¶ … Communicative Language Teaching the Best Methodology to Prepare Students for the Cambridge First Certificate Exam?
Based on its emphasis on authenticity and relevancy to students' lives, it has been argued that the communicative language teaching approach may represent the best methodology to prepare students to take the Cambridge English: First for Schools (also known as First Certificate in English or FCE for Schools), which demonstrates student progress in second language acquisition for work and/or study applications. To determine if the FCE is in fact the best alternative approach for this purpose, this paper reviews the literature to provide a detailed outline of the communicative language teaching approach, a description of the Cambridge FCE, an analysis of what the FCE exam appears to be assessing and how, followed by an analysis concerning the degree to which communicative language teaching is an appropriate methodology for the FCE exam preparation class. A summary of the research and important findings are presented in the conclusion.
Review and Discussion
Detailed outline of the communicative language teaching methodology
Communicative language teaching (CLT) is an approach to teaching world languages that is based on a theory of intercultural communicative competence in which second-language learners are encouraged to actively participate in communication with one another by their teacher in various settings (Burke 2007). According to Byram (2000), "Communicative language teaching refers to both processes and goals in classroom learning. A central theoretical concept in communicative language teaching is communicative competence, a term introduced into discussions of language use and second/foreign language learning in the early 1970s" (p. 124). The CLT methodology is drawn from five major theoretical sources as follows:
1. Anthropology with its concern for social contexts and the 'speech events' taking place in them;
2. Sociolinguistics with its observation of the patterns of adjustment individuals make in changing from one situation to another and its demonstration that linguistic rules should be understood as probabilities rather than absolute ones;
3. Social psychology for its mapping of affective judgments made between in- and out-groups and the way individuals converge or diverge from linguistic forms and the motivation they have for doing so;
4. The concern in philosophy for speech acts, intentions and interpretations, and the notion of the 'cooperative principle' in linguistic interactions; and,
5. Ethnomethodology, which addresses the rules governing micro-interactions, the conventions followed in social activity (Grenfell & Harris 1999, p. 37).
All of the foregoing theoretical sources contribute different perspectives concerning the social aspects of communication, with language playing a central role in all of them. For instance, Grenfell and Harris report that, "It was from the social sciences and a broad view of human discourse that the early advocates of communicative language teaching (CLT) took their inspiration" (1999, p. 37).
The emergence of the CLT approach to teaching foreign languages has been in response, in part, to recent trends that have placed greater emphasis on adopting a broader perspective of language that includes its grammatical mechanics, but the capability of employing a foreign language in various settings as well (Ruiz-Funes 2002). In this regard, Ruiz-Funes reports that, "The recent emphasis on communication in language teaching is expressed in attempts to develop students' socio linguistic and discourse competencies in addition to their grammatical competence. In short, the conception of what it means to be proficient in a language has expanded significantly" (2002, p. 14). This shift in the conception of the definition of foreign language proficiency has been based on concomitant changes in the world language education that have stressed the need to make learning relevant and authentic for L2 learners. For example, Ruiz-Funes notes that proponents of the CLT approach believe it is more "likely to produce foreign language learning and teaching that will better serve educational needs now and at the beginning of the 21st century than did the older emphases on structure, translation, and literature" (2002, p. 14).
This shift, though, has not been met with universal acceptance by L2 educators who cite CLT's lack of a language theory foundation and young learners' personal goals and intentions for their foreign language acquisition that may not be reflected in the CLT model (Grenfell & Harris 1999). In this regard, Tedick reports that, "In the last two decades, the movement toward a communication-oriented approach or communicative language teaching (CLT) has been a remarkable phenomenon in the contexts of both English as a second language (ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL). However, it has been suggested that in some countries where EFL is taught, teachers find it difficult to implement communicative language teaching in their contexts" (2005, p. 113). In addition, Ruiz-Funes...
A. In Literature. Thus, 25% of the participants within the study did not have an academic background in education, and had focused on literary structure and analysis rather than education as a major staple in their own training. These teachers had more of a critical evaluation background in comparison to teaching methodologies. Having a Literature background has been shown to impact the teaching methodologies and strategies implemented in language learning,
Further, it is in this stage that instructors have the ability to widen the instruction significantly to incorporate many activities that allow students to practice their new knowledge in a variety of different ways and with focus on a variety of different subject matters. In viewing the basic theoretical and practical-use background of the Natural Approach of Language Teaching and Learning, one can understand that basic functions that allow students
Communicative Approach Applying the Communicative Approach to TESOL Classrooms The communicative approach is a style of teaching language that focuses on interaction as the ultimate goal of study and also the means with which it is carried out (Mitchell, 1994; Richards & Rodgers, 2001). While some call it a teaching method, many argue that it is not a method but a broad approach (Richards & Rodgers, 2001). There are no clearly defined
Theoretically, CLIL draws on research that situates the integration of language and content as the relationship between form and meaning. An understanding of the theory and practice related to the content-based classroom is essential to the present study. In this section of the chapter, I outline the underlying theory and rationale commonly cited as a basis for CLIL, review empirical research that has evaluated CLIL in the classroom, and
first language (L1) in the second language EFL classroom (L2). The study provides a brief historical background of the use of native or target language for a classroom teaching. The literatures are also reviewed to enhance to a greater understanding on the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis. Theoretical arguments are provided to support or against the use of monolingual or bilingual approach in a teaching environment. While some scholars believe that
Iraqi Students The literature review provides an abundance of material related to the educational and cultural aspects of Australian society and how those aspects play into the educating process regarding immigrants and especially high school students from Iraq who immigrate to Australia in search of education and a better way of life. The review focuses not only on the generality of those concepts but on specific aspects as well. Some of
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now