THE THIRD VIEW OF LANGUAGE IS THE INTERACTIONAL VIEW. "IT

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third view of language is the interactional view.

The

language

sees

as

interpersonal

a

relations

vehicle and

for

the

realization

for the performance

txanaactiona between individuals.

Language

"It

of

of

social

seen as a tool

is

far the creation and maintenance of racial relations."

3 . 2 LANOUAOL LEARNING THEORIES

Various theories havr been proposed by researcherr regarding the

language learning activity or process, which

are discussed

below.

3.2.1

Monitor Theory In Monitor Theory, Stephen D Kraehen distinguished the terms and

acquisition

unconscious

proeere

through usage

two

that

Acquisition involves

for communication while

consciou~ process According

learning.

refers

to

the

language

proficiency

learning

refers to a

which involves the study of

to Krashen'r theory, acquisition and

language rules.

are

learning

different processes and they convey two different functions.

While

communicating,

(uncon~cious) and monitor

the

learner

uses

acquired

learned system (conscious) functions

that checks the language.

system

as

But for this to operate

a

the

learner

have aufficient time and then he

must

choose and

can

,991~ e~ learned rule.

3 . 2 . 2 Silent Way

empharis

The

led

revolution teaching Silent

on

a

to

cognition inspired

new

general

termed as cognitive code.

Way did not

approach,

evolve

ite principles

basic tenets o f Silent

to

human

learning".

inevitable

and

way

Another

directly

are is

exploring new areas of the

to

from

Caleb

"the

subordination

principle

is that

the teacher that the

language.

to

language

Grattegnols

cognitive

constituent with it.

shared

are rigns

approach

Although

Chomskyan

by

-

code

One o f

the

of teaching errors

are

learner

is

The teacher tries to help

the etudents to become self-reliant and increasingly

independent

of the teacher. 3.2.3 Bugger topedia

Georgi Lozanov ( 1 9 7 8 ) , the originator of suggestopedia feels that

the

inefficiency in

language

learning

P~Ychological barriers learners rstablieh is

one

of

them.

Teacher

is due

- the fear of

to

the

failure

can help learners to surmount these

barriara and to f u l l y tap thelf mental powrre by desuggesting the

learners' in the

self imposed

authority

limitations.

When the learners

of the teacher, they will reach

-

of infantalization

adopting

a

child

like

trust

a state

If they

role.

f e e l secure, learners can be more spontaneous and less inhibited.

3.2.4 Counreling-Learning/ Community Language Learning According as

to Charles Curran (1976) learners should be seen

"whole personsM, not just cognitive beings.

teachers

understand

concerns.

In addition, teachers

accept

their

atmosphere

students

to provide a secure learning

try

can

be

non-defensive

In such

their

and

positive energies can be channeled towards the language

In community language learning the syllabur

task.

method,

fears and

students'

in which, a sense of community is fostered.

environment an

and

In this

teaching

is

learner

generated. the methods make assumptions, elaborate

All ones,

these

not

about

the

assumptions

been

viewed

learner appear

and the ways

plausible

critically

realities of actual learning.

and

of

detailed

and

learning.

in principle,

systematically

they against

While

have the

Method

a

is

vital

factor

difference between

language teaching and

philosophy

the

of language teaching at the

of theory and principles and a ret of derived procedures

levels

It is a known fact that in most o f the

for teaching a language.

and

the

The central point in describing methods is the

learning Proeenn.

urban

in

elite colleges the Direct Method and SOS Method are in use

in rural colleges

the

teachers

are

still following the

Grammar Translation Method. 3.4 METHOD, APPROACH AND TEC-IQUE

"Linguistic

method

capacity

arouse

to

has

surpassed religion

controversy

Much of the Zielde of language matter

and

method

of opinion rather than of fact.

create

has

in

trends.

become

Method

its

a

meana

mither so little or so much". (Mackey, 1966 : 1 3 5 )

E.M. distinguish to

him,

Anthony the

in

an article published in 1963 attempted to

terms approach, method and technique. According

is a

"the arrangement is hierarchical. ..An Approach set of

correlative assumptions

nature

of

language

teaching

with

the

learning.

It

dealing

and

indieatem a point of view, an article of faith. ie

..Method presentation

an

overall plan

far

the

of language material, no part

orderly of

which

contradicts and all of which is based upon the selected approach. it ir procedural.

..A

technique

is implementational

-

that

which

actually takes place in a classroom". (Anthony 1963 : 63-67) Halliday,

et

a1 (1964 : 200) , however, used

term

the

"Methodies" for linguistic based teaching. It is the framework of organisation

for practical

teaching,

in which

pedagogical'

techniques and linguistic theory cross fertilize each other.

is not

the same as methodology, which

refers

to

It

pedagogical

aspects of language teaching without necessarily any reference to linguistic

categories.

Methodf es

thus does

not

supersede

Methodology, but relates rather to a different area of the operation.

total

Þ he lexical r e f made by the three terms, method, methodology and methedica can be summarised as follows.

A

Method

specific set of teaching

materials, principles

generally

techniques

backed

stated

by

but not necessarily

and

having

any

reference to linguistics

An

method

alternative term for methodology,

often

less technical and less specific

Prineiplee

Methodology

and techniques of teaching with

no necessary reference to linguistics

A

Methodics

framework of

organisation

for

language

teaching which relates linguistic theory

to

pedagogical principles and techniques

3.5 POPULAR METHOD

The language

popular

teaehrrs,

in

the

li~tenere.

As

teacher

that is being followed by most of the

method,

is no

active

doubt

member

the main

the lecture method, where ths

and

studenta

objectiver

at

are

PU/Inter

the passive level

is

is an outdated one.

in language akills, this method ~ttemptm

therefore be

should

made

to

an informed

evolve

eclecticism as suggested by Richards and Rodgera. In

changing language teaching/ learning

the

~ n d i a , more emphasis is given to language

than

required

to

objectives, teaching

bring

in

coordination

literature.

to

So it is necessary to examine what methodological between

changer the

methods, materials and evaluation procedures in

/learning

ie

are

changed

context. Keeping in view the needs

of

learners it is necessary to examine what is good in old what

OF

context

in new methods and what changes are

new

the the

methods, needed

to

suit the present needs. 3.6 GRAMMAR TRANSLATIOH METHOD

This is language, Sanskrit

oldest

the

It

ia

method

a relic

of

employed teaching

in

the teaching of

Greek,

Latin

based mainly on cramming the grammatical forms

of

and the

language.

of grammatical rules, paradigms, bilingual

Memorization word

-

lists

constitute

the

and

application

essence

of

of

these

this method.

Thin

in

tranrlation is

simply

a

=ombination

Of

the activities of grammar and translation and this

is baaed on the following principles. 1, Grammar is an outline of Formal grammar. 2. Vocabulary based on texts.

3. Teaching

begins

with rules,

isolated vocabulary items,

paradigms, translation. 4. Students native language is the medium of instruction.

5. Pronunciation

either

is

not

taught or i r limited to a

mere introduction. 3.6.1 Drawbrckm of Grammar Trrnrlatian Method

Grammar Translation method ha. the following disadvantages.

1. Mere grammar doer not provide an opportunity to speak. 2. Language

is

a process of communication among the people

of particular tradition, customs and environments. not

po~sible to

completely.

translate

one

language

It is

into another

Hence this method does not fulfill the need

and requirement of aecond/foreign language teaching. 3. It

the

i~ an unnatural method because in learning a language

firnt

step

mhould

be to learn spoken language and

then to practice it through oral expression.

Thia method

violates t h i r natural principle. 4. Learning

takes

keep

which

place on the basis of isolated sentences

out the element of coherion and that can not

be neglected in language learning.

3.6.2

Merits of Grammar Traamlation Method

It would be unfair to condemn the grammar tranelation method outright.

