Microsoft word - sanchez_ocon_beatriz_&_rivera_garcia_maria_isabel.doc

MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) Teaching English without Spanish, is it worth it?
Abstract
Nowadays there are different methods to teach English. Most of them differ in
their materials, activities or in their teaching approaches. In the same manner
there are different beliefs about the use of mother tongue (L1) in the language
classroom. The first group believes that L1should be used for all the instructions
and explanations done to the young learner. The second one believes that L1
should be only used in extreme cases. And the last one believes that the use of
L1 in the language classroom should be banned. This project is based on the
third belief, where the teaching of English to children should be done completely
in English.
This project is based on the teacher and the learners focusing on four specific
aspects: the characteristics of the group, the teaching mechanics, the way the
teacher handles the class and the reactions and attitudes presented by the
young learners. The instruments that were used to collect the data were
Observations and Surveys which helped the research find out the possible
outcomes.
This thesis was done with students of a primary school who are in Fourth grade
and have had a year and half of English classes. The treatment lasted a period
of three weeks.
For the presentation of this thesis in process, the researchers will share with
you the different outcomes based on the relationships formed between teachers
and learners while applying this treatment. The researchers will finish this
presentation with the results and the conclusions of the treatment.
1. RESEARCH PROJECT
1.1 Type of Research Approach
This research project is going to be based on the Qualitative approach because is very similar to the procedure we are going to follow to obtain our results. As we know, the qualitative approach is based on characteristics which are very humanistic and we can relate this important fact with our research because it’s going to be based on the contact, observation and relation between teacher and Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) student. We are not concerned with quantities or statistics, we want our project to be specific and based only in the students. By using the qualitative approach we can be more involved and concerned with the students needs, for this reason, we chose to apply the qualitative approach. 1.2 Type of Procedure and Description
For this research we are going to use the Sequential procedure. This procedure begins with the qualitative method to acquire the possible results or our purposes and at the end we use the quantitative method to give the quantity of the results (if there are) or to show a generalized result. This procedure can be applied in our research because first we are going to use the qualitative method to obtain our results and at the end of the project we could use the quantitative method to mention how many kids ignored us or how many kids paid attention, this is how these two methods could be applied in our research project. 1.3 Type of Research Method
As we know the action research method has a lot of facts of the qualitative method because the action research method is very humanistic and that’s why we chose it for our research. The action research method relates a lot with the topic we are going to be investigating for our project but it’s also important for us as teachers because we can help one another and we can be collaborative the whole 1.3.1 Design and its Description
This project is going to be based on a method which has a predetermined design. At the end of the research we are going to review our results and according to them, we are going to see if we are going to apply an specific design. If our results are positive or do not need to be improved, the investigation is going to stay as it is but on the other hand, if we get negative results we’re going to need to use a design called pre-experimental design which is based on applying a treatment to the sample and then measuring again the results to see if they worked and if there is a change or if the results stayed as they were. There are varied types of pre- Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) experimental designs but the one I mentioned before is the one-shot case study. Our project has to be based on this type of experiment because our research topic has to do only with our classroom and we cannot apply another type of experiment because we don’t have a population to compare it with, the only sample is my 1.3.2 Population and Description
In the Elementary school there are students from six years old until twelve years old, the school applies a common teaching program where the students learn Spanish, grammar, vocabulary and other subjects like: civism, geography, mathematics, etc. Also, they include a class where the students can practice a In general the students are beginners in English because they have only taken one year of English classes, but there are some students that know the language very well pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary and because maybe they already take it in an institute or they know the language because they’ve lived in The school is situated in the street called San Francisco, next to the garden and next to the church. It’s a very big school, it has two floors and two building where there are the classrooms and the office where the principal is. It also has a big field where the students can play soccer and other sports. 1.3.3 Sample and its Selection
In the elementary school named Dr. Miguel Galindo, there are 19 fourth graders who are about 9 to 10 years old. The 4th grade students are beginners in learning English as a second language because they have only had English for The classroom 4° “B” is a quiet and interested group, they are motivated to learn English but there are 5 students who are uninterested in learning the language, nothing seems to motivate them only the game called hang man, when we play this game they participate and pay attention. Most of the students enjoy Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) drawing images and cartoons. They also enjoy watching movies, they dislike English music and there are two boys that dislike puzzles. In the classroom there are useful materials, for example, there is media equipment like: a T.V., a DVD, a VCR, and a tape recorder for the school use The ventilation in the classroom helps the students feel comfortable because there are three fans, two for the students, one for the teacher and two big windows, this way kids cannot complain about being uncomfortable. To maintain the classroom cleaned there is a trashcan in a place where the students can see it. In general the furniture of the classroom is comfortable for the students because the tables and chairs are individual and it has the advantage of having more space 1.3.4 Aim
