THE COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING ( CLT)

&
TASK-BASED TEACHING (TBT)
 What Is Communicative Language Teaching?

 Does communicative language teaching, or CLT,

mean teaching conversation, an absence of grammar
in a course, or an emphasis on open-ended
discussion activities as the main features of a course?

 What do we understand by communicative language

teaching?
 Task 1 Which of the statements below do you think characterizes
communicative language teaching?

1. People learn a language best when using it to do things rather than

through studying how language works and practicing rules.
2. Grammar is no longer important in language teaching.
3. People learn a language through communicating in it.
4. Errors are not important in speaking a language.
5. CLT is only concerned with teaching speaking.
6. Classroom activities should be meaningful and involve real
communication.
7. Dialogs are not used in CLT.
8. Both accuracy and fluency are goals in CLT.
9. CLT is usually described as a method of teaching.
 1. Defintion

 CLT emphasizes interaction as both the means and the

ultimate goal of learning a language.
 It focuses on enabling students to communicate effectively and
meaningfully in real-life situations. Rather than just memorizing
grammar rules or vocabulary, CLT encourages students to use the
language in authentic contexts.
 CLT has had a significant impact on language teaching
since its emergence in the 1970s, leading to the
development of new syllabus designs, teaching materials,
and classroom activities.
 The goals of language teaching

 CLT sets as its goal the teaching of communicative

competence.

What does this term mean?

Grammatical competence Communicative competence

 The goals of language teaching (cont.)

Communicative competence includes the following aspects

of language knowledge:

 Knowing how to use language for a range of different purposes and

functions.

 Knowing how to vary our use of language according to the setting

and the participants (e.g., formal and informal speech)

 Knowing how to produce and understand different types of texts

(e.g., narratives, reports, interviews, conversations)

 Knowing how to maintain communication despite having limitations

in one’s language knowledge (e.g., through using different kinds of
communication strategies)
 Task 2 Consider the following sentences that are all
requests for someone to open a door

Check if you think they conform to the rules of

grammatical competence (GC), communicative
competence (CC), or both.
 Please to opens door.
 I want the door to be opened by you.
 Would you be so terribly kind as to open the door for me?
 Could you open the door?
 To opening the door for me.
 Would you mind opening the door?
 The opening of the door is what I request.
 2. Methodology

A traditional language syllabus usually specified the vocabulary

students needed to learn and the grammatical items they should
master, normally graded across levels from beginner to
advanced.

But what would a communicative syllabus look like?

Skill based +Functional skill based syllabus

 2. Methodology (cont.)

 A skills-based syllabus: This focuses on the four

skills, and breaks each skill down into its component
microskills.
 For example, the skill of listening might be further described in
terms of the following micro skills:
 Recognizing key words in conversations
 Recognizing the topic of a conversation
 Recognizing speakers’ attitude toward a topic

CLT however stressed an integrated-skills approach to the teaching

of the skills. Since in real life the skills often occur together, they
should also be linked in teaching
 2. Methodology (cont.)

 A functional syllabus: This is organized according

to the functions the learner should be able to carry
out in English, such as expressing likes and dislikes,
offering and accepting apologies, introducing
someone, and giving explanations.
 For example, a sequence of activities similar to the P-P-P
lesson cycle is then used to present and practice the function.

Functional syllabuses were often used as the basis for

speaking and listening courses.
 3. Key principles

 Make real communication the focus of language learning.

 Provide opportunities for learners to experiment and try out what

they know.

 Be tolerant of learners’ errors as they indicate that the learner is

building up his or her communicative competence.

 Provide opportunities for learners to develop both accuracy and

fluency.

 Link the different skills, since they usually occur so in the real
world.

 Let students induce or discover grammar rules.

 4. Activities

Accuracy vs. Fluency Activities

 One of the goals of CLT is to develop fluency in language
use. Fluency is developed by creating classroom activities in
which students
 must negotiate meaning,
 use communication strategies,
 correct misunderstandings,
 work to avoid communication breakdowns.

 Fluency practice can be contrasted with accuracy practice,

which focuses on creating correct examples of language use.
 4. Activities (cont.)

