Background
The Silent Way is
the name of a method of language teaching devised by Caleb Gattegno. Gattegno's name is well known for his revival of
interest in the use of coloured wooden sticks called cuisenaire rods and for
his series Words in Colour, an approach to the teaching of initial reading in
which sounds are coded by specific colours. His materials are copyrighted and
marketed through an organization he operates called Educational Solutions Inc.,
in New York. The Silent Way represents Gattegno's venture into the field of
foreign language teaching. It is based on the premise that the teacher should
be silent as much as possible in the classroom and the learner should be
encouraged to produce as much language as possible. Elements of the Silent Way,
particularly the use of colour charts and the coloured cuisenaire rods, grew
out of Gattegno's previous experience as an educational designer of reading and
mathematics programs. (Cuisenaire rods were first developed by Georges Cuisenaire,
a European educator who used them for the teaching of math. Gattegno had
observed Cuisenaire and this gave him the idea for their use in language
teaching.)
The Silent Way
shares a great deal with other learning theories and educational philosophies.
Very broadly put, the learning hypotheses underlying
Gattegno's work could be stated as follows:
1) Learning is facilitated if
the learner discovers or creates rather than remembers and repeats what is to
be learned.
2)
Learning is facilitated by accompanying (mediating)
physical objects.
3) Learning is facilitated by problem solving involving the material to be
learned.
Let us consider each of these
issues in turn.
1. The
educational psychologist and philosopher Jerome Bruner distinguishes two traditions
of teaching - that which takes place in the expository mode and that which
takes place in the hypothetical mode. In the expository mode "decisions
covering the mode and pace and style of exposition are principally determined
by the teacher as expositor; the student is the listener." In the
hypothetical mode "the teacher and the student are in a more cooperative
position. The student is not a bench-bound listener, but is taking part
in the "play
the principal role in it" (Bruner 1966: 83),
The
Silent Way belongs to the latter tradition, which views learning as a
problem-solving, creative, discovering activity, in which the learner is a
principal actor rather than a bench-bound listener. Bruner discusses the
benefits derived from "discovery learning" under four headings: (a)
the increase in intellectual potency, (b) the shift from extrinsic to intrinsic
rewards, (c) the learning of heuristics by discovering, and (d) the aid to
conserving memory (Bruner 1966: 83). As we shall see, Gattegno claims similar
benefits from learners taught via the Silent Way.
2. The rods
and the coded-coded pronunciation charts (called Fidel charts) provide physical
foci for student learning and also create memorable images to facilitate
student recall. In psychological terms, these visual devices serve
as associative mediators for student learning and recall. The psychological
literature on mediation in learning and recall is voluminous but, for our
purposes, can be briefly summarized in a quote from Earl Stevick:
If the use of
associative mediators produces better retention than repetition does, it seems
to be the case that the quality of the mediators and the student's personal
investment in them may also have a powerful effect on memory. (Stevick 1976:
25)
3. The
Silent Way is also related to a set of premises that we have called
"problem-solving approaches to learning." These premises are
succinctly represented in the words of Benjamin Franklin:
Tell me and I
forget,
teach me and I
remember,
involve me and I learn.
In the language of
experimental psychology, the kind of subject involvement that promotes
greatest learning and recall involves processing of material to be learned at
the "greatest cognitive depth" (Craik 1973) or, for our purposes,
involving the greatest amount of problem-solving activity. Memory research has
demonstrated that the learner's "memory benefits from creatively searching
out, discovering and depicting" (Bower and Winzenz 1970). In the Silent
Way, "the teacher's strict avoidance of repetition forces alertness and
concentration on the part of the learners" (Gattegno 1972: 80). Similarly,
the learner's grappling with the problem of forming an appropriate and
meaningful utterance in a new language leads the learner to realization of the
language "through his own perceptual and analytical powers" (Selman
1977). The Silent Way student is expected to become "independent,
autonomous and responsible" (Gattegno 1976) - in other words, a good
problem solver in language.
Approach
Gattegno
takes an openly sceptical view of the role of linguistic theory in language
teaching methodology. He feels that linguistic studies "may be a
specialization, [that] carry with them a narrow opening of one's sensitivity
and perhaps serve very little towards the broad end in mind" (Gattegno
1972: 84). Gattegno views language itself "as a substitute for
experience, so experience is what gives meaning to language" (Gattegno
1972: 8). We are not surprised then to see simulated experiences using tokens
and picture charts as central elements in Silent Way teaching.
