LECTURES 1-2

1. Methodology as a science. Its components, terms and a system of teaching

2. Classifications of activities
3. Methods and approaches of teaching foreign languages and cultures viewed
diachronically

I. Methodology as a science, its links with other sciences.

The basic elements in any teaching situation are: the learner, the teacher, the subject matter,
the aims of instruction. These elements are related to each other, so the methods of language
teaching are based on at least 3 cornerstones: a) what is known about the nature of the
language; b) what is known about the nature of learning and the learner; c) the aims of
instruction.

Methods of foreign language teaching cover 4 main components:

(1) aims of teaching a foreign language (why to teach);

(2). content of teaching, i. e. what to teach to attain the aims;

(3) methods and techniques of teaching, i . e . how to teach a foreign language to attain
the aims in the most effective way;

(4) teaching aids(with the help of what we teach)

The aims are determined by the state standards, Curriculum and the type of school. They
correlate with A Common European Framework of Reference: Modern languages: Learning,
Teaching, Assessment. There are five main aims in teaching FL at schools: practical,
affective, educational, developmental and professionally orientated (in senior forms).

The Practical aim of teaching FL and Cultures is developing Learner’s Communicative

Competence in the target foreign language, i.e. ability to understand and interact with native
speakers according to the norms and cultural traditions in the conditions of direct and indirect
communication.

Communicative Competence embraces several kinds of competences:

 Speech competences in listening, speaking, reading, writing and mediating

(translating and interpreting)
 Language competences ( in phonetics, vocabulary, grammar, spelling)
 Linguosociocultural competence (sociocultural competence, sociolinguistic
competence, social competence)
  Strategic competence (developing effective learner strategies, e.g. how to use a
dictionary, and communicative strategies, e.g. compensation strategies – fill in
hesitation pauses)

Affective aim includes developing the culture of communication appropriate in modern

civilized societies, tolerance and respect to other cultures and other language speakers,
positive attitude to mastering foreign languages and cultures etc.

Educational aim presupposes developing learner’s worldview through cultural,

linguocultural and sociocultural knowledge, intercultural knowledge (e.g. contrastive studies
of the two systems of language means, native and foreign).

Developmental aim is targeted at developing learners’ motivation to studying foreign

languages and cultures, developing learners’ communicative abilities, helping learners to
become autonomous.

Professionally orientated aim is closely connected with different profiles introduced in

senior forms: mathematical and physical, biological and chemical, humanitarian, including
philological, sports, esthetical etc. The aim presupposes developing professionally orientated
language competences (e.g. vocabulary, terms), speech competences (e.g. reading and
discussing professionally orientated texts), linguosociocultural competences (e.g. making
presentations at scientific conferences).

Aims, or goals are broad, while planning a lesson they are realized through concrete
objectives set by the teacher and written in the lesson plan, to enable learners speak about
their hobbies and pastimes using verbs in Present simple. Mind that it’s much better to think
of learning objectives, not teaching objectives.

The content of any teaching curriculum is described in the syllabus, i.e. what is to be learned
within a definite period of time, e.g. a year. The content involves:

 Teaching material arranged in topics, situations, areas of communication

 Teaching language skills: listening skills, reading skills, writing skills, oral skills
 Teaching linguistic material: phonetical, vocabulary, grammar, spelling
 Teaching speech patterns of different levels ( phrase, sentence, sentence unity, text)
 Teaching cultural knowledge and skills of intercultural communication
 Developing learning and communicative strategies.
 Teaching foreign languages and cultures is based on several didactic and methodological
principles.

Main didactic principles of foreign language teaching:

 The principle of visualization (visual aids and auditory aids)

 The principle of retention (to remember well, recycling of the material etc)

 The principle of conscious approach (understanding language phenomena, modeling

situations, using rules, using learner’s native language)
 The principle of learners’ cognitive, emotional and speech activity
 The principle of continuity and logical development
 The principle of accessibility and inclusive classroom

Main methodological principles:

 Communicative approach (teaching process should be approximated to the real
process of speech communication)
 Development of integrated language skills
 Interconnected and interrelated teaching of languages and cultures
 The principle of dominating role of activities (you can master skills only by
practicing them, so about 85 % of time should be devoted to activities)
 The principle of authentic materials and authentic tasks
In describing methods, the difference between a philosophy of language teaching at the
level of theory and principles, and a set of derived procedures for teaching a language, is central.
In an attempt to clarify this difference, a scheme was proposed by the American applied linguist
Edward Anthony in 1963. He identified three levels of conceptualization and organization, which
he termed approach, method, and technique.

