Lecture 1: ESL Teaching Methods: A Review Douglas Fleming Faculty of Education University of Ottawa

Pendulum Swings in the Field “our field has been afflicted with many false dichotomies, weak conceptualizations, and neglect of critical issues and variables” (Carroll, 1965, p. 102)

Method, Approach and Technique an approach is one’s assumptions and beliefs about language and teaching; a method is the pattern with which you make pedagogical choices based on your approach; a technique is a specific set of activities for the classroom based on your preferred method. based on Anthony (1963)

Grammar Translation developed out of the ecclesiastic use of Latin; adopted by educated and class elites; centered on the memorization of verb forms, grammar rules, and vocabulary; methods concentrated on: the translation of literary texts; comprehension questions following a text; teacher-centered activities.

Audio-lingual Approach originated out of the U.S. ‘Army Method’; based on the behaviorist belief that language learning consists of habit formation; communication and context not emphasized; purpose of language use for learner not judged to be important; features repetitive drills and memorization of dialogue; emphasis placed on pronunciation; activities usually teacher-centered.

Designer Methods a multitude of techniques developed by specific curriculum and materials designers in the 1960’s-1980’s; often spawned dogmatic attitudes most were based on the pop-psychology of the time; examples include: Total Physical Response Suggestopedia The Silent Way

Criticisms we need to discard simple formulas (Stern, l983) tensions exist between conceptions of teachers as a) technical implementers of fully developed curricula and b) fully developed professionals (Pennycook,1989) singular methods are irrelevant to most practice (Nunan, 1991)

Stephen Krashen one of the best known applied linguists today; often (justifiably) criticized for being pseudo scientific; legacy has been important if only for the way he forced the field to deal with long ignored fundamental issues and contradictions. hypotheses Acquisition/ Learning Hypothesis Monitor Hypothesis Natural Order Hypothesis Input Hypothesis Affective Filter Hypothesis (1981) Second Language Acquisition and Second Language Learning

The Communicative Approach the most commonly accepted methodology today; concentrates on function rather than form; the goal is to create a realistic context for language acquisition in the classroom. Subject of my next lecture.

Group discussion: Which methods have you experienced as a student? Which methods have you been trained in as a teacher? Which methods have you used as a teacher? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each method? How should these methods be used and adapted to the Moroccan context?