Learning language is not an event, it is a long way, it is a hard process and it demands effort and patience.
Although learners have enough vocabulary or grammar base, there are some barriers which are difficult to overcome. As we are teacher trainers, we sometimes face such problems even with the teachers of distant regions.
Having been thinking over this we have identified the following problems which detract learners from speaking, simply saying from expressing their thoughts or flashing their English out:
Firstly, shyness or lack of self confidence. As we know learning to speak a new language involves errors and some uncomfortable situations. Learners do not want to appear foolish in public, especially in communicative classes where errors like mispronounce, misuse a word or fail to understand something that somebody said are inevitable. Here, teachers’ role is to create warm and friendly atmosphere, explain the learners that it is natural to make errors in learning process and nothing to be ashamed of. It is not secret that sometimes teacher themselves make mistakes as we mentioned above. By smilingly admitting their error (and thanking the person who pointed it out) teachers may create the climate that encourage students to use English.
Another problem is reluctance or lack of motivation. In teaching a foreign language it is necessary to think over the motives which make learners speak. They should have a necessity to speak and not only a desire to receive a good mark, ensure conditions in which a learner will have a desire to say something in the foreign language, to express their thoughts, their feelings, and not to reproduce someone else's as is often the case when they learn the text by heart.
Teachers should try to catch the learners attention equally, the chosen material should be comprehensible, and appropriate to the level. We should organize the teaching process in a way which allows your pupils to speak to someone, to their classmates in particular, i. e., when speaking a learner should address the class, and not the teacher. When he retells a text which is no longer new to the class, nobody listens to him as the classmates are already familiar with it. The speaker will hold his audience when he says something new, something personal. Teachers should try to supply pupils with assignments which require individual approach on their part.
Different level of knowledge is also may be one of the reasons. In this case one of the effective ways is a project work where learner can show himself as an individual. But teacher should be careful in grouping the students, weak students should not all the time rely on strong students or vice versa strong ones should not dominate other learners.
Whether we like or not, classes of learners are not simply collections of learners who happen to be studying the same learning in the same room. They are individuals, with the different behavior and abilities. It is really important to make connection between learners, encourage their confidence and willingness to study. Here we have to point that Hadfield presents an extensive collection of classroom activities for encouraging classes to develop and maintained a positive group feeling [1].
Moreover, if teacher lacks of professionalisms because of appearance, manner of speaking or level of preparedness for the lesson could cause another problem, not friendly atmosphere between teacher and learner. For classroom teaching to be effective, it is essential that the students know the behavioral expectations of their teacher: which behavior will be condoned and which will not. Teacher should be open and never should play a role in front of the learners. Proficient teacher is aware of the need to gain the confidence of the students by demonstrating high levels of professionalism, never have favoritisms, and always answer the questions of students.
Even if a teacher cannot answer a tricky question, all is not lost: they can simply say they will check and provide the answer for the following lesson (and, of course, remember to do so).
Another problem is learners’ attitude to each other or grouping. As it was above mentioned, we, teachers should not forget that the most important in teaching is to establish warm and friendly atmosphere in the class because it is the most important tool. Encourage students to behave in generous — minded ways toward their group mates, helping and supporting them and never behaving in offensively. It is our, teachers role to make our learners respect each other at all times, laughing with but never at fellow students and never whispering with friends which make others feel excluded.
Concluding we want to say, teaching is a really hard and long way, that demands effort and patience, never stop and always try to bring warmness, lightness into your classroom and provide optimal environments for language learning.
References:
1. Hadfield, J «Classroom Dynamics» OUP 1992.
2. Tuckman, BW and Jensen, MA «Stages of group development».
3. Senior, R ‘ The good language class: teacher perceptions’ Edith Cowan University.
4. Senior, R The Experience of language teaching CUP 2006.
