MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 1 Week 11 Communicative Language Teaching 1. Introduction Problems of conceptualization: triads (grammar-translation audiolingual communicative) - Better perhaps conceptual space Accuracy ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fluency The second problem with conceptualization dichotomies 1) Some of Widdowson s Dichotomies (Widdowson, 1978) Usage : use = form/structure : function/purpose propositional : functional meaning locutionary force : illocutionary force (Searle, J.R. 1969. Speech Acts) 2) Text: discourse = language: language+purpose+context - Communication implies discourse to achieve something, not merely linguistic text-production. A: Did you get the bus? B: I met the baker s wife. * No textual cohesion ; only meaningful as discourse in a shared context. 3) From Brumfit (1984) - Accuracy : fluency = getting grammar/pron right : communicating successfully etc. 2. Background The origins of CLT: The changes in British LT tradition dating from the late 1960s - SLT CLT - Chomsky s criticism of structural linguistics theory Relatively failure of structural approaches - Awareness that much is learnt that is not taught - Failure of mastery learning approach Developments in linguistics - The notions of a list of structure - Stimulus-response learning - Rational-order learning The need to focus in LT on communicative proficiency rather than on mere mastery of structures - Candlin & Widdowson - Firth & Halliday: Relation of language to situation and function Austin & Searle: Speech acts - Locutionary force semantics - Illocutionary force pragmatics
MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 2 Interest in needs analysis & the Council of Europe: Functional syllabus - Notional syllabus (Wilkins, 1976); threshold level specification (van EK & Alexander, 1980) - Systematic attention to functional as well as structural aspects of language (Littlewood, 1981) Anthropological linguistics: Hymes communicative competence Post-communicative developments: Not a counter-revolution, some shift in emphasis Howatt s (1984) STRONG and WEAK version of CLT STRONG interpretation one can only learn/acquire language by negotiation meaning communicating in the language WEAK interpretation practice in communicating is important Finnocchiaro & Brumfit (1983): ALM vs CLT (see Appendix B) CLT is a theory of LT that starts from a communicative model of language and language use, and that seeks to translate this into a design for an instructional system, for materials, for teacher and learner roles and behavior, and for classroom activities and techniques. 3. Approach 1) Theory of language Language as communication Language is a means of communication involving more than sentence-grammar; a tool for use, whatever use means. - Concern for language function various meanings Chomsky s definition of competence and Hymes definition of CC (p.159) - CC is that aspect of our competence that enables us to convey and interpret messages and to negotiate meanings interpersonally within specific context (Brown, 2000). Halliday s (1975) seven basic functions - The instrumental function; - The regulatory function - The interactional function - The personal function - The heuristic function - The imaginative function - The representational function Canale and Swain s (1980) four kinds of competence - grammatical competence; discourse competence; sociolinguistic competence; strategic competence Richards and Rodgers (1986) communicative view of language Bachman (1990): Components of language competence (See PLLT, Brown, 2000, pp. 248-250, and see Appendix B.) 2) Theory of learning Initially a very linguistics-based approach, no view of LANGUAGE LEARNING other than that you learn what you do; one must practice on all levels.
MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 3 Then influence of second language acquisition theory (video, A Child s Guide to Learning Language): one can only learn a language by using it in communication; importance of negotiating meaning. Here too there is influence from progressivist learner-centred views which hand over responsibility to the learner. Elements of an underlying learning theory: the communication principle, task principle, and meaningfulness principle But also a skills-based theory: communicating in a foreign language is a complex task; one must not only learn all the subskills but also learn to integrate them. 4. Design 1) Objectives General objectives: Piepho s (1981) levels of objectives in a communicative approach Particular objectives for CLT cannot be defined beyond the level of specification. - The objectives should come from the needs of learners (but in early CLT; this is questionable) - These needs may be in the domains of reading, writing, listening, or speaking - Curriculim or instructional objectives for a particular course would reflect specific aspects of communicative competence according to the learners proficiency level and communicative needs. 