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English Language Education to Pupils with General Intellectual Giftedness

by Eva Reid (Author)
©2020 Monographs 174 Pages

Summary

The topic of English language education for pupils with general intellectual giftedness is rare in worldwide research areas. Even though research into English language education receives great attention and similarly does gifted education, the connection is not very common. The aim of this research study is to investigate the state of, and current challenges to, English language teaching in gifted education. Multiple methods (participant observation, interview and survey) were used under the «umbrella» of the case study with the aim to achieve an in-depth understanding of the case. Research findings reflect which principles, teaching techniques, types of activities and materials are used, what English teachers’ positions concerning their qualifications, experiences, beliefs and problems are, and what learning strategies gifted learners use when learning a foreign language.

Table Of Contents

  • Cover
  • Title Page
  • Copyright Page
  • About the author
  • About the book
  • Citability of the eBook
  • Contents
  • Introduction
  • 1 Foreign language acquisition/learning
  • 1.1 Language acquisition
  • 1.2 Second vs. foreign language acquisition vs. learning
  • 1.3 Foreign language aptitude
  • 1.4 Methods for teaching foreign languages
  • 1.5 Foreign language education of the 21st century
  • 1.5.1 Language skills and language systems
  • Vocabulary
  • Pronunciation
  • Grammar
  • Listening and speaking
  • Reading and writing
  • Culture
  • 1.5.2 Priorities of foreign language teaching
  • 1.6 English language education in Slovakia
  • 2 Defining terms of giftedness and talent
  • 2.1 Place of intelligence in terms of giftedness
  • 2.2 Giftedness and intervention
  • 2.3 Gifted children – pupils with special educational needs
  • 2.4 Twice exceptional children
  • 2.5 Myths in giftedness
  • 2.6 Identification characteristics of the gifted
  • 2.7 Forms of educating gifted children
  • 2.8 Development of gifted education in various countries
  • 2.8.1 Historical background and development of gifted education
  • 2.8.2 Gifted education today in the USA and the UK
  • 2.8.3 Gifted education in Austria, Germany and Switzerland
  • 2.8.4 Gifted education in the Czech Republic
  • 2.8.5 Gifted education in Slovakia
  • 2.8.6 Summary of gifted education programmes
  • 3 Teaching English to gifted learners
  • 3.1 Young learners in English language education
  • 3.2 The place of English language teaching in gifted education at a primary school level in Slovakia
  • 3.3 Principles of educating gifted pupils with regard to English language education
  • 3.3.1 Developing creativity
  • 3.3.2 Developing divergent thinking
  • 3.3.3 Developing high level thinking skills
  • 3.3.4 Facilitating learning study skills
  • 3.3.5 Attending to personal qualities, attitudes, values and feelings
  • 3.4 Teaching techniques in teaching English to gifted pupils
  • 3.4.1 Problem-based teaching
  • 3.4.2 Projects
  • 3.4.3 Discovery techniques
  • 3.4.4 Techniques supporting higher level thinking
  • 3.4.5 Techniques supporting cognitive processes
  • 3.4.6 Mind maps
  • 3.4.7 Techniques for working with texts
  • 3.4.8 Multi-stimulation techniques
  • 3.4.9 Techniques developing creativity
  • 3.4.10 Self-learning techniques
  • 3.4.11 Techniques supporting communication and cooperation
  • 4 A statement of the problem
  • 4.1 The main research aim
  • 4.2 Further research aims
  • 4.3 Research questions
  • 5 An outline of the research undertaken
  • 5.1 Case study
  • 5.1.1 Participant observation
  • 5.1.2 Interview
  • 5.1.3 Survey
  • 5.2 Reliability and validity
  • 5.3 Sampling
  • 5.3.1 Research subjects
  • 5.3.2 Description of pupils
  • 5.4 Ethics
  • 6 Analyses of research
  • 6.1 Observation analyses of English language lessons of gifted classes
  • 6.1.1 Teaching intervention during the English language lessons
  • Lesson number 1
  • Lesson number 2
  • Lesson number 3
  • Lesson number 4
  • 6.2 Interview analyses with English language teachers of gifted pupils
  • 6.3 Analyses of the Young Learners’ Language Strategy Use Survey in the gifted class
  • 6.3.1 Classification of language learning strategies
  • Classifying strategies by language skills
  • Classifying strategies by function
  • 6.3.2 Analyses of foreign language learning strategy use of gifted pupils
  • Function-based strategies
  • Metacognitive strategies
  • Cognitive strategies
  • Compensation strategies
  • Skill-based strategies
  • Listening strategies
  • Vocabulary strategies
  • Speaking strategies
  • Reading strategies
  • Writing strategies
  • Translation strategies
  • 7 Research discussion
  • 7.1 Conclusions of observations of gifted pupils
  • 7.2 Conclusion of interviews with the teachers
  • 7.3 Conclusion of foreign language learning strategy use survey
  • 7.4 Triangulation
  • 7.5 Answers to the research questions
  • 7.6 Recommendations for pedagogical practice and further research in teaching English to gifted pupils
  • Conclusion
  • List of Figures
  • List of Tables
  • Bibliography

Introduction

The topic of English language education for pupils with general intellectual giftedness is rare in world-wide research areas. Even though research into English language education receives great attention, and similarly does gifted education, the connection is not very common. Some researchers attempt to find a connection between general intelligence and foreign language aptitude which results in different opinions, from believers in a connection, to sceptics who deny any relation. In Slovakia, a special system has been developed, of educating gifted pupils in segregated classes. Subjects such as maths and Slovak receive special attention at primary school level, where teachers have special materials and books to help and guide them in their work. No special attention is paid to teaching English, other than the recommendation to teach it from the first grade of primary school. The aim of this research study is to investigate the state of, and current challenges to, English language teaching in gifted education. More specifically, to find out how English is taught, which principles, teaching techniques, types of activities and materials are used; what are English teachers’ positions concerning their qualifications, experiences, beliefs and problems; and what learning strategies gifted learners use when learning a foreign language.

