Audio Lingual Method
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GGGV 2044 METHODS IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE Semester 2 2009/2010
AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD: A DISCUSSION (INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT)
LECTURER: DR. HAMIDAH BT. YAMAT @ AHMAD
LISA KWAN SU LI A123040 TESL/2
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INTRODUCTION
The Audio-lingual Method (ALM), by its very name – “audio” and “lingual” – refers to a language teaching approach that focuses on two aspects of language, namely listening and speaking. Unlike its predecessor, the Grammar Translation Method, which focuses on reading and writing skills, this approach chooses to emphasize on the first two stages in the natural order of language learning (listening, speaking, reading followed by writing) with the belief that learners who are better speakers and listeners consequently make better readers and writers.
The ALM has a firm foundation in the theories of both structural linguistics and behavioural psychology, and thus incorporates techniques and strategies that advocate the concepts and assumptions of language learning from both schools of thought.
The structural linguistics view of language learning says that language is learned through awareness and specific attention to the patterns and structure of the language. One of the ALM’s main characteristics is its use of repetition and drills that draw learners’ attention to the patterns of the target language which are subsequently memorized and repeated to automaticity.
Language learning from the view of behavioural psychology on the other hand, occurs by conditioning and habit formation of accurate responses to stimuli. The right response for a stimulus is modelled by the teacher beforehand and then drilled into the
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learners repeatedly until such responses become a “habit” that enables learners to successfully produce accurate responses without clues or prompting by the teacher.
This discussion aims to further understand the Audio-lingual Method and explore the advantages and disadvantages of employing
GGGV 2044 METHODS IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE Semester 2 2009/2010
AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD: A DISCUSSION (INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT)
LECTURER: DR. HAMIDAH BT. YAMAT @ AHMAD
LISA KWAN SU LI A123040 TESL/2
2
1.1
INTRODUCTION
The Audio-lingual Method (ALM), by its very name – “audio” and “lingual” – refers to a language teaching approach that focuses on two aspects of language, namely listening and speaking. Unlike its predecessor, the Grammar Translation Method, which focuses on reading and writing skills, this approach chooses to emphasize on the first two stages in the natural order of language learning (listening, speaking, reading followed by writing) with the belief that learners who are better speakers and listeners consequently make better readers and writers.
The ALM has a firm foundation in the theories of both structural linguistics and behavioural psychology, and thus incorporates techniques and strategies that advocate the concepts and assumptions of language learning from both schools of thought.
The structural linguistics view of language learning says that language is learned through awareness and specific attention to the patterns and structure of the language. One of the ALM’s main characteristics is its use of repetition and drills that draw learners’ attention to the patterns of the target language which are subsequently memorized and repeated to automaticity.
Language learning from the view of behavioural psychology on the other hand, occurs by conditioning and habit formation of accurate responses to stimuli. The right response for a stimulus is modelled by the teacher beforehand and then drilled into the
3
learners repeatedly until such responses become a “habit” that enables learners to successfully produce accurate responses without clues or prompting by the teacher.
This discussion aims to further understand the Audio-lingual Method and explore the advantages and disadvantages of employing
References: Abdel-Rahman Abu-Melhim. 2009. Re-evaluating the Effectiveness of the Audiolingual Method in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. International Forum of Teaching and Studies 5(2): 1-9. Britto, Rory. 2009. The Dissipation of Methods in ESL: Expanding to Fill the Void. The Journal of Education p.75-84. Brown, H. Douglas. 2001. Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy, p.13-37. Second edition. New York: Addison Wesley Longman, Inc. Larsen-Freeman, Diane. 2000. Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. Second edition. New York: Oxford University Press. Savignon, Sandra J. 2001. Communicative Language Teaching. Theory Into Practice 26(4): 235.