Focus On The Younger Learner

Focus on the
Younger
Learner
The Distance Delta
© International House London and the British Council

The Distance Delta Module 3
Focus on the Young Learner

Summary
In this input, we shall look at typical characteristics of different ages of Young Learners. We
shall consider how it appears children learn and analyse some language learning theories
and their relevance for us as teachers of Young Learners. We shall then explore a range of
factors that can affect (whether positively or negatively) children’s learning, both inside and
outside the classroom. We shall consider how their beliefs, motivations and learning styles
are likely to be quite different from adult language learners and how these can impact on
their learning strategies. With all of these things in mind, we shall then explore some
principles of best practice in terms of teaching styles and approaches including behaviour
management, learner training, means of assessment and classroom resources.
Objectives
By the end of this input you will be:
 Able to notice and describe differences between Young Learners in terms of their age,
cognitive development, background, exposure to English outside the classroom, how
they learn, their motivation.
 Able to demonstrate understanding of the ways you can enhance motivation and
learning opportunities for your Young Learners, taking into account their cognitive and
affective needs as well as knowledge of issues outside the classroom.
1 © Copyright The Distance Delta

Contents
1 Introduction
1.1 Defining the Term ‘Young Learner’
1.2 Differences between Adult Learners and Young Learners
1.3 Characteristics of Different Groups of Young Learners
2 Child Development and Language Learning Theories

2.1 How Children Learn
2.2 First Language Acquisition Theories
2.3 Second Language Learning Theories
2.4 Is There a ‘Best’ Age to Start Learning a Second or Foreign Language?
2.5 Implications of Child Development and First and Second Language Acquisition
Theories for the Young Learner Language Classroom
2.6 The Teenage Brain
3 Local Context and Parental/Guardian Involvement
4 Out-of-class Exposure and Impact on Learning
5 Behaviour Management
5.1 The Importance of Routines
5.2 Pre-empting Behaviour Problems
5.3 Dealing with Misbehaviour
5.4 Promoting Positive Behaviour and Using Praise
6 Learner Training
6.1 Introduction
6.2 ‘Hallmarks’ of a Good Learner
6.3 Strategies Involved in Learning to Learn
6.4 Encouraging Learner Awareness and Responsibility in the Classroom
6.5 Development of Study Skills
6.6 Developing Critical Thinking Skills
7 Learning Styles and Intelligences
7.1 Learning Styles in the Young Learner Classroom
7.2 Mixed Levels and Different Abilities
8 Means of Assessment
8.1 Formal Assessment Versus Learning
8.2 Backwash and Spin-off Effects of Pen-and-Paper Testing on Young Learners
8.3 Evaluating Published Testing Resources
8.4 Implications of Using Pen-and-Paper Tests with Young Learners
8.5 Alternative Forms of Assessment for Young Learners
8.6 Reporting on a Child’s Progress and Attainment to Parents or Guardians
9 Classroom Resources and Teaching Approaches
9.1 Developing Literacy with Young Learners
9.2 Primary and Secondary School Language and Literacy Development
9.3 Adaptation of Published Materials
Reading
Appendices

1. Introduction
1.1 Defining the Term ‘Young Learner’
Interpretations of the term ‘Young Learner’ vary according to country, culture and
educational context. In the Italian state school system, for example, Young Learners are
divided into 6-10 year-olds attending elementary school, 11-13 year-olds at middle school,
and 14-18 year-olds in secondary school education. In some language schools, the term
refers to anyone under the age of 18 i.e. the age of majority, and they may also accept
children as young as two or three in their Very Young Learner Department. In others, the
cut-off point is earlier and teenagers aged 16 and over are considered part of the school’s
adult population. Although we shall make references to very early years to inform our
understanding of later development in children, the minimum age for a Delta lesson class is
8 years old. Therefore, we shall use the following divisions:
 Primary (8 – 10)
 Lower secondary (11 – 13)
 Upper secondary (14 – 16)
1.2 Differences between Adult Learners and Young Learners
Task 1: Differences between Adult and Young Learners (about 20 minutes)
Reflective Task:
1. Write notes under each of the headings below of your ideas and experiences
regarding some general differences between Adult and Young Learners.
2. Note any implications of these differences for the Young Learner teacher.
 Stages of development
 Motivation
 Capacity to concentrate; tendency to get bored
 Development as learners
 Life experience
 Ability to mimic
Now compare your ideas to the overview below.

Adults Young Learners

Stages of development
There are variations in any class e.g. aptitude for learning, motivation, There may be wide variations in development between children of the same
previous learning experiences etc. age. Development is influenced by family, school, culture and cognitive or
affective factors. Some children are more capable of more logical, deeper and
abstract thinking, or more cooperative with others. Others may just be
beginning to develop these skills.
Motivation
Adults may be learning English for extrinsic or instrumental reasons e.g. Very young children may have no clear reasons for learning English but will
in order to get a (better) job or go up a salary scale. They may learn for engage with it if it is fun. As they grow older, their motivations are often
integrative reasons, because they are living or will be moving to extrinsic, being derived from their parents or other caregivers, who may instil
another English-speaking country. Or, they may be learning for intrinsic in them reasons for learning English as an extra-curricular activity: to help
reasons, because they enjoy the language learning process itself. Of them with their English lessons at school, because it is a universal language
course, some adults will have a mixture of motivations. and will help them get a better job. They also have intrinsic reasons e.g. to be
able to participate in computer video games or understand lyrics of their
favourite bands.
Capacity to concentrate; tendency to get bored
Adults can generally concentrate on a single task for between 15 to 20 Very Young Learners can only concentrate for a very short time on one task.
minutes. Whilst adults can get bored in a language lesson, they have This expands as children grow older with pre-adolescent children able to focus
learnt to deal with this feeling and hopefully their motivation for on a single activity for longer and extending again in most teenagers. The
learning carries them through. They are also on the whole too polite to length of time children can concentrate can be affected by issues such as
show how they feel to the teacher or those around them. attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADD / ADHD). Children have no choice
but to be in the classroom and have not learnt the societal norms that inhibit
overtly open negative reactions, so they will let a teacher know when they are
bored. Bored children will not focus on the lesson, can be very disruptive and
will develop negative attitudes about their learning experience.

Development as learners
Practically all adults come to the class able to read and write in their Young children are still learning their own language. They may not be able to
own language, with a history of education (whether positive or read in their own language or they may be at very early stages of reading
negative) behind them. Through past experience they have developed development and have very limited skills in writing. They do not have the
attitudes and beliefs about learning and themselves as learners, which same range of language skills to draw upon and apply to the learning of a
may hinder their learning of languages. However, they may have learnt second language as secondary school pupils or adults. They are also still
(whether consciously or subconsciously) some helpful strategies and developing communication skills such as turn-taking and the use of body
techniques for learning, such as ways of memorizing new words or language, as well as motor skills like holding a pencil and hand-eye
rules, and can question what they learn as a means of cognitive coordination. Young children are still open to learning and they tend to have
processing of information. fewer inhibitions than some older teenagers or adults. Children do not begin
to hypothesise or analyse language until they are 10 or 11 years old, although
they can see patterns.
Life experience
The topics we can present in an adult language classroom to provide a A child’s world tends to revolve around the self: children are preoccupied with
motivating context for target language are almost limitless. Adults are their own likes and dislikes, their own family and friends, their own personal
generally also very interested in learning about their classmates as well space or environment, whether in the home or at school. They also have less
as the world around them. knowledge of the world. As they develop, they become increasingly
interested in other topics, whether intrinsically or because it is something they
are learning about at their mainstream school. But their opinions are likely to
be quite ‘black and white’ and spontaneous, rather than reflective.
Ability to mimic
Adults’ ability to pronounce effectively can vary widely, and depends The one area in which children are often superior to adults as language
on their previous language learning experiences. Often, those who learners is in their ability to imitate a pronunciation model. In part it is
have learnt one or two languages before will be better imitators as they because this is what they do in their first language, but also in part because,
have had previous experience of dealing with unfamiliar sounds or especially at a younger age, they are not preoccupied with the need to have a
combinations of sounds. Those who start to learn English later on in complete formal understanding of what they wish to say e.g. parts of speech,
life as their first foreign language experience often take longer to word order, differences between their own language and English etc., but
become more proficient in their pronunciation. more with conveying their immediate message. Being generally
unpreoccupied with how they look and sound to others also contributes to
them enjoying imitating, or even exaggerating models.

Implications of These Differences for the Young Learner Teacher
Stages of development
A Young Learner teacher needs to plan and manage for different levels of ability within one
group. For example, in a group of 8 year olds, some may be competent at cursive writing
and be able to write quite quickly, while others may take a long time to get started on
writing (perhaps because of a disinclination they have for the medium), and others may still
be at the print-writing stage or be slow writers. At the planning stage, you need to consider
exactly why, what and where you wish the children to write. With adult learners, writing is
often seen as a means of consolidation of previous language work, as well as training in the
skill of writing. Given the fact that younger children are still in the process of learning the
finer mechanics of writing, it may be more appropriate to consider other means of
consolidation e.g. giving them word cards to organise into grammatically correct and
coherent sentences, which can then be stuck on larger paper and displayed as a poster in
the classroom. This also means that the children are more likely to be working ‘lock-step’
i.e. everyone finishing the task at around the same time.
Because younger children are still learning how to read in their own language, some are
likely to be more efficient readers in English than others. More confident readers tend to
read in a more logical fashion, reading a whole sentence (rather than just to the end of the
line). Others find it difficult to know how to approach a text in a clear and efficient way to
gain information. This can be quite clear to see in the way their eyes move erratically
around the text as they unsuccessfully attempt to find specific information. They need a
clear and meaningful task to encourage them to read logically and carefully, such as a
competition whereby pairs of students read short definitions of vocabulary they have
recently been learning in order to guess the word and win a point from the teacher, but only
once they have guessed the correct word e.g. ‘People eat this vegetable a lot in soups. It’s
very good for you. You can eat it hot with fish or meat or cold in a salad. It isn’t green and it
isn’t round. Rabbits like this vegetable a lot!’
The Young Learner teacher needs to include activities that cater for various types of learner
because some children are capable of deeper analysis of language, while others have no
interest in this way of studying language. In order to help children understand the various
forms used in a particular tense, e.g. present continuous, the teacher can give students
word cards and get them to come up to the board and complete a large verb table on the
board and then get them to do the same in the table on their coursebook page.
Motivation
It is crucial for teachers to motivate children so they want to learn and can see a purpose in
what they are doing. Children’s motivation and attitudes are central to their initial
engagement and on-going learning. These are promoted by positive relationships with the
teacher, success in foreign language learning, parental attitudes and interesting learning
experiences. The Young Learner teacher is like a sports coach: you need to tell students
when they are improving, and get them to make overt connections between what they are
doing and how this can lead to better results. This is just as, if not more, true for an
apparently ‘weaker’ student as a stronger one. Nothing succeeds like success. However,
praise should be specific to the occasion and the child e.g. ‘You didn’t speak Portuguese at
all in that speaking activity – well done!’ and always deserved rather than an overused and
rather anodyne ‘Great!’

Capacity to concentrate; tendency to get bored

This means that activities should be as interesting, challenging, engaging and varied as
possible. Often the brightest children get bored most easily. Children take their learning
very seriously and will quickly reject that which appears to have no interest or purpose. It is
important to keep in mind the possibility of drops in concentration at the planning stage.
You need to include the following means of keeping students attentive on the lesson plan:
 Regular and appropriate changes of activity e.g. from reading task to song
 Different patterns of interactions e.g. individual, pairwork and open-class
 Change of pace e.g. written question formation activity to small group brainstorming
activity
 Variety in seating arrangements e.g. sitting on chairs, mingling around classroom, small
groups working sitting on the floor
 Clear and familiar routines e.g. for starting lessons, setting up activities, managing
materials
It is also useful to set time limits for parts of larger stages of the lesson. Although younger
children will not have much of a notion of what, for example, two minutes ‘feels like’,
chivvying them along in this way will give greater impetus to activities, and revive flagging
concentration.
You can also find out if any children in a group have been formally diagnosed with any
learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, Asperger’s Syndrome or ADD (Attention Deficit
Disorder), and how these affect concentration and can be managed in lessons.
For an introduction to dealing with learning difficulties in classes, see

http://oupeltglobalblog.com/2013/07/18/5-myths-about-teaching-learners-with-special-
educational-needs/
Development as learners
A Young Learner teacher needs to be aware of what the children they are teaching will be
capable of and what is beyond them because of their age and level of development.
Use judicious questioning to help further language comprehension. Asking a group of eight-
year-olds to translate a certain expression into their own language may be counter-
productive, as their experience of English expressions and words is so deeply embedded in a
specific context i.e. a story or situation. It could be disruptive to take this language out of
the context with which it is associated.
Choose topics, activities and language forms carefully to suit the child’s age and stage of
development. For example, it takes a certain amount of training to get eight and nine-year-
olds to successfully carry out a closed pairwork information gap activity, such as asking and
answering a partner’s questions and completing a table on a worksheet. They find it
difficult to maintain extended discourse and conversation without the involvement and
intervention of the teacher, they cannot appreciate the concept of wanting to find out
missing information in this way, and writing simultaneously during a speaking/listening
activity is often too cognitively demanding.
A Young Learner teacher is not just someone who develops their language level, but is also
aiming to encourage and develop values such as cooperation, patience and tolerance, as
well as critical thinking skills (organising, categorising, inferring etc). It is also important to

remember that because younger children do not have the capacity to analyse and
appreciate contrasts in language forms e.g. the present simple and the present continuous,
an overt focus on grammar is likely to be unproductive. That said, teachers can start some
useful learner training in critical thinking skills even with younger children, as we shall see
later on.
Life experience
We can exploit this by relating as much of the content as possible to children themselves
such as my family, my friends, my home, my classroom, my toys, my favourites, my likes and
dislikes etc. Of course, the exact topic depends on their age; as children grow older, they
see beyond themselves and this can be reflected in the topics covered in their classes, for
example fashion, social media or extreme sports.
Ability to mimic
Take advantage of their natural inclination to mimic and incorporate this when drilling, and
make sure you model clearly and naturally. Provide Young Learners with lots of exposure to
the language as well as opportunities for repetition through chants, rhymes, songs, stories
and other language activities.
1.3 Characteristics of Different Groups of Young Learners
In this section we shall explore the key differences and stages of development between
children of different ages. It is useful to have a clear idea of general characteristics that
children of a particular age group have in common to help ascertain the following:
 The expectations of the teacher regarding children’s behaviour, interests, levels of

concentration, non-linguistic capabilities, spatial awareness, types of preferred
interactions, sense of responsibility and awareness of their own learning potential.
 The manner and roles the teacher should therefore adopt with regard to individuals and
the group as a whole.
 The most appropriate activities, approaches, techniques, materials and resources that
should be used to facilitate engaging, efficient and effective language learning.
The minimum age of learners for the purposes of Delta lessons is 8, but we shall
occasionally refer to children younger than this to help contextualise development in Young
Learners generally.

Task 2: Characteristics of Different Groups of Young Learners (about 30

minutes)
The following website provides details of general, physical, social and emotional
characteristics of different age groups (5-7, 8-10, 11-13 and 14-16):
http://www.son.wisc.edu/net/wistrec/net/developstagetext.html
Whilst these characteristics are not specific to language teaching and learning
contexts, there are clear implications for us as language teachers and course
developers. Bear in mind also that these were written for educators working in The
United States.
As you read, consider the implications and make notes on the following:
 What learners of each age group need and like.

 How well these characteristics describe similar-aged Young Learners in your own
current teaching context.
See Appendix 1

2 Child Development and Language Learning Theories
2.1 How Children Learn
Task 3: Child Development and Language Learning Theories (about 20

minutes)
Look at these questions and see if you can already answer any of them.
1. Have you heard of the following child psychologists and educators: Piaget,
Donaldson, Vygotsky, Bruner, Egan? If so, what do you already know about them?
2. What does cognitive development involve?
3. What is the difference between assimilation and accommodation regarding the
way a child develops his understanding of the world around him?
4. Do children and adults think in different ways?
5. Are children incapable of thinking logically before the age of 7?
6. Do you think children move through fixed and predictable stages of mental
development?
7. What role can adults play in helping children’s mental development?
8. What does ‘scaffolding’ mean in terms of the help an adult can give a child?
9. Why do children under the age of 10 tend to have a ‘black and white’ view of the
world? For example, why might a child say things like ‘ALL my friends have got
one!’ or ‘You NEVER let me do that!’?
10. Is the concept of understanding typically complete by the age of 16 or 17?
Now read the next section, and compare your ideas to those of the psychologists’
theories below.
Theories of child development and learning have evolved considerably over the last century
and have significantly changed the way children are perceived as active learners in the
learning process. These theories have also affected perceptions of the role of the teacher,
the guardian/parent, as well as heredity and the cultural environment.
In order to become an increasingly principled Young Learner teacher, it is important to have

an overview of background research into the areas of child development and learning
theory, as well as first and second language development. This has clear implications for
how we view our Young Learners, our role in their development and language learning and
the context in which they learn and we teach.
Strange as it seems now, it was once believed that children were unable to think or form
complex ideas, unable to make decisions until they learnt to speak. Of course we now know
that babies are aware of their surroundings and are inquisitive from the time they are born.
From birth, babies begin to actively learn, absorbing and processing information from
around them. They use this data to develop perception and thinking skills. This process
continues into adulthood and is known as ‘cognitive development’: the way a person

perceives, thinks, and gains understanding of his or her world through the interaction of
genetic and learned factors. Cognitive development involves information processing,
intelligence, reasoning, language development and memory.
The Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) began to develop his ideas of cognitive
theory in the first half of last century, by watching his own and other children in their own
environment. Prior to Piaget, people tended to think of children as simply small versions of
adults. His work introduced the idea that children's thinking was fundamentally different
from than that of adults. His observations led him to put forward the theory of active
learning or ‘constructivism’, namely, that children build up knowledge for themselves by
making sense of their environment. For example, the young child understands that the
plastic toy he plays with at bath-time is called a duck. When he goes to the park and sees
ducks and geese in the lake, he assumes they are all ducks. This is what Piaget referred to
as ‘assimilation’. The child is assimilating this new experience by relating it to something he
already knows. However, at a later stage, his parents may point out to him that there are
other birds in the park and he will realise that not all birds are ducks. Now he needs to
adapt his way of thinking to allow this new concept to become part of his worldview. This is
what Piaget referred to as ‘accommodation’. Cognitive development involves an ongoing
attempt to achieve a balance between assimilation and accommodation that he termed
equilibration.
Findings from various tasks and experiments conducted with children of different ages led
Piaget to categorise child development of logic into four operational stages:
Source: http://epltt.coe.uga.edu/images/b/b8/Piaget_1.jpg
Pinter (2006) summarises Piaget’s stages thus:
Sensorimotor Stage
The young child learns to interact with the environment by manipulating objects around
him.

Preoperational Stage
The child’s thinking is largely reliant on perception but he or she gradually becomes more
and more capable of logical thinking. On the whole this stage is characterised by
egocentrism, a kind of self-centredness, and a lack of logical thinking.
Concrete Operational Stage

Year 7 is the ‘turning point’ in cognitive development because children’s thinking begins to
resemble ‘logical’ adult-like thinking. They develop the ability to apply logical reasoning in
several areas of knowledge at the same time such as maths, science, or map-reading but
this ability is restricted to the immediate context. This means that children at this stage
cannot yet generalize their understanding.
Formal Operational Stage

Children are able to think beyond the immediate context in more abstract terms. They are
able to carry out logical operations such as deductive reasoning in a systematic way. They
achieve ‘formal logic’.
Cameron (2001) explains this Piagetian viewpoint as follows:
A child’s thinking develops as a gradual growth of knowledge and intellectual

skills towards a final stage of formal, logical thinking. However, gradual growth
is punctuated with certain fundamental changes, which cause the child to pass
through a series of stages. At each stage, the child is capable of some types of
thinking but still incapable of others. In particular, the Piagetian end-point of
development – thinking that can manipulate formal abstract categories using
rules of logic – is held to be unavailable to children before they reach 11 years of
age or more.
Cameron L. Teaching Languages to Young Learners CUP 2001
However, Piaget had his detractors. The Scottish child psychologist Margaret Donaldson
(1978) suggested Piaget underestimated children at the pre-operational stage in believing
that they were largely incapable of logical thinking. She argued that Piaget and his
colleagues used unnatural and ambiguous language and unfamiliar tasks in their
experiments, such as: ‘Are there more yellow flowers or flowers in this picture?’ (Pinter
2006:9). She redesigned some of the original experiments in a more child-friendly format
and demonstrated that ‘when young children are presented with familiar tasks, in familiar
circumstances, introduced by familiar adults using language that makes sense to them, they
show signs of logical thinking much earlier than Piaget claimed’ (ibid). Another criticism was
that Piaget spent too much time describing the typical child, and did not take into account
the individual differences of children, or the differences caused by heredity, culture and
education. It is felt that he put too much emphasis on the individual's internal search for
knowledge, and not enough on external motivation and teachings. He did little research on
the emotional and personality development of children and could have gained more
accurate results if he had viewed cognitive development as gradual and continuous rather
than having definite demarcation stages. (Berger 2008 in
http://thinkingbookworm.typepad.com/blog/2012/03/a-criticism-of-piagets-cognitive-
development-theory.html) Despite such criticisms, most psychologists still support the
existence of some stage-like development in children, albeit less rigid than those suggested
by Piaget.

While the Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky agreed with Piaget that children construct
knowledge for themselves and actively participate in the learning process, he also
demonstrated the impact of social context on children’s development. Irrespective of
Piaget’s stages of development, he was interested in the unique learning potential of the
individual child in conjunction with other people. As Cameron summarises:
Whereas for Piaget the child is an active learner in a world full of objects, for
Vygotsky the child is an active learner in a world full of other people
…[who]play important roles in helping children to learn, bringing objects and
ideas to their attention, talking while playing … reading stories, asking
questions. In a whole range of ways, adults mediate the world for children and
make it accessible to them.
(Cameron 2001:6)
Vygotsky developed the concept of the ‘Zone of Proximal Development’, often referred to
as ZPD. This is the notional gap between the child’s current developmental level as
determined by his independent problem-solving ability and his potential level of
development as determined by the ability to solve problems under adult guidance or in
collaboration with more capable peers.
Source: http://esl.fis.edu/teachers/fis/scaffold/zpd.jpg
Pinter offers the following example to illustrate how this works in practice:
Think of a four-year-old boy who is sitting down to share a story book with a
parent when he notices that the cover page of the story book is full of colourful
stars. He is eager to start counting the stars and is able to count up to about
15 or 16 but beyond that he gets confused with the counting. He will say
things like ‘twenty ten’ instead of thirty, and leave out some numbers
altogether, or just stop, not knowing how to carry on. Left to his own devices,
he will probably abandon the task of counting. However, a parent or teacher,

or even an older brother or sister, can help him to continue. They can prompt
him by inserting the next correct number or by giving a visual clue (for
example, showing the numbers of fingers) or by pronouncing the first sound of
the word (twenty-fff) that follows. […] Given this kind of help, the child may be
able to count up to 50 or even 100.’
(Pinter 2006:11)
For more on the Zone of Proximal Development, see Carol Read’s blog:
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/z-is-for-zone-of-proximal-development/
This systematic type of support is often referred to as ‘scaffolding’, a term introduced in

1976 by the psychologist Jerome Bruner. This is an instructional strategy that supports a
child in carrying out an activity to ensure that he can gain confidence and take control of a
task or parts of a task when he is ready and willing to do so. Alongside this, the child is also
offered relevant constructive support whenever he gets stuck. In order for learning
development to take place effectively in the ZPD, the parent/caregiver or teacher needs to
ensure the following features are included:
 Demonstrating an idealised version of the task (where and when appropriate)

 Getting and keeping the child interested in the task
 Breaking the task down into smaller steps to make it manageable according to the
needs of the individual child
 Avoiding distractions
 Encouraging the child with meaningful praise
 Keeping the child on track towards the completion of the task, by reminding him what
the task was
 Controlling the child’s frustration during the task
 Adjusting the type of scaffolding and interaction to the needs of the child as he
becomes increasingly competent
 Offering relevant and precise feedback to the child on his performance
The Canadian Professor of Education Kieran Egan (born 1942) has also taken issue with
some of Piaget’s staging, believing that learning should follow the natural way the human
mind develops and understands. He sees educational development as a process of a learner
developing layers of capacity for engaging with the world. Individuals proceed through
different kinds of ‘understanding’ and as they develop, they add new layers of sophistication
without losing the qualities of earlier stages. His ‘understandings’ proceed in this way:
The Somatic Layer (ages 0 – 3/4)

This understanding involves pre-linguistic, physical understandings for which we may not
have adequate verbal means of expression. However, very young, pre-language using
children do have an understanding of the world. This is not an ‘animal’ perception; it is a
distinctively human ‘take’ on the world, composed of how we first make sense with our
distinctive human perceptions, our human brain and mind and heart. In short, it is ‘a
knowledge from the body, beyond human words.’ (Egan cited in
http://reading2live.blogspot.pt/2010/05/on-kieran-egans-educated-mind-chicago.html)
The Mythic Layer (ages 4/5 to 9/10)

In this stage, emotional characteristics have primary importance. Children need to know
how they feel about whatever they are learning. Fundamental moral and emotional
categories are used to make sense of their experiences, such as good/bad, love/hate,
happy/sad, always/never. Simple binary opposites such as these can be used as a means to
develop further understanding. For example, understanding ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ precedes the
concept of ‘warm’. The story form is a powerful vehicle for learning at this stage, as it
incorporates the categories and processes used by the child in understanding and
interpreting the world: a beginning, a middle, an end, binary opposites, absolute meanings,
emotional and moral connections and metaphors.
The Romantic Layer (ages 8/9 to 14/15)

At this stage, children need to develop a sense of romance, of wonder and awe. Here the
learner is in search of answers to the general question: ‘What are the limits and dimensions
of the real and the possible?’ (Egan 1979:125). Children start to develop initial concepts of
‘otherness’ of an outside world distinct and separate from their own. This separate world is
perceived as potentially threatening and alien. Children are now learning to develop a
sense of their own distinct identity. The romantic learner seeks out the limits of the real
world, looking for binary opposites within which reality exists. So the learner is fascinated
with extremes, and the more different from their own experience and reality, the better.
Typical stories and story forms that children of this age enjoy include a lot of realistic detail
and heroes and heroines with whom they can identify and who embody the qualities
necessary to succeed in a threatening world.
The Philosophic Layer (ages 14/15 to 19/20 years)

At this layer of understanding, learners are developing their capacity to be able to
generalise and organise information. They start to see the world as a unit, of which they are
a part. The meaning of individual pieces of information is derived primarily from their place
within the general scheme of things. Hierarchies are seen as a means of gaining control
over the threat of diversity. Learners become (over-)confident that they know the meaning
of everything.
2.2 First Language Acquisition Theories
For Young Learner teachers, it is particularly useful to have an understanding of how

children acquire their first language because of parallels we can draw in terms of how they
learn English as a second language. Also, depending on their age, children are still likely to
be in the process of learning their mother tongue, so the two processes are to a greater or
lesser degree similar.
As very young children lack the ability to manipulate and think about language in a
conscious way, it is likely that the ways they acquire English will replicate the way they
acquire their first language. Conversely, older children are less likely to learn a second
language purely holistically as unanalysed chunks because of their increasing abilities to
analyse, hypothesize, deduce and use logic in their thinking processes. It is this unanalytical
(as opposed to unthinking) aspect of mastering the mother tongue where language is
subconsciously ‘acquired’, that differentiates it from the more formalised procedures
required in ‘learning’ a second or other language.
Yule defines acquisition as:

…the gradual development of ability in a language by using it naturally in

communicative situations with others who know the language.
And learning as:
…a more conscious process of accumulating knowledge of the features, such as

vocabulary and grammar, of a language, typically in an institutional setting.
Yule G. The Study of Language: an Introduction CUP 1985
Although very young children cannot verbalise with precision, they are very able
communicators. An 18-month-old child is unlikely to respond to the question ‘Where’s your
teddy bear?’ by saying ‘I believe it is where I left it last night, behind the sofa’. Instead, he
will probably go and get the teddy bear. Children demonstrate understanding and
communicate using their bodies in the early stages of language development. Some parents
use baby sign-language (gestures to convey words such as ‘eat’, ‘sleep’, ‘more’, ‘hug’ and so
on) to help toddlers communicate because gross motor skills are more developed than vocal
skills. Interestingly, children introduced to this method tend to have fewer temper
tantrums as they are better able to express themselves. For more information see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_sign_language
Jean Aitchison illustrates the way children acquire their first language with the following
example of a 12-month-old boy called Adam. He used to shriek ‘Dut!’ (meaning ‘duck’) at
bath-time when he knocked his toy duck off the edge of the bath. He only said ‘dut’ if he
knocked the duck off and he never said it when the duck was swimming in the bath. It
appeared the exclamation and the action were part and parcel of a set routine, and could be
better translated into adult language as ‘whoppee!’ or ‘here goes!’ So Adam wasn’t labeling
an object, but the whole scenario. Later on, he would say the magic word when his mum or
dad knocked the duck on the floor. A final stage occurred when Adam disassociated himself
from the whole event and started to use the word with all his ducks regardless of whether
they were being knocked about or not! Later still, the word was used for real ducks, swans
and geese. This example shows how we start to build up our encyclopedic knowledge in our
mental lexicon. (Aitchison 1992)
Young children are not initially aware of the concept of ‘words’. They first extract multi-
word units, for example ‘thatsnotfair’, from the stream of speech around them, store them
and produce them as wholes. Only later do they separate these prefabricated chunks into
their component parts. The words are stored in their mental lexicon both as connected
chunks and individual words. So, using the above example, the word ‘fair’ is stored as both
a word in isolation and as a component of a chunk. The older they get, the more places
(with this meaning alone) this word will appear: ‘fair’s fair’ and ‘fair enough’ to name but
two.
The following cartoon neatly demonstrates the technique of trial and error that children use
in the process of acquiring new language:

Source: http://www.cse.iitk.ac.in/users/amit/books/lightbown-1993-how-
languages-are.html
When the boy said ‘I putted’ rather than ‘I put’, the error is evidence that he has already
acquired the rule that the past can be shown by adding the inflection ‘-ed’. What has yet to
be acquired is that this verb is irregular. He is trying out his hypothesis of how the past is
formed. Continued exposure of the correct version spoken by other children and adults
subconsciously helps him to adjust his understanding of the rule and will eventually lead
him to produce it correctly. A similar process is at work in the following conversation
extract taken from Crystal 1986:
Marcus: (on a train, approaching London) Are we there yet?

