Myth Contributions

7/24/2019 Myth Contributions

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MYTH 1: CHILDREN LEARN SECOND LENGUAGES QUICKLY AND

EASILY

Frequently people think that the children learn more quickly the second language due to

the belief of the "critical period hypothes is" that consists in that the brain of the children

has a cognitive plast icity superior than that the adults because the cortex of children ismore plastic than that of the older learners. Recently this hypothesis has beenquestioned due to there are other very significant factors that are very relevant at the

moment of the learning as psychological and social, for example the personalmotivat ion of the pupils.

Nevertheless, this hypothesis isnt true because there has been verified that the adultslearn better and more quickly than children, due to the fact that already they have

acquired learning strategies as well as the vocabulary. The only exception that we canfind is the re lating one to the pronunciation.

MYTH 1: CHILDREN LEARN SECOND LANGUAGES QUICKLY AND

EASILY

People tend to think that children learn second languages more quickly andeasily than adults. We are going to explain the pros and cons about this myth.

According to the article, on the one hand, children could learn faster a second

language because their brains are more flexible and their cortex is more plastic thanadults brain. As we can see in Chinese shops, kids translate to their parents what peopleare saying to them.

Talking about pronunciation, children speak without foreign accent. They aremore open-minded to receive other languages. Also, kids are more motivated to speak

new languages because they arent so shy. On the other hand, some studies proved that adults have more skills in order to

relate grammatical constructions than young people. In fact, adults language tends to bemore complex and technical. Also older learners have more memory techniques andstrategies to learn a second language, for that reason they have a richer vocabu lary.

To sum up, in our opinion teachers have to be aware of children difficulties and

assume they will not get it immediately.

MYTHS AND MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT SECOND LANGUAGE

LEARNING: WHAT EVERY TEACHER NEED TO UNLEARN.

Myth 2: The younger the child, the more skilled in acquiring a second language.On the one hand we can say that this myth is false because in this text appears a studywhere we can see that older children are better than younger children in acquiring a

secondlanguage, it can be because the older children are accustomed to study languages in atraditional style or using grammatical styles, so older children have more skills ininstructional approach hence this ones are better in tests. But there are other things likeolder children have more experience than younger children and this ones have a minor

cognitive development.On the other hand the text says that younger children are better than older children in

pronunciation because pronunciation involves motor patterns and this stop on the f irst

language and it is very difficult to change after a concret age.So younger children have a better native accent because they havent closed this motor


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patterns yet. The younger children have native accent, this accent is like native personsaccent.However this doesn't mean that learning a second language at an early age is a good or

bad thing, but it a ll depends on many factors, but younger children have an advantage

because they can increase their potential in communicat ion skills and they can integrate

other cultures as their own.Furthermore the text says that people who stay more time in contact with secondlanguage dont learn more than the people who dont stay in contact a lot of time.

All this things says that each children have a different form to learn and acquiring skillsand theteachers have a lot of forms to explain languages or other thing, so the younger the childthe more skilled in acquiring a second language are false because older children have a

determined skills and younger children another determined skills hence the olderstudents will show quicker gains and younger students have an advantage in

pronunciation.

To conclude the text explain that all the teacher have to be clear the situation of each

student and act accordingly to the needs of students because each one's need differentthing when they study, learn, memorize For example, if a teacher have a student who have other mater language and he doesnt understand a lot of english, the teacher will help him and the teacher have to know a

little bit the students mater language; so if people who have a minority mater language,

they have to usethis language to learn the second language because they take as a reference their materlanguage.

MYTH 2: THE YOUNGER THE CHILD, THE MORE SKILLED IN

ACQUIRING A SECOND LANGUAGE.

This myth talks about the best time to start language instruction. Is supposed that thebest time to learn two languages simultaneously.

The best way to learn a second language is to begin at the same time that the first

language. Exist a discuss between when children learn the second language earlier.A British study shows that older children learn a second language better than youngerchildren. This results are similar in a other studies, as for example Swedish childrenlearning English. However, this results aren't always similars. A program in Canada

defends that older guys haven't more skills to learn a second language than younger

children.

In the pronunciation aspect is better to learn the languages at the same time because the

accent acquired in first language have repercussions in the second language. If thechildren starts to learn the second language when their motor patterns have beenfossilized in the first language, they use this pronunciation for the second. And itrepercutes in phonology of the second language learned.Although otherwise, the older children have acquired a cognitive skills which do that

they learn better.


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MYTH 3: THE MORE TIME STUDENTS SPEND IN A SECOND LANGUAGE

CONTEXT, THE QUICKER THEY LEARN THE LANGUAGE

Myth 3 talks about the time students spend in a second language context and the quicker

they learn the language.

On the one hand, the first part of this myth explains that some educators think that thebest way to know a second language is a structured immersion. However, students thatgo a bilingual classroom acquire the same knowledge that the structured immersion

because the most important is the language learning, not the time.On the other hand there is a great deal of evidence that, while oral communicat ion skillsin a second language maybe purchase within two or three years, it may take up to fourto six years to gain the level of proficiency for understanding the language.

