INFLUENTIAL FACTORS TO EFL LEARNERS

Although an egg is high quality,

only in the condition of environment

it can open a chick

By following this saying, knowledge cannot be developed alone; it looks like in slumber position, for its awakening and developing, we need environment to practice. Environment is the summary of external situations, which influence to every person.

If the pupil or student is in appropriate environment, his/her talent can be appeared very quickly.

So, EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers should take into consideration, that they should provide English environment during and after lessons. During the lessons the teacher explains some rules, makes artificial environment. But pupils are in it only one or two lessons a day. What about environment of the outside? Are pupils in the outside much or not?

Certainly, “much”! Learners talk with each other; communicate with some people in the outside. It means, if the learners learn in class and practice in social environment, they will know and understand much in English.

Factors to EFL learner

We can say, social environment, education and behavior will awake ability, if the person takes part in it, actively. Whether the learner is very interested in learning English, he/she can appear capability.

“Age” is one of the most influential factors to the EFL learners. By growing every child, becomes pupil, student… According to psychologists, 6-7 years old pupils have good memory. They can learn even very long poems. Together with it, they have great interest in everything. We inform them as 1^st grade pupils. They begin realizing listened and read information in letters in direct meaning. But in the 1^st grade, EFL learners work with pictures, audio and video materials, theme will be kept in mind easily and completely. It is very difficult to accept “letter” information on their age. Songs and poems make bright their “English environment”.

Since children (up to the age of about 11) are still in an intellectual stage of what Piaget called “concrete operations” we need to remember their limitations. Rules, explanations and even other slightly abstract talk about language must be approached with extreme caution.

12-13 years old pupils are full of sharp changes in their behavior: sometimes active, sometimes passive; in some cases passionate, in some cases slow; sometimes they have great interest, sometimes not. So, EFL teachers should work with parents, too.

Every pupil likes to be in the centre of attention. He tries to have respect for him in community. If he has not it, he gets attention with making noise, breaking rules. That’s why, the first task of teachers is to make busy and teach according to their interests.

Children are often innovative in language forms, but still have a great many inhibitions. They are extremely sensitive, especially to peers: What do others think of me? What will so-and-so think when I speak in English? Children are in many ways much more fragile. Their ages are still being shaped, and therefore the slightest nuances of communication can be negatively interpreted. Teachers need to help them to overcome such potential barriers to learning:

• Elicit as much oral participation as possible from students, especially the quieter ones, to give them plenty of opportunities for trying things out

• Help your students to laugh with each other at various mistakes that they all make

• Be patient and supportive

Having pupils’ attention is very important. Since language lessons can at times be difficult for children, teacher’s job is to make them interesting, lively and fun. How to do that?

• A lesson needs a variety of activities to keep interest and attention alive

• Because children are focused on the here and now, activities should be designed to capture their immediate interest

• A teacher needs to be animated, lively and enthusiastic about the subject matter. Consider the classroom a stage on which you are the lead actor; your energy will be infectious

• A sense of humor will go a long way in keeping children laughing and learning. Since children’s humor is quite different from adults’, remember to put yourself in their shoes

• Children have a lot of natural curiosity. Make sure you tap into that curiosity whenever possible, and you will thereby help to maintain attention and focus.

Teaching English to young learners has become its own field of study as the age of compulsory English education has become lower and lower in countries around the world. It is widely believed that starting the study of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) before the critical period- 12-13 years – will build more proficient speakers of English. However, there is no empirical evidence supporting the idea that an early start in English language learning in foreign language contexts produces better English speakers (Nunan, 1999).

Rewards can help, but more affective on the whole are elements that contribute motivation: interest in doing the learning activity itself. They activate the children in speech or movement.

Three very important sources of interest for children in the classroom are pictures, stories and games: the first being obviously mainly a visual stimulus;

the second both visual and aural; and the third using both visual and aural channels as well as activating language production and sometimes physical movement.

In general, children have a greater immediate need to be motivated by the teacher in order to learn effectively.

What about adult learners? Age, health and other personal circumstances influence adult learners. Adult classes often include student ranging in age from 18 to 80 more. Younger students may perceive those who are older as slow and rigid, while older adults may feel that younger ones are frivolous and irresponsible

Health, particularly for the older adults, may be a complicating factor. Difficulties with hearing, eyesight and memory need to be taken into account.

Effective instructors need to inform their teaching by collecting information about their students’ first language knowledge, knowledge of the world , previous learning experience, learning styles and preferences, personalities and personal circumstances, as well as their existing second language skills and goals. Some characteristics for adult learners:

1. Adults have longer attention spans for material

2. They are self-confident

3. Adults, with their more developed abstract thinking ability, are better able to understand a context-reduced segment of language

4. Adults are more able to handle abstract rules and concepts

5. Sensory input need not always be as varied with adults, but one of the secrets of lively adult classes is their appeal to multiple senses

Furthermore, the most influential factor to EFL learners is education. Every child together with communicating with people gets education, practice and qualification. At first, he/she gets education in family and kindergarten, then at schools, lyceums, universities…

In the result of environment, hard work and learning language, the child gets

good or bad behavior. Because:

1. The person can know much from education that cannot find from the nature. For example, the child can know mother tongue from social environment, but cannot know reading or writing.

2. Even with the help of education, we can change inborn minorities. Some children born blind, deaf and dumb etc. However, by special education, their intellect being developed.

3. We can stop or reduce bad habits, which appeared in the result of negative influence of environment (For example, rudeness)

4. In order getting knowledge, practice and qualification, intellectual outlook being developed, too. It causes to moral and physical growing.

In accordance with these reasons above, I think, education has the greatest affect in appearing EFL speaker, specialist…

In conclusion, I can say that learner populations differ according to various parameters: whether the learners are beginner, intermediate or advanced; their objectives in learning the language, and how they are motivated whether their environment outside the classroom is target language or mother tongue; the size of the group, and many more.

If the EFL teachers will know these factors and teach by taking them into consideration, learning and teaching will be effective. Also, it is very important to affect pupils pedagogically.

Bibliography:

1. Umarov B.M., Tashkent 2012, Psychology

2. Piaget J. 1972. Play dreams and imitation in childhood. New York: Norton

3. Shin J.K. 2006, Ten helpful Ideas for Teaching English to Young learners, English Teaching forum

Supervisor: candidate of pedagogical sciences- S.Misirov