The Communicative Approach of Language Teaching

29 June 2015
HALIMA ABDULLAH ELAYEB
2

 Country of Origin.
 The Historical Background of the Communicative
Approach.
 The Goal of the Communicative Approach.
 The Basic Principles.
 The Techniques and activities used by this approach.
 The Role of the Teacher and the Students.
 Evaluation.
 Advantages and Disadvantages.
 How the Communicative Approach differs from the other
Traditional Methods?
 Conclusion.
 The references
 Quiz
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 Communicative Language Teaching began in Britain
in the 1960s as a replacement to the earlier structural
method, called Situational Language Teaching. This
was partly in response to Chomsky’s criticisms of
structural theories of language and partly based on
the theories of British functional linguistic.
 In the United States, Hymes (1971) had reacted to
Chomsky’s characterization of the linguistic
competence of the ideal native speaker and, retaining
Chomsky’s distinction between competence and
performance, pro-posed the term‘ ‘communicative
competence’’ to represent the ability to use language
in a social context.
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 The Communicative Approach is generally
referred to as The Functional-Notional
Approach (Wilkins1972).
 What people want to do with the language
(functions) and what meanings people want to
convey (notions).
 Functions such as: evaluating, persuading,
arguing, informing, agreeing, questioning,
requesting, expressing emotions.
 Notions such as: time, quantity, space,
location, and motion.
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 It was based upon needs analysis of adult
learners (learners’ needs and teacher’s goals).
 This approach came into existence during
the seventies of the last century, when some
experts of language teaching began to look
for a new technique which met learners’
needs.
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The CA can be traced to the work of Chomsky
in the 1960s, when he advanced the two notions
of ‘competence’ and ‘performance’ as a reaction
against the Audio-Lingual Method and its views.
These two concepts were developed later on by
Hymes, into a ‘communicative competence’
which has been expanded by a number of
writers to finally propose seven categories of
communicative functions (evaluating,
persuading, arguing, informing, agreeing,
questioning, requesting, expressing emotions).
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The theory of learning underlying this
approach is holistic rather than behavioristic.
According to this approach, the notion of
habit formation is rejected and language
learning is considered as cognitive process.
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To teach REAL LIFE language
To become communicatively competent
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 Communicative competence. Implies
knowledge of the grammatical system of the
language as well as performance. Language
grammar is seen as a language tool not an
aim. It is taught intuitively.
Inductive as well as deductive learning of
grammar.
The semantic content is given the priority in
language learning. Learners acquire the
grammar through meaning.
Comprehensible pronunciation is acceptable.
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 CA follows a systematic learning
process involves trial and error.
 Fluency is emphasized rather than
accuracy.
 It is learner centered approach.
 Group/pair work is encouraged.
The class should be held in the TL.
In CA, the teacher must free himself
from the text-book. Never feel that text-
book must be used from cover to cover.
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A closer link is required between classroom
activities and authentic situations outside (in
the target language).
 In this approach, the visual aids are
permitted. They help to motivate and focus
students’ attention.
 Errors are considered inevitable and
predictable in the process of language
learning. The teacher should be tolerant and
need NOT to correct every mistake
(selective error correction).
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1. GAMES:
Guessing games are common, mime game and
find the differences or similarities etc..
2. ROLE-PLAY:
e.g. one student imagines he/she is a farmer.
Other students ask him/her questions about
his/her daily routine.
4. PROJECTS:
This is for learners of all ages especially young
ones.
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3. DRAMA:
In which students of a small group may
prepare a short dramatization of same event
and perform the scene as a group.
5. INTERVIEWS:
It is popular and appropriate activity for pair
and group work. Here, the students can ask
and answer each other some questions such as:
- What’s your name - where do you live?
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6. BRAINSTORMING:
This task is used for developing the thinking process,
and used in preparing students to read a text or write on
a topic.
7. INFORMATION GAP:
When one person in an exchange knows something that
the other person doesn’t. if we both know today is
“Monday” and I ask you, “what is today?” our
exchange isn’t really communicative.
8. JIGSAW:
A special forms of information gaps. One very popular
technique is used with large groups. It is known as strip
story.
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9. PROBLEM SOLVING AND DECISION
