Example

Analyze how infrastructural constraints influence the adoption of a competence-

based approach at your internship school. How does your supervisor deal with
such constraints? How can a teacher plan for a problem-based class within this
set of conditions?

In Topic 2, you will study how the BNCC approaches competence-based teaching and
apply its principles to the class you are observing.

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The intercultural axis

As we have seen in Topic 1, ELT competence-based teaching and problem-based

approaches focus on developing the communicative competence. This competence
relates to the knowledge and skills necessary for us to interact communicatively. It is also
an umbrella term, encompassing micro competence frames that cannot be assessed
in isolation. When we communicate in real life scenarios, grammar, sociolinguistic,
discursive, and strategic competences work together, according to our own level of
development. Nevertheless, the question remains:

• After observing classes for your internship, do you believe competence-based

teaching can work in Brazil?

Know more

The BNCC was published in 2018 by the Ministério da Educação – MEC after
consultation with academics, specialists, teachers and other members of
the Brazilian society. Parâmetros Curriculares Nacionais – PCN published in
2001, was the first large attempt of creating national curriculum guidelines.
It understood schooling as a path towards full citizenship, including the
development of critical thinking and job market-related skills. Its ELT section
was criticized due to its focus on reading. The ELT section of the BNCC aims at
overcoming this issue by adopting communicative approach concepts.

The BNCC (2018, p. 246-249) establishes specific sets of skills to be worked with for
each year of regular schooling. They are divided into five axes. Check them out below:

The Orality Axis – Comprehension and oral production

practices in the English language, within different
discursive contexts (either presential or simulated) with a
diverse speech repertoire, including the teacher’s speech.

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 The Reading Axis – Reading practices of diversified texts in the
English language (verbal, verbal-visual, multimodal) present in
different supports and circulation spheres. These practices involve an
articulation with the students’ previous knowledge in their native and/
or other languages.

The Writing Axis – Text production practices in the English language

related to the student’s everyday reality, in different supports and
circulation spheres. These practices involve writing that is mediated by
the teacher or colleagues and articulated with the students’ previous
knowledge in their native and/or other languages.

The Linguistic Knowledge Axis – Linguistic analysis practices that

lead to a reflection upon the functioning of the English language, based
on the language uses worked with in the Orality, Reading, Writing and
Intercultural Dimension Axes.

The Intercultural Dimension Axis – Reflection on aspects related

to the interaction among cultures (students’ culture and the culture
of other English language speakers), in order to favor socialization,
respect, conflict resolution and the valorization of diversity amongst
the people.

Example

Compare the axes division proposed by the BNCC and the communicative
competence description you have seen in Topic 1. How similar are they? How
do they differ? Do you believe that this division can help Brazilian teachers to
work for competence development?

Aside from proposing interconnected axes, the BNCC goes further to indicate which
specific sets of skills can be related to each axis, according to the school year each
teacher will work with.

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 Example

For sixth graders, the orality axis proposes that teachers mediate the production
of oral texts based on the following communicative functions:

- Talking about oneself and other people: giving personal information; sharing
preferences and routines.
- Planning presentations about one’s family, community and school, sharing it
orally with the group.

For ninth graders, all axes turn to argumentation.

There is a strong connection between the concept of communicative competence

studied in Topic 1 and the logic implemented by the BNCC. Grammar, sociolinguistic,
discursive, and strategic competences are contemplated. Nonetheless, the focus turns to
practice, as a means of helping teachers prepare their lesson plans. While talking to their
colleagues about their lives or preparing presentations about their families, students are
faced with open-ended problems and teachers can mediate their task according to each
student’s level of language development.

Curiosity

Did you notice that the Linguistic Knowledge Axis (Grammar Competence)
depends on the practices proposed by the other axes? It happens due to the
long-standing tradition, still prevailing at Brazilian schools, of adopting content-
based approaches that focus on knowledge of grammar instead of grammar-
contextualized practices.

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As discussed in Topic 1, any competence-based approach needs to focus on real life
practice opportunities and the infrastructure offered by Brazilian public schools may
make it difficult for teachers to implement it. However, the BNCC proposal depends upon
a very specific view of the English language, which can help teachers adapt their classes
and rethink traditional standards. The authors understand English as lingua franca.