Considerable
discussion is devoted to the importance of grasping the "spirit" of
the language and not just its component forms. By the "spirit" of the
language Gattegno is referring to the way each language is composed of
phonological and suprasegmental elements that combine to give the language its
unique sound system and melody. The learner must gain a "feel" for
this aspect of the target language as soon as possible, though how the learner
is to do this is not altogether clear.
By
looking at the material chosen and the sequence in which it is presented in a
Silent Way classroom, it is clear that the Silent Way takes a structural
approach to the organization of language to be taught. Language is seen as
groups of sounds arbitrarily associated with specific meanings and organized
into sentences or strings of meaningful units by grammar rules. Language is
separated from its social context and taught through artificial situations,
usually represented by rods. Lessons follow a sequence based on grammatical
complexity, and new lexical and structural material is meticulously broken down
into its elements, with one element presented at a time. The sentence is the
basic unit of teaching, and the teacher focuses on prepositional meaning,
rather than communicative value. Students are presented with the structural
patterns of the target language and learn the grammar rules of the language
through largely inductive processes.
Gattegno
sees vocabulary as a central dimension of language learning and the choice of
vocabulary as crucial. He distinguishes between several classes of vocabulary
items. The "semi-luxury vocabulary" consists of expressions common in
the daily life of the target language culture; this refers to food, clothing,
travel, family life, and so on. "Luxury vocabulary" is used in
communicating more specialized ideas, such as political or philosophical
opinions. The most important vocabulary for the learner deals with the most functional
and versatile words of the language, many of which may not have direct
equivalents in the learner's native tongue. This "functional
vocabulary" provides a key, says Gattegno, to comprehending the
"spirit" of the language.
Like many
other method proponents, Gattegno makes extensive use of his understanding of
first language learning processes as a basis for deriving principles for
teaching foreign languages to adults. Gattegno recommends, for example, that
the learner needs to "return to the state of mind that characterizes a
baby's learning surrender" (Scott and Page 1982: 273).
Having
referred to these processes, however, Gattegno states that the processes of
learning a second language are "radically different" from those
involved in learning a first language. The second language learner is unlike
the first language learner and "cannot learn another language in the same
way because of what he now knows" (Gattegno 1972: 11). The
"natural" or "direct" approaches to acquiring a second language
are thus misguided, says Gattegno, and a successful second language approach
will "replace a 'natural' approach by one that is very 'artificial' and,
for some purposes, strictly controlled" (1972: 12).
The
"artificial approach" that Gattegno proposes is based on the
principle that successful learning involves commitment of the self to language
acquisition through the use of silent awareness and then active trial.
Gattegno's repeated emphasis on the primacy of learning over teaching places a
focus on the self of the learner, on the learner's priorities and commitments.
To speak...
requires the descent of the will into the voluntary speech organs and a clear
grasp by one's linguistic self of what one is to do to produce definite sounds
in definite ways. Only the self of the utterer can intervene to make objective
what it holds in itself. Every student must be seen as a will capable of that
work. (Gattegno 1976: 7)
The self, we are told, consists of
two systems — a learning system and a retaining system. The learning system is
activated only by way of intelligent awareness. "The learner must
constantly test his powers to abstract, analyse, synthesize and integrate"
(Scott and Page 1982: 273). Silence is considered the best vehicle for learning,
because in silence students concentrate on the task to be accomplished and the
potential means to its accomplishment. Repetition (as opposed to silence)
"consumes time and encourages the scattered mind to remain
scattered" (Gattegno 1976: 80). Silence, as avoidance of repetition, is
thus an aid to alertness, concentration, and mental organization.
The
"retaining system" allows us to remember and recall at will
linguistic elements and their organizing principles and makes linguistic
communication possible. Gattegno speaks of remembering as a matter of
"paying ogdens." An "ogden" is a unit of mental energy
required to link permanently two mental elements, such as a shape and a sound
or a label and an object. The forging
of the link through active attention is the cost of remembering paid in ogdens.
Retention by way of mental effort, awareness, and thoughtfulness is more
efficient in terms of ogdens consumed than is retention attained through
mechanical repetition. Again, silence is a key to triggering awareness and hence
the preferred path to retention. Retention links are in fact formed in the most
silent of periods, that of sleep: "The mind does much of this work during
sleep" (Stevick 1980: 41).
