Using Volunteers in the Language Classroom

By Anne Van GilstApril 09, 2011

Eyes wide open

Benefits and Potential Problems

Teacher’s Perspective Student’s PerspectiveVolunteer’s Perspective

(Groups Brainstorm)

Eyes Wide Open

Benefits for teachers: Volunteers can enable teachers to better meet the specific needs of their learners. Volunteers can provide extra attention for shyer or quieter learners. Volunteers can make it a bit easier to work with mixed-level classrooms. Volunteers can nurture the less-confident learners. Volunteers can keep the class going while the teacher is involved in individual

conferencing/marking A volunteer can be another language model for the learners A volunteer can help save time by doing administrative tasks Potential of a new friend and colleague

Potential problems for teachers: Can take extra prep time (more at first) to figure out how to best use volunteers. Could be a personality conflict Problem solving to fit tasks to the volunteer’s personality Dealing with an unreliable or inappropriate volunteer Volunteers are often not pedagogically trained, so they may use ineffective teaching

methods with which they were taught...need monitoring and feedback to train.

Eyes Wide Open

Benefits for Students Chance to interact and learn from another native or near- native

speaker Another language model Another person to ask questions of ... Less waiting Receive extra attention Potentially more encouragement 

Potential Problems for Students Have to potentially deal with inappropriate/insensitive behaviour Potentially are advised or taught something incorrect (though this

can happen with teachers too) Potential loss of face if singled out for extra help 

Eyes Wide Open

Benefits for Volunteer Potential of a mentor relationship Valuable learning experience from teacher and students Exposure to a variety of cultures Observe pedagogy in action Chance to develop own skills and knowledge Potential for meaningful rewarding work Potential Problems for Volunteer Potential for meaningless/boring work (perception of wasting time. Potential to feeling unvalued Potential to be overworked Potential for personality conflict Potential to feel vulnerable

Learning with the Volunteer

Language learning is in large part a social process. In Vygotsky’s notion of "zone of proximal development" (ZPD), the more capable peer or volunteer work together with the learner on tasks that the learner could not independently accomplish.

When help is needed, the more capable peer adjusts a task to the level of the learner (providing scaffolding). In the context of volunteer interaction, scaffolding could include modified input, clarification questions, and corrective feedback provided within context.

Even the simplest of conversations can become verbal scaffolding, since learning takes place “when the new is embedded in the familiar” and “conversational interaction naturally links the known to the new” (Van Lier, 1996, p. 171).

Learning with Volunteers

Determining a learner’s ZPD is an act of negotiated discovery …. between the learner and expert. In other words, the learner and expert engage each other in an attempt to discover precisely that the learner is able to achieve without help, and what the learner can accomplish with assistance… . Importantly, the help negotiated between the novice and expert … is offered only when needed and is withdrawn once the novice shows signs of self-control and ability to function independently

(Aljaafreh and Lantolf 1994: 468)

Discover where Student is at

Build Competence with Support Encourage Autonomy

Relations of Power

The volunteers’ fluency in the target language and their cultural knowledge places them in a position of power. Fairclough (1989) discussed power in discourse where participants are unequal (i.e., fluency in the target language vs. lower level language skills) and the powerful participant has the potential to “control and constrain the contributions of the non-powerful participants” (p. 46).

Cummins (1996) noted that these power relationships are “additive rather than subtractive. Power is created with others rather than being imposed on or exercised over others” (p. 21). In my research of volunteer roles (Van Gilst, 2010), I discovered that learners perceive and give volunteers a lot more power than the volunteers want to accept.

Implications of Power

Volunteers need to be aware of this power and the trust of a learner.

Implications:Volunteers should not attempt to give

information on high stakes issues unless they have been trained in that area.

Teachers shouldn’t place volunteers into positions where they teach skills or subjects they don’t know enough about (i.e., grammar)

Students will automatically defer leadership to the volunteer in group settings.

Motivation

Sandra Kerka (1998) provides several different psychological motivations for volunteering:

AffiliationVarietySelf-esteemAltruismAchievementGrowth

Letting your Volunteers Shine

  “Human beings have an innate inner drive to be

autonomous, self-determined, and connected to one another. And when that drive is liberated, people achieve more and live richer lives.”

(2009, Daniel H. Pink, Drive: The Surprising Truth about that Motivates Us)

  If the psychological needs of “ competence,

autonomy, and relatedness” are met, “we’re motivated productive, and happy”

(Jan. 2000, Ryan, R. And Deci, E “Self-Determination Theory and the Facilitation of Intrinsic Motivation Social development, and Well-Being, American Pshchologogist 55: 68)

Discover where the volunteer is

Build Competence with Support Encourage Autonomy

Letting your Volunteers Shine

To allow our volunteers to become their best we need to:

Provide roles they feel competent in (or provide the training so that they do)

Encourage connecting in meaningful ways, treating them as if they belong

Work towards autonomyProvide new experiencesProvide positive and constructive feedback