This book focuses on the importance of student/teacher communication in a second language classroom. The chapter that will be most useful to my research discusses how a teacher’s beliefs or vision of how a foreign language should be taught affects the methodology and forms of communication he or she uses within the classroom. This idea is for the teacher to make his or her instuctional goals clear to the students so that both the teacher and the students can work towards a common goal. The way in which a teacher communicates with the students may also have an effect on the students’ participation in the class as well as influence how well these students can communicate back to the teacher and among their peers in a classroom situation.

This paper describes two different strategies that can be used in a foreign language classroom to help improve student attitudes and motivation. These strategies focus on Total Physical Response (TPR) and cooperative learning as ways to get students more involved in class and create enthusiasm for learning a foreign language. TPR involves using actions and body language to enhance vocabulary learning, and cooperative learning gives students the opportunity to use the language with their peers as a means of practice and problem solving. It also focuses on the importance of placing the language into a meaningful context so that students can relate the language to real-life situations.

This paper discusses the decline in motivation which occurs when the study of grammar is introduced into beginning level Spanish classrooms. The focus of this study is to create methods which use communication skills as a means to improve student motivation for learning a foreign language. This article suggests that one of the main reasons for acquiring a second language is to gain the ability to comprehend and communicate in another language. This method includes practicing communication in practical, real-life contexts. The argument is that curriculum needs to correctly integrate listening, speaking, and grammar activites to enhance communication skills. The classroom activites should include using the language in meaningful contexts for the students and emphasize lessons that are more student-centered instead of always having the teacher as the producer of information and ideas. Also, more emphasis should be placed on cooperative learning as an attempt to motivate students to learn.

 

This book focuses on using comprehension skills as a basis for acquiring fluency in a second language. The basic principle of this theory is the assumption that learning grammatical rules can be deceiving and only results in complications and confusion because there always seems to be an exception to every rule. This theory also states that grammar rules and concepts can be easily figured out if the language can be understood. In addition, the theory does not use the acquisition of speaking skills as the most important aspect of learning the language. The belief is that conversation is a natural result of comprehension. Once the language is understood, there will be a desire for students to express themselves verbally in the language. Therefore, although speaking is not the main focus, it is greatly encouraged.