TQ Dialogues The Hidden Curriculum CH1

Survival speech is very apparent in many classrooms around the United States where students depend on these skills to allow them to comfortably get through each day as smooth as possible. Whether it is conversing about what they want for lunch, how they plan on getting home, discussing their emotions about the people they interact with (friends, teachers, strangers, etc), and more. It is a technique that I feel needs to be introduced to an E.S.L. learner from the beginning and then expanded while incorporating more comprehensive and communicative language skills for the future. It is important overall that the student acquires the ability to think critically and to problem solve. As for myself using survival speech while visiting in Mexico, I can relate to students who are permanently living in an English speaking world where bi-lingual settings are few and far between. It is encouraging that we are seeing more bilingual signs in high traffic foreign foot traffic areas: airports, bus and train stations, and directions on food, appliances, etc. Life is very unexpected and you can only prepare as much as you are willing to study. Just like being on stage giving a performance- you can rehearse and rehearse and speak the script to a tee but anything in the environment can change the whole perspective where you need to be ready for plan B.