Effective teaching is not about a method. It is about understanding and implementing principles of learning. What Is Communicative Language Teaching?

Communicative language teaching (CLT) is generally regarded as an approach to language teaching (Richards and Rodgers 2001). As such, CLT reflects a certain model or research paradigm, or a theory (CelceMurcia 2001). It is based on the theory that the primary function of language use is communication. Its primary goal is for learners to develop communicative competence (Hymes 1971), or simply put, communicative ability. In other words, its goal is to make use of real-life situations that necessitate communication.

Defining communicative competence

Communicative competence is defined as the ability to interpret and enact appropriate social behaviors, and it requires the active involvement of the learner in the production of the target language (Canale and Swain 1980; Celce-Murcia et al. 1995; Hymes 1972). Such a notion encompasses a wide range of abilities: the knowledge of grammar and vocabulary (linguistic competence); the ability to say the appropriate thing in a certain social situation (sociolinguistic competence); the ability to start, enter, contribute to, and end a conversation, and the ability to do this in a consistent and coherent manner (discourse competence); the ability to communicate effectively and repair problems caused by communication breakdowns (strategic competence). As frequently misunderstood, CLT is not a method per se. That is to say, it is not a method in the sense by which content, a syllabus, and teaching routines are clearly identified (see Richards and Rodgers 2001). CLT has left its doors wide open for a great variety of methods and techniques. There is no single text or authority on it, nor any single model that is universally accepted as authoritative (Richards and Rodgers 2001). By and large, it uses materials and utilizes methods that are appropriate to a given context of learning. CLT has spawned various movements

Communicative Language Teaching Objective: To become communicatively competent, use appropriate language for social context, and negotiate meaning. Process: Activities are communicative through the use of authentic materials. Speakers choose what to say and how to say it, usually working in small groups. Roles: The teacher manages activities and sets up communicative situations (not scripted). Language Emphasized: Function is emphasized over form and students work at discourse level focusing on negotiating meaning. View of Language and Culture: Culture is part of daily communication. Role of Students Native Language: The students native language does not play a role.

Evaluation: Informal evaluation is part of communication. Formal evaluation includes integrative tests, which include communicative functions. Errors: Errors are natural. Students with incomplete knowledge can still succeed.

Lesson Sequence: Dialogues Oral Practice Questions and Answers (oral, based on dialogue) Basic Communicative Expressions Generalizations (language/grammar) Oral Recognition/Interpretative Activities (Pictures/questions) Oral Production Activities (Practice dialogue, restate, extend and predict) Dialogue Copy Written Homework Evaluation Communicative Language Teaching is:

A set of principles about: goals of language teaching how learners learn a language classroom activities that best facilitate learning roles of teachers and learners The goal of language teaching : To develop communicative competence Communicative competence contrasted with linguistic competence
Teachers role: needs analyst, task designer

Teacher is a facilitator:
climate conducive to language learning opportunities for Students to use and practice language opportunities for Students to reflect on language use and language learning

Some shools of methology see teachers as background facilitator and classroom colleague to the learners.
Students role: improviser, negotiator

Language learning facilitated by activities involving: inductive or discovery learning language analysis and reflection

Language learning is gradual creative use of language and trial and error errors are normal while learning goal is to use new language accurately and fluently 7. Learners develop their own routes to language learning, progress at different rates, and have different needs and motivations for language learning The classroom is a community where learners collaborate and share
Language is integrated into the broad curriculum. Learning is improved through motivation and the study of natural language in context. CLIL is based on language acquisition rather than enforced learning. Language is seen in real-life situations. CLIL is long-term learning. Fluency is more important than accuracy. Reading is essential.

Learning claims Grammatical syllabus not needed Grammatical knowledge built around task performance Reverses the standard P-P-P lesson format and replaces it with one consisting of: Task - Language awareness - Follow up activity 1. Language is facilitated by interaction and meaningful communication 2. Students: y Take part in meaningful conversation y Expand their language base Are facilitated in interpersonal exchange y 3. Processing content for relevance and interest 4. Holistic Process 5. Discovery learning-analytic and reflective learning 6. Creativity and trial and error 7. Learners find their methodologies 8. Strategizing learning 9. Teacher as a facilitator 10. Collaborative sharing

Where does communicative language teaching come from?

Its origins are many, insofar as one teaching methodology tends to influence the next. The communicative approach could be said to be the product of educators and linguists who had grown dissatisfied with the audiolingual and grammar-translation methods of foreign language instruction. They felt that students were not learning enough realistic, whole language. They did not know how to communicate using appropriate social language, gestures, or expressions; in brief, they were at a loss to communicate in the culture of the language studied. Interest in and development of communicative-style teaching mushroomed in the 1970s; authentic language use and classroom exchanges where students engaged in real communication with one another became quite popular. In the intervening years, the communicative approach has been adapted to the elementary, middle, secondary, and post-secondary levels, and the underlying philosophy has spawned different teaching methods known under a variety of names, including notional-functional, teaching for proficiency, proficiency-based instruction, and communicative language teaching.

