ENGLISH TEACHING METHODS

Throughout the history of teaching languages a number of different teaching

approaches and methodologies have been tried and tested with some being more
popular and effective than others. If you’re just beginning your TEFL career, it would
be beneficial to be familiar with a few of these.
The Direct Method
The direct method of teaching, which is sometimes called the natural method, and
is often (but not exclusively) used in teaching foreign languages, refrains from using
the learners' native language and uses only the target language.
It was established in England around 1900 and contrasts with the grammar–
translation method and other traditional approaches, as well as with C.J.
Dodson's bilingual method. It was adopted by key international language schools
such as Berlitz and Inlingua in the 1970s and many of the language departments of
the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. State Department in 2012.[1]
In general, teaching focuses on the development of oral skills.[2] Characteristic
features of the direct method are:

1. teaching concepts and vocabulary through pantomiming, real-life objects and

other visual materials
2. teaching grammar by using an inductive approach (i.e. having learners find out
rules through the presentation of adequate linguistic forms in the target
language)
3. centrality of spoken language (including a native-like pronunciation)
4. focus on question-answer patterns

Definition
Direct method in teaching a language is directly establishing an immediate and audio
visual association between experience and expression, words and phrases, idioms and
meanings, rules and performances through the teachers' body and mental skills,
without any help of the learners' mother tongue[3].

1. Direct method of teaching languages aims to build a direct way into the world
of the target language making a relation between experience and language,
word and idea, thought and expression rule and performance.
2. This method intends for students to learn how to communicate in the target
language
3. This method is based on the assumption that the learner should experience the
new language in the same way as he/she experienced his/her mother tongue
without considering the existence of his/her mother tongue.[4]
Techniques[edit]

1. Question/answer exercise – the teacher asks questions of any type and the
student answers.
 2. Dictation – the teacher chooses a grade-appropriate passage and reads it aloud.
3. Reading aloud – the students take turn reading sections of a passage, play or a
dialogue aloud.
4. Student self-correction – when a student makes a mistake the teacher offers
him/her a second chance by giving a choice.
5. Conversation practice – the students are given an opportunity to ask their own
questions to the other students or to the teacher. This enables both a teacher-
learner interaction as well as a learner-learner interaction.
6. Paragraph writing – the students are asked to write a passage in their own
words.[4]

Nature[edit]

1. The direct method is also known as natural method. It was developed as a

reaction to the grammar translation method and is designed to take the learner
into the domain of the target language in the most natural manner.
2. The main objective is to impart a perfect command of a foreign language. The
main focus being to make the learner think in the targeted language in the
same manner as the learning of his/her mother-tongue in the most natural way.
3. In traditional language-learning, pupil participation was found to be diminished
as the teaching is perceived to be long and monotonous.[5]

