ESTUDIO CASO REAL - TAREA UD 2 -TEXT 3

QUESTIONS

1. How can American classrooms be described by 2030?

By the year 2030, demographers say that American classrooms will be formed by
approximately 40% of non-English language natives.

2. Why is it imperative SLPs understand the processes of second language acquisition?

Give an example.

It is essential that speech-language pathologists understand the processes and phenomena of

second-language acquisition in order to avoid considering as pathologic linguistic behaviors
which are instead normal (e.g. interference, silent period and code-switching are all normal
phenomena in language learning subjects, but they can be misinterpreted as manifestation of
language disorders.

3. Is interference a language disorder?

Interference is not a language disorder. It is a normal phenomenon that language learners

may manifest by transferring linguistic structures of their first language into the second
language.

4. When children are starting to learn a new language, do they focus on speaking?

When children start to study a new language they often focus of listening and
comprehension (i.e. understanding the new code) rather than speaking. This stage is called
silent period.

5. Can the silent period be related to age?

Silent period length tends to vary as the age of the child varies - the younger the child the
longer the silent period tends to last.

6. What kind of speakers are affected by code-switching?

Many fluent bilingual speakers all over the world are affected by code-switching.

7. Why do the authors speak of a sink or swim situation?

The authors refer to the case of learners attending classes taught in a language which in not
their own, a language they do not understand at all. In this context sink or swim means to
abandon classes (i.e. sink) or to learn the language and understand the subject taught (i.e.
swim).

8. How can ELLs be taught according to the authors?

ELLs should receive education in L2 gradually: in kindergarten and first grade they should
be mainly taught in their first language (90% of time and only 10% in English), then
teaching in English should be increased gradually until, by sixth grade, they are taught in L1
 50% of the time and in English 50% of the time in order to allow them to build their
conceptual-linguistic foundation.

DEFINE USING YOUR OWN WORDS

Primary language
1) a native language or mother tongue is the language a person has learned from birth;
2) the main language in which education is given.

Hispanic
Relating to the people, speech, or culture of areas where Spanish is spoken or being a person
of Latin American descent living in the United States.

Speech-language pathologists
A physician specialized in evaluating and treating patients with speech, language, cognitive-
communication and swallowing disorders.

Struggling
To try very hard to do something which is difficult or to make strenuous efforts in the face
of difficulties.

Lagging behind
To not be at the level that someone else has already achieved.

Disability
A condition that limits a persons physical or mental abilities.

False positive
A result in a medical test that wrongly indicates the presence of a condition or finding that
does not exist.

Flounder
To struggle; to move with difficulty, as in mud.

Outperform
To perform better than someone else.

YOU ARE NOW A TEACHER

You have many different English language levels in a 1 st year secundaria classroom. How
would you cope with this situation? What kind of learning-teaching strategies would you
employ?

That would not be an easy task, I know that is almost impossible to manage a multilevel class.
Nevertheless I would try to improve the proficiency of lower students working on their gaps and
increasing their self-confidence letting them work on didactic material at their level in order to do
not frustrate them. If possible I would let them attend extra-classes. At the same time I would follow
the normal program with the other students occasionally stopping to review vocabulary, grammar,
expressions, etc. in favor of both lower lever students (to give them a chance) and higher level ones
(to consolidate their knowledge). I believe that is unfair to slow down all the students in one class
but it is unfair to abandon some students too.

TRANSLATE INTO SPANISH

Los nios tambin pueden manifestar un fenmeno comn durante la adquisicin del segundo
idioma llamado el periodo de silencio. Cuando los nios son expuestos por primera vez a un
segundo idioma, a menudo se concentran en la escucha y en la comprensin. Estos nios suelen ser
muy tranquilos, hablan poco, ya que se centran en la comprensin de la nueva lengua de hecho,
tanto como lo hacen los adultos cuando viajan a pases extranjeros. Cuanto ms joven sea el nio,
ms largo tender a ser el periodo de silencio. Los nios mayores pueden permanecer en el
periodo de silencio durante unas semanas o unos meses, mientras que los nios en edad preescolar
pueden permanecer relativamente en silencio durante un ao o ms.

GRAMMAR
The vast majority of nouns in the English language are made plural by adding an s or es to the
end of the word. For example, book, apple, house, table, door, cat, bush, boss are just some of the
millions of words that become plural with the simple addition of an s (books, apples, houses,
tables, doors, cats, bushes, bosses). However, certain nouns have irregular plurals which do not
behave in this standard way.

For most nouns, the general rule for making the word plural is:

If the word ends in s, x, ch or sh, add an es Bless + es = blesses

Box + es = boxes
catch + es = catches
Dish + es = dishes
If the word ends in a consonant (all letters except a, e, i, o, u) + y, then change the y to an
i and ad the letters es Baby = Babies

Candy = candies

For all other non-irregular nouns, simply add an s to the end of the word Cat = cats

Dog = dogs
Kid = kids

Certain words do not follow the above rules for regular plurals. There are some common types of
irregular plurals that occur, and some words simply have no plural form at all.

Non-Count Nouns
Non-count nouns, also called collective nouns, have no plural form because they are assumed to be
plural. Most abstract nouns are non-count nouns. Some examples are:
Hair
Grass

Mud
 Dress (when referring to a style of dress, not when referring to a clothing item that hangs in
your closet)

If you are talking about multiple varieties or types of these irregular plurals, you cannot make them
plural by adding an s or es to the end. Instead, you need to make them plural by adding a
descriptive phrase. For example:

There are many different styles of hair

There are several varieties of grass

There are three different kinds of mud

The ancient people had a few types of styles of dress

Unchanging Nouns
Certain other nouns have the same plural form as singular form. A large number of animals happen
to follow this rule. For example, among others:
Deer is deer whether singular or plural
Fish is fish whether singular or plural

Bison is bison whether singular or plural

Moose is moose whether singular or plural

Elk is elk whether singular or plural.

Other Irregular Plurals

In addition to non-count nouns and unchanging nouns, there are several different types of irregular
plurals which follow a pattern in the English language.
For words that end in fe, you change the letter f to the letter v and then add s

Knife = knives
Wife = wives

For words that end in f you change the f to a v and add es

Half = halves
Loaf = loaves

For words that end in us, change the us to an i

Syllabus = syallabi
For words that end in o add es

Tomato = tomatoes

Words that are borrowed from other languages such as Greek or Latin. Borrowed from
Greek, the English word phenomenon is the most common singular form and phenomena is
the most common plural form.
Words that Change Form
Certain words do not add a letter to the end, but instead change the word itself. These words simply
need to be memorized. Some examples include:
Man to men
People to persons

Tooth to teeth

Goose to geese

THINK OUT OF THE BOX

Imagine you are a student in a foreign country whose language you dont master at all
because you have been given a grant to study a masters course. How would you try to learn
the L2 to study your master subjects (it has to be fast and give you enough confidence to keep
on with your classes).

I would make every effort to use L2 in every context: I would mix direct study of the language
(i.e. language classes, self-study of grammar, reading and checking new words, etc.) and indirect
learning (i.e. listening music or pod cast, watching movies or TV, chatting, speaking, etc.). In a case
like this determination and perseverance are key words.