This week we were learning about different methods and approaches to language teaching. Summing up our class discussions, it can be clearly seen that the least appealing method for most of us appears to be Grammar-Translation Method.
Most of my classmates have a negative attitude to the Grammar-Translation Method because of their personal experience and there are various other reasons why this method is disliked. In my opinion, most of them are the failure to transfer the knowledge outside the classroom. Students, after the learning language by such method are unable to communicate in real life settings. Another reason pertains to considerable memorisation and drilling that is not only boring but also not stimulating to learning language. Additionally, when using Grammar-Translation Method an interaction in the classroom goes only between the student and the teacher and the teacher controls every step. I completely agree with all given reasons. The only reason for not neglecting this method at all is because at certain stages of language learning, it would be a good and necessary supplement to the main method, since many of the methods do not pay enough attention to grammar learning.Suggestopedia also was called among the least appealing methods and personally, I agree with that. Because of my personality and my learning style, the music greatly distracts me during my learning. I would never turn on the music when I am trying to memorize or concentrate on something important. Moreover, as was noticed by some of my classmates, there are people with diverse cultural backgrounds and a variety of taste in music, therefore, it is very difficult to select the type of music that would be suitable for all students. Suggestopedia is a much more specific method than others, which requires special accommodations and is not flexible in its implementation. All of the above mentioned drawbacks of Suggestopedia ring true for me.
The Audio-Lingual Method was pointed out too as a not commonly used method. The reason is similar to the one given for the Grammar-Translation Method, its inability to apply the knowledge gained by imitation and repetition to new or unprompted situations.
I completely agree with all the rationales of my classmates. However, as I mentioned above and in our class discussions, I would incorporate these methods in my teaching as part of my lessons to ensure the comprehensiveness of the learning process.
I agree with you that Suggestopedia seems like a strange way to learn a language. I really can't imagine it, although I do like it's emphasis on making students feel comfortable and relaxed. The music would create a big problem, I agree, as there are so many styles of music, and people have strong likes and dislikes. It would be interesting to experience this method sometime, though, just to understand it better.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with you that some of the "out-dated" methods might still have their place in the overall scheme of language learning, as long as they are not overused, or used to the exclusion of other, more appropriate methods. I really think that we need to know our students and not be afraid to try new things, as long as we are constantly evaluating their effectiveness.