Teach English in Yinlingzhi Zhen - Jinzhong Shi

Nowadays, there are hundreds of language learning techniques, the availability of resources and tools to learn languages makes it easier for users to progress faster in their target language. However, for some people it is really hard to spot which one of these methods is the most effective for them. In this essay, I will talk about the most popular language learning techniques, their advantages and disadvantages and which one of them I consider to be the most effective based off of my experience as a teacher and as a student of foreign languages. With that being said, let’s get into the most common ways people learn languages. The Grammar-Based Approach This method usually mixes some vocabulary with lots of explicit grammar rules that are usually found in written and spoken texts. Progressively, further lessons will include the vocabulary that has been previously taught and also new grammar content. The main focus of this approach lies in reading and writing in the target language. Its most important advantage is that once the student has processed the grammar rules, it’s easier for them to use the new vocabulary correctly. Some of the disadvantages are that at some point, the progress starts to be slower and this methodology could become repetitive and boring with time. Therefore, some students might quit due to lack of motivation. Shadowing This technique consists of listening to a recording made by native speakers in the target language and simultaneously repeating aloud what the speaker is saying, but before that, the learner must solely listen attentively to the recording once or twice, trying to understand as much as they can, then listen to it again but reading the transcription at the same time and looking up all the new words. The next step is to listen and repeat with a little delay. Lastly, listen and repeat simultaneously. I consider this method very effective, since it’s based off of a lot of drills, that I find it very helpful in order to get the words stuck in our memory while we work with their pronunciation. However, one of its major disadvantages is that it might require a lot of time, patience and it also could turn out to be very repetitive and boring for some people. Output-based learning (speaking from day one) This methodology consists of speaking from the very first day, which means that as soon as the student learns a new word, they should start using it right away. The most important advantage of this method is that when the person begins using the words they know, it could be very motivating for them and, in my opinion, that’s the key to keep going and keep the interest and motivation up during the whole learning process. The disadvantage of this technique is that if the person has a very small vocabulary, they won’t be able to have meaningful conversations with native speakers of the target language. Listening This method focuses mainly in listening to audio material in order to get the students familiar with the phonology of the language without the aid of the visual input of reading, with the objective to force the student to pay close attention to the words that they hear and make sense of them audibly. This approach has several advantages, one of them is that it uses the space repetition system where the student first, reviews the learnt words after a short period of time. Next, the time of the interval is bigger and this process continues. Another advantage is that it introduces sentence structure by drilling those sentences. During the learning process, it helps the students progressively build more complex sentences as well as new vocabulary. One of the major disadvantages in this technique is that, in my opinion, using only audio is not enough to really get fluent in any language because there will be times where the student won’t be able to understand certain words and the visual aid will be missing to make the connection between the words they hear and the transcription of them, which is essential to build strong basis in the target language. Parallel reading This approach consists of reading a text and simultaneously, listen to the audio made by a native speaker. One of the advantages of this methodology is that it can be very powerful because it combines the listening part with the visual representation of the words which helps with memorization. Memorizing words is easier because the person is seeing them with context. This approach can be extremely motivating when the student gets to choose a topic of interest. It also might help with pronunciation because when we read, we subvocalize and we are connecting to the sounds of the language. The main disadvantage of this method is that it lacks conversational practice. After going through some of the most commonly used approaches to learn languages, we can clearly see that none of them are perfect, all of them have their advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, I believe that the first step to choose the most effective language learning technique is to find out what we like to do: reading, listening, watching videos or films and so on. Then, we must identify our goals regarding the language and our time available. We must also bear in mind the motivational part, that means, that we should enjoy the learning process, because if we do things that we like to do, any of the methods described above will work. In contrast, the things we are forced to do will never be effective. To conclude, I think that there’s no such thing as “the perfect learning technique”. I personally prefer the combination of different approaches rather than solely relying on just one or two of them. All of these techniques have something good to contribute, and the combination of different methods will make the learning process more varied and enjoyable which is essential to achieving success in this journey. Bibliography Matador Network. (n.d.). (2019). Shadowing: The better way to learn a language. Retrieved June 25, 2019, from https://www.lingualift.com/blog/shadowing-learn-language-efficiently/ Seifi, F. (2019). The 5 Ways We Learn Languages and Which Style Is Right for You. Retrieved June 25, 2019, from https://matadornetwork.com/abroad/the-5-ways-we-learn-languages-and-which-style-is-right-for-you/ Richards, J.C. (2019). Limitations of the text-based approach. Retrieved June 25, 2019, from https://www.professorjackrichards.com/limitations-of-the-text-based-approach/