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Theories of Teaching in Language Teaching

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 Theories of Teaching in Language Teaching
Jack C Richards

The field of TESOL is shaped in substantial ways by how the nature of language teaching is
conceptualized. As with teaching in general, language teaching can be conceived in many different
ways,for example as a science, a technology, a craft, or an art. Different views of language teaching
lead to different views as to what the essential skills of teaching are, and different approaches to the
preparation of teachers. The purpose of this paper is to examine conceptualizations of teaching
which are found in TESOL and to consider the implications of different views of teaching for second
language teacher education.

In an important paper on the relationship between theories of teaching and teaching skills, Zahorik
(1986) classifies conceptions of teaching into three main categories: Science-Research conceptions,
Theory-Philosophy conceptions, and Art-Craft conceptions. I will take this classification as my
starting point, illustrating it with examples from the field of language teaching. I will then examine
how each conception of teaching leads to differences in our understanding of what the essential skills
of teaching are.

1. Science-Research Conceptions
Science-Researchconceptions of language teaching are derived from research and are supported by
experimentation and empirical investigation. Zahorik includes operationalizing learning principles,
following a tested model, and doing what effective teachers do, as examples of Science-Research
conceptions.

Operationalizing learning principles

This approach involves developing teaching principles from research on memory, transfer, motivation,
and other factors believed to be important in learning. Mastery learning and Programmed Learning
are examples of science-research conceptions of teaching in general education. In TESOL,
Audiolingualism, Task-Based Language Teaching, and Learner Training represent applications of
learning research to language teaching.

Audiolingualism was derived from research on learning associated with behavioral psychology.
Laboratory studies had shown that learning could be successfully manipulated if 3 elements were
identified: a stimulus, which serves to elicit behavior, a response, triggered by a stimulus, and
reinforcement, which serves to mark the response as being appropriate (or inappropriate) and
encourages the repetition (or suppression) of the response in the future. Translated into a teaching
method this led to the Audiolingual Method, in which language learning was seen as a process of
habit formation and in which target language patterns were presented for memorization and
learning through dialogs and drills.

A more recent example of attempts to develop a teaching methodology from learning research is
referred to as Task-Based Language Teaching. Proponents of Task-Based Language Teaching point

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out that second language acquisition research shows that successful language learning involves
learners in negotiation of meaning. In the process of negotiating with a speaker of the target
language, the learner receives the kind of input needed to facilitate learning. It is proposed that
classroom taskswhich involve negotiation of meaning should form the basis of the language teaching
curriculum, and that tasks can be used to facilitate practice of both of language forms and
communicative functions. Research is intended to enable designers to know what kinds of taskscan
best facilitate acquisition of specific target language structures and functions. Prahbu (1983)
initiated a large-scale application of this approach in schools in India, developing a syllabus and
associatedteaching materials around three major types of tasks: information-gap tasks, opinion-gap
tasks, and reasoning-gap tasks.

Learner Training is an approach which draws on research on the cognitive styles and learning
strategies used by learners in carrying out different classroom learning tasks. This research may
involve observing learners, asking them to introspect about their learning strategies, or probing
learners in other ways. Once successful learning strategies are identified, these can be taught to
other learners. This is referred to as Learner Training.

Following a tested model of teaching

This approach involves applying the results of empirical or experimental research to teaching. In this
approach, a view of good teaching is developed through logical reasoning and previous research;
good teaching is defined in terms of speeific acts (Zahorik, 1986, 21); An example of research of
this kind which has been used to develop theories of good teaching across both regular and ESL
classrooms is research on teachers question patterns and wait time. Long (1984) argued that
research had established the contribution of these to the quality of classroom interaction in SL
classrooms. In applying this research to teacher preparation, a simple training model was developed
in which teachers were taught the differences between display questions (those for which answers
are known in advance) and referential questions (those for which answers are not known) and the
advantages of providing longer wait-time after questions. Teachers question use and wait-time
before and after training were measured, and it was found that the training modules affected
teaching behaviors, and that the new behaviors affected student participation patterns in ways
believed to be significant for these students language acquisition (Long 1984:vi).

With approaches of this kind, if the specific teaching behaviors such as question patterns and wait
time are effective in bringing about second language acquisition, a conception of good teaching will
have been identified and validated.

Doing what effective teachers do

Another approach to developing a theory of teaching is to derive teaching principles from studies of
the practices of effective teachers. This involves identifying effective teachers and then studying
their teaching practices. Effective teachers are typically defined as those whose students perform
better on standardized achievement tests.
.
In a study of effective teachers in bilingual education programs in California and Hawaii for
example, Tikunoff (1985) observed teachers to find out how they organize instruction, structure

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teaching activities, and enhance student performance on tasks. Teachers were interviewed to
determine their instructional philosophies and goals, and the demands they structured into class
tasks. An analysis of the classroom data revealed that there was a clear linkage between

1. teachers ability to clearly specify the intent of instruction, and a belief that students could achieve
accuracy in instructional tasks

2. the organization and delivery of instruction such that tasks and institutional demands reflected this
intent, requiring intended student responses, and

3. the fidelity of student consequences with intended outcomes.

In a summary of research of this kind (Blum, 1984: 3-6) 12 characteristics of effective teaching were
identified:

1. Instruction is guided by a preplanned curriculum.

2. There are high expectations for student learning.
3. Students are carefully oriented to lessons.
4. Instruction is clear and focused.
5. Learning progress is monitored closely.
6. When students dont understand, they are retaught.
7. Class time is used for learning.
8. There are smooth and efficient classroom routines.
9. Instructional groups formed in the classroom fit instructional needs.
10. Standards for classroom behavior are high.
11. Personal interactions between teachers and students are positive.
12. Incentives and rewards for students are used to promote exceliilence.

Advocates of effective teaching use findings of this kind asguidelines to train teachers. An approach
to teaching which reflects these principles has been labelled Direct Instruction or Active
Teaching.

2. Theory-Philosophy Conceptions
The next approach to theories of teaching Zahorik terms theory-philosophy conceptions. Their
truth is not based on a posteriori conditions or on what works. Rather, their truth is based on what
ought to work or what is morally right (Zahorik, 1986,22). Teaching conceptions which are derived
from what ought to work are essentially rationalist in approach, while those which are derived from
beliefs about what is viewed as morally right are values-based approaches.

Theory-based approaches
The conceptions underlying many teaching methods or proposals can be characterized as theory-
based or rationalist in approach. This suggeststhat the theory underlying the method is ascertained
through the use of reason or rational thought. Systematic and principled thinking is used to support
the method, rather than empirical investigation. These conceptions of teaching hence tend not to
draw support from classroom results as such (e.g. by showing pre and post test gains resulting from
the use of a method), but defend themselves through logical argumentation.

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Examples of theory or rationally-based approaches in TESOL are Communicative Language
Teaching, and the Silent Way. Each of these is based on a set of carefully elaborated assumptions.

Communicative Language Teaching for example, arose as a reaction to grammar-based approaches

to teaching realized in teaching materials, syllabuses, and teaching methods in the 1960s. The
proponents of Communicative Language Teaching established it through convincing critiques of the
inadequacy of the linguistic and pedagogical theory underlying grammar-based approaches. It was
often described as a principled approach. Communicative Language Teaching was an attempt to
operationalize the concept of communicative competence and to apply it across all levels of
language program design, from theory, to syllabus design, to teaching techniques. Its proponents
however never felt compelled to produce any evidence to demonstrate that learning was more
successfulif communicative teaching methods and materials were adopted, since the theory itself
was considered sufficient itself to justify the approach.

A method such as The Silent Way on the other hand, is derived not so much from a linguistic theory
but a learning theory. It is based on a set of claims and beliefs asto how learning takes place in adults.
The classroom procedures which are distinctive to the method attempt to draw on the learning
principles espoused by Gattegno, who attests (1982.203):

there are no really dificult forms which cannot be illustrated through the proper situation involving rods
and actions on them about which one makes statements by introducing specific words whose associated
meaning is obvious. What teachers must do is to arrange forpractice so that students' mindare triggered
to use these new worak spontaneous&.

