Standardize Input, Personalize Output: Catering to the Needs of All Students in the Multi-Level Classrooms of East Asia
Todd Hull*
Citation : Todd Hull, Standardize Input, Personalize Output: Catering to the Needs of All Students in the Multi-Level Classrooms of East Asia International Journal on Studies in English Language and Literature 2018, 6(10) : 1-7
A common dilemma in the EFL/ESL classroom is what to do with classes in which there are learners of differing abilities. This problem takes a different form in university English programs in East Asia than in the ESL classrooms of North America, Britain and elsewhere in that the learners in the basic communicative English programs that are common for freshmen in East Asia are "false beginners." They have had a fair amount of English instruction prior to entering university. Further, as a result of the similar curricula in their pre-university educations, not only do students come to class with knowledge of English, but they come with similar knowledge bases in terms of grammar and vocabulary. This paper proposes a method for dealing with diverse levels in these learning environments in which educators make use of students' passive knowledge for receptive skills and allow learners to create their own material for productive output.