[MUSIC] Hello again. Like I said before, the cognitive approach isn't exactly a teaching approach as much as it is a way to understand a learner. But that doesn't mean that there aren't key take aways for teachers in a language classroom. Let's discuss a few of these ideas now. Language learner strategies. Cognitive and meta-cognitive. First of all, one of the great concepts that is directly tied to the cognitive approach is that learners have both cognitive and meta-cognitive strategies that they use in order to learn. Teachers that study these strategies can understand learners. Different learning styles and then try to accommodate learners as a result. There are entire books, not as boring as a book about a comma, on learner strategies. And entire disciplines devoted to the use of learner strategies effectively used in a classroom. These books help learners and teachers understand how to plan, organize, and monitor learning. In fact, it wouldn't be entirely incorrect to say that cognitive scientists helped us move away from teacher centered views about language learning, and closer to the student centered strategies we use today. For those of you who have taken our first course, Foundational Principles, remember that we discuss certain strategies such as practice. Cognitive theorists spend a lot of time discussing the process of practice and they break it down into key components. For example, one one of former practice is often termed, rehearsal. A rehearsal might be defined as speaking practice that can be done by yourself, I often practice in front of a mirror. Or with a partner or group. And come to fine out, there are several steps to a successful rehearsal. A rehearsal of language often involves pre-learning vocabulary. Often enhanced by writing down vocabulary words to help chunk certain ideas together. Second, learners often have to slow down during particularly difficult linguistic structures, like a hard to pronounce word or difficult grammatical item. Finally students have to repeat the process so that the difficult sections and the easier sections move together until it feels more authentic, more automatic. Interestingly enough cognitive scientists noticed that thinking of location and audience gives the learner better recall and understanding. Thus cognitive theorist would definitely recommend extensive practice and practice that involves a clear understanding of the mental processes associated with practice. Feedback on errors and explicit grammar instruction. Another important cognitive science concept that language teachers use today is the need to give student feedback on their errors rather than punishing or ignoring the use of errors. Errors especially those that an entire group of learners makes help give an instructor information on mental process, thus by examining common errors, error types can be identified, examined, and then attempts to clarify those errors can be made. Are errors bad? No! They give you a window to examine what is going on in the minds of your learners. And in fact, errors help a teacher understand what rules should be explicitly taught. Grammatical rules it is argued can help learners receive the necessary information to overcome certain language rules. While the amount of explicit grammar instruction is debated in today's world, most teachers find themselves in the position of providing clear grammar instruction to those who continue to make certain errors. Pre-reading and pre-listening activities. Recognizing that the mind doesn't just receive instruction all at once, cognitive scientists would most likely recommend activating background knowledge, using pre-reading and pre-listening activities. Pre-reading and pre-listening activities are very common in most language textbooks, and can come in a variety of forms. For example, you might see an activity that shows a simple picture, and asks students to explain what they see. This picture engages students to think of language that is likely going to be seen in the reading or listening activity. Thus, if you were teaching an activity about going to a restaurant, you might see a picture of a restaurant featured in the anticipatory activity. The basic concept is that you want to activate a student's mind. Engage them in ideas and thoughts that they already know. So that you stimulate the same part of the brain that you will be requiring them to use in the future reading or listening activity. Other Cognitive Processes. There are a number of cognitive processes that we will discuss in our third course about lesson design. In fact, we will loosely base lesson plan design on the work of cognitive scientist Robert Gagne, who suggests a number of different steps of instruction for appropriate learning to take place. In the future, we will discuss such concepts as gaining attention, reception, informing learners of objectives, expectancy, stimulating recall of prior learning, retrieval, and other steps intended to help learners retain information. Lesson planning with the learner in mind is a powerful way to ensure that instruction isn't simply left to a learner to solve. Rather a wise instructor can carefully build lesson plans so that students will receive the information in a way that allows them to hold on to that information. Now, let's do as cognitive scientists would suggest and do a little predicting exercise, a great mental process. Anyone have any idea how the pendulum might swing next? The cognitive approach looked an awful lot at the mind of a learner, didn't it? And it also focused a lot on research and studies and got a little bit away from students themselves. What do you think the next approach might look like? Let's find out in our next video here at teach English now, see you then. [MUSIC]
