Whole-language Approach

“Education is the most powerful weapon

which you can use to change the
world.”
–Nelson
Mandela
 Introductio
nwas created in the 1980s by a group of
Whole Language
U.S educators concerned with the teaching of language arts,
that is, reading and writing in the native language (L1).

The teaching of reading and writing in the L1 (also called

the teaching of literacy) is a very active educational
enterprise worldwide that has led to a number of different
approaches and methodologies.

One of these approaches focuses on decoding, which is the

teaching of language components separately (grammar,
vocabulary, word cognition, & phonics).
 Introductio
“whole.”
n
Whole Language argues that language should be taught as a

Whole Language instruction is a theory of language instruction

developed to help young children learn to read, and to the teaching of ESL
(English as a Second Language).

Whole Language approach emphasizes learning to read and write

naturally with a focus on real communication and reading and writing for
pleasure.

In the 1990s, Whole Language became popular in the US as a

motivating and innovative way of teaching language arts to primary
school children.
 Introductio
n
In language teaching, Whole Language shares a
philosophical and instructional perspective with
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) since
it emphasizes on the importance of meaning and
meaning making in teaching and learning.

Whole Language also relates to natural

approaches to language learning since it is
designed to help children and adults learn
an L2 in the same way children
learn their L1 (esp. in ESL case
scenarios).
 Theory Of
Language
Whole Language views languagefrom an
interactional perspective. In this perspective,
language functions as a vehicle for
human communication.

Heavy emphasis on is placed on “authenticity,”

on conversation. For example: in mastering
the sociolinguistic signals for apologizing, a
Whole Language perspective requires an
authentic situation in which one truly
needs to apologize (esp. in ESL classes).
 Theory Of
Language
 Whole Language also views
languageas a vehicle for internal
“interaction,” for egocentric
speech, for thinking. We also use
language to think (Rigg,
1991).
A Functional model of language is
also referred to in Whole
Language because language is
 Theory Of
The learning theory underlying Whole Language is in the
Learning
humanistic and constructivist schools.

Whole Language is said to be authentic, personalized, self-

directed, collaborative, and pluralistic. Such
characteristics are to focus learner attention and to
motivate mastery.

Constructivist learning theory hold that knowledge is

constructed, rather than received or discovered.

Constructivist learners create meaning, learn by doing,

and work collaboratively in mixed groups on common
projects.
DESIGN

Syllabus/Curriculum: Always using what was leaned in real

situations. Content is organized according to the students’ needs to
communicate.
Activities:Reading authentic texts, writing to a real audience,
using texts produced by the students and always interact “writing”,
“reading” and other skills.
Objectives in Whole
Language
Integration of reading, writing, and other skills (listening
and speaking).

The use of authentic literature rather than “artificial.”

A focus on real and natural events rather than on

specially designed written stories which do not
relate
to the students’ experience.

Reading is conducted for the purpose of

comprehension.

Use of student-produced texts rather than teacher-

 Syllabu
s
Whole Language instruction advocates the use
world materials rather than commercial texts.
of real-

Students are selectors of learning materials.

Choice is vital in a whole language class, because

without the ability to select activities, materials, and
conversational partners, the Ss cannot use language for
their own purpose.

Schools make use of class sets of literature, both

fictional and nonfictional.
 Learning &Teaching
Activities
 Reading for the purpose of comprehension.

 Writing for a real audience and not simply to practice

writing skills.

 Writing as a process through which learners explore and

 discover meaning.

 Integration of reading, writing and other skills.

 Reading and writing in partnership with other

learners.
 Learner & Teacher Roles
The teacher is seen as a facilitator.

The teacher is an active participant in the learning community, and not

an expert passing on knowledge to the Ss.

The teacher teaches Ss, and not the subject matter.

The teachers creates a climate that enables collaborative learning.

The learner collaborates with his classmates, and with the teacher (pair
work and whole group activities).

Students are evaluators of their learning process with the help of the
teacher.

The learner is self-directed, his experiences are used as resources to

enrich the learning process.
PROCEDURES

 The use of literature

 The use of process writing
 Encouragement of cooperative learning among students
 Concern for students’ attitude
 Activities that are often used in Whole Language
instruction are:
 Individual and small group reading and writing
 Ungraded dialogue journals
 Writing portfolios
 Writing conferences
 Student-made books
 Story writing
 Many of these activities are also common in other instructional
approaches, such as Communicative Language Teaching, Content-
Based Teaching, and Task-Based Language Teaching.
 What differs in Whole Language teaching is not the incidental use
of such activities based on the topic of the lesson or an item in the
syllabus but their use as part of an overall philosophy of teaching
and learning that gives a new meaning and purpose to such
activities.
 The Whole Language movement is not a teaching method but an
 approach to learning that sees language as a whole entity.
 Advantages claimed for Whole Language are that it focuses on
experiences and activities that are relevant to learners’ lives and
needs, that it uses authentic materials, and that it can be used to
facilitate the development of all aspects of a second language.
 Procedure
The use of literature.
s
The use of process writing (pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, publishing).

Encouragement of cooperative learning among Ss (pair work and whole group

activities).

Concern for Ss’ attitude.

Individual and small group reading and writing.

Ungraded (with no grade in class) dialogue journals.

Writing portfolios.

Student-made books.

Story writing.
 Conclusion
s
The Whole Language movement is not a teaching method but
an approach to learning that sees language as a whole entity.

Each language teacher is free to implement the approach

according to the needs of particular Ss and classes.

Advantages claimed for Whole Language are as follows: focuses

on experiences and activities that are relevant to Ss’ lives and needs, use
of authentic materials, it can be used to facilitate the development of
all aspects of an L2.

Whole Language promotes fluency at the expense of

accuracy.