The Audio-lingual vs.

the Total Physical Response Method The first point to note, before going deeply into the comparison of these two methods, is to give a general idea of what a method is and what is its role in language teaching. According to Jack Richards a method is an overall plan for the orderly presentation of language material, no part of which contradicts, and all of which actually takes place in classroom. Subsequently we can agree that methods give teachers a backup and awareness of the purpose and theory of their actions. If teachers are clear on this, they have the chance to support their practices with the most appropriated methods according to what they want to teach and what they want the students to learn. I would like to add that having a good knowledge of methods supports a successful teaching practice. The Audio-lingual method was born as a consequence of USA entry into WW II. The military required people with a high proficiency in speaking and understanding foreign languages. It is based in behaviorist ideology, which professes that certain traits of living things, and in this case humans, could be trained through a system of reinforcement The Total Physical Response Method is a language teaching method that relies in the coordination of speech and action. The main premise is to teach a foreign language through physical activity. Besides that, it is believed that speech is mainly based on commands and children have to attempt to respond physically before oral production. By comparing these two methods we can recognize some points in which they share some similarities. In relation to what class interaction involves, we can notice that in both cases the teacher acts as a model. The teacher is the leader, the one who controls the language behavior of the students. The teacher also is responsible for providing a good language model as the students are going to learn what he says or does. In addition to classroom interaction, the role of the students its also similar. Students are passive at the beginning, just observing and listening to the teachers model but by the end of the class they are supposed to produce, even orally (audiolingual) or physically (TPR). Analyzing the main aims of these methods, we can say that both consider oral modality as primary. The spoken language should be emphasized over the written language since the belief is that language skills are learned effectively if the items to be learned in the target language are presented in spoken form. When contrasting the audio-lingual method with TPR we can appreciate important things which make each other different. In terms of content we can realize that in the audio-lingual method new vocabulary and structural patterns are presented through the use of dialogues whereas in the Total

Physical Response method the new vocabulary and grammar are presentment by using commands and performing them. Another important contrasting point refers to the way in which grammar and vocabulary are view. In TPR grammar and vocabulary are emphasized over the language areas, these are immersed into the use of imperatives and commands. In contrast to that, the audio-lingual method implies the teaching of grammar and vocabulary in a deductive way. In relation to the use of the students mother tongue; No native language is used in the audio-lingual method while TPR is usually introduced in the students native language in order to avoid confusion. Moreover, one of the main differences comes to be the objectives that each method wants to achieve. The audio-lingual method proposes a speech- based instruction in which the main objective is oral proficiency. It tends to avoid the study of grammar and literature. On the contrary, the total physical response method gives the opportunity to the students to produce orally once they fell are ready to do so. The main objective in TPR is to train learners capable of react physically to any command of the language. The ultimate aim is to teach speaking as a basic skill with the purpose of make communication intelligible. In conclusion, we can state that Total Physical Response and the Audiolingual method are different in some aspects, which is good because it gives the teacher the opportunity to choose the way in which they want to teach according to their aim and focus. At the same time, we can say that both methods share features and that make us think that there are some points, patterns or clues that cannot be avoided at the time of teaching. But the most important thing when talking about methods is to have in mind that every teacher should have knowledge on this, since it helps to improve their performances and that would be reflected in their students learning process.

Sources Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. Diane Larsen Freeman (2000) Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. Jack Richards and Theodore Rodgers (1998)

Universidad Catlica de la Santsima Concepcin Faculty of Education English Teaching Programme

Student : Carolina Rojas Cruz Teacher : Roxana Correa. Subject : English Methodology

Date

: 30th, April, 2008