Language Acquisition Theories
RUNNING HEADER: Language Acquisition Theories
Introduction It is reported by Waggoner that one in six United States adolescents between the age of 14 and 19 speaks a foreign language at home besides English. Some schools expect these children to speak English fluently and at a rapid pace. They also have this hidden expectation that there will be no interference with their academic progress in the classroom. The information that is taught to English language learners is prolific in words and phrases. This can at times become baffled due to the literal and figurative language of words. Children who are fluent in English have a solid understanding of those figurative phrases. Lazar, Warr-Leeper, Nicholson, and Johnson (1998) reported that 11.5% of lessons taught in the classroom contain figurative language and teachers use idiomatic looks in one out of ten words used when teaching in the classroom. Idioms are very difficult for English language learners to translate. Often the English language learner also has difficulty understanding figurative language in the social setting. Figurative language is indeed a needed portion for the English language learner instruction. These students must have the appropriate instruction so that they can master the difficult task of speaking, reading, and writing a foreign language to them which is English. Palmer and Brooks (2004), states that if the English language learner is unable to understand and translate figurative language this will cause a disruption to their comprehension, which will cause frustrations and may hinder the student from wanting to become a reader of English. Classroom teachers must scaffold their instruction for the English language learner. The lessons must consist of comprehension strategies that are fostered around figurative language. This may have some challenges for the classroom teacher because the English language learner is diverse with a
Introduction It is reported by Waggoner that one in six United States adolescents between the age of 14 and 19 speaks a foreign language at home besides English. Some schools expect these children to speak English fluently and at a rapid pace. They also have this hidden expectation that there will be no interference with their academic progress in the classroom. The information that is taught to English language learners is prolific in words and phrases. This can at times become baffled due to the literal and figurative language of words. Children who are fluent in English have a solid understanding of those figurative phrases. Lazar, Warr-Leeper, Nicholson, and Johnson (1998) reported that 11.5% of lessons taught in the classroom contain figurative language and teachers use idiomatic looks in one out of ten words used when teaching in the classroom. Idioms are very difficult for English language learners to translate. Often the English language learner also has difficulty understanding figurative language in the social setting. Figurative language is indeed a needed portion for the English language learner instruction. These students must have the appropriate instruction so that they can master the difficult task of speaking, reading, and writing a foreign language to them which is English. Palmer and Brooks (2004), states that if the English language learner is unable to understand and translate figurative language this will cause a disruption to their comprehension, which will cause frustrations and may hinder the student from wanting to become a reader of English. Classroom teachers must scaffold their instruction for the English language learner. The lessons must consist of comprehension strategies that are fostered around figurative language. This may have some challenges for the classroom teacher because the English language learner is diverse with a