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Part of
Individual Differences and Task-Based Language Teaching
Edited by Shaofeng Li
[Task-Based Language Teaching 16] 2024
► pp. 288–312

Chapter 10
Practitioners’ perspectives

How teachers use TBLT to accommodate individual differences

| Freelance Language Teaching Consultant

The aim of this chapter is to explore the potential of task-based language teaching to accommodate a range of learner individual differences (IDs). As such it is different from previous chapters in this volume which report research findings on separate individual differences. To supplement my own experience, I invited teachers I knew who practised TBLT to contribute their observations and reflections on the IDs most relevant to TBLT in their teaching contexts. Their experiences of using task-based language teaching in their classes shed light on how a task-based approach can support learners with individual differences. The chapter then explores ways in which the stages in a task-based lesson framework can address particular individual differences. The chapter contains practical examples which illustrate aspects of task design and implementation that can accommodate one or more individual differences. These will be of relevance to all language teachers including those in professional development programs and novice teachers on pre-service teacher education courses.

Keywords: practitioners’ perspectives, task-based language teaching, individual differences, task cycle
Article outline
  • Introduction
  • Part 1.The practitioners: Their thoughts and experiences
    • Motivation
    • Anxiety
    • Learner autonomy
    • Learner beliefs
    • Socio-cultural variation
  • Part 2.A task cycle within a wider framework
    • The pre-task phase
    • The task cycle: Task > planning > report
    • Teacher-led tasks to accommodate specific IDs
    • Accommodating IDs in pair and group work
    • The need for a focus on form
    • Focus on form: Analysis and practice
    • Evaluation and assessment
  • Summary and concluding comments
  • List of contributors
  • Acknowledgements
  • References
Published online: 6 June 2024
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/tblt.16.10wil
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Cited by (5)

Cited by 5 other publications

Dao, Phung, Noriko Iwashita, Mai Nguyen & Carolina Arias-Contreras
2024. Chapter 8. Teachers’ and learners’ beliefs about task-based language teaching. In Individual Differences and Task-Based Language Teaching [Task-Based Language Teaching, 16], ► pp. 228 ff. DOI logo
Ellis, Rod
2024. Chapter 12. Conclusion. In Individual Differences and Task-Based Language Teaching [Task-Based Language Teaching, 16], ► pp. 346 ff. DOI logo
Li, Chengchen & Jean-Marc Dewaele
2024. Chapter 3. Understanding, measuring, and differentiating task enjoyment from foreign language enjoyment. In Individual Differences and Task-Based Language Teaching [Task-Based Language Teaching, 16], ► pp. 84 ff. DOI logo
Li, Shaofeng
2024. Chapter 1. Individual differences and task-based language teaching. In Individual Differences and Task-Based Language Teaching [Task-Based Language Teaching, 16], ► pp. 10 ff. DOI logo
Namkung, Yoon & YouJin Kim
2024. Chapter 7. A review of learner motivation and engagement research in task-based language teaching. In Individual Differences and Task-Based Language Teaching [Task-Based Language Teaching, 16], ► pp. 198 ff. DOI logo

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