An Individual in a Group: Reflections on TYL Project at the University of Gdańsk Teacher Training College

Mariola Bogucka and Magdalena Wawrzyniak-Śliwska, Poland

Mariola Bogucka is an experienced teacher of English. She currently works as a lecturer at the University of Gdansk - Foreign Language Teacher Training College, Poland. She is the INSETT Project Regional Leader. Polish INSETT Project has been set up to help teachers of English working in all types of schools at different levels to develop professionally. She is co-author of the video-course for English language teachers Observing English Lessons published by British Council Studium UG (1999). Mariola's special interest is teaching English to young learners. She is co-author of the courses for young learners 'Your English ABC'(1999), 'Friends' (2002). E-mail: brcmb@univ.gda.pl

Magdalena Wawrzyniak-Śliwska is an EFL teacher and a teacher trainer at Gdansk University Teacher Training College, Poland, where she teaches both TEFL and TEYL Methodology. She is also interested in learner autonomy and has written a number of articles on this subject. E-mail: magmar@wp.pl

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Introduction
Teaching Young Learners Project - history and underlining principles
TYL Project - critical remarks
Cooperation, co-teaching and critical thinking
Training through materials development - unlimited creativity
An individual in a group
Trainees' opinions
Conclusion: humanizing teacher training
References

Introduction

In Poland in the recent decade we have experienced an unprecedented interest in teaching foreign languages to young learners. It has been reflected by the growing number of so-called 'bilingual kindergartens' and the introduction of a foreign language as a new subject at the early education level. Although officially a foreign language does not have to be introduced until grade four, all community schools and the more competitive state primary school do offer English even in class 'zero'. These facts undoubtedly reflect the social changes and the need to create better conditions for foreign language acquisition and learning.

At the same time, the current situation gives a great cause for concern about the quality of teaching foreign languages to young learners as well as provision of qualified teachers who can take up the challenge and the responsibility. Although it has been recognised that the educational needs of young children are different from those of teenagers and adults, the general discussion and teacher training programmes are too often limited to the presentation of list of techniques used in TEYL. Unfortunately this leaves issues of vital importance, such as child emotional security, motivation, learning difficulties and discipline problems unaccounted for. The necessity of looking for new comprehensive solutions seem to be rather urgent. In this article we would like to present some reflections about a novel project: Teaching Foreign Languages to Young Learners (here: TYL Project) introduced at the Teacher Training College at the University of Gdańsk.

Teaching Young Learners Project - history and underlining principles

Teaching Young Learners (TYL) Project started in Gdańsk Teacher Training College in 1993, as a workshop for undergraduates in the German section, and as it proved to be very successful, workshops for English and French trainees were organized respectively in the year 2002 and 2004.

A group of trainees teach German, English or French over a period of two years to a group of young learners aged 7-9. Trainees volunteer to take part in the Project instead of their teacher training practice based in a primary, middle or secondary school. The intake of children is officially advertised by the College on the Internet home page. The Project is supervised by College lecturers who specialize in teaching foreign languages to young learners. The authors of this article specialize in teaching English but the experiences they would like to share reflect general tendencies.

The Project is comprised of two equally important parts: lessons for children and workshops for trainees devoted to pre-lesson preparation and post-lesson discussion.
The Project takes up 120 hours in each year. Children attend two 60-minute lessons a week. The lessons are held in the afternoon as an additional activity for children. The number of children varies but it is never more than 15. The lessons are discussed by all trainees but eventually prepared and co-taught by two of them. The other trainees observe the lessons focusing on chosen aspects of the teaching/learning process and, if necessary, help the teachers during the lessons: monitoring, helping children with their individual difficulties or dealing with possible discipline problems. The course is not taught according to any particular course-book, the trainees design the syllabus and develop their own materials. All the lessons are recorded and watched by the trainees and the trainer to reflect over selected issues connected with the lesson.

The syllabus of the training part of the course covers a number of issues, such as:

• techniques of teaching young learners such as storytelling, drama techniques, games, songs, chants and TPR;
• whole-learner teaching;
• global listening;
• reading real books;
• task-centered and activity-based teaching;
• developing the ability to speak about oneself and the "world around the child";
• sustaining learner motivation and developing learner autonomy;
• developing student cooperation;
• using authentic materials for teaching young learners;
• developing one's own teaching materials;
• intercultural teaching and teaching tolerance;
• planning individual lessons and syllabus design;
• testing and assessment of young learners;
• raising language awareness;
• developing positive attitude to learning languages.

Before each lesson trainees receive an observations task in order to focus their attention on one aspect of a lesson, which is later discussed in a post-lesson workshop. The trainees responsible for conducting the lesson prepare self-assessment in writing. Their reflections are discussed individually with the tutor.

TYL Project - critical remarks

Since the Project is organized as an alternative to the regular teacher training practice it has been carefully observed and scrutinised by other university teacher trainers and eventually raised some queries concerning its validity.

