25.Review of Websites-6

 Q.Attempt a review of websites or online journal sites and identify at least five popular strategies that are used for teaching English in Asian countries. 

Introduction 

The importance of the English language in the contemporary world is fundamental in all spheres of life. Over the past few decades, the number of people who have a functional command over the language of English around the world is rising above the par. The global language of English is very much important to survive and to keep healthy relations across the world. Even in the Asian countries, the language of English has gained much popularity and has secured a safe place in the national language list used in the countries. The Asian countries give utmost importance to English education nowadays. They employ multiple strategies to teach English to the growing generations of the times. In this review, my topic of discussion includes the identification of five popular strategies that are used for teaching English in Asian countries. 

Language Immersion 

The Language Immersion method is a modern method used in the teaching-learning process which requires the usage of the target language in all aspects of the class. Just like how a child is taught to swim by entering into the water, the students are expected to learn a language by getting full exposure to the language. This means that the students in the Asian countries are taught English by exposing them into a language-rich environment. 

Language Immersion method can be considered as one of the most natural teaching method of English where students can train their skills and capabilities of their own through proper understanding of the target language. The language immersion method is featured by its incidental learning. In addition to all the demonstrations and textbook learning, here the learner spontaneously and naturally learns concepts and usages in its due course without any pressure. This kind of unrehearsed learning by the learner themselves help in better retention of the things they learn. It more or less leans to the side of acquirement of learning instead of learning a new language. Flexible cognition and transferrable learning skills are other features of the language immersion method. For an effective actualisation of this method, flexible and skilled teachers who can easily navigate the learning environment of the students are needed. 

Critical Thinking 

One of the most popular strategies adopted in Asian countries for teaching English language is the promotion of critical thinking. For any individuals, critical thinking enhances their knowledge and thereby contributes to their understanding abilities. In the context of English learning, the students are encouraged to do critical thinking and to formulate as much as doubts and questions as possible and the clearance of these questions will result in thorough learning. In this method, questions play a major role. The input of these referential questions will enhance the higher order capability of the students and thereby providing better understanding. The child input is also higher, thus making them an active learner. Language is taught through this method by providing questions which the students are expected to answer critically after thinking. The expression of each student to one single question will vary according to their communicative competency. Repeating this process will be beneficial to the students to develop their critical thinking along with language proficiency. 

Guided  Individual  Learning 

Every student is not alike when it is concerned with the process of learning. Therefore it is not possible to say that classroom teaching will benefit everyone equally for language acquisition. This conclusion made by experts suggested many ways to provide equal opportunities for all kinds of students in the Asian countries to acquire to English language proficiency. For that, they identified the importance of language learning outside the classroom at the pace of the students. Thus came in the strategy of implementing Guided Individual Learning Centres  (GIL).  These  Guided  Individual  Learning  Centres     provide opportunities for the students to choose their learning styles and to develop their language at their own pace outside the classrooms. Here, the students will be free from the pressures of the classroom learning, instead will be provided with numerous resources to develop their language proficiency. Experts and trained teachers will assist the students in choosing the most appropriate learning style for them. The learners themselves can test their progress of learning through various evaluation strategies available in these centres. 

Grammar Translation Method 

Grammar Translation method is one of the oldest teaching strategy used in Asian countries to teach English to the students. Grammar translation is a method of learning a foreign language by translating its content into the native language of the learner. As far as skills are concerned, reading and writing skills are more focused than the listening and speaking skills. In the Grammar Translation method, the teacher teaches the grammar and then gives examples to the students. The teachers translate the content and teach it in the mother tongue with little active use of the target language. The students are only focused on the content of the subject matter being discussed and they are not at all exposed to the target language, which adversely affects the ultimate aim of their language learning classes. 

Communicative  Language Teaching

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is an approach that aims to achieve communicative rather than linguistic competence through learner interaction. Born in the 1980s, this strategy to language teaching is based on the philosophy that, in order to learn a language, one must practice using that language to communicate meaning to others. The main purpose of the CLT is to prepare the students to be confident for real-life situations which require their communicative skills. For that, the students will be provided with different contexts where they have to flaunt their communication skills. Thus, in CLT, communication is the end and means of the teaching method. 

Conclusion 

All the five strategies I presented here are some of the most popular ones that are used widely in the Asian countries. There are numerous other strategies used across the nations for effective teaching of English. Many expert studies across the world prove that there will never be a single strategy or approach that can effectively teach a language. The effect of comprehensive strategies in teaching English among the non-native speakers is miraculous. Therefore, an eclectic approach of learning should be promoted for teaching-learning process and especially teaching of English.  

References 

Sonita ,Chea , Sou. Guided Individual Learning Centre: A Non-Classroom Learning Environment. 

Brandon, K. (2004). Best Practice in Guided Individual Learning. North Sydney, AU: NEAS. 

Ishikawa, Sasaki, Yamamoto. Integrating Critical Thinking Skills into the EFL Classroom. 

Devine, T. G. (1962). Critical Thinking in the English Class. Peabody Journal of Education, 39(6), 359-365. 

Kirkpatrick, A. (2009). English as an Asian lingua franca and the multilingual model of ELT. Paper presented at the Hong Kong Association of Applied Linguistics Research Forum, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, December, 1-18.  

-Submitted by,  Ms.Thara. S. Das