EDPM01: A CASE STUDY

ALTERNATIVE TASK
“Do not keep children to their studies by compulsion but by play.” (Plato,
s.f.)

_________________

“No matter how long you train someone to be brave, you never know if they are or not until
something real happens.”1 (Roth, 2012)

1 This quote has been chosen to highlight the importance of real life experience. No amount of language teaching
from textbooks can prepare students for use of language in the real world.
Introduction

This hypothetical programme is intended for KS2 students and is envisioned as being a
programme in which children learn through experiential language learning and immersion, as
opposed to through primarily textbook learning, with the programme´s focus on learning through
play. The educational process at the root of this study is a programme for weaker EAL students,
designed for schools in Spain. As Knutson explains, language is best learnt in language
environments which are ´challenging, communicative, and meaningful´ (Knutson, 2003, p. 56),
which is why this programme is one in which ´students learn to help themselves learn, ask for
help from each other and from the teacher, learn language by using it in real settings´ (Knutson,
2003, p. 56).

Regrettably, the Spanish education system often allows weaker learners to fall behind in learning
English, as argued by McMurty, who stated that despite learning English from the age of 5, ´Nearly
60% of Spaniards recognize that they can’t speak, read or write in English, according to the latest
poll from Spain’s CIS state research institute´ (McMurtry, 2017, p. 16). This newly designed
programme of study is intended to prevent those who struggle from being left behind and to give
them a chance to catch up with their peers. Not only this, the programme will give learners the
chance to explore their imaginative sides and ingenuity; skills they cannot often test out and build
upon in day to day school life, as they often learn within four ´white walls (with) absolutely no
comforts or creativity in classrooms´ (Aloise, 2012).

Literature Review

The debate about text books

Lenon (2015) opens his article for The Telegraph with a statistic comparing Education in the UK
with Asian Countries, which he describes as being ´the highest performing in the world´ (Lenon,
2015): ´In England, 10 per cent of 10-year olds are issued textbooks, in South Korea, the figure is
99 per cent. The benefits are clear´. However, Oates on the other hand does not put performance
difference solely down to use of textbooks, but rather how teachers teach:

The current collaborative developments between Singapore and English publishers

includes vital exchange and development of appropriate professional development
to accompany curriculum innovation led by textbook adoption. (Oates, Cambridge
Assessment, 2014)

Oates also argues that the quality of textbooks has decreased and suggests ´a supply of high
quality textbooks may provide considerable support to both teachers and pupils´ (Oates,
Cambridge Assessment, 2014, p. 20). Lenon may encourage the UK to follow suit and be inspired
by teaching in Asian countries, but textbook dependency is not a desireable reality for students
as Yong Zhao´s article for The New Internationalist reveals that adopting Asian practices ´amounts
to a fatal attraction´ (Zhao, 2017).
Students from the Qiang ethnic group study the regional textbook in Sichuan province.
[Photo/China Daily]. (Fang, 2017)2

In the same way that Chinese textbooks ´allow room for fictional embellishments´ (Fang, 2017)
in what are being described as ´fake texts´ in Fang´s article for China Daily, EAL ´textbooks are
becoming anachronistic´ (Ross, 2015). Meaning students are left asking: “Why is it so difficult to
understand a native speaker?“. Due to research like this, this programme will ensure that no
textbook dependency occurs, and that children learn outside of the textbook, therefore offering
a better chance at understanding native speakers.

However, not everyone is against textbook learning. ´Every year, more than 200,000 Spanish-
speaking candidates take one of the Cambridge exams´ (Press, 2018), this high interest and
demand meant Cambridge decided to write textbooks especially for Spanish speakers learning
English. Cambridge confirms that the topics in their textbooks ´are relevant to Spanish-speaking
learners of English´. Despite FluentU´s arguments against textbook learning, in a separate article
in which books to promote and encourage language learning in the classroom are listed,
Cambridge´s Face to Face and Interchange make the top five, suggesting that Cambridge´s
editorial team include useful and relevant topics for Spanish speakers, which is why this
programme will incorporate them throughout.
The key to language learning (according to McCarthy, 2014) is engaging students and holding
their attention, which is why the programme suggested in this hypothetical assignment links
textbook topics to every day life. As McCarthy argues: ´Student interest in a topic holds so much
power. When a topic connects to what students like to do, engagement deepens as they willingly
spend time thinking, dialoging, and creating ideas in meaningful ways. Making learning contextual
to real-world experiences is a key learning technique with differentiating for student interests. ´
(McCarthy, 2014)

