The Mental Note of the Month
Monthly observations from the classroom by
Todd Hawkins
10/1/99
www.mentalnotemusic.com
TPR Storytelling
Readers of previous columns know that I am a firm believer
that good teaching is largely a result of eliminating methods that do not
work. I also contend that teachers should see themselves as researchers,
constantly experimenting to find the most effective ways to give our students
lifelong skills. These two beliefs converged for me in a powerful way this
summer, as I attended a workshop by Blaine Ray, the creator of TPR Storytelling.
After seven years of teaching, I felt that I had
come up with a solid philosophy based upon my experiences as a learner
and teacher of foreign language, had eliminated many ineffective methods,
and had replaced them with some innovative and effective activities. But
after taking my ideas as far as they could go, I knew that my students
were capable of learning more, faster than I was teaching them. As soon
as I read the outline of Blaine Ray's methodology, I saw a gaping TPRS-shaped
hole in my teaching. I attended the workshop, and have spent the last two
months throwing out stuff I used to think was effective!
Ray has acheived amazing things, and I love the
way he arrived at his innovation: he knew he could do better than he was
doing, he drew from academic research, (throwing out the parts that didn't
survive the realities of the high school classroom) and developed methods
based upon the resulting real-world ideas about second-language acquisition.
Needless to say, I've tried the method, and am sad
to report that I'm no longer a fan of innovation or experimentation. Now
I am just going to recommend that you attend a TPRS workshop and teach
like Blaine Ray! Okay, I overstated that a bit, but I want you to understand:
TPRS is not a buzzword that will fade; it's not another rehash of an old
idea that you tried twenty years ago; it is not some gimmick designed to
sell materials. It is based on sound theory, easier than what most of us
do, and more fun than what most of us do. And most importantly, it works
better than anything short of sending a kid overseas.
The Basics of TPRS
The philosophical basis of TPRS is simple: People best
acquire a second language essentially like they acquire their first--by
hearing lots of speech in context, and making connections between the parts
they understand and the parts they don't. As children and as older learners,we
are capable of absorbing amazing amounts of vocabulary and structure under
the right circumstances. When we are ready, we begin to draw upon what
we have heard to produce the words we have absorbed, arranging them in
an ever-more-complex manner according to what sounds right, making grammatical
guesses based upon the rules our brain (correctly or incorrectly) deduces.
Additional philosophical mooring is furnished by
the idea of the "kinesthetic learner"--that the acquisition of knowledge
is enhanced when accompanied by physical activity. It is an extension ofthe
Total Physical Response method, in which the kinesthetic response is central.
In TPRS, students hear lots of comprehensible speech
in the target language, allowing them to absorb rules and vocabulary well
before they are expected to produce in the target language. When production
is delayed in favor of comprehensible input, the quality of the eventual
production is based upon a deep knowledge of the language as it has been
absorbed and synthesized.
Here is a brief summary of the methodology: Three
or four vocabulary target-language words are introduced to the class. English
may be used, as well as mnemonic devices for remembering the new words.Most
importantly, each word is learned along with a gesture (actual sign language
gestures may be used, making it possible to learn two languages at once!).
The teacher says the words in random order, modeling the gestures at first,
then testing for comprehension by observing the speed of students' responses.
When the words seem to have been learned, a brief story is told which uses
the words. The process is repeated until ten to fifteen words have been
taught. A longer story is then told which features these words.Comprehension
is tested on the spot every step of the way, first by the speed of the
gestures (students are required to close their eyes, so each student's
knowledge is truly measured), then by target-language questions about the
stories.
I began this year experimenting with TPRS, trying
to integrate Ray's techniques into the curriculum with which I am comfortable
(and which must be followed since most of my students move to another teacher
after one semester), and within a week, I was exuberant. In the first four
weeks, in which we usually cover one chapter of material, most of my students
already recognize about one third of the vocabulary which is normally introduced
in the fifth week. They have learned several adjectives in context, and
I get the feeling that agreement of adjectives will sound natural to them
in a few months when it's officially introduced.I fully expect that by
second semester, most students will already know about half of the vocabulary
that will be presented. All this, and I really feel like I haven't mastered
the technique yet, and feel frustrated because I'm bogged down by the tests
and assignments that I don't have time to re-do.
There are a few elements of the method that will
give teachers pause; I remember being suspicious of approaches which took
students away from drills. I have been a firm believer in homework, which
Ray virtually eliminates. But why don't we let results speak for themselves?
How many students have you seen become fluent from drills? Most of BlaineRay's
students leave school fluent, passing AP tests in astounding numbers. Don't
fight it, learn it!
TPRS has all the themes of the Mental Note philosophy
of education which has been espoused in this column: It is less work for
the teacher; It is intrinsically motivating; Its focus is long-term retention;
It is an efficient use of the taxpayers' class time. This method is not
dynamite--it's nuclear fission for second language acquisition, and the
sooner you check it out, the sooner you can taste true success as a teacher.
Click here to access Blaine Ray's
WebSite