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TASK
Vol. 4:2 (2024) ► pp.203–241

A task-based needs analysis of primary school-aged children with migrant or refugee backgrounds in Austria

ORCID logo | University of BarcelonaGuerrero, Spain
ORCID logo | University of BarcelonaGuerrero, Spain
In this study, we report on a task-based needs analysis (TBNA) for primary school-aged newcomers to Austria. 31% of Austria’s primary school students learn German as L2 and thus a systematic analysis of their language learning needs is crucial. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and a survey was distributed. Results show 38 crucial target tasks for social and academic integration and their respective rankings regarding perceived frequency and the need for training. Triangulation of multiple sources and methods facilitated the identification of target tasks in various life domains and the development of detailed task descriptions along multiple task dimensions. Collectively, the results provide a basis for task selection, task sequencing, and the development of a meaningful syllabus for refugee/migrant populations at the primary school level in Austria.
Keywords: task-based language teaching, needs analysis, young learners, refugees, L2 German
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Literature review
  • Review of needs analyses in the context of migration and younger learners
    • Research questions
  • Methodology
    • Methodological considerations
  • Participants
  • Instruments and analysis
    • Interviews
    • Surveys
  • Creation of thematic task groups
  • Results
    • Answer to RQ1
    • Answer to RQ2
    • Additional quantitative data
  • Discussion
    • Discussion of RQ1 results
    • Discussion of RQ2 results
    • Methodological and theoretical reflections
    • Limitations
  • Conclusion
  • Note
  • Author queries
  • References
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