The Audio Lingual Method (ALM) of teaching languages was first developed in the United States during World War II. People in a hurry needed to learn foreign languages for military-supportive activities. It is based on descriptive linguistics and behavioral psychology.
Principals for effective application of Audio Lingual Method
  • Language is learned in a sort of naturally designed context where the learners are exposed to be engaged in a free and frank environment to practice the language.
  •   The native language and the target language have separate linguistic systems in audio lingual method
  • One of the roles of the language teacher is to be a model of the target language. Teachers should provide students with a native-speaker-like model
  •  Language learning is a process of habit formation. The more often something is repeated the stronger the habit and the greater the learning  
  • It is important to prevent learners from making errors that lead to bad habits
  •   The purpose of language learning is to learn how to use the language to communicate
  •  Particular parts of speech occupy particular slots in sentences. In order to create new sentences students must learn which part of speech occupies which slots in sentences.
  • Positive reinforcement helps students to develop productive habits
  • Students need to learn to respond to both verbal and nonverbal stimuli
  • The teacher should be like an orchestra leader conducting, guiding, and controlling the students’ behavior in the target language
  • In the audio-lingual method, the actual objective of language teaching  should be to enable students to acquire the structural pattern
  • The learning of a foreign language should be the same as the acquisition of the native language
  • Speech is more basic to language than the written form
  • Language cannot be separated from culture

Techniques in Audio Lingual Method
  • Dialogue memorization
  • — Backward build-up (Expansion) Drill
  •   Repetition Drill
  • Chain Drill
  • Single –Slot Substitution Drill
  • Multiple-slot Substitutions Drill
  •  Transformation Drill
  • Question and Answer Drill
  • — Use of minimal Paris
  • Complete the dialogue
  • Grammar game