CLT is based on the idea that learners are capable of more than imitation and in fact that they generate and manage their own meanings, that fluency is as important as accuracy, that communication is often a negotiated and iterative process between the participants in an interaction (Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Hinkel & Fotos, 2002). Communicative language teaching (CLT) is an approach to the teaching of second and foreign languages that emphasizes interaction as both the means and the ultimate goal of learning a language. It is also referred to as communicative approach to the teaching of foreign languages or simply the communicative approach.

Communicative language teaching derives from a multidisciplinary perspective that includes, at the least, linguistics, psychology, philosophy, sociology, and educational research. The focus has been the elaboration and implementation of programs and methodologies that promote the development of functional language ability through learners participation in communicative events. Hymes s focus was not language learning but language as social behavior.
the 1980s, these methods in turn came to be overshadowed by more interactive views of language teaching, which collectively came to be known as Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). Communicative Language Teaching advocates subscribed to a broad set of principles such as these:

y y y y y

Learners learn a language through using it to communicate. Authentic and meaningful communication should be the goal of classroom activities. Fluency is an important dimension of communication. Communication involves the integration of different language skills. Learning is a process of creative construction and involves trial and error.

However, CLT advocates avoided prescribing the set of practices through which these principles could best be realized, thus putting CLT clearly on the approach rather than the method end of the spectrum.

Community Language Learning 1. Goals Communication. Promote nondefensive learning.

Total Physical Response Communication. Learning L1= learning L2.

Natural Approach Communicative competence. Facilitate acquisition by providing comprehensible input (i+1).

Communicative Language Teaching Communication in social context. Appropriacy. Functional competence.

2. Role of the teacher/student?

Counselor/client. As S assumes more responsibility, becomes independent of T. Security, aggression, attention, reflection, retention, discrimination. Ss initiate speech in L1, T supplies L2.

Director. T provides model of L2 for imitation. Later role reversal. Comprehension before production. Modelling by T followed by performance.

T as facilitator. Primary responsibility is with S.

Facilitator. Manager of learning activities. Promotes communication among Ss. Ss learn to communicate by negotiating meaning in real context. Activities include information gap, choice, feedback.

3. Teaching/ Learning Process

Comprehension before production. Developing model approximates L2 (L1, . . . L2). Gradual emergence of speech. Task oriented.

4. Nature of student/teacher interaction?

Changes over time. Importance placed on cooperative relationship between T/S and S/S. S viewed as whole person, no separation of intellect and feelings. T "understands Ss. Language for developing critical thinking. Culture integrated with language.

T speaks, Ss respond nonverbally. Later, Ss verbalize.

S-centered. Both initiate interaction. S/S interaction in pair and small group activities. Affective factors over cognitive factors. Optimal learner has low affective filter. Language as a tool for communication. Language function over linguistic form. Vocabulary over grammar. Function over form. Comprehensione earlyproductions speech emergence. L1 can be used in preproduction (comprehension) activities. Communicative effectiveness. Fluency over accuracy. Task oriented.

T arranges tasks for communication. S/S interaction.

5. How are students feelings dealt with?

Ss have fun in a nonstressful situation.

Ss are motivated to learn thru usefulness of language functions.

6. View of language/ culture?

Spoken over written.

Language in social context, for communication.

7. What skills are emphasized?

Ss determine syllabus by what they what to say.

Grammar and vocabulary (initially via imperatives). Comprehension precedes production. Not used.

Function over form. Discourse and sociolinguistic competence + all 4 skills.

8. Role of L1?

Used in the beginning, less in later stages. Integrative tests. Selfevaluation.

Generally not used.

9. How does evaluation occur?

By observation.

Communicative tests. Fluency and accuracy.

10. Treatment of errors?

Nonthreatening. Correction by modelling.

Unobtrusive correction.

No error correction unless errors interfere with communication. Tracy Terrell, Stephen Krashen

No error correction unless errors interfere with communication. Various.

11. Associated with whom?

Charles Curran

James Asher

Communicative Language Teaching has spawned a number of off-shoots that share the same basic set of principles, but which spell out philosophical details or envision instructional practices in somewhat diverse ways. These CLT spin-off approaches include The Natural Approach, Cooperative Language Learning, Content-Based Teaching, and Task-Based Teaching.
What is communicative language teaching?

Communicative language teaching makes use of real-life situations that necessitate communication. The teacher sets up a situation that students are likely to encounter in real life. Unlike the audiolingual method of language teaching, which relies on repetition and drills, the communicative approach can leave students in suspense as to the outcome of a class exercise, which will vary according to their reactions and responses. The real-life simulations change from day to day. Students' motivation to learn comes from their desire to communicate in meaningful ways about meaningful topics. Margie S. Berns, an expert in the field of communicative language teaching, writes in explaining Firth's view that "language is interaction; it is interpersonal activity and has a clear relationship with society. In this light, language study has to look at the use (function) of language in context, both its linguistic context (what is uttered before and after a given piece of discourse) and its social, or situational, context (who is speaking, what their social roles are, why they have come together to speak)" (Berns, 1984, p. 5).