By Enrique Rojas R.
Since men
started to inhabit the world, we have tried to develop ways to communicate with
each other orally. Thus, different human groups developed diverse languages. In
order to connect with other groupings, at least some of the individuals had to
familiarize themselves with the language of others. And that is how, through
history, so many systems and approaches to teach foreign languages have
developed.
Admittedly,
some systems were more effective than others, but, in the end, they all
achieved their purpose and responded to the reasons why they were created. For
example, in the late 19 century, behaviorist theories, combining elements of
philosophy, methodology and psychological theory dominated society and
determined the way a second or foreign language should be taught. Nevertheless,
eventually cognitivist views took over establishing that human beings’ behavior
adjusts to the cognitive and to the expectations of what is known. Since
learning began being considered a process which brings about the adaptation of
significances in the interior of the minds, new proceedings had to be
established for the teaching of second/foreign languages.
A number of
approaches or systems for the teaching of new languages were created and used,
mostly related to the psychological theories prevailing in the time. And they
all produced a result. Thus, we arrive at the 1970’s with the advent of the
Communicative Approach with the theory that the best way to learn a language is
practicing and using it in a meaningful way, this is, really for purposes of
communicating something instead of studying the language just as a body of
words, sounds, and systems.
Together
with communicative language came the issue of Contextualization that is providing
learners with language
items “into a meaningful and real context rather than being treated as isolated
items of jargon for language manipulation practice only.” (British Council,
2006). Halliday defines it as “the events that are going
on around when people speak,” in other words, it refers to the situation in
which people speak. Spolsky accentuates the importance of social context. He
remarked: “…a social context results in learners having different attitudes
towards the situation they are in or at least perceive themselves in. This
leads on to a higher motivation in learners, which in the case of a task helps
learners to focus on it and solve it.” And then he added: “In the model the
motivation and other aspects of the pupils’ personality lead to learning
opportunities. The context itself can also offer learning opportunities.”
So, for the first time,
language was being used in classroom teaching for its communicative function
and not just as raw material or educational matter for learning the subject of
“language”. Roland K. Yeo et al supplement that learning language in context
permits: “Through an integrative framework, we
demonstrate that the interplay of cognition, behavior, and context offers
insight into how and why learning occurs at multiple levels.”
In spite of this, it has been contended for a long time that textbooks
present language that is a poor representation of the real thing. David Crystal
& D. Davy (1975) see it as: “far away from that real,
informal kind of English which is used very much more.” (Crystal & Davy 1975:
2) Crystal, D. & D. Davy (1975). Advanced conversational English. Harlow:
Longman)
On the other hand, if we are to
take as model the way children learn their first tongue there are those who
sustain that the way in which children learn their native language is more
frequently than not, decontextualized. They say that children learn
decontextualized vocabulary from their parents’ speech, language that is deprived
of the here and now containing pretend, narrative, and explanatory discourse,
with preschool children. Meredith L. Rowe offers examples of these with explanations
by parents on why we do things or how things work, commentaries about things
that took place in the past or could happen in the future, make believe
expressions used during imaginary play, and non-immediate talk during book
reading. She observes: “Decontextualized language is challenging for children
for several reasons. First, because the meaning of decontextualized language is
conveyed primarily through the linguistic cues and not through the context, it
requires a more abstract level of analysis by the child than does comprehending
contextualized talk that is focused on the here or now, such as object labels…
and the linguistic nature of decontextualized language is itself more complex.”
(Rowe, 2013)
At any rate, the magic wand to
teach foreign languages quickly, effortlessly and ultra-effectively is yet to
be found. The best advice is still “Use out of each method those things that
work for you and your students.”
And now it is
your turn:
What do you
think about contextualized language teaching?
Do you
employ it? Habitually or sporadically?
References:
Halliday, M. A. K., Mc Intosh, A. y P.
Strevens. 1964. The Linguistic Sciences
and Language Teaching. London: Longman.
Spolsky,
B. 1969. “Attitudinal Aspects of Second Language Learning”. Language Learning 19, (3 / 4), págs.
171-185.
BIOGRAPHICAL DATA
Graduated in Journalism at the PUCP, Peru, Enrique Rojas R. holds a MA
in Journalism and MA in Inter American History from Southern Illinois
University, USA; an MA in Literature from University of the Americas, Puebla,
Mexico, all the coursework for a MA in TEFL at Universidad de Piura, Peru and
BA in Education from Universidad Federico Villarreal. He has also obtained
Certificates of Proficiency in English both from Cambridge University and the
University of Michigan and the Diploma for EFL Teachers from Universidad del
Pacifico. He is an Oral Examiner for the Cambridge University exams and has
been awarded the title Expert in E-Learning from Asociacion Educativa del
Mediterraneo and Universidad Marcelino Champagnat. He has worked as a professor
in universities in Peru, Mexico and the United States; as a newscaster and a
producer in radio and television stations in the United States and Mexico, and
as a writer and editor in daily newspapers of the same countries. He has been
in the staff of CIDUP for 19 years teaching English and Spanish specializing in
International Exams, English for Business, ESP and Teacher Training. He has
been a speaker in every Congress of English for Special Purposes organized by
Centro de Idiomas de la U.P. He is also a member of its Research Area.
