任務(wù)型教學(xué)法(Task-based English teaching method)

1、任務(wù)型教學(xué)法(Task-based English teaching method)編制僅供參考審核批準(zhǔn)生效日期地址： 電話：傳真: 郵編:任務(wù)型教學(xué)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 purp

2、ose 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 d

3、iscussed 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 “f

4、ocusing 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

5、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. What is task?Different

6、 teachers and writers use different definitions of the term “task”, such as: 1a 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 sho

7、uld have a sense of completeness, being also to stand alone as a communicative act in its own right. (Nahan, 1989,15) 2any structured language learning endeavor which has a particular objective appropriate contents, a specified working procedure, and range of outcomes for those who undertake the tas

8、k . (Breen via Brown, 1994, 83) 3an 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: 1Tasks are activities in which st

9、udents work purposefully towards an objective.2The objective may be one that students have set for themselves or one which has been set by the teacher.3Tasks may be carried out in competition with other or(more often) in collaboration.4They may be carried out individually or (more often) in groups.5

10、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 crucia

11、l. 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 langua

12、ge. 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 lea

13、rners 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

14、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 exercise

15、s is supported by Ellis Nunan and Skehan. Skehan, for example, describes the criteria for a task as follows:1meaning is primary; 2there is some communication problem to solve ; 3there is some sort of relationship to real-world activities; 4task completion has some priority; 5the assessment of the ta

16、sk is in terms of outcome .The definition reflects the methods interaction but we cant make a clear-cut distinction between “task” and “exercises”. This will be discussed in the next section. Communication, Tasks and Exercises.As weve seen, one of the key features of a communicative task is that cen

17、ters 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 matterof degree. For example, there are some activities in which the learner may focus mainly on the produ

18、ction 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 thing

19、s, 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 communica

20、ting 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 hot

21、el 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

22、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 pe

23、rson. 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

24、meaning. Activities can then be classified according to where they lie along this continuum. The continuum is divided into five sections. From section to section , the content from forms to meaning is becoming stronger and stronger.1.Non-communicative learning. Focusing on the structures of language

25、, 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. Communic

26、ative 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. i

27、n 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 bott

28、om are obviously “tasks”. Those in the middle (2-4) have features of both. 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 t

29、erms 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 o

30、n 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

31、 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

32、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

33、 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 d

34、iscrete 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”. Richards obligations are cleaning floors, washing wind

35、ows and emptying the bins. His desires are to go to evening school, to get a better job and to marry Fiona. Fionas 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 a

36、ctivity 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 question

37、s 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 PracticeThe main difference between this category and the previous one is that there is now some kind of “information gap”, tha

38、t 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

39、 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 quest

40、ionnaire surveys in which the information gap is created by the students own individual experiences and ideas. For example, who is ones 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 ou

41、t about their classmates preferences.4. Structured CommunicationIn 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 t

42、he 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 increasingly difficult to predict what language will be required and therefore to associate an acting with t

43、he practice of specific linguistic structures. It is, however, possible to structure the activity in such a way that it is likely to elicit a particular range of language and, above all, so that the teacher knows that the students are equipped with language to perform it. Thus, in this activity, the

44、 students will need to make extensive use of the future tense. For example: The World TomorrowStudents are asked to write down a list of changes they expect to see in the world by a date 50 years in the future. For example:We will have a working day of four hours. Every home will have a video teleph

45、one. People will have to be 100 years old or more.They may be told to write as many ideas as possible in the time given or they may be asked to write ideas for a particular topic-area (e.g. education, sport, fashion, technology, etc.) the ideas are then read out and discussed. Those that most of the

46、 class agrees with may be written up on the board.Variations: In groups, students try to sort their predictions in to “optimistic” and “pessimistic” ones. Later, students may choose predictions that appeal to them and use them as the topic for a short essay.Another common way of creating contexts fo

47、r structured communication is the use of role-play in which the students are given general instructions as to what views or ideas they should express but left to decide for themselves on the exact meanings and language. An example of this was the role-play described earlier, in which students were a

48、sked to book hotel accommodation.5. Authentic Communication One of the characteristics of “authentic communication” is that the language that is used depends on the meanings that arise naturally in the course of communication. The teacher still “controls” the activity, by creating a situation which

49、he or she thinks is suitable, but has even less control than in “structured communication” over the actual language that students will need. Students may need to activate any part of their language knowledge that is relevant to the meanings they want to understand or convey. In authentic communicati

50、on, then, the students are not asked to focus on individual parts of the grammar. Rather, they are asked to draw on the whole of the grammar that they have so far internalized and use it as a means for conveying whatever meanings may arise. There was always also a strong element of this in structure

51、d communication, but there the students were more “protected” from the unpredictable needs that arise in natural communication.In authentic communication activities it is important to have a context and purposeful developments towards an outcome. They are therefore often larger in scope than those d

52、iscussed earlier. This is not necessarily the case, however, as we see from this example:I Love Music!How do you feel when you listen to music Why do you like music Discuss with your partner. Write down five reasons.Here is an example which is larger in scope and also illustrates the principle of “t

53、ask-dependency”, in which individual tasks are connected with each other to form a more extended task or project:Module: Study, School Life, Work.Unit: Part-time work?Task: Making the Right Choice, Part 1The following are 4 case students of fellow students who wish to take part-time work.1. In group

54、s of four, discuss whether they should take up part-time jobs and give reasons.2. Suggest alternatives to each one of them. Instead of taking up part-time work, what else can they do to address their needs?3. Each group will select a spokesperson to report their conclusions to the whole class. After

55、 listening to all the groups, the class will vote for the group with the best suggestions.Case 1: Michael Michael is tall and strong and spends a lot of time on sports activities in school. He lives far away from school. His grades are average. He wants a part-time job so that he can buy more expens

56、ive sports equipment.Case 2: PansyPansy is very smart and is the best student of the form. She is quiet and shy. She wants to take up a part-time job to gain some work experience and develop more confidence when working with other people. She has strong computer skills.Case 3: Nick Nicks father has

57、been out of work for a long time and his mother may soon lose her job. Nick wants very much to earns some money for the family. His grades in school are not very good. He is polite and hardworking.Case 4: LucyLucy has average grades in school. She is the only child in the family and her parents are

58、busy at work all the time. She feels bored at home. She wants to take up a part-time job because she thinks it may be fun. She loves music and plays the piano and violin.Module: Study, School Life and WorkUnit: Part-time work?Task: Making the Right Choice, Part 2The 4 people in Part 1Michael, Pansy,

59、 Nick and Lucyhave read the following 8advertisements for part-time work and have made the following choices:Michael: Distributing leafletsPansy: Chinese Character Input.Nick: Poster DistributionLucy: Fish and Chips ShopYou think one of them has selected a job highly unsuitable for him/her. Write a

60、letter about 150 words to persuade him/her not to take up the job. You may consider the factors discussed in Part 1, such as: his/her need for a part-time job, the working hours, traveling time, the pay, effects on his/her health and studies, nature of the work, his/her personality and skills and al