PEER INVOLVEMENT IN LANGUAGE LEARNING

• Main Author: Gaies, Stephen J (Author)
• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Published: Orlando Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc. 1985; ©1985
• Subjects: Language and languages > Study and teaching
• Online Access: Click Here to View Status and Holdings.
• Physical Description: ix, 162 pages illustrations 23 cm
• ISBN: 015599316X

While not an instructional panacea, peer involvement in second language learning can provide a rich and productive supplement to the second language classroom experience. It casts learners and teachers into new roles that may lead to a variety of benefits, enriching the total educational and social environment. The systematic use of peer teachers and tutors is a much-publicized practice in contemporary education, but information about it has not been widely disseminated. While peer involvement programs are often largely in response to practical needs, they also closely reflect current views about how a second language is learned best. It is widely applicable for learners of all ages and achievement levels and for a wide variety of instructional purposes. The potential pedagogical benefits include increased individualization, intensified drill practice, and increased communication opportunities. Potential socio-affective benefits include increased motivation, strengthened cross-cultural understanding, self-concept and sense of self-direction, and reduced inhibition. To be successful, peer involvement programs must be thoughtfully planned, carefully structured, and systematically monitored. If this is accomplished, the technique may lead to a new teacher-learner relationship and form the basis for more effective and meaningful second language learning. (MSE)