Its main focus is oral skill and it is taught via repetitive drilling. Grammar is taught
using an inductive way and students need to try and guess the rules through the
teacher’s oral presentation.
Today popular forms of the Direct Method are Callan and Berlitz.
The Grammar Translation Method
Just like its name suggests, this method of teaching English is grammar heavy and
relies a lot on translation. This is the traditional or ‘classical’ way of learning a
language and it’s still commonly used when learning some languages. Some
countries prefer this style of teaching and the main idea behind this method is that the
students learn all grammar rules, so they’re able to translate a number of sentences.
This is particularly common for those students who wish to study literature at a
deeper level.
The Audio Lingual Method
The Audio Lingual Method otherwise known as the New Key Method or Army
Method is based on a behavirourist theory that things are able to be learned by
constant reinforcement. However, just like in the army when someone behaves badly
(or in this case bad use of English), the learner receives negative feedback and the
contrary happens when a student demonstrates good use of English.
This is related to the Direct Method and just like its predecessor it only uses the target
language. The biggest difference between the Audio Lingual Method and the Direct
Method is its focus of teaching. The Direct Methods focuses on the teaching of
vocabulary whereas the Audio Lingual Method focuses on specific grammar
teachings.
The Structural Approach
As the name suggests, the method is all about structure. The idea is that any language
is made up of complex grammar rules. These rules, according to this approach need
to be learnt in a specific order, for example the logical thing would be to teach the
verb “to be” prior to teaching the present continuous which requires using the
auxiliary form of the verb “to be.”
Suggestopedia
This is a behaviourist theory and related to pseudoscience. This method relies heavily
on students’ belief about the method’s effectiveness. This theory is intended to offer
learners various choices, which in turn helps them become more responsible for their
learning.
It relies a lot on the atmosphere and the physical surroundings of the class. It’s
essential that all learners feel equally comfortable and confident. When teachers are
training to use the Suggestopedia method, there’s a lot of art and music involved.
Each Suggestopedia lesson is divided into three different phases – 1. Deciphering 2.
Concert Session 3. Elaboration.
Total Physical Response
Total Physical Response, otherwise known as TPR is an approach that follows the
idea of ‘learning by doing’. Beginners will learn English through a series of repetitive
actions such as “Stand up”, “Open your book”, “Close the door”, and “Walk to the
window and open it.” With TPR, the most important skill is aural comprehension and
everything else will follow naturally later.
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)
The idea behind this approach is to help learners communicate more effectively and
correctly in realistic situations that they may find themselves in. This type of teaching
involves focusing on important functions like suggesting, thanking, inviting,
complaining, and asking for directions to name but a few.
The Silent Way
The Silent Way emphasises learner autonomy. The teacher acts merely as a facilitator
trying to encourage students to be more active in their learning. The main of this way
of teaching is for the teacher to say very little, so students can take control of their
learning. There’s a big emphasis on pronunciation and a large chunk of the lesson
focuses on it. This method of learning English follows a structural syllabus and
grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation are constantly drilled and recycled for
reinforcement. The teacher evaluates their students through careful observation, and
it’s even possible that they may never set a formal test as learners are encouraged to
correct their own language errors.
Community Language Learning
This is probably one of the English teaching methods where the student feels the
safest as there’s a great emphasis on the relationship and bond between the student
and teacher. Unlike a lot of the other methods and approaches of teaching English as
a Second Language, a lot of the L1 (mother tongue) is used for translation purposes.
Task Based Language Learning
The main aim of this approach to learning is task completion. Usually, relevant and
interesting tasks are set by the teacher and students are expected to draw on their pre-
existing knowledge of English to complete the task with as few errors as possible.
The Lexical Approach
The Lexical syllabus or approach is based on computer studies that have previously
identified the most commonly used words. This approach in teaching focuses on
vocabulary acquisition and teaching lexical chunks in order of their frequency and
use. Teachers of the Lexical Approach place a great emphasis on authentic materials
and realistic scenarios for more valuable learning.
The Natural Approach

This approach, propounded by Professor S. Krashen, stresses the similarities between learning
the first and second languages. There is no correction of mistakes. Learning takes place by the
students being exposed to language that is comprehensible or made comprehensible to them.

Immersion

This corresponds to a great extent to the situation we have at our school. ESL students are
immersed in the English language for the whole of the school day and expected to learn math,
science, humanities etc. through the medium of the target language, English.

Immigrant students who attend local schools find themselves in an immersion situation; for
example refugee children from Bosnia attending German schools, or Puerto Ricans in American
schools. .

e more accessible with a mobile app or a mobile-friendly version. Wordable (Playlingo Ltd. with Cambridge
University Press) turns vocabulary-learning into a fun, competitive game you could play with your friends. It
has built-in, spaced repetition and active-recall learning to make new words stick.

Essential English (Oxford University Press) uses mobile technology to provide free resources for teachers
and students, including flashcards, phrasebooks, lesson plans and activities. Meanwhile, Tri Pro English
Website and Mobile Apps helps learners to practise their listening through free, high-quality recordings
divided into levels and coupled with comprehension questions.

Gamification

Appealing to football-lovers, LearnMatch (VE Vision Education GmbH) uses training sessions, friendly
matches, leagues and cup games to make vocabulary learning fun for young learners. Get Set, Go!
Phonics (Oxford University Press) uses chants, songs and games to help develop pre-school children’s
phonological awareness.

