sign in sign up
<<
Home , 21st century

Harry Samuels B a h r a i n

20th- Humanism and 21st-Century : A Match Made in Cyberspace

earning a foreign is a fidence to speak more in the target challenging task—and teach- language and move closer to full lin- ing a foreign language can be guistic competence. This innovation Ljust as daunting. Though as teach- in teaching was known as the human- ers we may experience only minimal istic approach to , and exer- changes in our curricula from cises developed for the classroom were to year, we are constantly looking for referred to as humanistic activities. new and creative ways to motivate Now, almost fifty later, we our students to learn. Once upon a are experiencing another time, back in the days of peace, love, in education: a revolu- revolution, and bell-bottomed blue tion in which people communicate jeans (that is, the ), a philoso- in cyberspace through aural, visual, phy gained popularity among edu- and written discourse. Via , cators in a variety of disciplines and YouTube, a blog, or other venues, one was adopted by teachers of foreign can reveal interests, innermost feel- . That method was based ings, core values, and straightforward on the premise that if our students opinions. Furthermore, it’s possible to feel better about themselves, they reveal the “real you” to hundreds of will achieve greater results as learners. people who can become your newest Additionally, the philosophy said, the friends at the click of a mouse. Hav- more inclined students are to share ing so many “friends” can certainly their feelings, interests, values, hopes, provide a boost for one’s ego—and and dreams, the stronger and more according to humanistic theory, the self-confident they will be. That phi- more that you are able to discover losophy appealed to foreign language about yourself and are willing to share teachers because it also meant that with others, the greater your sense of our students would have the con- self-esteem and the more successful

2 2 0 1 3 N u m b e r 3 | E n g l i s h T e a ching F o r u m you will be in your endeavors, including for- achieving one’s potential, sharing oneself, and eign language learning. giving and receiving support are all parts of In certain respects, then, twentieth-centu- this new area of emphasis” (Moskowitz 1978, ry humanism and twenty-first-century social 10). Simon, Howe, and Kirschenbaum (1972) media are a logical match; the more you also wrote of the estrangement of students who interact with others in cyberspace, the more were put off by the status quo in education: self-assured you can become, and with the “So often, what goes on in the classroom is increasing availability of social media, nowa- irrelevant and remote from the real things that days you can reach out to a vast number of are going on in students’ lives—their daily people online. This article will explore the encounters with friends, with strangers, with background and principles of humanism, peers, with authority figures” (13). then present ideas for humanistic activities In this environment of alienation and rebel- updated for the twenty-first century. lion, attention to humanism and self-actualiza- tion—achieving one’s full potential—gained Origins of humanistic methodology in momentum in society and in the classroom. education According to Moskowitz (1978, 13), “Such Sixty years ago, the was an approach will help increase the esteem and emerging from a period during which the understanding students have for themselves country’s had suffered economic and others, thus facilitating growth in the hardship in the Great and sacrificed direction of being more self-actualized” (italics lives and wealth during World II. A time added). In other words, learners will be more of peace and prosperity in the resulted confident not only in their ability to learn Eng- in a spike in the nation’s birthrate, produc- lish—but to succeed at almost any task. ing a generation of youngsters who came to Critics of this shift of emphasis from the be known as the Baby Boomers. Upheaval cognitive to the personal insist that the goal of in the nation’s economic, political, and social education is to teach academic content accord- structures occurred during the middle of the ing to the requirements of the curriculum, and twentieth century, and education was not that by devoting time to activities that address immune from the changes. During this period, the feelings of students, we are simply creating the theories of psychologists Abraham Maslow a distraction from the main task at hand. Gadd and Carl Rogers influenced educators who (1998) argues that some teachers substitute recognized the value of introducing humanism affective learning for more formal learning, to in the classroom. By the late 1960s, the Baby the detriment of the student’s academic prog- Boomers were college students and were call- ress. In a rebuttal, Arnold (1998) makes the ing for greater reform in education and society, point that the vast majority of foreign-language their demands expressed in lyrics to songs such teachers use these exercises to supplement what as “Aquarius” (Rado, Ragni, and MacDermot students are expected to learn in class. She cites 1969), which proclaimed it was a time for “har- Moskowitz as someone who recommended “not mony and understanding, sympathy and trust total abandonment of what teachers are expect- abounding … .” Educators realized that more ed to teach, but supplementing these materials attention needed to be paid to students’ emo- where appropriate” (Moskowitz 1978, 1). In tional needs, and that also had to be reflected in Arnold’s words, “Humanistic language teach- the way teachers performed their duties. ers see that they can teach English at least as One result was that greater attention was effectively as those who take another approach, paid to the personal as compared with the and at the same time provide their students with intellectual dimension of the student. Gertrude added benefits” (Arnold 1998, 237). Moskowitz, a guru for those who tuned in and If we consider the basic principles that pro- turned on to humanism in education, describes vide a justification for humanism in education, the mood of the period: “There seems to be its benefits become clear. Referring to those a shift in our society’s focus from one of aca- principles, Moskowitz has written, demic achievement to one of self-actualization. Suppose the target language is Developing fulfilling relationships, recogniz- taught so that students develop ing interdependence, expressing one’s feelings, more positive feelings about them-

