任务型教学法(Task-based English teaching method)

任务型教学法(Task-based English teaching

method) Introduction

Task-based language teaching was first invented by an English linguist Allwright in the 1970s, popularized abroad in the 1980s, and introduced into China in the 1990s.The purpose of this article is to outline the principles that underlie task-based language teaching and to give examples of classroom activities within the approach. Task-based language teaching can be regarded as one particular development within the broader “communicative approach”. It is currently much discussed in many parts of the world and, indeed, is recommended in the official curriculum documents of a growing number of countries and regions. This article has five main sections. The first looks at what is meant by the term “task”. The second looks at the continuum from “focusing on form” to “focusing on meaning” with the continuum I hope to illuminate the distinction often made between “tasks” and other kinds of activity. The continuum is described and explored in more detail in the third section, which provides a range of examples from different parts of it. The fourth section presents a framework for looking at tasks in terms of how they contribute to the linguistic, cognitive and personality development of the students. The conclusion summarizes some of the main aims and benefits of task-based learning by means of a mnemonic base on the word “task” itself.

Ⅰ. What is task?

Different teachers and writers use different definitions of the term “task”, such as:

1﹑?a piece of classroom work which involves learners in

comprehending, manipulating, producing or interesting in the target language while their attention is principally focused on the meaning rather on the form. The task should have a sense of completeness, being also to stand alone as a communicative act in its own right. (Nahan, 1989,15)

2﹑?any structured language learning endeavor which has a particular objective appropriate contents, a specified working procedure, and range of outcomes for those who undertake the task . (Breen via Brown, 1994, 83)

3﹑?an activity which is designed to help achieve a particular goal . A number of dimensions of tasks influence their use in language teaching. (Richards Etal, 2000, 468)

Most people would probably agree on certain basic characteristics:

1﹑Tasks are activities in which students work purposefully towards an objective.

2﹑The objective may be one that students have set for themselves or one which has been set by the teacher.

3﹑Tasks may be carried out in competition with other or(more often) in collaboration.

4﹑They may be carried out individually or (more often) in groups. 5﹑The outcome may be something concrete( e.g. a report or presentation) or something intangible(e.g. agreement or the solution to a problem). The main area of disagreement revolves around the relationship between tasks and communication. Some teachers and writers do not see this relationship as crucial. They define a language learning task as including almost anything that students are asked (or choose) to do in the classroom, including formal learning activities such as grammar exercises and controlled practice activities, provided the objective of the activity is related to learning the language.

Within this broad definition, some writers distinguish subcategories such as communication tasks and enabling tasks according to the extent to which they involve communication or focus on form.

Many other teachers and writers use a more restricted definition. They exclude activities where the learners focus on formal aspects of the language (such as grammar, pronunciation or vocabulary) and reserve the term “task” for activities in which purpose is related to the

communication of meanings. Willis (1996,p.23) is one writer who adopts this definition. In this book tasks are always activities where the target language is used by the learner for a communicative purpose (goal) in order to achieve an outcome.

Activities which focus upon and practice specific elements of knowledge, skills and strategies needed for the task are called exercises. The same distinction between tasks and exercises is supported by Ellis Nunan and Skehan. Skehan, for example, describes the criteria for a task as follows: 1﹑meaning is primary; 2﹑there is some communication problem to solve ; 3﹑there is some sort of relationship to real-world activities; 4﹑task completion has some priority; 5﹑the assessment of the task is in terms of outcome .

The definition reflects the method’s interaction but we can’t make a clear-cut distinction between “task” and “exercises”. This will be discussed in the next section.

Ⅱ﹒ Communication, Tasks and Exercises.

As we’ve seen, one of the key features of a communicative task is that centers focus on communicating meanings rather than learning or

practicing forms. However it is not usually simply a question of learning focusing either on meaning or on form. More often, it is a matter of degree. For example, there are some activities in which the learner may focus mainly on the production of certain forms that are being practiced, but he or she ma still be using these forms to convey meanings to somebody. This would be the case in, for example, this “Questionnaire survey” activity, in which the students needs to use “can you??” in order to find classmates who can do certain things, such as: who can speak three languages/ use a computer/ make cakes/ ride a bike/swim? In this activity, although the students have a communicative purpose (to find classmates with particular skills) it is also clear that they are practicing specific forms. At other times, the emphasis on communicating meanings may increase but students may still pay attention to the forms they are producing (and which indeed, they may just have been taught). This might be the case in this role play if students are asked to perform it shortly after learning how to make enquiries and give information about hotel accommodation. Each student has one of the following role cards: student A: You arrive at a small hotel one evening. In the foyer, you meet the manager(ess) and 1. Ask if there is a room vacant. 2. Ask the price, including the breakfast. 3. Say how many nights you would like to stay. 4. Say what time you would like to have breakfast; student B: You are the manager(ess) of a small hotel that prides on itself on its friendly, homely atmosphere. You have a single and a double room vacant for tonight. The prices are: ＄100 for the single room, ＄160 for the double room. Breakfast is ＄15 extra per person. For guests with cars, there is a free car park. Since it is impossible to draw a clear dividing line between activities where the focus is on form (exercise) and activities where the focus is ion meaning (task), it is useful to think of a continuum with varying degrees of focus on form and/or meaning. Activities can then be classified according to where they lie along this continuum. The continuum is divided into five sections. From sectionⅠ to sectionⅤ , the content from forms to meaning is becoming stronger and stronger.1. Non-communicative learning.

