Understanding Language: Communication, Speech, and Writing

Posted on Mar 16, 2025 in Other civil servant exams

Unit 1: Language as Communication

Language as communication. Oral and written language. Factors which define a communicative situation: Sender, Receiver, Functionality, and Context.

This essay studies language as communication. The topic is divided into three main sections:

The concept of language and its properties.
The characteristics and differences between writing and speech.
The ways in which communication occurs.

Additionally, this essay identifies the key factors affecting any communicative interaction in Foreign Language Teaching (FLT). Finally, it compiles the main conclusions and the bibliography used to develop this topic.

Regarding foreign language learning, the legal framework is the Organic Law 2/2006 of Education, 3^rd May, modified by the Organic Law for the Improvement in Educational Quality, 8/2013, 9^th December. Section XII of its preamble establishes that “the command of a second or third language has become a priority in the Education field, as a consequence of the globalization process we live in.”

One of the most relevant aspects of the Organic Law for the Improvement in Educational Quality is related to the Order ECD/65/2015, 21^st of January, which establishes the relation among the key competences, contents, and evaluation criteria in Primary Education. On the other hand, the Royal Decree 126/2014, 28^th of February, establishes the Minimum Teaching Requirements for Primary Education and states in Article 7, Objective F: “to acquire basic communicative competence in at least one foreign language to enable expression and comprehension of simple messages and survive in everyday situations.” In addition, the Order EDU/519/2014, 17th of June, modified by the Order EDU 278/2016, 8^th of April, establishes the minimum contents for Primary Education in the Autonomous Community of Castilla y Leon.

1. Definition and Properties of Language

Language is the main means by which people communicate. It is a system of signs that are combined to transmit a message. Language is a patterned system of arbitrary sound signals characterized by displacement, duality, creativity, cultural transmission, and structure dependence.

All the features show that acquiring a language is a complicated process which is unconscious and effortless when children learn their mother tongue, but conscious and difficult when learning a foreign language.

1.2. Communication Theory

Three influential approaches on communication theory are:

The Cooperative Principle
The Speech Act Theory
Discourse Analysis

They have a common concern: they see language as a dynamic, social, and interactive phenomenon, whether between the speaker and listener or the writer and reader. Meaning is conveyed by more complex exchanges, in which the participant, the purpose, and the situation play a crucial part.

2. Oral and Written Language

2.1. The Importance of Speech and Writing

For centuries, written language held a more pre-eminent place than oral language. It wasn’t until the 20^th century, however, that a new approach appeared. This new approach pointed out that speech was more important than writing because it is developed naturally in children, while writing is artificially taught and because writing is a transcription of the sounds of speech. Nowadays, speech and writing are different systems of communication, with their own characteristics and uses.

2.2. Differences Between Oral and Written Language

The characteristics of oral language are:

Expressive Possibilities: When speaking, we can vary the tone, the accent, and the speed of our words to underline the most important word in our speech.
Use of Gestures and Body Language: These are important because they reinforce the transmission of the message.
Spontaneity and Speed: The spontaneity and speed of oral language makes a person build simpler sentences when speaking than when writing. Pauses, repetitions, or rephrasing are frequent, according to the degree of the speaker’s understanding. It is normal to make mistakes or to hesitate when speaking.

2.3.1. Methodological Principles of Oral Language

Activity, socialization, individualization, and motivation. The first aim at school should be to motivate and release oral language starting from the child’s interest and experience.

2.3.2. Main Forms and Techniques of Oral Communication

The practice of dialogues and monologues.

2.3.3. Assessment of Oral Language

This is a complex process due to the fact that oral communication is not only influenced by the way of expressing but also by the speaker’s personality, intelligence, and emotions. Evaluation of oral language includes three levels: diagnostic of the difficulties and mistakes, correction, and planning of activities of reinforcement and extension.

2.4. Characteristics of Written Language

Precision: The fact that writing is permanent allows more time for its preparation, promoting the development of careful organization and more structured expression than in oral language.
Clarity: The participants in a written interaction are not usually present. Therefore, ambiguity should be limited to the maximum.
Unique Graphic Features: Writing displays several features such as punctuation, spelling, space organization, capitalization, and calligraphy.
Formal: Written language tends to be more formal than spoken language and it provides a standard valued by society.

2.4.1. Methodology of Written Language

The difference between controlled practice, guided or directed practice, and free practice is the level of free participation the student has when writing.

2.4.2. Assessing Written Language

A good test should give us a reliable indication of our student’s skill.

2.5. Pedagogical Implications

We can draw several conclusions:

Oral language is easier to acquire, so it should be introduced earlier. It is more natural.
Errors in oral language should be considered as more normal within the learning process.
Spelling exercises are important: students find the writing of words in English difficult because of the difference between the oral and written forms.
The understanding of oral expressions should be encouraged.
The graphic features of writing make the learning of this skill the slowest to acquire.
To be able to write is necessary the linguistic competence and to learn how to organize ideas in a written text.
The teacher should give notions of style to help the students to organize their discourse logically and cohesively.

