Community Language Learning

Community Language Learning (CLL) is a language-teaching method in which students work

together to develop what aspects of a language they would like to learn. It is based on the
Counselling-approach in which the teacher acts as a counsellor and a paraphraser, while the
learner is a client and collaborator. The CLL emphasizes the sense of community in the learning
group, it encourages interaction as a vehicle of learning, and it considers as a priority the
students' feelings and the recognition of struggles in language acquisition. There is no syllabus or
textbook to follow and it is the students themselves who determine the content of the lesson by
means of meaningful conversations in which they discuss real messages. Notably, it incorporates
translation, transcription, and recording techniques.

The Community Language Learning Method takes its principles from the more general
Counseling-Learning approach. There are some main principles of Community Language
Learning Method:

1) Building a relationship with and among students is very important.

2) Any new learning experience can be threatening. Students feel more secure when they have
an idea of what will happen in each activity. People learn non-defensively when they feel secure.

3) The superior knowledge and power of the teacher can be threatening. If the teacher does
not remain in the front of the classroom, the threat is reduced and the students learning is
facilitated.

4) The teacher should be sensitive to students level of confidence and give them just what
they need to be successful.

5) Teacher and students are whole persons. Sharing about their learning experience allows
learners to get to know one another and to build community.

Background

The CLL approach was developed by Charles Arthur Curran, a Jesuit priest, professor of
psychology at Loyola University Chicago, and counseling specialist. This method refers to two
roles: that of the know-er (teacher) and student (learner). Also, the method draws on the
counseling metaphor and refers to these respective roles as a counselor and a client. According to
Curran, a counselor helps a client understand his or her own problems better by 'capturing the
essence of the clients concern relating affect to cognition in effect, understanding the client and
responding in a detached yet considerate manner.

To restate, the counselor blends what the client feels and what he is learning in order to make the
experience a meaningful one. Often, this supportive role requires greater energy expenditure than
an 'average' teacher.

Objective

The goal of this method is attaining near-native mastery of the target language. Specific
goals include developing a whole person learning process and a trusting relationship
among the members of the class.

The syllabus: CLL does not use a conventional language syllabus , which determines in
advance the grammar , vocabulary , and other items to be taught in specific orders .

The course progression is topic based with learners choosing the message they wish to
communicate to other learners in the class.

It evolves its own syllabus.

Language Skills Focused

1. In the early stages, typically the students generate the material since they decide what they
want to be able to say in the target language.
2. Later on, after students feel more secure, the teacher might prepare specific materials or
work with published textbooks.
3. Particular grammar points, pronunciation patterns, and vocabulary are worked with, based
on the language the students have generated.
4. The most important skills are understanding and speaking the language at the beginning,
with reinforcement through reading and writing.

Advantages:

1. Creating a supportive community to lower student anxiety

2. Help them overcome threatening affective factors, such as making errors or competing
with peers.
In the beginning of the course, the learners ate totally dependent on the teachers translation, but
over time they are able to engage in more direct communication as they move toward
independence. In addition, learners are not limited in their topics of conversation, regardless of
their language proficiency. Learners are free to talk about the affairs of daily life. This approach
to language learning encourages the meaningful use of language which the learners can store,
synthesize and use in new situations. CLL allows learners to practice the structure or
characteristics patterning of sentences and conversations. Moreover, it is believed from the
teachers translation, learners will be able to induce a grammar far more complex than they are
able to use their own. One key reason this method seemed to work, was that it allowed the
learners to continue using their L1, while promoting the L2. It is important to be aware of its
existence, so that when the need arises, the strengths of CLL can be utilized.

Disadvantage

1. The procedure does not ensure that a variety of contexts necessary for copying in the
target culture is included since the content is determined by the participants.
2. Students may feel uncomfortable with the apparent lack of structure or sequence in the
introduction of grammatical and lexical items; that is too much reliance on an inductive
strategy of learning. Besides, there is no syllabus for CLL, a posteriori approach to
syllabus specification. The teacher is too nondirective. Finally, the success of CLL
depended largely on the translation expertise of the counselor.

Teachers role

The teacher: The teachers initial role is primarily that of a counselor. This means that the
teacher recognizes how threatening a new learning situation, can be for adult learners, so he
skillfully understands and supports his students in their struggle to master the target language.

1. Teachers want their students to learn how to use the target language communicatively.
2. They want their students to learn about their own learning.
3. They want their students to take increasing responsibility for their own learning.
4. They want their students to learn how to learn from one another.

student role

1. The students Initially the learners are very dependent upon the teacher. As the learners
continue to study, they become increasingly independent.
2. Learning is not viewed as an individual accomplishment but as something that is achieved
collaboratively
 3. Learners become members of a community.
4. Learn through counseling with their teacher and classmates.
5. They listen carefully to the knower, repeat the target utterances, support fellow members
of the community, report deep feelings, and act as counselors to other learners
6. CLL compares language learning to stages of human growth. Therefore, the learner plays
many different roles in the process of maturation.
7. Stage 1, like an infant, completely dependent, repeats utterances, overhear other
interactions
8. Stage 2, a measure of independence, produce simple expressions.
9. Stage 3, the separate-existence stage, begin to understand directly in the target language.
10. Stage 4, a kind of adolescence, functions independently, ask for correction.
11. Stage 5, independent stage, improve their understanding of register as well as grammar,
add native like constructions to their language.

Conclusion

Community Language learning is a good method for practicing communication. It is also good
method for beginners who just first study their second language. Using this method can help
beginners to reduce their anxiety in the classroom. Most of the time the students were anxious
and never enjoyed learning English. The teacher believes that punishment and pressure could
help students learn more. There are a lot of reasons related to language achievement such as
students personality characters, learning styles, education system, textbook appropriateness, or
educators method. Even though anxiety is not the most important reason for failure or success in
learning language, we cannot ignore its affection. This method considers the student to be
whole person. It is not only to think about students intellect but also their feeling in learning
language.