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This unit discussed several theories, methods and techniques that can be used when teaching English as a second or foreign language, and the pros and cons of each. Out of the nine that are discussed, three that I would consider using are Presentation, Practice and Production (PPP) (students practice making sentences out of a context or situation presented by the teacher), Communicative Language Teaching (language is learned through real life situations and stresses the importance of language function rather than grammar and vocabulary), and the Lexical Approach (uses words and phrases as building blocks for language acquisition instead of grammatical structure). I learned there are three elements to successful language learning, “Engage, Study and Activate” or “ESA.” To engage is to arouse the students interest in speaking in English by showing pictures or drawings and asking questions about the images. The study phase is when students practice sentence structure verbally and when the teacher discusses a new concept. It is also the time when the teacher positively corrects students in grammar, vocabulary and sentence structure. The activate phase is when the students put into practice what was learned in the study phase, and can be tied into the engage phase. All classes should use ESA, and ESA should always begin with “engage” and end with “activate.” There are two ways ESA can be used – the “straight arrow” way or the “boomerang” way. The straight arrow method is typically used for early or young learners and involves just the three steps – engage, study and activate. The boomerang method can be used for intermediate to advanced learners and can consist of a patchwork of ESA, (i.e., engage, activate 1, study, activate 2). I learned the most important feature of ESA is “elicitation.” It is a strategy used by many teachers to get students to respond to thought-provoking questions. I also learned the five most important points to remember, regardless of what technique or theory is used: 1) students need a lot of exposure to language; 2) teachers are involved to an extent that is not overbearing; 3) communicative tasks assist with learning, but will not work on its own; 4) students should feel relaxed and comfortable to facilitate learning; and, 5) students should be encouraged to discover language for themselves, where possible.
