Facing up to Frustration:Taking Control of Learning

MEXTESOL Regional Conference 2016

Laura Sagert (laura.sagert@cide.edu) CC BY-SA 3.0

Photo credit: Matthias Ripp (2014) “Locked”. Flickr 15868178370_fceace541e_z. CC BY 2.0

ENGLISH = FRUSTRATION?

Why might learners (or users) of English become frustrated?

Share your observations with the person next to you.

•To what extent do you agree or disagree?

CLARIFYING TERMS

Phrasal verbs and affective states

Facing up

Image credits: Adam Jones (2012). “Young Mayan Girl” Flickr 20128250897733_7888bb3d90_z. CC BYDiacritica (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons Dice (typical role paying dice)Asangi (2012) "Supine and prone" Licensed under CC0 via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Supine_and_prone_2012-02-20.jpg#/media/File:Supine_and_prone_2012-02-20.jpg

Up, down, off?

• face down

• “To attain mastery over or overcome by confronting in a resolute, determinedmanner.”• We face down an enemy or opponent.

• face off (Sports) “To start play in ice hockey, lacrosse, and other games by releasing the puck or ball between two opposing players.”

• lose face To lose our “value or standing in the eyes of others; prestige”• Just as we would not like to lose face in front of our students, we should not make our

students lose face in front of their peers.

• face up

• “To confront an unpleasant situation with resolution and assurance.”• Both teachers and students need to face up to the fact frustration is part of any complex

learning process.

Adapted from Webster’s College Dictionary (Random House) via The Free Dictionary (face)

CONFUSION

• not understanding or not knowing what to do

• mistaking one thing or person for another

• unclear, messy, or disorganized instructions or information

Photo credit: TheHuxCapacitator (2012) “This had me confused for hours!” Flickr 7443943968_dd6ec18d38_z. CC BY 2.0.

BOREDOM• lacking interest in

one’s current activity or having nothing to do

Bored students quickly become disengaged.Once students get bored, they tend to stay bored. We can become bored if something is too easy –or if it is too hard. (Baker et al, 2010: D’Mello et al, 2012)

Photo credit: Claudine Antoinette Francisco (2010). “Bored during my management class”. Flickr 5023500204_af403782c7_z

FRUSTRATION• feeling upset,

irritated, impatient or annoyed because we can’t do (or get) what we want

• blocked from reaching, or perhaps even progressing towards, a goal

Photo credit: OakelyOriginals (2009) “Late night mathematics”. Flickr 3393259139_c621008ec1_z. CC BY 2.0.

ONE EMOTION: TWO SIDES

• X He used to read in the morning. “But, that’s right. It’s what he normally does…Hmm, he + s, used to, ah, usually. He usually reads in the morning”. (epistemic)

• X He made the dishes. “I always get make and do wrong. I just can’t get it right.” (achievement)

• I didn’t get the score I need on the TOEFL. What’s wrong with me. (achievement)

EPISTEMIC (COGNITIVE PROCESS)

• Surprise• Curiosity • Anxiety (marked

incongruity)• Enjoyment (solving problem)• Frustration (not able to

solve problem)

ACHIEVEMENT

Focus on personal failure, not being able to solve problem

(Pekrun and Linnenbruck-Garcia, 2014)

THINKING ABOUT LANGUAGE LEARNING

WHERE DOES FRUSTRATION COME IN?

THE INHERENT FRUSTRATIONS OF LANGUAGE LEARNING (?)

BRAINSTORM

•Work with a small group to prepare a list of some of the frustrating aspects of learning English (or another additional language).

Are these inherent to language learning?

KEY APECTS TO CONSIDER

•THE LANGUAGE ITSELF

•L1–L2 DIFFERENCES

•MISCONCEPTIONS •about language•about language learning

FRUSTRATIONS OF LEARNING ENGLISH?

Image credits: All three images on this page are CCO (Public Domain) images taken from Pixabay.

read, said, bedbusy, women, villagebear, hair, mayor

TO BE

Actually, that extra spending money was given to Ann for her having made dessert, done the dishes, and assisted her mother with various other chores.

THINKING ABOUT LANGUAGE LEARNING

HOW DO WE LEARN LANGUAGES ANYWAY?

