Second language teachers' perceptions and implementations of communicative language teaching

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) has received a great deal of attention in second language (L2) literature. However, research studies have indicated that some teachers do not advocate CLT because of their misunderstanding of the methodology. These teachers think that CLT hinders students' development of language learning process because of its restriction of focusing on meaning only. This qualitative case study aimed to ascertain college level language teachers' perceptions of CLT and what they do to make their classrooms communicative. This study also examined to what extent these teachers' classroom practices coincide with the perceptions of CLT. Data were collected from classroom observations, interviews, and documents and records. The results of this study showed that some teachers admitted that they did not understand what exactly CLT meant, but agreed that a communicative approach could facilitate students to talk more in class. These teachers would like to insert a variety of methods, especially more grammar teaching in their practices. The reasons included a) that was how they themselves learned their second languages, b) students need more grammar explanation at a college level, c) every student learns differently, and d) it makes both students and teachers feel less stressed. The findings also indicated that some teachers advocate for CLT because they believe it is the best way to learn a second language and that students do not need grammar explanation to achieve communicative competence. The findings revealed that teachers' perceptions of what they deem to be effective are influenced by their experience as learners as well as their observational learning. This study aims to improve second language teacher education by examining college-level language instructors' perceptions and practices of CLT in detail. Experience gained from observing and interacting within the dynamic of classroom settings is expected to yield informative insight regarding the design of future language teacher training programs.