Introduction

Language teaching methodologies have been going through a number of transformations over the years. Unquestionably,
these changes have led to new pedagogical approaches that have strengthened the efficacy of language teaching.
Communicative language teaching (CLT) is one such pedagogical approach that has enhanced the way language is taught and
learned. Communicative language teaching as a teaching methodology fosters active learning as students will be actively
involved in the learning process.
You may have noticed that the goal of most of the methods we have looked at so far is for students to learn to communicate
in the target language. In the 1970s, though, educators began to question if they were going about meeting the goal in the
right way. Some observed that students could produce sentences accurately in a lesson, but could not use them appropriately
when genuinely communicating outside of the classroom. Others noted that being able to communicate required more than
mastering linguistic structure, due to the fact that language was fundamentally social (Halliday 1973). Within a social
context, language users needed to perform certain functions, such as promising, inviting, and declining invitations (Wilkins
1976). Students may know the rules of linguistic usage, but be unable to use the language (Widdowson 1978). In short, being
able to communicate required more than linguistic competence; it required communicative competence (Hymes 1971)—
knowing when and how to say what to whom. Such observations contributed to a shift in the field in the late 1970s and early
1980s from a linguistic structure-centered approach to a Communicative Approach (Widdowson 1990; Sauvignon 1997).
Applying the theoretical perspective of the Communicative Approach, Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) aims
broadly to make communicative competence the goal of language teaching. What this looks like in the classroom may
depend on how the principles are interpreted and applied. Indeed, Klapper (2003) makes the point that because CLT lacks
closely prescribed classroom techniques, as compared with some of the other methods we have just looked at, CLT is ‘fuzzy’
in teachers’ understanding. This fuzziness has given CLT a flexibility which has allowed it to endure for thirty years.
However, its flexibility also means that classroom practices differ widely even when teachers report that they are practicing
CLT. It is
probably fair to say that there is no one single agreed upon version of CLT. Nevertheless, we will follow our usual way of
understanding the theory and associated practices by visiting a class in which a form of Communicative Language Teaching
is being practiced. The class we will visit is one being conducted for immigrants to Canada. These twenty people have lived
in Canada for two years and are at a high-intermediate level of English proficiency. They meet two evenings a week for two
hours each class.
What is Communicative Language Teaching?
Communicative Language Teaching is a methodology by which learners learn language through interaction. The interaction
can be with teachers or their peers. The primary objective of CLT is to enable learners to communicate effectively in the
second language or foreign language that they are trying to learn.
In CLT, generally, teachers and students do not follow textbook theories for acquiring language skills. However, it focused on
building the language skills of students through active learning activities and thus, improving the communication skills in
that language. In the past, language teaching and learning were all about grammar rules and learning those rules. Its
effectiveness was very low compared to the modern methodologies as they focus on improving the communication skills of
the learner in that particular language.
In Communicative language teaching, teachers act as facilitators rather than instructors or lecturers as they will be guiding
learners in such a way that they will be able to use the language in a real environment. Now, let us look at the history of CLT
to understand, how the language pedagogical approaches have evolved and reached CLT.
History of CLT
The inception of this teaching methodology is believed to have started in the 1960s. It was Noam Chomsky, the American
linguistic theorist who has given rise to the communicative language teaching methodology. His theories have accelerated the
shift from situational language teaching to CLT. Unlike, communicative language teaching, situational language teaching did
not give importance to direct communication. The traditional language teaching approaches did not have much impact as the
learners failed to master foreign languages in their true sense or rather failed to communicate effectively.
In the 1970s, when people started traveling from one country to the other for better prospects, second language learning
became essential. A lot of people around the world started migrating to Europe in the hope of better life. Expats had to master
foreign languages in order to thrive in their careers. Prior to this, the opportunity to learn a second language in school was
only available to members of the elite classes, making it a sign of privilege. However, migration made it a necessity for all
people to learn foreign languages as the need for communication became inevitable. Hence, people started learning different
languages.
In addition, the Council of Europe played a vital role in fostering the development of CLT as they realized the inefficacy of
situational language teaching. They focused on developing syllabi tailored to meet the requirements of European immigrants.
It facilitated the growth of CLT, which later became the main approach for language teaching.
