1.

Intro:

The need to learn a second/foreign language seems to have reached its peak in our
times, bilingualism or multilingualism is the norm rather than the exception. In fact,
the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) establishes
plurilingualism as the natural state of a European citizen: an individual surrounded by a
plurality of languages, which he/she is able to understand and speak at different
degrees.
Language teaching with a communicative purpose is a fairly new model. As we know,
through history, many different methods of language teaching and learning have been
used. So the aim of this topic will be to deeply analyse their basic characteristics with
their pros and cons in relation to our profession, as well as offer a revision of the
newest methods currently available.

2. The teaching of foreign languages:

2.1. The introduction of modern languages in schools

For centuries, Latin was the dominant language of education, commerce, religion and
government in the Western World. It was natural, though, that Latin was the most
widely foreign language studied. In the 16th century, however, French, Italian, Spanish
and English gained in importance as a result of political changes in Europe, and Latin
gradually became displaced as a language of spoken and written communication.

When the need of learning Latin as a means of communication diminished, the study
of classical Latin and the analysis of its grammar and rhetoric became the model for
foreign language study from the 17th to the 19th centuries.

In the 19th century, when modern languages began to be introduced in education, the
teaching methods followed those used for Latin.

2.2. First approaches

2.2.1. The Grammar-Translation Method.

It dominated language teaching in Europe and America from the 1840s to the 1940s.
Its goal is to read (and write) in the foreign language. It consists of analysis of
grammatical rules and translation of texts.

This method focused on the omission of the mistakes and the accuracy of the
language. It was based on reading, translation and written imitation. The vocabulary
was memorised, and the grammar was learnt inductively. Therefore, the teacher had
an authoritative roll. The terms and explanations of Latin grammar were applied to
modern European languages.
- The role played by words in a sentences was carefully analysed.
- The TL process was based on written skills and conversation was not taught.
- Students had to learn by heart lots of grammar and vocabulary lists.
- Accuracy was requisite.
- Compositions had a great importance and they were used to test students
proficiency.

This method has received several criticisms as language is not only rational but also
intuitive. Spoken language and interaction were neglected. However, this method also
offers some positive aspects, e.g. it gives a great importance to meaning in the learning
process and translation is highly considered, which can be pretty useful in high levels
when learning a foreign language.

2.2.2. The reform movement

Suggested by Henry Sweet and Wilhelm Viëtor. It stresses the relevance of Phonetics;
the goal of study is spoken language. It uses oral/conversational methods in
meaningful contexts. Mother tongue (L1) should be avoided.

2.2.3. The Direct Method

Posed by Sauveur and Berlitz, it focuses exclusively on oral communication in L2.

This method is based on the belief that learning how to speak of FL is not a rational but
an intuitive process for which humans have a natural capacity that can be awakened
provided that the proper conditions exist, which are mainly as follows; someone to talk
to, something to talk about and a desire to be understood.

It deals with everyday vocabulary and sentences in communicative situations. It

stresses the importance of accuracy.

Principles:
1. Language should be learnt through speech.
2. Language should be used as much as possible.
3. Grammar rules don´t have to be learnt by heart, but picked up by the practice
of the language itself.
4. L1 has to be totally avoided.

(-) takes too much time; it completely excludes translation and explanation of grammar
rules, which have been proved useful for adults; vocabulary learning is slow and
unefficient in the long run.

2.3. 20th century innovations

2.3.1. The Audio-lingual method.

It is based on behavioral psychology and structuralist linguistics. Learning a language is

just a process of learning correct habits through repetition, imitation and
reinforcement.
The audio-lingual method appeared in the USA in the late 1950s. Its origins may be
found in a structuralism. For behaviourist, learning is a mechanical process of habit
formation, which is created by repetition of a stimulus-answer sequence. Mother
tongue processes are the pattern for learning a second language, which must be done
by imitation.
Rules are presented by the teacher and memorized by students. Then, they practice
and repeat mechanically. Error is punished. It focuses on developing oral skills as these
are considered more important than reading and writing.
(-)slowness of the teaching process. Language is communication and not a mere
repetition of structures. Boring and demotivating. The learner has a passive role
(robot-like learners)

2.3.2. The oral/situational approach

This approach was the most accepted method in the 1950s. The fact that linguistic
issues are introduces and practiced in situation turned into the key factor in the 1960s,
and the term situational started to be used to refer to the oral approach.

