METHODS AND APPROACHES in TEACHING ENGLISH AS A second LANGUAGE

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Approaches, methods, procedures, and techniques Approach : this refers to “theories about the nature of language and language learning that serve as the source of practices and principles in language teaching”. It offers a model of language competence. An approach describes how people acquire their knowledge of the language and makes statements about conditions which will promote successful language learning.

Approaches, methods, procedures, and techniques Method : a method is the practical realization of an approach. Methods include various procedures and techniques as part of their standard fare. Procedure : a procedure is an ordered sequence of techniques. A procedure is a sequence which can be described in terms such as first you do this, then you do that… Smaller than a method and bigger than technique.

Technique : Is a classroom device or activity and thus represents the narrowest of the four concepts Some examples: dictation, imitation , and repetition a common technique when using video material is called “silent viewing”. This is where the teacher plays the video with no sound. Silent viewing is a single activity rather than a sequence, and as such is a technique rather than a whole procedure.

A term that is also used in discussions about teaching is “model” – used to describe typical procedures, usually for teachers in training. Such models offer abstractions of these procedures, designed to guide teaching practice.

The Grammar – Translation Approach/Method This is a method that has been used by language teachers for many years. At one time it was called Classical Method,since it was first used in the teaching of the classical languages,Latin and Greek. Earlier in this century,it was used for the purpose of helping students read and appreciate foreign language literature.

The Grammar – Translation Method Classes are taught in the students mother tongue,with little active use of the target language; Vocabulary is taught in the form of isolated word lists; Elaborate explanations of grammar are always provided; Reading of difficult text is begun early in the course of study; Little attention is paid to the content of text,which are treated as exercises in grammatical analysis.

Direct Approach A reaction to the Grammar Translation Approach and its failure to produce learners who could communicate in the foreign language they had been studying; No use of the mother tongue is permitted; Lessons begin with dialogues and anecdotes in modern conversational style; Actions and pictures are used to make meanings clear; Grammar is learned inductively.

Direct Approach Literary texts are read for pleasure and are not analyzed grammatically; The target culture is also taught inductively; The teacher must be a native speaker or have nativelike proficiency in the target language;

Reading Approach A reaction to the problems experienced in implementing the Direct Approach; Reading was viewed as the most usable skill to have in foreign language since not many people traveled abroad at that time; Also few teachers could use their foreign language well enough to use direct approach effectively in class.

Reading Approach Only the grammar useful for reading comprehension is taught; Vocabulary is controlled at first and then expanded; Translation is once more a respectable classroom procedure. Reading comprehension is the only language skill emphasized; The teacher does not need to have good oral proficiency in the target language.

Audiolingualism or the Audio-lingual Approach Audio-lingual methodology owes its existence to the Behaviourist models of learning using the Stimulus-Response-Reinforcement model, it attempted, through a continuous process of such positive reinforcement, to engender good habits in language learners. Audio-lingualism relied heavily on drills like substitution to form these habits. Habit-forming drills have remained popular among teachers and students, and teachers who feel confident with the linguistic restriction of such procedures

Presentation, Practice, and Production A variation on Audio-lingualism in British-based teaching and elsewhere is the procedure most often referred to as PPP, which stands for Presentation, Practice, and Production. In this procedure the teacher introduces a situation which contextualizes the language to be taught. The students now practice the language using accurate reproduction techniques such as choral repetition, individual repetition, and cue-response drills.

PPP and alternatives to PPP The PPP procedure came under a sustained attack in the 1990s. Michael Lewis suggested that PPP was inadequate because it reflected neither the nature of language nor the nature of learning. Jim Scrivener advanced what is perhaps the most worrying aspect of PPP,the fact that it only describes one kind of lesson;it is inadequate as a general proposal concerning approaches to language in the classroom. In response to these criticism many people have offered variations on PPP and alternative to it: ARC, OHE/III, ESA.

ARC put forward by Jim Scrivener stands for Authentic use, Restricted use and Clarification and focus Communicative activity will demonstrate authentic use; elicted dialogue or guided writing will provoke restricted use of language by students; finally clarification language is that which the teacher and students use to explain grammar,give examples,analyse errors,elict or repeat things.

OHE/III Michael Lewis claims that students should be allowed to Observe (read or listen to language) which will then provoke them to Hypothesize about how the language works before going on to the Experiment on the basis of that hypothesis.

