Nature and structure of language

Nature and Structure of Language

Criteria of the system of communication in order to be considered a language:

A language uses symbolsA language is meaningful and

therefore can be understood by other users of that language.

A language is generativeA language has rules that govern how

symbols can be arranged.

The Building Blocks of Language

1. Phonemes- the smallest distinguishable

units in a language.

2. Morphemes- the smallest meaningful units

in a language.

3. Syntax – is a system of rules that governs

how words can be meaningfully

arranged to form phrases and

sentences.

Properties of Human Language

creative and dynamicstructuredmeaningfulreferential interpersonal

Course Descriptions of the Language

What is the secondary English subject all about?

The secondary English curriculum for 2002 seeks to develop citizenship and to address the communication needs(i.e. interpersonal, informative, and aesthetic) of Filipino students for English, which is emerging as the

international lingua franca.

In line with developments in applied linguistics and pedagogy, and in consonance with the government thrusts and globalization ,this emerging English curriculum adopts a communicative- interactive, collaborative approach to learning as well as reflection and introspection .

It has the aim in view of developing autonomous language learners who are aware of and are able to cope with global trends.

…Central to the framework of this curriculum is the need for language learning that is contextualized, interactive, and integrated.

Goals and Expectations

At the end of the First Year, the students is expected to:

a. determine how sentences are used to

perform communicative acts, such as

describing, defining, classifying,etc.;

b. make use of real world knowledge and

experience with emphasis on cross-

cultural items ,

c. Work at the denotative meanings of a text;

identify and explain different literary

types with emphasis on Philippine

literature,

d. and show appreciation of art forms and

familiarization with the more common

mass media forms.

At the end of the Second Year, the students is expected to:

a. Exhibit skills in utilizing the prosodic

features in oral texts and signals and

cues in written texts to follows the

development of ideas,

b. Show understanding and appreciation of the different genres with emphasis on types contributed by Afro-Asian and Philippine countries,

c. and to manipulate formal devices used to combine sentences to create continuous prose employing different rhetorical patterns.

At the end of the Third Year, the students is expected to:

a. Utilize a variety of sentences and

methods in persuasion and

argumentations,

b. Break down complex sentence to get

the message in different text types,

c. Journalistic, scientific, literary, and technical,

d. and single out the devices employed in fiction works and non –fiction works (foreshadowing, flashbacks, figurative language, etc.) used by authors for intellectual, emotional, and aesthetic purpose with emphasis on Philippine and British-American literature.

At the end of the Fourth Year, the students is expected to:

a. Have acquired skills of assessing,

evaluating, and using relevant

information to meet their various needs,

thereby enabling them to adapt and

respond flexibly to a rapidly changing

world;

b. and to have developed listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills and appreciation of literature resulting in a deeper understanding of the ideas, experiences, and cultures of other people, customs and traditions, as well as values.

Scope and Sequence of the Language Subjects

First Year

Quarter 1

Getting in Touch with Self and Others

1. How I see myself

2. How does family see me?

3. Through the eyes of my friends

4. I, as a member of the community

5. How informed and concerned am I about

national and global issues?

6. Reaching out to others

7. being open to contrary opinions

8. Do I step on the right of others?

9. My relationship with God

Output: My Profile: A thumbnail sketch ( An

autobiography, a collage,

or a self- portrait)

Quarter 2

I as a learner

1. I am a learner

2. Making sense of what I’ve learned

3. When communication bogs down

4. When memory fails me

5. Planning my learning activities

6. Becoming a resourceful learner

7. Working harmoniously with others

8. Reflecting on what I’ve done

9. Synthesizing my learning experiences

Output: My portfolio as a learner

Quarter 3

My Relationship with Nature

1. Learning from nature

2. Bounties of nature

3. Taking care of nature

4. Coping with the wrath of nature

5. The 3 Rs of waste management

6. Being a responsible steward of nature

7. Communing with nature

8. Nature in us

9. Drawing inspiration from nature

Output: a campaign for change: treating

nature right

Quarter 4

Science and Technology: Friend of Foe?

1. Development in transportation

2. Development in communication

3. Medical breakthroughs

4. Food for all

5. Consumerism

6. Science and Technology: master or slave?

7. Our throw- away society

8. Experiencing information overload

9. Necessity: the mother of all inventions

Output: Round table discussion on the topic:

science and technology: friend of

foe?

