Page 52 - Teaching English at Primary Level: From Theory into the Classroom

Approaches to Language Teaching

Figure 2.2
Scaffolding Used
in Activities Based
on the Picture Book
The Mitten by Jan Brett

The MI Approach has received remarkable attention since it was first
proposed by Gardner. Both researchers and practitioners have especially
warmed to the idea of seeing learners as unique and capable individuals
who should be catered for using different channels of instruction. How-
ever, Franklin (2006) argues that the theory may be misleading for teachers
who are led to believe that it is possible to teach in such a way as to take
into account all the different intelligencetypes.Inaddition,categorising
pupils according to a particular intelligence may lead to negative percep-
tions, for example, labelling kinaesthetic learners as ‘low-ability’ and logical-
mathematical learners as ‘high-ability.’ While it is sensible for a teacher to
be aware of the numerous advantages of using the MI approach, it is also
important to understand the limitations of the theory.

Story-Based Approach
There are several benefits of using stories in the foreign language classroom.
From the language development perspective, they provide a natural con-
text in which learners are exposed to rich and authentic L2 input which al-
lows them to develop vocabulary and language patterns but also become
aware of the rhythm, intonation and pronunciation of the language. Stories
are characterised by predictable formats and repetitive patterns which give
children the possibility to take part in the telling of the story or recreate parts
of it.
From a socio-affective perspective, a good reason for using stories for FLT
purposes is in the fact that children generally love stories. As they become

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