TEACHING METHODS

GTM
There are many methods that are usually used by teachers to teach a foreign language. One of them is the
Grammar Translation Method. The Grammar Translation Method is not new. It has had different names, but it has
been used by language teachers for many years. At one time it was called the Classical Method since it was first
used in the teaching of the classical language, Latin and Greek. Earlier in the 20th century, this method was used
for the purpose of helping students to read and appreciate foreign language literature. It was also hoped that
through the study of the grammar of the target language students would become more familiar with the grammar
of their native language and that this familiarity would help them speak and write their native language better.

Objectives of GTM:

• To be able to read literature written in the target language.

• To be able to translate from one language to another.
• To develop reading and writing skill.

Features of the Grammar Translation Method:

• Reading and writing are the major focus; little or no systematic attention is paid to speaking and listening.
• Vocabulary selection is based solely on the reading text used, and words are taught through bilingual
words lists, dictionary study, and memorization.
• The sentence is the basic unit of teaching and language practice. Much of the lesson is devoted to
translating sentences into and out of the target language.
• High standards of accuracy are emphasized.
• Grammar is taught deductively, that is by presentation and study of systematically presented grammar
rules, which are then practiced through translation exercises.
• The students’ native language is the medium of instruction. It is used to explain new items and to enable
comparison to be made between the foreign language and the students’ native language.

Techniques of the Grammar Translation Method:

• Translation of a literary passage.

• Reading comprehension questions.
• Antonyms/synonyms.
• Cognates.
• Deductive application of the rule.
• Fill-in-the-blanks.
• Memorization.
• Use words in sentences.
• Composition.

The Advantages:

• The teacher doesn’t have to be very competent in the speaking aspect of the target language as they
teach in the mother tongue.
• Applicable in overcrowded places, and the only material needed is a textbook.
• Students enhance their ability in reading and writing, as well as the acquisition of great vocabulary.
• Students feel comfortable while learning, since they are taught in their mother tongue.

Disadvantages:

• It neglects the natural order of learning (listening, speaking, reading and writing), so it is thought to be an
unnatural method.
• It neglects communicative skills, so students fail to learn how to communicate in real life even after
completing the program with all its tedious requirements.
 • Its emphasis on word translation disregards the fact that exact translation is not always possible or
correct.
• Interaction is teacher initiated rather than of students to student type.
• Students strictly follow the textbook and have no active role in the classroom.
• Students’ feeling receives little or no attention to this method

THE DIRECT METHOD

As with the Grammar-Translation Method, the Direct Method is not new. Its principles have been applied by
language teachers for many years. Most recently, it was revived as a method when the goal of instruction
became learning how to use another language to communicate. Since the Grammar- Translation Method is not
very effective in preparing students to use the target language communicatively. The Direct Method became
popular.

The Direct Method has one very basic rule: No translation is allowed. In fact, the Direct Method receives its name
from the fact that meaning is to be conveyed directly in the target language through the use of demonstration and
visual aids, with no recourse to the student’s native language.

Objectives of the Direct Method:

Teachers who use the Direct Method intend that students learn how to communicate in the target language. In
order to do this successfully, students should learn to think in the target language.

Features of the Direct Method:

• No L1 is used in the classroom.