On certain occasions, written and spoken language are present at the same time. For instance, a perfect example would be this theme that I am reading to you at the moment. I wrote this in such a way that, when I came to read it in your presence, it would be perfectly understandable.

Therefore, I paid particular attention to previously mentioned aspects of written language, like grammatically correct sentences, organization of my ideas, lexical and semantic cohesion and coherence. At the same time, I need to think carefully about how all of the written information would sound to those who would be listening to me.

3. Factors Defining a Communicative Situation

3.1. Addresser, Addressee

They are the participants in the communicative act. The addresser is the author of the message and the addressee is the person or people to whom it is directed. The relationship between the participants in a communicative act is called the tenor. In an English classroom we should try to vary the interactions: teacher-student, student-teacher, student-student.

3.2. Context

Linguists distinguish between linguistic context (the text, words, phrases…) and the situational context (the place and the moment in which the communicative act is developed). In the English class the students should learn how to select the language form to use in a certain context. We can use with children role-plays to recreate a situation.

3.3. Purpose

It is the intention of a message. When learning English, the students should have a purpose or desire to communicate.

3.4. Topic

It is the matter about which the interaction develops. In order to have successful communicative activities in the English class it is essential for the topics to be based on the students’ interests.

3.5. Medium/Channel

The medium is the means by which a message is transmitted. There are two types of media: speech and writing. The channel is the technical means of transmission: telephone, television, radio.

3.6. Code

The code is the communication system shared by addresser and addressee. Language is the most frequent code used. But there are also extra linguistic codes as facial expressions, body language or intonation. Non-verbal communication is also very important.

3.7. Register

In linguistics, register refers to a defined style of language and has to do with more or less formality. Martin Joos describes the following registers: formal, consultative, casual, intimate, frozen. In the English classroom, the register used corresponds to informal or intimate situations, since the context will always be friendly.

4. Functionalities

4.1. Jakobson’s Model

Jakobson’s model follows six general functions:

Emotive: This is the expression of feelings and attitudes.
Conative: This is used to draw the addressee’s attention.
Referential: It is the communication of ideas or facts.
Poetic: This is the language used for aesthetic purposes or as verbal play.
Phatic: This is based on the human being’s need for showing signs of friendship.
Metalingual function: This is used when explanations are requested for clarification.

4.2. Halliday’s Model

Halliday’s model sees language as a social and cultural phenomenon. He identifies three principal functions of language:

The ideational: This function emphasizes language as an instrument of thought with which we represent the world to ourselves.
The interpersonal function: This function emphasizes language as an instrument of transaction by which we represent ourselves to other people.
The textual function: It emphasizes language as an instrument of communication with which we construct sentences cohesively and coherently.

Language Teaching now focuses on communicative proficiency rather than on mastery structures. The language presented to students must be contextualized in realistic and natural situations. Students are expected to interact with one another through pair and group work in order to experience communication. Syllabus should be organized around the notions and functions that learners may need in order to communicate successfully.

5. The Communicative Approach to FLT

With regard to the historical attitudes, written language was traditionally considered to be superior to spoken language for many centuries. Contrary to this influential view, a group of linguistics argued in favour of studying speech as the primary medium of communication. Dell Hymes established the communicative competence. It is defined as what a speaker needs to know in order to be communicatively competent in a speech community. Hymes said that a communicative and cultural dimension should be incorporated. Canale and Swain established four subcompetences:

Grammatical (linguistic code).
Discursive (the ability to relate and combine grammatical forms to achieve coherent texts).
Sociolinguistic (the ability to produce and understand messages relating to social context, participants and purpose.
Strategic (it refers to participant’s verbal and non-verbal strategies).

These four skills are complemented by the socio-cultural competence. Julian Edge describes the students’ tasks as juggling with the accuracy, the fluency and the appropriateness. On the other hand, Communicative activities refer to the tasks and exercises that the student carries out for real communication. A communicative activity must be interactive, unpredictable, within a context and authentic.

Examples: information-gap activities, role-play, problem-solving, following instructions, describing personal experiences, communicative games, reaching a consensus.

Examples of written activities: writing instructions, short messages, short letters, to penfriends, questionnaires, imaginary diaries, filling forms, project work.

6. Conclusion

Learning a foreign language today implies knowing the structures and the vocabulary, at oral and written in a variety of circumstances and situations. The English teacher can’t just teach structures, vocabulary and pronunciation. He should add the social element. The teacher should keep in mind that the structures he will teach are transmitted within a certain context, through a channel, orientated to an addressee who will interpret it. The function of the message and the factors that intervene in a communication act must be included in the methodology of the foreign language.

Bibliography used to develop this unit includes:

COUNCIL OF EUROPE. (2003). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.
EMMER, E.T. & GERWELS, M.C. (2002). Cooperative Learning in elementary classrooms: Teaching practices and lesson characteristics. The Elementary School Journal.
GARDNER, H. (2001): Reformulated Intelligence. Multiple Intelligences in XXI Century. Buenos Aires: Paidós.
HARMER, J. The Practice of English Language Teaching. London: Longman, 2008 (4th ed.)
NUNAN, D. (2010): Language Teaching Methodology. University Press.

Referring to the webpages: