The Grammar Translation Method (GTM)

GTM is not a new thing in language learning, which is only slightly different. The name has been used by language teachers for a few years ago. In ancient times this method is called the "classical method" of the time used in the classical language learning, such as Latin and Greek. At the beginning of this century, this method is used to assist students in reading and understanding a foreign language literature. But it is also expected that it is in studying or understanding the grammar of the desired target language, students will become more familiar with the language rules in accordance with the source language and a deeper understanding of this will further help them in reading and writing according to the source language to be better.

Finally concluded that it is studying a foreign language will help the development of students in developing intellectual, it can be recognized that the students will never use the target language, but learning is very much needed mental.

Description

Simply, Grammar Translation Method is a method to learn language by learning the grammar through translating the target language to the native language of learner.

Characteristic

The grammar translation method has eihgt caracteristic

1. Classes are taught in the mother tongue, with little active use of the target language.

2. Much vocabulary is taught in the form of lists of isolated words.

3. Long elaborate explanations of the intricacies of grammar are given.

4. Grammar provides the rules for putting words together, and instruction often focuses on the form and inflection of words.

5. Reading of difficult classical texts is begun early.

6. Little attention is paid to the content of texts, which are treated as exercises in grammatical analysis.

7. Often the only drills are exercises in translating disconnected sentences from the target language into the mother tongue.

8. Little or no attention is given to pronunciation.

Steps of Grammar Translation Method

Ø  The teacher asks the students to read few lines from the text. And the teacher asks them to translate into L1 and teacher helps them with new words.

Ø  The teacher answers all their questions in L1.

Ø   The students write the answers for the questions.

Ø  The answers are asked to translate the words listed into their L1. The teacher helps them in synonyms, antonyms and meanings for these words.

Ø  The teacher works the grammar exercises and teacher presents grammar rules.

Ø  The students translate and the students memorize the read out listed words and frame sentences for the vocabulary items.

Ø  Students write the composition based on the passage.

Techniques

The grammar translation method has nine techniques :

1. Translation of a Literary Passage (Translating target language to native language)

2. Reading Comprehension Questions (Finding information in a passage, making inferences and relating to personal experience)

3. Antonyms/Synonyms (Finding antonyms and synonyms for words or sets of words).

4. Cognates (Learning spelling/sound patterns that correspond between L1 and the target language)

5. Deductive Application of Rule (Understanding grammar rules and their exceptions, then applying them to new examples)

6. Fill-in-the-blanks (Filling in gaps in sentences with new words or items of a particular grammar type).

7. Memorization (Memorizing vocabulary lists, grammatical rules and grammatical paradigms)

8. Use Words in Sentences (Students create sentences to illustrate they know the meaning and use of new words)

9. Composition (Students write about a topic using the target language).

    

Advantages

a. The phraseology of the target language is quickly explained. Translation is the easiest way of explaining meanings or words and phrases from one language into another. Any other method of explaining vocabulary items in the second language is found time consuming. A lot of time is wasted if the meanings of lexical items are explained through definitions and illustrations in the second language. Further, learners acquire some short of accuracy in understanding synonyms in the source language and the target language.

b. The grammar translation method develops the art of translation.

c. The use mother tongue helps the students in vocabulary getting. It saved time and more effective.

d. The words and phrase are easily learnt and explained if translation method is use.

e. The working knowledge of mother tongue helps them to learnt grammar of a foreign language.

f. English grammar can be easily taught by comparing with the grammar of mother tongue. 

g. Teacher’s labor is saved. Since the textbooks are taught through the medium of the mother tongue, the teacher may ask comprehension questions on the text taught in the mother tongue. Pupils will not have much difficulty in responding to questions on the mother tongue. So, the teacher can easily assess whether the students have learnt what he has taught them. Communication between the teacher and the learners does not cause linguistic problems. Even who are not fluent in English can teach English through this method. That is perhaps the reason why this method has been practiced so widely and has survived so long.

