As elucidated in this paper, currently the most preferred approach to teaching English speaking in Thailand and
other similar contexts is CLT. The paper argues that this approach can be more efficacious with the integration of
aspects of CA. CA can especially serve as an instructional tool for raising learners’ awareness of the genuine
nature of interactions and enhancing interaction-based learning, as well as provide instructors with a powerful
lens for identifying problems within classroom interactions. As the numerous aforementioned studies indicate, a
CA-oriented pedagogical approach has proven successful not only in equipping learners with better interactional
competence but also in identifying and addressing problems in classroom teaching. With the ASEAN Economic
Community (AEC) merger on the horizon and all that is at stake with that merger, it is critical that the
shortcomings of the most dominant pedagogical approach, CLT, be addressed. CA can offer complement to CLT
that may well provide English learners with a level of communicative competency that will allow them to more
effectively operate within the high-stakes AEC community.