E n g l i s h T e a c h i n g F o r u m | N u m b e r 3 2 0 1 3 3 selves and their classmates and find activity; feeling overly pressured to participate out more about what they are really can discourage any language learner. Third, like. Such an approach will help bear in mind that these activities are meant increase the esteem and understand- to supplement what you are required to cover ing students have for themselves with your students according to your syllabus and others … . They will then and curriculum. become more motivated to learn to The activities presented here have been use the foreign language and, as a adapted to social media platforms in order to result, will be more likely to learn. increase their appeal as well as their effectiveness. (Moskowitz 1978, 13) Four humanistic activities Today, with the increasing popularity of social media, students have new forums where 1. Find Someone Who … they can share their feelings with others. This is an important development for English- Many teachers have had experience with language teachers and learners; if we apply Find Someone Who …, but in a humanistic the principles of humanism to social media, exercise, the questions that students usually it means that as the number of English- ask each other about hobbies, experiences, and language-speaking peers in one’s social media skills can be supplemented with others that network grows, it will be easier for a student address a student’s feelings, values, and personal to move along the path to self-actualization qualities. and that student will have greater potential for Establishing a level of rapport with your success in learning the target language. students at the beginning of a course can help facilitate a humanistic adaptation of Find Humanistic activities Someone Who … . One strategy is to share Traditionally, humanistic activities designed personal information, as suggested by Mole for the classroom have not been dependent on (2011): “Something that I think helps establish advanced technology, so they serve as realistic a rapport is to tell the class a few details about possibilities for teachers in nearly every context. yourself, your family, and your background … . But because an increasing number of teachers So I talk about various members of my family and students have access to the , the and some of my friends as well as drawing on exercises described in this article are also Inter- my experiences in other countries.” Such an net-adaptable, and they include instructions for approach, if you feel comfortable with it, can using web platforms such as chat rooms (also help put students at ease and at the same time known as message boards or online forums) or provide them with an example of the type of more recent innovations such as the web-cam information you would like them to share with chat and a social network. Additionally, the activ- their classmates. By engaging the students, you ities presented here are relatively easy to carry may also discover which topics are of interest out in the classroom. The first is based on the to them. That will help you draft your own well-known icebreaker Find Someone Who …, prompts for the activity. while the others focus on self-expression, intel- Some teachers use this activity during lect, and perception. the first week of class, depending on their Some of the activities featured in this article students’ level. Tell your students that by are inspired by ones that appeared in Mos- participating, many of them will discover kowitz (1978) and by her enthusiasm for they have common interests, share values, using humanistic techniques to teach foreign or have had similar experiences. The proce- languages. She offers three important pieces dures for this activity are fairly well known. of advice. The first is to always accentuate Each student is given a series of prompts—or the positive. Humanism is all about feeling copies the prompts from the blackboard— good about yourself, so tell your students that that begin with “Find someone who ... .” whenever they are tempted to say something Students move around the classroom and negative about someone, they shouldn’t do ask their classmates questions based on those it! The second piece of advice is to give your prompts. For example, if told to “Find some- students the option to not participate in any one who … has a younger brother,” the student

