Pre-Service English Language Teachers’ Environmental Print Attempts for Young Language Learners


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Ünal Gezer M.

FIRST INTERNATIONAL LANGUAGE-FOR-ALL CONFERENCE '22, Adana, Turkey, 21 - 23 October 2022

  • Publication Type: Conference Paper / Unpublished
  • City: Adana
  • Country: Turkey
  • TED University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

In primary language classrooms, the physical layout should consist of labels with words and pictures so that students make connections between the written and visual input presented via posters, and displays for young learners’ use. This environmental print provides continuous learning opportunities through exposure to the target language with authentic and multi-modal input with visuals and interactivity. Existing literature highlights the importance of print in classrooms (Cameron, 2001; Linse and Nunan, 2006; Kang-Shin and Crandall, 2014) and adds that young children pay attention to the literacy-based elements in their environments. A total of 78 pre-service English language teachers taking Teaching English to Young Learners became familiar with the concept of environmental print via poster design project and a total of 39 posters were designed by small groups. The present study examines pre-service English language teachers’ poster designs and their attempts in creating literacy-rich learning environments for young language learners. Once the goal of the poster project was explained, participating teacher candidates chose the content, goal, and design, and intended young learner profile for their poster designs. The analyses of posters revealed poster designs were mainly for the walls of the classrooms though few others were designed as floor board game posters. The designed posters showed similarities with the concepts and themes appearing in the primary English program. The study has implications for pre-service teacher training and material development. Keywords pre-service teacher training, poster design, environmental print, teaching English to young learners