Journal of Research in Innovative Teaching - National University

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education when students are isolated from their first language both physically (e.g., on a ship) and situationally (a ban on first language imposed and strictly maintained 24 hours a day), which leads to enormous progress in communicative competence in a matter of a few days (Serdyukov, 2008). This is the most radical case, yet it demonstrates that immersion in the target language by excluding the first language does serve the purpose. Regrettably, this opportunity is often underestimated by the educators. Nation (2001) discusses this issue, suggesting several reasons why learners use the L1 when they should be using the L2. These reasons include low proficiency in the L2, the naturalness of using the L1 to do certain jobs, shyness in using the L2, or simply a lack of interest in learning the L2. Here are two most important of several ways of dealing with these obstacles to L2 use: • Make the L2 an unavoidable part of the task. • Inform learners of the learning goals of each task so that they can see how using the L2 will help them achieve a clear short term learning goal. Nation (2001) also discusses a balanced approach in which he sees a role for the L1 but also recognizes the importance of maximizing L2 use in the SL classroom, which supports our view of concentrating on the target language for faster results. Lack of success or little success in developing SL proficiency can thus be explained by social, cultural, and pedagogical factors. First of all, society must be interested in supporting bilingualism and create opportunities for all people to learn a SL. It is helpful to compare the EU and U.S. societal attitudes: Whereas in European countries an FL is compulsory in all schools, and in some countries there are already two or even three mandatory FLs, in the U.S. only ESL is required for the non-English speakers alone, while an FL for native English-speaking students remains a matter of choice or availability in the school curriculum. Culturally, learning an FL is a tradition in some societies; for example, Russians have always believed that to be a cultured person one has to know at least one FL. In the multilingual Europe, speaking in several languages is a clear necessity. Americans, on the contrary, customarily believe it is not worthwhile to learn an FL, as the whole world speaks English anyway (Bernhard, 1998). To succeed in integrating balanced bilingualism the U.S. society has to develop the concept of SL value for all its members. Environmental Factors Influencing Second Language Learning While additive bilingualism benefits all citizens, learning a new language is important for an individual for a variety of reasons that depend on whether one is a native or a non-native speaker of the dominant language. For the native speaker of English in the U.S., learning a new language affords greater cultural awareness and more professional opportunities, among other advantages. For the non-native speaker of English in the U.S., learning English is a matter of survival. Exactly how does one maintain one’s own (non-English) linguistic identity in a society in which English is the language of business, education, and government We claim that the family and ethnic community should play a crucial role in the process of becoming bilingual, supporting bilingualism instead of restraining it by either approving the first language alone or, on the contrary, stimulating only SL use. Children from families that support additive bilingualism will 131
e more likely to achieve a successful balance between individual and national identities than will children from families that do not support it. We are also convinced that the view that SL proficiency should take many years to develop is counterproductive and in disagreement with contemporary methodological theory and practice. Language environment plays an important role in the extent to which languages influence one another. However, its influence is often mitigated by other factors, one of which is the language of the family, home, and local community. It is logical to conclude that, in this case, the effect of family, home and language community alleviated the fact that these participants lived in a second-language dominant community. This suggests that family and cultural community may have a strong influence on the degree to which SL influences first language. We posit at least six major interrelated factors that influence the balance between first and SL use: (1) family (i.e., the support and use of the first language by parents and other family members); (2) community (community-based activities and learning); (3) houses of worship (teaching and conducting religious services either in the first language or in both languages); (4) mass media in the first language (e.g., ethnic newspapers, TV, and radio); (5) reading (books and other printed material in the first language); and (6) school or workplace (training for and performing on the job in both languages) (Kinberg & Serdyukov, 2004). We argue that the more environments in which the first language is used, the weaker will be the influence of the SL, and vice versa. If we define balanced bilingualism as the ability to use both languages with about equal proficiency in about the same number of contexts, how can we help SL learners achieve this goal If our model of balanced bilingualism is correct, the greater the number of contexts in which one uses a language, the more proficient one will be in that language. So, for instance, in an environment in which the SL is dominant in most contexts, maintenance of the first language is enhanced if it is used within the family, classroom, firstlanguage community, house of worship, and so on. In an environment in which the first language is dominant, the SL is enhanced if, besides in the outside world, it is used in the classroom and supported by the family. One practical example of how this may be accomplished is evident through the use of a two-way bilingual program. In such a program, the first and SLs both serve as the medium of instruction; the language of instruction varies by day, by time of day, by content area, or (where there is more than one instructor) by instructor (Kinberg, 2001). As we know, these programs offer the opportunity to develop and maintain proficiency in both languages, since both are used in a variety of contexts. Even if a particular classroom is not designated as a two-way bilingual classroom, it is certainly possible to plan activities, events, and projects that make use of more than one language. This approach is more efficient, however, in the advanced stages of SL development. The initial stages should be as intensive as possible to boost the students’ proficiency to the sufficient level of language proficiency that will ensure his or her successful and prompt integration in the mainstream educational classes. Another way in which we might promote proficient balanced bilingualism is through community involvement. For instance, in the case of a second-language-dominant larger community, the first-language community might attract people to the events that are conducted in the first language. Likewise, in the case of a first-language dominant community, those who are learning a SL or FL might hold events that take place in that language (Kinberg & Serdyukov, 2004). 132
