28.3463, Review: Applied Ling; Socioling: Gómez (2016)

[The LINGUIST List]

LINGUIST List: Vol-28-3463. Fri Aug 18 2017. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 28.3463, Review: Applied Ling; Socioling: Gómez (2016)

Moderators: linguist at linguistlist.org (Damir Cavar, Malgorzata E. Cavar)
Reviews: reviews at linguistlist.org (Helen Aristar-Dry, Robert Coté,
                                   Michael Czerniakowski)
Homepage: http://linguistlist.org

Please support the LL editors and operation with a donation at:
           http://funddrive.linguistlist.org/donate/

Editor for this issue: Clare Harshey <clare at linguistlist.org>
================================================================


Date: Fri, 18 Aug 2017 16:49:05
From: Sahar Farrahi Avval [saharfa2000 at gmail.com]
Subject: Language Teaching and the Older Adult

 
Discuss this message:
http://linguistlist.org/pubs/reviews/get-review.cfm?subid=36270001


Book announced at http://linguistlist.org/issues/27/27-3769.html

AUTHOR: Danya  Ramírez Gómez
TITLE: Language Teaching and the Older Adult
SUBTITLE: The Significance of Experience
SERIES TITLE: Second Language Acquisition
PUBLISHER: Multilingual Matters
YEAR: 2016

REVIEWER: Sahar Farrahi Avval,  

REVIEWS EDITOR: Helen Aristar-Dry

SUMMARY

This volume, Language Teaching and the Older Adult, written by Danya Ramírez
Gómez, is intended for instructors, course designers and audiences interested
in teaching foreign languages, especially teaching foreign language (FL) to
older adults. The author introduces the term “geragogy” as her main concern
all over her book. Geragogy refers to the management of teaching and learning
for older adults and has become a well-known term applied to teaching and
learning in later life (Formosa, 2012).

By writing this book, Gomez brings the needs and importance of older people
into the spotlight and reminds us that this age group is as valuable and
respectable as when they were younger, and that their cognitive, psychological
and social needs should be met.

This book falls into four main sections. Section One contains an introduction
to the volume, Sections Two and Three include Chapters Two and Three, and
Section Four is devoted to Chapters Four, Five, Six and Seven.

In her first chapter, as the introduction to the book, the author defines the
scope and structure of the book, gives a brief summary of the following
chapters and tries to clarify the relation between the aging process and FL
learning. Chapter Two covers the most common age-related transformations older
adults experience. Chapter three is devoted to an exploratory, multi-method
study focused on older learners’ vocabulary-learning strategy (VLS) . In
Chapter Four, Gomez discusses primary notions on education for adults and
older adults, lifelong education and the main principles of critical foreign
language geragogy. Chapter Five, introduces the idea of learner re-training
and its techniques and also a seven-lesson course for Japanese older learners
of Spanish. Chapter Six encompasses a series of concrete techniques to be used
in the older-learner FL classroom, and finally Chapter Seven presents a brief
summary of the previous chapters, which should be studied by  readers before
reading other chapters.

Chapter 1, Introduction, as the fundamental part of this volume, this chapter
encompasses the author’s main concern which is teaching an FL to older adults
(individuals aged 60 years old and over) and the scope of this book, which is
looking at FL learning as an experience with the potential to transform the
individual’s relationship with their environment and with themselves.

In this chapter, Gomez  introduces the following chapters briefly. She also
differentiates between L2 acquisition as “learning a second language in the
community of the L2” and FL learning as “learning an L2 in a formal setting in
the L1 community”. 

Throughout, this volume asserts that FL learning is cognitively and
psychologically beneficial to older learners. Gomez emphasizes the need for an
appropriate methodology which fits the cognitive, psychological and social
needs of older learners . She points to age-related language learning issues,
such as physiological and psychological differences between young and old
people.

In a citation form Birdsong (1999), she refers to native-like   reading
proficiency by adults who started learning an L2 after puberty, and by this
reference she intends to claim that such a thing can happen to older adults as
well in spite of many opposing theories .

Aging and its effects on memory is another issue considered by Gomez in this
chapter. She refers to some information-specific theories arguing that
age-related cognitive changes depend on various factors which are not uniform
within the individual and between two individuals.