Noam Chomsky pointed out that structural language theories cannot cover the varieties that the spoken language would have.
Moreover, linguists like Christopher Candlin and Henry Widdowson emphasized the ineffectiveness of situational language
teaching methodologies. Subsequently, the concept of communicative competence gained popularity, and language learning
shifted towards approaches that accentuated the importance of functional competence and communication skills.
Classroom Activities to Promote CLT
According to the CLT approaches, learning a language requires effective communication with others. Writing abilities are
subordinate to it. As long as a person does not practice speaking in the language they wish to learn, they will not be able to do
so fluently. Teachers can set up circumstances in which students can practice their language skills, point out their errors, and
offer assistance in fixing them. There are a variety of activities you may run to help language learners improve their language
abilities.
As mentioned above, teachers serve as a facilitator in CLT by being available to respond to the student’s questions.
Additionally, they offer the students feedback based on their performance, assisting them in improving their learning.
Speak, Speak, and Speak
Teachers can motivate students to converse in the language they are trying to learn or the target language. Teachers can
correct their mistakes when made, and rectify them. In this way, they are improving their language skills and learning how to
communicate well in that language. Teachers can also deliver their lectures in the target language to ensure exposure to the
language.
Group Activities
Group activities are the best way to make the students interact with each other. The facilitators can ensure that the students
are communicating with each other in a foreign language. When they are given situations to talk with each other in the
language, they start thinking in that language and try their best to formulate sentences on their own. Moreover, students will
correct each other and will have the scope to learn from each other.
Extempore
Instructors can give students a topic to talk about for a few minutes. Also, they can give students some time to prepare for
that particular topic. When they talk about the topic, the teacher can make a note of the error that the student makes and after
the completion of the task, can give them feedback. It gives students a chance to get an idea about the errors they are making
while articulating something in that language and hence they try to overcome them.
Information-Gap Activities
For information gap activities, students will have to communicate well with each other to connect the dots. Hence, they will
try harder to speak well and understand well. This improves their communication skills and comprehension power. Hence,
students will try hard to succeed in the competition through meaningful intelligible communication.
Advantages and disadvantages of CLT
ADVANTAGES
• Communicative approach is much more pupil-orientated because it is based on pupils’ needs and interests.
• Communicative approach seeks to personalize and localize language and adapt it to the interests of pupils.
Meaningful language is always more easily retained by learners.
• Seeks to use authentic resources. And that is more interesting and motivating for children.
• Children acquire grammar rules as a necessity to speak so are more proficient and efficient.
DISADVANTAGES
• It pays insufficient attention to the context in which teaching and learning take place
• The Communicative Approach often seems to be interpreted as: “if the teacher understands the student, we have
good communication” but native speakers of the target language can have great difficulty understanding students.
• Another disadvantage is that the CLT approach focuses on fluency but not accuracy. The approach does not focus
on error reduction but instead creates a situation where learners are left using their own devices to solve their communication
problems. Thus, they may produce incoherent, grammatically incorrect sentences.

3. Principles of CLT
In the CLT approach, meaning is given prime importance. The main focus of the approach is to make the learners able to
understand the intention and expression of the writers and speakers.
In this approach, it is believed that communicative functions are more important rather than linguistic structures.
Littlewood states that’’ one of the most characteristic features of communicative language teaching is that it pays systematic
attention to functional as well as structural aspects of language, combine these into a more fully communicative view’’
(1981:1). Each language has a limited number of sentence patterns. Mastering only those sentence patterns does not help the
learners to communicate in the target language. The learner needs to learn the communication functions of those structures.
While using the CLT approach in teaching language, the target language is used in the classroom. The target language is a
vehicle for classroom communication, not just the object of study (Larsen Freeman, 2000:125). Because if the learners
continue to use their native languages, they are not able to communicate in the target language. It is believed that the native
language should be used judiciously.
Appropriate use of language is emphasized rather than accuracy. Accuracy comes at a later stage. It is believed that when
learners learn to use the language appropriately accuracy comes automatically.
Language should be taught by integrating all language skills and not by only one skill. It means the communication
approach is not limited to only speaking skills; reading and writing skills should be developed.
