Teaching and supporting students’ language development is like coaching a sport. The students are the ones running around with the ball – reading, writing, speaking, listening, viewing, and presenting – “doing” language. The teacher, as “language coach”, has the job of analysing and assessing what the students can do right now, establishing what they need to be able to do, and finding strategies for teaching them those skills. Students need plenty of practice with each skill, and they need to be able to put the skills together into a whole game – that of language use and interaction in relation to curriculum learning.
Wise words from the Ministry of Education’s Pasifika Education Community LEAP resource!
Ni Hao Children's Community Mandarin Chinese Language Education Programme 