Role of drill in language learning

Drilling is an audio-lingual technique which laid emphasis on repeating structural patterns through oral practice. It means listening to a model provided by the teachers repeating what is heard. It is a technique that is still used by many teachers when introducing new language items to the students. Harmer states that "drilling is a mechanical ways if getting students to demonstrate and practice their ability to use specific language items in a controlled manner". According to the Haycraft there are different kinds of drill such as the Repetition drill, the Substitution drill, the Question and Answer drill, the Transformation drill, the Chain drill, the Expansion drill, and Communicative drill.
For the learners, drill can:
 i. Provide for a focus on accuracy.
ii.  Provide learners with intensive practice in hearing and saying particular words or phrases.
iii. Provide a safe environment for learner. iv.  Provide an opportunity for learners to get immediate feedback.
v. Help memorization and atomization of common language.
vi.  Meet students expectation.
For the teacher, drill can:
i. Help in term of classroom management.
ii. Help the teacher recognise if the new language is causing problems in the term of form or pronunciation.
Drilling help our learners memorise language by the teacher's control. The teacher can correct mistakes of students and encourage them to concrete on difficulty. Drilling often makes the students not very creative. One of the problems about drills is that they are fairly monotonous.
In a nutshell, over drilling structures and vocabulary items may not be helpful in language teaching. Drills must be integrated in meaningful activities if they are to be of any use.


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