MAKING:
This task focuses on group solution of any
specified problem. In this technique , the focus
is on meaningful cognitive challenges, not on
grammatical or phonological items.
10. OPINION EXCHANGE:
It is suitable for intermediate level. It contains
the exchange of various opinions.
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 Freeman mentions some of the techniques
used by teachers who adopt the CA for
teaching intermediate level as follows:
1. Authentic material
2. Scrambled sentences
3. Language games
4. Picture strip story
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A) THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER:
The teacher is less dominant than in
traditional methods, but not less important.
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Co-Communicator
Facilitator
Advisor
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B) THE ROLE OF THE
STUDENT:
Students are communicators.
They work actively in
negotiating meaning to
understand others and to be
understood.
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 Students are evaluated informally (during
class) or formally (through tests) not only in
accuracy but also in fluency, and not only
orally but also written.
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A) THE ADVANTAGES OF THE CA:
1. This approach considered the four language
skills equally.
2. The plenty of techniques and activities
adopted by this approach provides students
with the opportunities to use the language.
3. In this approach, every student is active
because there are interactions among
students and teacher verbally and non-
verbally.
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4. In this approach, the modern techniques are used to
make teaching very effective and interesting.
5. This approach creates communicative environment
of real life language.
5. As this approach is learner centered, all the
teaching materials are prepared according to
mentality and interest of the students.
6. It has transformed the traditional role of the teacher
as the sole giver (the only source) of knowledge to
that of receiver of information, and from the
dominant figure in the classroom to that of a
manager and co- ordinator of the class.
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B) THE DISADVANTAGES OF THE CA:
1. It is not possible to have big number of
competent teachers who can communicate
as native speakers of the target language. In
the Arab world such teachers are scarce.
2. Unfortunately, most schools lack the
classrooms that can allow for group work
activities and teaching aids and materials
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1. The CA considered the four language
skills, whereas the other methods
considered two only or neglected them
absolutely.
2. In the CA, the ultimate goal in learning is
achieved upon communicative
competence, whereas in the other methods
it is on linguistic competence.
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3. In the CA, teachers encourage the learners
to communicate from the early stages,
whereas in many other methods the
communicative activities are achieved after
a long period of tedious exercises.
4. In the CA, the intelligible pronunciation is
accepted, whereas in some other methods
the accurate pronunciation is required, and
in others, it is absolutely neglected.
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5. In the CA, the teachers should be tolerant
with students’ mistakes, whereas in other
methods, they are more strict.
6. In the CA, the suitable use of the native
language is accepted, whereas in some
traditional methods, the use of students’
native language is rejected.
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 Communicative Language Teaching is
accepted as a best language teaching approach
by different countries of the world.
The Communicative Approach, though still
evolving, has gained increased popularity in
many educational systems across the world.
Many Arab countries especially those of the
Gulf States have recently adopted a modified
version of this approach to teaching English
with the aim of improving the communicative
competence of the students.
There is no PERFECT method of teaching. We,
ourselves can make it perfect if we used it in the
appropriate situation in the appropriate time.
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 Al-Mutawa, N. and Kailani T. (1998). Methods of Teaching
English to Arab Students. Longman: Harlow.
 Freeman, D. L. (2000). Techniques and Principles in
Language Teaching. Oxford University Press: Oxford.
 Richards, J. C. and Theodore S. Rodgers. (1997).
Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching.
Cambridge University Press: USA.
 Rivers, W. (1981). Teaching Foreign-Language Skills. The
University of Chicago Press: Chicago and London.
 Melinda Whong. (2011). Language Teaching _linguistic
theory in practice_. Edinburgh University Press: Scotland.
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TRUE or FALSE
1. CA encourages individual work.
2. Pronunciation is emphasized.
3. Grammar is taught inductively.
4. Repetition is discouraged.
5. In CA, the curriculum is restricted to
textbook.
6. Mother tongue can be used when it is
necessary.
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The Communicative Approach of Language Teaching

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