On How to Teach a Second Language

Every teacher likes to say that their subject is the most important. It's an argument that I've had time and time again with teachers teaching as diverse topics as mathematics to history, or from Spanish to (in one very odd conversation) drama. Call me a little odd, but I think that the methodology for teaching a subject is a better topic of conversation for teachers than the subject itself.

For example, why do we only seem to use word problems in math? Yes, there are long-essay prompts that are similar in many subject areas, but I can't think of any problems in any other class (except for maybe science) where I had to identify the necessary information in a block of text, and then use it in a multi-step process to solve a problem. In fact, the closest I've seen in Spanish is a series of, "Use the text to answer these following comprehension question," questions.

But let's say that you want to teach basic Spanish. What should you do? Well, there are many possible curricula. Too many, in fact, to really go in any kind of depth here. That's why, instead, I'm going to go through a slightly different process. I'm going to start at the end, and then apply it to what I know.

So, what's the end? What's the goal? What's the way for a 300-bowl?

To communicate, to talk, to understand, to converse, to produce.
In other words, to develop a communicative proficiency in both input and output in the target language. Or, in normal people talk, to be able to use the darn thing.

For any language, that means having a basic knowledge of vocabulary and grammar. Most people would include being able to read the letters, and--if you're feeling really hoity-toity--being able to write them too.

So, if the goal is to be able to use the language, how do we get our students to learn the vocabulary and grammar? Long vocab-lists and careful lessons on grammar?

Example A) Vocab List

1. Verduras
2. Frutas
3. Carne
4. Pescada
5. Pan
6. Manzana
7. Naranja
8. Platano
9. Lima
10. Lemón
11. Papa
12. Cebolla
13. Zanahoria
14. Berenjena
15. Pepino
16. Aguacate
17. Leche
18. Jugo
19. Chocolate Caliente
20. Presa
21. Comprar
22. Vender
23. Tienda
24. ect.

Example B) Sample Grammar Lesson

1. Direct Object Pronouns
1. Direct Object Pronouns are a set of words that refer to an object that the subject is interacting with. They are used to simplify speaking. For example, instead of repeatedly saying, "la manzana...la manzana...la manzana..." with pronouns we can just say, "la manzana...la...la..." Direct objects usually go before the verb. Depending on what the object is--me, te, lo/la, nos, os, los/las--the form changes. Here's a worksheet to practice working out the differences.
2. Now, onto when the direct object pronoun can go after the verb as a suffix--it's not required, but part of personal preference/ dialect--and when it must go after the verb.

At face value, both of these examples seem fairly effective. Students need a lot of vocabulary, so the teacher gives them lots of vocabulary and incentivizes learning it with a quiz. Likewise, the students will need to know the rules, so explicitly explaining them will help students pick them up.

The problem, though, is that people tend to learn best through repetition. Going back to math, that's why teacher's assign large numbers of problems. Of course, if there's no context for the problems, then students' can't really apply them, but that's just another layer.

So, where does that leave us?

If a vocab list is used, then make it short enough that all of the vocabulary can be practiced many times over the course of the week. If you'd rather not make a vocab list, it's always acceptable to elicit vocabulary from the students. Say that you're going to teach them about grocery stores; you can ask them what kind of food they like. If the students are interested in the words that they're learning, then they are more likely to not only use those words in class, but to use those words in their daily lives as well.

Likewise, I'm not sure that explaining the grammar really helps when students are first starting out with a language. My judgement might be clouded since much of my language teaching experience is with fairly low level students, but beginning students seem to respond better to learning either sentence frames that they can use or conjugated verbs, rather than the rules underlying why either those sentences work, or why the conjugation looks the way that it does. Comparing what my students with less traditional forms of language acquisition are able to produce with what I could produce at similar intervals, I don't see much value in an explicit explanation. Or, perhaps I should say, providing an explicit explanation at first. By letting students interact with the language, and try to make connections on their own, the teacher not only encourages the curiosity of the students, but respects their ability to make intelligent connections on their own. Once students have made a guess, then the teacher can suggest targeted corrections to help the students to understand the language.

To recap, it's important for a second (or third...or fourth...) language to be learned with the intent that, one day, it will be used. Students will need vocabulary and grammar, but need it in a way that is both accessible and will stick with them. Lastly--and this was only touched on at the start--it would behoove a teacher to look at methods that other subjects are using.

Some might indeed have wonderful ideas.