Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Personality and Language Learning

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is a widely-used test of "personality." Personality has been identified as a factor for the "good" language learner, language learning in general, as well as "selection" of learning strategies by a learner. After taking the Jung Typology Test (similar to the MBTI), I was not surprised by the outcome, especially having taken other "strengths" tests in the past. My personality is Extrovert, Sensing, Thinking, Judging (ESTJ), in which Extrovert is a high strength (89%) and the remainder are all moderate.

Ehrman's chapter in Lessons form Good Language Learners presents a study that identifies the personality type that is most advantageous for achieving a Level 4 in the FSI categorization (which is quite high proficiency). The results indicate that Introvert, Intuitive, Thinking, Judging (INTJ) was the most conducive to high proficiency achievement in language learning. Additionally, Ehrman points out that Extrovert, and more specifically Extrovert Sensing, is not a feature that is characteristic of high proficiency learners. Additionally, while Thinking is common in these learners, it is its combination with Introversion and Intuition that makes these learners well-equipped for language learning.

Comparing Ehrman's data to my own "personality," I am quite disappointed. I always thought myself to be a decent, if not good, language learner. Though, it would seem according to Ehrman, that I am not equipped for achieving high levels of proficiency (again, I would beg to differ). The one language that I would claim high proficiency (besides my L1), would be my L2, Spanish. However, unlike the participants of Ehrman's study, I started learning my L2 before adulthood. The Critical Period effect may well play a role here, or perhaps I am an exception. I do not think that my outcome on the Jung Typology Tests are wrong, as a matter of fact, I would have expected those results had I known the exact categories beforehand.

Ehrman suggests some ways teachers can encourage (ESTJ learners like myself) to become more introverted and intuitive when it comes to language learning. While I think these may be helpful in some situation, to some learners, all learners learn differently. As evidenced by the strategies we employ, learners vary and it could be harmful to impose different ways of learning or thinking about language if it is not compatible with a student's preferred strategy/style.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Lesson #5

Recently I have been experiencing some frustration with my Yaqui language learning. I do not have many resources nor a native or heritage speaker to practice with. Having limited resources- that is, nothing resembling a textbook or guide for language learners- has left me with an even more limited proficiency level.

However, I have not given up! The website "Vachiam Eecha" (http://hemi.nyu.edu/cuaderno/yoeme/content.html) has been an incredible resource not just for culture, video clips, and history, but it has provided me an opportunity to test my hypotheses about Yaqui. A few pages have the same description/text in Yaqui (or Yoeme) and English and/or Spanish. I decided to take a look at both texts and attempt to find common words and identify them in Yaqui.

Using these texts, I thought I had found the words for "commentary" and a few other phrases, like "welcome." To determine this, I looked a frequent words in the Yaqui text and tried to identify them with frequent words in either the Spanish or English text. Unfortunately, I found out I was wrong in many of my hypotheses. The word "enchim," which I thought was the plural for "commentary," turned out to be the plural for "you."

The link above also has more information on the language basics, like tense markers, subject and object pronouns, and vocabulary lists. I have been studying those lists (including vocabulary for numbers, emotions, question words) but I still lack knowledge of verbs. I do know that Yaqui is a verbal final language, however, it has been difficult to figure out either the meaning of the verb and if it is really the final element of the phrase (that is, it is final in the S-O-V phrase, but what about adverbs, adjectives, etc?). Once I receive my dictionary, my first task is to compile a list of necessary verbs (want, be, have, etc) and attempt to create sentences using the vocabulary I already have and the new verbs.

Lesson #5: Hypotheses Testing: while it is a great way to experiment and explore the language, be sure to have a way to test or check your hypotheses! Otherwise, you just might go around saying something incorrect, impolite, and possibly stigmatizing.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Learning Style

A few posts back I mentioned the importance of knowing your own preferred learning style. I was speaking in generalities, but I now have access to a tool that allows me to pin-point my own major, minor, and negligible learning styles: Reid's Perceptual Learning Style Preference Questionnaire. After completing and scoring the self-guided questionnaire, I found that of the six styles identified by Reid (i.e. visual, auditory, kinesthetic, tactile, group, and individual), I have 3 major learning style preferences: visual, kinesthetic, and individual. The other three are minor learning style preferences and I have no "negligible" style preferences (this means I could probably learn well with any of the styles categorized).

I believe this measurement of my learning style preference is quite accurate. Though, while completing the questionnaire, I debated how accurate it would be since I believe my learning style preferences vary according to the task-at-hand and the learning environment. I prefer to study and do rote tasks on my own (since I feel I perform faster than others) yet I would prefer group work in a classroom that required a lot of role-playing. I think this is where is where the concept of "major" and "minor" learning preferences is really justifiable. My first instinct is to work as an individual unless a situations calls, or is more appropriate, for group work.