4 2 0 1 3 N u m b e r 3 | E n g l i s h T e a ching F o r u m must turn the prompt into a question and ask The classroom usually becomes quieter as a classmate, “Do you have a younger brother?” students near completion of the task. Have If the response is “No,” the student moves to the students sit down again and then ask if another classmate and repeats the question. anyone has written the name of a student for If the response is “Yes,” the student asks for each item. Or you can ask students to talk the respondent’s name and writes it after about some of the interesting things they’ve the prompt. Ideally, the student will write learned about their classmates. Use follow-up a different student’s name for each of the questions to elicit more details during the prompts. discussion phase. The activity gives students practice with forming questions using “Do you …,” “Are Using a chat room for you …,” and “Can you …,” along with other Find Someone Who … structures, if you expand the prompts to An Internet connection can make it pos- include tenses besides present simple. The sible for a class to participate in chat rooms. activity also allows for practice using vocabu- Such platforms make it possible for students or lary related to things students do, think, and instructors to post messages that others can read feel, inside and outside the classroom. and respond to almost instantaneously. Find As such, the activity offers an excellent Someone Who … can be adapted to an online to incorporate prompts with a chat room format, but instead of the teacher humanistic orientation and the qualities associ- providing the prompts, the students anony- ated with it. Following are examples of prompts mously post their own sentences. Then, in (and a quality that each relates to): class, these sentences become the prompts that students turn into questions as they try to dis- Find someone who … cover who wrote them in the chat room. Here • is a volunteer. (civic responsibility) are a few examples of online postings, followed • can tell funny jokes. (humor) by the in-class questions they would prompt: • can keep a secret. (trust) • thinks it is better to give a gift than 1. Post: I volunteer to tutor students who receive one. (generosity) study English at my school. • is a member of a club. (sociability) Question: Do you volunteer to tutor • cleans his or her room every day. (neat- students who study English at our ness/self-discipline) school? • is always on time for school. (punctual- 2. Post: Many of my friends tell me their ity/self-discipline) secrets. • likes helping other people with tasks. Question: Do many of your friends tell (consideration of others) you their secrets? • would offer his or her seat to an elderly 3. Post: I taught my brother how to swim person. (consideration of others) last weekend. • always follows rules. (obedience) Question: Did you teach your brother • helps with chores at home. (cooperation) how to swim (last weekend)? • is saving money to buy something. Give a deadline for posting statements, (thrift) and on the day of the activity, print the page • wants to read a new book. (curiosity/ containing all of them or write the statements self-improvement/personal growth) on the board. The students mingle as they • wants to learn a new language. (curios- search for the authors, and when they find ity/self-improvement/personal growth) one, they write his or her name on the printout • exercises every day. (health and fitness) or another sheet of paper. Students should • eats healthful foods. (health and fitness) be encouraged to give extended answers and • has a part-time job. (industriousness) not limit their responses to a simple “Yes” or • likes to work with others. (cooperation/ “No.” For example, a student might answer teamwork) the question, “Do you volunteer to help other • wants to be a leader. (leadership) students?” by saying, “No. I don’t have any free Give students enough time to find people time to volunteer because I am studying for who say “Yes” to most or all of the prompts. my entrance examinations.” That answer tells

