Communicative approach

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The communicative approach is based on the idea that learning language successfully
comes through having to communicate real meaning. When learners are involved in
real communication, their natural strategies for language acquisition will be used, and
this will allow them to learn to use the language.

Example
Practising question forms by asking learners to find out personal information about their
colleagues is an example of the communicative approach, as it involves meaningful
communication.

In the classroom
Classroom activities guided by the communicative approach are characterised by trying
to produce meaningful and real communication, at all levels. As a result there may be
more emphasis on skills than systems, lessons are more learner-centred, and there
may be use of authentic materials.

An Introduction to the Communicative Classroom

In this section, we follow a Beginner 1-2/Literacy class as they learn to communicate on the topic of clothing and
shopping. The lesson contains a Warm Up, Review, two Communicative Activities (a Card Game and a Dialogue)
and a brief closing activity. Despite the low level of the class, this lesson is very student-centered, with plenty of
authentic interaction and creative use of repetition and practice. The students are encouraged to take risks within a
safe, respectful atmosphere where mistakes are seen as part of the learning process.
Activity: Warm Up.
This simple warm up practices greetings and small talk with the whole class and then with dyads.
Activity: Review.
The instructor reviews clothing vocabulary using realia, focusing on plurals, pronunciation, intonation and spelling.

Activity: Communicative Activity. Go Fish Card Game.

This card game, played in small groups, practices the target vocabulary in the context of the question “Do you
have…?” which encourages the students to use correct structure and pronunciation.
Activity: Communicative Activity. Dialogue (parts one and two).
Now the students are ready to go shopping at “Tanya’s Store”. The instructor first elicits the simple dialogue,
focusing on articles, plurals and  correct intonation. The students then practice the dialogue in pairs.
In Part Two, they practice writing the dialogue, memorize it using a disappearing cloze on the whiteboard and
finally, perform it in front of the class.
Activity: Closing.
Before leaving for home, the students have to describe to the teacher what they are wearing. This personalizes the
vocabulary they have learned and gives them a chance to practice saying goodbye at the same time

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Language teaching methodologies

The Direct Method

In this method the teaching is done entirely in the target language. The
learner is not allowed to use his or her mother tongue. Grammar rules are
avoided and there is emphasis on good pronunciation. [More]

Grammar-translation

Learning is largely by translation to and from the target language. Grammar

rules are to be memorized and long lists of vocabulary learned by heart.
There is little or no emphasis placed on developing oral ability. [More]

Audio-lingual

The theory behind this method is that learning a language means acquiring
habits. There is much practice of dialogues of every situations. New
language is first heard and extensively drilled before being seen in its written
form. [More]

The structural approach

This method sees language as a complex of grammatical rules which are to

be learned one at a time in a set order. So for example the verb "to be" is
introduced and practised before the present continuous tense which uses "to
be" as an auxiliary.

Suggestopedia

The theory underlying this method is that a language can be acquired only
when the learner is receptive and has no mental blocks. By various methods
it is suggested to the student that the language is easy - and in this way the
mental blocks to learning are removed. [More]

Total Physical Response (TPR)

TPR works by having the learner respond to simple commands such as

"Stand up", "Close your book", "Go to the window and open it." The method
stresses the importance of aural comprehension. [More]

Communicative language teaching (CLT)

The focus of this method is to enable the learner to communicate effectively

and appropriately in the various situations she would be likely to find herself
in. The content of CLT courses are functions such as inviting, suggesting,
complaining or notions such as the expression of time, quantity, location.

The Silent Way

This is so called because the aim of the teacher is to say as little as possible
in order that the learner can be in control of what he wants to say. No use is
made of the mother tongue.

Community Language Learning

In this method attempts are made to build strong personal links between the
teacher and student so that there are no blocks to learning. There is much
talk in the mother tongue which is translated by the teacher for repetition by
the student.

Immersion

This corresponds to a great extent to the situation we have at our school.

ESL students are immersed in the English language for the whole of the
school day and expected to learn math, science, humanities etc. through the
medium of the target language, English.

Immigrant students who attend local schools find themselves in an

immersion situation; for example refugee children from Bosnia attending
German schools, or Puerto Ricans in American schools. .

Task-based language learning

The focus of the teaching is on the completion of a task which in itself is

interesting to the learners. Learners use the language they already have to
complete the task and there is little correction of errors.