On an even more immersive scale, Learn Languages with Ruby Rei (Wibbu) plunges the learners into an
interactive adventure game. They have to use their language skills to negotiate, collaborate and build
friendships in order to escape from a forgotten planet at the edge of the universe. Any learning that takes
place is incidental.

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Embodied learning

Embodied learning is based on the idea that learning is not just about remembering. It involves using the
mind and the body, collaborating, discussing and exploring. Learners need to be emotionally, intellectually,
physically and socially engaged.

Courses such as Doodle Town (Macmillan Education) use visual, audio and hands-on activities to stimulate
and inspire learning, getting young learners to draw, create, and be inquisitive. Orbit (Richmond) develops
the young learners’ socio-emotional and cognitive skills through a language course that follows the story of a
ferret and children who go on adventures in multicultural environments.

Inquiry-based learning (or: 'learning in a complex world')

The scenarios that teachers come across in some course materials can seem simplified and unrealistic,
leading us to wonder if we are adequately training our learners for real life in the 21st century.

Courses like Fast Track 5 (EF Education First Ltd) and Wider World (Pearson with the BBC) use authentic
video and audio content to bring the real world to teenage learners. They encourage teenagers to practise
the soft skills and communication skills needed to take part in the global communities of the 21st century.
Aimed at the adult learner, Perspectives(National Geographic) uses real-life stories and TED talks to
motivate learners to think critically and creatively.

Danny Norrington-Davies’s Teaching Grammar: From Rules to Reasons (Pavilion Publishing) is an

alternative approach to teaching grammar. Teachers and learners discover how writers and speakers use
grammar to express themselves in real life. Hugh Dellar and Andrew Walkley’s Teaching Lexically (Delta
Publishing) combines the teaching of grammar and lexis for more effective classroom practice, rather than
over-simplifying language into a more traditional ‘grammar + words’ view.

English as a lingua franca (ELF)

When the concept of English as a lingua franca was first discussed by teachers, academics, writers and
trainers, it was controversial. Many refused to consider how the concept of English as an international
language might fit into course materials and language teaching. Today, we see resource materials
like PronPack 1-4 (Mark Hancock) taking a non-prescriptive approach to accent and instead focusing on
increased intelligibility as the objective. Using elements of blended learning and gamification, this
pronunciation course doesn’t help the learner sound British or American, but instead prepares the learner to
use English in the global arena.

Multi-literacies and trans-languaging

In global communities where English is a common language of communication alongside other languages,
knowledge of other languages is an asset. Rather than diminish the learners’ first language (also known as
subtractive bilingualism), teachers are encouraging learners to use their own languages. This requires
complex social and cognitive skills. In contrast, strict English-only classrooms are slowly becoming a thing of
the past. Such linguistic diversity is celebrated in courses like the Family Skills Toolkit (Learning Unlimited
Ltd) that encourages parents and carers of children learning English to see their bilingualism as a benefit.

Supporting learners of specific needs

As globalisation takes hold, 'glocalisation ' (adapting an international product to match what people want in
their particular country or culture) becomes necessary. The more we understand individual learners' needs,
the more we can tailor our lessons to suit them. Ros Wright’s book Learning English: English for Health
and Social Care Workers (Pavilion Publishing) provides learners not just with medical terms, but also
knowledge of policies and procedures in the medical and care industry. Study Legal English – the world’s
first legal English podcast includes online learning materials and quizzes to gamify learning.

However, catering to learners with specific needs does not only mean English for Specific Purposes
(ESP). Imagine! (Silva Education Ltd) caters to Brazilian learners from low-income families. EAP for Syrian
Academics Projects provides online EAP lessons and material support for Syrian academics exiled across
Turkey. Supporting Learners with Dyslexia in the ELT classroom is a teacher resource providing
teachers with both theory and practical ideas of how to ‘reach and teach’ students with dyslexia.