Although

certain

elements

situation.

of

Upe

as in

a teaching method it is unsatisfactory,

it

are found

useful

in

Mother tongue o r translation

is

a

teaching useful

in

certain contexts. "When be

the

for

native

foreign word to be demonstrated is known to

all word,

practical purposes the equivalent translation

is

a

better

mode

of

a

than

definition. (Palmer 1917 : 5 8 ) 3.7 DIRECT MTHOD

"There Cansidered

is no am

one

such

thing

as

the

method rays Gauntlett.

Direct

Method",

when

In a broad aenee any

method

doe8

which

method.

direct

not

The

between language.

use

mother

term

direct

thought

and

tongue may be said to be a method

implies,

a direct

expression and experience and

Its main characteristics as stated by Mackey are :

1. The use of everyday vocabulary and structure.

2. Grammar taught by situation.

3. Use

of

many

new items in the same lesson to encourage

normal conversation. 4. Oral teaching of grammar and vocabulary.

5. Concrete

meaning

through

object

lessons,

abstract

ones through the arsociation of ideas.

6. Most

of

the work is done in the classroom and therefore

more class hours are needed. 7. The first few weeks devoted to pronunciation.

8. All reading presented orally.

9. Both apeech and listening compreheneion are taught.

his method aims at developing further abilities and perfect command

over

language,

comprehension,

reading and writing. the natural method.

It is

epeaking with good more or

less based on

The learner is encouraged to use the foreign

language with the same ease which he has while using his

mother

tongue. 3.7.1 Demeritr of Direct Method 1. The

method

natural language

over

first

emphasizes

language

learning

and

the

similarities between

learning

and clrasroom foreign

failr

to consider the practical

realities of the class room.

2. It requires teachers who are native speakers or who had native like fluency in the foreign language. 3. Only

skilled

teachers with

natural

command

over the

language can adopt this method.

4. Over

emphasis on speech leada to neglect of reading

and

writing. 5. Over crowded

classes and paucity

of good

n o t allow the method work effectively.

teachers do

Practical reality o f DU in Indian context

3.7.2

Since direct of

the

class

method demands individual attention, the size

should

not

large.

be

But in reality a general

English class any where in Indian consists of 100 to 150 students where this method is practically an impassibility.

Secondly, linguistically aural/ oral

this method minded,

appeal

is

foreign language. abilities,

But

the Direct

completely

ignorea

suits only

as ita basic principle stronger

Method

week)

can be easy and time saving

bound

second

students not

does

translation which

the

at

ntudents

of

the

times is

varying

(the actual

4 to 5 hours

for explanation. In a

selection

DM

succeed.

language teaching/learning situation

abilities of the students, the

that

is

than the visual. in learning a

in a clase w i t h

contact time of teacher with

of

those students who a r e

a

time

with mixed

grading and requencing

the syllabus can not be left to the discretion of

individual

teachers.

The

critics

of the DM point out that the goal of trying to

teach convereational skills was considered impractical in view of the

restricted

time available for foreign language teaching in

Ich~oln.

has

Since

no

model is given to the students, the tmacher

to build up dialogues artificially on written texts without

=onsidering the principles o f selection and grading. 3.8 STRlfCTUrUL O

"The

W

theory

- SITUATIQNU APPROACH of

oral situational

language

underlying

structural

can be characterised as a

approach

type of Britiah Structuralism".

(Richard & Rodgers: 35) Palmer,

Hornby and other British deeeriptiona af basic

pedagogical English

applied

linguists

grammatical

proposed

structures

of

and there were to be followed in developing methodology.

"Word

order, structure wordr, the few

inflections

and content words will form the

English

material

of of

our teaching".

Structure

lists

considered

speech

as

the

basis

of the

language because a child learns firnt to speak and then to write.

The theory that "Structures must be linked to situations in which they

could

be

uaed"

ia

one

of

the distinctive

features of

sos

approach.

M.K.

Hallidsy

The

developed

contest

meaning,

British

and

Language was viewed

8s

linguists

as

J.R.

powlrful V ~ W Sof language

situation were a

such

purpoaeful

in which

prominent

given

activity

Firth,

place.

related to

the

goals and situations in the real world.

