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Teach English in Changdian Zhen - Xuzhou Shi

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I could have chosen any of the other topics, but the abundance of choice would have left me very indecisive. This topic, simple as it may seem to some, covers it all for me. We can talk about language acquisition in many different ways but the most important thing to establish before those ways take any effect, is confidence. I have seen students come from a variety of situations and backgrounds. Those who lacked confidence always stood out to me, because they had a hard time letting the new language sink in. The reason behind it was a precarious situation- whether as refugees, children of divorced parents, or any other case that would make you seek comfort rather than challenge. Stepping out of your comfort zone and daring to make mistakes in a new language is where you learn and perfect the language. Building confidence among students also comes when establishing rapport. This is why I link back to the last chapter and what it means to make children feel comfortable in the class setting. To really let them know that you are on their side, but also there to help them move forward. In any case, whether it is learning how to conjugate correctly and getting corrected by your teacher or your class mates, the feeling that comes after that in is most decisive in language acquisition. If a student feels any kind of embarrassment, future answers will likely be limited or tainted with stress. It is important that the teacher and the classmates also learn to react in a respective manner, not always correcting but chiming in when necessary. Confidence building is done in many ways. Making sure students are matched based on their abilities, whether weak together with stronger or different groups of different levels, is already a key ingredient to a successful lesson. Another way confidence building works is allowing students to participate in discussions by choosing the right technique to guide them, if need be. When students say something correctly, they often auto-reward and get a positive confirmation from peers and teachers as well. Students usually don’t mind being corrected if it is done in the right way. The more confidence, the more soft a student is able to react. They are confident in knowing that they are there to learn and others are there to help them. For teachers, equally, confidence is a very important trait. It makes them able to smile and really own their lesson, motivating students to speak with a level that could be that bit better, or higher. It allows teachers to read more interactively, clear, loud and pronounced. I would like to add a personal note on why confidence building is so important to me. Learning different languages growing up, as a speaker of five languages, the languages I learned with most ease are the ones I learned at a very young age without any real pressure on how I was learning them and at what pace, with what mistakes and what perfections. At a younger age, starting to learn French deemed a bit complicated. Not because I wasn’t capable, but because people in my environment would laugh off the fact that I was really making an effort to throw myself into a language, try, and be corrected. Building confidence over the years has really taught me that anything we try in language is already a step forward. This is something I try to remind my students of on a daily basis. Trying already puts you one step ahead. So here you go.


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