Communicative Competence
Communicative Competence
Communicative Competence
grammatical knowledge of syntax, morphology, phonology and the like, as well as social
knowledge about how and when to use utterances appropriately.
The term was coined by Dell Hymes in 1966,[1] reacting against the perceived inadequacy
of Noam Chomsky's (1965) distinction between competence and performance.[2] To
address Chomsky's abstract notion of competence, Hymes undertook ethnographic
exploration of communicative competence that included "communicative form and
function in integral relation to each other" (Leung, 2005).[3] The approach pioneered by
Hymes is now known as the ethnography of communication.
Use in education
The notion of communicative competence is one of the theories that underlies the
communicative approach to foreign language teaching.[3]
Canale and Swain (1980) defined communicative competence in terms of four
components:[4]
1.
2.
3.
4.
In the early stages of language learning, instructors and students may want to keep in
mind the goal of communicative efficiency: That learners should be able to make
themselves understood, using their current proficiency to the fullest. They should try to
avoid confusion in the message (due to faulty pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary); to
avoid offending communication partners (due to socially inappropriate style); and to use
strategies for recognizing and managing communication breakdowns.
Pragmatic aspects
Functions
Variations
Interactional skills
Cultural framework