Father: No, we’re in the outskirts.
Marcus: Have we reached the inskirts yet?
Marcus has noticed the prefix ‘out’ and is demonstrating he understands this new word by
using a word that presumably would fit the bill for ‘in a town’. He is using intelligent
guesswork to help further his understanding and creative use of the language.
As well as over-generalising with lexical and grammatical meaning, children are also apt to
under-generalise, as this last conversation extract from Aitchison reveals:
Experimenter: Look at this. It’s an animal.

Brian: No.
Experimenter: Yes, it is.
Brian: No (laughs).
Experimenter: Yes, it is. And this is an animal too.
Brian: No … horsie.
Experimenter: It’s also an animal.
Brian: No.
Experimenter: You don’t believe me.
Brian: No.
(Aitchison 1992: 94)
Brian refused to believe that a horse was an animal. For him, the word ‘animal’ was for a
group of assorted animals, such as the plastic ones he plays with. In all of the above
examples, we can see aspects of Piaget’s theories of ‘assimilation’ and ‘accommodation’ at
work.

A further way that very young children acquire their first language is through repetition.
Their lives are frequently very routine-focused, with the same language occurring over and
over again. The language connected to these routines is also repetitive and predictable
(getting up, getting dressed, having breakfast etc.). As well as this, children also enjoy
having the same storybooks read to them or singing the same songs. This means they are
exposed to certain phrases over and over again. The same is true for songs or chants which
are often accompanied by actions and gestures. The rhythm helps keep the language ‘alive’
in children’s minds.
Children naturally imitate the phrases and language that they hear around them,
particularly phrases which have exaggerated intonation or rhythm. This appears to help to
perfect the enunciation of sounds as structures tend to disappear in favour of the stressed
words. For example, a sentence such as ‘all the food has gone’ will be reduced to ‘all gone’.
Finally, we cannot forget the impact of praise from caregivers and parents in language
acquisition. The average child will receive enormous amounts of positive reinforcement for
often rather incomprehensible attempts at language production. Parents jump up and
down and rave about the language their child is producing which may be barely
comprehensible to an outsider.
Until fairly recently, it was commonly assumed that a child would have acquired his first
language by the age of 5, albeit with a very limited vocabulary. Cameron (2006) refers to
reports which indicate that full acquisition may not be complete for a further ten years: 11-
year-old children whose L1 is English, for example, tend not to use relative clauses starting
with whose, or a preposition plus relative pronoun e.g. ‘in which’, and clauses introduced
with ‘although’ or ‘unless’ can still be problematic for 15-year-olds. These instances of late
acquisition are not surprising, given what we now understand about child development:
they are features of the language which are frequently written rather than spoken and
express complex logical connections between ideas. Cameron goes on to say that children
aged 7 are still acquiring the skills needed for extended discourse, such as telling stories.
They are still learning how to create coherence and cohesion, and still developing the full
range of uses of pronouns and determiners.
2.3 Second Language Learning Theories
Second Language Acquisition (commonly abbreviated to SLA) is a relatively new field of

research and since there is much debate still about exactly how language is learned, some
issues remain unresolved. There are various theories of second language acquisition, but
none are accepted as a complete explanation by all SLA researchers. There is no one
universally accepted theory of how a child learns his first language, nor do we understand
fully why some children have language disorders.

Task 4: Second Language Learning Theories (about 10 minutes)
The table below contains the main theories of Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Add
the appropriate theories and the names to the spaces in the table.
Input Hypothesis
Noticing Hypothesis
Mentalism
Behaviourism
Noam Chomsky
Stephen Krashen
BF Skinner
Richard Schmidt
Theory Key Terms Names Dates

imitation, practise, 1957
reinforcement, habit formation
Universal Grammar language 1960s
acquisition device (LAD),
a language instinct
comprehensible input (i+1), 1970s
natural order, critical period and
affective filter, monitor 1980s
hypothesis
the essential point of 1990
acquisition of grammatical
features of a language
See Appendix 2

2.4 Is There a ‘Best’ Age to Start Learning a Second or Foreign Language?
Task 5: Best Age to Start Learning a Foreign Language (about 15 minutes)
Before you read the next section, write down your answers to these questions, based
on your own experiences of learning a foreign language at school, as well as your
experiences as a Young Learner teacher.
 What is the best age to start learning a second language?

 What reasons can you think of to support your ideas?
Now compare your ideas with the discussion below.
There is continuing debate as to whether there is an optimum time for someone to start
learning another language. Starting in 1957, Eric Lenneberg proposed the Critical Period
Hypothesis, asserting that the brain’s plasticity was only conducive to language learning
until puberty, because until that time it uses the mechanism that assists first language
acquisition (Pinter 2006:29 and Cameron 2001:13). According to this theory, older learners
will learn language differently, and native speaker-like acquisition can never be fully
attained. However, learners are not learning language in a vacuum, and there are various
factors to take into account, such as whether the child is fully immersed in the second
language environment e.g. a Korean child who has emigrated to Australia with his parents,
or learning in his own country as part of the school’s curriculum. The type of input and
interaction he receives from adults e.g. teachers and caregivers impacts on the degree of
proficiency he may ultimately attain, as does the frequency and length of language lessons
he has, not forgetting of course the quality of the teaching he is given.
Current consensus is that there is no clear cut-off point for successful second language
acquisition; indeed, studies carried out comparing children who started earlier in primary
school with those who started a little later in secondary school show that the advantages of
the early starters tend to diminish by the time they reach the age of 16 (Pinter 2006: 29). Of
course, there are likely to be variations due to the quality of teaching, frequency of lessons
as well as the children’s attitudes towards learning the second language.
The main benefits to starting early appear to be three-fold. Younger children tend to
develop and retain the following:

 Good listening comprehension

 An intuitive grasp of language
 More accurate pronunciation
This is probably because most learning before the age of 7 is aural and oral, and younger
children are arguably more sensitive to the sounds and rhythms of the new language than
older teenagers. As we have discussed earlier, they enjoy copying new sounds and
intonation patterns and are often less anxious and inhibited learners than older children.
However, there is significant evidence to advocate starting studying a language later, since
teenagers are in the process of developing the following:
 More efficient strategies for acquiring facts and concepts

 Better developed learning strategies and skills
 A more mature conceptual world to rely on
 A better grasp of grammatical concepts
 Greater cognitive maturity
 A clearer sense of discourse as they have had more practice at e.g. negotiating, turn-
taking and sustaining conversations
 A clearer sense of why they are learning a foreign language
 Greater potential to analyse language
 Greater potential to pay attention to detail
(Blondin et al in Pinter 2006: 29 and Carol Read Is Younger Better? English Teaching
Professional 2003)
In principle, these factors enable them to make more rapid progress in much less time and
be more efficient learners than young children. Carol Read (ibid) illustrates the negligible
effects of starting young: ‘Penny Ur refers to two classes she taught, one starting at the age
of eight and one at the age of ten, and reports that, by the time they reached 13 and moved
up to secondary school, there was no perceptible difference between the two. Similarly,
David Nunan (2003, cited in Read) reports on language programme evaluations that tested
groups of students aged 15, some of whom started learning English at the age of ten and
some at the age of five, and again found no difference at age 15.’
2.5 Implications of Child Development and First and Second Language

Acquisition Theories for the Young Learner Language Classroom
As you have been working through these materials, you have probably noticed connections
and echoes with your own teaching and students. Indeed, many of the procedures,
techniques, activities and approaches we use are the practical realisation of these theories.
What follows below is a summary of the ways in which theory can be translated into best
practice in the second language classroom.

Task 6: Implications of Theories (about 20 minutes)
Before you read the next section, write down some reasons why the following
statements are important in terms of teaching Young Learners, based on your previous
teaching experience, background reading and opinions. Then compare with the
commentary below.
 Teach the new through the familiar
 Give children tasks relevant to their stage of development
 Focus on language, topics and tasks which are within the cognitive development
and life experiences and interests of the children you are teaching
 Engage your students through topics and situations they can relate to
 Involve your students as fully as possible to help them relate to the language they
are learning
 Make sure your students always understand you
 Do not mistake silence for lack of understanding
 Focus on your students’ needs, not just the coursebook syllabus
 Prepare and set up language tasks carefully to ensure they are manageable
 Encourage repetition, imitation and experimentation
 Encourage children to make intelligent guesses about language
 Encourage children to become ‘language detectives’
 Catch your students being good and let them know!
Teach the new through the familiar

Piaget noted that children learnt through a process of assimilation and accommodation.
Here is an example of how this theory can inform practical lesson design and staging:
In Cyrillic script, for example, children are taught to start writing letters from the bottom
and the letters tend to be slanted forwards. This contrasts with Roman script, where
children are taught to start letters at the top and tend to be straight. Young Ukrainian
children who start learning English aged 6 or 7 appear to have relatively few difficulties
writing in English. This is perhaps because they have comparatively little experience of
writing in their own language, and so the Cyrillic script is not fully ingrained yet. However,
children aged 8 upwards learning English for the first time often find Roman script
considerably more challenging, because they already are more practised writers in their

own language. Whilst the younger children can assimilate the new way of forming letters
surprisingly well, the older children’s longer experience as writers implies the need for them
to accommodate the new style of writing.
Give children tasks relevant to their stage of development

Donaldson’s recasting of several of Piaget’s experiments (Donaldson 1978) shows the
importance of choosing relevant activities and carefully worded supporting questions that
accompany tasks if they are to be effectively carried out by children (see Section 2.1 above).
Transferred to the language classroom, this means students need to be able to readily
understand a task as it reflects their current life experience and also be able to process the
teacher’s instructions without much difficulty.
Focus on language, topics and tasks which are within the cognitive development and life
experiences and interests of the children you are teaching
A class of 8-year-olds is unlikely to be able to talk about ‘regrets’ as they have not had
sufficient life experience nor the linguistic abilities to express such a concept in their own
language. It would be similarly unreasonable to expect them to recount anecdotes in a
clearly organised and coherent fashion because their ability to separate and sequence
events in a chronological order as well as effectively manipulate reference words and
conjunctions is still developing. They tend to use absolutes rather than more balanced
middle shades of meaning in order to argue their case, as in these typical refrains to
parents: ‘you never let me …’ or ‘everyone else has got … except me!’ ‘Rarely’ and ‘hardly
ever’ are examples of mental and linguistic constructs that are later acquired in a child’s first
language.
This is not to say that certain concepts or language forms should be avoided; rather, the
Young Learner teacher needs to have clear reasons and tasks for focusing on certain items
of language, depending on the age of the students, as this example illustrates: a teacher of
primary aged children realises that simply getting pairs of students to ask and answer
questions about their weekend routines with questions and responses such as ‘How often
do you see your grandparents?’ ‘Not very often’ or ‘Nearly every weekend’ is not necessarily
going to be particularly memorable, because these are not the sorts of nuanced responses
they would naturally give in their own language. However, the language focus can be made
more relevant, enjoyable and memorable if the teacher sets up a class mingling activity
whereby the children not only ask and answer these questions, but also record the
responses by completing a simple grid, which they then use to draw a graph. Apart from
reflecting a task they may be familiar with through their maths lessons at mainstream
school, they can take pride in have produced an attractive display for their classroom.
Engage your students through topics and situations they can relate to
A sure-fire way to turn off a class of young teenagers is to announce that their lesson is
going to focus on studying a specific area of grammar. The reason for this is that children
are not normally intrinsically interested in language forms per se, such as present perfect or
concessive clauses, but on what they can do with language, that is how it can enable them
to communicate. Children acquire language through a focus on meaning rather than on
grammatical forms, which is why more effective syllabuses at primary and middle years
have a main focus on topics or situations appropriate to the children’s age and learning
context. Young Learner coursebooks frequently situate language within a cartoon story or
easily recognisable situation, such as ordering food in a fast-food restaurant, and language
practice will involve children repeating chunks of language, rather than close analysis of
form. It is this focus on meaning rather than grammatical forms that facilitates language

acquisition in younger students. For example, a class of six-year-olds ‘read’ a story taken
from Mini Magic 1 (Esteve and Estruch Macmillan, 2003). Little Elephant complains to
Doctor Monkey of having stomach ache, saying ‘My tummy! My tummy!’ Several lessons
later one of the children looked quite upset, and when the teacher asked what was wrong,
she replied: ’My tummy! My tummy!’, using precisely the same lament and the same
gestures as Little Elephant.
Involve your students as fully as possible to help them relate to the language they are
learning
Teachers need to interact with children to make language and meanings accessible. An
example of this is in reading. There is a parallel to be drawn between a caregiver reading
aloud a bedtime story and the way a Young Learner teacher handles a reading text with a
group of learners. The caregiver will not normally give the child a book to read alone;
instead, she will typically get and keep the child’s attention and interest by sitting near the
child, asking questions and commenting on the storyline and pictures. In a similar manner,
in order for the children to develop relevant language and reading skills, the teacher needs
to mediate in order to get their interest, find out what they can already bring to the text in
terms of related knowledge, as well as help them to interpret the information they hear or
read. The teacher of a group of 9-11 year-olds can ask questions about the plot, the
characters and objects in a story they read and listen to, such as ‘Do you think Colin’s
clever?’ or ‘Why is Clara a good friend to Colin?’ Questions that a teacher might discuss with
an older group of students prior to working on a text about mobile phones could include
‘What are the different functions of your mobile phone?’, ‘What do you most use your
phone for?’ or ‘How do you think mobile phones will change in the next ten years?’
Make sure your students always understand you

Krashen believes language acquisition takes place most effectively when the input is
meaningful and interesting to the learner, and when it is slightly above their current level of
understanding. He calls this level of input ‘i+1’, where ‘i’ represents the level of language
already acquired and ‘+1’ is a +metaphor for language (words, grammatical forms, aspects
of pronunciation) that is a step just beyond that level (Lightbrown P. and Spada N. 2011). It
is important to use L2 i.e. in our case, English so that our students understand us at all
times, even though they may not be familiar with every word. This can be done in
conjunction with gestures, examples, illustrations, experiences, caretaker speech.
If students complain they cannot understand their teacher, it could be that the teacher is
using language at a level too far beyond the students’ current ability to understand, in other
words where the ratio is i+10 or even i+50. This could take the form of using words and
structures that are too advanced for the children’s level of comprehension, as in this
teacher explanation of ‘have to’ to elementary level students whose mother tongue does
not have a cognate for ‘necessary’: ‘You don’t have to wear a uniform means it isn’t
necessary to wear a uniform’. Lack of comprehension can also result from overly
complicated task instructions which are sequenced above the children’s mental, as well as
linguistic, stages of development, as in this example: ‘Before you answer the questions in
your exercise books about this story, I want you to read it quickly and tell me what the story
is about.’ To be fully comprehensible, the teacher needs to divide the instructions into five
micro stages given in chronological order i.e. ‘first: read the story quickly, second: tell me
what the story is about, third: read the questions, four: read the story a second time more
carefully, five: write the answers to the questions in your exercise books.’
The teacher needs to use natural, rather than contrived language with children. Part of

creating comprehensible input consists of using strategies for making the message
understood, variously known as ‘motherese,’ ‘caretaker speech,’ ‘teacherese,’ or ‘foreigner
talk.’ Some of the characteristics of this speech, as it occurs naturally, will be observed
when a grandparent is talking to a young grandchild or when a skilled teacher is introducing
a new language. Examples of this include elaboration, slower speech rate, use of gestures,
and the provision of additional contextual clues. To make the meaning of ‘I’m an only child’
clear to primary aged children, the teacher could use a combination of these strategies. She
could elaborate by saying ‘I haven’t got any brothers or sisters’, say the sentence more
slowly, to help mitigate any potential difficulties in pronunciation, point to a child in the
class whom she knows is an only child and another who she knows has siblings, and ask
accompanying concept questions: ‘Is Monica an only child?’, ‘Carlos has got a brother’, ‘Is he
an only child?’
Insufficient attention by the teacher to ensuring that messages are always comprehensible
can result in the children becoming demotivated with English classes, because they feel
either that they are no good at English, or that English is just too hard to learn. It is
therefore important for teachers to use planning time to develop effective strategies to
make language comprehensible, be it specific structural or lexical content or classroom-
based language.
Do not mistake silence for lack of understanding

The Silent Period, where learners of a second language do not attempt to speak, is more
common in very young children than in teenagers, as there is often more pressure for them
to speak during the early stages of acquisition. The Silent Period is often associated with
Krashen's Input Hypothesis whereby learners are building up language competence during
their silent periods through actively listening and processing the language they hear, and
that they do not need to speak to improve in the language. A common Young Learner
classroom application of the Silent Period is with the Total Physical Response Method,
which does not require children to speak at an early stage of input of new language; rather,
they are required to listen and observe the teacher’s instructions and gestures, to allow
them time to absorb the new language. What follows is an example of TPR with a group of
10-year-olds and illustrates the carefully scaffolded stages which are key to effectiveness:
 The students stand in a circle and watch the teacher;

 The teacher tells the children to listen to her and watch her actions. They must not
repeat what she says or does;
 The teacher tells a mini story, line by line, accompanied by appropriate mime and
gestures:
It’s a very hot day!
I know! I’ve got an idea!
Put on your swimming clothes;
Put on your shorts and t-shirt and sandals;
Walk to the swimming pool;
Take off your shorts and t-shirt and sandals;
And jump into the pool!
Great!
 The teacher repeats the story, and this time the children copy the teachers’ gestures;
 The teacher repeats the story, but uses to gestures; the children need to listen and
show understanding by using the correct mime of gesture;
 The teacher mixes up the order of the story and the children need to listen carefully and
respond using the appropriate gesture or mime;

 Optionally, the teacher can now elicit the language from the students as they start to
tell the story for themselves, all the while using gestures to help move the storytelling
along.
Focus on your students’ needs, not just the coursebook syllabus

Chomsky put forward the concept of a Universal Grammar (UG) to explain the fact children
often produce language that they could not have heard in natural interaction with others,
such as ‘flyed’, ‘writed’ or ‘buyed’. Attaching regular past tense inflection to irregular verbs
is, according to Chomsky, an example of how children make constant hypotheses about the
structure of their mother tongue. This innate metaphorical device allows all children to
acquire the language structure and syntax of their environment during a critical period of
their development. Some theorists argue that it is the Universal Grammar that children
have of their first language which affects language output of second and successive
languages, and accounts for the idea of L1 interference. Without a specific focus on form
differences, students ‘may assume that some structures of the first language have
equivalents in the second language, when, in fact, they do not.’ (Lightbrown and Spada: 36).
Krashen took this idea one stage further with his notion of a natural order hypothesis. Not
only is each child equipped with a set of blueprints (a Universal Grammar) for learning their
first language, there is also a route map for acquiring languages i.e. language is acquired in
predictable stages.
His summary of second language grammatical morpheme acquisition sequence was as

follows:
-ing (progressive)
plural
copula (‘to be’)
auxiliary (progressive as in
‘He is going’)
Article
irregular past
regular past -ed

third person singular s
•(Lightbrown and Spada: 84) possessive s
(Lightbrown and Spada: 84)

It is perhaps ironic that the features of language that are heard most frequently are not
necessarily the easiest to learn. On the face of it, present simple in the affirmative form
should pose few problems for learners, since they need only remember to add ‘s’ or ‘es’ to
the third person singular forms. Yet it is arguably this simplicity compared to the
grammatical morphology required in other languages that causes this and other deceptively
straightforward features of English to be later, as opposed to early, acquired. This does not
mean that we should therefore delay the teaching of certain structures until such time as
Young Learners are capable of learning them more efficiently. In the case of present simple,
this is certainly an ‘empowering’ structure as it enables them to describe themselves and
others and could also be seen as a gateway for understanding and acquiring other key
structures. What it does mean is that we need to be mindful of the value of recycling,
rather than assuming that if something is ‘taught’ and apparently understood in one lesson,
it will remain in the children’s mind, ready to be accurately produced on demand in a future
lesson. And also to have some empathy with children that seem to persist in making
mistakes which have already been covered in lessons. Lightbrown and Spada illustrate this
point with reference to four stages of acquisition of question forms. They recorded
interactions with a teacher and 11-12 year old French children learning English and found
that drawing a student’s attention to an error and recasting is not going to result in
language improvement if the level of complexity of language is too far above the learner’s
actual level of competence:
S1: Is your favourite house is a split-level?

S2: Yes.
T: You’re saying ‘is’ two times dear. ‘Is your favourite house a split-level?’
S1: A split-level.
T: OK.
(Lightbrown and Spada: 161)
Krashen also put forward the idea of a monitor, a metaphorical ‘editor’ that makes minor
changes and fine-tunes what the acquired system has produced. An example of this would
be a 12-year-old, who has already had quite extensive exposure and practice in talking
about people’s ages. When talking about her sister, she says: ‘Sonia has 9 years old …er …
Sonia IS 9 years old.’ This is evidence that she has already understood that, unlike her own
language, English uses the verb to be with ages, and her ‘monitor’ has interacted to override
what she now understands to be a mistake. Such monitoring takes place when the speaker
(or writer) has time to reflect, is aware of the importance of producing correct, as opposed
to simply understandable, language, and has already learned the relevant rules.
Conversely, however, children are capable of understanding and producing certain language
forms which may not appear in their coursebooks or course syllabus, as long as the message
is highly relevant to them, it has a high surrender value i.e. they will hear and use it
frequently and the children are not expected to be able to analyse and show understanding
of the individual components of the structure. It could be argued that the past tense, for
example, should be part and parcel of the language classroom from an early stage, since this
is a very frequently used structure by native speakers. So even 8 and 9-year-olds in their
first year of learning English can develop an understanding of questions such as ‘Did you
have a nice weekend?’, ‘Did you stay at home?’, ‘Did you go to the beach?’ which their
teacher can ask at the start of lessons and which the children can respond either with a
simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ or shake or nod of their heads.

Prepare and set up language tasks carefully to ensure they are manageable
Borrowing from Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development, and Bruner’s concept of
scaffolding, language tasks need to be thoughtfully planned and carefully set up to ensure
children are not overloaded or feel that a task is beyond their capability. A simple written
grammar exercise requires just as much scaffolding as does a more elaborate mingling
activity. An example of this in practice which is valid for children of any age who are
capable of focusing on grammatical forms which illustrates many of the features mentioned
in 1.4 above is as follows:
 On the board the teacher writes a first example of the grammar manipulation task to be
done and elicits from various students what the task is and clarifies through clearly
checked instructions how to go about doing it.
 Students work through a second example, this time the students working from their
coursebooks, but feeding back their answers to the teacher in open plenary again.
 Students work through the remainder of the questions by themselves.
 Answers are checked at the end when everyone has finished and the teacher offers
constructive feedback to both individuals and the class as a whole.
Encourage repetition, imitation and experimentation

Very young children hear the same expressions from adults and older children over and
over again, and they also repeat many of these for themselves, replicating the same pitch
and tone, deriving pleasure from doing so. Behaviourists would certainly argue that this act
of repetition of language promotes acquisition in children’s first language and is something
we can encourage in the second language classroom. There is value in primary aged
learners repeating tasks, games, songs and chants from one lesson to another; if it is an
activity they enjoyed in one lesson, the chances are they will enjoy doing it again in another,
with the added benefit that the act of delayed repetition is likely to improve their
performance too. However, the teacher needs to exert judgment to ensure the children do
not get bored with too much repetition.
Similarly, with middle-school aged children, the act of choral drilling can be one way of
promoting automaticity, which is ‘the ability to perform a task without conscious or
deliberate effort’ (scottthornbury.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/a-is-for-automaticity/), and
can be made fun by getting Young Learners to say the target language loudly, then slowly,
then quickly, then happily and finally quietly.
Far from merely parroting the language children hear around them, they can be very
creative and enjoy playing with words. As Pinter points out: ‘They make up their own
words, create jokes, and experiment with language even when they have to rely on limited
resources.’ She cites the examples of one native English-speaker child calling a cactus a
‘hedgehog flower’, and another referring to a Dalmatian as a ‘dog with chicken pox’. (Pinter
2006: 20) Young Learner teachers need to encourage similar use of imagination when
teaching English through drama activities, writing poetry, creating chants and raps, and
generally playing around with sounds, rhyme, rhythm, as well as creating imaginary or
nonsense words. For example, rather than getting a class of 11-year-old elementary level
children to describe farm or jungle animals, they can invent and describe the habitat and
diet of their own ‘composite animals’ such as a ‘bananaroo’ which is a mixture of a banana
and a kangaroo. It is the act of putting their own idiosyncratic sense of humour to creative
use that can help the learning process become more meaningful and therefore potentially
more memorable for children.