Focusing on the structures of language, how they are formed and what they mean, e.g. through exercise, “discovery” and awareness-raising

activities. 2. Pre-communicative language practice. Practicing language with some attention to meaning but not communicating new messages to others, e.g. in “question- and- answer” practice. 3. Communicative language practice. Practicing language in a context where it communicates new information, e.g. information gap activities or personalized

questions. 4. Structured communication. Using language to communicate in situations where elicit pre-learnt language but with some unpredictability, e.g. in structured role-play and simple

problem-solving. 5. Authentic communication. Using language to

communicate in situations where meanings are unpredictable, e.g. in

creative role-play, more complex problem-solving and discussion. The activities at the top are obviously “exercises”. Those at the bottom are obviously “tasks”. Those in the middle (2-4) have features of both.

Ⅲ. From Non-Communicative Learning to Authentic Communication.

The section will elaborate on the previous one by giving examples of activities from five parts of the continuum from “focus on form” to “focus on meaning”. In the terms discussed above, this corresponds also to a progression from clearly defined ‘exercises” to clearly defined “tasks”.

1. Non-Communicative Learning.

It is in this category that there is the least element of communication. Here, for example, students are involved in “discovering” a rule of grammar on the basis of examples. In the examples below, look carefully at the position of the adverbs “always”, “often”, “sometimes”, “usually”, and “never”. What are the rules?

A. We are usually hungry when we come home.

John is always late.

His parents were often tired in the evening. I never sure whether this word is correct. B. I sometimes go to the cinema on Fridays.

We never eat much in the morning. Jane often arrives at school early. They always come home late at night.

C. They have never written to me again.

You can always come and visit me. I will never know why he did it.

Pat has often seen him with two dogs.

The students are then required to apply this rule to a new set of examples: Put the adverbs into the right places in the sentence below. A. We play football in the evening (often).

I can catch the first bus in the morning (never). Jack and Jill are very happy (always). They visit me (sometimes).

You write very good English (usually). B. They have been to Jinan (often).

We drink tea for breakfast (always). You are cheerful (usually).

John can keep a secret (never).

He has refused to speak to me (sometimes)

2. Pre-Communicative Language Practice.

In this category the focus is still on the practice of discrete items of language but, in order to produce the appropriate forms, the students have to pay attention to aspect of meaning. In the first activity, they have to find out what Richard and Fiona “have to do” and what they “would like to do”. Richard’s obligations are cleaning floors, washing windows and emptying the bins. His desires are to go to evening school, to get a better job and to marry Fiona. Fiona’s obligations are typing letters, answering the telephone and doing photocopying. Her desires are to earn more money, to take holiday abroad and to marry her boss.

The best known type of activity that belongs to this category is the familiar “question-and-answer practice” in which students have to answer (and sometimes ask) questions about a situation, picture, or topic. The answers are already known but students have to pay attention to meaning in order to produce them. The questions are as follows: How many students are there in the class? Are there more boys than girls? Who is sitting next to Jane? Which lesson is this now? etc.

3. Communicative Language Practice

The main difference between this category and the previous one is that there is now some kind of “information gap”, that is, the language conveys meanings that were not previously known to everybody. The question-and-answer practice just described would come into this category, if the questions elicit information that was previously unknown, e.g. what students did at the weekend or who their favorite singers are. In a task-based approach, however, the practice is more likely to be structured in some way so that there is a recognizable context, purpose and outcome. This structuring may be achieved in a variety of ways, for example, a “guessing-game” format. Another common question problem is to use simple questionnaire surveys in which the information gap is created by the students’ own individual experiences and ideas. For example, who is one’s favorite singer/actor/actress etc.?

As a written follow- up task, students may be asked (individually or in groups) to write a short report on what they have found out about their classmates’ preferences.

4. Structured Communication

In the examples given so far, it has been possible to predict the exact language that is needed in order to perform the exercise or task. These activities therefore offer clear ways to practice specific areas of grammar. As we move to the next category along the continuum, we enter a domain in which the focus shifts further on to the communication of meanings. This means that, as we move further into this domain, it becomes

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