Audio-lingual method:
I thought this was an attractive method. Especially because it does have the grammar learning as an objective but teaches it inductively. The students use their grammar spontaneously without having actually studied nor focused on any specific rules or structures.
Repetitition is a fundamental part of this method. While it is somewhat effective in most cases, not all students feel comfortable doing this, especially older people or the ones who are in advanced levels. Besides, it must be quite hard for a teacher to check every single student's pronunciation. So it would be difficult to use it with a large group and obtain great results.
It is a shame that the audio-lingual method does not give much importance to the other pair of macro-skills that every student should develop, which makes it a mediocre method.
Whole Method:
Reading comprehension is certainly relevant in this method, as well as the students' development of their writing skills. Grammar and punctuation are also given a high priority place in this whole language method.
One aspect did catch my attention, the one which involves literature. As Henry explained, in our society there has never been a good reading custom. Most people do not enjoy reading anything. It is taken as something completely dull and unappealing. Whereas in other countries it is common, considered as more than a rare hobby, but nothing extraordinary. So if we try to apply this method, one of two things might happen, either people would start to like reading or it will fail because the method will not meet its objective for being used on a non-appropiate group.
TPR:
Learning a new language, supposedly in almost the exact same way we did when we were only tiny babies, does actually sound non-sensical. I believe it has got to be extremely hard to go ahead and try to recreate a similar environment and have that kind of process. I mean, we do not even remember how we went through that first language learning so many years ago. Anyway, we also now that babies' brains are much alike to sponges, referring to how incredibly quick they absorb knowledge.
The method mentions something regarding body language, which I may say is not really practical for any person. At least in my case I often face many difficulties when it comes to understanding body language or trying to make gestures. I just do not see the point, I understand perfectly well, without requiring to see weird faces or arms moving randomly...
Therefore, in my opinion this method is perhaps better for kids, I suppose.
Checking students pronunciation.
ResponderEliminarTo check the pronunciation of each student is hard as you mentioned.One way to work with pronunciation would be to make use of the Internet tools. I found these websites that may be someway an aid for a teacher in the hard task of making students improve their pronunciation http://www.voxopop.com/, http://voicethread.com/#home
The use of different methods will depend on your students´learning styles while some will enjoy being silent working, others would go around socializing with the whole class.
The success of a reading will depend on how interesting the topics appeal to students and the activities the teacher designs around that reading http://www.rhlschool.com/reading.htm, this is a selection of readings that someone may work in different ways. You can also try readers theater, which is an entertaining way to make people read some short stories.
Thanks for your work.
I agree with teacher Aida because as she said the students´ learning style is different from one and other, so you might feel comfortable with one activity while other students do not. As teacher you have to plan many activities to develop in the classroom in order to make all the students feel comfortable participating in each one of them. I think that in the audio-lingual method the other skills are taken into consideration in some way.
ResponderEliminar