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Ask for help > Should teachers translate?!
Should teachers translate?!
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dwaikat
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Should teachers translate?!
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Hi there,
I wonder whether teachers should translate their lessons or parts of them while teaching? Since there are some weak students who usually ask for the translation of some parts of a reading passage, for instance, or some sentences in a dialogue!
What should language teachers do: to translate or never do that, I am talking about secondary phases as elementary ones use tangable things, so there is no need for the translation at all.
Any ideas, Plz?!
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7 Dec 2009
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Pachy
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If the grammar I �m teaching is a bit complicated, I normally explain it first in English and then in my students � language in order to make sure that the weaker students can understand the basic rules. If you only use English and you ask them whether they have understood or not, the weaker students will probably say nothing although they haven �t understood a word! So, I don �t think using your own language is bad for the learning process, especially if you have a big group of students with lots of different levels. |
7 Dec 2009
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lizsantiago
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i dont know about your school but in my case the only time my students have to speak and listen to english is in my class and only for an hour and if you take the time it takes for me to start the class it only leaves them with 50 minutes, so i try to spend most of the time speaking english, in terms of my weak students i never ever speak our language i ether try to use body language or in the worst case let one of the student translate. |
7 Dec 2009
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lizsantiago
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ohh i forgot... if is a reading i try to have pictures to help them visualize and figure by themselves what is going on in the sentence or passage. |
7 Dec 2009
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manonski (f)
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I �m with lizsantiago. I speak English all the time and very very rarely translate. |
7 Dec 2009
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keftor
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Good topic.
One of my colleagues told me translation is one of the best method which I don �t agree with him, and said so many good things about it. So I decided to attend his lesson because I wanted to see how it works in his class.
Well, first, ss translated from English into Turkish, then from Turkish to English. And it didn �t make any sense. And later, (after the class) I told him what I thought: instead of translation what about giving situations, reading texts, songs, drama activities ..... etc(that is what ı do in my classes. Once he also attended my class and he said he liked it). I mean let them use the language. They don �t need to translate every word, and don �t have to understan every word. I believe that he just teaches "about the language" not "the language".
Unfortunately, he still insists on his being right, and tries to persuade me to use translation method in my classes.
As a result, yeah sometimes I have to translate some complex sentences. But mostly, no translation.
RIDVAN |
7 Dec 2009
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Baadache
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I agree with keftor, I personally use very very simple English , gestures , pictures .. but I from time to time use Arabic in grammar to explain a method or a use , no more. |
7 Dec 2009
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keftor
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What about your colleagues? Do they use translation method so much?
Thanks Baadache,
Yeah, right! while teaching grammar, translation is needed sometimes. |
7 Dec 2009
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Baadache
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The older ones , Imean the experienced teachers don �t use it nither in lessons nor in grammar.I sometimes wonder how do low level pupils achieve the lessons?
But when I translate , I make things a bit clearer but always translation adds nothing to the pupil level. What do you think ? have you touched a good lasting result ? |
7 Dec 2009
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volga
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Hi all,
I teach Basic ESL students who come from Mexico and I don �t know Spanish to the point where I can converse with them or translate every English word. I use a little bit of Spanish at the beginning of the school year - just enough to have class procedures established. After that I hardly ever say anything in Spanish. Kids pick up English from me very fast. At first, I use very simple language with them, we do simple activities, play a lot of games, learn simple poems and chants, I use a lot of visuals and repetition, and then I gradually increase the complexity of the language. Yes, sometimes it is difficult for some of them to understand everything, and that is fine with me. I let them figure out the meaning by themselves. They know they are not going to hear a translation and they pay attention and do the thinking.
I �ve been teaching for 20 years and I am convinced this is the best teaching method.
Cheers!
V.
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8 Dec 2009
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