1. TBLT for Teacher Development Implementing an Online Course
María Elena Solares
Department of Applied Linguistics - CELE
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
September, 2007

2. Objective
Through direct experience in learning tasks participants will analyze and implement the principles of TBLT in order to assess its usefulness in their specific teaching context

3. This objective derived from 4 premises:
Direct Experience: Do as you preach
Implement: Performance-based curriculum design
Assess: not TBLT as the “golden method” but to raise teachers’ awareness of recent research in SLA
Addressed to Teachers: main agents of change
Making SLA research accessible to Ts & raising teachers’ awareness of their teaching habits and of the kind of teachers they are to deal with change in language teaching

4. Reaching my course objectives implied:
Finding the way of making teachers experience TBI
Defining my concept of task in T Ed
Defining the aspects of TBI which were applicable to teacher education
Defining what my framework for TBL in teacher education would be

5. TBL Experience: what I wanted
Involve Ts in learning “x” + analyze experience = TBI
However:
“x”: different from English learning
Time constraints: 60 hours
Need to clarify concepts, present TBI in a historical context and respond to Ts’ needs analysis

6. TBL experience: what was achieved
Organizing knowledge around a main task
Main task: implementing = learning by doing
Having a pre-task stage with mini-tasks which prepared Ts to achieve the main task
Pre-tasks which allowed Ts to notice important features of tasks and of TBI necessary for the implementation
Post-task: identify teachers’ major problems and interests
First module in English in ALAD diploma  possibility to explore L2 development in a content based course

7. Tasks in T Ed (Crookes, Prabhu, Ellis, Puren)
A work plan where the primary focus is on solving a real-world teaching and learning problem and which promotes teachers’ reflection, questioning and searching for solutions. This work plan is usually reflected in a product or outcome.

8. Criteria for Tasks in T Ed
Tasks (Ellis)
Work plan
Focus on meaning
Real-world processes of language use
Four skills
Cognitive processes
Communicative outcome
Tasks in T Ed
Work plan
Focus on solving a problem
Real-world teaching and learning problems
Problems in the 4 skills
Reflective, cognitive processes
Outcome

9. Course Features

10. Course Content Unit 0: Speak to us of Teaching
Unit 1: What is Task Based Language Teaching?
Unit 2: Models for Language Teaching
Unit 3: What is a “task”?
Unit 4: Implementing TBLT
Unit 5: Assessing TBLT

11. Course Structure UNIT 0 Speak to us of Teaching UNIT 1 UNIT 2 UNIT 3
Problem
Input
Major Problem
UNIT 0
Speak to us of Teaching
UNIT 1
What is TBLT?
UNIT 2
Models for LT
UNIT 3
What is a task?
Pre Task
UNIT 4
Implementing TBLT
Task
UNIT 5
Assessing TBLT
Post Task

12. Framework for TBL in Teacher Education (Puren)
STATEMENT OF A PROBLEM
Approached from teachers´ representations or beliefs about that problem
I N P U T
Through articles, models, interactive activities, online presentations engaging teachers in constant reflection and search
INDENTIFICATION OF A MAJOR PROBLEM
Attempt to solve a problem  a major problem (no unique, universal solution)

13. Course Components
Course platform: units, personal folder, forum, gallery, tools (progress log, evaluation rubrics, course schedule, peers’ profile, etc.)

14. Course Components (cont.)
Tasks which promoted collaborative work and interaction at different levels:
Tutor-student: folder
Student-student: forum
Student-content: interactive activities

15. Course Components (cont.)
Samples of TBL implementation: interviews with implementers

16. Course Components (cont.)
Free online articles, books, books or articles summaries
Constant cycles of self-evaluation

17. The Online Course
Unit 0
Unit 1
Unit 2
Unit 3
Unit 4
Unit 5

18. Feedback Questionnaire
Preliminary Results
Feedback Questionnaire

19. Course strengths Organization Objectives Content
5 sts: very well organized
1 sts: some aspects were, others weren’t (tech. sup.)
Objectives
6 sts: were reached and went beyond my expectations
Content
6 sts: was very good, very useful and relevant to my teaching practice

20. Course strengths (cont.)
Materials
6 sts: very useful and illustrative
Evaluation criteria
6 sts: very adequate
Evaluation rubrics
6 sts: were useful and clear to understand what was expected from me in each of the activities

21. Course impressions Interesting Useful Seed for new projects
At the cutting edge
Motivating
Very good
It invited me to reflect and improve my classes
Innovative
Edifying
Recommendable
Attractive and fruitful
It overcomes teachers’ isolation at work
Excellent course
Educational
Some times tiring

22. Things to improve Time allotted to different units
3 sts: enough
2 sts: more time should be allotted to each unit
1 sts: limited, some units needed more time (planning a TBL lesson, designing/transforming a task, implementation)
No. of activities assigned for each unit
5 sts: enough
1 sts: too many

23. Things to improve (cont.)
Kinds of problems you found in the course
6 sts: technical (folder was not working properly, lack of support from technician)
In future courses
3 sts: WWW resources should be better exploited
2 sts: it was ok for me
1 sts: audio, video-tapes and/or CDROM should be included

24. Suggestions for the course
Improve technical problems
More time should be considered for some activities
Reduce a couple of readings, specifically in unit 4 (implementation)
Course schedule should be extended to assimilate contents better

