THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD

ÖZGÜN SAVAŞ EKİCİ

SEHER KADER
AYŞEGÜL ŞANLI
 CONTENT

1. INTRODUCTION
2. DEFINITION
3. WHEN AND HOW THE METHOD OCCURED?
4. BEHAVIORIST PSYCHOLOGY
5. HOW DO WE USE METHOD IN THE CLASSROOM
6. THE SYLLABUS
7. PRACTICE OF THE METHOD
8. PRINCIPLES OF THE METHOD
9. THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD
10. CRITICISM OF THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD
11. LESSON PLAN
 DEFINITION

• The Audio-lingual Method is a method of foreign language teaching

which emphasizes the teaching of listening and speaking before
reading and writing. It uses dialogues as the main form of language
presentation and drills as the main training techniques. Mother tongue
is discouraged in the classroom.
• It aims at developing listening and speaking skills which is a step away
from the Grammar translation method
• The use of visual aids has proven its effectiveness in vocabulary
teaching.
WHEN AND HOW THE METHOD OCCURRED.

• The Audio-lingual Method was developed in the U.S.during the Second World War. At that
time, the U.S. government found it a great necessity to set up a special language-training
program to supply the war withlanguage personnel. Therefore, the government commissioned
American universities to develop foreign language program for military personnel.

• Thus the Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP) was established in 1942.The objectives
of the army program was for students to attain conversational proficiency in a variety of
foreign languages. The method used was known as the “informant method”, since it used a
native speakers of the language, the informant, and a linguist. The informant served as a
source of language for imitation, and the linguist supervised the learning experience. The
intensive system adopted by the army achieved excellent results.
 BEHAVIORIST PSYCHOLOGY

• The learning theory of Audio lingualism is behavioral psychology which is an

empirically based approach to the study of human behavior. Behaviorism tries
to explain how an external event (a stimulus) caused a change in the behavior
of an individual (a response) without using concepts like “mind” or “ideas” or
any kind of mental behavior. Behaviorist psychology states that people are
conditioned to learn many forms of behavior, including language, through the
process of training or conditioning.
HOW DO WE USE THIS METHOD IN THE CLASSROOM

• As mentioned, lessons in the classroom focus on the correct imitation of the

teacher by the students. The students expected to produce the correct output,
but attention is also paid to correct pronunciation. Although correct grammar is
expected in usage, no explicit grammatical instruction is given. Furthermore,
the target language is the only language to be used in the classroom. Modern
implementations are more lax on this last requirement.
• The language teacher uses only the target language in the classroom. Actions,
pictures or realia are used to give meaning otherwise.
 THE SYLLABUS
• A contrastive analysis of the differences between the native and target language
• A lexical syllabus of basic vocabulary items is usually specified in advance
• The language skills are taught orderly as listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
• Vocabulary is kept to a minimum while teaching students sound system and
grammatical patterns.
• Recognition and discrimination are followed by imitation, repetition, and
memorization.
• After students learn the sounds, arrangements, and forms of target language, they
can focus on vocabulary.
• Lastly, students gain accuracy and then they concentrate on fluency.
 PRACTICE OF THE
METHOD
• Observations
1. Teacher introduces a new dialogue.
2. Teacher uses only the target language in the classroom.
3. Teacher introduces the dialogue by modelling it two times. Wrongly and correctly.
4. Students repeat each line of the dialogue several times.
5. When students stumble over the lines of the dialogue, teacher corrects their
mistake.
6. Teacher initiates a chain drill where each student greets another.
 PRACTICE OF THE
METHOD
• Observations
7. Teacher uses single and multiple slot substition drills.
8. Teacher gives positive feedbacks when student answers correctly.
9. Teacher uses both spoken and visual cues.
10. Teacher conducts transformation and question-and-answer drills
11. New vocabulary is introduced through lines of the dialogue.
12. Students are given no grammar rules.
 PRACTICE OF THE
METHOD
• Principles
1. Language forms occur naturally within a context.
2. The native language and the target language should be kept apart.
3. Teacher must be the model of the target language.
4. Language learning is a process of habit. So, the more often repeat, the greater the
learning.
5. It is important to prevent learners from making mistakes.
6. The purpose of learning is to learn how to use the language to communicate.
 PRACTICE OF THE
METHOD
• Principles
7. Students must learn which part of speech occupies which slot.
8. Positive feedbacks helps the students to develop their correct habits.
9. Students must learn to respond to both verbal and nonverbal stimuli.
10. Q/A practice helps students to improve themselves in a communication.
11. Students should learn the structural patterns of the language at first, and then
vocabulary.
12. Students do not need to memorize rules in order to use the target language.
 PRINCIPLES OF THE METHOD

The Goals of the Teacher in the Audio-lingual Method:

• Teachers want their students to be able to use the target language communicatively, they
want their students to talk in target language without stopping to think.
The Role of the Teacher and Student:
• In the Audio-lingual Method the teacher has an active role as he is the sole authority to
control and direct the whole learning programme. He monitors and corrects the students'
performance.
• Students play a reactive role by responding to stimuli, and thus have a little control over
the content, pace, or style of learning.
 PRINCIPLES OF THE METHOD
Characteristics of the Teaching/Learning Materials
• In the Audio-lingual Method the materials are predominantly teacher-oriented. The
instructional materials basically contains the structured sequence of lessons to be followed,
the dialogues, drills, and other practice activities, which would hopefully enable the
teacher to develop language mastery in the student.
The Nature of Student-Teacher Interaction
• Most of the interaction is between teacher and students is initiated by the teacher.
• The View of Language and Culture
• The view of language is influenced by descriptive linguists.
• Each level has its own distinctive patterns.
• Everyday speech is emphasized.
• The level of complexity of the speech is graded.
 PRINCIPLES OF THE METHOD

