Silent Way

The Silent Way is a language-teaching approach created by Caleb Gattegno

that makes extensive use of silence as a teaching method.
The method emphasizes learner autonomy and active student participation.
Silence is used as a tool to achieve this goal; the teacher uses a mixture of silence
and gestures to focus students' attention, to elicit responses from them, and to
encourage them to correct their own errors.
Pronunciation is seen as fundamental to the method, with a great deal of
time spent on it each lesson. The Silent Way uses a structural syllabus and
concentrates on teaching a small number of functional and versatile words.
Translation and rote repetition are avoided, and the language is usually practiced in
meaningful contexts. Evaluation is carried out by observation, and the teacher
may never set a formal test.
One of the hallmarks of the Silent Way is the use of Cuisenaire rods, which
can be used for anything from introducing simple commands to representing
objects such as clocks and floor plans. The method also draws on color
associations to help teach pronunciation; there is a sound-color chart which is used
to teach the language sounds, colored word charts which are used for work on
sentences, and colored Fidel charts which are used to teach spelling. While the
Silent Way is not widely used in its original form, its ideas have been influential,
especially in the teaching of pronunciation.
The silent way makes use of specialized teaching materials: colored
Cuisenaire rods, the sound-color chart, word charts, and Fidel charts. The
Cuisenaire rods are wooden, and come in ten different lengths, but identical cross-
section; each length has its own assigned color. The rods are used in a wide variety
of situations in the classroom. At the beginning stages they can be used to practice
colors and numbers, and later they can be used in more complex grammar. For
example, to teach prepositions the teacher could use the statement "The blue rod is
between the green one and the yellow one". They can also be used more abstractly,
perhaps to represent a clock when students are learning about time.
A Silent Way classroom also makes extensive use of peer correction.
Students are encouraged to help their classmates when they have trouble with any
particular feature of the language. This help should be made in a cooperative
fashion, not a competitive one. One of the teacher's tasks is to monitor these
interactions so that they are helpful and do not interfere with students' learning.
 A set of Cuisenaire rods

Gattegno's original sound-color chart for English. This type of chart is

used right from the beginning stages to teach pronunciation and word stress.
 A word chart. Its color-coding enables the teacher to remain silent while
students work out pronunciation by themselves.

