When I hear the question “is
homework appropriate for a foreign language class,” the first response that pops
into my mind is yes. With that being said however, I think it’s very important
that teachers use their best judgment to create meaningful, worthwhile
assignments for their students. In my opinion, homework on a particular lesson
should be given after the lesson is
taught in class, not before. I think the lesson should be introduced, taught,
and explained in class because that is where the students will get their basic
understanding of the concepts. That is also where the students can ask any
questions they might have while learning the new material. After that, I think the
students should go home and use their homework to practice what they learned in class that day. The only time that I
think it is acceptable for teachers to assign homework for a lesson that has
not yet been covered in class is when that assignment is simply to read over
that next lesson and become familiar with the ideas. I had many classes in high
school where this idea was reversed: the students would go home, read a chapter
of the book (covering brand new topics), do the accompanying homework
assignments, and come to class the next day with questions. I’ve never liked
that method because it seems to me like the students are teaching themselves! Many
of my teachers in high school said that they liked this method of
teaching/assigning homework because it was good for students to “discover
things on their own.” So basically, the students taught themselves the major
concepts, and then the teachers answered their questions the next day in class
(if there were any questions). I don’t agree with this method because I think
teachers are there to teach their students and that is what they should do.
Sure, sometimes it’s good for students to “discover” and “explore” new ideas
and concepts on their own, but not all the time. I also despise the idea of “busy-work” for homework—in other words, work
that is not meant to teach much of anything, but just meant to keep a student
busy (ex. coloring, word searches, etc.).
I was assigned a lot of busy-work throughout high school and all it did
was waste time. I’m not going to learn anything by coloring a picture of a
burrito, or by searching for the words “pedir” and “jugar” in a word search.
Homework should not be assigned just to take up your students’ time—they have
better things to do. Students should be taught new ideas and concepts in class
by the teacher, and homework should be used to practice those ideas that are important for the students’ success
in the class.
As for the video, I
thought it was fun to watch and I would probably show it to my students. I know
that the study habits mentioned in the video do not work for everyone (for
example, I cannot listen to music, chew gum, or snack on anything while I’m
trying to study), but I think this video is just meant to help people feel a
little better about their homework load. If you try the methods suggested here
and they do not work for you, you do not have to use them. If you try the
methods suggested here and they do
work for you, than you’ve found yourself new study habits and that’s great.
I liked what you said about "meaningful and worthwhile assignments". I completely agree. From my past experiences, I have had many teachers who fill time with coloring pages or extra worksheets that they have lying around. As a student I always knew they were trying to fill time or create an assignment when they did not have one planned. This never motivated and students today will certainly understand this trick as well as we did when we were all in middle or high school. Busy work will only become boring and completely counteract any efforts made to interest students in a foreign langauge. Repetition is great for beginners, but at some point in the language aquisition process the step has to be made to higher order thinking. The same worksheets, etc should not be completed in a first year course and a third year course. The challange needs to change with ability.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the video did give some helpful studying suggestions. I thought it was funny that if you actually did do all of those suggestions you would probably never leave time to actually get something done! My perspective is that students should study how they feel the most comfortable and are free of distractions. Once you find a way to work, you should stick with it! Everyone is different when it comes to getting things done.
ReplyDeleteI think you bring up an important point because students teaching themselves, and then bringing questions to class may have unintended negative consequences. One problem I have already noticed in my class is that students feel hesitant to ask questions in class. They will ask me privately or through email, but they cannot bring themselves to speak in class, in a new language. When students learn on their own, they risk misunderstanding or missing entirely some important concepts. When encouraged to ask questions in class, some students simply will not, and this can be very detrimental.
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