5. TBLT: Can this method improve the language skills in an integrated manner?-Dr R Saravana Selvan & Mrs B Sivakami

TBLT- CAN THIS METHOD IMPROVE THE LANGUAGE SKILLS IN AN INTEGRATED MANNER?

Dr. R. Saravana Selvan Mrs. B. Sivakami

Associate Professor&Head i/c Ph. D. Research Scholar(FT) Department of English Department of English

Bharathiar University, Coimbatore. Bharathiar University,CBE

raja_saravanan@gmail. com rekachandran55555@yahoo.co.in

This paper is about how task based learning suits the needs of learners in using English in day- to- day classroom activities. Non language major learners at the tertiary level hesitate talking or avoid talking with others in English. It is needless to mention about their hesitation in using English in black and white. Though every teacher knows the reason for their reluctance to write and speak, yet the hesitation on the part of a few teachers who refuse to take up the challenge to introduce suitable changes in the classroom techniques is unexplainable. It may be the adoption of interactional method of teaching which will mitigate the problem to a larger extent.

The intention of learners to listen to the news programmes and other academically beneficial programmes in English on the television or radio seems to be declining with the present set of learners because of their lack of interest in being aware of the day-to-day happenings at the national as well as at the international level. Reading books has abated with the availability of internet service and need and desire of learners, in general, for writing is almost non-existent. To top it all, they give the least importance to speaking since regional language or mother tongue serves the purpose for expressing their emotions or ideas.

What can be ascribed to this lack of interest of learners in developing or enhancing their skills? Is it lack of interest inducing activities in the class? The researcher’s surmise is that the following of the Task Based Language Teaching, perhaps, is one of the ways to keep learners involved in the classroom language activities.

The teaching of discrete grammatical items is probably uninteresting or performing the language activities individually may be difficult for the learners. Long(2000) highlighted ‘the perceived clash’ between the language artificially and in a restricted manner learnt in the class and the language that speakers of English employ beyond the classroom.(qtd. in East 43)

The rationed language may be demotivating the learners who wish to replicate the natural settings in the class to make learning beneficial. Teachers can be within the comfort zone, if synthetic syllabus is followed. But learning takes place through using the expressions as a chunk and not as a single word. If learning is incremental, restriction would serve the purpose.

To allow learners to use the language as they want, teachers can adopt the Task Based Language Teaching. According to Klapper, this method with its learner centred approach frees the teachers and learners from ‘higher archaically-organised syllabus’.(qtd. in East 45)

Task provides a context for their learning and signalling the start and end point to their communicative oriented language learning. Thus, it makes learners think about ‘langauge use and language learning in a holistic terms’. (Long 591) It ensures the development of language through a stretch of holistic experiences. As tasks make learners realise the actual use of language in natural context, it facilitates the ‘organic interaction of form, meaning and function’(Long).

Exposure of learners to appropriate contexts which show the integration of all the four language skills in a task will make them understand the importance of this task based instruction. Learners may be given the familiar and frequently encountering task like presenting a paper at a conference or seminar.

They can be allowed to discuss on the topics specified for the paper presentation by visiting the library or the related websites. After analysing the availability of materials, their own interest and the familiarity of the topics among the mentioned ones, they will settle on a particular topic. This unstructured discussion is to be followed by the work plan for the minor tasks which involve in deciding on the suitability of chosen topic. In the first round of free talk among the members of each group and the following discussion on the suitability and nature of the topic chosen, according to the work plan, the learners in a group will engage themselves in the speaking task.

This round of discussion may be succeeded by their engagement in writing their finally chosen topic and how they have arrived at a consensus on the topic selection. The presentation of their discussion to the entire class by the previously much- hesitated learner from each group will assure the effectiveness of the method on improving their confidence to use the second language.

Willis and Willis (2007) suggested the criteria for the tasks in the form of questions. It stresses on engaging learners’ interest, primary focus on meaning, the goal or an outcome, the priority for the completion and its relation to the life activities.(Teaching)

The kind of task suggested to follow in the class is based on Jane Willis’ model. This model encourages the learners to have a model performance by less confident learners or teachers with these learners at the pre task stage and at the subsequent post stage, teacher’s correction of the grammatical mistakes in the linguistic expressions employed by the learners in the pre task and task stage.

Stages in the performance of a task

1. Pre –task stage

Identification of task

Mock performance of task

2. Task stage

Performance of task

3. Post-task stage

Reflection

Discussion regarding the use of correct structure

Presentation of the report

At the post stage, learners write about how they select the particular topic and teachers review their work for checking the grammatical errors in the structures used and the appropriateness of lexicons to the task content chosen.

The researcher presents the work plan of the task chosen for the illustration.

Conferences are held often in the Departments of English at every college once a year at least. Presenting a paper at the conference is more frequently an encountering phenomenon. The task can be designed on how to choose the topic from the given ones and how to prepare the paper on the chosen topic for the presentation at the conference. If a task is a complex one, the division of task into many simple tasks will make learners motivated to complete the task, however difficult the nature of task is.

1. Choosing the type of oral story for the paper presentation- Major Task

Minor tasks associated with it are

1. Defining the nature of oral stories

2. Identifying the sources of oral stories

3. Listing the sources

4. Identifying the genre in which the oral stories are available now

5. Finding the suitability of stories for paper presentation

6. Checking the norms of the seminar

7. Choosing the oral story/ies for the presentation

2. Analysing the type of oral story/ies chosen for the presentation –Major Task

Minor tasks associated with it are

1. defining the particular genre of story

2. confirming the genre of the story chosen

3. identifying the plot line

4. identifying the characters

5. identifying the point of view

6. identifying the rhetorical aspects of such stories or tales

Each task thus, requires the guidance of teachers for the work plan and model performance. They act as a facilitator and a guide till the completion of the task. The instructional material can be the activities normally learners perform beyond the classroom.

Learners’ performance of the task mimics the activities in life as the ambience resembles that of life. The interactions of learners help them to develop their inter language, which has the current version of the learners’ language and seems to be perfectly logical for the learners when it is incorrect. After a period of time, the inter language leads to the proficiency of language as tasks, through integrated skills push them to use strategies and thus, will restructure their inter language.

References

Books

1. East, Martin. Task-Based Language learning from the Teacher’s Perspectives. Amsterdam: John Benjamines, 2012.

2. Thomas, Michael, and Hayo Reinders. ed.Task -Based Language Learning and Teaching with Technology. London: Continuum International, 2010.

3. Long, Michael H., and Catherine J.Doughty. The Hand book of Language Teaching. Ed. UK: Wiley–Blackwell, 2012.

Websites

1.“Criteria for identifying tasks for TBL” TeachingEnglish <http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/criteria-identifying-tasks-tbl>

2. “Interlanguage” TeachingEnglish <http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/knowledge-database/interlanguage>