Christine Muir is the Assistant Professor in Second Language Acquisition at Nottingham, her current research interests include language learner role modelling, issues of self and identity, and long-term motivation. Here, she discusses how the multilingual superstars of Wimbledon are great role models for language learners, and why language learners should be using role models in the first place.
These few weeks at the start of July are inescapably some of my favourite of the entire year – the strawberries are ripened to perfection, the tennis whites have been ironed and new balls delivered to SW19 – Wimbledon 2019 is upon us…!
Reflecting on my own tennis, I would be the first to concede that it’s definitely a work in progress. Still, there is little that can beat the unbridled feeling of joy in hitting the perfect shot and watching it whoosh past your opponent (except, perhaps, when you manage to do it a few times in a row….)
For anyone wanting to observe the best, it can surely only be The Championships, Wimbledon. Federer, Nadal and Djokovic are all in attendance this year, and Murray’s announcement that he will be playing mixed doubles with Serena Williams has heightened fans’ excitement to fever pitch. On the women’s side of the draw the line up is led by Barty and Osaka: Numbers 1 and 2 in the current WTA world rankings. A veritable feast of tennis role models for any budding player!
Just how important are role models though? Vicarious learning (or observational learning) is a well-established principle in psychology. In all aspects of our lives we continually and actively search for models we perceive as representative of what it is we wish to achieve, and doing so both directs and motivates our development (Bandura, 1997).
It’s not just these tennis players’ games that are impressive, however. It’s also the feats they pull off in the press rooms afterwards…. Think about Roger Federer. Often revered as ‘the GOAT’ (the greatest of all time), he is fluent in Swiss German (his first language), German, French and English. Djokovic is another player celebrated for his linguistic abilities – he’s fluent in Serbian (his first language), German, French, Italian and English. (Note, too, that these are only the languages that they are fluent in!).
Undoubtedly, both Federer and Djokovic – along with many other players on the tour – are outstanding linguistic role models. As language learners we have all experienced the feeling of anxiety when called on in class to answer a question, so imagine having to do it with a whole stadium full of people listening in…!
Unlike in some other areas of education, there is surprisingly little research into language learners’ role models. In a recent pioneering study of nearly 8,500 participants from around the globe, 68% of participants reported having an English language role model (Muir et al., under review). Do you have an English language role model?
As you watch Wimbledon, be sure to pay attention not only to the players’ tennis, but also their interviews… What do you find most impressive about their English? What aspects of their language/communication style do you most want to emulate?
I fear that my tennis serve may still be somewhat lacklustre even when Wimbledon comes around again in 2020, but my language skills? If I work at it, by this time next year I think there is every chance I could be one step closer to emulating my linguistic role models…
Role models activity for the classroom
1. Begin by asking your students to share some of their role models with a partner. In what areas of their life do they have clear role models? Who are they? What is it about them that they admire?
2. Ask students to think specifically about their language learning, do they have any English language role models? Who are they? Students should make a list of all the things they admire about their language/communication style. This can be done for more than one role model if relevant.
3. Working with their partner, learners should go through their lists and think about all the things that they could do to help develop their own competency in this area. If stuck, they can ask the teacher or other peers to help design possible action plans.
4. Choose one of the things from the admiration list they made in Question 2 to work on over the next two weeks. Don’t forget to also think about what else they will be doing during this time too. Make sure the goals that you and the students set are realistic and achievable!
5. Learners should arrange a meeting with their partner for the end of these two weeks. In this meeting, they should share what they found easy/hard, and the progress they think they made during this time. If either partner found it difficult, try to work out why. (Was their strategy/action plan not as effective as it could have been? Were they too ambitious with what they wanted to do in the time they had available?). What could they do differently next time?
6. (Keep repeating steps 3-5…!)
For more of Christine’s work, read her article on football and why visualising success is effective for language learners. You can also find out more about how role models can aid language learning by listening to episode three of ‘The Speaking Corner’ podcast, ‘The power of near peer role models’.
References
Bandura, A. (1997) Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. New York: W.H. Freeman and Company.
Muir, C., Dörnyei, Z. & Adolphs, S. (under review). Role models in language learning: Results of a large-scale international survey. Applied Linguistics.