Challenges of implementing verbal communicative tasks in Hungarian primary schools teaching EFL

 

Pannon Egyetem, TNYDI

 

 

Communicative language teaching (CLT) has proven to be the most effective approach to teaching English as a foreign language so far. However, EFL teachers often face challenges in practice. Even if the EFL teacher adheres to the steps advocated in the literature on the methodology of CLT, the efficacy of verbal communicative practice in the classroom may not be guaranteed. Although teachers of EFL in Hungary have a say in choosing the course book they find most appropriate, they may still encounter speaking tasks in the course books that cannot be implemented successfully without modification throughout the school year. This paper presents an evaluation of speaking exercises in the student’s book Enter the Portal 1 by H. Q. Mitchell and Marileni Malkogianni. I have analysed the speaking tasks in terms of the underlying theoretical principles of CLT. The findings indicate that the majority of the objectives cannot be attained through L1 instruction, which is in line with the expectations associated with proficient EFL teaching. Consequently, these objectives do not contribute to the achievement of effective language instruction. In the course book, I have found several problematic aspects of speaking tasks that should be restructured to support teaching purposes.

 

Keywords: communicative language teaching (CLT), teaching English as a foreign language (EFL), verbal communicative practice, speaking tasks, effective language instruction