11/01/2019 ACTFL

FLUENCY ACTIVITIES TO BUILD LONG-TERM CONFIDENCE

AND AUTONOMY IN STUDENTS
Proposal No:
4570 

Type:
Practice-Oriented Paper 

Applicable Language:
Non-language specific 

Language of Presentation:
English 

Lead Presenter:
Elis Rosa  
N/A

Submitter:
Elis Rosa  
N/A

Content and Purpose:

In the language learning process, the teacher is essential to guide students, plan activities that gradually introduce complex structures, and present content.
However, if the teacher is the person that takes the most time speaking and having students focus on him/herself, there's not enough time for students to learn how
to use the target language. Students keep silence out of respect, as the teacher were the only knowledge resource in class; or actually believe that teachers' full
guidance and predominance in class makes learning more comforting, when it reinforces students' submission and weakens their autonomy. In order to develop the

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11/01/2019 ACTFL

student's autonomy, giving them a safe space to make mistakes and learn from them, it's crucial to bring fluency activities to class, where the teacher participates
as the "play director", intervening only when extremely necessary. The current presentation aims to demonstrate some techniques to help the teacher be effectively
essential to the process

Outcomes:
Attendees will be able to observe the symbiotic relationship established between an insecure teacher that wants to feel as important as possible in an era that
internet can easily provide the content he/she wants to control in class, and a student that doesn’t want to leave their comfort zone, hoping to go through the
process without any mistakes.

Attendees will pay more attention on how long they are speaking in a language class as teachers, as well as how to make that speech time effective to the language
learning process.

Attendees will also get in touch with examples of fluency activities that can enhance students’ self-awareness of their mistakes, improve their pace, and make them
confident to use the language in their real lives.

Program Guide Description:

This presentation aims to discuss how the predominance of the teacher as the main speaker in class can build a symbiotic relationship with the student and a false
impression of learning, with an actual reinforcement of students' submission and weakened autonomy. Fluency activities can help diminish that problem.

Keywords:
Proficiency-oriented Language Instruction

Audience Level:
All

Will you be representing a company, organization or institution that may be exhibiting at the Convention?
No

If you submitted a proposal for a 45-minute session, would you agree to have it converted to a 15-minute Practice-oriented
paper to be combined with other Practice-oriented papers in a 45-minute session?
Yes

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11/01/2019 ACTFL

If you want your proposal to be reviewed and sponsored by an ACTFL Special Interest Group (SIG), please check one
below. If not, select "Not Applicable (N/A)" (information only used for classification purposes).
Teacher Development

Submitted By
Name: Elis Rosa 
Address1: 415 17th Street NE Apt B 
City: Washington 
State/Province: DC 
20002 
Postal Code:

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