The most crucial part of correcting non-speakers is by starting with the understanding that they are learning, and it is a process that has to take time for them to become conversant with the language. It is significant for them to take it step by step. Learning few words at a time, then moving on to phrases. Keep the sentences as brief as possible to avoid getting lost on what to say next. Learning, in this case, is not just about speech but also an adjustment to a new culture. The teacher does not just start teaching. They need to understand the cultural differences for the student so as to have a clear picture of what will make it easier for them (Sravani,2016)
Most people would argue that English is well taught by native speakers. According to Kiczkowiak, it is not true. The best English teacher is one that is qualified, experienced and willing to teach the students. Any teaching institution should only consider quality and not the mother tongue. At times, it is better to employ teachers who are not native as they do understand the struggles of learning a foreign language (2014).
As a trainer, it is important to make strategic plans on the correction criteria to use. Speaking clearly and slowing is an important way of communicating with people that are learning. They get to hear what has been said and therefore they can utilize the same words in their speech. Correcting is a good thing, but it has to be done in a way that motivates and not discourages the learners. Avoiding correcting each and every word can be a good way to tell them that they are learning. When the students can understand what they have said is wrong it helps them correct it later, and they have to be able to hear the correct pronunciations from the teachers (Robby, 2013).
It is also important for the learner not to say too much. Speaking a lot of things all at once leaves the person confused on what they are talking about and how to explain it. However, keeping conversations brief can help even the listen to interpret what has been said into the proper language. Practice is crucial in any learning process and therefore, the person heeds to join other people just like them. For example, they can join clubs of speech leaners. It will help to boost their confidence when learning with others who just like them are not vast in the language. Another significant way of learning is by construction is simple sentences. Using basic sentences which are a combination of a subject, a verb, an object, the manner of doing, the place it was done, and the time helps a person to keep growing and becoming better. Use of gestures is also important for someone that is learning a language. It helps reinforce what is being said. The person can show by hand what they want especially in marketplaces and shops. This will help the people around to understand if the language is minimal.
The teacher needs to advise the students on what to read. A learner has to keep in mind that reading the correct material is key to learning the correct words and sentence construction. The teacher does not need to be strict in this as they can also let the students get to read their favorite magazines once in a while. It helps in cultural integration. To get to know how the people live, what is trending for them in terms of fashion, technology and such things?
When teaching, it is important to keep an open mind. Explain vocabularies that are difficult for the students to guess when they are used. Let them keep asking the questions so that none of the words pass them without their explanation. Allow them to have time to look up words. It helps them to keep them in mind more if they checked them up immediately they hear them. A teacher, therefore, has to be patient with the students as they will consume time in such kind of times trying to get every word not to pass them
The students should be open to class work as well as assignments. When they have work to take home, it helps them practice. At home, the environment is more welcoming, and it allows the student to be free. Availability of the dictionaries that help in translation into different languages can be of good use in the lessons. The teacher can allow the students to keep checking the words even during class as well as at home. When the teacher helps the student to read and interpret words in class, they gain more confidence and to use dictionaries that have their mother tongue can help them continue the practice at home.
For proper learning process, it is key to give effective feedback to students. Devita (2000) in his work states that the comments tell a student “there is a person who cares about your work not just to read but also to thin about the work.” Feedback forms the framework for formative assessment; which offers information to teachers and students regarding the proper performance in a classroom, in this case, multicultural classroom (p. 34). For an effective feedback to existing, a good formative assessment needs to be in place. There is always a disparity between academic and student perceptions of the meaning of a helpful and or effective feedback.
In this essay, the term Limited English Proficiency is to be used. It refers to the inability to speak, read or write or comprehend English at situations that allow a person actually to interact with his/her fellows. According to Costello & Crane, the ability to communicate effectively in one context is no assurance that a person can communicate adequately in another. Communication presents a key obstacle to accessing a good education in multicultural classrooms, which is as a result of their first language, not English (p. 217). In classrooms consisting of students from the European, American, Asian, Indian and Australian countries, the possibility for intercultural understanding and skills development is huge. However, it will not happen with the lack of assistance. For instance, various international students who go for studies in India, learn about Australian business practices in the classroom. However, the students do not gain any practical experience regarding the Indian business, or in fact, Indians, are similar.
Such factors impact on providing effective learning with consequent feedback to all students in multicultural classrooms. A multicultural classroom refers to an educational movement established on basic American virtues as freedom, justice, opportunity, and equality. The objective is to address the varied challenges experienced by the fast shifting American demographics. As per se, a multicultural classroom, ought to create a safe and kind learning environment, increase the awareness of the global concerns. Also, it should make stronger intercultural consciousness, encourage critical thinking, let the students be aware that there are numerous historical opinions and avert prejudice and discrimination. These aspects offer a good foundation for the feedback that should be in place, and it begs to answer the question, what are we aware of regarding the students views of the feedback they receive?
The feedback for culturally diverse students is a crucial issue identified in several different student research studies conducted, across various universities and colleges dating back to ten decades. The studies are attributable to the psychological perception, referred to as behaviorism. Feedback scores are consistently given a lower rating than other areas of teaching and learning in the several student surveys. This is a scenario that is applicable across disciplines and levels of study at the university and or colleges. As Ryan, narrates in his work, “Cross-cultural teaching and learning for home and international students”, International students often draw attention that feedback is not always being provided, is not comprehensive enough, does not make them aware of what they can develop. Additionally, he says that the feedback is received too late to be of help and does not sufficiently clarify why they have attained certain results. Despite our primary objective which is to make teaching and learning better, instead of inevitably getting better grades, the survey scores are showing something essential.