ESA In the ESA model three components will usually be present in any teaching sequence,whether of five,fifty or a hundred minutes E stands for Engage - students have to be engaged emotionally S stands for Study A stands for Activate - any stage at which students are encouraged to use all and/or any of the language they know

Oral – situational Approach A reaction to the Reading Approach and its lack of emphasis on oral-aural skills; Was dominant in Britain during the 1940’s, 1950’s and 1960’s; It draws from the Reform Movement and the Direct Approach but adds features from Firthian linguistics and the emerging professional field of language pedagogy.

Oral – situational Approach The spoken language is primary; All language material is practiced orally before being presented in written form; Only the target language should be used in the classroom. Efforts are made to ensure that the most general and useful lexical items are presented;

Oral – situational Approach Grammatical structures are graded from simple to complex; New items are introduced and practiced situationally (e.g., at the post office, at the bank, at the dinner table)

Cognitive Approach A reaction to the behaviorist features of the Audiolingual Approach; Influenced by cognitive psychology (Neisser 1967) and Chomskyan linguistics (Chomsky 1959, 1965); Language learning is viewed as rule acquisition, not habit formation; Instruction is often individualized; learners are responsible for their own learning;

Cognitive Approach Grammar must be taught but it can be taught deductively (rules first; practice later) and/or inductively (rules can either be stated after practice or left as implicit information for the learners to process on their own); Pronunciation is de-emphasized; perfection is viewed as unrealistic and unattainable; Reading and writing are once again important as listening and speaking;

Cognitive Approach Vocabulary instruction is once again important, especially at intermediate and advanced levels; Errors are viewed as inevitable, to be used constructively in the learning process; The teacher is expected to have good general proficiency in the target language as well as an ability to analyze the target language;

Affective-Humanistic Approach A reaction to the general lack of affective considerations in both Audiolingualism and the Cognitive Approach; e.g., Moskowitz 1978 and Curran 1976; Respect is emphasized for the individual ( each student, the teacher) and for his or her feelings; Communication that is meaningful to the learner is emphasized

Affective-Humanistic Approach Instruction involves much work in pairs and small groups; Class atmosphere is viewed as more important than materials or methods; Peer support and interaction are viewed as a self-realization experience; The teacher is a counselor or facilitator;

Affective-Humanistic Approach The teacher should be proficient in the target language and the student’s native language since translation may be used heavily in the initial stages to help students feel at ease; later it is gradually phased out.

Comprehension-Based Approach An outgrowth of research in first language acquisition that led some language methodologists to assume that second or foreign language learning is very similar to first language acquisition; e.g., Potovsky 1974; Winitz 1981; Krashen and Terrell 1983)

Comprehension-Based Approach Listening comprehension is very important and is viewed as the basic skill that will allow speaking, reading, and writing to develop spontaneously over time, given the right conditions. Learners should begin by listening to meaningful speech and by responding nonverbally in meaningful ways before they produce any language themselves.

Comprehension-Based Approach Learners should not speak until they feel ready to do so; this results in better pronunciation than if the learner is forced to speak immediately. Learners progress by being exposed to meaningful input that is just one step beyond their level of competence. Rule learning may help learners monitor what they do, but it will not aid their acquisition or spontaneous use of the target language.

Comprehension-Based Approach Error correction is seen as unnecessary and perhaps even counterproductive; the important thing is that the learners can understand and can make themselves understood. If the teacher is not a native (or near-native) speaker, appropriate materials such as audio- tapes and videotapes must be available to provide the appropriate input for the learners.

Then…

The Communicative Approach The communicative approach or Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is the name which was given to a set of beliefs which included not only a re- examination of what aspects of language to teach but also a shift in emphasis on how to teach!

The Communicative Approach The communicative approach or Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) was developed in the 1970s, and in critical reaction to the formal and boring types of exercises used under the audiolingual approach (‘drill-and-kill’ exercises).

The Communicative Approach The communicative approach or Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) puts the focus on communicative interaction in class, not on a correct but mind- and meaningless reproduction of the linguistic forms prescribed for a specific lesson.

The Communicative Approach The communicative approach or Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is an outgrowth of the work of anthropological linguists (e.g. Hymes 1972) and Firthian linguists (e.g. Halliday 1973) who view language first and foremost as a system for communication.

The communication continuum Non-communicative activities Communicative activities The communication continuum No communicative desire No communicative purpose Form not content One language item only Teacher intervention Materials control A desire to communicate A communicative purpose Content not form Variety of language No teacher intervention No materials control