Developing Communicative Competence among the Learners: An Analysis of Secondary Level Textbooks for English in Pakistan

Abstract

The study aimed at analyzing the secondary level English textbooks taught in Pakistan to determine their contribution in developing communicative competence and its components covering linguistic competence, sociolinguistic competence and pragmatic competence, among the learners. The data were comprised of eight English textbooks of secondary level taught in all the provinces of Pakistan. There were two main research questions to examine the suitability of the textbooks to develop communicative competence among the students. It was a qualitative and descriptive research. The checklist derived from CEFR (2001, 2020) was the tool to analyze the data. The results showed the presence of most of the items in the textbooks but they were not added in a systematic way which impede in developing communicative competence. The research would help the syllabus and curriculum body to improve the diagnosed area.