[accessibleimage] Re: more Re: Molyneaux's question rephrased

Thank you for this information, Sylvie. I suppose that
one of the reasons that adults (used to) learn a foreign
language without immersion was also that the language
immersion can often be a bit difficult to arrange in
their own country where their own language is spoken by
the majority of people. I'm no expert in these matters
though, so I appreciated your input. In any case, there
is still a lot to be investigated where it comes to the
use and value of technology now that "visual" immersion
for blind people has become a technical possibility. A
lot depends on how plastic the human brain is, and how
that depends on age, just like one has to have mastered
the grammar of at least one language before a certain
critical age or else the prospects of mastering language
appear to be low. No one really knows where the limits
are for learning to see, either if one has never seen
before, or if the visual input runs via another modality
like touch or hearing. Interesting note about the role
of laughter.

Best wishes,

Peter Meijer


Seeing with Sound - The vOICe
http://www.seeingwithsound.com


Kaizen Program wrote: 
Hi Peter,

You wrote:

"babies do not get grammar lessons first (although parents will speak
simplified sentences to support learning by example). With adults it can be
somewhat the other way around, taking grammar lessons plus memorizing
vocabulary lists in mastering a new language before getting fully immersed
in the foreign language."

Nowadays, language teachers have found that the best way to start teaching
functional language is through emergence, teaching through social
interaction and interaction with pictures and objects. When I teach
immigrants and refugees who are blind or have low vision, I emphasize the
objects and social interaction because I obviously have to leave out the
pictures. When I teach fully sighted immigrants and refugees (which I did a
lot of in the past), I do the same, and it actually works better than using
pictures because pictures can sometimes be ambiguous or misunderstood by
students due to different ways of understanding pictures in different
cultures, etc.  And, people can remember vocabulary much better when they
associate it with bodily movements, objects and even small dramas. For
example, people remember "hello" in the beginning as associated with my
shaking their hand, and the words for "a cup of tea" with the actual cup of
tea they are given, and the word "stomachache" with my holding my stomach
and groaning, even and especially when it makes them laugh. By the way, I
just recently read that new research has shown that laughter can increase
learning, even when the laughter is not directly related to the new things
being learned, only occurring directly before it. I already knew that
laughter or just smiles can relax people and make it easier for them to
learn... We learn something new every day. (smile)

When adults have some basic English language to build on, they can begin to
understand grammar and it can be of much greater use to them. Before that it
can be very confusing. And, it takes a lot longer to remember rules than to
react on the basis of habits built up from social interaction and haptic,
sound, taste, etc. memories.

Best,

Sylvie


Other related posts: