Nimrod, Minnesota TESOL Online & Teaching English Jobs

The Classical method was created around the XVII century by scholars with the objective of translate ancient greek and latin to their native language. It consists in convert the native language to the target language. Although this method is very old it is still used nowadays. The problem of this method is that it works better with languages with a similar grammar structures but if does not, it becomes really hard to learn. This method focus on grammar and translation turning the learning unnatural and does not involve speaking skills. Gouin and Berlitz saw the need to create something new to change the way we learn a second language. They came up with a methodology called direct method or natural method. Differently from the classical method, it was invented to be learn in a more natural way not focusing only on grammar structures and translation. They believed that to learn a new language we have to create natural conditions, the same way we learn our native language. Following the behaviorism theories in that time, it was created the audio Lingualism or Army method called by this name because it was adopted by the United States military. The behaviorists believed that the environment influences behavior. Whereas the classic method only focuses on grammar, the army method focuses only on listening because of the military's necessity of learning a language very quickly. Audiolingualism consists in listen and repeat through repetitions drills to try to give conditions to stimulate the students but it was not very realistic, although it was very efficient to learn vocabulary and pronunciation. The students learn specific sentences and it does not develop naturally grammar, not enabling the student to associate how the grammar works and it does not give enough conditions to when to be more creative when it comes to use the language, to come up with new sentences by their own. Another method created was the Silent Way based on constructivism. Constructivism believes that we construct their own understanding and knowledge of the world through experiencing things and reflecting on those experiences. A French mathematic teacher realized that the students needed more visual stimulation to learn, so he created a method using colored rods. Language teachers thought that this method could be applied to teach language as well. Each color rod would be represent a different sound but not only language is more complex than math but also by doing so it took longer to understand. The students needed to first of all learn all the codes to then finally learn the language itself. When we talk about good conditions to learn a language we need to consider not only one teaching technique, for example just listening or just grammar, but this method was created by a math teacher, a different subject, with a different approach, method and technique. What we need to understand is that language is not very concrete, it changes with time, you cannot "do" language but "live" the language, experience the language. Suggestopedia was based on another psychological theory, its principal objective is to create perfect conditions to make the students comfortable to learn the language by creating an atmosphere where the students get the opportunitty to gain confidence and feel safe while learning, even though they might had an unsuccesfull experience in the past. One of the techniques is to use music in class. This method is too different from the most common methods, which can create a barrier for students to learn the language for being way different from the conventional methods. The method Total Physical response (TPR) focus on how the brain works. The main point of this method is that the brain retains more information when associated with motion. It is something good for really young learners because young kids are more energetic and they get bored easily but it becomes a problem when it is applied to adults students. Eas (engage, study, activate) is one of the most acepptable methods to young teachers and students. Elicitation is the main point of this method, the teacher should ask thought-provoking questions because this is a perfect way to see what the students already know, to make the students to think, speak and participate in class. This method does not have to follow a very specific pattern, sometimes the teacher will need to change or the class becomes pretty predictable and students will lose interest in learning. The Engage stage is the moment the teacher brings new and interesting things to introduce the subject to the class. This is really important to engage the student's attention and have their interest in learning more and more. The Study Stage is the moment when students learn about the language, it could be a verb tense for example. Elicitation is very important in this stage, the teacher will need to get as more information from the students as possible. The Activate Stage is when the students practice what they have discussed and learnt through activities, games, role-plays that give the students freedom to use the language.