Job Discussion Forums

[dyak]

From the FAQ section of 'International Language Schools of Canada'... interesting policy!

Does anyone teach in a school with a similar policy?
Is this the way to go?

The schools in London would be empty within a week.

Do you have to speak English when you are in the school? Even when you are not in class?

YES! We have a strict English only policy at ILSC. You are here to learn English. In Montreal, it is a strict English or French only policy where students are expected to adhere to the spirit of the rules. If you are an English speaking student studying French, you are expected to use French only. Same for French students studying English. The English only rule is in effect throughout the school and is enforced by staff and student volunteer "language patrols". If you are caught speaking your native language you are given a warning the first time. If it happens again, you are given a one week suspension (you do not get your money back for this time). If you are caught a third time you are expelled from the school.

[joshua2004]

[valley_girl]

That's a common policy for full immersion programs, particularly in Canada. I attended French immersion years ago and they did have a "three strike" policy - two warnings and then an expulsion. They also had a Wall of Shame in the cafeteria, where the names of those who'd been caught (once, twice, or three times) speaking English would have their names posted for all to see. It was a bit amusing, actually. (For the record, I never had to see my name on the Wall of Shame. )

In our program, we do have a language policy that includes not speaking any language other than English in class. We also don't allow students to have bilingual dictionaries or electronic translators in class. If they are caught using any of these crutches, they lose half a point from their participation mark (10% of their final). It could mean the difference between passing and failing in the end, so we've found this to be effective. My colleagues and I agreed to implement this policy because we believe strongly that translating into L1 is actually going to slow the students down. We want them to become immersed in the language and to sharpen their reading and listening skills so that they will be able to figure out what is being said without the aforementioned crutches. Things like guessing the meaning from context, using prefixes, suffixes, and root forms of words, or even recalling a previous encounter with a word or phrase are much better, and faster, ways for students to learn their L2 and the best ways to become fluent overall. Furthermore, translations are not infallible. Far too often, students will come up with the wrong definition or the wrong word or phrase because they translated word for word.

I think "English only" is a great policy to have. Students may balk in the beginning, but sooner or later they will (hopefully) see the value in it.

JMHO

[lajzar]

Which is better, for a student to look up a word in a bilingual dictionary (electronic or otherwise), or for a student to sit in stony incomprehending silence?

Bilingual dictionaries are a language learning tool. Banning them seems counter-productive to me.

[Gordon]

English-Only policies are common in Vancouver schools. I worked at a school similar to the story posted, only stricter. They could not even speak their native language on the street within a block of the school and we as teachers were to enforce that if we heard it in a nearby Starbucks. Yeah right!
However, the rules were generally appreciated by students and students' expulsions were very rare (once in the 2 years I was at the school). Basically the student opposed any effort to speak English. What were they doing at the school any way?

[Gordon]

My wife attended a French immersion program in Quebec where they had one warning and then they would be placed on the next plane back and no credit for the course. They could only speak French 24 hours/day and "spies" would listen outside their doors to make sure they didn't speak English. She could only speak English while making a long distance phone call.
Draconian, yes but also effective.

[Chris_Crossley]

[Roger]

[quote="lajzar"]Which is better, for a student to look up a word in a bilingual dictionary (electronic or otherwise), or for a student to sit in stony incomprehending silence?

Bilingual dictionaries are a language learning tool. Banning them seems counter-productive to me.[/quote

Finally a cmmonsensical question!

My answer would be:
Yes, students SHOULD use dictionaries, though I would prefer monolingual ones such as Cobuild, an Oxford Pocket dictionary for English learners or a Webster. Not a L1/l2 dictionary, if it can be helped!

But I note that many of my colleagues even frown on the dictionaries some of my more enterprising students do use. Why? OK, in conversation classes, this is not ideal, but in writing lessons I thoroughly advocate it.

On the other hand, strict English only policies - that sounds very much like regimentation and boot camp! It is similar to imposing a smoking ban - people will do it secretly, or be cast out!
It's an authoritarian approach!

[Chris_Crossley]

[Gordon]

[dyak]

I think the problem with bi-lingual dictionaries is that students' lack of L1 awareness makes it difficult to use them effectively. If they don't know what a verb, noun, adjective etc. is in their own language, how are they going to use the contrastive element to get the right word in English?

Another problem with bi-lingual dictionaries is that a lot of them are just rubbish... those decrepid turn-of-the-century eastern european things that don't even class the words... those yellow ones too, are littered with mistakes!

I've noticed the similarities between students gasping for a cigarette and gasping to speak L1, and the relief when they can. If a school could create an atmosphere where it was socially unacceptable to speak L1 then it could work; as in any situation like that, the people will police the people.

[Stephen Jones]

We might all hate bilingual dictionaries but the only research I have ever seen on the subject was conducted by Bernard Spolsky, now Professor Emiritus at Tel Aviv university, and it showed that Israeli learners of English allowed to use bilingual dictionaries did better than those who weren't.

With regard to the original rule, it is standard for inside the class. At our college you would certainly be warned if during an inspection you used Arabic in class. In my experience if you let the native language be used in class, then the class often degenerates into a class about English and not a class of English.

[valley_girl]

[struelle]

I think those policies are brutal, negatively reinforcing, and far from effective - in my mind they are imperialistic. That is, you see them far more in ESL environments when students are studying abroad in Western countries, the justification being that the student will forego all native speech and assimilate into the English speaking culture.

Can you imagine if this happened to Westerners who went abroad and studied another language and culture? During my Chinese studies in Shanghai, this simply doesn't happen. My teacher pushes me hard to speak only in Chinese and reprimands me for English use, but no expulsion policies or anything ridiculous like that. It is also greatly motivating to practice on the streets, because I can see the usefulness of doing so and it's rewarding.

If I choose to teach ESL when I return to Vancouver, I will avoid all the 'English or expel' schools like the plague.

Steve

[Peligro]

this is very off-topic! But does anyone else think this is rude?
Well i work at a store and I am a cashier, and sometimes while I am ringing a customer through, they start talkign to their spouse or w/e in a foreign language and ignore me. Like I dunno, I am trying to serve them and they just talk cuz they know I can't understand.