CONTOH MAKALAH PSIKOLINGUISTIK LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS, NEEDS, AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN L1 AND L2 LEARNING

LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS, LEARNER NEEDS, AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN L1 AND L2 LEARNING

I.                   LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS

Every learner has his/her own characteristics, depends on the person itself. The characteristics affect the process of learning of the learners. By knowing learner characteristics, a teacher can treat them better and optimaze the learner’s learning process. According to the Index of Learning Styles survey by Barbara Solomon and Richard Felder, there are eight characters of learners as follows :

1.      ACTIVE LEARNERS:

ü  Learn best by doing

ü  “Let’s try it out and see if it works”

ü  Like group work

ü  Lecture classes are challenging

ü  May have difficulty when they always act before they think

ü  Should try to work and study in groups or with a partner

2.      REFLECTIVE LEARNERS:

ü  Like to process information before trying it out

ü  “Let’s think through it first”

ü  Like to work alone

ü  May have trouble getting started if they think too long before acting

ü  When learning new information, should stop periodically and try to apply it in new ways

3.      SENSING LEARNERS:

ü  Like to learn facts

ü  Like to use established methods to solve problems

ü  Resent being ‘thrown curves’ ( ie being tested on something that hasn’t been ‘covered’)

ü  Are patient with detail work and are good at memorizing

ü  Like hands-on work

ü  Like learning things that have a direct connection to the ‘real world’

ü  Should ask for specific examples when task is unclear

4.      INTUTIVE LEARNERS:

ü  Prefer to discover new ideas and connections

ü  Like abstract problems

ü  Prefer to work quickly

ü  Don’t like to memorize or do routine calculations

ü  Should try to discipline themselves to check work to make sure careless mistakes haven’t been made

5.      VISUAL LEARNERS:

ü  Remember what they see—timelines, demonstrations, flowcharts

ü  Create timelines for projects, papers, tests

ü  Color code tasks        

6.      VERBAL LEARNERS:

ü  Prefer written or spoken instructions

ü  Should write summaries of tasks in own words

ü  Should try to work in groups or with a partner whenever possible

7.      SEQUENTIAL LEARNERS:

ü  Like to follow steps in learning and in finding solutions

ü  May know a great deal about each step of process, but have a hard time understanding ‘the big picture’

ü  Should try to fill in missed steps by asking instructor or supervisor

ü  Should try to think ahead to end product, even if he/she is not sure what it might be

8.      GLOBAL LEARNERS:

ü  Tend to learn in large leaps, without necessarily processing all steps

ü  Have many “A-ha!” moments

ü  Sometimes have difficulty explaining how they reach conclusions

ü  Are not detail-oriented

ü  Should find out as much as possible about a new project, task, or topic before tackling assignment

II.                LEARNER NEEDS

Every learner has a various kind of needs when she or he learn a foreign language. The needs will be influence in his/her learning. The needs could be personal needs such as praise to motivate the learner or a needs to play, learning needs such as a need to become more fluent, or professional needs such as a needs to have a good English to be going to study at an English-medium university. The table bellow will be contain of the kind of learners.

LEARNER NEEDS
Kind of needs	Reason for needs
Personal needs e.g. Security, challenge, support, praise, movement, goals, learning expectations, other psychological or physical needs	Age Gender Cultural background Interests Educational background Motivation Personality
Learning needs e.g. Specific ways of learning, specific target language, specific language subskills, exam strategies, learner autonomy, working at a suitable level	Learning styles Past language learning experience Learning gap (gap between the learner’s present level and the target level of language proficiency) Learning goals and expectations for the course Level of skill and knowledge Availability of time exam
(Future) professional needs e.g. Specific subskills, specific vocabulary and grammar, specific functions, specific types.	Professional language requirements for employment, training or education

Learners at primary or secondary level may have personal needs such as praise and playing. In their age, they still feel happy to be praised with everything they do. It also could motivate them to do good stuff. They also like to play around with their friends to get an experience. Adults or older teenagers usually will have professional or academic needs. For example they will need it to prepare their university entrance exam or  older learners who may be going to study at an English-medium university. And the other older learners who need it to get a specific job or to start new job duties.

To meet a learners in school, the teachers can find out through observation, questionnaires or through discussing them with students in the class. Learner needs can affect many things related to their learning, in example which methods or approaches they like the teacher to use, what topics interest them, what language and skill they have to focus on, and what materials they prefer. And to face the learner needs, the school should provide different kind of courses such as activity-based courses for younger learners, medical English for doctors, study skill courses for learners wishing to go to an English-medium school or university, etc.

III.             DIFFERENCES BETWEEN L1 AND L2 LEARNING

What are the difference between L1 and L2 Learning?

In according Lynne Cameron (Language Learning Library,Cambridge, p.12), ”when we learn our first language we are likely to learn it in different way and difference contexts from we learn  a second language. And think about the  learne’s age , ways of learning and context they are learning in”.

1.      L1 Learning

a.       Age is from learning stars from baby and continue through childhood.

b.      Babies learn language at the same time as their cognitive skills

c.       Learners are motivated to learn language as they need to communicate.

2.      L2 Learning

a.       Starts in primary or secondary school. It may also start and continue in adulthood.

b.      Learners may be still developing or have developed their cognitive skills.

c.       Adult learners may already have expectations about how languages should be learned. Based on past experiences of learning, some may or may not be motivated to learn the language.

