Language Acquisition
Explain the Communicative Competence Model of Teaching Grammar
Communicative competence refers to the knowledge and skills required to use language effectively and appropriately in different communicative contexts. Grammar is an important component of communicative competence because it enables learners to construct meaningful and accurate utterances. However, effective communication involves more than grammatical accuracy alone; it also requires an understanding of how language varies according to context, purpose, and the relationship between speakers. For example, the language used when addressing a king or queen is likely to differ considerably from the language used when speaking to a close friend. Therefore, grammar needs to be taught not simply as a set of rules, but as a resource that enables learners to communicate appropriately in a range of social situations. This essay will examine how grammar can be taught through a communicative competence model.
Language is used for a variety of social and communicative purposes, and the appropriateness of an individual’s language can influence how they are perceived by others. Consequently, learners need to understand how grammatical structures operate in both formal and informal contexts. Teaching grammar communicatively allows students to recognise that different grammatical forms may be appropriate depending on the situation, the intended meaning, and the relationship between participants. Rather than learning isolated grammatical rules, learners should be exposed to language in meaningful contexts in which grammatical structures serve a genuine communicative purpose.
A communicative approach also recognises that language is fundamentally social. Individuals use language not only to exchange information but also to express their identity, establish relationships, and respond appropriately to others. For this reason, grammatical structures should be presented within meaningful contexts rather than as decontextualised forms. This approach places greater emphasis on authentic communication and learner-centred teaching. In stronger versions of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), the teacher is expected to adopt a “less dominant role”, while learners are encouraged to become “more responsible managers of their own learning” (Larsen-Freeman, 1986, p. 131). This shift allows learners to take a more active role in developing their communicative abilities.
A further consideration is the tendency for learners to rely on simplified language or memorised chunks of language when communicating. Although learning language in chunks can support fluency, an excessive reliance on fixed expressions may result in learners paying insufficient attention to the grammatical system underlying the language. A communicative competence model therefore aims to establish a balance between fluency and accuracy. Learners should be given opportunities to communicate meaningfully while also being encouraged to notice, understand, and apply grammatical structures. In this way, grammar becomes an integral part of communication rather than an isolated area of language study.
Reflection on a Lesson
New Interchange Student Book Activity: Imagining a different past
1. What specific class were you teaching?
I was teaching a level 8 class. The specific grammar point that I was teaching was ‘imagining a different past’. This was done by using the verb structure ‘I would have + past participle’ and ‘you should have + past participle’. There were 10 students in the class and their English was good. They were mostly older students with two young boys about 16 years old. Two or three of the students were a bit talkative.
2. What exactly was being taught?
(What was your teaching goal or objective?)
My teaching goal was to have the students talking about various situations and then imagining these situations from another perspective. This meant they had to imagine a different past. The objectives were to use certain grammar which showed they were imagining or trying to change the past.
3. Describe the environment and setting you were in.
(When and where did the event occur? To what extent did the setting contribute to the success or less successful lesson?)
This class was on a Tuesday evening in a rectangle shaped room with windows on the shorter walls. There was a long whiteboard along one longer wall and the students sat along the other wall. The classrooms are a bit of a funny shape and there was not much to see from the windows, a car park one side and toilets from the other. I would say it is not the most relaxing situation/place. To add to this the air conditioning was broken so the students were very hot. I think the students were not so bothered about the classroom but were annoyed with the air conditioning. For myself, I was aware that the students kept talking about the temperature and this kept taking their minds off the lesson.
4. How was the material actually presented?
(What was actually done, how was it done, and why is it interpreted as successful?)
The material was presented in a more grammar based lesson. The students had to understand the structure and also understand that they were imagining different past. This was a past that did not happen. For this, I had to do a lot of concept checking questions. I gave them a lot of examples and made them give me a lot also. This made way for a lot time to help them with their grammar. I gave them a few sheets where they had to fill in the gaps. I certainly gave them enough information to formulate an idea on changing the past. At the end, I gave them a story about a shipwrecked man and they had to explain what he did wrong. This gave them a freer practice. At this time I recognized how well they had demonstrated their knowledge of the lesson.
5. How did you, the instructor, know whether students had learned the material to the expected level of performance? How did the students know?
(How was achievement tested/evaluated/ assessed and measured against the goal?)
I did an exercise at the end of the class and got them to figure out a problem that I set. It was about a man who had got lost at sea and found himself on a desert island. A group of students starting writing in the present and I said to them that we were imagining a different past. Once I said this they understood and started writing as they were supposed to. I did not need to tell them more. I looked at their sentences and apart from some little grammar points it was fine. They also asked me for some clarification which was only to say that is fine. I went around each group and highlighted the points are noticed were not easy to understand. The students gave me some bright answers.
6. What did you learn as a teaching instructor from this experience?
(Why does this particular example stand out in your memory?)
