Enhancing Communicative Competence in English: Some Needs to Be Addressed
On March 02, 2022, the Language Research Center hosted a webinar in which Ms. Sharmin Siddiqui presented a paper titled "Enhancing Communicative Competence in English: Some Needs to Be Addressed". Her presentation shone a spotlight on the concept, components, strategies, and challenges of communicative competence.
Siddiqui brought to the discussion a variety of scholarly perspectives, including those of Widowson and Brown, to illustrate that genuine language proficiency extends beyond the learners' capacity to understand, read, write, and speak. She asserted that true competence is realized only when learners' knowledge achieves its communicative effect. Siddiqui underscored the significance of applying the target language in real-world situations, a facet closely intertwined with communicative competence. She also highlighted the complexities involved in achieving communicative competence in a foreign or second language among students.
Within her discourse, Siddiqui addressed the ongoing debate around the definition of communicative competence. She noted that Chomsky was the first scholar to draw a distinction between 'performance' and 'competence' as lexical items. While Chomsky designated 'performance' as knowledge of various grammatical rules, 'competence' was defined as successful communication. Siddiqui also mentioned Hymes' contribution to this concept by introducing socio-cultural factors into the equation.
Drawing from Sauvignon's work (1997), Siddiqui delved into the four components of communicative competence: discourse competence, strategic competence, grammatical competence, and sociolinguistic competence. These elements, she suggested, can form the foundation for both curriculum design and classroom practice. To ensure adequate development in these areas, Siddiqui stressed the need for dedicated time and guidance.
Siddiqui identified several challenges associated with communicative competence. These include a lack of linguistic and background knowledge, difficulties in organizing ideas and expressing oneself, foreign language inhibition and anxiety, shyness, interlanguage errors, overgeneralization, excessive use of the native tongue, and limited teaching time. Each of these issues, she noted, can hinder English language learners' development of communicative competency.
Concluding her presentation, Siddiqui advocated that possessing effective communication skills can foster learners' confidence and their ability to express themselves effectively. She emphasized the need for ongoing, systematic research to better understand and support students in fully achieving communicative competence.
The webinar concluded as a great success, marked by the active participation and interaction of both male and female faculty members.
