This is a (potentially) interesting little challenge to set for yourself...
1. What does language fluency mean to you?
1a. What criteria do you use to differentiate "more fluent" language students from "less fluent" ones?
1b. Would it be fair to say that "fluent" language users need less (or no) support along the lines of materials, preparation time, scaffolding and feedback?
Okay, if you got stuck immediately on that first question (about defining fluency), don't beat yourself up too much. Even the experts find it hard to define and operationalise, as Scott Thornbury's blog article on Fluency demonstrates quite clearly.
In any case, whatever basic idea you came up with for "fluency" I now want you to take the phrase "language fluency" and substitute in the word "teaching"- giving us "teaching fluency".
When I refer to "teaching fluency" I am inviting you to think about your actual ability to teach in a manner and scope similar to the way a fluent language user handles and uses language.
Now let's repeat our questions above, with a focus instead on the notion of teaching fluency (and please note that I'm not talking about "how to teach language fluency" - I'm referring to a teacher's ability to teach in a smooth, capable and fluent manner)...
2. What does teaching fluency mean to you?
2a. What criteria might you use to differentiate "more fluent" teachers from "less fluent" ones?
2b. Would it be fair to say that "fluent" teachers need less (or no) support along the lines of materials, preparation time, scaffolding and feedback?
Okay, if you could be bothered having a crack at that in the comments section below, I could certainly be bothered reading it and learning something from your thoughts and observations!
:-)
