USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS FOR LANGUAGE TEACHING AT VIT, VELLORE - EXPLORATIONS AND EXPERIENCES

This paper presents the experiences of the authors in using authentic materials in the classroom for teaching English and French to students of engineering at VIT, Vellore. The paper begins by providing an understanding of the terms ‘authentic materials' and ‘native speakers'. It, then, provides an account of the sources of authentic materials and how they can be employed effectively in language classrooms to develop or improve the language skills. The advantages and the limitations of authentic materials are also discussed. Further, it gives a detailed description of how authentic materials were used by the authors in the classroom, and narrates experiences gained and offers some suggestions to teachers on the choice of materials based on the experiences of the authors. This paper discusses the use of authentic materials for teaching all the four language skills (LSRW).