Advantages and Disadvantages of Communicative Language Teaching
What is the Communicative Language approach?
Communicative language teaching (CLT): This approach emphasizes communication and interaction between learners and the teacher. It focuses on real-life situations and encourages learners to use the language in a meaningful way.
How Does Communicative Language Teaching Differ From Other Language Teaching Methods
Communicative language teaching (CLT) differs from other language teaching methods in several ways. Here are some of the differences:
1.CLT emphasizes communication and interaction between learners and the teacher, while traditional methods such as Grammar-Translation and Audio-Lingualism focus on grammar rules and vocabulary memorization
2.CLT involves learners working on tasks that require them to use the language in a real-life context, while the Direct Method involves teaching the language entirely in the target language
3.CLT involves teaching a subject in a foreign language, while the Structural Approach focuses on the structure of the language
4.CLT encourages learners to take on a greater degree of responsibility for their own learning, while the Grammar-Translation method relies on the teacher to guide the learners
5.CLT emphasizes the importance of listening and comprehension, while the Audio-Lingual method emphasizes repetition and memorization of set phrases
In summary, CLT differs from other language teaching methods in its emphasis on communication, real-life context, learner responsibility, and listening and comprehension.
Advantages of Communicative Language Teaching:
- Increase in fluency in the target language
- Development of communicative competence
- Emphasis on self-direction for the learners
- Encourages learners to take on a greater degree of responsibility for their own learning
- Involvement in real communication
- Use of natural strategies for language acquisition
- Localization of language learning
- Meaningful language learning
- Use of authentic teaching resources
- Efficient and proficient approach
- Learning with a clear purpose
- Fostering a student-centered approach
- Increasing student engagement
- Promoting lesson variability and creativity
- Developing all core language skills
- Enhancing the communicative skills of learners
Disadvantages of Communicative Language Teaching:
- Lack of context
- False interpretation
- Lack of accuracy
- Lack of errors reduction
- Incoherence
- Emphasis on mastering language forms rather than practical use
- Emphasis on vocabulary and grammar rules, rote memorization
- Learners are likely to produce incorrect grammatical structures since their errors aren’t corrected
Javier Gonzalez Fernandez
