G L O T T O D I D A C T I C S

MIDTERM 1

GLOTTODIDACTICS AS APPLIED LINGUISTICS

Glottodidactics = the study of foreign language learning and teaching (teorija nastave

stranih jezika)

David Crystal: Applied linguistics is a branch of linguistics where the primary

concern is the application of linguistic theories, methods, findings to the elucidation of

language problems which have arisen in other areas of experience

TESOL = teaching English to speakers of other languages

Methods = actual techniques and procedures of the class work; an overall plan for the

orderly presentation of language material

o Grammar-translation

o Direct

o Audiolingual

o Communicative

o Natural approach etc.

Approach = a theoretical paradigm; theories about the nature of language and language

learning that serve as the source of practices and principles in language teaching

o Theoretical methods are based on approaches

Theoretical views of language:

o STRUCTURAL – language is a system of structurally related elements for the

coding of meaning; mastery of the system is the target

o FUNCTIONAL – language is a vehicle for the expression of functional meaning

o INTERACTIONAL – language is a vehicle for the realization of interpersonal

relations; a tool for the creation and maintenance of social relations

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A BRIEF HISTORY OF LANGUAGE TEACHING

16th-19th century – political changes, Latin was no longer the main language

French, Italian and English become more important

Latin – rote learning of grammar rules

Modern languages appeared in school curriculums in the 18th/19th century – taught

the same way as Latin = the Grammar-Translation Method

THE GRAMMAR-TRANSLATION METHOD

Learning everything about something rather than the thing itself

A.k.a. the Classical method/the Prussian method (in the USA)

Speaking is neglected; reading and writing are most important

Goals of foreign language literature = to develop intellect and to learn a language in

order to read its literature

Detailed analysis of grammar rules + translating

Focus on sentence = distinctive feature

Selected vocabulary is based on texts used

Grammar is taught deductively (presenting rules and practicing through examples)

Dominant method from the 1840s-1940s (used even today in a modified form)

Techniques used: translation of a part of a text, antonyms/synonyms, fill-in-the-blanks,

memorization, composition, reading comprehension questions, deductive grammar

teaching

Principles: reading literature in a foreign language, translation, communication in a

foreign language is not important, reading and writing are important, the teacher

controls everything, learning vocabulary by translating…

THE NATURAL (“SERIES”) METHOD

Francois Gouin

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Approach based on children’s use of language

Using language to accomplish events consisting of a sequence of actions

Learning directly (no translation) and conceptually (using context, objects, gestures etc.

to explain things)

Used situations and themes to present and organize oral language (“series”)

Oral approach to language

THE DIRECT METHOD

Developed by Maximilian Berlitz (a.k.a. the Berlitz Method)

Stemmed from the Natural Method

Avoiding translation and the mother tongue

All four principles (reading, writing, listening, speaking) are equally important

Using gestures and objects to explain the meaning of new words

Pronunciation is important as is communication

Implicit/inductive grammar technique

Classroom instruction exclusively in the target language

Teachers are usually native speakers

Teaching only everyday vocabulary and sentences

Communication is centered around questions and answers

Speech and listening comprehension are taught

Emphasis on correct pronunciation and grammar

Actually used in schools

Beginning of the “methods” era

THE AUDIOLINGUAL METHOD

Popular in the US in WW2 (teaching soldiers Japanese, German, Italian, Chinese for

military purposes)

1942-1944 – ASTP (Army Specialized Training Program) a.k.a. “The Army Method” –

objective is conversational proficiency

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o Teachers are applied linguists at universities esp. Leonard Bloomfield (structural

linguist) – wrote the books Language (1933) and An Outline Guide for the

Practical Study of Foreign Languages (1942)

The informant method = informants (native speakers) are sources of phrases, words

and sentences

o Dialogue between the student and informant (the linguist doesn’t necessarily

have to know the FL but serves as a mediator who discerns the rules of a FL)

o ASTP application – soldiers learn languages 12-18 weeks (10h/day, 6

days/week)

Linguists and applied linguists became greatly involved in foreign language teaching

First institutes specialized in the training of EFL teachers (first was at the University of

Michigan) emergence of the audiolingual method

Approach = structural linguistics + Oral Approach + contrastive analysis +

behaviorist psychology

Structural linguistics = language is a system of structurally related elements for the

encoding of meaning

o Elements in a language are linearly produced in a rule-governed (structural) way

teaching rules

o Language samples could be exhaustively described at any structural level of

description error analysis (avoiding errors by not letting students to think for

themselves)

o Linguistic levels: phonemes – morphemes – phrases – clauses – sentences

o Learning a language = mastering the elements and learning the rules by which

they are combined

o Learning begins with speaking (speech is language)

Theory of learning in the audiolingual method:

o Behaviorism = human beings are organisms capable of a wide repertoire of

behaviors

o Stimulus-response-reinforcement (crucial elements of behaviorist theories)

o Reinforcement is vital because it forms habits

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o Language is a set of habits; it is verbal behavior

Stimulus response (linguistic input) (learners’ reactions)

Reinforcement (extrinsic approval)

HABITS

ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES AND METHODS

Paradigm shift in the 70s and 80s

Developed outside of mainstream language teaching (mainly the audiolingual method)

Alternative approaches/methods:

o The silent way

o Total physical response (TPR)

o Community language learning (CLL)

o Suggestopedia

Not based on research and theory in applied linguistics (sometimes based on

theories of a single educator)

THE SILENT WAY

Teacher should be silent as much as possible; students should do most of the talking

Learning hypotheses:

o Learning is facilitated if the learner discovers or creates rather than remembers

and repeats (making use of previous knowledge, active participation, full

attention…)

o Teaching is subordinated to learning

o Physical objects are used to facilitate learning

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o Problem solving (by using materials)

Theory of language:

o Structural approach

o Sentence is the basic unit of meaning

o Focus on propositional meaning rather than communicative (no practical use in

everyday life)

o Inductive grammar teaching

o Choice of vocabulary is crucial (it is functional – using most common words)

The learner has to return to a baby’s state of mind (surrendering to language)

Language learning is artificial (can never be natural/direct second language learning

can never be the same as first language learning)

Discovery learning

Silent awareness active trial

Learning tasks and activities:

o Teachers encourage and guide students without direct oral instruction

o Students develop independency, responsibility, autonomy

o Using charts, rods and other aids

Teacher roles:

o Presenting an item once (non-verbally)

o Using gestures and charts to elicit and shape student responses

o The silence is most demanding part of this method

Materials:

o Cuisenaire rods (colored rods) – connect words to their meanings (to avoid

translation/speaking)

o Color-coded pronunciation charts (Fidel charts) – symbols are color coded

according to pronunciation, contains symbols for all consonant and vowel sounds

TOTAL PHYSICAL RESPONSE (TPR)

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James Asher

Language teaching method built around the coordination of speech and action

It attempts to teach language through physical (motor) activity

Successful adult second language learning is a parallel process to child first language

learning

Approach:

o Reflects grammar-based views of language

o “Most of the grammatical structure of the target language and hundreds of

vocabulary items can be learned from the skillful use of the imperative by the

instructor”

o Verb = central linguistic motif

o Stimulus-response

o “trace theory” of memory – the more often/more intensively a memory

connection is traced, the stronger the memory association will be and the more

likely it will be recalled

Learning hypotheses:

1. First and second language learning are parallel processes

children develop listening competence before they develop the ability to

speak

children respond physically to spoken language (parental commands) –

this develops their listening comprehension

once a foundation in listening comprehension has been established,

speech develops naturally out of it

2. child language learner acquires language through the motor movement – a right

hemisphere activity

when a sufficient amount of right-hemisphere learning has taken place,

the left hemisphere will be triggered to produce language to initiate other,

more abstract language processes

3. the absence of stress is an important condition for successful language learning

