Journal of English Language Teaching

Sociopragmatic Perspective to ELT: The Forgotten Indispensable of Communicative Competence

Usha Kanoongo

The LNM Institute of Information Technology, Jaipur

Keywords: Sociopragmatics, Communication, Communicative Competence, ELT

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Abstract

This paper sets out a case for adopting a sociopragmatic perspective in English language teaching in India. Drawing attention towards this crucial but neglected facet of communicative language teaching, it discusses how sociopragmatic awareness contributes to achieving communicative success at both receptive and productive stages. In the present times when language learners and language users are faced with multiple contexts of using English as an international language, they need to be equipped with tools of socially appropriate language behaviours to achieve multi-contextual and crosscultural communication. Knowledge of the social constraints of language use, ability to adjust speech to fit the situation, express intended meaning and understand that of the other is often a challenging task for even the native speakers of any language, let alone the second language learners. The growing use of English by its L2 speakers for international communication demands a recognition of this indispensable dimension of communicative competence which encompasses local and international contexts as settings of language use involve native–nonnative and nonnative–nonnative discourse participants, and provides intercultural insights and awareness. The essay argues that language teaching theory, research and pedagogy must evolve to address the sociopragmatic element of communicative competence in India.

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