For many teachers, lesson shapes tend to follow a similar pattern of Presentation, Practice and Production (PPP). Within this model, individual language items, for example the past continuous, are presented by the teacher, and then practised in the form of spoken and written exercises often involving pattern drills and choral repetition. These are then used by the learners in less controlled speaking or writing activities. While this approach has benefits – the grammar structures presented follow linear progression, students are given an opportunity to practice structures they’ve seen in context – there are drawbacks. A PPP procedure assumes that students learn in ‘straight lines’, going from no knowledge to restricted sentences to immediate production. Yet you may agree from your own classroom experience that this is very rarely the case.
In my experience however, the biggest flaw in this more traditional approach of Presentation, Practice and Production is the fact that it is so teacher centred. The teacher presents the grammar, models and then conducts the practice activity. Whilst students may feel they are ‘learning’ as they are being presented with new structures, they have no opportunity to inductively discover rules for themselves, feel no positive backwash at having been able to decipher these rules, and some students become bogged down in the meta-language of grammar rather than its functional use. The disadvantages can at times outweigh the benefits.
What is Task-Based Language Teaching?
“Task- Based Language Teaching (TBLT) refers to an approach based on the use of tasks as the core unit of planning and instruction in language teaching” – Richards and Rogers (2001; 223)
Task-based language learning, sometimes referred to Task-Based Instruction, ‘makes the performance of meaningful tasks central to the learning process’ (Harmer, 2007; 71). It is said by some to have derived from Communicative Language Teaching since it upholds several of the principles that this 1980s movement proposed. For example, Richard and Rogers summarise such parallels in this way:
- 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.
The primary focus of classroom activity is the task and language is the instrument that the students use to complete it. The task is an activity in which students use language to achieve a specific outcome. The concept of a task being used in the classroom is not new; in fact, teachers have been using tasks for hundreds of years. In the days of grammar-translation, the task was a piece of translation often from a literary source. In the 1950s, tasks could be seen in vocational training practices. Nowadays when we think of tasks, projects for producing posters, brochures, pamphlets, oral presentations, radio plays, videos, websites and dramatic performances may come to mind. The traditional way that teachers have used tasks is as a follow-up to a series of structure/function or vocabulary based lessons in which tasks are used as ‘extension’ activities as part of a graded and structured course. Nunan (1989; 10), however, defines a task as a ‘classroom activity which involves learners in comprehending, manipulating, producing or interacting in the target language while their attention is principally focused on meaning rather than form.’
In task-based teaching, the tasks are central to the learning activity. TBLT is based on the belief that students may learn more effectively when their minds are focused on the task, rather than on the language they are using. The activity must reflect real life and learners focus on meaning; they are free to use any language they want. Playing a game, solving a problem or sharing information or experiences, can all be considered as relevant and authentic tasks.
Willis (1996), a TBLT proponent, in her book A Framework for Task-Based Learning suggests a model for the use of TBLT in the classroom. This consists of:
- Pre-task activityan introduction to topic and task– in this stage the teacher introduces and defines the topic and the learners engage in activities that either help them to recall words and phrases that will be useful during the performance of the main task or to learn new words and phrases that are essential to the task
- Task cycle: Task > Planning > Report– Here the learners perform the task (typically a reading or listening exercise or a problem-solving exercise) in pairs or small groups. They then prepare a report for the whole class on how they did the task and what conclusions they reached
- Language Focusand Feedback– they present their findings to the class in spoken or written form. The final stage is the language focus stage, during which specific language features from the task are highlighted and worked on. Feedback on the learners’ performance at the reporting stage may also be appropriate at this point.
The main advantages of TBLT are that language is used for a genuine purpose, meaning that real communication should take place, and that at the stage where the learners are preparing their report for the whole class, they are forced to consider language form in general rather than concentrating on a single form (as in the PPP model). Whereas the aim of the PPP model is to lead from accuracy to fluency, the aim of TBLT is to integrate all four skills and to move from fluency to accuracy plus fluency. The range of tasks available (reading texts, listening texts, problem-solving, role-plays, questionnaires, etc) offers a great deal of flexibility in this model and should lead to more motivating activities for the learners.
Most modern day English classes are fairly eclectic, using a combination of various methods and approaches in everyday classes. But I challenge you to an experiment: Why not try using a TBLT approach in your class next year? Consider these areas:
- Whether task based learning is effective as a basis for a class
- Whether you can ‘take a back seat’ in class and make lessons more learner centred
- How learners feel at not being presented language items, do they still feel like they are being ‘taught’?
- If learners remained engaged throughout the lesson.
- Whether students did indeed use the target language when completing the task.
 At MLA, we encourage our teachers to use a TBLT approach, as our lesson aims tend to centre on students achieving a particular goal of communication, usually presented within the context of a task. Students are given a reason to speak in a real, meaningful, way. Having walked along the corridors of a MLA centre, peering into the classrooms, I have indeed seen the concentration on students’ faces as they prepare a task, heard their laughter as they try out new vocabulary, felt the excitement as students discover and learn independently. TLBT is an intrinsic part of the MLA approach; why not make it a part of your classroom too.
Daniellar Amoah
UK Academic Manager
