Teacher's Voice
  Experiences as an L2 Learner Experiences as an L2 Teacher Experiences Teaching Domestic and Heritage Language Students
 
Students' Voices
  Sara Lindsay Casey Yi-Ting Eric
Instructional Challenges
  Differences in terms of Skills Differences in terms of Attitudes Dealing with Face-saving Issues
Instructional and Management Strategies Use of Student's Non-Verbal Behavior Use of Korean Use of Sarcasm Use of Korean Names Use of Translation Use of HLLs as a Resource for DLLs Language Play Teaching Reading, Speaking and Writing
 
Explorations
  Building Classroom Communities Constructing a Case: Instructional Challenges Seeing Your Students Dealing with Social/Political Issues Dealing with Resistant Students Acknowledging and Building on Students' Strengths Dealing with Error Correction Using Humor/Sarcasm Appropriately Reading Students’ Non-verbal Cues

Explorations - Building Classroom Communities

According to Diana Boxer and Florencia Cortes-Conde (2000) a strong sense of classroom community has important consequences for second language learning. They describe “relational identity” as the bonding between interlocutors that is formed by the group for the group. In other words, the development of “relational identity” within and among groups in language classrooms works to validate learners as legitimate members of a language community, encourages them to become invested in the success of that community, and helps them become active agents in their own and each others language learning successes.

With Others

Listen to So-Eun [Question #14 (Available in full version only.)] describe the interpersonal and instructional practices she uses to create effectual learning communities in her Korean language classrooms.

Now listen to Casey [Question #6 (Available in full version only.)] and Sara [Question #4 (Available in full version only.)], two of So-Eun’s students, as they describe their relationships with their classmates and the sense of community that has emerged in their Korean language classes.

Now complete a wiki entry in which you describe what you see as ways of creating effectual learning communities in your language courses. Provide specific examples based on your experiences as a language teacher.

Now compare your entry to those posted by other teachers using this program. What do you find to be the most striking? How do these practices compare to those described by So-Eun, Casey, and Sara?

On Your Own

Read Diana Boxer and Florencia Cortes-Conde’s 2000 chapter “Identify and Ideology: Culture and Pragmatics in Content-Based ESL” [Hall & Verplaetse - Second and Foreign Language Learning Through Classroom Interaction - (pp. 203-219) Lawrence Erlbaum].

Consider how they define and track the development of “relational identity” in a Content-Based ESL class. What do you find to be most striking about this article?

In your Google Blog, describe what you believe is most critical to building classroom communities in language classrooms.


Select a set of interview questions from the Student Voices Strand and ask your students to write a language learning autobiography.

Have your students post their autobiographies on their own blogs or on an on-line course management system (i.e., ANGEL) so that they can be read by you and other members of the class.

Reference

Boxer, D. & Cortes-Conde, F. (2000) Identify and Ideology: Culture and Pragmatics in Content-Based ESL. In J.K. Hall & L. Verplaetse (eds.) Second and Foreign Language Learning Through Classroom Interaction (pp. 203-219) Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc.


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