LINEAR VS CYCLIC GRADATION

-BUSHRA AHMAD
MA ELT (II SEMESTER)
16ETM05
 WHAT IS GRADATION

◦ The next step after selection

◦ Organising/arranging course content
◦ In the order to be taught
◦ To achieve objectives efficiently
◦ Rationale – strong foundation, clear chain of connection
◦ Orderly progress through successive stages
 GRADATION

LINEAR CYCLIC
 LINEAR GRADATION
◦ Successive gradation
◦ More popular in the past
◦ With research in FLT – replaced
◦ Moves strictly in one direction
◦ Items presented one by one
◦ Discussed in detail
◦ Practised extensively
◦ Aim – achieve mastery
 …LINEAR GRADATION

A B C …Z
 OBJECTIONS
◦ Difficult to retain learning
◦ Since each item presented only once
◦ Only encountered briefly in revision units in the same
context

◦ Progress slow in the beginning

◦ Considerable time before real life communication
◦ Demotivating
 CYCLIC GRADATION

◦ Concentric/spiral gradation
◦ Bosco and Di Pietro (1970) - …”presentation of a point in
a way:
◦ Leading to gradual familiarisation
◦ By returning to it at different intervals in the course of
instruction
◦ …mastery is achieved by successive approximation to
a given standard.”
 CYCLIC GRADATION

◦ First exposure – limited to certain essential aspects

◦ Item keeps recurring
◦ Work with the same topic more than once
◦ Each time in a new context/increased complexity
◦ Integrated with previous learning
◦ E.g. Corder (1973) – simple present
◦ 1. Present State, 8. Habitual action, 104. Timeless truths,
118. Verbs of perception
G+a

C+b
B+a

A
 LINEAR GRADATION CYCLIC GRADATION

TARGET
PROFICIENCY
 ADVANTAGES

◦ Corder (1973) – closer to the way language is structured

◦ Howatt (1974) – resembles the natural process of
language learning
◦ Constant revision
◦ Gradual familiarisation  coherent system of language
for communication
THANK YOU