In the final section of this chapter, the author cites some research carried
out in the field of FL education and the older learners and provides the
objectives and results of each study.   She concludes that studies on the
interaction between aging, memory and language development imply that FL
learning is possible throughout life and that new approaches are demanded to
fulfill this promise.

Chapter 2, Characteristics of the Older Learner: Whom Are We Teaching?,
highlights main language learners’ characteristics, namely physiological,
psychological, cognitive and experiential dimensions. The author points out
that the aging process is influenced by interaction among genetic,
environmental, cultural, nutritional and disease-related factors. Since the
brain and its structures are in charge of language learning, it cannot escape
these influences.

Gomez refers to the cognitive dimension as changes made in cognitive abilities
which affect some processes included in language learning such as memorization
and reasoning.  The psychological dimension  includes factors affecting the
learner’s purpose, motivation and   effort . Gomez  claims that the social and
environmental attitude towards old learners affects their process of FL
learning and the way they think about this process.  The experiential
dimension refers to all experiences the language learner has previously had in
FL learning .

Gomez draws attention to a review of teaching methodologies from 1960 to 1980,
giving a brief history of the most prominent methodologies, e.g., the grammar
translation method, audio-lingual method, and communicative approach. She
concludes by placing emphasis on two points; the first one is that older FL
learners’ experiential background in other languages has a great effect on
their new experience in FL learning; second, the experiential background
determines the learners’ potential approach to the lesson and independent
study.

Chapter 3, Experience, Foreign Language Learning and the Third Age: The Case
of Japanese Older Learners of Spanish, presents   the study carried out by the
author  which is also the basis of this book. The author asserts that
vocabulary learning is very challenging for older adult FL learners and that
VLS (vocabulary learning strategy) is a helpful tool for these kind of
learners . She mentions  that older learners’ experiences determine how they
interact with the variables pertinent to VLS, which requires different
learning profiles.  In addition, she refers in detail to different types of
vocabulary learning strategies taken from Rubin (1987), Schmitt (1997) . 

Learning experiences and VLS use among Japanese older learners of Spanish is
embedded in a multi method study by the author and she explains the
methodology devised, e.g.,  participants, procedures for data collection and
data analysis and the material. Gomez concludes from her study that the
learners’ reliance on the instructor and formal education were likely to
produce  a high level of performance and that such studies can reveal some
aspects of FL learning that have not been discovered in other studies carried
out on young FL learners.

Chapter 4, Lifelong Learning and Education for Older Adults,   provides 
evidence that educating older adults in different countries and civilizations
has always been regarded as necessary.

The author asserts that in addition to concrete classroom technologies, a
clear theoretical framework and philosophical approach are required. She
defines education as “the art and science of teaching children”; by this, she
means that there are some situational differences, goals and purposes for
learning in adults in contrast to children.

Self-directedness is  one of the main elements of adults’ education. The
author insists that a sense of efficient self-directedness should be created
in the learners and they should engage in the process of FL learning. Gomez
says that when FL learners are asked to negotiate meaning, they are taking the
responsibility for decision making rather than considering only their personal
needs.

Under the subtitle “critical education for older adults: general notion”, the
author introduces the notion of reconstruction of life after retirement. By
raising this issue, she demands exploration of field dependency and
non-instrumental discipline which can help older adults reconstruct their life
after retirement.

Programs for life reconstruction  help older adults attain self-actualization,
although today these programs should be revised and rebuilt so that they can
appropriately match older adults’ basic needs. The author also introduces CEG
(critical educational geragogy), which is based on a critical pedagogical
framework conceiving older adults as in control of their thinking and learning
and capable of further development.

Other issues explained in this chapter are self-concept, learner profiles,
self-directedness, the effects of learner’s prior experience and the role of
the instructor. Gomez believes that the ultimate goal of critical geragogy and
critical theory is to change society in a way that is more age friendly . She
terminates the chapter by emphasizing that older adults should examine and
reflect on their social situation and be empowered to transform it for the
better.

