INTEGRATING CRITICAL THINKING INTO CEFR-BASED COMMUNICATIVE LANGUAGE TEACHING FOR 21ST-CENTURY COMPETENCE

This article explores the integration of critical thinking into CEFR-based communicative language teaching, arguing that such alignment is essential for preparing 21st-century learners to engage meaningfully in academic, professional, and intercultural contexts. Within the Uzbek educational landscape, where English is gaining prominence, the traditional focus on memorization and structural accuracy must give way to pedagogies that promote analysis, evaluation, and reflective communication. The study demonstrates how communicative descriptors can be reinterpreted through a critical thinking lens to foster autonomy and deeper engagement. It proposes a framework of spiraled, task-based activities that integrate language skills with higher-order thinking. The article also examines the use of digital platforms alongside low-tech tools to support collaborative reasoning, visible thinking, and formative assessment. Emphasis is placed on reflective practices, dual-trait rubrics, and portfolio-based evaluation as means to validate critical thinking-communicative competence development. Professional development, curriculum design, and national policy alignment are identified as key levers for sustainable implementation. Ultimately, the paper offers a research-informed model for transforming English language education in Uzbekistan and similar contexts, shifting the focus from rule-based instruction to inquiry-driven, cognitively rich learning.