This method focuses on oral activity including pronunciation and pattern drills, and conversation practice. Grammar and translation methods employed in traditional classes are rejected in ALM. 

Objectives |  Teach oral proficiency to produce learners who can communicate uninhibitedly and intelligibly  with native speakers.
Syllabus | Sentence-based syllabus with grammatical and lexical criteria being primary, but focus on meaning, not form.
Activity Types | Imperative drills to elicit physical actions
Learner Roles | Listener and performerHas little influence over the content of learning
Teacher Roles | Active and direct role - "The director of a stage play" with students as actors.
Roles of Materials | No basic textMaterials and media have an important role later.Initially, voice, action, and gestures are sufficient

The summary of main characteristics of this method is presented in the table below. 

Objectives | Near-native fluencyCorrect pronunciationBasic practical knowledge of the grammar of the L2Learner learns how to learn a language
Syllabus | Structural lessons planned around grammatical items and related vocabulary.Items are introduced according to their grammatical complexity.
Activity Types | Learner responses to commands, questions, and visual cues. Activities encourage and shape oral responses without grammatical explanation or modelling by the teacher.
Learner Roles | Learning is a process of personal growth. Learners are responsible for their own learning and must develop independence, autonomy and responsibility.
Teacher Roles | Teacher MUST teach, test, and get out of the way. Remain impassiveResist temptation to model, remodel, assist, direct and exhort.
Roles of Materials | Unique materials consisting of coloured rods, collar-coded pronunciation and vocabulary charts. 

The main characteristics of this method are presented in the table below. 

Objectives | No specific objectivesNear-native mastery is the goal
Syllabus | No set syllabusCourse progression is topic-basedLearners provide the topicSyllabus emerges from learners' intention and the teacher's reformulations.
Activity Types | Combination of innovative and conventional TranslationGroup workRecordingTranscriptionReflection and observationListeningFree conversation
Learner Roles | Learners are members of a community. Learning is not viewed as an individual accomplishment, but something that is achieved collaboratively.
Teacher Roles | Counseling/parental analogyTeacher provides a safe environment in which students can learn and grow
Roles of Materials | No textbook, which would inhibit growth. Materials are developed as course progresses. 

The summary of the main characteristics of this approach is presented in the table below. 

Objectives | Designed to give beginners/ intermediate learner communicative skills which include the four broad areas, basic personal communicative skills (oral/written) and academic learning skills (oral/written)
Syllabus | Based on a selection of communicative activities and topics derived from learner needs
Activity Types | Activities allowing comprehensible input, about things in the here-and-now. Focus on meaning not form
Learner Roles | Should not try and learn language in the usual sense, but should try and lose themselves in activities involving meaningful communication
Teacher Roles | The teacher is the primary source of comprehensible input. Must create positive low-anxiety climate. Must choose and orchestrate a rich mixture of classroom activities
Roles of Materials | Materials come from realia rather than textbooks. Primary aim is to promote comprehension and communication

The main characteristics of this method is shown in the table below. 

Objectives |  To deliver advanced conversational competence quickly. Learners are required to master prodigious lists of vocabulary pairs, although the goal is understanding, not memorisation.
Syllabus  | 10 unit courses consisting of 1,200 word dialogues graded by vocabulary and grammar.
Activity Types | Initiatives, question and answer, role-play, and listening exercises under deep relaxation.
Learner Roles | Must maintain a passive state and allow the materials to work on them (rather than vice versa).
Teacher Roles | To create situations in which the learner is most suggestible.Present material in a way most likely to encourage positive reception and retention. Must exclude authority and confidence.
Roles of Materials | Consists of texts, tapes, classroom fixtures, and music. Texts should have force, literary quality, and interesting characters.