B-SLIM MODEL
We talk so much about self directed
learning and have structured policies and proposed practices around the
assumption that all learners are equally self-directed. BUT, practitioners know that not all learners
are equally self-directed. In fact, teachers
also know from experience that some learners need to be taught to be
self-directed. By being based on
success, B-SLIM incorporates enough scaffolding (structure and support) at each
phase for learners who are less self sufficient to succeed while simultaneously
providing opportunities and direction for the more self-directed student to
push forward. For example, while a less
self-directed student might need to follow a template several times before
really ‘getting’ the structure of a form such as a brief event review (in order
to be able to create one on his/her own as an OUTPUT assignment), a more
self-directed learner may only need to hear or see the model once and be able
to replicate and creatively alter it!
Theoretical Underpinnings
Cognitive Science (Piaget, Vygotsky,
Gagne) (We organize knowledge of different types into schema through mental
processes. As learners who are active
participants we require scaffolded instructional material that utilizes
demonstrations, illustrative examples and corrective feedback to maximize
memory retention.)
Constructivism (Bruner) (We construct
our own understanding of the world by generating our own rules and mental
models to make sense of our experiences.)
Developmentalism (Ryle, Schwitzgebel)
(We learn concepts and dispositions in a gradual way frequently passing through
periods of being "in between" genuine understanding and failure to
understand.
Goals
-to develop self directed learners
-to ensure that every learner succeeds
at each phase of the learning process by maximizing exposure to concepts
through all learning styles/intelligences and encouraging intellectual/thinking
growth in systematically developed steps
-to help students develop all aspects
of language by applying research findings from all areas of second language
learning and acquisition (language awareness, pronunciation, vocabulary,
grammar, situations- fluency-accuracy, culture and Culture, learning
strategies, listening comprehension, speaking, writing, reading, forms, skills,
content, motivation-attitude)
-to ensure that learners can transfer
what they have learned to new contexts
-to learn language and to learn
through language
-to identify success in learning in
concrete term.
Planning and Preparation
• What we do before we enter the
classroom
• Knowledge of what resources we can use
and how to quickly find them
• Choosing what materials to use
• Adapting and/or developing resources
• Scaffolding:
• Creating games, pair activities
• Selecting worksheets
• Creating games, pair activities
• Selecting worksheets
• Pacing – considering cognitive
overload/capacity (attention and automaticity)
• Selecting and developing activities
that appeal to all learning styles/intelligences
• Selecting and developing activities
that help each student advance in each type of input
Comprehensible Input
• What is new to the students
• Building on what students already know
(moving from their understanding of a concept in L1 or MT to how that concept
is expressed in L2)
• Choosing and structuring the learning
of something into small steps to teach “new” material
• Presenting in a way that students
understand
• Power of the First impression
• Miller’s magical Number of 7 +/- 2
• Appeal to as many of Gardner’s
learning Intelligences as possible: linguistic, visual-spatial,
logical-mathematical, kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, musical
• Maximize use of instruction in Target
Language (TL)
• Research suggests that language
production is a complex enterprise that entails the integration of many areas:
language awareness, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, situations-
fluency-accuracy, culture and Culture, learning strategies, listening
comprehension, speaking, writing, reading, forms, skills, content,
motivation-attitude, content (See Appendix A)
Intake - “getting it”
• Helping students LEARN meaning that
they understand AND remember because if
one cannot remember a concept (vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, cultural
point, learning strategy, etc.) one cannot use it!
• “getting it” activities help students
understand the concept being taught at their own rate (self-paced) and through
a variety of learning styles. They need
to be structured so that all students can succeed.
• The teacher needs to develop a
REPERTOIRE of strategies/activities in this phase so that students can learn in
different ways AND not become bored or unmotivated when learning more difficult
concepts
• Providing clear examples
• Providing sufficient examples
• Providing supports such as templates,
sample sentences, models, dictionaries, visual support of keywords or
illustrations
• Answering student questions
• Guiding, coaching, encouraging,
praising students
• Takes time to learn:
• “often lower performing students need
more time to reach levels of language development similar to those of other
students”
• LOTS of Pair work for practice and
clarification
• Can include ‘drill and skill’
activities
• Use choice and chance to maintain
motivation
• Giving personalized positive feedback
• Emphasis on accuracy
• Focusing “attention” in order to later
develop “automaticity”
Intake - “using it”
• From memory (or with minimal
assistance) students engage in activities that require them to USE or apply
what they have learned
• Students problem solve, create, use
their imaginations (e.g. moral dilemmas, role plays)
• Students are put in new
situations-contexts in order to ‘transfer’ what they have learned to it
• Work in pairs, groups or alone
• One- or two- way information gap
activities
• Move from “learning language” to
“learning through language”
• Includes Tasks (TBLT)
• Activities should be more
communicative in nature (NO ‘drill and skill’ at this phase)
• Emphasis on fluency
Output – “Proving it”
• PROOF of what the students have
learned
• Meaningful task for the students (high
interest)
• Oral and written FORMS
• Integrates pronunciation, vocabulary,
grammar, situations, functions.
• Requires criteria for
direction/structure/inclusion of NEWly emphasized content. . .
• Emphasis on BOTH fluency and accuracy
• Students reveal their abilities to use
English spontaneously, creatively, and personally by integrating all aspects of
INPUT into oral and/or written activities or projects
Assessment
• Criteria that help students see how
they are doing and how they can improve
• What makes a GOOD performance
• What makes communication successful
•
Gives Feedback to the
teacher about how and what students are learning – through observation and
direct feedback from students – at every phase of B-SLIM
• Helps teachers to determine what
students still need to learn
Evaluation
• Final grade
• Tests
• Exams
• Determining what students still need
to learn in order to reach a prescribed mandate