Foreign Language Learning Problems and the At-Risk Learner

This article was about identifying students who may be at-risk learners of a
foreign language and what steps can be taken to help them achieve in the acquisition of a
foreign language. The article said that many students who have previously had a history
of trouble in their native language are more likely to be at-risk when learning a foreign
language. It is important to not only look at their performance and use of their native
language, but also to review their academic histories. If they have had a history of any
native language acquisition problems, this could also show a possible difficulty in foreign
language learning (43).
The studies that were talked about in this article compared low risk and high risk
students and found that the students who were at a higher risk for trouble with foreign
language learning also displayed difficulties with phonology and orthography in their
native language (p.41). Students who had also been previously diagnosed with a learning
disability in their native language were at a higher risk to have trouble learning another
language.
The article, besides identifying these difficulties an at-risk learner may have, gave
suggestions to differentiate instruction and to provide successful guidance for these
students. Some of the main accommodations that the article offered were help form
personal tutors, use of oral and visual material, slower pace of instruction and untimed
tests (46).
I feel that this article is very valid. It has studies that help to support the main
ideas regarding foreign language learners and their potential difficulties. This article is
mainly geared towards university students, but it also spoke of secondary level students.
Many of the ideas for accommodation of instruction could be applicable to either area
and I feel that the article is suitable for either higher level or lower level instructors to
reference. The concepts could be applied to all foreign language learners and used to help
a learner of any language with overcoming their difficulties.
I thought that this article was very helpful and informative. It had many ideas in it
that I can use with students in my classroom that may be having troubles learning
Spanish. It gave many ideas of where I should start when I encounter a student having
difficulty learning the language. I can start by looking at their other subjects and their use
of native language and by using this information, I can better determine how to help the
student and what the root of their problems may be. This article also gave great ideas on
how to accommodate students with learning difficulties. Whether the student has a
learning disability or is having difficulties with learning a foreign language, it provided
way to differentiate instruction that I felt were valuable.

Learning and Teaching Styles in Foreign and Second Language Education

This article focused on the many differences in student learning styles and how
educators can change their approach to help fit their student's various needs. It especially
drew attention to effective learning styles for foreign language classes and how a foreign
language is best learned. It spoke of the different types of learners that will be found in a
classroom. Some students may be sensory and some will be intuitors, some visual
learners, and others verbal learners. There are many differences in how students will learn
in the classroom and the article gave ideas on how to combine teaching techniques to
cater to the needs of each learner.
Students may also be either holistic learners or sequential learners. It may be
easier for them to look at components of a concept and build from those or they may be
able to grasp large concepts and make leaps in their learning (25). Students are also
usually either inductive or deductive and this too will be a difference in learning styles
that affects foreign language learning.
This article can apply to all types of language learners at different levels. It gave
great advice on how to manage instruction and make changes for different learning styles.
All age groups could benefit from the differentiated instruction suggestions in this article.
It is a great article for educators that provides insight on ways to help combine strategies
and make learning multidimensional.
This article was very valuable to me as a future educator. It explained the many
different ways in which students may learn. I was able to recognize the learning styles
that I have and how I have been able to use different learning techniques to learn a
language. This article showed me that each student has many different learning styles and
needs and that combining methods and different teaching techniques will provide the best
learning environment for foreign language students. Combining strategies that are visual
and auditory, or inductive and deductive can benefit all students and provide challenges
and also a more fulfilling learning experience for students.

Foreign Language Production and Avoidance in US University Spanish-Language

Education
This article was about a study done at a U.S. university to look at the retention of
grammatical elements of the Spanish language. The article looked at four different levels
of Spanish classes and compared their instruction and assessment methods. The article
also focused on the issue of avoidance that is possibly occurring in foreign language
classrooms.
The article said that many U.S. classes of foreign language specifically focus on
grammar (223). This focus is meant to help students proficiently and effectively
communicate in their target language. The problem that was found however is that the
grammatical elements taught in classes are not usually found in the actual production of
the language when students are being assessed. It was also found that avoidance of the
target language could play a part in this acquisition of grammatical elements. Some
students may either be choosing which elements of the language will only get them by, or
they may simply be ignorant to the parts of language they are not learning.
The study found that the higher level courses were using more grammatical
complexity in their assessments, but that they still were not using a large amount of the
structures taught to them. In speaking assessments, students were the same way and could
not always complete sentences. When they did have complete thoughts, they still did not
fully employ the grammatical structures taught to them in class (235).
A solution that this article offered was to explicitly and continuously engage
students in use of the target language and all the concepts to which they are learning.
With continual practice and high expectations of the grammatical instruction, students
will hopefully exhibit higher acquisition of the target language.
This article is very useful for educators who may be having trouble getting
desired results from their students. It shows that educators need to continuously engage
their students and push them to be better learners. Even though this article studied
university age students, it could be applied to students at the secondary level. Students at
the secondary level will be learning some of the same things and it is just as important to
focus and teach the grammatical elements to this age group in the same way.
I thought this article was very informative and I can take what I learned from it
and apply it to my future classroom. I will need to be aware of students who may not be
using all grammatical elements we learn. To help them with this, I could give more direct
instruction on what specific grammatical elements a students need to include in
assessments and assignments. This would push them to use what we learn and class and
help them know that I expect them to be able to use all concepts we cover.

Annotated Bibliography
Felder, Richard M., and Eunice R. Henriques. "Learning and Teaching Styles In Foreign
and Second Language Education." Foreign Language Annals 28.1 (1995): 2131. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
This article examined different learning and teaching styled and how they can be
used together in a classroom to fully benefit the students. It provided information
how the many different types of learners that may be encountered in a classroom
and how activities and techniques that will help them learn to their fullest. It also
showed the benefits of a multidimensional instructional approach to foreign
language education.
This article is beneficial for educators of any subject, but especially offers advice
for those of a foreign language. The detailed descriptions of different learning
styles offer a full picture that is easy to understand. This article could be applied
to learners of all ages and could help educators learn how to best develop
instruction and differentiate for their learners.
Hubert, Michael D. "Foreign Language Production and Avoidance in US University
Spanish-language Education." International Journal of Applied
Linguistics 21.2 (2011): 222- 43. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
This article was about foreign language instruction in university classrooms and
the focus on grammatical concepts in these classes. It focused on the problem that
students in these classes however are not producing the proper grammatical
concepts in their assessments even though there is such a heavy focus on these.
This article is valid and beneficial to educators at all levels even though it is about
university education. It shows that expectations for students need to be made clear
and assessments should be geared toward what is learned in class. Learning needs
to be based off of the desired learning outcome. This article can be applied to all
learners and is a good reminder that educators need to have high and known
expectations and direct and specific instruction.
Sparks, Richard L. "Foreign Language Learning Problems and the At-Risk
Learner." Research and Teaching in Developmental Education 12.1 (1995): 3953. New York College Learning Skills Association. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
This article focused on how to identify and help students who may be at-risk
learners of a foreign language. It provided details on what areas of academic and
personal history can be especially helpful in identifying these students. It also
gave advice on how these students can be given extra help and how instruction
can be differentiated to help them learn.

This article is valid and supports its arguments with studies done with university
students. It is geared towards college age students but could be beneficial for
instructors of the secondary level as well. The suggestions in this article can be
used to help student learn at a fuller potential. It can also be used to asses which
students may be have a more difficult time learning a foreign language so that the
educator is aware of this before instruction begins.