E n g l i s h T e a c h i n g F o r u m | N u m b e r 3 2 0 1 3 5 the questioner something important about the why they like it. You can also encourage the student. You can ask students if they were able following: to identify the authors of all the postings and • positive remarks about the collage conclude with a discussion about the interest- • comments about what the viewer ing things they learned about their classmates. learned about the interests of the cre- Find Someone Who … can be adapted ator of the collage to a humanistic context. It will give students • reflections on personal qualities and a forum, either in the classroom or online, interests shared by the creator and the where they can share information about their student who is commenting values, feelings, and personal qualities. As they do, stronger bonds will be formed, confidence Some examples of thoughtful comments: to speak in the target language will increase, “You and I have visited the same waterfall.” and they will make progress toward reaching “I can tell that you are a generous person.” their full potential as language learners and “It’s great that you like to exercise so much. human beings. You must be very healthy.” The activity can conclude with each student presenting his or 2. Self-Collage her collage to the class and reflecting on the Collage is an form that offers students comments made by classmates. an excellent venue for self-expression. Even stu- Using a Ning for the self-collage dents who do not consider themselves accom- This project can also be carried out on plished artists can derive pleasure from creating the online platform called a Ning (www.ning. their own collage. In this exercise, each student com). A Ning is an online social network with combines meaningful images with words in the membership limited to individuals who are target language to create a collage about himself invited to join and participate. Members create or herself. Many examples of collages can be blogs, upload photos, participate in forums, found on the Internet; you can find images of and do much more. Students can upload pho- some by doing a search for “self-collage” under tographs of their collages, and comments can the www..com Images tab. A typical self- be posted by other members of the Ning—that collage includes pictures of people, places, and is, other students in the class. Each student will other items that are important to the creator of be able to read how the collage is perceived the piece. Those images may be cut from maga- by classmates, and creators can compare those zines or newspapers, or students can draw their perceptions with how they perceive themselves. own sketches. Because this is a language proj- Their own reactions to comments can also be ect, English should be prominently featured posted on their Ning blog. in the collage. Words and phrases in the target One goal of the collage project is to promote language that describe personal qualities, inter- friendship and trust, and you should emphasize ests, hobbies, and emotions are interspersed that goal when you introduce the assignment. among the images. Remind students of the importance of making When you introduce the assignment, tell positive comments on their classmates’ collages: students not to put their names or pictures of such comments can help students feel better themselves on the collage in order to ensure about themselves and about their classmates. anonymity, an important element of the proj- In addition, being positive about an aspect of ect. This is an assignment that should be a collage that may be different from their own completed at home and will require one to two also helps students appreciate individual differ- weeks for preparation. On the due date, stu- ences in taste, interests, and experiences. dents hand in their collages, and you can hang Expressing how students perceive them- them on the walls of the classroom. A sheet of selves in a collage hung on a classroom wall is a lined paper should be attached to the bottom great way for them to communicate with peers, of each collage where other students can post but posting the collage on a Ning can give stu- their comments. Encourage your students to dents access to a wider audience. A project that write extended comments rather than snippets a teacher assigns to several groups who belong like “It’s good” or “I like it”—urge them to to the same Ning will allow more students to try to figure out and explain why it’s good or view the artwork and offer feedback. Applying