An insight into foreign language acquisition and learning are defined in Chapter 1. Various views on first and second language acquisition are introduced and different notions of second/foreign language acquisition/learning are discussed in Sections 1.1 and 1.2. Various views on foreign language aptitude and the connection of general intelligence and foreign language learning are covered in Section 1.3. A brief coverage of methods for teaching foreign languages is offered. The aims of foreign language education in the 21st century are discussed and concluded with priorities of foreign language teaching. Chapter 1 concludes with a brief account of the place of English language teaching in gifted education at primary school level in Slovakia.

The theoretical background and fundamental terms of giftedness and talent are introduced and discussed in Chapter 2 of the monograph. Terminology is reviewed from the point of view of various scholars. Further, the place of intelligence in giftedness and intervention is discussed, together with the ways of identification of the gifted and various forms of education of the gifted. Gifted children in most countries are recognised as pupils with special educational needs and the reason for this identification is explained together with cases of twice exceptional children and common beliefs about gifted children, which are ←11 | 12→considered to be myths. A special section is dedicated to the history and development of gifted education in the world and systems of gifted education in the USA, UK, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Chapter 3 combines the knowledge of foreign language learning and gifted education. English language teaching to young learners and teaching English to gifted pupils are discussed. Even though it is my interest to cover English language education to all age groups of gifted learners, only the specifications of young learners in learning the English language, and teaching English to gifted pupils at primary schools are discussed. The main reason is that this research is carried out with gifted young learners and it is also because I have experience mostly with young learners, being the author of English language textbooks and having done most of my research with this age group. Principles of teaching gifted pupils and recommended teaching techniques are discussed in detail, because the research design is based on their identification in English language teaching and the development of new activities suitable for English lessons to gifted pupils.

Chapter 4 states the problem with the form of research aims and their corresponding research questions. Chapter 5 outlines the research undertaken. An interpretative case study was chosen for this research because it has the ambition to capture a holistic view of English language education to gifted pupils. Multiple methods (participant observation, interview and survey) were used under the “umbrella” of the case study with the aim to achieve an in depth understanding of the case. Reliability and validity, sampling and ethics of research are addressed.

Each research method is analysed separately in Chapter 6. The observations took place during five months in a special class of fourth grade gifted pupils at a primary school in Slovakia. A total of 40 lessons were observed, plus I conducted an intervention at random intervals during four additional classes. Interviews were conducted with nine English language teachers of gifted pupils, including the observed teacher. Categories for analyses were developed for processing the data from observations and interviews and conclusions of the findings were made. Additionally, Oxford’s (1990) Young Learners’ Language Strategy Use Survey was used with gifted pupils to find out which strategies they use; whether they correspond with the theories of gifted learners and language learners; and how this knowledge of gifted pupils’ use of strategies can be used in English language education of gifted pupils.

Chapter 7 – research discussion – concludes the findings from observations, interviews and surveys, and, by triangulation, the data from different methods are compared to confirm or contradict the findings. Conclusions are summarised in the answers to the research questions. Recommendations for pedagogical practice are discussed at the end of the chapter and ideas for further research are proposed.

1 Foreign language acquisition/learning

The theoretical part of the monograph is divided into three main parts: foreign language acquisition, gifted education and, the final part, English language teaching in gifted education, which connects the previous two. In the first part, the issue of language acquisition, foreign language acquisition/learning, foreign language aptitude, methods for foreign language teaching, foreign language education in the 21st century and English language education in Slovakia are addressed.

1.1 Language acquisition

Language acquisition is the way a human being subconsciously obtains a language to produce speech. It usually refers to our first language, but it can also include a second or third language, as long as the language is acquired – developed slowly with listening skills being faster than speaking skills. It is believed that children tend to acquire languages better than adults, and that adults learn more than acquire. However, Krashen (1982) claims that adults can also acquire and that the ability to ‘pick up’ a language does not disappear in puberty. Natural settings provide possibilities for acquisition processes, while arranged settings are for learning processes. It can be seen that there is a distinction between language acquisition and learning. Language learning is a part of curricula and states how a language should be learned, produced and comprehended. In the process of learning, accuracy and correctness are addressed. There is, however a possibility to combine language acquisition and learning. For example, when a foreigner is staying in England and attends English courses, he/she acquires English in natural settings but also learns English in a classroom.

Details

Pages
174
Year
2020
ISBN (PDF)
9783631806708
ISBN (ePUB)
9783631806715
ISBN (MOBI)
9783631806722
ISBN (Hardcover)
9783631802113
DOI
10.3726/b16332
Language
English
Publication date
2019 (November)
Keywords
Foreign language acquisition Giftedness and talent Teaching English Principles Teaching techniques
Published
Berlin, Bern, Bruxelles, New York, Oxford, Warszawa, Wien, 2020. 174 pp., 5 fig. b/w, 15 tables.

Biographical notes

Eva Reid (Author)

Eva Reid is an associate professor at the Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra, Slovakia. She has been researching the topic of teaching English to gifted pupils for several years, and she has published numerous papers in this area. Another area of research in which she has been publishing is the development of intercultural communicative competences in English language education. She is also the author of four English language textbooks for primary school pupils.

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Title: English Language Education to Pupils with General Intellectual Giftedness
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