ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNING AT THE ENSLAP
The English Area organizes its pedagogical action base don the Colombia General Education Law, Law 115 Act of 1994, the Cukrricular Guidelines, the Basic Learning Rights (DBA), and the Suggested English Curriculum, the ENSLAP pedagogical model “Towards a multidimensional projection of human being”, as well in the Development of Thinking Processes, which are considered mechanisms to promote students` competences and talents, who appropriate them with the teacher´s guidance and orientation, strategies and means fo learning. Throughout the pedagogigal practice, the English area also pursues to optimize English language teaching and learning processs by promoting between teachers and students interaction, communication, teamwork, creativity, use of ICT and management of available resources.
Quite a few theoretical references have been taken both in the methodological and in the pedagogical part. The postulates of authors such as Bruner, Vygotsky, Piaget, Seaver and Botel are taken into account along with the four principles of learning.ç
Likewise, the five indispensable principles in the teaching and learning of a foreign language proposed by Brown (2007) (are incorporated: Recognize and take advantage of the child's intrinsic motivation; recognize the importance of risk-taking behavior to give students opportunities in both oral and written language; Recognize that language and culture are closely related and encourage students' self-confidence. The pedagogical strategies enforced by English teachers at the ENSLAP, within and beyond the classrooms, include a serie of activities enhancing the communicative competence, the creation of ludic-pedagogical learning environments, the search of significant and pertinent learnings according to the students’ needs and interests, and an approach to the culture of some of the English-speaking countries, all of them based on the principle of learning by doing. The English day as the main activity of the area, gathers all the meaningful experiences carry out during the school year, a sample of the integration and appropriation of the English language by exploring, communicating, expressing, proposing and creating. The active participation of students consolidates this activity as a major area project, it aims to strengthen the different English skills and the security and confidence of the students in the use of the language through theater, poetry, dancing, singing, crafts designing, rallies, English Olympics and speeches. Research processes are also developed, involving teachers and students of both elementary and high school. PFC students and teachers carry out research projects that include the application of new methodologies, strategies and resources that seek to optimize English learning processes. Many of these projects are ICT-mediated. In 2022, the area leads the progressive application of some strategies aimed to consolidate the cross-cutting bilingualism (transverse) project at the ENSLAP. Activities such as: English Day, students and teachers Spelling Bee, publication of a commemoration card in special dates, posters with the most relevant environmental celebrations of the year, English corner in each one of the classrooms, mock exams for eleventh graders and an interdisciplinary approach to Science Area; aim to promote innovation in the English learning process and integrate English to the everyday life of the ENSLAP community. References: English Area Syllabus ENSLAP Cross-cutting Bilingualism Project (2022)
Written by: English Area Teachers |