by the every day practice and the constant preparation; therefore the statements established on this teaching philosophy will certainly change with the time, more experience and more knowledge in the field.

7) !

!"#$%&'()*%&+,-.%/) 01)23(,

References
Ellis, N.C. (2002). Frequency effects in language acquisition: A review with implications for Theories of implicit and explicit language acquisition. Studies in Second Language Acquistion 24/2 pp. 143-188 Gardner, H. (1993). Multiple Intelligences. The Theory in Practice. New York: Basic Books Lightbrown, P.M. & Spada, N. (2013). How Languages are Learned. Oxford UK: Oxford University Press. Reid, J. (ed.). (1995). Learning Styles in the ESL/EFL Classroom. New York: Heinle and Heinle. Schmidt, R. (1990). The role of consciousness in second language learning. Applied Linguistics. 11/1 pp. 17 - 46 Schmidt, R (2001). Attention in P. Robinson (ed.) Cognition and Second Language Instruction. Cambridge, MA. Cambridge University Press. Shrum, J.L. (1991) Testing in context: A lesson from foreign language learning. Vision, 1,3 pp. 7-8 Vigotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in Society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press

! ) )

"#$%&'()!*+,*-.!

) )