Robert Harrell addresses those who may think that what we do is too teacher centered:
1. We know that when the teacher is the center of the class, CI is less effective. The student interests, the student connection to the readings, etc. are the center. This learner-centered approach is only possible when the teacher collaborates with students by helping them to express their interests in the target language. The teacher further facilitates understanding of the language, interaction in the language. In the teacher-centered class, the teacher may speak too quickly, bring in unfamiliar vocabulary, not look into the eyes of the students, do comprehension checks, fail to ask students about themselves, fail pause and point, expect too much of them, assume they know more than they do. Following this learner-centered approach will get in the way of completing the textbook scope and sequence in time for the scheduled textbook company exams.
2. In TPRS the teacher is neither a lecturer nor a presenter. The teacher establishes meaning by engaging the students in kinesthetic responses (TPR/gestures). The teacher challenges the students to own the meaning by becoming creators of word associations. The emphasis in PQA and stories is on making the students engaged doers and creators despite their minimal language acquisition. The goal of CI is for students to become fluent doers and creators of the language. The method is to engage them as co-doers and co-creators (at their level of acquisition) with sufficient understood, acoustical messages in the interpersonal mode. Following a textbook lends itself well to being a lecturer on and presenter of textbook grammar points.
3. It is hoped that all students would be able to use the language to facilitate their future interests and needs. For some this may mean “using language as the vehicle to teach academic content.” As such, our intention is to provide enough comprehended language input for a mental representation of the language to become established in the mind. The goal is fluent understanding, expression, and negotiation of meaning. For those who are at the point where they can learn academic content in the target language, the only useful textbook will be the one used in the academic subject. This approach obviates the need for a textbook to “learn” the target language.