Task-Based Learning: The Building Blocks for the Young Language Learner

Christina Nicole Giannikas, Greece

Christina Nicole Giannikas is a YLL specialist and her PhD thesis concentrates on the field of Early Language Learning. She is a researcher for the Cyprus University of Technology and a YLTSIG committee member. Her career history spans from primary and adult language teaching in the UK and Greece. Additionally, she worked as a seminar tutor and guest lecturer for London Metropolitan University and conducted empirical research related to the ELLiE project. E-mail: christina.giannikas@cut.ac.cy

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Introduction
Background
Task-Based learning in practice
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Early language learning has enjoyed a great amount of discussion over the years. Many have been the debates on the age appropriate teaching approaches used in the language classroom which young learners could relate to. This article presents an overview of Task-Based Learning (TBL) which can prove to be an effective approach to teaching children a foreign language and benefit them in various ways.

TBL has played a vital role in both research and language education (Seedhouse, 2005). It is typically separated into three parts; the pre-task, this part could be attempted as a whole class activity under the teacher’s supervision and guidance, the task which is an attempt the learner makes to work individually with limited teacher guidance and the third being the post-task which is the evaluation of the task (Prabhu, 1987). The process of TBL could be a vital combination for the young students’ development in the language classroom as they are at a stage where they are not yet autonomous as older students are.

Background

In the case of the TBL approach, children are given a better understanding of what is expected of them. This could result to them feeling comfortable and safe in the classroom environment. They gradually learn to take chances and contribute to the completion of their given task by communicating with their peers in a social context. When students are placed in a classroom, they are put into their own society in a microcosm. There is a distinctive atmosphere where the teacher is partially the determiner. When the teacher introduces the topic and gives instructions on what they are to do during the task stage, children are given enough to proceed with the task and build confidence to communicate with others to reach an outcome. They can then complete the task in pairs or in groups using the language resources they have whilst the teacher monitors their progress and offers them encouragement. The approach in question is relatable to children as they are social creatures. Vygotsky (1978), who looked more into social interaction as a primary source of behaviour and cognition, argued that children fully develop through social interaction, it is, therefore, essential for language educators to provide their learners with the opportunity to learn through communication, free of language control. Once the children have completed their task they are expected to report back to the rest of the class, a procedure the teacher can take advantage of and help their students perform and develop their presentation skills. The language explored throughout the task arises from the students’ needs which dictates what would be covered during the lesson rather than a decision made based on the syllabus or a coursebook.

Waer (2009) states that in order to maintain the task outcomes, language learners must negotiate for meaning and communicate with others, asking for clarification, or checking comprehension. Language in this case is used for genuine purposes, meaning that authentic communication takes place. Young learners are encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning without the constant assistance of the teacher. Breen (1987) characterised TBL as a structured language learning venture which contains a specific objective, content and working procedure. A range of outcomes can occur from this process and as Kaplan has argued, ‘task’ in this sense, “refers to a range of work plans that have the overall purpose of facilitating language learning, from the simple and brief exercise type, to more complex and lengthy activities such as group problem solving or simulations and decision making” (Kaplan, 2002:217). The assumption made is that the use of the target language during the task is the means to language development as interlanguage development is driven through tasks and not merely by the instructor’s control and input (Kaplan, 2002; Long, 1989; Prabhu, 1987). Advocates of TBL suggest that it provides the building blocks for language development and consider this approach an appealing development of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). In the last twenty years the interest in TBL grew strongly and TBL tasks were often used as supplementary material. Additionally, a number of course book series claim to be task-based and the aim of TBL is to encourage fluency, accuracy and complexity as a result of engaging with authentic and communication tasks. Kumaravadivelu (1993) claims that pre-determined language tasks cannot be followed. They ought to be thought of as ‘learning material rather than teaching material’ as the form of communication provided by these materials can only be used as an indication of content because the negotiation of actual language must be left to the teacher and the language learners. Furthermore, Kumaradivelu (1993) explains that practicing teachers cannot expect to be given in precise terms what structures and vocabulary they would be introducing in their classes. Cameron (2001:30-31) suggests that task-based learning, focused on young learners, must have a realistic goal if they are to intrigue and give content to language lessons. She specifically states that “the best we can do is aim for dynamic congruence: choosing activities and content that are appropriate for the children’s age and socio-cultural experience, and language that will grow with the children, in that, although some vocabulary will no longer be needed, most of the language will provide a useful base for more grown-up purposes”.

Cook (2001:223) focuses on the disadvantages of task-based learning, arguing that the language that is practiced and then evaluated would only be used in the classroom and that TBL follows the standard line of minimizing L1. There are claims that TBL is only appropriate when the learners have a specific goal such as “an interest for language or personal liberation”. Of all the challenges posed by task-based pedagogy, it needs to be presented in such a manner that young language learners will be tempted to take advantage of the classroom and become autonomous. Furthermore, it needs to be “balanced with other styles to make certain the coverage of language components is adequate even to achieve its own goal of communicative competence” (ibid).

Task-Based learning in practice

There currently is a wide array of teaching materials available to primary language teachers in order to accommodate their students’ learning needs. There has been an attempt to present examples of task-based activities below, which would create an opportunity for young learners to learn and use the foreign language. The examples given can assist the teacher in applying TBL in their lessons.

