Task-based Learning (TBL) is an increasingly important approach in ELT. It is considered to be a breakthrough as it is thought to replicate everyday situations; learners are encouraged to, as Nunan (2004:1) states, utilise the language of everyday life ‘beyond’ the classroom. Ultimately, TBL is one of the approaches which focus on meaning and communication more than form and structure; learners are given opportunities to use language for natural communication in a classroom setting (Willis & Willis, 2007:4).

This article will provide the definition of Task-based Learning; present the stages of a TBL lesson; and discuss some advantages and disadvantages of the approach.

What is Task-Based Learning?

 In his seminal book, Nunan (2004:1) suggests six principles for TBL, which constitute the basic tenets of the approach:

1. The content is chosen based on the learners’ needs.
2. Communication is done through using the target language for interaction.
3. Authentic materials are included in learning.
4. Giving learners opportunities to focus on what and how they learn.
5. Valuing learners’ experiences as significant factors in learning.
6. Connecting language learning in classrooms with the authentic everyday use of language.

Significantly, these criteria focus on interaction, communication and authenticity. Such goals are achieved by, as the very name of the approach demonstrates, giving learners ‘tasks’. Although it might be perceived that any activity learners do in class is a task, Thornbury (2006:222-223) draws a distinction between a ‘task’ and an ‘activity / exercise’. He argues that ‘tasks’ are classroom exercises which focus on communicative meaningful outcomes, such as solving a problem or drafting a plan. On the other hand, an ‘activity’ or an ‘exercise’ focuses on practising language items, for instance, the present perfect, in a controlled way without any communicative objectives.

Therefore, Task-based Learning is centred around simulating real-life tasks in the classroom to encourage learners to use the language in a natural communicative manner. This does not mean that focus on form is totally neglected, but there is room for it depending on the performance of the learners during tasks.

Stages of a TBL lesson

Typically, a TBL lesson has three main phases: a) pre-task; b) task cycle; c) language focus, as illustrated by Willis (1996:38). Nevertheless, Willis (in Harmer 2001:87) noted that Task-based Learning is more complex than simply a three-stage methodology. The following is a brief account of each stage based on Willis (1996:39-103):

1)    Pre-task:

In this phase, learners are introduced to the topic of the target task. The teacher may need to pre-teach some examples of important phrases learners will need to use when performing the task. Additionally, the teacher will make sure that he / she facilitates instructions so that student understand what they need to do. A key step is that learners hear or watch a similar task as a model for them to follow; for example, if the task is to give a presentation about tourist attractions in their countries, they watch or listen to a presentation about the same topic.

2)    Task cycle:

The task cycle is probably the most productive phase which gives the opportunity for learners to be autonomous and creative. Content and meaning are the sole focus of this phase; learners are not provided language work. The task cycle consists of three steps:

First, they do the task by brainstorming ideas and organising their thoughts in pairs or groups, meanwhile, the teacher monitors from a distance. At this stage, learners’ communication skills are supposed to develop. Going back to the example task of giving a presentation, students at this stage should be deciding on the content, the outline, the pictures of attractions, etc.

Second, students will plan how they are going to report to the rest of the class; e.g., plan how they will deliver the presentation; who will start, who will finish, timings of each students, etc. The teacher’s role here is a ‘language advisor’ who helps students with, for instance, alternative vocabulary to make meanings clearer; grammatical structures which illustrate ideas more meaningfully.

Third, students report their production to colleagues normally orally but can also be in a written form. Apparently, students, who were selected beforehand, report to the rest of the class; they, for example, give time-bound presentations group by group. The role of the teacher is a chairperson who organises the procedures and responds to the content of the presentations.

3)    Language focus:

Unlike the PPP (Presentation, Practice, Production) approach in which the language focus comes at the start, TBL concludes with it. It gives learners the opportunity to investigate language they used during the task cycle. Useful language which emerges from the task is analysed and discussed so that students are able to notice it when they encounter the same task in real-life. In order to consolidate such language, learners are given practice activities to help them process useful functional phrases needed for the successful achievement of the task when they do it again either inside the classroom or outside it.

