The Roles of Teachers and Learners in the Classroom in the Communicative Approach

The Roles of Teachers and Learners in the Classroom in the Communicative Approach

The type of classroom activities proposed in CLT also implied new roles in
the classroom for teachers and learners. Learners now had to participate in
classroom activities that were based on a cooperative rather than individualistic
approach to learning. Students had to become comfortable with listening to
their peers in group work or pair work tasks, rather than relying on the teacher
for a model. They were expected to take on a greater degree of responsibility
for their own learning. And teachers now had to assume the role of facilitator
and monitor. Rather than being a model for correct speech and writing and one
with the primary responsibility of making students produce plenty of error-free
sentences, the teacher had to develop a different view of learners’ errors and of
her/his own role in facilitating language learning. What difficulties might students and teachers face because of changes in their roles in using a communicative methodology? Teachers in communicative classrooms will find themselves talking less and listening more--becoming
active facilitators of their students learning . The teacher sets up the exercise,
but because the students performance is the goal, the teacher must step back and observe, sometimes acting as referee or monitor. A classroom during a communicative activity is far from quiet, however. The students do most of the speaking, and frequently the scene of a classroom during a communicative exercise is active, with students leaving their seats to complete a task. Because of the increased responsibility to participate, students may find they gain confidence in using the target language in general. Students are more responsible managers of their own learning).