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TEACHING YOUNG LEARNERS

Young learners should have fun with English! The purpose of this program is to

introduce participants to the theory and practice of teaching young learners in the EFL

classroom. Participants will engage in enjoyable activities designed specifically for young

learners, such as songs, chants, finger plays, and storytelling. The teacher has to know about the

characteristics of young learners and their learning styles that affect second language acquisition.

Therefore, it is important to remember that an early start alone will not necessarily improve

childrens ability to learn English. It is also very important that L2 instruction include language

vocabularies that are presented within a context that is meaningful and communicative Young

learners tend to have short attention spans and a lot of physical energy.

There are many kinds of methods and techniques to teach vocabulary to young learners

such as teaching vocabulary by using pictures, songs, games, cartoon video and else. According

to Sigmund Freud, FAIES (first aid in English System) is the teaching method to emphasize or

stress on communication which consist of direct approach, Functional approach, situational

approach and drilling technique. It is actually merging from those 3 approaches and 1 technique.

This method was expended by Ali Badarrudin around 18 years ago in 1990. Basically, the

methods want the students can learn English (especially in learning vocabulary) without

translation.

In addition, children are very much linked to their surroundings and are more interested

in the physical and the tangible. As Scott and Ytreberg (1990) describe, Their own

understanding comes through hands and eyes and ears. The physical world is dominant at all

time. Its mean that teaching learner or children is not easier. There are many definitions that we

have to know before for instance who the young learner is? There is a general agreement in the

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literature about the definition of young language learners. Slatternly and Willis (2001) define the

young learners as those between 712 years old while very young learners are defined as less

than 7 years of age. Scott and Ytreberg (2001) distinguish between two groups of young learners,

one between 5-7 and another 8-11, considering mainly their ability to perceive the abstract and

concrete. The Turkish primary curriculum for teaching English (Ministry of National Education

2006) defines the young learners as the children from the first year of formal schooling (6 years

old, in our case) to 12 years of age. In foreign language teaching, age is one of the most critical

individual differences (Matsuoka & Smith, 2008; Brewster, Ellis & Girard, 2004). Stems from

the developmental features, especially weaknesses and strengths of the learners from different

age groups, such as children, adolescents, and adults (Harmer, 2007). Among those age groups

especially the first one has become fashionable in terms of teaching English in many countries in

Europe during the last few decades (Brewster et al., 2004). Many governments have put

compulsory English education in their curricula (Afia, 2006; Shin, 2006). Given all these efforts

to provide young learners with English as early as possible, the main challenge seems to make

sure that the instruction they receive is developmentally appropriate, pedagogically sound, as

well as culturally responsive (Koller, 2006). Yet, before dwelling on the quality of instruction

provided for young learners, some points should be clarified both for professional teachers and

especially for the parents of young learners:How to teach English to young learners? This

question requires the deepest and widest consideration, which needs long volumes. Yet, here it is

best to mention about the most general and widely accepted points.

While teaching English children needs emotions ideas about learning process as well as

their physical, cognitive, and affective abilities should be taken into consideration. While their

levels of proficiency seem to be dependent on many factors including type of program and

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curriculum, number of hours spent in English class, and techniques and activities used (Shin,

2006), there is an agreement in the literature about the priority of affective objectives. Schindler

(2006) high lights that the main aim of early language education should be to hook students

when they are young and keep them interested in learning English for the rest of their lives.

The result of all this is that quite often English teachers find themselves thrown in at the

deep end, teaching Young Learners with little specific knowledge of who they are teaching, what

materials they should use and how best to manage them and their classroom.

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REFERENCESPenny, 1996: 60.As the words we teach in the foreign language: vocabulary can be defined,

Roughly.

jshin2@umbc.edu, 2011.English Language Center University of Maryland, Baltimore County.Joan Kang Shin

W Widaningsih,2011. She analyzed method of teaching English vocabulary to young

Learners. the teaching method to emphasize or stress

Harmer , October 2010 26. Vol.6, No.2, Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies

Brewster et al.2004.Language learning, and getting motivated for the young leaner life-longlearning

Hill, L A and Innes, C 1981 Oxford Childrens Picture Dictionary Oxford University Press

mailto:jshin2@umbc.edumailto:jshin2@umbc.edu

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especially by the supporters ofCritical Period Hypothesis (Brewster et al., 2004; Robinson, 2003).

Another reason for the popularity of teaching English to young learners is because it is a lingua

franca today, which means a common language used for communication between two people whose

languages are different (Harmer, 2007). Thus, especially parents want their children to learn English

as early as possible so that they will be able to benefit from English as an important part of their

academic and business career in the future.

Teaching English to young learners also has gained importance as English has become a part of

international policy, at least in European Union context. Today all EU citizens are encouraged to

have a European Language Portfolio (ELP). No matter what their ages are, people keep a personal

record to show their interaction with other languages and other people from different cultural

backgrounds. Given the main purposes of ELP, some benefits of this broad language learning policy

can be said to include fostering childrens tolerance towards other cultures, maintaining freemovement across Europe, having an opportunity to evaluate ones own language learning, and

getting motivated for life-long learning (Brewster et al., 2004).

This course assumes an initial level of knowledge of the

principles of English Language Teaching and is designed to give newor practising TEFL teachers some help with the following areas:1. Some insights into the world of teaching English to YoungLearners2. A look at how we develop the basic skills of reading, writing, speaking and listeningeffectively with Young Learners3. An overview of some of the main methodologies for teaching English in three key YLareas: Kindergarten, Primary and Teenagers4. Practical help for Classroom Management5. A look at maximising your use of free and subscription internet resources6. At the other end of the scale, how to teach with minimal resources

Although this Young Learners module is made up of several components under separateheadings, it is important to remember that these interact with each other. We have brokenthem down to make the ideas behind teaching this fascinating area easier to understand.While the demand for teaching English to Young Learnerslessons is increasing world-wide, of course it means differentthings to different people. For example, you wouldnt walk intoa classroom of teenagers and expect to use the samematerial you have just finished using with your primary levellearners. So we will look at a range of levels and ages acrossthe Young Learner sections of this course. Our aim here is tointroduce you to Young Learner English as a subject and toprovide you with the confidence to teach, and a framework for

your teaching to a variety of groups and abilities.

Why is it important to teach English to young learners?

As emphasized above, one main reason for teaching English to young learners is the convenience of

their age for language acquisition. The belief that younger is better and children learn much morequickly and efficiently is generally appreciated by many, Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies

Vol.6, No.2, October 2010 26