A variety of approaches
Language teaching demands a variety of approaches and methodologies. This section of the guidelines for teachers suggests some approaches that reflect the principles and priorities of the English curriculum and that can enhance children's language learning by realising the aims and learning goals of the curriculum. These approaches, however, are not intended to be exhaustive. They should be adapted as appropriate to the needs of the school, the class, the child and the teacher, and be supplemented from the teacher's own talents, expertise and experience.
Language awareness
The strand Receptiveness to language is concerned with making pupils aware of the potential of language both as listeners and users. Listening is an essential element of the communicative process because it is through listening that we know what others feel, what they know, what they need, and what they want to tell us. It is important, therefore, that children's listening skills are developed and that they learn to listen actively.
Receptiveness to language involves receiving all of the meaning that the speaker or writer wishes to convey. Speech is the most common, natural and accessible means of communication. It entails the use of both language and non-verbal cues, such as tone of voice, and gesture, to convey meaning.
Speech facilitates spontaneous expression. It has the immediacy of personal interaction and allows for the quick communication and reception of thought. Children use speech to express ideas, feelings and intuitions and through it they listen to the ideas, feelings, intuitions and reactions of others. In the interaction of listening and self-expression children can clarify their thoughts, modify their perceptions and expand their view of the world.
Learning how to use language for different functions in different contexts is important for both speaking and writing. In the early stages, children will write as they speak. In writing for an ever-widening audience, for different purposes and in different genres, children can learn to identify and use appropriate language in particular contexts.
Children's receptiveness to printed language is, of course, essential, for the achievement of literacy and for the development of comprehension skills. The ability to read and comprehend text will have a bearing on children's learning in every curriculum area. In the early years at school, children's visual awareness of language can be cultivated through exposure to a rich and changing environment of print.
The extent to which children can construct meaning from text will depend, in great measure, on the quality of language they already possess and the level of their awareness of the nuances of words and phrases. However, the children's understanding of what they read can also be developed and extended through discussion. Through the writing process the teacher can consistently guide children towards appropriate forms of language and develop their sense of language awareness to the point where they can choose independently the language best suited to the particular writing task.
The role of the teacher
As a model for the children, the teacher should be conscious of the importance of his/her own use of language and of the significance of such factors as clarity of diction, tone of voice, facial expression and gesture.
It is important that children experience challenging vocabulary and sentence structure. The teacher will also enhance the children's language development by consistently drawing their attention to new words and new meanings of words they already know. As the child matures, increasing reference can also be made to the origins and meanings of words, to the effect of a particular expression or turn of phrase and to the role of local accent and idiom.
The interaction of the teacher and the child is an essential feature in enhancing children's language awareness. Through questioning, prompting and suggesting the teacher can expand children's vocabulary, enable them to use language more accurately and expressively, and deepen their appreciation of its communicative power. This interaction will occur in every curriculum area, so that the development of children's language awareness will be a factor of their total learning experience.
The social context of language
The child needs to develop the appropriate language needed to perform the common social functions such as greeting, asking questions, saying goodbye and expressing appreciation and sympathy. Through the teacher's example, prompting and guidance, children will develop a sense of how to use language appropriately. As children get older, more structured and formal contexts for developing the appropriate use of language will need to be created. These contexts could include debates, presentations and interviewing interesting people.
Creating the context for oral language
As an interactor with the children it is the teacher who creates the general context for oral language activity. This is done in two ways:
- by ensuring the desired quality and variety of stimulation in the form of ideas and topics. The child's experience, in and out of school, is the natural starting point but this, of itself, is not sufficient. The elements of content in the curriculum indicate the variety of stimuli needed for a comprehensive oral language programme.
- by creating and facilitating the organisational structures in which talk can take place. These will vary with the nature and function of the activity but will consist of the various permutations of whole-class, group and one-to-one talk and discussion (both pupil-teacher and pupil-pupil).
Whole-class and group work
Whatever the format being used, the teacher has a crucial role to play in ensuring that the talk is directed in the most effective way. In a whole-class context, while the teacher will help to give the most productive direction to the discussion, the children should be encouraged to make the major contribution.
In group and one-to-one discussion, the teacher can move from group to group prompting, questioning and suggesting in order to ensure that the maximum learning potential is derived from the particular activity or topic. A group might choose a spokesperson who would report back to the class and this, in turn, might furnish the basis for further whole-class discussion.
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| Oral language activity is central to the curriculum |
Improvisational drama
Improvisational drama should be an essential element of oral language activity. Through drama, children can explore ideas, feelings, characters, actions and reactions in a way that frees them from the constraints of their immediate context and inhibitions. It can also help to create the contexts in which more formal social functions can be learned and practised. It is a teaching medium which can be used in many areas of the curriculum.
English and the European dimension
Much of the character and power of the English language is the result of the influence of other languages in the course of its development. In their evolution from Anglo-Saxon, English vocabulary and grammar have been profoundly affected by Greek, Latin, the Scandinavian languages of the Middle Ages, Norman-French, modern European languages and, of course, Irish. This has given an enormous richness and expressive power to the language. In its turn English has influenced other European languages, especially in modern times.
It is important that children, particularly in the later stages of the primary school, are made aware of these connections. The curriculum is quite specific in this regard. It states that the child should be enabled to discuss the meanings and origins of words, phrases and expressions with the teacher. It is important, therefore, that children have the regular experience of examining the origins and history of words. This will not only increase their awareness of language but extend their knowledge, since both culture and history are reflected in the origins of words and the course of their development.
There is an obvious point of integration here with the history curriculum. The decline of Irish as a spoken language and the extent to which Irish influenced English as it is spoken in Ireland were of enormous significance in Irish history, culture and literature, as were the Viking, Norman and English settlements. The consequences for language of these events should be examined when they are being treated in the history class.
Another obvious point of contact with both Irish and other European languages is through translation into English. It is important that, in the course of their reading, children should have experience of both poetry and prose in translation from Irish and other European languages.