The arrangement is hierarchical. The organizational key is that techniques carry out a method
which is consistent with an approach.

An approach is a set of correlative assumptions dealing with the nature of language

teaching and learning. An approach is axiomatic. It describes the nature of the subject matter
to be taught. (It is in your head, these are views on language, language learning and
language teaching)
 А method is an overall plan for the orderly presentation of language material, no part
of which contradicts, and all of which is based upon, the selected approach. An approach is
axiomatic, a method is procedural. Within one approach, there can be many methods...
(Method is on paper, it reveals itself in curriculum and syllabus)

A technique, or an educational technology is what actually takes place in a

classroom. It is a particular trick used to accomplish an immediate objective. (A procedure that
can be observed in the classroom). Techniques must be consistent with a method, and therefore
in harmony with an approach as well.

We can single out problem educational technologies, project technologies, interactive

technologies, game technologies, computer technologies, mobile learning etc. They are
realized through activities – short tasks which are parts of the lesson.

Classification of Teaching Aids

Curriculum/Syllabus – a description of the contents of a course of instruction and the

order in which they are to be taught. It may be based on a grammatical items and vocabulary; the
language needed for different types of situations; the meanings and communicative functions
which the learner needs to express in the target language.

Course-book: student’s book, workbook, teacher’s book, an activity book, a test book,
a guide for the teacher, CDs etc.

Reference books: dictionary, grammar book, special reference books (idioms,

prepositions, phrasal verbs, collocations etc)

Visuals: real objects, pictures, photos, flash cards, worksheets, charts, maps, overhead
projector, CD player, computer, mobile phone

TYPES OF ACTIVITIES

Activity (exercise, task) is a specially organized students’ activity aimed at mastering the
operations that activity consists of.

There exist different classifications, one of the most generally accepted is classification
suggested by N.K. Sklyarenko.

Criteria used for that and types of activities that are singled out are as follows:

1. communicative character: - communicative tasks

- semi-controlled

- totally controlled (drills)

 Characteristics of a communicative task:
 communicative purpose
 information/opinion gap
 communicative situation
 learners’ choice of the language material
 authenticity of actions
 minimal degree of the teacher’s control.

2. motivation: - motivating

- non-motivating

3. receiving or giving information: - receptive

- receptive-reproductive

- receptive-productive

- productive

4. availability of support: - without any support

- with specially created support

- with some natural support

5. mode of interaction: - individual

- in chorus

- as a whole class

- in pairs

- in small groups

- in teams

6. the character of assessment: - immediate or delayed

- total or selected at random

- teacher-assessment

- self-assessment

- peer assessment

7. mode of doing: - oral

- written

8. the role of Mother tongue: - monolingual

 - bilingual

9. function: - teaching

- testing

10. place of doing: - in class

- at home

Another classification: skill-developing (arranging sentences in order, close test, substitution,

transformation, dictations etc) v. skill-exploiting (filling in forms, doing crosswords, taking
notes during the lecture, writing a letter, a postcard etc)

Still another classification depends on the purpose of activity:

 an ice-breaker (helps to establish rapport at the beginning of the course, to get

acquainted)

