"ALM" STANDS FORTHE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD
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Chronologically, the Audio-Lingual method comes right after the "failure", not blithering, of course, of the Direct Method. It was a fiasco in public schools, a thing that limited its use and triggered another quest for just another and more suitable method. As any other method that has underlying approach and theory, the ALM (Audio-Lingual Method) has got its goals, Views, Techniques and, for sure, Shortcomings. There is no perfect method. That goes without saying to become a common sense, a fact that urges us to be eclectic in approaching our teaching practices. It is not unbeknownst to all that the history of science is a history of mistakes.
Keeping all that aside, let's dig this method up and discover what does the ALM advocate and how does it account for its goals, techniques and views.
Goals of teachers using the Audio-lingual Method:The ultimate goal is teaching students how to use the target language COMMUNICATIVELY. How that? Simply by thrusting students into over learning the language to learn to use it with autmaticity and without stopping even to think or reformulate or use any other hesitation processes. Such an automacity, that yields fluency on the long run, is attained through forming new habits in the target lge. and stepping over the old habits that are connected with the primary code/ tongue.
Teacher's Role (s):
An ALM teacher Provides, Controls and Directs. They (Teachers) are akin to Orchestra-conductors; they direct and control students' linguistic behaviors (e.g. by stiff errors/ mistakes correction) and provide good models for imitation. These models are stressed, if not instilled by rote learning/ drilling.
Student's Role (s):
Mere imitators are these students (sorry for the insinuation!). I mean Parrots! They imitate and respond to the teacher's commands and instructions as quickly as possible and as accurately as they could. Aside, it does not take a professional's eye to diagnose the practice as unhealthy and barren and to prescribe injections of “creativity" to develop a sane lge. learning.
Interaction Pattern (s):
* T. / Ss.: A hectored pattern of interaction in the sense that the T. hectors their students into learning the lge. as they, Teachers, are the Ps Cs Ds.
* Ss. / T.: This pattern can not even be qualified as an interaction. It is based in imitations to the Teacher's Models and Modeling.
* Ss. / Ss.: It is clearly seen in Chain Drills and Dialog performance, though this is till directed by the Teacher.
What about the Affective Domain:Talks on the Students' Affective side and its relevance to the Learing-Teaching process did not exist at the time. Ostensibly, it did not exist or it existed but did not come to the surface till recently, especially With Stephen Krashen who assigned it much more stake than others.
Language and Culture:Language is speech and to that everyday speech is highlighted and graded, while teaching, from simple to complex a thing that has been labeled the "Hierarchy of Complexity. Culture (la cultura), on another hand, is the target language speakers' everyday behaviors and lifestyle. Here, we note a step beyond the Language that reaches a study of what is typically Cultural.
Language Skills and Areas Emphasized:The four Skills are organized and presented in a linear way that starts from: Listening to Speaking, and Reading to end in Writing. Vocabulary study is kept to a minimum to set the stage free for the mastery of the Sound System (Pronunciation) and Structural Patterns.
References:
Diane-Larsen, Freeman. Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. England: Oxford University Press, 1990.
H. Douglas Brown. Principles of Language learning and Teaching. US: Prentice-Hall, 1987.
PREPARED BY: Nouamane ERRIFKI
P.S.: To be continued