2
A picture speaks a thousand words
Supporting EAL learners in best practice

Students must have opportunities to communicate powerfully in the target language if

they are going to integrate their language and cognitive development with their growing personal
identities. (Cummins, 2000)

Megarry developed a list of approaches for engagement of EAL learners and these tie in perfectly
with this new programme. The strategies Megarry suggests to assess learners gives them
sufficient distance to express themselves freely whilst ensuring the examiner remains in control.
This hypothetical EAL programme focusses not on the right or the wrong, but rather on the ability
to communicate and live through different scenarios. The programme is about learners
successfully surviving through language and looks for not one aswer, but many. Professionals
working on the programme will use Megarry´s reccommendations as follows:

 Narrative reports: Freedom of being in written or spoken form, or images. A way for
working professionals to feed back exactly what is happening to their superiors.
 From games to real life: Letting learners explore, seeing how they react. When placed in
a pop up shop with real life objects, seeing who adopts which role independently.
 Instructional interviews: scenarios will be played out and reacted to by a profesional
individual beforehand so learners understand how the programme works and what they
are expected to do. (In this programme children are not expected to do one correct thing,
but instead react naturally and try to communicate in English in a way they feel they can)
 Checklists: To log and detect what works for learners and what does not, the goals they
are achieving and the set backs that arise throughout the programme.

Benny Lewis, founder of ´Fluent in 3 months´, states that ´you can never speak a language by just
studying it´ (Lewis, s.f.). Too much time is spent unpicking and breaking down a language3 and
not enough time speaking it, as according to Krashen and Terrell´s natural approach to language
adquisition, there should be less focus on grammar structures and more exposure to the language
itself. Similarly, language learning expert Stephen Krashen´s theory of second language
acquisition suggests that language learning ´requires meaningful interaction in the target
language - natural communication - in which speakers are concerned not with the form of their
utterances but with the messages they are conveying and understanding.´ (Krashen, 2002)

It is also vitally important to note that Jim Cummins believes

that after one language is learnt, the base is already there to
aid learning another, as shown in this diagram. Suggesting
that Spanish speakers who speak Spanish fluently will find it
easier to learn English.

(FIS)

This programme will incorporate both BICS:´ social, conversational language used for oral
communication` (Bilash, 2009) and CALP: ´ context-reduced language of the academic classroom´
(Bilash, 2009). The image below shows how assessment methods and tasks fall under BICS or
CALP. In a way this programme mixes the two as children will learn conversational English, but in
a classroom environment. BICS will be present throughout the programme in the learner´s use of

3
Speaking a language is the best way of learning it.
conversational language in these hypothetical social situations and role play activities. As
Cummins argues the importance of CALP, especially in an early age, this KS2 aimed programme
will ensure students get the chance to build on their CALP via developing and experimenting with
´skills such as comparing, classifying, synthesizing, evaluating, and inferring´ (Haynes, 2007).

(Bilash, 2009)

Carder insists that mother tongue learning affects second language acquisition, the reason being
that findings showed children ´were being forced to speak, read and write in English when they
could not read or write in their own language´ (Carder, 1993). This intervention programme´s
approach to EAL will ensure children are able to react and respond to role play scenarios in their
native language before attempting in a second. This leads onto the reason of why this
hypothetical programme has been designed for students struggling in English and not for
students facing difficulties in their mother tongue too. These learners have been specifically
chosen so that all efforts can aim towards a successful EAL intervention.

Underpinning Education Theory

Maslow´s heirarchy of needs is Split into five levels, but this programme will incorporate two out
of the five: esteem, and self actualisation. This programme aims to help children gain a ´feeling
of accomplishment´ (McLeod, 2018) when speaking in English, as well as ´achieving one´s full
potential, including creative activities´.