The main purpose in this research is to know which are the effects or the reactions that the fourth grade students that have been taught English in Spanish will have if their English teachers apply a new way to teach it; teaching the whole class only in English (the instructions, commands, the activities, explanations, etc.) We also want to know if within the time we apply the new teaching way, the students will react in a bad way or in a good way. A positive response from the students would be that after the research project is over the students will understand what we tell them in English without them making faces or asking each other what the teacher said. The good response is going to be that the students understand what the teachers says and they apply it unconsciously. On the other hand, the negative response is going to be that they may not like the teacher, they may not pay attention anymore to her or that they might simply not learn anything. 1.4 Research Question
What effects will occur in an English classroom with students that have been taught English in Spanish and now are going to be taught completely in English. Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) 1.5 Hypothesis
Students are going to complain during the first classes, then, they’re not going to say anything, at the end they are going to be used to listening to the 1.6 Justification
This research is going to be done with the purpose of observing if our fourth grade students are going to have a positive or a negative response with our new teaching way, in which we as teachers are only going to speak English, regarding the fact that last semester we would teach the class in English and in Spanish. Last semester we gave the class in English but whenever they didn’t understand our instructions we as teachers had to give them an explanation in Spanish, this important fact helped them because they didn’t needed to pay attention to me but when applying this new teaching way things are going to change. With this project we are going to see if their behavior towards the class is going to change in a positive way and to see if they understand the instructions without the teacher explaining in Spanish. Also, if they are going to apply their new knowledge unconsciously or we might get a negative result, where the kids are going to just ignore us and not do what they’re told. 1.7 Materials
For this project we are going to use a lot of materials for the different activities that we might do during the lesson plans. For example; we are going to practice with worksheets of different kinds: matching, organizing, ordering, coloring, etc. Another type of materials can be: games, listening activities, memory 1.8 Procedure
The procedure we are going to follow is going to be very basic. From now on we are going to start speaking only English to our fourth grade students, last semester we had to explain in English then in Spanish because they wouldn’t Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) understand what we were trying to say, for this reason, we want to know what’s going to happen if we only speak to them in English without using Spanish at all. The process we are going to use is going to vary for us as teachers, for example, one day the teacher Betty is going to teach the class by herself all in English and the teacher Isabel is going to be observing everything that the kids do and writing notes specifying how the kids are acting. We might get positive or negative responses but that’s what we want to see, we want to see if they make faces because they don't understand or if they stay still and listen to us. Another day we can change position and the teacher Betty observes and the teacher Isabel teaches the class. On the other hand, both of us can give the class in English to see if the kids pay more attention or if they understand more with both us helping them understand either by mimic, drawing, body movements, signals, etc. When we get to teach the class together, we are going to be taking notes during the class of how they are acting or we can also do our conclusions at the end of the class. In general, we are basically going to be observing what happens while we are giving them the instructions, while they are doing their activity, checking if they are doing their working activity, observing their attitudes, if they are going to be motivated, instant reactions, etc. All the information that we are going to collect from the notes, observations, exam scores, etc, are going to be organized according to the date that they were acquired so at the end of the research project we can analyze it and observe the results. This way is going to be easier for us to observe how they were acting at the beginning of the research and then we are going to get the observations from the last notes that we might take. At the end, we are going to make a comparison and we’re going to give the conclusions in the research. 1.9 Data collection
The data that is going to be collected and used by us is going to be based mostly on observations. In the case of our research, we as English teachers are going to be based on observations taken from our own classroom to get the results we are looking for. During the class we are going to be observing and taking notes Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) of what the fourth grade students do, what attitudes they take, if they work on their tasks, if they pay attention to the teacher, if they listen to instructions, if they understand or get confused. All of these important facts and the other extra information that might come out is going to be written and organized by us, the teachers. We are going to take care of the observations by taking turns, either both of us teach and observe or by one teacher giving the class and the other teacher 1.10 Research Statement
