Communicative Language Teaching Clt

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

University of Prishtina

Faculty of Education

English Language Department

Thesis:

CLT-Activities

Mentor: Candidate:

Ma. Blerim Saqipi Elsa Vula

Prishtina, 2013

Ky punim diplome u mbrojt më ________________ para Komisionit Vlerësues në përbërje të:

__________________________, Kryetar

___________________________, Anëtar

___________________________, Anëtar

Komisioni Vlerësues e vlerësoi punimin me notën: _____________ ( ____ )

Nënshkrimet e anëtarëve të Komisionit Vlerësues:

___________________________

___________________________

___________________________

Table of Content

Abstract...........................................................................................................4

I. Communicative Language Teaching (CLT)........................5

What is CLT?

1.2. The beginning of CLT and its characteristics.

II. CLT Activities ...................................................................7

2.1. Accuracy and Fluency Activities

2.2. Mechanical, meaningful and communicative practise.

2.3. Other CLT activities

Abstract

In this thesis written about Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), I especially focused on Communicative Language Teaching-activities. First of all you will get introduced with the beginning of CLT and its characteristics, because it is important to know the beginning of CLT: When did begin? How it is formed the CLT that we are using nowadays? What characteristics does it have? Why it is useful for teaching foreign language? In the pages that follow, it will be argued of three kinds of practise which I consider basically remarkable: Mechanical practise, Meaningful practise, Communicative practise. Classroom activities in CLT which are: Accuracy activities and Fluency activities, are mentioned in this paper as important point that CLT has, also I have done an observation in primary school to see which activity is being implemented in primary schools, because it is very important to see how good our educational system is going and to prepare myself as a future teacher to select which activities are more "comfortable" for pupils. Next section of this paper it has an elaboration of CLT-Activities; there you will see their implementation and one example for each of them. I have done a questionnaire for pupils contained by twenty questions related to CLT-Activities, and after it I have explained the results of each question of questionnaire. At the end you will see an overall conclusion of this paper, what I have understood based on my research, observations, theoretical part of Communicative Language Teaching.

Communicative Language Teaching

What Is CLT?

In the late years, there has been an increasing interest in learning "English" as a foreign language, which basically considered one of the most important languages in all over the world. People need "English" for their jobs, career, life, travelling, studies, etc. The problem was and in some countries is considering problem in how to learn and how to teach a foreign language (including rules of grammar, pronunciation, skills, communication). Fifty years ago "Grammar" was a remarkable point in teaching a foreign language, the system’s focus was in teaching a foreign language based just in grammar (rules, sentence formation, definitions) which was called "Traditional Approach". Fortunately activities started to be in process of changing with other activities and soon traditional approach went out of fashion. What made this approach to get out of the system was a new approach called "Communicative Language Teaching" or CLT. "With CLT began a movement away from traditional lesson formats where the focus was on mastery of different items of grammar and practise through controlled activities such as memorization of dialogs and drills, towards the use of pair work activities, role plays, group works activities and project work" (Richards) (n.d). Based on this citation and what is generally accepted about CLT, I can say that CLT is a new approach, useful too, and it focuses on needs of teachers: How to teach a foreign language? And also in students: How to learn a foreign language?

1.2 The Beginning of CLT and its characteristics.

According to Richards (n.d) CLT created a great deal of enthusiasm and excitement when, first appeared as a new approach to language teaching in the 1970s and 1980s. So it is understandable that CLT has changed a lot of things in the field of language teaching. As I mentioned before the "Traditional Approach" was a set of grammar rules, therefore it had a principal goal which is called "Grammar Competence". Grammar Competence is full filled with rule’s grammar, creating sentences based on grammar, communicating with rules, whereby the feeling of natural language was absent. As a result professors of language thought that there can something more than "Grammar Competence", and there as a principal goal of Communicative Language Teaching is "Communicative Competence". "Communicative Competence" which is at the heart of our understanding of CLT plays a very important role in function of CLT. CLT needs Communicative Competence in order to be useful and cannot work without it.

●Why Communicative Competence is so important for CLT

-Communicative Competence is a relative not absolute, and it depends from the cooperation of participants, their involvement, and so on.

There are four aspects of Communicative Competence:

∙Grammatical Competence

Even that teaching "Grammar" is considering "boring" from students, we cannot avoid it, and grammar is principal thing of speech, communication, formal or informal written. However for me as a future teacher, I should find ways how to teach grammar without creating stress on students, or boring classes.

-Discourse

The second aspect of the Communicative Competence is "Discourse". In this aspect can enter the intersentential (it means: email, conversations, communication).

-Social cultural elements.

The third aspect Communicative Competence is Social Cultural Elements. In this aspect is very attractive one this one includes interaction, context and students in the classroom. Practising social cultural elements than bringing in cultural things, and having students practising it, it means they have ability to communicate on natural context.

-Strategic Competence

Strategic Competence goes beyond the classroom instruction, by using strategies and learning by mistakes students can communicate easily, can learn different ways of expressions.

Also Accuracy and Fluency play very important role in Communicative Competence, their balance is the true model of Communicative Competence.

Communicative Learning Teaching uses these four components of Communicative Competence in order to function successfully in process of teaching and in learning.

Communicative Language Teaching involves different kinds of classroom activities that gives students opportunity to see natural language and real communication that promotes learning.

CLT- Activities