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Unit three dwelled on the 8different methods of language learning, describing and explaining each one of them as well as pointing out their pros and cons. The section however ended with the conclusion that it is difficult to ascertain which of them is the best method. Choosing a suitable method will depend on factors such as the teacher’s personality, students’ cultures and also students’ needs. The unit focused more on Jeremy Harmer’s “Engage Study Activate” methodology, as it is the methodology our course its based around. It also dwelt on an Important component of this methodology which is elicitation, a technique quite relevant in the study stage of the ESA. We also looked at variations of this methodology which include; the “straight arrow” ESA lesson where the teacher takes the lesson in a straightforward order that is, Engage- Study-Activate. This other is quite suitable for lower level learners but may be boring for intermediate and advanced level learners. The “Boomerang” ESA lesson plan allows an insertion of a stage in between two stages e.g. Engage-Activate1-Study-Activate2. This lesson model ensures that the teacher only gives the student what they need after showing that they do not know it and have need for it. Lastly, the “Patchwork” lesson which allows many mini-stages e.g. Engage-Activate-Activate-study-Activate-Engage-Study-Activate. This section also makes it clear that we can alter the model to suit learners’ needs but we must make sure the lesson starts with an “Engage” stage and ends with and “Activate” stage. The Unit concludes with a topic on how to make corrections and who should make corrections. It talks about self- correcting where the learner is expected to correct his/her own mistakes but warns that before the learner does this the teacher must make sure that the learner is aware something is not right, where the error lies as well as what kind of error it is. Teachers have to be careful not to embarrass students if they can not correct themselves. Student-student correction is also an effective correction method as it is believed that students loved being helped by their peers or fellow classmates. However, it is advised that the method should not be used if it going to further confuse the student. Teacher-student correction should be the last resort as it does not give the student an opportunity to reflect on his/her errors. Thus, the possibility of the learner making the same mistake is very high. What I gathered from this unit is that the learning techniques teachers may choose to employ need to be as flexible as possible, making sure that it allows for students’ talk-time to be higher that teachers’ talk-time. Also, teachers need to understand each stage of the ESA methodology perfectly to avoid mistakes as well as ensure that the model they choose (be it the “Straight arrow”, “Boomerang” or “Patchwork” ESA) is suitable for the learners’ level. Most importantly, teachers must never forget to give feedback and must remain positive when learners make errors as it is part of the learning process, it also gives the teacher clues on the areas that need more attention.
