This document discusses the history and evolution of methods in teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL). It covers early structural approaches from the 1800s-1950s like grammar translation and audiolingualism. It then discusses communicative approaches from the 1970s onward that focus on using language for communication. Key concepts discussed include communicative competence, the natural approach, whole language methods, dialogic pedagogy, and applying sociolinguistic and anthropological linguistics perspectives to language teaching. The document advocates for teaching approaches that value students' voices and social contexts.

1. Does “native speaker” mean white?

2. Nicole Osolin and Hannah Herrmann Political Roots of TESOL

3. Other Relevant Questions What purpose does education serve? Should education replicate hierarchical social structures as they currently exist? How does language create and maintain institutions, i.e. English as a “power language”? What kind of action can individuals take, especially teachers?

4. Teaching Methodology Study of pedagogical practices in the broadest sense Theory and practice of curriculum instruction Teaching and learning across the spectrum Studying all aspects of teaching Evaluating and assessing student progress Reflecting back on our own learning

5. Prator’s Three “Cornerstones” of Methodology What are the aims of instruction?: student-centered, needs analysis What is the nature of language? What is the nature of the student(s)?

6. A Few Quick Definitions… Approach: Includes philosophy of teaching, along with principles of theories of language teaching and learning Method: Overall plan for putting the theories into practice Technique: A specific procedure or step used to accomplish particular objectives

7. History of TESOL Methods Early approaches focused on structure – phonological, morphological, and syntactic aspects of English Ignores sociopolitical and communicative aspects of English “English is the language of […] mental colonization, as children, for example, learn English in American schools and forget their native languages and heritage. Learning of English opens some doors that run contrary to people’s native cultures, even while it opens the doors of educational and economic opportunity. […] As teachers, we need to get to know the many contexts of our students, their histories and realities, so we can provide them with the language to communicate about them. This is a central purpose of dialogic pedagogy. “ (Wong, 12)

8. Grammar Translation Approach[1800s] Translated sentences Use of mother language in instruction “The goal of grammar translation is to read classic texts so as to benefit from the mental discipline and intellectual development that result from foreign-language study.” (Wong 13) Structural approach Teaches recitation and translation, but not language use

9. Direct Method[1880] European response to reform the Grammar Translation Method Teach modern languages differently from classical languages Structures and emphasis on oral language Development of International Phonetic Alphabet (Jespersen) Structural approach, but related to frequency of use in oral language Does not tie first and second languages so closely together like Grammar Translation Never dominant in the United States; required that teachers be fluent in the target language and they were not

10. Reading Method[1930-1940] Emphasis on reading No emphasis on grammatical structures or communicative skills and techniques “Students were introduced only to grammar that was needed for reading comprehension” (Wong, 15). Only dominant approach in the U.S. that was not structural in nature

11. Audiolingual Approach[1950-1960] Army Method – used to train military personnel Inadequacy of Reading Method – did not prepare students to speak Conversational dialogue – listening and repetition “mim-mem” – mimicry and memorization Based on Behaviorist theories Minimal pair drills Instant error correction

12. Cognitive Revolution Chomsky – language as a creative and cognitive process Rejection of behaviorist theoriesand structural linguistics Difference between “competence” and “performance”

13. Communicative Approach[1970] Use of target language Usage: “the learner’s ability to demonstrate his or her knowledge of the properties of formal linguistic rules Use: “the learner’s ability to apply knowledge of linguistic rules in effective communication” Development of both competence and performance Use of role-playing (using language in simulated contexts rather than practicing repetition) Shift from structural to functional Canale and Swain (1980): Communicative competence is composed of grammatical, sociolinguistic, discourse, and strategic competencies

14. Del Hymes (1974) Coined the term “communicative competence” Seven themes that are relevant to communicative competence: Linguistic theory as theory of language, entailing the organization of speech Foundations of theory and methodology as entailing questions of function Speech communities as organizations of ways of speaking Competence of personal ability (not just grammatical knowledge) Performance as accomplishment and responsibility and investment (not just psycholinguistic processing) Languages as what their users have made of them Liberte, egalite, and fraternite of speech as something achieved in social life

15. Natural Approach[1980] Incorporation of first-language acquisition studies in the teaching of a second language Silent period (21 hours of silence) Low affective filter so that students are not so worried about making mistakes Krashenand [i + 1]

16. Whole Language and Language Arts Methods [1990-2000] TESOL has been influenced by first-language education Audiolingual approach sequenced four skills – listening, speaking, reading, writing Whole Language methods add in readers and writers workshops and journal writing Stresses importance of biliteratedevelopment

17. Anthropological Linguistics “homework” methodology vs. “fieldwork” linguistics In fieldwork linguistics, “linguists don’t study what people say they know about language but what they actually do” Concerned with meaning in USE “In both EFL and ESL contexts as teachers we need to be aware of unconscious linguistic stereotypes that may affect our attitudes, assessment, and expectations towards students from poor and working class families who may speak rural, village, or other dialects not valued as “the educated standard”. (Wong)

18. BaKHtin’s “Dialogism” Theorist writing in the Soviet Union Beginning in the 1920’s Focus of theories: Dialogue Language, from speech to writing, always a dialogue The Dialogic Imagination: hybrid nature of language; context over text A literary work carries on a continual dialogue with other literary works To make an “utterance”: Appropriate the words of others and populate them with one’s own intention **www.colorado.edu

19. So… What Does This Mean for TESOL? Dialogic Approach linked with sociolinguists and anthropological linguists (Halliday) Social context and meaning are critical Two forces operating in language: 1. centripetal forces: unify and centralize 2. centrifugal, stratifying forces: social and historical “heteroglossia” Heteroglossia: Distinct varieties within a single linguistic code

20. “The aim of the dialogic pedagogy is to support the inclusion of voices of those who have traditionally been excluded from academic discourse” (Wong 35)

21. Features of Dialogic Pedagogy Learning in Community: interaction of multiple voices, unending dialogue Problem Posing: don’t just follow the syllabus; inquiry and exploration; student reflection on learning Learning by Doing: actual communication; speaking; sharing work; working together Knowledge for Whom: aim of instruction for the students; how do we include all?

22. “If language education is to actualize the ideals of the French revolution for liberte, egalite, fraternite (and one might add sisterhood and racial and economic equality) it must be seen as an ongoing project, a work in progress or social practice, requiring ongoing analysis, reflection, and further transformation.” (Wong 23)