Awareness
is educable. As one learns "in awareness," one's powers of awareness
and one's capacity to learn become greater. The Silent Way thus claims to
facilitate what psychologists call "learning to learn." Again, the
process chain that develops awareness proceeds from attention, production,
self-correction, and absorption. Silent Way learners acquire "inner
criteria," which play a central role "in one's education throughout
all of one's life" (Gattegno 1976: 29). These inner criteria allow
learners to monitor and self-correct their own production. It is in the
activity of self-correction through self-awareness that the Silent Way claims
to differ most notably from other ways of language learning. It is this
capacity for self-awareness that the Silent Way calls upon, a capacity said to
be little appreciated or exercised by first language learners.
But the
Silent Way is not merely a language teaching method. Gattegno sees language
learning through the Silent Way as a recovery of innocence — "a return to
our full powers and potentials." Gattegno's aim is not just second language
learning; it is nothing less than the education of the spiritual powers and of
the sensitivity of the individual. Mastery of linguistic skills are seen in the
light of an emotional inner peace resulting from the sense of power and control
brought about by new levels of awareness. Silent Way learning claims to
"consolidate the human dimensions of being, which include variety and
individuality as essential factors for an acceptance of others as contributors
to one's own life" and even moves us "towards better and more lasting
solutions of present-day conflicts" (Gattegno 1972: 84).
Design
The general objective of the Silent
Way is to give beginning level students oral and aural facility in basic
elements of the target language. The general goal set for language learning
is near-native fluency in the target language, and correct pronunciation and
mastery of the prosodic elements of the target language are emphasized. An
immediate objective is to provide the learner with a basic practical knowledge
of the grammar of the language. This forms the basis for independent
learning on the learner's part. Gattegno discusses the following kinds of
objectives as appropriate for a language course at an elementary level
(Gattegno 1972: 81-83). Students should be able to correctly and
easily answer questions about themselves, their education, their family,
travel, and daily events; speak with a good accent; give either a written or
oral description of a picture, "including the existing relationships that
concern space, time and numbers"; answer general questions about the
culture and the literature of the native speakers
of the target language; perform adequately in the following areas: spelling,
grammar (production rather than explanation),
reading comprehension, and writing.
Gattegno states that the Silent Way
teaches learners how to learn a language, and the skills
developed through the process of learning a foreign or second language can fee
employed in dealing with "unknowns" of every type. The method, we are
told, can also be used to teach reading and writing, and its usefulness is not
restricted to beginning level students. Most of the examples Gattegno
describes, however, as well as the classes we have observed, deal primarily
with a basic level of aural/ oral proficiency.
The syllabus
The Silent Way adopts a basically
structural syllabus, with lessons planned around grammatical items and related
vocabulary. Gattegno does not, however, provide details as to the precise
selection and arrangement of grammatical and lexical items to be covered. There
is no general Silent Way syllabus. But from observation of Silent Way programs
developed by the Peace Corps to teach a variety of languages at a basic level
of proficiency, it is clear that language items are introduced according to
their grammatical complexity, their relationship to what has been taught
previously, and the ease with which items can be presented visually. Typically,
the imperative is the initial structure introduced, because of the ease with which
action verbs may be demonstrated using Silent Way materials. New elements, such
as the plural form of nouns, are taught within a structure already familiar.
Numeration occurs early in a course, because of the importance of numbers in
everyday life and the ease with which they can be demonstrated. Prepositions of
location also appear early in the syllabus for similar reasons.
Vocabulary
is selected according to the degree to which it can be manipulated within a
given structure and according to its productivity within the classroom setting.
In addition to prepositions and numbers, pronouns, quantifiers, words dealing with temporal relations, and words
of comparison are introduced early in the course, because they "refer to
oneself and to others in the numerous relations of everyday life" (Stevick
1979). These kinds of words are referred to as the "functional
vocabulary" of a language because of their high utility.
The
following is a section of a Peace Corps Silent Way Syllabus for the first ten
hours of instruction in Thai. It is used to teach American Peace Corps
volunteers being trained to teach in Thailand. At least 15 minutes of every
hour of instruction would be spent on pronunciation. A word that is italicised
can be substituted for by another word having the same function.
|
Lesson
|
Vocabulary
|
|
1. Wood
colour red.
|
wood,
red, green, yellow, brown, pink, white, orange, black, colour
|
|
2. Using the numbers 1—10
|
one,
two,... ten
|
|
3. Wood
colour red two pieces.
|
take
(pick up)
|
|
4. Take
(pick up) wood colour red two pieces
|
give,
object pronouns
|
|
5. Take
wood colour red two pieces hive him
|
where,
on, under, near, far, over, next to, here, there
|
|
6. Wood red
where? Wood red on table.
|
Question-forming
rules. Yes.