Also, bilingual classroom are beneficial to students its allow do a good word. Thechildren who go a bilingual classroom acquire as much English as children who havemore exposure from an earlier age.

In conclusion, children learn more and quick when they expend more time in contact

with the second language, but we think that children learn the same in a public school,bilingual, or if they have an exchange. The important is that children have a competentteacher. Nevertheless is not necessary that they are native.

Myth 3

In first place, our myth talk about the time a child spends learning a second languageand the relation between this time and the speed of the childs learning.

It is said that children who receive all the instructions in the second language (English)and attend only lessons in this language are faster developing the English language

skills than children who attend lessons in the mother language and in the second

language. However, research has demonstrated that this is not truth.

Furthermore, research has proved that children who attend lessons in both languages,that is in their mother language and in the second language, have a level of Englishwhich is equilavent to the level that have the children who only learn in English.Finally, as future teachers, we should promote the use of both languages at the same

time because with this kind of lessons we will be sure that our children will learn thesecond language and also that they will not fall behind school work.

MYTH 4: CHILDREN HAVE ACQUIRED A SECOND LANGUAGE

ONCE THEY CAN SPEAK IT

Myth 4 says that children have acquired a second language once they can speak it.It's not true because children can speak proficiency English sometimes they aren't good

atwriting, listening, nouns, verbs, synonyms and antonyms.Jim Cummins says that children who are not ready for a ll-English classroom may beharmful to the children academic success.Also, if the children can't understand English, they won't be able to have success in

English class.


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English summary myth 4

We often think that children know English properly when they know how to speak it but

thats not true because English doesnt consist in oral expression only but also in

vocabulary, syntact ic knowledge and other grammatica l objects.

This thesis is supported by the Canadian educator Jim Cummins by an investigationdone by him that indicates kids take longer to handle cognitive language skills properlyrather than oral communicative skills. He and other investigators argue that children

show fluency in a language because they have good oral skills but dont understa nd theabstract aspects of the language like synonyms, nouns, adverbs, adjectives and manyothers.All exposed above has a great influence in teaching. Teachers have to be careful with

placing children in a ll-English classes because it can be dangerous for their academicsuccess and knowledge. It is inappropriate to put children in a classroom where theassessment is based in oral unrollment.

Children can have problems in reading and writing even if they can speak properly the

language. Many problems with English language can be due to the bad teaching andlimitations in middle and high school. Basically, learning a second language is not aseasy as it seems and isnt finished in a year or two.

MYTH 5:

All children learn a language in the same way

To answer this question we say that there are we two issues. In the First place we canfind from difference cultures, with its own language and in the second place we can find

difference ways to learning the language.

Parents teach their children through language, this is used to communicate meaning and

to convey information, and things like that. .. when children come to school thelanguage is very difference is more formal, often do not understand, so children will befrustrated.Some children in some cultures are more accustomed to learning from peers than from

adults. They learned to be quiet in the presence of adults and had little experience ininteractive with them.We can find children shy and quiet and children extrovert and talkative. They learnlanguage the difference way. While the first will feel worry about mistakes, the others

children will dont feel worry about mistakes and therefore they will speak more and

will learn faster.Therefore, teachers need to be aware of cultural and individual differences in learnerstyles to use the best strategies and methods to help the students reach success.

What does this mean for the teacher?

Teacher must make; small group, cooperative learning, peer tutoring, individualizedinstructions, and other strategies that take the childrens diversity of experience into

account.Finally, teachers need to be aware of how the childs experiences in the home and inthe home culture affect values, patters of language, and interpersonal style.

This myth says that all children learn a second language in the same way, but it is false,each child learn to different rate and different way.


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In addition, education does not only depend on the school but also it is work of theparents. Each child comes from a different culture so not everyone speak the same way.Some children in some cultures are more accustomed to learning from peers than from

adults. They learn to be quiet in the presence of adults and have little experience in

interacting with them.

We can find shy and quiet children and other extrovert and talkative children. The firstfeel worry about mistakes however other children dont feel worry about it so theyspeak more and learn faster than the first.

Therefore, teachers need to be aware of cultural and individual differences in learnerstyles to use the best strategies and methods to help the students reach success.

MYTH 5

All children learn a second language in the same way. This myth is false, teachers admitthat not every child learn the same way. A research showed that children from

American that become from minority cultural background have different ways of

talking.Some schools from there teach language in order to communicate meaning to conveyinformation, to control social behavior and to solve problems and later in upper gradesthe style of talk is analytic and deductive.

Furthermore in social middle-class parents teach their children through language

where instructions are given verbally from a very early age.In addiction some children in some cultures are more accustomed to learn from peersrather than adults.

All these facts are the things that teachers have to take into account when teaching.We need to be aware that many cultura lly and linguistica lly diverse children enter

school with cognitive and social norms that differ from those which the govern of

every country wants to teach in every classroom. This is why this myth it isn t true.

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Myth Contributions