I learnt that students can appreciate grammar if it is done correctly. I feel this was a grammar lesson and they were asking a lot of question for clarification. I was pleased I asked a lot of concept checking questions. This I felt gave the students the idea to ask me for clarification. There was also the case of the students being able to say the words together for example ‘you shouldn’t have done that’. For English speaking people, this can roll off the tongue but for my students it was hard. I was pleased I helped them in this respect.
7. Is there a “big lesson” here or a general principle about effective teaching and learning that your example illustrates? Can you summarize it?
(How would you explain this insight to a new instructor who is not in your discipline?)
I would say that students need to be tested. They also need lots of examples for clarification. They also need to be heard, not only speaking but also speaking the target language.
8. What did you like about he lesson (and WHY?)
I like the way that I got the objective of the lesson over. I did a lot of concept checking questions that nearly all the students answered correctly. This made me move on with the lesson at a certain pace. I felt I kept them busy.
9. How would you change the lesson (and WHY?)
There were two students in the class who loved to talk. Even though it is good to talk English in class, these students were taking valuable time of my lesson and handing the other students less time to understand fully what the lesson was about.
I have to agree with one of the points Barry raised in our meeting which was asking students randomly for answers. I asked them in a line at times, this made some switch off and not listen. I have since tried asking random students other lessons and seen the benefit of doing it this way. I must agree that it keeps the students on their toes and lets the students realize that it could be them next which means they should be prepared.
10. What I would do differently next time?
I would change the final use stage as I felt it only made them create sentences not actually talking. The students got up and said their sentences which were fine as they were but this did not lead onto to any further discussion. I feel as though the use stage should allow the students to comment on other students’ work which can lead to the other students commenting further. I would have liked to have them comment on the other group’s ideas. I could have written up a form for them to write the other group’s ideas. I think also a role-play where you have an agony aunt ‘phone in’ that people discuss their problems could have been better. I mean everyone has something to say about people’s problems.
What Makes a Good Language Lesson?
Notes on a Lecture by Professor Jack C Richards
Reflection on an Article
(590 words)
My initial reaction to this article was to think I had heard this before and read it also in a book. I think the issue is though, as a teacher if you miss some points in your lesson then all that reading /listening was not worth the effort. I think that Professor Richard raises some valid points that I hope by talking about them raises my awareness that bit more.
I have to agree with Professor Richards, this is a focus of mine as well, and that is the ‘focus on the learners’ in the classroom and their acquisition of a new language. I know in a class of twenty students there will be students that are more extroverted and introverted. I think it is right, bearing the students’ learning in mind, that the teacher must ‘allow the learner’s perspective to be their constant focus of attention’. I think for a teacher, it can be easy to teach a lesson but if you have not made sure that the students have learned all that you gave them it is not of any value. I think by involving all the class you can get a better perspective where you can improve yourself and help all students more in the class. Professor Richard alludes to this by saying: ‘teachers need to change students seating positions on regular basis and teach lesson from different location’. I have heard the word ‘comfort zone’, and I think this is what it means by getting the students to realize the reason for coming to an English language class. It is true that the students do like to sit with their friends and sometimes make the class a social experience, not a learning experience.
Another fact I think is valuable and that is the ‘goals of the lesson’. This goes along with the clearly written lesson plan. If there are clear objectives and the teacher makes sure the students are achieving them the teacher will have the students’ attention. Professor Richards says for successful lessons, ‘goals and activities are clear and students are occupied for a large portion of the lesson’. I think by doing this, the lesson will give the students as Professor Richards says, ‘a sense that they are actually capable of learning to speak English’. This means that activities given to the students are achievable. Also, I think the end result is as much value as the during/middle part. The result is what the students leave the classroom with. The teacher hopes and I think every teacher should strive for is that the students should, ‘be able to do something in English that they couldn’t do as well before’. This means the teacher’s lesson must be something that the students can, ‘retain and use and which is lasting value’. I think this is one of the main issues for a teacher which is to be able to successfully finish a lesson where all the students have learned something and achieved. This is an issue that affects me, as I like to focus on challenging the students.
I like this article because it is another way of reinforcing what the teacher knows but sometimes forget. I would have liked to have listened to the whole lecture though and not just these summaries.
Building Language
As much as a teacher tries to build language, it helps to highlight certain grammar points that help to expand the students’ sentences by questioning them about factors such as time, place and manner. We can add details to the students’ speech or writing with adverbial phrases.
Example #1
Time (answers the question ‘When?’)
She will be arriving in a short time.
Place (answers the question ‘Where?’)
He is waiting near the wall.
Manner (answers the question ‘How?’)
They are discussing the matter in a civilized way.
Example #2
“Sue went” doesn’t convey much information.
S: Sue went.
T: Where did Sue go?
S: Sue went to the gym.
T: And, when did Sue go to the gym?
S: Sue went to the gym after work.
T: And also, why did Sue go to the gym after work?
S: Sue went to the gym after work to keep her New Year’s resolution.