Find a friend who…

This is a well known task that can be pleasantly used in the young language learners’ classroom. The specific form of the task can be used with children aged 10-12, of all levels, it is best not to introduce this task with younger children as the operation of turning the sentences into questions can be confusing. The language focus is on questions and answers in the present simple, sports and free-time activities. Alternatively, any familiar language and vocabulary can be used. Essential materials are photocopies of the following table for each child to complete:

Once the photocopies are given out, the teacher can start by eliciting questions that children will need to ask to successfully complete the task. This will help the children become familiar with the needs of the task and guide them towards its completion. The teacher then explains and demonstrates how children are to walk around the classroom and find a friend who says ‘Yes’ to a question and write their names in the table. It is important to encourage children to find a different friend for each question. This would add variety, make all children feel included and help children step out of their comfort zone and interact with many other children to complete the task. Once their tables are complete, children return to their seats and report back on their findings (Read, 2007).

Making plans

This activity can be used with children aged 9-12and to levels A1.1-A.2.2. The aim of the task is for children to plan a group outing with their peers, make and respond to suggestions and to compromise if needed, in order to agree on a plan. The language focus is ‘shall’, language of suggestion, ‘want to…’ ‘like/don’t like/love’ and places to visit. Essentially for this task, the children will need information regarding local places to visit and/or internet access. The teacher can first start with asking the children to imagine that they are going on an outing instead of coming to school. Then the teacher can elicit ideas for places to go, like the zoo, the science museum or the water park. The children are then asked to think of three places and decide where they would like to have lunch and make notes of children’s ideas. The teacher can help the children organize their thoughts by writing a frame on the board for the students to copy and use during the task. The frame could look as followed:

The class can be divided into pairs and be encouraged to take turns to make and respond to the suggestions their partner makes and make plans for the day. An appropriate time limit for this could be 5 minutes. When the children are ready with their plans they can report back to the whole class and note the plans which everyone agrees on in the frame on the board (Read, 2007).

Guess and find out

This final example of TBL material is appropriate for all levels to children aged 8-12. The aim of this task is to motivate young learners to read, to predict whether statements are true or false and to check if their predictions were correct. The language focus here would be the present simple, weights and measures, superlative adjectives, explaining and justifying opinions, can (for possibility) and ‘because’. For the task children will need texts to read that can either be taken from their course books, magazines or the internet. The teacher may also like to use photocopies of True/False statements based on the information given in the text and a picture that illustrates the text.

The teacher can first divide the class into pairs/groups and introduce the topic they are going to work on with a picture. The teacher can give out True/False statements for a text on blue whales for example, these can be as followed:

1. The blue whale is the largest mammal in the world.
2. A baby whale is five metres long when it is born.
3. An adult blue whale can weigh more than 100 tons.
4. The blue whale can stay under water for an hour.
5. The blue whale has sharp teeth.
6. The blue whale eats big fish.

Children can work together and predict which statements they think are true or false. When they are ready they can report back, justify their views and explain what made them come to this conclusion. The teacher should not yet reveal the correct answers. After sharing opinions and having a short discussion about all statements children read the text and find out how many answers they had predicted correctly:

The blue whale is the largest mammal in the world. When it is born, a baby whale is about seven metres long and weighs nearly two tons. For about six months it feeds on its mother’s milk. By the time it is fully grown, the blue whale can be thirty metres long and weigh 130 tons. It can stay under water for about an hour before it comes to the surface to breathe. The blue whale has no teeth and is harmless to other fish. It eats very small sea creatures. In spring and summer it eats four tons of food a day.

At the end the answers can be checked. The teacher can ask students if there was information about the blue whales that surprised them and listen to their answers (Read, 2007).

These three sample tasks presented, display all three stages of TBL and can provide the teacher with material and ideas that can bring about a pleasant and motivating learning environment for young children.

Conclusion

TBL is seen as a social dynamic activity and can encourage students to become active participants in their language development through games, solving a problem, sharing information or experiences, which can all be considered as relevant and authentic tasks. This approach could give young learners the confidence they need to develop as language learners and use the foreign language without fearing the consequences of making a mistake since TBL encourages classroom communication and cooperation. Through TBL young language learners are given the chance to become involved in the negotiation of meaning which is the nucleus of human interaction (Giannikas, unpublished data).

References

Breen, M.P. (1987) Learner Contributions to Task Design. In C.N Candlin and D. Murphy (eds) Language Learning Tasks. Lancaster Practical Papers in English Language Teaching, vol. 7. Hemel Hempstaed: Prentice-Hall.

Cameron, L. (2001) Teaching English to Young Learners Cambridge University Press.

Cook, V. (2001) Using the First Language in the Classroom. Canadian Modern Language Review

Kaplan, R.B. (2002) The Oxford Handbook of Applied Linguistics. Oxford University Press.

Kumaravadivelu, V.B. (1993) Maximizing learner potential in the communicative classroom. English Language Teaching Journal, 47/1, 12-21.

Long, M. H. (1989). Task, Group, and Task-Group Interaction. University of Hawaii Working Papers in ESL 8/2, 1-26. (Reprinted in S. Arivan (Ed). Language Teaching Methodology for the Nineties. Singapore: SEAMEO Regional Language Centre.31-50.

Prabhu, N.S. (1987) Second Language Pedagogy Oxford University Press.

Read, C. (2007) 500 Activities for the Primary Classroom. Macmillan Books for Teachers.

Seedhouse, P. (2005) “Task” as Research Construct. Language Learning 55/3 pp.553-570.

Please check the Methodology and Language for Kindergarten Teachers course at Pilgrims website.
Please check the Methodology and Language for Primary Teachers course at Pilgrims website.