Although this blog is about using films and music in the EFL classroom, today we will start by analysing in a deeper way why music can be an excellent tool at the moment of teaching a foreign language.
To begin with, it is necessary to say that music is an essential element of our lives; everyone has their own favourite songs and artists, and we always listen to music to relax or to have fun. These aspects are also present when using music in the EFL classroom, and as teacher you can provide your students with a more friendly environment in the classroom, and also you will show them that it is possible to have fun while learning a new language.
Secondly, when it comes to analyse the use of music to teach specific aspects of English, it is possible to notice that music can help students to acquire new vocabulary in a more natural way, because new words are used in a certain context which is provided by the song(s) you are using. Additionally, music is also extremely useful to practice pronunciation. Thus, you can have your students singing a song and at the same time you are showing them how words in that song are pronounced.
Thirdly, using songs in the classroom can bring the class together, due to the fact that music has always been an important element of social interaction, Consequently, when your whole class sings a song (and obviously you sing with them too), they are all sharing a very special moment in which they can interact with each other and in which they can see that they are equally important in their group. Moreover, it has proven that group singing increases the level of oxytocin, a substance that when is liberated in our bodies "enhances feelings of trust and bonding, which may explain why still more studies have found that singing lessens feelings of depression and loneliness" ("Singing changes your brain", 2013)
To sum up, we can say that the use of music in the classroom can help language learning not just in terms of the acquisition of formal aspects like vocabulary or pronunciation, but it can help students to feel more relaxed in the EFL classroom, and it also gives them the opportunity of having a good time at the sime time that they share a wonderful experience of social interaction.
If you want to see how a real teacher uses music in the EFL classroom, watch this video and pay attention to the marvelous experience that this teacher has had with her students. Enjoy!
REFERENCES:
Singing Changes your Brain (2013, August 16). Time. Retrieved from: http://ideas.time.com/2013/08/16/singing-changes-your-brain/
I found this article very interesting, since I'm planning to do an essay based in a similar topic so you provided concise and important information to me (thank youuu!) :) I think that music is an essential tool that teachers are implementing and developing in their classes more and more, and I think that nowadays is one of the most effective methods of teaching.
ResponderEliminarHello! :) I really like this post because as you mention, music can be an excellent tool when teaching a foreign language. At the same time we as future teachers need to be aware about what kind of music we will use in classroom. Also use this kind of tool with a purpose it in order to make it useful for your students. It's true that students are more motivated to learn when they have a positive environment with music and especially in English classes, in that way they relate English with something positive and fun. In consequence if you use music as a tool to teach English in a clever way probably the results will be great.
ResponderEliminarExcellent entry! Personally, I advocate for the idea of using films and songs to teach a new language, mainly because they provide a natural language, which is commonly used in this context, moreover, as you mentioned before, virtually, almost all of students like movies or music in English, therefore they can serve as a motivational tool for students to enhance the process.
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