Go back to the top 5. The Internet TESL Journal . Language teaching that has as its focus passing an exam is destined to be ineffectual. If successful communication is the goal the focus should be on the student's ability to get an idea across and should not require complete grammatical accuracy. Students who desire the ability to speak like a native speaker should be exposed to the rules of grammar, but this goal must play a secondary role to first learning to use the language.
Communication is a creative process.
In focusing on rules students do not have the chance to see how flexible a living language is. If the student is learning how to express themselves they may easily be hampered by a concentration on the rules. The students should be encouraged to guess at meanings rather than relying on a pattern of continual translation into their native language. Often the guess will be no less accurate in meaning than the too literal translation. It is important for the students to take an active role with the language.