Issues in Applied Linguistics

Approaches to second (SL) and foreign (FL) language teaching in recent decades have emphasized the centrality of communication both as an end and a means. Both the quantity and the nature of communication that occurs in a language classroom ultimately depend on the beliefs and practices of language teachers. The present self-analysis, focused on one teacher/researcher, traces her experiences with the challenges of classroom communication over the course of an entire academic term. This longitudinal approach exposed contradictions that surfaced over time in three areas: the use of the L2 for classroom interaction, the assumption of truthfulness in the exchange of information, and learners' voice or control over their own messages. the findings have implications for language teaching and highlight the role of thoughtful reflection as a first step toward minimizing the gap between what teachers believe and what they actually do.