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The Direct Method
It has often been pointed out that the direct method was developed as a reaction to the grammar-translation method. This is true, but in fact people have been learning languages by this method at least as early as Roman times, when young men were provided with Greek, the cultural language of Europe in those days and an essential part of one's education. The educationalists attempted to build a language learning methodology around their observations of child language learning. They argued that a foreign language could be taught without translation or use of the learner's native tongue. The Direct Method therefore insists on thinking and communicating directly in the target language and does not allow translation. The Berlitz School of Languages is the best known proponent of this method.
The appearance of this method was brought about by the rapid development of various branches of industry and the tremendous development of international trade and colonial expansion required plenty of officials who had a practical mastery of the language, people who could speak and write a foreign language and be able to communicate with foreigners. Therefore practical mastery of a foreign language becomes the main purpose of teaching this subject at school.
The rapid development of pedagogies, psychology, namely, a perceptive psychology, and linguistics promoted the appearance of new methods.
Distinguishing Features:
The four language skills are taught from the beginning, but a special emphasis is placed on speaking. Classes often start with the reading aloud of a specially graded text which introduces the lesson's vocabulary and grammatical structure. Practice follows with exercises such as guided conversation, where the teacher asks questions on the text and the students answer using full sentences. Students will then ask each other similar questions.
Other practice exercises include filling-in-the blanks, dictation, controlled
composition or listening comprehension exercises. Grammar is taught inductively, that is to say, language patterns are presented and practiced, but the rules are not explicitly given. The Direct Method teacher uses mime, demonstrations, relia, and visual aids to help students understand grammar and vocabulary.
1) The practical direction in the teaching of foreign languages which is understood as teaching language skills and speaking in particular, therefore spoken
language becomes the basis of teaching;
2) the ignoring of the existence of the mother tongue as it is assumed that learning the mother tongue and learning a foreign language are similar processes,
merely undertaken at different ages;
3) Restricted application or veryoften complete elimination of translation as a means of teaching a language which plays a leading part in the grammar-translation method;
4) the inductive approach to teaching grammar,i.e., the learner may discover the rules of grammar for himself after he has become acquainted with many examples (in the grammar-translation the rule is first stated, and then sentences embodying the rule are studied; later the rule is put into practice by writing new sentences, generally by translating sentences from the mother tongue into the foreign language);
5) Great care in teaching pronunciation throughout the course and especially the first weeks and months. Correct pronunciation must be constantly practiced since comprehension and speaking is possible if the learner has adequate pronunciation in the target language;
6) Great attention to the subjects ofthe texts, especially a topical arrangement of the material with the purpose of ensuring speech development.
The method is called direct because in teaching a foreign language an attempt is made to establish a direct connection between a foreign word and the thing or notion it denotes without the aid of the native language.
The "No Translation" rule can become an issue. Teachers complain that it is sometimes time consuming to mime vocabulary, when a simple translation would do. And some words are difficult to mime. Students become frustrated when some members of the class do not understand the teacher's explanations and when the whole class is held up untill the meaning becomes clear to all.
While monitoring carefully the amount ofyour students' native language you use in class, you should use your common sense in this question of translation. If you judge that your students are not getting the point, or the meaning of a particular word, if you think that your lesson straying from itsobjectives, and if you know the word in your students' language, then give a translation and get onwith your lesson.
Many of the textbooks based on the Direct Method, most of which are by now
quite dated, were written for Western schoolchildren. This can be problematic since the method is heavily dependent on the textand the texts are not guarantied to be culturally accessible. A textbook used inFrancophone Africa describes children having cornflakes for breakfast, putting on their Wellington boots because it is raining, and catching a double-decker bus to go to school. It is not difficult to transfer this lesson into a cultural context that your students will understand,but it is an additional barrier for your students to overcome. And your role in thisprocess will be to provide the necessary cultural translation.
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