Gattegno takes the theory underlying the Silent Way as self-evident; neither the theory nor the
method have been subject to any form of empirical verification.

Values-based approaches
A different approach to a theory of teaching is to develop a teaching model from the values one holds
about teachers, learners, classrooms, and the role of education in society. Certain ways of going
about teaching and learning are then seen to be educationally justifiable and should therefore form
the basis of teaching practice. In some situations this leads to certain approaches to teaching being
viewed as politically justifiable (and therefore good) and others seen as not morally, ethically or
politically supportable (and therefore bad).

Values-based approaches in education are not hard to identify. For example advocates of literature
in the language curriculum, school-based curriculum development or the teacher as action
researcher essentially appeal to educational or social value systems in justifying their proposals.

Other examples of value-based approaches inlanguage teaching include team teaching, humanistic
approaches, the learner-centred curriculum movement, and reflective-teaching. Team teaching
is based on a view that teachers work best when they work in collaboration with a peer, and that the
interaction with a colleague in all phases of teaching is beneficial to both teachers and learners.

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Humanistic approaches in language teaching refer to approaches which emphasize the development
of human values, growth in self-awareness and in the understanding of others, sensitivity to human
feelings and emotions, and active student involvement in learning and in the way human learning
takes place. Community Language Learning is sometimes cited as an example of a humanistic
approach; asis the work of Stevick and Moskawitz.

The Learner Centered Curriculum is one of a number of terms used to refer to approaches to
language teaching which are based on the belief that learners are self-directed responsible decision
makers. Learners are seen to learn in different ways and, to have different needs and interests.
Language programs and the teachers who work in them should therefore set out to provide learners
with efficient learning strategies, to assist learners identify their own preferred ways of learning, to
develop skills needed to negotiate the curriculum, to encourage learners to set their own objectives,
to encourage learners to adopt realistic goals and time frames, and to develop learners skills in self-
evaluation.

Reflective Teaching is an approach to teaching which is based on a belief that teachers can improve
their understanding of teaching and the quality of their own teaching by reflecting critically on their
teaching experiences. In teacher education, activities which seek to develop a reflective approach
to teaching aim to develop the skills of considering the teaching process thoughtfully, analytically
and objectively, as a way of improving classroom practices. This is brought about through using
procedures which require teachers to collect data on their own teaching practices (i.e. through audio
or video recordings), to reflect on their own decision-making (e.g. through journal writing) and to
examine their own values and assumptions about teaching (i.e. through peer or group discussion, or
observation of videos).

3. Art-Craft Conceptions
Another way of conceptualizing teaching is to view it as an art or craft, and as something which
depends upon the teachers individual skill and personality. Zahorick (1986:22) characterizes this
approach to teaching in these items:

The essenceof this view of good teaching is invention and personalization. A good teacher is a person who
assessesthe needs andpossibilities of a situation and createsand usespractices that have promise for that
situation.

Art-craft approaches to teaching seek to develop teaching as a unique set of personal skills which
teachers apply in different ways according to the demands of specific situations. There are no
general methods of teaching, rather, teachers should develop an approach to teaching which allows
them to be themselves and do what they feel is best. Teacher-decision making is an essential
competency in this approach, because a good teacher is seen asone who analysesa situation, realizes
that a range of options is available based on the particular class circumstances, and then selects an
alternative which is likely to be most effective for the circumstances. This does not deny the value
of knowing about different methods of teaching and how to use them, but it suggests that
commitment to a single method of teaching may impede the teachers full potential as a teacher.
4. The Essential Skills of Teaching
A central issue in a theory or conception of teaching is what the essential skills of teaching are
assumed to be. Science-research conceptions, Theory-Philosophy conceptions, and Art-Craft
conceptions, represent different points of view about what teaching is. Science-researchconceptions
use learning theory or learning research to validate selection of instructional tasks and tend to
support the use of specific teaching strategies and techniques. Teachers are expected to select and
monitor learners performance on tasks to ensure that the tasks are generating the appropriate use
of language or choice of learning strategy. The Effective Teaching model of teaching is similarly a
top-down philosophy of teaching, in the sensethat once the characteristics of effective teaching are
identified, teachers must aim to implement such practices in their own classes.

