Universidad Católica de la Ssma. ConcepciónEducation DepartmentEnglish Pedagogy

Essay: ‘Communicative Approaches’.

Authors: María de los A. Betancur Murillo. Paulina Ramírez González. Subject: Applied Linguistics. Teacher: Ms. María Angelica Fuica.

Concepción, September, 30.

COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH.

Nowadays, thanks to the new communication systems, education had suffered a

revolution in a lot of scopes, for example in second language learning methodologies. For

this reason, many teaching methods had born, such as ‘Communicative Approach’, also

known as ‘Communicative Language Teaching’ (CLT). This approach of second language

acquisition is defined as a language teaching approach, in which the most important point is

the interaction as a mean and as the final objective in language learning. But, is it really

adequate for present schools?

Historically, CLT was born in late 1960, when structuralism was call in question.

This model proposed answers to Chomsky’s interrogations to the structural theories (about

lack of responses to essential characteristics of the tongue, e.g. originality, singularity).

Furthermore, experts on this field considered that Communicative Competence was more

important than language structures, because in this way, the learning covered a more

complete understanding, for the reason that it is conceived as the capacity that each student

have to utilize the knowledge about formal and sociolinguistic aspects of the tongue, in

order to use it in the correct way.

CLT was an answer for ‘Audio-lingual method’, which emphasizes in listening and

speaking, but, it did not allow the development of Communicative Competence, that is too

much important to CLT; and also as an extension of ‘Notional-functional method’, which

pay all attention in the purposes to use language in different contexts, that is, it “focuses on

what people want to do or what they want to accomplish through speech” (Learning Ace,

n.d.). Related to this, Littlewood (1981) says: “one of the characteristics of the

Communicative Approaches of other languages is that it worries about the functional

aspects of the language as of the structural ones. Classroom lessons are likely to be

organized around concepts such as ‘asking for things’ in different social settings, procedure

by means of students worked in small groups and the purpose is that they can use the

linguistic resources in tasks of resolution of problems”.

Now, in order to extend the concept of Communicative Competence, that was

defined previously, is important to say that it is composed by two versions: the weak

version, that is related to the habitual practice, when is central to give the students the

opportunity of use the language. And the strongest version is associated with the classroom

situation, when students learned language by communication.

Another author, David Nunan (1996), conceived CLT as a general teaching model,

being that, it implies all the skills in one method and it searches global learning and

comprehension. Consequently, this approach is guided by five principles that are focuses on

the needs and interests of each student, there are: 1. It emphasizes in the language

communication through the interaction; 2. It uses real-life situations to learn language; 3.

Students have the chance of think in the learning process, not only in the tongue; 4.

Personal experiences are important like learning elements; 5. CLT tries to link up

knowledge acquired in class with real life.

So, basically this methodology searches to lead to negotiation and cooperation

between students, to create fluidity through a comfortable environment, and, in the same

way to improve pronunciation and grammar. It is of this manner, because one of the most

important things is that students feel comfortable at the moment of learning a second

language, as well as the relation between the language used in classroom and language used

outside the classroom.

Thus, a relevant factor to heed that can make the difference at the moment of learn a

new language, is the time of exposure of people with the language. It has been

demonstrated that students in their early teens are quicker and more effective second

language learners. The ideal age for learning a new language may be during the years from

about ten to sixteen when the maturation of cognitive skills allows a more effective analysis

of the regular features of the second language being learned.

Concluding, if we use Communicative Approach in the process of second language

acquisition is essential to interact with other people, because it allows students’

development as a social entity, in order to prepare them for real life. On one hand, it is the

idea that if we use this method, we extend the skills about abstract and critic thought, that is

the ability of think, tools that were forgotten in other approaches. On the other hand, we

have older instruments to use, as memorization and repetition, those are useful implements

that now had been forgotten, and for this reason, today students cannot pay attention and

memorize words or simple definitions; it is a big problem for all people that hope to learn

or to teach a language. Hence, at the moment of teaching, the students ought to have the

opportunity to express themselves and share their knowledge about language. For a correct

comprehension is necessary to know how to use language accurately, appropriately, and

flexibly. But anyway, is important to unite resources used in different approaches, as those

named above, so as transmitting the knowledge to the learners through all the possible

learning styles.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

- Littlewood, William (1981). Communicative Language Teaching: An Introduction.

Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.

- Nunan, David (1996). Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom.

Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.

- Richards, J. and Rodgers, T. (1986).Approaches and methods of language teaching.

Cambridge. Cambridge University Press.

- Brown, H.D. (1994). Principles of language learning and teaching. New Jersey.

Prentice Hall.

WEBGRAPHY.

- Learning Ace (n.d.). A functional-notional approach to language learning. Extracted

in September, 9th, from

http://www.uwec.edu/esl/minors/TESOL/FunctionalNationalSylllabus.pdf