CHAPTER IX The Situational Syllabus
CHAPTER IX The Situational Syllabus
CHAPTER IX The Situational Syllabus
PBI 5B
These are the advantages of The Situational Syllabus in several ways: (1) Wilkins
considers this type of syllabus more efficient and more motivating than the
Grammatical Syllabus because it hinges round practical needs rather than abstract
analysis; (2) It is a learner-centred syllabus, since it takes account of the learner and his
needs; (3) It enables the learners to behave appropriately in various social contexts. (4)
It pays more attention to learners speaking ability in contrast to the Grammatical
Syllabus.
Even though the Situational Syllabus is widely used as a replacement for the
Grammatical Syllabus to organize language teaching materials, there is still strong
criticism against this model: (1) The main disadvantage of the Situational Syllabus is
that it is less appropriate for the students of general English, since it tries to teach
language in the context of some specific linguistic situations, which cannot be
considered as an all-encompassing yardstick for fulfilling the learners general language
needs. That is, because it is difficult to guarantee that one specific situation will be
useful in another; (2) Although some situations have a predictable script, unanticipated
things can happen in any situation, requiring a change of script or topic.; (3) Grammar
is dealt with incidentally, so the Situational Syllabus may result in gaps in learners
grammatical knowledge; (4) The Situational Syllabus does not provide us with clearly
defined criteria for the sequencing of teaching items.; (5) The Situational Syllabus is
probably most appropriate for short-term special-purpose courses: giving prospective
tourists survival skills or preparing service personnel, such as waiters or waitresses, to
deal with routine requests or fire fighters to handle emergency situations. It has limited
potential for the language learner interested in acquiring global language proficiency.
So, the conclusion of this essay is situational syllabuses are focused on the
communicative purposes rather than on linguistic structures. They can directly meet
the learner's needs in their communication. The learning process following a situational
syllabus will be naturally learner-centered rather than subject-centered and thereby it
will be more motivating to the learner.
PBI 5B