Task-Based Language Teaching

• It refers to an approach based on the use of tasks as the core unit of planning and instruction in language teaching.

• It is presented as a logical development of Communicative Language Teaching.

TBLT draws on several principles thar formed part of the communicative language teaching movement from the 1980s.:

• 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 precess.

The key assumptions of task-based instruction are:

• Focus on process;

• Emphasis in communication and meaning;

• Language learned by interacting communicativele and purposefully;

• Activities and tasks can be achieved in real life and have a pedagogical purpose;

• Activities and tasks of a task-based syllabus are sequenced according to difficulty.

TBLT proposes the notion of ‘task’ as a central unit of planning and teaching, it means ‘task’ is an activity or goal that is carried out using language.

Nunan says the communicative task is a piece of classroom work which involves learners in Comprehending;

Manipulating;Producing;Interacting

Task Analysis and Instructional Desing turned to team tasks.There are four categories of team performance function:

1. Orientation Functions;

2. Organizational Functions;

3. Adaptation Functions;

4. Motivational Functions.

TBL Approaches

Theory of Language

Theory of learning

• Tasks provide both the input and the output.

• Task activity and achievement are motivational.

• Learning difficulty can be negotiated and finetuned for particular pedagogical purposes.

DESIGN

Objectives:

Goals are to be determined by the specific need of particular learners

The Syllabus

Conventional Syllabus

• It specifies the content of a course among some

categories.

Task based Syllabus

• It specifies the tasks that should be carried out by

learners within a program.

Different definitions of TASK

• Breen (1987): a structured plan.

• Prabhu (1987): an activity.

• Crookes (1986): piece of work or activity.

• Willis (1996)

Different definitions of TASK

• Pica, Kanagy and Falodun (1993):

Jigsaw tasksInformation-gap tasksProblem-solving tasksDecision-making tasks

Opinion exchange tasks

Other characteristics of tasks

• One-way or two-way

• Convergent or divergent

• Collaborative or competitive

• Single or multiple outcomes

• Concrete or abstract language

• Simple or complex processing

• Simple or complex language

• Reality-based or not reality-based

LEARNER ROLES

Group participant

Monitor

Risk-taker and Innovator

TEACHER ROLES

Selector and sequencer of tasks

Preparing learners for tasks

Consciousness-Raising

Procedure

.Pretask

.Task

.Planning

.Report

.Posttask

.PretaskIs the introduction to the topic and the task. The teacher helps the students to understand the theme and objectives of the task.

.ACTIVITIESBrainstorming ideas, mime, personal experience, read the text, think vocabulary, etc.

.TaskIs done by the students. The teacher walks monitoring and encouraging them.

.PlanningIn this stage the students prepares the next step (Report). They make a draft of what they want to say or write.

.ReportThe teacher ask the students to report to the whole class what they did in the task.

.Posttask listeningThe students listen to a recording of fluent speakers doing the same task, and compare the ways in which they did the task themselves.