6 2 0 1 3 N u m b e r 3 | E n g l i s h T e a ching F o r u m basic principles of humanism to social media You can also use a graphic organizer to suggests that the more a student’s social media illustrate how the same image can affect dif- network expands, the better the student will ferent people in many ways. To do this, attach feel about himself or herself. the picture to the center of the blackboard and draw lines that connect it to ovals containing 3. Express Yourself with Art words or phrases you elicit from your students. During this activity, students listen to a As with any graphic organizer, the first set of musical arrangement and—using pencils, mark- ovals can radiate to others containing related ers, watercolors, or whatever sketching tools words and phrases. The choice of prompts you are available—draw images that capture their use is up to you; here are three suggestions: emotions. The selection they listen to should • What do you see in this picture? allow enough time for students to complete • How does this picture make you feel? their drawings; ten to fifteen minutes should • What similarities do you see in this be sufficient. An instrumental piece such as a picture and your own picture? symphony, a jazz composition, or a selection from an indigenous or traditional musical genre Artwork and social media would be suitable. I’ve always done this activity Photographs of the artwork can be upload- or seen other teachers do it with an instrumen- ed to a Ning, and members can use their blogs tal piece; lyrics might become a distraction, or to post comments that describe how they were the students might sketch according to words influenced by the recordings; classmates can they hear in the song. After the students have also post impressions and interpretations of the put the finishing touches on their artwork, have artwork created by others. The presentation each one stand up and present it to a small of artwork can be fun and, regardless of the group or to the entire class. It should be held level of sophistication, a source of pride and high enough so that everyone can see the image achievement. That pride can be channeled in as students describe what they’ve drawn and a direction that will give your students more how they were affected by the music. confidence to communicate through speech If you want to be explicit about the lan- and in the target language. guage your students practice, instruct them to Additionally, groups of students in more use a structure being targeted or vocabulary than one location can take part in a web chat, being reviewed. Examples might be “This where students use a video connection to pres- is a picture of a sunset” (demonstratives) or ent their artwork to students in a classroom “The music made me feel ______” (adjec- in another school, city, or even country. The tives that describe emotions). The activity can students who are viewing the artwork post their become more interactive if other students ask feedback as chat—text that appears in a “chat the artists about their artwork (“What is the box” on the same screen. There are several web- small blue object in the corner?”) and compare sites where this application can be downloaded, drawings among themselves. In a humanistic but currently (www.skype.com) is the context, questions could address the following: most popular; it’s free if the users communicate • motivation (e.g., “What did the music computer-to-computer. The students who are make you think of?”) presenting can also respond to the comments • emotion (e.g., “How did you feel when of others on camera or with text. you were drawing the picture?”) According to humanistic principles, the • reflection (e.g., “What do you like best more people you can communicate and share about your picture?”) with, either verbally or nonverbally, the more As most teachers know, using a visual aid can confidence you can develop in your own skills. help elicit feedback. Images are interpreted Moreover, the opportunity to converse with in different ways, and interpretations can be students in other places will stimulate your stu- compared in a lively discussion. To one stu- dents’ motivation to learn the target language. dent, the drawing might look like a shimmer- While many students would like to participate ing stream flowing through a tropical jungle, in exchange programs, few get the chance. while to another it may appear to be an alien Web chats are currently the next best thing to from a distant world. actually being there. And exchanging opinions

E n g l i s h T e a c h i n g F o r u m | N u m b e r 3 2 0 1 3 7 about music and art with learners from places up of cells where answers can be deposited. (See your students would like to visit will also give Figure 1 for an example, but you can play the them a feeling of satisfaction at having been game with fewer categories or fewer items in able to make themselves understood through each category.) Use stiff poster-sized paper and both art and language. make pouches for each cell. Note that each cell contains the answer to a 4. Jeopardy! question about an item in the category. To play For years, teachers of all subjects have debat- the game, a contestant must choose a cell (e.g., ed the value of playing games in the classroom; “Cities for 10 points”), and a moderator—you many teachers and even some students consider or a student who is not in the game—reads the such activities frivolous. On the other side of answer in the cell. The contestant must then the argument are teachers like Adam John ask a question that would produce that answer. Simpson, who writes, “Despite my many years For example, the “Cities for 10 points” cell of trepidation, there has always been pedagogic might have the answer, “Washington, D.C.” evidence out there to endorse the use of games The contestant is expected to provide a ques- in the language classroom” (Simpson 2011). tion such as, “What is the capital of the United He cites Lengeling and Malarcher (1997), who States?” On the other hand, the cell worth point out that games offer affective and cogni- 50 points should contain an answer to a more tive benefits, strengthen classroom dynamics, challenging question. If the answer “Mother and foster adaptability. Teresa” appears in a cell under “Famous Peo- In a humanistic context, games will help ple,” a correct question would be, “Who helped language learners develop greater confidence poor people living in Kolkata, ?” as they perform tasks that give an indication The Jeopardy! game is played by teams of of their level of knowledge in a specific area of students (teams of three work well), with one language or culture. In games that are played by student representing each team in each round. teams, learners build teamworking skills, and If necessary, the player is allowed to ask his or when students perform well, not only do their her teammates for help. Players have the right teammates benefit, but all of their classmates to choose answers from any of the cells, but observe their accomplishments. The affective most begin with ones that have lower values benefits identified by Lengeling and Malarch- (easier items) and then move on to more er (1997)—e.g., lowering the affective filter, challenging, higher-value cells. If a student encouraging the creative and spontaneous use produces the correct question, he or she is of language, and promoting communicative awarded the corresponding number of points. competence—are well known to those of us If the student is incorrect, the points are sub- who use humanistic techniques. When a stu- tracted from the team’s total, and the other dent performs successfully in front of a group team is allowed to try. After an equal number or in front of the class, those affective benefits of students from each team has played the are multiplied. game, scores are totaled and the winning team How has the Internet affected the quality is announced. and availability of games we can use in the Jeopardy! also provides the opportunity for classroom? Games for teaching English as a for- collaboration during at least two stages. First, eign language can be found on many websites, students working in groups of three can collab- but a more important decision for the teacher is orate to create “answers” for games that will be which game to choose. Television may provide played by other groups. Students have a sense us with an answer. of the kinds of categories their classmates may One of the most popular American televi- be interested in as well as the specific questions sion game shows of all time, Jeopardy!, tests a that are easy or difficult to answer. Students contestant’s knowledge on a variety of topics. can derive as much satisfaction and sense of There are various commercial websites where achievement from creating a game that is fair templates for games such as Jeopardy! can be and fun for their classmates to play as they downloaded for a fee. However, it’s not dif- might from playing a game themselves. ficult for your students to create their own A second opportunity for collaboration Jeopardy! game board. The board has categories comes during the playing of the game. Instead across the top, with the rest of the board made of having an individual student represent his or

