As Celce Murcia relates in her article, most teachers are unaware of the history behind TESOL and the varying methods that have been practiced for hundreds of years--myself included. Sure, I had heard of the audiolingual method and known about translation-based classrooms, but I never knew why the focus was on each technique and how the context helped shape these different approaches.
These separate ways of teaching a foreign/second language again trace back to the teacher's philosophy on language learning and what they view to be the purpose of instruction. How does the teacher define acquisition? What are the reasons for learning the language? These are all valuable questions to ask oneself before creating lesson plans or stepping in front of a class. In the past, I have always placed importance on the ability to actually use the language in meaningful, real-life contexts (Communicative Language Teaching). I believed this was the best (and maybe only) way to effectively teach a language. However, as Kumaravadivelu states, "Even teachers who are committed to CLT can fail to create opportunities for genuine interaction in their classroom" (62). He also mentioned the arguments against CLT in many different countries. This got me thinking, challenging myself and my own methodology. Was I really fostering student growth and meaningful production of the language? How could I be sure? Was this the "best" methodology I could be implementing in my classroom? Is there such a thing as the "best" methodology?
Reading this article also helped me to classify my philosophy within the Affective-Humanistic Approach, which sees each individual as unique and fosters a respectful, interactive, and goal-oriented classroom environment. The goal, however, is not the end-all-be-all but rather what the group collectively must word towards and help each other obtain. This also goes along with my Values-Based teaching philosophy. Thinking about my definitions of teaching and learning has been both comforting and challenging. As a teacher, you want your students to succeed, and you want everything you do to aid them in that process. So where do we go from here? There may never be conclusive scientific research that spells out what works and what doesn't. Are we doomed to trial and error approaches in the field of TESOL?
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