Creating and sharing content

While there’s much online content already out there for learners, some programmes and apps allow learners
to produce their own content and share what they have created with others. Popular online sites
like Quizizz and Socrative allow both teachers and students to create online games and play games that
are shared by users from around the world. Websites like Canva allow teachers and learners to express their
creativity through posters, social media memes and banners. Then there are mindmapping sites, comic-strip
creation sites and movie-editing/movie-making sites.

Using content-creation tools like these allow learners to use language creatively, and turn language practice
into a fun and engaging activity. ELTons finalist Brick by Brick (StandFor/ FTD Educaçāo) is one such
course for younger learners that has them creating and embarking on hands-on projects as they learn.
Learning and teaching management platforms

Learning management platforms (LMSs) like Edmodo are increasingly popular. They give learners an online
way to find handouts, continue classroom discussions and submit homework. Now, online platforms are also
used to communicate with parents and other stakeholders, give teachers and administrators a better
overview of the curriculum, and help manage lesson plans and materials.

The Royal ABC (Prosper Education Pte Ltd) curriculum for four-to-six year olds comes with a teacher
platform that allows teachers to manage lesson planning, complete administration, schedule homework and
report to parents. This gives teachers more time to work with children in the classroom.

These tools may appeal because they seem shiny and new. But the true value of innovations lies in how
much they can help learners to become better communicators in English., and the extent to which they can
help teachers encourage learners in the most efficient, motivating ways.

1. Digital platforms

When we discuss innovation, we often immediately think of the internet and what we can now do online.
Facebook and especially Edmodo, which creates a safe online environment
for teachers, students and parents to connect, are popular with teachers.

Cloud-based tools like Google Docs have also become indispensable. For teacher Tyson Seburn, it’s
'where I've moved so much of individual and (because of its functionality) collaborative writing with
students...'

The list of digital platforms is extensive and growing all the time. A multimedia manual like Digital
Video by Nik Peachey (nominated for an ELTons award for innovations in teacher resources) can help
teachers navigate the complicated, and sometimes overwhelming, world of digital resources, enabling
teachers to create activities, lessons and courses from a range of digital tools.

2. Online corpora

The use of corpora – large text collections used for studying linguistic structures, frequencies, etc. – used to
be the privilege of lexicographers. But with most corpora now available online, and quite a few for free,
teachers now have access to information about the way language is used in authentic texts and speech.

Teachers no longer have to panic when students ask them about the difference between ‘trouble’ and
‘problem’. And it's not just teachers who benefit. To find out if more people say ‘sleepwalked’ or ‘sleptwalk’
(for example), students can simply search the words on Google, which uses the internet as its corpus.

3. Online CPD (continuous professional development) and the global staffroom

The advent of the internet and the growth of social media have certainly allowed teachers of English from all
over the world to form online communities that act like a huge global staffroom. Twitter and ELT blogging,
for example, have 'opened up a network of people who can offer advice, support and ideas’,
says Sandy Millin. Participants who are generous with their time, ideas, and contacts find they receive much
in return.

4. Mobile learning and BYOD (bring your own device)

The development of mobile technology and the proliferation of smart phones have enabled many of us
to access the internet and a huge variety of apps on the go. Learners benefit too, from apps like WIBBU,
and podcasts like Luke’s English Podcast – Learn British English with Luke Thompson – nominated for
an ELTons award in the category of digital innovation.

Teachers are also able to build on their teaching knowledge and skills by listening to podcasts
like The TEFL Commute or join 50,000 teachers from more than 200 countries and watch webinars or
archived videos of talks by TEFL teachers on EFL Talks. Both are nominated for an ELTons for innovation in
teacher resources.
And if teachers and students are gaining so much from their mobile devices, why ban them from
classrooms? It seems that getting students to bring their own devices to class is fast becoming a game-
changer in ELT practice.

For teacher Ceri Jones, tools like WhatsApp and Padlet help build channels of communication beyond the
classroom. She says: 'I often don’t have the hardware or the connectivity in teen classes to use internet, so
students using their own devices is great – and it means they have a record of the resources we've used to
check back on after class...'