• Vocabulary and sentences taught are of ordinary forms which are used daily. Concrete vocabularies are
taught through pictures and real objects, but abstract ones are presented via association of idea.
• Oral communication skills are built up in a carefully graded progression organized around question-and-
answer exchanges between teachers and students in small, intensive classes.
• Grammar is taught inductively.
• Correct pronunciation and grammar are emphasized.
• The demonstration is preferred for explanation and translation. Meaning should be taught in the first
instance by demonstration to establish the meaning and then be defined and used in context to encourage
thinking in the target language.
• Every teaching point is introduced orally first and only after it is orally mastered, reading and writing will be
dealt with.
• Conversation taught through imitation and practice. For this reason, either native or nativelike teachers
should be employed by these schools
• Pronunciation receives primary attention-focus on the form. Correct pronunciation and grammar were
emphasized.
• Immediate correction is suggested: self-correction is preferred to teachers’ correction.
• Its syllabus is topical, not structural.
Techniques of the Direct Method:
• Reading Aloud.
• Question and Answer Exercise.
• Student Self-Correction.
• Conversation Practice.
• Dictation.
• Fill-in-the-blanks.
• Paragraph Writing.
• Map drawing.
The Advantages:
• Student of DM develop fluency in spoken English and can use this knowledge in communication in L2.
• Understanding L2 takes place through L2. So, there is no need for translation and hence no division
between active and passive vocabularies.
 • Its outcome or the ability to communicate in the target language is very attractive to those who need to
learn a language other than their mother tongue.
• Its use of realia for teaching vocabulary is a natural way of changing perception into the conception.
• It was one of the first methods to introduce the teaching of vocabulary through realia.

Disadvantages:

• Not all age groups and not all educational contexts benefited equally from DM. It was more useful for adult
language learners in a private language school.
• DM is not as structured as a method. That is, its materials are not probably graded and sequenced. So, at
times it is very confusing for learners who are bombarded with examples of living language.
• Not all teachers are able to teach in this method. DM teachers have to have native-like competence,
creativity, time, devotion, energy and imagination to design their own courses.
• Its rejection of translation makes this method very time and energy consuming. At times when it is difficult
to convey meaning through realia, explanation in L2 can be a great asset in the hands of the teacher.
• It doesn’t build upon the reading skills the learners have already developed in their L1 and instead passes
all the responsibilities on to the teachers. So success in DM becomes too much dependent on teachers’
skill rather than on methodology itself.
The AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD
(ALM)
An audio-lingual Method is an oral-based approach. However, it is very different, in that rather than emphasizing
vocabulary acquisition through exposure to its use in situations, the Audio-Lingual Method drills students in the
use of grammatical sentence patterns. Also, unlike the Direct Method, it has a strong theoretical base in
linguistics and psychology. Charles Fries (1945) of the University of Michigan led the way in applying principles
from structural linguistics in developing the method, and for this reason, it has sometimes been referred to as the
‘Michigan Method’. Later in its development, principles from behavioral psychology (Skinner 1957) were
incorporated. It was thought that the way to acquire the sentence patterns of the target language was through
conditioning- helping learners to respond correctly to stimuli through shaping and reinforcement so that the
learners could overcome the habits of their native language and from the new habits required to be target
language speakers.
Objectives of the ALM:
Teachers want their students to be able to use the target language communicatively. In order to do this, they
believe students need to overlearn the target language, to learn to use automatically without stopping to think.
Their students achieve this by forming new habits in the target language and overcoming the old habits of their
native language.
Features of the ALM:
• Foreign language is the same as any other kind of learning and can be explained by the same laws and
principles (Stimulus-Response- Reinforcement).
• Learning is the result of experience and is evident in changes in behavior. The aim is for linguistic
competence and accuracy.
• Foreign language learning is different from first language learning.
• Foreign language learning is a process of habit formation.
• Language learning proceeds by means of analogy (habit- formation involving discrimination and
generalization) rather than analysis (deductive learning of rule, as the Grammar Translation Method) and
involves attending to form and structure.
• Errors are the result of first language interference and are to be avoided at all costs in the course of
instruction. Teachers must specify what language the student will use and control student interaction with
the language.
• Focuses on all its practices and procedures shifted from reading, translating and deductive explanation of
grammar rules to the listening, speaking and the inductive presentation of language patterns in the spoken
language.
Techniques of the ALM:
• Repetition drill.
• Single- slot substitution drill.
 • Question-and-answer drill.
• Expansion drill.
• multiple- slot substitution drill.
• Chain drill.
• Complete the dialogue.
• Use of minimal pairs.
The Advantages:
• It was the first method which was based on scientific linguistic and psychological theories.
• With its simpler techniques, this method widened the scope of the language learner.
• Syntactic progression of language patterns receives more importance than vocabulary and morphology.
• Language learning involved in learning different skills.
• They promote the use of a simple technique
Disadvantages:
• A teacher-centered class, students are almost passive in the learning process.
• Low attention is paid to communicativeness and the productivity of the students since they only imitate
their teacher.
• The neglect of meaning due to the intense focus on form, (grammar over vocabulary).
The Communicative Language Teaching
It has been noticed that the goal of most of the methods is to make the students able to communicate in the
target language. But in the 1970s, the educators tried to find out whether they were going to meet the goal of the
students in the right way or not. It had been observed that students were able to write and read the sentences in
the target language correctly. But when it came to communicating in the target language, they failed to do so. It
made clear to the observer that making the students able to communicate in the target language, required more
than mastering only the linguistic structures. It had been accepted by the educators that to be able to
communicate in the target language, communicative competence is required with linguistic competence. There
had been a shift from the linguistic structure-centered approach to a communicative approach in the late 1970s
and 80s. CLT is an approach to teaching a foreign or second language that emphasizes communicative
competence. It also emphasizes interaction as a means to teach the language. It had been considered as the
major British approach.
Objectives of the Communicative Language Teaching:
It aims to make learners to attain communicative competence so the learners can use language
accurately and appropriately.
Features of the Communicative Language Teaching:
• The major focus while using the CLT approach is on the learners. The teacher is just the facilitator.
• The syllabus emphasizes the functional use of language. The syllabus relies on authentic materials.
• Communicative activities enable the learners to attain communicative objectives of the curriculum, engage
learners in communication.
• In the CLT approach, the meaning is given prime importance.