The most controversial issue concerns the number of trainees and children taking part in the Project. On the average the ratio of trainees and children is almost 1:2, which might suggest that trainees do not have a chance to experience a real-life teaching situation where one teacher has to cope with a big group of children (15-20). What is more, the trainees planned and taught the lessons in pairs so apparently they did not get a proper training preparing them for a solitary teaching post.

Another critical remark related to the fact that the trainees did not teach 45 hours during the academic year, but co-taught only 10-15. In comparison, students doing the regular teaching practice teach about 45 lessons but observe about 10-15 lessons, always at the very beginning of the teaching practice.

Another point raised against the Project was the fact that the trainees are devoid of the experience of school life and reality and do not get familiar with the atmosphere of the teachers' room. Another problem seemed to be the young learners taking part in the project, who were said not to be a typical group that can be encountered in a regular Polish primary school. Moreover the learners taking part in the Project may not represent a 'typical' class in a state primary school.

Having considered all the points stated above, we came to the conclusion that the Project offers solutions that would make the first teaching experience less stressful more 'trainee-friendly'.

Cooperation, co-teaching and critical thinking

Lacking the methodological background and experience, feeling insecure and not trusting their skills and abilities, the trainees need more support, help and guidance. In TYL Project, supported by the trainer and their peers, and on the other hand not being overwhelmed with paper work that lesson planning and school reality involves, the trainees get more involved in the teaching process, have more time to plan the lessons carefully, produce their own materials and reflect on their teaching.

The fact that trainees co-teach the lessons does not always make their work easier. They have to negotiate with each other, divide the workload and plan the lesson very carefully so as to know who is responsible for running every minute of it. They also have to learn a few techniques of co-teaching concerning giving instructions, monitoring and giving feedback. On the other hand they definitely feel more secure and less intimidated when planning and running the lessons with a partner. They also prove to be more creative and courageous when trying out new ideas.

The success of co-teaching the TYL Project resulted in implementing it in the academic year 2005/06 in first year of the teaching practice of students doing the regular teaching practice at schools.

It is true that in the TYL project the trainees co-taught only about 15 lessons but they observed about 50 throughout the year. In their Project evaluation the trainees pointed out that the focused observation and post-lesson discussions was what they appreciated the most. They can see that other trainees have similar problems and dilemmas, which made them more supportive towards each other and boosted their self-confidence. They learnt from each other, adapted and used ideas tried out by the others, analyzed why some the techniques and ideas that were effective and some ineffective. They can focus more on children, their individual difficulties and needs, which eventually has given rise to interesting discussions about the essence of successful teaching of young learners. It is a truly 'hand-on experience' of how the change of teacher attitude, empathy, understanding and adjusting methods of teaching to the needs of the learner influences the process of teaching.
The Project has proved that trainees gain expertise and experience not only when they are actively involved in the teaching process but also when they observe other teachers at work and reflect more - over their own teaching when watching lessons recorded on the video, and over other teachers' work..

Training through materials development - unlimited creativity

Comparing our trainees with other trainees who do a regular teaching practice at schools, we discovered that TYL Project trainees are more enthusiastic and more devoted to their work. They also seem to be more learner-centred and creative, they avoid stereotypes and evaluate solutions and tasks according to whether they are good and suitable for the learner. Trainees develop both their creative and critical thinking when writing lessons plans and making their own teaching aids. Although the preparation of materials is extremely time consuming it is worthwhile as trainees are more enthusiastic when using them and after the lesson thoroughly analyzing their effectiveness. When they decide to use the published material they take a great care to understand how it is recommended to be used and whether it suitable for their learners.
The trainees very soon become autonomous and independent in their thinking as they feel free from any limitations imposed by a mentor teacher or a course-book. They are encouraged to take an active role in planning the syllabus and then implementing it in practice at the same time learning to take the responsibility for their own decisions.

An individual in a group

The children attending the lessons are not selected in any way. Yet the way the Project is advertised limits parents to the ones who have access to the Internet and are actively involved in looking for new educational opportunities for their children. They also commit themselves to bringing their children to the College two afternoons a week.
The attitude of children to the lessons is an interesting phenomenon in itself. As they attend a regular school in the morning, in the afternoon they expect less formal teaching, which frequently causes additional discipline problems. Some of the children receive undivided attention from their parents at home and consequently during the lessons find it difficult to work in a group. It seems that the proportion of hyperactive and disruptive children is higher than in a regular primary classroom. Undoubtedly in this respect the Project is more challenging to run as both parents' and children's expectations are more difficult to meet.

The most important aspect of our work for both trainers and trainees is to give every child an opportunity to develop their linguistic, cognitive, affective and social skills. We try to identify individual interests and needs of each child in the group, not only when we deal with diagnosed dyslexia or ADHD cases. By adjusting the methods and techniques we want to make sure that no-one is lost or left behind. The main aim of the training is to highlight the phenomenal importance of the teacher, their knowledge, their ability to apply it and their willingness to empathize with each and every child in class.

