I can honestly say that I learned quite a lot about second language acquisition in this course. One of the things that I found most interesting as a bilingual student myself was how children go about learning their second language. Ortega states that one of the ways as that children go about learning their second language is though a naturalistic way, that is listening to and being around the native speakers and acquiring the language by being around them. The other way that children learn their second language is formally thought some type of class or formal schooling (Ortega, 2013, p. 6).
What I took out of this class the most is how this class will impact my professional practice. I have always been hyper aware of the importance of catering and differentiating English Language Learners so that they may have the best chances of learning English. This is especially true because of my own experience of being an ELL. However, after taking this class I now feel more equip with the knowledge and tools necessary to help all of the students in my class. I now understand more deeply than ever before the ways that my own behavior can have an influence on my students including those who are ELL’s. I also now understand the implications that my classroom climate, and classroom management will have on my student’s education. Such things as demanding that there be respect for all cultures and believes will undoubtedly communicate to my students that they are important as individuals and there for are a vital part of our classroom.
Although I found this class very informative and eye opening, I would have liked there to be more emphases on bilingual students. I think this is a topic that is often overlooked and I for one would have liked to have learned more about these types of students. I think the reason for this is because I myself am a bilingual student who still sometimes struggles with my L2, English, especially when it comes to spelling. That being said the chapters I did read were interesting to say the least. I would have also liked to have learned about what we as teachers can do to assist parents of ELL’s in helping their own children learn the L2. Besides these two points I believe this class did a good job at focusing on the most important and thought-provoking aspects of second language acquisition. Not to mention that the textbooks used provided a realistic and accurate description of what it is like to learn a second language.
To be honest when I first read that we would have to create a blog and upload videos I was not too excited. However, I actually enjoyed creating the videos because it allowed me to step out of my comfort zone and interact in a new way with the people around me. From my friend Kenia to my mentor teacher Mrs. Patel, I learned so much from their experience and expertise in relation to learning English. I also gain a lot of insight from the conversations I had with my fellow classmates in the comment section of my vblogs. Overall, the vblogs have allowed me to interact with others who have a similar and sometimes different points of view to mine which in turn helps me grow as a person and future educator.