NO SIMPLE ANSWER

THERE IS NOT ONE CORRECT ANSWER.

HOW DO WE LEARN LANGUAGES ANYWAY?

COGNITIVE

Attention

Remembering

Categorizing

Generalizing

Thinking

Identifying patterns:(Sounds,

words, syntax, genre, context, functions, …)

(Ellis and Robinson, 2008)

THINKING. RECOGNIZING. UNDERSTANDING.

Image credit: John Hain/Public Domain CC0 via Pixabay

SOCIOCOGNITIVE

MIND-BODY-WORLD: integrated, inseparableCognition affects (extends into) the world.Learning=default state (of humans)Situated activity system (classroom only one type)(Atkinson, 2011)

INTEGRATION: MIND-BODY-WORLD. DEFAULT STATE: LEARNING.

Image credits: Public domain images via Pixabay. (Gerald, Mind: Barli1, Hand [with bird]: Ju_sajjad0, Hand [with wire])

SOCIO-CULTURALUse of language to mediate communication and mental activity

Different learners need different types of mediation—even for the same language point.

Shift from focus on accuracy (teacher as audience?) to fluency and relevance (interest in topic).

Self-talk: mediation of mental activity) in L2 is extremely difficult for even advanced users.(Lantolf (in Atkinson (ed.), 2011)

MEDIATION. SELF-TALK. DIFFERENT FOCUS, DIFFERENT OUTPUT.

DIFFERENT LEARNERS, DIFFERENT MEDIATION NEEDS.

Image credit: Public domain images via Pixabay (Skeeze Boxer; jsks Anime)

LANGUAGE SOCIALIZATION

Language as much more than a linguistic code

Language development + other forms of knowledge learned in or through language

Culture + social knowledge

Use of language to markhierarchy and status

Routines = communication repertoires(Duff and Talmy n Atkinson, 2011)

SOCIAL KNOWLEDGE. COMMUNICATION REPERTOIRES. STRATIFICATION.

Image credits: Public domain CC0 images via Pixabay. (Darvinsantos: Boy girl + beach); Rodro: Street)

IDENTITY APPROACHLanguage as a complex social practice involved in the definition, and resistance, of identities

Inequitable power relations

Social construction of identity and affective factors

Learner investment, or not, in the social language practices of a specific classroom/learning context(Norton and McKinney in Atkinson (Ed.), 2011)

MULTIFACETED SENSE OF SELF. IDENTITY: INEQUITIES OF POWER, NEGOTIATION, RENEGOTIATION, RESISTANCE.

Image credit: CC0 public domain images via Pixabay (Snips and clips, Geralt, eommina)

COMPLEXITY THEORYLanguage as a complex adaptive system

Context of use—emergence of patterns of language use

New circumstances —change

Interaction—change in language resources (adaptive imitation)

Heterochronic: different times /intermittent(Larsen-Freeman in Atkinson (Ed.), 2011)

CONSTANT CHANGE. ADAPTIVE IMITATION. INTERACTION.

Image credit: Zachary Veach (2009). “Dynamic system”. CC-By 2.0 via Flickr 3510995344_0de002e2cf_z

What experiences, or lack thereof, do our students bring to class?

See the full Mexicanos Primeros(2015) report at http://www.mexicanosprimero.org/index.php/educacion-en-mexico/como-esta-la-educacion/estado-de-la-educacion-en-mexico/sorry-2015)

Prior Learning? Current classes?

•Quality? Equity?

• Focus on accuracy at the expense of meaning?

• “It’s just an example teacher”?

• Today we are going to do pages 94‒97?

• Focus on grades, or exam scores, rather than linguistic competence?

•Work on only some skills or weak L1 skills?

•Boredom / exasperation / frustration?

BLOCKAGE OR OBSTACLES

BUT, TO WHAT EXACTLY?

Image credit: Alberto G (2006) Exam. CC BY. 2.0 via Flickr : albertogp123/5843577306

TAKING CONTROL: WHO AND WHY?

Image credit: Public domain CC0 via Pixabay. (Geralt)

PERSEVERANCEREALISTIC

EXPECTATIONS

Image credit: Geralt. Don’t Give Up and The Way Forward. Public domain images (CC0) via Pixabay.

