Oral Journal Entry 1

 

WEEK 9
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION X FOREIGN LANGUAGE LEARNING

        Engaging with this week’s materials has deepened my understanding of the distinction between second language acquisition and foreign language learning. Reflecting on my personal experiences, I realize that I had intuitively made this distinction based on the context and speed at which I acquired different languages. Krashen’s theories, in particular, helped clarify why my experiences felt so distinct.

        For example, I began learning English when I was about seven or eight years old, using audio tapes. Since I couldn’t read Portuguese fluently at the time, my early exposure to English was mostly auditory and self-directed. As I progressed, I began using books and written exercises that accompanied the tapes, which added structure to my learning. However, significant progress only occurred later, at university, when I engaged in real conversations with native speakers. These communicative interactions accelerated my language development and reinforced the idea that meaningful use of language plays a crucial role in mastering it. This experience aligns with Krashen’s emphasis on comprehensible input and also echoes some aspects of behaviorist theory regarding the importance of practice.

        In contrast, my experience with Spanish, which I consider my true second language, occurred in an immersive, natural environment. I didn’t intend to learn it formally; I was simply living among Spanish speakers and needed to communicate. Without structured lessons, I became fluent within a few months. This was a clear example of acquisition: language development that occurred naturally through necessity, context, and interaction.

        This week’s content has helped me connect these personal experiences to theoretical frameworks. I now better appreciate how language development varies depending on the learning context, the type of input, and the learner’s motivation.

        As a future educator, I intend to bring this awareness into my teaching practice. While some schools advocate for exclusive use of the target language in the classroom, I respectfully disagree. I believe in embracing interlanguage and leveraging students’ native languages to support their learning process. Encouraging students to make connections between their first language(s) and the target language, through cognates, grammar structures, phonetics, and more, can enhance understanding and foster confidence. In my view, acknowledging and building on what students already know is not a hindrance, but a powerful tool for language development.

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The text above is a transcribed and revised version of my original oral journal entry, based on the suggestions provided. The feedback for the original version is presented below.

Hi Eri! Thank you for this thoughtful and reflective entry—it’s a strong start to the second half of the term, and you’ve done an excellent job connecting theory with your personal experiences. That’s exactly what these journals are for, and it’s clear you’ve taken the content seriously and are trying to apply it meaningfully.

Understanding of SLA Concepts – Clear and Personal

Your reflections show a solid grasp of the difference between acquisition and learning, and how these processes can feel different depending on the context. You used your real-life experiences to illustrate this clearly:

• Your autonomous, tape-based English learning was a great example of structured, conscious language learning—especially when you described adding books to create more formal structure.
• In contrast, your natural acquisition of Spanish through immersion and necessity was an excellent example of language acquisition. You instinctively described the process in a way that mirrors Krashen’s theories, especially his emphasis on comprehensible input and real-life communication.

What you did well:

• You made strong connections to theory (e.g., Krashen, behaviorism).
• You recognized the role of interaction, context, and motivation in language development.
• You raised a valuable point about how educators should treat interlanguage and the native language in the classroom—this was a thoughtful pedagogical insight!

What you could explore further:

• You mentioned behaviorism and Krashen’s input theory. You might want to also explore the Interaction Hypothesis or Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory in future entries since your experience clearly supports the idea that social interaction boosts acquisition.

Personal Reflection – Insightful and Authentic

I really enjoyed the depth of your self-reflection. The way you described not just what happened, but how it felt and what you’ve come to realize from it, shows strong metacognitive awareness. It’s especially impressive that you’ve begun to question long-standing classroom practices, like the overuse of the target language without leveraging students’ full linguistic repertoire.

Highlights:

• You’re starting to position yourself as a future teacher—thinking about what you want for your students, and how your own experiences have shaped that vision.
• You didn’t just summarize the readings—you internalized them and applied them critically to both your past and your future as an educator. Well done!

Language Use & Delivery – Clear and Natural

Your speaking style is clear, natural, and engaging. I appreciated how fluidly you moved between personal experiences and academic reflection.

A few small things to keep working on:

• Occasionally, there were minor repetitions or hesitations, especially when searching for the right word. Totally normal, especially in reflective speech!
• You might benefit from organizing your main ideas into sections or short bullet points before recording. It could help you maintain structure and flow while still sounding natural.

Final Thoughts

You’re off to an excellent start with this journal. This entry shows not only that you're engaging deeply with the material, but also that you're starting to develop your own informed teaching philosophy—grounded in both theory and personal experience. That’s incredibly valuable.

Keep up this level of thoughtfulness in your next entries, and don’t hesitate to bring in new questions, challenges, or ideas that emerge as we move forward in the unit. You're clearly thinking like an educator already, and it shows!