Band 70-80: Academic Writing about Total Physical Response

Total Physical Response: Introduction, Advantages and Disadvantages as well as it is potential application to Turkish context

Teaching, which is fundamental structure of education is a challanging process requiring a lot of effort. Today, because it is a stringent case, many people think knowledge is power; hence, teaching and learning have much significance. Language teaching that is one of the widest field of teaching shares the same importance, insomuch that is regarded as a vital point owing to international feature of today’s world when the Lingua Franca status of English is taken into account. Therefore, some methods, which are aimed to facilitate language acquisition have emerged in field of English Language Teaching (ELT) to render the efficiency of language acquirement considerably achievable. One of these methods in ELT is Total Phsyical Response (TPR) which demands physical participation of learners in learning process. This paper will advert TPR method in ELT. Consecutively, basic information about TPR will be highlighted before clarifying the approving and inimical sides of the method, and then a potential answer to whether it is appropriate for performing in Turkish education system will be briefly debated. 

First of all, it is immensely pertinent to be informed about background data of Total Physical Response (TPR). It was first conceived by James Asher and was mentioned in a detailed way in Learning Another Language through Actions by James Asher in 1997.[i] Nascency of TPR began with Asher’s observation on communication between kids and their parents, and the fact that he realized learning their mother tongue is related to physical responses of their father or mothers. It can be concluded from these points that teaching a language has some exigencies according to the method TPR. One of them is that learners should have listening in target language instead of speaking at initial times.[ii] In that way, it can become painless to incarnate the language for learners. Moreover, Asher suggested that corporal acts are administeted by the right bisection of human brain, and if acquiring a new language is controlled by the right hemisphere, it has much more positive influences on learning process.[iii] By the same token, the process of acquisition a new language should be occur in a place where is not only far away from uneasiness but also natural.  To illustrate this point, it may be mentioned that babies learning their native language have an environment they can feel cosy. In TPR method, grammar is not taught intentionally but in an inductive way.[iv] Considering all these matters, knowing about the framework of TPR has high significance.

Secondly, TPR which is regarded as one of the appropriate methods being used in English teaching has some positive sides as well as some disadvantages. In order to decide if it is one of those which are the better among methods in ELT, its advantages may be mentioned initially. Stress-free environment that is one of the fundamentals of TPR is considered as an significant advantage. In stress-free environment, learners can succeed in the process of learning a foreign language, and they may retain from wasting their all energy in a redundant way. In addition to this positive side, participation of learners in learning by being active in classes is an enormous contribution to both facilitators and learners. Among benefits of TPR, the fact that learning occurs in a natural way has an influence as important as the two mentioned. Learners who experience the same things as in the acquisition of their mother tongue feel comfortable as if they were in their homes with their family. Therefore, they can focus on learning instead of the mistakes they do during learning process. In comparison with its benefits, TPR contains some disadvantages which make it hard to decide whether TPR is among others which are the better. The fact that facilitators have insufficient qualities can be a proportion that destroys effectiveness of TPR since facilitators have a great importance in their students’ learning process. Moreover, adaptation of TPR to some education systems can lead problems that are causes of procrastination in learning process. TPR has both advantages and disadvantages which have a incontrovertible influence on learning process.

Thirdly, adapting TPR to Turkish EFL context is challenging, and it demands some adjustments. To perform this method in Turkish schools properly, facilitators should be educated well about TPR. Educators ought to be aware of TPR so that they can help learners. Furthermore, materials and use of these items can immensely influence on the duration of adapting TPR to Turkish curriculum. For instance, while teaching colors, facilitators should have some colorful items. Supposing that materials for teaching English are appropriate for learning in Turkey, TPR can be an effective method. Moreover, learning environment has a huge significance for using TPR in Turkish education system. Learning environment which is important in almost every method may be one of the most significant issues in facilitating learners by using TPR in Turkey, and there should be serious amendments such as adjusting learning environments and materials used learning process in Turkish education system. Using TPR method in Turkey is an arduous issue that has some advantages and disadvantages if it is used in Turkish schools.

Consequently, this paper has attempted to present some background information of TPR, several advantages and disadvantages of this method, and adapting TPR to Turkish education system. As previously highlighted, TPR is one of the methods used in teaching English, and it was developed by James Asher in 1997. Among many, it has benefits such as providing stress-free environment, its natural learning technique and helping learners participate in learning process in an active way; on the other hand, there can be some potential negative influences on learners such as insufficient quality of facilitators and it is vital to stress that there may be crucial difficulties about using TPR in different education systems. In relation to TPR and Turkish context, TPR may be adapted to Turkish EFL context supposing that facilitators are qualified well, materials are chosen properly and learning environment arranged according to learners needs. Additionally, ties connecting these points display the fact that we ought to pay attention to its background during using TPR in Turkish educational institutions in order that its advantages may be enhanced, and its disadvantages can be derogated. If TPR can be adapted to Turkish education system by reducing its disadvantages, this method may be effective and benefical in teaching English process. Besides teaching English, in other fields of education, methods which would be convenient the most br considering learners should be implemented since scholarship is one of the most significant point of mankind development.

Note: This is an original piece of writing lease cite this website if you want to use it for any educational purposes. The text was produced by 1st year ELT student Elif Özdemir at Erciyes University, Kayseri

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[i] Byram, Michael, Routledge Encyclopedia of Language Teaching and Learning, Routledge Press, 2000, pp. 631-633.

[ii] Larsen-Freeman, Diane, Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching, Oxford University Press, 2000, pp. 107-108.

[iii] Richards & Rodgers, Jack C., Theodore, Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, 2001, p. 75.

[iv] Richards & Rodgers, Jack C., Theodore, Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching, 2nd edition, Cambridge University Press, 2001, pp. 75-76.