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Explore the principles and methodology of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) and its role in language acquisition, emphasizing real communication and meaningful tasks. This approach focuses on task activities to motivate learning and improve language acquisition. Discover how TBLT shapes learner and teacher roles, learning objectives, syllabus design, and teaching activities.
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As with content-based instruction, a task-based approach aims to provide learners with a natural context for langauge use • It refers to an approach based on the use of tasks as the core unit of planning and instruction in language teaching • It draws on several principle tat formed part of the Communicative Language Teaching movement: • Activities that involve real communication are essential for language learning • Activities in which language is used for carrying out meaningful tasks promote learning • Language that is meaningful to the learner supports the learning process
Theory of language • Several assumptions about the nature of language can be said to underlie current approaches to TBLT: • Language is primarily a means of making meaning (meaning has the central role in language usage) • Lexical units are central in language use and language learning (vocabulary has the central role) • Conversation is the central focus of language and the keystone of language acquisition (trying to communicate through the spoken language drawing on the learner’s available linguistic and communicative resources is considered a basis for SL acquisition in TBLT)
Theory of learning • Several learning principles play a central role in TBLT theory: • Tasks provide both the input and output processing, necessary for language acquisition TBLT proposes that the task is the pivot point for stimulation of input-output practice, negotiation of meaning and focuses conversation • Task activity and achievement are motivational Tasks are said to improve learners motivation and therefore promote learning. They require learners to use authentic language, involve partnership, and call on the learner’s past experience, they tolerate variety of communication styles
Learning difficulty can be negotiated and fine-tuned for particular pedagogical purposes Specific tasks can be designed to facilitate the use and learning of particular aspect of language.
Objectives • Goals in TBLT are to be determined by the specific needs of particular learners • Selection of tasks should be based on a careful analysis of the real-world needs of learners
Syllabus • TBLT syllabus specifies the tasks that should be carried out by learners within a program • Syllabus might specify two types of tasks: • Real-world tasks – which are designed to practice those tasks that are important and useful in the real world • Pedagogical tasks – which have a psycholinguistic basis in SLA theory but do not necessarily reflect real-world tasks
Types of learning and teaching activities • A task is “an activity which requires learners to arrive at an outcome from given information through some process of thought, and which allows teachers to control and regulate that process” (Prabhu, 1987:17) • Willis groups tasks into categories built on more or less traditional knowledge hierarchies: • Listing - sharing personal experiences • Ordering - creative tasks • Comparing • Problem solving
Learner roles • There is a number of specific roles for learners: • Group participant – tasks are done in pairs or small groups • Monitor – class activities have to be designed so that students have the opportunity to notice how language is used in communication • Risk-taker and innovator – many tasks will require learners to create and interpret messages for which they lack full linguistic resources and prior experience
Teacher roles • Additional roles are also assumed for teachers in TBI: • Selector and sequencer of tasks – the central role of the teacher is in selecting, adapting, and/or creating the tasks themselves and then forming these into instructional sequences • Preparing learners for tasks – learners should not go into new task “cold” so some sort of pre-task preparation or cuing is important • Consciousness-raising – if learners are to acquire language through participation in tasks they need to attend to or notice critical features of the language they use and hear.
The role of instructional material • Pedagogical material – materials that can be exploited for instruction in TBLT are limited only by the imagination of the task designer. • Realia – newspapers, television, internet
Class example: Handout – Task Based Language Teaching • TBLT– CONCLUSION • Take a look at the handout and answer the following questions: • What are the goals of teachers who use the TBLT? • What is the role of the teacher? What is the role of the students? • What are some characteristics of the teaching/learning process? • What is the nature of student-teacher interaction? What is the nature of student-student interaction? • How are the feelings of the students dealt with? • How is the language viewed? How is culture viewed? • What areas of language are emphasized? • What is the role of student’s native language? • How is evaluation accomplished? • How does the teacher respond to student errors?
