Communicative Activities

Teacher’s Training
Course
 COURSE OUTLINE
What is communication?
 Brainstorm
What’s the communicative approach?
 English as a real tool to communicate
Characteristics of communicative approach?
What are communicative activities?
Games and presentation…
Self-evaluation.
 INTRODUCTION
 What is communication?
 Communication is defined as the sum of
total of information about feelings, attitudes
and wishes, transmitted directly and
indirectly, consciously and unconsciously.
The term ‘communication' covers just about
any interaction with another person. It
includes sharing information, ideas and
feelings between people.
 When good communication is
missing….
 Feeling angry or worried
 Irritation
 Learning process broken….
 _____________
It’s important to communicate…

 Communication is a ‘two way' process.

When you communicate you perceive the
other person’s responses and react with your
own thoughts and feelings. It is only by
paying attention to the other person that you
have any idea about what to say or do next.
 What’s the communicative approach?
 Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is an approach to the
teaching of second and foreign languages (why…) that emphasizes
interaction as both the means and the ultimate goal of learning a language.
It is also referred to as “communicative approach to the teaching of foreign
languages” or simply the “Communicative Approach”.
 Communicative language teaching makes use of real-life situations where
communication is required. The teacher sets up a situation that students
are likely to encounter in real life. Unlike the traditionalist method of
language teaching, which relies on repetition and drills, the
communicative approach can leave students in suspense as to the outcome
of a class exercise, which will vary according to their reactions and
responses.
 The real-life simulations change from day to day. Students' motivation to
learn comes from their desire to communicate in meaningful ways about
meaningful topics.
 What does it mean?
 1) The primary aim of foreign language learning is communication with
users of the foreign language.

 2) Students study the foreign language as a system of communication.

 3) Students learn and practice the foreign language through 'communicative

activities‘.
 Margie S. Berns, an expert in the field of communicative language teaching,
"language is interaction; it is interpersonal activity and has a clear relationship
with society. In this light, language study has to look at the use (function) of
language in context, both its linguistic context (what is expected before and after
a given piece of function) and its social, or situational, context (who is speaking,
what their social roles are, why they have come together to speak)" (Berns, 1984,
p. 5).
 Example: “May I use the yellow pages, please?...” (Pragmatic)
 What does it mean?
In other words:
We make English a real tool to communicate.
Considering: ________, ___________ and __________.
The communicative approach helps to teach how to use
grammar, how to use vocabulary, etc. The pragmatic of
the language or the proper use of it.
The communicative approach helps us for specific
functions and real life situations.
 The aim is…
 In the past the 'primary aim' of language learning seemed to be the use of the grammatical
system. The only practical task was translation and that was usually translation of 'great
literature' rather than letters to the bank manager for instance.

 Today, we see our primary aim as teaching the practical use of English for communication.

 Learning English as a system of communication

Language contains many 'systems', one of which is the system of grammar. Use of grammar is
still important but only as a means to successful communication.

 Example:
How long have you been here?

How long are you here for?

BUT…. We are less concerned with the grammatical difference between these two questions than
with their difference in meaning. We are less concerned with grammatical errors of form than
with errors of meaning because these will lead to a breakdown in communication. Does it
mean that we are not correcting our students? NO way jose!! But the focus in communicative
approach should be in functions and corrections should be made in a proper way.
 The communicative approach
Sentences In the Communicative
Approach, the focus is
not on SENTENCES but
I am a teacher
rather on FUNCTIONS
I am giving a lecture
We had a coffee break
Etc
Socializing
Getting and giving information
Expressing emotions
etc

Functions
 What are communicative activities?
 Activities in classroom where the purpose
is to produce language previously learned.
 Six main characteristics of a
communicative activity:
 a desire to communicate
 a communicative purpose
 a focus on language content (meaning)
not language forms
 a variety of language used (vocabulary)
 no teacher intervention (EYE)
 no control or simplification of the material
 A desire to communicate.
 In a communicative activity there must How can we involve
be a reason to communicate. When our students in a
someone asks a question, the person
communicative
must wish to get some information or
some other form of result. activity?
 If the students do not want to be Relevant topics
involved in communication then that ____________
communication will probably not be
effective.
 Why would a student not be involved
in a communicative activity?
 _____________
 A communicative purpose
 They should be using language in some way to Your topic is
achieve an objective, and this objective (or
purpose) should be the most important part of “traveling” what can
communication.
be a purpose?
 If the students do have a purpose of this kind then booking
their attention should be centered in the content of
what is being said not the language form is being ____________
used.

 Example: when we ask students to describe their

bedroom furniture to their partners, we are
creating a 'communicative purpose’.
 Focus on language content
 In real life, we do not ask about our Your grammar form
friend's family in order to practice is simple past what
‘have/has' forms.
could be your
 We ask the question because we are language content?
interested in the information. That is to Famous people
say, we are interested in the language
____________
content and not in the language forms.

 Having a purpose for the activity this will

come naturally.
 A variety of language used
 In normal communication, we do not Your teaching noun-
repeatedly use the same language forms. clauses “embedded”
 In fact, we usually try to avoid repetition.
 Example: Teacher is it correct “I’m doing
questions…
great!” for “How are you?” I don’t know…
 Languages are different than exact
____________
sciences. “DO NOT BE SQUARED”
 In many classroom activities we often try
to create situations in which students
will repeatedly use a limited number of
language patterns. This is also artificial.
Please don’t do that.
 NO teacher intervention
 When you are buying a ticket for The Lion How can you be
King at the theatre, your teacher is not
usually beside you to 'help' or 'correct' your
involved as teacher?
English. ____________
 Teacher intervention in classroom
communicative activities adds to the
artificiality.
 By intervene we mean telling students that
they are making mistakes, insisting on
accuracy and asking for repetition, etc.
 This undermines the communicative
purpose of the activity.
 The teacher may be involved as a participant
and will also be watching and listening
carefully so as to be able to conduct feedback
AT THE END.
 No control or simplification of the
material
 In the classroom, we often use graded or Give examples of
simplified materials as prompts for
communicative activities.
free control material
 These will not be available in the real world. Pictures
 Often students work with material which
________
force them to use certain language or at least
restrict the students’ choice of what to say
and how to say it. Don’t do this!
 By restricting the students’ opinions the
materials are denying the language variety,
characteristic which we have to say is
important for genuine communication.
 Less control material the better.
 Preparing a communicative activity
We’re presenting a
communicative
activity.
Divide class into pairs or
groups.
Each groups will
conduct a
communicative activity.