No.
|
|
7. Wood
colour red on table, is it? Yes, on. Not on.
|
adjectives
of comparison
|
|
8. Wood
colour red long. Wood colour green longer. Wood colour orange longest.
|
|
|
9. Wood
colour green taller. Wood colour red is it?
|
|
|
10.
Review. Students use structures taught in new situations, such as comparing
the heights of students in the class.
|
|
|
|
(Joel
Wiskin, personal communication)
|
Learning tasks and activities in
the Silent Way have the function of encouraging and shaping student oral
response without direct oral instruction from or unnecessary modelling by the
teacher. Basic to the method are simple linguistic tasks in which the teacher
models a word, phrase, or sentence and then elicits learner responses. Learners
then go on create their own utterances by putting together old and new
information. Charts, rods, and other aids may be used to elicit learner responses.
Teacher modelling is minimal, although much of the activity may be teacher
directed. Responses to commands, questions, and visual cues thus constitute the
basis for classroom activities.
Learner roles
Gattegno
sees language learning as a process of personal growth resulting from growing
Student awareness and self-challenge. The learner first experiences a
"random or almost random feeling of the area of activity in question until
one finds one or more cornerstones to build on. Then starts a systematic
analysis, first by trial and error, later by directed experiment with practice
of the acquired sub areas until mastery follows" (Gattegno 1972: 79).
Learners are expected to develop independence, autonomy, and responsibility.
Independent learners are those who are aware that they must depend on their own
resources and realize that they can use "the knowledge of their own
language to open up some things in a new language" or that they can
"take their knowledge of the first few words in the new language and
figure out additional words by using that knowledge" (Stevick 1980: 42).
The autonomous learner chooses proper expressions in a given set of
circumstances and situations. "The teacher cultivates the student's
'autonomy' by deliberately building choices into situations" (Stevick
1980: 42). Responsible learners know that they have free will to choose among
any set of linguistic choices. The ability to choose intelligently and
carefully is said to be evidence of responsibility. The absence of correction
and repeated modelling from the teacher requires the students to develop
"inner criteria" and to correct themselves. The absence of explanations
requires learners to make generalizations, come to their own conclusions, and
formulate whatever rules they themselves feel they need.
Learners
exert a strong influence over each other's learning and, to a lesser degree,
over the linguistic content taught. They are expected to interact with each
other and suggest alternatives to each other. Learners have only themselves as
individuals and the group to rely on, and so must learn to work cooperatively
rather than competitively. They need to feel comfortable both correcting each
other and being corrected by each other.
In order
to be productive members of the learning group, learners-thus have to play
varying roles. At times one is an independent individual, at other times a
group member. A learner also must be a teacher, a student, part of a support
system, a problem solver, and a self-evaluator. And it is the student who is
usually expected to decide on what role is most appropriate to a given
situation.
Teacher silence is, perhaps, the unique
and, for many traditionally trained language teachers, the most demanding
aspect of the Silent Way. Teachers are exhorted to resist their long standing
commitment to model, remodel, assist, and direct desired student responses, and
Silent Way teachers have remarked upon the arduousness of self-restraint to
which early expedience of the Silent Way has subjected them. Gattegno talks of
subordinating "teaching to learning," but that is not to suggest that
the teacher's role in Silent Way is not critical and demanding. Gattegno
anticipates that using the Silent Way would require most teachers to change
their perception of their role. Stevick defines the Silent Way teacher's tasks
as (a) to teach, (b) to test, and (c) to get out of the way (Stevick 1980: 56).
Although this may not seem to constitute a radical alternative to standard
teaching practice, the details of the steps the teacher is expected to follow
are unique to the Silent Way.
