Principles

A contextual approach applies primary biological skills to second language learning. It comprises six principles which translate usage-based theory into classroom pedagogy. The first four relate to the learner environment. The Context Principle highlights the importance of an ideational context. This facilitates the creation of the symbolic, syntagmatic, paradigmatic, and pragmatic associations necessary for language learning. The Input Principle argues that more input promotes deeper learning. A fluent language user has experience of many thousands of language items, and these can only be learnt from input. The Modality Principle proposes the use of multimedia materials to establish a rich imagic and auditory context. The Autonomy Principle posits that working independently promotes deeper learning. It shifts the balance from the productive activities of the current paradigm to receptive activities which afford substantially more opportunities for language learning. The final two principles relate to learner behaviours. The Modality and Autonomy Principles lead naturally to the Iteration Principle which states that task repetition creates more stable representations in memory. The Attention Principle uses shadowing to focus on form.