Second Year

Quarter 1

Learning to Know

1. A wealth of knowledge

2. Learning to learn

3. Learning from experiences

4. Learning from others

5. Learning from events

6. Learning from information technology

7. An analytical learner

8. Reflecting on what I learned

9. Reflecting on an informative talk show

Output: An informative talk show related to

national and global issues

Quarter 2

Learning to Be

1. Being true to ourselves

2. Tracing our roots

3. Being a nationalists

4. Being an Asian citizen

5. Being an open- minded but discerning

global citizen

6. Being a team player

7. Being concerned about people

8. Being concerned about nature

9. Being responsible for one’s decisions

Output: A peace book/ wall or board

Quarter 3

Learning to Become

1. Responding to differences of opinions

and culture

2. Responding to personal problems

3. Responding to societal problems

4. Responding to uncertainties

5. Responding to changes

6. Responding to media

7. Taking risks

8. Listening to events

9. Timeout for reflection

Output: A show case of growth through

colors, shapes, objects, sounds, and

language

Quarter 4

Learning to Do

1. Viewing problems and issues from

different vantage points

2. Reading up on previous efforts

3. Noting trends

4. Drawing up plans

5. Trying things out

6. Analyzing results

7. Reflecting and evaluating processes

8. Creating new applications

9. Presenting and sharing results

Output: A project proposal and end- of-

project reports

Third Year

Quarter 1

In the Realm of Thoughts

1. Seeing patterns

2. Perception versus reality

3. Reconciling contradictions

4. Breaking down walls

5. Up- down and up again: The S- curve

6. People change

7. What’s new?

8. Green housing ideas

9. Looking back, looking forward

Output: Making ideas take shape through

songs, painting, collage, etc.

Quarter 2

Interactions

1. Formal interaction with people

2. Interaction through technology

3. Interaction with nature

4. Interaction with ideas: A self-talk

5. Non- verbal interactions

6. Reducing language barriers

7. Language of power

8. A cross- cultural perspective

Output: A phrase book of basic

conversational expressions

Quarter 3

Quality not Quantity

1. Uniqueness

2. Impact

3. Multi- modal

4. Inter- connectedness integration

5. A work of art

6. A labor of love

7. Transcending time and space

8. Source of pride

9. Beyond the unexpected

Output: standards of quality: a primer

Quarter 4

Making a Difference

1. People who make a difference

2. Earth- shaking events

3. Moving ideas

4. Inventions and discoveries that change

the world

5. What if?

6. Both sides of the coin

7. Taking a stand

8. Refuting arguments

9. Where lies the truth?

Output: debate

Fourth Year

Quarter 1

Education for Life

1. Learning to think

2. Expanding and refining knowledge

3. Applying for college admission/

employment

4. Process and product

5. Language in the content area

6. Developing a sense of responsibility

7. Service for others and willingness to

share

8. Making my voice heard

9. Previewing and evaluating

Output: Annotated bibliography and note

cards

Quarter 2

Education for Justice

1. Sharing resources equitably

2. Tempering justice with mercy

3. In defense of life

4. Defending basic human rights

5. The culture of non- violence

6. Trial by publicity

7. Justice delayed, justice denied

8. In fairness to all

9. Speaking out in defense with others

Output: Debate and letters to the editor

Quarter 3

Education for Sustainable Development

1. Education: A life long process

2. Values for sustainable growth and

development

3. Change is costly

4. Networking

5. Self- management

6. concern for the environment

7. Using language to establish relationships

8. Constant self- assessment

Output: Research paper. Draft for chapters

1- 3

Quarter 4

Education for Global Citizenship

1. Stressing interconnectedness

2. Looking at problems in a global context

3. Accepting cultural differences

4. Working cooperatively and responsibly

5. Thinking in critical and systematic way

6. Going ``global``

7. Adjustments and re- adjustments

8. Language for survival in a global culture

9. Envisioning possible, preferred and

plural future scenarios

Output: Research paper or a simple

feasibility study

Principles of Teaching

and Learning Language

1. Begin with the end in mind.

“With a specific objective in mind, our lesson becomes more focused. We do not waste nor kill time for we are sure of what to teach, how to teach and what materials to use.” – Corpuz, B. & G.

2. Encourage your students to personalize

the learning goals identified for them.

“When students set their own personal targets (lesson objectives), they will become more self-motivated.” – Corpuz, B. & G.