Differences between activities that focus on fluency and

those that focus on accuracy can be summarized as follows:
Activities focusing on fluency Activities focusing on accuracy

• Reflect natural use of language • Reflect classroom use of language

• Focus on achieving communication • Focus on the formation of correct

• Require meaningful use of language examples of language
• Require the use of communication
strategies • Practice language out of context

• Produce language that may not be • Practice small samples of language

predictable
• Do not require meaningful
• Seek to link language use to context communication

• Control choice of language

 4. Activities (Cont.)

2. Mechanical, Meaningful, and Communicative

Practice:
 Mechanical practice: refers to a controlled practice activity
which students can successfully carry out without necessarily
understanding the language they are using.
 Meaningful practice: refers to an activity where language
control is still provided but where students are required to
make meaningful choices when carrying out practice.
 Communicative practice: refers to activities where practice
in using language within a real communicative context is the
focus, where real information is exchanged, and where the
language used is not totally predictable.
 4. Activities (Cont.)

3. Information-Gap Activities: This refers to the fact that in real

communication, people normally communicate in order to get information
they do not possess.

4. Information-gathering activities: student-conducted surveys,

interviews, and searches in which students are required to use their linguistic
resources to collect information.

5. Opinion-sharing activities: activities in which students compare

values, opinions, or beliefs, such as a ranking task in which students list six
qualities in order of importance that they might consider in choosing a date
or spouse.

6. Information-transfer activities: These require learners to take

information that is presented in one form, and represent it in a different
form.
 5. Teacher and students roles

 the teacher assumes two main roles: facilitator and monitor of

the learning process.

 the teacher is also considered as another member within the

learning-teaching group.

 the learner is defined as a negotiator.

 students participate in classroom activities which entail

cooperative rather than individualistic learning.

 Students are also responsible for the process of learning a

language.
Task-based teaching (TBT)
 1. Introduction

TBLT is defined in several ways, as different scholars have

definitions. However, there are some similarities that could help
to define its characteristics (Long, 1985; Skehan, 1998; and
Ellis, 2003):
 TBLT includes the use of “tasks” (a kind of activity or exercise,
explained further on in this chapter) in which the focus is on
conveying meaning rather than using the right grammatical
form;
 TBLT uses authentic materials -which are materials that are
not made for the classroom but come from the “real life”;
 TBLT relies on communication and interaction;
 TBLT is learner-centred;
 TBLT uses existing languages skills of learners.
 2. Key principles

 Focus on Meaning and Communication: tasks provide a context for

meaningful communication and encourage learners to use language for
authentic purposes.

 Outcome-Oriented: tasks have clear goals and outcomes, which motivates

learners and provides a sense of achievement.

 Use of Authentic Language: TBL encourages the use of real-world

materials and language samples, exposing learners to language as it is used in
natural contexts.

 Learner-Centered: TBL empowers learners to take ownership of their

learning and encourages collaboration and peer interaction.

 Promotes Interaction and Negotiation of Meaning: tasks require

learners to work together, share information, and negotiate meaning, which
fosters fluency and communicative competence.
3. What makes TBLT different from other methods of
language teaching?

 TBLT is a form of language teaching that fits within

the “communicative approaches”.
 It is therefore different from the “traditional
approach” in which grammar is being explained and
learners practice with exercises and finally in the real
world.
 in the TBLT approach, learners do the practice first
(and thus figure things out on their own) and only
afterwards the grammar (or form, as they call it
within TLBT) is explained.
 3. What makes TBLT different from other methods of
language teaching? (cont.)

Teacher-Centered Pre-Task (Introduction, Activation,

Modeling)

Present New Structure

Task Cycle Task

Planning – Report Language Focus

Controlled Practice: Drills (Pair/Group Work) (Analysis & Practice)

Practice: Aiming for Fluency End of Lesson

End of Lesson
4. What is a task?

 it can be said that a task is:

 “a piece of classroom work which involves learners in
comprehending, producing or interacting in the target language
while their attention is principally focused on meaning rather than
on form” (Nunan 1989:10)

 “a goal-oriented activity in which learners use language to achieve a

real outcome” (Willis, 1996:95).