Without having put a label on it before, I knew that I had to write down information in order to remember. According to Reid's questionnaire, this is a characteristic of a Visual learner. Interestingly, a Visual learner can often learn alone with just a book, since not much auditory input is required for learning. Taking this into perspective for learning my LCTL, Yaqui, it would seem self-guided learning might be an appropriate venue to put into practice my visual learning style. However, I have found almost the opposite: while I still learn best by writing out information, I feel that auditory input may well aid my acquisition more so than just visual learning. Additionally, through my self-guided study, my kinesthetic learning preference is not being met (particularly without a mentor) since I do not have much, if any at all, opportunity to learn the language through role-playing or group activities as in a classroom. When I have the resources available, I do believe I prefer to learn alone; yet due to the scarcity of Yaqui language resources, a group learning setting could possibly provide more ways to learn the language.

Nel (2008) provides a summary of the research on student learning styles and addresses the issue of whether there is a good language learner style. While no one style has been shown to be more advantageous than another, good language learners are more field-independent. That is, they are able to separate relevant material from its context and break down problems into components (i.e. not looking at the "big picture" but rather the parts/variables that make it up). Moreover, good language learners are capable of adapting their learning styles depending on the learning environment. It would appear that my questionnaire results indicate that I could use a variety of learning styles and therefore may well be a good language learner. I had previously thought that I was a "good" language learner, though this experience with Yaqui has challenged my beliefs. However, I do believe a good language learner may not have any negligible learning style preferences and could therefore adapt to the learning environment by using one of his/her other styles. On the other hand, a good language learner might by able to "build up" a negligible style as well.

As Nel points out, most students, myself included, do not fall into one polar side of learning style dichotomies. Rather, they are on a continuum and often have more than one style (or parts from more than one style). Looking at my own results, I can see that certain characteristics from different learning styles actually make up my own preferred style- and it is highly dependent on the learning context.

Nel also outlines the areas language instructors should consider in order to maximize the success of individual learning styles. Offering different stimuli and making the learning/teaching environment more attuned to different learning styles are two suggestions that I believe are imperative to foster successful learning across individual learning styles. I was once an assistant for a Spanish conversation course for high school students. The instructor of the course noticed that a few students who were quite silent in the classroom had a talent for drawing. She adjusted future group activities to accommodate these students' learning style and found that they were more expressive in oral communication when they had created a storyboard to coincide with their verbal output. As a foreign language instructor, I believe it is essential to play into the various learning styles by varying activities, assessments, and even the environment of learning.

Nonetheless, it would be interesting if a reliable model for learning styles could be developed to determine if a particular style was most conducive to language learning (which may vary from language to language as well).

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Lesson #4

I have really been enjoying reading up on the culture and history of the Yaqui. Unfortunately, this material tends to be in English or Spanish (not that I could even read it in Yaqui anyway). Being of Yaqui background, I am familiar with a few cultural and historical aspects already; the references I have provided are still quite beneficial as some information comes directly from the Yaqui people.

I read about the cultural traditions of the Yaqui and how tied into religion they are -this is due to their history of interaction withe Jesuits in the 1600s. But the Spanish arrived in the mid-1500s, so why the 1600's you ask? As it turns out, the Yaqui were one of the most defensive and resistant to Spanish troops and managed to maintain their way of living for many decades after the Spanish conquest of many other indigenous groups of Central America. Even today, their traditions are a blend of Catholicism and ancient beliefs. For example, the Pascua Yaqui hold their deer dances (ancient ceremony) during the Easter season (Catholicism). During the deer dance, a dancer will where a deer headdress and imitate the deer's movement. This is an important symbol of the Yaqui and to show respect for the ceremony and the people, you are not allowed to record (via video, audio, or sketch) the religious ceremony.

Language-wise, I have brushed up on some greetings (see Lesson Plan) and kinship terms. In Yaqui, men and women have, for the most part, different words for their relatives. For example, I would call my father "Hapchi" and my mother "Ae," while my brother would call our father "Achai" and our mother Ae." So, let me break down my own family for you, using the Yaqui kinship terms.

I live with my Hapchi, Ae, and Saila.

I have my: Mamai Rebecca, Mamai Debra, and Taata Tim (mom's side).
I have my: Samai Jerry (mom's side).

And my Apa Doug (mom's side). My Asu was 1/2 Yaqui and my Hamuli was 100% Yaqui.

I believe the words for cousin follow the say wording as brother and sister- there is also a distinction between older and younger siblings. Additionally, elder men are referred to as "Hapchi" (F) or "Achai" (M) and women in general are called "Maala."

