Community Language Learning
Community Language Learning
The Community Language Learning method takes its principle from the more general Counselling-Learning approach developed by Charles A. Curran. Curran studied adult learning for many years. A language counsellor means someone who is a skilful understander of the struggle students face as they attempt to internalize another language. By understanding students’ fears and being sensitive to them, he can help students overcome their negative feelings and turn them into positive energy to further their learning.
The goals of teachers are to make their students to learn how to use the target language communicatively. They want their students to learn about their own learning to take responsibility for it.
The principles of Community Language Learning:
- the teacher is a counsellor who recognizes how threatening a new learning situation can be for adult learners so he understands and supports his students in their struggle to acquire the target language;
- the student-teacher interaction in the Community Language Learning method changes within the lesson and over time, this method is neither student nor teacher centred but; rather teacher-student centred, with both being decision makers in the class; building a relationship with and among students is very important;
- where possible, literal native equivalents are given to the target language words that have been transcribed, this makes their meaning clear and allows students to combine the target language words to create new sentences;
- active vocabulary is very important as conversations in the target language can replace native language conversations;
- the focus shifts from grammar to sentence formation, language is for communication;
- pronunciation is developed by reading out loud;
- culture is integrated with language;
- the most important skills are the receptive ones and speaking the language, reading and writing are worked on;
- whatever evaluation is conducted it should be in keeping with the principles of the method, a classroom test should be more of an integrative test than a discrete point one, students are asked to write a paragraph rather than being asked to answer a question which deals with only one point of the language at a time; students often self-evaluate to become aware of their own progress;
- errors are corrected in a non threatening way, the teacher repeats correctly what the student has said incorrectly;
- the syllabus is designed primarily by the students.
Activities characteristic of the method:
- transcription (The teacher transcribes the students’ tape-recorded target language conversation.)
- reflective listening (The students relax and listen to their own voices speaking the target language on the tape.)
- human computer (The student is “in control” of the teacher when she tries to say the word or phrase. The teacher repeats the phrase as often as the student wants to practise it. The teacher does not correct the student’s mispronunciation in any way.)
- small group tasks (The small groups make new sentences with the words on the transcript. Afterward the groups share the sentences they made with the rest of the class.)
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