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the key to stress-free learning: to recapture the relaxed and pleasurable

experiences that accompany first language learning

TPR objectives and syllabus:

o To teach oral proficiency at a beginning level

o Specific instructional objectives: not elaborated

o Syllabus: sentence based

o Grammar is taught inductively

o A fixed number of items should be introduced at a time (12-36 per hour)

Activities: imperative drills (major classroom activity), conversational dialogues

(delayed until after about 120 hours of instruction)

Learner roles:

o Listener and performer

o Learners listen attentively and respond physically to commands given by the

teacher

o Expected to respond also to new combinations of previously taught items

o Learners are encouraged to speak when they feel ready to speak

Teacher roles:

o Plays an active and direct role

o Decides what to teach; should write a detailed lesson plan

o Provides opportunities for learning

o Allows speaking abilities to develop at the learner’s own natural pace

o Should refrain from too much correction in the early stages (parents!)

Aids and materials:

o For beginners: teacher’s voice, action and gestures

o Classroom objects

o Later learning stages: supporting materials

o Pictures, realia, word charts

o Specific situations

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COMMUNITY LANGUAGE LEARNING (CLL)

Charles A. Curran

Counseling – learning (C-L) – application of C to L

The use of C-L theory to teach languages

Counseling = 1 person giving advice, assistance and support to another who has a

problem or is in need

Teacher= counselor; learners = clients

Humanistic techniques – they engage the whole person (emotions, linguistic knowledge,

behavioral skills)

Theory of learning – stages:

1. Dependent – teacher translated student’s sentences, feelings of security and

belonging are established

2. Self-assertive – students gradually learn the phrases, atmosphere is warm and

accepting

3. Resentful and malignant – students speak independently and may need to

assert their identity, they reject unasked for advice

4. Tolerant – students use the foreign language freely, teacher provides idioms and

more complex grammar items, students are secure enough to take criticism

5. Independent – improving style and knowledge of linguistic appropriateness,

students know everything, they can become knowers for new students)

Learning is a person’s:

o Convalidation – positive evaluation of other person’s work, warmth…

o The development of the learner’s relationship with the teacher is essential to the

learning process

Objectives and syllabus:

o Explicit linguistic or communicative objectives are not defined in CLL

o CLL does not use a conventional language syllabus

o The progression is topic-based

o Learner’s communicative intentions + teacher’s formulations

Learner roles:

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o Suggest topics

o Members of a community

o They learn through interacting with the community

o Learning is not an individual accomplishment; it is achieved collaboratively

o Their roles change – connected to five stages of language learning

Teacher roles:

o Change with developmental stages - initially a supportive role; later a monitor

o Teacher is often compared to a nurturing parent

Students like children grow in their ability to speak the FL

SUGGESTOPEDIA

Georgi Lozanov

Suggestology = a science concerned with the systematic study of the non-rational

and/or unconscious influences

Memorization in learning – accelerated by up to 25 times

Language learning can occur at a much faster rate than we believe

Inefficiency in LL is due to psychological barriers

Learners do not use their full mental powers (only 5-10%)

Negative feelings/limitations need to be desuggested (desuggestopedia)

Developed to help students eliminate negative feelings

Application of the power of suggestion to pedagogy

Teachers should “suggest” to students that learning is easy

Optimum state of learning = relaxed and focused

Music, environment, teacher-student relationships

Music is vital for this approach (esp. Baroque music e.g. Bach, Handel, Vivaldi and

Telemann)

Theory of language and learning:

o Lozanov does not articulate a theory of language

o Emphasis: memorization of vocabulary pairs

o Lexis is central

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Theoretical components:

1. Authority – people remember best and are most influenced by information

coming from an authoritative source

2. Infantilization – authority is also used to suggest a teacher-student relation like

that of parent to child

3. Double-planedness – the conscious plane (learners attend to the language and

the linguistic message), the subconscious plane (factors influencing the linguistic

message – the physical environment i.e. the classroom, musical background,

shape of the chairs, personality of the teacher etc.)

