Framework of Task Based Learning

2 Task Cycle Phase This is where the learners start working in small groups or in pairs to achieve the goals of the task. Teachers should encourage learners to work independently and to communicate on their own to achieve the set goals by keeping minimum interference on learners’ work. Therefore, there is often little concern for grammatical accuracy. After they have finished, teachers should ask them to prepare an oral or a written report on how they solved the task as well as the result of the task. Learners will psychologically feel encouraged to do their best when they know that they have to report their work to the class. It will make learners plan their reports effectively and maximize their learning opportunities. Therefore, they will try to deliver their work correctly and orderly, which will be the process that drives their language development forward. After that, the teacher should ask some groups or all of them if possible, to report their task to the class. This will give learners a natural stimulus to upgrade and improve their language. It encourages them to think about form as well as meaning; accuracy as well as fluency and to use their prestige version of the target language. It allows other students to hear or read what they have done, which provides useful exposure. In this phase, the teacher may provide brief feedback on students’ presentation. It is important that learners’ performance must not be devaluated. Teachers should emphasize their good points. Such positive reactions increase students’ motivation and self esteem and encourage them to do better next time. 18 3 Language Focus Phase This phase allows a closer study of some of the specific features such as unfamiliar words, structures, or pronunciation that naturally occur in the task cycle. By this point, the learners will have already worked with the language and processed it for meaning, so they are ready to focus on the specific language forms that carry that meaning. Thus, the study of this form is clearly contextualized through the task itself. After reviewing the features, learners then practice what has been discussed during the language analysis activities to improve their language form. This final phase, which includes analysis and practice components, fulfils the fourth desirable extra condition for learning. The elements of task based learning are illustrated in Figure 2.2. Figure 2.2: Willis’s Task-based Learning Framework Willis, 1996: 38 Pre-task Introduction to topic and task Teacher explores the topic with the class, highlights useful words and phrases, helps students understand task instructions and prepare. Students may hear a recording of others doing a similar task Task Students do the task, in pairs or small groups. Teacher monitors from a distance Task Cycle Planning Students prepare to report to the whole class orally or in writing how they did the task, what they decided or discovered Report Some groups present their reports to the class, or exchange written reports, and compare the result Analysis Students examine and discuss specific features of the text or transcript of the recording Practice Teacher conducts practice of new words, phrases and patterns occurring in the data, either during or after the analysis Language Focus The writer can determine the sequence of learning activities after understanding the stages in task based learning framework. Therefore, the materials for each meeting will consist of pre-task, task-cycle, and language focus phase.

d. Learner’s Roles in Task Based Learning

Learner’s roles are very important in task based learning because the activities in the classroom emphasize on learner’s active involvement. Willis 1996 describes the roles of learners as follows: 1 Learners as active language users When the learners do the tasks, they have the opportunities to communicate and to experiment with the language in order to complete the tasks. Therefore, they have to find a way to overcome their linguistic resource before conveying their thoughts. That would lead them to learn the skills of restating, paraphrasing, using gestures, guessing from linguistic and contextual use, asking for clarification, as well as consulting with other learners Willis, 1996. 2 Learners as language learners Besides paying attention to the message of a task, the learners should also notice the form in which the message is delivered. The grammatical rules can be deduced from the interaction that they observe in the task cycle phase. Learners can also deduce them by consulting it with the teacher in the language focus phase. Therefore, learners take full responsibility of their own learning progress. 20 3 Learners as group participants When doing the tasks, learners are often required to work in groups, in which they have to cooperate with other learners. Eventually, those tasks will improve learners’ communication skills, such as negotiating, respecting others’ opinion, and improving their thinking skills Willis, 1996. Knowing learners’ roles in TBL will help the writer to select the learning activities appropriate for TBL, in which the learners function as the language users, language learners and group participants.

e. Teacher’s Roles in Task Based Learning

Willis 1996 describes the roles of the teacher as follows: 1 Teacher as a facilitator The teacher mainly functions as a facilitator because task based learning is a learner-centred approach. The teacher sets up tasks, gives the instruction to do them, and makes sure that learners do the task using the target language and learn something from the activities. 2 Teacher as a monitor This will take place in the task-cycle phase. The teacher should keep minimum interference with working learners and stop teaching. They should observe and encourage the learners from a slight distance, as well as reminding them to use the target language. If the teacher stands too close with the learners, they tend to ask the teacher for words they do not know rather than to express it in another way. 21