Myths or Realities Assignment

Exploring the principles of first and second language acquisition, the differences between first and second language acquisition, and the design of instruction for ELLs.

Myth or Reality

​Becca Hodge

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: It is easier for children to acquire a second language.

• Myth

• Reality

Correct Answer: Myth!

According to Lightbown and Spada...

The challenges presented to L2 learners of different ages can be vastly different, as can advantages to those same groups. However, in general, younger learners do not have a vastly larger advantage over adult learners of a second language.

Adult learners of a second language have the benefit of a complex understanding of a first language, where younger learners do not. On the other hand, younger learners have less of an expectation to engage immediately using the second language, which allows them more time to observe and blend with other children, which offers a low-pressure environment advantage.

Teaching Implications:
-Teachers should use the advantages listed to support student learning.

-Operating with the idea and mindset that every student is capable of great things helps to encourage growth mindset within learners.

-Creation of a supportive environment where all learners, including the teacher, are able to make mistakes AND grow from them is essential.

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: Learning and using two languages at the same time is detrimental.

• Myth

• Reality

Correct Answer: Myth!

Translanguaging should be encouraged!

Lightbown and Spada reference the concept of translanguaging, or "the notion that multilingual individuals draw on all of their linguistic resources for comprehension and expression of information and emotions" in an incredibly positive light. In their opinions, translanguaging is a vital tool for learners, in a way that can help with academic content, vocabulary, and so on.

​Teaching Implications
-Students should be encouraged to approach a topic using everything in their toolkit, including their understanding of other languages.
-Including ways to show creative understanding or description of a topic can be vital for students who are multilingual.
-Providing opportunities for translanguaging helps students to connect to their home culture, as well as express themselves while creating deeper learning.

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: Non-native English speaking parents/families should only speak English in the home

• Myth

• Reality

As a teacher, we speak with students day-in and day-out. The perspective that we as educators have on parents and families who do not speak English can have a massive impact on the students that we see. The use of intentional language to students about the importance of their home language and celebrating their family is something that I apply in my daily conversations with students.

Teaching Implications

"When parents with limited English proficiency follow this frequent advice, they lose opportunities to support their children’s language development". Parents speaking to their children in their home language helps not only with cultural values and beliefs, but also model confident language use, that will support students translanguaging abilities in the future.

Soonhyang Kim & Raquel Plotka state in a journal article titled, "Myths and Facts Regarding Second Language Acquisition in Early Childhood: Recommendations for Policymakers, Administrators, and Teachers :

Correct Answer: Myth

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: The more time students spend in a L2 context/classroom,

the quicker they will learn the language

• Myth

• Reality

For me as a 6th grade social studies teacher, this means that there is no harm in including both English and Spanish versions of the text for my students. In reality, I think that there is some real benefit to acknowledging students where they are, but offering areas to grow. This may mean providing English AND Spanish versions so the student may use both.

Teaching Implications

"Research, however, indicates that...increased exposure to English does not necessarily speed the acquisition of English". Instead, the research has shown that bilingual programs are just as effective as English-only.
(Cummins, 1981; Ramirez, Yuen, & Ramey, 1991)

Correct Answer: Myth

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: Each student learns a second language in their own way.

• Myth

• Reality

In order to teach my students effectively, I need to know them as individuals, as humans, with unique talents, areas of growth, likes and dislikes.
This quote from EffectiveLanguageLearning.com fully explains the implications that I feel. "Effective instruction for children from culturally diverse backgrounds requires varied instructional activities... Teachers need to recognize that experiences in the home and home culture affect children’s values, patterns of language use, and interpersonal style.

Children are likely to be more responsive to a teacher who affirms the values of their home culture, and while this is difficult when engaging with a whole class, it must be attempted interpersonally."

Teaching Implications

Students are individuals, who take part in their individual culture of their communities, and who have different strengths and areas of growth. Rogoff says that most learning happens "nonverbally, through observation, supervised participation, and self-initiated repetition". This, of course, looks different for every student!

A variety of sources tell us that...

Correct Answer: Reality

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: Multilingual children have less success with their academic and language skills.

• Myth

• Reality

What this means for me in my classroom is that I need to encourage my multilingual students to mentor monolingual students in areas such as creativity and problem solving. This offers a way for students who sometimes feel that they cannot be leaders in other ways to display their strengths to their monolingual peers.

Teaching Implications

Leikin (2013) found that multilingual young children displayed higher levels of creativity and higher levels of creative mathematical problem solving than monolingual children. Other researchers in the field found evidence that multilingual students "exhibit better executive functions, such as attention and memory" (Kalashnikova & Mattock, 2014; Lauchlan, Parisi, & Fadda, 2013).

Correct Answer: Myth

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: When a learner of L2 makes an error, it does not need to be corrected immediately.

• Myth

• Reality

I think that the idea of correcting errors in terms of pronunciation solidifies my thoughts on helping to uplift students. I truly think that modeling can be the best teacher. I also think that this is a place where students can be the teacher and help to implement the modeling.

Teaching Implications

It’s more effective and encouraging to model the language and explicitly teach grammar and mechanical conventions. Using a combination of modeling and direct instruction allows the point to sink in more deeply without feeling overwhelming or urgent.

Correct Answer: Reality

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: Being multilingual is an asset that must be nurtured, not erased.

• Myth

• Reality

Again, this means that multilingual learners can be leaders, can be mentors, and can absolutely have the capacity to build literacy in more than one language.

Teaching Implications

What we know is that students who are literate in one language can have increased literacy development in another language.
The skills that are acquired when we learn literacy in one language can be transferred to another language (Cummins, 1974).

Multilingual learners should be uplifted and celebrated!

Correct Answer: Reality

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: Speaking equals proficiency.

• Myth

• Reality

For me, this means that my students need to be supported in more categories than just speaking. For full comprehension, I need to make sure that all four areas happen daily in my classroom.

Teaching Implications

In reality, proficiency goes far beyond speaking. Even if you memorize every word, there can still be strong struggles with decoding or comprehending the bigger ideas. In order for someone to be truly proficient in their L2, they should be well-versed in speaking, reading, writing, and listening.

Correct Answer: Myth

Multiple Choice

Myth or Reality: More English is better when learning it as a L2.

• Myth

• Reality

The text goes on to say that by 6th grade, students should be spending ~50% of their time in class hearing English. I think that I can help support this easily in my Social Studies classroom.

Teaching Implications

Hearing, reading, writing, and speaking English is helpful when learning English. However, Thomas and Collier say that ELL students are supposed to make 1.5 year's progress in English for six successive school years in order to be on-par with their peers. The text also suggests that in order for students to learn best, they should spend 80-90% of their time in their home language, and 10-20% in English, in K-1st grade.

Correct Answer: Myth

Sources Used:

• Katie Toppel, Tan Huynh, and Carol Salva (https://tankhuynh.com/9-myths/)

• Colorin Colorado (https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/whats-normal-whats-not-acquiring-english-second-language#:~:text=Gradually%2C%20as%20they%20learned%20more,very%20early%20in%20their%20schooling.)

• Soonhyang Kim & Raquel Plotka (https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1150266.pdf)

• Effective Language Learning (https://effectivelanguagelearning.com/language-learning-tips/language-learning-myths/)

• Lightbown & Spada