How Conscious are you about the Difference between Language Acquisition and Language Learning

Language Acquisition Vs. Language Learning

by Lic. Maynor Segura Calvo

e-mail: mynsegca@gmail.com

How conscious are English teachers of the difference between language acquisition and language learning? I really worry about this situation since many think that a very strict, detailed, perfect and structured planned lesson is more important than creating a good environment.

I do believe in that students will acquire language through language exposure and meaningful communication. For that reason, it is not enough with having a good English class. It is necessary to create other activities where students are pushed and motivated at the same time to spend time using the English Language.

Why is it that English teachers care so much for proper English language learning? When it comes to language acquisition, communication is an important factor since children need to communicate what they need or want and in certain way, adults need language to communicate as well certain needs and feelings. However, communication is broken after continuous correction and confidence is never made if students are not allowed to share ideas although some errors may occur.

The question is how we can create activities out of the class time and that are meaningful and attractive to our students. Some may find that a good answer is technology. Nowadays there are different Learning Management Systems (LMS) that help students to have these activities which are attractive and bring automatic feedback.