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PPP Basics
INTRODUCTION:
In recent years, the purely "structural" approach to language teaching has been criticized, as
it tends to produce students who, despite haing the ability to produce structurally accurate
language, are generally de!icient in their ability to use the language and understand its use in
real co""unication#
$hat is the "structural" approach to language teaching% I! your classroo" is !ull o! students
that "e"orize ocabulary and gra""ar rules through repetition and rote learning, and are
corrected !or een the s"allest "ista&e whilst spea&ing or writing 'nglish, then you are a
cha"pion o! the structural teaching approach# No doubt your students are learning a lot o!
'nglish, but how e!!ectie and how en(oyable is this process%
)n approach to language teaching has been deeloped which atte"pts to oerco"e the
wea&nesses o! the "structural approach" *which incidentally is the &ind o! teaching
"ethodology that tends to preail in )sian public schools+# The new approach is based on
iewing language as a co"bination o!:
a+ ,inguistic -tructures b+ -ituational -ettings c+ Co""unicatie )cts
This is &nown as the "co""unicatie approach" to language teaching# Co""unication is not
si"ply a "atter o! what is said *structure.le/is+, but where it is said, by who", when and why
it is said# In short, this is basically the "co""unicatie !unction" or "purpose" o! language#
)t the opposite e/tre"e !ro" the structural approach, and with at least as "any !laws, is the
purely "conersational" approach, where it is assu"ed that e/posure to lots o! conersation
!ro" a natie 'nglish spea&er will produce a high leel o! aptitude in the students# $hereas
the structural approach pro"otes accuracy and tends to inhibit co""unicatie con!idence,
the conersational approach tends to create co""unicatie con!idence in co"bination with
"any entrenched errors# 0eing &een to co""unicate and yet not being able to do so
properly is al"ost as ris&y as &nowing what to say but not haing the con!idence or practice to
use it###
The PPP Approach to Language Teaching
The "Three 1s" approach to ,anguage Teaching is the "ost co""on "odern "ethodology
e"ployed by pro!essional schools around the world# It is a strong !eature o! the renowned
C',T) certi!ication and other T'2, 3uali!ications o!!ered especially in the United 4ingdo"#
$hile this approach is generally geared toward adult learners, "ost o! the principles inoled
are also essential to lessons !or children *clic& on the "5oung ,earners" lin& aboe !or "ore
in!or"ation+# It is ery i"portant to understand what "Presentation", "Practice" and
"Production" really are, and how they wor& in co"bination to create e!!ectie co""unicatie
language learning#
1resentation is the beginning or introduction to learning language, and 1roduction is the
cul"ination o! the learning process, where a learner has beco"e a "user" o! the language as
opposed to a "student" o! the language# 1ractice is the process that !acilitates progress !ro"
the initial stage through to the !inal one#
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To e/plain the process in brie!, the beginning o! a lesson inoles the introduction o! the new
language in a conceptual way in co"bination with so"e &ind o! real *or at least "realistic
!eeling"+ situation# $hen this is understood, the students are proided with a linguistic
""odel" to apply to the concept they hae recognized# $ith this ""odel" in "ind, the students
practice the new language by "eans o! arious "controlled" actiities# )!ter su!!icient practice,
the students "oe into so"e &ind o! "productie" actiity, where a situation calls !or the
language to be used naturally without correction or control#
In general, !or co""unicatie language learning to be "ost e!!ectie, the three stages need
to occur and they "ust !low easily !ro" one stage to the ne/t#
1R'-'NT)TION
This is the !irst *and perhaps "ost crucial+ stage to the language learning process, as it
usually has a pro!ound in!luence on the stages that !ollow and goerns whether those stages
are e!!ectie or not#
1resentation inoles the building o! a situation re3uiring natural and logical use o! the new
language# $hen the "situation" is recognized and understood by the students, they will then
start instinctiely building a conceptual understanding o! the "eaning behind the new
language, and why it will be
releant and use!ul to the"# $hen the situation surrounding the new language and the
conceptual "eaning o! it has been achieed, the new language should be introduced by
"eans o! a linguistic ""odel"# It is this "odel that the students will go on to practice and
hope!ully achiee naturally without help during a productie actiity#
2or obious reasons, it is naturally easier to "present" new language to '-, students *who
are learning 'nglish as a -econd ,anguage in an 'nglish spea&ing eniron"ent+ than it is to
'2, *'nglish as a 2oreign ,anguage+ students, who hear little or no 'nglish outside o! the
classroo"# '2, teachers in particular need to wor& hard to build "realistic" !eeling situations
re3uiring the new language# I! the "situation" appears totally unreal or een !arcical to the
students, so too will the language they are learning#
)n i"portant aspect o! introducing the situation re3uiring and concept underlying new
language is to build the" up using whateer 'nglish the students hae already learned or
hae so"e access to# )t lower leels, pictures and body language are typical ways o!
