YOED 6020--The methods class

There are some positives and negatives to taking a class during the summer.  On the positive note, there is the fact that it is over quickly and you have plenty of time to work on the projects. On the negative side, there is something due almost every day.  I'm certain that any other comments that I have about the class itself, as well as online learning, are not the intention of this blogging assignment.  Therefore I will here end my digression and get to my opinion on the content and value of the class.

There are four aspects to language learning:  listening, speaking, reading and writing.  This class focused on speaking, reading, and writing and was a very complete methods class for ESL.  The most interesting aspect for me was literacy.  I believe that reading is closely keyed to vocabulary acquisition, and during the second half of last year I was trying to push for more reading in my classroom.  This year we learned even more about reading and I got exposed to a number of different activities that I can use to boost my students' literacy in their target language.  I have never tried using graphic organizers and the like, but I think they are a fabulous idea and I will be implementing them next year as my standard operating procedure.  The readings and content gave me ideas not only for the ESL classroom that I may eventually teach, but also for the French class that I currently teach.

Furthermore, on a personal note I can see the interest in blogging and I'm planning on starting one or more of my own blogs within the next few weeks.  I have a lot to talk about and I only hope it isn't too ambitious!