CONRAD GREGORY MATL PORTFOLIO
InTASC Standard #1: Learner Development
The teacher understands how learners grow and develop, recognizing that patterns of learning and development vary individually with and across the cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional and physical areas, and designs and implements developmentally appropriate and challenging learning experiences.
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ARTIFACT 1
Name of Artifact: Final Synthesis Paper: Key theories affecting development and instruction in Second Language Acquisition
Course: WL 664: Second Language Acquisition -Theory and Practice
Date: Spring, 2021
ACTFL World-Readiness Standards Addressed: Interpersonal Communication, Interpretive Communication, Presentational Communication, Relating Cultural Practices to Perspectives, Relating Cultural Products to Perspectives, Language Comparisons, Cultural Comparisons, School and Global Communities
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RATIONALE
The artifact I have selected to demonstrate my understanding of how learners grow and develop is a final synthesis paper from the course WL 664: Second Language Acquisition. This course examined theories and research trends that explain how second language acquisition occurs, and also evaluated the varying perspectives for their applicability and relevance in the foreign language classroom.
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This artifact was an assignment that required me to synthesize the main theories covered in the course. I chose to place this artifact under learner development because it demonstrates my understanding of the main theories and hypotheses explaining how learners effectively acquire a second language. The assignment required me to sort through these theories and subsequently select those that I felt best accounted for learner development and growth. In addition, this assignment required me to develop my own perspectives and principles around which the teaching of a second language should be organized.
Several decades of research have provided us with a vast range of ideas into how second language acquisition occurs and the stages of learner development, including perspectives offered by behaviorist, cognitive, sociocultural and functional constructivist approaches. There has also been much important research into the roles of social interaction, intercultural competence, interlanguage, pragmatics, affective barriers as well as the importance of individual learner differences. Although we still do not have a single unifying theory explaining how second language acquisition occurs, there are aspects of several approaches that provide key insights into how learners develop their second language competency. For me, part of the answer is provided by Krashen’s input hypothesis which states that second language acquisition occurs when comprehensible input is a bit beyond one’s level of competence (Krashen, 1984; as cited in Brown, 2014). Affect and the emotional side of human behavior are also inextricably interwoven into the second language acquisition process (Brown, 2014), so much so that they act like a filter to create Apperceived Input (Gass et al., 2020). However, no matter how authentic and effective the input, it is essential to provide learners with as many opportunities as possible to engage in output and interaction. Not just rehearsed speaking drills, but the genuine communication that occurs in activities like task-based projects that force learners to comprehend, convey and negotiate true meaning (VanPatten, 2017). Last but not least, learner development requires an awareness of sociolinguistics because true communicative ability is founded on the development of intercultural competence (Kramsch, 2011; as cited in Brown, 2014).
This activity came early on in my MATL experience and while I still see these various perspectives as vital to second language acquisition, two years of course work and teaching high school French have helped me to focus on what I believe to be the key elements to successful learner development. There is now no doubt that Affect, learner motivation and learning styles impact the success of acquisition at all stages of development. Second language acquisition is also dependent on providing learners with ample opportunities to engage in comprehensible output and pragmatics as well as helping them to develop a greater cultural and identity awareness. I have also come to see the positive impact on learner development from non-traditional authentic resources like Bandes Dessinées, the use of peer feedback and the integration of a more multiliteracies approach. As I continue teaching French in the future, I believe it is essential to stay informed on research trends surrounding the various phases and elements of learner development so that I can continue to reflect on my instructional approaches and modify them when needed.
References
Brown, D. H. (2014). Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. Pearson Education.
Gass, S. M., Behney, J., & Plonsky, L. (2020). Second language acquisition: An introductory
Course (5th ed.). Routledge.
Vanpatten, B. (2017). While we’re on the Topic: BVP on language, acquisition and classroom
practice. Alexandria, VA: ACTFL.
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ARTIFACT 2
Name of Artifact: Leçon sur la culture française
Course: FRE 641: French Culture through Comics
Date: Spring, 2023
ACTFL World-Readiness Standards Addressed: Interpersonal Communication, Interpretive Communication, Presentational Communication, Relating Cultural Practices to Perspectives, Language Comparisons, Cultural Comparisons
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RATIONALE
This artifact is a lesson plan I developed during the course FRE 641: French Culture through Comics. I designed the lesson for a high school French class which uses a Bande Dessinée, Astérix chez les Bretons, as the resource for a series of communicative and collaborative activities that help learners explore and understand aspects of French culture present in the reading. I chose to place this lesson under this Standard because it demonstrates my ability as a French instructor to not only understand the various aspects of learner development, but also to design meaningful and impactful learning experiences that promote learner growth.
This standard requires teachers to understand how learners grow and develop, and to understand the key determinants affecting second language acquisition. For me, this also means having an in depth understanding of the challenges facing frequently used practices in L2 classroom instruction as well as the main obstacles to learner development. As an authentic resource, Bandes Dessinées can have a very significant impact on the development of both beginner and advanced learners (Giacotto, 2022). Part of the reason for this comes from the motivation they inspire as a resource, but their impact, in large part, is due to a multimodal effect: a combination of verbal and visual cognitive processes that stimulate learner development in ways other resources cannot (Clark, 2017). Research has demonstrated that Affect and individual learner differences play a pivotal role in learner growth and the language acquisition process, and that Bandes Dessinées can stimulate development by reducing Affective barriers, increasing motivation and adapting to a variety of individual learning styles (Oz & Efecioglu, 2015).
Arguably, the most challenging stage of learner growth is the development of communicative competence. In the past I have primarily used textbooks as a resource to develop classroom speaking opportunities such as role playing or scenarios like ordering food in a restaurant or buying a train ticket. Although learners are often able to perform these activities effectively, they do little to advance genuine communicative competence. I selected a lesson plan based on a Bande Dessinée because unlike textbook dialogues, a Bande Dessinée effectively integrates pragmatics: language that mirrors how real people speak outside of the classroom. Since a significant percentage of our daily conversation contains commonly used speech acts, and because Bandes Dessinées use these speech acts in their dialogues, learners feel more connected to authentic language, more motivated to use it and engaged to a level that stimulates growth (Schauer, 2022).
At the beginning of my MATL course work, I would not have seriously considered using a Bande Dessinée for instruction in a French class. However, during the last two years I have had the opportunity to take two courses in which I was required to read Bandes Dessinées and the experience was so impactful on me as student, that I reassessed my instructional approach and the role these resources have in learner development. This experience also highlights the critical importance of language instructors staying on top of research.
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References
Clark, E. (2017). Are comics effective materials for teaching ELLS? A literature review on graphic media
for L2 Instruction. International E-Journal of Advances in Education, 3(4), 298-309.
http://ijaedu.ocerintjournals.org
Giacotto, S. (2022). Using Comics to Teach. Language Magazine.
https://www.languagemagazine.com/2022/08/03/using-comics-to-teach/
Oz, H., & Efecioglu, E. (2015). Graphic novels: An alternative approach to teach English as a foreign
language. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 11(1), 75-90.
Schauer, G. (2022). Exploring the potential of graphic novels for L2 pragmatic teaching and Learning –
focus on young learners. The Language Learning Journal, 50(4), 491-505.