Community Language Learning: A Humanistic Approach to Language Acquisition

Community Language Learning (CLL) is a distinctive language teaching method developed by Charles A. Curran and his associates, emerging as one of the innovative "designer methods" of the 1970s. Curran, a counseling specialist and psychology professor at Loyola University, Chicago, applied psychological counseling techniques to learning, calling it Counseling-Learning. CLL represents the use of Counseling-Learning theory to teach languages.

Background and Foundations

At its core, Community Language Learning derives its primary insights and organizing rationale from Rogerian counseling, as articulated by Carl Rogers. This approach emphasizes empathy, understanding, and support, mirroring the counselor-client relationship. In essence, CLL redefines the roles of teacher and learners in the language classroom, with the teacher acting as a counselor and the learners as clients.

CLL techniques align with humanistic approaches to language teaching. These techniques blend what the student feels, thinks, and knows with what he is learning in the target language. Rather than self-denial being the acceptable way of life, self-actualization and self-esteem are the ideals the exercises pursue. Community Language Learning emphasizes the sense of community in the learning group, encourages interaction as a vehicle for learning, and considers as a priority the students’ feelings and the recognition of struggles in language acquisition.

Key Principles and Features

Several key principles underpin the Community Language Learning method:

Community Emphasis: CLL fosters a strong sense of community within the learning group, recognizing that a supportive and collaborative environment enhances the learning experience.
Interaction as a Vehicle for Learning: The method emphasizes interaction among learners as a primary means of language acquisition, encouraging them to engage with each other in meaningful ways.
Learner Feelings as a Priority: CLL places a high value on students' feelings and acknowledges the emotional challenges inherent in language acquisition, creating a safe and supportive space for them to learn.
Learner-Generated Content: CLL has 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. It evolves its own syllabus.
Counseling-Learning Theory: Based on an approach modeled on counseling techniques that alleviate anxiety, threat and the personal and language problems a person encounters in the learning of foreign languages.

The CLL Classroom: A Step-by-Step Approach

In a typical CLL classroom, the learning process unfolds as follows:

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Circular Seating Arrangement: A small group of learners (ideally no more than 12) sits in a circle, fostering a sense of equality and collaboration. There is a small portable tape recorder inside the circle.
The "Knower": The teacher, referred to as the "Knower," stands outside the circle, providing support and guidance as needed.
Initiating Communication: When a student wants to express something in the foreign language, they whisper the message in their native language to the Knower.
Translation and Repetition: The Knower whispers the equivalent utterance in the target language back to the student, who then attempts to repeat it with encouragement from the Knower. The rest of the group eavesdrops.
Recording the Utterance: Once the Knower is satisfied with the student's pronunciation, the utterance is recorded.
Dialogue Development: Other students repeat the process, gradually building a dialogue.
Reflection and Analysis: The Knower replays the recording and transcribes it on the board. In subsequent sessions, the Knower may suggest activities springing from the dialogue.
From Dependence to Autonomy: The learner is supposed to move from a stage of total dependence on the Knower at the beginning to a stage of independent autonomy at the end, passing through 5 developmental stages along the way.

The Five Stages of Learner Development

In the basic form of CLL, a maximum of 12 students sit in a circle. There is a small portable tape recorder inside the circle. The teacher (who is termed the ‘Knower’ ) stands outside the circle. When a student has decided they want to say something in the foreign language, they call the Knower over and whisper what they want to say, in their mother tongue. The teacher, also in a whisper, then offers the equivalent utterance in English. The student attempts to repeat the utterance, with encouragement from the Knower, with the rest of the group eavesdropping. When the Knower is satisfied, the utterance is recorded by the student. Another student then repeats the process until there is a kind of dialogue recorded. The Knower then replays the recording, and transcribes it on the board. In a subsequent session, the Knower may suggest activities springing from the dialogue.

The learner is supposed to move from a stage of total dependence on the Knower at the beginning to a stage of independent autonomy at the end, passing through 5 developmental stages along the way:

1- A sense of security.
2- Paying attention to language in all its forms.
3- Learners display aggression when ready.
4- Reflection and participation in class activities.
5- Internalization by retention at a deep level.

The Role of the Teacher

The teacher’s initial role is primarily that of a counselor. This does not mean that the teacher is a therapist, or that the teacher does no teaching. In a beginning class, students typically have a conversation using their native language. The teacher helps them express what they want to say by giving them the target language translation in chunks.

The teacher in CLL takes on a multifaceted role, acting as a facilitator, counselor, and language expert. Key responsibilities include:

Creating a Safe and Supportive Environment: The teacher fosters a non-threatening atmosphere where students feel comfortable taking risks and experimenting with the language.
Providing Target Language Translations: The teacher offers accurate and comprehensible translations of student utterances, ensuring that learners have access to the language they need.
Monitoring Learner Utterances: The teacher carefully observes and listens to student utterances, providing guidance and support as needed.
Providing Assistance When Requested: The teacher is readily available to answer questions, clarify grammar points, and offer suggestions for improved language use.
Advising on Usage of Grammar: May intervene directly to correct the problem and advise on usage of grammar.

The Nature of Student-Teacher Interaction

The nature of student-teacher interaction in the community Language Learning Method changes within the lesson and over time. Sometimes the students are aggressive, as when they are having conversation. Responding to the students feelings is considered very important in having a con Counseling-Learning. One regular activity is inviting students to comment on how they feel while the teacher`s understand.

Language and Culture

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. Later on the teacher might also work with published textbooks. Particular grammar points, pronunciation patterns, and vocabulary are worked with, based on the language the students have generated. Students` security initially enhanced by using their native language, where possible, literal native language equivalents are given to the target language word that have been transcribed.

Evaluation in CLL

Evaluation is conducted should be in keeping with the principles of the method. If, for example, the school requires that the students take a text at the end of a course, then the teacher would see to it that the students are adequately prepared for taking it. Teachers should work with what the learner has produced in a non-threatening way.

How language is viewed

Language is for communication. The focus shifts from grammar and sentence formation to a sharing and belonging between person.

Practical Considerations and Limitations

While CLL offers a unique and potentially effective approach to language teaching, it is essential to acknowledge its limitations:

Small Class Sizes: CLL is best suited for small groups of learners, as the individual attention and personalized support it requires become challenging to deliver in larger classes.
Shared Native Language: The method typically works best when students share a common native language, as this facilitates the translation and support process.
Teacher Proficiency: The teacher (Knower) must possess a high level of proficiency in both the target language and the students' native language to provide accurate and effective translations.
Adult Learners: The methodology is exclusively suitable for adult learners, not for children, adolescents.

Benefits of CLL

Despite its limitations, Community Language Learning offers several potential benefits:

Learner-Centered Approach: It enables the teacher to refocus on the learner while the students immediately react positively to working in a community.
Enhanced Confidence: The students take exceptionally well to peer-correction and by working together they overcome their fear of speaking.
Inclusive Participation: It has also been found that quieter students are able to offer corrections to their peers and gladly contribute to the recording stage of the lesson.
Holistic Skill Development: It’s a teaching method which encompasses all four skills while simultaneously revealing learners’ styles which are more or less analytical in their approach to language learning.

Variations and Adaptations

Teachers can also incorporate activities with more traditional ones.

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