Chazlee Myers

Date of Award

2021

First Advisor

Nancy Bonvillain

Second Advisor

Moira Buhr

Abstract

Often, it appears that each student’s learning style is overlooked at times, which results in frustration and disinterest. The German language is seen as “difficult” or “angry-sounded”: these are always the first responses heard when German is mentioned. Many feel deterred from learning German. How can educators design a language plan that understands how students perceive language and how students prefer to learn in the classroom? For this reason, a more detailed understanding of the methodologies of language acquisition is crucial. My research findings indicate that students glean more from their language learning in classrooms where they felt valued and where they could learn more about cultural aspects such as food, music, and travel. The students who felt inspired and had fun in their classes continued their studies and also chose to learn additional languages at a much higher rate than those who had a negative experience learning their first foreign language. Majorly, a lack of time and access prevented students from continuing their language studies. Those who opted to study independently used language books, online language applications, and media consumption. For this project, I elected to create a four-week language lesson plan, taking my findings and my experiences with learning several foreign languages into consideration. The lesson plan aims to quell potential boredom that educators may be faced with when teaching foreign languages. It will also allow students to feel valued, heard, and have fun while learning.

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