Presented by: Diodelys Santos
Id: 4-757-565
The Grammar Translation Method
►16th century: Latin no longer the dominant international
language of communication.
 ►Latin = a subject in the school curriculum
 ►The study of classical Latin and an analysis of its grammar and
rhetoric became the model for foreign language study in the 17th
and 18th centuries.
 ►By the 19th century, this approach had become the standard
way of studying foreign languages. It was known as “the Prussian
Method”. It dominated FLT from the 1840s to the 1940s.
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►It was originally used to teach 'dead' languages and literatures
such as Latin and Greek
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►It is still used in situations where understanding literary texts is
the primary focus of foreign language study and there is little
need for a speaking knowledge of the language.
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►This approach was based on the thought that mental discipline
was essential for strengthening the powers of the mind
Characteristics
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focus on learning the grammar rules and vocabulary of the target
language in order to read literature in the target language
A fundamental goal for students is to be able to translate one
language into the other
The main skills to de developed are reading and writing.
Classes are teacher-centred
Grammar is taught deductively
Memorization of grammar rules, grammatical paradigms and
vocabulary
The sentence is the basic unit of teaching and language practice.
Much of the lesson is devoted to translating sentences into and
out of the target language, and it is this focus on the sentence that
is a distinctive feature of the method.
Accuracy is emphasized
The student's native language is the medium of instruction. It is
used to explain new items and to enable comparisons to be made
between the foreign language and the student's native language.