(McLeod, 2018)
Howard Gardner´s Multiple Intelligences Theory has identified distinct intelligences:
visual/spatial, linguistic/verbal, logical/mathematical, bodily/kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal,
intrapersonal and naturalistic, and with each come different characteristics. ´Many teachers
utilize multiple intelligences in their teaching philosophies and work to integrate Gardner’s theory
into the classroom´ (Cherry, Very Well Mind, 2018), which is also what this programme aims to
do.

The value of role play

The earliest scholarship on role-play in TESOL emphasized its linguistic and affective
benefits: role-play was shown to improve the acquisition of vocabulary and grammar structures
and to promote spontaneous language use (Paulston et al., 1975; Scarcella, 1978). It was also
touted as a means of increasing students’ motivation, engagement, and confidence (Ladousse,
1987). (Shapiro & Leopold, 2012)
Kristina DeNeve and Mary Hepner argue that ´role play simulation is an effective teaching
technique´ (Hepner, DeNeve, 1997, pág. 231), which is why role play has been chosen for this
hypothetial programme. If we go back to the origins of role play, ´role-playing was introduced to
the United States as a therapeutic procedure by Jacob Moreno in the 1930s. His group therapy
sessions were called ‘psychodrama’´ (Research Methods in Education, 2018). Using the words of
Hamilton these activities would be ´unstructured´ as these young learners will not be ´restricted
by the experimenter´ (Research Methods in Education, 2018). Following Moreno´s methods, this
programme aims to limit students as litte as possible, allowing them to explore and engage freely
in each different scenario.

Not everyone supports role playing, and some argue that role play is infact ´awkward and
unproductive´ (Swift, 2018) when used in a classroom setting. However, Shapiro and
Leopold argue that role play ´resides in the middle ground between creative thought and real-
world interaction´ (Shapiro & Leopold, 2012, p. 123) and their theory and research has inspired
the use of role play in this hypothetical programme.

The importance of play

Jean Piaget´s different stages of play explore the roles of practice play and ability aswell as the
social aspects of play as a child grows and becomes more aware of their surroundings. As this
programme is aimed at KS2 learners, this overlaps with Piaget´s concrete operational stage which
children experience between the ages of 7 and 11. This third stage in Piaget´s theory of cognitive
development is one in which children become ´much more logical and sophisticated in their
thinking´ (Cherry, Very well mind, 2018) and ´it also serves as an important transition between
earlier stages of development and the coming stage´. Piaget argues that at this age children are
able to focus on more than one aspect of a situation at once and begin to understand that others
have thoughts that are perhaps different to their own, which is why it is a suitable age to take
part in this hypothetical programme in which children learn language through play, role play and
natural conversation and interaction.
Vygotsky´s ZPD enourages peer on peer interaction, and advocates play, arguing that ´a child´s
greatest achievements are possible in play, achievements that tomorrow will become her basic
level of real action and morality.´ (Vygotsky, Mind in Society, 1978) This programme recognises
that among weaker learners there will still be differences, and as Vygotsky argues that scaffolding
and support are important, weaker students will be paired up with stronger students to
encourage help and guidance amongst themselves. ‘What a child can do today with assistance, she
will be able to do by herself tomorrow.’ (Vygotsky, s.f.)

In order to play there must be space in which to play, which leads onto Marketta Kytta and her
research. Marketta Kytta developed a framework which focusses on open spaces being free,
welcoming and ´child friendly environments´ (Kytta). The problem in many EAL settings is not
what is being taught, but rather how it is being taught. If it is Plant Week in an Early Years
classroom and a florist is set up for the children to use, as well as a mini garden setting with soil
and seeds, the question raised is how free this setting will be. In many classroom settings if
children use their intitative and move flowers from the florist and plant them in the soil, many
teachers will ask for the flowers to be put back in the florist. This suggests that in a classroom
setting children do not have free space in which to explore and experiment, and Kytta argues
against places ´which are too ‘‘precious’’ for children to run about in´. (Kytta M. , 2004, p. 195).
This programme will be an advocator of free spaces in play.

