A Complementary-compensatory Approach to Teaching Focus on Form/S in EFL/ESL Classrooms

Focus on form has received considerable attention as researchers and theorists have enthusiastically embraced an integration of meaning-focused and form-focused instruction in the L2 classroom. Therefore, the present paper is an attempt to delve deeply into elucidating different taxonomies subsumed under the specious polarization of Focus on Form (FoF) and Focus on Forms (FoFs). It then offers the possible rationale behind the integration of FoFs into meaning-centered and communicative classes. The article also elaborates upon the methodological implications underpinning reactive vs. preemptive focus on FoF. Analogous to other approaches to SLA, some practical, socioeconomical, and cultural criticisms were raised against FoF. The researchers conclude that the developed myth about the FoF and FoFs polarization should be treated cautiously. They also propose a complementary-compensatory approach to teaching FoF and FoFs.