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Journal of Research in Innovative T
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Table of Contents Editor’s Column
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Editor’s Column National Universi
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training-based method for integrati
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The Editorial Board invites the rea
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The Influence of Social Worlds on E
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experience in a strong group settin
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Table 1 Example Scenario of a Burea
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hierarchy ensures a social position
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(see Figure 5). Each member is affo
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through four types of instructional
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Hierarchic (high grid, strong Group
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Figure 10. Didactic Task Structure
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Stansberry, S., & Harris, E. (2005)
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Utilizing current research-based co
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teachers. The instructor kept a mas
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References Coburn, C. E. (2001). Co
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Organizing for Instruction Carefull
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Accelerated Learning 33
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the learning process but rather to
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Csikszentmihalyi (1982) has written
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term (intersession) gets its name b
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Some Important Issues Scott and Con
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esponsibilities). A higher percenta
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them in such a way that the likelih
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makes a valuable contribution to ou
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North American Association of Summe
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E-learning 51
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Academic Learning Today Academic in
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In the original publication by the
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• Individual (1) — Group (2) co
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Challenges and Opportunities From t
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About the Authors Cynthia (Cindy) L
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AGILE TEACHING: A CASE STUDY OF USI
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the scope-by-name feature of Ruby e
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need to deal with. Students learned
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experiment with different options f
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the students evaluate the optimum s
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Using Bibliotherapy as a Tool for C
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different clients and their present
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supervisees with a brief synopsis o
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Stick Figure, by Lori Gottlieb As t
Page 86 and 87: psychological awareness to encourag
Page 88 and 89: on the Internet. To keep the classr
Page 90 and 91: The third portion of the discussion
Page 92 and 93: Henry, S. (2005). A different appro
Page 94 and 95: elementary-age students. Linked wit
Page 96 and 97: considered in multicultural literat
Page 98 and 99: In Finding One, the conclusion was
Page 100 and 101: Stephanie: “I learned that some p
Page 102 and 103: importance in society and in school
Page 104 and 105: published in the United States. Ret
Page 106 and 107: Reading Practices in Elementary Sch
Page 108 and 109: groups of students reading by apply
Page 110 and 111: Table 2 Participant-Reported Teachi
Page 112 and 113: Table 5A Teachers’ Reading Task P
Page 114 and 115: Because electronic texts are increa
Page 116 and 117: Conclusion As teachers work to impr
Page 118 and 119: Bilingual Education and Second Lang
Page 120 and 121: successful in hiring enough qualifi
Page 122 and 123: Five Innovative Strategies That Wor
Page 124 and 125: The third strategy is “Determinin
Page 126 and 127: the categories, synthesized and def
Page 128 and 129: Fereshteh, M. H. (1995). Multicultu
Page 130 and 131: Can Balanced Bilingualism Be Achiev
Page 132 and 133: As may be seen from this discussion
Page 134 and 135: Alternatives to Current Methodologi
Page 138 and 139: Conclusion SL learning must be a tw
Page 140 and 141: Language as Tool for a Global Educa
Page 142 and 143: encouraging passive learning. Such
Page 144 and 145: Similarly, their actions or what go
Page 146 and 147: should therefore not be glued to th
Page 148 and 149: Supplementary Reading Since there i
Page 150 and 151: Bruce, M. G., Podemski, R. S., & An
Page 152 and 153: • Sentence combination (using con
Page 154 and 155: The Motivational and Attitudinal Ch
Page 156 and 157: Other researchers have challenged t
Page 158 and 159: education classes were taught in Ru
Page 160 and 161: Participants also described how the
Page 162 and 163: Implications and Suggestions for Fu
Page 164 and 165: National University Carlsbad, CA Em
Page 166 and 167: Assessment and Evaluation 161
Page 168 and 169: affordance of opportunities for sel
Page 170 and 171: An examination of the peer-comment
Page 172 and 173: language used in the description an
Page 174 and 175: promotes self-discovery (Saulnier e
Page 176 and 177: Appendix A Sample Language from an
Page 178 and 179: Student Evaluations of Courses and
Page 180 and 181: that there is a consistent positive
Page 182 and 183: (teaching) for all classes (11 item
Page 184 and 185: Figure 1. The Nonlinear Relationshi
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About the Authors Nataliya Serdyuko
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Best Practices 183
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The Textbook Elementary Statistics
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If the mean number of visits was as
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discussion in such courses is slow;
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Table 1. A grade list for a class o
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Sloboda, B. W. (2005). Improving th
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The Journal of Research in Innovati
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About the Author In the end of your
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