Chapter 5, Learner Re-training, mostly discusses older learners’ attitudes and
preconceptions about the FL learning experience and remarks that although,
because of aging, older adults lose or weaken some of their skills and
abilities, if they have a positive attitude about FL learning, they succeed in
it. Gomez claims that it is necessary for instructors to apply those teaching
methods that fit older learners’ cognitive and social characteristics and that
FL learning, in addition to being a leisure activity, should be a means of
improving older adults’ life conditions and social relations . The author
believes that FL learning should be content-based instead of function-based,
because,  through content-based methodology, older FL learners may identify
and discuss issues relevant to them.

Gomez also explores the role of instruction in FL teaching. Because of the
complexity of the material to be taught to older FL learners, instructors
should employ teaching styles that address  these difficulties.  Other factors
considered in this chapter include learners’ prior experience, self- concept
and learners’ profiles, each of which is explained in detail and tables
introduces some main characteristics of the learners’ profiles.

The most substantial part of the chapter is devoted to presenting some
practical activities, accompanied by their objectives, intended for an older
FL learners’ class; all of these activities should resulty in  the learners’
re-training, a process that helps the learner to develop self -knowledge,
accurate beliefs and a strategic behavior appropriate for themselves.

Finally, a general assessment of all activities is made and learners evaluate
the course prepared for them. Learners have reported that this course has
helped them acquire concrete knowledge about specific strategies and their 
use. In addition to the learners’ evaluation, Gomez ends the chapter by
remarking that learners’ re-training leads older learners to identify and
debunk common age related preconceptions that do not apply to their reality
and to acquire the tools for developing self-directedness and learning habits
appropriate to them.

Chapter 6, The Foreign Language Lesson, opens with a summary of the previous
chapters; in addition, the author presents a process model for the older
learners’ FL classroom. In this model, the author points to some features such
as learners’ preparation, climate, planning, needs diagnosis and evaluation.
She includes some recommendation for FL geragogical courses and lessons based
on the instructor’s beliefs about the learning process of Japanese younger and
older learners of Spanish and English. 

The author devotes other parts of the chapter to the issue of how tasks should
adjust the older learners’ physical, cognitive and psychological losses, such
as hearing or visual losses, and provides some recommendations. For cognitive
and psychological losses, she includes some recommendations too such as
simplifying activities that require conducting several tasks at the same time
or analyzing and defining learners’ goals.

In considering the instructor's authority, Gomez emphasizes that negotiation
should take place between the learners and the teacher to lead the learner to
develop self-directedness by accepting responsibility and control over their
learning process . This negotiation depends on the learners’ characteristics
according to Breen and Littlejohn(2000); it is suggested that the negotiation
process occur in stages.The chapter ends with some activities intended to
improve four skills in an FL learning program, namely listening, speaking,
reading and writing. Overall, the author aims at providing a framework for the
creation of courses and lessons for the age group under study in this chapter
and reminds us that lessons  should be organized in a way that buffers the
effects of absence, adapting visual and aural material and instruction. As the
final point, Gomez claims that many of the adjustments suggested in this
chapter are applicable to younger learners as well.

Chapter 7, “Recapitulation and Conclusions: The Criticality of an FL Geragogy”
gives a summary of other chapters by, first, reminding that the focus of this
volume is on FL learning in older adults, individuals who are 60 years old and
over and either totally or partially retired. It is claimed that little
research on teaching and learning a FL has been carried out on this age group
, and this was the impetus to Gomez to conduct such research, the reports of
which are given in this volume. Gomez also explains why children and adults
learn languages differently than older adults by mentioning some key factors
such as different developmental characteristics. Also mentioned is the age of
entering the second language community, which affects the proficiency level of
the language learner.

In addition, the Gomez discusses how an individual’s ability to notice,
analyze, organize and memorize input received, i.e., their cognitive and
physical condition, affect the learning process; but she provides some
evidence that age related cognitive problems such as reduction of gray matter
can be improved by older adults’ engagement in various activities. She
mentions some research findings that older adults  face different sets of
challenges during language learning but she emphasizes that there is no
evidence  that these challenges keep this age group from learning an FL to a
high level of proficiency.

