WHATISATEACHINGMETHOD?

Wedefinetheterm"TEACHINGMETHOD"asbeingcomprisedof:
1)
2)
3)

An ORIENTATION/APPROACH based on a pedagogical philosophy

and/or learning theory about how students learn language best. This
establishesthegoalsoflanguageinstruction.
Learning objectives, kinds of tasks learners are to perform, and
perceptionoflearner/teacherroles;and
Theinteractionstyleofteacher/learner,attitudetowardcorrections,and
thedesiredclassroomatmosphere.

Somemethodsfocusoncommunicationskillsandplacethegreatestemphasisonbeing
able to express oneself; others focus on grammatical accuracy. Some methods suggest that
reading and writing should be secondary to spoken language emphasis, others suggest that
vocabularyandgrammarinstructionshouldbeemphasized.
ORIENTATIONS/APPROACHESTOTEACHINGENGLISHASAFOREIGNLANGUAGE: A
setofassumptionsaboutlanguageandlearningformsthebasisforeachorientation/approach.
1.

GrammarBasedOrientation/Approach:
Learningalanguagemeanslearningthegrammarandthevocabulary.
Learningalanguageexpandsonesintellect.
Learningaforeignlanguageenablesonetotranslategreatworksofliterature.
Learningthegrammarofaforeignlanguagehelpsonelearnthegrammarofones
nativelanguage.

Inthisorientation/approach,thestudyofaforeignlanguageinvolveslearningthe
grammarandthevocabularyofthelanguage.Thisstudyisintendedtoexpandtheintellect.For
example,studentsdontexpecttocommunicateinLatinorGreek,butstudyingthoselanguages
isthoughttobegoodmentaldiscipline.Thegoalistobeabletotranslategreatworksfromthe
classicallanguagesintoEnglish.
MethodAssociatedwiththeGrammarBasedOrientation/Approach:
GrammarTranslationMethod:Atypicalgrammartranslationlessonbegins
withashortreading,oftenaboutsomeplaceorherofromacountrywherethe
targetlanguageisspoken.Thisreadingisfollowedbyalistofvocabularywords
taken fromthe reading. Students spendagreat deal oftime memorizing the
vocabulary.Thereareoftenquestionsaboutthereadingtobeanswered,usually

inwrittenform. Thenextpartofthelessonisagrammarpointtobelearned.
Followingthegrammarexplanationthereareexercisesforstudentstopracticethe
grammarpointstranslatingfromthenativelanguagetothetargetlanguageand
viceversa.Thegoalofthelessonistodeveloptheabilitytotranslatebetweenthe
target language and the students primary language. During the lesson, the
teacherandstudentsallspeakintheirprimarylanguage.Thefocusofgrammar
translationlessonsisalmostentirelyonthewrittenlanguage.Theyareevaluated
with tests of grammar and vocabulary as well as with passages that they are
required to translate. However, no real attention is paid to oral language
developmentforcommunicativepurposes.
2.

CommunicationOrientation/Approach:
Thenativelanguageshouldnotbeusedintheclassroom.
Students should makedirect associations between the target language andthe
meaning.
Languageisprimarilyspeech,butreadingandwritingshouldalsobetaughtfrom
thebeginning.
Thepurposeoflanguagelearningiscommunication.
Learningalanguageinvolveslearningabouttheculture.

Thisorientationtolanguagelearningdatesbacktothe1800sandisbasedontheworkof
Gouin who observed children learning language in a natural setting. In classes using this
orientation,theteacherandstudentsspeakonlyinthetargetlanguageinorderforstudentsto
learntocommunicateinthelanguagetheyarestudying. Teacherswantstudentstoassociate
wordsinthenewlanguagewiththeirmeaningsinsteadoftranslatingtermsintotheirnative
language.Theemphasisisonorallanguagebutstudentsarealsogivenexercisesthatinvolve
writtenlanguage.Readingsanddiscussionoftencenteronthepopularcultureofthecountries
wherethetargetlanguageisspoken.
MethodassociatedwiththeCommunicationOrientation/Approach:
TheDirectMethod (thisisexemplifiedbytheBerlitzMethod). Thismethod
gets its name from the fact that students are encouraged to make direct
associations between objects or concepts and the corresponding words in the
target language. New target language words are introduced through realia,
picturesorpantomime. Teachersdemonstrateratherthantranslatingtoanswer
questions.Agoalofthemethodistogetstudentstothinkinthetargetlanguage.
Directmethodlessonsareorganizedaroundtopics,suchasbodyparts,foodand
clothing. Asstudentsbecomemoreproficient,thetopicsincludemanyofthe
culturalaspectsofthecountrieswherethetargetlanguageisspoken. Students
learn about the geography, history and customs of the target culture. In this
process vocabulary is emphasized and grammar is only taught inductively.
Teachersworkonpronunciationandstandardgrammaticalform,buttheyhelp
studentstoselfcorrectratherthancorrectingdirectly.Eventhoughspeakingand

listeningskillsareemphasized,readingandwritingaretaughtfromthebeginning.
Teacherscreatesituationsinwhichstudentscancommunicateforrealpurposes.
Studentsareevaluatedthroughactualuseofthetargetlanguagewithactivities
suchasoralinterviewsandassignedwrittenparagraphs.