Creativity is key
´It´s about special people. That only a few people are really creative. ´ (Robinson)
Creativity runs through this programme from start to finish. Sir Ken Robinson encourages
creativity and in an interview with Amy Azzam, editor of Education Leadership, discusses the
importance of creativity in the classroom:
Here we make a distinction between teaching creatively and teaching for creativity.
Teaching creatively means that teachers use their own creative skills to make ideas and content
more interesting. Some of the great teachers we know are the most creative teachers because
they find a way of connecting what they're teaching to student interests.
But you can also talk about teaching for creativity, where the pedagogy is designed to
encourage other people to think creatively. You encourage kids to experiment, to innovate, not
giving them all the answers but giving them the tools they need to find out what the answers
might be or to explore new avenues. Within particular domains, it's perfectly appropriate to say,
"We're interested in new and original ways you can approach these issues. (Azzam, 2009)

This literature review has shown the importance of creativity and conversational English, as well
as exploring the role of textbooks and learning through play in an EAL setting. This assignment
aims to show that the best way of learning a language is through speaking or experiencing it in
real life settings.

The programme design

One of the principle benefits of teaching small groups is that the learning experience
remains dynamic, versatile, and subject to change based on the specific nature of
the interactions between teachers and students. (Alexander, 2013)
This intervention programme will cater for all weaker English learners within KS2 at primary
school. There will be a minimum of two teachers per group, at least one trained and experienced
in EFL, EAL or TEFL, who will remain throughout the whole programme, monitoring progress of
students and tailoring the learning experience to everyone´s needs. A TA will also be present
throughout, offering individual help to students; the TA will be appointed one or two students in
specific to work with throughout the programme to enhance their learning experience and aid
them in meeting objectives and improving, as, according to Hodge (2015) TAs can make a real
difference.

The arts are central to the idea of education being about inculcating a love of learning, of
acquiring knowledge. It is no accident that the arts are traditionally connected with the idea of
being educated. Hence an educated person is assumed to be interested in the arts. (Earle, 2013).
With this in mind, specialist teachers (such as for literature or art) will be invited to teach specific
subjects. This support process will allow weaker learners to learn textbook content outside of the
textbook, theoretically bringing lessons alive, with the aid of skilled professionals.

The 20 week programme will be split into six, three week sections. The last two week period will
be a recap of everything covered with final observations, and a review of progress. The six
sections will be entitled as follows:

 Who am I? – Personal life, information, family, home

 Adventurous us! Getting around town, transport, directions, nature
 Let´s get our chefs´ hats on! Cooking, food
 Play – Making friends and socialising, inviting to play, activities etc
 Creative minds – Music, Literature, Theatre, Art, Museums
 A day in the life of! Experiencing different job roles

These six sections have been designed to follow the same or similar topics that appear in the
textbooks students use in their main EAL lessons, so as to give students the best chance of
improvement both in class and out. TV and radio, programmes, stories, children´s magazines
along with other materials, will be used and available throughout the whole programme as
primary resources. Often what the ordinary classroom lacks are ´real materials´, as confirmed by
The British Council: ´using authentic materials is a relatively easy and convenient way of improving
not only your students' general skills, but also their confidence in a real situation´ (Shepherd, s.f.)

Each three-week section will include creative, hands on tasks in which students need to combine
imagination and ingenuinty to tackle the situation they face. ´A day in the life of´ will follow the
Cambridge unit on ´jobs´ by letting students live those roles. There will be costumes and tasks to
complete, aswell as a presentation at the end of the section where students can choose their
favourite job to explore in more detail, and act out in a role play situation.

Embedded throughout will also be conversation, phrasal verbs and collocations, with the aim of
focussing on important language used most in ´real life´, just as FluentU recommends: ´strategize
and prioritize your learning by focusing on what matters´.