25. Conclusions & Insights

26. Conclusions & Insights
It is possible to make SLA research accessible to busy practicing teachers
The proposed approach for teacher education generated reflection and hopefully change in teachers’ practices
The course motivated teachers to further explore TBI in their classes
Presenting TBI in a historical context resulted useful and enlightening for teachers (against omitting unit 1)
Need for long-term teacher follow-up was expressed and it is also necessary  study groups

27. Conclusions & Insights (cont.)
Instruments to measure teachers’ behavior or views before and after the course are necessary
Transforming exercises into tasks & writing TBL lesson plans were considered motivating, useful, challenging, meaningful, real-life tasks
Willis´ framework and Ellis’ approach to understanding “task” and TBL resulted enlightening and accessible. Both allowed Ts to look at TBL as a whole, as a larger pedagogic plan around a task
Evaluating TBLT: rejection to Swan’s criticisms
Task vs. exercise debate: Ts had clear idea about differences between task and exercise

28. Conclusions & Insights (cont.)
TBLT course + L2 teaching = more meaningful exp.
(Ts apply what the learn + explore from the classroom + tutor & colleagues’ feedback)
More time for planning, implementing and assessing teachers’ experience is necessary
Online education allowed sharing and enrichment from different teaching contexts + “minimizing Ts’ isolation”
Swapping units 2 and 3

29. Future Research Need to further explore TBI in teacher education
Need for instruments to measure Ts´ change in ways of thinking, attitudes and behavior
Need for teachers’ follow-up  study groups
Results in wider/different communities
international
where L2 is an objective

30. Future Research (cont.)
New areas of research
The role of tutor’s feedback in teacher development
Ts’ interaction in discussion forums
Knowledge building in online education
When and how teachers’ awareness takes place

31. Samples of Tasks

32. Task 1: Presenting Willis’ TBL framework
Pre-task
Poem Pre-Task Activities
Teacher’s role Teacher's Role
Mind map Pre-task.pdf
Task Cycle Task Cycle.pdf
Language Focus Language Focus.pdf

33. Task 2: Task vs. Exercise Debate
Participation in a debate Task-Exercise Debate.pdf
Supported argumentation (from someone else’s shoes)
A discussion is started from a concrete problem
Ts are asked to participate in discussion from a point of view contrary to their own
Each teacher must act as a person with different views from his/her own

34. Task 3: Creating evaluation instrument
Ts read a text and prepare an evaluation instrument based on its content for a different group to answer
Instrument 1 instrument 1.pdf
Instrument 2 instrument 2.pdf

35. Main Task: implementing TBLT
“Taskifying” textbook units
Teaching 2 parallel courses: same objectives + different methodology (“traditional” vs. TBLT) + exam + compare results
Analyzing textbooks from TBL perspective
Implementing TBL lessons and task created by Ts + observing sts’ response + writing Ts’ insights

36. Other pedagogical tasks
Matching concepts, interviewing colleagues, finding similarities and differences in teachers’ implementation of TBI, inferring concepts, reading to agree or disagree, analyzing different authors’ points of view, etc.
Tasks Characteristics (Skehan): motivating, meaningful, useful, at the appropriate level of difficulty
Course tasks lead teachers to comprehend, to analyze, to synthesize, to evaluate and to apply

37. Thank you! solares@servidor.unam.mx

38. PRE-TASK ACTIVITIES Engage your students In pre-task activities
Advance preparation
So goals are attained
Defining objectives
Will surely be needed
Let students recall
Eavesdrop here and there
And words will sure flow
Introduce vital phrases
And language as well
To make students confident
For whatever may come
But don’t you despair
If problems do arise
As pre-task activities
Are only the start

39. Teacher’s Role

40. What is TBLT? (unit 1)
What is TBL, its objectives, its theoretical support?
What does TBL consist on? How does it work? What are the advantages and disadvantages of TBL for learners and teachers? How efficient is TBL?
How much of CLT is there in TBL? What is the difference between TBL and CLT?
Where does TBL come from? Who created it, when and where? Who is/are its proponent(s)? What audience is TBL addressed to? For how long has it been used?

41. Models for Language Teaching (unit 2)
How can I use TBL in my classes? How is grammar approached in TBL?
Does TBL allow for focus on form?
Does TBL have any implications in lesson planning? How can I plan TBL classes? How can activities be sequenced in TBL?
Can TBL be applied to the 4 skills?
What kind of activities does TBL suggest for learners to go beyond communication and be able to automatize specific structures?

42. What is a task? (unit 3) What is a task?
What is the main difference between a task and an activity?
What makes a “task” a task?
Why should we use tasks? What is their rationale? What do they consist on?
What type of tasks?
Are tasks always oral, written or both?
Can tasks be used in all languages and for any topic?

43. Course Structure: Principles of TBI (Skehan)
Instruction should allow for the experimentation and use of the model: pre, during and post task (implementing)
Selection of tasks should lead to a larger pedagogic plan: implementation of TBL
There should be conscious cycles of evaluation: self-evaluations + evaluation rubrics

44. Numa Markee (1997:80)
“From the perspective of practicing foreign language teachers, SLA research is rarely worth reading because the ideas researchers discuss are too distant from teachers´ everyday classroom concerns.
Furthermore, even when researchers discuss ideas that are potentially relevant to teachers, they often express themselves in such opaquely technical language that teachers are “turned off” from the whole idea of research”.