IN-PERSON MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY. SECTION B

Abstract

The presentation focuses on foreign language pedagogy whilst offering crossdisciplinary reflection on the role of creativity in teaching. The communicative approach (CLT) has been the dominant practice in second language teaching for the last three decades and the subject of academic debate for even longer. Central to this approach is the concept of authenticity – students receive input through authentic material (newspaper articles, tv programmes, films, advertisements, etc.) and produce output thanks to tasks mimicking real-life situations (writing an email, a post, an article, as well as engaging in role-plays, and similar tasks). In the context of an approach that values communication over form, authenticity is considered essential. Yet, millions of users around the world are learning languages through AI-powered apps without ever engaging with any authentic material. And whilst the shortcomings of app-based learning are widely recognised, undeniably some learning does occur. On such evidence, the presentation argues for a non-dogmatic approach to CLT and the principle of authenticity whose strict application risks stifling creativity, a crucial skill for the future. Both the input and the output produced under the conditions described above are anything but creative. Authentic resources are incorporated into the teaching unit as they are, or with minimal adaptation; the tasks students complete are essentially imitative exercises being modelled on linguistic acts performed by ‘real’ speakers. In both cases, we are far removed from the creative process. The presentation makes suggestions on how to incorporate creativity in the curriculum without repudiating CLT whose efficacy is not questioned.