Dual Language Instruction and Contrastive Analysis in the Elementary Grades by RICHARD GÓMEZ JR., Ph.D

Research into Practice: LITERACY Dual Language Instruction and Contrastive Analysis in the Elementary Grades BY RICHARD GÓMEZ JR., Ph.D. Contrastive Analysis is the systematic study of a pair of languages with a view to identifying their structural differences and similarities. This systematic approach to studying two languages has been visited and revisited since the 1960s and 1970s, probably reaching its peak in the mid-1980s. Contrastive Analysis attempted to predict errors due primarily to first-language interference in the acquisition of a second language. Through Contrastive Analysis study, it was thought that a curricular design could be developed to directly address and “head off” these problem areas. Contrastive Analysis has been critiqued and defended over the decades. It has gone through revision from time to time due to these critiques, such as RICHARD GÓMEZ JR., Ph.D. when Contrastive Analysis was not able to predict errors in acquiring a second Dr. Gómez is currently the CEO of language and this resulted in some speakers of the second language not Gómez and Gómez Dual Language experiencing the predicted errors, while others did. In fact, in some cases, Consultants and was Co-founder errors in the first language occurred unpredictably even with speakers of of the Gómez and Gómez Dual different first languages. Over the years, Contrastive Analysis has been utilized Language Enrichment (DLE) model. Dr. Gómez is a retired professor of more and more to explain why, when acquiring a second language, errors were Bilingual Education. His research is committed. Contrastive Analysis shifted to an “after-the-fact” posture instead focused on language and academic of trying to predict those same errors before they occurred. This white paper issues affecting bilingual learners. is a study of Contrastive Analysis within Dual Language programs at the For the last 20 years, Dr. Gómez elementary level. has been dedicated to sharing For purposes of this paper, I am going to make several assumptions. First, I his research in dual language education in over 900 schools am going to presume an elementary Dual Language program of two languages. across 11 states. He secured a Furthermore, I am going to establish the two languages to be English and Title VII grant establishing a Spanish. One last caveat, this paper is not intended as a scholarly work but Bilingual Doctoral Fellowship rather as part of an ongoing discussion for classroom teachers and school program at Texas Tech University. administrators to create the most successful and effective academic and His dedication to teacher linguistic Dual Language programs in their schools. professional development is exemplified in the establishment of Though it is true that there is an increased likelihood that students learning a State Professional Development a second language will commit errors based in part on similarities and Conference to provide teachers differences between their first and second languages, it is usually not worth with strategies for educating ELL, the time and effort necessary to create a curricular design intended to migrant, and children of poverty. acquiring a second language? Is there value to understanding why some second-language learners are committing certain errors? I believe the answer Dual Language programs that to the last two questions is absolutely! Not as an attempt to prevent errors, but rather as a means of recognizing produce a strong first language and understanding the errors that survive the “natural” “will result in rich and ample second-language acquisition process in order to target and eliminate those errors with highly effective opportunities for transference language-acquisition activities. to occur from the first language Over the span of 22 years assisting more than 160 school districts (across 11 states) in implementing to the second language. highly effective one-way and two-way Dual Language programs in about 900 schools, my experience is that native Spanish speakers learning English as a second language will naturally learn and correct most of the prevent or significantly reduce the predicted errors. errors identified through Contrastive Analysis as potential For example, a Spanish native language speaker might ” “problematic” areas IF (very significant “IF”) those native have a tendency to add an “e” in front of English words Spanish speakers are placed in learning environments that have an “s” in the initial position due to this being designed to enhance “transference” from one language the way these words are written in Spanish. Words in to the other. In fact, the best strategies to assist native Spanish such as estrella, estudiante, and escalera are Spanish speakers learning English as a second language examples of this specific structure. Thus, a Spanish are as follows: native learning English might say and write “eschool,” “estar,” and “estudent.” This error would be a classic 1) Create a learning environment where native example of predicting first-language interference. Spanish speakers can develop strong literacy and However, the key word here is “might.” Although some writing skills in their native language! native Spanish speakers might commit this error when Dual Language programs that produce a strong first they are acquiring English, other native Spanish speakers language will result in rich and ample opportunities might not! The predictability that every single native for transference to occur from the first language to Spanish speaker, or even a high number of such students, the second language. Systematic vocabulary-building would commit this error in learning English simply does strategies, such as robust word walls in Spanish not hold true. Although some native Spanish speakers and English, are imperative to capitalizing on the will make this error when learning English as a second considerable benefits derived from transference. language, is it practical to attempt to prevent all native 2) Establish student-centered classrooms where Spanish students learning English from making this students produce more than three quarters of the specific error? If the answer to this question is held in talk and work in the classroom. the affirmative, then what would that mean in regard It is essential for students learning a second language to time dedicated to this effort? Would this effort to to speak, listen, read, and write in both languages prevent this error be one 20-minute activity? Or perhaps as much as possible! Teachers and their students a couple of activities each day for five days? Should it be have a “one or the other” language relationship. a once-a-week activity for a full year? Would success be Either the teachers use most of the language in the claimed when 100 percent of native Spanish speakers classroom and their students minimize their language are prevented from making this error? Or perhaps 80 production, or students use the lion’s share of language percent is deemed good enough as a preventive measure? in a classroom in return for teachers’ herculean effort When the effort to prevent errors in learning a second to minimize their language production. It is one or the language is laid out in planning, it very quickly loses its other, teachers or their students. Thus, teachers must attraction as a viable strategy. On the other hand, is it limit their direct instruction to no more than 15 to 20 a valuable tool for teachers and administrators to be minutes, giving their students the balance of the core aware of potential sources of errors when students are block in which to build language skills. 2 3) More listening = more listening; more speaking = a. More academic rigor more speaking; more reading = more reading, and b. Closing of academic and linguistic gaps between yes, more writing = more writing. students (acceleration) It sounds so simple. But it is so true. If you want your students to listen, speak, read, and write more in their c. More language (vocabulary) development in first first and second languages, then give students as and second languages many opportunities as possible to listen, speak, read, d. Brain (creative and problem solving) and write! Second-language acquisition is hastened cross-pollination when students practice the four modalities of a 5) Have clear end-of-year first- and second-language language (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) acquisition expectations. in the first and second language, all day and in each The Gómez and Gómez Dual Language model brings activity within each subject. A teacher asked me, with it very clear end-of-year expectations for the “What can I do for three of my students who are first two years of the program. Teachers and students very low in my Kindergarten classroom? They have must have a goal, and the goal must be a strong one. difficulty writing even one word!” My response to her Districts implementing G & G Dual Language was, “Have them write more!” It is still one of the best Enrichment Model accept the following two goals. pieces of advice to these kinds of questions. When students are behind, they need more, not less! Less 1. Pre-K (1st year) – At the end of the year, all Pre-K only results in gaps getting larger. Only acceleration students are expected to “create write” a complete will begin to chip away on linguistic and academic sentence in their native language that includes a gaps. Do you want better readers? Have them read capital letter to begin the sentence and a period more! Listening, speaking, reading, and writing should at the end of the sentence. be going on as much as possible in the Dual Language 2. Kindergarten (2nd year) – At the end of the classroom, across the entire core curriculum, all day, second year in the Dual Language program, day in and day out! students are expected to write a full page of reflection writing (brainstorm writing) in approximately 15 minutes.

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