Perceived Advantages and Disadvantages

There are a number of issues which some ELT practitioners perceive about Task-based Learning. Willis and Willis (2007:200) illustrated ten perceived obstacles; they relate mainly to timing, learners, motivation, administration and classroom management. They state that:

• Most books do not use TBL, so there will be a need to find timing to design tasks.
• Lack of timing to integrate TBL into existing syllabi.
• Teacher may be confused about how to teach TBL if they are not used to it.
• Some learners ask for concrete outcomes such as grammatical rules.
• Learners may not be motivated enough to take TBL seriously.
• Given that the approach uses ‘real’ tasks, it is not suitable for low-level students.
• Overwhelming use of L2 for learners during the different phases of TBL.
• Student feel no sense of progress; the outcomes of learning are not clear.
• Challenging for teachers (and learners) because there is no control over language.
• There is a gap between TBL and existing exam systems- exams are not based on tasks.

Although the abovementioned points are feasible, there are ways to overcome them. Consequently, advantages can be derived from such perceived disadvantages. The following are examples of the numerous advantages of Task-based learning:

• It focuses on meaning and production; this lets off steam as it does not confine students to use pre-taught language.
• Learners make efforts to understand each other and to get their messages across, which enables students to acquire language easily (Larsen-Freeman, 2000:144).
• Attention is given to the language needed for genuine communication, not to learn language items simply because they exist in language (Nunan, 2004:7).
• TBL facilitates collaboration, teamwork, negotiation and other skills needed for effective communication.
• Learners experiences are valued, the teacher is not the source of knowledge but rather a facilitator. So, there is a principle of sharing.
• It boosts creativity due to the flexibility of tasks. Although students carry out tasks of the same theme, each individual / group create their own unique tasks.

Conclusion

This essay has presented some key features of Task-based Learning: the premise underlying the approach is to focus on meaning via real-life simulations of genuine tasks learners are expected to encounter outside the classroom. TBL, in its popular framework,  has three phases: 1) the pre-task, in which learners are introduced o the topic and watch / listen to the task they will be doing; 2) the task cycle, this is when students create the task, prepare how to report it to the class and then report it; 3) the language focus phase in which useful language examples are analysed and practised.

While there are supposed limitations to TBL implementation; such as motivation, teachers’ readiness and time constraints; I think that there is always room for experimenting with it and investigating whether or not it suits our learners. I suggest that reading a good TBL book would make it less intriguing and would definitely encourage us to try it out for our learners.

Bibliography

Harmer, J. (2001) The Practice of English Language Teaching. 8^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Larsen-Freeman, D. (2000) Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching. 6^th ed. New York: Oxford University Press.

Nunan, D. (2004) Task-based Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Thornbury, S. (2006) An A-Z of ELT. Oxford: Macmillan Publisher Limited.

Willis, D. & Willis, J. (2007) Doing Task-based Teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Willis, J. (1996) A framework for Task-based Learning. Essex: Longman.

So, whatever the training objectives are, should we really bother about introducing teaching methodologies? There are good reasons to do that.
Diane Larsen-Freeman (2000: ix-x) mentioned 5 reasons why studying teaching methods in teacher training is important. The following are the reasons with my comments on them:

1) Studying methods allows us to understand the premise underlying our actions: this gives us a logical base which we can refer to (and revisit when necessary) during our teaching practice. It’s very useful when initial teacher training programmes such as CELTA gives undivided attention to aims; this includes main, subsidiary, and personal aims as well as objectives for each stage in the lesson. Bringing the teaching method to teachers’ attention lets them know which techniques they use are appropriate and which aren’t.

2) Being aware of the principles upon which methodologies are based can develop teachers’ analytical skills in relation to the suitability of a particular method to their teaching context. This can be very demanding especially with teachers who are planning to embrace teacher training or academic management pathways. Having this knowledge is critical to specialist policymakers who need to assess methods and decide which can best suit their situations.

3) Understanding the history of teaching methods and their development over the decades inspires practitioners to hold discussion forums and conferences to share what they gain and what they need to reconsider regarding their teaching practice, no matter how diverse their contexts or cultures are. A good example of this is TESOL and IATEFL annual conferences in which ELT professionals from around the globe present, challenge and discuss their ideas.

4) Greater understanding of teaching methods promotes teachers’ reflective practice through which they are able to properly match teaching approaches to their learner groups and decide which techniques better suit individuals in different situations.

5) A package of techniques is needed so that teachers can cater for different learning styles and employ the most relevant way of teaching. Adequate study of methodologies is a key factor in expanding this repertoire of skills. Not only does this  make a teacher expert in how to teach different students, materials, contexts, etc, but it also boosts his creativity and ingenuity.

Larsen-Freeman, D. (2000) Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching (2nd ed.) Oxford: OUP.

Motivation is the key to learning. When it comes from within, it’s intrinsic; however, it can be developed and created extrinsically. The following are 5 practical tips to keep your students motivated all the time.

