Action Research for Implementing Task-Based Language Teaching and Enhancing Speaking Skills in a Class of 12th Grade English Students in an Angolan School
This study evaluated the use of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) to enhance the speaking skills of Grade 12 EFL students at Escola de MagistérioSecundário No. 135 “Comandante Liberdade” in Lubango, Angola. The research was prompted by observations of students’ lack of speaking confidence, confirmed through informal interviews. Using an action research approach, the study included diagnostic and intervention phases, with data collected through pre- and post-tests, questionnaires, and observations. SPSS was used to analyse the data, with results compared using t-tests. The research involved 58 students, with 27 in the experimental group and 31 in the control group. Initial findings revealed challenges such as limited exposure to English, anxiety and motivation, pronunciation and the influence of their L1. TBLT tasks, including role-plays, problem-solving, creative task and group discussions, led to improvements in fluency, coherence, and accuracy, with the experimental group’s mean score increasing from 2.81 to 4.27. Post-intervention questionnaires showed reduced anxiety and increased confidence.
References
[1]
Albino, G. (2017). Improving Speaking Fluency in a Task-Based Language Teaching Approach: The Case of EFL Learners at PUNIV-Cazenga. SageOpen,7. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017691077
[2]
Brewster, J., Ellis, G., & Girard, D. (2002). The Primary English Teacher’s Guide (2nd ed.). Pearson Education.
[3]
Brown, H. D. (2001). TeachingbyPrinciples:AnInteractiveApproachtoLanguagePedagogy. Longman.
[4]
Cacumba, J. S. C. (2014). Determining the Academic Reading Needs of Teacher Trainees of English at ISCED-Huíla, Angola. University of South Africa.
[5]
Campbell, D. T., & Stanley, J. C. (1963). Experimentaland Quasi-Experimental Designsfor Research. AERA (American Educational Research Association). https://www.sfu.ca/~palys/Campbell&Stanley-1959-Exptl&QuasiExptlDesignsForResearch.pdf
[6]
Canale, M & Swain, M. (1980). Theoretical Bases of Communicative Approaches to Second Language Teaching and Testing. AppliedLinguistics,1, 1-47. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/1.1.1
[7]
Carless, D. (2009). Revisiting the TBLT versus P-P-P Debate: Voices from Hong Kong. AsianJournalofEnglishLanguageTeaching,19, 49-66.
[8]
Carless, D. (2012). Task-Base Language Teaching in Confucian-Heritage Settings: Prospects and Challenges. JALTSIGConference,2, 4-8.
[9]
Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational Research:Planning, Conducting,and Evaluating Quantitativeand Qualitative Research (4th ed.). Pearson Education.
[10]
Dörnyei, Z. (2001). MotivationalStrategiesintheLanguageClassroom. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511667343
[11]
Dörnyei, Z. (2007). Research Methods in Applied Linguistics. Oxford University Press.
[12]
Echevarria, J., Vogt, M. E., Short, D. J., & Toppel, K. (2023). Making Content Comprehensiblefor Multilingual Learners:TheSIOPModel (6th ed.). Pearson.
[13]
Ellis, R. (2003). Task-Based Language Learningand Teaching. Oxford University Press.
[14]
Ellis, R. (2006). The Methodology of Task-Based Teaching. Asian EFL Journal, 8, 79-101.
[15]
Ellis, R. (2009). Task-Based Language Teaching: Sorting Out the Misunderstandings. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 19, 221-246.
[16]
Ellis, R. (2014). Taking the Critics to Task: The Case for Task-Based Teaching. In ProceedingsofCLaSIC (pp. 103-117).
[17]
Farvardin, M. T. (2017). Task-Based Language Teaching and Oral Proficiency: A Study with Intermediate EFL Learners. JournalofModernResearchinEnglishLanguageStudies,4, 45-66.
[18]
Gass, S. M., & Selinker, L. (2008). Second Language Acquisition:An Introductory Course (3rd ed.). Routledge.
[19]
Golonka, E. M., Bowles, A. R., Frank, V. M., Richardson, D. L., & Freynik, S. (2014). Technologies for Foreign Language Learning: A Review of Technology Types and Their Effectiveness. ComputerAssistedLanguageLearning,27, 70-105. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2012.700315
[20]
González-Lloret, M., & Ortega, L. (2014). Technology-Mediated TBLT:Researching Technology and Tasks. John Benjamins Publishing.
[21]
Graciano, J. C. (2019). EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT)atLiceu No 1.152Caconda. TESOL. ISCED-HUILA.
[22]
Harmer, J. (2014). ThePracticeofEnglishLanguageTeaching (5th ed.). Pearson.
[23]
Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety. TheModernLanguageJournal,70, 125-132. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.1986.tb05256.x
[24]
Hung, N. V. (2014). Review of Notion and Framework of Task-Based Language Teaching. International Journal of English and Linguistics Research, 2, 39-48.
[25]
Hymes, D. H. (1972). On Communicative Competence. In J. B. Pride, & J. Holmes (Eds.), Sociolinguistics (pp. 269-293). Penguin Books Ltd.