Theory-Philosophy conceptions require teachers first to understand the theory underlying the
methodology, and then to teach in such a way that the theory is realized in classroom practice. With
Communicative Language Teaching for example, lessons,syllabi, materials and teaching techniques
can be judged as more or less communicative. Specifications asto what constitutes communicative
teaching have been proposed, and a teachers performance can be assessedaccording to the degree
of communicativeness found in his or her lessons. Likewise Gattegnos view on teaching which
form the basis of The Silent Way lead to prescriptions as to what teachers should and should not do
in the classroom. The essential skills the teacher needs to acquire are those that reflect the theory
and spirit of the Silent Way Approach. There is little room for personal interpretations of the
method. *

Philosophical or value-based approaches are prescriptive in a different kind of way, since the choice
of instructional means in this case is not based on educational criteria (e.g. on effectiveness or
learning criteria) but on a wider set of values which are not subject to accountability (e.g. religious,
political, social or personal beliefs). Art-Craft conceptions on the other hand are more bottom-up
than top-down. Teachers should not set out to look for a general method of teaching or to master
a particular set of teaching skills but should constantly try to discover things that work, discarding old
practices and taking on board new ones.

The different principles underlying the three conceptions of teaching can thus be summarized in
terms of the following statements of what teachers should do according to each conception of
teaching.
Science-research conceptions:
These seethe essentialskills in teaching as the following:
- Understand the learning principles.
- Develop tasks and activities basedon the learning principles.
- Monitor studentsperformance on tasksto seethat desired performance on tasksis being achieved.
Theory-Philosophy conceptions:
These seethe essentialskills in teaching as:
Understand the theory and the principles.
Selectsyllabi, materials and tasksbasedon the theory.
- Monitor your teaching to seethat it confirms to the theory.
In the caseof values-basedapproaches,the essentialskills in teaching are:
Understand the valuesbehind the approach.
Select only those educational meanswhich conform to thesevalues.

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 Monitor the implementation processto ensurethat the value systemis being maintained.
Art-Craft Conceptions:
From this approach, the essential skills of teaching are:
Treat eachteaching situation as unique.
- Identify the particular characteristicsof eachsituation.
m Try out different teaching strategies.
- Develop personal approachesto teaching.

Since these three conceptions of teaching offer quite different perspectives on what the essential
skills of teaching are, it is not the case that they can simply be regarded as alternatives, which can be
exchanged according to the whims of the moment. Eclecticism is not an option here, since the
different conceptions of teaching represent fundamentally different representations of what teaching
is and how teachers should approach their work.

However it is possible to view these three conceptions as forming a continuum. Teachers entering
the teaching profession need technical competence in teaching, and the confidence to teach
according to proven principles. Science-research conceptions of teaching might well provide a good
starting point for inexperienced teachers. As they gain experience, they can then modify and adapt
these initial theories of teaching, moving towards the more interpretive views of teaching implicit in
theory-philosophy conceptions. Eventually as they develop their own personal theories of teaching,
they can teach more from an art-craft approach, creating teaching approaches according to the
particular constraints and dynamics of the situations in which they work. In this way teacher
development can be seen as a process of on-going self-discovery and self-renewal, as top-down
approaches to teaching become replaced by more bottom-up approaches, or approaches which
blend the two. This moves the teachers work beyond the routine, creating both the challenges and
rewards of teaching.

References
Blum, R.E. (1984). Effective Schooling Practices: A Research Synthesis. Portland, Ore: Northwest
Regional Educational Laboratory.

Gattegno, C. (1982). Teaching Foreign Languages in Schools. New York: Educational Solutions.

Long, M. H. (1984). The Effect of Teachers Questioning Patterns and Wait-Times. Dept of ESL,
University of Hawaii.

Prahbu, N.S. (1983). Procedural syllabuses. Paper presented at the RELC Seminar, Singapore.

Tikunoff, W. S (1985). Developing Student Functional Proficiency for LEP students. Portland, Ore:
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory.

Zahoric, John A. (1986). Acquiring teaching skills. Journal of Teacher Education, (March-April),
21-25.

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