4. Intonation, rhythm and concert pseudo-passiveness – varying the tone and

rhythm helps to avoid boredom and to give meaning to the linguistic material,

intonation and rhythm are coordinated with the musical background, concert

pseudo-passiveness relaxed attitude = optimum for learning

Objectives and syllabus:

o To deliver advanced conversational proficiency quickly

o Course lasts 30 days, 10 units

o Classes held 4 hours a day, 6 days a week

o Central focus of each unit = dialogue consisting of 1200 words

o Dialogues are graded by lexis and grammar

o Unit study – organized around 3 days

Learner roles:

o Mental state is critical for success

o Learners must maintain a pseudo-passive state in which the material “rolls over

and through” them

o Expected to tolerate infantilization

o Expected to acknowledge the absolute authority of the teacher

o Groups: socially homogenous, twelve in number, divided equally between men

and women

o Learners sit in a circle

Teacher roles:

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o Create situations in which learners are the most suggestible

o Present the material in a way most likely to encourage positive reception and

retention

Lozanov – teacher roles:

o Shows absolute confidence in the method

o Displays fastidious conduct in manners and dress

o Organizes properly and strictly observes the initial stages of the teaching process

(includes choice and play of music as well as punctuality)

o Maintains a solemn attitude toward the session

o Gives tests and responds tactfully to poor papers

o Stresses global rather than analytical attitude towards the material

o Maintains modest enthusiasm

Procedure:

1. Oral review

2. New material is presented and discussed – learners read the dialogue and its

translation, grammar/vocabulary/content

3. Concert session

COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING (CLT)

1970s and 80s - paradigm shift

Alternative methods develop

Mainstream teaching – communicative movement

Encompasses: the Natural Method (Krashen), Content-Based Instruction,

Communicative Language Teaching, The Lexical Approach, Task Based Language

Teaching etc.

Main tenets:

1. People learn a language best when using it to do things rather than through

studying how language works and practicing rules

2. Grammar is no longer important in language teaching

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3. People learn a language through communicating in it

4. Errors are not important in speaking a language

5. CLT is only concerned with teaching speaking

6. Classroom activities should e meaningful and involve real communication

7. Both accuracy and fluency are goals in CLT

8. CLT is usually described as a method of teaching

Origins of CLT = changes in British LT tradition in the late 60s (Situational Language

Teaching / SLT up to then), basic structures were practiced in meaningful situation-

based activities, ALM in the US theoretical assumptions underlying SLT were called

into question

ALM and SLT have structuralism in common

Background:

o Noam Chomsky – criticism of structural theories of language – they are incapable

of accounting for the fundamental characteristic of language (an infinite set of

utterances can be created from a finite set of rules)

o British applied linguists criticize SLT; emphasis on the functional and

communicative potential of language

o Communicative proficiency vs. mastery of structures

o British functional linguists (Firth, Halliday)

o American sociolinguists (Hymes, Labov)

o Philosophy of language (Austin, Searle)

o Changing educational realities in Europe: the need to develop alternative

methods of language teaching is a high priority

o Council of Europe – working towards the development of a language teaching

system suitable for teaching all the languages used in the Council’s member

countries the Threshold Level (1977, van Ek) – a series of detailed syllabus

specifications at several different language learning levels

o Today = the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages

o D.A. Wilkins (1972) – proposed a functional or communicative definition of

language

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o Functional view of language – language items for teaching purposes can be

grouped in terms of language function they perform, systems of meanings behind

the communicative uses of language

o Defining language through its use for communication

o Based on an analysis of learners’ social and/or vocational communicative needs

o Idea of functions and (semantico-grammatical) notions

Evaluating, persuading, arguing, informing, existential, spatial, temporal,

agreeing, questioning, requesting, quantitative, qualitative, mental,

expressing emotions relational, deixis

Work of the Council of Europe theoretical basis for the communicative approach to

language teaching application of these ideas by textbook writers acceptance of

ideas by teacher the Communicative Approach / Communicative Language Teaching

Aims:

o To make communicative competence the goal of language teaching

o To develop procedures for the teaching of the four language skills that

acknowledge the interdependence of language and communication

Audiolingual Method Communicative Approach

Structure and form Meaning

Memorization of dialogues Dialogues are center around communicative

functions

Language items are not contextualized Contextualization

Over-learning Effective communication

Linguistic competence Communicative competence

Theory of language:

o Goal of language teaching = communicative competence (Dell Hymes)

