What is a Communicative Approach to English Language Teaching?

A Communicative Approach?

There are a variety of approaches to teaching English as a second or foreign Language. One aspect of English and foreign Language teaching involves using a Communicative Approach. But what exactly does using a communicative approach mean?

Well for me, a Communicative Approach to Language teaching includes several distinct aspects. We'll mention two of them here. Applying these aspects means that language teaching and learning become far more than a series of grammar lessons and vocabulary lists. For language teaching and learning to be truly communicative, it must not only be in context, but used to convey ideas, preferences, thoughts, feelings and information in a way that is addressed to reach others. Usually, I address communicative language teaching through the use of two approaches:

o Content-Based Instruction (CBI)

o Task-Based language teaching (TBLT)

Definitions of CBI vs. TBL in ELT

In CBI (Widdowson, 1978), the focus of classes is not on the language and structure itself, but rather on learners acquiring skills or knowledge using English as the language of instruction. If you teach a learner how to repair computers, for example, and use English as the language of instruction, the learners improve their language communicative skills while learning foremost the skill of computer repair.

Task-Based Learning in ELT

In the TBLT approach (Willis, 1996), the focus is on providing communicative activities needed for English language learning, performing tasks using the target language (English) and using the English language in other ways for learning tasks. Examples would be having learners buy postage to mail a letter by first teaching them the structures and language needed to perform the task, then actually having them do it. Another example would be teaching learners the needed English to order a meal in a restaurant, or make a shopping purchase, then allowing them to complete such tasks on their own using unguided or free speech.

In the publication, "Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching" by Jack C. Richards and Theodore S. Rodgers (CUP, 2001) more than a dozen approaches to ELT are explored in depth. From the now defunct Grammar-Translation and Situational approaches to Total Physical Response (TPR), Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and Lexical approaches to the Communicative approaches, the Natural approach and Cooperative Learning, English and foreign language teachers world wide have a much greater language teaching approach repertoire than ever before.

So, what's it going to be then?

Communicative Strategies in a Second Language Learning

The communicative approach does not emphasize error correction; rather it emphasizes fluency and meaning or in more concrete terms, getting the meaning across. In the communicative approach, learners are introduced to a variety of conversational contexts, yet the target Language speakers are limited. There is also a limited time frame of classroom learning in these contexts yet second Language learners are not always encouraged to place emphasis on accuracy right away in the beginning.

What comes to mind therefore, are the five proposals for classroom learning according to Lightbrown and Spada. This article will focus on the two more talked about ones that have implications for learning and teaching. The ideal classroom learning situation evolves around both accuracy and meaning. The proposals of 'say what you mean and mean what you say,' which is based on an interactionist's view in that a negotiation of meaning and modified input, are the basic components of teaching methodology where the learners are encouraged to pursue clarification and confirmation questions in order to negotiate meaning. There is no emphasis on accuracy or form. The 'Just Listen' proposal does not encourage performance as it relies solely on comprehensible input through listening and reading skills. The proposal is idea for the silent learners who learns and communicates via the material within himself or herself. The criticism behind the proposals of 'Just Listen' and 'Say What You Mean' state that comprehensible levels of input and meaningful interaction are not enough to bring the learner to high levels of accuracy of second language learning.

The Behaviorist proposal however works differently in that it is based solely on accuracy and form with litle or no negotiation of meaning; therefore, it is redundant to conclude that the behaviorist proposal is successful for creating a balance between fluency and accuracy. Its teaching methodology rests on preventing errors before they become fossilized thus learners are encouraged to repeat and repeat with little emphasis on meaning.

The final proposal of 'Teach what is teachable' places a high emphasis on the learner learning the structures according to his or her internal syllabus and the order of second language acquisition. Within the frameworks of classroom proposals for teaching are the elements of content based words behind a communicative oriented input where the learner has to decode language but does not have to break the language. (code breaking) One of the main assumptions behind negotiation of meaning within the communicative approach is that learners should reach high levels of intelligibility and that they are capable of being understood in various contexts. In decoding, the main aim is on fluency and not on accuracy. Learners do not have to produce; the focus is on making use of content words, background knowledge in order to negotiate meaning. In code breaking on the other hand, the emphasis is on production where a learner is encouraged to use the forms correctly.

These proposals when connected to a language monitor model provide important implications for teaching a second language. In the monitor model, a learner who does not monitor his/her speech, shows developing level of competence whereas a learner who monitors his/her speech according to the target forms will eventually reach higher levels of second language accuracy.