Essay; Characteristic of Young Learners and The Implication

                   

                       To arrive at the intended goal of the teaching-learning of Englsih at elementary school, there are several factors which need to be considered. Those factors are the theories of the teaching of language to young learners ( in this case, elementary school students ), the management of English classroom and atmosphere, and factors to consider in designing materials. Having comprehended the theories  of  teaching  language to young learners in general, the teachers of English could determine how English is to be taught to young learners – learning English through activities in social contexts. Meanwhile, the management of the English classroom and atmosphere during the teaching-learning process depends on the activities which are done so that the students ( children ), instead of getting bored, will become interested in participating the class.

                      However, to meet the goal of the teaching-learning of English at elementary school, the English teachers must know not only the students’ development related to language ability in general but also their students’ background and wantsk-especially the students’ characteristics. They could then  teach appropriately because they  teach at a certain elementary school. In short, the teachers  need to consider  who their students are and why they learn English. Therefore, they are able to design materials and teach their students naturally on the basis of a social and economic environment; as a result, the students ( children ) master English through acquisition rather than learning. Young learners are supposed to be children from the first year of formal schooling (five or six years old) to eleven or twelve years of age. However, the age of children is not crucial for how mature they are.

               According to Phillips “there are many factors that influence children’s maturity: for example, their culture, their environment (city or rural), their sex, the expectations of their peers and parents.” It is individual how quickly the children develop. There is a difference between how skilled the children are not depending on their different ages. Some children develop later than others.

        And Ytreberg 1990, In general, it is assumed that five to seven year old children are all at the same – beginner level. The eight to ten year olds may also be beginners, or they may have been learning the foreign language for some time, so there are both level one and level two pupils in the eight to ten age groups.  Ytreberg mentions some basic characteristics of the young language learners:

·         Children sometimes have problems to distinguish the real world from the imaginary world. It can be difficult for teachers to cope with it and to understand their perception of reality.

·         When working or playing they like to be accompanied with others. Most of them do not like to work alone.

·         They use language skills long before they are aware of them.

             Teaching English to young learners at elementary school is different from to adults. The English teachers to young learners in elementary school, therefore, need to comprehend and to apply the theories of language teaching-learning to young learners and language classroom management. Besides, the English teachers are not only required to be able to teach well but also to be able to design materials so that they can apply approaches, methods, and techniques of teaching-learning English appropriately.