It means that context of learning,

L1 learning is we can  exposure and picking up language, hearing the language all the time, and needing to communicate. And through interaction with family. Then, Have lots of opportunities to experiment with language. On the other hand, Bet lots of praise and encouragement for using the language.

For L2 Learning is through being taught specific language items. Often by focusing on structures and individual words. Learners are not exposed to the L2 very much - often only in class (3-4 hours a week). Teachers have vary the amount of praise or encouragement. And for learner may receive little or no individual attention. In addition, learners are often asked to produce correct language and are corrected by teachers.

Differences between L1 and L2 learning?

In according from Diane Larsen-Freeman from book (In Language teaching as a Second Language, Oxford), L1 and L2 is actually we can learn our first language as a baby and as a young child and continue to build our language as we grow older and learn different kinds of language and language skills.

According to   Diane Larsen-Freeman,  we are talking about L1 is from the babies and children are surrounded by their first language. They hear and see their families, friends and strangers talking and interacting with each other and friends and family interact with them. Children are constantly provided with opportunities to use the language and to experiment with the language as they are learning it and they receive constant praise and encouragement for their efforts. Parents encourage and persuade their children to talk by simplifying their own language and directing simple questions and requesting simple responses. When children’s language is inaccurate, adults very rarely correct them or make them repeat accurate forms and they will, more often than not, respond to the utterance in anatural way.

Babies and children learn language by ‘acquiring’ it through exposure and by picking it up. They are generally highly motivated to learn their first language because they have a great need and desire to communicate with others around them. They hear and see friends and family communicating with each other and they will listen and take in this language and process it during a ‘silent period’, possibly lasting many months, before using language themselves. When children start using language the language they use will be about things they see around them and they will play and experiment with new language. They learn through this experimentation and through interaction with family and friends.

And then, most people learn their second language at school in a classroom. Some start at primary school or secondary school and their learning might continue in later life. Some people begin second language learning as adults and attend lessons along with the other things they do in their lives.

In my point of view about L2 is Second language learners do not usually hear or read more than three or four hours a week of the second language, so they do not have much exposure to the language. The exposure they do get is generally in the classroom, where they will hear recordings and read texts and will have the teacher to listen to. Teachers often simplify their language so are not necessarily a source of additional exposure to language and they usually correct students frequently. In class, the opportunities for second language learners to use the language vary, as does the amount of praise and encouragement provided by the teacher and other learners.

Second language learners, like L1 learners, do learn language by ‘acquiring’ it through exposure but they are more likely to learn language in a classroom and the language they learn is selected by teachers. They learn by interacting with the teacher and with other learners and by using language in controlled practice activities. In the classroom, learners often want to produce the language as soon as possible and do not always welcome the opportunity of a silent period. They use language for talking about experiences and things relating to their lives outside the classroom. Learning is often dependent on motivation and this can vary in second language learners, from learners having little or no motivation to learners being very highly motivated.

The point of view from two according we have get result or resume  in learning for students about L1 and L2.

According to Lynne Cameron and Diane Larsen-Freeman. They have same argument about difference between L1 and L2.

Keep motivation  learning is necessary for successful language learning, but learners may not be very motivated so teachers can make use of strategies to motivate their students. Remember, learners are different from one another so we should try to personalize our teaching learning to match their learning needs and preferences.Some learners may find a silent period useful, but some learners, especially adults, may not. And exposure to language is important for learning. We can encourage learners to use English as much as possible in and out-of-class time.

We can Interaction is a way of learningand we can try to simplify our language to a level that learners can learn from and avoid correcting them too much. They need to build up their fluency, motivation and confidence. In the classroom, praising learners can be very motivating. younger learners respond well to praise. We can also try to give learners as much individual attention as possible.

IV.             CONCLUSION

All learners have their own characteristics how they learn or getting knowledge. Based on the explanation above, learners are divided into severah characters. And also learner needs is different for each other. Learners characteristics and needs affect the process of getting knowledge.

In learning L1 and L2, there are several differences that explained in the explanation above. How a learner learn L1 and learn L2 are totally different, start from the beginning until the result. L2 will never as perfecly as learning L1.

LESSON PLAN

Topic : The Sound of Animal

Method : Direct Method

Skill : Speaking and Reading

Objectives : Students are able to know and memorize the sound of animal.

Activity :

Introduction Activity

1)      Teacher greets students and asks them to pray together led by the captain.

2)      Teacher asks students’s feeling of today.

3)      Teacher asks students to turn off or silent all gadgets (mobile phone, mp3, laptop, etc.)

4)      Teacher asks students whether they are ready to learn.

5)      Teacher asks about it randomly to make sure.

Main Activity

1)      Teacher tells a story about him/herself. He/she woke up this morning several times because of animal’s sounds.

2)      Teacher gives the example of the sounds.

3)      Teacher asks to the students what animal are in their houses and ask students to give the example of the sounds.

4)      Teacher shows animal’s pictures and ask them to give the example of the sound.

5)      Teacher shows a video.

6)      Teacher asks about the video to several students.

7)      Teacher gives a paper contain a story with several blanks and ask student one by one to stand up and read it. The rest are asked to give the sound when the name of animal is mentioned.

8)      Teacher gives an applause for every student.

Closing Activity

1)      Teacher asks students what they have learned today.

2)      Teacher asks students’s feeling of today after learning and playing a game.

3)      Teacher asks students to pray together led by the captain.

4)      Teacher thanks to students.