(This is the predominant method in middle school ESL teaching at Frankfurt

International School. The tasks are subsumed in a major topic that is studied
for a number of weeks. In the topic of ecology, for example, students are
engaged in a number of tasks culminating in a poster presentation to the
rest of the class. The tasks include reading, searching the internet, listening
to taped material, selecting important vocabulary to teach other students
etc.)
The Natural Approach

This approach, propounded by Professor S. Krashen, stresses the similarities

between learning the first and second languages. There is no correction of
mistakes. Learning takes place by the students being exposed to language
that is comprehensible or made comprehensible to them.

The Lexical Syllabus

This approach is based on a computer analysis of language which identifies

the most common (and hence most useful) words in the language and their
various uses. The syllabus teaches these words in broadly the order of their
frequency, and great emphasis is placed on the use of authentic materials.

Theories of language learning and teaching

1. Individual differences in foreign language learning. Provide a definition of the term,

explain how they are classified, give relevant examples. Then select 3 factors and

explain what role they play in language learning/teaching.

2. Affective factors in language learning: define the term, give examples and explain

how they influence the process of language learning/teaching.

3. Age as a factor determining success in second/foreign language learning. Discuss

various age groups in terms of their expected achievement.

4. Discuss child-adult differences in the process of second language learning.

5. Discuss the notion LAD. What implications does it have for language acquisition, first

and second?

6. Krashen’s theory of SLA: list and describe the five hypotheses. What implications

does the theory have for language education?

7. Discuss the Critical Period Hypothesis. Is there a critical period in second language

acquisition? Consider different aspects of the process, i.e. psychomotor, affective,

cognitive, etc.
8. What is Contrastive Analysis? Which linguistic theory does it derive from/is related

to? Does it have any role to play in language teaching today?

9. Behaviourist views on first language acquisition: definitions of language and language

acquisition, processes involved, evaluation of the theory.

10. How do children acquire their mother tongue? a) Discuss some theories you are

familiar with, b) Compare and contrast two theories you are familiar with: consider

the perception of the process of acquisition, processes involved, the role of the

environment, strengths and weaknesses of the theories.

11. Define rote learning as opposed to meaningful learning. What theory/-ies do you

associate these concepts with? Are the two types of learning applicable in the

contemporary language classroom?

12. Specify the most important principles of humanistic psychology. How are they

reflected in contemporary language teaching methods?

13. Select 3 language teaching methods and explain the role of L1 in those methods.

14. Define motivation and provide its basic classifications. What is the role of motivation

in foreign language learning? How can the teacher enhance it?

15. Input vs. interaction. Identify the two terms and theories they are associated with

and explain what role they play in language learning/teaching.

16. Field dependence vs. field independence: define the two terms and explain their role

in foreign language learning.

17. What is input? What role is it assigned in different language acquisition theories?

18. What are the sources of errors in language learning? Explain how different theories

of second language acquisition try to account for learners’ errors.

19. What is Error Analysis and what information does it provide the teacher with? What
is the difference between Error Analysis and Contrastive Analysis?

20. Define interlanguage and specify its features. How is interlanguage formed (i.e. what

processes contribute to its development?). What is its significance for language

teachers?

21. What are learning styles and learning strategies? Define them and give examples.

22. What is the claim of the Contrastive Analysis Hypothesis (CAH)? Why was its strong

version rejected?

23. What is modified input and what is its role in language acquisition? What types of

modified input can we identify?

24. Differences and similarities between first and second language development.

25. The notion of fossilization – definition, causes, ways of preventing.

26. What is language transfer and when does it take place? Give some examples from the

Polish-English learning context (at the level of pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary,

etc.)

27. Transfer vs. generalization. Identify the two notions and explain how the two learning

processes manifest themselves in second/foreign language learning giving examples.

Is there any relationship between them?

28. The affective filter hypothesis of Krashen’s SLA theory. How does it relate to the

other hypotheses? Are you familiar with other similar concepts?

29. The notion of communicative competence and its components. What are the

teaching implications of this concept?

30. What is the function of learned competence in Krashen’s Monitor hypothesis (a part

of his Monitor Model/Theory)? What does this hypothesis claim/explain? Does it

have any implications for the language classroom?

31. Explain the process of hypothesis formation and testing in language development.

Give some examples. What acquisition theory does it come from? Does it have any

role to play in a language classroom?

32. The notion of comprehensible input and its relevance for language teaching. What

approach to grammar teaching/learning is it related to?

33. What are communication strategies – give some examples and explain when we use

them. Should they be taught?

34. Cognitive factors in language learning: define them, give examples and specify how

they influence language learning/teaching.

35. Specify the principles of Communicative Language Teaching and list its advantages

and disadvantages.

