Language and Learning Research

[Niko]

Teaching methods haven't changed much.

Thanks to an enormous investment in language and learning research, the past 2 decades have been marked by a better understanding of first and second language learning, learning psychology and of language itself.

However, the effects of this progress are not easy to find in language teaching classrooms of schools and colleges. In fact, the current approaches to language teaching have not developed significantly beyond the notions and assumptions of the linguistics, psychology and pedagogy (the art or profession of teaching) of the 40's and 50's.

In spite of the admittedly high attrition rate and modest proficiency attainment of most students in language classes, the majority of language courses still today differ little in design or content from their predecessors.