Chapter Overview

1. The Subject Matter of Language

Teaching

2. First Lessons –hints and strategies

3. Method? What method?

The Subject Matter of Language
Teaching

Typically classified under two main

headings

Language Language
Systems Skills
 Phonology
Grammar
Refers to the study of
Refers to how the
phonemes, intonation, word
words interact with
stress, sentence stress,
each other within the
rhythm and aspects of
sentence
connected speech

Lexis Discourse
Refers to the Language Refers to a unit of
meaning of the Systems language, especially
individual words or spoken language that
groups of words is longer than the
sentence

Functions
Refers to the things people do
through language, e.g., apologizing,
complaining, etc.
 LANGUAGE SKILLS
WHAT WE DO WITH THE LANGUAGE

Receptive Skills Productive Skills

• Listening • Speaking
• Reading • Writing
 Changes of Emphasis in Language
Teaching through History
• Interest in all language
skills, especially listening
Grammatical Functional and speaking
Syllabus Syllabus
• Grammar with an emphasis
(language taught (language taught
on communication of
according to according to meaning rather than purely
structure) purpose) mechanical practice
60’s late 70’s & 80’s Nowadays

• Concentrated on • More lexically oriented

grammar and vocabulary view of language
• Reading and writing • Growing influence of
used to reinforce CEF (Real-World Tasks)
grammar and vocabulary
 The Communicative Purpose of
Language Learning
Neither skills nor The purpose of learning
language systems a language is usually to
exist in isolation enable Ss to take part in
exchanges of
information

Traditional teaching methods have seemed to:

• emphasize the learning of language systems as
a goal in its own right
• fail to give learners an opportunity to gain
realistic experience in using the language
knowledge gained
Other Areas that are Part of Language
Learning
Students may be learning…

• new ways of learning (specific study skills and

techniques)
• about the other students in their class, and exploring
ways of interacting and working with them
• about themselves and how they work, learn, get on
with other people, cope with stress
• a lot about the culture of the countries whose
language they are studying (target culture)
• how to achieve some specific goal (passing an
exam, making a business presentation at an
upcoming conference,etc)
 Key Hints when Planning your First
Lessons
1. Use the coursebook (if
there’s one)
2. A lesson is a
sequence of activities
3. Learn something
about your students
4. Plan student-focused
activities
– lead in
– set up the activity
– students do the activity
– close the activity
5. Make a written plan of
the running order of your
activities
6. Consider aims
7. Fluency or accuracy?
8. Get the room ready; get
yourself ready
9. Have at least one
emergency activity
Key Hints when Teaching your First
Lessons
1. Talk to the students as they come into
the room
2. Learn names as soon as possible
3. Be yourself
4. Teaching doesn’t mean “talking all the
time”
5. Teaching doesn’t mean “teaching” all
the time
6. Slow down
Key Hints for Starting to Teach Better
(once you’ve gotten past the first few classes)

• Start to tune in more to the students,

and be less self-focused (ask for
comments and feedback on things you do)
• Don’t teach and teach instead teach
then check
• Teach the class, not one person
A Method is…. a way of teaching. Your
choice of method is dependent on what you
believe about:
• what language is
• how people learn
• how teaching helps people learn

Based on such beliefs, you will then make

methodological decisions about:
• the aims of a course
• what to teach
• teaching techniques
• activity types
• ways of relating with students
• ways of assessing
 Some Well-known Methods &
Approaches
1. The Grammar- 6. The Natural Approach
Translation Method 7. Task-Based Learning
2. The Audio-Lingual (TBL)
Method 8. The Silent Way
3. Communicative 9. Person-Centered
Language Teaching Approaches
(CLT)
10. Lexical Approaches
4. Total Physical
Response (TPR) 11. Dogme
5. Community
Language Learning
(CLL)
Designed as a companion for “Learning
Teaching” Methodology I by C. Moscoso
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