Characteristics of a Communicative Language Teaching Approach

Characteristics of a CLT (Communicative Language Teaching) approach

1.      Overall goals. CLT suggests a focus on all of the components (grammatical, discourse, functional, sociolinguistic, and strategic) of communicative competence. Goals therefore must intertwine the organizational (grammatical, discourse) aspects of language with the pragmatic (functional, sociolinguistic, strategic) aspects.

2.      Relationship of form and function. Language techniques are designed to engage learners in the pragmatic, authentic, functional use of language for meaningful purposes. Organizational language forms are not central focus, but remain as important components of language that enable the learner to accomplish those purposes.

3.      Fluency and accuracy. A focus on students “flow” of comprehension and production are seen as complementary principles underlying communicative technique.  At times fluency

4.      Focus on real-world contexts.  Students in a communicative class ultimately have to use the language, productively, and respectively, in unrehearsed contexts outside the classroom. Classroom tasks must therefore equip students with the skill necessary for communication in those contexts.

5.      Autonomy and strategic involvement. Students are given opportunities to focus on their own learning process through raising their awareness of their own styles of learning (strengths, weaknesses, preferences) and through the development of appropriate strategies, for production and comprehension. Such awareness and action will help to develop autonomous learners capable of continuing to learn the language beyond the classroom and the course.

6.      Teacher roles. The role of the teacher is that of facilitator and guide, not an all-knowing font of knowledge. The teacher is an empathetic “coach”  who values  the students’  linguistic development. Students are encouraged to construct meaning through  genuine  linguistic interaction with other students and with the teacher.

7.      Students roles. Students in a CLT class are active participants in their own learning process. Learner-centered, cooperative, collaborative learning is emphasized, but not at the expense of appropriate teacher-centered activity.

}  Source: H. Douglas Brown. (2000). Teaching by Principles (Second Edition).