Music Speaks, We Listen: A Teacher\u27s Guide for Using Music in the Adult ELL Classroom

Too often adult ESL students are stymied by high levels of perfectionism, self-consciousness and anxiety when trying to learn English. They are further challenged because they may have come from a country where language teaching methods have not kept up with the times, so have an imbalance of skills—lacking speaking and listening skills. When students’ affective filters are high and their motivation is low they are less open to learning. Students need authentic, culturally-relevant material to stimulate learning and activate their multiple intelligences. The purpose of this project is to introduce adult ESL teachers to using popular songs to teach English. Music-centered curriculum offers rich, authentic and culturally-relevant material for use in the adult ESL classroom. This project explores research in second language acquisition and the neuro-cognitive and psychological benefits of using music in adult ESL. Finally, practical aspects of materials development are presented for music-centered classroom activities with specific songs as examples to teach vocabulary, speaking, listening, grammar and pronunciation