Abstract:
This research work is carried out to clarify oral performance in French which is almost nonexistent with our learners in the senior high, even though, it is the communicative approach which is supposed to be in use at the pre-tertiary levels (JHS and SHS) in the teaching of French in Ghana. This approach favours oral performance in the teaching of FLE. The main objective of this research work is to try to identify the impact of the communicative approach on the teaching/learning of French as a foreign language in Ghana, in the acquisition of oral performance while identifying the obstacles that hinder or slow down learners in achieving this oral performance in French. We collected our data from three second cycle schools in the Accra Metropolis. We used two instruments in doing this; observation and interview. These data were then analysed and explored focusing on phenomenon that bring out the impact of the communicative approach on oral performance of students at the second cycle. The results of our analysis reveal that, there is not enough interaction between the teacher and the learner in FLE classes to enable them express themselves using the appropriate speech acts and utterances similar to those in real communication situations. The issue of lack of confidence on the part of the learners to speak voluntarily in class, motivation and inadequate application of strategies under the communicative approach among others were also brought to the fore as being obstacles to the development of language autonomy on the part of the learner. The study ends with pedagogical suggestions for teachers regarding the key roles they are expected to play to enable the learner to be involved in the learning process thereby, enhancing his/her oral performance in FLE.
