A framework for the implementation of task-based instruction (original) (raw)
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Language teaching, 2003
This article is organised in five main sections. First, the sub-area of task-based instruction is introduced and contextualised. Its origins within communicative language teaching and second language acquisition research are sketched, and the notion of a task in language learning is defined. There is also brief coverage of the different and sometimes contrasting groups who are interested in the use of tasks. The second section surveys research into tasks, covering the different perspectives (interactional, cognitive) which have been influential. Then a third section explores how performance on tasks has been measured, generally in terms of how complex the language used is, how accurate it is, and how fluent. There is also discussion of approaches to measuring interaction. A fourth section explores the pedagogic and interventionist dimension of the use of tasks. The article concludes with a survey of the various critiques of tasks that have been made in recent years.
Task-based language teaching (TBLT) is an approach that differs from traditional approaches by emphasizing the importance of engaging learners' natural abilities for acquiring language incidentally through the performance of tasks that draw learners' attention to form. Drawing on the multiple perspectives and expertise of five leading authorities in the field, this book provides a comprehensive and balanced account of TBLT. Split into five parts, the book provides an historical account of the development of TBLT and introduces the key issues facing the area. A number of different theoretical perspectives that have informed TBLT are presented , followed by a discussion on key pedagogic aspects-syllabus design, the methodology of a task-based lesson and task-based assessment. The final parts consider the research that has investigated the effectiveness of TBLT, address critiques and suggest directions for future research. TBLT is now mandated by many educational authorities throughout the world and this book serves as a core source of information for researchers, teachers and students.
Background and summary The framework for task-based learning as described in this paper was developed over a period of time in the 1980s, working with students aged 14 and upwards in both multilingual and mono-lingual classes in a number of teaching environments. It is illustrated in more detail in 'A Framework for Task-based Learning' first published in 1996 but now out of print and available as an e-book from http://www.intrinsicbooks.co.uk/title\_by\_title/framework.html This paper explores the rationale behind task-based learning, defining and giving examples of tasks and their outcomes. It explains the stages in a typical task cycle which focus on using language to exchange meanings, then looks at the importance of a subsequent study of language forms in the context of the task. It shows how the stages in the framework generate optimum conditions for language learning Finally it reports the reactions and findings of novice teacher trainees trying out task-based teaching for the first time. Note: This is a revised version of the paper written originally in 1995 for inclusion in the collection 'Challenge and Change in Language Teaching' (now out of print) alongside a paper on Consciousness-raising activities in TBL, for which see http://www.willis-elt.co.uk/articles/ This Task-based Learning (TBL) framework has since been adapted for use by teachers in many countries round the world – and their experiences are reported in 'Doing Task-based Teaching' Willis and Willis, 2007. For a summary and sample TBL lessons, see http://ihjournal.com/doing-task-based-teaching-2 Sample TBL lesson plans are available free from www.willis-elt.co.uk Introduction We began to experiment with task-based learning in the early eighties, frustrated by the limitations of methodologies that prioritized form-focused language teaching, even when supplemented with`skills' lessons. The Presentation, Practice, Production (PPP) model, which focused on accurate use of the grammatical forms taught at the Presentation stage, was in common use at the time. But very few students who finished their English courses were able to use their English to communicate adequately with others. We were encouraged by the success of Prabhu's Communicational Teaching Project in primary and secondary schools in Bangalore (Prabhu 1987), where the focus throughout was almost entirely on meaning rather than grammatical forms. We felt supported by recent research findings in the field of Second Language Acquisition such as those reported by Ellis (1993) and summarized by Skehan (1996) earlier in this volume. This task-based framework differs from a PPP cycle because the focus on language form comes at the e nd. The communication task itself is central to the framework. Such a task may involve student production of language and/or may be linked to a spoken or written text. A single task would normally involve both productive skills, eg speaking and note-taking, and receptive skills, eg listening and often reading. Learners begin by carrying out a communication task, using the language they have learnt from previous lessons or from other sources. They then talk or write about how they did the task and compare fi ndings. At some point they might listen to recordings of other people doing the same task, or read something related to the theme of the task, again relating this to their own experience of doing the task. Only after that is their attention directed towards specific features of language form-features that occur naturally in the recordings they have heard or the texts they have read. In other words, learners begin with a holistic experience of language in use. They end with a closer look at some of the features naturally occurring in that language. By that point, the learners will have worked with the language and processed it for meaning. It is then that the focus turns to the surface forms that have carried the meanings.
Task-based language teaching: sorting out the misunderstandingsi jal_231 221..246
This paper begins by offering a definition of 'task' and by emphasizing that there is no single 'task-based teaching' approach. It then evaluates a number of criticisms of TBT, drawing on recent critiques by Widdowson, Seedhouse, Sheen, and Swan. It is argued that many of these criticisms stem from a fundamental misunderstanding of what a 'task' is, and of the theoretical rationales that inform task-based teaching. These criticisms also reflect a failure to acknowledge that multiple versions of task-based teaching exist. In particular , it is argued that task-based teaching need not be seen as an alternative to more traditional, form-focused approaches but can be used alongside them. The paper concludes with an examination of a number of genuine problems with implementing task-based teaching, as reflected in evaluation studies.
