Entry 2: Interview with an ELL
For this blog I decided to
interview my best friend, Lily, she is an English Language Learner who learned
the language at a young age. We have been best friends since high school.
During this interview, I actually learned a lot about her journey with learning
a new language that I did not know. Lily grew up speaking dominantly Spanish.
She was raised in a Spanish speaking house hold. It wasn't until she was four
years old when she started school when she was exposed to English. According to Ortega, "the individuals learning an
additional language are still young children when they start acquiring the L2”
(Ortega, 2013, 4) In this case, that is what happened. Of course, when she went
to the stores with her parents, she would hear other people speak English, but
she did not start learning it until she actually started school. She mentioned
that in school she would surround herself around kids who spoke Spanish just
like her, I imagine it made her feel more comfortable since that is what she
knew best.
Her story reminded me a lot
of my own, just like her it wasn't until I moved to CyFair district that I was
put in an English only classroom. Although, it was easier for me because I knew
both languages pretty well since I grew up in a household speaking both.
Overall, I consider Lily to be fluent in English like she stated she struggles
more with speaking Spanish now. I have heard her speak Spanish to her parents
and yes, it is a struggle for her now. Eventually English became more dominant
for her, which is normal for the Spanish to go away.
Ortega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge.
Ortega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge.
Hey Carina, I enjoyed watching your interview with your friend Lily. It's interesting to hear her mention that she would want to surround herself with other students who spoke Spanish just like she did because they could communicate in her L1 and she could stay in her comfort zone. Even though it seems like doing this wouldn't help her progress, I bet it helped a lot throughout learning English. Having those informal times to socialize with other students that could have possibly already known English and Spanish would have helped her gain that informal, relaxed exposure to the English language that she was first so unfamiliar with. Ortega points out that "students join language classes for the very concrete business of learning the L2," which I have always thought is only made better when students can couple their class learning time with informal social time practicing the use of the L2. I believe in Lily's case, she was getting the classroom instruction and making progress with English, but it also helped to have interactions with peers who spoke her L1 and L2 so she could make a smoother transition (2014, p. 69). The interview also reminded me how easy it is for a child to make the L2 their dominant language because “for most, one language is dominant, and this is often the community language rather than the home language” (Ortega, 2013). Just like you pointed out, she struggles with Spanish more now because English became what was most useful most often each day growing up in America. I have always thought that was so interesting, thanks for sharing the interview!
ReplyDeleteOrtega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge.
Hey Megan! Thank you for watching my video. I really did enjoy doing this interview just because I got the chance to interview my best friend. I found out some things about her that I did not know. I was not aware of her learning her L2 until she actually started school. Also, I could relate to her when she stated she would surround herself with other students who spoke Spanish. In my own journey of learning a second language, once I was placed in an English only classroom my classmates were mostly all Hispanic. Therefore, it was still like I was in a bilingual class except for the academic portion that was in English only.
DeleteHello Carina, I enjoyed watching your video and listening about your friend Lily’s English learning experience. I understand a lot of what she has gone through and what she means by feeling like she is more dominant now in her L2 rather than her L1 this has happened to me as well although I consider myself more of a simultaneous learner rather than a sequential learner. What I found the most interesting and relatable to most ELLs that was said in your interview was about how Lily stated she believed she managed to learn English by interacting with others in school, and now because she interacts with others more by using English, she finds herself more dominant in that language. This is a key statement to me because Ortega (2013) mentions that interaction is a key source to helping ELLs learn a new language because they must adjust and process the information they are receiving and sending out in order to properly interact with others (p. 61).
ReplyDeleteOrtega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge
Hey Yesenia! I appreciate you watching my video. I feel like it is easy for your second language to become more dominant than your first language. You spend so much time practicing it, it eventually becomes natural. Lily did mention that she learned English by interacting with others. I also believe this is another reason why the language became dominant. She began to surround herself with it, as it happens to many of us including myself. I am glad you enjoyed watching my video.
ReplyDeleteHi Carina! I really enjoyed watching your video! I relate to how your friend learned English, I learned English that way. Learning it by being around people that speak the language and and hearing them communicate solidifies the learning aspect. According to Ortega “Much in the linguistic environment, particularly in naturalistic settings, but also
ReplyDeletein today’s communicative classrooms, comes to learners in the midst of oral interaction with one or more interlocutors, rather than as exposure to monologicspoken or written discourse” (Ortega, 2013, 60) if you learn it in a more natural setting the language will come easier to the person learning it.
Ortega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge
Hello Carina, it is nice to meet you. First off you and your friend did a wonderful interview video. The picture was clear and the sound was good. During the video your friend mentions how when she was young she would spend time with her own people, or mainly Spanish speakers. This makes sense since youths tend to stick with their own people, because students her age who were Spanish speakers were part of her comfort zone. As she grew up however, she learned to improve her social skills and build her L2 to communicate with non-Spanish speakers. As Ortega mentions, “languages are almost always learned with and for others” (Ortega, pg.55). Eventually, as your friend grew older, she learned to speak Spanish to communicate with friends and adults who could not speak Spanish and build relationships with them.
ReplyDeleteOrtega, L. (2013). Understanding second language acquisition. Routledge.