 warm up (warmer) (to improve the psychological climate in the group, to immerse in
the English language environment)
 lead-in (serves to tune in the learners to the topic of the lesson, to focus on the material
under consideration etc)
 presentation activity (serves to introduce and clarify a new learning item: vocabulary
unit, grammar item, learning strategy etc)
 practice activity (involves performance, some learning item has been presented and now
is practiced in the controlled activity, often a model for performance is given, e.g. a
sample dialogue to practice speech patterns or a sample activity to do your own on a
different material
 memorization activity (involves memorizing some info or learning material, e.g. SS
may be asked to memorize a voc. List which they will later use in a speaking task.
Contemporary approaches discourage mere memorization in favour of activities in which
learning is achieved through doing smth with the material to be learnt
 comprehension activity (demands Ss to develop or demonstrate their understanding of
written or spoken texts. May require different levels of comprehension: literal (explicit
info), inferential(conclusions and predictions on the inferred info), evaluation (making
judgements based on personal or other values)
 application activity (require learners to use in a creative way knowledge or skills
previously presented and practiced)
 strategy activity (develop particular learning strategies and approaches to learning, e.g.
to develop the strategy of using predictions to guide one’s reading)
 affective activity (has no specific language learning goal, it is intended to improve
motivational climate of the classroom and to develop the Ss interest, confidence and
positive attitude to learning)
 feedback activity (to get feedback on learning or on some aspect of performance of the
activity
 assessment activity (to diagnose areas which need further learning or to evaluate student
performance)
 II. Methods and approaches of teaching foreign languages and cultures viewed
diachronically

1. Grammar translation approach is a method of foreign language teaching, which

makes use of translation and grammar study as the main teaching and learning activities. In the
18th - 19th centuries it was used to teach “modern” languages the way classical languages were
taught (Latin, Greek). The best known representatives of that approach were Maydinguer
(Germany) and Ollendorf (GB). In tsarist Russia it was the main method till 1917. Grammar
translation method later developed into textual translation method (Hamilton in GB). It
emphasized reading rather than the ability to communicate in a language. Language was viewed
as a system of rules, a learner was viewed as an empty mug to be filled with knowledge and a
teacher as a jug full of that knowledge. The language structures were regarded as mainly the
same in all the languages. A typical lesson consisted of the presentation of a grammar rule, a
study of lists of vocabulary, a text for reading and translating, and a translation exercise. Context
and meaning were often completely ignored, Mistakes should be immediately corrected and
learners punished for their carelessness.
Positive results: Language analysis, analogies with the native language, translation
exercises, teaching culture through literature, writing essays.
Negative results: languages were not taught as a means of communication,
pronunciation aspect was totally ignored, form and meaning were separated most of the time,
original texts from classical literature were very difficult for understanding.

2. Direct method appeared in the middle of the 19th century as reaction to GT and had
the following features: only the target language should be used in class; meanings should be
communicated “directly” by associating speech forms with actions, objects, mime, gestures and
situations; reading and writing should be taught only after speaking; grammar should be taught
inductively, i.e. starting with examples, teaching through imitating the model supplied by the
teacher. Numerous repetitions were compulsory. Mistakes were viewed negatively, though a
learner was given a chance to self-correct. Later some modifications of the direct method
appeared, e.g. oral method by Harold Palmer. The scholar believed that for several months
learners have to listen to spoken language, to immerse in the speech flow without speaking
themselves, then speak and some moths later start reading short texts.
Positive results: techniques of teaching spoken language (e.g. substitution tables,
question and answer exercises, dialogue models), ways of introducing new words, using
pronunciation exercises, using the principle of continuity and gradation in the system of
exercises(from easy to more difficult).
Negative results: teaching grammar only inductively, complete exclusion of the native
language in class, more difficult texts that contained some unfamiliar words and not just the
material that had been practiced orally, were ignored.

3. Audio-lingual approach was prominent in the 1950s and 1960s in the USA and many
other countries (Charles Fries, Robert Lado). It was based on structural linguistics (language is
viewed as a system of signs, the written language as an artificial and inaccurate way of fixing the
sound form) and behavioral psychology (stimulus – response - reinforcement). It emphasized the
teaching of speaking and listening before reading and writing; used dialogues and drills;
discouraged use of the mother tongue in the classroom; often made use of contrastive analysis.
Positive results: based on scientific data, attempts to develop communicative skills,
worked out a new system of exercises (substitution, transformation, expansion, completion,
sentence combining), using native speakers and experts in linguistics.
Negative results: exaggerated the importance of structures, vocabulary was often
ignored, functional aspect was not taken into account, the mechanic repetition of structures was
often boring, learner’s native language was excluded.

