NEWS
TEACHING AND ORGANIZATION PRINCIPLES
Our teaching is based on four cornerstones: philosophical, linguistic-methodological, psychological and neurophysiological.
The philosophical cornerstone is primarily evident in the choice of pragmatism as the basis of selecting and evaluating teaching methods. If a given method does not work in practice, i.e. it does not bring about the expected results, it should be modified or replaced.
What follows from such a pragmatic attitude is that we favour an eclectic communicative approach, which was the first to point out that in essence what matters is not learning the language as a system, but learning the skills of receiving and providing information. It has also been demonstrated that the effectiveness of communication is the most important thing, and not the correctness of the message. In order to achieve this goal, it is of course necessary to become familiar with the grammatical forms of a given language, as well as the functions of speech and their relationships. However, grammatical correctness is not top priority if effective communication is taking place.
In order to develop communicative competence, it is necessary to participate in a large number of situations arranged by the teacher, which should simulate the natural conditions of communication in everyday life as close as possible. For this reason, the presentation of new language material is most often situational and visual, with limited use of the native language, with comments and explanations also restricted to a required minimum.
Practice exercises are designed in such a way as to reflect genuine language communication. Their purpose is to convey a certain message and achieve a desired outcome. That is why most dialogues, simulations, role-plays, games, riddles and discussions are conducted in pairs and small groups, so that the students are encouraged to freely communicate in the target language.
Drawing from a pragmatic outlook and rich experience, Akademos has introduced a number of modifications to the communicative method, derived mainly from psychological and neurophysiological findings.
Thus, from the once popular audiolingual method (also known as the laboratory method) we have adopted the principle of language as a habit, particularly during the early stages of language acquisition. That is why we stress the importance of frequent repetition, which is essential in developing any type of skill, and language is no exception. The roots of this principle can be traced deep in the human mind, and it has been described by behaviourist psychology.
From behaviourism we have also embraced the principle of positive reinforcement.
New material is presented to the students in such a way as to limit the number of mistakes, which in any case are treated as something quite natural.
We have also adopted from the audiolingual method the principle of memorising, which was strongly criticised by advocates of the communicative method. However, after many years of observing language learners, we may certify that the technique of memorising certain language structures, especially in the form of dialogues, is the most effective when it comes to breaking one's language barrier. Furthermore, memorising requires a high degree of concentration, which speeds up the learning process. We regard the concentration factor as the most important factor leading to improving one's memory.
Most of all, it depends on the motivation of the learner. Our contribution towards developing this factor consists of:
- Selecting instructors whose vigorous style matches the temperament of students
- Conducting the lesson in such a way as to maintain an optimal level of the student's emotions. The desired effect may be achieved by
- selecting interesting teaching material, which also refers directly to the student's workplace and his/her profession
- the use of attractive and diversified techniques
- the introduction of "wandering" native speakers
Finally, one more comment. In our activity we have adopted the rule: it's okay to break rules, if they do not meet the specific needs and expectations of the student. Between the instructor and the student there must be interactive feedback. That is why, before classes get under way, we conduct an analysis of the company's and student's expectations, and in the preliminary stage, the instructors create a psychological profile of the learner. During the course, the approach may still be modified on the basis of the learner's suggestions and the observation of his degree of acceptance. Only such a continually improving system of teaching helps to ensure the desired effects for both parties.
