A Critical Examination of the Beliefs about Learning a Foreign Language at Primary School

than many children from less advantaged backgrounds. Whether in the form of
the number of books in the home or in the form of holidays abroad, research
suggests that achievement at school is at least partially affected by such
factors.

4.7 Conclusion

Learning success and outcomes are likely to be the result of a ∞mplex
interplay between a host of factors, psychological, cognitive, affective, social,
pedagogical as well as the status of the language learned and its relevance,
real or perceived. Discussions in this chapter suggest that children of the same
chronological age can vary greatly in the degree of language awareness they
have attained, in their command of first language literacy skills, in their
application of learning strategies, their previous experiences, their motivation,
attentiveness and attitude towards the learning process as well as the language
itself, its speakers and its culture.

It would not seem unreasonable to suggest that those children who know how
to listen, who can pay attention and concentrate, who have a good command of
reading and writing skills, who have a degree of language awareness, who
display positive attitudes towards the total learning experience are more likely to
obtain from their lessons the quality and quantity of language input necessary
for successful learning and are thus more likely to make effective use of limited
teaching and learning time.

249

<<   246   247   248   249   250   251   252   >>

More intriguing information