* Correspondence

Sense of plausibility
The third characteristic feature of the post method condition is principled pragmatism 
(Kumaravadivelu, 1994). Kumaravadivelu argues that principled pragmatism is different 
from eclecticism which has long been advocated to overcome the limitations of any given 
method.
Hammerly (1991) states that, the proponents of eclecticism aim to promote “the careful, 
principled combination of sound ideas from sound sources into a harmonious whole that 
yields the best results” (Kumaravadivelu, 1994. p. 60). But there are well-reasoned 
counter-arguments regarding eclecticism. The most conspicuous one is that this 
apparently sound combination of ideas may turn into an unsystematic, unprincipled, and 
uncritical pedagogy (Kumaravadivelu, 1994). Although eclecticism sound to be a 
desirable way to remedy the drawbacks of method, but concurrently it is perilous. 
Choosing different principles and blending them together in an advantageous manner 
demands high proficiency and field-related experience. Even if the teacher is highly 
proficient, there are no objective criteria to rely on. Majority of techniques and principles 
have underlying psychological and scientific thoughts. They may not be visible, but they 
assert their influence.
Kumaravadivelu (1994) outlines that one of the ways in which teachers can follow 
principled pragmatism is by developing what Prabhu (1990) calls, a sense of plausibility. 
Teachers' sense of plausibility is their "subjective understanding of the teaching they do. 
This subjective understanding may arise from their own experience as learners and 
teachers and through professional education and peer consultation; in addition, because 

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teachers' sense of plausibility is not linked to the concept of method, an important 
concern is "not whether it implies a good or bad method, but more basically, whether it 
is active, alive, or operational enough to create a sense of involvement for both the 
teacher and the student (Kumaravadivelu, 1994). 
It seems that the second and third features of post method are interrelated. The sense 
plausibility again is another vital responsibility for the teacher. As Clarke (1994, cited in 
Can, 2012, p. 3) puts it: “within this framework [post method] teachers play a pivotal
role in language classes and the exponential increase and eagerness in taking teachers 
into account as the focal point of education is manifest in the strikingly increasing 
number of journal articles dealing with language teacher education” (cited in Khatib,
2012). On the contrary, Akbari (2008) addresses the problem of high work load for the 
post method teachers (cited in Khatib, 2012). Similarly Khatib (2012) mentions a central 
problem which is a “very fact requires that a teacher be a critical and a reflective 
practitioner.” Much care should be taken into account that teachers are not the
same in their abilities. Not every single teacher is competent and confident enough to 
be autonomous and draw upon his or her ‘sense of plausibility’. And certainly not all
the teachers have the time, resources, or the willingness to shoulder the cumbersome
responsibilities put upon a post method teacher. This is a true argument which cannot 
be ignored or even answered easily. As far as teachers’ confidence and abilities are 
concerned, teacher education can prove helpful.
There is a tendency in the literature to name the post method condition as CLT 
(communicative language learning). Bygate (2001, Cited in Khatib 2012) argue that 
"communicative language teaching was explicitly a post-method approach to language 
teaching in which principles underlying the use of different classroom procedures
were of paramount importance, rather than a package of teaching materials" (cited in 
Khatib, 2012). Similarly, Celce-Murcia, Dörnyei, and Thurrell (1997) note that the “need 
for guiding principles [in CLT] is, in fact, not inconsistent with the postmethod
perspective” (p. 149). Bell (2003) claims that post method pedagogy can therefore be
seen as both an attempt to understand the paradigm shift that L2 education has 
gone through in the past 40 years and an attempt to unify practices in a more holistic 
way . Post methodology, therefore, rather than going beyond method, may be
understood as a synthesis of various methods under the umbrella of CLT , or what 
Liu(1995) calls a “method redefining condition” (Celce-Murcia, Dörnyei, and Thurrell, 
1997; cited in Bell, 2003).