The Audio Lingual Method

The audio-lingual method began during World War II as a way to give troops survival
communication tools before sending them to the front lines.
But the actual method as we know it today rose from the work of structural linguists like Charles
C. Fries and Robert Lado.
They developed it to focus on listening and speaking. Much of their work was based on
behavioral psychology—especially the work of B. F. Skinner—and studies of the English
language.
Although the results of the study of English structure were revolutionary, the creators of the
ALM had little practical teacher training. So the classroom techniques drew the attention of hard
critics.
This criticism would lead to an evolution towards different, more innovative methods of
language teaching.
Why the Audio-lingual Method Became Less Popular
When the audio-lingual method was being designed and put to use, linguistics as a science was
in its infancy.
Linguists were often at each other’s throats, and differing schools of thought arose. These led to
diverse theories about what language is, how it is learned and how it should be taught.
While structural linguists were taking language apart, listing its parts and figuring out how they
were joined, other linguists were more interested in the sources of language within psychology,
its use and meaning.
Naturally, many linguists tried to apply these theories to language acquisition and teaching.
Noam Chomsky—who belonged to a different camp than the structural linguists—wrote a
landmark essay/critique of Skinner’s book “Verbal Behavior.”
Though this critique has been subsequently questioned, at the time of its publication, it had a
significant influence on the development of psychological thought. In fact, the essay is often
considered a turning point towards cognitive psychology from behavioral psychology.
Unfortunately, because the ALM based much of its pedagogy on Skinner’s behaviorist ideas, the
method directly suffered from this harsh critique.
It also didn’t help that the actual methodology had flaws. Promised objectives were not met,
students were dissatisfied with results and the linguistic community began to turn its back on the
ALM.
The Pros and Cons of the Audio-lingual Method
In the early days of the ALM, structure, rules and procedures were closely monitored and
practiced to standardize the teaching process and evaluate its effectiveness.
Those on the audio-lingual bandwagon pointed out lots of advantages. These include:
 Students practice useful language from the very first class.
 Better pronunciation and increased participation as a result of the drilling exercises.
 The use of visual cues, which was thought to help develop vocabulary.
On the other hand, critics felt that the method had these disadvantages:
 Too much attention was placed on the teacher, who was limited to presenting only
mechanical aspects of the language.
 The reduction of vocabulary in favor of structure.
How the Audio-lingual Method Is Used Today
Despite language teaching drifting away from using ALM as a complete method, the materials
that were developed for classroom use are still valid and useful.
Textbook developers continue including the best audio-lingual practices in printed language
materials. These same materials are also online.
From everyday dialogue to structural substitution and transformation exercises, the legacy of
ALM continues with us to modern-day language instruction.
3 Ways to Use the Audio-lingual Method in Your Class
Now, let’s discuss three basic ALM techniques to adapt to your language classroom.
1. Focus on Practical Pronunciation
The audio-lingual approach treated language sounds as essential building blocks to fluency.
All spoken languages are pronounced. Individual sounds can be isolated.
In any language, there may be 20 to hundreds of sounds.
No matter how many sounds the language you teach employs, you first need to understand what
they are, how they are produced and how they work together to create words.
 Step 1: Identify the Language Sound System
 Step 2: Use Tongue Twisters to Improve Articulation and Pronunciation
3. Use Dialogue Practice
Dialogue is the natural next step in language production.
Structural linguists found that many conversational exchanges followed basic structures that can
be studied and learned.
Everyday dialogues are probably the most familiar leftovers of the original audio-lingual
method.
Most language textbooks include dialogue material and exercises. They’re often the first thing in
a lesson unit.
What Kinds of Dialogues to Use
Dialogues can fall into many different categories. But for this article, I’m going to limit them to
just two:
 Standard everyday dialogues. This is the type of verbal exchange we tend to repeat
throughout our daily lives. They include basic greetings and farewells, shopping
dialogues and information requests.
 Improvisational dialogues. These may begin standard, but they’re unpredictable because
of the personal interaction of the people speaking. These may include debates,
discussions, arguments and opinion sharing.

References:
The Audio Lingual Method: What It Is, Pros and Cons, How to Use It and More | General Educator Blog
(fluentu.com)