Foreign Language

Recently, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has been receiving a lot of criticism about statements he made at this year's annual convention of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. At this event he told Hispanic journalists that immigrants who wish to learn English must avoid the Spanish media.

"You're just forced to speak English, and that just makes you learn the language faster," Schwarzenegger said.

This may seem harsh and Schwarzenegger admitted he is going to get himself in to trouble for saying it, but is it really that far from the truth?

Some say Hispanic television, newspapers and magazines are essential for Spanish-speaking immigrants to function in society. Although this is probably true for newly arriving immigrants, the earlier one can force themselves to avoid these media sources, the faster they will learn English.

How important are gestures in communication? Is body language as important as verbal communication?

"Gesturing is not merely hand-waving. It conveys substantive information — thoughts that often are not conveyed in words," said Susan Goldin-Meadow, a professor of psychology at the University of Chicago.

"People naturally tend to rely heavily on nonverbal communication when they are learning a foreign language," said Lewis Johnson, the director of the Information Sciences Institute of the University of Southern California.

A recent study provides insight into the relationship between verbal and non-verbal communication. The study conducted by Simone Pika at the University of Alberta, Canada observed a group of bilingual individuals as they described a cartoon in their two languages. The subjects spoke either French or Spanish (a gesture-rich language) as their mother tongue, and English (a gesture-poor language) as their second.

Technology is becoming more of a focus in education, noted by university research, Web sites and other sources.

“Computers, multimedia tools, peripherals and applications, satellite downloads and the World Wide Web are becoming more common in schools and classrooms,” according to research posted on California State University’s Web site in 1999. “That infusion of the technologies into schools across the country has created substantial new expectations in K-12 education.”

Computers can help students meet test scores and other expectations early-on, Northwest Regional Educational Library suggests.

“Computers allow representation and actions not possible in the physical world. For example, children can manipulate variables such as gravity or speed and discover the resulting effects,” the Oregon-based nonprofit stated on its Web site in 2001. “Technology offers additional ways to learn and to demonstrate learning. For some children who have unique learning styles, computers can reveal hidden strengths. At the computer, children can approach learning from a variety of perspectives and follow various paths to a goal.

Besides encouraging cognitive skills, technology can help your child develop physically.
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory suggests tips to help writing skills.

“Fine and gross motor skills develop at varying rates, and learning to write can be tedious and difficult as children learn to form letters,” the Oregon-based nonprofit published on its Web site in 2001. “A word processor allows them to compose and revise text without being distracted by the fine motor aspects of letter formation.”

QuickSource also lists activities to develop qualities such as hand-eye coordination.
One suggests preschoolers paint their own version of a well-known painting.

“Tape the print up for all of the children to see. Discuss the name of the painting and the artist,” the educational resource states on its Web site (www.teacherquicksource.com) “Great artistic masterpieces are stored in museums all over the world. Take this opportunity to bring the most famous works of art to life in the classroom, while encouraging children to explore and reproduce shapes.”

Technology can help children develop language skills, encouraging them to raise their hand in class more often.

“Language empowers children to participate in both the cognitive and affective parts of the educational program,” the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory posted on its Web site in 2001. “Everyday, playful experiences in print-rich environments expose children to the processes of reading and writing for real purposes. Technology has a place in this environment; language and literacy development are major strengths of technology use with young children through the opportunities and motivation it provides.”

The nonprofit is funded through the U.S. Department of Education and advocates making computers part of every child’s development.

Tape recorders and video cameras are other helpful tools, according to the Northwest Educational Technology Consortium.

While there are many tools to help children learn, technology can accelerate the process, Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory published on its Web site in 2001.

The nonprofit funded through the U.S. Department of Education focused research on how technology fosters social, language, physical, general and cognitive development.

“Children can be successful learners in many different ways,” the organization states. “Properly used, however, computers and software can serve as catalysts for social interaction and conversations related to children’s work.”

Its Web site suggests not only making computers part of any young classroom, but placing them close together to encourage sharing, putting them in a middle area or setting up two chairs in front of each computer so children can easily work together.

Now that you have decided learning another language is important, how do you do it?

Most books, magazines and online sources recommend immersion, but language programs can offer everything from translation to bilingual instruction.

Immersion:

Immersion is absorption into language, such as teaching Spanish elementary classes to English-speaking students.

The type of language learning was first studied in-depth in the 1960s in Canada. English-speaking students were taught classes in French to help them learn their nation’s other official language, according to the National Center for Research on Cultural Diversity and Second Language Learning.

“The first lesson to be learned from immersion is that when language instruction is integrated with instruction in academic content, it is more effective than teaching the language in isolation. Proficiency in the target language is not a prerequisite to academic development; rather, language learning results from using language to perform authentic communicative functions,” the center published in a 1995 report.

We have many parents and teachers from other learning centers asking us about the ideal learning environment for second language aquistion of children. There are many characteristics and techniques we use at Kultural Kids in creating a near perfect situation for our students to learn.

The second language your child learns will make them part of more than 18 percent of United States residents who are bilingual.

One of the most interesting innovations to emerge in second language education during the last three decades is the language immersion program. In this method of language instruction, the regular school curriculum is taught through the medium of a second language. The first immersion programs were developed in Canada to provide English-speaking students with the opportunity to learn French, Canada's other official language. Since that time, immersion programs have been adopted in many parts of North America, and alternative forms of immersion have been devised. In the United States, immersion programs can be found in a number of languages, including French, German, Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese.

With the purpose of highlighting the lessons to be learned from immersion, this Digest presents selected findings from research carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of immersion programs in Canada and the United States. These lessons are related to the importance of (1) integrating language with content instruction, (2) creating classroom environments that are discourse-rich, and (3) systematically planning language instruction along with content instruction.