Task-based research and language pedagogy Rod Ellis g Brenda 張琳美 Date:2008/03/07 Outline of the Presentation I Introduction II Defining Task III Task from a psycholinguistic perspective 1 The Interaction Hypothesis 2 A ‘cognitive approach’ to tasks 3 Communicative effectiveness. 4 Evaluating the psycholinguistic perspective. IV Task from a social-culture perspective V Task in language pedagogy I Introduction The purpose What is “Task”? Pica (1997) A construct of equal importance to (SLA) researchers and teachers.

Corder, (1981), Prabhu (1987). Both clinically eliciting for research and a device for organizing the content and methodology Bygate, Skehan and Swain(2000b) Viewed differently whether the perspective is. The purpose To examine theoretical views of language use, learning and teaching.

Gazovaya plita elekta rukovodstvo po ekspluatacii. 1.1 ‘task’ is seen as a construct of equal importance to second language acquisition (SLA) researchers and to language teachers (Pica, 1997). 1.2 ‘Task’ is both a means of clinically eliciting samples of learner language for purposes of research (Corder, 1981) and a device for organizing the content and methodology of language teaching (Prabhu, 1987). 1.3 However, as Bygate, Skehan and Swain (2000b) point out, ‘task’ is viewed differently depending on whether the perspective is that of research or pedagogy. 說明: 1.4 Researchers, for example, may view a task in terms of a set of variables that impact on performance and language acquisition whereas teachers see it as a unit of work in an overall scheme of work. – for example, information about significant task variables acquired through research can assist teachers in deciding what tasks to use and when.

I Introduction Ellis Lantolf (1996) Long and Crookes ( 1987) Vygotsky The first view computational models of (L2) acquisition. Long and Crookes ( 1987) ‘psycholinguistically motivated dimensions’ of tasks. Vygotsky The second view is socio-cultural in orientation. Ellis He is arguing that language pedagogy needs to take account of both views in order to accommodate Van Lier’s (1991) two essential teaching dimensions – ‘planning’ and ‘improvising 1.5 The purpose of this article is to examine theoretical views of language use, learning and teaching that underlie the work on tasks that has taken place to date. Two broad and disparate views will be identified and discussed. The first view Lantolf (1996) has referred to as computational models of second language (L2) acquisition, which treat acquisition as the product of processing input and output. In accordance with this model, researchers have sought to identify ‘psycholinguistically motivated dimensions’ of tasks (Long and Crookes, 1987) – that is, to establish the task features that have a significant impact on the way learners process language in performance and, therefore, potentially, on how they acquire an L2.

The identification of such dimensions can be used to select and grade tasks for teaching and learning. The second view is socio-cultural in orientation, drawing on the work of Vygotsky, as this has been applied to L2 learning. This approach views language learning as socially constructed through interaction of one kind or another and, thus, treats ‘tasks’ as workplans that are enacted in accordance with the personal dispositions and goals of individual learners in particular settings, making it difficult to predict the nature of the activity that arises out of a task. In particular, it can contribute to the development of a methodology for task-based teaching and learning. The article concludes by arguing that language pedagogy needs to take account of both views in order to accommodate what Van Lier (1991) has advanced as the two essential dimensions of teaching – ‘planning’ and ‘improvising’. II Defining Task Bygate, Skehan and Swain (2000b) ‘context-free’ Breen(1989) task-as-workplan Skehan (1998a) 4 defining criteria: 1. Meaning is primary; 2.