    

Disadvantages

a. It is an unnatural method. The natural order of learning a language is listening, speaking, reading and writing. That is the way how the child learns his mother tongue in natural surroundings. But in the Grammar Translation Method the teaching of the second language starts with the teaching of reading. Thus, the learning process is reversed. This poses problems.

b. Speech is neglected. The Grammar Translation Method lays emphasis on reading and writing. It neglects speech. Thus, the students who are taught English through this method fail to express themselves adequately in spoken English. Even at the undergraduate stage they feel shy of communicating through English. It has been observed that in a class, which is taught English through this method, learners listen to the mother tongue more than that to the second/foreign language. Since language learning involves habit formation such students fail to acquire habit of speaking English. Thus, they have to pay a heavy price for being taught through this method.

c. Exact translation is not possible. Translation is, indeed, a difficult task and exact translation from one language to another is not always possible. A language is the result of various customs, traditions, and modes of behavior of a speech community and these traditions differ from community to community. There are several lexical items in one language, which have no synonyms/equivalents in another language. For instance, the meaning of the English word ‘table’ does not fit in such expression as the ‘table of contents’, ‘table of figures’, ‘multiplication table’, ‘time table’ and ‘table the resolution’, etc. English prepositions are also difficult to translate. Consider sentences such as ‘We see with our eyes’, ‘Bombay is far from Delhi’, ‘He died of cholera’, He succeeded through hard work’. In these sentences ‘with’, ‘from’, ‘of’, ‘through’ can be translated into the Hindi preposition ‘se’ and vice versa. Each language has its own structure, idiom and usage, which do not have their exact counterparts in another language. Thus, translation should be considered an index of one’s proficiency in a language.

d. It does not give pattern practice. A person can learn a language only when he internalizes its patterns to the extent that they form his habit. But the Grammar Translation Method does not provide any such practice to the learner of a language. It rather attempts to teach language through rules and not by use. Researchers in linguistics have proved that to speak any language, whether native or foreign entirely by rule is quite impossible. Language learning means acquiring certain skills, which can be learnt through practice and not by just memorizing rules. The persons who have learnt a foreign or second language through this method find it difficult to give up the habit of first thinking in their mother tongue and than translating their ideas into the second language. They, therefore, fail to get proficiency in the second language approximating that in the first language. The method, therefore, suffers from certain weaknesses for which there is no remedy

   

Reviewing the Principles

1.      What are the goals of teacher who use the grammar translation method?

·        A fundamental purpose of learning a foreign language is to be able to read literature written in the target language.

·         Student can learn about the grammar rules and vocabulary of the target language.

·         Studying a foreign language provides student with good mental exercise which helps develop their minds.

2.      What is the Role of the teacher? What is the role of the students?

·      The teacher is authority in the classroom. The students do as the teacher says so they can learn what the teacher knows.

3.      What are some characteristics of the teaching/learning process?

·         Students are thought to translate from one language to another language.

·         Student study grammar deductively

·         The students learn grammatical paradigms such as verb conjunctions.

4.      What is the nature of student-teacher interaction? What is the nature of student-student interaction?

·         Most of the interaction in the classroom is from the teacher to the student. There is little student initiation and little student- student interaction.

5.      How are the feelings of the students dealt with?

·         There are no principles of the method which relate to this area.

6.      How is the language viewed? How is culture viewed?

·         Literary language is considered superior to spoken language and is therefore the language that students study.

·         Culture is viewed as consisting of literature and the fine arts.

7.      What areas of language are emphasized? What language skills are emphasized?

·      Vocabulary and grammar are emphasized. Reading and writing are the primary skills that the students work on.

8.      What is the role of the students’ native language?

·      The meaning of the target language is made clear by translating it into the students’ native language.

·      The language that is used in class is mostly the students’ native language

9.      How is evaluation accomplished?

·     Written test in which student are asked to translate from their native language to the target language. Question about the target culture or question that ask student to apply grammar rules and also common.

10.  How does the teacher respond to student errors?

·       Having the students get the correct answer is considered very important. If student make error or do not know an answer the teacher supplies them with the correct answer.

Conclusion

In learning and teaching language we have to know about approach, method, and technique. They are very important for learner and also teacher in guide our action in the class to achieve the learning objective. One of the methods is Grammar Translation Method. This method is used for the purpose of helping student read and appreciate foreign language literature; it is also hope that through the study of grammar of target language. Student would become more familiar with the grammar of their native language and that this familiar would help them speak and their native language better.  Finally it was thought that foreign language learning would help students grow intellectually, it was recognized that students would probably never use the target language but the mental exercise of learning it would be beneficial.