The Teacher and the Samurai
Recommended reading for future educators and samurai warriors.
Samurai master Miyamoto Musashi (in The Book of the Five Rings, 1644) once
compared the samurai warrior to that of a carpenter: they use a variety of
tools. Just as a carpenter uses different tools for different jobs, a teacher should
have a variety of methods and techniques at his disposal.
A teacher must not spurn any technique just
because these are “traditional” or “old-fashioned”. Nor should he or she be on
the constant chase for the “new” or ‘innovative” just for the sake of being new
or innovative. Writing about favoring a particular of weapon, Musashi says,
From olden times it has been said: “Great and small go together”. So do not unconditionally dislike extra-long swords. What I dislike is the inclination towards the long sword.
--Musashi is talking about martial arts
schools that favor the use of “extra-long swords” (called the tachi) while spurning the use of the normal
“long sword” (called the katana).
Their reason is that a “one inch gives one handbreadth’s advantage”. But
Musashi says of this attitude, “these are idle words of one who does not know
strategy”.
The same thing about teachers. A teacher
who is too dependent on a single technique is does not really know how to teach.
First, let us define “teaching strategy”,
“teaching method”, and “teaching technique”. Here, I use the term teaching strategy to mean the way or plan that a teacher devises in order
to teach a lesson. A teaching method
is a set of techniques that center on
certain principles. Lastly, teaching
techniques are individual activities to teach a lesson.
Here, we will outline of three teaching
methods and the historical background of each: the Grammar-Translation Method,
the Audio-Lingual Method, and the Communicative Approaches.
(Photo from Mentalfloss.Com)
The
Grammar-Translation Method was devised to study the
“classical languages”: Greek and Latin. It emphasizes the learning of
vocabulary and grammar in the second/foreign language. The goal is to be able
to read and write in the target language. In use for many centuries, this has
been called the “Classical Method”. We could say that is “the oldest trick in
the book”. But it does not mean that we should reject it just because it is
“traditional”. Some of the techniques are still in use today—such as vocabulary
lists, grammar rules, and composition writing—testament to this method’s
durability.
Since this method is focused on reading and
writing, it does not equip a person for listening and speaking. Thus, a student
may be able to explain the grammar rules of a language but unable to hold even
a simple conversation. This leads us to the next teaching method.
(Photo from ICCS.Edu.Ph)
The
Audio-Lingual Method was devised for students to learn
quickly how to speak in the target language. It was developed in the United States during
World War II, when it was important for diplomats and military officers going
abroad to be able to learn how to speak foreign languages quickly. The method
emphasizes repetition and drill, mimicry and memorization (“mim-mem”). Because
of constant drilling, students learn how to answer automatically routine
questions. But here lies its greatest weakness: a person gets too dependent on
memorized scripts but once the conversation departs from the script, they can
no longer cope. Hence, another method—which is actually a set of methods—was
developed.
(Photo from Alphadex.Ro)
The
Communicative Approaches refers to sets of
techniques designed for students to be able to use the target language in communicative
situations. It was created as a response to the artificiality of the Audio-Lingual and the Grammar Translation methods. The emphasis is on fluency, not accuracy—that is, a student may lapse into some errors in grammar
but as long as he or she is understood, it is all right. This is the method
currently in favor with educators today. The techniques under this method, like
language games, role-playing, the use of comics, etc., promise to make language
learning more exciting for the students.
(Watch out for techniques under each method in future posts here in Instructional Minutes.)