Language cannot be learned through rote memorization. It cannot be learned in isolation. It should be learned through
social interaction. To communicate in the target language, there is a need to struggle with language. Richards & Rodgers state
that the target linguistic system will be learned best through the process of struggling to communicate (1986:67).
While using this approach, the major focus is to make the learner able to communicate in the target language. Errors are
tolerated by the teacher because what is more important is to make them able to speak in the target language. The teacher
should not correct them during the activities in which they are using
the target language. The teacher can note the errors of the learners and make them correct them after the activities are over.
CLT approach provides opportunities to communicate in the target language to the learners. It encourages teacher-student
and student–student interaction. It helps to encourage cooperative relationships among students. The teacher should give
work in group or in pair which give opportunities to share the information among them. It also helps to promote
communication among them. Richards & Rodgers state that students are expected to interact with other people, either in the
flesh, through pair and group work, or in their writings (1986:68).
CLT approach provides opportunities to the learners not only about what to say but also about how to say it.
The teacher should create situations that help to promote communication. The teacher should teach them how language
should be used in a social context. The teacher should give activities such as role play which help the learners to learn the
language in a social context.
Language teaching techniques should be designed in such a way that it encourages the learners to use the target language.
Functional aspects of language should be given importance. Dramas, role plays, and games should be used in the classroom
to promote real communication.
Students should be given opportunities to listen to language as it is used in authentic communication. They may be coached
on strategies for how to improve their comprehension (Larsen- Freeman, 2000:128).
4. Role of the Teachers in the classroom
The teachers are just the facilitators who facilitate the learning process. It is the responsibility of teachers to create such
situations in which communication can take place among the students. They monitor the learning process. While using CLT
approach in the class room, the teachers do not interrupt during the learning process to correct the errors of the learners. They
just note the errors and correct it at a later point. The teachers give such types of activities which help to accelerate the
communication process. The teachers are also active participants of the communicative process. Richards & Rodgers state
that there are some other roles assumed for teachers are need analyst, counsellor, and group process manager (1986:77).
5. Role of the Learners in the classroom
The major focus of the CLT approach is on the communication process rather than mastering linguistics structures. This leads
to different roles for the learners. Communicative Language Teaching is a learner-centered approach in which the learners are
given importance. The learners are expected to
participate in the communication process actively. The cooperative approach (rather than individualistic) approach to
learning stressed in CLT may likewise be unfamiliar to learners. CLT methodologists consequently recommend that learners
learn to see that failed communication is a joint responsibility and not the fault of the speaker or listener. Similarly,
successful communication is accomplishments jointly achieved and acknowledge (Richards & Rodgers, 1986:77).
Experience
The teacher greets the class and distributes a handout. There is writing on both sides. On one side is a copy of a sports
column from a recent newspaper. The reporter is discussing the last World Cup competition. The teacher asks the students to
read it and then to underline the predictions the reporter makes about the next World Cup. He gives them these directions in
the target language. When the students have finished, they read what they have underlined. The teacher writes what they have
found on the board. Then he and the students discuss which predictions the reporter feels more certain about and which
predictions he feels less certain about: France is very likely to win the next World Cup. Spain can win if they play as well as
they have lately. Germany probably won’t be a contender next time. Argentina may have an outside chance. Then he asks the
students to look at the first sentence and to tell the class another way to express this same prediction. One student says,
‘France probably will win the next World Cup.’ ‘Yes,’ says the teacher. ‘Any others?’ No one responds. The teacher offers,
‘France is almost certain to win the World Cup.’ ‘What about the next?’ he asks the class. One student reply, ‘It is possible
that Spain will win the World Cup.’ Another student offers, ‘There’s a possibility that Spain will win the World Cup.’ Each of
the reporter’s predictions is discussed in this manner. All the paraphrases the students suggest are evaluated by the teacher
and the other students to make sure they convey the same degree of certainty as the reporter’s original prediction. Next, the
teacher asks the students to turn to the other side of the handout. On it are all the sentences of the article that they have been
working on. They are, however, out of order. For example, the first two sentences on this side of the handout are: Argentina
may have an outside chance. In the final analysis, the winning team may simply be the one with the most experience. The
first sentence was in the middle of the original sports column. The second was the last sentence of the original column. The