Data Collection
Data collection will take place through interviews, and all participating teachers and TAs will be
interviewed at the end of the programme in order to provide an evaluation of running processes
and for the purposes of future amendments. Interviews are supported by Kvale who defines
interviews ´as an inter-view, an interchange of views between two or more people on a topic of
mutual interest, sees the centrality of human interaction for knowledge production, and
emphasizes the social situatedness of research data´ (Cohen, 2007, p. 349). Diary entries written
by the learners will be read and both comments on observation and role play will be assessed
throughout the 20 week programme, which will allow a previously formed checklist to be
completed.
At the end of each section children will be observed through play and role play4 as well as being
given a short written assignment to help track progress. Formative assessments will also take
place at the end of each mini unit; a hidden student speaking assessment in which teachers assess
students´ abilities to communicate in English. Tracking pupils will make it easier to see if and
where problems are beginning to develop aswell as being able to monitor the effectiveness of
programme materials. Students will keep diary logs, writing a short entry at the end of every class
with details of what they did. Teachers will be asked to comment on each entry with a few words
at the end of every week. These entries will form part of a larger study incorporating interviews,
questionnaires and observation (Bell, 2005).

Triangulation will be achieved by combining different research methods of data collection in this
programme: a combination of quantitive and qualitative methods. Megarry´s checklist on data
collection, diary entries, as well as role play tasks inspired by Shapiro and Leopold and speaking
assessment, should facilitate data validation, as Cohen confirms, ´triangular techniques in the
social sciences attempt to map out, or explain more fully, the richness and complexity of human
behaviour by studying it from more than one standpoint and, in so doing, by making use of both
quantitative and qualitative data. Triangulation is a powerful way of demonstrating concurrent
validity´ (Cohen, 2007, p. 141)

To help log progress at the end of each unit pupils will be given a scenario in which to respond to
in the form of role play. Pupils will also have a written task at the end of each topic to complete
at home with a total time of thirty minutes, based on the unit they have been experiencing for
the past three weeks5. Through diary entries, written tasks, role play and observation, teachers
should be able to evaluate effectively, monitoring progression and improvement which can then
be fed back to interested parties. Main evaluation will take place through role play and following
the ideas of theorist Megarry:
 ´using narrative reports
 using checklists gathered from students’ recollections of outstanding positive and
negative learning experiences
 encouraging players to relate ideas and concepts learned in games to other areas of their
lives
 using the instructional interview (Megarry, 1978)´

Justification of support process

The diminution of textbook learning

Textbook topics have their place in learning but often struggle to facilitate spoken language with
Spanish learners, this may be due to the fact that many ´textbooks are outdated as soon as they
are printed’ (Lenon, 2015). Interestingly FluentU´s complete guide to foreign language immersion
does not mention textbooks, instead encouraging learners to become ´active learners´ rather
than passive ones. As Piaget advocates that ´play is the work of childhood´ (Piaget, s.f.), this newly
designed programme will seek to focus on learning through play and immersion, and how to
facilitate the use of English in a ´real world´ setting.

4
BICS assessment
5
CALP assessment
Cambridge University Press offer many textbooks teaching British English for EAL learners such
as:

 Kid´s Box
 Starters, Movers and Flyers
 Greenman and the magic forest
 Super safari
 Super minds
 The English ladder

EAL textbooks tend to structure content almost identically. Similarly Oxford University Press,
perhaps their fiercest competition, offer Oxford International English which follows a similar
design and syllabus. Topics found on all of the above, or branches of, are as follows: hello, school,
toys, home, pets, face, jobs, clothes, animals and family. Perhaps these topics have been chosen
as they incorporate what Maslow argues to be what people need most. In Maslow´s heirarchy of
needs he explores the relationship between student success and needs being met, and the
correlation between the two. These topics have been chosen for a reason, perhaps as they
overlap with Maslow´s ´ identified categories of “physiological” and “psychosocial” needs´
(Freitas, 2004) and their experience in the world of education leaves no reason to doubt, which
is why instead of forgetting these topics, this new programme will base learning around them.
Changing the way these topics are taught, rather than the topics themselves. As an educative
body, Spain has a long tradition of utilising text books from the Oxford and Cambridge publishing
houses.

