Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching.docx

1、Approaches and Methods in Language TeachingApproaches and Methods in Language Teaching This semester, I read a book called Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. In this report, I will restate six approaches introduced by this book briefly, because I think the procedure of retelling is also a

2、progress of learning. Then I want to share some consideration about this book. 1. Six Approaches 1.1 The Oral Approach and Situational Language Teaching Palmer, Hornby, and other British applied linguists from the 1920s onward developed an approach to methodology that involved systematic principles

3、of selection (the procedures by which lexical and grammatical content was chosen), gradation (principles by which the organization and sequencing of content were determined), and presentation (techniques used for presentation and practice of items in a course). Their general principles were referred

4、 to as the Oral Approach to language teaching. This was not to be confused with the Direct Method, which, although it used oral procedures, lacked a systematic basis. The main characteristics of the approach were as follows. Language teaching begins with the spoken language, material is taught orall

5、y before it is presented in written form. The target language is the language of the classroom. New language points are introduced and practiced situationally. Vocabulary selection procedures are followed to ensure that an essential general service vocabulary is covered. Items of grammar are graded

6、following the principle that simple forms should be taught before complex ones. Reading and writing are introduced once a sufficient lexical and grammatical basis is established. As fas as its theory, speech was regarded as the basis of language, and structure was viewed as being at the heart of spe

7、aking ability. It addresses primarily the processes rather than the conditions of learning. Its objective is to teach a practical command of the four basic skills of language, goals it shares with most methods of language teaching. But the skills are approached through structure. Situational Languag

8、e Teaching employs a situational approach to presenting new sentence patterns and a drill-based manner of practicing them. In the initial stages, the learner is required simply to listen and repeat what the teacher says and to respond to questions and commands. Later, more active participation is en

9、couraged. The teacher serves as a model, “the skillful conductor of an orchestra”, the lookout for grammatical and structural errors. Pittman gives an example of a typical lesson plan: pronunciation, revision (to prepare for new work if necessary), presentation of a new structure or vocabulary, oral

10、 practice, reading of material on the new structure, or written exercises. Because the principles of Situational Language Teaching, with its strong emphasis on oral practice, grammar, and sentence patterns, conform to the institutions of many practically oriented classroom teacher, it continues to b

11、e widely used in the 1980s. 1.2 Communicative Language Teaching The communicative approach in language teaching starts from a theory of language as communication. The goal of language teaching is to develop what Hymes referred to as “communicative competence”. Learning a second language was similarl

12、y viewed by proponents of Communicative Language Teaching as acquiring the linguistic means to preform kinds of functions. At the level of language theory, Communicative Language Teaching has a rich, if somewhat eclectic, theoretical base. Some of the characteristics of this communicative view of la

13、nguage follow. Language is a system for the express of meaning. The primary function of language is for interaction and communication. The structure of language reflects its functional and communicative uses. The primary units of language are not merely its grammatical and structural features, but c

14、ategories of functional and communicative meaning as exemplified in discourse. Elements of an underlying learning theory can be discerned in some CLT practices, however. One such element might be described as the communicative principle: Activities that involve real communication promote learning. A

15、 second element is the task principle: Activities in which language is used for carrying out meaning tasks promote learning. A third element is the meaningfulness principles, language is meaningful to the learner supports the learning process. The role of learner as negotiator-between the self, the

16、learning process, and the object of learning. The teacher has two main roles: the first role is to facilitate the communication process, the second is to act as an independent participant within the learning-teaching group. We consider three kinds of materials currently used in CLT and label these t

17、ext-based, task-base, and realia. Now that the initial wave of enthusiasm bas passed, however, some of claims of CLT are being looked at more critically. The adoption of a communicative approach raises important issues for teacher training, materials development, and testing and evaluation. 1.3 Tota

18、l Physical Response Total Physical Response is a language teaching method built around the coordination of speech and action; it attempts to teach language through physical activity. Total Physical Response is linked to the “trace theory” of memory in psychology, which holds that the more often or t

19、he more intensively a memory connection is traced, the stronger the memory association will be and the more likely it will be recalled. Retracing can be done verbally and in association with motor activity. Combined tracing activities, such as verbal rehearsal accompanied by motor activity, hence in

20、crease the probability of successful recall. The labeling and ordering of TPR classroom drills seem to be built on assumptions that owe much to structuralist or grammar-based views of language. Asher states that “most of the grammatical structure of the target language and hundreds of vocabulary ite

21、ms can be learned from the skillful use of the imperative by the instructor”. Ashers Total Physical Response is a “Natural Method”, inasmuch as Asher sees first and second language learning as parallel process. Asher sees Total Physical Response as directed to right-brain learning, whereas most seco

22、nd language teaching methods are directed to left-brain learning. Asher holds that the child language learner acquires language through motor movement, a right-hemisphere activity. Right-hemisphere activities must occur before the left hemisphere can process language for production. An important con

23、dition for successful language learning is the absence of stress. The general objectives of TPR are to teach oral proficiency at a beginning level. Comprehension is a means to an end, and the ultimate aim is to teach basic speaking skills. Imperative drills are the major classroom activity in TPR. T

24、hey are typically used to elicit physical actions and activity on the part of the learner. Learners in TPR have the primary roles of listener and performer. They listen attentively and respond physically to commands given by the teacher. The teacher plays an active and direct role in TPR. It is the

25、teacher who decides what to teach, who models and presents the new materials, and who selects supporting materials for classroom use. TPR class are processed in the following ways. Review, in which individual students were moved with commands. New commands, some verbs were introduced. Role reversal,

26、 students readily volunteered to utter commands that manipulated the behavior of the instructor and other students. Reading and writing, students speak each item and actor out the sentence. TPR has enjoyed some popularity because of its support by those who emphasis the role of comprehension in seco

27、nd language acquisition. However, TPR should be used in association with other methods and techniques. 1.4 The Silent Way The Silent Way is the name of a method of language teaching devised by Caleb Gattegno. Gattegnos name is well known for his revival of interest in the use of colored wooden stick

28、s called cuisenaire rods and for his series Words in Color, an approach to the teaching of initial reading in which sounds are coded by specific colors. It is based on the premise that the teacher should be silent as much as possible in the classroom and the learner should be silent as much as possi

29、ble in the classroom and the learner should be encouraged to produce as much language as possible. The Silent Way shares a great deal with other learning theories and educational philosophies. Very broadly put, the learning hypotheses underlying Gattegnos work could be stated as follows. Learning is

30、 facilitated if the learner discovers or creates rather than remembers and repeats what is to be learned.Learning is facilitated by accompanying physical objects. Learning is facilitated by problem solving involving the material to be learned. Gattegno views language itself “as a substitute for expe

31、rience, so experience is what gives meaning to language”. It is clear that the Silent Way takes a structural approach to the organization of language to be taught. Language is seen as groups of sounds arbitrarily associated with specific meaning and organized into sentences or strings of meaning uni

32、ts by grammar rules. Awareness is educable. As one learns “in awareness,” ones powers of awareness and ones capacity to learn become greater. The Silent Way thus claims to facilitate what psychologists call “learning to learn”. The general objective of the Silent Way is to give beginning level stude

33、nts oral and aural facility in basic elements of the target language. The general goal set for language learning is near-native fluency in the target language, the correct pronunciation and mastery of the prosodic elements of the target language are emphasized. Learning tasks and activities in the Silent Way have t