View Content #17416

by Julie Sykes, CASLS Director

In Task-based Learning and Teaching (TBLT), the design and implementation of tasks are central to success in the classroom.  Ultimately, the learners themselves much choose to engage around the task(s); however, successful design can facilitate learner engagement with the meaning and purpose. Three phases of task design are helpful in constructing a task for use in the classroom.

(1) Pre-task: This phase prepares learners for the primary task by discussing the objective(s), activating background knowledge, and providing the resources needed to convey meaning.  It is important to remember the pre-task phase is still focused on meaning and it not the manipulation of form(s).  Pre-tasks can be a series of subtasks that help learners gain skills to convey meaning and to activate background knowledge and contextual understanding. Sample pre-tasks might include brainstorming, reading introductory material, or surveys.

(2) Task: This entails the primary task with a real-world purpose. The primary objective is the outcome of the task where the focus is on the communication of meaning and not the manipulation of form. Sample tasks can include, for example, sharing unknown information, engaging in a transaction for services or goods, understanding critical elements of a message, putting things in order, comparing, and problem solving.

(3) Reflection/Assessment: Upon completion of the primary task, the learners and instructor engage in a process of reflection and assessment. Learners are given feedback from experts and peers and also self-reflect on their own ability to complete various elements of the task. Reflective elements can include overall success with the task, the ability to use structure in the service of expressing meaning, organization of discourse, and pragmatic elements of task completion.