Using the Internet as a resource for task-based learning

1. Using the Internet as a resource for task-based learning Dr. Beata Schmid and Dr. Christopher McCormick www.ef.com/teacher

2. Welcome to the lecture Listen to the speaker and use the buttons to interact. saying yes and no raising your hand laughing and clapping text messages Questions will be answered during and after the talk.

3. Main topics What is task-based learning (TBL) and why is it useful in language teaching? Why should we use the Internet in language teaching and specifically for TBL?

4. Outline of presentation Warm-up activity Description of task-based learning for language teaching Examples of task-based activities The Internet as a resource tool: advantages and disadvantages Sample websites and activities Conclusions and Q & A

5. Warm-up activity Which activity do you think would be more motivating for students? Read about �Sightseeing in London� (this is a text in your course book) and describe the most interesting sites in a one-page summary. B. Read about �Sightseeing in London� (this is a text in your course book) and build an itinerary for a 2-day sightseeing tour on �50 per day.

6. Description of task-based learning for language teaching Pre-task: Introduction to task and topic Task cycle: The task itself: planning, doing, reporting (in writing or by presentation to the larger group or to another small group) Language Focus: Analysis; additional practice (and teaching if necessary)

7. Quotations A communicative task is 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.� David Nunan A task is an activity �where the target language is used by the learner for a communicative purpose (goal) in order to achieve an outcome.� Jane Willis TBL is �the use of content to build language skills.� Unknown

8. The Internet as a resource tool: advantages It�s a motivator It�s an activator It�s fun It�s informative and up to date It�s convenient and cheap

9. The Internet as a resource tool: disadvantages It�s overwhelmingly vast and confusing It�s a free-for-all. www.dhmo.org It�s not always up to date and impartial Some parts of the site are often available in the students� native language as well It�s an invitation to cut and paste and present information as your own (plagiarism)

10. Designing task-based activities Are these typical course book activities task-based or not? ??Locating a list of places on a map of a city and pronouncing them ??Reading a newspaper article ??Reading a movie critique ??Listening to a song in class ??Doing a role play involving parents and teenagers arguing about rules ??Answering a questionnaire about which foods students like and dislike ??Looking at restaurant menus and asking students to role play a restaurant situation ??Asking students to describe pictures in a magazine

11. Designing task-based activities When designing task-based Internet activities, it�s important to look at real-life uses of the age groups that you teach and adapt activities in your materials to match the needs of your age groups. Let�s look at these typical activities in terms of task-based teaching.

12. Sample activities and websites: Budget travel Read about the places on the Internet. Select 5 places to visit in a day. Find a public transportation map. Make sure that you can reach the places by public transportation. Make an itinerary, based on locations. Research entry times and prices to the sites you have selected. Limit the budget for the day. Websites: for the London Underground: www.tfl.gov.uk/tube/ for the Boston T: www.mbta.com, etc.

13. Sample activities and websites: Current events Find articles on topics also found in coursebook to develop tasks Sample topic: Gender differences If your course book has a unit on differences between males and females, find recent research on this topic. In 2005, this was a hot topic in the USA for example, when the president of a famous university publicly stated that there were certain things women could not do as well as men. This sparked a debate and lots of articles on how women/girls do in the sciences. Hold debates based on the research in your own class. Sample topic: The environment and global warming Find materials on the Kyoto Accord, hurricane Katrina, or local implications of climate change. Have students read the article, and instead of just writing a summary, have them write a 3-fold pamphlet on the topic, advising people in their community (school, town, etc.) what global warming is and how it can be prevented and concretely in their own community. All major newspapers have websites. Just type the title of the paper into your search engine.

14. Sample activities and websites: Movie critique Have students� Read different current movie critiques from these or similar websites: www.rogerebert.com www.mrqe.com/lookup (Movie Review Query Engine) www.rottentomatoes.com Choose which film they want to see, based on the critiques Watch the film from the perspective of a film critic (optional) Discuss the films in groups and compare their opinions to the judges of the Academy Awards (the Oscars)

15. Sample activities and websites: Listening to a song Have students� Use the content to act out the events or emotions Rewrite the song from the other person�s point of view or write a �Dear Abby� (agony aunt) letter from either person�s point of view. Have students write another ending or come up with the history that led to story told in the song Perform the songs in groups Sites www.eslpartyland.com/teachers/nov/music.htm www.lyrics.com www.kissthisguy.com Or, type a line from the song into your search engine (in quotation marks) and it will find the lyrics of the song.

16. Sample activities and websites: Role play (parents, children) Role plays are not necessarily task-based. There should be an outcome that models the real world. Prepare a role play between parents and teens where an agreement, such as for new rules, has to be reached Write a letter to an advice column: (�My parents don�t understand me!�) Sites where teens can request advice or research what others are asking: http://teenadvice.about.com www.coolnurse.com www.toptenlinks.com/cat.php/Family:Teens:Advice Note: It�s always a good idea to preview any sites you plan use in your classes!

17. Sample activities and websites: Market research Involve students in researching tastes and interests. With data, they can argue for change. Find a relevant topic, such as campaigning for better food choices at school, and have students devise a questionnaire to interview others. Formulate the questionnaire with the goal that students will petition their cafeteria for healthier choices. Sites: The site www.coolnurse.com/dieting_ff.htm has information on which foods are best and worst at popular fast food restaurants. www.coolnurse.com/fab_foods.htm has a list of foods that are good for you and why.

18. Sample activities and websites: Restaurant role play Many newspapers post restaurant reviews. Have students research a location and choose a restaurant, based on participants� specific food requirements (vegetarian, etc.) Have students then imagine their visit there and act out the relevant scenes of ordering, eating, and paying. Convince the waiter/manager that you don�t want to pay for your food because it is bad. Sites: www.fodors.com/reviews www.toptable.co.uk

19. Sample activities and websites: Advertising campaigns Show students magazine images and have them guess which product is being advertised (delete the information on the picture). Have students formulate which types of ads are effective for which types of products and for which groups of consumers. For advanced students, you can combine with a newspaper article on how difficult it is for advertisers to figure out what teens like and how to reach them. Have students advise an advertising company on what would be an effective ad for their age group. Site: www.sciencenewsforkids.org/articles/20050928/TZWorksheet.asp links to a synopsis of a TV program on advertising for teenagers

20. Conclusions and Q & A We�ve defined and discussed task-based learning We�ve reviewed and assessed typical coursebook activities We have also looked at advantages and disadvantages of using the web We�ve adapted traditional activities to make them task-based, using the web as a resource for authentic information to make them more interesting, up-to-date and relevant to our learners. Q & A