presenting new language# )s students progress, dialogues and te/t can also be used#
There are a ariety o! ways in which new language ite"s "ay be presented but "ost
1resentations should hae at least so"e o! the !ollowing !eatures: "eaning!ul, "e"orable
and realistic e/a"ples6 logical connection6 conte/t6 clear "odels6 su!!icient "eaning!ul
repetition6 "staging" and "!i/ing"6 brie!ness and recycling#
1R)CTIC':
The 1ractice stage is the best &nown to teachers irrespectie o! their training or teaching
ob(ecties# 7oweer, it is a stage that is o!ten "oer8done" or used ine!!ectiely, either
because 1resentation was poor *or lac&ing altogether+ or it is not seen and used as a natural
step toward 1roduction# It is the i"portant "iddle stage to co""unicatie language teaching,
but e/actly that 8 the ""iddle" stage#
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It is i"portant that practice actiities are appropriate to the language being learned and the
leel and co"petence o! the students# 'ssentially 1ractice is the testing procedure !or
accuracy, and the !re3uency procedure !or !a"iliarity with the language# It is also a re"edial
stage# ) good way to su""arize e!!ectie 1ractice is to see it as repetition leading to
co"petence and accuracy in ter"s o! 1honology and -ynta/#
1ractice actiities need to be clear and understandable 8 they should also be directed toward
pro"oting a considerable degree o! con!idence in the students# In general, a care!ully laid out
practice actiity that loo&s "attractie" to the eye will generate the students9 "otiation# They
need to be challenged, but they should also !eel that the actiity is "within their reach"#
:a&ing a s"ooth transition !ro" 1resentation to 1ractice usually inoles "oing the
students !ro" the Indiidual Drill stage into 1air $or& *chain pair8wor&, closed pair8wor& and
open pair8wor&+# Co""unicatie practice then leads the way toward 1roduction#
1RODUCTION:
The 1roduction -tage is the "ost i"portant stage o! co""unicatie language teaching#
-uccess!ul 1roduction is a clear indication that the language learners hae "ade the
transition !ro" "students" o! the &ey language to "users" o! the language#
;enerally 1roduction inoles creating a situation re3uiring the language that was introduced
in the 1resentation -tage# That situation should result in the students "producing" "ore
personalized language# 1roduction is highly dependent on the 1ractice -tage, because i!
students do not hae con!idence in the language then they will naturally be hesitant to
independently "use" it#
One o! the "ost i"portant things to re"e"ber is that 1roduction actiities should not "tell"
students what to say# $hereas in 1ractice the students had "ost or all o! the in!or"ation
re3uired, during 1roduction they don9t hae the in!or"ation and "ust thin&# Ideally it is
challenging in that it is representatie o! "real li!e" situations#
Creating and engaging in "1roductie" classroo" actiities can re3uire a certain leel o!
cognitie ability# 1roduction actiities !or 5oung ,earners in particular need to be care!ully
thought out and prepared#
-o"e good e/a"ples o! e!!ectie 1roduction actiities include situational role8plays, debates,
discussions, proble"8soling, narraties, descriptions, 3uizzes and ga"es#