Another point that attracts the attention is the case of different
methodologies the age group under consideration may experience. Gomez believes
that older learners may have been exposed to many language teaching
methodologies in the past which may bring about some problem for them when
they are exposed to current communicating FL teaching methodology because it
is assumed that these learners may be accustomed to previous methodologies. In
sum, this new situation may obstruct their recognition of instructional
discourse as the author of this volume puts it. 

The author develops a FL geragogy and includes it in 3 successive chapters
namely 4,5 and 6. Primary notions of education for adults and older adults,
lifelong education, the main principle of critical FL geragogy (CFLG) and
other related issues are the focus of the aforementioned chapters. 

In Chapter 5, the author asserts that old FL learners need to reexamine their
strategies and   evaluate their habits  to learn whether they match their
current psychological and cognitive characteristics.

A seven lesson course is designed for Japanese older learners of Spanish. This
lesson is regarded as a constructive and positive experience helping the
learners increase their metacognitive experiences.

Chapter 6 explains concrete techniques to be applied in classrooms with older
adult FL learners. These techniques are introduced in two forms: “a general
discussion of recommended modification” and “concrete checklists” to be
considered   during lesson planning. In addition to these techniques, a more
personal and detailed approach to VLS is introduced in order to improve
vocabulary learning capacity and vocabulary knowledge. 

The author, terminates this chapter by mentioning a few points: the
propositions in the current book may be applicable to younger adults; studies
on orientation and trajectories suggest that older adults’ experiences affect
their learning process which differs from what younger adults experience; and
younger adults show more homogenous interaction with experience. She also
states that her current work is not going to criticize instructors or course
developers but to ask course planners and instructors to put their effort into
developing more appropriate methodologies for the age group under
investigation . As her final contribution to this volume, she claims, “this
has been the main objective of this book: to spark a constructive debate on
this issue. A debate that is long overdue”.

EVALUATION

This volume is well written and contains few editorial flaws. The author
presents her research findings in detail and accompanied by theoretical
concepts from similar studies. For the most part, the chapters are presented
in a succinct fashion, going over the major findings in previous research
carried out by other researchers in the field before moving to her own
specific research facts and findings. 

Gomez has provided a brief summary of the issues discussed in each chapter in
the first section of each chapter and she has given an overview of the
chapters to the reader which has made the process of reading of the book
easier.   The seventh chapter of this volume serves as the final chapter and a
summary of the whole book as well. By reading this chapter, the reader can get
the general ideal of each chapter and important issues discussed before
starting to read them one by one.  Chapters are appropriately titled; and the
author has provided tables, figures and picture wherever possible, and this
has helped the comprehensibility  of the book. The author has also avoided
using long and complex sentences  and this makes different chapters quite easy
to read. 

My main quibble with this book is that in some parts of the book, such as
Chapter 6, the author asks the reader to bear in mind that the techniques she
is introducing and using in her book to improve FL learning in older adults
are indeed applicable to learners of all ages. But the author does not provide
any evidence that supports  her idea .

This book helps researchers, instructors and course and syllabus designers to
approach the issue of FL teaching to older adults from different perspectives
.

In sum, the writer does exactly what she had planned ; she introduces her main
concern, elaborates on it, provides lessons and programs, conducts a study,
reports the findings and reaches the conclusion she has intended. This
handbook could indeed be a very helpful starting point for any language
researchers, planners and instructors interested in engaging in an empirical
and practical study of teaching FLs to older adults.

REFERENCES

Formosa, M. 2012. Critical geragogy: Situating theory in practice. Journal of
Contemporary Educational Studies, 63/129 (5), 37–54.


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Sahar Farrahi Avval, from Iran<br />Ph.D candidate in ELT<br />17 years of
experience in TEFL at Iranian English language institutes<br />Interested in
psycho-linguistics, FLA, SLA, ESP/EAP, and studying cognitive factors
affecting language learning process <br /><br />Second email address:
sahar_ma28 at yahoo.com





------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*****************    LINGUIST List Support    *****************
Please support the LL editors and operation with a donation at:
            http://funddrive.linguistlist.org/donate/
 


----------------------------------------------------------
LINGUIST List: Vol-28-3463	
----------------------------------------------------------