Meaningful Learning in an EFL Classroom by The

8/10/2019 Meaningful Learning in an EFL Classroom by The

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Meaningful Learning in an EFL

Classroom by the Use of Visual

MDE. Francisco Ricardo Chvez Nolasco.


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Introduction

Since the beginning of our lives, we

develop visual skills; our central nervous

system is composed that it experiences

continuous stimuli through sensory organs

in order to permit contact with the outside

world.


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Reasons

I selected this topic because my students were losing

interest in the class. They considered English classes to be

boring, uninteresting, and even a waste of time.

I was constantly wondering which would be an

appropriate strategy to motivate students and at the sametime, favoring meaningful learning

Therefore, I decided to integrate flashcards and posters to

establish how effective they could be if they appeared at

different stages of the class.


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Structure

This study will be divided into three phases. The first

one parting from the inquisitive nature of adolescents

and their insatiable need to solve doubts which brought

out the need to look for strategies for students to learn.

The second one is the application of these strategies,

based on the idea that images create an impact that

allows students to learn. Finally, the last phase is

intended to show the results of what was obtained in

this process.


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Why

The reason for choosing the topic

MEANINGFUL LEARNING IN AN EFL

CLASSROOM BY THE USE OF VISUAL

AIDS is to implement the use of visual aids

and eventually, to focus on the result that

students have related to the use of these

visuals and the impact they may cause in the

learning process. Throughout the process I

will conduct various evaluation techniques

in order to obtain information that may

facilitate the analysis of the entire teaching-

learning process with the use of visual aids.


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Outcomes

The results will be obtained

through the analysis of didactic

sequences in 3rdgrade B where

students were exposed and

engaged into the topic in order

to concede meaningful

understanding of the target

language.


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Importance of images

I decided to use flashcards and posters in order to promote a

meaningful learning in the students of 3rdgrade B. I

considered these materials the most suitable to use in the

different didactic sequences applied because images and

clearer written dialogues were clearly served to help students

reach the threshold where they know enough to start

learning in a meaningful way.


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Advantages of using Visuals

Some of the advantages, of using flashcards andposters within the class, were that they optimized

my time in the different stages of the lesson.

During warm-ups, for instance, I showed a

flashcard and students felt rapidly engaged with

the content of the class. On the other hand, it was

even more difficult and took more of the

established time for a warm-up when I wanted to

motivate and engage my students with an oral

instruction.


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Students learning

Some checklists were designed in order

to give me and structure and framework

of my students learning process.

Moreover, they were related to learning

objectives and used to assess students

performance. Each one included a set of

criteria related to the use of visual

materials but also to evaluate students

productions.


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Evaluation

With the application of all the didactic sequences and the use of the

different checklist I was able to notice the impact that these classes were

causing on my students. First of all, the 3rdgrade B students were rarely

familiarized with the use of different materials.

Hence, students showed interest when an image was presented and their

participation gradually increased; Grover Tuttle (1975) mentioned that

visual material lends excitement and interest to the foreign language class;

students can become more actively involved through the use of visual

material.

Thus, it was a great experience to perceive a motivation environment

where students had the opportunity to learn English in a meaningful way.


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My learning

I realized that flashcards and posters were favorable in mystudents learning process; students showed a positive attitude

when I integrated these visual resources. Visual material can

play an imaginative role in foreign language instruction. Visual

material can be used in as many ways as you or your students

imaginations allow. The use of visual material will help make

foreign language learning an enjoyable, life- like activity.


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Challenges

My main troubles and challenges in this

Specialization were related to time.

Sometimes I had no opportunity to

complete tasks and I missed some of

them. Luckily I could finish my final

project which to be honest seemed so

hard to do it.


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Bibliography

Kurtz, L. (2006). Visual Perception Problems

in Children with AD/ HD, Autism and other

learning disabilities. A Guide for parents and

Proffessionals. London, UK: Athenaeum

Press.

Tuttle, H. (1975). Using visual materials in

the foreign language classroom. Learning

Resources, Vol. 2, pp. 9-13.


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Thanks for allIt was a greatexperience

being learningwith you all.

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Meaningful Learning in an EFL Classroom by The