Eclectic Approach
75 ENLIGHTENED, ECLECTIC APPROACH IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING By: Christina I.T. Panggabean (Universitas PGRI Ronggolawe Tuban)
Abstract English language teachers need to explore what works and what does not work in a certain ELT context, applying what Brown (2001) names an enlightened, eclectic approach or a principled approach. They are suggested to explore all language teaching approaches or methods since no single approach or method is best suited for all teaching contexts. This paper also shows that up to the present the principles of Communicative Language Teaching is a generally acceptable norm in language teaching field which has been adopted in some current concepts of language teaching such as Learner-Centered Instruction, Cooperative and Collaborative Learning, Task-Based Instruction. Despite the well informed principles underlying CLT, teachers need to be aware of its implementation considering different contexts of teaching each teacher may face. Key words: Method, Enlightened, Eclectic Approach, English Language Teaching INTRODUCTION The theory of second (or foreign) language teaching has undergone many fluctuation and shifts over the years. The historical cycles and trends of language teaching have shown the approaches and methods that were applied in language teaching. The history of language teaching informs us that the language teaching profession was involved in what many pedagogical experts would call search. Brown (2001) clarifies that the search was for what was popularly called “methods,” or ideally a single method, generalizable across widely varying audiences that would successfully teach students a foreign language in the classroom. Before discussing further about the trends of language teaching, the term method will be clarified in the following. How is method defined? Edward Anthony in Brown (2001) states the concept of method, which was the second of three hierarchical elements, namely, approach, method, and technique, as an overall
Abstract English language teachers need to explore what works and what does not work in a certain ELT context, applying what Brown (2001) names an enlightened, eclectic approach or a principled approach. They are suggested to explore all language teaching approaches or methods since no single approach or method is best suited for all teaching contexts. This paper also shows that up to the present the principles of Communicative Language Teaching is a generally acceptable norm in language teaching field which has been adopted in some current concepts of language teaching such as Learner-Centered Instruction, Cooperative and Collaborative Learning, Task-Based Instruction. Despite the well informed principles underlying CLT, teachers need to be aware of its implementation considering different contexts of teaching each teacher may face. Key words: Method, Enlightened, Eclectic Approach, English Language Teaching INTRODUCTION The theory of second (or foreign) language teaching has undergone many fluctuation and shifts over the years. The historical cycles and trends of language teaching have shown the approaches and methods that were applied in language teaching. The history of language teaching informs us that the language teaching profession was involved in what many pedagogical experts would call search. Brown (2001) clarifies that the search was for what was popularly called “methods,” or ideally a single method, generalizable across widely varying audiences that would successfully teach students a foreign language in the classroom. Before discussing further about the trends of language teaching, the term method will be clarified in the following. How is method defined? Edward Anthony in Brown (2001) states the concept of method, which was the second of three hierarchical elements, namely, approach, method, and technique, as an overall
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