TBLT is a popular and effective communicative approach that uses the "task" as its main unit of instruction and assessment. Tasks can be defined as pedagogical constructs that have meaningful, real-world-like outcomes; for example: Write a thank you letter, or Order a meal at a restaurant. Importantly, tasks are assessed primarily by whether these outcomes are adequately achieved.
Over the past three decades, TBLT has come to inform the creation of language descriptor systems such as the Common European Framework, the Canadian Language Benchmarks, and the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines, and is increasingly an explicit feature of major tests such as the TOEFL and the IELTS. However, because the core principles of TBLT can sometimes appear to be at odds with more traditional approaches to language teaching, instructors and course designers have sometimes struggled to implement TBLT in the classroom or to create appropriate sequences of lessons.
This course aims to clarify the definition of tasks, to outline the major principles of the approach, and to demonstrate how to select, sequence, and assess meaningful tasks by using authentic examples from the classroom. We will focus on the practical aspects of instruction, assessment, and syllabus design, and participants will leave with a clear and practical understanding of the approach.
Live sessions (registered participants only)
- March 1st – course participants only (60 minutes)
- March 8th – course participants only (60 minutes)
- March 22nd – course participants only (60 minutes)
- April 5th – course participants only (60 minutes)
Time: 12:00 – 13:00 UTC – Check your local time here: CONVERT TIME
- Certificate of Distinction
US $169 – Course, Recordings, Handouts, Private Community, Instructor Evaluation, and Private Mentoring. - Certificate of Accomplishment
US $99 – Course, Recordings, Handouts, Private Community, Instructor Evaluation. - Certificate of Completion
US $69 – Course, Recordings, Handouts, Private Community.
Check out, like and/or share the FB recording of week 1 live session
This 4-week online iTDi Advanced Skills course will bring up to 100 teachers together in our user-friendly iTDi online classroom every Sunday, and then continue throughout the week, sharing, discussing and reflecting in a private but vibrant online community.
As a registered participant, don’t worry if you ever have to miss a class. You’ll receive weekly recordings of each class, full transcripts of the text chat during class, assigned readings and a PDF of the PowerPoint slides. Furthermore, the online community will certainly become a wealth of ideas and information, and it will remain private and online for your use anytime in the future.
For more information about course content, scroll down to the Curriculum About Task-Based Language Teaching or click here.
Scholarships
As always, iTDi believes that all teachers deserve the same opportunity to improve themselves. Therefore, a limited number of scholarships will be available for this course. Please apply through our scholarship application.
About Marcos Benevides:
Marcos Benevides is an award-winning co-author and editor of nearly fifty ELT titles. His books have been nominated for British Council ELTon Awards three times (2011, 2015, and 2019), and have won twice. He has also received the 2010 Duke of Edinburgh English Book Award and several Extensive Reading Foundation awards. His most recent book is Widgets Inc.: A task-based course in workplace English, 2nd Edition. Since its original release in 2008, Widgets has been widely recognized as the first practical truly task-based coursebook. Marcos has been involved in TBLT for nearly twenty years, and is currently involved in grant-supported research on task-based assessment, aspects of which will also inform this course. He is an assistant professor at J. F. Oberlin University in Tokyo, where he coordinates a large EFL program.
