Learning a second language definitely has its challenges. I learned French in school. My French instruction started in kindergarten and continued into CEGEP. Having grown up in Montreal, I was able to practice French in the workplace, conversing with friends, and in social contexts, when I am out at a restaurant for example, or even in stores... Neither of my parents spoke French. As an adult, my mom went back to school to learn French so that she could help my sisters and I with homework. My dad listened to French radio often in order to improve his accent. He grew up in Flin Flon, (yes, that's a real place!) Manitoba, learned very little French at school and was never able to practice as no one in his neighbourhood actually spoke French! According to Gordon (2000), if children learn a second language at an early age, they can master it and speak without an accent. I tried learning Spanish as an adult. I took a 10 week course, did my homework, progressed in class and felt as though I could move to a Spanish-speaking country and get by with my fantastic Spanish! Ask me a question now and all I would be able to muster is: No habla espagnol. I completely lost everything - I guess that's what happens when you don't practice. According to Gordan (2000), learning a new language after the age of 12, can be compared to learning any other subject. You can still learn it but may not necessarily master it. I was first hired as a French teacher. I had an interview at Lester B. Pearson School Board back in 2003. My interview was conducted in both French and English, and as there were more French positions available, I got a job as a grade 6 French teacher. I had to take a course that year, offered by my school board. It entailed me to write papers throughout the course, and to do a final oral and written exam to be considered a French teacher. It was a great experience! I thought back to my schooling, from my early years in elementary all the way to CEGEP, and thought how well I was taught a second language that I was able to find work in French. According to Hartshorne et al. (2018), children learn languages more easily than adults. Later on in my career, I taught in English too as more positions began to open up. I have taught in 50-50 schools (equal instruction given in English and French), in immersion schools (French instruction only from kindergarten to grade 2, turning into a 50-50 setting as of grade 3), and finally in Français Plus schools (French instruction only from kindergarten to grade 4, turning into a 50-50 setting as of grade 5). I taught students who had never spoken French at home and whose parents don't speak French, I have taught francophones who speak French with their parents at home, and I have taught anglophone children whose parents really make an effort with their children to expose them to as much French as possible in the classroom. In my fifteen years of teaching experience, and having taught over 500 students, I really appreciated the parents who continued to speak French at home with their children. And if they didn't speak French, they would make an effort to watch movies in French and to help their children with their homework. According to Hoover-Dempsey et al. (2005), parent involvement in their children's school work, has a positive impact on student outcome. It is so important for parents to get involved in their child's academic work. Not all parents are able to help their children. In those cases, work has to be done in school. I used to give an extra hand to my students at recess and at lunch time if I knew that they weren't getting the support at home. Two things happened to me recently that inspired me to write this blog. One, I was on a road trip with a couple and their children. We were traveling to Quebec City together. The husband is anglophone and the wife is francophone. They were speaking English to their children the whole time. I asked the mom if she spoke French with her kids and she said: "Ah! They can learn in school!" I was taken aback by this answer! Although the mom is right and her children can very well learn French at school, it would be most beneficial for the kids if they learned French at home before starting school. Teachers need support at home! The second thing that happened was that my sister said her kids would not be speaking French as well as they do now if it wasn't for her efforts at home...Again, I was taken aback. What's wrong with encouraging them to speak French at home? Why does it have to fall solely on the shoulders of the teachers? I love what my sister does with her kids: From ALL screen time being in French, to French board games, to random conversations in the house. I hear my nieces speaking French among themselves without any prompting from their parents ALL THE TIME. Although their parents are anglophone, they make every effort to bring French into their home. According to Gordon (2000), if children hear a second language at home, they are learning it as they would their mother tongue. I start off every "Meet the Teacher" night by telling the parents that we are in a partnership for a year, that it takes a village to raise a child and that we need to work together and communicate throughout the year. I tell them that I need their support and that I can't do it without them. I ask them, that if they don't already speak French at home with their kids, to please consider adding it to their daily routine, by reading to them in French, by having them read in French, watching French shows and movies and really integrating it into their routine. So, what if you don't have parental support, for whatever reason...Perhaps, the parents don't speak French and are unable to help their children. According to Goldberg (2012), children can fall into a homework trap and fall behind in their studies. The students may not understand the work being taught in class, and not get the much needed support at home and fall more and more behind in their work. It is a win win situation, if teachers, parents and students all work together and support one another. It takes a village to raise a child. References and recommended readings
Anderson, R. (January 01, 2004). Phonological acquisition in preschoolers learning a second language via immersion: a longitudinal study. Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics, 18, 3, 183-210. Fennell, C., & Byers-Heinlein, K. (2014). You sound like Mommy: Bilingual and monolingual infants learn words best from speakers typical of their language environments. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 38(4), 309–316. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025414530631 Gordon, N. (January 01, 2000). The acquisition of a second language. European Journal of Paediatric Neurology, 4, 1, 3-7. Hoover‐Dempsey, K. , Walker, J., Sandler, H., Whetsel, D., Green, C., Wilkins, A., and Closson, K. Why Do Parents Become Involved? Research Findings and Implications, The Elementary School Journal 106, no. 2 (November 2005): 105-130. Goldberg, K. (2007). The homework trap. Encounter, 20(4), 70-89. Hartshorne, J. K., Tenenbaum, J. B., & Pinker, S. (2018). A critical period for second language acquisition: Evidence from 2/3 million English speakers. Cognition,177, 263-277. doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2018.04.007 Learning a Second Language Through Interaction. (January 01, 2002). Language and Education Clevedon-, 16, 73-75.
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