The Communicative Language Teaching Approach
All the methods described so far are symbolic of the progress foreign language teaching ideology underwent in the last century.  These were methods that came and went, influenced or gave birth to new methods - in a cycle that could only be described as competition between rival methods or even passing fads in the methodological theory underlying foreign language teaching.  Finally, by the mid-eighties or so, the industry was maturing in its growth and moving towards the concept of a broad "approach" to language teaching that encompassed various methods, motivations for learning English, types of teachers and the needs of individual classrooms and students themselves.  It would be fair to say that if there is any one umbrella approach to language teaching that has become the accepted "norm" in this field, it would have to be the Communicative Language Teaching Approach.  This is also known as CLT.



Overview | Basic Features | Features at Length | Caveats






Basic Features of CLT

David Nunan (1991:279) lists five basic characteristics of Communicative Language Teaching:

(1)  An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language.

(2)  The introduction of authentic texts into the learning situation.

(3)  The provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only on the language but also on
      the learning process itself.

(4)  An enhancement of the learner`s own personal experiences as important contributing
      elements to classroom learning.

(5)  An attempt to link classroom language learning with language activation outside the
      classroom.







Top | Basic Features | Features at Length | Caveats
CLT Features at Length

Finnochiaro and Brumfit (1983:91-93) compiled this list of CLT features way back in 1983 as a means of comparing it to the Audiolingual Method.  Below each feature in blue italics is the feature of ALM to which it was being compared.

(1)  CLT:  Meaning is paramount.
      ALM:  Attends to structure and form more than meaning.

(2)  CLT:  Dialogs, if used, center around communicative functions and are not normally memorized.
      ALM:  Demands more memorization of structure-based dialogs.

(3)  CLT:  Contextualization is a basic premise.
      ALM:  Language items are not necessarily contextualized.

(4)  CLT:  Language learning is learning to communicate.
      ALM:  Language Learning is learning structures, sounds or words.

(5) CLT:  Effective communication is sought.
      ALM:  Mastery or "overlearning" is sought.

(6)  CLT:  Drilling may occur, but peripherially.
      ALM:  Drilling is a central technique.

(7)  CLT:  Comprehensible pronunciation is sought.
      ALM:  Native-speaker-like pronunciation is sought.

(8)  CLT:  Any device which helps the learners is accepted - varying according to their age,
               interest, etc.
      ALM:  Grammatical explanation is avoided.

(9) CLT:  Attempts to communicate may be encouraged from the very beginning.
      ALM:  Communicative activities only come after a long process of rigid drills and exrecises.

(10)  CLT:  Judicious use of native language is accepted where feasible.
        ALM:  The use of the students` native language is forbidden.

(11)  CLT:  Translation may be used where students need or benefit from it.
        ALM:  Translation is forbidden at early levels.

(12) CLT:  Reading and writing can start from the first day, if desired.
        ALM:  Reading and writing are deferred until speech is mastered.

(13)  CLT:  The target linguistic system will be learned best through the process of struggling to
                 communicate.
        ALM:  The target linguistic system will be learned through the overt teaching of the patterns of
                  the system.

(14)  CLT:  Communicative competence is the desired goal.
        ALM:  Linguistic competence is the desired goal.

(15)  CLT:  Linguistic variation is a central concept in materials and methods.
        ALM:  Varieties of language are recognized but not emphasized.

(16)  CLT:  Sequencing is determined by any consideration of content function, or meaning which
                 maintains interest.
        ALM:  The sequence of units is determined solely on principles of linguistic complexity.

(17)  CLT:  Teachers help learners in any way that motivates them to work with the language.
        ALM:  The teacher controls the learners and prevents them from doing anything that conflicts with
                  the theory.

(18)  CLT:  Language is created by the individual often through trial and error.
        ALM:  "Language is habit" so error must be prevented at all costs.

(19) CLT:  Fluency and acceptable language is the primary goal: accuracy is judged not in the
                abstract but