Dictogloss Teaching Technique
1. Definition of Dictogloss
Dictogloss from the English language, and composed of
words, namely dictation or dictate and gloss, which means
interpretation. This technique is a combination of two techniques,
dictation and interpretation.
According to Wajnryb in Vasiljevic (2010:41) Dictogloss is a
classroom dictation activity where learners listen to a passage, write
down key words and then work together to create a reconstructed
version of the text. It was originally as an alternative method of
teaching grammar. The “Dictogloss” has been proposed as a
procedure that encourages students to reflect on their own output. 
10 
This technique, train students to listen, understand, interpret
and respond the given information.
The method requires learners in the classroom to interact with
each other in small groups so as to reconstruct the text as a co-
operative endeavor. Learners working in self-study are required to
bring their own grammatical resources into play with the notes taken
during the dictation so as to create a text. Both in the classroom and in
self-study, learners are actively engaged in the learning process.
According to Wajnryb in Nunan (1991:28) there are four
stages in the dictoglossapproach :
a. Preparation, the teachers prepare students for the text they will
be hearing by asking question and discussing a stimulus picture,
by discussing vocabulary, by ensuring that students know what
they are supposed to do, and by ensuring that the students are in
the appropriate groups.
b. Dictation, learners hear the dictation twice. First, they listen
only and get a general feeling for the text. Second, they take
down notes, being encouraged to listen for content words which
will assist them in reconstructing the text. For the reasons of
consistency, it is preferable that students listen a cassette
recording rather than teacher-read text.
c. Reconstruction, at the conclusion of the dictation, learners pool
notes and produce their version of the text. During this stage it is
important that the teacher does not provide any language input.
11 
d. Analysis and correction, there are various ways of dealing with
this stage. The small group versions can be reproduced on the
board or overhead projector, the texts can be photocopied and
distributed, or the students can compare their version with the
original, sentence by sentence. 
According to Wajnryb in Nunan (1991:28) The dictogloss
technique provided a useful bridge between bottom-up and top-down
listening. The learners are primarily concerned with identifying
individual elements in the text-a bottom-up strategy. However, during
the small group discussions, some or all of the following top-down
strategies might be employed. In all of these, the listener will integrate
background, ‘inside the head knowledge with the clues picked up
during the dictation.
1. Listeners will make predictions.
2. Listeners will make inferences about things not directly
stated in the text.
3. Listeners will identify the topic of the text.
4. Listeners will identify the text type (whether it is a
narrative, descriptive, anecdote etc.).
5. Listeners will identify various sorts of semantic
relationships in the text.
Dictogloss exploits the principle that two heads are better than
one. Students are able to pool their resources, and even low-level learners are able, through collaborative action, to ‘outperform their
competence’.
According to Anderson and Lynch in Nunan (1991:29) have
also developed a technique for making listening tasks more
interactive. The teacher plays a recorded text to which the students
listen and complete an activity such as tracing a route on a map. The
teacher pauses at certain key points, and the students are able to
discuss the task. The students can also request that the teacher stop the
tape at any point so they can discuss the task. The teacher only
provides information on demand from the students. A number of
problem points are built into the task which are designed to increase
the processing demands on the learners and to encourage students to
interact.