This method teaches us a foreign language with the help child's native language.
Bilingual Method
This method was invented by Pro. C J Dodson of wales. As the name suggests, the method makes use of two languages- the mother tongue and the target language. Hence, this can be considered as a combination of the direct method and the grammar-translation method. ‘Selection, ‘Gradation’, ‘Presentation’, and ‘Repetition’ are the four cardinal principles of all language teaching methodology.
This method has all the four principles in it. It is a midway approach between the grammar translation method and the direct method. This method believes that while learning the mother tongue, the child has already established the concept of so many objects and things in his mind. It is therefore unless repeating these concept again while teaching a foreign language if he knows the concept of a word in his mother tongue we should give him the mother tongue equal lent of a word of foreign language the word bilingual is generally used to refer to the knowledge of two languages by the same individual. This method teaches us a foreign language with the help child's native language.
This method strikes a balance between the spoken and written words and accuracy and fluency. The grammar translation method aims accuracy at the expense of fluency, while the direct method aims at fluency at the expense of accuracy. The bilingual method happily combines both and aims at accuracy and fluency in the spoken and written words. This method allows controlled and systematic use of mother tongue by the teacher.
Dodson argued that the amount of time required learning a language naturally is of necessity, large and our present school curriculum does not allow the time requirement for such a learning process. He further also added that in natural method a teacher employs a technique that waste time. Dodson advocated that a method should be within the capabilities of all teachers, it should be simple and balanced between the spoken and the written word. In practice, most teachers in India use only the Bilingual method to teach English and other subjects in English medium classes. Some kind of English is used even in teaching of modern Indian languages and a classical language like Sanskrit.
Chief characteristics :
1. Mother tongue equal lent of English words are told to the class.
2. The word by word translation is not done by the teacher. Translation is used only when the meaning of a particular word is difficult to explain through direct method. English passages are explained in English and not in the student's mother tongue
3. The mother tongue is used only at the initial stage. This practice is dropped as soon as students develop sufficient vocabulary. of foreign language.
4. Rules of grammar are not taught separately as is done in Grammar Translation Method.
5. Sentences is a unit of teaching.
6. It must strike a balance between the spoken and the written word, accuracy and fluency.
There are certain disadvantages associated with this method. They are as follows:
i. Since many teachers are not well-versed in the features of the students' mother-tongue and the foreign language, they may create a muddle.
ii. A contrast between the features of the two languages, viz., English and the mother-tongue, may confuse the students to a great extent.
iii. The Bilingual Method is not suitable at higher secondary stage.
iv. There is always a strong possibility of reducing the teaching to mechanical translation exercise in the classroom. If the teacher fails in handling the Bilingual Method properly, he may degenerate it into the Translation Method.
Despite all these drawbacks, one may not say that the Bilingual Method is just another attempt for the backdoor entry of the Grammar- Translation Method