3. Motivation is essential in learning.

It is motivation that makes students explore, choose, remain interested, participate actively and build self- confidence.

4. Learning is a social activity.

“It is a cooperative and collaborative process.” – Pine, Gerald & Peter J. Horne.

We learn from others when we interact with them in the same way that they learn from us.

5. Teaching language is more effective and learning, more meaningful when it is integrative.

When you do integrative teaching, you will:

incorporate the 4 language arts (listening, speaking, reading and writing)

consider varied strategies for all multiple intelligences and learning styles

apply interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary teaching

teach language structure and form in authentic contexts rather than through contrived drills in language workbooks

connect your lessons to the life experiences of your students

incorporate effective, research-based instructional strategies for teaching

integrate values in your lessons

6. A conducive classroom atmosphere is a sine qua non of the teaching-learning process.

Build comfort into learning. People function best in a favorable atmosphere.

Gerald J. Pine and Peter J. Horne describe a facilitative learning atmosphere as one that:

encourages people to be activepromotes and facilitates the

individual’s discovery of the personal meaning of ideas

emphasizes the uniquely personal and subjective nature of learning

sees difference as good and desirable

consistently recognizes people’s right to make mistakes

tolerates ambiguity

looks at evaluation as a cooperative process and emphasizes on self-evaluation

encourages openness of self rather than concealment of self

encourages people to trust in themselves as well as in external sources

gives respect to people accepts people for who they are permits confrontation with self and ideas

7. Learning is an active process which uses sensory input and constructs meaning out of it.

“Learning involves the learner’s engaging with the world and not the passive acceptance of knowledge which exists out there” – Hein, G.

8. Learning is reflective.

Need to provide activities which engage the mind as well as the hands. Physical actions, hands-on experience may be necessary for learning but it is not sufficient.

9. An approach that allows for ‘more time, more depth with fewer, more complex topics’ is more desirable.

This superficial teaching won’t allow a teacher’s lesson to seep into the minds and hearts of the students.

10. Emphasize on self-evaluation.

Feedback should be criterion- referenced. Practice using rubrics. It is against this personal target that they will evaluate themselves at the end of the lesson.

11. Make use of an integrated performance assessment that makes the connections between learning styles, intelligence, and the real world explicit in a way that is useful to both students and teachers.

12. Emphasize on real word application that favors realistic performances over out-of-context drill items.

Howard Gardner argues for assessment practices that look directly at the performance that we value, whether it is linguistic, logical, aesthetic, or social performance.

Effective Instructional Strategies

Characterize an effective instructional strategy are:

Interactive

Integrated

Introspective

Reflective Contextualized

Experiential

Collaborative

Cooperative

Interactive Teaching Strategy=> is in keeping with the

principle that learning is an active process. The more you involve yourselves in the learning process, the more learning you get.

Modes of Interaction: Interact with Classmates Interact with Teacher Interact with Instructional Material Interact with Self

Integrative Teaching=> comes from the word “integer”

which means to make a whole; an effective instructional strategy.

Integrative Teaching=> To do wholistic or integrated

teaching is in contrast with the choppy and isolated teaching that takes place in several classrooms.

MI-Integrated Teaching Strategy Teaching is also integrative

when it includes all learners with multiple intelligences and varied learning styles. There are teaching strategies that are more effective for each intelligence and learning style.

IntelligenceExamples of

Classroom Activities

Verbal-Linguistic discussions, debates, journal writing, conferences, essays, stories, poems, storytelling, listening activities, reading

Logical-Mathematical calculations, experiments, comparisons, number

games, using evidence, formulating & testing

hypothesis, deductive & inductive reasoning



Visual-Spatial concept maps, graphs, charts, art projects,

metaphorical thinking, visualization, videos, slides

visual presentations

Bodily-Kinesthetic

role-playing, dance, athletic activities, manipulatives, hands-on demonstrations,

concept miming



Musical playing music, singing, rapping, whistling, clapping, analyzing sounds and music

Interpersonal community-involvement projects, discussions,

cooperative learning, team games, peer tutoring,

conferences, social activities, sharing



Intrapersonal student choice, journal writing, self-evaluation,

personal instruction, independent study, discussing feelings,

reflecting

Naturalist ecological field trips, environmental study, discussing feelings,

reflecting

LS – Integrated Activities

IntelligenceExample of Classroom Activities

Activities that focus on:

