Allison Lewis
Fluency First ELT
Because TBL, along with Dogme and CLL, involve reactive teaching, language needs are addressed both during and after the task itself. Practitioners of task-based learning have given it a rather technical name, Focus On Form . This simply means that language focus occurs in the context of communication, so that the lesson itself remains centred on task completion, and what students can do with language, rather than on language items for their own sake. This isn’t just a semantic distinction – it underpi
“form can best be learned when the learner’s attention is focused on meaning” (Beretta, 1989, quoted in Thornbury’s Walking While Chewing Gum article.)
Most writers now agree on its effectiveness; few hold firmly to a so-called non-interface position. Ideally, this kind of corrective feedback can be delivered at the exact point at which learners need it.
Allison Lewis
Fluency First ELT