CES Study: The Affective Filter

The affective filter is a theory that describes how the classroom environment including the teacher, materials, activities and classmates influences how a student feels in the classroom and how emotions can affect learning. For example, if a learner has high levels of anxiety and lacks self-confidence and motivation, this would act as a filter which negatively affects the extent of what is learnt in the classroom. However, when a student has a lower affective filter, that is, the learner feels comfortable in the classroom and has lower anxiety, the learner is more likely to have higher success (Krashen, 2003).  Studies such as Morita, 2004 and Norton, 2000 describe how the effect of anxiety in the classroom negatively impacted the amount learners wanted to participate in class. This is very important because participation is key to developing the skills needed to flourish.  When learners feel free to express themselves and are not afraid of making mistakes in class, they will get more out of learning by participating and capitalizing on opportunities to collaborate with their classmates. At CES we are conscious of the affective filter and believe in the importance of increasing motivation, participation and overall enjoyment in classes, especially for young learners.

Young children learn their native language slowly over a number of years. There is no pressure and every advance is enthusiastically welcomed. However, when children learn English at schools and institutions the atmosphere can be very different. Depending on the context, there is considerable pressure on young learners to learn English quickly. This pressure can heighten the affective filter. At CES, we believe that the affective filter should be lowered as much as possible for young learners by surrounding them with love and attention, which is why we prefer small groups.  These small groups give our teachers time to get to know learners and their needs. This way our teachers can encourage learners to make every attempt to communicate. This is important because all children need to play with language, try it out, test it, receive feedback and try again. This is only possible if learners feel comfortable and happy in class. At CES, we are conscious of how our learners might feel in class, and we always aim to create a friendly and encouraging group environment. This means that in our group classes we focus on making sure each learner feels like a member of a group, as Ashworth and Wakefield (2003 p.33) describe “All children need a sense of self-esteem, a warm accepting atmosphere and friends around them.”

References:

Ashworth, Mary, and H. Patricia Wakefield. Teaching the World's Children: ESL for Ages Three to Seven, Pippin Publishing Corporation, 2003.
Norton, B. (2000) Claiming the right to speak in classrooms and communities
Morita, N. (2004) Negotiating participation and identity in second language communities, TESOL Quarterly, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 573–603.
Krashen, S.D. (2003), Explorations in Language Acquisition and Use