Communicative language teaching

 Introduction
      

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 linguistis, such as Firth and Halliday, as well as American sociolinguists, such as Hymes , Gumperz and Labov and the writings of Austin and Searle on speech acts.

Approach

      
Theory of language
      

The functional view of language is the primary one behind the communicative method, as well as
     

Theory of learning
      

Not a great deal has been written about the learning theory behind the communicative approaches, but here are some principlesthat may be inferred:
      

    activities that involve real communication promote learning
    activities in which language is used for carrying out meaningful tasks promote learning
    language that is meaningful to the learner promotes learning

Design
      
Objectives
      

Here are some of the objectives of Communicative Language Teaching:
      

    students will learn to use languge as a means of expression
    students will use language as a means of expressing values and judgments
    students will learn to express the functions that best meet their own communication needs.

      
The syllabus
      

Communicative language teaching often uses a functional-notional syllabus. Yalden(1987) has classified a number of communicative syllabus types.
      
Types of learning techniques and activities
      

Communicative language teaching uses almost any activity that engages learners in authentic communication. Littewood, however has distinguished two major activity types:
      

    functional communication activities: ones aimed at developing certain language skills and functions, but which involve communication, and
    social interaction activities, such as conversation and discussion sessions, dialogues and role plays

Procedure
      

It is difficult to summarize the procedure in communicative classes because of the wide variety of activities used

DIRECT METHOD

DIRECT METHOD

        Also known as Reform Method / Natural Method / Phonetical Method / Anti-grammatical Method

        All reformers were vehemently opposed to teaching of formal grammar and aware that language learning was more than the learning of rules and the acquisition of imperfect translation skills.

        Vietor ('Die Sprachunterricht muss umkehren' 1882) "This study of grammar is a useless torture. It is certainly not understood; therefore it can have no effect as far as the moulding of the intellect is concerned and no-one could seriously believe that children could learn their living German tongue from it."

        Instead grammar should be acquired inductively by inducing the rules of how the language behaves from the actual language itself. "Never tell the children anything they can find out for themselves." (Jesperin 1904)
        
        Direct Method based on belief that:

            1     Knowing a language was being able to speak it! Primacy of spoken word. New method laid great stress on correct pronunciation and target language from outset. Advocated teaching of oral skills at expense of every traditional aim of language teaching.

            2     Second language learning must be an imitation of first language learning, as this is the natural way humans learn any language, and so MT has no place in FL lesson. (Baby never relies on another language to learn its first language).

            3     Printed word must be kept away from second language learner for as long as possible (same as first language learner, who doesn't use printed word until he has good grasp of speech).

            4     The written word / writing should be delayed until after the printed word has been introduced.

            5     The learning of grammar/ translating skills should be avoided because they involve the application of the MT.

            6     All above items must be avoided because they hinder the acquisition of a good oral proficiency