The

term

structure

the definitions

is

difficult

to define.

One

OF

mtrueture is given by Benveniste in 1959 as

of

"An inter ordering of linguistic items".

3 . 8 . 1 The Characteristic8 of SOB Approach

1. Structural

approach

pre-supposea

that

structures, not

mere words, are important in language learning.

2. Language material

teaching

ie

taught

begins

with

orally

before

spoken it

language

and

i r presented in

written form. 3. The

target

language

ia

u ~ e d exclusively in the clasn

room. 4. Well graded grammatical items are used. 5. Language items a r e used aituationally.

6. Reading

and

writing is introduced only after sufficient

lexical and granunatical basis is established. 3 . 8 . 3 Objectivaa of 808 Approach 1. To

teach a practical command of the four b a ~ i cskills of

language.

This goal it shares with most other methods of

language teaching.

But the skills a r r approached through

structures.

2. Accuracy

in both pronunciation and grammar is considered

crucial. 3. Automatic

patterns

control is

of

achieved

basic

rtruetures

and

aentence

through speech work which enables

the learner to read and write fluently. 3 . 8 . 3 Practical Application o f 808 Approach

The carefully and

selected

graded.

meaning

approach

50s

is based

on

structures which

and graded. Vocabulary too muet be

grading

to

and form. Items of vocabulary and grammar are taught

in

appropriate situations. ertablished

by

attention

rslected paid

In

strueturer

are

is

Only one meaning is taught at a time and

practice before another meaning

is

taught.

prill should may

be

the watch word of the teacher and viaual by the teacher like wall charts,

be produced

flash

aids cardr,

pictures, etc. Structural drills proceed from the most mechanical

-

simple repetition and ~ubstitutionto

the

are given more opportunity to uae language

students controlled

situation.

The

teacher

can

choose

freest.

in

lasr

exerciser

considering the students needm. 3.8.4

Merits of SOS Approach over Direct method approach

$08

Both

emphasise

inhibit

has some points in cornon with direct method.

the

the ure

of

importance

speech and habit Formation,

of

the mother

tongue,

situations by use rather than by rule. scores

over

syllabus

.

The

vocabulary Tho

,

SOS

D.M

items

as

teach language

in

However, the SO5 approach

it follows a carefully selected and graded

selection and facilitate

gradation of

atructures

and

learning on the part of the pupil.

approach deals with the three main levela of language

Phonology,

Morphology

a controlled

and

of linguistic

atruetures

and

Syntax and the teachers

definite proeels of input based on the unlike

in D.M.

are given full freedom in the choice of input.

where the

uae ruloa

teachers

Indian Vmrrion o f BOS Approach

3.8.5

The

approach

SOS

aituational/structural 1987).

The

pedagogical

term

is

approach

the to

modified

language

version

teaching

of

(Prabu-

was used by RIE, Banglore t o refer to the

505

it

principles

has been helping to implement.

was a popular method during sixties.

Thia

The characteristics of this

approach are:

1. use

of

graded

etructurer and vocabulery in appropriate

situations. 2. to

teach

the

four

fundamental

ekills,

namely

understanding, speaking, reading and writing.

3. Grammar

to

be taught explicitly in the form of sentence

analysis and parsing,

N observes

S

Prabu (1987) in his book "Second that

language

those who were taught through

SOS

method

pedagogy" several

Years at school still lacked the following abilities,

1. to use

class

(deploy) the language when necessary outside the room.

unnaturally)

.

(They

found

themselves

deliberating

2 , t o achieve an acceptable level of grammatical accuracy in

language use outside the class room. (Though they

their

might achieve euch accuracy in the c l a m room context). 3. to achieve an acceptable level o f situational apgropriacy

in

their language use outside the clarsroom (Though they achieve grammatical accuracy).

might

Keeping regulating system

in view the

through

thesr facts,

learner's planned

attempts

ware

internalization of progreseion,

made

at

the grammatical

pre-selection

and

farm

rchools

in

India

in

clrrrroom

focused activity, which too did not yield good results. The

observations

on

SOS

Pedagogy

in

highlight certain points.

