大切な言葉たち English tooコミュの on line debate

so there was a topic that AEON in Japan is trying to introduce classes for baby while they are still in their mothers.

this English teacher thinks it is insane, and there is no meaning for doing so.
i had some thoughts, and i wrote back.
then got response as well.
i do not want to get in trouble,,,for pasting, i didnt put this teacher's name either.
but i was wondering if anybody has different opinions.
feel free to write me in English or Japanese!!
here is the debate...


English teacher:
just read on the Internet something that surprised me,
AEON英会話 has kids classes...
for children...
that are ...
in their mother's bodies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's right people! English lessons for children who have not even been born yet!


What's next?
Haveing sex in English to help your child understand English better?
Writing ABC with a magnet on a pregnant womans belly?


I have been an English teacher for over eight years.

I also have a bachelors degree in psychology, my thesis was "human learning and associated heuristics" (that's just a big way of saying "understanding how people learn.")

So in my educated opinion I say that this is absolutely insane
In my opinion I think they're trying to teach a child to speak another language before they completely understand their own is absolutely insane.
Some people in the Eikaiwa industry will tell you that a child learns most of his language between the ages of two and 18.
this is true.
This research was done by a man named Noam Chomsky from the University of Chicago. However the thing that they do not tell you is that he researched language development in native speaker children.
I have never seen any research done by any university supporting any of the claims of AEON.
In my opinion I believe that teaching children under the age of 8 is just a money grab by greedy corporations. IT DOSN"T WORK!
They can't use the language.
The child just runs around and tears stuff off the walls.

The truth is: if you want your child to be a very good speaker of English your child has to:
1) want to speak English
2) have a reason or motivation for speaking English
3) practice English for at least an hour everyday.

At the moment I know of no Eikaiwa that offers English classes everyday to children at a reasonable price.
In closing: I would just like to say to any Aeon teachers that happen to read this "I pity you for having to put up with this"

What's you oppinion?

When should a child begin learning a forign language?




myme:

i think listening is actually good..
cuz what a lot of japanese people having a hard time to learn english with is
pronounciation
and it gets developed by listening, environmental suroundings.
we 'japanese' dont have knowledge of sounds in brain...
such as
'th' and/or 'L-R differences'

so,
as placing a data in brain,
understand/speak language and be able to separate the sounds differences are two different issues.

i agree with the theory of best to learn second language is to build up first language first and then second language.

but along with listening to the variety of different sounds is important.

cuz it is hard to 'learn' that.
it is more of having it in you as you grow up.

as my experience,,
my son did not have a chance to learn how to speak japanese, and had never spoken when he was in japan.
we lived in japan till he was 20 months old.
his first spoken language was english.
he returned to japan at age 5 for 1 year then his progress was super, learned how to speak japanese(the language he had never spken) so quick.
i think it was because he had a data in his brain even though he had never spoken japanese as his language.

thats my opinion, B.T.W....
hope my english isnt too messed up, and understandable...



Et:
@myme
Hi! Thanks for commenting! Great English! Don't be so hard on yourself. (^o^)

I think that you highlight another one of my points.
The best way to learn a language is to speak it everyday and be "emersed" in that language.
Going to an Eikaiwa for 20 or 40 or 50 minutes each week isn't going to work.

I think what it does do is make children more comfortable about being around people for other counties. Which is good.

I'll tell you what. Lets have a test.
I'll take a person 13 years old that thinks English is cool. Then Give me another child, three years old and is going to be a kind of because... well he doesn't know why, he's too young to understand why he's there and what he's doing. The whole reason why the three-year-old child is at AEON is because his mother brought him there.
We must teach each of his two children exactly the same things for six months. Then after that six months is over we will test them on what they remember.
I will guarantee you that the 13-year-old motivated boy will have better pronunciation better understanding of the material and may even be able to use it for himself. Three years old boy will probably not remember anything and will not be able to produce anything.
Why is this?
It's because between 8-13 years old, you begin to understand how your mind works and how you can direct your attention to learn things. You have an understanding for what you are doing a thing.
A 3-year-old child does not understand. Your average three-year-old is only slightly different from an animal.
If you doubt me, go and stand outside of a preschool and watch their behavior. Then go to the monkey cage at your local zoo and observe that behavior.
You will notice that there are very few differences.


myme:
i think it is just different perspective.
i have been raising two boys, 4 and 9 currently, they were once three year old too.
i have worked at daycare, as well as at elementary school.
i think three year old though, even younger children, are very different from monkeys in cage. maybe some what similarity, but more differences you will find i would say.
and if an instructor/teacher/parents could give good enough tools to make that three year old boy motivated and interested in study, i would say for sure, he would have better pronunciation than the thirteen year old boy.
because younger they are, more flexible they are to gain new information in brain.
for instance, there are very many genius kids, so to call, are in the world who can do much better than adults can do. you know those kids on TV shows.
math and reading and such.
how can they learn so much? without knowing meaning of the knowledge they gained?
because their brain is trying to grow, easier to activate.
more they use, better it becomes.(i dont know if thats right way to put in words)
i do not think they are any different from others though, anybody can do it, only if the teacher can give matched tools/teaching methods for the child to learn.
i can not guarantee how much they would remember what they have learned when they get older, but for pronunciation purpose which Japanese people are struggling with, it would make significant differences i think.
even for the baby in their mothers, being around English speaking would be good i think. i mean how people learn their first language at the first place anyways?
i do not know how extreme AEON went, but i agree with the concept.

i do not know what would be the best productive way for baby to learn while they are still in their mothers, how the Aeon is trying to pull this off.
i am not totally agree to AEON, but i kinda understand where that idea came from, and i will not get to conclusion right away either.

either way, it is better than raising baby in stroller(the symbolic tool of no interaction) and produce kids with no character. thats more scary than paying AEON for no use of learning English.
the kids at least get to go out and have some interaction with other kids and adults "out of stroller"!

sorry for long writing, but that was very interesting debate...thank you :-)