Week 2 Blog: Music and ESL Classroom


This article discussed the value that music could bring to ESL classrooms.  Music in general is very popular among students and plays a vital role in their lives.  However, music is rarely used in an educational setting to assist learners in understanding language. The author explained how it is harder to incorporate music into high school classrooms than elementary or middle school classrooms, since there are several songs to memorize or learn concepts (states, ABCs, etc). The writer mentioned another source who suggested utilizing music and songs to teach grammar (ex: many confuse the use of "can't" with ability and "may" with permission), which is a subject area students do not really enjoy. However, the content and engagement can be enhanced through music! She also included this information in your article: To find suitable pop songs, busyteacher.org a great resource with more than 1,700 song worksheets submitted by teachers and organized by ESL level.

Teachers may be turned off to the idea of music since it is non-traditional and requires a different level of creativity on both the teacher and the students.  I honestly did not think about using music to teach grammar to ESL students, but I love the idea! Personally, I have used music to teach about how a bill becomes a law.  The students are required to either create their owe song and beat or use a song and incorporate the steps on how a bill becomes a law.  Majority of students absolutely love the project!!! I offer bonus points for the students to "rap" their song in front of the class.  I also used music when I taught Psychology and students had to find a song that explain their lives and break down the meaning of the lyrics. Finally, I used music to teach Sociology, where students had to view appropriate music videos to find gender roles. Furthermore, the website offered in the article ( and in my above paragraph) offered great ideas and resources to incorporate, not only music but other types of learning tools! Overall, students love music and are constantly listening to it or singing songs, so why not incorporate something they like into education and the learning process.  After all, we all can remember a song from years ago, yet sometime forget what day it is :)



http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/despite-challenges-songs-add-value-to-the-high-school-esl-classroom/education

Comments

  1. AnonymousJune 6, 2017 at 5:32 AM

    Hi Jenn,

    I loved the topic of your blog for this week. I worked at Dorney Park for five years while I was completing my bachelors and masters degrees, particularly in the Human Resources department. I had the opportunity to work with students in the International program, which was such an enriching experience. One of the things that always amazed me was that while their English skills were ok (fragments and phrases incorrectly used, but close enough to be able to figure out their intentions), many of them would sing pop music word for word with no accent and zero hesitation. Shania Twain's 'From this Moment' was clearly a favorite for the girls from Poland. :) I appreciate the reference for finding suitable pop songs to incorporate into the classroom. The foreign language teachers often play Spanish and French music while students are entering the classroom, it makes sense that pop music in English could and should be played in an L2 classroom. In addition to exposure to the pop culture, it provides a means for understanding phrases and expressions that otherwise may not be taught in the classroom. Great post!

    Kim

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  2. Peter_WeissJune 7, 2017 at 5:09 PM

    I think this article is great! I remember in elementary school learning so many things via the use of song. Putting words to a rhythm and sound is a great way to practice memorization and retaining langue. I know at a school I taught at, one teacher had the students take a pop song and change the words to make it about them. This was an ice breaker project at the begging of the year. Helped to build that classroom community. Seemed like a really fun project and as you mentioned there are many ways to make this happen.

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  3. Haley KlineJune 8, 2017 at 5:47 PM

    I love the idea of using music in the classroom. Personally, I love finding songs on youtube that relate to concepts I am teaching at the time. The kids sing the songs and it helps them remember the concepts. For example, I love using the song Too Late To Apologize, A Declaration. It follows the beat and similar lyrics to the song Too Late To Apologize by One Republic. The students learn about how the Declaration of Independence came to be in a fun and engaging way. I have seen on teacher blogs the use of pop songs to teach grammar concepts. I think it sounds like an awesome and engaging way to make mundane material more exciting. I'm not sure if you've ever heard of or used Flocabulary, but it uses rap to teach concepts from all content areas with accompanying activities. Some videos are free, but most require you to pay for the service. I also love the examples you gave for how you use music in your classroom. I'll be sure to check out busyteacher.org. I enjoyed reading your post!

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