The Task-based Approach in Language Teaching
International Journal of English Studies, 2004
The Task-Based Approach (TBA) has gained popularity in the field of language teaching since the last decade of the 20th Century and significant scholars have joined the discussion and increased the amount of analytical studies on the issue. Nevertheless experimental research is poor, and the tendency of some of the scholars is nowadays shifting towards a more tempered and moderate stand on their claims. Reasons for that are various: the difficulty in the implementation of the method in the classroom, the difficulty in elaborating materials following the TBA and the scarcity of task-based manuals count as important and perhaps decisive arguments. But there are also theoretical implications in the TBA which do not seem to be fully convincing or may lack sound foundations. In this paper I will attempt to describe the TBA criticaIly, pointing out what I consider positive in this approach, and underlining the inadequacy of some assumptions and conclusions. The design of a new TBA model is not the goal of this study. But the conclusions suggest that tasks may contribute to the production of a more refined and complete foreign language syllabus, helping to motivate the students and focus the attention of teachers and learners on meaning and communicative language use.
Task-Based Language Education: From Theory To Practice
Index vi Contents de®nition. This we ®nd in the de®nitions proposed by Bachman & Palmer (1996) and Bygate et al. (2001), who stress that even though the goal that the learner aims to achieve need not be linguistic (e.g. painting a fence), the task necessitates language use for its performance. In other words, painting a fence becomes a language task if it cannot be performed without some use of language (e.g. under-Author De®nition Long (1985) A piece of work undertaken for oneself or for others, freely or for some reward. Thus examples of tasks include painting a fence, dressing a child, ®lling out a form. .. . In other words, by`task' is meant the hundred and one things people do in everyday life, at work, at play, and in between.`Tasks' are the things people will tell you they do if you ask them and they are not applied linguists. Crookes (1986) A piece of work or activity, usually with a speci®ed objective, undertaken as part of an educational course, at work, or used to elicit data for research. Carroll (1993) Any activity in which a person engages, given an appropriate setting, in order to achieve a speci®able class of objectives. Bachman & Palmer (1996) An activity that involves individuals in using language for the purpose of achieving a particular goal or objective in a particular situation. Bygate et al. (2001) An activity which requires learners to use language, with emphasis on meaning, to attain an objective. It is claimed, rather, that (pedagogic) tasks provide a vehicle for the presentation of appropriate target language samples to learners ± input which they will inevitably reshape via application of general cognitive processing capacities ± and for the delivery of comprehension and production opportunities of negotiable dif®culty. New form±function relationships in the target language are perceived by the learner as a Prabhu (1987) An activity which required learners to arrive at an outcome from given information through some process of thought and which allowed teachers to control and regulate that process was regarded as a task. Candlin (1987) One of a set of differentiated, sequencable, problemposing activities involving learners' cognitive and communicative procedures applied to existing and new knowledge in the collective exploration and pursuance of foreseen or emergent goals within a social milieu. Nunan (1989) A piece of classroom work which involves learners in comprehending, manipulating, producing or interacting in the target language while their attention is primarily focused on meaning rather than form.
Task-based language teaching: how it is implemented effectively?
Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 2018
There have been a number of ideas on how task-based language teaching (TBLT) is applied in English instruction. This research attempted to investigate how the task-based language teaching (TBLT) should appropriately be implemented in vocational college. A group of twenty eight students majoring in tourism were involved as research participant. Prior to treatment, they were given pre-test (T1) to see their basic level. The test, assessment rubric, learning materials, and learning syntax were developed and validated by an expert judge prior to their use. The treatment using task-based learning materials and learning syntax stages of "leading in-enriching-activating-naturalizing" (LEAN) was undertaken for three times. The post test (T2) was then given two days upon treatment to avoid their being able to answer the test because they just still remember of the materials during the learning. The analysis result of T1 and T2 using paired sample t-test showed that there was significant difference between means of T1 (M=6.14) and T2 (M=15.46), indicated by t (27) =-54.51, p < .05. Further development is recommended to use other English for specific purposes' materials and different research participant.
Task-based Language Teaching and Grammar
The TESOL Encyclopedia of English Language Teaching (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2020
Task‐based language teaching (TBLT) has received considerable attention in the field of second or foreign language teaching from both supporters and critics. Since its early stages in the late 1970s to early 1980s, one of the main challenges in using TBLT has been to incorporate its principles (focus on meaning and focus on form) into second language (L2) classrooms. One particular issue of contention found in the literature relates to the considerable criticism it has received as it encouraged learner fluency at the expense of accuracy. This chapter aims to describe how L2 researchers' views have changed over time, currently focusing mostly on how focus form can be distributed across pre‐ and post‐task stages. This chapter provides practical ideas for teachers to balance focus on meaning and focus on form in their L2 classrooms.