SILENT WAY METHOD

THE SILENT WAY

The silent way is the name
of the method of language
teaching devised by
Caleb Gattengo.
 THE SILENT WAY
It is based on the idea that teachers
should be as silent as possible
during a class but learners should be
encouraged to speak as much as
possible.
 Basic Premises of SW
There are three basic principles:
The learner needs to discover or create.
Learning is made easier by the use of physical
objects such as Cuisenaire rods.
Learning is made easier by problem-solving using
the target language.
 OBJECTIVES OF THE SW
Near-native fluency in the target language.

The teacher facilitates the students’ and

helps the students gain insight into the
functioning of the language.
Learner’s autonomy and
independence.
 THEORY OF LANGUAGE
Language is seen as groups of sounds, associated with specific
meanings and organized into sentences or strings of
meaningful units by grammar rules.

Language is separated from its social context and taught

through artificial situations, usually represented by rods.
~ Gattegno views language itself "as a substitute for experience,
so experience is what gives meaning to language".
THEORY OF LEARNING
Gattegno recommends that the learner needs to
"return to the state of mind that characterizes a
baby's learning surrender".

The "artificial approach" that Gattegno proposes is

based on the Principle that successful learning
involves commitment of the self to language
acquisition through the use of silent awareness.
TEACHER’S ROLE
A technician or an engineer who
facilitates learning/ neutral observer.

Teacher silently monitors learners'

interactions with each other.

The teacher uses gestures, charts, and

manipulates in order to elicit & shape
students' responses.

"Teach, test, get out of the way"

 LEARNER’S ROLE
Learners are expected to develop independence,
autonomy, and responsibility.
The absence of correction and modeling requires
students to develop « inner criteria» and to
correct themselves.
Learners work collectively rather than
competitively.
A learner should be a teacher, a problem-solver,
and a self-evaluator.
 PEDAGOGICAL MATERIALS
1. Word chart 3. Cuisenaire Rod
Wall charts on which the words are written with Ros is used to create clear and visible situations
the same color code as the rectangle chart. that enable students to understand how a given
These charts display the structural vocabulary concept is expressed in the language.
of the language: about 500 words.
The color code means that languages as
different as Japanese and Russian, which use
signs unfamiliar to the learner, can be 4. A Pointer
immediately read and pronounced correctly.
The teacher or the learner can show a word or a
2. The Fidel sentence while maintaining the essential
characteristic of language - its ephemeral
nature.
These show all the possible spellings for
The pointer creates the dynamic of the
each phoneme which also use the same
language by introducing the element of time
color code as the rectangle chart.
concerning different charts, which are in
The Fidel is particularly useful for
themselves, static.
languages such as English and French,
The use of the pointer is one of how the teacher
which have complex and irregular spellings.
calls on the learners to use their mental powers.
 Disadvantages

The learner works in isolation and

communication is lacking badly in a Silent Way
classroom.
With minimum help on the part of the teacher,
the Silent Way method may put the I earning
itself at stake.
The material (the rods and the charts) used in this
method will certainly fail to introduce all aspects
of language. Other materials will have to be
introduced.
 Advantages
Learning through problem-solving looks attractive especially
because it fosters:
- creativity,
- discovery,
- increase in intelligent potency and
- long-term memory.

The indirect role of the teacher highlights the importance and

the centrality of the learner, who is responsible for figuring out
and testing the hypotheses about how language works. In other
words, teaching is subordinated to learning.
 THANK YOU
FOR ATTENTION!