FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND FACILITATION
Abstract:
A foreign language teacher, as a permanent professional, requires further improvement of the foreign language skills and competencies, backed by positive psychology. Some students as well as adults learning foreign languages, have to beat communication barriers, what for them becomes incredibly difficult. Foreign language teachers or lecturers, therefore implement facilitation, positive motivation and positive emotions as a challenging tool, that enables, provokes and sets the course with direct teaching activities.
Key words:
foreign language learner, facilitation, positive atmosphere, motivation
Positive psychology and humanistic approach in teaching process are very close to each other because they are aimed at mental processes of a person, their further development together with hidden but also potential abilities, in the case the individual is allowed of spontaneous, authentic and creative responses. So, the potential of each individual is connected with the importance and capability of own growth and actualization, bound with the essence of humanistic psychology and the faith in initial goodness, and that mental and social problems deepen in deviations of natural character (Ručková, 2011) C.R. Rogers proposed a new theory of personality, with "self" concept, emphasizing the unity and uniqueness of each person, further developed into the approach to counselling, known as Client-Centred Counselling and Client-Centred Psychotherapy, as the non-directive and non-manipulative psychotherapy that supports empathy and accepts a client "as he is"(in Atkinson, 2003). Maslow's theory of motivation, together with the hierarchy of needs, places in the top positions: own personal potential utilization, self-fulfilment and self-realization. At present, principles of humanistic psychology and Rogers' client-centred approach are not any more used as a therapeutic procedure, but also are used in the sphere of healthcare, education, personnel management etc. (Maslow, 1970).
The Rogers´ thought, that each individual is a carrier of a huge source of self-understanding, has the ability to change the self-acceptance, thus can be applied in the relationship of a therapist and a client, a parent and a child, teachers and students etc.
Three conditions of appropriate atmosphere are:
- Congruence – (authenticity, spontaneity) Congruent relationship of teachers and students create a basis for positive influence in education.
- Acceptance - (care, respect) Where the teacher positively accepts students in a way who they are, without prejudice or imposing conditions, setting targets, with the acceptance of their real language competences, etc then the acceptance is manifested in the belief that each student can be better, more successful, smarter, through study can acquire new knowledge, strengthen it and get better.
- Empathy - (empathic understanding) If the teacher empathizes, sees and understands the world from the student´s perspective, understands various manifestations of students´ thoughts, then is able to empathize with possible difficulties and overall survival and understand the students´ needs, unblock fear and anxiety and can lead to released and creative forces. The teacher should focus not only on what the student knows, but also what and how the student feels and survives, and through the open discussion shows interest in his needs, views and opinions.
Foreign language teachers should share optimistic perspectives with students (adults included), create positive atmosphere and allow some changes. When a person is accepted and valued in the society or group, then the person tends to have more caring attitude towards himself, as well as to the "duties" bound with works or tasks, in our case during foreign language teaching. Passive language learning is related to the knowledge of language, but for active communication are necessary skills. Acquisition of foreign language competences cannot be only limited by the learning process, but must be understood as a life-long process. It is irrelevant which level of language competence the student reaches, but important is ensuring his further smooth and continuous development of communication skills or possibilities, resembling or imitating real communications and using the foreign language in everyday or working life situations that the learner can encounter, when the foreign language becomes a source for knowledge complementing. Expanding vocabulary must be implemented in real communication. Important is encouraging and leading learners to express themselves and give immediate reactions, further developed in discussions, given arguments based on a topic, but important is to praise and evaluate even a partial success and effort, through the verbal appraisal and criticism expressed and highlighted by informal means such as facial expressions, smile, tone of voice, gestures.
Effective communication is essential in our daily lives but the ability of effective communication means: be able to learn, listen, write, understand, speak and also give presentation in a foreign language. Eligibility of active listening: listening to each other, giving signals on participation, showing the interest, expressing emotions.
How to bring to active communication in a foreign language? Is the facilitative approach really helpful?
A teacher with the specific type of approach can become a facilitator (facilitare from original Latin word, with meanings of lightness, agility, smoothness, willingness, friendliness, kindness, affection, friendliness), in English means accompanying, making things easier.
Psychological dictionary defines facilitator as a leader or teacher who retreats from its dominant position, promotes interaction in a group, develops moral teachings, takes the role of a moderator in the group with belief that active learning is more effective (Hartl, Hartlová, 2004).
Vašutová J. (2002) states that the role of facilitator is associated with learning support, with the key factor - a specific teacher-students relationship, often expressed in the ability and willingness of informal communication, in created friendly atmosphere suitable for mutual openness and ability to open up and communicate.
The role of a teacher – facilitator is connected with adequate evaluation of students needs and abilities, followed by adequate methods and techniques determination to ensure the continuous improvement in learning basics and essential skills, engagement of students allowed to interconnect across disciplines.
Learning is an open lifelong process, so patience, used effort and seeking the adequate steps towards effective communication can enrich both- teachers and students.
Contribution of facilitator in the foreign language acquisition is mainly aimed at the change of relationship between teachers and learners - from asymmetric to symmetric model where those who are learning are more and more drawn into the process and active participation in teaching. The teacher in this case is not the only and absolutely dominant one, passes significant changes, the teacher is the supporter, creator of positive atmosphere, so the student feels well and feels confidence to the teacher, confidence to the group and to himself with a very clear intention: I want to learn. The atmosphere with enhanced mutual interaction and acceptance supports communication of weaker individuals, so the teacher has the possibility to modify the objectives and democratically respects the requirements of students, but it does not mean that he resigns the management process.
The teacher supports and respects the values of self-knowledge, self-esteem, self-image, but further promotes peer reviewing, choosing topics closer to the student etc. Essential is that the teacher rejects memorization but leads to various forms of acquisition and subsequent presentation of knowledge, thereby enhance intrinsic motivation to learn through the open atmosphere in the group, the need for feedback, discussion, exchange of opinion, giving arguments through supportive and effective methods of expressing own opinions, approaches and attitudes in a foreign language.
Conclusion
Humanistic approach is anchored in trust in the strengths and abilities of a student, the student's acceptance as a personality, emphasizing the need for own activities, self-education, self-esteem, self-regulation and self-realization of students and teacher facilitator. All these attributes are necessary for development of foreign language competences. Creative, positive, triggering atmosphere breaks barriers, the teacher-facilitator accompanies, supports and encourages students, participates in the responsibility for the learning process and what is important leads students to continuous and partial acquisition of foreign language knowledge and skills, that are only able to be achieved through systematic internally motivated process and self-discipline. The centre is the one who is learning - a student.
References:
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Contact
PaedDr. Ľubica Varečková
University of Ss Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Slovakia
Institute of Physiotherapy, Balneology and Therapeutic Rehabilitation
email: [email protected]
