CLT: Why Should It be Implemented in Language Teaching?

Nowadays there are various methods and approaches used in language teaching. Most of them have appeared in the last century as a reaction against the Grammar Translation Method, which was the first and most common method used for teaching English.  One of those new approaches is the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT).  It is said that this approach is very broad and cover or has characteristics of other approaches and methods.  Of all the methods and approaches existing in language teaching we think that the Communicative Language Teaching approach should be implemented in all the schools for teaching English.  Before tell you why let us talk a little about CLT.

Communicative Language Teaching is an approach that puts emphasis on the development of communicative competence. Proponents of CLT say that language is used to communicate. “The goal of language teaching is to develop communicative competence” (Hymes 1972). That is why in this method there is little emphasis on grammar and the memorization of structures and verbs. On the contrary, this is an approach that put emphasis on real life situations (usually practiced in pairs or in groups) and other students centered activities that in some way help them to have tools at the moment of using the language outside the classroom.

Many people think that there are better methods and approaches for teaching languages than CLT. They say for example that there is no logical reason to think that somebody can develop communicative competence leaving apart grammar and structures. For example, it is not the same to say “I lost the exam” than “I failed the exam.” Also, you could argue to the idea of implementing CLT saying that learners can benefit equally from their communication with a text than communicating with a partner. It is said that a text is rich in terms and provide with good input to activate learners communicative competence. Also, another point that you could establish is that the learning process should be teacher centered and not learner centered taking as a stand that the teacher is who has the knowledge and who provides all the information students need.

Although all this could be true, the matter is that this is “a misconception or lack of training in CLT.” (Li 1998) For instance, it has never been said that grammar and structure is not important. The only thing CLT says about them is that the learning process should not be centered on them. The students should infer and internalize those grammar rules from the activities and from the exercises they do.  In Sweet’s words “Grammar should be taught inductively.” (Sweet 1899)

Talking about using books, it could be beneficial to use them for teaching and learning a language. However, we have to consider that in real life interactions, students are not going to find texts but other people. That is why the activities done in the classroom should simulate those situations through the use of pair and group work. To finish, the last of the issues is whether classes should be teacher centered or students centered. Well, we consider that the ones who should have the main role in the class are the ones who are learning the language and not those who already know it.  That is why, in the view of CLT teachers are seen just as facilitators. Teachers should talk less and listen more.  Their role should be just to set up the exercises or tasks and monitor what the students do. (Rodgers and Richards 2001)

There is no any method or approach that can be used for ever or would be useful in all the contexts. The world change and the methods and approaches change in the same way.  For all this and because of the characteristics of this challenging world in which we live, we consider that the approach that offers or gives students more tools to defend themselves in it, is the Communicative Language Teaching approach.  This approach should be implemented or at least taken into account in the schools that want to give their students the best training in languages.