CLT

The CLT approach has called my attention as it could be one of those approaches that cover many points of view. Wilkins (1976) said that we need to look at the notions that language expresses and what kind of communicative functions people can perform with language; I think language is for sharing the view that we have about the world.

From what I see, CLT is focused on content and how meaningful can be the tasks that a learner is asked to do In order to make these resemble realistic situations that a person can face in  real environments of the target language. Thus, one of the advantages that CLT has presented is linked to that idea of it can integrate many approaches conforming what is taught in something more complete and structured than other approaches do.

The learner that is exposed to the right kind of activities interacting with others should learn grammar of the L2 incidentally. Those kind of activities should be communicative and full of meaning, it can help to develop an indirect knowledge about the structures of the L2 generating in the student knowledge that would be acquired somehow as he did it in his mother tongue, unconsciously (Long, 1988).

Personally, I agree with this approach as it seems to model a more realistic way of acquiring a L2 and at the same time avoids focusing on forms that sometimes students find quite boring. The important thing here, it is to think about the contexts and tools which teachers have to take into account in order to get more significant spaces for this kind of learning and if their learners are prepared to deal with the kinds of activities that CLT asks them to perform.

Finally, I think education continues in a constant searching about those approaches that better fill the students’ needs. Meanwhile, CLT will continue to be one the most important and applicable in L2 learning nowadays.

Javier Rodríguez.

Notes:

·         Wilkins, D. (1976). Notional Syllabuses. Oxford University Press.

·         Long, M. H. (1988). Instructed Interlanguage Development I (ed). Issues in Second Language Acquisition: Multiple Perspectives. Newbury House.  

Let´s call it a reflection.

I used to think that languages had to be learnt completely by instruction, but in this moment of my career I have realized that there are many important factors present at the moment of acquiring a L2. Thus, peolpe have to see language learning from different points of view where a L2 can be learnt both by the exposure to it getting the right input and  by direct instruction where forms are the axis of this kind of learning.
There was something that called my attention about something that I read and it was a passage which talks about how language takes care of itself. Illich (1972) says that learners can be exposed to the right and meaningful activities where they have to use the knowledge for solving problems of their L2, so language will take care of itself. It seems that we as teachers should think more about those variables and try to find new ways of teaching a L2 in order to make more meaningful and realistic what we teach.
 I think that teachers have focused their energy on doing many things that sometimes students find boring and even unrealistic. The world has changed and education too, that is why teachers have to be aware that is time to design new activities that can engage students and encourage them to use their target language in order to create environments in which the knowledge can be used in a more natural way, so the input will be internalized thoroughly and learners will be more competent.
Finally, there is one thing that remains in my mind; education always has something new to teach us and we never stop learning because it is renewing itself day by day.


Javier Rodríguez.

Notes:
Illich, I (1972). De-Schooling Society. Harrow books.

As students we have been exposed all of our academic life to tests, some of them cause us fear and others make us feel more competent but all them have been designed with a purpose; it is something that test-takers rarely stop to think about. When I read the third chapter in the Brown´s book (2000), I realized that perceptions that many people and I had about formulating a test were so reduced. For a long time I thought it was just a matter of asking questions over a particular topic and designating a numerical value according on how well students answered to them but it seems that behind a test there is a lot of planning.
At first, there are many aspects that are important for a test to be successful; the type of test, the test-takers and the most important thing the purpose of the test. Then, we have to choose the kind of questions or activies into the test; these must belong to the kind of test that is proposed. Finally, the thing that most surprised me; the way of grading is something that should not be chosen at random because the appropiate feedback may interfere in the learning process either positively or negatively.
Thus,  I wanted to highlight with this entry the fact that as teachers it is our duty to plan even the most insignificant  detail in our job because there are no bad students maybe there are uninformed and unprepared teachers so that teaching may become in the most difficult test that teachers could face in their working lives.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06fTnszze_Q
Another good example about how our children learn through observing...

   Teachers must be aware about those things that are behind education. As teachers we know that we are a transforming element which is linked to external streams (government) but, at the same time it should be governed by internal critism that finally would take us to generate big changes in our society. however, it seems that teachers have forgotten this internal power and given what could be their flag to those who just want to sell but not build   knowledge.
This kind of spaces have to be a wake up call to walk again for the loss paths and recover what has been stolen from our hands by those who have been behind the scenes and as future teachers to change the future of many lives.