校长说，正确的双语习得方法，发掘学生的学习潜力| Principal Write

Dear parents and students,

I hope that you are well, and I am writing from a locked down Uzbekistan with my family as the global pandemic continues to impact our life outside of China. It is at this difficult period that a time of reflection causes me to look at the important things in life and how to share my experiences with every teacher, parent and student as I look forward to starting the new chapter of my life in Beijing.

We have learned that Beijing has confirmed the opening date of the school, and our school will open on June 1st. We are glad that every student in Beijing nodeanda will return to school soon. I also hope that parents and students can arrange the students' work and rest time during this period to adapt to the learning schedule after the new semester. The school will do its best to ensure the safety of students returning to school.

As an educator for over 30 years I am passionate in developing strategies to ensure the fulfillment of student potential. To do this in a Bilingual setting there needs to be the correct methodology in language acquisition, and I want to share with you the best practise that our teachers will be implementing, that will allow better academic achievement, and a true bilingual experience.

An unknown author once wrote “all learning begins with the simple phrase 'I don't know.'", and it is the understanding of this to enable and create a safe and secure environment which makes students feel safe and ensure they are willing to take risks. Teachers and support staff provide support, challenge, praise and encouragement which accompanies this, and with this supportive base, students develop skills quicker and fosters a love of learning.

The way in which we are grouping children, is another key element of ensuring the maximum impact of learning. As educators we need to provide opportunities for peer models to provide language support, as it often the students themselves that can also promote language acquisition. Collaborative group work is planned out and roles given to ensure students aren’t left out of the learning. It is also appropriate that opportunities are provided for students to use the first language where appropriate. This is something that needs to be used.

Our classrooms ensure the visual support and stimuli which promotes language acquisition, with classroom displays showing keywords (and we are developing  translations where possible) and main points of the curriculum studies. Children’s work is celebrated which provides positive feedback, engages and motivates the children in their learning. As practitioners we often modify what we say by using gestures and non-verbal communication, in tandem with speaking clearly,  and at all costs avoiding colloquialisms. It is also vital to slow down the pace of delivery, helping students  to have time to process what we say, emphasising key words, rephrasing and restating important information.

As we begin the journey of development in this second language, creating opportunities for talk is fundamental to success and it is an area that parents can encourage where possible out of school. Within the curriculum we provide lots of opportunities for student to student talk and student to teacher talk. Speaking and listening are the initial tools required to become a fully bilingual learner. Purposeful talk is planned, students are provided with clearly defined tasks and roles within this. Students should also always be given time to practise what they are going to say before speaking in front of class or writing in books.

As academic practitioners we are able to monitor children’s understanding by giving thinking time to understand and respond. We actively encourage any attempt to communicate, and an effective strategy is having a student clarify a point in the home language if a concept is unclear to a student. This ability for peer interaction often is the clearest indicator that a concept is fully mastered, if you can explain to another. Personal dictionaries are another highly effective strategy that can be simply created but personalise the learning experience.

These are just some of the “tricks of the trades” that skilled language practitioners are able to call upon in the development of students, and it is these strategies and skills that are a feature of learning in a Nord Anglia Education School. All students have the capability to be bilingual, but it is the effective cognitive development that is planned and implemented in our schools, that sets us apart.

I look forward to seeing you even sooner.

Kind regards

Adrian Macaulay

International Principal