The Silent Way

C. Gattegno

Background

Although Audiolingualism is widely used all

over the world, it was heavily criticized in the

early 1960s.

Both Behaviorism (psychological foundation)

and Structuralism (linguistic foundation) were

attacked by linguists and psychologists.

Background

Human is creative, so mimicry, memorization,

repetition and parrot learning (Behaviorism) do

not lead to real learning.

Language is not confined to a limited number of

structures (as opposed to Structuralism). Best

evidence: new sentences that children make in

early life.

Background

Language learning is not the outcome of habit

formation (Behaviorism). It is the process of

creative rule formation (Cognitive Psychology)

Introduction

Language learning is not the passive process

of stimulus → response → behavior. Learners

are actively involved in discovering L2 rules.

Gattegno’s “Silent Way” was not the outcome

of Cognitive Psychology, but in line with the

theory. That is, both assign an active role to the

learner.

Introduction

Teacher should be silent as much as possible

and learners should be encouraged to produce

as much language as possible.

The Silent Way student is expected to

become”independent, autonomous and

responsible” (Gattegno, 1976)

Tell me and I forget,

teach me and I remember,

involve me and I learn.Benjamin Franklin

The Silent Way is related to what we called “problem-

solving approaches to learning.” It can be represented in

the words of Benjamin Franklin. (Richards & Rogers, 1987)

Principles

● Teachers should concentrate on how

students learn, not on how to teach

● Imitation and drill are not the primary means

by which students learn

● Learning consists of trial and error,

deliberate experimentation, suspending

judgement, and revising conclusions

Principles cont’d

● learners draw on everything that they

already know, especially their native

language

● The teacher must not interfere with the

learning process

These principles situate the Silent Way in the

tradition of discovery learning, that sees

learning as a creative problem-solving activity.

Silence…(as a vehicle of learning)

● to focus students' attention

● to elicit student responses

● to encourage them to correct their own

errors

Teachers are still active:

● mouthing words

● using hand gestures

● encourage students to help their peers

An Example: Teaching English

sounds

To Make It Work...

“I see the Silent Way as a dynamic approach

under two conditions: a teacher who knows and

understands the philosophy of the Silent Way,

and a student of at least average motivation

willing to accept a totally different

teaching situation from that of traditional

concepts.” (Varvel, 1979)

Questions for Discussion

1. Is the value of the Silent Way largely

confined to the early stages, for teaching

numbers, colors, spatial relations?

2. What are the reasons for the teacher’s

silence in the Silent Way?

3. What does the phrase” Teaching is

subordinated to learning.” mean?

4. What techniques in the Silent are adaptable

to you?

Question for Discussion

Silent Way and similar methodologies allow the

learner to experience in a classroom setting

what Bullock (cited in D'Anglejan1978, 218)

characterizes as 'genuine learning', which takes

place in the natural setting through discovery

rather than through explicit presentation of

principles and rules. (Lantolf, 1983)

What is your response to this statement?

References

1. Lantolf, J. P. (1983). Silent way in the university setting:

an applied research report. Canadian Modern

Language Review, 43(1), 34-58..

2. Richards, J.C. & Rogers, T. S. (1987) Approaches and

Methods in Language Teaching. Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press.

3. Varvel, T. (1979) The silent way: Panacea or

pipedream?. TESOL Quarterly, 13(4), 483-494.