4. Audio-visual approach is another one that is based on behaviorism and views on

language as a system of signs for communication. It also teachers speaking and listening before
reading and writing; does not use the mother tongue in the classroom; uses recorded dialogues
with film-strip picture sequences to present language items; uses drills to teach basic grammar
and vocabulary. It was developed in France in the 1950s (its best known representatives are
Guberina (Yugoslavia), Rivenc, Michea, Gugenheim (France). and was based on the belief that
language is learned through communication in situations.
Positive results: the language of real communication was used in teaching, situations
were introduced alongside with the language material, and visual aids were amply used.
Negative results: importance of mechanic practice was exaggerated, and learner’s
native language was excluded.

5. Communicative approach emphasizes that the goal of language learning is

communicative competence. It has been developed by British applied linguists in the 1960s.
(Henry Widdowson, Brumfit, Littlewood). In Russia Y.I. Passov developed their ideas.
The main principles and features of CLT:
 language as a means of communication;
 teaching language in a meaningful context (specifying notions, functions, functional
exponents based on the learners’ needs analysis);
 prioritising meaning over form;
 focus on skills;
 task-based learning;
 focus on sociolinguistic and pragmatic competence as well as linguistic competence;
 the correlation between accuracy and fluency(viewed not in abstract but in context), the
role of grammar;
 errors as learning steps;
 the changed roles of a teacher and a learner.

Roles of a teacher according to the communicative approach:

 an organizer
 a manager
 a model
 an informant
 a monitor
 a councilor
 a facilitator
  a communication partner
 a life-long learner
Roles of a learner:
 the subject of the educational process
 a communication partner
 an active participant
 an autonomous learner.
Positive results: learning foreign language as a means for communication, attempts to
communicate are encouraged from the very beginning, communicative competence is the desired
goal, anything which helps the learner is accepted, contrastive analysis and translation included.
Negative results: accuracy may suffer, the teacher cannot know exactly what language
the students will use and often cannot preplan the course of the lesson, a number of mistakes
during pair and group work may remain uncorrected and not explained, a teacher needs more
preparation for the lesson and heavier work during it.

6. Innovative approaches.
I. Comprehension-based approaches:
a) Total Physical Response (TPR) (James Asher). The teacher gives commands for
single actions and learners physically respond. TPR offers a route to the acquisition of
comprehension skills, which underlie the natural acquisition of communication skills;
b) The Natural approach. Learners of any age are able to take in speech input if most of
it is comprehensible through pictures, actions. It respects the initial pre-production period,
expecting speech to emerge not from artificial practice but from motivated language use.
Attention is paid to interpersonal and personal negotiation. Fluency is often achieved at the cost of
accuracy.

II. Production Based Learning:

Silent Way of Learning (Galeb Gattegno). The main principle – teaching should be
subordinated to learning. The teacher doesn’t speak much, his verbal input is restricted to
minimum. Verbal output is elicited from the learners with the aid of “scatter charts” of words and
affixes, rods. There is no praise or criticism, the teacher corrects and guides by means of gestures
and silent lip movement. The atmosphere promotes cooperation and support.

III Humanistic and Phycho-suggestive approaches:

a) Community Language Learning (Curran) stresses the importance of treating the

learners as individual human beings and requires the teacher to be a sympathetic counselor, guide,
friend rather than an authority and instructor. It places emphasis on the learners’ personal feelings
and their reactions to language learning. Learners say something they want to talk about, in their
native language, the teacher translates learners’ sentences into the foreign language, and the
learner then repeats the phrase to other members of the group.

b) Suggestopedia was developed by Lozanov (Bulgaria). It makes use of dialogues,

situations, music, visuals, images and relaxation exercises to make learning more comfortable and
effective and to make maximum use of the brain’s capacity to combine the conscious and the
unconscious for learning. All these promote learning superconductivity, a perfect state of learning
receptiveness enabling learners to process massive input into intake with no forgetting. This
method was used for developing intensive learning methods by G. Kitaygorodskaya and others.