ARHIVELE OLTENIEI - Universitatea din Craiova

Different pedagogic perspectives in teaching spanish as a foreign language 187teacher must be careful and pay attention to every student – that is why the groupshave to be reduced – so that every of them is developing their level; in these kindsof role games every student can improve their level by adding new structures theyhave just learnt on the street. In this way, the students are used as semi-teachers.Of course, the teacher do not have to make the mistake of leaving the students whoare ahead to get bored in class; the demand has to be according to the possiblitiesof everyone. Some times –and now I am giving my opinion from the perspectiveof a student of Romanian language- you can learn more from your classmates thanfrom the teacher, so it is very good to split up the students according to their level,but it is not negative to mix them up in the same room to make them to interact,even in the university level.Nowadays I am teaching Practical courses of Spanish in the universityof Craiova, being this language the minor of the student’s degree –the studentsin the class have different majors, and Spanish is the second speciality theychoose-. This is a different model of teaching, since the students are reallyinterested in the grammar issues, because their laboral future will demand themto have deep notions on syntax and grammar. However, I think that usingchapters of TV programmes, vocabulary games, press articles, film proyections,etc. is really necessary to keep the interest of students on the subject. Theinteraction between traditional exercises, such as “drills” in which syntacticstructure repititions are made, with dynamic exercises, or even to include thephysical movement of students in the class – for example, by using balls in class,and throw out the ball from one student to the other while they have to say thetenses of some verbs, or vocabulary – can help them to oil the wheels of theirminds, and to teach grammar, but in an indirect – and funnier – way.In a nutshell, I think that when we are teaching Spanish – or anotherforeing language – fun exercises play a very relevant role to suceed in theenterprise. Even if we are in a universitarian level, we can try to find therecreational part of the subject we are teaching, and from time to time, leave apartthe grammar side, that will be learnt little by little. The objective we should alwayspursue is “communication”, that is the main reason why we are making an effortto learn foreign languages. As Carlos Lomas, director of the Spanish magazine“Signos” says: “When we are learning a foreign language, we are not onlylearning to build structures gramatically correct, but also we are learning to knowwhat to say, to whom, when and how to say it, and finally, when to be in silent.”BIBLIOGRAPHY1. Savignon, S. “Evaluation of Communicative Competence: The ACTFLProvisional Proficiency Guidelines.” Te Modern Language Journal. vol. 59.(1985), p. 129-1342. Las competencias lingüística, ideologíca y comunicativa. A propósito dela evaluación masiva en Colombia. De Guillermo Bustamante Zamudio.