T B L in college English teaching

人文素质教育部 宋琦

What is your teaching style?

• P Presentation

• P Practice

• P Production

Focuses on a single point of grammar, or one function, usually presented in an appropriate context. In this stage the learner should become aware of the language point and understand its form and meaning

Presentation

At this stage the practice is “controlled”. It focuses on the language item presented and is supposed to help the learners use the new item correctly in terms of form and meaning

Practice

The learners have the opportunity to use the target language item more freely and flexibly. BUT often this stage does not work well:*Not free because forms are specified*OR Target form is not used at all

Production

A) Find the manual and read it carefullyB) Take everything out of the box and work it out by using it?C) Talk to someone else about how to set it up?

If I give you the very newest modular furniture and you have to make it together, do you...?

A is a visual preference

B is a tactile or kinaesthetic approach

C is an auditory way

How do you sense the world?

see hear feel smell taste

Chinese students very strong at memorisation and seeing patterns (from learning ideographic writing system Hofstede 1986)

and want to analyse everything in detail (Anglo American culture analytic style Brown 1987)

1. How did you feel doing this activity?

2. What language is being developed in this activity ？

3. What adaptations would you make if using this activity with your students ？

Learners use the target language for some communicative purpose rather than simply to practise using the language. There is a clear context for the language use and the learners’ language activity leads to an outcome or product.

Task-based learning

The TBL classroom should :

Have enough room for different activities to be taking place

Allow students to work in groups in different parts of the classroom

Definitions we will need

• Task

• Activity

• Exercise

Define the three terms for yourself and then see if you agree with your neighbour

Activity

• An activity is a general term describing what the learners are required to do at any one stage of a lesson. An activity may be, for example, a task or an exercise, a drill or a project.

Exercise

An exercise is an activity that involves learners in manipulating the language.

• Closed exercises have one right answer only.

• Open exercises permit more than one right answer.

A language learning task

• Includes a workplan

• Focuses on meaning

• Gets learners using language to communicate, not to show teacher that they ‘know’ a form

• Involves real-world processes of language use

A language learning task• Can involve any of the four skills (but not

all skills activities are tasks.)• Engages cognitive processes. Learners

choose the language to use to get the task done.

• Has a clearly defined communicative outcome.

• The outcome is non-linguistic. It’s clear whether the task has been completed.

Today language forms are included by means of the task cycle:

• Pre-task

• Task

• Post-task

Pre-task1. Can input language the learners need for the task, prepares and motivates the learners to perform the task. 2. Clear and short instructions, set signal for start and end or set time.

3. CCQ(concept checking question)

TaskIn this process, teacher is the monitor, listen and observe or give help if needed

Post-taskFollow –up exercise

Give relevant assignment for students to do after class.

As teachers, we should 1) Repeat the task Under same or different conditions 2) Reflect on the task What was good? How could it be improved? How interesting or useful was the task?3) Language work

-review of errors-consciousness-raising activity-practice exercises

Summary: TBL

• The focus is on making meaning, not practising forms

• Making meaning is purposefully directed towards an outcome or result

• A focus on forms can be included

• Tasks can be graded and supported