Direct method (education)

The direct method of teaching, which is sometimes called the natural method, and is often (but not exclusively) used in teaching foreign languages, refrains from using the learners' native language and uses only the target language. It was established in England around 1900 and contrasts with the grammar–translation method and other traditional approaches, as well as with C.J. Dodson's bilingual method. It was adopted by key international language schools such as Berlitz, Alliance Française and Inlingua in the 1970s and many of the language departments of the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. State Department in 2012. In general, teaching focuses on the development of oral skills. Characteristic features of the direct method are: teaching concepts and vocabulary through pantomiming, real-life objects and other visual materials teaching grammar by using an inductive approach (i.e. having learners find out rules through the presentation of adequate linguistic forms in the target language) the centrality of spoken language (including a native-like pronunciation) focus on questionanswer patterns The direct method in teaching a language is directly establishing an immediate and audiovisual association between experience and expression, words and phrases, idioms and meanings, rules and performances through the teachers' body and mental skills, without any help of the learners' mother tongue. Direct method of teaching languages aims to build a direct way into the world of the target language making a relation between experience and language, word and idea, thought and expression rule and performance. This method intends for students to learn how to communicate in the target language This method is based on the assumption that the learner should experience the new language in the same way as he/she experienced his/her mother tongue without considering the existence of his/her mother tongue. No translation Concepts are taught by means of objects or by natural contexts through the mental and physical skills of the teacher only.