Being conscious of Suggestopedia’s unconscious techniques
by Omar García Pérez
Subject: Teaching English as a Foreign Language: Methodology I
In this essay, I will talk about Georgi Lozanov’s curious method of “Desuggestopedia” or “Suggestopedia”. His idea that learning can be improved through the influence of non-rational and unconscious factors is actually interesting, but teachers should rationalize and be conscious of some inadequacies that might emerge in its application. What I really liked about this method is the emphasis on “emotional meaning”, to which students are exposed, that language is thought to be mostly acquired (unconsciously) by means of an enjoyable experience, and that both cultural and pragmatic aspects of language are taken into account.
I loved the principle that the classroom environment is of major importance in the learning experience. A bright cheerful classroom with comfortable chairs and colorful things or relevant notes around, is something far better than an empty cold room in which chairs are so painful that students only want to leave. A reform on this aspect should be done in education, though I don’t think that posting cardboards on the walls or having a fashioned room are the ultimate solutions to the problems in language learning education.
There are several principles with which I disagree. One of them, is Lozanov’s claim that “we may be using only five to ten percent of our mental capacity” (Larson-Freeman, 2000:73) has been proved to be a pseudoscientific statement (Boyd, 2008) now referred to as the “ten percent brain myth”. But what I disliked most about Desuggestopedia is that the real identities of the students are not respected, and they are expected to invent a new identity, take a different name, make up an imaginary biography, assume an hypothetical profession or conceive almost always unreal situations. Maybe these might be more appropriate for playful children, but I think that in general, it may unconsciously give us the idea that one’s own identity in the L1 is not acceptable when learning the target language. I think that our true identity (from which there is a factual need to communicate) should be respected and incorporated, rather than ignored. I know that assuming a new identity is meant to break emotional bounds from the past or develop creativity; but retaining one’s own identity within the classroom is also helpful as a way to learn to express ourselves better and to be honest about our real persona and who we really are and what we really want to communicate. For the same reason, I dislike that role plays and fake acting pervade the lessons under this method.
I also think that the election of several things (pictures, paintings, music, role plays, etc.), might be rather arbitrary because is left almost completely to the teacher’s tastes. Many times I’ve disliked the music chosen or the roles assigned to me by my professors, and by experience, I know that those things can encourage the learning experience only if the person really likes it; but if not, they may cause exactly the opposite effect expected. So on this topic, I put into question whether the use of classical music is always helpful, because I know some people who dislike it. And after all, who decides which are fine arts and which are not? Who decides whether it is Mozart or Beethoven what should be played on an English lesson in order to “activate the brain function”, or somebody else? And why should the teacher assume that his or her election is always going to be ‘enjoyable’ to all the SSs? For instance, I love Bach and Händel, whose music is to me very peaceful; but in contrast, I can’t stand Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 which prelude Ode To Joy I detest with all my heart, and which “1st movement” causes me anxiety. I also remember an English course where a professor who firmly believed in “the Mozart effect” used to bring a recorder and play music during the exams. I sometimes liked the melody, and got relaxed; but sometimes I really disliked the melodies, and had to struggle hard not to get distracted by the sound of the music itself.
In conclusion, Lozanov’s Suggestopedia has interesting proposals to form a good atmosphere in the classroom, but it will only work as long as the students really find the features likable. Enjoyable classrooms, playful techniques and comfortable atmosphere, are very good, but teachers should not be unconscious of the possible problems, and the purpose of language teaching should not be confused with creating an art gallery, a musical session, or an acting lesson.
I loved the principle that the classroom environment is of major importance in the learning experience. A bright cheerful classroom with comfortable chairs and colorful things or relevant notes around, is something far better than an empty cold room in which chairs are so painful that students only want to leave. A reform on this aspect should be done in education, though I don’t think that posting cardboards on the walls or having a fashioned room are the ultimate solutions to the problems in language learning education.
There are several principles with which I disagree. One of them, is Lozanov’s claim that “we may be using only five to ten percent of our mental capacity” (Larson-Freeman, 2000:73) has been proved to be a pseudoscientific statement (Boyd, 2008) now referred to as the “ten percent brain myth”. But what I disliked most about Desuggestopedia is that the real identities of the students are not respected, and they are expected to invent a new identity, take a different name, make up an imaginary biography, assume an hypothetical profession or conceive almost always unreal situations. Maybe these might be more appropriate for playful children, but I think that in general, it may unconsciously give us the idea that one’s own identity in the L1 is not acceptable when learning the target language. I think that our true identity (from which there is a factual need to communicate) should be respected and incorporated, rather than ignored. I know that assuming a new identity is meant to break emotional bounds from the past or develop creativity; but retaining one’s own identity within the classroom is also helpful as a way to learn to express ourselves better and to be honest about our real persona and who we really are and what we really want to communicate. For the same reason, I dislike that role plays and fake acting pervade the lessons under this method.
I also think that the election of several things (pictures, paintings, music, role plays, etc.), might be rather arbitrary because is left almost completely to the teacher’s tastes. Many times I’ve disliked the music chosen or the roles assigned to me by my professors, and by experience, I know that those things can encourage the learning experience only if the person really likes it; but if not, they may cause exactly the opposite effect expected. So on this topic, I put into question whether the use of classical music is always helpful, because I know some people who dislike it. And after all, who decides which are fine arts and which are not? Who decides whether it is Mozart or Beethoven what should be played on an English lesson in order to “activate the brain function”, or somebody else? And why should the teacher assume that his or her election is always going to be ‘enjoyable’ to all the SSs? For instance, I love Bach and Händel, whose music is to me very peaceful; but in contrast, I can’t stand Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 which prelude Ode To Joy I detest with all my heart, and which “1st movement” causes me anxiety. I also remember an English course where a professor who firmly believed in “the Mozart effect” used to bring a recorder and play music during the exams. I sometimes liked the melody, and got relaxed; but sometimes I really disliked the melodies, and had to struggle hard not to get distracted by the sound of the music itself.
In conclusion, Lozanov’s Suggestopedia has interesting proposals to form a good atmosphere in the classroom, but it will only work as long as the students really find the features likable. Enjoyable classrooms, playful techniques and comfortable atmosphere, are very good, but teachers should not be unconscious of the possible problems, and the purpose of language teaching should not be confused with creating an art gallery, a musical session, or an acting lesson.
References:
- Boyd, Robynne (2008). "Do People Only Use 10 Percent Of Their Brains?". Scientific American. Feb 7, 2008. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/people-only-use-10-percent-of-brain/
- Larsen-Freeman, Diane; (2000). Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. Teaching Techniques in English as a Second Language (2nd ed.). Oxford. Oxford University Press.
- Larsen-Freeman, Diane; (2013). “Language Teaching Methods: Suggestopedia”. American English - Official Youtube Channel. Jan 25. Online Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rkrvRlty5M
- Colin Baker, Sylvia Prys Jones, "Encyclopedia of Bilingualism and Bilingual Education". Multilingual Matters. p. 681. ISBN: 1853593621
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