English Only Classrooms: Helpful or Not?

#languageteaching #english #learnenglish #teacher #esl #esol #ell #instructor #professor #polyglot #monolingualism #purist #bilingualism #microaggression #helpful #intolerance #culturaldiversity #latin #greek #german #culturallyinsensitive #englishteaching

I have a confession. I do not believe in being a language purist when it comes to English language teaching. Is that shocking? I have been teaching English as a Second Language for about 6 or 7 years now. I started out teaching English online for one of China's leading education companies. I now teach at a language school in the evenings and am an ESOL Lecturer in the daytime at a college here in New York (this is important for understanding the rest of the post). Oh wait, did I mention: I have studied four languages myself. So, I have had my share of experience being a language student too, which helps me relate to my students.

I have taught students from Madagascar, China, Japan, the Caribbean, Kenya, Jordan, Benin, Brazil, South Korea and various Spanish speaking countries. What I have found is this: when I am able to validate a student's understanding of something, it helps them immensely. I myself used to make linguistical connections between my understanding in different languages.

Then Why Are so Many Language Schools Shouting at Their Students "English Only!"?

For years there has been information leading us to believe that language purity and diving head first in a new language is the only way to learn a language. "English Only!" has been the motto of English language teaching for years. I want to challenge this. I do agree that, after a certain level of fluency is achieved, language purity is important. To begin a language this way could be discouraging. I have found that warning students "English Only!" pushes students away. It could also defer students from making their own language connections. "Speak English!" "Stop speaking Spanish!" "Stop speaking Mandarin!" is what the students hear from their instructors daily. They are in classrooms with posters on the walls: "Only English is Allowed!". Why must we 'other' our students? Why do we make their native language criminal in the classroom? How can a student learn in an environment of micro-aggressions? Is speaking English only actually helpful? Have these "English Only!" rules been created by polyglots or monolinguists?

Using my Knowledge of Languages to Validate a Student

For my Chinese students, verb tenses are a new subject. Chinese dialects do not have the complex verb tense system English has. Knowing this about their language, allows me to help my Mandarin speaking students because knowing other languages helps me to be a better English teacher. Take the English present progressive (continuous) verb tense. In Spanish, this could be understood as the "ando" ending. For example: hablar: estoy hablando= I am talking. For my Spanish speaking students, the present progressive is not a new concept and not a uniquely English concept. However, I am not allowed to simply say "yes" when my student says "ah como ando?" (oh just like 'ing' in Spanish?). The language center I teach at in the evenings prohibits the use of anything but English in the classroom (whether it's spoken or comparative) and I have been instructed that I am not allowed to tell my students I speak Spanish. To see my students not grasping something they already know is disheartening but more importantly not being allowed to use my own education to help them (or give a quick validation) is infuriating. Additionally, I must admit that when I am pressured to warn my students to "Speak English Only!" it makes me feel culturally intolerant and insensitive towards my students.

When I Can Use Other Languages in the Classroom

The college I lecture at does not have a strict "English Only" pressure. Our English prefixes, suffixes, and root words are often found in Latin, German, and Greek. When I lecture I always point out these prefixes, suffixes, and root words to my students. I then ask them: Does this mean anything in your language? Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. But, doing this allows me to teach my students to teach themselves and to make connections. They learn to dissect words and extract information.

A classroom that comes together, is a classroom that grows together. My goal is to always make my students feel comfortable, confident, and connected in the classroom but more importantly: with me. Shouting "English Only!" could not only be perceived as culturally intolerant but English itself is not only English. English is made up of various different languages... so why are we still shouting "English Only"?