THE ROLE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF DISCOURSE ANALYSIS IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE

Abstract

The shift from teaching language as a system of isolated sentences to teaching it as a tool for meaningful communication has placed discourse analysis (DA) at the forefront of second language (L2) pedagogy. This article explores the role and significance of integrating discourse-analytic principles into teaching English as a second language (ESL). It argues that DA provides a crucial bridge from linguistic competence to communicative competence, enabling learners to understand language in its social, cultural, and interactional contexts. Through a review of seminal and contemporary literature, coupled with a discussion of practical pedagogical applications, this article demonstrates that DA equips both teachers and learners with the tools to move beyond grammatical accuracy towards coherence, cohesion, and pragmatic appropriateness. The findings suggest that a discourse-based approach fosters deeper language awareness, improves production and comprehension skills, and better prepares learners for authentic, real-world communication.