The focus is on grammar and vocabulary, which is selected according to criteria of

usefulness and frequency. Grammatical items are gradually introduced. Its aim is
spoken language; grammar is gradually presented according to difficulty.

It has been, and still is, a quite influential method. In the 1970s this method began to
be questioned. As a consequence, the communicative approach was born, which
would become the most relevant movement in teaching practice at multiple
educational levels.

2.3.3. The cognitive approach. TGG (Transformational Generative Grammar)

Chomsky’s Syntactic Structures (1957) is the point of departure of reaction against

structuralism and behaviourism. Language is derived from mental innate aspects.
Language learning is not based on habit formation, but on the acquisition of a finite set
of rules which can be applied to create an infinite number of utterances. This line of
argument leads to the notion of “linguistic competence”.

Cognitivism does not constitute an approach or a method, but has exerted significant
influence on later approaches and methods. Its influence, together with other scientific
and social factors, gave way to the rise of communicative language teaching (CLT),
which will be the focus of the third section of this unit, as well to a proliferation of
language teaching methods.

2.4. Contemporary trends in the teaching of English as a foreign language.

2.4.1. The distinction between approach and method.
Richards and Rodgers’ description of the different components of a language teaching
method, which involves an approach to language and language teaching, a design of
the course, and the procedures for its execution.
 2.4.2. The Silent Way.It emphasizes creativity on the part of the student.
Teaching is carried out by means of physical objects and gestures, provoking silent
periods from the teacher.

2.4.3. Community Language Learning.

It focuses on affective needs; it is student-centred. t conceives language as a social
process. Requirements for success can be abbreviated to SARD.

2.4.4. Suggestopedia.
It involves using yoga, music and rhythmic breathing in order to get the student
relaxed and more receptive.

2.4.5. Total Physical Response.

The main objective is to achieve a level of oral skills. Following a child’s language
acquisition process, physical action is required as a response in the early stages of
language learning.

2.4.6. The Natural Approach.

A widely known and successful method posed by Krashennand Terrell.It is based on
the existence of five hypotheses: acquisition vs. learning, comprehensible input, the
existence of a monitor, the affective filter and a natural order.

2.4.7. Contemporary approaches

Most of them share a communicative point of view. Its immediacy has not allowed for
rigorous criticism from experience.
The most relevant are: CALL, task-based learning and content-based instruction (CBI).

2.5. Description of Communicative Language Teaching

The goal of language teaching is communicative competence, which is a core concept.

It understands language as communication, including processes of information sharing
and negotiation of meaning.
It is an approach, not a method. In fact, it owes much to many different disciplines,
and has different varieties.
It tries to meet the learner’s needs before a syllabus is designed.
Activities are uncountable, provided that they engage the learner in real
communication.
The teacher becomes a facilitator, leader, needs analyst, material designer.
The learner is the centre of the process; he/she must be an active participant in the
process, and assume responsibility and autonomy in learning.

It is essential to understand CLT as an approach, and not a method whose main

principles are:
a) the goal of language teaching is “communicative competence” in opposition to
Chomsky´s “linguistic competence”. In fact, the term communicative is to be
understood as referring to the process and to the goals of learning.
b) The four language skills must be taught in a comprehensive way.
“Competence” is defined as the expression, interpretation, and negotiation of meaning
and looks to second language acquisition research to account for its development. The
identification of learning communicative needs provides a basis for curriculum design.