Encourage children to make intelligent guesses about language

Use of carefully staged elicitation and concept questions can help children make educated
guesses and logical deductions about language meanings and forms. This is especially
important as children move from primary to secondary education, where they are expected
to be able to analyse language forms as well as meanings. Asking ‘either/or’ questions and
questions which encourage children to justify their answers can develop these skills e.g. ‘Are
they talking in a school or a hospital?’, ‘How do you know?’ Secondly, the more we can
encourage our learners to speak, the more opportunities there are for them to test out
hypotheses (whether out loud with the rest of the class or internally in their minds) about
the target language grammar (Ellis, 2008).
Children in Egan’s Mythic Layer of development (4 - 10 year-olds) often enjoy stories, and
this form is relevant to the language classroom: like a story, a lesson needs a clear and
strong beginning, middle and end, with carefully staged repetition and a certain sense of
predictability to help children feel more secure. As a further connection between the
Egan’s description of characteristic of this age of children and the language classroom, we
can introduce topics and contexts using strong opposites, absolute meanings with strong
emotional and moral appeal. Since children in the Romantic layer (ages 8 – 15) are
developing an interest and fascination of the world beyond themselves, they may become
keen collectors of objects or facts. Project work and homework research tasks on a subject
which they find engaging can be particularly fruitful and motivating.
Encourage children to become ‘language detectives’

As children move from primary to secondary education, there is an increasingly overt focus
on grammar and forms. This is important at this stage of children’s learning, as it can help
them to systematise their knowledge and potentially enrich and extend creative ways in
which they can use English for themselves. However for some children, the jump from ‘fun’
learning, based largely on stories, songs and games with its emphasis on implicit
understanding of language forms, to being expected to analyse forms and meanings in
perhaps decontextualised sentences and later compare and contrast between forms and
meanings can be too great. The Young Learner teacher’s responsibility is to try to bridge
this gap, by training them in the cognitively demanding skills of analysing, comparing and
contrasting and to develop their awareness and explicit understanding of aspects of
grammar. Although Richard Schmidt (1990) referred to adult second language learners, his
observations have relevance for older children too. He argues that learners cannot learn
the grammatical features of a language unless they notice them. However, noticing is not
per se, sufficient. Learners need to engage and interact with what they have noticed if the
language is to be memorable and move from input to uptake. Carol Read describes various
ways this can be managed with primary aged children in ‘500 Activities for the Primary
Classroom’ (Read C. 500 Activities for the Primary Classroom, Macmillan 2007). This
generic example that can be used with older children demonstrates the value of getting
students to react on a personal level with language they have seen in a unit dealing with
identity. The generic example below using vocabulary taken from the first four units of
Gateway B1+ (Spencer D. Macmillan 2011) demonstrates the value of getting older children
to react on a personal level with language they have previously seen.

Look at these words and expressions which are taken from Units 1 – 4 of
your coursebook, and answer the questions below:
overweight cottage bald lorry plain stale bossy luggage
reliable fresh selfish raw talkative bright elderly filthy
break down skinny suburbs curly campsite tidy skyscraper
impatient overcooked vegetarian inner city platform bed and breakfast
Which words or expressions …
1. …do you have no problem remembering? Why is this?

2. …can you match to a particular topic in the coursebook?
3. …can you not remember seeing before?
4. …do you think are the most useful to you? Why?
5. …have you used recently? In which context?
6. …are the most difficult for you pronounce? Why is this?
7. …do you think you might misspell in future? Why is this?
Catch your students being good and let them know!

Many of us find it easier to spot mistakes and shortcomings, rather than to notice positive
effort and real improvement. However, as Bruner’s advice for managing scaffolding shows,
meaningful praise will help spur on a child to further endeavour and also pinpoint what the
child is doing well. We need to be principled in the way we manage praise in the classroom.
It is important to praise the effort, and not just the ability, and to be directive saying what
was good about a child’s (or a class’s) performance, and in the case of more appropriate or
good behaviour, say how it was qualitatively different from behaviour in previous lessons.

2.6 The Teenage Brain
Task 7: The Teenage Brain (about 5 minutes)
Decide if the following sentences are true (T) or false (F). Then read the information
below to check your answers.
1. The teenage brain and the adult brain are physiologically the same.
2. Teenagers need more sleep than children or adults.
3. A young adolescent brain can hold an average of four items of information in
working memory.
4. Teenagers perceive and interpret information differently from adults.
5. Teenagers use a different part of the brain to assess emotion than adults.
6. Boys’ and girls’ brains are identical.
While reading this section, two things need to be borne in mind: firstly, not all teenagers go
through the emotionally difficult hurdles that we often associate with adolescence.
Secondly, teenagers are not the only people who can be irrational, overly emotional,
volatile, argumentative, sullen or prone to mood swings.
The adolescent brain is still developing: just before puberty, usually between the ages of 10
and 12, there is a massive proliferation of grey matter in the prefrontal cortex, the part of
the brain that has most to do with thinking, reasoning, logic and decision-making. This grey
matter is responsible for the generation of nerve impulses, which process the brain’s
information. Using the analogy of a tree, after this flurry of growth, unused branches or
pathways are pruned during adolescence. This pruning down process means those
connections and cells which are regularly used will flourish, whereas those which are not
used will wither and die. It is this pruning which gives the tree its shape with fewer, but
thicker and stronger branches. A process of myelination occurs and continues beyond
adolescence into the mid-twenties, whereby the brain’s pathways are insulated with myelin
to make them faster, stronger and more stable.
Whereas adults think with the prefrontal cortex, teenagers process information with the
amygdala, the instinctual, emotional part of the brain. This can mean they tend to lack
impulse control, demonstrate more irrational behaviours, and often make decisions based
on their feelings rather than logical thought-processing. It can also mean that they feel that

others, especially their elders, do not understand them or are not interested in them, and
that they also misinterpret messages and facial expressions and other signals, as the
researcher Deborah Yurgelun-Todd discovered when she showed photographs of adults
exhibiting various emotions. The adults in the experiment were able to correctly identify all
the emotions, but a large number of teenagers were not. (Nicola Morgan Blame my Brain:
The Amazing Teenage Brain Revealed, Walker 2013)
The cerebellum, positioned at the back of the brain also changes most during teen years and
continues to do so until the early twenties. This is responsible for the coordination of
muscles and thinking processes, leading some teenagers to be mentally, as well as
physically, clumsy. This can result in them saying things out of turn, sometimes with no
explanation for what they have said!
A further difference between teenagers and adults is the amount of sleep they need. On
average, American teenagers get seven and a half hours sleep a night, while they actually
need nine and a quarter hours. The result is therefore significant sleep deprivation, which
affects moods, their ability to think, perform and react appropriately. To further complicate
matters, their circadian clock, or biological timing system, essentially shifts three hours
backwards meaning that they often feel wide awake late into the night, resulting in them
finding it very difficult to wake up and be alert in the morning when they need to get to
school and participate actively in lessons.
http://www.brainwaves.com/
For more on the teenage brain, including an informative video from the perspectives of
scientists, psychologists, parents and, importantly, teenagers, go to:
http://sharpbrains.com/blog/2010/12/21/top-10-resources-to-better-understand-the-
teenage-brain%E2%80%94-brain-health-series-part-2/
Also, for more on teenage sleep patterns:

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/07/17/sleep-and-the-teenage-brain/

3 Local Context and Parental/Guardian Involvement
Success in learning a language is not just accounted for by a child being a hard-working and
able learner with an effective teacher. The degree and quality of support received at home
is of undeniable importance.
Task 8a: Case studies (40 minutes)
Read the following case studies of children’s home situation and their progress and
attainment in learning English.
For each case make a short list of how home-life can impact a) positively and b)
negatively on the child’s English learning.
The first one has been done as an example.
See Appendix 3
Ana Rita is 9 and has been having English lessons in her primary
school since she was 6. She is now in her first year of English
lessons at a language school which she attends for an hour twice a
week. Her parents are both teachers but they do not speak any
English. Her older sister, Sara, is 14 and hard-working and is making
good progress with her English: she has already passed the
Cambridge PET for Schools exam, and she is also a student at the
same language school.
Possible positive impacts Possible negative impacts

Ana Rita  She has some previous  She may not wish to emulate her
knowledge from her lessons at sister, or have her sister help her,
primary school to draw on. and resent comparisons people
 Her sister may be prepared to make between the two of them.
support her e.g. helping with her  Her sister may not want to help
homework. her with her English homework.
 She may see her sister as a model  Her parents may be too busy
of what she will be able to being involved in their own time-
achieve consuming professions to give
 Her parents presumably see the much time to helping Ana Rita at
value in her learning English for home with her English.
her future academic and  They may feel it is more
professional life. important that they help her with
 As teachers, they are likely to her mainstream school
place importance on studying at homework.
home, being organised, attending
lessons punctually and regularly
etc.

Carlos is 14 and an only child who lives with his mother (who has a
full-time job) and grandparents. His father has been working in
Canada for the past year. Carlos has cousins and aunts and uncles
living in Canada too with whom he keeps in regular contact and he
has been over there twice. His father comes back home every three
months for two weeks at a time. Carlos has English lessons on
Saturday mornings at a language school.
Sofia is 8 and Chinese and emigrated with her parents to Italy when
she was 6. Her parents only speak a smattering of Italian and no
English. Sofia is now learning both Italian and English. She is making
remarkable progress in English at her language school, and her hard
work has meant she has jumped a grade, and is now in a class with
students exactly the same age as her.
Viktor is 15 and has been learning at a language school since he was

3. His parents got divorced two years ago and Viktor and his 12-
year-old brother live with their mother during the week and their
father during the weekend. He recently passed the Cambridge First
for Schools exam. He is an able student, but not a high flyer. He is
now in an advanced teenage class at his language school.
Li Na is 12 and in addition to her one hour English lessons at a

language school which she attends twice a week, she also has other
after-school activities: catechism classes, table tennis and extra
maths coaching. When she comes to class, she is very enthusiastic
and seems to be keeping up quite well.
Now compare your notes to those in Appendix 3
We can see from these examples that it is important that teachers are aware of home and
family circumstances of their Young Learner students. It is also worth remembering that
what appears to be a positive situation is not necessarily so, and vice versa.

Task 8b: Case Studies (about 20 minutes)
Here is some further information about each of these children. The original
information from the previous task is in grey. For each one, answer the following
questions:
 How does the new information affect learning positively or negatively?

 What type of parental involvement is necessary to promote or improve each
child’s learning?
 What can the teacher do to facilitate?
Again, the first one has been done as an example.
See Appendix 4
Ana Rita
Ana Rita is 9 and has been having English lessons in her primary school since she was 6. She
is now in her first year of English lessons at a language school which she attends for an hour
twice a week. Her parents are both teachers but they don’t speak any English. Her older
sister, Sara, is 14 and hard-working and is making good progress with her English: she has
already passed the Cambridge PET for Schools exam, and she is also a student at the same
language school. Ana Rita is struggling to keep up with the other children in her class. Her
homework is done to an excellent standard, but she has significant problems completing
activity book exercises in class and her test results do not match the standard of her
homework.
How does the new information affect learning positively or negatively?

It seems that her sister is ‘helping’ Ana Rita with her homework, or rather, she is doing her
homework for her. Whilst this may initially make Ana Rita feel better, and perhaps she has
some passive understanding of how Sara is completing the exercises, this isn’t helping her
productive and active understanding of English. Her parents may feel they cannot be of
much constructive help as they do not speak English, and so are grateful that at least Sara is
willing to support her sister.
What type of parental involvement is necessary to promote or improve each child’s

learning?
Of course, if the parent speaks some English they are more likely to understand the
requirements of a homework activity. But this doesn’t necessarily make them good English
teachers. There are two possible options for constructively supporting Ana Rita with her
homework. One option is for one of the parents to sit down with her and ask her to explain
what the homework is and to work out the homework with Ana Rita. What they lack in
pronunciation they may make up for in having a more cognitively developed approach to
the exercise. Alternatively, if the language is beyond them, or they really do not have the
time in addition to the time they are already spending with her on her mainstream school
work, Sara needs to be shown how to help rather than spoon-feed answers.

What can the teacher do to facilitate?

Talk to the parents, showing them examples of homework tasks and class-based work so
they can see the discrepancy between the two, being careful not to blame her older sister.
Discuss the kind of difficulties Ana Rita is having, as well as what she is doing well. Suggest
and come to an agreement on an alternative way of managing Ana Rita’s homework, and
set a time for a follow-up discussion to assess her progress in this respect.
Carlos
Carlos is 14 and an only child who lives with his mother (who has a full-time job) and
grandparents. His father has been working in Canada for the past year. Carlos has cousins
and aunts and uncles living in Canada too with whom he keeps in regular contact and he’s
been over there twice. His father comes back home every three months for two weeks at a
time. He has English lessons on a Saturday morning at a language school. His attendance is
sporadic and he rarely does homework. In fact, he has yet to hand in any compositions.
When he comes, he enjoys speaking and vocabulary activities, as well as anything ‘gamey’,
but finds it difficult to maintain concentration or interest in reading or grammar-focussed
work.
Sofia
Sofia is 8 and Chinese and emigrated with her parents to Italy when she was 6. Her parents
only speak a smattering of Italian and no English. Sofia is now learning both Italian and
English. She is making remarkable progress in English at her language school, and her hard
work has meant she has jumped a grade, and she is now in a class with students exactly the
same age as her. Sofia has very natural pronunciation and she enjoys all the songs and her
coursebook cartoon storyline and drama-based activities in her English classes.
Viktor
Viktor is 15 and he has been learning at a language school since he was 3. His parents got
divorced two years ago and Viktor and his 12-year-old brother live with his mother during
the week and their father during the weekend. He recently passed the Cambridge First for
Schools exam. He’s now in an advanced teenage class at his language school. He’s an able
student, but not a high flyer. Viktor’s parents expect him to be able to pass the Cambridge
Proficiency exam in two years, since this means he will be able to devote his last year at
school to getting the highest grades possible in his final school exams in order to secure his
place at university. However, Viktor seems to be doing the minimum to get by, and he does
not seem to be making much progress, citing pressures of work from his mainstream school.
Li Na
Li Na is 12 in addition to her one hour English lessons at a language school which she
attends twice a week, she also has other after-school activities: catechism classes, table
tennis and extra maths coaching, and she often doesn’t get home finally until 7.30. When
she comes to class, she is very enthusiastic, but she sometimes misses two or three lessons
in a row, and she doesn’t always do her homework. When Li Na’s teacher asked the school
receptionist to contact her parents about her absences and lack of homework, she found
out that her father has been seriously ill for the past year, and that he needs constant care
from Li Na’s mother. Keeping Li Na more fully occupied in extra-curricular activities helps
her deal with the fact that her father is so ill, and also frees her mother up somewhat.

These examples illustrate just a few of the apparent paradoxes a teacher needs to be aware
of regarding home-life circumstances:
 Siblings and the type of support they offer or rivalry and ‘pecking order’ within a family.
 Parents. There is no guarantee that being teachers will mean they offer appropriate
support. Likewise, not having had an ‘academic background’ does not imply a parent
cannot offer good support.
 Children are not necessarily going to be at a disadvantage if they are of a different
culture or speak a different first language from the other children in their class.
 Having family that are native or near-native speakers of English is not necessarily an
advantage.
 An absent parent or illness in the family may or may not impact on the attitude and
progress of a child.
 Parents’ expectations of their child’s potential and progress can vary greatly, from a
keen awareness to the unrealistic.
 Divorced parents may offer the same or better ‘joined up thinking’ as regards their
child’s education as happily married ones.
It is clear it is imperative to have regular contact with parents to gain some appreciation of
and sensitivity towards the child’s home-life and exploit or find opportunities which can
benefit the child’s learning. Without doing so, a teacher is at risk of misinterpreting a child’s
actions or abilities, dealing with a situation in a manner inappropriate to the child’s
circumstances and needs, and perhaps ultimately either being ineffective in efforts to
manage a situation or event or, worse still, aggravating it. As Jean Handscombe points out:
If each side has conflicting, deeply held beliefs and values about what
constitutes good child-rearing practices and quality education…and if
teachers and parents…view each other as rivals engaged in a power struggle
over who knows what is best for a specific child, then a distrustful relationship
is almost certain to develop.
Handscombe J. in Educating Second Language Children CUP 1994: 346-7
It is equally important to be aware of how you need to speak to a child’s parents concerning
poor or inappropriate behaviour or attitude, it is imperative you have clear facts at hand
and where possible concrete evidence to support your case. Many parents will naturally
wish to defend their children against complaints made by the teacher, no matter how

obvious the proof. Caroline Rinse has this cautionary tale to tell: ‘I remember confronting
one mother about her daughter Linda’s very messy habits. Linda’s mother told me that
Linda was merely creative and that she didn’t want to stifle her daughter’s creativity. A few
weeks afterwards, I noticed that Linda was becoming tidier and tidier. According to Linda,
her mother had spoken to her and given her some suggestions about how to be neater. I
was very puzzled as to why, on the one hand, Linda’s mother had defended Linda, but on
the other hand, had shown that she agreed with me by helping Linda overcome some of her
untidiness. A senior colleague explained that parents are supposed to stick up for their own
children and when they do not, you, as a teacher, have cause to be concerned. Once I
acknowledged that it is a parent’s responsibility to defend and protect their children, I
immediately viewed parents differently, seeing them as advocates for their children rather
than as my adversaries. Although I still had, and have to, deal with challenging parents, now
I have a better appreciation of their perspective.’
(https://www.etprofessional.com/meet_the_parents_3854.aspx )
As we saw with the example of Sofia, it can at times be challenging to ensure there is
adequate and meaningful communication between the teacher and the parents, but
language need not be a barrier to involving parents as the following example illustrates. Jim
Cummins describes an experiment with immigrant parents (who spoke little or no English
while some were barely literate) and their children in Haringey, London. In the experiment,
one group of parents listened on a regular basis to their children reading books sent home
from school. These children’s reading progress was compared to another group of children
who were given additional reading instruction in small groups several times a week by a
trained professional. The results showed the children from the first group had made more
progress than the second, plus the parents liked being involved in this way. A further
backwash effect was in the increased interest they showed in school learning and improved
behaviour. Cummins concludes that ‘The academic and linguistic growth of students is
significantly increased when parents see themselves, and are seen by school staff, as co-
educators of their children along with the school.’ (Cummins J. in Educating Second
Language Children CUP 1994: 43)
That said, many Young Learner teachers are not native speakers or have limited knowledge
of the children’s mother tongue, and as a result may also feel less confident in managing
any differences between their own culture and the children’s, especially as regards dealing
with parents. It is therefore crucial that the school or language institute (via Director of
Studies, fellow teacher or front office staff) work constructively and sensitively in
conjunction with parents and teachers, so that there are good channels of communication
and that any issues can be appropriately avoided or dealt with to the benefit of the child or
children. Parents meetings can give a more realistic perspective regarding their child’s
language education and explain, for example, how long it will take their child to be able to
communicate in English, or understand a native speaker, or the fact that production
naturally lags behind receptive abilities.
Olha Madylus describes the situation of many children learning English as a foreign
language: ‘…the reality is younger learners usually study English for a limited time per week,
quite often just an hour or two. Their parents take them along to English lessons, ... Alas the
children themselves have no extrinsic motivation to learn English and this lack of the kind of
motivation … can lead to little perceived progress in learning English.’
(http://oupeltglobalblog.com/tag/olha-madylus/)

Parents can play a pivotal role in stimulating and maintaining their children’s motivation and
interest in learning English. Madylus suggests getting parents to read English story books
with their children at home. ‘By reading together even for 30 minutes a week, the learners’
contact with English is increased and crucially children’s perceptions of the value of English
is heightened’ – in other words, if the child’s parents are taking an active interest in the
stories, English is not seen as just something for the classroom, but elsewhere too.
If you are interested in providing your Young Learners’ parents or guardians with some
practical guidelines for helping with homework, you could direct them to the following US
government website:
http://www2.ed.gov/parents/academic/involve/homework/homeworktips.pdf
Also, there are these two sources from the British Council:
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/articles/home-school-connection-1
Parents and guardians expect their child to be learning in a safe and secure environment
and many schools have clear child protection policies. It is obviously essential that a
younger teacher is very aware of their responsibilities and the duty of care that they have
over the children in their charge while they are teaching, but situations and legal
requirements vary greatly from country to country and culture to culture, and it is beyond
the scope of these materials to go into specific details and recommendations here. For
more information on child protection policies, you may be interested to go to:
http://www.britishcouncil.org/nepal-childprotection-policy-mainpage.htm
http://www.unicef.org/eapro/CP-ED_Setting.pdf

4 Out-of-class Exposure and Impact on Learning
Task 9: Out-of-class Exposure (about 15 minutes)

Apart from the English your Young Learner students encounter with you and their
mainstream school English teacher, in what ways are they exposed to English?
1. Make a list of ways they are exposed to English.

2. How do you think has this changed in the last thirty years?
3. What variables are there from country to country, in your opinion or experience?
Then compare your list and ideas to those suggested below.
The amount of out-of-class exposure to English that many children who are fortunate
enough to attend language schools receive nowadays has increased substantially due to the
prevalence of the Internet and the increasing use of English as a lingua franca. In addition
to listening to music, reading song lyrics, watching English-speaking TV programmes or films,
watching films at the cinema, it is the norm nowadays for many of our Young Learners to
play video games in English, surf English sites on the Internet, participate in social
networking sites, apart from the English that may be used to make eye-catching adverts.
However, if your students live in a region where foreign films and TV programmes are
dubbed, the children will have considerably less exposure. This can have a dramatic effect
on their understanding of speech and also their ability to pronounce English sounds. This
could in part account for the frequently marked difference in listening, speaking and
pronunciation abilities between Portuguese and Spanish speakers, since in Portugal, films
are subtitled, whereas in Spain professional Spanish actors are usually used to dub foreign
films and TV programmes. Your students may live in an area where Internet access is not a
given, or at least not for pleasure; again, this limits the amount of exposure your children
have to absorbing English outside the classroom. If you teach in a country where children
have limited exposure to English, it is crucial that the teacher creates and exploits
opportunities to replicate the outside world in the classroom, such as the following:
 Bringing in aspects of English-speaking countries’ cultures

 Getting students to communicate with language school receptionists and other teachers
in English
 A class or interclass blog or wiki
 A ‘twinning programme’ with similar aged children in an English-speaking country
Pia Sundqvist (2009) carried out an interesting study of Swedish teenagers to determine the
impact of ‘extramural’ activities on their English language skills. This was a catch-all term
which included ‘unintentional learning’ (accidental learning of information without the
intention of remembering that information), ‘self-instruction’ (any deliberate effort by the
learner to acquire language content or skills without a teacher) and ‘naturalistic learning’
(direct spoken interaction with users of the target language or through interaction with
target language texts.

