ESL School

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I always find this topic sparks lively debate. When second languages were taught by the grammar/translation method, everyone seemed fairly clear about what should be taught and in what order. Verbs in all their complexity dominated the scene and conjugations and inflections were learnt by rote. The result was that language learners understood a good deal about how the target language was constructed but had little...

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The real proof of effective learning lies in the student’s ability to use the new material creatively: Bloom’s highest order thinking. In traditional terms, this is

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Analysing and evaluating help deepen the learning experience. By analysing new language the learner breaks something complex into its basic components. In pronunciation...

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According to Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy, once new material has been understood it should be applied. Here the learner has the opportunity to explore how the items learnt can be used. It is best to begin with transfer to situations similar...

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Understanding is the second element in the Revised Taxonomy. It reminds us that it is not enough that learners have remembered new material but that we must check they have really understood. Understanding new language takes place on...

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As I noted last time, Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy puts remembering as the first element in the learning process: we have to remember an item before we can understand it. How do we help students to etch the new material...