By such milestones as the appearance of the Threshold level (1975) and

Wilkin’s Notional Syllabus (1976), communicative language teaching (CLT) has
been with us for nearly three decades. A strong theoretical impetus for the
development of CLT came from the social sciences and humanities outside
language pedagogy. Different notions of communicative competence, proposed
by Hymes from the perspective of linguistic anthropology and by Habermas
from the vantage point of social philosophy, served as guiding constructs for the
design of communicative competence as the overall goal of language teaching
and assessment. An influential and comprehensive review of communicative
competence and related notions was offered by Canale and Swain (1980), who
also proposed a widely cited framework of communicative competence for
language instruction and testing.
To understand what the communicative competence is and why it is so
important for L2 pedagogy, we have to consider pragmatics. According to
Crystal, pragmatics is ‘the study of language from the point of view of users,
especially of the choices they make, the constraints they encounter in using
language in social interaction and the effects their use of language has on other
participants in the act of communication’. In other words, pragmatics is defined
as the study of communicative action in its sociocultural context.
Communicative action includes not only using speech acts but also engaging in
different types of discourse and participating in speech events of varying length
and complexity.
Regarding the theoretical basis of the communicative approach,
Widowson stated the following main features:
1. The heart of the language lesson is the communicative activity in itself, not
the grammar explanation.
2. The syllabus has to be built around a carefully grades selection of
communicative acts which the ss will need to perform their purposes.
3. Language must be used for communicative purposes. Interaction is not
only advised but also fundamental.
4. All skills should receive the same attention.
5. If possible, authentic materials should be used. They put ss in contact with
the real use of the language and are highly motivating.
6. The more L2 is used, the better.

What learning theory lies behind this approach?. Richard and Rogers list a
number of elements:
- communication principle: activities that involve real communication.
- task principle: activities in which language is used for carrying out
meaningful task.
- meaningfulness principle: the use of language that is meaningful to the
learner, that is, selecting activities which engage learners in meaningful and
authentic language.

Communicative approach allows for diversity and plurality therefore the range of
activities which can be labeled communicative is uncountable, provided that they
engage learners in communication and involve communicative processes such as
interaction, negotiation of meaning and information sharing. In fact, a common
element of all communicative activities is that they require a change in the role of
teacher and learner.
From passive recipient of information comment the learner must become the centre
of the learning process, for example an active participant in their own learning
process and assume a large degree of responsibility about it.
The teacher must assume a multidimensional role:
- facilitator of learners autonomous learning process
- participant himself within the learning teaching group,
- researcher and learner about the development of the learning-teaching process
- analysts councillor on group process manager who organises activities in the class,
prepares suitable materials and provides the necessary linguistic information.

Therefore, with the purpose of engaging learners in communication, involving

processes of information sharing, interaction on negotiation of meaning, work in the
classroom must focus on contextualised, situational use of language, obviously by
integrating the four skills.

The materials used must encourage both participation in their execution and
participation in their creation as well. Richard and Rogers classify CLT materials in
three broad categories:
- text based: textbooks. They do not differ very much from prior structurally
organised texts
- task based: role plays, simulations, task based communication activities, cue cards,
activity cards, students interaction materials, and others
- Realia or authentic, real life materials: magazines, advertisements, newspapers,
graphs or charts.

2.6. Contemporary trends in CLT

It continues to show a great range of varieties and new methodologies, approaches
and strategies.
Evaluation has received a greater emphasis in the last years.

Conclusion

This unit shows the major trends in the history of language teaching, together with a
description of the fundamental principles, their objectives and procedures and
techniques. The history of language teaching goes hand in hand with that of theories
of language.

Finally, regarding the didactic application of this unit, it is obvious that the teacher will
not explain the different methodologies to learners. These are interested in learning
the language; therefore, the application of these units must be shown in actual
practise, in everyday classroom techniques, in the materials used, in the syllabus
design, in the focus on interaction on communication in the classroom. By analysing
the history of language teaching and learning from its discoveries and faults, we may
become better teachers and choose the road that best suits us and our students.