BY: I VA N AG U I L A R

TASK BASED LEARNING IN THE ENGLISH CLASSROOM

OBJECTIVES

By the end of this presentation we’ll have…• Reviewed the evolution of Language Teaching

Methodology• Explained the underlying principles to TBL• Compared TBL with another language teaching model• Experienced a language teaching activity based on

TBL• Identified ways to implement TBL principles in our

teaching• Shared and evaluated ideas on how to implement TBL

in our classrooms

WHERE DOES AN E.T. COME FROM?

Linguistics

Applied Linguistics

Language Pedagogy

Bilingualism

Contrastive analysis

WHERE DOES AN E.T. COME FROM?

Grammar translation

Direct Method

Audio-lingual

Community Language Learning

Communicative Language Teaching

• Lexical Approach• Natural Approach• Humanistic Approach• Task Based Learning

TASK BASED LEARNING: PPP VS TBL

PPP•Presentation

•Practice

•Production

TBL•Pre-task

(Introduction to topic and task)

•Task cycle (Task-planning-report)

•Language focus (Analysis and practice)

TASK BASED LEARNING: PPP VS TBL

PPP• A Focus on two or three

forms specified by the teacher.

• The focus on form comes before the communicative activity

• The success of the activity is judged in terms of whether or not learners produce the target forms.

TBL• A focus on meaning in which

participants are concerned with communication

• A focus on language when learners think about the best way to express themselves.

• A focus on meaning in which learners study isolated lexical or grammatical forms.

TASK BASED LEARNING: THE FORM MEANING CONTROVERSY

Why not starting with form?Learners can not pay attention to both form and

meaning.Natural development of a language (in children)

starts with the meaning.Learners engage in unnatural activites where the

goal is form focused practice.Time investmentReal world needs and presures.

TASK BASED LEARNING: THE FORM MEANING CONTROVERSY

This is a very popular contest in many radio stations. The task is simple. Ask your partner as many questions as possible. Your classmate should answer to your questions but can not say YES or NO because this makes him/her lose.

TASK BASED LEARNING: PPP VS TBL

TASK BASED LEARNING: AN EXPERIENCE

TASK BASED LEARNING:THE PRINCIPLES

• 1. Meaning is primary.• 2. Learners do not regurgitate meanings from

teachers, course books or other sources.• 3. There is a connection between a real-world

activity and the classroom task.• 4. Task completion has some priority.• 5. Task outcomes are the basis for assessment

TASK BASED LEARNING: A TAXONOMY OF ACTIVITIES

Your TopicTeens

OrderingSorting

Classifying

ComparingMatching

Sharing Experienc

es

Project Work

Problem Solving

Listing

TASK BASED LEARNING: IMPLEMENTING THE PRINCIPLES IN THE CLASSROOM

• Make your instructions more precise: Talk to your partner-Talk to your partner and…• Add post tasks reports• Re-ordering activites-Do the skill lessons first.• Prime better (warm-up activites)• Focus on a concrete outcome.

TASK BASED LEARNING:SHARING IDEAS

• Check your handout.• Where could you implement some of the task

based learning principles?• Here are the principles to help you remember.

1. Meaning is primary.2. Learners do not regurgitate meanings from teachers, course books or other sources.3. There is a connection between a real-world activity and the classroom task.4. Task completion has some priority.5. Task outcomes are the basis for assessment

TASK BASED LEARNING: A CHECKLIST

1. Does the activity engage learners’ interest?2. Is there a primary focus on meaning?3. Is there an outcome?4. Is success judged in terms of outcome?5. Is completion a priority?6. Does the classroom activity relate to real world activities?

QISS• What is a QUESTION you have in your mind?• What is something you found INTERESTING you

found?• How could you SUMMARIZE your learning?• What is a SUGGESTION you have?

Thank you!