People have always sought to create the best methodology for mastering a foreign language. Speaking one or two or more languages contributes to the development of humans as individuals. There are many tips on how to increase your vocabulary, how to quickly read foreign books, how to practice speaking via Skype, etc. However, today there is no universal model for learning a foreign language, in particular English. Still, some techniques are considered the most interesting. Let’s review them briefly together.
1) Immersion method
This approach is based on the replacement (substitution) of one’s personal biography. For the period of study, everyone comes up not only with a new name but also a new biography. The technique allows a person to fully immerse themselves in the fictional image of a foreign citizen. This method brings a lot of fun, especially if you use additional tools like a wanted poster template for students on www.storyboardthat.com/create/wanted-poster-template. It will make the educational process enjoyable and engaging.
2) Physical response technique
This principle of learning is based on the postulate: you cannot understand what you have not tried yourself. This approach involves the student’s silence at first. About the first 20 lessons, a student only needs to listen, read, but never talk. Only later, he is allowed to respond to what is heard or read not by words but only by actions. Everything is extremely simple: a student has to get up or lie down when there is the appropriate command. Only when the pupil accumulates enough information about the foreign language, he is allowed to respond with words, phrases, or sentences.
3) Silence technique
In the mid-60s of the 20th century, this technique of learning was developed. The main idea of this approach can be expressed as follows: a person’s language skills are inherent after birth, so the teacher should not interfere with the student and impose one’s point of view. In full accordance with this method, the tutor keeps silent. He adjusts the initial pronunciation level with color tables. Each color and symbol means a certain sound. The advantage of this technique is that the teacher’s level of English does not affect the pupil, allowing him to develop and express himself.
4) Grammar-translation method
The basics of this technique were laid in the 18th and 19th centuries. This method prevailed until the mid-50s of the last century. The main idea of such an approach is to master vocabulary and grammar. In the process of mastering, one grammatical scheme replaces another, respectively, they select certain texts that need to be translated.
First from Eng to the required language, then – vice versa. The texts are mostly artificial; the main emphasis is on understanding the grammatical scheme, not the content. The main disadvantage of this approach is that it creates the preconditions for the emergence of a communication barrier: a person cannot freely speak English.