“Sue went to the gym after work to keep her New Year’s resolution” explains the where, when and why of the event.
Moreover, adverbial phrases can be created by using prepositions to tell how, where, when, and how often. For example, “Sue swam with perfect technique in the pool before lunch on Tuesdays.”
SIT TESOL – Extended Reflection on Classroom Practice
Lesson #2
(words 1238)
As usual, I think the lesson was done competently without having much to quibble about. I felt as though I tested the students, which gave me some satisfaction. The lesson that I gave had a purpose and there were objectives to be met, which I think were achievable and a little challenging. Making the lesson challenging was a focus from my previous lesson so I think I took my action points, that I had written in my lesson plan, onboard. I must say though, as always, there are some details regarding the teaching in the class to work on. The details I would like to raise in this reflection are to make me realize some of the reasons for doing certain methods of teaching in class, which I hope after this reflection, will make the lesson more rewarding for the students.
One of my main focuses this time was to make the lesson more challenging for the students, as they were at a higher level. The part of the lesson that I think the students were challenged, was the listening section that certainly gave the students a chance to test their skills. What the students had to do was to listen to a tape with two men talking about their university schedules. Prior to starting the exercise, I had the students get into groups of seven, which I believe made for a better learning experience, where their peers could discuss the answers with them after each listening of the tape. The listening experience was also facilitated with modeling of how to finish the exercise. This worked well because I showed them a model schedule and also wrote the schedule on the board thus I felt the students had a complete understanding. I also made sure I asked concept-checking questions to some of the students about what to complete on the schedule, so I felt as though they were completely ready to listen to the tape. I think I this process is done every time I should not have any problems with listening.
The tape was about two minutes long, which I thought worked fine. I think if it was any longer would have prolonged the listening too far and likewise shorter would not challenge the students enough. I say this because in the previous lesson, which another teacher took before me, the students had listened to a tape and I felt as though it went on too long which was about 4 minutes. That time I saw the students losing interest, which is hard if you have to play it twice or three times. I think with my tape the students needed to listen two times such that once they had listened the second time they were fine and had completed the exercise. I must say though there were a few students that didn’t finish the task completely, so I think this told me that I tested some students. I mean if all the students had finished the first time I would have known for sure that it was easy, but the second play and some students not entirely finishing gave me a feeling of how I was testing them. There was one issue that I think did hinder the proceeding though, and that is, I should have given the students some time to check their answers the first time after listening to the tape. I think there were some students who were a little confused about the answers and needed that checking time to ask their peers. Also, I had put them into groups, which would have made them be able to converse and to understand better so maybe I missed a good opportunity to let the students think about their answers. I think in consequent classes I should go around the group asking and provoking thought and trying to get the student in the groups to say what they wrote down as to generate student talking in English.
I think again I could have challenged the students a bit more. There are points in the class after I finished explaining where I think that all the students understand but I cannot be really sure because I haven’t checked all the students. I introduced the ‘subjects at university’ and wrote them on the board for example physics, chemistry, and science. I ‘fumped’ the words which was the right idea because I knew some of the words were new to them but as for clearer dictionary definition and reinforcing this definition I am not sure a did this. I think the students kind of knew the words but it would have been nice to have them discuss and at least be able to understand them by trying to talk about them. I think for the level they were it would have not been much trouble to converse about these words. I think a simple exercise like matching the words and definitions could have worked. Also, when I asked the two groups to think of some subjects to go with a major (e.g. major – science / subject studied at university – physics) I didn’t give them a model because one of the majors I gave one group was art and I never really said what branch of arts at university. I could have said fine arts, humanities, and liberal arts.
If I had given liberal arts I could have elicited an example like ‘music’ to the board just to send the students on the right path. My objectives were for the students to learn new words relating to university. This was learned by way of a university schedule that was filled in with these words from the tape after they had listened to it. I think the students achieved their objectives of learning the new words and filling in the schedule as planned. To explain how well these adjectives were achieved I would have to say not entirely. I say this because of some of the actions I did to confirm every student’s knowledge. There were times when simple checking could have confirmed everything to me. I have mentioned one way I could have checked above with the subjects and majors. Also after each listening of the tape, I checked on the students and asks them how they were getting on. If they were hearing the tape, what were they thinking? And also at the end of the final post-exercise, I could have made the students not look at their schedules so much and discuss more. I did find them saying student A: ‘when are you free?’ student B: ‘Friday’ student A: “okay’. This was distinctly different from the tape, which lasted two minutes.
To conclude this reflection, I think I have learned to put more into a lesson. I mean the start where I would be doing the presentation/pre-stage of the lesson is to make sure all the students are well informed before I move on. This means getting the so-called weaker students to prove some understanding. Also in relation to the weaker students is to keep the students in pairs and groups so the better students help those weaker ones. Also, I should give them time to discuss in-between stages. I think there is a lot to be learned at certain stages if only to get the students to sit back and contemplate what they have just been told. This would be done in groups or pairs again.
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