[26]
Jasim, I. A. I. (2011). Investigating Teachers’ Attitudes toward Task-Based Language Teachingina Vocational School intheUAE(UnitedArabEmirates). Master’s Thesis, American University of Sharjah.
[27]
Jenkins, J. (2007). EnglishasaLinguaFranca:AttitudeandIdentity. Oxford University Press.
[28]
Jeon, I., & Hahn, J. (2006). Exploring EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of Task-Based Language Teaching: A Case Study of Korean Secondary School Classroom. AsianEFLJournal,8, 123-139
[29]
Krashen, S. (1985). The Input Hypothesis:Issuesand Implications. Longman.
[30]
Leong, L., & Ahmadi, S. M. (2017). An Analysis of Factors Influencing Learners’ English Speaking Skill. InternationalJournalofResearchinEnglishEducation,2, 34-41. https://doi.org/10.18869/acadpub.ijree.2.1.34
[31]
Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (2013). How Languages Are Learned (4th ed.). Oxford Uni-versity Press.
[32]
Liu, Y. (2018). Task-Based Language Teaching: Theoretical Foundations and Practical Applications. EducationandInformationTechnologies,23, 1715-1732.
[33]
Long, M. H. (2015). Second Language Acquisitionand Task-Based Language Teaching. Wiley-Blackwell.
[34]
Long, M. H. (2016). In Defense of Tasks and TBLT: Nonissues and Real Issues. AnnualReviewofAppliedLinguistics,36, 5-33. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0267190515000057
[35]
López, L. L. (2021). Collaborative Tasks to Develop Speaking Skills in the English Classroom: An Exploratory Study. LanguageLearningJournal,49, 92-103.
[36]
Mahdavirad, F. (2017). Task-Based Language Teaching in Iran: A Case Study of EFL Teachers’ Perspectives. InternationalJournalofEnglishLanguageandTranslationsStudies,5, 14-21
[37]
Mayo, M. P. G., & Agirre, A. I. (2012). Task Repetition and Its Impact on EFL Children’s Negotiation of Meaning Strategies and Pair Dynamics: An Exploratory Study. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 50, 119-142.
[38]
Mertler, C. A. (2012). Action Research:Improving Schools and Empowering Educators (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
[39]
Murad, N. M. (2021). The Impact of Task-Based Language Teaching on Speaking Skills of EFL Learners: A Systematic Review. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 12, 852-858.
[40]
Nunan, D. (2004). Task-Based LanguageTeaching. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511667336
[41]
Odlin, T. (1989). Language Transfer: Cross-Linguistic Influence in Language Learning. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9781139524537
[42]
Richards, J. C., & Rodgers, T. S. (2014). ApproachesandMethodsinLanguageTeaching (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009024532
[43]
Richards, J. C., & Schmidt, R. (2010). Longman Dictionary of Language Teachingand Applied Linguistics (4th ed.). Longman.
[44]
Ringbom, H. (2007). Cross-Linguistic SimilarityinForeignLanguageLearning. Multilingual Matters. https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.27939672
[45]
Robinson, P. (2001). Task Complexity, Task Difficulty, and Task Production: Exploring Interactions in a Componential Framework. AppliedLinguistics,22, 27-57. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/22.1.27
[46]
Shen, M. (2019). EFL Learners’ English Speaking Difficulties and Strategy Use. Educational and Linguistic Research, 5, 88-102. https://doi.org/10.5296/elr.v5i2.15333
[47]
Shih, R. (2010). Blended Learning Using Video-Based Blogs: Public Speaking for English as a Second Language Students. AustralasianJournalofEducationalTechnology,26, 883-897. https://doi.org/10.14742/ajet.1048
[48]
Skehan, P. (1998). A Cognitive Approach to Language Learning. Oxford University Press.
[49]
Swain, M. (2000). The Output Hypothesis and Beyond: Mediating Acquisition through Collaborative Dialogue. In J. P. Lantolf (Ed.), Sociocultural Theory and Second Language Learning (pp. 97-114). Oxford University Press.
[50]
Swain, M. (2005). The Output Hypothesis: Theory and Research. In E. Hinkel (Ed.), Handbookof Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning (pp. 471-483). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
[51]
Thomas, M., & Reinders, H. (2010). Task-Based Language Learningand Teaching with Technology. Continuum International Publishing Group.
[52]
Tuan, N. H., & Mai, T. N. (2015). Factors Affecting Students’ Speaking Performance at LE Thanh Hien High School. AsianJournalofEducationalResearch,3, 8-23.
[53]
Willis, D., & Willis, J. (2007). DoingTask-BasedTeaching. Oxford University Press.
[54]
Willis, J. (1996). A Flexible Framework for Task-Based Learning. In J. Willis, & D. Willis (Eds.), Challengeand Change in Language Teaching (pp. 42-53). Heinemann.
[55]
Zhao, Y. (2003). Recent Developments in Technology and Language Learning: A Literature Review and Meta-Analysis. CALICOJournal,21, 7-27. https://doi.org/10.1558/cj.v21i1.7-27