 It also relates to the real-world activities as it includes some

sort of communicative problem to solve, or “information
gap” in which one part knows something, the other part
does not, and they need to communicate this information.
 4. What is a task? (cont.)

A task is an activity based on a real-life situation or a

problem that can be used to work on a specific topic,
through which the learners use and thus learn the
language, and in which the main aim is to convey a
message.
 i.e “giving directions to a tourist in the street, from the bus
station station to the Art gallery”.
 4. What is a task? (cont.)
Traditional exercises Task-Based Language Teaching
exercises

• Written questionnaire about • The instructor divides the class in 5 groups.

the understanding of the film. Each group is assigned a part of a silent movie
(for example, Charlie Chaplin – The Kid,
• Activity to describe the which you can find on YouTube). The class
storyline of the film. does not know the title of the film, nor the
order of the different fragments.

• Each group watches the assigned fragment

and discusses the important facts.

• The instructor re-divides the group in groups

of 5, so that in each group there are 5 learners
who watch a different segment. The groups
reconstruct the storyline together.
 5.
5. What is the structure of a TBLT language
lesson?
 5. Task types

Willis' Six Task Types are structured to encourage learners to use

language authentically and meaningfully.
 Listing Tasks: generate lists based on a given topic or stimulus.
Vocabulary activation and idea generation.
 Listing items to pack for a trip, making a list of classroom rules, creating a shopping
list for a party.
 Sorting and Ordering Tasks: categorizing and prioritizing
information. Discussion, negotiation, and the use of comparative and
superlative language.
 Ranking activities based on preference, sorting objects into categories, sequencing events in
a story.
 Comparing Tasks: Learners engage in identifying similarities and
differences between two or more items or concepts. Analytical skills
and encourages the use of comparative language structures.
 Comparing product features, contrasting opinions on a current event, analysing
characters in a story.
 3. Task types (cont.)

 Problem-Solving Tasks: Learners are presented with a

problem or scenario and must work collaboratively to find
solutions. Critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and the use of
language for expressing opinions and suggestions.
 Designing a community project, planning a trip itinerary, solving a
mystery or riddle.
 Sharing Personal Experiences Tasks: These tasks
encourage learners to share their own experiences and
perspectives on a given topic. Personalizes learning, promotes
fluency, and helps learners connect language to their lives.
 Discussing favourite hobbies, describing a memorable event, sharing
views on a social issue.
 Creative Tasks: These tasks invite learners to use language
imaginatively and expressively. Encourage divergent thinking,
collaboration, and the use of language for planning and design.
 Writing a story or poem, designing a product, creating a role-play or skit
 ACTIVITIES

Task: Travelling

1. Pre-task (introduction): an excerpt from the movie “Forest Gump” is shown, in which
the protagonist starts a journey, followed by a discussion of the storyline (the discussion
should bring out useful language, vocabulary, and grammar for the task itself).
2.Task:
 Task preparation: Images (general) and phrases of a book linked to travel – in
groups learners make a story using at least 2 phrases and 2 images, within the theme
of travelling.
 Task realization (reporting): After the time finishes, each group presents their
story.

3. Post-task: Explanation or other exercises to deepen the understanding about the

specific grammatical or linguistic learning objectives of the activity.
Task: Introducing people

1. Pre-task (introduction): The instructor can start introducing him/herself (name, age,
country). Then he/she can ask the same information to the learner. The learner can have in
front of him/her these questions with the answers, with some gaps to write his/her own
information.
1.1 Second pre-task: Choose an audio with people introducing themselves and later ask
the learners where these people come from, how old they are, etc.

2. Task: A game, i.e., choose a famous person known all over the world and introduce
yourself as you were this person. The rest of the group will guess and say the name of the
person you are.

3. Post-task: Focus on form and vocabulary regarding presenting one-self.

 5. Advantages of TBL

 Real-World Examples
 For example, how problem-solving tasks can help learners
develop skills in collaboration and critical thinking, which are
valuable in academic and professional settings.

 Or how sharing personal experiences tasks can build learners'

confidence in expressing their opinions and participating in
social interactions.
 6. Disadvantages

 Limited Evidence of Superiority

 Challenges in Task Selection and Sequencing
 Accuracy Concerns