Note 4 Communicative competence, Lesson planning

(Last updated: 09/12/2024)

1. What are communication and communicative language ability

1.1 Communication means

• Interaction: Two-way!
• Information exchange
• Authentic context
• Meaningful communication

1.2 Communicative language ability

Communicative language ability includes the competence of language and the capacity for implementing this competence.

• Linguistic competence
• Pragmatic competence
  • Illocutionary competence.
    • e.g., (Someone enters the room and the windows are open.) It's so cold!
  • Sociolinguistic competence
    • the ability to use language that is appropriate to social contexts
• Discourse competence
  • e.g. This is the book I read last week. It's about the civil rights movement in the 1960s. ...?
• Strategic/communicative competence
  • e.g., Two people meet in the hall way:
    A: What's up?
    B: Nothing much.
    A:???
• Fluency

Another take on communicative competence by Prof Jack Richards:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwMii_YtEOw&index=15&list=PL29EFEBBC48DA9B67
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpGvWYPL7cU&index=16&list=PL29EFEBBC48DA9B67

Demonstrtion and more

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfhB7fqg4BI
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cy1K9LkrlSc
  • Activities: Information gap, role-play, interview, group work, opinion sharing, scavenger hunt
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGDxCg90Its

1.3 Communicative and linguistic functions

c.f. List of functions from the following sources:

• Functional-notional approach: http://www.moramodules.com/ALMMethods.htm
• http://www.carla.umn.edu/articulation/polia/pdf_files/communicative_functions.pdf
• ESL examples: http://esl.about.com/b/2010/03/06/language-functions.htm

1.4 Communicating in the classroom

• Use the target language in the classroom
• Exchange unknown information
• Be meaningful in culture-rich environment, i.e., aim for real-life language use

Two approaches:

• Teacher fronted
• Paired or group interaction

3-step process:

• Identify the topic
• Identify the information sources
• Negotiating meaning
  • Information-gap activities
  • Group decision activities

2. Lesson planning

2.1 The five-phase lesson plan

c.f. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2003.tb01467.x/abstract (Access to this document is restricted by the publisher. Use a computer on campus).

1. Preparation: Overview/preview
   • Lesson goals and objectives (in L1 or L2), what is to be learned
2. Presentation
   • Input: Listening and reading materials,
3. Practice
   • Activities for interpretation, drills, group work, etc.
4. Evaluation: Check (accountability)
   • Demonstration students' mastery of skills/knowledge: Presentation or submission of charts, groups, tables, etc.
5. Expansion: Follow-up
   • Homework, cultural comparison, and strategy discussion, etc.

Noticing.pptx

2.2 Sample lesson plans

• c.f. https://www.grahnforlang.com/lesson-and-unit-planning.html

2.3 Checklists

• Checklist 1
• Checklist 2 (This is what you are going to use for your class observation.)