She analysed the amount of time eighty 14 – 16 year-olds spent doing the following
extramural activities in English:
 Listening to music
 Playing video games
 Watching TV
 Watching films
 Surfing the Internet
 Other activities
 Reading books
 Reading newspapers/magazines
She explained her results through the metaphor of a house, the Extramural English House,
which is composed of ‘three rooms on the first floor, each representing one of the EE
activities in the language diary: the music room, the TV room and the film room. Upstairs,
on the second floor, there are two rooms: the office and the library. In the office, there is a
computer. This room represents the two EE activities that require a computer, namely
‘playing video games’ and ‘surfing the Internet’. The library also covers two activities, which
combined represent ‘reading in English’ (books and newspapers/magazines). Finally, the
open category for other EE activities is placed up in the attic in a chest: ‘basically anything
can be put in a chest in the attic.’
She used the metaphor to show that the nearer the activities were to the street, the less
effort they required on the part of the teenagers and correspondingly, the further away
they were, the more effort was required to access them. She concludes:
It is unfortunate that not all students walk upstairs. Even though a claim can

be made that students benefit from spending time in the whole EE House,
because their oral proficiency and vocabulary might develop from just being
in the house, the present study has shown that time spent upstairs in the
office is particularly important for vocabulary acquisition and time spent in
the library for oral proficiency skills. That is, the more time students spend
in the office, the higher their scores on vocabulary tests will be. Likewise, in
general, students who read in the library are likely to receive high grades on
oral proficiency. One major conclusion of my study is that entering the EE
House and spending time there is generally good for students’ English.
Furthermore, if they walk upstairs and spend time in the office and the
library, it is even better.
Another key finding in my study is that boys and girls behave in totally
different ways in the EE House. For example, boys spend more time in the
house than girls. Another difference is that girls stay downstairs almost all
of the time. Girls like spending time in the music room in particular. Boys,
on the other hand, have their favorite room upstairs: the office. They spend
almost half of their time in the EE House in that room, mainly playing video
games, but also surfing the Internet.
www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:292259/FULLTEXT01.pdf
For additional reading on out-of-school factors affecting learning of English, please see:
ELLiE (Early Language Learning in Europe) Ed Janet Enever British Council 2011 Chapter 4

5 Behaviour Management
5.1 The Importance of Routines
Routines are established patterns of behaviour in which everyone knows what is expected
of them and what they should do. We can see how relevant they are in the Young Learner
classroom if we refer back to Egan’s description aged between 8/9 and 14/15 who are
passing through the Romantic Layer of development, when they start to develop initial
concepts of ‘otherness’ of an outside world distinct and separate from their own. This
separate world is perceived as potentially threatening and alien. Children are now learning
to develop a sense of their own distinct identity so familiar routines can help make children
feel secure and confident in the classroom because they promote cooperation and a sense
of community and belonging. Children are creatures of habit and are quite used to routines
in their home and main-stream school; therefore not to have a clear sense of established
and repeated routines would be disconcerting for them, even though the routines used in a
language classroom are likely to be different. Routines can also play an important role in
providing opportunities for repetitive language and as Young Learners become aware of
what is expected of them, they provide opportunities for natural language acquisition.
Managing classes where routines are the norm means lessons become more efficient -
children get in to groups more quickly, tidy up more efficiently and the language that
accompanies the routine is acquired more easily as it is contextualised (adapted from Read
2007:12). Cameron illustrates this latter point with the use of a ‘classroom monitors’
whereby different children are responsible for distributing and collecting materials for arts
and crafts work. She describes how the language the teacher uses with the monitors can
become increasingly detailed, yet still comprehensible:
The language used would suit the task and the pupils’ level; so early age
learners might hear, George, please give out the scissors. Margaret, please
give out the paper. The context and the familiarity of the event provide an
opportunity for pupils to predict meaning and intention, but the routine also
offers a way to add variation and novelty that can involve more complex
language: Sam, please ask everybody if they want white paper or black
paper, or Give out a pair of scissors to each group. As the language
becomes more complex, the support to meaning that comes from the
routine and the situation helps the children to continue to understand. The
increased complexity of language provides a space for language growth; if
the new language is within a child’s ZPD, she or he will make sense of it and
start the process of internalising it. (Cameron 2001:10-11)
Cameron L. Teaching Languages to Young Learners CUP 2001
The actual routines a teacher uses are likely to vary, depending on the age of the children,
the size of the group, the social dynamic within the group, and the learning context. With
children aged 8-10, it is important that they can easily relate to the routine, perhaps
because it is something that happens at their mainstream school. An example of this is
taking the register or roll call at the beginning of the lesson. If the teacher did not do this,
they might feel the lesson had not properly started. The teacher needs to ensure the
routine will engage the students. Younger children may enjoy the routine of only being
allowed into the classroom if they are waiting quietly in a line and can individually tell the
teacher standing at the door the name of a food or drink, but teenagers aged 14-16 are
likely to find this activity childish. This routine may also not be appropriate if there are

more than 15 in the class, or if the school corridors are thronging with students coming in
and out of other classes.
Task 10: Classroom Routines (about 15 minutes)
Below is a list of routines typical to the Young Learner classroom. Write down some
examples of routines that you use in these points in a lesson. Note down also any
variations due to age of children, size of group, group dynamic and learning context.
 Entering a classroom
 Starting a lesson
 Giving instructions and setting up activities
 Getting students’ attention
 Dealing with materials
 Asking for things
 Managing students’ answers open-class
 Managing homework
 Ending a lesson and leaving the classroom
Now compare your routines to those in Appendix 5
5.2 Pre-empting Behaviour Problems
The use of appropriate and easily understandable routines is a fundamental first step to
creating a positive and organised classroom environment. If children have a clear
awareness of the value of these routines, they are less likely to act out of turn, since the
teacher has established clear limitations for what is, and what is not, acceptable in the
classroom as regards behaviour. Carol Read summarises the point in this way:
If we succeed in managing children’s behaviour in a positive way, everything

else falls into place and children will learn, no matter what methodology or
approach we use. If not, our lessons fall apart and very little or even no
learning will take place, and we probably feel stressed out and exhausted too.
There are no easy answers, many complex variables, and it’s almost always
easier said than done. However, there are many things we can do to be pro-
active in planning and preparing how we are going to manage children’s
behaviour, and anticipating any likely problems in advance.
http://www.macmillanenglish.com/webinar-archive/2011/

5.3 Dealing with Misbehaviour
As well as clear and familiar routines, it is important that children understand what is and
what is not acceptable behaviour and attitudes in their language classroom. To a large
extent, these are likely to be generic rules laid established by the school or institute that
employs the Young Learner teacher. In some circumstances, for example, where the
teacher is teaching ‘off-site’ at private primary school through the auspices of the employing
language school, the discipline policy may be somewhat different from that of the language
school, taking into account different class size, human or other resources, facilities,
expectations of parents and so on. And it is very likely that an individual teacher will wish
to establish a set of routines and behaviour code that is tailored specifically to the class he
or she is teaching, taking into account such variables as age and level of English of the
children, class size, time of lessons, personalities within the group, and the teacher’s own
‘style’ and professional personality.
Task 11: Measures to Deal with Misbehaviour (about 15 minutes)
Below are some common (but not exhaustive!) reasons for misbehaviour in the
classroom. For each one, write down the measures a Young Learner teacher can take
either to prevent them in the first place, or from letting them happen again and again.
The students ...
 are bored with the lesson, they have ‘done’ it before.

 get over-excited.
 do not know what to do.
 find the activity / exercise too difficult.
 are not interested in learning English.
 are tired.
 have got problems at home.
 want to ‘test’ the limits of the teacher.
The teacher ...
 has allowed a student’s misbehaviour to go unnoticed.

 is unaware that the students are misbehaving.
 threatens but does not actually carry out warnings.
 is inconsistent in the way s/he reprimands students.
 has an unreal expectation as to how students see him.
 does not appear to show an interest in students’ written work.
 does not see positive behaviour from students who sometimes misbehave.
 cannot get and keep the students’ attention.
 does not vary the pace and focus in an appropriate manner.
See Appendix 6

Being aware of reasons for misbehaviour, when disruptive behaviour occurs, you must be
prepared to deal with it calmly and quickly. Preparation is the key. By planning your
consequences and deciding what you will do in advance when a student misbehaves, you
will have course of action to follow and will be able to avoid knee-jerk reactions. Below is a
‘cline’ showing an assertive discipline policy common in many language schools. You may
wish to compare this to your own teaching context, considering the reasons for any
differences. The consequences follow this order:
1. The student(s) directly involved in the disruption are warned that they will be moved / separated
if their behaviour continues.
2. The student(s) are moved within the classroom.
3. The teacher speaks to the student(s) after class. The teacher ensures that the Director of
Studies is appraised of the issues. If appropriate, s/he will inform the reception staff. These first
three steps are the most common and usually all that is necessary. You need to exercise common
sense and operate according to the precise circumstances i.e. because of ‘chattering’, you may give
three warnings before you move a student.
4. The Director of Studies talks to the student.
5. The parents are informed.
6. If there is evidence of persistent misbehaviour and disruption (this excludes homework), the
student receives an appropriate comment on the end of term report and the parents are invited in
to talk to the teacher.
7. If this pattern persists the following term, point six is repeated. Additionally, the parents are
told that their child is now on a half-termly report - the teacher will write a report on the child’s
progress and behaviour at the mid-point of the term.
8. If there is no improvement and the next end of term’s report has similar comments about poor
behaviour, the parents will be asked to remove their child from the school.

These are guidelines, and clearly each child and each situation is different. We need to strike
a balance between being unfeelingly authoritarian on the one hand, and being overly
forgiving on the other. It is the consequences after Step 3 where matters become more
serious. You must ensure that you talk things through with the Director of Studies if you are
in the least part unsure of your ground or how to deal efficiently with any given situation.
For more on behaviour, the following websites contain some useful insights:
Read C. http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/01/20/b-is-for-behaviour/
Read C. http://www.macmillanenglish.com/webinar-archive/2011/
McCamley M. http://www.onestopenglish.com/support/methodology/classroom-
management/classroom-management-classroom-discipline/146446.article
5.4 Promoting Positive Behaviour and Using Praise
Praise should be an intrinsic feature of the Young Learner classroom, but needs to be
managed carefully for it to have a full and effective impact. As Carol Read observes, ‘[It] is a
powerful way of building up children’s self-esteem and maintaining healthy, trusting
relationships. Praise can also play a significant role in managing children’s behaviour in a
positive way. But [it] is also a double-edged sword and … certain types of praise can
sometimes unintentionally lead to a range of negative underlying feelings.’
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/09/28/p-is-for-praise/
Task 12: Using Praise (about 30 minutes)
Referring to the four websites below, make notes using the following questions about
praise to guide you:
1. What are some examples of ‘unhelpful praise’?
2. What sorts of things should you praise?
3. What does Carol Read mean by the following in the language classroom?
 CBG
 praise early
 peripheral or proximity praise
 positive compliment
 … by the way
4. What provisos do the writers mention in terms of the following?

 the degree of difficulty of a task
 overpraising
 comparing one child to another
 praising ability or intelligence
 teacher’s tone of voice
 use of rewards
 the age of children
 public or private praise

http://psychology.about.com/b/2013/07/08/overjustification-when-rewards-
decrease-motivation.htm
http://www.parentingscience.com/effects-of-praise.html
http://www.parentingscience.com/praise-and-intelligence.html
The following website is aimed at summer camp organisers in the United States, but
contains some interesting insights on Development Characteristics of children and
teenagers, plus a wealth of information on bullying and how to pre-empt and deal with it:
http://www.acacamps.org/sites/default/files/images/education/ndo/Section5_Camper_De
velopment_Behavior_Handouts.pdf

6 Learner Training
6.1 Introduction
This section will investigate ways the Young Learner teacher can offer a guiding hand in
helping children to become more efficient and effective learners of English. There are
various terms which fall under the umbrella of learner training: learner autonomy, learning
strategies, awareness-raising and learner independence. What they all have in common is
the notion of learners becoming less reliant on the teacher and more confident in
themselves as regards organizing and improving their learning, and maintaining motivation.
Carol Read offers a forceful rationale for the inclusion of learner training in the Young
Learner classroom: ‘…[L]earning to learn is arguably the most important aspect of children’s
overall educational development, of which foreign language learning is just a part. … [W]e
can give children all the opportunities in the world to learn, but ultimately we can’t learn for
them.’ (Read C. 2007). Pinter reiterates the relevance of learner training as a key
learning/teaching objective: ‘In our fast-moving world, it is simply impossible for learners to
acquire all the knowledge and skills they need while they are at school. It is the school’s
responsibility to teach the learner how to learn, i.e. to equip them with strategies that they
can use outside school.’ (Pinter A. 2006). The implication here is the more informed and
aware children are about their own learning, the more effective and successful they will be.
6.2 ‘Hallmarks’ of a Good Learner
Children are not ‘tabulae rasae’; they do not usually start their learning with us with no idea
of positive learning strategies: they may have acquired these at their mainstream school,
from their parents or guardians, or through a process of trial and error by themselves.
There is much that Younger Learner teachers can learn from their students in terms of
successful learning strategies. As we shall see in Section 7 below, children learn in different
ways. To illustrate with two extremes, for some the fact that they are outgoing and
uninhibited may mean they avail themselves of lots of oral practice of the language, helping
them to develop their fluency and fluidity; other quieter children who prefer individual
written activities may, as a result, spend more time analysing and reflecting on discrete
aspects of language, thereby helping them to develop their accuracy. Whilst there is some
overlap of specific ‘positive learner’ traits that successful 8-year-olds will share with
successful 16-year-old language learners, there are some obvious differences due to their
stage of development as children, previous experience of learning and existing knowledge
of English. The task below encourages you to consider generic features of effective and
successful young language learners aged between 8 and 16.

Task 13: Successful Young Language Learners (about 5 minutes)
Think of some successful 8-16-year-old Young Learners that you have taught. What
characteristics did they have that contributed to their success?
Continue this list:
They appear to …
 be creative and enjoy experimenting with language.

 find it quite easy to learn chunks of language as unanalysed ‘wholes’.
Now compare your list to Appendix 7.
6.3 Strategies Involved in Learning to Learn
Children do not naturally possess all the qualities of a good language learner; these have to
be learnt, and the Young Learner teacher has a central scaffolding role in ensuring that
children’s potential to learn how best to learn is realised. As Read explains: ‘This includes a
procedural role: setting up and following procedures that provides a framework for
developing children’s learning strategies and […] awareness. […] It also includes a
behavioural role in explicitly demonstrating and modelling different learning strategies in a
way that allows children to experience directly what these involve as a prelude to
developing the competence to transfer and apply them to their own learning.’ (Read 2007:
286) There are four types of strategies that we shall explore in order to determine the best
types of procedure and behaviours that can be used in different age-specific classes.
Raising awareness about

Socio-affective what language learning is
Learner Training
Strategies
Metacognitive Direct or cognitive
(Categories taken from Pinter: 2006)

1. Social and affective strategies

These are strategies whose objective is to enhance the learning that can occur through
interaction between learners as well as between the teacher and learners, and helping them
to become more aware of how their emotional states and feelings can influence their
learning. The Young Learner teacher’s role here is to build confidence, instil and maintain
motivation, and raise children’s self-esteem. These goals can be realised by encouraging
children to actively listen to each other, learning to be more tolerant of other people in the
classroom, managing group work effectively, offering some personal choices regarding what
and how children study, providing positive encouragement and praise, and giving
constructive and meaningful individual feedback.
2. Strategies related to raising awareness about what language learning is

Helping Young Learners develop an increasingly realistic sense of what learning a language
involves can help them deal with the inevitable ups and downs they may experience, given
that they are likely to be learning English over the course of several years. This is important
in helping them to appreciate that difficulties they have are not necessarily unique to them
and to give them some practical strategies and techniques for managing some more
problematic areas of English language learning. On the more positive side, finding out
about how English ‘works’ (or other languages for that matter) can be fascinating for Young
Learners and a further motivational force. Pinter (2006) suggests the Young Learner teacher
can discuss general expectations in learning English, recount anecdotes and interesting facts
about language learning, encourage children to make comparisons about their language and
English, as well as discuss importance of practising or why making mistakes as a process of
learning can be a positive thing.
3. Metacognitive strategies
These refer to helping learners become more aware of themselves. Metacognition is
characterised by matching thinking and problem-solving strategies to particular learning
situations, clarifying purposes for learning, monitoring comprehension through self-
questioning, and taking corrective action when there is a breakdown in comprehension.
Examples of strategies include discussing the purpose behind certain classroom activities or
procedures, discussing with children what they can do to participate effectively in the
learning process and helping them to become better at reflecting on their progress and
what they studied, as well as the ‘metacognitive cycle’ of plan-do-review (Pinter 2006 105),
whereby children can be asked to think ahead before carrying out an activity or thinking
while doing a particular task, rather than just reflecting on how it went and why.
4. Cognitive strategies
In Section 2.1, we saw that cognitive development refers to ‘mental mechanics’, in other
words: processes such as the ability to organise, categorise or memorise information, make
reasoned predictions, or deduce and infer meaning. Being able to process information
systematically in these ways means it can be stored in the learner’s brain and be available
for retrieval more easily and efficiently.

6.4 Encouraging Learner Awareness and Responsibility in the Classroom
Integrating learner training into course programmes

As we mentioned earlier, the specific activities of procedures and behaviours that we adopt
will vary to some extent depending on the age of our Young Learners and the amount of
previous English or language learning experience they have. Teaching and learning
programs are often eclectic in nature; there is a balance and interplay between
grammatical, lexical, phonological and skills components. A further aspect needs to be
included here: a learning to learn syllabus to ensure that children have appropriate
exposure and practice in key learner training strategies that are relevant to their needs,
interests and stage of development. And the overall manner in which this can be achieved
is no different from the way other systems and skills work is taught: using a logically staged
continuum such as that suggested by Muth, D. and Alvermann, D. Teaching and Learning in
the Middle Grades, Allyn and Bacon p.202):
Teacher- Teacher- Peer- Student-

centred assisted assisted centred
As Gail Ellis points out: ‘It simply becomes another element to be woven into the fabric of a
lesson.’ (Ellis G. in Teaching English to Children edited by Brumfit et al Collins 1991 p.193)
Task 14: Analysing Learner Training Activities (about 25 minutes)
Below are some sample activities that aim to help children to become better learners.
Complete the grid, and for each one, decide which learner training strategy or
strategies is (are) being focused on, and for which age group or groups it is most
appropriate.
Learner training strategies:

1. Social and affective
2. Related to raising awareness about what language learning is
3. Metacognitive
4. Cognitive
Age groups:
A. Primary (8 – 10)
B. Lower secondary (11 – 13)
C. Upper secondary (14 – 16)
Then compare your answers to those suggested in Appendix 8

Sample Activity Strategies Age group(s)

a) Students brainstorm words in their own
language they would like to learn that are 1 2 3 4 A B C
connected to an upcoming coursebook topic.
b) The teacher demonstrates her class how to go 1 2 3 4 A B C
about revising for a vocabulary test.
c) The teacher asks the students to evaluate
certain aspects of a roleplay they performed e.g. 1 2 3 4 A B C
amount they contributed, use of appropriate
intonation, how the problem was resolved etc.
d) The teacher and the class draw up a set of class 1 2 3 4 A B C
rules together.
e) The students make an alphabetical wall display
for them to pin up words and accompanying 1 2 3 4 A B C
pictures of new words they learn in their
lessons.
f) The teacher teaches and tests the students on
some numbers and adjectives in Russian (not the
students’ L1), then gets them to reflect on how 1 2 3 4 A B C
effective their methods for remembering the
words were and why or why not.
g) The teacher includes an exercise at the bottom
of a worksheet used to practise ‘going to’ which 1 2 3 4 A B C
is aimed at getting students to consider the
English they are going to practise in the
following week.
h) The teacher gets the students to work in pairs to
test each other on new words, expressions or 1 2 3 4 A B C
structures.
i) The teacher gets the students to make some
speech bubbles to display in the classroom of
useful questions e.g. ‘How do you spell …?’ ‘How 1 2 3 4 A B C
do you say … in English?’ ‘What’s another word
for … in English?’
j) The teacher encourages the students to make
educated guesses about the meaning and form 1 2 3 4 A B C
of words, working from affixes and cognates
with their L1.
k) The teacher models how to go about a speaking
task, so they know they are expected to say as 1 2 3 4 A B C
much as possible and not be monosyllabic.
l) The teacher gets the students to work through
an end of unit evaluation sheet for them to think 1 2 3 4 A B C
about what they can do / found easy/difficult /
enjoyed/did not like and why.
m) The teacher gives a post mock exam tutorial
sheet to individual students with feedback on 1 2 3 4 A B C
their performance in each part and paper of the
exam. The students have to demonstrate

understanding of the teacher’s comments, by

referring to their own performance and progress
in class, homework and exam practice work.
Carol Read’s article on learning to learn from her ‘ABC of Teaching Children’ blog contains
some other useful skills and strategies designed to get children learning to their full
potential:
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/05/30/l-is-for-learning-to-learn/
See also this article from the British Council website on including learner training in
children’s classes:
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/articles/learner-training-young-learners
6.5 Development of Study Skills
Related to learner training are study skills. This is a broad term that applies to tools and
strategies used to make learning more efficient, organised, and successful. They are of
more relevance to children aged 11 upwards, as they move from primary to middle and
secondary education where children need to get acclimatised to the following routines and
norms:
 Longer school hours

 More subjects (often from four subjects in primary school to about eight or nine in
secondary)
 More emphasis on critical thinking skills
 Greater independence on the part of the student
 More homework
 More regular formal testing procedures
 More independent research work
Borrowing from mainstream school professionals, the Young Learner teacher can include
the following study skills into a course programme to help teenagers with the increasing
demands they may face in managing their English language courses alongside the demands
of their other school subjects: creating a positive study environment, getting organised,
time management, note-taking, reading tips, managing tests and exams.
Below is an extract of a document given to teachers of teenagers aged 13-15 who will
eventually take the Cambridge Preliminary English Test (PET for Schools). It shows the
typical problems that such students may have with various task types and offers some
useful study skills and strategies that the Young Learner teacher can develop over a course.

Paper and Task Type and Format and Students’ Problems Useful Strategies
Suggested Number of questions
Timings
Reading  Four-option multiple  They do not approach the  Be methodical: read the title of the text and the text
choice text logically and read itself to get an overall understanding.
Part 4 word for word and hone in  Read the questions carefully and get them to think
 Five items with an on extraneous information of their answer before reading the four options.
10 mins adapted-authentic long or unfamiliar words.  Make sure they understand which questions require
text  They do not read the global understanding and which require more
questions or four options detailed comprehension e.g. What is the writer’s
 Students are expected to carefully enough. main purpose? / What is the writer trying to do? / In
read for gist, inference and  They make random this text, the writer is describing etc.
global meaning, as well as choices not based on logic  Make sure they understand that for some questions
detailed comprehension or process of elimination. they’ll need to read part of the text, and for other
and show they can  They do not double-check questions they will need to read all of the text.
understand attitude, their answers.  Find evidence to eliminate three of the options and
opinion and writer evidence to confirm one option.
purpose.  Ensure they get into the habit of finding clear
justification for their answers, and make this a
 Five questions means of conducting open-class feedback i.e. that
they compare their answers with another student
and say e.g. ‘Number 21 is A because it says in the
text … ‘. ‘It can’t be B because …,’ or ‘C because …’
etc.

Writing  Short communicative  They do not read the  Get them to underline key pieces of information in
message: postcard, note, question carefully and the opening context e.g. You’re spending a day in the
Part 2 email, thank you card, misunderstand the task. capital of your country next Saturday, the addressee
birthday card etc.  They do not include all e.g. Write an email to an English friend called Helen,
10 mins three content points. and the three content points. The name is not always
 Between 35 and 45 words.  They address the message given, but they need to use a ‘typical’ English /
Candidates will lose marks if to the wrong person, or to American name and note if they are addressing a
their answer is under or no one, or ‘Hi, friend!’ friend or friends.
above these limits.  Their answer is too long.  Make sure they understand the following verbs
 They make too many which commonly occur in the task instructions:
 Students are expected to careless (and/or impeding) apologise, ask, describe, explain, invite, say, suggest,
answer all three content errors. tell, thank.
points in an organised  They use the wrong tenses  Give students three answers to the same questions
fashion, showing clarity of for the task. and get them to say why two are not appropriate and
expression; minor, non-  It is difficult to read their why the remaining one is.
impeding errors are not writing.  Make sure they understand which tense(s) are
penalised.  They include SMS appropriate to use for the message and why.
shorthand and  Ensure they have a reasonable idea of what 35–45
 Five marks. inappropriate words look like, so they can aim for that length.
abbreviations.  Proofread carefully for mistakes once they have
finished writing.
 Make sure they understand what they’re being
evaluated on i.e. refer to the assessment criteria in
your marks and commentary.
 Make sure they understand which abbreviations they
can/should use e.g. asap.

Listening  Multiple choice  They do not look properly  Look at each picture carefully and consider the
at all three pictures and differences between them.
Part 1  Short neutral or informal consider the differences  Predict the vocabulary likely to occur in the
monologues or dialogues between them. listening texts according to the pictures.
About 30  They think they hear the Brainstorm as a class.
mins for all 4  Seven discrete three- answer at the beginning or  Listen to the complete extract before choosing an
parts, plus 6 option multiple choice the middle of the extract option i.e. do not switch off half-way through.
mins to items with visuals, plus and stop listening to the  Do not just latch onto one piece of information; in
transfer one example rest of it, thereby missing some extracts, they will need to take several
answers the actual correct answer. pieces of information into account; in others, only
 Students listen to identify  They are so convinced one piece of information will be necessary.
All parts are key information they heard correctly the  Use the second listening to check and confirm
played twice first time that they do not their answers.
 Seven questions listen as carefully when  Warn students of red herrings, perhaps use the
the extracts are repeated. tapescript in conjunction with listening to
 One mark per question emphasise importance of listening to the whole
text.
 Individual candidate  They are very nervous and  Make sure they can spell their name correctly and
Speaking answers the interlocutor’s mishear questions. fluently. Provide regular practice of this when you
questions and personal  They misspell their take the register at the beginning of each lesson.
Part 1 information questions. surname.  Provide regular practice of simple personal
 They offer very limited questions that students can ask and answer in
2-3 mins for  This tests the language of answers and do not pairs, perhaps using questions on slips of paper.
both simple social interaction expand.  Ensure they know how to seek clarification e.g.
candidates and their grasp of simple  They do not ask for ‘I’m sorry, can you say that again, please?’
everyday language. They clarification if they didn’t  Encourage them to extend their answers with
will be asked to spell their hear or misunderstood. reasons / examples.

surname.  Teenagers especially have little experience of

speaking under exam conditions, nor of the
rationale for providing more extended answers, so
they need regular practice in saying as much (as
opposed to as little) as possible. Make one of
your instructions prior to all speaking activities:
‘don’t just say the minimum, but as much as
possible’.
 Make sure they have worked through all the
suggested questions for part 1 as per Feedback
Sheet post mock exams.
 Put the pressure on with the ‘hot seat’ idea -
should help promote natural and accurate English
in a stressful situation.
For more information and tips on the area of study skills, see http://www.ncld.org/students-disabilities/homework-study-skills/study-skills-teens

6.6 Developing Critical Thinking Skills
Related to study skills and learning strategies is the area of different types of thinking, or
critical thinking skills. In the mid 1950s, Benjamin Bloom and others designed a framework
to classify different learning objectives that teachers and examiners can set for students.
These involve thinking skills, and are organised from lower order thinking skills (LOTS) which
require little cognitive demand, such as memorising or listing to more challenging higher
order thinking skills (HOTS), such as justifying or comparing. The infographic below
illustrates the skills types of thinking and their relative demands on the learner. Higher
order thinking requires different learning and teaching methods, than just the learning of
facts and concepts because it involves the learning of complex judgmental skills such as
thinking critically (rather than just accepting facts as they are) and problem solving. It is
therefore more difficult to learn or teach but also more valuable because such skills are
more likely to be usable outside the classroom.
Below is a revised framework by one of Bloom’s students, Lorin Anderson, and uses verbs
rather than nouns with some renaming of levels, and is perhaps more easily transferable to
the language learning classroom.

[Click on the link to view larger version of diagram below] http://ww2.odu.edu/educ/roverbau/Bloom/blooms_taxonomy.htm

Herbert Puchta, a writer of children’s and teenage coursebooks, has argued that developing
critical thinking skills within the language classroom is important as children need to face
the challenges of a changing and unpredictable world and need to learn problem-solving
and decision-making skills to meet unexpected problems and be able to tackle them
effectively.
Herbert Puchta: Towards Developing Critical Thinking Skills with Young Learners:
https://www.cambridgeenglishteacher.org/resource-details/1070
Task 15: Developing Critical Thinking Skills (about 10 minutes)
Watch the following 5 minute video on ‘Developing Critical Thinking Skills’ presented
by Herbert Puchta.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGst5YkBHBA
Make notes on the following:
1. What are the various thinking and problem-solving skills he mentions?