The fact that we are going to be the researchers and the teachers might affect the results that we might get but we think that our hypothesis are not going to change a lot We consider that with the fact that we’re going to be the researchers they are not going to take it in a bad way, on the contrary, they are going to be cooperative and they’re not going to argue that much if they don't like what we are going to be doing because they know us and they like us. On the other hand, we personally think that at first they are not going to like the idea that we speak to them only in English, but we never know. 2. RESEARCH PROJECT
In the research Project called: “Students reactions when receiving an English class without speaking Spanish”, the instruments that were used for the data collection were observations and surveys. These two instruments were chosen because they are the two most appropriate, according to the project. The instruments (observations and surveys) were selected according to the needs of the project because both of them are based on students’ way of reacting to one way of teaching, also, they are concerned with observing what the attitudes, participation, motivation and reactions of the students were. The observations that were applied in each class are based on observing the kids’ reactions, participation and motivation. The observations are thought to be the most complete and easiest way to write on and they can be used right away as the things are going on at any specific moment. The observations help gather the Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) information that is being used as reference for the research results at the end of The elaboration of the observation format was created based on the different attitudes and aptitudes that might had come up through the class time. It is also created for the observer to write notes, points of view, examples and the different types of reactions that the students might have while having their English class. The questions that integrate the observation format were chosen according to the different things that might come up. To choose the questions, the researchers had to analyze their students and according to their criteria the A survey was also applied at the end of the project. The main point of the survey was to see what the students thought about the project and the treatment that was applied in their classroom. The survey is also going to show if the treatment was useful for them, if it helped them to understand English better, if they felt comfortable, motivated, participative or enthusiastic, after hearing the class only in English through a period of time. The surveys, which were applied at the end of the treatment, helped the researchers to see what the students thought about the treatment that was applied during their English class. In the survey the students gave their personal opinion about how they felt during the treatment and if they felt it was useful to increase their listening skills. The survey questions were made according to the age range of the students and they were fixed so they would be clear and easy for the students to answer them. The questions were made according to what the researcher wanted to know. Four questions are multiple choice and another four questions are opened questions where they have to write how they felt through the treatment period; if they think it helped having a class completely in English, if they had any problems understanding, etc. The observation format and the survey questions were validated by two experimented professors in the career of Teaching Foreign Languages and it was also validated by one student who is also using this type of instrument for her project. These three people validated the observation format and gave their points of view towards the things that needed to be changed or modified. The student Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) only observed that one question should be changed in a different order and also noticed that there were two questions that were almost the same, from there on From the survey questions she did noticed two elements, one thing was that the question marks were missing and she also gave opinions about the different ways the questions could be more appropriate for the students. The teachers from the Faculty also gave comments, for both the observation sheet and the survey sheet. For the observation sheet they gave a different type of sentence for the objective part and they also gave other comments in general about the questions and their syntax. For the survey sheet the same thing happened, the teachers only The instrument that was being used daily was the observation sheet, which was applied Monday and Wednesday at 5:00pm, and on Friday at 3:40 pm. The researcher always sat in front of the classroom while the teacher was giving the class. During the class time, the researcher was observing the kids to see their reactions while the treatment was being applied by the teacher. The teachers/researchers took turns to be either one or the other, at the end of the class, the teacher and the researcher would talk about how they saw the class and what things they noticed to see if they saw the same things or to see if one of them skipped something important from the kids. The role of the teacher was to give the class using the treatment which was speaking only in English. Of course, there were different type of reactions. When the students wouldn’t understand what the teacher was saying, the teacher would try to help them in different ways. One way was to give examples, the teacher would write examples on the board using vocabulary the students already knew or sentences which they were familiar to. Another way she would try to help them was to do body movement (when it was vocabulary or an easy topic like spatial positions). If the teacher would see that some of the students were not understanding she would explain again and she would wait until one of the students would get the answer so he would tell the others. Something the teacher wouldn’t had to explain that much, certain times, the students would just start Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) yelling what they guessed the answer was and when they would get it right the The researchers’ task was to sit in the chair of the Teachers desk which was in front of the classroom. The researcher had to carry the observation sheets which were going to be filled in while the teacher was giving the class. The researcher already knew the questions that composed the observation sheet and right when he noticed important details he knew that he had to write them down. At the end of the class, the researcher would talk to the teacher about the important things that were noted during the class and both of them would share their personal opinions. 3.- DATA COLLECTION
