The Independent Self-Directed Language Learner and the Role of the Language Educator — Expanding Access and Opportunity

Authors

  • Kathleen Stein-Smith Fairleigh Dickinson University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1402.01

Keywords:

independent learning, self-directed, heritage languages

Abstract

There is a foreign language deficit in the US – not only do Americans tend to speak only English, but US students do not always have the opportunity to learn additional languages, including heritage or family languages. On the other hand, most Americans have a heritage language in their background, and 70M in the US speak another language in the home.  Independent learning is an important element in effectively addressing the foreign language deficit both in terms of Anglophone Americans learning additional languages and of heritage language speakers maintaining and re-acquiring their heritage language(s). This article examines how, in the classroom and beyond, language educators can play a valuable role in empowering and supporting independent self-directed learners to learn another language and in developing sustainable environments for language use in the home, community, and workplace. In addition, it is necessary to work to increase the accessibility and affordability of language learning so that those who are not in the educational system, especially adult learners, have access to learning new languages, including heritage languages. It is equally – and perhaps even more – important that parents and communities are supported in their efforts to maintain their family language and ensure that their children have an opportunity to learn and use their family language. Language educators can also work to develop materials for language learning freely accessible to all as well as opportunities for the use of different languages in their institutions and communities, as well as in the workplace.

References

American Academy of Arts & Sciences (AMACAD). (2017.) America’s Languages: Investing in Language Education for the 21st Century. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.amacad.org/publication/americas-languages

American Academy of Arts & Sciences, (AMACAD). (2020). The Importance of Languages in Global Context: An International Call to Action. Retrieved July 28, 2022 from https://www.amacad.org/news/global-languages-importance

American Councils on International Education. (2017). The National K-12 Foreign Language Enrollment Survey Report. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.americancouncils.org/news/announcements/new-report-world-language-study-us-k-12-schools

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (ACTFL). (n.d.). Benefits of Language Learning. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.actfl.org/resources/guiding-principles-language-learning/benefits-language-learning

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (ACTFL). (n.d.b.). Heritage Learners. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.leadwithlanguages.org/why-learn-languages/heritage-learners/

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. (ACTFL). American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). (2019). Making Languages Our Business. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.leadwithlanguages.org/language-advocacy/publications/

Americans. (2022). Retrieved July 28, 2022, from ttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Americans

Antony-Newman, M. (2022). Plurilingual parenting: why many experts think families who speak multiple languages should just go with the flow. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://theconversation.com/plurilingual-parenting-why-many-experts-think-families-who-speak-multiple-languages-should-just-go-with-the-flow-185255

Center for Open Educational Resources. (COERLL). (n.d.) The Language Learners, Lesson 2. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.coerll.utexas.edu/methods/modules/learners/02/

Cultural Services French Embassy in the US. (2021). Job Fairs. Retrieved July 28, 2022, fromhttps://frenchhighereducation.org/job-fairs

Devlin, K. (2018). Most European students are learning a foreign language in school while Americans lag. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/06/most-european-students-are-learning-a-foreign-language-in-school-while-americans-lag/

Dornyei, Z. (2010). The Psychology of the Language Learner: Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition. NY: Routledge,

Dornyei, Z., ed. (2003). Attitudes, Orientations, and Motivations in Language Learning: Advances in Theory, Research, and Applications. NY: Wiley-Blackwell.

Fogg, B.J. (2021). Tiny Habits: The Small Habits That Change Everything. San Francisco: Mariner.

Fortune, T.W. (2012). What the Research Says about Immersion. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://carla.umn.edu/immersion/documents/ImmersionResearch_TaraFortune.html

Gagliano, K. (2019). Lafayette area businesses encouraged to just say 'oui' to keeping French language alive. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/news/article_b96e8628-4db4-11e9-b987-8f521cb8f779.html

Gardner, R. C., & Lambert, W. E. (1972). Attitudes and Motivation in Second Language Learning. Boston: Newbury House.

Grosjean, F. (2010, 2020). Bilingualism’s Best Kept Secret. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/life-bilingual/201011/bilingualisms-best-kept-secret

Johnson, S. (2019). Colleges Lose a ‘Stunning’ 651 Foreign-Language Programs in 3 Years. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.chronicle.com/article/colleges-lose-a-stunning-651-foreign-language-programs-in-3-years/

Jones, J.M. (2001). Twenty-Two Percent of Non-Hispanic Americans Speak a Second Language. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://news.gallup.com/poll/1573/twentytwo-percent-nonhispanic-americans-speak-second-language.aspx

Knowles, M. S., Holton, E.F., Swanson, R.A., & Robinson, P.A. (2020). The Adult Learner, 9th ed. NY: Routledge.