2. How are these skills incorporated into the lesson sequences he describes?
The activities and materials are aimed at young children, but the principles he offers
can still be applied to older children’s lessons. Consider how the materials or
approaches could be adapted for a class of older children to encourage development
of similar higher order thinking skills.
Then read the suggestion below
Here is one suggestion for encouraging development of higher order thinking skills with
older children who are studying for the PET for Schools Test:
Aims:
 To further familiarise students with task types in the reading and writing paper.
 To encourage peer collaboration and correction as a means of learning.
 To develop awareness of their strengths and areas needing further attention.
 To promote a positive and supportive learning environment.
Procedure:
1. Students work in pairs and complete a table about the various task types, what is being
tested, possible difficulties with various tasks etc.
2. Teacher tells the class they are going to write their own exam for classmates, based on
topics and language they have recently covered in their coursebook and lessons.
3. Teacher works through an example of each task type with the whole class, eliciting what
is being tested, and how to go about writing the task. Students can refer to their
coursebook, dictionary and other grammar or vocabulary materials as necessary.
4. Teacher divides the class into appropriate pairs or small groups to work together to
devise their test for other pairs / small groups. Teacher monitors and provides help as

required and sets clear time limits, and also makes sure the students keep a note of the
answers to the questions they write, on a student answer sheet such as they are
expected to use in the actual exam.
5. Students then write out their work neatly or type up on a computer and print out,
making sure they are proofreading carefully.
6. Teacher takes in the tests and redistributes them, and gives a time limit for the groups
to complete their test, and allowing time for them to transfer their answers to the
student answer sheet.
7. The completed tests and answer sheets are then passed back to the original test
writers, who correct and offer an evaluative comment on the work: what their
colleagues did well, what type of problems they had and possible reasons and some
advice for future improvement.
Focus on Critical Thinking Skills:
Step 1
 Remembering: recognising, describing, identifying, naming
 Understanding: comparing, explaining
[Step 2 n/a]
Step 3
 Understanding: explaining, exemplifying, summarising
Step 4
 Applying: implementing, carrying out, using
 Analysing: organising, finding, structuring, integrating
 Evaluating: checking, experimenting, judging, testing
 Creating: making, designing, constructing, planning, producing, inventing
Step 5
 Analysing: organising, structuring, integrating
 Evaluating: checking, judging, testing, monitoring
Step 6
 Remembering: recognising, identifying, retrieving
 Applying: implementing, carrying out, using
 Evaluating: checking, judging, monitoring
Step 7
 Analysing: comparing, finding
 Evaluating: checking, judging, testing, monitoring
 Creating: designing, producing, planning
For additional reading on this subject, you may find the following of interest:
http://worldteacher-andrea.blogspot.pt/2012/10/towards-developing-critical-thinking.html
http://www.onestopenglish.com/clil/methodology/study-skills-for-clil/thinking-skills-for-
clil/501197.article

7 Learning Styles and Intelligences
7.1 Learning Styles in the Young Learner Classroom
These describe ‘an individual’s natural, habitual and preferred way of absorbing, processing,
and retaining new information and skills’ (Reid 1995 in Lightbown and Spada 2006:59).
Some styles (or preferences) relate directly to personality types such as careful, reflective
children or, at the other extreme, impulsive and outgoing children. Some children tend to
be more analytic learners, and pay attention to detail, while others can be described as
global learners, since they are more holistic in their approach to learning. Other styles
relate to perceptual differences, such as those described by the American psychologist,
Howard Gardner who identified eight types of intelligences: linguistic, logico-mathematical,
musical, spatial, bodily/kinaesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and natural [see Focus on
the Learner input materials for more information on learning styles]. It is obviously
important to have an understanding of apparent preferences that children have as regards
how they seem to take on board new language and ideas, but there are some questions to
be considered in how this is to be managed in the Young Learner classroom, namely:
 Do learning styles vary and change according to the children’s ages?

 How does a teacher determine what an individual child’s learning preference is?
 Are an individual’s learning styles immutable, or can a teacher successfully develop
other positive learning styles in a child i.e. nature versus nurture?
 How does a Young Learner teacher manage to cater for all the children’s learning styles
in one group?
 How do a teacher’s own learning preferences affect teaching style and lesson design?
What impact can these have on the children he or she teaches in terms of their learning
styles?
To some extent, age and corresponding physical and cognitive development dictate the
learning styles that children may have and therefore the type of learning activities a Young
Learner teacher can use successfully in the language classroom. As we have noted in earlier
sections, young children often enjoy kinaesthetic activities such as TPR, or oral/musical
activities such as chants. However, as they enter adolescence, fear of judgement by their
peers may mean that they shy away from movement activities which involve others looking
at them, such as acting out short sketches. And while they may recoil at the thought of
singing songs in class, they may be very happy to participate in a more analytical activity,
working with lyrics from pop songs. We can see here, therefore, that learning preferences
and so-called ‘intelligences’ are modified and developed as children learn new skills and
become increasingly independent in their outlook and behaviour.
Unlike a group of adult learners, it is not always practicable to give children a learning styles
questionnaire to help determine their learning styles or preferences. The detailed reading
skills involved, plus the level of knowledge of vocabulary, grammatical structure and syntax,
as well as the abstract nature of the topic of ‘learning styles’ means that interpreting and
interacting with such a text may be beyond the reach of some children. And even if they
have sufficient language knowledge and reading skills, it is possible that their answers will
be suspect, since many children are unlikely to have much experience of reflecting on their
own ways of learning (as opposed to abilities), and they may answer in a random fashion or
give the answer they think their teacher wants to see rather than one which is informed and
reflective of their real feelings and beliefs.

An awareness of individual and group learning styles can help ensure the teacher uses the
most effective and efficient means of facilitating understanding, producing and retaining
new language, skills and concepts. Coursebook writers often have their own ideas regarding
useful styles and intelligences that should be developed. The teacher can complete a
questionnaire adapted from those aimed primarily at parents (see
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/schoolgate/helpfromhome/content/howchildrenlearn.shtml)
for content which can be adapted to make a class questionnaire on learning styles).
Where possible the Young Learner teacher needs to talk to previous teachers, Director of
Studies and the children’s parents to gain an understanding of the types of preferences and
therefore suitable activities and approaches that are most effective with a group of learners
and the individual children within that group, and conversely those which appear to have
little impact on the children’s learning, and should therefore not be used, or used
judiciously.
This is not to say that children should not participate in a teacher’s efforts to determine
learning styles. A questionnaire which has clear learning outcomes, has been thoughtfully
designed and forms part of a carefully scaffolded interactive lesson can yield valuable
insights, not only for the teacher, but also in terms of helping children become more aware
of ‘options and choices available to them for learning and to think about and identify their
own preferences’ (Read 2007).
Below is an example aimed at helping 8-12 year-olds to reflect on learning styles and
strategies related to learning vocabulary:


(Carol Read 500 Activities for the Primary Classroom p.304 10.17 Things that help me learn)
Read offers the following suggestion for older children: ‘it may be appropriate to introduce
them to the idea of the way we use our senses when we learn and that some of us prefer to
see (visual learners), some to hear (auditory learners), and others to move about
(kinaesthetic learners), and that very often we use a combination of two of our senses to
learn, or all three. Children can then reflect on their own learning styles in those terms and
discuss their preferences.’ (Read 2007:304)
There has been criticism regarding the validity of learning styles (Ellis 1994, Read 2010,
Thornbury 2013). They are difficult to measure in an objective and scientific way; it is
difficult to distinguish between assessments about a learner’s behaviour and attitude;
interpretation is frequently subjective: if someone prefers to learn through writing rather
than speaking, is this evidence of a visual or verbal intelligence or style, and does this
preference make someone necessarily more analytic and less communicative? There seems
to be little evidence that learning is significantly improved when teaching is matched to an
individual’s learning style; finally, a teacher’s own learning preferences and styles will
inevitably inform the types of activities and approaches that are used in the classroom. For
example, teachers who are more tactile learners are perhaps going to find it more natural to
devise activities such as card games or activities involving movement than those who prefer
to learn through reading and reflection.
Teachers’ personal experiences can lead to unhelpful over-generalisations regarding what

constitutes effective learning styles and strategies, and we therefore need to ensure that we
do not over-promote those strategies and techniques that we have found personally helpful
to the detriment of others. The Young Learner teacher also needs to ensure that the
coursebook or other material the class is working from is relevant to the group’s learning
styles. Below is an example of guidance from a teacher’s book regarding the presentation
of a grammar point and the accompanying grammar table. Whilst this may be appropriate
for some adult learners who can appreciate the value of a grammar table and who may
prefer to learn through listening to the teacher explaining rules of form and meaning, for
many Young Learners, the stages suggested will not necessarily cater to their preferred
learning styles, intelligences and level of cognitive development. There is very little
interaction between the children and the material or the teacher, they are not challenged in
an appropriate way, nor are they physically involved in the learning process.

(Oxford Heroes 1, Quintana J. & Robb Benne R. OUP, 2007)
An alternative procedure (whilst not rejecting the material from the coursebook) which
aims to cater to those who have a combination of kinaesthetic, oral, aural, visual
preferences for learning could be as follows:
 Use a TPR activity to present activities taken from the coursebook e.g. sleeping, sitting,
eating etc. and teach the words in the following way:
o Students watch and listen to the teacher; they do not speak or copy teacher’s
actions
o Students watch and listen to the teacher and copy the teacher’s actions
o Students listen to the teacher and mime correct action
o Teacher repeats the activities in random order and students listen and mime
correct action
o Teacher mimes actions and students say the correct activities
 Show the children an envelope containing slips of paper with activities on. Take one
out, mime it and elicit the activity, adding ‘You’re ...’ e.g. ‘You’re smiling’. Get one
volunteer to come to the front, make sure they understand what to do and then get the
others to guess.
 Check meaning and form used in the sentences that the children produce.
 Repeat the process with other volunteers and different word slips.
 Hand out large cards with the words from the grammar table written on and ask
children to come up and stick them in the correct place on the board to complete a
logical grammar table.
 Ask them to compare the large board version of the grammar table to the one in their
coursebook.

As Pinter observes, ‘teachers need to incorporate a variety of activities into second and
foreign language classrooms to ensure everybody’s preferences are catered for at least
some of the time.’ (Pinter: 2006 14)
7.2 Mixed Levels and Different Abilities
Some children seem to have little difficulty in keeping up and learning at a reasonable pace,
while others seem to be generally ‘slow’ or ‘weak’. There are two points to bear in mind
here. Firstly, children may be taught and assessed in their mainstream schools with a focus
predominantly on linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligences, through transmission of
information and an emphasis of rule-based learning from the teacher to the child in the
mother tongue, rather than a discovery approach which encourages interaction and
engagement of the child in the learning process. Those who have a predisposition to both
linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligences are likely to fare well therefore in a
traditional language classroom. Secondly, it is dangerous to categorise all children as either
intrinsically capable or not capable of learning a language. No class is completely
homogenous: even though the children will have been tested and placed into the same
group, there are inevitable differences in apparent rates of uptake and internalisation of
new language, skills and information. Some children excel at speaking, but they may have
little interest in writing and therefore these two productive skills are likely to develop at an
uneven rate. Others do not enjoy speaking activities because they have difficulty with
English pronunciation, but they may be quite proficient readers, although this may not be
immediately apparent to a teacher who assesses reading ability by getting learners to read
aloud. A student who dislikes grammar may experience little difficulty in picking out
detailed information from a recorded conversation. A teacher may be surprised to see that
a child who often struggles in language-focused work in class has done reasonably well in an
end of term test. As we have noted before, children need encouragement and praise to
help them overcome hurdles, and any difficulty may be perceived as failure, which in turn
can result in diminished motivation and interest, and so on in a downward-spiralling circle.
For further reading on mixed ability teaching, please see:
Rose J. Mixed ability an ‘Inclusive’ Classroom. English Teaching Professional April 1997
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/mixedability.pdf
Bremner S. Some Thoughts on Teaching a Mixed Ability Class

http://www.strath.ac.uk/media/faculties/hass/scilt/slr/issues/18/18_bremner.pdf
It is also not uncommon for there to be children in a class who may have learning
difficulties, such as those who are dyslexic or have attention deficit disorder (ADD),
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or Asperger’s Syndrome. These learning
difficulties are beyond the scope of these Distance Delta materials, but for those interested,
here are two web resources that may provide some useful guidance:
http://eltnotebook.blogspot.pt/2007/01/helping-students-with-learning.html
http://eltnotebook.blogspot.pt/search/label/Learning%20Disabilities
Some children are physically, visually or hearing impaired and the Young Learner teacher
will need to work closely with the parent/guardian, Director of Studies and mainstream
school teacher of the children to find out how best to ensure they are fully included and

have the same opportunities as their colleagues in all aspects of learning in their English
language classes.
It is often easier to cater to those who appear to progress at a satisfactory to good rate; it is
not always easy to spot potential areas of strength in those who may be thought of as a
‘slow learners’. The challenge for a Young Learner teacher is often in ensuring, whilst many
tasks and exercises are, of practical expedience, generic to the whole class, that they are
also suitable for each child, and that the teacher is able to provide relevant and appropriate
challenge and feedback according to the individuals within the class, so that all children can
develop at their own pace with a sense of meaningful achievement.
Children also develop new interests and strengths, so it is also dangerous to assume an
apparent ‘slow learner’ will remain so. It is therefore important for the Young Learner
teacher to monitor all children’s progress carefully for potential spurts of development, as
well as any areas of difficulty which the teacher may not have predicted, and to try to
ascertain the reasons for any changes, be they positive or negative. In the same way that a
change in circumstances at home can adversely affect a gifted child’s performance in
schoolwork, so too can the quality of support and praise given to one who has hitherto been
struggling to keep up.
For additional reading on the area of learning styles and intelligences, please refer to the
following:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_styles
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/06/13/m-is-for-multiple-intelligences/
http://www.kidspot.com.au/schoolzone//Learning-Learning-styles-Learning-styles-in-
children+4053+391+article.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/schoolgate/helpfromhome/content/2howchildrenlearn.shtml
Thornbury S. The Big Questions, The Round, 2013-08-11

8 Means of Assessment
8.1 Formal Assessment Versus Learning
There are three terms that need to be defined: evaluation, assessment and testing.
Evaluation refers to the broad notion of the process of systematically collecting, analysing
and combining different types of information such as course documentation, observation of
lessons, interviews of Young Learners and teachers, course feedback questionnaires and
test results in order to make a judgement of the success, viability, or cost-effectiveness of a
course. Assessment is one part of the process of evaluation which focuses more precisely
on the children’s learning or performance. Testing is a particular form of assessment, and is
concerned with measuring learning through performance (Rea-Dickins and Germaine in
Cameron 2001:222).
[While here we focus specifically on issues relating to Young Learners, there is more
detailed Distance Delta material on testing and assessment in Library / Input]
There is an apparent disconnect between traditional methods of assessment i.e. pen-and-

paper testing and what we have seen earlier regarding how children learn in general and
the type of classroom approaches the Young Learner teacher uses. The list below illustrates
the dichotomies between learning and testing:
 Interactive vs. Non-interactive

 Collaborative vs. Solo / individual work
 Oral vs. Written
 Integrated vs. Discrete / isolated item
 Relative lack of pressure vs. Potentially stressful
 Unfamiliar vs. Potentially stressful
 Support vs. Independent / self-reliant
 Degrees of concentration vs. Total concentration / attention
required required

8.2 Backwash and Spin-off Effects of Pen-and-Paper Testing on Young

Learners
The backwash (also known as washback) effect is the influence that a test has on the way
students are taught prior to the test and the effects that a test can have on their motivation
for learning during the course leading up to it. Spin-off refers to the effects on the learners
and their subsequent lessons after they have taken the test. Pen-and-paper testing has
both positive and negative backwash and spin-off effects with regards to Young Learners, as
described below:
Negative Backwash and Spin-off

 They can cause considerable stress, resulting in children not performing to the standard
they would when doing similar tasks during normal lessons.
 They can downgrade learning, reducing learning to a series of hurdles to be successfully
passed.
 Classroom time can become dominated by test preparation and ‘teaching towards the
test’, for example teaching exam techniques and strategies, rather than useful language
and skills to enable children to communicate.
 Classroom activities can become dominated by test types which may be far removed
from children’s own interests, wider linguistic needs or life experience.
 The means of testing language and skills is often different from how these are
developed and practised in the Young Learner classroom.
 Tests are designed by publishers for a global market, so they do not necessarily take
into account the specific development and linguistic strengths / difficulties of a
particular group of learners. Some aspects of test may be overly easy because of the
learners’ mother tongue. Similarly other areas may be overly challenging because of
the learners’ culture / mother tongue.
 There may be an over-reliance by teachers and schools on tests as means of assessment
because they offer concrete evidence of apparent attainment, which can result in other
aspects of the child’s learning and achievements being excluded.
 The style, content, length, frequency of a test may be quite different from the type of
tests they do in their mainstream school. This may be confusing for children, or may
mean they do not take their language school tests seriously.
 They may require specific study /revision skills which children are unfamiliar with.
 They frequently concentrate teaching on written forms before children are able to cope
with the demands this makes on them.
 Since many tests are norm-referenced, they can encourage comparison and
competition among children which may not be constructive to the learning process.
Positive Backwash and Spin-off

 They can provide good preparation to help children with the inevitable stress they will
face later on as the process of learning becomes more demanding.
 They can help determine course programme or syllabus content and so ensure a degree
of benchmarking across classes of same age/level of learners within one school. This in
turn can help avoid teachers from going wildly astray and/or being overly demanding or
conversely under-challenging of Young Learners.
 If managed carefully, they can highlight neglected aspects of learning, and show the
teacher and students where performance has been below expectations, leading to
useful remedial work and helping teachers to plan more effective lessons.
 They can be motivating and enjoyable for children.

 Whilst children profess to hate exams, they also ask for them because they want to
know how they are progressing, which of course they have a right to know.
 They are relatively easy for a teacher to mark and correct, and results are quantifiable.
 They are a means of assessment that meets parents’ or guardians’ expectations.
8.3 Evaluating Published Testing Resources
In this section, you will be looking at two tests of a similar level (A2 in the Council of Europe)
aimed at Young Learners of different ages. By analysing these two tests in some detail, you
will have a greater appreciation of some different types of tasks and formats that are
relevant for different ages and how test design can impact on the learning process.
Task 16: Evaluating Published Tests (about 60 minutes)
Look at the following Cambridge ESOL tests for Young Learners.
 Cambridge Flyers
https://www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org/ts/exams/younglearnersandforschools/y
leflyers
 KET for Schools Exam

https://www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org/ts/exams/younglearnersandforschools/k
etforschools
Referring to the handbook of each test, make a list of similarities and differences
between the two tests and then summarise how aspects of each test may positively or
negatively impact on the following:
 Performance
 Course planning
 Backwash and spin-off
Consider the aspects in the table below, then compare your analysis to Appendix 9

Cambridge Young Learners Cambridge Key English Test

Flyers Test (KET) for Schools
Age the test is
suitable for:
Number of
papers:
Length of each
paper:
Results and
certification:
Differences in
topic areas
tested:
Reading and
Writing: format,
focus and task
types:
Listening:
format, focus
and task types:
Speaking:
format, focus
and task types:
How aspects of each test may positively or negatively impact on the following:
 Performance
 Course planning
 Backwash and spin-off

8.4 Implications of Using Pen-and-Paper Tests with Young Learners
In order to ensure that Young Learners can perform to their best in pen-and-paper tests, the
Young Learner teacher needs to be mindful of the following issues:
Design and writing of tests

 Make sure the metalanguage used is easy for children of a given level to understand.
 Always include examples so the children understand what is required of them in a
particular task.
 Break up tasks or questions into appropriately short activities (according to the age of
the learners) to help manage the children’s shorter attention spans, rather than long
exercises.
 Select tasks that reflect the children’s experience of the world. Include familiar genres,
pictures from coursebooks, tasks, question types and examples.
 Ensure the questions are clearly laid-out, easy to follow, colourful, include easy-to-
interpret pictures to reduce stress and keep children interested.
 Beware of including tasks that demand abstract analysis and interpretation of language
which go beyond children’s cognitive abilities, for example ‘use these words to write
complete sentences using the present perfect e.g. ‘He (go) to Brazil’, ‘They (not eat)
Indian food before’.
 Include tasks which are appropriate to children’s stage of literacy development in terms
of genres, tasks and expectations of performance (see McKay 2006: 12).
 Make sure there is test validity: that the test tests what it is supposed to test. Cameron
uses the example of ‘milk’, which children have learnt in connection with cartons of milk
in a supermarket. ‘If the test picture for milk showed a glass bottle on a doorstep, then
the testee may well not be able to answer’ (2001: 224). By the same token, the use of
red, green and blue needs to be carefully considered so children who are colour-blind
are not adversely affected (see http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-vision/what-is-
color-blindness for more information on this). Similarly, a writing task which only
assesses spelling and neatness lacks test validity in its omission of key aspects of the
writing skill such as text organisation and content.
 Put the easiest questions at the beginning of the test so children can get warmed up to
the difficult ones.
Administration and management

 Children need to understand the importance of revision, what this means and how to go
about it. The Young Learner teacher can provide a checklist of what to revise,
encourage involvement with parents to help them revise, give over a lesson to help
them revise. Children also need to realise what they understand / do not understand /
can do / cannot do with regard to discrete language points and skills, especially if they
have been absent for one or more lessons. Ensuring that everyone has had the same
opportunity to revise and catch up on what they may have previously missed
encourages fairness.
 Make sure all the children have been given sufficient notice of the date of the test.
 Assessment should wherever possible involve familiar adults rather than strangers, thus
providing a psychologically ‘safe’ environment.
 The more relaxed the child feels, the better he or she is likely to perform. Gipps (cited
in Cameron 2001: 219) suggests a ‘scaffolded assessment’, with the familiar adult (in
our case, the child’s teacher) sitting with a child when he is taking a test. This is
obviously not feasible, but by adopting an encouraging manner, ensuring all the children

understand how to answer all the questions and being readily available to clarify any
areas of doubt will help to put children more at their ease.
 Help the children manage the time it takes them to work through a test and parts of a
test by giving them clear time limits (written on the test paper, on the board, and
spoken reminders by the teacher) since children do not necessarily know what, for
example, five minutes ‘feels like’.
 Make sure rules regarding the test are clear from the outset and that all the children
understand what they can and cannot do during the test.
Marking system
 Rather than using norm-referenced assessments, whereby one child’s performance is
compared to another’s, a teacher can use criterion referenced assessments where
performance is measured against a set of criteria of expected performance or learning
targets. This could be through a set of descriptors along a scale or bands on which a
learner is placed, such as those used in the Cambridge ESOL Young Learner Tests.
Alternatively, the teacher could use a set of ‘can-do statements’ such as ‘I can read and
understand short messages such as e-mails and postcards’. This needs to reflect what a
child can do in order to understand or communicate, rather than what they know about
aspects of language per se. So ‘I can use the past continuous’ would not be an
appropriate indicator of what the child can do with this structure. Better might be ‘I can
use the past continuous to help me tell stories and recount past events’.
 Make sure the point system used for individual tasks is fair and proportionate and
reflects the challenge and time taken to complete the task.
 Ensure that the total mark for the test is easy to understand and made into a
percentage (for example 50 or 100).
 Make sure children are not unfairly penalised for mistakes which are beyond the level or
scope of the test, or for language errors in answers on comprehension tasks where the
correct answer according to the text has been found.
Feedback
 After marking a group’s tests, identify areas of strength and difficulty for the learners.
As well as going through some general areas of weakness, pick some examples of
models of good work that the other children can look at.
 Cameron and McKay suggest the following: if possible, talk to individual learners on a
one-to-one basis about their work, pointing out where they have done well and what
they need to work on. Keep it positive, and encourage them to keep trying by showing
them where their previous efforts have paid off’ (Cameron and McKay 2010: 65).
 Write a clear and constructive summative comment on the test that is easy for both
student and parents/guardians to understand.
 Reflect on all of the above points in relation to a test prior to writing and setting the
next one with a group of children to ensure that you have retained the strengths in
design, management, marking or feedback can be replicated and any weaknesses or
mistakes rectified.
8.5 Alternative Forms of Assessment for Young Learners
Because of the limitations of pen-and-paper testing described above, the Young Learner
teacher needs to include other means of assessment in order to gain a more complete
picture of each child’s progress and attainment. These can include the following:

 Observations e.g. during pairwork / whole class work / monitoring during writing
activities
 Project work
 Marks collection from classroom tasks e.g. reading, grammar exercises
 Homework tasks
 Self-assessment
 Portfolios
 Mini vocabulary tests
By incorporating a variety of means of assessment procedures whose principles are made

overt to the children and parents/guardians, the Young Learner teacher can demonstrate
that assessment does not need to be stressful and competitive; rather it can help foster a
positive self-image and self-esteem within a collaborative learning environment.
Task 17: Alternative Means of Assessment (about 15 minutes)
Based on your own experience, write down the advantages and disadvantages of each
of the above alternative means of assessment with Young Learners and any
implications arising. Consider the following age groups:
 8 – 10
 11 – 13
 14 – 16
Then compare to the suggested answers below.
Observations e.g. during pairwork / whole class work / monitoring during writing
activities
This is a non-threatening means of assessment suitable for all ages of young learners, as it
should not disturb the children as they go about their regular classroom activities. Indeed,
they may not even be aware that they are being assessed. It is useful for the assessment of
non-linguistic skills such as engagement, interest, willingness to share and cooperate, and
the teacher can use this as an opportunity to assess how individual children react and
perform during certain stages in a lesson, for example when clarifying meaning or repeating
instructions, as well as offering time to work with individuals when monitoring. The
decision to make an assessment in this way can be spontaneous: the teacher may realise
while teaching that a particular activity or lesson phase is an ideal opportunity for observing
individual child behaviours. Observation can form part of a virtuous circle of continual
teaching/learning improvement, in terms of a ‘observe-notice-adjust’ process (Cameron
2001: 231), where observing and noticing a child’s or group’s behaviour or performance can
lead to the teacher making useful adjustments to the selection, setting up or management
of activities. Unless the class size is small, it is not usually possible to observe each and
every child in great detail, so the teacher may need to select certain children one lesson and
others in another lesson. Alternatively, the focus could be very specific and limited,
allowing the teacher to gain an assessment of all children. Some Young Learner coursebooks
include teacher observation checklists, and Pinter suggests a template taken from New
English Parade 1 (Pinter 2006:135) which teachers can use to create their own questions or

tasks. And Cameron (2001: 230) includes a table detailing various skills within the language
areas of vocabulary, discourse and grammar, which teachers can use as a springboard for
creating their own assessment criteria.
See also Ioannou-Georgiou S. and Pavlou P. Assessing Young Learners OUP 2003, for other
free downloadable worksheets of class observation record sheets.
Project work
Since much of the type of learning that goes on inside the Young Learner classroom is
collaborative, it is logical that assessment should also be so, to some extent. This can be a
way of assessing all four skills and the joint effort of several children. It can be motivating
for weaker learners, as they can learn from their friends and demonstrate other non-
linguistic strengths they may have, such as drawing or acting and stronger learners can have
the chance to display their knowledge and skills. A group project can therefore be useful
with a mixed ability/level group, and is suitable for children aged 8 – 13 as an ideal means of
encouraging peer support and collaboration. A group project can therefore be useful with a
mixed ability/level group. However, it can be difficult to assign specific grades and be
absolutely fair to everyone, so it is important to acknowledge individual work and group
effort and ensure that everyone has played a key role in the creation of the project, by
giving praise and constructive feedback, and use it as part of formative feedback.
Marks collection from classroom tasks e.g. reading, grammar exercises

