Background to Language Teaching Flashcards
6 cards from real TKT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Background to Language Teaching flashcards as text
Which approach to language teaching focuses on the accurate production of grammatical forms through drills and repetition?
Answer: The Audio-lingual Method
The Audio-lingual Method uses pattern drills and repetition to build accurate habits, based on behaviourist principles that language learning is habit formation.
What is the primary aim of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT)?
Answer: To use meaningful real-world tasks as the main vehicle for language learning
TBLT places meaningful communicative tasks at the centre of instruction, so that learners acquire language through the process of completing real-world-like activities.
What does 'scaffolding' mean in a language teaching context?
Answer: The temporary support provided by a teacher or peer to help a learner accomplish a task they could not do alone
Scaffolding refers to the temporary, adjustable support (language frames, prompts, demonstrations) given to help learners perform tasks just beyond their current independent ability.
Which teaching approach is most associated with the use of the Silent Way?
Answer: The teacher uses minimal talking so learners take responsibility for speaking
In the Silent Way, developed by Caleb Gattegno, the teacher remains largely silent to encourage learner independence and self-correction, using coloured rods and charts instead of explanation.
What is the role of the 'P-P-P' framework in language teaching?
Answer: Present, Practise, Produce — a three-stage lesson structure for teaching new language
Present-Practise-Produce (PPP) is a widely used lesson framework in which the teacher presents a language item, learners practise it in controlled activities, then use it more freely in production tasks.
What does 'learner-centred teaching' emphasise?
Answer: Placing learners' needs, interests, and involvement at the forefront of classroom decision-making
Learner-centred teaching focuses on the needs, goals, preferences, and active involvement of learners, with teachers acting as facilitators rather than sole authorities.