Postive Thinking: The Secret to Success in the Language Classroom

Education professionals are always looking for ways to enhance their effectiveness in the classroom. This book investigates the claim that music, relaxation and suggestion, three factors of the Accelerated Learning method of language instruction, can improve student outcomes. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were used to assess the effect of these factors on the communicative competence of students in tertiary Japanese language classes. The research showed that anxiety, motivation and self- concept were all significantly related to success in language learning. It also found that learning environments were closely related to achievement and affective variables. Of the three factors, only suggestion was found to have a significant effect. It appears that suggestion has an influence on attribution patterns that in turn enhance self- concept. The findings suggest that teacher''s positive messages are a powerful tool to enhance students'' affect in learning a foreign language. This book offers language teachers valuable insight into how students feel about their language learning and some practical strategies to use in the classroom.