Teaching methods of foreign language

Language acquisition[edit]

Language acquisition can occur in three ways: first language acquisition, bi- and multilingualism, and second language acquisition. First language acquisition is classified as the unconscious development of one's native language very early in development. Bi- and multilingualism is the acquisition of two or more languages, which can be done at a young age or later in life. However, all languages are not created equal and one language is typically the dominant one. Second language acquisition also sometimes known as 'further language acquisition' is the development of a different or foreign language after the native language has been fully developed. This acquisition is typically defined as one that occurs after puberty and into adulthood (Hickey, 2017).

Stages of Language Acquisition[edit]

Birth to 3 months: child makes organic sounds such as crying or cooing
3 months to 10 months: child enters the babbling stage
10 months to 1 year: child enters the holophrastic stage where the first comprehensive words are spoken
2-3 years: child uses interrogative and imperative phrases along with inflection and negation
3-4 years: child develops a vocabulary of around 1000 words
5 years: child has developed the main syntactic rules by this stage

(Note: these stages will vary from child to child.) (Hickey, 2017).

Common teaching methods for language acquisition[edit]

The Grammar Translation Method
The Direct Method
The Audio-Lingual Method
The Silent Way
Suggestopedia
Community Language Learning
Total Physical Response

The Grammar Translation Method[edit]

Also called 'classical method', this approach was historically used in teaching Greek and Latin and has now been generalized to teaching modern languages. This method aims to teach students foreign language by reading literature and learning grammar. This approach is taught in the students' mother tongue, with little use of the target language. It focuses on lists of vocabulary, and elaborate explanations of grammar. Little or no attention is given to pronunciation (Mora, 2017).

The Direct Method[edit]

This approach was developed in response to the grammar translation method to integrate more of the target language in the instruction. When the first teaching model lost its value to teach foreign language, the direct method began to play main role in teaching. The aim of this method is teaching communication so students, who should think in the target language, must speak in only the target language. In the interaction, based on teacher-student and student-teacher, the teacher and students are like partners in teaching process, and lessons should contain some conversation activities; all four skills (reading, writing, speaking and listening) are emphasized in this method. Culture is also considered an important aspect of learning the language, and is taught inductively (Mora, 2017).

The Audio-Lingual Method[edit]

This method was developed in United States during the Second World War, when there was huge demand of people who were able to speak in foreign language for military purposes. It is also based on the principles of behavior psychology, and has adapted many of the principles of the Direct Method (Mora, 2017).

This is an intensive method which enables the students to learn language and use it communicatively. Teacher's role here is like an orchestra leader, that is, they must direct and control the students' language behaviour, and provide the students with a good model of imitation; target language is used in classroom; using dialogues remains the best way to learn new vocabulary and structures, which are learnt through imitation and repetition. There is a great emphasis on native-like pronunciation.

The Silent Way[edit]

Created by Caleb Gattengo, the aim of this method is to enable the students to express themselves in target language. In order to achieve that aim, the students should be independent from teacher – they must develop their own inner criteria for correctness. The purpose of this method is to provide a duration of spontaneous speech upon which the teacher and the students can work to obtain a similarity of melody to the one heard, providing melodic integrative schemata from the beginning (Mora, 2017).

As its name makes clear, the teacher remains silent in this method – the native language is only used for giving instructions about the pronuncuation or other parts of language, and the culture is accepted as an inseparable part of a language. Teacher assesses all the students according to their daily activities, not through formal tests. The errors should be seen as natural, and teacher uses students' errors as a basis for deciding where further work is necessary. The teacher concentrates on what the students say and how they say it, drawing attention to the differences in pronunciation and the flow of words.

Suggestopedia[edit]

This method was developed in order to help students eliminate feelings that they cannot be successful, and to help them to overcome the obstacles of learning. The goal of this method is to develop the process by which students learn to use a foreign language for everyday communication.

The teachers has the authority in classroom, and native language may be used to make meaning clear; pronunciation is developed through reading out loudly, and students' evaluations are based on normal in-class performance.

Community Language Learning[edit]

In this method the teacher, who must be skillful in the field of teaching language, must help students make themselves comfortable while learning foreign language. The aim of teachers is to convince their students that they are able to learn language communicatively. The syllabus is created by the students in this teaching method.

The instructor does not correct errors directly to create a low-anxiety environment that fosters the comfortability required to learn a new language. Students are allowed to speak in the target language, their native language or a mixture of the two.

The focus of this method is to focus on the communicative competence required to learn a language, rather than focusing on grammar (Mora, 2017).

Total Physical Response[edit]

This method aims to make students become motivated and enjoy their experience in learning to communicate in a foreign language. It combines information and skills through the use of the kinesthetic sensory system, allowing the student to assimilate information and skills at a fast rate. The student is not required to speak in this method until they are comfortable and confident in their pronunciation. This method stresses understanding the spoken language before developing the skills of speaking. Once the method is introduced in native language, this language should't be used in classroom. Pronunciation is developed through listening and behavior types (Mora, 2017).

References[edit]

Hickey, Raymond. “Language Acquisition.” Language Acquisition, Feb. 2017, www.uni-due.de/ELE/LanguageAcquisition.htm.

Mora, Jill Kerper. “Second and Foreign Language Teaching Methods.” MoraModules, 2017, moramodules.com/ALMMethods.htm#The%20Grammar-Translation.

External links[edit]

This article "Teaching methods of foreign language" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.