A teacher can use exercises and texts from the children’s coursebook as a means of
continuous assessment. After the children have completed the exercise, the teacher collects
and records the marks of individual children. Together these can form a picture of
‘snapshots’ of the child’s ability and overall progress over a specified period of time e.g. a
term. If all teachers in a school with a particular grade of Young Learner’s class use the
same exercises, this can form a useful means of benchmarking level and relative ability.
Although this is potentially time-efficient for the teacher ( there is not necessarily any need
to produce a specific test paper or worksheet since the children are working from their
coursebook, can correct their work themselves and relay their scores to the teacher), there
are issues that can affect reliability and validity: the teacher needs to ensure that children
have at least two opportunities to demonstrate their efforts with a particular subskill or
exercise type, it may be difficult to ensure that the children are not copying from one
another, and there is the danger that a developmental task from the coursebook is being
lost as it gets used as a test rather than practice activity. Therefore the teacher needs to
make reasons for the assessment explicit to the children and give clear instructions as to
how to carry it out e.g. getting them to correct their answers in a different colour pen,
rather than rubbing out mistakes. However, as with other means of assessment, if this type
of collection is done regularly, it becomes another ongoing classroom routine and children
understand that if they do not do well on one occasion, there will be an opportunity to
improve on another. As such, this type of assessment can be carried out with all children
over 8 years old.
Homework tasks
For the teacher, this means of assessment can reveal what children have not apparently
understood from classroom language or skills focused work, and therefore indicate possible
remedial work. There are issues regarding the correction of homework tasks: when and
how the work is corrected and the type of feedback given. It can provide an opportunity to
perform to their best as they are not constrained by time, and can produce some well-
researched, organised and attractively-produced work; however, for some children,

homework is seen as a chore, done in a hurry, at the last minute, or worse still, copied from
another classmate. A child may justify the latter action if he was absent from a particular
lesson, although this is not helpful to the teacher in terms of assessment. Some children
may not perceive the connection between a type of activity done in class-time and a
corresponding workbook activity. There needs to be an overt system for setting, collecting
and marking of homework to ensure that it is an expected obligatory norm of assessment
for all students, with a transparent marking system which offers constructive and
meaningful feedback. This is particularly true for some younger children aged 8 – 13. And
since it often does not include listening or speaking tasks, it needs to be supplemented with
other means of assessment, rather than being used as a key indicator of progress and
ability.
Self-assessment
By training children to realistically assess themselves, they can understand more about the
learning process, be more motivated to learn both inside and beyond the classroom and
teachers can gain greater insights about individuals, which in turn can inform the teaching
process. As Cameron comments: ‘In Vygotskyan terms, a pupil who learns to assess his or
her own work moves from being ‘other-regulated’ to being ‘self-regulated’ or autonomous’
(2001: 235). The way self-assessed tasks are written can help young children understand
why they are useful and how they work so that their responses can be increasingly honest
and constructive. Initial self-assessment sheets can focus on the parts of a coursebook or
period of work the children enjoyed or did not enjoy. As the children gain increasing
command of English, they can react to simple ‘can do’ statements, such as ‘When speaking I
can ask questions / answer questions / introduce myself’ etc. by ticking (McKay p166). Peer
observation can also be used as a means of assessment, for which, like self-assessment,
children will need to be trained. They need to learn for example to follow the criteria, say
positive things first, and not to laugh when they are experiencing difficulty (McKay 167
adapted from Scarino et al., 1988, Book 3, p53). For these reasons, this type of peer
observation may be more appropriate for children aged 13 and above.
Name: ………………………………..
Class: ………………………………….
Topic: Food and Drink
I can … Checked by my classmate Checked by my teacher
(write the name of the
classmate who checked you)
 express likes and dislikes

about food
 describe my favourite room
 choose a meal from a menu
 find out preferences of my
friends regarding food
 draw a table to show my
friends’ preferences
regarding food
 negotiate activities

The teacher needs to ensure that the metalanguage used in the assessment sheets is
familiar and helpful to the children and does not imply needing to teach various functional
words simply to carry out the assessment. The process is likely to be more successful if self-
(and later) peer-assessments are carried out on a regular basis i.e. at the end of each
coursebook unit and have a familiar format. Especially with younger children, the teacher
will need to be able to deal sensitively with any discrepancies between how a child has
assessed him or herself and the teacher’s own assessment. For example, a child may be
overly pessimistic in the assessment of his performance and ability, as a protective
mechanism. The teacher needs therefore to show, either through written work or
anecdotal evidence, how the child has fared better than he thinks.
Older children, who are more self-aware and have a growing understanding of the
learning/teaching processes they experience in their language classroom, can be given
increasing responsibility regarding self-assessment. They can, for instance, select and write
their own ‘can-do’ statements by looking back at the work they have done from their
coursebook and other worksheets or other resources. They can be encouraged to consider
what constitutes a ‘satisfactory’, or ‘very good’ level of performance within these ‘can-do
statements’.
Portfolios
These are collections of a student’s work and evidence of what he or she has produced and
achieved over a period of time and can include samples of written work, examples of crafts
and other artwork related to English lessons, tests, plus references to class blogs or wikis
where the children can embed their own audio and video performances. They can also
include self-evaluation sheets and progress reports from the teacher. Penny McKay
(Assessing Young Language Learners CUP, 2006) underscores their value when she says
‘The use of portfolios becomes an assessment strategy when there are plans to select tasks
for assessment and collection, and when materials are systematically collected.’ [Our italics]
So, if they are managed carefully, they can be something that children can take pride in, and
can provide clear evidence of the learning process to parents or guardians, who in turn can
promote their children’s learning by taking an active interest in their portfolios. Children
can make certain decisions as to which materials they wish to see included in their portfolio,
which links to their ability to reflect about their learning and self-assessment, and this can
have the added spin-off of developing learner training in terms of organising and looking
after their work. However, since they are most frequently paper-based, it is inevitably more
challenging to incorporate spoken tasks, which could mean that a key skill in the Younger
Learner classroom is not fully represented in the portfolios. However, see
http://blog.evernote.com/blog/2012/02/28/how-to-create-a-portfolio-with-evernote-
education-series/ for a computer based portfolio.
They can be quite time-consuming for the teacher in terms of selection and organisation of
materials, as well as the class time that needs to be devoted to helping children to compile
them and keep them in good logical order. This is especially true with younger children who
may be unfamiliar with working with various pieces of loose paper rather than their
coursebook and exercise book. A solution here may be for the teacher to keep all the
materials and get the students to organise them into a portfolio before the end of term
when they can be shown to parents or guardians. This would avoid problems of children
forgetting to bring their portfolios to lessons or worse, losing them! For older children who
already have a folder for their English lessons, they could include a section to store items to
be included eventually in their portfolio, which can be organised and tidied up at a later

stage. See Cameron and McKay for more ideas on helping children collect their work into a
portfolio (Cameron and McKay:68)
Mini vocabulary tests

These can be a useful introduction for younger children aged 8 – 10 to the area of pen-and-
paper tests. As with many of the types of assessment we are describing here, used regularly
in the classroom, they can become increasingly effective: the children do not find them
threatening, they understand their relevance and how to revise for them and therefore they
become easier and more time-efficient to administer. They can be a source of motivation
for children to aim for similar or better scores than previous test results. If a teacher has a
template, they can be quick and simple to produce. However, because they are discrete
item language-based tests, they do not give a comprehensive picture of a child’s progress or
attainment, so they need to be used in conjunction with other means of assessment. Since
they demonstrate evidence of memorisation of words and spelling, they can make useful
additions to a child’s portfolio. They are also useful in terms involving parents or guardians
in the learning process as they can help their child focus and memorise as preparation for
the test. See below for an example that can be used with 9 and 10-year-olds. In Appendix 9
there is a generic template that can be used with various vocabulary areas.
Vocabulary Test on Places in a Town
Procedure:
Children study the spelling of each word and the corresponding pictures, then fold the test
so they cannot see the word and then write the word next to the picture. They then unfold
their test and check their spelling against the correct one. If they are correct, they write a
tick; if there is a mistake, they write a cross and rewrite the word correctly.
study the words and look at the write correct?  / x

pictures
1.
police station …………………….
2.
school …………………….
3.
restaurant …………………….

4.
zoo …………………….
5.
bus station …………………….
6.
library …………………….
7.
church …………………….
8.
park …………………….
9.
train station …………………….
10.
street …………………….
Score: …… / 10 My teacher says: ……………………………………
See Appendix 10 for a generic template of a vocabulary test that can be used with various
vocabulary areas.
As we have seen, traditional pen-and-paper testing is just one option of a range of ways to
assess Young Learners, and certainly should not be seen as the overriding indicator of
progress and attainment. Assessment should therefore support rather than drive learning
and teaching. As Cameron observes, ‘In order to be more in control of the relationship

between assessment and learning, teachers need to have a clear understanding of language
learning process and of the socio-cultural context in which they operate. They can predict
the impact of assessment on their teaching and plan accordingly. If the picture of language
learning can be communicated to learners and their parents, then it may also help parents
to understand what assessment can tell them and what its limits are.’ (2001: 219)
8.6 Reporting on a Child’s Progress and Attainment to Parents or Guardians
As we have mentioned earlier, it is essential that there is regular communication about the
child’s progress, behaviour, needs, attainment and future potential involving the teacher,
the child, the parents or guardians, the school’s Director of Studies, and where appropriate,
the reception or other support staff. As well as more informal, casual conversations, there
need to be occasions for more formal means of communication to ensure a complete
picture of information regarding the child is accurately recorded and can be acted on and
referred back to if necessary. In some schools, this can take the form of timetabled
meetings where the parents or guardians have the opportunity to talk to the child’s teacher,
look at some of the work the child has produced as well as reviewing some more formal
marks and verbal assessments from classwork, homework tasks or tests, and discuss their
child’s report which has been written by the teacher and double-checked and countersigned
by the Director of Studies. In some schools with very high populations of Young Learner
students, this may not be feasible on a regular basis, so there needs to be an effective
system for parents or guardians to have ready access to marks and verbal comments on
their child’s progress, behaviour and attainment – either via a school’s internal computer
system or via written reports which are sent out at regular intervals.
The report which the parents or guardians receive needs to be honest but tactful, easy to
understand to someone who is not a teacher, and include genuine praise where appropriate
and constructive means of support so the child and parents or guardians can easily
understand what steps need to be taken to effect any necessary improvements.

Task 18: Writing Reports (about 10 minutes)
Here are some examples of written comments by teachers. As you read through
them, evaluate their strengths and weaknesses, bearing in mind these will be read by
parents or guardians as well as the child, and also will need to be referred to by the
Director of Studies.
1. A is an enthusiastic student who tries hard. She is a pleasure to teach. Very good
effort with homework. Has some problems with sentence transformations.
2. I am concerned that B has not handed in any homework this term. As a result, I
am unable to assess his grammar and writing.
3. C seems OK so far. Difficult to evaluate as he only started last month.
4. D is a hard-working student, and generally asks when he’s unsure. Grammar is

fine, although he’s liable to make mistakes during freer activities. Homework is
sometimes not done or is incomplete. Good reading comprehension, but he
sometimes has difficulties with listening tasks. He needs to panic less when
listening to conversations on CDs and concentrate on just picking out the
important information rather than trying to understand every word.
5. E enjoys lessons, but has trouble concentrating and often fidgets. She takes a long
time to finish activities compared to others in class and enjoys games much more
than working in the book.
6. F is a lovely student, very quiet but slowly becoming more confident. Others are
not keen to work with him as he takes a long time to absorb information and
instructions, both written and verbal. Reading and writing are OK for the level.
Pronunciation is OK but he is not an enthusiastic contributor. Listening is OK for
level, but he takes a long time to process information. Homework is always done
but shows areas of lack of understanding.
Compare your answers to those below.
Suggested interpretations and improvements to reports
1. Whilst this is generally good news to the parents or guardians, this does not give much
indication of relative strength or weakness, and they may not understand what
‘sentence transformations’ are. Nor is there any indication of what they need to do to
further support their daughter.
2. This lack of homework should have been flagged up at a much earlier stage. Homework
is only one way of assessing language and skills work, so the report needs to include
other evidence of progress and attainment in these areas. The impression is of a
teacher who has not kept any or consistent records of the child throughout the term.

3. ‘OK’ does not mean much. A teacher should be able to make reasonably detailed
qualitative comments on language, skills abilities as well as behaviour, motivation and
effort in a month’s attendance.
4. The teacher has tried to give quite a detailed summary of various aspects of the child’s
abilities and performance, and pinpointed some areas of strength and weakness. The
parents understand the reason for difficulty with listening and there is a constructive
suggestion to help in this area.
5. This is presumably quite a young child, given the type of comments the teacher has
made regarding behaviour, interests and effort. There is sufficient indication here for
parents or guardians regarding the type of feedback they should give their child. It
would be useful to include some commentary on her abilities with reading and writing,
the teacher has not stipulated which ‘activities’ E is slow to finish or why, and this might
be a useful basis for discussion with the parents or guardians as there may be
underlying learning difficulties such as mild dyslexia which the teacher is unaware of,
and may consequently explain her preference for game-like activities.
6. It is important for the parents or guardians to feel the teacher empathises with their
child and that they enjoy a warm relationship. It is also good that the teacher
recognises that the child is being picked on by others in the group, but it is not
necessarily the most appropriate way of transmitting this in a formal report format. The
report could include ways of instilling further confidence in the child, so he learns to feel
less intimidated by others, and to ask for clarification regarding class or homework.
To summarise, a report needs to include clear and precise information on the child’s
progress and attainment with regard to behaviour, attitude and motivation, both in class
and at home, their performance and progress with language, literacy and other skills work.
Comments need to complement and explain marks and grades from classwork, tests,
portfolios, projects, self-assessed work, and these marks need to be consistently and neatly
recorded. The overall effect of the report should be that the teacher knows the individual
student, has a very clear idea of his/her strengths and weaknesses in the areas mentioned,
and what he/she needs to do to improve. The report needs to avoid potentially confusing
metalanguage (such as ‘roleplays’, ‘cloze tests’, ‘listening for gist’ etc) and be easily
understandable to both parents or guardians and the child. It is this type of rigour and
transparency that parents or guardians are often used to in talking to their child’s
mainstream school teachers, and which needs to be replicated (taking into account the local
context and particular requirements of the language school) in order to help maintain the
virtuous closed circle of communication between the various interested parties as
illustrated below:

9 Classroom Resources and Teaching Approaches
9.1 Developing Literacy with Young Learners
This section will give an overview of what is involved in reading and writing in the context of
the Young Learner language classroom, and suggest some ways of helping learners from age
8 upwards to become increasingly proficient, confident and motivated readers and writers.
It is beyond the scope of these materials to detail suitable approaches for developing
literacy with children who have special needs, such as those with dyslexia, but for more
information on this, please refer to:
http://www.visd.com/depart/specialPrograms/dyslexia/dyslexia_handbook_teacherstrategi
es.pdf. Literacy is ‘language use for expressing and sharing meaning between people’
(Cameron 2001:123), and in this sense is both social and cognitive. As Cameron goes on to
explain: ‘socially, literacy provides people with opportunities to share meanings across
space and time. Cognitively, literacy requires that individuals use specific skills and
knowledge about how the written language operates in processing text.’ (ibid)
The effective development of reading with Young Learners involves a combination of top-
down strategies and skills, bottom-up work perhaps using phonics teaching (which involves
showing children the sounds of the different letters in the alphabet, then how the letters
can be combined) through meaning-focussed and multi-sensory approaches. There are
obvious advantages for those teachers working on reading with Young Learners aged eight
and above: by this age, the children will certainly have a notion of what reading is, and most
will have at least some ability to read in their own language. They are often motivated to
read and write the words they hear and speak when they start learning English.
As well as being beneficial for quieter students to demonstrate their abilities, and helpful as
a means of memorisation and reinforcement for more visual learners, children can derive a
great sense of achievement when they have written something meaningful, which has
involved considerable thought and effort and which can be seen and admired by others,
such as a contribution for a classroom display or as part of their personal portfolio.
Promoting writing can also encourage children to keep good records of their work, which in
turn will help their study skills and in revising efficiently for tests. Finally, writing is
something frequently included in the mainstream school curriculum although often as a
means of language consolidation rather than the development of the skill itself. As a result,
there can be positive spin-off from training done on writing skills development in the
children’s English language school classes Although writing in English is a skill Young
Learners may not need immediately, if they study or work in English it may be of increased
importance in the future.
However, there are some challenges that children typically experience which the Young
Learner teacher needs to take into account when preparing lessons and training.
 The children’s literacy knowledge may be only partially developed in their own
language, and confusion could arise as they are exposed to different skills, strategies
and procedures in their English lessons. For example, using a bottom-up approach to
initial reading work such as phonics teaching is likely to be more effective as a sole
means of developing reading skills and competence to children whose first language
uses the Roman alphabet like German or Spanish. In these languages, there is a clear
cut-and-dried grapho-phonemic relationship. This contrasts with English, which has a

‘deep’ orthography, where sounding out a word does not always help with how it is
written (Pinter 2007);
 Similar issues of transfer from the children’s first language to English arise for those
whose first language texts operate in a different direction to English. It is a similar case
with children whose first language uses a completely different script such as Arabic, or
those languages that use a syllable and logographic system, such as Japanese, where the
syllable is the unit and symbols represent meanings directly. For more information on
using phonics with Young Learners, see:
http://scottthornbury.wordpress.com/2011/02/27/p-is-for-phonics/ and Stephen
Krashen’s reply and his description of three approaches to teaching phonics: ‘intensive
systematic’, ‘zero’ and ‘basic’.
 Adults have life experience and knowledge of other text types or genres in their own
language to draw upon to help them comprehend a text, whereas children are likely to
have incomplete or even inaccurate prior knowledge. Children aged between 8 and 11
will usually be familiar with stories or the narrative structure, but less familiar with
other types of texts and discourse organisation. Lack of knowledge as to how a text
type is likely to operate will mean the decoding process for children is more challenging
and onerous, as they struggle to make sense of what they are reading.
 When reading aloud, a child may tend to read word-for-word, concentrating on
sounding out the words and syllables and stopping at the end of the line, rather than
recognising that they have not reached the end of the sentence. This is an indication to
the teacher that the child has not understood what he has read. However, training
children to read aloud can be valuable, as it can promote oral fluency and strengthen
comprehension as they read aloud expressively. Here is another classroom activity that
requires principled scaffolding: first ensuring the children have an adequate
understanding of key points of the text (such as a dialogue between friends), modelling
from a CD or video or the teacher, allowing children time to rehearse in closed groups,
and then optionally reading out to the rest of the class. For more information on the
benefits of getting children to read aloud, see:
http://www.education.com/reference/article/reasons-teach-children-read-aloud/ .
 Older children frequently have difficulty recognising topic sentences in paragraphs,
since this is not something that has a one-for-one equivalent in speaking. In reading,
this can result in them having difficulty in understanding the overall purpose of a
paragraph. In terms of writing, it can mean the children do not organise their thoughts
coherently or logically; instead, ideas are grouped or listed in a haphazard fashion, with
no clear development of a topic, or conversely, ideas are unnecessarily repeated.
 Even in their first language, children will not have encountered in talk some of the
grammatical patterns found in written texts, such as the use of relative clauses.
 Not all children enjoy the act of either reading or writing, and there are various reasons
for this: they are slower than their classmates, who may have limited patience and want
to move ahead faster, they see it as a test rather than an activity which can be
enjoyable and rewarding, they have poor handwriting, and therefore take no pride in
what they have produced, they do not have the necessary concentration and
persistence to overcome difficulties.
In order to combat the areas of difficulties that will continue to arise as children progress in
their language development, the Young Learner teacher needs to incorporate the following
into literacy-based lessons:
 Draw children’s attention to regular patterns at the word level;

 Help them to notice useful ‘intra-word’ features, such as

 Introduce relevant metalanguage gradually as appropriate, such as skim, scan, guess the
meaning, justify your answer;
 Offer carefully scaffolded questioning techniques to help learners towards an
understanding of a text, be it at the clause, sentence or paragraph level without ‘spoon-
feeding’ in answers and explanations which provide no useful development, or serve
only to confuse;
 Make board-writing easy for children to decipher, remembering that the script their
mainstream school teacher uses may be quite different from the one you use, such as
how the letters ‘n’, ‘m’, ‘r’, ‘w’, ‘y’ are formed;
 Ensure that all work is meaning-focussed, using a combination of top-down and bottom-
up approaches to ensure that children understand both the broader content of the text,
as well as the individual words;
 Encourage young children to copy longer texts from those selected by the teacher from
their coursebook, or from cartoons from suitable internet kids’ sites, as a means of
helping them to become more fluent writers;
 Make the reading and/or writing lesson as multi-sensory as possible so that children do
not feel the text is a chore or a test to be completed as quickly as possible. This means
creating flashcards to accompany a text to help clarify meaning and act as an aide-
memoire, using word cards which the teacher can hold up and get the children to find
as quickly as possible in the text, getting children to interact with the text, for example
by providing any noises involved in a story, getting them to act out the cartoon story,
reading from their coursebook, getting them to memorise parts of the cartoon story to
act out in closed or open groups, typing out the coursebook text using a large font,
breaking the text into lines of text which small groups then have to reconstruct;
 Involve the children in assessing themselves in terms of their progress and what they
need to do to make further improvements.
For references dealing with story-telling with Primary School aged children, see:
Carol Read Storytelling http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/10/25/s-is-for-storytelling/
Sandy Mourao ‘What’s in a picture book?’

http://sandiemourao.eu/pages/images/Sandie_Mour%C3%A3o_2010.pdf
9.2 Primary and Secondary School Language and Literacy Development
One way to gain a more in-depth understanding of how children change and develop,
linguistically, cognitively, intellectually and in terms of their world view, is to compare and
contrast several coursebooks which deal with a similar language point or topic.
Task 19: Young Learner Coursebooks (about 30 minutes)
Compare the tasks and activities used in the following three Young Learner
coursebooks’ extracts, using the following questions to guide you:

 How is the language introduced?

 How is meaning checked?
 What do you think was the apparent rationale for the approaches, tasks and
activities?
 What learning styles are catered for in the materials?
 What types of skills work is being develop?

Maidment S. and Roberts L. New Edition Happy Street 2 OUP 2009


Granger C. Hotspot 2 Macmillan 2009

Aravanis R. and Cochrane S. Code Green B1+ Macmillan 2010

9.3 Adaptation of Published Materials
In some language schools and institutions, it is obligatory that the teachers and children
work through set materials, often in the form of a coursebook and workbook. There are
some sound pedagogic reasons for this: they offer (or should offer) a clearly defined
teaching programme and the contents pages should provide clear signposting for the
teacher, the children and the parents or guardians. Additionally, the materials have, in
theory, been designed and written by experienced Young Learner teachers-turned-
coursebook writers whose approaches, activities and methodology can form a valuable
training ground for less experienced Young Learner teachers. For teachers with a full-time
teaching timetable, being able to rely on such materials means they can save time preparing
texts and other resources, and instead put their efforts into ensuring the coursebook is
properly tailored to the needs and interests of their children. However, coursebooks are
usually written for a variety of nationalities and children of different mother tongues, who
have very different cultural backgrounds. Even authors who have written a coursebook for
a specific market, such as Italian secondary school children, have to imagine the types of
students who are likely to use the book. In this respect, coursebook writers cannot know
the precise needs, interests, motivations, strengths or learning styles of any given group of
learners. It is therefore very unlikely that the Young Learner teacher will be able to work
through the coursebook in the manner or order suggested by the writers.
Task 20: Reasons for Adapting Coursebook Materials (about 5 minutes)
There are various reasons for needing to adapt coursebook materials. Reflect on your
own experience as a Young Learner teacher and note down reasons why you have
needed to make changes, whether to omit, extend, change or add in something
completely different. Use these headings to help you:
 topic
 activities and tasks
 approach and methodology
 type of target language
 written exercises
 resources available
 students’ mother tongue
 parental ‘constraints’ and expectations
 school ‘constraints’ and expectations
 age(s) of children
 level(s) of children
 layout and format of coursebook

Task 21: Adapting Coursebook Materials: Case Study (about 30 minutes)
Using the above criteria, read these ‘case study’ notes about a class and their learning
context. Look at the extract of material taken from their coursebook (Interactive 1 pp
70-71) and decide what can stay the same, what will need to be adapted, why and
how.
The class is a monolingual group of 12 Portuguese teenagers aged 13 to 15. They

would have started learning English when they started primary school aged 6. They
have made very little progress in their mainstream school, which is why they are
attending a language school, where they have one ninety minute lesson on a Saturday
morning. They often appear very tired when they come into class. They are poorly
motivated and have poorly developed study skills. In their mainstream school they are
used to other colleagues doing their work for them and not taking an active part in
lessons. They are reticent to offer information or take the initiative, and do not appear
to enjoy spoken activities for fear of being laughed at by others, preferring to
communicate with each other in Portuguese. They are happiest in lessons when they
can copy from the board. They like word games. The school has a computer room,
and each classroom has internet access and IWB.
Now compare your ideas to those in Appendix 11.