The Role of Native Language

• The habits of the students’ native language are thought to interfere with the
students’ attempts to master the target language.
Teacher Responds to Student Errors
• Student errors are to be avoided if it is possible, through the teacher’s
awareness of where the students will have difficulty, and restriction of what
they are taught to say.
• What language skills are emphasized?
• The structure is important. From the most important to least, skills are
listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE AUDIO-
LINGUAL METHOD

• Backward Build-up (Expansion)

Drill: This drill is used when a long
line of a dialogue is giving students
trouble. The teacher breaks down the
line into several parts. The students
repeat a part of the sentence, usually
the last phrase of the line. Then,
following the teacher's cue, the
students expand what they are
repeating part by part until they can
repeat the entire line.
 EXAMPLE

• Teacher: ‘’Repeat after me; health care’’

• Class: ‘’Health care’’
• Teacher: ‘’Interested in health care’’
• Class: ‘’Interested in health care’’
• Teacher: ‘’I am interested in health care’’
• Class: ‘’I am interested in health care’’
 THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE
AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD

• Repetition Drill: Students are asked to

repeat the teacher's model as accurately
and as quickly as possible. This drill is
often used to teach the lines of the
dialogue.
 THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE
AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD

• Chain Drill: The teacher

begins the chain by greeting a
particular student or asking him
a question. That student
responds, then turns to the
student sitting next to him. The
first student greets or asks a
question of the second student
and the chain continues.
 THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE
AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD

• Single-slot Substitution Drill: The teacher says a line, usually from the
dialogue. Next, the teacher says a word or a phrase (called the cue). The
students repeat the line the teacher has given them, substituting the cue into the
line in its proper place.
• Multiple-slot Substitution Drill: This drill is similar to the single-slot
substitution drill. The difference is that the teacher gives cue phrases, one at a
time, that fit into different slots in the dialogue line. The students must
recognize what part of speech each cue is, or at least, where it fits into the
sentence, and make any other changes, such as subject-verb agreement. They
then say the line, fitting the cue phrase into the line where it belongs.
 THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE
AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD

• Transformation Drill: The teacher gives students a EXAMPLE:

certain kind of sentence pattern, an affirmative sentence
for example. Students are asked to transform this
 He knows my adress.
sentence into a negative sentence. Other examples of  He does not my adress.
transformations to ask of students are changing a
statement into a question, an active sentence into a
 Does he know my adress?
passive one, or direct speech into reported speech.  He used to know my adress.
 If he had known my adress.
 THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE AUDIO-
LINGUAL METHOD
• Question-and-answer Drill: This drill
gives students practice with answering
questions. The students should answer the
teacher's questions very quickly. This gives
students practice with the question pattern.
• Use of Minimal Pairs: The teacher works
with pairs of words which differ in only
one sound; for example, 'ship/sheep.'
Students are first asked to perceive the
difference between the two words and later
to be able to say the two words.
 THE TECHNIQUES USED IN THE AUDIO-
LINGUAL METHOD
• Grammar Game: Games like the Supermarket Alphabet
Game are used in the Audio-Lingual Method. The games are
designed to get students to practice a grammar point within a
context.
• Complete the Dialogue: Selected words are erased from a
dialogue students have learned. Students complete the
dialogue by filling the blanks with the missing words.
 THE ADVANTAGES AND THE DISADVANTAGES
OF THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD
THE ADVANTAGES:
• Listening and speaking skills are emphasized and especially the former are
meticulously developed.
• The method is equally functional and easy to implement for larger groups.
• Correct pronunciation and structure are emphasized and achieved.
• It is a method dominated by teachers. The student has a directed role; the student
has little control over the material studied or method of study.
THE ADVANTAGES AND THE DISADVANTAGES
OF THE AUDIO-LINGUAL METHOD
THE DISADVANTAGES
• Students who learn a foreign language with audio-lingual
method learn the language mechanically as they listen
and repeat constantly. This leads to the ability to speak
the language only within patterns.
• Because new words and patterns are taught in context,
students have difficulty understanding and using them
outside of context.
• The students develop a sense of insecurity because they
try to learn a language by focusing only on their ears and
it is difficult to remember all that is said.
 LESSON PLAN
• School Type: Middle School
• Grade: 5th Grade
• English Level of Students: A1- A2 Level
• The environment: English Classroom
• Purpose: Teaching English as a second language to students
• Duration of the lesson: 50-60 minutes
• Number of students: 10-15
• Materials: Whiteboard, Visual Products, Audio cassette, board pen.
• Methods/Approaches: Audio-Lingual Method
 LESSON PLAN
• Teaching Process
1. Teacher introduces the method by talking.
2. Activity 1: An activity based on memorizing dialogue is done.
3. Activity 2: In the parts where students have difficulty, the teacher divides
the sentences into small parties and provides convenience to the students.
4. Activity 3: Teacher directs students to take turns to use the expressions
in communication with someone else.
 LESSON PLAN
5. Activity 4: An activity is done to improve the vocabulary by using different
words that have the same meaning.
6. Activity 5: Teacher directs student to replace a word or a phrase in the
sentence in order to teach different structures.
7. Activity 6: Teacher asks students to practice asking and answering questions
with following the cues teacher helds up.
 LESSON PLAN
• Evaluation
• Grades are given based on speaking skills.
• Speaking skills can be evaluated by the student-student
interactions or student-teacher interactions based on
dialogues.
 LESSON PLAN
• In conclusion, at the end of the term students will be able to:
• Develop their oral skills by repeating a series of short dialogues.
• Read and understand texts through silent reading.
• Understand the information in the dialogue by listening.
• Ask and answer questions.
• Write the answers to questions.
• Write a dialogue.