teacher tells the students to unscramble the sentences, to put them in their proper order by numbering them. When they
finish, the students compare what they have done with the original on the other side of the handout. The teacher then asks the
students if they agree with the reporter’s predictions. He also asks them to get into pairs and to write their own prediction
about who will be the next World Cup champion. The teacher then announces that the students will be playing a game. He
divides the class into small groups
of five people each. He hands each group a deck of 13 cards. Each card has a picture of a piece of sports equipment. As the
students identify the items, the teacher writes each name on the board: basketball, soccer ball, volleyball, tennis racket, skis,
ice skates, roller skates, football, baseball bat, golf clubs, bowling ball, badminton racket, and hockey stick. The cards are
shuffled and four of the students in a group are dealt three cards each. They do not show their cards to anyone else. The extra
card is placed face down in the middle of the group. The fifth person in each group receives no cards. She is told that she
should try to predict what it is that Dumduan (one of the students in the class) will be doing the following weekend. The fifth
student is to make statements like, ‘Dumduan may go skiing this weekend.’ If one of the members of her group has a card
showing skis, the group member would reply, for example, ‘Dumduan can’t go skiing because I have her skis.’ If, on the
other hand, no one has the picture of the skis, then the fifth student can make a strong statement about the likelihood of
Dumduan going skiing. She can say, for example, ‘Dumduan will go skiing.’ She can check her prediction by turning over
the card that was placed face down. If it is the picture of the skis, then she knows she is correct. The students seem to really
enjoy playing the game. They take turns so that each person has a chance to make the predictions about how a classmate will
spend his or her time. For the next activity, the teacher reads a number of predictions like the following: By 2030, solar
energy will replace the world’s reliance on fossil fuels. By 2050, people will be living on the moon. The students are told to
make statements about how probable they think the predictions are and why they believe so. They are also asked how they
feel about the prediction. In discussing one of the predictions, a student says he does not think it is *like a world government
will be in place by the twenty-second century. The teacher and students ignore his error and the discussion continues. Next,
the teacher has the students divide into groups of three. Since there are 20 students, there are six groups of three students and
one group of two. One member of each group is given a picture strip story. There are six pictures in a column on a piece of
paper, but no words. The pictures tell a story. The student with the story shows the first picture to the other members of her
group while covering the remaining five pictures.
Figure 9.1 Students making predictions about a strip story
The other students try to predict what they think will happen in the second picture. The first student tells them whether they
are correct or not. She then shows them the second picture and asks them to predict what the third picture will look like. After
the entire series of pictures have been shown, the group gets a new strip story and they change roles, giving the first student
an opportunity to work with a partner in making predictions. For the final activity of the class, the students are told that they
will do a role-play. The teacher tells them to get into groups of four. They are to imagine that they are all employees of the
same company. One of them is the other’s boss. They are having a meeting to discuss
what will possibly occur as a result of their company merging with another company. Before they begin, they discuss some
possibilities together. They decide that they can talk about topics such as whether or not some of the people in their company
will lose their jobs, whether or not they will have to move, whether or not certain policies will change, and whether or not
they will earn more money. ‘Remember,’ says the teacher, ‘that one of you in each group is the boss. You should think about
this relationship if, for example, she makes a prediction that you don’t agree with.’ For 10 minutes the students perform their
role-play. The teacher moves from group to group to answer questions and offer any advice on what the groups can discuss.
After it is over, the students have an opportunity to pose any questions. In this way, they elicit some relevant vocabulary
words. They then discuss what language forms are appropriate in dealing with one’s boss. ‘For example,’ the teacher
explains, ‘what if you know that your boss doesn’t think that the vacation policy will change, but you think it will? How will
you state your prediction? You are more likely to say something like “I think the vacation policy might change,” than “The
vacation policy will change.” ‘‘What if, however,’ the teacher continues, ‘it is your colleague with whom you disagree and
you are certain that you are right. How will you express your prediction then?’ One student offers, ‘I know that the vacation
policy will change.’ Another student says, ‘I am sure that the vacation policy will change.’ A third student says simply, ‘The
vacation policy will change.’ The class is almost over. The teacher uses the last few minutes to give the homework
assignment. The students are to find out what they can about two political candidates running against each other in the
upcoming election. The students are then to write their prediction of who they think will win the election and why they think
so. They will read these to their classmates at the start of the next class.