Naomi Miller

ED 650
22 February, 2016
Philosophy of Teaching and Learning
For me, learning has always been about what you can DO. Im a real chatterbox, so it
stands to reason that I love learning languages speaking more languages means speaking with
more people! When I teach, I like to appeal to my kids sense of how fun it is to be able to do
new things. Many second language learners come to class already passionate about learning
languages, either because they have family who speaks that language, or because they want to
travel, or because theyre simply fascinated by other cultures. However, many students who
grow up speaking the dominant language dont see much point in learning a second language.
They can communicate to their friends and family with their language, and can study or work
with that language, so the effort of learning may seem to outweigh the benefits. One of my main
goals is to get these students to understand how learning an L2 personally benefits them, as well
as benefiting their family and greater community.
Many students believe that learning a second language is just not for them. I beg to
differ. Whether or not Michigan continues to require two years of a second language, I believe
that everyone benefits from learning an L2. Struggling to communicate in a second language
teaches students empathy for those who struggle to communicate in English. Learning a
language teaches students to think creatively. Being bilingual teaches students to see the world
through multiple lenses, causing them to be more open-minded. Yet, some students feel that these
benefits are out of reach, as they just cant learn languages.
Its certainly true that languages come more easily to some students than to others. A
second-year Spanish classroom often contains a wide variety of Spanish proficiency from the
heritage learners who can speak fluently but struggle with writing, to the self-motivated students
who study with Mango Languages outside of school, to the students who passed Spanish 1
without mastering the basics. This is why differentiation is so important. Differentiation, as I see
it, is a two part process. You meet the students where they are, and you take them further. Some
teachers stop after the first part, giving As for effort. I believe that you do no favors passing a
student along without teaching them the essential knowledge needed to really use that second
language.

I believe that language is all about communication, which means striking a balance
between form and flow. I dont want my students to end up like a friend of mine who studied
English in school able to perfectly conjugate about three verbs in every conceivable tense, but
unable to hold a conversation. On the other hand, I think that its problematic when students go
too long without mastering grammatical forms. Its difficult to get 4 th year students to practice
conjugating the present tense because its no longer novel, and therefore not very interesting, yet
the longer they go without mastering it, the harder it becomes to do so. When language learners
dont learn grammatical forms, it limits their conversations. Often, this means that teachers and
university professors revert to the students L1 in order to have more in-depth conversations, or
simply dont have those conversations. This sets a cap on student learning, which could have
been avoided if more time had been spent focusing on form earlier on. Its the case of an ounce
of prevention being worth a pound of cure.
Because I believe it helps students in the long run, I focus on form in my classes more
than is currently popular. I believe that this allows my students to communicate more freely. Just
as you teach addition early on so dont waste a lot of time in a calculus class figuring out sums, I
believe that one should learn grammatical forms early on. However, learning form doesnt have
to be decontextualized. One can practice conjugation by talking about oneself, interviewing
others, reading funny stories or learning about cultural practices in different countries. The best
way to teach form is to contextualize it for the students likely personal goals meeting new
people, getting around town, learning about their favorite topic, etc. The more I find out about
my students, the more I can contextualize their learning in ways that are motivating to them,
even for the students who start out reluctant to learn a second language.
I like to integrate my students interests in what they are learning, and let students really
shine. I love to use creative assignments such as short sketches rather than simply translating
sentences. While translating sentences is nothing more than recognizing or recalling factual
information, writing sketches is creating, a higher order thinking skill. In addition, being creative
allows kids to have fun with what theyre doing, so they are more engaged. It is so satisfying to
see students who dont always come prepared to love Spanish cracking up as they figure out how
to tell a waiter that their lobster is still alive, or to see the look of recognition when you use a
LOTR meme to demonstrate the impersonal passive mood. After all, we are inherently creative
people. Teaching students to complete boring activities is teaching them to be boring, which is

contrary to their nature. Refusing to teach them grammar or vocabulary is taking away the tools
they need to show their creativity. Because of this, I think its very important to both teach
mechanics and to leave room for individuality.
While I believe that the mechanics of communication are important, I believe that
learning Spanish is about much more than learning grammar, vocabulary, and other
communication skills. Roughly one fifth of the United States speaks Spanish, and there are more
Spanish-speakers in the United States than any other country besides Spain (fact-check and
citation needed maybe the US is #3?) Languages can divide people, and bilinguality can bring
people and communities together. I want to teach my children not only how to speak Spanish, but
why it is so important. Spanish is not just a foreign language. It is an American language. I dream
of a day when the United States is not a series of communities divided by languages, but one
multilingual society. And I teach to work towards that dream.