Collaborative Project

During our first session we studied the relationship between language sciences and communicative competence from the historical and epistemological approach. We talked about the need to teach phonological units, grammatical units and operations and lexical items. We also mentioned that the prioritized dimensions are the semantic and communicative dimensions of language, and teaching functions and notions of language is something necessary and which does not have the same weight in the classroom.

Being aware of this, we decided to make a presentation about the different linguists and the contributions they made to language learning. The objective of this was to design a collaborative chronological line to have a global view of the impact of linguistics on language learning and language teaching. We also wanted to regard linguistics from a practical perspective to a coherent basis to develop the following content blocks of the subject. Finally, our aim was to put into practice the concept of creativity by Ken Robison.

Summary of the project .

We had to divide ourselves in groups of 4-5. Then, we had to choose a linguistic theory from the list provided and prepare a presentation of ten minutes in a concise way about the linguistic theory that we have chosen. After doing this, each group had to look for information about their linguistic theory and prepare one or two slices of a Power Point Presentation. Once we had this, we had to upload our slices to google drive, so in this way we had a common Power Point Presentation. In this way, it was very easy to develop a chronological time for the linguistics we were studying and make the content clearer. With all the Power Point Presentations completed, during the following session each group presented in front of the whole class their linguistic theory. While a group was presenting their theory, some other groups (previously assigned) had to evaluate their performance. Those other groups had also to give a mark to the presentation the others had done. 

Thus, we can say that it was a collaborative project in which all groups participated and tried to explain their theories as clearly as possible so that their colleagues could understand them (and also they could have a higher mark). In this way, the understanding of the different linguistic theories became more comprehensible since the explanation was more dynamic and interactive. 

What is collaborative learning?

Collaborative learning is based on the view that knowledge is a social construct. Collaborative activities are most often based on four principles:

The learner or student is the primary focus of instruction.

•  Interaction and "doing" are of primary importance
• Working in groups is an important mode of learning.
• Structured approaches to developing solutions to real-world problems should be incorporated into learning.

Collaborative learning can occur peer-to-peer or in larger groups. Peer learning, or peer instruction, is a type of collaborative learning that involves students working in pairs or small groups to discuss concepts, or find solutions to problems. This often occurs in a class session after students are introduced to course material through readings or videos before class, and/or through instructor lectures. Similar to the idea that two or three heads are better than one, many instructors have found that through peer instruction, students teach each other by addressing misunderstandings and clarifying misconceptions.

What is the impact of collaborative learning or group work?

Research shows that educational experiences that are active, social, contextual, engaging, and student-owned lead to deeper learning. The benefits of collaborative learning include:

• Development of higher-level thinking, oral communication, self-management, and leadership skills.
• Promotion of student-faculty interaction.
• Increase in student retention, self-esteem, and responsibility.
• Exposure to and an increase in understanding of diverse perspectives.
• Preparation for real life social and employment situations.

How can you evaluate group work?

Student group work can result in the production of:

• wikis
• proposals
• reports of case studies
• class or video presentations
• posters

Something that draw our attention.

Austin and Searle are important linguists and philosophers as their approaches to speech acts now enable us to fully understand the production of utterances in English. Moreover, their work enhances the comprehension of the social reality and the social constructs that surrounds us. Their detailed study of everyday language is vital for the study of the English language. The other linguist which drew our attention was Vygotsky due to the connection that his theories have with collaborative work, just what we were experiencing with this activity. Furthermore, we found interesting how Vygotsky highlights in his theory the key role of social interaction and the importance of the community when developing cognition.