Audio-lingual method
The audio-lingual method or Army Method is a method used in teaching
foreign languages. It is based on behaviorist theory, which postulates that certain
traits of living things, and in this case humans, could be trained through a system
of reinforcement. The correct use of a trait would receive positive feedback while
incorrect use of that trait would receive negative feedback.
This approach to language learning was similar to another, earlier method
called the direct method. Like the direct method, the audio-lingual method advised
that students should be taught a language directly, without using the students'
native language to explain new words or grammar in target language. However,
unlike the direct method, the audio-lingual method did not focus on teaching
vocabulary. Rather, the teacher drilled students in the use of grammar.
Applied to language instruction, and often within the context of the language
lab, it means that the instructor would present the correct model of a sentence and
the students would have to repeat it. The teacher would then continue by
presenting new words for the students to sample in the same structure. In audio-
lingualism, there is no explicit grammar instruction: everything is simply
memorized in form.
The idea is for the students to practice the particular construct until they can
use it spontaneously. The lessons are built on static drills in which the students
have little or no control on their own output; the teacher is expecting a particular
response and not providing the desired response will result in a student receiving
negative feedback. This type of activity, for the foundation of language learning, is
in direct opposition with communicative language teaching.
The theory emphasizes the listening-speaking-reading-writing order.
Listening is important in developing speaking proficiency and so receives
particular emphasis. There are strong arguments, both physiological and
psychological, for combining speaking practice with training in listening
comprehension.
Speaking is effective through listening. By hearing the sounds, articulation
is more accurate, with differentiation of sounds, memorization and internalization
of proper auditory sounds images. Development of a feel for the new language
gains interest for the language.
There has been practically no study or experiments to determine how much
time should be taken between listening experience and speaking practice.
 Listening comprehension is most neglected in language learning. It is
generally treated as incidental to speaking rather than as a foundation for it. Texts,
guides and course of study contain tests for evaluating progress in listening
comprehension, but they rarely contain specific learning materials designed for the
systematic development of this skill.
Here are some materials that can be adapted for improving listening
comprehension:
 The dialogue should be presented as a story, in the foreign language, using
simple language.
 The meaning of some of the new words and expressions that will appear in
the dialogue should be explained through gestures, visual aids, synonyms,
etc.
 The idea is to teach the content in the story.
 Different role-plays can be used to present the dialogue.
 Without stopping, the dialogue can be gone through to hear how the entire
conversation sounds at normal speed.
True and false activity can improve comprehension. The entire dialogue can
be repeated at normal rate speed. The student can close his eyes to eliminate
distractions and increase his listening concentration.A listening comprehension test
can be given.
Listening comprehension practice can be given using dialogues from other
courses of study or recorded materials that contain most of the language that has
previously been learned by the students. The speaking practice would begin after
listening comprehension. The students will be ready to speak at this time. Speaking
practice can proceed according to sequence.
Pattern practice can be based on material taken from the dialogue.
Performance of the dialogue in front of class and at the seats with the
students changing roles and partners from time to time.
Dialogue can be adapted.
Memorization of techniques suggested represent an approach that will
enable student to memorize larger segments at a time and perform dialogues as a
whole with more confidence. In the meantime, if teachers are willing to use their
imagination and experiment with new techniques, many ways can be found to
emphasize the audio in the method.
 The Direct method
The direct method of teaching, which is sometimes called the natural method,
and is often (but not exclusively) used in teaching foreign languages, refrains from
using the learners' native language and uses only the target language.
The direct method in teaching a language is directly establishing an immediate and
audiovisual association between experience and expression, words and phrases,
idioms and meanings, rules and performances through the teachers' body and
mental skills, without any help of the learners' mother tongue.
1. Direct method of teaching languages aims to build a direct way into the
world of the target language making a relation between experience and
language, word and idea, thought and expression rule and performance.
2. This method intends for students to learn how to communicate in the target
language
3. This method is based on the assumption that the learner should experience
the new language in the same way as he/she experienced his/her mother
tongue without considering the existence of his/her mother tongue.

Techniques
1. Question/answer exercise – the teacher asks questions of any type and the
student answers.
2. Dictation – the teacher chooses a grade-appropriate passage and reads it
aloud.
3. Reading aloud – the students take turns reading sections of a passage, play
or a dialogue aloud.
4. Student self-correction – when a student makes a mistake the teacher offers
him/her a second chance by giving a choice.
5. Conversation practice – the students are given an opportunity to ask their
own questions to the other students or to the teacher. This enables both a
teacher-learner interaction as well as a learner-learner interaction.
6. Paragraph writing – the students are asked to write a passage in their own
words
Merits
1. Facilitates understanding of language – understanding of the target language
becomes easier due to the inhibition of the linguistic interferences from the
mother tongue, it establishes a direct bond between contexts and helps in
understanding directly what is heard and read
2. Improves fluency of speech – fluency of speech results in easier writing, it
tends to improve expression, expression in writing, and it is a quick way of
learning and expanding vocabulary
3. Aids reading – reading becomes easier and more pleasant, and it also
promotes a habit of critical studying
4. Improves the development of language sense
5. Full of activities, which make it interesting and exciting
6. Emphasizes the target language by helping the pupil express their thoughts
and feelings directly in target language without using their mother tongue
7. Develops listening, speaking, reading.
8. Increased employment opportunities
9. Helps in bringing words from passive vocabulary into active vocabulary
10.Helps in proceeding the English language from particular to general, it
bridges the gap between practice and theory
11.Makes use of audio-visual aids and also facilitates reading and writing
12.Facilitates alertness and participation of students.