1. Promote a positive atmosphere:

Smile at your students, deal with them in a respectful manner and establish rapport with them. This could be your nature, if not, fake it until you make it. It makes students more valued, confident and have a positive experience which helps them keep motivated.

2. Link courses to big aims; and learning outcomes to big contexts:

I mean to elicit / remind students of why they learn English in the first place, and why we do each (set of) activity (ies). By doing this, the whole learning experience is seen in a meaningful context rather than attending some lessons and doing some tasks in isolation. Consequently, students keep motivated, and regain motivation in case of any ‘downs’.

3. When there’s a communication issue, intervene to fix the issue:

This is an example of mine: 2 days ago, I was teaching a class when one student mentioned a comment in L1, I echoed the comment in a disapproving manner (to highlight that using L1 in this situation is unnecessary). It was apparent that the student got embarrassed because my reaction was a bit off-putting. About 10 minutes later I noticed that the same student was erasing a wrong answer in her colleague’s book, so I said, “Well done for helping your friend; this is a small action but it counts, thank you!” Although it was something minor, I didn’t want to miss this chance to put the student on track again and to make her feel more appreciated.

4. Give students opportunities to express their opinions about learning and suggest improvement:

I do this informally, by having discussions about student’s learning preferences and how they would like to learn; for example I ask them about what kind of activities they enjoy more and why. Formally, at the end of each level, we distribute a questionnaire through which students can say what they find positive and what they need to change; and I react to their needs. Such a way promotes students’ sense of ownership to learning.

5. Not to be an ‘innocent bystander’ all the time:

I mean, sometimes the teacher can become involved in classroom activities (while monitoring of course); for instance, tell your students when they prepare questions for a mingling activity that they can feel free to ask you the questions. They feel more at ease and they like knowing more about their teacher, and, as a result, they maintain motivation.

• Challenges:

Educational organisations and language teachers face challenges on daily basis, especially NNESTs. Ulate (2011) points that the term ‘non-native English speaker’ has a negative connotation attributed to it as people compare it with the positive term ‘native English speaker’. One of the consequences of this is the lack of confidence specially when there are native colleagues. There are internal causes for this due to the perception of native English-speaking teachers (NESTs) as linguistically and pedagogically superior. External causes can mainly be assigned to the way students compare between NESTs and NNESTs (including NNESTs as language learners themselves).

It is serious when students ask for NESTs in feedback sessions because it threatens NNESTs’ credibility and motivation; however, it can be motivating for others to advance their language learning. In his well-known article ‘Native or Nonnative: Who’s worth more?’ Megyes (1991) concludes that being native or non-native does not determine the “teacher’s effectiveness” but there are many variables; and that “a favourable mix” is healthy as it opens the doors for meaningful teamwork.

In a different context where all or the majority of the teachers are NNESTs, there can emerge problems when teachers have mixed levels of English. One of the challenges is staffroom gossip; some teachers feel high-caliber and start to gossip about those who are less competent in language. Likewise, those who are less capable start to be envious because other teachers are proud, sometimes arrogant, because of their language or accent. Indeed, this is a challenge for the teachers as it has a detrimental effect on teambuilding. Symptoms vary, such as the look between two friends when somebody else talks, the gossip which takes place after someone has talked in a meeting, etc. (Tizzard 2006)

In addition, when NNESTs language progress is slow, certain individuals find it difficult to ascend in the training ladder; they stop at a certain point failing to exceed it. An example would be a teacher who is not eligible for the DELTA because he / she is not yet C2 in the CEFR. Moreover, this puts timetabling constraints on the academic staff and admins when assigning higher-level classes such as B2 and above to teachers.

• A Framework for Recruiting NNESTs :

Recruitment is such a big process which involves complicated procedures with even more considerations when the candidate is non-native. Problems of non-native-related nature can be minimised by careful attention to the recruitment and selection process of teachers. Below is a suggested scheme which provides some guidance to ELT organisations. It is useful for recruitment in general; nevertheless, it is essential in the case of non-native candidates.

