Transcript Content-based Instruction and Students’ Motivation: A Case

The Natural Approach
As Seen
in Historical Context
Foreign Language Pedagogy
Akemi Morioka
Introduction
The paper will examine the significance of the
“Natural Approach” in the history of foreign
language education, both from the aspects of
political context and theoretical background.
It will review why the Natural Approach was
received enthusiastically at the time it was
introduced, address issues debated over time, and
finally seek an alternative approach.
Significance of FL Education in
the US and California
– "To continue to compete successfully in the global
economy and to maintain our role as a world leader, the
United States needs to ensure that its citizens develop a
broad understanding of the world, proficiency in other
languages, and knowledge of other cultures. America's
leadership also depends on building ties with those who
will guide the political, cultural, and economic
development of their countries in the future. A coherent
and coordinated international education strategy will
help us meet the twin challenges of preparing our
citizens for a global environment while continuing to
attract and educate future leaders from abroad."
(President William J. Clinton, Memorandum of April
19, 2000)
Significance of FL Education in
the US & California(continued)
Vision Statement of ACTFL (American Council
on Teaching of Foreign Language):
“All Americans should be proficient in at least one
language and culture in addition to English. …”
The 2002 Master Plan for Education in the State
of California
“…establish a foundation for future mastery of
a second language by the end of elementary
school, and attainment of oral proficiency and
full literacy in both English and at least one
other language by the end of secondary
school.”
A core academic subject under NCLB Act.
Historical Incidents and Foreign
Policies
1942: Army Special Training Program to train
linguists for service in World War II
1957: Sputnik launch-off
1958: Title VI of the National Defense and
Education Act
1983: Nation at Risk
1991: The National Security Education Act
2001: Promoting Foreign Language Education,
Title III of the Homeland Security Education Act
History of Language Learning
Theories and Approaches
The grammar-translation method ( 18th, 19th
and early 20th century)
The Audiolingual Method (ALM): very popular
from the 1940s through the 1960s, is based on
structural linguistics (structuralism) and
behavioristic psychology (Skinner's behaviorism).
Beginning in the 1950s, Noam Chomsky:
“language is creative (not memorized), and rulegoverned (not based on habit),” and “universal
phenomena of the human mind underlie all
language.” Lead a paradigm shift from
behaviorist/ empiricist view to rationalist view.
Natural Approach and Krashen’s
5 Hypotheses
In 1977, Tracy Terrell, an Associate Professor of
Spanish and Linguistics at UC Irvine at that time,
published an article in the Modern Language
Journal entitled "A Natural Approach to Second
Language Acquisition and Learning." Stephen
Krashen, currently at the University of Southern
California, later collaborated with Terrell on the
book The Natural Approach (1983). The Natural
Approach developed by Terrell and Krashen came
to exert a heavy influence on language teaching in
the United States and around the world.
Key Words of the Natural
Approach
besides Krashen’s Hypotheses
Communicative competence
Meaningful message
Learner-centered
Speech emerges
Natural Approach and Krashen’s
5 Hypotheses (Continued)
1) Language acquisition (an unconscious process
developed through using language meaningfully) is
different from language learning (consciously
learning or discovering rules about a language) and
language acquisition is the only way competence
in a second language can develop. (The
Acquisition/Learning Hypothesis)
2) Conscious learning operates only as a monitor
or editor that checks or repairs the output of what
has been acquired. (The Monitor Hypothesis)
Natural Approach and Krashen’s
5 Hypotheses (Continues)
3) Grammatical structures are acquired in a
predictable order and it does little good to try to
learn them in another order. (The Natural Order
Hypothesis).
4) People acquire language best from messages
that are just slightly beyond their current
competence.: i+1 (The Input Hypothesis)
5) The learner's emotional state can act as a filter
that impedes or blocks input necessary for
language acquisition. (The Affective Filter
Hypothesis)
Theoretical Support for Natural
Approach and Krashen’s Monitor
Hypothesis
Chomsky:
• Generativism
• A paradigm shift from the behaviorist/empiricist
view to the rationalist view.
Vygotsky:
• Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
• Cognitive approach
• Social interaction
“Natural Approach” Movement
The Natural Approach, followed by
development of Communicative Language
Teaching (CLT), resulted in less-structured
and more natural, communicative and
experimental approaches and pointed to the
importance of early real-world human
interaction in foreign language learning.
The Debate over CLT &
the Natural Approach
Kramsch(2002): “Language should be looked at not
just as a communication tool but as social semiotic
praxis, i.e., language as social practice, or
simplistically, the manner in which humans “make
meaning” about themselves through language.” (this is
in distinct contrast to the previously-held Chomsky-ian
view of language as a closed linguistic system.)
Liddicoat(1999): “Although CLT endeavored to teach
about communication in a foreign language, it failed to
lead learners to intercultural understanding, tolerance
and harmony between different cultures.”
Need for Alternatives:
Content-based Instruction (CBI)
Integrate language and content
Lends itself to various theories, such as
that of Vygotsky, Krashen and Kramsch,
and achieves beyond CLT
Fosters Intercultural Competence
Facilitates critical thinking
Social Divide/Social Fault Line
FL Ed in the US has been impacted by governmental
policies originated by historical incidents, and educational
theories in general. It reveals a profound and troubling
change in our conception of national community. The notion
of nationality has gradually shifted from political
institutions to cultural communities and commonalities as it
is observed in the trend of FL Ed theories.
FL Ed that fosters the students’ language and cultural
competence is not only a key for broadening the students’
perspectives of the world community, but also a key for
bridging the distance among linguistically- and culturallydiverse students, families and schools.
It is crucial to promote FL Ed in American public schools in
order to facilitate “intercultural competence” among
students who especially live in multi-cultural communities.
Conclusion
I feel that the most revolutionary shift in the
history of foreign language education in the US
was brought about by the genesis of the Natural
Approach. Reflecting the cognitive psychology
and humanistic approach prominent in the field of
education at that time, the Natural Approach
shifted the culture of the language classroom 180
degrees and brought a sense of community to the
students by their sharing of the experience of
learning the same language together.
Conclusion (continued)
Foreign language learning constitutes a life experience for
children and students alike, that is no less important than the
study of any other school subject. Furthermore, when
compared to some school subjects, such as math or physics,
language learning can be considered as psychologically
more closely related to one’s social identity. For example,
whether in a public or private situation, both the content and
style of one’s utterances reflects one’s feelings at the
moment, personality, gender, socioeconomic status, etc. We
can say that the humanistic aspect of the Natural Approach
has contributed to making the language classroom a place
where students are able to express themselves comfortably.