SELF-REGULATIONAROUSAL STATES

inhibition(zoned out)

asleep

drowsy

hypo alert

calmly focused and alert

activation (stressed out)

hyperalert

flooded (overwhelmed)

Self-awareness

Ability to respond to stressors and maintain, or return to , a state of emotional equilibrium

Identify:

▪different arousal states.

▪sources of stress.

Modulate:

▪different states of arousal

Not = compliance, self-control or self-discipline(Shanker, 2012; Shanker, 2013)

“When children are calmly focused and alert, they are best able to modulate their emotions; pay attention; ignore distractions; inhibit their impulses; assess the consequences of an action; understand what others are thinking and feeling, and the effects of their own behaviours; or feel empathy for others.” (Shanker, 2013)

STRESSORS

biological regulation of physical arousal state

emotional monitoring and changingemotional responses

cognitive maintaining and shifting attention, sequencing thoughts, dealing with frustration and distractions

social rules of appropriate behavior

pro-social Empathy

SELF-EFFICACYSOURCES OF SELF-EFFICACY

SuccessReaching a goal that required sustained effort and perseverance.

Social modelsSeeing others succeed, with sustained effort, at tasks perceived to be similar.

Social persuasionBeing persuaded they are capable of doing something can help people achieve this target.

(Caution. It is easier to undermine than foster motivation. Unrealistic persuasion is counterproductive and quickly belied by disappointing outcomes. A more effective approach would be to constructing situations in which learners will succeed.)

Controlling stress and negative emotionsPerception of one’s physical and emotional state or reactions is a key differentiator.

(Bandura, 1994)

Our beliefs about our capability to act in such a way as to influence the outcome of events in our lives. Personal agency.

Success tends to increase our sense of self-efficacy.

Failure (real or perceived) tends to decrease this sense.(Bandura, 1994)

EMPATHY

UNDERSTANDING ANOTHER’S FEELINGS, THOUGHTS, ATTITUDES, SITUATION, POINT OF VIEW.

Imagining what it is like to “be in their shoes”

Image credits: Public domain CC0 images via Pixabay. (Argaplek, Boys talking; Stocksnap, Shoes)

THANK YOULaura Sagert (laura.sagert@cide.edu)

ReferencesAtkinson, Dwight (Ed.) Alternative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition. London and New York: Routledge, 2011.

Baker, Ryan, Sidney K. D’Mello, Ma. Mercedes Rodrigo, Arthur C. Graesser (2010) “Better to be Frustrated than Bored: The Incidence, Persistence, and Impact of Learner’s Cognitive-Affective States during Interactions with Three Different Computer-based Learning Environments”. International Journal of Human-Computer Studies 68, no. 4 (2010): 223-241.

Bandura, Albert. “Self-efficacy” In V. S. Ramachaudran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of human behavior Vol. 4. New York: Academic Press, 1994: 71-81

D’Mello, Sidney, Roger Taylor and Art Graesser “Monitoring Affective Trajectories During Complex Learning” in Norbert M. Seel (Ed) Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning . Springer US, 2012. pp. 2325-2328 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4419-1428-6_849

Pekrun; Reinhart and Lisa Linnenbruck-Garcia (2014). “Introduction to Emotions in Education” in Reinhart Pekrun and Lisa Linnenbrink-García, Eds) International Handbook of Emotions in Education. New York: Routledge, 2014: 1-10

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. Via “Face” The Free Dictionary http://www.thefreedictionary.com/face

Robinson, Peter and Nick C. Ellis. Handbook of Cognitive Linguistics and Second Language Acquisition. New York and London: Routledge, 2008.

Shanker, Stuart. “Calm, Alert and Happy” Ontario Ministry of Education/ Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 2013. https://www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/Shanker.pdf

Shanker, Stuart. “The Self-Regulated Student” in learn, Summer+Fall, 2012 pp. 4-6. Accessed through The Canadian Self-Regulation Initiative (http://www.self-regulation.ca/uploads/5/6/2/6/56264915/learn_magazine_-_the_self-regulating_student.pdf)