8 2 0 1 3 N u m b e r 3 | E n g l i s h T e a ching F o r u m her team, allow the team members to consult reinforce students’ knowledge. You could also one another about which category they want follow up with a post-game focus on people or to try and then again about what their ques- qualities that were used in the game. tion will be. And, of course, they can also col- When I observed Jeopardy! played among laborate to determine the correct form of the three groups of students in the city of question they would like to ask. Taraz, Kazakhstan, the game produced the There is almost no limit to the categories heightened level of interest, enthusiasm, and that can be used in this game—choices will excitement that teachers aim for in a foreign- depend on your students’ background knowl- language classroom. The students had been edge and topics they are currently studying. enrolled in a beginners’ level group for slightly Humanistic qualities can be worked into the less than a semester. Yet the progress they answers and questions. For example, a broad had made in that brief period was impres- category called “Vocabulary” might incorpo- sive. The affection the teachers had for the rate humanistic values with answers like these students was palpable, and the camaraderie (possible correct questions are in parentheses): displayed among students was also clearly evident. The Jeopardy! game was an indication • 10 points: The opposite of war (What is of what had been taking place in the program peace?) for the entire semester. The combination of • 20 points: A group of people who work effective instruction, appropriate materials together to accomplish a goal (What is a and activities, and sincere caring produced team?) the kind of results teachers strive for: happy, • 30 points: A person who offers to do confident students whose progress exceeded work without receiving payment (What expectations due at least in part to the human- is a volunteer?) istic approach implemented by the teaching • 40 points: A person who gives money to staff. My observations—and the work of help other people (What is a donor?) those teachers—support the belief of Arnold • 50 points: A word describing a per- (1998): “Basic humanism—not a set of tech- son who is always on time (What is niques nor a specific method, but rather an punctual?) approach to life reflected in one’s attitudes Humanistic values could also be incorpo- towards all of one’s activities—has much to rated in categories that focus on, for example, offer to English language teaching” (241). “ Winners” (e.g., ; Mother Teresa; Martin Luther King, Jr.; Adapting Jeopardy! for social media Kofi Annan; ). A pre-game Teachers have both structured or nonstruc- assignment might involve students doing tured options for using the Jeopardy! concept research on individuals or topics that will of providing an answer and having students be used, with the game serving as a tool to write a corresponding question. In a structured

