AE Live! Teacher Professional Development Events - AE Live 16.3 - Promoting Authentic Language Use with Tasks

With 1.5 billion English speakers in the world, the status of English as a lingua franca is widely recognized. A primary goal of many English learners is to be able to communicate internationally as global citizens. However, among the different language skills, speaking is difficult to master, especially when there’s generally a lack of opportunities for authentic communication inside and outside the classroom in many EFL contexts. Task-based language teaching (TBLT) offers a principled approach to making language lessons and classes more communicative and meaning-focused because tasks may offer learners compelling reasons to communicate in pairs or in groups. This webinar will explore TBLT by introducing the four criteria of tasks, presenting different task types, and sharing specific examples of successful classroom tasks. Using this information, teachers will be able to develop their own tasks that are relevant to their curriculum and their students’ interests to encourage authentic language use in the classroom. To learn more English or to get additional resources for English language teaching, see: http://www.facebook.com/AmericanEnglishatState  http://www.facebook.com/AmericanEnglishforEducators http://americanenglish.state.gov http://openenglishprograms.org