Principles of an Effective Feedback
Better still, principles form an effective feedback that will foster better learning experiences in the multicultural classroom. Students should be consistently assessed, and the identification made in where the students are recording good performances. This will help to see the loopholes and students can be done to improve on the areas and offer ideas and suggestions regarding the approach to be used. Feedbacks should be done in a formative manner rather than a summative way. Also, it should be explicit. In overseeing the feedback, it should be issued in such constructive way that pictures and presents the students with developmental and not deficit concerns (Mccord, 2012).
It is always a learning process, and right ideologies of no instilled prejudice help to correct the mistakes and gives the students the vigor of wanting to learn more with their fellows. This minimizes the cultural disparities as the students will and can embrace each other. Also, right time allocation is key to the students in preparation for future assessments and their involvement in the topic of discussion. For example, international students have the urge to understand the ‘Western’ way of living. This is despite them not being familiar or comfortable with the process employed in the facilitation of learning in their classes. For example, in Australia, the categories of those taking Masters in Business Administration (MBA) historically use a variety of the Western teaching and learning approaches. The techniques pay attention to the critical analysis, oral discussion, and problem solutions with the use of research was done and focus groups that call for involvement and contribution of the students, which is not familiar to the international students. These students come with their prior anticipations based on the educational practices of their societies. This implies that their lack of participation in the daily class tasks exerts constraints on the classroom interactions and learning. It also suggests that nothing is learned, from nothing about their way of undertaking activities.
Time Saving Feedback Tips
First, students usually make the similar mistakes, and still undertake similar things right in their assessment. Summarize commonly used comments for your evaluation activities and discipline. These can be pulled to offer a personal appeal to the students. Coming up with several comments of one type to use can be of help. This is because it can guarantee that students have no feeling that they have been given a ‘stock’ reply. Secondly, explore the suitability of e-tools in the learning and teaching situation. These are geared to reduce the time spent on issuing feedback, and at the same time giving students useful and productive feedback. Third, establish some tutorial group tasks regarding approach is given to assessment. Students can work together to ascertain the best way to tackle the issue, and then a feedback can be provided to several students at the same time on the right thing they are doing, and on where other approaches may be suitable for their use. Fourth, short spaces in lectures or tutorials should be provided for ‘model’ samples of student methods to assessment, and describe how and why they are suitable or not suitable (Ginsberg & Wlodkowski, 2009, p.76-78).
What Can Be Done
The personal resources, prejudices that are taken to the classes call for attention. Real growth would be seen in assessing the personal skills, knowledge and resources and the level to which we require maximizing the resources in preparation for a meaningful feedback in being in a multicultural classroom.
The first step is the assessment of the teaching strategy and receiving feedback regarding individual strengths and weaknesses, in the categories of students we enjoy. Also, a positive impact should be created on and others we have not been comfortable towards, on the grading classrooms. Secondly, validating our personal and institutional level of consciousness on not only racism but also sexism homophobia. As Mccord (2012) states, a decision should be made on what is needed to learn about the cultural heritage of other people. Third, on-campus and off-campus opportunities should be identified to learn cognitively and practically the history and current situations of the youths who are associated with various racial, economic, sex, and religious groups. Fourth, the faculty, student, and administrative associates should be mobilized, to exert pressure for change in the departments and institutional mission, visions and ambitions so that multicultural change methods are under way in the entire university system.
Conclusion
The attempt to shift towards a fair and efficient teaching, to establish a multicultural classroom for effective communication for a resultant feedback, is hard work, demanding substantial time and energy. Communication with the students with limited English proficiency, as can be seen, is a challenge of its own. Therefore, the teacher(s) who is to communicate to the students has to have good communication skills, should not be bias and more so should not discriminate along any line of racism, sex or religious inclination of a person. Hopefully, the mentioned ways for effective communication to get a feedback will prove to be helpful in association with embracing a strong mindset concerning the fear of making mistakes in conversing with culturally diverse students.
It is of significance to have a listening ear, be able to explain, recognize, and recommend. It is, therefore, important to employ teachers who have a vast grasp of the language. More so they need to be patient to help the students learn at their pace. To adjust adequately into the new culture. To give them confidence in speech. In case, they have problems to feel free to ask questions and clarifications for them to learn adequate communication skills.
References
Costello, J., & Crane, D. (n.d.). Effective Feedback in Online Learning. Handbook of Research on Active Learning and the Flipped Classroom Model in the Digital Age, 212-231. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-9680-8.ch011
Devita, G. (2000). Inclusive approaches to effective communication and active participation in the multicultural classroom: An international business management context. Active Learning in Higher Education, 1(2), 168-180. Doi:10.1177/1469787400001002006
Ginsberg, M. B., & Wlodkowski, R. J. (2009). Diversity and Motivation: Culturally responsive teaching in college. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Kiczowiak, M. (2014). Native English Speaking Teachers: Always the Right Choice? British Council. Retrieved from https://www.britishcouncil.org/voices-magazine/native-english- speaking-teachers-always-right-choice
Language Needs in the Multicultural Classroom. (n.d.). SpringerReference. doi:10.1007/springerreference_69978
Mccord, M. B. (2012). Exploring Effective Feedback Techniques in the ESL Classroom. Language Arts Journal of Michigan, 27(2). doi:10.9707/2168-149x.1905
Robby, K. (2013). Self-Correction-An Integral Part of Your Spoken English Improvement Routine. English Harmony. http://englishharmony.com/self-correction
Ryan, J. (n.d.). Cross-cultural teaching and learning for home and international students: Internationalization, pedagogy and curriculum in higher education.
Sravani, Y. (2016). How to Deal with Non-English Speaking Students. WiseStep. Retrieved from http://content.wisestep.com/how-to-deal-with-non-english-speaking-students/