1. Though

the

etudents

situation, their

perform

well

the

language ekilla out side the claarroom

situation is very poor. 2. The

baric

foundation required

to build

up

Further

language experience at the college level is inadequate.

approach

1. SOS

proficiency, clssaee

im

baaed on the principle of oral

mainly

hence,

it

can not

be practiced in large

.

is effective in the hands of trained teachers because

2. It

the method demands proper study and understanding of

tho

theories underlying the practice drills. methods require a well graded syllabus which insists

3. The

not

only

the

grading

of

structures but also a baric

vocabulary within which the etructures should be operated i.e.,

grading

of

structures and vocabulary control are

essential. 3.9 COWblUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING

The be

in

found

the

from

tradition "Syntactic theories

of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) are to

origin

changes

the

late

Structures"

of

language

in

of

Englieh Noam

1960's.

language

Chommky

Teaching

in his book

(1957) damonstrated that the structural

were

not

fundamental' characterietic of uniqueness

the

individual

capable Language

sentrncen.

of accounting for the

-

the

creativity and

British applied linguir ts

like

John

Hpaa,

Firth,

John

Halliday, American

Gumperz

and

fundamental dimension potential

Labov

William

of

language

of

the

Sociolinguists

-

emphasized

the

language.

another

functional

Consequently

has resulted in C ~ n k m ~ n i ~ a tApproach i~e to Language Teaching

CLT

The

starts

conununication.

(1972)

Hymes

a

theory

of

the

urcd

term

language

and

this

. as

communicative

in order to contrast a comunicative view of language

competence

and

from

as

such

Chomsky's

theory

of

"CornrnunicaEive Competencew, he

is not

In his redefinition of

Competence. said

that

an

what

is crucial in

language

learning

language

is structured but an under~tanding of how a language is

ro

much

understanding of how a

It i a more of an approach rather than a method. It aims to

used.

1. make

communiertivr

teaching

2. develop

skills

competence

the

goal

of

language

and proceduree for the teaching of the four language that acknowledge the interdependence of

language

and conununication (Richards and Radgrrs). It

is

this

comprehensivaness

that

maker

CLT

approach

different in ecope and status from other methods and approaches.

1. Places Paramount

importance on meaning because language

learning is learning to communicate

2. Contexualfzation a basic premiee 3. Any device which hrlpn the learner is accepted.

4. The

criteria

consideration

of of

sequencing content,

is

determined

function,

or

by

any

meaning which

maintains interest 5. Studsntr

are

expected

to

interact

with other people,

teachers help students in any way that motivates them

to

work with the language.

6.

Language ability "lrnguags"

rather

should be simply

achieved through

through "exercises"

the on

the language. 7 . Communicative syllabur should be bared on needs analysis

8. The communicative syllabus should be semantic bared.

3 . 9 . 2 Com~lunicative Syllrbur

The main student8

how

incorporated

to into

of

communicative

express the

things

eyllabus

syllabus

with

ie to teach the

language and

through

texts.

this is

Teaching

of

is done s~atematicallythrough sentences in combination

meaning which

aim

gives

structures.

priority The

to

the meanings

conununieative ayllabus

rather

than

to

the

demands the following

changes : 1. A

semantic

oriented

syllabus

language

an

emphasis from learner

The needs of the learner are given

approach.

importance

demands

taking

into

experience,

consideration

hia

focusing attention on all

previous aspects

of the learner.

2. The

students

can

no longer be paseive as the

syllabus

demands interaction. 3 . Interactive

behaviour.

classroom Students

activities should

demand

unconstrained

be allowed "the liberty of

natural behaviour" [Widdowson 19861.

4. Thm

techniques

applied

to the materials should be task

oriented rather then exerci~eoriented.

5 , The

testa

ahould

be valid i.e.,

they should test

what

has been taught.

Teaching in India in mainly based on the

~ n g l i s h Language fact

that

i s used as library language and a9 a language for

it

eomunication.