Tim Oates suggests ´it would be naïve to ignore the way in which existing carefully-designed
textbooks have played a crucial role in improving educational outcomes in key nations´ (Oates,
Cambridge Assessment), which is perhaps the case, but the issue is that now they seem to have
the opposite effect on language learning, limiting learners with English levels deteriorating across
the board in Spain. The question is why, which leads on to something Dylan William said that
speaks volumes. “A bad curriculum well taught is invariably a better experience for students than
a good curriculum badly taught: pedagogy trumps curriculum. Or more precisely, pedagogy is
curriculum, because what matters is how things are taught, rather than what is taught.” (William,
2011) William´s statement is a central axiom for this programme in that EAL lessons will inspire
creativity and fun and result in a more enriching, enlightening experience for both children and
adults, students and teachers.

Assessment and data collection

Teachers and other professionals involved in the programme will focus on eight out of the nine
multiple intelligences first named by Gardner in 1983 to aid them with assessment. Gardner´s
Multiple Intelligences theory will act as a guide for the professionals involved in this programme
to ensure they are fully prepared and aware of what they are monitoring and appraising during
assessment:

Naturalist: Understanding living beings, working with nature

Musical: Connecting with sounds
Logical: Understanding and working out what to do in each scenario
Interpersonal: Peer to peer interaction and ability to know how to behave based on peer
reactions: reading body language, facial expression etc
 Kinesthetic: How learners link their body and mind, does their bodies´ movements reflect
their minds´thoughts.
Linguistic: How learners use language, how they find the words they are looking for to express
themselves in English
Intrapersonal: How learners understand themselves, their feelings, needs and wants.
Spatial: How learners use the space given to them, what they do with it.

Diary entries are crucial in getting an insight into hidden student feelings and emotions. To
promote and encourage honesty, diary entries will be completed in comfortable, private settings
in which students feel relaxed and able to express themselves freely. MiSC developed the PawsB
curriculum in 2012. Psychologists Vickery and Dorjee studied the effects of an 8 week PawsB
mindfulness programme which stated that ´follow-up correlational analyses revealed patterns of
improvement in emotional well-being between measures of mindfulness and emotional
awareness and expression´. (Dorjee, 2016) Another psyhchologist, also known as the “mother of
mindfulness”, Dr Langer firmly defends and encourages mindfulness, expressing that
“Mindfulness can encourage creativity when the focus is on the process and not the product.”
(Langer, 2014) . This EAL programme focusses on the process rather than the product, which is
why diary entries have been carefully chosen as a form of data collection and assessment.

The importance of role play

According to Piaget´s theory of cognitive development and his focus on active learning and
interactions, teachers looking to improve classroom productivity or student performance need to
do so by boosting the presence of active learning, and having students take the lead, or at least
feel as though they do. This is why role play will take centre stage for this new programme. There
are many advantages of role play assessment as it ´sets up a relatively non-threatening setting in
which the students can feel comfortable and relaxing with speaking an unfamiliar language,
resulting in the development of long-term motivation in mastering the new language…and
encourages the students to make use of their innovative thinking and creativity when acting the
characters out´ (Centre for the enhancement of teaching and learning, s.f.)

The importance of play

The field of knowledge surrounding the topic of learning through play is vast to say the least, with
arguments stretching from the likes of Lenon who advocates textbook learning while others like
Piaget advocates learning through play. What both sides agree on is that play is needed in a young
mind in order to grow, learn and develope. In actual fact, Play England´s ´Play for a change´ 2008
report establishes play as a human right. In 2007 the government adopted a new play policy, a
´strategy to make England the best place in the world to grow up´ (Play England, s.f.). The report
builds a strong case about how play boosts resilience and ´contributes to children’s physical and
emotional well-being and to their development´ (Play England, s.f.). This programme is inspired
by Play England´s ideas, and is keen on sharing them with Spanish learners.

Supporting EAL learners in best practice

As supported by Judie Haynes and her hybrid model of ESL instruction, this programme will
combine both pull out and push in provisions, with classes running for two and a half hours per
week, two one hour sessions after school and another half an hour taken from their usual EAL
class. The two after school classes will be chosen with teachers, students and parents in mind,
and the days that best suit all parties involved will be those chosen. Students will have a short
break after the bell rings and before starting class.