1. Although NNESTs sometimes are not equally treated as NESTs, and “discriminated against because of their non-native status” as Ulate (2011) argues, recruitment teams should not have blind sympathy and unjustifiably accept NNESTs declaring the radical sign of “The Native Speaker is dead![1]“. A balanced combination is always more effective.
2. While it is preferable to have a degree in teaching or education, recruiters have to decide if this is essential.
3. The English language level issue must be clear: What level? How do we know? Which test should candidates have? Will it be a prerequisite for the application? All these questions should be answered or else undesirable consequences can happen; for example, having teachers who are less competent than some students!
4. Duties and responsibilities should be clear in the job description in addition to class levels the candidate will teach.
5. In schools which have learners of different age range, i.e., adults, young learners, etc. the candidate should know which group they are teaching.
6. Interviews should include competency questions through which the candidates’ language level, soft skills, teamwork, willingness to learn, etc. are assessed.
7. The recruiting board should make reasonable decisions when there are complex situations, for example, a candidate whose language level is very high but are stubborn vs. a candidate who is willing to learn and open to new experiences but his / her language level is significantly lower.
8. When language schools decide to give pre-service training, they need to decide whether to incorporate a language awareness element in the course or not depending on the type of candidates and the school needs- this relates to point b. and the candidates’ previous education. A similar proposition was put by Anderson (2015) when he compares between the needs of NESTs and NNESTs in initial teacher training courses.

• Practical tips for NNESTs:

In “A forum on non-nativeness in ELT” in IATEFL conference 2015, there were three of us presenting in the forum: a colleague talked about the topic from an academic point of view; the other colleague was categorically denying any criticism to NNESTs; and I addressed non-nativeness as an existing issue highlighting how to boost the NNESTs credibility. I believe that NNESTs should be humble and confident at the same time, that is, they should be willing to accept constructive criticism and improve their proficiency and efficiency; they also should not feel inferior to their native counterparts.

The following are practical tips for the NNESTs to be able to survive in the ELT setting.

Tip 1: Being a NNEST is not a shame; Medgyes (2001) listed six advantages NNESTs:

1. Provide a better learner model.
2. Teach language-learning strategies more effectively.
3. Supply more information about the English language.
4. Better anticipate and prevent language difficulties.
5. Be sensitive to their students.
6. Benefit from their ability to use the students’ mother tongue.

Tip 2: No matter which level you are, you have to continuously improve your English language. It is commonly perceived that non-natives use ‘bookish’ language, so shifting towards more ‘real’ language is key.

Tip 3: Use language more confidently and try to embrace your native speaker mode without exaggeration.

Tip 4: In your teaching, try to be more creative and provide lots of opportunities for the students to use language in meaningful contexts.

Tip 5: On your first lesson, be clear with your students that you are a language learner as well and you do not know everything about English; however, that will depend on the type of students and how they might perceive this.

Tip 6: Always maintain a positive approach towards your colleagues; be ready to sympathise and humbly offer help to those who need it, and seek help from those who can offer it.

Tip 7: Be sincere. Do not backbite your colleagues or managers. Give advice and ask questions if you are in doubt.

Tip 8: Be autonomous! Do not expect that your school or centre should be responsible for your development. Although they may offer training opportunities, you have to take responsibility of your learning and professional development.

Tip 9: Participate and present in conferences, try to publish in ELT journals, take relevant free online course on FutureLearn, Coursera, etc.

Tip 10: Read about ELT in general and NNESTs in particular.

All in all, although the challenges bilingual teachers face are unavoidable, they have to be dealt with positively in order to boost confidence and teamwork. Recruiters also need to clearly delineate a scheme which can be used as a reference for them when selecting candidates – each school decides what criteria meet their needs without discrimination. This, hopefully, is going to add integrity and inclusion to ELT recruitment.

References:

Awan, A. S., Cavalcante, H., Othman, A. (2016) ‘ Forum on non-nativeness in ELT: implications, knowledge of

language and credibility’ in IATEFL 2015 Manchester Conference Selections. Kent: IATEFL, pp. 172-175.

Medgyes, P. (1992) ‘Native or non-native: who’s worth more?’, ELT Journal, vol. 46, issue. 4, pp. 347.

Medgyes, P. (2001) ‘When the teacher is a non-native speaker’. Teaching Pronunciation. Online. [Accessed: 21/09/2016]. <http://teachingpronunciation.pbworks.com/f/When+the+teacher+is+a+non-native+speaker.PDF>

Tizzard, P. (2006) ‘The Teambuilding Activities Pocketbook’, Management Pocketbooks Ltd

Ulate, N. V. (2011) ‘Insights towards Native and Non-native ELT Educators’. Bellatella Journal of Teaching & Learning Language & Literature, vol. 4 (1), pp. 56-79.

[1] Peter Medgyes pointed out to a book with this title in his article “When a teacher is a non-native”