5. Communicating with people online

The ability to communicate online with people outside the classroom via Skype and similar tools has
enabled students to meet and interact with others in English. In monolingual classes (i.e., most English
classrooms around the world), this could give much-needed motivation to students who otherwise might not
have the opportunity to interact with anyone in English.

And as for teachers, the ability to converse with students face-to-face online has opened up a whole new
market for Skype lessons and online classes.

6. Online authentic materials

One of the biggest benefits of the internet for language learners is the sudden widespread availability
of authentic resources. As David Deubelbeiss points out, this enables teachers to use 'content with
messages students want to hear'. We can now access the daily news, watch trending videos on YouTube,
read the latest tips on TripAdvisor… the possibilities are endless.

But with so much content available to us, choosing the right online materials is crucial for efficient and
effective learning. Keynote by National Geographic Learning, makes use of TED talks to develop a
pedagogically sound approach to language learning, while Language Learning with Digital
Video (Cambridge University Press) looks at how teachers can use online documentaries and YouTube
videos to create effective lessons. Both resources are nominated for this year's ELTons awards.

7. The IWB (interactive white board)

The IWB started appearing in classrooms in the early parts of this century and has now become a staple of
many classrooms in Britain and around the world. It allows us to save and print notes written on the board,
control the classroom computer from the whiteboard, play listening activities on the sound system, use the
screen as a slide for presentations, access the internet, and so on. The possibilities seem endless.

But the addition of an IWB to a classroom does not automatically make for a better learning experience.
Indeed, unless teachers use them skilfully to complement teaching and learning, they are little more than a
distraction.

As teacher David Dodgson explains, some people 'love the shiny stuff', believing that simply standing in
front of an IWB is effective integration of education technology. It's not.

8. Dogme (or materials-light teaching)

For teachers like Matthew Noble, discovering the Dogme approach to language teaching was 'galvanising'.
A communicative approach that eschews published textbooks in favour of conversational communication
between learners and teacher, Dogme signals a departure from a one-size-fits-all approach to classroom
materials.

For many teachers, this 'unplugged' approach represents a new way of looking at the lesson content,
and the chance to break free from self-contained language points and give more time to student-generated
language.

9. Students steering their own learning

Over the last couple of decades, learning has gradually been moving from a teacher-centred top-down
approach to a student-centred, bottom-up one. The trend has accelerated rapidly in recent years with the
growing quantity and quality of information on the internet. In many respects, this has changed the teacher's
role from that of knowledge-transmitter to consultant, guide, coach, and/or facilitator.

One example is the 'negotiated syllabus', previously the domain of the business English teacher, who
would conduct a needs analysis before tailoring a course to suit the participants. But we've come to
recognise that there is nothing general about the general English learner either, and increasingly,
teachers involve students in decisions about what to do in the classroom.

The ELTons-nominated Connections E-textbook (a project by Zayed University in the UAE) takes this a step
further and involves the students in the design of their e-textbook, allowing them to make decisions on page
layout and the clarity of task instructions.

10. Teaching soft skills and critical thinking skills

As English cements its position as the world’s lingua franca, many of our students are now learning
English to oil the wheels of communication in the worlds of business, trade, education, and tourism. To
enable our students to become better communicators, we should perhaps go beyond grammar, vocabulary
and pronunciation, and look at helping them communicate effectively in international settings.

Learner resources nominated for an ELTons award this year include Richmond Business
Theories (Richmond ELT), which features online resources that help teachers and students with soft skills
like problem-solving, presentation skills, time management and decision-making. Academic Presenting and
Presentations (Levrai and Bolster) looks specifically at the communication skills needed when making a
presentation at college or university.

Another ELTons nominee is The Thinking Train (Helbling Languages), which believes in starting young. It
helps children develop critical thinking skills that could support them not just in their English learning but in
the learning of other subjects and life skills.

And perhaps it is this ability to think and reflect that will enable us as teachers and learners to take any
innovation out there and make it work in our context for our students. After all, as a wise teacher of mine
used to say, 'It’s never the tool, but the user that makes the difference.'