Get ‘em While They’re Young: Complex Digitally-Mediated Tasks for EFL Learners in Primary Schools
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37213/cjal.2021.31340Abstract
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 the primary level is a motivating alternative to playful teaching techniques traditionally championed at the primary level. Moreover, it may be a way of bridging the problematic gap between the primary and secondary levels as tasks can prepare young learners for the challenges they will face at the secondary level.
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Copyright (c) 2021 Celestine Caruso, Judith Hofmann, Andreas Rohde
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