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Communicative Competence

Language teaching in the United States is based on the idea that the goal of language
acquisition is communicative competence: the ability to use the language correctly and
appropriately to accomplish communication goals.

The desired outcome of the language learning process is the ability to communicate
competently, not the ability to use the language exactly as a native speaker does.

Communicative competence is made up of four competence areas: linguistic,

sociolinguistic, discourse, and strategic.

• Linguistic competence is knowing how to use the grammar, syntax, and vocabulary of
a language. Linguistic competence asks:
What words do I use?
How do I put them into phrases and sentences?

• Sociolinguistic competence is knowing how to use and respond to language

appropriately, given the setting, the topic, and the relationships among the people
communicating. Sociolinguistic competence asks:

√ Which words and phrases fit this setting and this topic?
√ How can I express a specific attitude (courtesy, authority, friendliness, respect)
when I need to?
√ How do I know what attitude another person is expressing?

• Discourse competence is knowing how to interpret the larger context and how to
construct longer stretches of language so that the parts make up a coherent whole.
Discourse competence asks:

√ How are words, phrases and sentences put together to create conversations,
speeches, email messages, newspaper articles?

• Strategic competence is knowing how to recognize and repair communication

breakdowns, how to work around gaps in one’s knowledge of the language, and
how to learn more about the language and in the context. Strategic competence
asks:

√ How do I know when I’ve misunderstood or when someone has misunderstood

me?
√ What do I say then?
 √ How can I express my ideas if I don’t know the name of something or the right
verb form to use?

Method: Learner-centered Instruction

In language classrooms in the United States, instruction focuses on the learner and the
learning process. The instructor creates a learning environment that resembles as much as
possible the one in which students learned their first language. Students participate in the
learning process by establishing learning goals, developing and choosing learning
strategies, and evaluating their own progress. In the classroom, students attend to models
provided by the instructor (input) and then build on those models as they use language
themselves (output). Classroom activities incorporate real-world situations.

Learner-centered instruction encourages students to take responsibility for their own

language skill development and helps them gain confidence in their ability to learn and
use the language. Teachers support students by devoting some class time to non-
traditional activities, including teaching learners how to use learning strategies, how to
use available tools and resources, and how to reflect on their own learning.

Many U.S. students have had experience with learner-centered instruction and expect it to
be used in their classrooms. Students who are accustomed to more traditional teacher-
centered instruction may resist the learner-centered model at first because it expects them
to be more involved in the learning process. However, when they discover that learner-
centered instruction enables them to develop real-world language skills while having fun,
they usually become enthusiastic participants.

Guidelines for Communicative, Learner-centered Instruction

The following guidelines will help you make communicative language teaching and
learner-centered instruction part of your own instructional approach.

1. Provide Appropriate Input

Input is the language to which students are exposed: teacher talk, listening activities,
reading passages, and the language heard and read outside of class. Input gives learners
the material they need to develop their ability to use the language on their own.

Language input has two forms.

1. Finely tuned input

• Is matched to learners’ current comprehension level and connected to what they

 already know
• Focuses on conscious learning of a specific point: the pronunciation of a word, the
contrast in the uses of two verb tenses, new vocabulary, useful social formulas
• Is controlled by the instructor or textbook author
• Is used in the presentation stage of a lesson

2. Roughly tuned input

• Is more complex than learners’ current proficiency and stretches the boundaries of their
current knowledge
• Focuses on authentic use of language in listening or reading passages
• Is used “as is,” with minimal alteration by the instructor or textbook author
• Is used in the activity stage of the lesson
Roughly tuned input challenges student to use listening and reading strategies to aid
comprehension. When selecting authentic materials for use as roughly tuned input, look
for listening and reading selections that are one level of proficiency higher than students’
current level. This will ensure that students will be challenged by the material without
being overwhelmed by its difficulty.

2. Use Language in Authentic Ways

In order to learn a language, instead of merely learning about it, students need as much as
possible to hear and read the language as native speakers use it. Instructors can make this
happen in two ways.

Teacher talk: Always try to use the language as naturally as possible when you are
talking to students. Slowing down may seem to make the message more comprehensible,
but it also distorts the subtle shifts in pronunciation that occur in naturally paced speech.

• Speak at a normal rate

• Use vocabulary and sentence structures with which students are familiar
• State the same idea in different ways to aid comprehension
Materials: Give students authentic reading material from newspapers, magazines, and
other print sources. To make them accessible,

• Review them carefully to ensure that the reading level is appropriate

• Introduce relevant vocabulary and grammatical structures in advance
• Provide context by describing the content and typical formats for the type of material
(for example, arrival and departure times for travel schedules)
Advertisements, travel brochures, packaging, and street signs contain short statements
that students at lower levels can manage. The World Wide Web is a rich resource for
authentic materials. Reading authentic materials motivates students at all levels because it
gives them the sense that they really are able to use the language.
3. Provide Context

Context includes knowledge of

• the topic or content

• the vocabulary and language structures in which the content is usually presented
• the social and cultural expectations associated with the content

To help students have an authentic experience of understanding and using language,

prepare them by raising their awareness of the context in which it occurs.

• Ask them what they know about the topic

• Ask what they can predict from the title or heading of a reading selection or the
opening line of a listening selection
• Review the vocabulary (including idiomatic expressions) and sentence structures that
are usually found in that type of material
• Review relevant social and cultural expectations

4. Design Activities with a Purpose

Ordinarily, communication has a purpose: to convey information. Activities in the

language classroom simulate communication outside the classroom when they are
structured with such a purpose. In these classroom activities, students use the language to
fill an information gap by getting answers or expanding a partial understanding. For
example, students work in pairs, and each is given half of a map, grid, or list needed to
complete a task. The pair then talk to each other until they both have all the information.

5. Use Task-based Activities

Fluent speakers use language to perform tasks such as solving problems, developing
plans, and working together to complete projects. The use of similar task-based activities
in the classroom is an excellent way to encourage students to use the language. Tasks
may involve solving a word problem, creating a crossword puzzle, making a video,
preparing a presentation, or drawing up a plan.

6. Encourage Collaboration

Whenever possible, ask students to work in pairs or small groups. Give students structure
in the form of a defined task and outcome. This structure will allow students to
collaborate as they develop a work plan, discuss the substance of the task, and report the
outcome. They will thus use language in a variety of ways and learn from each other.
Effective collaborative activities have three characteristics.

• Communication gap: Each student has relevant information that the others don’t have
• Task orientation: Activity has a defined outcome, such as solving a problem or
drawing a map
• Time limit: Students have a preset amount of time to complete the task

7. Use an Integrated Approach

Integration has two forms. Mode integration is the combination of listening, speaking,
reading, and writing in classroom activities. By asking students to use two or more modes,
instructors create activities that imitate real world language use.

Content integration is bringing content from students’ fields of study into the language
curriculum. University students often find it instructive to read, discuss, and write about
material whose content they already know, because their knowledge of the topic helps
them understand and use the language. They are able to scaffold: to build on existing
knowledge as they increase their language proficiency. For students who plan to study
and/or work in a field that will require them to use the language they are learning,
integration of content can be a powerful motivator.

8. Include Awareness of Cultural Aspects of Language Use

Languages are cognitive systems, but they also express ideas and transmit cultural values.
When you are discussing language use with your students, it is important to include
information on the social, cultural, and historical context that certain language forms
carry for native speakers. Culture is expressed and transmitted through magazines and
newspapers, radio and television programs, movies, and the internet. Using media as
authentic materials in the classroom can expand students’ perspectives and generate
interesting discussions.