TESOL 01: Second Language Acquisition  Assignment.

Name: Sara ( Ha, Hye Jung)

When it comes to the effectiveness of learning the way of the second language acquisition, more and more people have been curious about what is the best way of acquiring the second language which is definitely considered difficult among people who are either poor or good at using the second language. According to the verified learning theories including Innatism, Behaviorism and Interactionism, it is noteworthy  that learning the second language is closely related to these kinds of theories. In this essay, my point of view will be presented with the detailed personal experiences in regards to the success and failure in learning the second language.

To begin with, it is widely believed that one of the most difficult tasks for adult learners is to acquire a new language. Based on my experience, I attended at J-LRO English academy 6 years ago. Then, I was a beginner since I had a difficulty in communicating with people living in English-speaking countries. What is worse,	I was in my late thirties back then so it was too late to learn the second language. Anyway, let me describe my learning surroundings. Unlike national schools, I had a chance to learn 4 sections in English which consist of listening, reading, writing and speaking. For me, it was absolutely different from what I was taught at school. To illustrate, when I was a high school student, I just learned reading and a wide range of grammars and vocabularies aside from having an opportunity of writing English assignments and participating in speaking English, which allowed me to be a passive learner, thereby making me feel stuffy. Conversely, studying English in J-LRO private institute left deep impression on me, for I met different English teachers according to each class divided into four classes. As an example, in my speaking class,  I was forced to show my presentation skill in front of many classmates and my English teacher. During the class, I got cold feet while giving them my perspectives because I had never been exposed to such a situation in school. Even though I suffered from presenting English tasks a great deal in public, owing to these efforts, I was no longer afraid of talking to foreigners. As a consequence, it makes me realized that the behaviourist approach is highly conducive to learning the second language now that learning is strengthened through repetition and practice.

Furthermore, creating learning environment is somewhat vital for adult students. In other words, the more an adult learner interacts with learning environment, the better she or he is confident. Let me take an example. I have been to America in order to study English. At that time, there was a big difference between staying in Korea and staying in the United States. One of the clear differences in my class was that I was permitted to interact with a number of students who were very good at speaking English. Thus, my friends and I naturally got along with together in and out of classes. Compared with the class in J-LRO, I got to know the difference. That is to say, If I were in J-LRO, I would not know about the power of interaction. Despite of the fact that I was allowed to speak English in public and watch numerous  English videos and CDs in J-LRO, it was almost impossible for me to spontaneously  experience live situations , sharing our opinions together. For instance, I was motivated entirely by facing challenge of speaking English on the spot. When asking an English teacher about different culture in America after experiencing many things in a class, I was surely able to figure out the meaning of a fact. Consequently, this stems from the view of interactionists that a learner must interact with the environment so as to completely learn and  be able to use a language.

In addition, it is said that a teacher has played a crucial role in improving adult participants' ability of learning the second language. In deed, different teachers have different characteristics such as explainer, involver and enabler. In a previous year, it was common for our parents generations and mine to have a teacher who was an explainer in a class because most of teachers in the past offered us theoretical knowledge instead of involving in our life or encouraging us to do something more energetic. therefore, it ended up putting us in a boring mood. On the other hand, it is appear that more and more teachers have become the importance of the role of a guide or a counsellor as a versatile teacher when teaching adult learners during the class. Taking for example, my English teacher, Alice, she knows how to handing many adult students as she knows about the subject matter and methodology, but also has an awareness of how individuals and groups are thinking and feeling within her class. From my point of view, she can be regarded as a true enabler.

To conclude, my view lies in the fact that learning the second language most effectively is mainly depends on how much we understand the linguistic environment based on the theories and what sort of ability a teacher has in order to efficiently tackle adult learners in a class. To succeed in learning the second language, it is seen that each adult learner needs to make an on-going attempt while interacting with other partners and each teacher should develop a real teaching skill to be able to make a student be on the cloud nine with his or her achievement.