M1 Language Teaching Methodology

Language Teaching Methodology
Theodore S. Rodgers, Professor Emeritus, University of Hawaii (2001)
Background
Language teaching came into its own as a profession in the last century. Central to this
phenomenon was the emergence of the concept of "methods" of language teaching. 1

(The method concept in language teaching—the notion of a systematic set of teaching
practices based on a particular theory of language and language learning) —is a powerful
one, and the quest for better methods was a preoccupation of teachers and applied
linguists throughout the 20th century. Howatt's (1984) overview documents the history of
changes of practice in language teaching throughout history, bringing the chronology up
through the Direct Method in the 20th century. One of the most lasting legacies of the
Direct Method has been the notion of "method" itself.
Language Teaching Methodology Defined
Methodology in language teaching has been characterized in a variety of ways. A more or

less classical formulation suggests that methodology is that which links theory and
practice. 2 (Theory statements would include theories of what language is and how
language is learned or, more specifically, theories of second language acquisition (SLA)).
Such theories are linked to various design features of language instruction. 3 (These
design features might include stated objectives, syllabus specifications, types of
activities, roles of teachers, learners, materials, and so forth). 4 (Design features in turn
are linked to actual teaching and learning practices as observed in the environments
where language teaching and learning take place.) This whole complex of elements
defines language teaching methodology.
Schools of Language Teaching Methodology
Within methodology a distinction is often made between methods and approaches, in

which methods are held to be fixed teaching systems with prescribed techniques and
practices, whereas approaches represent language teaching philosophies that can be
interpreted and applied in a variety of different ways in the classroom. This distinction is
probably most usefully seen as defining a continuum of entities ranging from highly
prescribed methods to loosely described approaches.
The period from the 1950s to the 1980s has often been referred to as "The Age of
Methods," during which a number of quite detailed prescriptions for language teaching
were proposed. Situational Language Teaching evolved in the United Kingdom while a
parallel method, Audio-Lingualism, emerged in the United States. In the middle-methods
period, a variety of methods were proclaimed as successors to the then prevailing
Situational Language Teaching and Audio-Lingual methods. These alternatives were
promoted under such titles as Silent Way, Suggestopedia, Community Language
Learning, and Total Physical Response. In the 1980s, these methods in turn came to be
overshadowed by more interactive views of language teaching, which collectively came
to be known as Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). Communicative Language
Teaching advocates subscribed to a broad set of principles such as these:
 Learners learn a language through using it to communicate.
 Authentic and meaningful communication should be the goal of classroom
activities.
 Fluency is an important dimension of communication.
 Communication involves the integration of different language skills.
 Learning is a process of creative construction and involves trial and error.
However, CLT advocates avoided prescribing the set of practices through which these
principles could best be realized, thus putting CLT clearly on the approach rather than the
method end of the spectrum.
Communicative Language Teaching has spawned a number of off-shoots that share the
same basic set of principles, but which spell out philosophical details or envision
instructional practices in somewhat diverse ways. These CLT spin-off approaches include
The Natural Approach, Cooperative Language Learning, Content-Based Teaching, and
Task-Based Teaching.
It is difficult to describe these various methods briefly and yet fairly, and such a task is
well beyond the scope of this paper. However, several up-to-date texts are available that
do detail differences and similarities among the many different approaches and methods
that have been proposed. (See, e.g., Larsen-Freeman, 2000, and Richards & Rodgers,
2001). Perhaps it is possible to get a sense of the range of method proposals by looking at
a synoptic view of the roles defined for teachers and learners within various methods.
Such a synoptic (perhaps scanty) view can be seen in the following chart.
TEACHING METHODS AND TEACHER & LEARNER ROLES
Method Teacher Roles Learner Roles
Context SetterImitator
Situational Language Teaching
Error Corrector Memorizer
Language Pattern Practicer
Audio-lingualism Modeler Accuracy
Drill Leader Enthusiast
Communicative LanguageNeeds AnalystImprovisor
Teaching Task Designer Negotiator
Total Physical Response Commander Order Taker
Action Monitor Performer
Counselor Collaborator
Community Language Learning
Paraphraser Whole Person
Actor Guesser
The Natural Approach
Props User Immerser
Auto-hypnotist Relaxer
Suggestopedia
Authority Figure True-Believer
Figure 2. Methods and Teacher and Learner Roles
As suggested in the chart, some schools of methodology see the teacher as ideal language
model and commander of classroom activity (e.g., Audio-Lingual Method, Natural
Approach, Suggestopedia, Total Physical Response) whereas others see the teacher as
background facilitator and classroom colleague to the learners (e.g., Communicative
Language Teaching, Cooperative Language Learning).
There are other global issues to which spokespersons for the various methods and
approaches respond in alternative ways. For example, should second language learning
by adults be modeled on first language learning by children? One set of schools (e.g.,
Total Physical Response, Natural Approach) notes that first language acquisition is the
only universally successful model of language learning we have, and thus that second
language pedagogy must necessarily model itself on first language acquisition. An
opposed view (e.g., Silent Way, Suggestopedia) observes that adults have different
brains, interests, timing constraints, and learning environments than do children, and that
adult classroom learning therefore has to be fashioned in a way quite dissimilar to the
way in which nature fashions how first languages are learned by children.
Another key distinction turns on the role of perception versus production in early stages
of language learning. One school of thought proposes that learners should begin to
communicate, to use a new language actively, on first contact (e.g., Audio-Lingual
Method, Silent Way, Community Language Learning), while the other school of thought
states that an initial and prolonged period of reception (listening, reading) should precede
any attempts at production (e.g., Natural Approach).

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Language Teaching Methodology

Theodore S. Rodgers, Professor Emeritus, University of Hawaii (2001)

phenomenon was the emergence of the concept of "methods" of language teaching. 1

Language Teaching Methodology Defined

Methodology in language teaching has been characterized in a variety of ways. A more or

Schools of Language Teaching Methodology

Within methodology a distinction is often made between methods and approaches, in

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