LangLit

IMPACT FACTOR – 4.23 ISSN 2349-5189

An International Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal

DESIGNING A CALL MATERIAL TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATIVE
COMPETENCE IN ENGLISH

MR. VIKI M. MODI PROF. (DR.) CHETAN TRIVEDI

Ph.D. Scholar Ph.D. Guide/Supervisor - KSV Gandhinagar
Kadi Sarva Vishwavidyalaya, Gandhinagar & Professor & Head, Department of English
Assistant Professor Bhakt Kavi Narsinh Mehta University,
Smt. S. R. Patel Engineering College, Dabhi Junagadh

ABSTRACT

The research paper examined to present; why is it important to improve

Communicative Competence in English? And how do we improve
Communicative Competence in English through CALL? The present study
discuss the good Communicative Competence in English should entail
everywhere. The massive development in Indian education system, in addition
to explosion in Engineering and Technology based employements have offered
an opportunity to a variety of other basic skill development, where the
employability is at the top most quality. For better employability in the present
days two major areas of interest encompasses with industrial skills as well as
Communicative Competence in English. Researcher wants to design CALL
material to improve degree engineering student’s communicative competence.
The design of the course will be based on the present requirement of outgoing
engineers. The CALL based teaching material used worldwide for teaching
many different subjects, but very few researches have particularly applied in
the field of engineering to teach communicative competence in English.

Keywords: Communicative, Competence, CALL - Computer Assisted Language Learing,

Employability, Engineering

1.0 Introduction:

The good Communicative Competence in English should require everywhere. The extensive
development in Indian education system, in addition to explosion in Engineering and
Technology based employements have offered an opportunity a variety of other basic skill
development, where the employability is at the top most quality. For better employability in
the present days two major areas of interest encompasses with industrial skills as well as
Communicative Competence in English. The Communicative Competence in English does
not only create efficient communicator but also give direction to the stream of technical
information and awareness for the direction of engineers, technocrats and others in their
professional enterprieses. Unfortunately, many companies and organizations have been
facing excessive complications in appointing individuals who, despite of being technically
competent, are not able to communicate accurately in English - a prime requirement for
employment particularly for international services. Even some organizations and companies

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IMPACT FACTOR – 4.23 ISSN 2349-5189

An International Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal

continuously organises professional development program for improvement of their
employee’s English Communicative Competence.

The researcher wants to design CALL material to improve degree engineering student’s
communicative competence. The design of the course will be based on the present
requirement of outgoing engineers. For the designing a material and creating interests among
students the researcher wants to use CALL as a supportive tool. The course of
Communicative competence in English is based and organized under the discussion of
English Language syllabus design which emphasizes on communicative competence in
English, which involves four areas of language skills: Listening, Reading, Speaking &
Writing.

2.0 Function of Language

Different languages have different roles to play. The mother tongue has a role; the regional
language has a role; the official language has a role; foreign and classical languages have
their roles. The function of language indicates the purposes for which people use the
language by speaking or writing. The function of language is always determined; it means
there are purposes or intentions behind carrying out these activities. Language performs
various functions. Halliday (1973) has defined the functions of language as under:

2.1 Functions of Language

1. Instrumental : Using language to obtain ideas.
2. Regulatory : Using language to understand the behavior of others.
3. Interactional : Using language to communicate with each others.
4. Personal : Using language to express personal meanings and feelings.
5. Heuristic : Using language to learn and examine.
6. Imaginative : Using language to do imagination.
7. Representational : Using language to communicate and expression.

3.0 Principles in designing CALL

The instructional and tasks design based on the communicative competence paradigm has
significantly changed language teaching and learning practices in computer-assisted language
learning or CALL structure (Chapelle, 2001). The review of related literature suggests that
the success of any educational system should be based on skill besed educational principles
and interactions. Pennington (1996) notes that an ideal teaching system:
 Assist learners to extend and elaborate their more and more particular cognitive
depiction for the second language.
 permit learners to analyse the situation to take risks in a motivating and
psychologically strong environment.
 Propose input to both conscious and unconscious learning processes.
 Offer learners opportunities to send and to obtain comment on the basis of their
performance.
 Puts learners in contact with other learners.
 Promotes socio-cultural learning.
 Promotes interactivity in learning environment.

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IMPACT FACTOR – 4.23 ISSN 2349-5189

An International Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal

 Present the learner to appropriate contexts for learning.
 Expands the learner’s ‘zone of proximal development’.
 Create the free learning environment for learners.

4.0 Syllabus Design

All classroom practices are controlled as well as determined by a specific methodological

framework and are realized finally by a set of techniques employed within that particular
procedural framework. In that particular procedural framework, the role of syllabus has
always been central.

The process of communicative competence requires different kind of syllabus other than
grammatical or structural syllabus. Yalden (1983) was of the view that in a communicative
syllabus, the whole thing becomes a task-oriented teaching. The learner is provided simulated
learning situations and certain language functions to be performed on CALL. These functions
are simulated on CALL through tasks and Functional Notional Syllabus helps to perform
various functions. The Functional Notional Syllabus helps learners to learn how to use
language for authentic communicative purposes. This syllabus provides ample opportunities
to use language and to express their own ideas, views and emotions effectively.