3.

EmpiricistOrientation/Approach:
Languageisspeech,notwriting.
Languageisasetofhabits.
Teachthelanguage,notaboutthelanguage.
Alanguageiswhatitsnativespeakerssay.
Languagesaredifferent.

WWIIchangedlanguageteachingmethodologyintheU.S.becauseitsoonbecameclear
thatgrammartranslationdidnotproducepeoplethatcoulduselanguagesforrealpurposes.The
goal became conversational proficiency and this renewed emphasis on communication and
broughtaboutthedevelopmentofseveralnewmethods. WhileGrammarTranslationfocuses
primarilyonwrittenlanguageandtheDirectMethodincludesbothoralandwrittenlanguage,
methodsbasedonanempiricistorientationemphasizeorallanguagefollowingthenaturalorder
ofchildrenlearningafirstlanguage.Thus,studentsfirstlisten,thenspeak,andonlylaterread
andwrite.
MethodsassociatedwiththeEmpiricistOrientation/Approach:
i)

TheAudiolingualMethod(ALM).InatypicalALMlesson,studentsbegin
withadialoguedesignedtoincludeaparticularstructuralpattern.Theexercises
anddrillsthatfollowareallbasedonthedialogue. Theygivestudentsmore
practicewiththestructurebeingstudied. Emphasisisondevelopmentoforal
languageandmostoftheclasstimeisspentrepeatingthedialogueordoingdrills.
ALMteachersleadthewholeclass,groupswithintheclassorindividualstudents,
providingamodeltobeemulated.Substitutiondrillsanddialoguesformthecore
ofteachingtechniquesintheAudiolingualMethod.Agooddealofattentionis
paid to correct pronunciation. Errors are corrected immediately to avoid the
formation of bad habits. This method has generally not produced fluent
communicatorsbuteventhoughitsefficacyhasbeenbroughtintoquestion,this
methodcontinuestobeusedwidelytodayinbothESLandEFLsettings.

ii)

Suggestopedia.ThismethodwasdevelopedbyaBulgarianpsychiatristeducator
in 1962 to eliminate the psychological barriers that people have to learning.
Suggestopedia uses drama, art, physical exercise and desuggestive/suggestive
communicative psychotherapy with greatest emphasis on spoken language,
thoughreadingandwritingarealsotaught.ThephysicalsettingforSuggestopedia

4.

isveryimportant.Classesaresmallandstudentssitincomfortablearmchairsina
semicircle.Onthewallsoftheroomhangpostersfromcountrieswherethetarget
languageisspokenaswellasposterswithgrammaticalinformation. Lessons
beginwiththeteacherspeakinginthestudents'firstlanguagetellingthestudents
aboutthesuccessfulandenjoyableexperiencetheyaregoingtohave.Students
aretoldtheywillchooseanewidentityandanewnameinthelanguagetheyare
learning. Music is played and deep breathing exercises are used to induce
relaxation.Studentsdoroleplaying,singsongsandusevocabularyastheirfears
ofspeakingaforeignlanguagedissipate.Theteacherdecideswhatmaterialto
present,leadsallactivitiesandisthecenterofinstruction.
TheRationalistOrientation/Approach:
Alivinglanguageischaracterizedbyrulegovernedcreativity.
Therulesofgrammararepsychologicallyreal.
Peopleareespeciallyequippedtolearnlanguage.
Alivinglanguageisalanguageinwhichwecanthink.

Newinsightsinpsychologyandlinguisticspromptedashiftfromtheempiricist
orientationtoarationalistorientationinthelate1950s.Behavioristpsychologythatemphasized
the influence of external stimuli on the learner was replaced by cognitive psychology that
stresses the importance of the activity of the learner. Its how the learner acts on the
environment, not how the environment acts on the learner that really matters. Chomsky
developedanewapproachtolinguisticsatthistimecalledtransformationalgenerativegrammar.
Hearguedthatpeoplearebornwithaknowledgeofthoseaspectsofgrammarcommontoall
languages and so learning a language consists of deciding on which parts of the universal
grammarshowupintheparticularlanguagepeoplearoundusspeak. Learningalanguageis
thus a natural process and language is acquired through authentic language use not direct
instruction.
MethodassociatedwiththeRationalistOrientation/Approach:
TheSilentWaymakesstudentsresponsibleforthisownlearningandencourages
learnerstobecomeindependentoftheteacher.Themethodgetsitsnamefrom
thefactthattheteacherissilentmuchofthetime.DuringSilentWaylessons,
teachersmodelandexpressiononlyonceandthenstudentsareresponsiblefor
workingtogethertotrytoreproducewhattheteachermodeled. Inthismethod
teachers should give students only what is absolutely necessary to promote
learninganditisbelievedthatstudentswillnaturallydeveloptheirowninternal
understanding of the language they are studying as they work with their
classmates. Beginnersareinitiallytaughtthesoundsofthenewlanguagefrom
colorcodedsoundcharts.Next,teachersfocusonlanguagestructure,sometimes
usingcolored,plasticrodstovisuallyrepresentpartsofwordsandsentences.The
teacher leads students toward correct responses and repetition of the teacher
modelwithnodsornegativeheadshakes.

