THE USE... R. Arief Nugroho Mater’s Program in Linguistics, Diponegoro University
©2009, UNDIP Institutional Repository
be unable to transfer skills acquired through Audiolingualism to real communication outside the classroom, and many found the experience of
studying through audiolingual procedures to be boring and satisfying”. Even though the researcher found this weakness, the researcher tried to
cover this weakness by using other methods Task Based Learning, CLL, Suggestopedia, and TPR that were suitable for students.
2. Task Based Learning
According to Richards and Rodgers 2001:223 Task Based Learning “refers to an approach based on the use of tasks as the core unit of
planning and instruction in language teaching”. In the Joint Construction level, teachers have to use a method which accommodates children
learners’ needs and teachers’ needs. Children need various and engaging activities which can avoid them from boredom, while teachers need to
measure students’ comprehension after they receive a new target language from the teachers. Richards and Rodgers 2001:223 state that “engaging
learners in task work provides a better context for the activation of learning processes than form-focused activities, and hence ultimately
provides better opportunities for language learning to take place”. Candlin and Murphy 1987:1 note “the central purpose we are concerned with is
language learning, and tasks present this in the form of a problem-solving negotiation between knowledge that
the leaner holds and new knowledge”. According to Sato 1988 in Richard and Rodgers’ book Approaches
and Methods in Language Teaching Second Edition 2001:228 “tasks are
THE USE... R. Arief Nugroho Mater’s Program in Linguistics, Diponegoro University
©2009, UNDIP Institutional Repository
believed to foster processes of negotiation, modification, rephrasing, and experim
entation that are at the heart of second language learning”. In addition, Crooks 1986:1 defines a task as “a piece of work or an activity,
usually with a specified objective, undertaken as part of an educational course, at work, or used to elicit data fo
r research”. This view is part of a more general focus on the critical importance of conversation in language
acquisition”. As for the features of task-based language teaching, Nunan 1991:279
gives a summary as follows: An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the
target language; the introduction of authentic texts into the learning situation; the provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only
on language, but also on the learning process itself; an enhancement of the l
earners’ own personal experiences as important contributing elements to classroom learning; an attempt to link classroom language
learning with language activation outside the classroom. Moreover, Nunan 1989 in Richards and Rodgers’ book Approaches
and Methods in Language Teaching Second Edition 2001:231 suggests that a syllabus might specify two types of tasks:
1 Real world tasks, which are designed to practice or rehearse those tasks that are found to be important…and turn out to be important and
useful in the real world. 2 Pedagogical tasks, which have a psycholinguistics basis in SLA theory and research but do not
necessarily, reflect real-world tasks.
Furthermore, Richards and Rodgers 2001:236 explain that “instructional materials play an important role in Task Based Learning
because it is dependent on a sufficient supply of appropriate classroom tasks…and resources to develop”. From those explanations, the researcher
THE USE... R. Arief Nugroho Mater’s Program in Linguistics, Diponegoro University
©2009, UNDIP Institutional Repository
concludes that Task Based Learning requires many tasks which engage and motivate students. Besides, a variety of realia can also be used as a
source for TBL. According to Richards and Rodgers 2001:237, there are some tasks that can be built around such media products; they are:
newspapers, television, and internet. As a result
, teachers should engage and raise students’ motivation through various tasks, and teachers should also prepare students for tasks
in a clear way. According to Richards and Rodgers 2001:236 “such activities might include topic introduction, clarifying tasks instructions,
helping students learn or recall useful words and phrases to facilitate tasks accomplishment, and providing partial demonstration of tasks
procedures”. That is why teacher plays an important role to motivate and encourage students through some tasks which are designed to raise
students’ interest. These kinds of tasks will accommodate both teachers and learners’
needs in teaching and learning process which occur in the classroom, because students will experience the learning process through the tasks
which reflect a real world situation and teachers will know how to measure students’ understanding through the tasks.
3. Community Language Learning