To

satirfy

this need

in the prenent context

requires specific approach in proficiency of reading and writing.

In this context, the CLT methodology appears to be impracticable. Though

class

informal

atmosphere

is conducive

to learning,

a

teachers' role in a large clareroom in our situation has

to be obviously formal.

Learner

centered

regular feedback in Indian context,

time bound

from with

activities teachera

of

the

require

CLT

regarding students work.

a large elasa o f varying abilities

ayllabusea, this approach is practically

3.10 CLOSURE

to have rxploded

- But and

difficult

to follow.

seem

a

"Recently,

method8

in

directions.

Everything is called a method, whether

all or

not

it

fits in Antony's

definition.

One

these methoda have in common is that they

to be

the

whole

with

practical

spectrum.

Some

are strongly focuaed on one aspect of

basis for a curriculum,

of

tend

concerned

the

eegmentr

element

namely

the

nature

of

the language learner, othera are grounded i n particular education philosophies".

Though practicr goals

today,

and

various

no method is fully successful in achieving

objectives features

approaches

of

and

without

the learners needs. tschniquee

explicit

from

reference

eg

methods

be

learning

Method and Communicative Language Teaching

adopted

for

oral

proficiency

English.

i.e.,

can

phonetics,

vocabulary etc. 508

can

be

ueed for

structural patterns.

reinforcing

and

to course objectives in

.,

Direct

the

But we can adopt

various

to r e a l i ~ ethe specific objectives of

order

For

there a r e various methods and approaches that are i n

grammatical

and

while using these methods and approaches it is necessary to consider how

far t h e m methods

checking

learners goals and objectives and at the same time

the

the

level

the

of

considered. So

method

by

The

combines

their

age

of

also be

various methods, Effective teaching depends

and

and his 'eclectic' ability to adopt

and

adapt

eclectic method is not one hamogeneous method since it in

itaelf all that is good in other methods.

Thus

necessary,

situations for presenting teaching material

and

freely

"Choice of a particular method can b e ' justified only it is clear that there is a close degree

of

Fit

between the program goals and objectives of the method. ~nformation concerning the kinds of gaina in proficiency

that

language

the method has been shown to bring

about in similar circumstances would be needed.

it

makes

uses audio-visual aids.

when

an

approaches to ruit his classroom environment.

makes use of the learner's mother tongue when

use

should

a principled eclecticism, combining techniques and

teacher

methods

approacher be uaeful in

it is neeeasary t o replace the traditional lecture

principles from

the

students and

and

When a

close

degree

objectives

of

fit between

method

program

be made

lacking a choice can

as

and

through

informed eclecticism".

(Finocchiaro and Brumfit

It language

is

necessary

to follow some

.

i e. , either

teaching,

form

of

1983)

eclecticism

informed

eclecticirm

uninformed eclecticism. "Eclectici~m combination

is

of

with

operating

of perceptions or procedures which

different and have

matter

a

a

though

... perhaps ... inconsistent with othero,

nevertheless

found a satisfying balance

mind of, an individual

in

..., the teachers mental mix

the

is

eclectic...

(

"We

would

be

eclecticirm' deterioration swearing

well

advised

to

N

S

opt

Prabhu 1986 : 67)

for

'informed

in our EbT programmes to prevent of

standard#,

inntead

of

by unattainable (and to my mind

further

eloquently underirabls)

in or

norms

and mtandards which when

undoubtrdl~ alienate us

from our

adopted

would

students who

are

basically bilingual". (S.

ir

It

necessary all

Buitrble f o r

keep

occasiono

i n mind

and

the

that no one method is

teacher cannot decide

What

approach

and

is important for the teacher is to find out what what

technique will

enable him

to realise

particular objective under a set of particular situations. i n a strong need to examine the needs of the learners.

needa

a

that a particular method is the only one that he/shr must

priori

use.

to

K. Rangacharya 1985 : 5 )

analysis

should

language proficiency

focus on

a

There

Therefore

the learners present level of

and what the learnar is required to do for

acquiring the necessary language proficiency.