Improving ESL Learning through Communicative Language Teaching: A Study on Balancing Fluency and Accuracy

Abstract

Communication is essentially a meaningful understanding between a speaker and a receiver. In a classroom, especially for a second language classroom, it prioritises communicative competence over grammatical accuracy. CLT promotes real-life spoken communication in a student-centred environment through learner collaboration and corrective feedback. In most educational institutions in India, English is taught as a second language and is a mandatory subject at both school and higher-education levels. A good rapport among learners helps achieve a balance between fluency and accuracy in second-language acquisition. Thus, the study explores students’ second language proficiency. In addition, it examines the principles of CLT and its effectiveness in English as a Second Language (ESL) among 30 undergraduate engineering and technology students, focusing on their comprehension and spoken proficiency, as well as its application in language classrooms, for a period of 12 weeks. The study adopts a method to examine the effectiveness of CLT in balancing fluency and accuracy. Data were collected through questionnaire, classroom observation, semi structured interviews, and pre, mid, and post-tests. Quantitative data were analysed by descriptive statistics, correlation, t-test, and anova, while qualitative data were analysed through thematic analysis. The findings suggest that CLT significantly enhances spoken skills by integrating communicative and form-focused instruction in ESL classroom. Post-test results showed consistent improvement in fluency and moderate gains in grammatical accuracy across all departments.