Limitations Of Grammar Translation Method
There are multiple methods of English language teaching. Ever since the invention of what some may argue to be the pioneering method in the field, the Grammar Translation Method (GTM), various other methods have been devised, in order to try and overcome the limitations of their predecessors. It is well known that each method has its strengths and limitations. The degree to which the strengths catalyse, and the limitations impeding the learning process of the student, depends mostly on the student him/herself, as different people have different aptitudes and personalities. Thus, I believe that there is no one best method of English language teaching, because the approach should be adaptive, if one were to best match the needs of the student.
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This first came about from my past experience learning a language a number of years ago. During these classes, the teacher used a combination of pair work, question and answer sessions, alongside what very closely resembled the Grammar Translation Method. This method worked very well with some of the students in class, especially this one girl, who thought that it was easy to absorb. This student studied her language books every other day, and as expected of the GTM, she managed to do well in the examinations. However, the case was very different for me at that time, as I found the idea that the teaching material will not be covered in the lecture, and hence were supposed to be read by students beforehand, absolutely appalling. And of course, I did not do too well in the examinations. On the other hand, when I took another class shortly after, taught by a different teacher, things progressed very differently. This teacher was more fun and relaxed. Furthermore, the amount of homework and pre-class readings he gave was only about 20% of what the previous teacher gave. He also encouraged speaking activities in class, and students were free to talk about whatever they wanted. On the other hand, the previous teacher was rigid in her choice of topics for classroom discussions. The second teacher’s methods worked better for me, as this time I managed to do really well in the …show more content…
The second principle is also used to retain the motivation and interest of students. For example, students in Hong Kong would unlikely be interested in a topic such as ‘building igloos and ice fishing’, as in is of no use to them. This closely resembles a principle of Task Based Learning (TBL)?. The third principle involves taking the suggestions of students seriously, with an open mind, and if deemed to be able to yield positive results, to consider implementing these in the
This first came about from my past experience learning a language a number of years ago. During these classes, the teacher used a combination of pair work, question and answer sessions, alongside what very closely resembled the Grammar Translation Method. This method worked very well with some of the students in class, especially this one girl, who thought that it was easy to absorb. This student studied her language books every other day, and as expected of the GTM, she managed to do well in the examinations. However, the case was very different for me at that time, as I found the idea that the teaching material will not be covered in the lecture, and hence were supposed to be read by students beforehand, absolutely appalling. And of course, I did not do too well in the examinations. On the other hand, when I took another class shortly after, taught by a different teacher, things progressed very differently. This teacher was more fun and relaxed. Furthermore, the amount of homework and pre-class readings he gave was only about 20% of what the previous teacher gave. He also encouraged speaking activities in class, and students were free to talk about whatever they wanted. On the other hand, the previous teacher was rigid in her choice of topics for classroom discussions. The second teacher’s methods worked better for me, as this time I managed to do really well in the …show more content…
The second principle is also used to retain the motivation and interest of students. For example, students in Hong Kong would unlikely be interested in a topic such as ‘building igloos and ice fishing’, as in is of no use to them. This closely resembles a principle of Task Based Learning (TBL)?. The third principle involves taking the suggestions of students seriously, with an open mind, and if deemed to be able to yield positive results, to consider implementing these in the