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o Chomsky’s theory of competence = linguistic theory is concerned primarily with

an ideal speaker-listener in completely homogenous speech community, who

knows its language perfectly and is unaffected by such grammatically irrelevant

condition as memory, limitation, distractions… = a declaration of irrelevance and

the Garden of Eden

o Some occasions call for being appropriately ungrammatical…we have to account

for the fact that a normal child acquires knowledge of sentences, not only as

grammatical, but also as appropriate. He or she acquires competence as to when

t speak, when not, and as to what to talk about with whom, when, where, in what

manner…

Canale & Swain - pedagogically motivated model

Several types of competence: grammatical competence, sociolinguistic competence,

discourse competence, strategic competence

Communicative competence:

o Underlying system of knowledge and skill required for communication

o Knowledge and skill in using this knowledge when interacting in actual

communication

o Knowing when and how to say what to whom

Grammatical competence:

o Mastery of the language code (features and rules of the language)

o Knowledge and skill required to understand and express accurately the literal

meaning of utterances

Sociolinguistic competence:

o Sociocultural rules of use

o The extent to which utterances are produced and understood appropriately in

different sociolinguistic contexts (depending on contextual factors: status,

purposes, norms…)

o Crucial in interpreting utterances for their “social meaning”

Discourse competence:

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o Mastery of how to combine grammatical forms and meanings to achieve a unified

spoken or written text in different genres

o Unity of a text is achieved through cohesion and coherence

o Cohesion = how utterances are linked structurally and facilitates interpretation

of a text

o Coherence = relationships among the different meanings in a text, where these

meanings may be literal meanings, communicative functions and attitudes

Strategic competence:

o Mastery of verbal and non-verbal communication strategies that may be called

into action for two reasons – to compensate for breakdowns in communication /

to enhance the effectiveness of communication

CLT is an approach rather than a method

Principles:

o Learners learn a language through using it to communicate

o Authentic and meaningful communication should be the goal of classroom

activities (authentic language learning)

o Fluency is an important dimension of communication (+ understanding speakers’

intentions – negotiating meaning in a real-life situation)

o Communication involves the integration of different language skills

o Learning is a process of creative construction and involves trial and error

TBLT, CBI, NA

TASK-BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING (TBLT)

Purpose – students have to complete tasks

Teacher’s steps: (1) eliciting vocabulary to set context (questions), (2) detailed

instruction, (3) students perform a task, (4) students present their work to the class

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Student groupings: group work/pair work (consensus building – students have to have

a good relationship), individual work

Phases of the lesson: pre-task activity (questions, vocabulary), task activity, post-task

activity (presenting)

TBLT is an approach based on the use of tasks as the core unit of planning and

instruction in language teaching

Draws on the principles of Communicative Language Teaching – real communication,

meaningful tasks and meaningful language

Task = a central unit of planning and teaching, an activity which has meaning as its

primary focus, success in a task is evaluated in terms of achievement of an outcome,

tasks bear resemblance to real-life language use

Theory of language:

o Language is primarily a means of making meaning

o Multiple models of language inform TBI

o Lexical units = central in language use and learning

o Conversation = central focus of language and the keystone of language

acquisition

Theory of learning:

o Tasks provide both input and output processing necessary for language

acquisition

o Task activity and achievement is motivational – tasks improve learner

motivation and promote learning

o Learning difficult can be negotiated and fine-tuned for particular pedagogical

purposes

o Tasks foster negotiation, rephrasing, experimentation and modification (all at the

heart of SLA)

