The Callan Method of Learning a Second/Foreign Language
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The Callan Method is an intensive English language teaching method developed by Robin Callan in Italy. It focuses on improving students' listening and speaking skills through questioning and correction. Lessons involve a lot of speaking practice from the student in response to the teacher's rapid-fire questions. The teacher speaks quickly without pause to prevent translation and encourage focus on meaning. Repetition is key to building vocabulary and grammar.
The Callan Method of Learning a Second/Foreign Language
- 1. The Callan Method Czarina A. Alvaro-Abenoja, Ph.D.
- 2. ROBIN CALLAN author of the Callan Method In his early 20s, he went to Italy to teach English in Salerno. Robin thought, that the way teachers teach their lessons was inefficient and boring.
- 3. A teaching method created specifically to improve one’s English in an intensive atmosphere. THE CALLAN METHOD The teacher is constantly asking questions so the student is hearing and using the language as much as possible. When the student speaks the lesson, the teacher corrects his/her grammar and pronunciation mistakes and learns a lot from this correction. Presents a lesson that entails a lot of speaking and listening practice, but there is also reading and writing so that the student understands English when it is spoken at a natural speed.
- 4. THE CALLAN METHOD Focus: Improvement of student’s listening and speaking skills. FAST FUN EASY
- 5. This method is full of questions. Each question practices a word, an expression or a piece of grammar. THE CALLAN METHOD The student never knows what questions will be asked by the teacher so he/she is always concentrating as one question is asked after the other. The teacher speaks quickly. This is because in the real word, it is natural to speak quickly. Callan principle: “If you want to understand normal English, you must practice listening to quick natural speech and become able to understand English without first translating into your language.”
- 6. Learn to listen and respond to English spoken at a normal conversational level Learn to think and speak directly into English without first translating. Learn practical, useful vocabulary and grammar structures. The Learner will…
- 7. THE CALLAN METHOD The goal is to make the student practice speaking as much as possible, so he / she always have to make complete sentences whenever he/she speaks in the lesson using the same grammatical structure as in the question. Example Teacher: About how many pages are there in this book? Student: There are about 200 pages in this book. Teachers and students use contractions – this is because it is natural to use contractions in spoken English and students must learn to understand them. ( e.g. I don’t instead of I do not) Lesson Structure: 20-minute class 50-minute class 4 min : reading 10 min : reading 14 min : speaking 35 min : speaking 2 min : dictation 5 min : dictation In this way, the student is not just answering a question but she can make full sentences with the vocabulary and the grammar that he/she needs to learn.
- 8. Are there two chairs in this room? / Are there two chairs in this room?..No there aren’t… No there aren’t two chairs in this room; there are twelve chairs in this room. The teacher will speak along with the student all the time while the latter is saying his/her answer. The student should repeat after the teacher, but must immediately try again to continue with the answer on his/her own.
- 9. It is suitable for students of all nationalities, of all ages, and for all purposes of study. It is based on repetition and speed, the two things that guarantee success in the learning of a language.
- 10. THE CALLAN METHOD No chatting. The student learns English quickly because the lessons are organized, efficient, fast and busy, and there is no time wasted on chatting. Chatting is not a good way to spend time in an English lesson. First, only a few students can really speak. Second, in a chat, people use only the English that they already know. Third, it is difficult for a teacher to correct mistakes during a conversation. In your native tongue, you sometimes read or hear a word that you do not already know. You usually need to read or hear this new word only once or twice in order to remember it and then use it for yourself. However, when you are learning a foreign language, things are very different. You need to hear, see, and use words and grammatical structures many times before you really know them properly. Thus, one’s studies must involve a system of revision (repeating what was studied before).
- 11. Check his/her understanding and progress with regular reading and writing practice Receive maximum speaking practice Choose to study in the morning, afternoon, or even nighttime. The Learner will…
- 12. Teacher’s Speed in Talking = 200 – 240 words/min The Callan Teacher’s extra speed : prevents boredom, stops them translate in their head ( by not giving them time), allows them to hear more words repeated more times. This makes it easier for them to understand English outside the classroom, and of course, makes them faster.
- 13. REPEAT, REPEAT, AND REPEAT “ The secret to success when learning a language is to repeat, repeat, and repeat, without thinking.”