MasteryExercise—practice

Direct instructionDrill and repetitionDemonstrationsCompetitions

• organizing & managing information• practicing a skill• observing• describing• memorizing• categorizing




InterpersonalExperience—personalize

Team gamesLearning circlesRole playingGroup investigationPeer tutoringPersonal sharing

• describing feelings• emphasizing• responding• valuing




UnderstandingExplain—prove

InquiryConcept formationDebateProblem solvingIndependent studyEssaysLogic problems

• classifying• analyzing• using evidence• applying• comparing and

contrasting• evaluating




Self-ExpressiveExplore—produce

Divergent thinkingMetaphorsCreative art activitiesImaginingOpen-ended discussionImageryCreative problem solving

• hypothesizing• synthesizing• symbolizing• creating• metaphorical

expression• self-expression

Research-based Teaching Strategy

According to the McREL researchers, there are 9 categories of instructional strategies that proved to be exceptionally effective in increasing student performance.

Setting Objectives Teachers can narrow the focus for students. Instructional goals should not be too

specific, however, or learning will be limited.

Students should be encouraged to adapt the teachers’ goals to their own personal needs and desires.

Providing FeedbackFeedback should be corrective in nature.The timeliness of feedback is essential to

its effectiveness.Feedback should be specific to a criterion.Students can effectively provide their own

feedback through on-going self-evaluation of their learning and performance.

Non-linguistic RepresentationsA variety of activities (graphic

representations, pictures, mental images, physical and technological models and kinesthetic activities) can help students to formulate non-linguistic representations.

It elaborate on knowledge.

Cues and QuestionsIt should focus on what is important

rather than on what is unusual.Higher-level questions produce deeper

learning than lower-level questions.

Waiting at least 3 sec. before accepting responses from students increases the depth of answers.

Questions are effective even before a lesson begins.

Advance OrganizersIt should focus on what is important

instead of what is unusual.Higher-level organizers produce

deeper learning than lower level advance organizers.

It is best used to give structure to information that is not well organized.

There are 4 main types of advance organizers: expository, narrative, skimming, and graphic.

Cooperative LearningThese groups should rarely be

organized by ability.These groups should also be small.Teachers should take care not to

overuse them.

Summarizing To effectively summarize, students must

keep, delete, and substitute information. Students must analyze the information at

a fairly deep level. Being aware of the explicit structure of

information is an aid when summarizing.

Note TakingVerbatim note taking is the least effective

way to take notes.Notes should always be considered works

in progress.Notes should be used as study guides for

tests.The more notes taken, the better.

Homework The amount of homework assigned to

students should increase as they progress from elementary through high school.

Parental involvement in homework should be minimal.

The purpose of homework should be identified and articulated.

Feedback should be provided on homework.

Reinforcing EffortStudents are unaware of the direct

effect that effort has on success.Students can learn that the effort they

put into a task has a direct effect on their success.

Strong belief in effort increases motivation.

Providing RecognitionRewards do not necessarily have a

negative effect on intrinsic motivation.Rewards are most effective when they

are contingent upon the attainment of some standard performance.

Abstract recognition is more effective in improving performance than are tangible rewards.

Generating and Testing HypothesesHypothesis generation and testing can

be approached in an inductive or deductive manner.

Teachers must encourage students to explain their hypotheses and conclusions.

Identifying Similarities and DifferencesTeacher-directed activities deeper

understanding for students and increase their ability to use knowledge.

Students should independently identify similarities and differences.

When students represent similarities and differences in graphic or symbolic form, it enhances their ability to identify and understand similarities and differences.

There are four different forms of identifying similarities and differences: comparing, classifying, creating analogies, and creating metaphors.

Instructional Materials for

Language Teaching

Graphic Organizers=> The use of different types of graphic

organizers enhances teaching and learning.

Narrative FrameElements of the narrative or story frame: Characters: the characteristics of the

main characters in the story Setting: the time, place, and context

in which the information took place

Initiating event: the event that starts the actions rolling in the story

Internal response: how the main characters react emotionally to the initiating event

Goal: what the main characters decided to do as a reaction to the initiating event

Consequence: how the main characters try to accomplish try to a accomplish the goal

Resolution: how the goal turns out

Value Integration Techniques / Tools

Value Sheet – It consist of a provocative statement and a series of questions duplicated on a sheet of paper. The purpose of the provocative statement is to raise an issue that have a value implication for students.

