Methods of Teaching English as a Foreign Language:
An Introductory Lesson
This lesson is devoted to introducing the subject of Methods of Teaching. The textbook of this course is Principles and Techniques of Teaching English as a Second Language by Al-Hamash and Younis. The term ‘second language’ is intended to cover both foreign and second language settings.
The material of the course includes a preface and six main chapters:
In the preface, the authors of the textbook introduce the subject and state the aims of the course. A main question is raised concerning whether teaching is an art or a science and the contrasting opinions in the field of methodology about this issue. It is concluded that teaching requires some personal qualities on the part of the teacher which are expected in any art. However, a formal course in methods of teaching is required. Consequently, teaching is both a science and an art.
Chapter One is about ‘Language and Communication’. It surveys the main properties of human language and highlights the communicative function of language. Then, it discusses the way in which foreign language teachers consider the communicative function of language as they teach.
Chapter Two is about the psychological principles of language learning. It tackles some psychological principles and their pedagogical implications: language learning is habit-formation, language learning is the acquisition of a set of skills, language learning involves some interference between the learners’ first language and the foreign language to be learnt, language learning requires exposing the learner to a model, language use is enjoyable, and language use is both an individual and social process.
Chapter Three is devoted to discussing some linguistic principles and their methodological implications: language is basically oral, language is systematic and learnable, language is a means of communication, languages change, language is essentially arbitrary, language has a form and meaning, languages are systems of contrasts, and it is necessary to distinguish between language usage and language use.
Chapter Four is about second language material. It tries to answer a main question: ‘What are the most important features of modern second (as well as foreign) language materials (i.e. syllabuses)?’. Concentration will be on the following features or requirements: the formulation of aims, variety and comprehensiveness of material, horizontal and vertical integrations of the material, and grading of material.
Chapter Five provides some suggestions for second language teaching. The suggestions include lesson planning, the variety of activities, students participation and avoidance of lecturing, contrastive techniques of presentation, the material to be assigned as homework, discipline, grading, avoidance of translation, and how to correct students errors.
Finally, Chapter Six briefly introduces four main methods of presentation, i.e., teaching: grammar-translation, direct, structural, and communicative. Each approach is discussed according to its premises, strengths, and weaknesses.
This course in ‘principles and techniques of teaching English as a foreign language’ is intended to provide the Iraqi undergraduate students of English with a general background knowledge in methodology. It paves the way to a more extensive discussion of the communicative approach in the second semester.
المادة المعروضة اعلاه هي مدخل الى المحاضرة المرفوعة بواسطة استاذ(ة) المادة . وقد تبدو لك غير متكاملة . حيث يضع استاذ المادة في بعض الاحيان فقط الجزء الاول من المحاضرة من اجل الاطلاع على ما ستقوم بتحميله لاحقا . في نظام التعليم الالكتروني نوفر هذه الخدمة لكي نبقيك على اطلاع حول محتوى الملف الذي ستقوم بتحميله .
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