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Arguments on why our way of teaching languages is or is not the right way.

You would think that over the years, our school and college systems would have changed a lot, but I beg the difference. Over the last 400 years or so, our way of teaching hasn’t changed much at all in my opinion.

According to Alex Rawlings, an undergraduate at Oxford with more than 11 different languages under his belt, is convinced that inspiring students to learn more about a certain language is important.

Pupils show greater motivation, are better behaved and are more likely to be independent and strategic thinkers when teachers are not obsessed by grades, a study by the Institute of Education found, which I find some teachers focus too much on.

Although a thing that has improved is the general language pedagogy where task-based approaches task-based approaches are widespread in British schools, emphasising communication and the practical uses of language. Unlike our previous way of repetitive grammar-translation methods.

Though this doesn’t account for many schools at all. Where in my experience in The Netherlands, teaching is very much still emphasized on repetitive tasks for learning grammar or vocabulary.

Sources:
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2010/aug/13/exam-test-results-teaching-style
https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2013/may/14/best-way-teach-language-schools

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In favour:

·      It takes a lot of time and money to change the way of teaching languages.

·      In The Netherlands the most people speak clearly other languages. I think that’s respectful for other countries.

·      There are good results with this system.

Against:

·      A lot of people do understand you when you don’t speak perfectly correct English.

·      Grading students doesn’t work. When pupils get an exercise, but don’t get a grade they just don’t put enough time in it, because it’s just a waste of time. They don’t have motivation anymore.

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In favour

·         The examinations force you to really learn the language. If these examinations did not count, some students would not put in 100% to learn for it as it has no consequences if you don’t perform well.

·         The examinations are a good indicator of how well you control the language and the stuff being examined.

·         This method has shown it works, as it has been used for 400 years now and most people can speak more than 1 language.

Against

·         It does not take into account people who have difficulties learning this way, which in the current method is mostly just repeating words over and over again.

·         Because this is the only method we have been using for 400 years we don’t know how well other methods will work, so maybe its time to try a new method.

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Grading students does not promote learning

Nowadays students are ranked by their performance with a test on school. This is very old-fashioned because what if someone is very intelligent but can not describe this on a paper? This is one of the many reasons why we should all stop the grading system on college, high-schools and universities.

Students and especially pubers are highly sensitive for bad reaction from their environment. This makes that for instance pubers can become very discouraged from learning when their parents react frustrated if they got a bad grade. This is not good for the parents nor for the students.

Moreover, teachers would learn how to effectively assess academic performance, and students would become independent learners, driven by curiosity and inspiration rather than by the empty promise of a "good" grade or the threat of a "bad" one.

On the other hand. Thing would turn out far more difficult because how are the teacher going to check if pupils did their homework, or learned for a test? When students do not become grades anymore they would obviously ignore all the directions from teachers.

Besides that it will be very hard for universities to find out the capabilities from students since they have no actual diploma with grades on it. This could potentially let to more corruption from parents who want their children on a top-ranking education.

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Teachers continually forget the purpose of grading, taking in assignments without giving actual feedback to the students.

Students study for the grade not the knowledge. They are so driven to get a good grade that they will forget to actual pick up the wisdom.

Grades don’t work for everybody. Some people know what they have to know but still get a failing grade due to common blackouts or being stressed out.

Against:
For many students grading is the only drive to learn. They’re able to brag about their good marks and might be punished for the inferior grades.

People are afraid of change. This is the way school has been for centuries and they like the consistency. Why change a working system?

-Per

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Teaching languages the way is has been taught for 400 years is the right way.

1.    I personally think that the school-system that we have nowadays work, because children learn different languages that gives them the possibility to go abroad and communicate with people from different countries.

2.    When you speak many languages, you have a better chance at a good job. Nowadays employers want people who speak different languages. So that’s very important

3.    When children learn foreign languages, they also learn about the culture.

1.    I think that when you go to the country from the languages you learn, it has more impact. Because the only way you can communicate is in that languages not your own.

2.    When you learn for example English words, people learn for that test. But after two weeks people forgot a lot of that words.

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My first argument against teaching languages is that learning foreign languages takes a lot of time. My second argument against it is that you are getting confused if you have to learn more than one foreign language. Learning foreign languages is not only bad, even it can be really good. When you are abroad you can communicate easily with the people who live there. Second you know more about foreign cultures when you learn foreign languages.

The last is that when you can speak more different languages you can work more international wherefore you can communicate better with your foreign colleagues.

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-Why would we change a working system.
The results are good.
-If all languages are taught the same way, people know what to expect

Arguments against:

-How many peolpe can actually speak the language they have been taught? In theory you know the language but you can’t actually speak it.

-changing such a system would probably take lots of time and effort

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Teaching languages the way it has been taught for 400 years is the right way.

Everybody at the moment masters English so there is no need to change the way it taught. It would cost a lot of money to make a new module and it would take a few years before it can be introduced. There is also no opportunity to go to other countries to learn the students the language.

How things are being taught at the moment, students have to learn 150 words per week. They will only save it in their short-term memory, but not for the rest of their life. You learn the language the best when you talk the language the whole day with your friends and teachers.