Post 303: What is the Novice level of Language Learning?

Post 303: What is the Novice level of Language Learning?

Speaking and Listening: The Language Learner is taught basic action verbs and actions. He learns how to ask formulaic questions like, 'Where is the hotel?" He imitates the teacher. He knows how to end and maintain a short conversation. Basically, at the novice stage, he listens to  the teacher and is still absorbing new words to practice. The teacher's job at this level is to provide the learner with comprehensible imput though using visual props like pictures.

Reading and Writing: The Language Learner can write simple sentences. He can barely write a paragraph. His topics are biographical and familiar.  His main concerns is to express what he is doing or thinking to the native speaker. He just knows the simple tenses.  He mainly communicates in the present tense. He gets to know the simple past and the simple future.

His main interaction is with the teacher and it's the teacher who leads the class and encourages students to speak short sentences to each other as students learn the sentence structure or word order of the new language.  Students practice dialogue using scripted conversations written by language teachers.

In my beginning French classes online, beginning French students only write one sentence answers in French. I don't expect much more out of my beginning French students. They mainly listen to Rosetta Stone and do Rosetta Stone exercises.

I assign them vocabulary building and pronunciation exercises for them to do. For instance, I would say, "How are you? I'm fine. And you?" Students would repeat that question and answer and then add some more to the conversation as they practice pronunciation. I then give them linguistic feedback on how to form those sounds phonetically.

Language Control: How accurate is the language learner language? At the novice level, students know very little of the language. They can only respond and ask formulaic questions like, How are you? What is your name? My name is for American students learning French.

Vocabulary: How extensive is his vocabulary? Their vocabulary is limited to naming common objects and knowledge of simple action verbs like is, go, run, drink or walk.  Nancy walks to the store for instance. or Is Nancy at the store?

Communication Strategies: How does he make meaning? Novice students make meaning by looking at flashcards or pictures of the items and associating that item picture with the target language word. Students imitate what the professor says to learn pronunciation and target language sentence structure. Some really short translation into the native tongue may be necessary.

Cultural Awareness: What is his knowledge of the target language culture?
Students will study scripted conversations of the target language written by language educators in a simplified manner using only the vocabulary that the students have learned so far in their language lessons. The students main interaction is with other language learners and their teacher. They are not ready to interact with native speakers or listen to native speaker conversation. They learn about the culture of the target language by reading about the culture in their native language.