Have you ever wondered about the history of the language experience approach (LEA), the teaching method that we advocate as most effective for our learners?
Paolo Freire, a Brazilian educator and philosopher, introduced the basis for the teaching method that English at Large tutors use with their learners.
Freire revolutionized teaching in the 1960s in an attempt to educate rural, illiterate Brazilian field workers. Having lived among poor rural families and laborers, Freire had a deep understanding of workers' lives and how illiteracy prevents men and women from achieving the full status of their citizenship.
Freire used the transcript-based method which English at Large uses to train volunteers in the language experience approach (LEA). Freire and his fellow teachers used the transcript method to teach illiterate Brazilian adults how to read and write the words that they used in their everyday lives. This method was so effective that the teachers who applied Freire's teaching methods taught 300 illiterate field workers to read and write Portuguese in only 45 days!
Paolo Freire, a Brazilian educator and philosopher, introduced the basis for the teaching method that English at Large tutors use with their learners.
Freire revolutionized teaching in the 1960s in an attempt to educate rural, illiterate Brazilian field workers. Having lived among poor rural families and laborers, Freire had a deep understanding of workers' lives and how illiteracy prevents men and women from achieving the full status of their citizenship.
Freire used the transcript-based method which English at Large uses to train volunteers in the language experience approach (LEA). Freire and his fellow teachers used the transcript method to teach illiterate Brazilian adults how to read and write the words that they used in their everyday lives. This method was so effective that the teachers who applied Freire's teaching methods taught 300 illiterate field workers to read and write Portuguese in only 45 days!
Freire's theory was very much a language experience approach, in that students learned to read and write texts generated by the words that that they already spoke and used daily.
At English at Large, many of our learners struggle with speaking English in addition to reading and writing. By using a word-for-word transcript (or text) of the learner's speech, the tutors get an exact picture of the learners' strengths and weaknesses in the English language. The learners, in turn, learn vocabulary, grammar and spelling that are immediately relevant to their lives. By correcting their text, with the help of their tutors, the learners can correct their speech.
LEA has a long history in language learning. Although Freire, as a philosopher, developed this theory within the larger context of social revolution, English at Large tutors use this transcript based approach almost exclusively because of its effectiveness in targeting the areas that need to be sharpened and are relevant to the learner. LEA and its cousin method dialog journals, used to teach writing, form the basis of English at Large's literacy training philosophy.
Now that you know the history of the language experience approach, we hope you'll use LEA with your learner with greater confidence in its validity and effectiveness!
If you're curious to learn more about Freire's work, have a look at his seminal work. Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Your purchase helps support English at Large!
Happy Tutoring!
Jiyoung
Jiyoung Song
Programs and Social Media Intern, English At Large
Dartmouth College, Class of 2016
ENGLISH AT LARGE
Literacy and Learning for Life
Join the conversation
No comments:
Post a Comment