This article discusses second language fluency. How do you acquire fluency in a second language? Language acquisition learners are taught in structured English immersion classrooms. No other language is taught. In order for students to become fluent in the second language, which is English, they must speak, read, and write in English.
I interviewed a a friend whose second language is English. Spanish is his first language.. During the interview, I wanted to know, how he learned English as a Second Language. There will be a summary of this interview at the end of this article.
As teachers, we give our students lessons to improve their comprehension and vocabulary in English. There are three theories that are used by teachers to develop lessons to encourage second language learners to achieve an ideal fluency in English. The first second language theory is the Behaviorist theory. This theory is focused on teacher directing and structuring great examples for their students to model. The learners generally work independently and are given purposeful objectives. This theory uses a full circle of reinforcement, correction and repetition.
Innatist is the second language theory. The innatist theory states that learning is natural for human beings. Children are also said to learn from the environment. Unlike the Behaviorist theory, Innatist learnings are not structured. Language acquisition is placed on the student and biological components. Students are exposed to grammatical vocabulary and rules and learn by applying them. THe learners do require formal teaching however, the teacher does monitor the progress of each student.
The third theory is interaction theory. This theory uses social interaction of students surround themselves with students that has the same language barrier as them. Emphasis is on communication which is vital in language acquisition. They cannot communicate with the teacher except through non-verbal communication. Therefore, it is up to the teacher to act as the adult in the infant-adult relationship. Parents play an important role in the social environment as well as the student.
The interview started with me asking the person questions about how he learned a second language during his years in school. He stated he was seven years old when he learned English. I asked him was he born in the United States, He stated his family moved from brazil to the united states for a better opportunity for his sisters and brothers. Thirdly, I asked what was his biggest challenge in school. He stated one of his biggest challenge was learning alphabet sounds. Next, I wanted to know if his teacher was fluent in Spanish. He states his teacher did not speak Spanish and some of the students were english language learners as well. My fifth questions was to know what learning strategies he use to learn English. He stated, the most effective strategy that he remembers was learning words in his Environment. This is known as environmental print. Examples of environmental print would be written words