Situational Language Teaching

The Oral Approach or Situational Language Teaching is based on a structural view of language. Speech, structures and a focus on a set of basic vocabulary items are seen as the basis of language teaching. This was a view similar to that held by American structuralists, such as Fries.  However, what distinguishes the  Situational Language Teaching approach is its emphasis on the presentation of structures in situations.

Situational Language Teaching is characterized by two major features:

• Focus on both vocabulary and reading is the most salient trait of SLT.  In fact, mastery of a set of high-frequency vocabulary items is believed to lead to good reading skills.
• An analysis of English and a classification of its prominent grammatical structures into sentence patterns (also called situational tables) is believed to help learners internalize grammatical rules.

Characteristics of situational language teaching

1. -based on how much we make English part of our daily life we can develop an habit of learning speech more proficiently.
2. -mistakes are avoided completely because they can create bad habits of learning.
3. -teaching English orally is the best way to learn the language after learning to speak you can start learning writing,
4. -using real life situations in class is the best way to make students interest in learning English.
5. -the learning of new words and new meanings have to be related to our linguistic and cultural context.
6. -using daily routine speech is essential for language learning, if the students must know which words can be used in each situation.

SLT objectives

The objectives of  Situational Language Teaching involve accurate use of vocabulary items and grammar rules in order to achieve a practical mastery of the four basic skills. Learners must be able to produce accurate pronunciation and use of grammar. The ultimate aim is to be able to respond quickly and accurately in speech situations with an automatic control of basic structures and sentence patterns.

Typical lesson

According to Situational Language Teaching, a lesson starts with stress and intonation practice followed by a revision and a presentation of new materials (mainly structures or vocabulary). The teacher then proceeds to oral practice and drilling of the elements presented. Finally, the lesson ends with reading activity or written exercises.

Advantages

Situational Language Teaching is still attractive to many teachers who still believe in the structural practice of language. Its practicality in the teaching of grammar patterns has contributed to the survival of the approach until recently. Besides, its emphasis on oral practice still attracts support among language teachers.

Disadvantages

Many premises underlying the approach have been criticized. For example, Chomsky (1957) showed that the structural and the behavioristic approaches to language are simply unfounded as they do not explain the fundamental feature of language learning: the ability to create novel and unique sentences. Children do not acquire their mother tongue through repetition and habit formation. There must be, however, an innate predisposition that leads them to a certain kind of linguistic competence-

Theory of language

The structual view of language is the view behind the Oral Approach and Situational Language Teaching. Speech was viewed as the basis of language and structure as being at the heart of speaking ability. 

Theory of learning:

1. -   language learning is habit-formation
2.  -   mistakes are bad and should be avoided, as they make bad habits
3. -   language skills are learned more effectively if they are presented orally first, then in written form
4.  -   analogy is a better foundation for language learning than analysis
5.  -   the meanings of words can be learned only in a linguistic and cultural context

Design:

Objectives

1.   -   a practical command of the four basic skills of a language, through structure
2.  - accuracy in both pronunciation and grammar
3.  - ability to respond quickly and accurately in speech situations 

Types of learning techniques and activities:

1. - A situational presentation of new sentence patterns
2. - drills to practice the patterns

Procedure:

1. -  Procedures move from controlled to freer practice of structures
2. - Procedures move from oral use of sentence patterns to their automatic use in speech, reading and writing.