Know more

Traditionally, ELT refers to English as a native, second or foreign language. The

idea of English as Foreign Language – EFL presupposes that students are
learning how to communicate in a language that is distant from their reality or
does not belong to them. The concept of English as a lingua franca understands
this language as a medium for worldwide interchange and communication,
which extrapolates the frontiers and linguistic forms used by native speakers.

Did you notice that the Intercultural Dimension Axis mentions “the interaction among
cultures (student’s culture and the culture of other English language speakers)”? Under
this notion, any person who speaks English — independently from their nationality or level
of competence — is an English speaker. Understanding English as a lingua franca has a
high impact on teaching practices, specifically when it comes to evaluative practices. Do
you remember our discussion about competence judgment? When we define English
as a lingua franca, our expectations regarding students’ (and teachers’) performance
change and the concepts of “standard”, “American/British English”, “native-like fluency”
stand revised.

Reflection time

When English is not associated with a “native ideal”, we can talk about a Brazilian
English. Common interlanguage, which is traditionally assessed by teachers
as mistaken, becomes part of a specific language variety. That is the case of
structures like “informations” or “I have 12 years old.”

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If American or British speakers hear the word “informations”, they will probably
understand it without any need for further sentence contextualization. The same is valid
for structures like “I have 12 years old.” Considering whether communication is achieved
or not may drastically change our perspectives for lesson planning, since it alters our
view on what is good/bad, successful/unsuccessful. Besides that, when using English
as a lingua franca, we never know what to expect.

Example

Workplace scenarios are filled with situations in which two non-natives speakers
use English as a mutual communication ground. An Argentinian manager and
a Chinese supplier will resort to their own varieties while interacting. In order
to achieve their communicative purpose, they will need to respect each other’s
linguistic differences and negotiate uses that are not common for them.

The authors of the BNCC suggest that teachers prepare students for unpredictability,
a common interactive characteristic. In this sense, working with a problem-based
approach will, at the very least, prepare students to deal with the skills they lack without
interrupting communication.

Media Library

Access your Media Library for Unit 1 and check the supplementary content selected
by your professor on the topic Base Nacional Comum Curricular – Lingua Inglesa.

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Respectfully negotiating linguistic knowledge is the one of most important aspects of a
competence-based English class. Instead of promoting what is “right/wrong”, “standard/
non-standard”, teachers encourage students to self-assess and answer questions like:

• Is this linguistic production adequate? Why?

• Who decides what is adequate or not (in a given situation)?
• How can I find out what is adequate (in a given situation)?
• How do these insights related to my production in Portuguese and other languages?

Reflection time

Consider the classes you are accompanying. Do they promote the concept of
English as a lingua franca? How do students position themselves regarding
the English language? How does that influence lesson conduction and general
classroom interaction?

Technology and infrastructural resources are facilitators. Nevertheless, competence-

based approaches can be implemented in less than ideal scenarios, especially if we revise
our competence standards. If success relates to communication, teachers can create
many interaction opportunities in which students will be in touch with contextualized
language use. Students themselves will generate some of these learning opportunities,
since their previous knowledge on the intercultural dimension may offer the start for
many linguistic debates.

In Topic 3, you will watch two recordings of real English classes and compare their
teachers’ interactive style with the experiences you are observing during your internship
process.

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Case studies: analyzing lesson plans

In Topics 1 and 2, you have reviewed your internship observation practice under
the lenses of competence-based approaches. You have analyzed teaching plans,
methodological strategies and classroom interactions, considering how teachers
can work for competence development. In Topic 3, you will watch recordings of real
English classes in order to broaden your perspectives on lesson plan conduction and
compare other teachers’ experiences with the ones you have been observing at your
assigned school.

Important

Keep organized records of the exercises and reflections you develop while
analyzing classes in Supervised Internship III. They might prove useful at the
end of the term, when you need to produce and implement your own lesson
plan for the group(s) you are observing. They may also assist you in the writing
of your final report.

Think about what we have discussed so far. It is clear that the Brazilian society
has mobilized around ELT, trying to encourage new ideological, conceptual, and
methodological perspectives in an effort to attend students’ needs. This on-going debate
has produced numerous documents, including the BNCC and the Programa Nacional do
Livro Didático – PNLD, which have influenced the way material designers conceived their
syllabi and unit structures.

Reflection time

Have you ever analyzed the English textbook collection used at your internship
school? Take a look at its content table, unit division, task structure and
objectives. Discover if/how the Portuguese language is used in the material.
Is it based on the notion of English as a lingua franca? Why? How does your
supervisor work with the material?

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