Get 'em While They're Young: Complex Digitally-Mediated Tasks for EFL Learners in Primary Schools
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| Title: | Get 'em While They're Young: Complex Digitally-Mediated Tasks for EFL Learners in Primary Schools |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Caruso, Celestine, Hofmann, Judith, Rohde, Andreas |
| Source: | Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics / Revue canadienne de linguistique appliquée. 2021 24(2):187-207. |
| Availability: | Canadian Association of Applied Linguistics / Association Canadienne de Linguistique Appliquée. Departement de langues, linguistique et traduction, Pavillon de Koninck, Universite Laval, Quebec, QC G1K 7P4, Canada. Web site: http://www.aclacaal.org |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 21 |
| Publication Date: | 2021 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Evaluative |
| Education Level: | Elementary Education Secondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Teaching Methods, Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, English (Second Language), Elementary School Students, Task Analysis, Foreign Countries, Computer Software, Computer Assisted Instruction, Learning Motivation, Articulation (Education), Secondary Education, Educational Principles |
| Geographic Terms: | Germany |
| ISSN: | 1481-868X |
| Abstract: | We suggest that complex tasks can be introduced to learners as early as primary school level with the help of digital media in the form of different apps. As a theoretical basis, we will first outline the principles of teaching English in (German) primary schools. Secondly, we will look at the framework of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) according to Nunan (2004) and explore how digitally-mediated tasks can be connected to this framework. Then, we will look at complex tasks as outlined by Hallet (2011) and present an example of a complex digital task for young English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners that we developed and tested in a German primary school classroom. It is suggested that TBLT at primary level is a motivating alternative to playful teaching techniques traditionally championed at primary level. Moreover, it may be a way of bridging the problematic gap between primary and secondary level as tasks can prepare young learners for the challenges they will face at secondary level. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2021 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1316418 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | We suggest that complex tasks can be introduced to learners as early as primary school level with the help of digital media in the form of different apps. As a theoretical basis, we will first outline the principles of teaching English in (German) primary schools. Secondly, we will look at the framework of Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) according to Nunan (2004) and explore how digitally-mediated tasks can be connected to this framework. Then, we will look at complex tasks as outlined by Hallet (2011) and present an example of a complex digital task for young English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners that we developed and tested in a German primary school classroom. It is suggested that TBLT at primary level is a motivating alternative to playful teaching techniques traditionally championed at primary level. Moreover, it may be a way of bridging the problematic gap between primary and secondary level as tasks can prepare young learners for the challenges they will face at secondary level. |
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| ISSN: | 1481-868X |