The purpose of the question is to carry each student through the value- clarifying process with the issue.

Value-Clarifying Question: Can we love our country even if we can speak English better that Filipino?

Can we claim we love our country even if we do not speak the national language? Are other ways of showing our love for country? Is there really need for a national language?

Voting – The teacher asks questions which require the students to take a stand on issues by raising their hands. e.g. Are you for the school policy on no field trip? Each student is asked to support his/her stand.

Rank Ordering – Words or statements are placed on the blackboard and the students are asked to rank them in order of their preference. Then each student is asked to explain his rank ordering.

Picture Without a Caption – The students will be asked to write a caption for a picture without a caption. Students will be asked to explain their caption.

Value Continuum – A value-laden statement is presented to the students. Each student is asked to express his degree of agreement or disagreement by encircling the letter that corresponds to his response in Likert scale: SA – Strongly Agree, A- Agree, U- Undecided, D- Disagree, SD – Strongly Disagree

Devil’s Advocate – This serves as an example. In his/her attempt to justify the presence of a pollution-contributing cement factory in town, the teacher forwards plausible reasons defending the cement factory before his/her students.

She/he says: “The cement factory gives jobs to the community. It made the town a first class town because of its taxes. It has put the community into the limelight because of its excellent products is serves as donor in many community projects”, etc. Teacher acts as contravida in the first part of the lesson.

In doing so, she/he stimulates the class to argue, to debate with him/her making the class highly interactive. Before the class ends, however, teacher makes clear his/her stands to clear all doubts and confusion.

Unfinished Sentences – An unfinished sentence is written on the board and the students are asked to complete it by injecting their thoughts about something.

Conflict Story – This is best explained by the use of this example. Shall we allow our best teachers, nurses, medical doctors and other professionals to contribute to the brain drain or keep them here to compete for the scare job offerings and contribute to unemployment?

Non-Linguistic Representations

Pictographs help students visualize information, recognize patterns, and remember new content such as vocabulary.

Photographs

Generating Mental Pictures – This helps students understand and store knowledge. Use all the five sense to help produce rich mental images.

Physical Models – These are concrete representations of what is being learned. When students use manipulative, they are making a physical model to represent knowledge.

Manipulative are commonly associated with math (e.g. shapes, cubes, money) but can actually be incorporated in all content areas through such items as puzzles, maps, word sorts and Legos.

Kinesthetic Activities – Students engage in active language learning by demonstrating their comprehension through body movements such as standing up, turning around, sitting down, clapping their hands.

Explicit Cues – Cues and questions must be used before a lesson begins in order to activate background knowledge and to help students focus on what they will be learning. A K-W-L chart is perfect for this purpose.

Teacher-Prepared Notes – This way teacher models good note taking. As students progress in their language acquisition, notes given in written form with some of the words missing.

Comparison matrix

English Debate – There are two sides to a question. The class is divided into two sections facing each other according to the position taken on the topic. Each side has a leader who fields questions. If someone’s argument convinces anyone that they should change sides, they literally get up and move to the other side.

A count is taken at the beginning and end to note changes made. A total class discussion of the pros and cons can be the final synthesizing activity. This debate technique can last for several days allowing time for students to read more on the topic for persuasive argument.

Assessing Learning

Assessment as an Integral Part of Teaching

Assessment

=> is an integral part of the teaching process. Teaching cannot be whole and complete without you assessing learning and you doing something after you have assessed students’ learning.

For our purpose, suffice it is to mention that:The use of the traditional paper-and –pencil

test is not adequate to measure the many types of learning.

An authentic assessment consists in looking directly into the performance that we value.

Assessment is formative and summative.Self-assessment is a pedagogically

sound practice.

Here are some effective assessment strategies:o Reflect and revise – Give students a

chance to reflect on and revise previously completed work will help ensure that they do, ultimately, master content objectives.

o Use rubrics - Students can use the same tool to self-and- peer-assess assignments that teachers employ to assess their work. If students write a summary of an article they read, for example, they can use a rubric to determine how well their work meets the established criteria for the assignment.

o The exit slip - Give students a chance to assess the teacher, too. Teachers can give students a form to fill out and turn in at the end of the class. The form may state the learning objectives for that day’s lesson and ask student to reflect on what they learned.