Hard Work (if you Know What I’m Saying): Exploring the Use of Communicative Language Teaching in Dutch Secondary Education

Abstract

The present research examined factors which could promote or hinder the application of communicative language teaching (CLT) in a classroom context. Participants were 10 Dutch foreign language teachers. A semi-structured interview was used to identify factors which they perceive as limiting or aiding them in applying CLT in language classes. Teachers stated that a lack of assessment instruments, large classes and a suboptimal integration of CLT into their schools’ summative testing schedule as primary factors for the suboptimal implementation of CLT in Dutch FL classes. To address these issues, schools should provide adequate instrumentation and emphasise communicative language testing in their FL curricula. Additionally, there should be an effort to reduce the number of students per classroom.