A number of points stood out for me from today's readings, but perhaps the one that got me to think to the most is a simple quotation from Kumaravadivelu: "In spite of the increasing number of publications, a consensus definition of task continues to elude the profession" (64). I am realizing more everyday as I continue my education that "things" are rarely agreed upon in the field of second language education, or in education in general. People are now trending toward Task-Based Language Teaching, but people cannot even agree on the definition of the word. The quotation reminded me of a reading for another class, one on rhetorical genre studies. I found it amusing in that article, as well, that no one seemed to come to a consensus on just what the definition of a genre was. As I read, I continually marked on the page that I had passed another definition.
Points like that made above seem to highlight the fact that teachers, or soon-to-be teachers, need to consider their own beliefs about teaching, about how they want their classrooms to. Teaching, as we mentioned in class on Tuesday, is not a one-size fits all students type of field. Rather, teachers need to really understand where they come from as teachers in order to best serve the many differents "sizes" of students in their classrooms.
In her article, Celce-Muria seems to reiterate this point: "What is the solution for the ESL/EFL teacher, given the abundance of current and future approaches? The only way to make wise decisions is to learn more abou the specific methods available." And, I would add, then consider which methods work best for your students.
No comments:
Post a Comment