2) The syllabus Notional (or notional-functional) syllabus (Wilkins 1976): Often non-structural, originally a semantic-gramatical/pragmatic (notional-functional) base Now a process syllabus, or multistranded: grammatical, notional, functional, vocabulary, topic, etc as Cambridge English Course, Threshold Level English (van Ek and Alexander 1980) Against notional-functional syllabus: Widdowson (1979) It is discourse which must be at the center of our attention. Cf. : Yalden s (1983) classification of communicative syllabus types, 1-8. - A current interest is in syllabus designs of types 6-8. * Some designers of communicative syllabuses have looked to task specification and task organization as appropriate criteria for syllabus design. (E.g., Malaysian communicational syllabus) 3) Types of learning and teaching activities The range of exercise types and activities is unlimited. Morrow s five principles: Johnson, K. and Morrow, K. (1981), Communication in the Classroom. London: Longman, pp 59-66. 1. Know what you are doing (= relate to a communicative purpose) 2. The whole is more than the sum of its parts (= operate above sentence-level, and integrate subskills) 3. The processes are as important as the forms (= to learn, replicate real communication) - Information gap, Choice of form and content, Feedback and interaction 4. To learn it, do it (don t teach them about language, get them to communicate; learner responsibility, learner activity, teacher s role) 5. Mistakes are not always a mistake (but they are sometimes)
MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 4 Littlewood s (1981) major activity types - Functional communication activities: - Social interaction activities: 4) Learner roles Negotiator (Breen and Candlin 1980) Activity, involvement, freedom, and responsibility (Maley 1986) * Maley, A. 1986. A rose is a rose, or is it? Can communicative competence be taught? In Brumfit, C. J. ed. The Practice of Communicative Teaching. (ELT Document 124). Oxford: Pergamon. 5) Teacher roles Two main roles - a facilitator and an independent participant (Breen and Candlin 1980) - And others?: an organizer of resources and as a resource himself, a guide, and researcher and learner Need analyst, counselor, group process manager, and expert on learning (Richards & Rodgers 1986) 6) The role of instructional materials A variety of materials: as a way of influencing the quality of classroom interaction and language use, i.e., stress on authenticity. - Materials are important since they define the task. - Text-based, task-based, and realia 5. Procedure Typical classroom procedures?: Not feasible. - Cf. A Finnochiaro and Brumfit s (1983) lesson outline Littlewood s (1981) methodological procedures - Pre-communicative activities: Structural activities and Quasi- communicative activities - Communicative activities: Functional communication activities and Social interaction activities Savignon (1972, 1983): Providing communicative practice from the start of instruction - Central to discussion of the communicative approach: How to implement CLT principles at the level of classroom procedures 6. Conclusion CLT is best considered an approach rather than a method. Some of claims of CLT are still being looked at more critically. Still many potential areas of controversy Newer teaching proposals incorporate principles associated with CLT (pp. 173-174)
MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 5 Appendix A: Finnocchiaro & Brumfit (1983): ALM vs CLT ALM CLT 의미보다구조와형태중시구조중심대화의암기언어항목은반드시맥락화될필요없음. 언어학습은구조, 소리, 혹은단어학습숙달혹은과잉학습추구반복연습이주요교수기법원어민화자와같은발음추구문법적설명회피의사소통활동은철저한연습과훈련의긴과정을거친후에야가능학습자의모국어사용금지초기단계에서번역금지듣기, 말하기를완전히학습하기전에읽기, 쓰기보류 의미중시대화사용시의사소통기능중시, 암기금지맥락화기본적전제언어학습은의사소통학습효과적인의사소통추구반복연습은부수적활동이해가능한발음추구학습자의나이, 흥미등에따라학습자에게도움이되는보조자료허용의사소통의시도학습초기부터장려필요시모국어사용허용학습자들이필요로하거나도움이될경우번역사용원한다면첫날, 첫시간부터읽기, 쓰기시작 문형을직접가르침으로써대상언어의언어 체계학습 목표어의체계는의사소통하려는노력과정을통해 가장잘학습됨 언어능력이목표 의사소통능력이목표 언어의다양성을인정하나강조하지않음. 언어의다양성이교재와방법론에서중심개념 단원의순서는언어의복잡성의원리에 따라결정 학습순서는흥미를유지하는내용, 기능, 의미등을 고려해결정 교사는학생을통제하고이론에배치는 모든것의실행을금지함 교사는학생에게언어를학습하도록동기를줄수 있는모든방법으로학생을도움 언어는습관이다. 따라서오류는반드시 막아야함. 언어는각개인의시행착오를통하여생성됨 정확성이주목표 유창성과용인되는언어가주목표 : 정확성은추상적이 아닌맥락에따라판정됨
MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 6 학생들은기자재혹은통제된교재를통해 언어체계와상호작용함. 학생들은짝또는그룹활동을통하여직접혹은 글로써타인과상호작용 교사는학생들이사용할언어를명시 교사는학생들이어떤언어를사용할지정확히알수 없다. 내재적동기는언어의구조에대한 관심으로부터나옴 내재적동기는언어를통해서의사소통되는내용에 대한관심에서비롯 Nunan (1991) 의 CLT 5 가지특징 교실내에서목표어로상호작용을함으로써의사소통방법을학습한다. 학습상황에진정성 (authentic) 있는교재를도입한다. 언어뿐만아니라학습과정자체에학습자가관심을둘수있도록많은기회를제공한다. 교실내언어학습의중요한요소로서학습자의개인적경험을중요시한다. 교실내언어학습을교실밖언어사용과연결시키도록노력한다. 4 CLT 적용시주의점 실제교수및학습에 CLT 원리를적용하려면, 먼저 CLT 원리를정확히이해해야한다. CLT 특징중일부만을과도하게사용해서는안된다. 예를들어, 실제상황과같은진정성있는언어사용을촉진시킨다는명목으로학습자에게도움이될수있는통제된언어연습과문법설명그리고기타분석적수단의사용을전적으로배제해서는안된다. 해당교실의상황을고려하여 CLT 원리들을적절히수정 적용해야할것이다.
MELT/ CLT/C.H.Lee 7 Appendix B