Week 5 Reading Response

Marshall, Chapter 6

The lesson plans provided by Marshall in Chapter 5 are a nice starting-off point for learning a language, especially one that an entire community speaks, and maybe reads and writes. However, what about even less well known (or even less commonly taught languages)? This is where I believe his advice for interaction, techniques, and topics presented in Chapter 6 become quite useful. Since my LCTL, Yaqui, does not have a native-speaker community nearby, nor does the target language community function ONLY in Yaqui (as mentioned before, it is a trilingual group in the US and at the very least, bilingual in Mexico), Marshall's suggestions on varying lessons (to keep up my own interest, if nothing else) and the topics to learn (which are categorized and provide a great overview of useful aspects to any language) provide a basis from which to structure and organize my language learning endeavor.

Going sequentially, Marshall presents ideas for increasing interaction opportunities. While I do not feel this does not apply to my own situation, at least at this stage in my learning, I think Marshall proposes realistic opportunities to practice the language in question. I did not notice this word in Marshall's chapter, but what I believe it comes down to is MOTIVATION. That is, if you are motivated to learn the language, you will make opportunities to use it. No matter the situation, employed or stay-at-home spouse, a motivated learner will incorporate language learning into their daily routine, chores, job, errands, down-time, etc.

As for techniques for activities, I found Marshall's suggestions to be very reminiscent of Total Physical Response (TPR). For example, there are multiple suggestions regarding realia, drawing, visual aids, and role-playing. My experience with TPR has been primarily with children; however, I think immersing yourself in a language requires you, no matter your age, to use all the senses to interact with and learn the language. A skill Marshall mentions is Mnemonic devices; this is something I like to use when I teach Spanish and it always comes as a total revelation to students (Oh! you mean I use that weird subjunctive conjugation when it is for Wishes, Emotions, Impersonal Expressions, Recommendations, Doubt, Ojala = WEIRDO). Other skills listed include using gestures, asking for repetitions or slower speech, paraphrasing, using what you know but being attentive as to what native speakers do and say (and how they say it). Thinking about the good language learner, I think these are skills that one would possess or try to pick up on.

Finally, Marshall's topics for lesson plans are varied, including topics for beginning to advanced learners. The ones I felt most related to my study include: informal socializing, interactions with "family," greeting/departing, personal information, questions/requests, polite phrases, +/- statements, action words, kinship terms, time expressions, descriptors, non-verbal cues, taboos, and pronunciation (personal interest). I believe most of these topics are at a beginning level and some can even be incorporated into more advanced levels.

I appreciated Marshall's note on practicality- not only for practicality in actually learning the language (i.e. time spent, using L1 versus TL) but for knowing what to expect of yourself in the language learning process. For example, I am constantly reevaluating my goals as I understand more about my own learning process and what I will be able to achieve in a given time frame. I had previous hoped to reach almost intermediate proficiency, though now I believe I will be lucky to achieve mid-novice.

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Lessson Plan

Here is a sample lesson plan for my Yaqui learning, using Marshall (Ch. 5) as a guide. Of course, I am still at a very elementary level and it has been difficult to find resources with phrases already made for me (the morphology/syntax is quite complex and I do not want to learn too many incorrect forms through my "hypothesis testing" of the language).


Task:
Greet locals (i.e. native speakers) as you meet them on the street, in shops, etc.

Dialogue:

Sl: Lios em chama.
S2: Lios em chiokoe.
S1: Empo allea.
S2: Kettu'i.

Practice:
Backwards build-up drill- repeat segments of the phrase, starting from the back to build up the entire phrase.

Substitution- the only other greeting I have found is: Aman ne tevote yevihnewi.

Realism:
Or, Marshall's Wokabaot

Since I do not have a mentor to practice these dialogues with, I will instead enlist the help of my friends (who will not have to memorize the passage, they can carry around a cheat sheet with the phrases). Still, in normal greeting situations, I can use the script above, even with non-Yaqui learners and just explain what I am doing (my excuse: I am a linguist).

Evaluation and More Practice:

Record the Dialogue, Listen, and Self-Evaluate- in the recording leave time after each phrase for repetition. Practice phrases at least 5 times.

Supplemental Activities:

Gesturing while greeting- How do the Yaqui use gestures when greeting? A handshake, a wave, a smile? When and with whom are certain gestures appropriate?
Introductions- Practice introducing myself to others. "My name is..." and "What is your name?"

Cultural Note:
Greetings are nearly always formal in Yaqui, even when greeting close friend. The four-phrase dialogue above is the common way to greet strangers as well as friends.

How to use gestures? (see questions above)

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Cultural Resources

Here are some fun resources for learning about Yaqui culture and history:

http://hemi.nyu.edu/cuaderno/yoeme/content.html In Yaqui, English, or Spanish!


http://www.pascuayaqui-nsn.gov/
Official Site!

http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/TIL_2.html Trilingualism!


http://latinola.com/story.php?story=8208
Newspaper POV from 1890s!


http://www.native-languages.org/yaqui_culture.htm
Everything you need!

Text resources to come soon!
To be included: Deer Songs and Teachings of Don Juan.