Including two sessions outside of class time and another half an hour inside class time, will
minimise negative impacts on learners involved as pull-out provisions mean students ´miss
instruction that takes place in the general education classroom´ (Haynes, 2007). Offering sessions
outside of class time means class instruction will not be missed, and offering half an hour inside
class time means textbook topics being covered can be adapted and worked on depending on the
students´needs. Learners need a chance to use what they learn outside of classes to give them ´a
chance to shine amongst their classmates and participate in classroom instruction, discussions,
projects, and assignments.´ (TESOL international association, s.f.) Also avoiding problems of
isolation by ´allowing them to stay in the classroom every day so they don’t feel “different” from
their peers´. (TESOL international association, s.f.)

In conclusion

This programme is designed to offer children all the creativity their daily English classes do not,
whilst taking focus away from grammatical structures and textbook exercises and towards play
and natural interaction for successful language acquisition instead. Teachers working on this
programme will see that topics have been carefully chosen based on EAL textbook content being
what Spanish children need. Despite topics being familiar, teachers will be discouraged from
textbook dependency, as this EAL experience explores the importance of thinking outside the
book, and welcoming hands on experience and play into English learning. “While teachers often
complain that their students seem to do very little thinking, teachers who simply follow the
manual should understand that they are actually contributing to the problem. Students seldom
learn to think under the tutelage of teachers who do not think either.” (Graham, s.f.)

This immersion programme, designed to supplant textbook learning via a series of 'real life'
learning contexts hopes to equip and prepare learners for the real world. Role play, play and
conversational interactions in free settings will give children a chance to experience speaking and
using English in every day scenarios they could one day face. This programme could be the start
of successful language learning for everyone in Spain. Delving into various theorists, theories and
research provides strong proof that learning through play is successful, and that this programme
lights the way for a very promising future. “The knowledge we gain from textbooks can never
measure to the wisdom we gain through experience.” (Souza, s.f.)

Word count: 4400 words

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Cummins, J. (2000). Immersion Education for the Millenium. Obtenido de

http://carla.umn.edu/cobaltt/modules/strategies/immersion2000.pdf

Dorjee, V. a. (12 de January de 2016). Frontiers in Psychology. Obtenido de

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.02025/full?utm_source=Ema
il_to_authors_&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=T1_11.5e1_author&utm_campaig
n=Email_publication&field=&journalName=Frontiers_in_Psychology&id=154489

Earle, W. (2013). Spiked. Obtenido de http://www.spiked-

online.com/newsite/article/the_importance_of_teaching_the_arts/13937#.Wxw1j4oz
Y2w

Fang, B. (2017). China Daily. Obtenido de http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2017-

03/31/content_28748408.htm

FIS. (s.f.). Frankfurt International School. Obtenido de

http://esl.fis.edu/teachers/support/cummin.htm

Freitas, A. (2004). Maslow's hierarchy of needs and student academic success.

Graham, D. L. (s.f.). Goodreads. Obtenido de https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/7751215-
while-teachers-often-complain-that-their-students-seem-to-do

Haynes, J. (2007). Everything ESL. Obtenido de

http://www.everythingesl.net/inservices/bics_calp.php

Hepner, DeNeve. (1997). Innovative Higher Education. Obtenido de

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01243718

Hodge, K. (2015). The Guardian. Obtenido de https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-

network/2015/apr/01/teaching-assistants-classrooms-research-impact

Hodge, K. (1 de April de 2015). The Guardian. Obtenido de

https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/apr/01/teaching-assistants-
classrooms-research-impact

Institute, L. M. (s.f.). Obtenido de http://langermindfulnessinstitute.com/ellen-langer/

Johnston, P. H. (2004). Choice words. En P. H. Johnston.