Trainees' opinions

At the end of a two-year Project we asked trainees to express their opinions on the development of their teaching competence, the biggest challenge and the greatest achievement.

The trainees who took part in the Project in the years 2002-2004 agreed that their overcoming the paralyzing stress at the beginning was the biggest achievement. They could feel how gradually they were more and more natural in the classroom and how much they enjoyed their lessons with children towards the end of the course. What they considered the greatest challenge and at the same time the most positive experience was getting to know and respecting 'the world of a child', creating the atmosphere of emotional security, acceptance and trust which obviously was conducive to learning. All trainees were surprised by their own creativity and the quality of the materials they prepared. They admitted they could not imagine teaching without the coursebook before the project and after a while they discovered the freedom the lack of the coursebook gave them. Most of the trainees were surprised with the amount of patience and positive feelings towards children they found in themselves.

Below are a few quotations from the trainees' comments on the TYL Project:

Question 1: What have you learnt about yourself since you started teaching children? Have you discovered anything new?

I try to focus on the aims of the lesson and what children can achieve during it. I am afraid that sometimes I'm too strict and I require too much from them.

Conclusion: humanizing teacher training

Wallace (1991) discusses three models of professional teacher education: the craft model, i.e. trainees imitate a "master"/ mentor practitioner, the applied science model, i.e. theory based on scientific research is conveyed to trainees who implement it in classroom, and finally the reflective model i.e. drawing on the two models, trainees are encouraged to reflect on their teacher training practice. It seems that generally speaking pre-service teacher training in Poland favours the applied science model. In most cases the trainees, equipped with the theoretical background knowledge, try to implement it during their teaching practice. If they are asked to look back at their teaching, they do not get any help and assistance in how to do it.

In the project we were responsible for we were trying to make the trainees more reflective and show them how much they can learn observing their colleagues at work and watching their own recorded lessons. The trainees not only were to write a self-evaluation after every lesson they taught, but also were required to do a number of observation tasks while observing other trainees at work. Yet the reflection over lessons with young learners is extremely demanding on trainees and very often hindered by their strong emotions connected with discipline problems or the lack of child motivation. A feeling of a possible failure, very often exaggerated by the trainees, and eventually their frustration should be dealt with almost immediately in a friendly understanding team. Positive, safe and friendly atmosphere is not only essential when teaching young learners, it is also inevitable in teacher training.
In our view, the post-lesson discussion should not concentrate entirely on issues such as the extent to which the planning was successful or how good the visuals were, but rather how effectively the lesson fostered child development.

It seems that the emotional baggage brought to sessions by young children and trainees surpassed our expectations and in many cases our expertise. In our experience it is hard to overestimate the importance of humanistic approach in both teaching and teacher training. Alongside with developing technical dexterity and survival strategies in the classroom, trainees should be offered an opportunity to discover their talents and develop their own teaching style.

Once it has generally been recognised that for a variety of reasons young learners should be introduced to foreign languages relatively early, we cannot withdraw but work out new procedures to enable trainees and practising teachers to face the challenges brought about by the difficult times we live in. We do hope that our experiences in this matter will allow for a valid contribution in the discussions about the new type of early education teacher training.

References

Brumfit Ch., et al.,(1995) Teaching English to Children, Longman

Cameron, L., (2001) Teaching Languages to Young Learners, CUP

Davis, P., Rinvoluori,M., (1990) Building Trust in the Language Classroom, Pilgrims Longman

Fisher R, (1990) Teaching Children to Think, STP

Fisher R., (2000) Teaching Children to Learn, STP

Fox, G., (2001) Supporting children with behaviour difficulties, David Fulton Publishers, Ltd.

Halliwell S., (1992) Teaching English in the Primary Classroom, Longman

Moon J., Nikolov, M., /ed/ (2000) Research into Teaching English to Young Learners, University Press Pecs

Nunan D., Lamb C. (1996) The Self-Directed Teacher, CUP

Pitamic, M., (2004) Teach Me Do It Myself - Montessori activities for you and your child, DK

Rogers, B., (2000) Classroom Behaviour, Paul Chapman Publishing

Scott, W.A., Ytreberg, L.H.,(1990) Teaching Engish to Children, Longman

Skehan P., (1989) Individual Differences in Second Language Learning, Arnold

Wajnryb, R., (1992) Classroom Observation Tasks, CUP

Wallace,.M.,J., (1991) Training Foreign Language Teachers - A reflective approach, CUP

Wallace, M.,J., (1998) Action Research for Language Teachers, CUP

Williams, M., Burden, R.L., (1997), Psychology for Language Teachers, CUP

Woodward, T., (1991) Models and Metaphors in Language Teacher Training, CUP

Woodward, T., (1992) Ways of Training, CUP

Please check the Methodology and Language for Primary Teachers course at Pilgrims website.
Please check the Skills of Teacher Training course at Pilgrims website.