Issues for Introducing Early Foreign Language Learning

1. Issues for Introducing Early Foreign Language Learning • No theoretical optimum age to start teaching • Early learning of non-mother tongue should be integrated to other teaching in primary school • The main concern in to prepare the ground for secondary school • Linguistic and pedagogical skills of the teachers are the two most important factors

2. Conditions to Introduce EYL • It should be properly planned • Governments and private institutions must ensure that adequate resources are provided • Evaluation of the learning outcome is essential since these provide information on the validity of teaching

3. AIMS of Introducing EYL • Psychological preparation (to motivate the learner, to learn English for fun, to motivate children to learn English in interesting and fun ways, and developing awareness of language) • Linguistic preparation (to develop communicative competence, develop global and specific understanding of simple oral texts related to well known objects) • Cultural preparation (Showing respectful attitude towards other languages, their speakers and their culture)

4. Questions of Introducing English at Primary Level • What are the advantages and the drawbacks • Is there an optimum starting age? • Who will do the teaching and what kind of training should they have? • Who will be the teacher trainer? • What kinds of methodology can be created which are finely tuned to pupil’s age, abilities and socio-economic group?

5. Questions of Introducing English at Primary Level • How far is it beneficial to integrate foreign language learning with the primary curriculum generally? • What are the merit of developing language awareness as well as language competence? • What kinds of learning outcomes and achievements can we expect? • What are the best methods for assessing language development?

6. Learning a first language • Bubbling: from birth to around 8 months babies can produce a wide range of noises and sounds • The first word: At about eleven months infants put names in their own fashion to the object and people around them. During the second year, the earlier random vocalization begin to take on the aspect of genuine communication

7. Learning a first language • Two words: Between 18 monthsand two years, they enter a genuinely syntactic phase by placing two words together (there, look, want, more, all gone) to create new meaning (there doggy) • Syntactic and lexical complexity: between 6 and 12, children continue to expand their reading vocabulary and to improve their understanding of words (Tell me your name, Ask me my name)

8. Learning a first language • Conversational skills: In interactional tasks, young children may not know that they do not understand or that directions they are given and incomplete and unclear. Older children are more likely to realize that something is unclear, try to identify the problem, and suggest an alternative. As children get older, they are more able to take another person’s perspective

9. Five Stages before School Age • First utterances are used to get attention, direct someone attention to an object or an event, get something they want, make request, and simple statements (Doggy gone). Much meaning is conveyed by intonation. • Chidlren begin naming and classifying things; asking questions using where and begin to talk about location changing

10. Five Stages before School Age • Children ask many different kinds of questions often using intonation with statements (Doggy gone Mummy? They express more complex desire using “I want”, refer regularly to event in the past, and can talk about on-going actions using still of the present continuous (Mummy still in bed)

11. Five Stages before School Age • Children use increasingly complex structure to make a wide range of request, explain things, or ask explanations, using why? • Children can use the language they need to give information, ask and answer questions, make direct and indirect requests, make suggestions and offers, state intentions, and ask about those of others.

12. Young Children are Different from Older Learners because they: • Have a lot of physical energy and often need to be physically active • Have a wide range of emotional needs • Are emotionally excitable • Are developing conceptually and are at early stage of their schooling • Are still developing literacy in their first language • Learn more slowly and forget things quickly • Tend to be self-oriented and preoccupied with their own world • Get bored easily • Are excellent mimics