From task-based training to task-based instruction: Novice language teachers’ experiences and perspectives

Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) is a promising approach to English language teaching that has the potential to enhance English language learning outcomes in Kuwaiti higher education institutions. However, it is important to consider the Kuwait-specific factors that can influence its effectiveness. This study investigated the effectiveness of TBLT in Kuwait and the Kuwait-specific factors that can influence its effectiveness. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with the selected educators. The study involved 12 educators from Kuwait's higher education sector. Participants were purposefully selected based on their experience in TBLT implementation to ensure that their insights and experiences aligned with the research focus. The study's findings suggest that TBLT is an effective approach to teaching English in Kuwait. Students who participated in the study reported that TBLT helped them improve their English language skills in several ways, including improved communication skills, increased fluency and accuracy, developed critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and increased motivation and engagement. The study also identified a number of Kuwait-specific factors that can influence the effectiveness of TBLT. These factors include learner characteristics, teacher perspectives, and curriculum design. It is important to design TBLT tasks that are appropriate for all learners' needs, provide teachers with training and support to help them implement TBLT effectively, and align the Kuwaiti curriculum with the principles of TBLT. The study concludes with recommendations for promoting the effective implementation of TBLT in Kuwaiti higher education institutions. These recommendations include providing TBLT teachers with training and support, aligning the Kuwaiti curriculum with the principles of TBLT, designing TBLT tasks that are appropriate for the needs of all learners, and conducting further research to investigate the long-term effects of TBLT on English language learning outcomes. Finally, the study's findings have implications for educators in Kuwaiti higher education institutions. By understanding the effectiveness of TBLT and the Kuwait-specific factors that can influence its effectiveness, educators can promote the effective implementation of TBLT and enhance English language learning outcomes for Kuwaiti students.

In teaching speaking for EFL, teacher has to consider a strategy that exposes students to speaking practices. This study aims to determine the implementation of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) principles in English learning, especially speaking. The approach used was descriptive qualitative. The instruments were classroom observations and interviews and the research subjects were 1 English teacher and 25 students of Class IXA at Darunnajat Islamic Boarding School Bumiayu Brebes. This study reveals that the teacher has implemented the seven principles of TBLT namely scaffolding, task dependency, recycling, active learning, integration, reproduction, and reflection suggested by Nunan (2004) in teaching speaking. They were reflected in the activities that students experience in the classroom.

This paper presents the findings of a study on Iranian English language teachers’ understanding of Task-based language teaching (TBLT) principles and perceived challenges of TBLT implementation in Iran. The data obtained from 100 respondents on a 39-item survey instrument and four essay questions analyzed through frequency statistics revealed that nearly 70 percent of teachers are cognizant of TBLT related principles. The study showed that in comparison with institutional and learner factors, teacher-related factors including teacher proficiency, experience, training, ability/skill, satisfaction and fidelity to tradition, inadequate income, and assumed roles were top challenges in the implementation of TBLT. This finding is a further confirmation of the extraordinary role put down to teacher variables by Deng and Carless((2009), Jeon and Hahn ( 2006) Chang and Goswami (2011), Li (1998) and Richard (2011). The study also found that factors like teachers’ being aware of TBLT advantages, their willingness to do TBLT, compatibility of their understanding with TBLT, their ability to change student attitudes towards TBLT, their access to authenticity, and student motivation can be viewed as assets in TBLT implementation. Further findings and implications are discussed in the paper.

Most research on task-based language teaching (TBLT) has focused on specific factors that play a role in task-based performance and learning, whereas considerably fewer studies have paid attention to how TBLT curricula have been developed and delivered in second language (L2) teaching contexts. However, it has been argued that the latter type of evaluative inquiry is crucial in order to advance the educational significance of the approach. While more evaluation studies have been published in recent years, few of them adopt a multi-methodological, longitudinal and cyclical perspective. The current study examines the planning and implementation of task-based instruction in a university-level Spanish as a foreign language program over a five-year period, with a particular emphasis on instructors’ and students’ perceptions about the approach. Data sources consisted of notes from meetings with instructors, classroom observations, students’ perceptions collected through journals, focus groups and questionnaires, and instructors’ perceptions collected through a questionnaire. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of these data revealed critical aspects of the planning phase, positive and challenging components of the approach, modifications made in response to participants’ perceptions, as well as a gradual increase regarding the level of acceptance of task-based instruction throughout the implementation. Implications for the implementation and evaluation of TBLT in other second language educational contexts are discussed.

This study aims to investigate the extent to which a Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) approach is integrated into Business English for Specific Purposes (ESP) materials used in China. Adopting a qualitative analytical framework, the research evaluates two prominent coursebooks, Business English: An Integrated Course 2 and Market Leader: Pre-Intermediate, against established TBLT criteria and Willis’s (1996) task-based learning framework. The analysis reveals a divergent application of TBLT principles between the two materials. Findings indicate that Market Leader incorporates TBLT to a significant extent, featuring communicative tasks aligned with real-world business activities and a coherent task cycle. In contrast, Business English: An Integrated Course 2 demonstrates a lower level of TBLT integration, with a stronger emphasis on discrete language points and grammatical exercises over holistic, meaning-focused tasks. The study concludes that the implementation of TBLT in Chinese Business English ESP materials remains insufficient and inconsistent. It is recommended that material developers and practitioners consciously adapt pedagogical activities to better align with TBLT principles, thereby enhancing the development of students' practical communicative skills in authentic business contexts.