Hadkins H and Lewis S Interactive 1 CUP2011

Reading
Books
 Berger, K.S. The developing person through the lifespan (2nd ed.), Worth Publishers1988
 Cameron, L. Teaching Languages to Young Learners, CUP 2001
 Cameron, L. & McKay, P. Bringing Creative Teaching into the Young Learner
Classroom, OUP 2010
 Crystal, D. Listen to your Child: A Parent’s Guide to Children’s Language, Penguin
1986
 Donaldson, M. Children’s Minds, Fontana 1974
 Egan, K. Educational Development, OUP 1979
 Lightbrown, P. & Spada, N. How Languages are Learned, OUP 2011
 McKay, P. Assessing Young Language Learners, CUP 2006
 Pinter, A. Teaching Young Language Learners, OUP 2006
 Read C. 500 Primary Classroom Activities Macmillan 2007
 Thornbury, S. The Big Questions, The Round 2013
Articles
 Aitchison, J. Words in the Mind: An Introduction to the Mental Lexicon (3rd ed.),
Blackwell Publishing 2002
 Nunan, D. ‘An Interview with David Nunan’, IATEFL TTEd SIG Newsletter 3/2002
 European Union Review: Foreign Language in Primary and Pre-school Education,
Blondin et al in Pinter 2006: 29
 Union Review: Foreign Language in Primary and Pre-school Education, Blondin et al in
Pinter 2006: 29
Online Sources
 Read, C. Is Younger better?, English teaching professional 28 July 2003

http://www.etprofessional.com/is_younger_better_1832.aspx
Website Links
1. Introduction
http://oupeltglobalblog.com/2013/07/18/5-myths-about-teaching-learners-with-special-
educational-needs/
http://www.son.wisc.edu/net/wistrec/net/developstagetext.html
2. Child Development and Language Learning Theories

http://epltt.coe.uga.edu/images/b/b8/Piaget_1.jpg
http://thinkingbookworm.typepad.com/blog/2012/03/a-criticism-of-piagets-cognitive-
development-theory.html
http://esl.fis.edu/teachers/fis/scaffold/zpd.jpg
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2011/08/08/z-is-for-zone-of-proximal-
development/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_sign_language
http://www.cse.iitk.ac.in/users/amit/books/lightbown-1993-how-languages-are.html
http://www.brainwaves.com/
http://sharpbrains.com/blog/2010/12/21/top-10-resources-to-better-understand-the-
teenage-brain%E2%80%94-brain-health-series-part-2/
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/07/17/sleep-and-the-teenage-brain/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiTsduRreug
3. Local Context and Parental/Guardian Involvement

https://www.etprofessional.com/meet_the_parents_3854.aspx
http://oupeltglobalblog.com/tag/olha-madylus/
http://www2.ed.gov/parents/academic/involve/homework/homeworktips.pdf
http://www.britishcouncil.org/nepal-childprotection-policy-mainpage.htm
http://www.unicef.org/eapro/CP-ED_Setting.pdf
4. Out-of-class Exposure and Impact on Learning

www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:292259/FULLTEXT01.pdf
5. Behaviour Management
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/01/20/b-is-for-behaviour/
http://www.onestopenglish.com/support/methodology/classroom-
management/classroom-management-classroom-discipline/146446.article
http://psychology.about.com/b/2013/07/08/overjustification-when-rewards-decrease-
motivation.htm
http://www.parentingscience.com/effects-of-praise.html
http://www.parentingscience.com/praise-and-intelligence.html
http://www.acacamps.org/sites/default/files/images/education/ndo/Section5_Camper_De
velopment_Behavior_Handouts.pdf
6. Learner Training
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/05/30/l-is-for-learning-to-learn/
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/articles/learner-training-young-learners
http://www.ncld.org/students-disabilities/homework-study-skills/study-skills-teens
http://ww2.odu.edu/educ/roverbau/Bloom/blooms_taxonomy.htm
https://www.cambridgeenglishteacher.org/resource-details/1070
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGst5YkBHBA
http://worldteacher-andrea.blogspot.pt/2012/10/towards-developing-critical-thinking.html
http://www.onestopenglish.com/clil/methodology/study-skills-for-clil/thinking-skills-for-
clil/501197.article
7. Learning Styles and Intelligences

http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/schoolgate/helpfromhome/content/howchildrenlearn.shtml
http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/sites/teacheng/files/mixedability.pdf
http://www.strath.ac.uk/media/faculties/hass/scilt/slr/issues/18/18_bremner.pdf

http://eltnotebook.blogspot.pt/2007/01/helping-students-with-learning.html
http://eltnotebook.blogspot.pt/search/label/Learning%20Disabilities
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_styles
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/06/13/m-is-for-multiple-intelligences/
http://www.kidspot.com.au/schoolzone//Learning-Learning-styles-Learning-styles-in-
children+4053+391+article.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/schoolgate/helpfromhome/content/2howchildrenlearn.shtml
8. Means of Assessment
https://www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org/ts/exams/younglearnersandforschools/yleflyers
https://www.teachers.cambridgeesol.org/ts/exams/younglearnersandforschools/ketforsch
ools
http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-vision/what-is-color-blindness
http://blog.evernote.com/blog/2012/02/28/how-to-create-a-portfolio-with-evernote-
education-series/
9. Classroom Resources and Teaching Approaches

http://www.visd.com/depart/specialPrograms/dyslexia/dyslexia_handbook_teacherstrategi
es.pdf
http://scottthornbury.wordpress.com/2011/02/27/p-is-for-phonics/
http://www.education.com/reference/article/reasons-teach-children-read-aloud/
http://carolread.wordpress.com/2010/10/25/s-is-for-storytelling/
http://sandiemourao.eu/pages/images/Sandie_Mour%C3%A3o_2010.pdf

Appendices
Appendix 1
Task 2: Characteristics of Different Groups of Young Learners
They need … They like …

5 – 7 years [NB Delta lessons must be with learners of minimum 8 years old]
 Training in class routines such as listening to the teacher  Listening to stories
and following instructions because they are still getting  Action songs / chants
used to classroom conventions.  Physical activities
 A friendly, reassuring teacher who focuses on the
 Making things
positive because they may feel anxious in an unknown
situation.  Playing
 The teacher to be ever-present and lead activities like  Puppets / toys
games so they do not get distracted and because they  Acting out
cannot work independently.  Simple games such as
 Short activities which last only a couple of minutes each picture pelmanism
to keep them focussed and interested.  The world of
 Exposure to chunks of language through stories where
imagination and make-
meaning is made comprehensible by pictures, and
concrete situations that the children can relate to easily. believe
 Lots of repetition and recycling within one lesson and
from lesson to lesson in different contexts.
 Lots of exposure to spoken language because they do
not write, or are still learning to write.
 Activities that help develop motor skills like colouring,
copying, tracing, using scissors.
 Lots of opportunities to sing, play, explore, touch, move,
and ‘hands on’ activities as the ‘whole child’ needs
stimulation.
 Exposure to a language-rich environment, where English
is the medium of instruction, and where language is not
over-simplified.
 A gradual introduction to the value of sharing and
cooperating with other children.
8 – 10 years
 A variety of tasks in terms of length and difficulty  Competitive and
because they can concentrate for longer, but they still collaborative team
get tired easily, and they are very active. games such as card or
 Very clearly checked guidance as to how to carry out board games, the whole
classroom tasks such as pairwork, games, completing class playing against the
grammar exercises, writing tasks because they may teacher
‘double-guess’ the teacher and stop listening to  Inventing things such as
instructions before the teacher has finished talking or monsters, stories, time-
showing what to do. saving equipment
 Opportunities to develop patience in sharing, turn-  Projects and other
taking, helping, because some children can be overly display activities, such
competitive, self-absorbed or intolerant. as posters, self-made
 Lots of exposure to English to make sense of it books, plays
themselves and see the emerging patterns of grammar,  Guessing games and

syntax, spelling etc. problem-solving

 Opportunities to show what they know because activities
(depending on their learning context) they may have
been learning English for one or more years and are
therefore likely to know more English.
 Interesting and rich lesson content related to areas they
are working on in their regular school lessons e.g.
animals, geography, food, science.
 Language to be presented in a fun, engaging way.
 A lot of discovery-type activities.
 Plenty of exposure to and opportunities to use formulaic
chunks.
 Encouragement to notice patterns in language before
they are exposed to grammatical terminology.
 Opportunities to use language in motivating contexts.
 Meaningful praise and encouragement by the teacher.
11 – 13 years
 Clarity from the teacher about boundaries and the sense A mixture of those
that the teacher is fair, because they are sometimes activities that 8 – 10 year-
confused about appropriate ways to behave. olds like, but fine-tuned in
 A mixture of fun and more serious content, to reflect the terms of topic and
fact that they are between being children and adults. cognitive demand to their
 Materials and content that are age-appropriate, they are age and interests e.g:
keenly aware of anything that appears ‘babyish’ to them.
 competitive and
 A variety of topics, themes and activities because they
collaborative team
are going through a transition period from imaginative
games such as card or
thinking to read world interest.
board games, the whole
 A balance of classroom interaction and sharply focused
class playing against the
language training because they are starting to have a
teacher;
clearer idea of the value of studying and learning English.
 inventing things such as
 Tasks and activities where they can see the progress they
stories, time-saving
are or should be making, because they are often under
equipment;
pressure to succeed academically.
 projects and other
 A teacher who is sensitive and aware of their mood
display activities, such
swings and needs caused by hormonal changes.
as posters, self-made
 Plenty of challenge appropriate to their age and level
books, plays;
because their intellectual skills are developing and they
 guessing games and
can get bored quickly if they feel they are ‘treading
problem-solving
water’.
activities;
 Plenty of opportunities to personalise learning
 activities to stretch
experiences because their world still revolves around
them mentally, such as
them.
tasks which develop
 A variety of classroom interactions because they are
their thinking skills;
forging strong connections with some classmates and
 opportunities to
like working together, but this can be counter-
demonstrate their
productive, resulting in ‘cliques’.
knowledge or
experience, especially if
it is outside the
teacher’s experience;
 opportunities where

they can test

themselves and
(informally) test each
other;
 computer-based and
other web 2.0-based
activities;
14 – 16 years
 Not to be treated as if they were children; instead the  Opportunities where
teacher needs to appeal to the emerging adult in them. they can test
 To have opportunities to show their individuality. themselves and
 Clear boundaries as to what is and is not acceptable (informally) test each
behaviour and why. other
 To appreciate the importance of taking responsibility for  Computer-based and
their actions and learning, and an understanding of other web 2.0-based
consequences of inappropriate behaviour. activities
 Not to be put on the spot and feel they are the laughing  Videos and music (and
stock of the class or the teacher. Sarcasm is not not necessarily just up-
normally a constructive method of maintaining discipline to-the-minute ones)
and motivation.  Activities to stretch
 To understand the relevance and rationale behind them mentally, such as
classroom and homework activities and procedures. tasks which develop
 The teacher to an empathic yet fair authority figure (as their thinking skills
opposed to authoritarian), rather than their ‘friend’.  Opportunities to
 To be pushed to achieve their full potential. demonstrate their
 The teacher notices when they have made efforts to knowledge or
improve themselves, be it directly connect to language experience, especially if
or skills work, attitude or behaviour. it is outside the
 Balanced practice in all areas of language. teacher’s experience
 Clear and reasonable deadlines for completion and  Quizzes and
delivering of homework tasks. They also have a lot of questionnaires which
main-school-related tasks and tests to do. claim to assess their
 Variety of activities and pace within a lesson to keep personalities
their attention and maintain levels of concentration.  Roleplays and
 Clear, directed and constructive feedback from the simulations, as long as
teacher at all times. these have been
carefully set up, and
clear boundaries for
behaviour have been
laid down
It is important to remember that these are typical characteristics for children within the
same age groups. However, children are obviously also very different as individuals
regarding their strengths and preferences. As Pinter points out: ‘While teachers can benefit
from familiarising themselves with the universal aspects of children’s development, it is also
important that this is balanced out with a focus on the individual child. Teachers will have
to use their best judgement in deciding about the most suitable materials and techniques to
fit their learners of different ages in different contexts.’ (Pinter: 2006 15) For example, the
type of activities and resources that are appropriate with a group of 20 six-year-olds
learning in their mainstream classroom with fixed chairs and tables is likely to be different
from a similar aged group of 10 children learning in a room with access to large floor mats

and cushions as well as tables and chairs. Even within the same learning context, similar
aged learners may differ quite markedly in their attitudes towards learning in general,
maturity and performance as language learners. What connects children of all ages are the
following: they often enjoy working together in small groups or pairs, they need clear
guidance from the teacher as regards how to manage learning tasks effectively, they will
generally respond positively to appropriate challenge, and they need to be valued as
individuals with their own strengths, interests and needs.
Return to text

Appendix 2
[See Methods and trends in ELT for more details on the theories below]
Task 4: Second Language Learning Theories
Theory Key Terms Names Dates

Behaviourism imitation, practise, reinforcement, BF Skinner 1957
habit formation
Mentalism Universal Grammar language Noam Chomsky 1960s
acquisition device (LAD)
a language instinct
Input hypothesis comprehensible input (i+1) natural Stephen Krashen 1970s
order and
critical period 80s
affective filter
monitor hypothesis
Noticing hypothesis the essential point of acquisition of Richard Schmidt 1990
grammatical features of a language
For more information about Stephen Krashen’s theories, see this You Tube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiTsduRreug
Return to text

Appendix 3
Task 8a: Case studies
Possible Positive Impacts Possible Negative Impacts

Carlos  His grandparents can provide some  He may miss the support of his
extra support and help for both father, or resent the fact that he is
Carlos and his mother. not around as often as he would
 It is likely he is able to practise his like.
English with his extended family  He may think he can ‘swing the lead’
via Skype and Facebook. with his father not being around.
 He has got an idea of what English  His mother and grandmother may
as a living language is like and an assume he does not need any
English-speaking culture since he specific home help with his English
has been to Canada. since he has Canadian relations and
is in regular contact with them.
 He may resent having to attend
extra English lessons on his
weekends.
Sofia  She seems very motivated to learn,  She is possibly the only Chinese girl
if only to be able to learn with in her class and therefore seen as
peers of her own age. different.
 Her level of English is likely to be  It is not easy for the parents to
(or soon will be) higher than her understand what she is studying or
parents’. what her teachers have to say about
 Her parents are keen for her to their daughter.
learn English and are likely to take  As she is also still learning Italian,
a positive interest in her progress. this may cause problems of
comprehension, especially if the
teacher checks meaning through
reference to Italian words or cultural
concepts.
Viktor  It is likely that his level of English is  He may resent having to come to
higher than that required in the English lessons on a Saturday, which
English classes at his mainstream cuts into the time he is at his
school, and he may get good father’s house.
grades without much effort.  He may not wish to carry on learning
 He has the best of both worlds in English as he has spent the last 12
terms of seeing his parents and years at the same language school.
having a change of scene.  His parents may not be particularly
 His parents may take an equal well organised regarding checking
caring and practical interest in that Viktor attends lessons
their sons’ English lessons, even punctually and regularly and
though they live apart. completes his homework properly
and on time.
 He may find the break-up of his
parents’ marriage difficult to deal
with, resulting in behavioural issues.
Li Na  She is a lively student who makes  For a young girl, her days are quite
an effort and enjoys joining in with long and she may not have much

the various activities. time just to relax and play.

 She must be quite able, as her  Although absenteeism may not
absences do not appear to be currently be an issue, this may
affecting her progress. become so in the future, as the
 She is being given a chance to English she studies becomes more
develop herself in various ways and more complex and demanding.
outside school.  One reason for her not doing her
homework could be that she does
not know what to do from a lesson
she has missed or since she missed a
presentation of a certain structure,
she is unsure how to complete some
of the homework exercises.
Return to text

Appendix 4
Task 8b: Case Studies
How does the new What type of parental What can the teacher
information affect involvement is do to facilitate?
learning positively or necessary to promote
negatively? or improve each
child’s learning?
Carlos He seems to be reliant on Both parents and the Clarify when homework
his fluency developed grandparents need to be is given and what the
through contact with his aware of his absenteeism deadlines typically are
Canadian family and and lack of spending time with the mother and
reluctant to do anything on his homework. They grandparents and that
that requires more effort need to clarify with the expectation is that he
on his part. Carlos the value of will have homework at
studying English at the least once a week.
language school and how Suggest that they ask to
his attitude is impeding see his homework and
his progress and the sign on the relevant page
possibility of failing the or paper to show the
year. teacher they have seen
that it has been
adequately completed.
Arrange a time for a
follow-up meeting to
assess Carlos’s progress
in this matter.
Sofia Sofia obviously enjoys They need to see this for Explain to the class that
‘living’ the English themselves, even though their homework is to
language and is not shy they will not understand read an episode of the
to participate and show the actual words. She cartoon storyline to
off her spoken abilities. could read the storyline someone in their house:
to her parents, or sing a parent, sibling or
them some of the songs grandparent. Tell them
or play some of the to explain what happens
games she has learnt in in their own language
class. first and then read them
the story in English. The
same can be done with
simple games by getting
the children to explain
the rules of the game in
their first language and
allowing the other player
to use their own
language if they do not
speak English.
Viktor He knows he has done They need to be aware of Talk to Viktor and his
well to pass First what Viktor’s parents together to

Certificate, but he now responsibilities are discuss the possibility of

wants a breather from regarding homework for him taking three rather
the pressure of studying his English lessons at his than two years to get to
so hard. He complains language school, what he Proficiency. Try to
that his parents and his needs to do to improve organise a reasonable
teachers are constantly his level, and to ensure timetable for Viktor to
‘on his case’. His parents that he sets aside a help him manage his
both seem to be in reasonable amount of English homework, so he
agreement regarding time at certain points does not fall behind and
what they wish for during the week for his gets work in on time.
Viktor. English homework.
Li Na The fact that Li Na seems Without wanting to put The teacher needs to
quite happy in class more pressure on the show understanding and
implies her mother has other, it would be helpful be mindful of the fact
made some wise if she could let the school that her English lessons
decisions regarding how know in advance if she are beneficial to Li Na –
her child spends her time knows that Li Na is going in terms of the
and it seems that to miss one or more enjoyment she gets from
keeping her fully lessons. This way the them and the backwash
occupied after school teacher could set aside effect onto her
finishes is, at present, the some coursebook and mainstream school
right thing to do. workbook tasks for Li Na English lessons. The
Presumably Li Na is not to do. This would help ideal would be for her
having problems with ensure that Li Na is more mother to contact the
English at her fully keeping up with school in advance of any
mainstream school, and new language work, lessons Li Na will miss,
her language school which will help her in but if that is not possible,
English lessons are preparation for the end then the teacher can
helping her here. of term tests. arrange for her to be
sent an email with
relevant exercises for Li
Na to complete.
Return to text

Appendix 5
Task 10: Classroom Routines
Entering a classroom
 Make sure children have taken off coats and hats and hung
them up or put them over the backs of their chairs.
 Chewing gum should go in the bin, food and drink put away
for later.
 They should be sitting quietly, looking at the teacher ready
for the lesson to begin.
 Ensure the students are sitting where you want them to sit.
 Minimise the disruption that latecomers can cause: teach
them to knock on the door before entering and insist they
sit down quietly, rather than taking your and the rest of the
class’s attention away from the lesson.
Starting a lesson
 Take the register. You can use this as an opportunity to

recycle vocabulary or another language point from a
previous lesson, so that when you call out a student’s name
he or she has to say, for example, a form of transport, or
their birthday or what they did at the weekend. This would
not be suitable for larger classes as it would obviously take
too long and children would start to get distracted. But
managed efficiently this routine switches them on to
English and gives them some individual attention.
 Nominate students as monitors to collect homework and
distribute books.
 The children can take turns to write the date on the board
at the beginning of the class. Older teenagers may find this
activity childish.

Giving instructions and setting up activities
 Ensure you have every student’s attention. If you begin an

activity when only half the class are listening, you not only
lose valuable time in setting up and re-explaining, you also
send out the signal to the class that what you are doing is
not important. Wait for silence.
 Break instructions down into micro-stages; do not give out
too many instructions at the same time.
 Check the children understand what they have to do by
asking either/or questions, ‘Are you going to do x or y?’ as
well as what they should not do by negative checking, ‘Do
you need to speak any Spanish in this activity?’, ‘Why not?’
 Do not give out worksheets or let the children open their
books until you have made it very clear what they are to do
and what page they are to look at.
 Always give an example of what they have to do first,
rather than handing out the worksheets and then
explaining: the children’s attention will be distracted by
illustrations or other exercises on the same sheet.
Getting Young Learners’ attention
 When you want to get the students’ attention back to you,

move away from the noise to a different part of the
classroom. You could additionally place a notice on the
wall which says ‘SILENCE!’ When you want the students’
attention, move to the sign and simply point. The students
will become ‘conditioned’ to this signal: you have created a
‘positive anchor’ if you only ever go to stand and point for
this reason.
 Lower your voice, rather than raise it, as this can force the
children to quieten down and listen to you.
 Establish a code for getting their attention: there are
various non-verbal ways you can do this, such as clapping
and the children have to follow your rhythm immediately,
making a physical gesture (raising one arm in the air): the
children have to follow suit and stop whatever they are
doing. This is more suitable for younger children rather
than teenagers, who may react better to a smart rap on the
board with your knuckles or the board pen.

Dealing with materials
 Get the students to take out the materials they will need
for the lesson from their bags i.e. coursebook, workbook,
exercise book, folder, pencil case and arrange them neatly
in front of them on their desks, or under their chairs if the
classroom has lecture chairs.
 Prior to starting any activity, tell them exactly which
materials they will need. Once these are no longer
required, tell the students to put them away again.
 Assign classroom monitors to distribute and collect
materials. This can be made into a student-centred
language routine, by getting the monitor to say ‘Here you
are’ and the students to say ‘Thank you’ when they are
given materials.
Asking for things
 Make sure they ask you in English. Teach core classroom

language such as ‘What’s … in English?’ ‘How do you spell
…?’ ‘Which page?’ and insist they use this with you and with
each other.
 Many questions in the classroom are requests, and this is
an ideal occasion to teach the functional exponents ‘Can
you …’ and ‘Can I …’. This type of language can be very
empowering, since with it the children can say: ‘Can I go to
the toilet, please?, ‘Can I have a rubber, please?’, ‘Can you
help me, please?’, ‘Can I ask you a question, please?’, ‘Can I
have my test back, please?’ Here is an example of why a
teacher should not steer clear of teaching certain language
forms just because they appear at a later stage in a school
or coursebook syllabus or until students are able to analyse
the various forms of a particular structure for themselves,
as we noticed earlier in Section 2.5.

Managing students’ answers open-class
 Ask a question to the whole class then tell them to think

before they shout out the answer.
 Insist that younger classes put their hands up takes time,
but it can help train them to be more aware of the need to
consider others in the classroom. Older teenagers may find
this childish.
 When a student interrupts or dominates during a question
and answer session, do not always respond to that student;
keep looking at the nominated child and keep the others
‘on hold’.
 Move towards noisy or distracted children, in a non-
threatening manner.
 Nominate clearly and consistently, ensuring only the person
whose name you have said is the one who can speak.
Managing homework
 Set this up at least 5 minutes before the end of the lesson,

if you have not set it up at an earlier point in the lesson.
 Give a clear indication that you are going to give
instructions for the homework, and ensure they have just
the materials necessary, and that they are all being quiet,
with their attention on you, rather than getting ready to
leave.
 Write the page and exercise numbers on the board and get
students to copy this down.
 Direct students to the exercises and do the first question of
each exercise open-class and check they all understand
what to do.
 Establish a clear deadline for this to be completed and write
this on the board for them to copy down.
 If your school has a policy that teachers need to check
homework has been done at the beginning of the lesson,
make a note of anyone who has not done it.

Ending a lesson and leaving the classroom
 Allow a few minutes reflection time for students to tell you

what they did in the lesson, what they enjoyed, what they
learnt etc. You could recap by eliciting the main activities to
the board and elicit why they did them. Here is a good
example of learner training, as we shall see in Section 6.
 Make sure everyone has put their materials away in their
bags, and that their desks are tidy, ready for the next class.
 Ensure everyone is quiet so that they do not charge out of
the classroom and potentially disrupt other lessons still in
progress.
 Tell them to walk, not run down the corridor until they get
outside the school building.
 Give students a password which is a word or phrase from
the lesson, so that they can only leave if they can tell you the
password correctly. This may only be suitable for younger
and small classes.
Return to text

Appendix 6
Task 11: Measures to Deal with Misbehaviour
The students ...
 are bored with the lesson – they have ‘done’ it before

When it comes to grammar-focused lessons, where the children have already had an initial
presentation, and the next lesson is a further focus on the same point, they may well feel as
if they are simply repeating the same thing. This is doubly true when they are learning the
same language points at mainstream school as well as in a language school. This refrain is
particularly understandable from older teenagers who have been learning English for
several years and may be reviewing certain structures for the fifth or sixth time (for example
the present perfect). There are several points to make here: firstly, the teacher needs to
provide stimulating revision of previously covered language areas to clarify both to the
teacher and the children themselves what they have understood as well as what they need
to be working on. Secondly, the teacher needs to ensure that the activities chosen to
further practise the language point are different and that there is an incremental degree of
challenge implicit in them from one lesson to another. Thirdly, children need to be made
aware of the reasons why not every lesson is going to be a brand new topic or language
point, and that being able to say that they have ‘done’ or that they ‘know’ something is not
at all the same thing as being able to say they have internalised and can use it
independently for themselves. So the Young Learner teacher needs to instil in children the
need for patience and persistence as valuable learning skills.
 get over-excited
Getting so involved in a game or other task can sometimes result in some children becoming
overly competitive, noisy, pushy, apart from not using English in the way the teacher
intended (if it is used at all!). Planning is important here for the teacher to be able to
predict the type of response an activity is likely to have with a particular group of learners
and to include relevant rules of behaviour to help the teacher manage the children. With
certain children and activities, this may mean a ‘three strikes and you’re out’ policy, for
example if the teacher has to tell them a third time to keep the noise down / be more
considerate of others / play fair, then they will not be allowed to continue to play. It is also
useful to demonstrate to children acceptable and unacceptable behaviour, and elicit from
them why certain behaviour or attitudes are unacceptable.
 students do not know what to do

This may be because the children have not been listening to their teacher’s instructions for
a task or activity, in which case, the teacher needs to ensure they follow the advice given in
Appendix 6 above about ‘getting students’ attention’, but it may well be that the children
are unused to dealing with the fact that all teaching is done through the medium of English,
unlike their mainstream English lessons, where the teacher can provide explanations for
rules and use of language in their mother tongue, and which therefore presents apparently
fewer difficulties in comprehension. A teacher teaching English through English therefore
needs to ensure all language is carefully graded and that meaning for language points and
instructions are consistently checked, rather than talking about language. In short, the
teacher needs to ensure all imparting of information is interactive and actively involves all
learners, rather than a one-way transmission with little means of ascertaining what the
children understand, and importantly, what they do not yet understand.

 find the activity / exercise too difficult

As we have mentioned earlier, it is imperative to ‘scaffold’ tasks, to ensure children
understand what they are expected to do, how they should go about a specific task and why
it is important they go about the task in a way indicated by the teacher. Perseverance
comes with appropriate encouragement from the teacher; so it is important that children
are given clear objectives for tasks, such as ‘do at least five of these questions’, so they can
see the light at the end of the tunnel. The teacher also needs to be reactive, and take
appropriate steps to rectify a situation if it is obvious the majority are finding something too
difficult. Rather than simply ‘spoon-feeding’ the correct answers, it may be worth stopping
all the students to clarify an issue so that they may recommence the same task with
improved understanding.
 are not interested in learning English

As we have observed earlier, most children do not possess an intrinsic motivation for
learning English, unlike many adult learners. Motivation comes from being able to
understand excerpts from cartoon channels, song lyrics and interacting on social media. But
in the eyes of some children these can seem a long way from the apparently dry demands of
the English classroom. So it is important that the teacher creates interest and motivation,
by including topics and activities of relevance and interest to them. A frequent complaint of
older children who say they do or did not like learning English is that they do or did not like
their teacher. So the relationship a teacher builds up with each child can be crucial in terms
of the attitude he or she has towards learning English.
 are tired
This can mean they be reluctant to engage or to make a reasonable effort in classroom
activities, they may get short-tempered with others in the class. And, unlike the majority of
adult learners, they will not disguise their feelings in this respect. To some extent, Young
Learner teachers need to have some sympathy for the children they teach; their days are
often very long, with lessons at their mainstream school starting early in the morning and
with sports and other extra-curricular activities going on till relatively late in the day. Even
those having lessons first thing in the morning are likely to still be very sleepy. A Young
Learner teacher needs, therefore, to design lessons that take tiredness into account i.e.
activities that will ‘stir’ alongside others that will ‘settle’ so that students, in their
overtiredness, do not get overly excited. Providing clear time limits, so the children can gain
a sense of how long they will be expected to work on a specific task can help channel effort.
 have got problems at home

This can show itself in lack of effort, attitude towards other children in the class as well as to
the teacher, so as we have discussed earlier, it is important that the teacher gains a clear
understanding of the issue, does not prejudge, and communicates with parents and other
relevant people in the language school or institution to ensure appropriate action is taken.
 want to ‘test’ the limits of the teacher

This can happen at the beginning of a course and may well be a result of insecurity on the
part of some of the children who are in an unfamiliar setting or new colleagues, new
teacher, new classroom and so on. Having clear routines and clearly checked instructions
which the teacher adheres to helps children understand what is and is not acceptable.
Having a clear policy for dealing with misbehaviour is also key.