Knutson, S. (2003). Experiential Learning in Second Language classrooms. Obtenido de

file:///C:/Users/jo_ma/Downloads/948-975-1-PB%20(1).pdf

Krashen, S. (2002). sdkrashen. Obtenido de

http://www.sdkrashen.com/content/books/sl_acquisition_and_learning.pdf

Kytta. (s.f.). Science Direct. Obtenido de

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494403000732

Kytta, M. (2004). The extent of children's independent mobility and the number of actualized
affordances as criteria of a child-friendly environment. Journal of Environmental
Psychology.

Langer, E. J. (2014). Mindfulness. 25th anniversary edition.

Lenon, B. (2015). The Telegraph. Obtenido de The Telegraph:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationopinion/11739310/Textbooks-
have-a-huge-impact-on-education.html

Lewis, B. (s.f.). Fluent in 3 months. Obtenido de https://www.fluentin3months.com/studying-

will-never-help/

McCarthy, J. (2014). Edutopia. Obtenido de https://www.edutopia.org/blog/differentiated-

instruction-learner-interest-matters-john-mccarthy

McLeod, S. (21 de May de 2018). Simply Psychology. Obtenido de

https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html

McMurtry, A. (5 de January de 2017). El Pais. Obtenido de El Pais:

https://elpais.com/elpais/2017/01/04/inenglish/1483542724_068710.html

Oates, T. (2014). Cambridge Assessment. Obtenido de Cambridge Assessment:

http://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/Images/181744-why-textbooks-count-tim-
oates.pdf
Oates, T. (s.f.). Cambridge Assessment. Obtenido de
http://www.cambridgeassessment.org.uk/Images/181744-why-textbooks-count-tim-
oates.pdf

Piaget, J. (s.f.). Obtenido de https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/jean_piaget_751100

Plato. (s.f.). The Play Museum. Obtenido de “Do not keep children to their studies by
compulsion but by play.”

Play England. (s.f.). Obtenido de http://www.playengland.org.uk/media/120519/play-for-a-

change-summary.pdf

Power, M. (2017). The Telegraph. Obtenido de https://www.telegraph.co.uk/health-

fitness/mind/dear-diary-surprising-health-benefits-journaling/

Press, C. U. (2018). Cambridge University Press. Obtenido de

http://www.cambridge.es/en/about-us/english-for-spanish-speakers

Research Methods in Education. (28 de 05 de 2018). Obtenido de

https://islmblogblog.files.wordpress.com/2016/05/rme-edu-helpline-blogspot-
com.pdf

Robinson, K. (s.f.). ASCD. Obtenido de http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-

leadership/sept09/vol67/num01/Why-Creativity-Now%C2%A2-A-Conversation-with-
Sir-Ken-Robinson.aspx

Ross, T. F. (6 de March de 2015). The Atlantic. Obtenido de

https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2015/03/the-death-of-
textbooks/387055/

Roth, V. (2012). Insurgent. HarperCollins.

Shapiro, S., & Leopold, L. (2012). A Critical Role for Role Playing Pedagogy.

Shepherd, S. (s.f.). British Council. Obtenido de

https://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/using-authentic-materials

Shirley, A. (18 de May de 2016). World Economic Forum. Obtenido de

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/05/5-charts-that-explain-the-future-of-
education/

Souza, A. d. (s.f.). Goodreads. Obtenido de

https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/14431955.Anika_de_Souza

Swift, J. (May de 2018). Classroom. Obtenido de https://classroom.synonym.com/advantages-

disadvantages-role-play-classroom-7959726.html

TESOL international association. (s.f.). Obtenido de Blog: http://blog.tesol.org/pull-out-vs-

push-in-esl-programs-in-elementary-schools/

Trinity College. (s.f.). Obtenido de https://www.trinitycollege.com/site/?id=368

Unknown. (2015). Quora. Obtenido de https://www.quora.com/Why-do-foreign-language-

textbooks-teach-people-to-say-things-that-are-never-actually-said-by-native-speakers

Vygotsky, L. (s.f.). Obtenido de http://www.ccpre.org/basicinfo/overview-the-ccpre-approach/

Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in Society.

William, D. (2011). Embedded Formative Assessment.

Zhao, Y. (2017). The New Internationalist. Obtenido de

https://newint.org/features/2017/09/01/asian-education