communicative language teaching/ principles of language teaching

Communicative Language Teaching

Set of Principles about:•Goals of Language Teaching•How Learners Learn a Language•Classroom Activities that best Facilitate Learning•Roles of Teachers and Learners.

Goal of Language Teaching• Develop Communicative Competence• Communicative Competence Contrasted withLinguistic Competence

Linguistic Competence

• Rules for creating grammatically correct sentences

Communicative competence

• How Sentences are Used in Communication• Implications for English as an International Language• Not Necessarily Based on Native-speaker

Norms

View of Second Language Learning

• Interaction between the Learner and Users of the Language

• Collaborative Creation of Meaning• Creating Meaningful and Purposeful Interaction

through Language• Attending to Feedback• Paying Attention Input• Incorporating New Forms into Communicative

Competence• Experimenting with Different Ways of Saying Things

• Traditional Approaches to Language Teaching(up to the late 1960s)

• Priority given to grammatical competence• Accurate Pronunciation and Mastery• Grammar Learned Through:– Direct Instruction– Repetitive Practice– Drilling– Memorization of Dialogs– Question and Answer Practice– Substitution Drills– Guided Speaking and Writing Practice

• Traditional Approaches to Language Teaching(up to the late 1960s)

Methodologies:– Audiolingualism– Structural-Situational Approach

Communicative Language Teaching(1970s to 1990s)

• Alternative Model of a Syllabuses to Replace Grammar Syllabuses

– Functional Syllabus– Skills Syllabus– ESP Approach• • Alternative Classroom Procedures

Implications for ClassroomMethodology

• Real communication the Focus of Language Learning

• Opportunities to Experiment• Tolerant of Errors– Building Communicative Competence• Opportunities to Develop Accuracy and

Fluency

Implications for ClassroomMethodology

• Link Different Skills Together• – Speaking, Reading, Listening and Writing• Students Induce or Discover Grammar Rules• Emphasis on Pair Work and Group Work• Push for Authenticity

Typical Classroom Activities in CLT

• Fluency Activities:• – Information-gap Activities• – jig-Saw Activities• – Task-Completion Activities• – Information-Gathering Activities• – Opinion-Sharing Activities• – Information-Transfer Activities• – Reasoning-Gap Activities• – Role plays

Ten Assumptions of CurrentCommunicative Language Teaching

• 1. Learners Engaged in Interaction and Meaningful Communication

• 2. Effective Classroom Learning Tasks:• Negotiate Meaning• Expand Language Resources• Notice How Language is Used• Meaningful Intrapersonal Exchange

Ten Assumptions of CurrentCommunicative Language Teaching

• 3. Meaningful Communication from Relevant, Purposeful, Interesting, and Engaging Content• 4. Communication a Holistic Process• • Use Several Language Skills or Modalities• 5. Language Learning Facilitated by Activities• involving:• • Inductive or Discovery Learning• • Language Analysis and Reflection

Ten Assumptions of CurrentCommunicative Language Teaching

• 6. 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

Ten Assumptions of CurrentCommunicative Language Teaching

• 8. Effective Learning and Communication Strategies• 9. Teacher is a Facilitator: • Climate Conducive to Language Learning• • Opportunities for Ss to Use and Practice Language• • Opportunities for Ss to Reflect on Language Use &learning• 10. The Classroom is a Community where Learners Collaborate and Share

Two Directions in CurrentMethodology

• Processed-based Approaches – Content-based Instruction – Task-based Instruction• • Product-based Approaches• – Text-based Instruction• – Competency-based Instruction

Two Directions in CurrentMethodology

• Processed-based Approaches – Focus on Creating Classroom Processes that Facilitate language learning• • Product-based Approaches – Focus on Learning Outcomes

Content-based Instruction

• Use Language as a Means of Acquiring• Information, rather than as an End in Itself• • Better Reflects Learners’ Needs• • Provides a Coherent Framework to link

and Develop Language Skills• • Content Can be from School Curriculum

or Related to Learners’ Interests and Needs

Content-based instruction• 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.

Task-based instruction• a) Key Characteristics of a Task:• – Something Learners Do Using Existing Language• Resources• – Outcome Not Simply Linked to Learning Language• Language Acquisition May Occur• – Focus on Meaning• – Use Communication Strategies and Interactional Skills

Task-based instruction

• b) Two Kinds of Tasks:• – Pedagogical Tasks• – Real-world Tasks

Task-based instruction• c) 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

Task-based instruction• a) TBI is Based on an Approach to Teaching• Language that Involves:• – Teaching the Structures and Grammatical

Features of Spoken and Written Texts• – Linking Spoken and Written Texts to the Cultural• Context of their Use• – Designing Units of Work that Focus on Developing

Skills in Relation to Whole Texts• – Providing Students with Guided Practice

Competency-based instruction• Characteristics of CBI:• – A Focus on Successful Functioning in Society• – A Focus on Life Skills• – Task- or Performance-oriented Instruction• – Modularized Instruction• – Outcomes are Made Explicit• – Continuous and Ongoing Assessment• – Mastery of Performance Objectives• – Individualized, Student-centered Instruction