Since its emergence in the 1980s, task-based language teaching (TBLT) has been regarded as a language pedagogy that fosters genuine communication and has the capacity to cultivate learners’ communicative competence. Consequently, TBLT research has become a vibrant and evolving field with numerous researchers exploring its theoretical foundations and gathering empirical evidence to support or challenge its effectiveness as a language teaching approach (e.g., Ellis, 2017; Erlam, 2016). In his recent publication, Foundational Principles of Task-based Language Teaching, Martin East adeptly navigates through the theoretical bases, implementation and assessment of TBLT. By delving into the book, readers will embark on a journey of deepening their understanding of TBLT while gaining valuable insights that inform pedagogical decisions and advance research within this domain.

This book offers an in-depth exploration of the use of communicative tasks in language classrooms, drawing on the principles of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT). While grounded in TBLT, the primary focus of the book is on the implementation of tasks in classrooms, rather than on a comprehensive theoretical account of the communicative approach. It examines the use of tasks as pedagogical tools from cognitive, interactional, and instructional perspectives, understanding the realities of language teaching and learning contexts. Based upon this, the book argues that task-based language practices are influenced by an interaction of cognitive, practical, and instructional factors, there-by affecting students’ language performance and development.

This paper presents a case study of a Black Spanish-language teacher and her 4th-grade students using Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) six years after a teacher-training program. We describe the program and the teacher’s understanding of tasks and TBLT. Using a bottom-up approach, we then explore the teacher and students’ implementation of TBLT six years later in a socioeconomically resilient 4th-grade classroom in Miami, Florida, where 95 % of the students are Black. Task-as-process was assessed with classroom observations, handouts, task outcomes, and interviews. Findings revealed that the teacher continued using TBLT, highlighting both its opportunities and challenges. Opportunities were driven by her beliefs, reliance on “Black students’ linguistic gifts,” and access to sample tasks. Challenges included time constraints, COVID-related logistics, and professional loneliness. Her innovative TBLT implementation was influenced by shared cultural artifacts considered “fun” to incorporate. Using Love’s framework of abolitionist teaching, we explore how the teacher and students resisted ideologies of culturelessness through Black cultural unity. Six years post-training, the teacher’s use of tasks and students’ success in TBLT were mediated by their shared Blackness. We conclude by arguing for more world language studies focusing on Black teachers and young learners as innovators in TBLT.

The research and implementation of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) in Pakistan remain relatively unexplored, with the approach neither explicitly favoured nor rejected by language teachers and institutions. To gain insights into teachers’ beliefs, knowledge, and pedagogical practices regarding TBLT, this study investigates the cognitions and practices of English language teachers in grammar instruction through TBLT at the undergraduate level in Pakistani universities. A qualitative research approach was adopted, involving 20 English language teachers from five public and private universities in Lahore, Pakistan. Data were collected through classroom observations, interviews, and stimulus recall discussions. The results indicate that while most teachers claimed familiarity with TBLT—primarily based on conceptual understanding rather than formal training—a smaller subset of teachers (n=6) with English literature background exhibited limited comprehension of the approach. Despite this, the majority expressed support for integrating TBLT into Pakistani English language classrooms, albeit with an awareness of contextual challenges. Many participants perceived TBLT as a meaning-focused approach, potentially unsuitable for explicit grammar instruction. Moreover, a significant discrepancy was noted between teachers’ stated beliefs and their observed classroom practices, with only two teachers demonstrating partial implementation of TBLT. The findings highlight a prevailing ambiguity among teachers regarding TBLT. Based on these insights, the study recommends comprehensive teacher training to facilitate the effective integration of TBLT in Pakistan.

Task‐based language teaching (TBLT) has been attracting the attention of researchers for more than 2 decades. Research on various aspects of TBLT has been accumulating, including the evaluation studies on the implementation of TBLT in classrooms. The evaluation studies on students’ and teachers’ reactions to TBLT in the online courses are starting to gain momentum, and this study adds to this line of research by enhancing our understanding of the implementation of TBLT in an online ab initio course. This study investigated the implementation of a TBLT syllabus in an ab initio online Chinese as foreign language course over a semester. Surveys and interviews with the students and the instructors revealed that students reacted positively to the online TBLT experience, and analyses of students’ performance at the end of the semester suggested that this pedagogy produced good learning outcomes. This study also identified some challenges and advantages of the online context for TBLT.

