Teaching Philosophy
I'm fascinated with why and how people learn languages, especially American Sign Language (ASL) as a second language. It is inspiring when students' knowledge related to ASL and Deaf culture can expand dramatically in a short time. I strongly believe that a positive learning environment will enhance a learning experience for all. My goal is to ensure students will appreciate ASL and Deaf culture and understand there is a strong relationship between ASL and Deaf culture.
Two words will summarize my teaching philosophy: "It depends." Any good teacher will tell you it depends on students' motivation for learning ASL, their ASL level, and their learning styles. It is not possible to apply one teaching method or approach to all learners. I believe in being flexible and adapt to learners' needs and interests. My methods and approaches will be dynamic depending on the goal of each activity.
Basically I support the concept in student centered learning. I believe that learning languages needs to be an active learning experience, which can be adapted to needs and learning styles. It is crucial that students have some control of the learning experience, and at the same time encourage creativity and give a sense of accomplishment.
I believe that three approaches will assist with learning ASL successfully and they could be under the umbrella of student centered learning. They are: Interactive Learning, Cooperative Learning and Total Physical Response.
The Interactive Learning approach will help students acquire language. Classroom activities will provide a foundation. To apply these concepts, interacting with Deaf people in the Deaf community provide the opportunity for students to have an "authentic language input in real-world contexts" (Brown, 2007, p. 54). Having conversations with fluent ASL users will create spontaneous actual and meaningful conversations in target language. Krashen's hypothesis encourages learning one level above their ability level and conversing with native users will achieve that goal.
In Cooperative Learning, group activities are strongly emphasized. Teachers can give structured social activities for students and within each group students will have varying strengths and can be complementary, so working together as a group benefits all. This will create a comfortable and a non-competitive environment. Learning will depend on information exchange between learners.
Total Physical Response is a method that is ideal for beginners learning ASL, as it helps them retain information on what they've just learned according to Trace theory. As an example of one activity involving commands, the teacher can encourage students to touch things and actually do the commands.
My teaching philosophy may not remain the same as mentioned above as they may change with new research findings related to effective teaching practices in the ASL classroom. I hope to do actual research myself and integrate that new information in my ASL classes. My ultimate goal is to inspire students to learn ASL and Deaf culture.
Brown, Douglas H. 2007. Teaching by Principles. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall/Regents.
Richards, J and T. Rodgers. 2001. Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Two words will summarize my teaching philosophy: "It depends." Any good teacher will tell you it depends on students' motivation for learning ASL, their ASL level, and their learning styles. It is not possible to apply one teaching method or approach to all learners. I believe in being flexible and adapt to learners' needs and interests. My methods and approaches will be dynamic depending on the goal of each activity.
Basically I support the concept in student centered learning. I believe that learning languages needs to be an active learning experience, which can be adapted to needs and learning styles. It is crucial that students have some control of the learning experience, and at the same time encourage creativity and give a sense of accomplishment.
I believe that three approaches will assist with learning ASL successfully and they could be under the umbrella of student centered learning. They are: Interactive Learning, Cooperative Learning and Total Physical Response.
The Interactive Learning approach will help students acquire language. Classroom activities will provide a foundation. To apply these concepts, interacting with Deaf people in the Deaf community provide the opportunity for students to have an "authentic language input in real-world contexts" (Brown, 2007, p. 54). Having conversations with fluent ASL users will create spontaneous actual and meaningful conversations in target language. Krashen's hypothesis encourages learning one level above their ability level and conversing with native users will achieve that goal.
In Cooperative Learning, group activities are strongly emphasized. Teachers can give structured social activities for students and within each group students will have varying strengths and can be complementary, so working together as a group benefits all. This will create a comfortable and a non-competitive environment. Learning will depend on information exchange between learners.
Total Physical Response is a method that is ideal for beginners learning ASL, as it helps them retain information on what they've just learned according to Trace theory. As an example of one activity involving commands, the teacher can encourage students to touch things and actually do the commands.
My teaching philosophy may not remain the same as mentioned above as they may change with new research findings related to effective teaching practices in the ASL classroom. I hope to do actual research myself and integrate that new information in my ASL classes. My ultimate goal is to inspire students to learn ASL and Deaf culture.
Brown, Douglas H. 2007. Teaching by Principles. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall/Regents.
Richards, J and T. Rodgers. 2001. Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.