Task types:

o Jigsaw tasks – students work in pairs/small groups, they each have different

information and have to exchange it so that they each have all the information,

they then have to answer questions or do other tasks based on the complete

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information; both/all participants must request and supply missing information

in order to complete the task, a convergent task (one correct outcome)

o Information-gap tasks – one learner has the information and the other/s must

find out about that information, flow of information is likely to be one-way unless

participants exchange roles, participation of all students is required, not

convergent (no one correct answer)

o Problem-solving tasks – groups devise possible solutions to problems,

may/may not be convergent, do not require every student to participate and do

not necessarily require feedback or checking; there may not be a great deal of

negotiation if some learners choose not to contribute best if the problem is

one that really interests the students

o Decision-making tasks – students have to come to a decision about a particular

situation, not all students have to participate but the fact that they have to come

to a single choice may encourage negotiation if the learners are interested in the

topic

o Opinion exchange tasks – students have to express their views on an issue and

give advice

CONTENT-BASED INSTRUCTION (CBI)

CBI is a method which integrates the learning of language with learning of some other

content

“Language across the curriculum” movement = project launched in England in the

1970s; the aim was to integrate the teaching of writing and reading into other subject

areas – every teacher should be an English teacher

Called a “method with many faces” – students get two for one (language and content

from other subjects), is adaptable to any language and content

The adjunct model – students enroll in a regular academic course, but in addition,

they take a language course that is linked to the academic course (a form of CBI)

Shelter-language instruction – both native speakers and non-native speakers of a

particular language follow a regular academic curriculum. For non-native speakers,

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“sheltered” instruction is provided and geared to students’ developing second language

proficiency

Teaching is organized around the content of information that students will acquire,

rather than a linguistic or other type of syllabus

Language that is being taught is used to present the subject matter

Students learn the language as the “by-product” of learning about the real-word content

Theory of language:

o Language is text- and discourse-based

o Language use draws on integrated skills

o Language is purposeful (language is used for specific purposes – academic,

vocational, social…)

Theory of learning:

o People learn a SL more successfully when they use the language as a means of

acquiring information, rather than as and end in itself

o People learn a SL more successfully when the information they acquire is

perceived as interesting, useful and leading to a desired goal

o Some content areas are more useful as a basis for language learning than others

o Students learn the best when the instruction addresses their needs

o Teaching builds on the previous experience of the learners

THE NATURAL APPROACH (NA) – WON’T BE IN THE MIDTERM

Stephen Krashen and Tracy Terrell

5 hypotheses (theory of learning):

1. The Acquisition/Learning Hypothesis

o There are two ways of developing competence in a FL:

Acquisition – the “natural” way, unconscious process, picking up

language, paralleling first language development in children

Learning – conscious study of language rules, result = explicit knowledge

about the forms of a language, formal teaching is necessary for language

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to occur, “knowing about” a language rather than knowing the language

itself

2. The Monitor Hypothesis

o Conscious learning can only function as a monitor or an editor that checks the

output of the acquired system – the only function of the learned system

3. The Natural Order Hypothesis

o The acquisition of grammatical structures proceeds in a predictable order

4. The Input Hypothesis

o People acquire (not learn) a language by understanding input that is slightly

beyond their current level of competence – L+1

5. The Affective Filter Hypothesis

o Low vs. high affective filter

o Students with a low AF receive more input, are more receptive to the input and

interact with confidence

o Anxious students have a high affective filter which prevents acquisition from

taking place

As much comprehensible input as possible should be presented

Whatever helps comprehension is important

The focus in the classroom – listening and reading; speaking should be allowed to

“emerge”

Meaningful communication interesting input lowers the affective filter

5 basic principles of the NA:

1. Communicative skills are the goal

2. Comprehension precedes production

3. Production emerges on its own

4. Acquisition activities are central

5. Lowering the affective filter

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