The data that was collected from the observations had a lot of different types of reactions of the students while the application of the treatment was applied. Some of them are positive, negative and some of them can be thought to be logic and obvious. When its mentioned that some of the results are positive its because some days and for certain topics the students would understand quickly what the teacher was explaining and they would participate really well, they seemed motivated, they would start their task right away and most important they would listen to what the teacher was saying because it was something they were capable of learning. When its mentioned that some of the results are negative its because for certain topics the students wouldn’t understand what the teacher was saying and this lead for kids to be distracted, not listening to the teacher, not answering their worksheets, not starting right away their task and most important of all not The data that was collected from the surveys helped the researchers to see how the students felt while the treatment was applied in their English class. It also helped to see if they like it or not, if they felt motivated or not motivated, if they think it helps more to receive an English class completely in English and most important of all, to see if there was an improvement in their learning skills. The data that was collected through the observations and the surveys was written down on the same format but now in computer so the information becomes Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) more formal and the researched data can be comprehended and analyzed more 4. RESULTS
During this research there were positive and negative results. Some of the  The students were more participative and they would take a guess at what the  SS paid more attention to the teacher  SS paid attention to the teacher, trying to figure out what she was saying.  SS started using the dictionary to look for certain word.  The students thought more because they had to figure out by guessing, The following are some of the negative results that were found during this  When the SS didn’t understand the teacher they would start talking with their  When SS didn’t comprehend what they had to do for the worksheets they  When the students didn’t understand they would not be motivated and some of  Some students wouldn’t be participative if they weren’t interested in what the  Some Ss would get distracted because they would ask another SS what the teacher was saying and they would get lost during the lesson. Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) 5. CONCLUSIONS
Young learners are smart and they can easily adapt to any type of environment and this was shown by them during this treatment and it can be proved by the results that were obtained. The negative factors which were obtained could be taken into account as something normal for young learners because they get bored and distracted real easily with anything not only in their English classes. The results that the researchers acquired during the treatment of speaking only in English to the students had its positive and negative results but the most important results to take into account are positive. With this project the researcher found out that the students can actually be more motivated which is going to generate other good factors such as: paying more attention, SS being more participative, SS guessing more, using their imagination, creativity and practicing more English with other resources such as dictionaries. There are also negative factors which appeared during the treatment such as having the SS talking with their friends when they didn’t understand the teacher, doing the worksheet incorrectly or simply staying quiet when they didn’t comprehended the instructions, SS were not participative if they weren’t interested or motivated and Ss would get distracted because they would ask another SS what the teacher was saying which led to getting lost with the activity. The question of our project is the following one:What effects will occur in an English classroom with students that have been taught English in Spanish and now are going to be taught completely in English? The answer to this question according to the results and the researchers, there was motivation, participation; students understood most of the things either by the language or the body language and it made them think more because they would use their imagination and creativity by guessing. The hypothesis that we had made at the beginning of the project said that the students were going to complain during the first classes given in English and then they were not going to say anything, towards the end they were going to be used to listening to the teacher speaking only English and they were not going to say anything anymore because they would feel comfortable. This is proved with Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected] MEMORIAS DEL IV FORO NACIONAL DE ESTUDIOS EN LENGUAS (FONAEL 2008) some of the statements that the students said, as the following ones: “no, si le entiendo pero si no entiendo algo le pregunto a mi maestro”, another statement, “no porque siempre nos dicen con señas despues” and the last statement “no References
1. Brown, Gillian. (1999).Teaching the Spoken Language. Cambridge University Press, New 2. Widdowson, H. (1984). A History of English Language Teaching. Oxford University Press. How to Teach English. London: Longman. Biodata
Beatriz Sánchez Ocón is a student at the School of Foreign Languages from the University of
Colima. She has been involved in teaching English in an Elementary School for a year. She is
interested in using body language, dynamic activities and attractive games for the students.
Contact: [email protected]

Maria Isabel Rivera Garcia is a student at the School of Foreign Languages from the University of
Colima. She has been teaching English in an Elementary School for almost a year, and also
teaching English as member of the PAI program. She is interested in creating material and using
dynamic activities to motivate students in the English class.
Contact: [email protected]
Universidad de Quintana Roo – Departamento de Lengua y Educación http://www.fonael.org - [email protected]

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