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Emergent Participatory Language Teaching And Strategic Learning

Eloise T. Choice M.S., Ed.

Participatory language teaching is concerned with critical pedagogy and social collectivism and is accomplished by participatory teaching the pedagogy of engagement (Richard-Amato, 2010, p. 93), or shared power between students and teachers. It involves scaffolding -- connecting the subject matter being taught to students personal backgrounds, experiences, and issues that affect their lives -- allows students to communicate more about what matters to them, and motivates them to higher levels of participation. It thus engages students, allows them to provide greater input into what happens in the classroom, and enables them to reach their academic goals. As students and teachers form dialectical relationships with one another, the process of teaching English language learners (ELLs) moves beyond the usual initiation/response/feedback (IRF) paradigm: The teacher asks a question (the initiation); the student gives the answer (the response); the teacher, more often than not, then evaluates the response (the feedback) (pp. 93-94). IRF is referred to as trans-missive discourse in that it is traditional pedagogy. Richard-Amato is careful to point out that traditional teacher input has its place and may be advantageous for students at the beginning stages of second language (L2) acquisition: However, once students become more proficient and are able to apply strategies, especially meta-cognitive [more comprehensive] ones, they may require the complex interactions and role alternatives offered in transformative [classroom] discourse (p. 95) between teachers and students that is social in nature. Freire argued that praxis the combination of reflection and action is necessary for teachers to transition from trans-missive discourse (teacher-led activities, viewed as being too controlling and manipulative for students at the higher levels of L2 acquisition) to trans-formative discourse (student-led, participatory learning activities). This encourages students to be active in their own learning and humanizes and validates the students and their cultures. On the other hand, Richard-Amato argues that if teachers continue transmissive instructional strategies at the higher levels of L2 acquisition, students may become marginalized by the host culture (p. 97). This will of course, have a negative effect on L2 acquisition as students may rebel against the language of the host culture. In response to question #1, in my classroom, before beginning a persuasive writing assignment, students discuss issues that affect their lives such as the following: the legal age to drink, the legal age to drive, immigration reform, curfews, abortion, and the military draft. They are instructed to take a stand for or against an issue (thus develop a thesis statement), work collaboratively with their peers and the teacher to develop arguments that support the thesis, and to conduct self-directed

research that provides expert opinion, data, facts, and statistics in support of their arguments. After the persuasive paper has been completed, they will then form pairs or groups, present their arguments orally, thus engaging in debate with those who hold the opposing point of view. For extra credit, they may even choose to write letters to the governor, the President, or to Congress concerning those issues. These processes interlace participatory learning and strategic learning. Because they are empowered by being able to participate in the social and political aspects of our society, the level of motivation is very high, and participation is usually at or near 100%. Strategic learning focuses more on the individual student and his or her self-directed learning, and equalizes power within the teacher-student relationship (p. 105); this further empowers the student and encourages the student to take responsibility for his or her own learning. At the higher levels of L2 acquisition, learning a second language should be a collaborative effort between the individual student and his or her teacher. It helps students to become more meta-cognitively aware and thus to become more independent of the teacher. Richard-Amato points out that one meta-cognitive strategy is one in which a student can evaluate his or her own progress. She also suggests that teachers should introduce a variety of learning strategies for students in the process of L2 acquisition that are integrated with the curriculum and that are instrumental in student self-evaluation; this way, each individual student can choose the learning strategy that works best for her or him. One example of self-directed learning is allowing students to keep writing portfolios with which they can self-assess their writing progress over the course of the school year by using checklists and rubrics. Richard-Amato provides sample lists of self-directed learning strategies for listening, speaking, pronunciation, reading, writing and vocabulary development, while cautioning teachers that practice and a focus on strategies need not be so extensive or intrusive as to interfere with learning (p. 110). In summary, she points out that although participatory and strategic learning seem to conflict, they complement each other: To function collectively, individuals need to bring to the table all their capabilities that have been highly developed through social processes (p. 111).

References
Freire, P. (1985). The politics of education: Culture, power, and liberation. New York: Bergin & Garvey. Richard-Amato, P.A. (2010). Making it happen. From interactive to participatory language teaching: Evolving theory and practice. White Plains, New York: Pearson Education.