By
"teaching" is meant the presentation of an item once, typically using
nonverbal clues to get across meanings. Testing follows immediately and might
better be termed elicitation and shaping of student production, which, again,
is done in as silent a way as possible. Finally, the teacher silently monitors
learners' interactions with each other and may even leave the room while
learners struggle with their new linguistic tools and "pay their
ogdens." For the most part, Silent Way teacher's manuals are unavailable
(however, see Arnold 1981), and teachers are responsible for designing teaching
sequences and creating individual lessons and lesson elements. Gattegno
emphasizes the importance of teacher-defined learning goals that are clear and
attainable. Sequence and timing in Silent Way classes are more important than
in many kinds of language teaching classes, and the teachers'
sensitivity and management of them is critical.
More
generally, the teacher is responsible for creating an environment that
encourages student risk taking and that facilitates learning. This is not to
say that the Silent Way teacher becomes "one of the group." In fact,
observers have noted that Silent Way teachers often appear aloof or even gruff
with their students. The teacher's role is one of neutral observer, neither
elated by correct performance nor discouraged by error. Students are expected
to come to see supportive but emotionally uninvolved.
The
teacher uses gestures, charts, and manipulates in order to elicit and shape
student responses and so must be both facile and creative as a pantomimist and
puppeteer. In sum, the Silent way teacher, like the complete dramatist, writes
the script, chooses the props, sets the mood, models the action, designates the
players, and is critic for the performance.
The Silent
Way is perhaps as well known for the unique nature of its teaching materials as
for the silence of its teachers. The materials consist mainly of a set of
coloured rods, coded-coded pronunciation
and vocabulary wall charts, a pointer, and reading/writing exercises, all of
which are used to illustrate the relationships between sound and meaning in the
target language. The materials are designed for manipulation by the students as well as by the teacher,
independently and cooperatively, in promoting language learning by direct
association. The number of
languages and contain symbols in the target language for all of the vowel and
consonant sounds of the language. The symbols are colour coded according to
pronunciation; thus, if a language possesses two different symbols for the same sound, they
will be coloured alike. Classes often begin by using Fidel charts in the native
language, colour coded in an analogous manner, so that students learn to pair a
sound with its associated colour. There may be from one to eight of such charts, depending upon the
language. The teacher uses the
pointer to indicate a sound symbol for the students to produce. Where
native-language Fidels are used, the teacher will point to a symbol on
one chart and then to its analogue on the Fidel in the other language. In the
absence of native-language charts, or when introducing a sound not present in
the native language, the teacher will give one clear, audible model after
indicating the proper Fidel symbol in the target language. The charts are hung
on the wall and serve to aid in remembering pronunciation and in building new
words by sounding out sequences of symbols as they are pointed to by the
teacher or student.
Just as the Fidel charts are used
to visually illustrate pronunciation, the coloured cuisenaire rods are used to
directly link words and structures with their meanings in the target language,
thereby avoiding translation into the native language. The rods vary in length
from one to ten centimetres, and each length has a specific colour. The rods
may be used for naming colours, for size comparisons, to represent people build floor plans, constitute a road map, and
so on. Use of the rods is intended to promote inventiveness, creativity, and
interest in forming communicative utterances on the part of the students, as
they move from simple to more complex structures. Gattegno and his proponents
believe that the range of structures that can be illustrated and learned
through skilful use of the rods is as limitless as the human imagination. When
the teacher or student has difficulty expressing a desired word or concept, the
rods can be supplemented by referring to the Fidel charts, or to the third
major visual aid used in the Silent Way, the vocabulary charts.
The vocabulary
or word charts are likewise colour coded, although the colours of the symbols will not
correspond to the phonetics of the Fidels, but rather to conceptual groupings
of words. There are typically twelve such charts containing 500 to 800 words in
the native language and script. These words are selected according to their
ease of application in teaching, their relative place in the
"functional" or "luxury" vocabulary, their flexibility in
terms of generalization and use with other words, and their importance in illustrating
basic grammatical structures. The content of word charts will vary from
language to language, but the general content of the vocabulary charts
(Gattegno 1972) is paraphrased below:
Chart
1: the word rod, colours
of the rods, plural markers, simple imperative verbs, personal pronouns, some
adjectives and question words
Charts 2, 3: remaining pronouns, words for
"here" and "there," of, for, and name
Chart 4: numbers
Charts
5, 6: words illustrating size,
space, and temporal relationships, as well as some concepts difficult to
illustrate with rods, such as order, causality, condition, similarity and
difference
Chart 7: words
that qualify, such as adverbs
Charts 8, 9: verbs, with cultural references where
possible
Chart 10: family relationships
Charts 11,
12: words expressing time, calendar elements, seasons, days, week,
month,
year, etc.