36. Select 3 language teaching methods and explain how they deal with the question of
grammar teaching.

Language is a cognition that truly makes us human. Whereas other species do

communicate with an innate ability to produce a limited number of meaningful
vocalizations (e.g. bonobos), or even with partially learned systems (e.g. bird songs),
there is no other species known to date that can express infinite ideas (sentences) with
a limited set of symbols (speech sounds and words).
This ability is remarkable in itself. What makes it even more remarkable is that
researchers are finding evidence for mastery of this complex skill in increasingly
younger children.
Infants as young as 12 months are reported to have sensitivity to the grammar needed
to understand causative sentences (who did what to whom; e.g. the bunny pushed the
frog (Rowland & Noble, 2010).

Language Acquisition
skill in increasingly younger children.
Infants as young as 12 months are reported to have sensitivity to the grammar needed
to understand causative sentences (who did what to whom; e.g. the bunny pushed the
frog (Rowland & Noble, 2010).

After more than 60 years of research into child language development, the mechanism
that enables children to segment syllables and words out of the strings of sounds they
hear, and to acquire grammar to understand and produce language is still quite an
enigma.

Early Theories
One of the earliest scientific explanations of language acquisition was provided
by Skinner (1957). As one of the pioneers of Behaviorism, he accounted for language
development by means of environmental influence.
Skinner argued that children learn language based on behaviorist reinforcement
principles by associating words with meanings. Correct utterances are positively
reinforced when the child realizes the communicative value of words and phrases.
For example, when the child says ‘milk’ and the mother will smile and give her some
as a result, the child will find this outcome rewarding, enhancing the child's language
development (Ambridge & Lieven, 2011).

Universal Grammar
However, Skinner's account was soon heavily criticized by Noam Chomsky, the
world's most famous linguist to date. In the spirit of cognitive revolution in the 1950's,
Chomsky argued that children will never acquire the tools needed for processing an
infinite number of sentences if the language acquisition mechanism was dependent on
language input alone.
Consequently, he proposed the theory of Universal Grammar: an idea of innate,
biological grammatical categories, such as a noun category and a verb category that
facilitate the entire language development in children and overall language processing
in adults.
Universal Grammar is considered to contain all the grammatical information needed
to combine these categories, e.g. noun and verb, into phrases. The child’s task is just
to learn the words of her language (Ambridge & Lieven).
For example, according to the Universal Grammar account, children instinctively
know how to combine a noun (e.g. a boy) and a verb (to eat) into a meaningful,
correct phrase (A boy eats).
This Chomskian (1965) approach to language acquisition has inspired hundreds of
scholars to investigate the nature of these assumed grammatical categories and the
research is still ongoing.
Contemporary Research
A decade or two later some psycho linguists began to question the existence of
Universal Grammar. They argued that categories like noun and verb are biologically,
evolutionarily and psychologically implausible and that the field called for an account
that can explain for the acquisition process without innate categories.
Researchers started to suggest that instead of having a language-specific mechanism
for language processing, children might utilise general cognitive and learning
principles.
Whereas researchers approaching the language acquisition problem from the
perspective of Universal Grammar argue for early full productivity, i.e. early adult-
like knowledge of language, the opposing constructivist investigators argue for a more
gradual developmental process. It is suggested that children are sensitive to patterns in
language which enables the acquisition process.
An example of this gradual pattern learning is morphology acquisition. Morphemes
are the smallest grammatical markers, or units, in language that alter words. In
English, regular plurals are marked with an –s morpheme (e.g. dog+s).
Similarly, English third singular verb forms (she eat+s, a boy kick+s) are marked with
the –s morpheme. Children are considered to acquire their first instances of third
singular forms as entire phrasal chunks (Daddy kicks, a girl eats, a dog barks) without
the ability of teasing the finest grammatical components apart.
When the child hears a sufficient number of instances of a linguistic construction (i.e.
the third singular verb form), she will detect patterns across the utterances she has
heard. In this case, the repeated pattern is the –s marker in this particular verb form.
As a result of many repetitions and examples of the –s marker in different verbs, the
child will acquire sophisticated knowledge that, in English, verbs must be marked
with an –s morpheme in the third singular form (Ambridge & Lieven, 2011; Pine,
Conti-Ramsden, Joseph, Lieven & Serratrice, 2008; Theakson & Lieven, 2005).
Approaching language acquisition from the perspective of general cognitive
processing is an economical account of how children can learn their first language
without an excessive biolinguistic mechanism.
Conclusion
However, finding a solid answer to the problem of language acquisition is far from
being over. Our current understanding of the developmental process is still immature.