• In this approach, it is believed that communicative functions are more important rather than linguistic
structures.
• Appropriate use of language is emphasized rather than accuracy.
• Language should be taught by integrating all language skills and not by only one skill.
• CLT approach provides the opportunities to the learners not only about what to say and but also about
how to say.
Techniques of the Communicative Language Teaching:
• Role-play
• Interviews
• Information gap
• Games
• Language exchanges
• Surveys
• Pair-work
• Learning by teaching
The Advantages:
• The communicative approach is much more pupil-orientated because it is based on pupils’ needs and
interests.
• The communicative approach seeks to personalize and localize language and adapt it to the interests of
pupils. Meaningful language is always more easily retained by learners.
• Seeks to use authentic resources. And that is more interesting and motivating for children.
• Children acquire grammar rules as a necessity to speak so is more proficient and efficient.
Disadvantages:
• It pays insufficient attention to the context in which teaching and learning take place.
• The Communicative Approach often seems to be interpreted as: “if the teacher understands the student,
we have good communication” but native speakers of the target language can have great difficulty
understanding students.
• Another disadvantage is that the CLT approach focuses on fluency but not accuracy. The approach does
not focus on error reduction but instead creates a situation where learners are left using their own devices
to solve their communication problems. Thus, they may produce incoherent, grammatically incorrect
sentences.
Total Physical Response (TPR) method
The Total Physical Response (TPR) method is a dynamic and innovative approach to language instruction,
designed to make language learning an engaging and interactive experience. Developed by Dr. James Asher in
the 1970s, TPR capitalizes on the fundamental principle that language is best acquired when it is associated with
physical actions and movement. This method is particularly effective for beginners and young learners, although it
can be adapted for learners of all ages and proficiency levels.
Objectives of the TPR:
• Develop Listening Skills: TPR aims to enhance students' listening comprehension skills by requiring them
to listen attentively and understand spoken commands or instructions in the target language.
• Build Vocabulary: TPR is effective for vocabulary acquisition, introducing new words and phrases in a
memorable and interactive way, allowing students to associate words with physical actions.
• Promote Contextual Learning: TPR places language in a meaningful context by having students perform
actions that mimic everyday activities. This contextualization makes language learning more relevant and
practical.
Features of the TPR:
• Listening-Centered: TPR places a strong emphasis on listening skills.
• Imitative Learning: TPR encourages imitation of the teacher's commands and actions.
• Contextual Learning: Language is taught in context, with commands and actions often mirroring real-life
situations and activities.
• Vocabulary Building: TPR is particularly effective for vocabulary acquisition. New words and phrases are
introduced through actions, making it easier for students to remember and understand the meaning of
words.
• Reduction of Anxiety: TPR creates a low-pressure and non-threatening learning environment.
• Immediate Feedback: The method provides immediate feedback to both teachers and students.
Techniques of the TPR:
• Command-Response Technique.
• Action Stories.
• Role Play.
• Simon Says.
• Use of Props.
• Chaining.
• Storytelling with Actions.
• Using Music.
The Advantages:
• It improves students’ listening skills.
• It is great for shy and introvert learners since no one is called on individually.
• It is fun and stress-free.
Disadvantages:
• Not everything can be taught using TPR, therefore it is limited.
• It becomes boring and repetitive if it is used so many times consecutively.
• Students do not get to express their own thoughts since they only mimic and repeat.
The Silent Way
Silent Way originated in the early 1970s and was the brainchild of the late Caleb Gattegno. The use of the word
"silent" is also significant, as Silent Way is based on the premise that the teacher should be as silent as possible
in the classroom in order to encourage the learner to produce as much language as possible.
The three basic tenets of the approach are:
• learning is facilitated if the learner discovers rather than remembers or repeats.
• learning is aided by physical objects.
• problem-solving is central to learning.
Objectives of SW:
• Students are able to use the language for self-expression.
• They need to develop independence from the teacher, to develop their own criteria for correctness.
• They become independent by relying on themselves.
• The teacher should give them only what they absolutely need to promote their learning.
Features of the SW:
• Learning is facilitated if the learner discovers or creates. The Silent way belongs to the tradition of
teaching that favors a hypothetical mode of teaching (as opposed to an expository mode of teaching) in
which the teacher and the learner work cooperatively to reach the educational desired goals. (cf Bruner
1966.) The learner is not a bench-bound listener but an active contributor to the learning process.
• Learning is facilitated by accompanying (mediating) physical objects. The Silent Way uses colorful charts
and rods (Cuisenaire rods) which are of varying lengths. They are used to introduce vocabulary (colors,
numbers, adjectives, verbs) and syntax (tense, comparatives, plurals, word order …)
• Learning is facilitated by problem-solving involving the material to be learned. This can be summarized by
Benjamin Franklin’s words:
“Tell me and I forget
Teach me and I remember
Involve me and I learn”
Techniques of the SW:
• Sound-color chart (The chart contains blocks of color, each one representing a sound in the target
language. The chart allows students to produce sound combinations in the target language without doing
so through repetition.)
• Teacher’s silence (The teacher gives just as much help as is necessary and then is silent. Even in error
