overview of Language Teaching Methodology

overview of Language Teaching Methodology

            Methodology is a system of broad principles or rules from which specific methods or procedures may be derived to interpret or solve different problems within the scope of a particular discipline. Unlike an algorithm, a methodology is not a formula but a set of practices.

            Language learning principles are generally sorted into three sub-groupings: Cognitive Principles, Affective Principals and Linguistic Principles.  Principles are seen as theory derived from research, to which teachers need to match classroom practices.  The Cognitive Principles input that Automaticity, Meaningful Learning, Anticipation of RewardsIntrinsic Motivation and Strategic Investment. And for Affective Principles input that Language Ego, Self-Confidence, Risk-Taking and Language-Culture Connection. And than for

Linguistic Principles input that Native Language Effect, Interlanguage, Communicative Competence.

            This is a very brief overview of various language learning principles, draws heavily from H. Douglas Brown explanation. However you view language learning principles, these should form the basis or backdrop of the techniques you choose to use and the choices you make in the language learning.

Grammar Translation Methods

            The grammar-translation method is widely hated by EFL/ESL instructors, even without clearly defining what the method is. It often serves as a catch-all for the repetitive, overly academic, and terminally boring language classes most of us sat through in school. Classes are also primarily conducted in the native language of the teacher and the students, a big no-no the EFL/ESL world.

            The objectives of Grammar Translation Methods are to teach English would probably tell you that (for their students at least) the most fundamental reason for learning the language is give learners access to English literature, develop their minds "mentally" through foreign language learning, and to build in them the kinds of grammar, reading, vocabulary and translation skills necessary to pass any one of a variety of mandatory written tests required at High School or Tertiary level. And than Some teachers who use the method might also tell you that it is the most effective way to prepare students for "global communication" by beginning with the key skills of reading and grammar.  Others may even say it is the "least stressful" for students because almost all the teaching occurs in L1 and students are rarely called upon to speak the language in any communicative fashion.

            According to Prator and Celce-Murcia (1979:3), the key features of the Grammar Translation Method are as follows classes are taught in the mother tongue, with little active use of the target language, much vocabulary is taught in the form of lists of isolated words, Long elaborate explanations of the intricacies of grammar are given and so many else.

The Audiolingual Method

            The Audiolingual Method is a method for foreign language teaching which emphasized the teaching of listening and speaking before reading and writing. This method is combination between behavioral psychology and linguistic. It’s also called “Army Method” because this method is appeared since the World War II for the American armies who had to learn language quickly and intensively. The structural theory of language constituted its backbone.Structural linguistic view language as a system of structurally related elements for the expression of meaning. These elements are phonemes, morphemes, words, structures and sentence types. The language teaching theoreticians and methodologists is behavioral psychology which is is an empirically based approach to the study of human behavior.

            The general goal of the Audiolingual Method is to enable the target language communicatively. And there are two objectives in Audiolingual Method such as; Brook distinguishes between short-range and long-range objectives of an Audiolingual program. Short-range objectives include training in listening comprehension and accurate pronunciation. Long-range objectives or the ultimate goal is to develop the student’s abilities are same like what native speakers have, to use it automatically without stopping to think.

            The main principles on which the audio lingual method is based are the following :Foreign language learning is basically a process of mechanical habit formation. The student are able to give correct response rather than by making mistake. Language skills are learned more effectively if the items to be learned in the target language are presented in spoken form before they are seen in written form. Aural-oral training is needed to provide the foundation for the development of other language skills. Drills can enable learners to form correct analogies. Hence the approach to the teaching of grammar is essentially inductive rather than deductive. The meaning that the words of a language have for the native speaker can be learned only in a linguistic and cultural context and not isolation.

Community Language Learning

Community language learning (CLL) is an approach in which students work together to develop what aspects of a language they would like to learn. The teacher acts as a counselor while the learner acts as a collaborator (client), although sometimes this role can be changed.

            The objectives of commynity language learning competence is specified only in social terms, explicit linguistic or communicative objectives are not defined in the literature on Community Language Learning. Most of what has been written about CLL describes its use in introductory conversation courses in a foreign language. The assumption seems to be that through the method, the teacher can successfully transfer his or her knowledge and proficiency in the target language to the learners, which implies that attaining near-native like mastery of the target language is set as a goal. Specific objectives are not addressed.

           

The role of instructional materials is evolves out of the interactions of the community, a textbook is not considered a necessary component. A textbook would impose a particular body of language content on the learners, thereby impeding their growth and interaction. Materials may be developed by the teacher as the course develops, although these generally consist of little more than summaries on the blackboard or overhead projector of some of the linguistic features of conversations generated by students. Conversations may also be transcribed and distributed for study and analysis, and learners may work in groups to produce their own materials, such as scripts for dialogues and mini-dramas.

The Silent Way

The silent way is a methodology of teaching language based on the idea that teachers should be as silent as possible during a class but learners should be encouraged to speak as much as possible. There are three basic principles: The learner needs to discover or create, learning is made easier by the use of physical objects such as Cuisenaire rods, learning is made easier by problem-solving using the target language.

Teachers using the Silent Way want their students to become highly independent and experimental learners.  Making errors is a natural part of the process and a key learning device, as it is a sign that students are testing out their hypostheses and arriving at various conclusions about the language through a trial and error style approach.  The teacher tries to facilitate activities whereby the students discover for themselves the conceptual rules governing the language, rather than imitating or memorizing them - Brown (1994:63) expresses this as being a process whereby "students construct conceptual hierachies of their own which are a product of the time they have invested."

In addition to the idea that students become more autonomous learners and "develop their own inner criteria for correctness" (Larsen Freeman, 1986:62), another key objective was to encourage students to work as a group - to try and solve problems in the target language together.

Based on these principles and using the techniques described below, it was hoped that students would eventually be able to actively use the language for self-expression, relating their thoughts, feelings and perceptions.