This research study investigates the relationship between Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) and English language proficiency among students in private schools in Erbil, Kurdistan. The study is underpinned by communicative language teaching principles and second language acquisition theories, which emphasize the importance of meaningful communication and contextual learning. The research hypothesizes that TBLT is associated with improved language proficiency, enhanced intrinsic motivation, and increased confidence in using English for real-life communication. The study's findings confirm these hypotheses, demonstrating a statistically significant positive relationship between TBLT implementation and English language proficiency. Moreover, TBLT outperforms traditional teaching methods in fostering language proficiency. The study also reveals that TBLT positively correlates with increased intrinsic motivation, contributing to improved language skills. Contextual learning afforded by TBLT is found to enhance practical understanding of English language skills. Additionally, TBLT enhances students' confidence in using English for real-life communication, a vital aspect of language proficiency. These findings suggest the potential of TBLT as an effective pedagogical approach for enhancing English language education in private schools in Erbil. The study concludes by offering recommendations for the implementation of TBLT and the importance of teacher training, motivational strategies, and long-term impact studies in the context of language education.

The Effect of Task-based Language Teaching (TBLT) and Content-based Language Teaching (CBLT) on the Iranian Intermediate ESP Learners’ Reading Comprehension

ABSTRACTThis paper aimed to develop culturally appropriate TBLT practices to enable teachers and students in China to employ TBLT to teach grammar in English classes. The study deployed design-based research with a total of 122 students at a Chinese university. The mixed-method study utilised questionnaires with 122 students, interviews with 10 students as two focus groups and autiotaoped group discussions of the focus groups. The findings disclosed several mismatches between teaching and learning traditions in China and the principles of TBLT: (1) The students failed to acquire implicit knowledge while TBLT aimed to enable students to understand what was not explicitly described; (2) The students depended on the teacher’s presentation while TBLT required students to learn independently; (3) The students were reluctant to work in group while TBLT emphasised student-centred learning in group work; and (4) The students required related grammatical input while TBLT required students to obtain holistic acquisition of knowledge. To address these mismatches, main adjustments of TBLT were made: adding grammatical input, encouraging the students to focus on form, to discuss grammar matters and to provide mutual corrective feedback, and emphasising the teacher’s participation into tasks as a facilitator. The study developed new tools that could assist teachers and students to adopt TBLT in a non-Western context.

This paper deals with the implementation of TBLT in the classroom. This research discussed the role of teachers and learners in TBLT to improve their ability. The problem statement in this research is how the writing abilities of the students before and after giving Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) work among the students with different phases of task activities. Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) is an approach that uses tasks as the primary element of planning and instructing in language teaching. In recent years, there has been an increase in interest in Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) because TBLT is an interesting task activity that enhances students’ learning process. Learning is a method of active learning that involves multiple levels of acquaintance at the same time. Task-based language teaching is a learner-centred approach. TBLT advocates the shift from teacher-dependence to learner independence and provides authentic materials.

1. Preface 2. Foreword (by Pica, Teresa) 3. Chapter 1. Introduction: Broadening the perspective of task-based language teaching scholarship: The contribution of research in foreign language contexts (by Shehadeh, Ali) 4. Section I. Variables affecting task-based language learning and performance 5. Chapter 2. Effects of task complexity and pre-task planning on Japanese EFL learners' oral production (by Sasayama, Shoko) 6. Chapter 3. Measuring task complexity: Does EFL proficiency matter? (by Malicka, Aleksandra) 7. Chapter 4. Effects of strategic planning on the accuracy of oral and written tasks in the performance of Turkish EFL learners (by Genc, Zubeyde Sinem) 8. Chapter 5. Effects of task instructions on text processing and learning in a Japanese EFL college nursing setting (by Horiba, Yukie) 9. Chapter 6. Task structure and patterns of interaction: What can we learn from observing native speakers performing tasks? (by Hobbs, James) 10. Section II. Implementation of task-based language teaching 11. Chapter 7. Patterns of corrective feedback in a task-based adult EFL classroom setting in China (by Iwashita, Noriko) 12. Chapter 8. Incidental learner-generated focus on form in a task-based EFL classroom (by Moore, Paul J.) 13. Chapter 9. Qualitative differences in novice teachers' enactment of task-based language teaching in Hong Kong primary classrooms (by Chan, Sui Ping (Shirley)) 14. Chapter 10. Implementing computer-assisted task-based language teaching in the Korean secondary EFL context (by Park, Moonyoung) 15. Chapter 11. Task-based language teaching through film-oriented activities in a teacher education program in Venezuela (by Chacon, Carmen Teresa) 16. Chapter 12. Task-based language teacher education in an undergraduate program in Japan (by Jackson, Daniel O.) 17. Chapter 13. Incorporating a formative assessment cycle into task-based language teaching in a university setting in Japan (by Weaver, Christopher) 18. Chapter 14. Language teachers' perceptions of a task-based learning programme in a French University (by McAllister, Julie) 19. Epilogue. What is next for task-based language teaching? 20. Chapter 15. TBLT in EFL settings: Looking back and moving forward (by Carless, David) 21. About the contributors 22. Index