The teacher ...
 has allowed a student’s misbehaviour to go unnoticed

This could be because the teacher is unsure how to deal with a specific situation, but it will
not go unnoticed by the rest of the class, who may interpret the teacher’s lack of
intervention as either weakness or an assumption that the behaviour is acceptable.
However, it may be that the teacher has made a principled decision to allow a student’s
behaviour to go apparently unnoticed, although this may be followed up by talking to the
class or specific individual at a later stage in the lesson or at the end of the lesson.
 is unaware that the students are misbehaving

Less experienced Young Learner teachers sometimes find they are unaware of what the
group or individuals are doing, because there are so many demands on their attention:
moving from one activity to another, writing on the board, organising materials, watching
the clock, monitoring individuals and closed groups. Predicting possible instances of
misbehaviour when planning lessons, as well as really watching and listening to what
children are actually saying and doing (or not saying or doing) are ways to help Young
Learner teachers develop ‘eyes at the back of their heads’ so that they are alert at all times
and can pre-empt or deal with misbehaviour before it escalates.
 threatens but doesn’t actually carry out warnings

It is easy to think that if you issue a warning, the problem has been dealt with. One issue
experienced by some Young Learner teachers is that some children persist in misbehaving
despite threats. Children need to see that their teacher is quite capable of carrying out a
threat. Anyway, for most children, this is what they have been brought up to believe from
their parents or guardians, so the language classroom should be no different in this respect.
 is inconsistent in the way s/he reprimands students

Children are very sensitive to the concept of fairness and will expect to be treated in exactly
the same way as others in their class. For example, a boy who has been separated from his
friends for persistently chatting to his friends will expect a girl who misbehaves in the same
way to receive the same punishment. It is also difficult at times to separate exactly who in a
small group of children has been misbehaving, and the Young Learner teacher needs to
ensure that all students are not tarred by the same brush, with some children being
erroneously punished or reprimanded simply for sitting in the same group, although they
may have done nothing wrong themselves.
 has an unreal expectation as to how students see him or her

A Young Learner teacher needs to establish and be able to maintain an appropriate rapport
and relationship with each class of children. On the one hand, the classroom atmosphere
set up by the teacher needs to be warm, friendly and purposeful, regardless of age of
students, size of group or seating arrangements within the classroom. However, having a
friendly working relationship with children does not mean the Young Learner teacher is
their friend. The teacher needs to be able to meet the students’ expectations of him or her
as a figure of authority, who can effectively direct and manage a class and the individuals
within it. This does not mean that the lessons are not fun and that there is no place for
spontaneous interaction; far from it, the most successful and effective Young Learner
teachers are those who can engage genuinely with individual children as well as the group
as a whole, but who are prepared to deal proportionally with misbehaviour as and when it
arises.

 does not appear to show an interest in students’ written work

For some Young Learner students, writing and homework is seen as a chore, rather than a
valuable consolidation of class or other oral work and a source of pride in what they can
produce. If a teacher’s way of marking work is to pick out mistakes, rather than also
highlighting interesting content as well as relevant or improved use of language and text
organisation, students will interpret this as lack of interest in them and their efforts on the
part of the teacher.
 does not see positive behaviour from students who sometimes misbehave
It is all too easy to label certain students as likely trouble-makers. However, one key way to
manage such children is to notice occasions when they have managed to refrain from a
certain action (such as interrupting another colleague, or grabbing the colouring pencils
first) and make this explicit to the student concerned. Not only does this reaffirm the
positive nature of their good behaviour, and hopefully encourage them to repeat this in
future, but it also shows the student that you recognise their efforts to improve.
 cannot get and keep the students’ attention

See Appendix 5
 does not vary the pace and focus in an appropriate manner

There needs to be an appropriate balance between activities, taking into account children’s
concentration spans. It is useful to split up a phase in a lesson into micro-stages. For
example, a reading phase may contain seven or eight mini-stages, each lasting different
lengths of time and different interactions and groups with varying demands in terms of
concentration and difficulty. By moving from small group to individual work, from quiet
concentration to short discussion comparison of answers to open plenary sharing and
justification of answers, children are more likely to be kept positively engaged in the various
tasks.
Return to text

Appendix 7
Task 13: Successful Young Language Learners
 Find it quite easy to learn chunks of language as unanalysed ‘wholes’.

 Be willing to take risks, and do not mind if they make mistakes.
 Be inquisitive about language.
 Pay attention to form: how a structure is made, constituents of words.
 Pay attention to meaning: understanding when to use a piece of language.
 Be persistent and do not give up easily.
 Do their homework conscientiously and consistently.
Return to text

Appendix 8
Task 14: Analysing Learner Training Activities
Answers indicated below by yellow highlight.
Sample Activity Strategies Age group(s)

a) Students brainstorm words in their own
language that they would like to learn that are 1 2 3 4 A B C
connected to an upcoming coursebook topic.
The teacher is actively involving the students in

some decision-making processes by giving them
some say in the language to be learnt that is
meaningful to them. This can help maintain
motivation, as the teacher is hopefully raising
the children’s self-esteem. This procedure can be
applied across the age groups, although the
teacher’s role here may be to help the children
think about why certain words are likely to be
more (or less) worthwhile.
b) The teacher demonstrates her class how to go 1 2 3 4 A B C
about revising for a vocabulary test.
This type of scaffolding activity is important as

Young Learners do not have an inbuilt ability to
revise; it is something that is learnt and children
need to be shown how to manage this logically,
efficiently and effectively.
c) The teacher asks the students to evaluate
certain aspects of a roleplay they performed e.g. 1 2 3 4 A B C
amount they contributed, use of appropriate
intonation, how the problem was resolved etc.
This helps children begin to understand why we

do these types of activities in the classroom and
to help them reflect on the quality of their
participation. Reflecting on specific micro-skills
and strategies is something children find
progressively easier to do the older they get.
d) The teacher and the class draw up a set of class 1 2 3 4 A B C
rules together.
Rather than the teacher dictating classroom

rules, involving children is not only (in the
children’s eyes) a different ‘take’ on handling
discipline and control, but if managed
sensitively, so that the rules that everyone draws
up are fair for all, the children should become
more self-aware and realise theirs (as well as the
teacher’s!) responsibilities.

e) The students make an alphabetical wall display

for them to pin up words and accompanying 1 2 3 4 A B C
pictures of new words they learn in their
lessons.
This helps younger children understand how to

organise and categorise information. They enjoy
seeing their work displayed in their classroom,
which is motivating.
f) The teacher teaches and tests the students on
some numbers and adjectives in Russian (not the
students’ L1), then gets them to reflect on how 1 2 3 4 A B C
effective their methods for remembering the
words were and why or why not.
Apart from raising awareness about other

languages and how they are similar or different
from their own, the post-lesson discussion can be
a motivating activity in itself as students discuss
and compare the strategies they used to try to
remember unfamiliar words and sounds.
g) The teacher includes an exercise at the bottom
of a worksheet used to practise ‘going to’ which 1 2 3 4 A B C
is aimed at getting students to consider the
English they are going to practise in the
following week.
Here is an example of how learning to learn can

be integrated into the learning of a particular
language structure. As well as talking about
their plans and intentions for their free-time over
the next week, students are asked to consider
what they can do to participate more fully in
learning process outside the classroom.
h) The teacher gets the students to work in pairs to
test each other on new words, expressions or 1 2 3 4 A B C
structures, and encourages them to help each
other with any difficulties or confusions.
Children often enjoy the friendly competitive

spirit engendered by this type of pairwork
activity. Preparing for the test is part of the fun,
as they try to effectively memorise prior to being
tested. They need to actively listen to each
other, and being required to constructively
support each other can help highlight the need
to be tolerant of others and to be more
empathic.
i) The teacher gets the students to make some
speech bubbles to display in the classroom of

useful questions e.g. ‘How do you spell …?’, 1 2 3 4 A B C

‘How do you say … in English?’, ‘What’s another
word for … in English?’
Being actively and fundamentally involved in the

process and the product of language work
means children are more likely to remember the
questions and understand the rationale behind
the activity and the language. With minor
adjustments, this type of activity is suitable for
all ages of Young Learners.
j) The teacher encourages the students to make
educated guesses about the meaning and form 1 2 3 4 A B C
of words, working from affixes and cognates in
their L1.
It is important to get students to make direct and

personal connections with specific parts of the
language they are learning, to be prepared to
make efforts to understand it as it relates to
them. For some students, this type of detective
work is stimulating and engaging, and can also
help them remember and retrieve language at a
later date.
k) The teacher models how to go about a speaking
task, so they know they are expected to say as 1 2 3 4 A B C
much as possible and not be monosyllabic.
It is important that the teacher gives a clear

model, not just of discrete items of language, but
of longer stretches of language, so students can
start to appreciate how the smaller parts fit
together into a more cohesive whole. It is
motivating for them to realise that what the
teacher is suggesting is in principle also within
their grasp.
l) The teacher gets the students to work through
an end of unit evaluation sheet for them to think 1 2 3 4 A B C
about what they can do / found easy / difficult /
enjoyed / did not like and why.
This type of task helps learners become more

self-aware. Initially, younger children are prone
to say they like (or dislike) everything quite
arbitrarily, but as Pinter points out: ‘If such
reflection is carried out on a systematic basis,
the children will get used to having to think for
themselves and the teacher will gain insights
into their motives and developing opinions.’
(Pinter 2006: 105) Indeed, in Portuguese
primary and middle schools, children are trained

to self-assess by giving themselves a mark from 1

– 5 prior to receiving the final teacher’s mark.
m) The teacher gives a post mock exam tutorial
sheet to individual students with feedback on 1 2 3 4 A B C
their performance in each part and paper of the
exam. The students have to demonstrate
understanding of the teacher’s comments, by
referring to their own performance and progress
in class, homework and exam practice work.
Children generally respond very well to this type

of individual attention, and it is important in
terms of providing encouragement and praise
where relevant, as well as them gaining an
understanding of how their moods or attitudes
can positively or negatively impact on
performance. The fact that the students are not
simply listening or reading the teacher’s
feedback, but are actively involved means they
are encouraged and expected to talk about
themselves – not always an easy thing to do.
Return to text

Appendix 9
Task 16: Evaluating Published Tests
Cambridge Young Learners Cambridge Key English Test

Flyers Test (KET) for Schools
Age the test 7 - 12 12 - 14

is suitable
for:
Number of 3 3
papers:
Length of  Reading & Writing:  Reading & Writing:

each paper: 40mins 1.10mins
 Listening: 25mins  Listening: 30mins
 Speaking: 3 – 5mins  Speaking: 8 – 10mins
Results and  No pass or fail mark  Statement of results

certification:  All candidates who issued to all candidates:
complete test receive a graphical display of
certificate candidate’s performance
 Tests are high facility in each paper. Pass =
tests: most candidates do minimum of 70/100.
very well. Certificates  Pass with Distinction = B1
show achievement in certificate
form of ‘shields’: possible  Pass with Merit or Pass =
maximum of 5 for each A2 certificate
exam  Under 70/100 = A2
certificate
Differences  Topics include areas of  Topic areas virtually

in topic relevance to the ages of identical to KET
areas candidates e.g. animals,
tested: toys, colours, school
Reading and 1. Matching words to 1. Matching sentences to

Writing: definitions; copying words notices; gist
format, 2. 7 sentences about a 2. 3 option multiple choice 5
focus and picture to decide if they sentences to complete

task types: are true or false read and identify

3. Choose 5 correct vocabulary
responses to complete a 3. a) 3 option multiple
dialogue choice verbal exchange
4. Read and complete a text patterns
with given words. 3. b) 5 matching items in
Knowledge of vocabulary continuous dialogue,
and grammar, ability to selecting from 8
predict part of speech functional exponents.
required, and use of logic. Reading and identifying
5. Text: story with picture appropriate response.
and sentences to 4. Right / wrong / does not
complete missing say
information from the OR 3 option multiple
story, using 1 – 4 words. choice adapted
Need to complete newspaper/magazine
sentences with correct articles. Reading for
information and detailed understanding
grammatically correct, and main ideas
knowledge of words in the 5. Multiple choice cloze
text. Ability to predict encyclopaedia entry/
and extract correct newspaper and magazine
information. article 8 x 3 option
6. 10 multiple choice with 3 multiple choice reading
options to complete gaps and identifying
in a text. Same as KET ex appropriate structural
5. word at grammatical level
7. Open Cloze task with 5 6. Word completion 5
gaps to complete a text dictionary definitions to
(page from diary, letter identify and spell reading
etc.). and identifying
appropriate lexical item,
spelling.
7. Open Cloze. Short letter
/email to write. 10 spaces
to fill, correct spelling.
Reading and identifying
appropriate word, focus
on structure and/or lexis.
8. Information transfer. 2
short tests (email, adverts
etc.) to prompt text (form,
note etc.) spaces to fill
with 1+ words / numbers
reading and writing words
/ numbers, focus on
content and accuracy.
9. Guided writing short note,
email, postcard 25-35

words, 3 messages to
communicate.
Listening: 1. Draw lines to match 1. 5 x 3 option multiple

format, names to people in a choice Neutral / informal
focus and picture. dialogues. Identify key
task types: 2. Complete 5 gaps in a form info (times, process, days
/ page: of week, numbers etc.)
spelling/names/other 2. 5 x matching. Longer
information. informal dialogue, identify
3. Match picture to key info.
word/name and write 3. 3 option multiple choice.
letter in a box. Listen for Longer informal / neutral
key word / names / dialogue x 3 option
detailed information. multiple choice items,
4. 5 x 3 option multiple identify key information.
choice pictures and 4. Gap-fill. Longer / neutral
dialogues. Listen for dialogue, gaps to fill with
specific information. 1+ words / numbers.
5. Colour / draw / write on a Listening and writing
black and white picture. down information as
Listen for specific dictated on recording.
information: words / 5. Gap-fill. Longer / neutral
colours. dialogue, gaps to fill with
1+ words / numbers.
Listening and writing
down information as
dictated on recording.
Speaking: 1 candidate, 1 2 candidates, 1 interlocutor, 1

format, assessor/examiner assessor
focus and
task types: 1. Responding to examiner’s 1. Greetings and
statements saying what is introduction; giving
different between two information on place of
pictures. origin, studies What /
2. Information gap activity Who / Why etc.; giving
between candidate and other general information
examiner: responding to about self: What / How
questions with short often / Where etc.;
answers; forming extended response. Tell
questions to elicit me about. 2 candidates,
information. one at a time 5-6mins bio
3. Continue telling a story data type questions
based on a series of 2. Collaboration between
pictures. both candidates using

4. Open-ended questions prompt material. 3-4mins

about the candidate and need to be able to
his/her family / friends / interpret written
school / home / interests. information in order to
answer questions
appropriately.
How aspects of each test may positively or negatively impact on the following:
Performance
KET for Schools papers are longer (for example 1 hour 10 mins as opposed to 40 mins
in the Reading and Writing Papers), therefore requiring more sustained concentration
and more developed sense of time management than Flyers. There is a greater
emphasis on production of language, rather than understanding of structures and
vocabulary, and tasks are more cognitively challenging. For example, Part 8
Information transfer, where candidates need to read and understand two short tests
(email, adverts etc.) in order to complete a form, note or similar in an appropriate way
with the correct missing information, and Part 9 which requires candidates to respond
appropriately to an email or similar from a friend. Writing as a productive skill in Flyers
is minimal, and is limited to words or very short parts of sentences. The Part 3 of KET
for Schools is more challenging with more input and more inference required and
understanding of specific reference words, such as pronouns and determiners. Flyers
tests contain more predominantly visual rather than verbal prompts, making greater
use of coloured images. This makes listening tasks easier to understand as there is
less chance of candidates being overwhelmed by so many heard and written words. In
the KET for Schools Reading and Writing and Listening Papers, candidates need to
transfer their answers from the question papers to answer sheets, so issues of time
management and logical organisation can occur here too. Both exams include
examples of questions in each part in the Listening and Reading and Writing Papers, so
candidates have a clear idea of what is required of them in terms of task completion.
The types of tasks included in the Flyers test are appropriate for children up to age 12,
and reflect the type of things they may typically do during their lessons.
Course planning
Whereas the types of tasks in the Flyers test are quite straightforward, some of the
tasks in the KET for Schools test are more cognitively challenging and not necessarily
typical of those carried out in normal lesson time, so the Young Learner teacher needs
to ensure children are adequately prepared, not just in terms of language knowledge,
but also in terms of task familiarity and strategies for completing tasks. Children at all
ages will need specific and consistent practice with managing the Speaking Paper, and
be given time for practice under exam conditions, since they are often unused to
speaking to an oral examiner, do not initially realise the importance of extended
speaking rather than saying the bare minimum, nor how to sustain an interaction with
another person working from specific verbal and visual prompts.
Backwash and Spin-off

The fact that there is no pass or fail criteria for candidates taking the Flyers test can be
very motivating, and in theory, at least, should remove much of the stress commonly

associated with exams. Receiving the certificate can often be a spur to continued
effort and interest in learning English. Likewise with KET for Schools: although the pass
mark for attaining at least 70/100 is high, especially in comparison to many
mainstream school exam pass marks, the format is very similar to that of PET for
Schools, so this initial main suite exam can be a useful fillip to encouraging continued
learning and success with English. However, the fact that the tasks are demanding and
may be quite different from those included in the children’s mainstream school exams
could be demotivating: it may appear that much class time has to be devoted to
learning specific test strategies which have no surrender value outside their English
classroom. And the fact that the pass mark for KET for Schools is so high may mean
that, unlike Flyers, which is designed for the majority to do well, only a few students in
a class may excel.
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Appendix 10
Generic Template for a Vocabulary Test
Study the words Draw Fold and write Check: yes / no
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Score: …… / 10 My teacher says: ……………………………………
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Appendix 11
Task 21: Adapting Coursebook Materials: Case Study
On the plus side, the class is quite small, the students are more or less of a similar level, and
the fact that their parents or guardians have sent them to have extra English lessons at a
language school means they will be interested and anxious to see progress and presumably
intervene if their child is not participating to an acceptable standard either in classwork or
homework. Having a computer room with internet access and IWB in the classroom offers
opportunities to work away from the book.
Assessment of the activities and exercises from the coursebook with the ‘case study’:
 The presentation of the language via the grammar table (3a) in itself is not stimulating
for them; there are likely to be problems with the students understanding the
vocabulary as well as the formation of comparatives, although the sample sentences
refer back to a previous text on two types of houses. The rule exercise is a useful
written record for later on for revision purposes, but is quite wordy.
 The controlled practice exercise (3b) is useful, but rather dry and the only connection
between the sentences is through the use of comparative adjectives.
 The pictures of the furniture (4a) are clear with useful opportunity to practise
pronunciation of these words, but there needs to be a bridge between comparative
adjectives to this vocabulary topic.
 The table completion exercise (4b) is useful reinforcement of the vocabulary, and it is
good that students have a chance to use any prior knowledge they may have of house
furniture, and (4c) offers a chance for personalisation. However, it is likely that students
will use one-word answers, rather than describe their bedroom in meaningful
sentences.
 There is a useful pre-listening task (5a). They may not have heard of all of the famous
people, so the teacher would need to offer a brief explanation.
 The while-listening task is manageable, as is the second listening task (5b).
 The pair speaking activity (5c) has potential, but again, there might be the danger of the
students simply pointing to their favourite house and using one word answers.
 The pronunciation activity (6) is useful and well designed, but seems to come on a little
late in the lesson.
 The final speaking activity (7) is a useful way of bringing together the work done earlier
on adjectives and comparing places. However, there is no reason for the speaking task,
nor any idea as to who would listen.
Some suggestions for adaptations for materials and activities for a ninety-minute lesson
(numbers in red indicate estimated timing of each activity):
 Put the photos of the traditional house and modern flat on the IWB with the words ‘the
traditional house’, ‘the flat’, ‘life in the city’, ‘life in the country’, ‘strong’, ‘pretty’ and
‘comfortable’ and see if the students can compare the two types of houses, writing their
ideas in pairs. In this way, the teacher can diagnostically test the students and see what
they may have remembered from work done on a previous occasion in their
mainstream school. It also involves them more in the grammar work. Tell them they
will return to these sentences later. 5 mins
 Display images of the words that they are not familiar with e.g. ‘sunny’, ‘far’ and clarify
meaning. 2 mins

 On the board show two columns labelled ‘Adjective’ and ‘Comparative’. Put up word
cards of all the ordinary adjectives, hand out word cards of all the comparative
adjectives to all the students, and get them to stick them up on the board in the correct
place. 3 mins
 Ask them to work in pairs and point out the differences between the words in the
‘Adjective’ column and the ‘Comparative’ column, and say why. 2 mins
 Get ideas from the students and check they all understand, using check questions rather
than explanation. 3 mins
 Get students to refer back to their original three sentences about the two types of
housing and compare to the sentences in the grammar table on page 70 of their
coursebooks, and correct any mistakes as necessary. 3 mins
 Get students to read the grammar rules and circle the correct answer in each case. 2
mins
 Tell students to close their books, then remove the comparative word cards from the
board and get students to take it in turns to come up to the board and write in the
correct word for each ordinary adjective, allowing for peer correction as necessary. 3
mins
 Focus on the pronunciation exercises (6). 10 mins
 With their books closed, display images of some of the possibly unfamiliar vocabulary
(e.g. ‘tortoise’, ‘dolphin’) and clarify meaning. 1 min
 Write up the first sentences of 3b and get students to complete it and justify with the
correct form rule they studied earlier. Drill the sentence, modelling the use of the
schwa naturally. 2 mins
 Get students to work through the rest of the exercise, referring to the rules in the
grammar table. 3 mins
 Students compare their answers in pairs and justify their choice, and also rehearse the
pronunciation of the sentences together. 3 mins
 Monitor and then go through the answers open-class. 2 mins
 Refer back to the images of the traditional house and the modern flat, and elicit ‘chair’,
‘cooker’ and ‘light’. 1 min
 Show two images of each and elicit the differences between them e.g. ‘this chair is
more comfortable than that chair’, ‘this cooker is more modern than that cooker’ and
‘this light is brighter than that light’. 2 mins
 Get students to match the furniture words to the picture in 4a, check with the CD and
repeat pronunciation. 2 mins
 Get students to test each other in pairs, with A asking questions e.g. ‘What’s H?’ and B
(who has covered the words at the top of the exercise) responding e.g. ‘It’s a cupboard’.
2 mins
 In pairs, get students to complete the table, using elementary dictionaries or a web
dictionary to check spelling as necessary. 3 mins
 Tell students you are going to describe your bedroom, and they need to listen for the
number of things you mention and what they are. 3 mins
 When they have listened and you have clarified the objects mentioned, ask them what
other information you included in the description (where things are, what it looks like,
the colour etc.). Write these topic headings on the board. 2 mins
 Elicit the language you used e.g. ‘I’ve got …’, ‘It’s got …’, ‘There’s a ...’, ‘It’s next to …’, ‘I
(really) like …’. Write this on the board. 2 mins
 Tell students to think for two minutes about their bedroom: what furniture and objects
they have got, and extra information using the topic headings and the useful language
to help them describe their room. They can ask you for help if necessary. 3 mins

 Tell students to take it in turns to describe their bedroom to their partner who needs to
listen and see what is similar to and what is different from their bedroom. 5 mins
 Allow time for feedback of similarities and differences, as well as examples of good
language / strategies and suggestions for improvement. 5 mins
 Get students to swap partners and redo the activity, trying to improve on their previous
performance. 5 mins
 Provide concluding feedback, then get students to work in small groups to say what
they talked about in the lesson, and to come up with some ‘can-do’ statements. 4 mins
 Elicit these to the board and add them to their portfolio with an evaluative comment of
either ‘I tried hard and I did my best’, ‘I could do better’ or ‘I need some more practice’.
4 mins
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© International House London and the British Council

Focus on the Young Learner

By the end of this input you will be:

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2 Child Development and Language Learning Theories

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1.1 Defining the Term ‘Young Learner’

1.2 Differences between Adult Learners and Young Learners

Task 1: Differences between Adult and Young Learners (about 20 minutes)

Now compare your ideas to the overview below.

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Adults Young Learners

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Implications of These Differences for the Young Learner Teacher

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Capacity to concentrate; tendency to get bored

For an introduction to dealing with learning difficulties in classes, see

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1.3 Characteristics of Different Groups of Young Learners

 The expectations of the teacher regarding children’s behaviour, interests, levels of

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Task 2: Characteristics of Different Groups of Young Learners (about 30

 What learners of each age group need and like.

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2 Child Development and Language Learning Theories

2.1 How Children Learn

Task 3: Child Development and Language Learning Theories (about 20

In order to become an increasingly principled Young Learner teacher, it is important to have

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Pinter (2006) summarises Piaget’s stages thus:

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Concrete Operational Stage

Formal Operational Stage

Cameron (2001) explains this Piagetian viewpoint as follows:

A child’s thinking develops as a gradual growth of knowledge and intellectual

Cameron L. Teaching Languages to Young Learners CUP 2001

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This systematic type of support is often referred to as ‘scaffolding’, a term introduced in

 Demonstrating an idealised version of the task (where and when appropriate)

The Somatic Layer (ages 0 – 3/4)

The Mythic Layer (ages 4/5 to 9/10)

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The Romantic Layer (ages 8/9 to 14/15)

The Philosophic Layer (ages 14/15 to 19/20 years)

2.2 First Language Acquisition Theories

For Young Learner teachers, it is particularly useful to have an understanding of how

Yule defines acquisition as:

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…the gradual development of ability in a language by using it naturally in

And learning as:

…a more conscious process of accumulating knowledge of the features, such as

Yule G. The Study of Language: an Introduction CUP 1985

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Marcus: (on a train, approaching London) Are we there yet?

Experimenter: Look at this. It’s an animal.

(Aitchison 1992: 94)

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2.3 Second Language Learning Theories

Second Language Acquisition (commonly abbreviated to SLA) is a relatively new field of

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