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Teaching Methods
Teaching Methods
Characteristics of GTM:
1. In Grammar Translation Method the structure of the foreign language are taught by
comparing and contrasting with those of the mother tongue.
Internship English Language Teaching (ENG-430)
Instructor: Moazzam Ali
(m_linguist@yahoo.com; www.uogenglish.wordpress.com)
2. Reading and writing are the major focus; little or no systematic attention is paid to
listening or speaking.
3. Vocabulary selection is based solely on the reading text used, and words are taught
through bilingual word lists, dictionary study, and memorization. Vocabulary terms
are presented with their translation equivalents, and translation exercises are
prescribed.
4. More stress is on the sentence structure, because the sentence is the basic unit of
teaching and language practice. According to Howatt (1984:131) The central feature
was the replacement of the traditional texts by examplifactory sentence.
5. As the students are taught each and everything by translating in the mother tongue, so
the teachers raise their expectations high about the students. Howatt (1984:132) The
high priority attached to meticulous standard of accuracy which, as well as having an
intrinsic moral value, was a pre-requisite for passing the increasing number of formal
written examination that grew up during the century.
6. GTM is the deductive way of teaching a language, means that language is taught
trough rules rather than use.
7. The students native language is the medium of instruction. New items are explained
by comparing and contrasting with those of native tongue and target language.
8. GTM is a very easy method. It proceeds from known to unknown. As a child already
known his mother tongue and now he learns the equivalents in the target language.
9. As the difficult and lengthy definitions are avoided in GTM the vocabulary is
acquired economically and effectively. Students can easily get the exact meaning of
the words.
10. The teacher feels at ease while teaching through GTM because they need not to labor
for preparing their lesson and to find out new ways for explaining the words. They
also need to collect different A.V. aids for the preparation of their lesson.
11. In GTM at the early stages the teacher can easily evaluate the students by asking
questions in their native language.
Disadvantages of Grammar Translation Method:
1. In GTM much attention is not paid to oral activities or drill work, through out the
class the students are focused on reading and writing. Nothing type of
conversational session is held.
2. The students become use to of thinking every thing in their native language first
instead of the target language.
3. It becomes much difficult to translation each and every thing in the native
language or in the target language for e.g. the idiomatic expressions can not be
translated exactly.
4. GTM teaches the language by rules rather than by use.
Internship English Language Teaching (ENG-430)
Instructor: Moazzam Ali
(m_linguist@yahoo.com; www.uogenglish.wordpress.com)
5. Teaching through GTM makes students passive listeners because they are not
motivated to speak in the class, most of the time the teacher be the active person
in the class.
6. As nothing type of A.V. aids are used in GTM to make lesson interesting so it
seems very dull and boring.
Direct method:
When GTM lost its popularity in America towards middle of the 19th century,
teachers set themselves for inventing some better method exactly on the lines on which a
child learns his mother tongue. The minister of public instruction of France was the first
to use the name the Direct Method. This method originated in France in 1901. (Ref.
Teaching of English by Shabir Ahmed Jaral)
Definition:
Direct Method is a method of teaching a foreign language especially a modern
language through conversations, discussion and reading in the language itself, without the
use of the pupils language, without translation and without the study of formal grammar.
The words are taught by pointing to objects or pictures or by performing actions.
(Websters New English Dictionary).
Characteristics of Direct Method:
1. Direct method is a natural method as it follows the natural principle of
learning, listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
2. DM. is an inductive method as it teaches the language by use rather than by
rule.
3. Being a natural method DM. lays emphasis on oral teaching. The learners are
strictly motivated to speak in the target language.
4. As there is much emphasis on oral training so the pronunciation of the
learners improves a lot. For this purpose a model from a native speaker of the
target language may be presented in the class.
5. The target language is taught through the real life examples and different
objects.
6. In DM. teaching the learners become very active because they have to
participate in all oral sessions.
7. DM. aims at the direct bond experience and expression, and learners are
strictly motivated to think in the target language. There is no intervention of
mother tongue in this method.
8. The sentence is the part of speech so learners are forced to answer in the full
sentence form instead of yes/ no.
Internship English Language Teaching (ENG-430)
Instructor: Moazzam Ali
(m_linguist@yahoo.com; www.uogenglish.wordpress.com)
3. Simple techniques
4. Auditory and oral practice
Note:
For more understanding of Language Methods read Techniques and Principles in Language
Teaching by Diane Larsen-Freeman or consult your teacher to have the notes on Teaching
Methods.