History Novels Cities Famous People Landmarks

10 points 10 points 10 points 10 points 10 points

20 points 20 points 20 points 20 points 20 points

30 points 30 points 30 points 30 points 30 points

40 points 40 points 40 points 40 points 40 points

50 points 50 points 50 points 50 points 50 points

Figure 1. Example of a Jeopardy! game board continued on page 19

E n g l i s h T e a c h i n g F o r u m | N u m b e r 3 2 0 1 3 9 20th-Century Humanism and 21st-Century Technology… (Continued from page 9)

approach, you can provide an answer on the Whether we teach English in the classroom class blog and assign students to write questions or in cyberspace, we must continually encour- that would produce that answer. The answers age our students to use the language they should be people or things that students are learn with enthusiasm and in a meaningful already familiar with, such as the name of the way. According to proponents of humanism school, a nearby landmark, or—in keeping in education, as students travel along the path with the humanistic approach—the name of toward self-actualization, they will become bet- a well-known person who has demonstrated ter language learners if they possess the right humanistic values. You might want to assign amount of self-esteem and have the confidence students to come up with more than one ques- to speak up and speak out when given the tion, both to give practice in forming different opportunity to do so. As Simon (1993) writes, question types and to provide opportunities for “From knowing yourself, your behaviors and students to think about the answer in a variety your patterns—a new confidence, an internal of ways. (It also prevents students from asking security, and a sense of potency will emerge only the most obvious question, such as “What that is life-giving” (101–102). The confidence is the name of our school?”) and security that emerge from allowing others Nonstructured options include asking stu- to know them as well as they know themselves dents to come up with their own answers, will make your students more effective learners then sending or posting the answer by what- of any foreign language, including English. ever means they prefer—, text, Facebook, etc.—to one or more classmates, who provide a References question for that answer—and then send back Arnold, J. 1998. Towards more humanistic English a new answer of their own. In this way, a back- teaching. ELT Journal 52 (3), 235–242. and-forth series of answers and questions could Gadd, N. 1998. Towards less humanistic English teaching. ELT Journal 52 (3), 223–234. develop, with students using their imaginations Lengeling, M. M., and C. Malarcher. 1997. Index to come up with challenging answers and cre- cards: A natural resource for teachers. English ative questions. Teaching Forum 35 (4): 42–44. There could also be competitions to see Mole, I. 2011. Establishing rapport with your which student or group of students could come students. Humanising Language Teaching 13 up with the most questions for a given answer (April). www.hltmag.co.uk/apr11/index.htm Moskowitz, G. 1978. Caring and sharing in the in a given time period. In any case, no matter foreign language class. Rowley, MA: Newbury how you incorporate the Jeopardy! concept, House. from a humanistic viewpoint the keys are that Rado, J., G. Ragni, and G. MacDermot. 1969. all students would be participating, using Eng- “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In.” The Age of lish in a nonthreatening situation, and likely Aquarius by The Fifth Dimension. Soul City Records. having fun doing so. Simon, S. B. 1993. In search of values: 31 strategies for finding out what really matters most to you. Conclusion New York: Warner Books. The humanistic approach in education first Simon, S. B., L. W. Howe, and H. Kirschenbaum. attracted attention a half century ago. Much 1972. Values clarification: A handbook of practi- more recent developments in social media and cal strategies for teachers and students. New York: Hart. information technology are taking foreign-lan- Simpson, A. J. 2011. Why use games in the lan- guage education in new directions. This article guage classroom? Humanising Language Teach- has featured humanistic exercises that have ing 13 (April). www.hltmag.co.uk/apr11/index. been adapted for this new era in global com- htm munication. These exercises are examples of ways that humanistic teaching can add to our Harry Samuels is a Regional English classrooms what Arnold (1998) calls “a further Language Officer and will begin working dimension: the capacity to use our thinking in at the U.S. Embassy in Manama, , a positive and useful manner” (240). later this year.

E n g l i s h T e a c h i n g F o r u m | N u m b e r 3 2 0 1 3 19