Other materials that may be
used include books and worksheets for practicing reading and writing skills,
picture books, tapes; videotapes, films, and other visual aids. Reading and
writing are sometimes taught from the beginning; and students are given
assignments to do outside the classroom at their own pace. These materials are
of secondary importance, and are used
to supplement the classroom use of rods and charts. Choice and implementation
depends upon need as assessed by teachers and/or students.
Procedure
A Silent way lesson typically follows a
standard format. The first part of the lesson focuses on pronunciation.
Depending on student level, the class might work on sounds, phrases, or even
sentences designated on the Fidel chart. At the beginning stage, the teacher
will model the appropriate sound after pointing to a symbol on the chart.
Later, the teacher will silently point to individual symbols and combinations
of symbols, and on monitor student utterances. The teacher may say a word and
have a student guess what sequence of symbols compromised the word.
The
pointer is used to indicate stress, phrasing, and intonation. Stress can be
shown by touching certain symbol more forcibly than others when pointing out a
word. Intonation and phrasing can be demonstrated by tapping on the chart to
the rhythm of the utterance.
After
practice with the sounds of the language, sentence patterns, structure, and
vocabulary are practiced. The teacher models an utterance while creating a
visual realization of it with the coloured rods. After modelling the utterance,
the teacher will have a student attempt to produce the utterance and will
indicate its acceptability. If a response is incorrect, the teacher will
attempt to reshape the utterance or have another student present the correct
model. After a structure is introduced and understood, the teacher will create
a situation in which the students can practice the structure through the
manipulation of the rods. Variations on the structural theme will be elicited
from the class using the rods and charts.
The
sample lesson that follows illustrates a typical lesson format. The language
being taught is Thai, for which this is the first lesson.
1. Teacher empties rods onto the
table. .
2.
Teacher picks up two or three rods of different colours, and after
each rod is picked up says: [mai].
3.
Teacher holds up one rod of any colour and indicates to a student that a
response is required. Student says: [mai]. If response is incorrect, teacher
elicits response from another student, who then models for the first student.
4.
Teacher next picks up a red rod and says: [mai sti daeng].
5.
Teacher picks up a green rod and says: [mai sii khiawj.
6.
Teacher picks up either a red or green rod and elicits response from student,
If response is incorrect, procedure in step 3 is followed (student modeling).
7.
Teacher introduces two or three other colors in the same manner.
8.
Teacher shows any of the rods whose forms were taught previously and
elicits student response. Correction technique is through student modeling, or
the teacher may help student isolate error and self-correct.
9.
When mastery is achieved, teacher puts one red rod in plain view and
says: [mai sii daeng nung an].
10. Teacher
then puts two red rods in plain view and says: [mai sii daeng song an].
11. Teacher
places two green rods in view and says [mai sii khiaw song an];
12. Teacher
holds up two rods of a different color and elicits student response.
13. Teacher
introduces additional numbers, based on what the class can comfortably retain.
Other colors might also be introduced.
14. Rods are
put in a pile. Teacher indicates, through his or her own actions, that rods
should be picked up, and the correct utterance made. All die students in the
group pick up rods and make correction is encouraged.
15. Teacher
then says: [kep mai sii daeng song an].
16. Teacher
indicates that a student should give the teacher the rods called for. Teacher
asks other students in the class to give him or her the rods that he or she
asks for. This is all done in the target language through unambiguous actions
on the part of the teacher.
17. Teacher
now indicates that the students should give each other commands regarding the
calling for of rods. Rods are put at the disposal of the class.
18. Experimentation
is encouraged. Teacher speaks only to correct an incorrect utterance, if no
peer group correction is forthcoming.
Despite
the philosophical and sometimes almost metaphysical quality of much of
Gattegno's writings, the actual practices of the Silent Way are much less
revolutionary than might be expected. Working from what is a rather traditional structural and lexical
syllabus, the method exemplifies many of the features that characterize
more traditional methods, such as Situational Language Teaching and
Audiolingualism, with a strong focus on accurate repetition of sentences
modeled initially by the teacher and a movement through guided elicitation
exercises to freer communication. The innovations in Gattegno's method derive
primarily from the manner in which classroom activities are organized, the
indirect role the teacher is required to assume in directing and monitoring
learner performance, the responsibility placed upon learners to figure out and
test their hypotheses about how the language works, and the materials used to
elicit and practice language.
