Language learning is a lifelong process which involves mastering tens of thousands of words and phrases.  For second language learning, mastering such a large amount of items is often a daunting task, especially in the early stages when the learner is not yet at the stage where he/she can use the language to enjoy communicating with native speakers and/or learn about foreign culture.  For many, learning about a foreign culture makes the arduous task worthwhile, however some do lose motivation early on and quit.  Thus, there is a clear need to provide learners with the support they need to overcome this initial challenge.

 

Ideally, an in-class activity will not only achieve pedagogical goals in an efficient way but it will also be enjoyable for learners to help maintain motivation.  Often efficient activities will not be very enjoyable, and vice-versa.  However, the Group Memorization Method (GMM) is an activity which is not only efficient but is also highly motivating.  It is based on sound, proven scientific theories on what kind of exposure a learner’s brain needs to retain information into long-term memory.  Furthermore, it has been proven over a number of years to be an extremely popular activity with over 1,000 learners.  This article will describe the theoretical background of this method, details of how to implement it, and the type of effectiveness it can achieve.