Task #14 -- Communicative approach

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Date Posted: 22:11:29 08/05/03 Tue
Author: Andre Luiz Elias
Subject: Task #14

Once again, as I did at my very first test, I would like to point out that everything you do concerning language has to be coherent to the concept of language you have. This way a language test that evaluates the ability one has to produce "correct" sentences has as underlying concept the idea that language is a bunch of linguistic (formal) rules and that getting to know them, one knows the language. But when Hymes proposed the concept of 'communicative competence', this traditional view of language changed a bit. In this view, knowing a language is not only being able to produce correct sentences, but also to use them appropriately. So a test that evaluates the communicative competence should be able to evaluate both the linguistic constraints and the appropracy of the use of the language. Activities should be context-bounded, creating a much as possible situations in which the learner use also the social rules to communicate effectively.

One example of a communicative test for basic levels can be a listening activity in which students have to listen to a radio program in which the announcer talks about a contest that is going to happen soon. Then students are supposed to listen and to jot down the phone number that they have to call in order to partake the contest.

In this activity students are not only supposed to listen in order to do the test, but also to get specific information.

In summary, communicative tests should be able to evaluate the language having behind the concept that knowing a language is knowing both the use of correct senteces and the use of them appropriately. Teachers have to be aware of this and the classes themslves have to be communicative in order to have students a communicative test.

References

Testing communicative competence

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Replies:

Re: Task #14 -- Vera, 08:19:13 08/07/03 Thu