Communicative Language Teaching: Principles & Techniques
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)
CLT suggests that grammatical structure might better be subsumed under various functional categories. Less attention is paid to the presentation and discussion of grammatical rules. More spontaneity is present in communicative classrooms; students are encouraged to deal with unrehearsed situations under the guidance, but not control, of the teacher. CLT has six key characteristics:
Classroom Goals and Communicative Competence
Classroom goals are focused on all components of communicative competence: grammatical, discourse, functional, sociolinguistic, and strategic. Goals must intertwine the organizational aspects of language with the pragmatic.
Purposeful Language Techniques
Language techniques are designed to engage learners in the pragmatic, authentic, functional use of language for meaningful purposes. Organizational language forms are not the central focus, but rather aspects of language that enable the learner to accomplish those purposes.
Fluency and Accuracy in Language Use
Fluency and accuracy are seen as complementary principles underlying communicative techniques. At times, fluency may have to take on more importance than accuracy to keep learners meaningfully engaged in language use.
Real-World Language Application
Students have to use the language, productively and receptively, in unrehearsed contexts outside the classroom. Classroom tasks must equip students with the skills necessary for communication in those contexts.
Focus on the Learning Process
Students are given opportunities to focus on their own learning process through an understanding of their own learning styles and through the development of appropriate strategies for autonomous learning.
The Teacher’s Role: Facilitator and Guide
The teacher’s role is that of a facilitator and guide, not an all-knowing bestower of knowledge. Students are encouraged to construct meaning through genuine linguistic interaction with others.
Key aspects of CLT:
- Meaning is paramount.
- Dialogues center around communicative functions and are not normally memorized.
- Contextualization is a basic premise.
- Language learning is learning to communicate.
- Effective communication is sought.
- Drilling may occur but peripherally.
- Comprehensible pronunciation is sought.
- Translation may be used where students need or benefit from it.
- Reading and writing can start from the first day, if desired.
- Teachers help learners in any way that motivates them to work with the language.
Learner-Centered Instruction
Learner-centered instruction includes techniques that:
- Focus on or account for learners’ needs, styles, and goals.
- Give some control to the student (e.g., group work or strategy training).
- Allow for student creativity and innovation.
- Include the consultation and input of students in the curricula, without presupposing objectives in advance.
- Enhance a student’s sense of competence and self-worth.
The teacher acts as a facilitator.
Cooperative and Collaborative Learning
Collaborative learning is a method of teaching and learning in which students team together to explore a significant question or create a meaningful project. Cooperative learning is a specific kind of collaborative learning. In cooperative learning, students work together in small groups on a structured activity. They are individually accountable for their work, and the work of the group as a whole is also assessed.