5.0 A Communicative Lesson Plan

According to Jill Kerper Mora (2000), the following are the steps for lesson planning of
Communicative Competence in English as a Second Langugae Teaching.
1. To initiate the learning with the brainstorming and motivational involvement of
the learners through dialogue. The dialogues are mostly related to learners’
experiences and interests. They may learn about different functions of language
and situations through role playing, formality or informality.
2. To accomplish the goal to develop communicative competence require framework
or structure of conversation through that the learners improve their vocabulary and
expressions.
3. To ask the Questions based on the dialogue, topic or situation. The question
should be Wh-, Yes/No type and open ended questions.
4. To clarify the some of the unknown functions give basic study of communicative
expressions or structures which are contains images, real objects or dramatization
etc.
5. To understand the rules of functional expressions or structures use model
examples on the chalk & board, underline the important features, using signs.
6. To give oral recognition and interpretative activities for freedom of language use.
7. To improve or practice the reading and writing skills use the dialogues with
variations.
8. To evaluate the language and questions/answers of learning with oral
presentations.
9. To give homework and extension activities to create new dialogues around the
same situations.
10. To provide chance to apply the use of language in new situations for the same or
unknown idea to complete the exercise series.

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IMPACT FACTOR – 4.23 ISSN 2349-5189

An International Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal

6.0 Instructional Material

The major objective of teaching Communicative Competence is to help the learners to make
concrete use of the language and to enable them to carry out a variety of communicative
tasks. In order to attain this objective, instructional material has the primary role to play. The
role of instructional material is determine specific subject matter or content, even if the
syllabus is not endures and defines or suggests the intensity of coverage of syllabus item.

The instructional materials try to fulfill the goal by up to date learning objective which
collectively design the syllabus. The role of instructional materials within a functional or
communicative approach has been specified by Littlewood (1981) in the following terms:
1. Materials will target on the communicative abilities of explanation, expression, and
discussion.
2. Materials will light on coherent, compatible, and attractive exchanges of information,
in lieu of the demonstration of grammatical form.
3. Materials will comprise peculiar varieties of media and different write up, through
that the learners may use to enhance their competence through various exercises.
4. Materials will provide flexibility to learners to progress at their own rates of learning.
5. Materials will design as per learners different styles of learning.
6. Materials will provide flexibility for independent study and use.
7. Materials will provide opportunities for self- evaluation and advancement in learning.

7.0 Variables:

7.1 Independent Variable

The independent variable in this study was delivery of the CALL materials to improve
Communicative Competence in English.

7.2 Dependent Variable

The dependent variables in this study were the pre-test and post-test scores that measured
effect of the materials on Communicative Competence in English with respect to various
discipline of degree engineering college and achievement in English in 12th standard.

8.0 Its Interdisciplinary Relevance:

The communicative competence requires each and every discipline of the engineering field.
This is the general core concept of improving skills of the engineers. The Communicative
Competence in English can fulfil the requirement of the engineers. The Communicative
Competence in English also introduces integration with CALL so it is also user friendly
because the engineering students expect technology based learning.

9.0 Rational of the Study:

It is observed that engineering students invest their most of the time in learning technical
subjects. They wish to learn communication skills but lack of time and resources do not allow
them to get mastery over it. If creative and interesting activities can be given to students, they

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 LangLit
IMPACT FACTOR – 4.23 ISSN 2349-5189

An International Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal

can improve their communicative competence in English language. In the light of the
problems stated above, it is important to provide a new way of learning communicative
competence and inspires students to learn by using CALL material course. To enhance
language proficiency; students need extra exposure apart from concept and to practice
concept. Traditional teaching is limited while CALL extends the boundary of classroom
teaching. It has flexible learning approach and overcome the obstacles of inflexible academic
structure. CALL focuses from teaching to learning and from teacher centred learning to
learner centred learning, including the students’ requirements to learn according to his/her
needs, interests, ability and at his/her own pace. Thus CALL is a supportive teaching tool to
classical method, makes learning interactive and meaningful.

10.0 Research Design and Methodology:

 Research Design: Research will be categorized as an experimental design since it

will attempt to provide treatment to experimental group and control over all factors
that may affect the result of an experiment. The researcher wants to use one group
pre-test post test design.
 Research Procedure: The major focus of the research study will be to apply and to
experiment CALL material to improve communicative competence in English. Before
implementation of CALL, Pre-Test will be conducted the group and based on its
result, need based course for communicative competence in English will be designed
and then implementation Post-Test will be conducted to measure the effectiveness of
various CALL material for improvement of Communicative Competence in English.
 Population: The population of the research will be the first year degree engineering
students of Gujarat Technological University.
 Sample: CALL will be applied on one group of 30 students of the first year
engineering of Smt. S. R. Patel Engineering College, Dabhi. The researcher will
conduct both pre-test post-test to the group of 30 students.
 Tools: Pre-Test will be prepared to diagnose the students’ problems in
communicative competence in English and then Post-Test will be prepared to measure
the effectiveness CALL material and improvement in students. To implement this
study successfully, the researcher will develop CALL based material.
 Data Collection: The researcher will give various tasks based on the CALL material
prepared by the researcher for engineering students. The students need to complete all
tasks on computer so that the data will be recorded in the computer. At the end of
each task, one unit test will be constructed and conducted in order to measure the
effectiveness.
 Data Analysis: The data analysis for the present research will be done quantitatively
with the help of descriptive statistics techniques like Mean, median and Standard
Deviation.

11.0 Conclusion:

Thus, the article has attempted to review the rationale behind CALL material use in
improving Communicative Competence. The paper has tried to classify CALL material and
its use in improvement of English language. The material is totally task-based so it is

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 LangLit
IMPACT FACTOR – 4.23 ISSN 2349-5189

An International Peer-Reviewed Open Access Journal

authentic and creative. It can provide vast opportunities for students to practice and promote
competence on an international scale Language skills can also be developed through CALL.
In this entire process of designing a CALL material learners are a central part of the whole
context and are aware of the growing needs for proficiency in communicative competence in
English.

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