The teaching of English as a foreign language, from a sociolinguistic perspective in the classroom

Abstract

In order for students to be able to communicate effectively in the English language, a requirement is that they develop their communicative competence through the sociolinguistic dimension. Thus, this article is a theoretical review of the sociolinguistic dimension of language teaching. The work has been analysed from three fundamental areas: a) the sociolinguistic dimension in English language teaching, b) the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (2002) and c) studies on the sociolinguistic dimension in English teaching. It was found that there is a lack in the teaching of this dimension in the classroom of English as a foreign language. It is therefore the responsibility of the teacher to provide the experience for students to achieve this learning.