A lot of us in the language teaching profession might agree that, even in CI/TPRS circles, the lack of balance between form and function in our profession is a core factor in explaining our unceasing failures to really reach kids with good communicative activities.
Why do teachers trying to teach using comprehensible input fail so much? Could it be that we just haven’t been able to wed form (curriculum) with function (communication) to where they work together in happy service to our students?
We do lack a clear and well-designed curriculum, don’t we? It seems that we have always lacked a curriculum that works. And what has been the result?
Sadly, the result has been that too many novice, and many experienced CI teachers have felt as if they were riding a bucking bronco in class and thus always feeling as if they are just on the wrong side of being in control of their classroom?
That’s not a place any of us want to be in our classrooms, and may be one factor in explaining why so few language teachers won’t give their heart and soul to CI. Why should they, if there is professional danger there – the danger of looking like a fool in front of your students?