Kotter, J. P. (2008). A Sense of Urgency. Harvard Business Press.

Lai, Y., Saab, N., & Admiraal, W. (2022). Learning Strategies in Self-directed Language Learning Using Mobile Technology in Higher Education: A Systematic Scoping Review. Education and Information Technologies. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10639-022-10945-5

Leveen, S. (2021). America's Bilingual Century: How Americans Are Giving the Gift of Bilingualism to Themselves, Their Loved Ones, and Their Country. America the Bilingual Press.

Livermore, D. (2011). The Cultural Intelligence Difference: Master the One Skill You Can't Do Without in Today's Global Economy. AMACOM.

Livingston, K. (2012). Independent Learning. Seel, N.M. Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning. Boston: Springer.

Mackey, A. (2014). “Wanting it enough: why motivation is key to language learning.” Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jun/26/motivation-key-language-learning

Masouleh, N.S., & Jooneghani, R.B. (2012). Autonomous Learning: A teacher-less learning! Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences v. 55 835-842. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877042812040323#bib0075

McComb, C. (2001). About One in Four Americans Can Hold a Conversation in a Second Language. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://news.gallup.com/poll/1825/about-one-four-americans-can-hold-conversation-second-language.aspx

Milkman, K. (2022) 5 science-based strategies for nailing your New Year’s resolutions. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/01/health/how-to-set-new-year-resolutions-wellness/index.html

Milkman, K., & Duckworth A. (2021). How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. NY: Portfolio.

Modern Language Association. (MLA). (2019). Enrollments in Languages Other Than English in United States Institutions of Higher Education. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.mla.org/Resources/Guidelines-and-Data/Reports-and-Professional-Guidelines/Teaching-Enrollments-and-Programs/Enrollments-in-Languages-Other-Than-English-in-United-States-Institutions-of-Higher-Education

New American Economy. (NAE). (2017). Not Lost in Translation: U.S. Jobs Market Needs Foreign Language Skills. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://research.newamericaneconomy.org/report/not-lost-in-translation-the-growing-importance-of-foreign-language-skills-in-the-u-s-job-market/

O’Connor, L., Lubin, G., & Spector, D. (2013). The Largest Ancestry Groups in the United States. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.businessinsider.com/largest-ethnic-groups-in-america-2013-8

O’Neill, B. (2020). Don’t Make Resolutions - Create Good Habits. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://njaes.rutgers.edu/sshw/message/message.php?p=Finance&m=1412

Pufahl, I. Rhodes, N.C., & Christian, D. What We Can Learn from Foreign Language Teaching in Other Countries. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED456671

Roberts, G., Leite, J., & Wade. O, (2018). Monolingualism is the Illiteracy of the 21st Century. Hispania v. 100 no. 5, 116-118.

Ryan, C. (2013). Language Use in the United States. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2013/acs/acs-22.html

Shute, N. (2012). Speaking Multiple Languages May Help Delay Dementia Symptoms. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2012/04/04/149995850/speaking-multiple-languages-may-help-delay-dementia-symptoms

Stein-Smith, K. (2016). The U.S. Foreign Language Deficit: Strategies for Maintaining a Competitive Edge in a Globalized World. NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

The Translators with Borders (2022). Language Data Initiative. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://translatorswithoutborders.org/language-data

University of Hull. (n.d.). What is meant by independent learning? Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://canvas.hull.ac.uk/courses/30746/pages/what-is-meant-by-independent-learning

University of Texas at Austin. (COERLL). (n.d.). Foreign Language Teaching Methods: The Language Learner - Motivation. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.coerll.utexas.edu/methods/modules/learners/02/integrative.php

Villasenor, J. (2022). Online college classes can be better than in-person ones: the implications for higher ed are profound. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2022/02/10/online-college-classes-can-be-better-than-in-person-ones-the-implications-for-higher-ed-are-profound/

Wilson, D., & Conyers. M. (2018). Guiding Students to Be Independent Learners. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.edutopia.org/article/guiding-students-be-independent-learners

Zeigler, K., & Camarota, S.A. (2019). 67.3 Million in the United States Spoke a Foreign Language at Home in 2018. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://cis.org/Report/673-Million-United-States-Spoke-Foreign-Language-Home-2018

Downloads

Published

2023-03-02

Issue

Section

Articles