Task-Based Language Teaching Vs. Conventional Language Teaching: The Case of News Story Writing in EFL Context

International Journal of Foreign Language Teaching and Research

دوره 10، شماره 40، تیر 2022، صفحه 123-132   

نوع مقاله: Research Papers

شناسه دیجیتال (DOI): 10.30495/jfl.2022.686659

نویسندگان

Negar Nowroozzadeh¹؛ Abbas Bayat^{* 1}؛ Abbas Mehrpooya²

¹Department of TEFL, Malayer Branch, Islamic Azad University, Malayer, Iran

²Department of Foreign Languages, Hamedan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Hamedan, Iran

چکیده

This study aimed to investigate the effect of task-based language teaching on news-story writing in Iranian EFL context. To this end, a quasi-experimental, pre- and post-evaluation research design was employed. First, 78 Iranian BA sophomores majoring in translation at Islamic Azad University, Hamedan Branch, were selected through convenient sampling as the participants of the study. They were then randomly divided into two treatment and control groups--task-based group (TB) and conventional teaching group (TC) respectively. Both groups were initially given a test on news story writing to measure their writing ability at the pre-treatment stage. Then, the control group was taught through explanations abstracted from some deductive plans and reading-oriented method of teaching news story structure. The other group was exposed to a six-weak TB treatment based on Willis’ TBL framework. The post-treatment researcher-made test was then administered to compare the participants’ writing progress. The obtained statistical results showed that the employment of the task-based language learning scenario does not lead to an overall significant improvement of Iranian EFL learners’ performance in news-story writing as compared with the conventional teaching of the same skill. This is perhaps due to learners’ negative attitude towards TBLT, which originates from the inconsistency of TBLT with the educational philosophy in Iran. Therefore, TBLT programs may need to be modified on the basis of the local and traditional specifications of the education in the target community to be able to develop the learners’ news-story writing skill.
            

کلیدواژه‌ها

Conventional language teaching approach؛ EFL Context؛ news story writing؛ task-based language teaching approach؛ writing skill    

مراجع

Bowen, T. (2018). Teaching Approaches: Task-based Learning. http:/ /www. onestopenglish. com/methodology/methodology/teachingapproaches/teaching-approaches-task-based-learning/ 146502.article

Breen, M. (1989). The evaluation cycle for language learning tasks. In R.K. Johnson and M. Swain (eds). The Second Language Curriculum (pp. 187–2007). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Butler, Y. (2011). The Implementation of communicative and task-based language teaching in the Asia-Pacific region. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 31, 36–57.

Carless, D. (2003). Factors in the implementation of task-based teaching in primary schools. System, 31, 485-500. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2003.03.002.

Carless, D. (2012). TBLT in EFL settings: Looking back and moving forward. In A. Shehadeh & C.A. Coombe (Eds.), Task-based language teaching in foreign language contexts: Research and implementation (pp. 345–358). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Dörnyei, Z. (2010). Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies: Oxford University Press Oxford.

Ellis,R. (2009). Task-based language teaching: Sorting out the misunderstandings. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 19, 221–246.

Ellis, R. (2018). Reflections on Task-Based Language Teaching. Multilingual Matters: Bristol/Blue Ridge Summit.

Frost, R. (2006). A Task-based Approach. British Council Teaching English. http://www. teachingenglish.org.uk/think/methodology/task_based.shtml

Littlewood, W. (2014). Communication-oriented teaching: Where are we now? Where do we go from here?’ Language Teaching, 47, 249–362.

Long, M. (1983). Native-speaker/non-native speaker conversation and the negotiation of comprehensible input. Applied Linguistics, 4, 126–141.

Long, M. (1985). A role for instruction in second language acquisition: Task-based language teaching. In K. Hyltenstam and M. Pienemann (eds) Modelling and Assessing Second Language Acquisition (pp. 77–100). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.

Nunan, D. (1989). Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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

Richards, J. and Rogers, T. (1986). Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Richards, J. and Rogers, T. (2014). Approaches and Methods in Language Teachings (3rd edn). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Shehadeh, A. (2012). Broadening the perspective of task-based language teaching scholarship: The contribution of research in foreign language contexts. In A. Shehadeh & C.A. Coombe (Eds.), Task-based language teaching in foreign language contexts: Research and implementation (pp. 1–20). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.

Skehan, P. (1998). Task-based instruction. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 18. 268–286.

Swan, M. (2005). Legislating by hypothesis: The case of task-based instruction. Applied Linguistics, 26, 376–401.

Watson-Tod, R. (2006). Continuing change after innovation. System, 34, 1–14.

White, R. (1988). The ELT Curriculum, Design, Innovation and Management. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.

Willis, J. (1996). A Framework for Task-based Learning. Harlow: Longman.

Willis, D., & Willis J. (2001). Task-based language learning. In R. Carter, & D. Nunan (Eds.). The Cambridge Guide to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.