Additional Info

• Course Title: Task based language teaching and ICT: a Pan-European perspective
• Rationale and justification for the course: This course presents the tenets of a European funded project (530863-LLP-1-2012-1-NL-KA2-KA2MP) in which the University of Granada is a consortium partner. Our goal is twofold: we put together ICTs and the so-called CEFR in order to enhance Task Based Language Teaching (TBLT). Nowadays, task-based language approach has an important role in second language teaching. It primarily emphasizes the importance of using authentic language in class, asking students to perform meaningful tasks in the target language. This project adds the technological dimension to TBLT so that at the end we come up with a set of ICT based tasks which may work well within any language learning context. To achieve this, the twenty partners (two per country) involved in the project will work cooperatively trialling each other's tasks. In this course we present the Spanish tandem's tasks and a selection of the tasks from neighbouring countries, and explain how they can be performed in the language classroom.
• Investigation of the field (state of the art) and innovative character: In Spain, teacher trainees usually complain that they need more training in innovative methodologies where ICTs play a leading role. Thus, this course is geared towards the development of strategies to provide teachers with the necessary tools to include ICT-based tasks in their teaching praxis.
• Target groups: Teacher trainees (primary and secondary education)
• Outcomes: changes in practices, procedures or didactic materials: Attendants will be able to: • Understand the main principles governing TBLT. • Design tasks for Primary and Secondary Education. • Use applications, webpages, software… to design tasks. • Incorporate tasks in CLIL programmes. • Consider and assess tasks from neighbouring countries. • Create ICT-based tasks.
• Contents: Module I: Definition of concepts (6 hours) 1) What do we understand by TBLT? A historial overview. 2) Communicative approaches and TBLT 3) CLIL and TBLT Module II: Designing and assessing quality ICT-based tasks (9 hours) 1) Finding Zemo (Go-animate or Bit Strips) 2) Once upon a time (Storybird) Module III: Creation of tasks and assessment (9 hours) (3 hours face-to-face lessons; 3 hours at-home lessons; 3 hours for presentation, discussion and assessment). 1) Commercial (mobile phones) 2) NGOs: A Better World is Possible (WebQuest) 3) Tasks from our European partners: Portugal and Italy 4) Presentation and Assessment
• Methodologies: Presentation of the underlying guidelines of the project/course. Practical lectures where students will participate actively. Brainstorming. Cooperative learning. Project-based learning. Problem-solving. The pattern we will use is: “I do” (the teacher sets the example); “we do” (the teacher and the learners work together); “you do” (the power is transferred to the students and they become active agents). Recommended readings for module I: Littlewood, W. (2004). The task-based approach: Some questions and suggestions. ELT Journal, 58(4), 319-326. Nunan, D. (1989). “Learning tasks and the language curriculum”. In David Nunan Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom, Cambridge: CUP, pp. 5-21. Recommended readings for module II: Raith, T. & Hegelheimer, V. (2012). In M. Thomas and H. Reinders (eds.) (2012). Task-based Language Learning and Teaching with Technology. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, pp. 176-196. Tomlinson, B. (2008). Review on Doing Task-Based teaching and Task-Based Language Education. ELT Journal, 61(1), 92-95. Recommended readings for module III: Ruiz Cecilia, R. and Guijarro Ojeda, J.R. (2015). “Apprising Teacher Trainees of New Language Approaches: An ICT Task-Based Training Course”. In Pixel (ed.). Conference Proceedings ICT for Language Learning, 8th Conference Edition. Padova: Libreriauniversitaria.it edizioni, pp. 109-112.
• Evaluation procedures: Evaluation forms for the attendees. Submission of an ICT-based task and feedback on the part of the teacher.
• Follow-up strategy: Participants will be duly informed of the results of PETALL project and be offered advice for the design of ICT-tasks (if required).
• Schedule: Timeframe 1 month (24 March – 21 April, 2015) Number of sessions 4 days. 3 Workshops per day Total number of hours for each type of session 6 (in Module III, students were given 3 hours to work at home)
• Approval by the national body: Name of national body: Universidad de Granada Date of approval: 9 March 2015
• Scientific advisor: Name: José Antonio Naranjo Rodríguez Affiliation: Universidad de Granada (España) Name: Davide Caperucci Affilation: Università degli Studi di Firenze (Italia)
• Bibliography and other resources: • Borg, S. (2003). Teacher cognition in language teaching: A review of research on what language teachers think, know, believe, and do. Language Teaching, 36, 81-109. • Edwards C. and J. Willis (eds.) (2005). Teachers Exploring Tasks in ELT. Palgrave MacMillan. British Council ELT Innovations Award 2006 • Leaver B. and J. R. Willis (2004). Task-based Instruction in FLE: practices and programs. Georgetown University Press • Liria, P. (ed) 2009 L'approche actionnelle dans l'enseignement des langues SBL • Littlewood, W. (2004). The task-based approach: Some questions and suggestions. ELT Journal, 58(4), 319-326. • Long, M., & Norris, J. (2000). Task-based teaching and assessment. In M. Byram (ed.), Encyclopedia of language teaching (pp. 597-603). London: Routledge. • Nunan, D. (1989). Designing Tasks for the Communicative Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. • Raith, T. & Hegelheimer, V. (2012). In M. Thomas and H. Reinders (eds.) (2012). Task-based Language Learning and Teaching with Technology. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, pp. 176-196. • Robinson, P. (ed.) (2001). Cognition and second language instruction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. • Ruiz Cecilia, R. and Guijarro Ojeda, J.R. (2015). “Apprising Teacher Trainees of New Language Approaches: An ICT Task-Based Training Course”. In Pixel (ed.). Conference Proceedings ICT for Language Learning, 8th Conference Edition. Padova: Libreriauniversitaria.it edizioni, pp. 109-112. • Seedhouse, P., & Almutairi, S. (2009). A holistic approach to task-based interaction. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 19(3), 311-338. • Thomas, M. And Reinders, H. (eds.) (2012). Task-based Language Learning and Teaching with Technology. London: Continuum International Publishing Group. • Tomlinson, B. (2008). Review on Doing Task-Based teaching and Task-Based Language Education. ELT Journal, 61(1), 92-95. • Van den Branden, K. (2006). Task-based language teaching: from theory to practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. • Willis D. and J. Willis, 2007 Doing Task-based Teaching Oxford University Press.