How much cognitive theory do English language teachers need to know?
• Step 1: make your trainees supply examples of all types of “meaningful” and “meaningless” pattern drills exploiting various relationships • Step 2: allow your trainees to experience what it is like to be in a beginners class in a language outside their current knowledge. The “Novish” simulation makes this possible if time is at a premium. Trainers of English language teachers can achieve practical coverage of cognitive learning theory by reviewing the history of language teaching, especially the period in the mid 20th century when “meaningful drills” were being advocated and the shortcomings of “meaningless drills” were being highlighted. Although drilling and rote learning became subject to considerable prejudice in some educational circles in the late 20th century, no language learner will proceed very far without recognition of language structure and nobody will succeed in learning much without practice and repetition. Knowledge of the “types of drill” which the accomplished langu