5.

TheAffectiveHumanisticApproach:
Respectfortheindividualsfeelings(studentsandteacher)isveryimportant
Communicationthatismeaningfultothelearnerisemphasized
Classatmosphereisconsideredmoreimportantthanmaterialsormethods
Peersupportandinteractionareviewedasnecessaryforlearning
Teacherisacounselororfacilitator

Believingthatthemethodsassociatedwithaudiolingualismandtherationalistapproach
hadremovedthehumanelementfromlanguagelearning,thisApproachseekstoemphasizethe
importanceofthelearnersfeelingsandemotionsasapartofthelearningprocess.
MethodassociatedwiththeAffectiveHumanisticApproach:
CommunityLanguageLearning(CLL)wasbasedonRogersprinciplesof
humanisticpsychology. Teachersserveascounselorsfacilitatinglearning. Theyjoin
together with students to form a learning community characterized by an accepting
atmosphere.Thegoalistolowerstudentsdefensesandencourageopencommunication.
InatypicalCLLlesson,studentssitinasmallcircleandtheteacherstandsbehindoneof
thestudents. Thestudentmakes astatement orasks aquestioninhisorhernative
language.Inagentle,supportivevoicetheteachertranslateswhatthestudentsaidtothe
newlanguage.Thestudentrepeatswhattheteachersaysuntilheiscomfortableenough
torecordthenewphraseonataperecorder.Theprocedureisrepeatedwithallstudents
inthegroupuntilashortconversationhasbeenrecorded.Thenstudentslistentotheir
conversationandtheteacherwritesitontheboard.Thetextbookactuallybecomeswhat
thestudentssayintheirrecordedconversation.Studentscopythewrittenconversation
fromtheboard.Thesesentencesarethenanalyzedforvocabularyorgrammarstudy.
6.

ComprehensionBased/NaturalApproach:
Listeningistheskillthatallowsallotherskillstodevelopovertime
Languageisacquiredratherthanlearnedandacquisitionoccursinanaturalorder
Comprehensibleinputisessential
Errorcorrectionisnotnecessaryandmaybecounterproductive
Itisessentialtolowertheaffectivefiltertoencouragestudentstouselanguage
freely

ThisapproachisbasedonKrashenandTerrellstheoryofsecondlanguageacquisition.
Theemphasishereisonnaturalexposuretolanguageintheformofcomprehensibleinput(that
whichismeaningful).Itrespectstheinitialpreproductionperiod,expectingspeechtoemerge
notfromartificialpracticebutfrommotivatedlanguageuse,progressingfromearlysingleword
responsestomoreandmorecoherentdiscourse.Focusisonmeaningfulcommunicationrather
than grammatical correctness. Learning activities are designed for learner comfort and
enjoyment.

MethodassociatedwiththeNaturalApproach:
TotalPhysicalResponse(TPR)isamethodthatwasdevelopedbyAsherin
1979basedonresearchthatsuggeststhatwelearnbetterwhenourmusclesare
involvedaswellasourminds.InTPRstudentslistenandrespondtoaseriesof
commands.Atthebeginning,studentsrespondtosimplecommandsuchasraise
yourhand,astheyprogress,studentsrespondtocomplexdemandssuchasraise
yourlefthandandscratchyournoseifyouarewearingablueshirt.Ultimately,
studentsbegingivingcommandstotheirteacherandfellowstudents.Readingand
writingcomeafterstudentshavedevelopedorallanguageproficiency.Formost
teachers,TPRisusedasonetechniquewithbeginningstudentsratherthanasa
completemethodtoteachallaspectsoflanguageinstruction.
7.

TheCommunicativeApproach:
Thegoaloflanguagelearningistocommunicate
Languageinstructionfocusesonsemanticsandsociolinguistics,notjustgrammar
structures
Cooperativelearninghelpsstudentstonegotiatemeaning
Languageisassociatedwithauthentic/reallifeusageandrealiaisafeatureof
materialresources
Skills are integrated from the beginning (listening, speaking, reading, writing,
vocabulary,grammar)

ThisisthedominantapproachfavoredintheU.S.todayasameansofhelpingstudentsto
immediatelyintegrateintothenativespeakingcommunitybyemphasizingtheimportanceof
helpingstudentstounderstandothersandtomakethemselvesunderstood.Itischaracterizedby
someofthesamephilosophyasthatofthenatural approach,that afun,relaxed, energized
classroomisaclassroomthatmotivateslearnerstotakeriskstospeakthelanguage.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Lowman, Joseph. Mastering the Techniques of Teaching. San Francisco: Jossey,
1995.
Christensen, C. Roland, Abby J. Hansen, and James F. Moore. Teaching and the
Case Method, 1987
Harmer,Jeremy. How to teach. Longman, 2009