correction the teacher will only supply a verbal answer as a last resort.)
• Peer correction
• Rods (Rods can be used to provide visible actions or situations for any language structure to introduce it,
or to enable students to practice using it.)
• Self-correction gestures (The teacher indicates for example that each of his fingers represents a word in a
sentence and uses this to locate the trouble spot for the student.)
• Word chart
• Fidel charts (The teacher points to the color-coded Fidel charts in order that students can associate the
sounds of the language with their spelling.)
The Advantages
• Learning through problem-solving looks attractive especially because it fosters: creativity, discovery,
increase in intelligent potency and long-term memory.
• The indirect role of the teacher highlights the importance and the centrality of the learner who is
responsible for figuring out and testing the hypotheses about how language works. In other words,
teaching is subordinated to learning.
Disadvantages
• The Silent Way is often criticized for being a harsh method. The learner works in isolation and
communication is lacking badly in a Silent Way classroom.
• With minimum help on the part of the teacher, the Silent Way method may put the learning itself at stake.
 • The material (the rods and the charts) used in this method will certainly fail to introduce all aspects of
language. Other materials will have to be introduced.
Suggestopedia
Suggestopedia is a specific set of learning recommendations derived from Suggestology. It is a method
developed by Georgi Lozanov, the Bulgarian psychologist and educator, in 1975. He created a suggestopedia for
learning that capitalized on relaxed states of mind for maximum retention of material. By using this kind of
method, memorization in learning seems to be accelerated 25 times over that in learning by conventional
methods.
Objectives of Suggestopedia:
The goal of the method is to accelerate the process by which students learn to use a foreign language for
everyday communication. This is to be done by breaking down the psychological barriers' learners bring with
them to the learning situation.
Principles of the Suggestopedia
• The teacher is the authority in the classroom, who must be trusted and respected by the students.
• Native language translation is used to make the meaning of the dialogue clear.
• Grammar is dealt with explicitly but minimally.
• The culture which students learn concerns the everyday life of people who speak the language.
• Speaking communicatively is emphasized, students also read the target language and write, for example,
compositions.
• Evaluation is conducted on students’ normal in-class performance and not through formal tests.
• At the beginning levels, errors are not corrected immediately since the emphasis is on students
communicating their intended meaning; when errors occur, the teacher uses delayed correction.
• The syllabus used in the method is functional.
Features of the Suggestopedia:
• Comfortable environment
• The use of music
• Peripheral Learning
• Free Errors
• Homework is limited
• Music, drama and art are integrated in the learning process
Techniques of the Suggestopedia
• Peripheral learning (This activity is based on the idea that we perceive much more in our environment
than that to which we consciously attend. By putting posters on the classroom walls students will absorb
the necessary facts effortlessly. Posters are changed from time to time to provide grammatical information
that is appropriate to what the learners are studying.)
• choose a new identity (Learners choose a target language name and a new profession or trade. In
someone else’s shoes the learners will be less inhibited while using the target language.)
• Role-play.
The Advantages
• The first and biggest advantage is about the results. In fact, Suggestopedia speeds the acquisition
process up by at least 6 times (up to 10 times, in many cases). This means people learn much faster and
the acquisition is deeper compared to the acquisition process taking place with other methods.
• The amount of input students absorb during a suggestopedic course is much bigger compared to what
they would acquire through other methods.
• From the learners’ point of view, the acquisition process is a flow of enjoyable and playful activities, such
as language games, music-based activities, dances and drama. Although the students are exposed to a
huge number of stimuli, they never feel under pressure, stressed or frustrated by this.
• No homework needed. This is another interesting feature. The acquisition process takes place during the
classes only.
• The method takes the students to absorb the target language and to become able to produce the target
language in a creative and spontaneous way.
• It’s a good boost of self-confidence for the students! The whole learning experience is pleasant and
enjoyable for the students involved.
Disadvantages
• The overall framework is intense and requires the teacher to necessarily stick to it. One of the main
reasons why many suggestopedic teachers are not delivering so many courses is down to the fact they
need to respect the original framework, which means delivering about 3.5 hours of lesson a day over a
month. The main difficulty many teachers encounter is related to the students’ actual availability. In fact,
the students are supposed to attend the classes 5 days a week (on average) for 3.5 hours a day over a
month. That’s pretty intense and not everybody can give such availability nowadays.
• The teacher must take a specific training and get certified in Suggestopedia. In other words, this is not the
kind of method you learn about from books.
• The quantity of materials a suggestopedic teacher needs to prepare is – oh my Goodness! – seriously
BIG. I want to be honest with you: sometimes, when I get ready for my suggestopedic courses, I really feel
overwhelmed. It takes me time to prepare everything I need: props, toys, exercises, activities, playlists,
and so on.
• The training room should be a classroom specifically dedicated to the suggestopedic course. Also, it
should be always the same during the whole course – no change of room whatsoever. Furthermore, it
would be recommended to choose a welcoming room, looking more like a domestic living room, rather
than a school classroom.