Pragmatic Knowledge and Pedagogical Practice Among EFL Teachers in Costa Rican Secondary Education

Given the importance of pragmatics in communicative competence for learners of English as a foreign language, this study investigates Costa Rican EFL teachers’ knowledge, perceptions, and instructional practices regarding pragmatic competence in secondary education. Using a mixed-methods approach, data were collected through a digital questionnaire administered to 62 non-native English-speaking teachers enrolled in a licentiate program at a private university in San José, Costa Rica. Findings reveal that while most participants demonstrate a general, context-based understanding of pragmatics, their knowledge lacks theoretical depth, with formal concepts such as speech acts, deixis, and implicature largely absent from their responses. A significant gap emerged between teachers’ recognition of pragmatics’ importance—with 95% affirming its relevance for learners—and actual classroom practice, as only 40% reported actively teaching it. Barriers identified include exam-driven curricula, time constraints, and insufficient teaching materials, with approximately 85% of participants rating available textbooks as inadequate for supporting pragmatic instruction. These findings are particularly relevant given Costa Rica’s 2016 English Curriculum Transformation, which explicitly incorporates a pragmatic component through the Action-Oriented Approach. The study concludes that systemic gaps in pre-service teacher education, professional development, and instructional resources must be addressed to align classroom practice with national curricular objectives and equip learners with the pragmatic competence needed for authentic communication.