Writing English Language Tests by J B Heaton
1. Introduction to language testing
1.1 Testing and teaching
to reinforce learning and to motivate
the student or primarily as a means of assessing the student’s
performance in the language.
1.2 Why test?
The evaluation of student performance
for purposes of comparison or selection is only one of the
functions of a test.
The aim of the classroom test is
different from that of the external examination.
1.3 What should be tested And to what standard?
Modern descriptive grammars,
Latin-based prescriptive grammars
1.4 Testing language skills
four skills: listening, listening and
speaking, reading and writing.
In many situations where English is
taught for general purposes, these skills
Task-based Language Learning and
Teaching
Rod Ellis (2003)
Oxford: Oxford University Press
Pp. x + 387
ISBN 0-19-442159-7 (paper)
£19.25
If anyone was asked to come up with a list of ELT writers who
have definitely influenced today's state of the art in Language
learning and teaching, there is little wonder that Rod Ellis would
have a preferential position. That is why many may speculate as to
the reasons Ellis takes an old issue such as Task-based Language
Learning. It is almost 15 years since Yalden (1987) stated the need
and option to work with single work units and defined them
(although Ellis dates 'task' in language learning back in the
sixties) as 'tasks' or 7 years since Jane Willis outlined a
framework for TBLL. Then, why now? A quick literature review shows
that TBLL has become an important approach in the last years. To
give an example, the ERIC database shows over 50 articles on this
iss
A Framework for Task-Based Learning
Jane
Willis
Longman, 1996
One-of-a-Kind
While the topic of 'task-based' learning has been discussed in the
literature throughout the '90s, and Task Based Learning (TBL) has
become a regular topic at teachers conferences, only one 'how to'
teachers' book exists on the market. Jane Willis' A Framework for
Task-based Learning is unique in this regard, one must scour
academic literature and conference proceedings to find other
discussions on the topic. But then, this title in the Longman
Handbooks for English Teachers series is everything an
experimenting teacher would want, so maybe the other ELT publishers
just surrendered?
A Narrow Target
Admittedly, Task Based Learning is still a small, yet growing,
trend in contemporary ELT. Task-based learning is based on several
fundamental assumptions which are now popular themes in many
'communicative
任务型教学(Task-based Learning)与英语新课程改革
进入20世纪80
学术权威畅谈中国外语教学法研究----——Rod Ellis教授专访
从事二语习得领域研究的人没有不熟悉Rod Ellis
这个名字的。这个响彻海内外学术界的名字,与《第二语言习得概论》、《第二语言习得研究》等15本学术专著、百余篇学术论文联系在一起。逐页研读过他的著作的中国研究生无不折服于他对此研究领域的深刻洞察力,而与其近距离交谈时,满头银发,身形矫健的Ellis教授那谦和儒雅的学者风范更令人赞叹倾倒。新西兰奥克兰大学应用语言研究与语言学学院教授、二语习得领域著名专家、国际权威、本次研讨会特邀嘉宾Rod
Ellis教授在25日的研讨会上作了以“任务型教学法方法”为题的主旨演讲,并于演讲结束后在刘春燕、陈科芳博士的陪同下接受了采访。
勤奋是成功的不二法门
Ellis教授认为认准目标,努力工作是他取得卓绝成就的根本原因。他的求学和工作经历非常丰富。1965年从大学毕业后的十余年间,曾一度在西班牙、伦敦、非洲等国家和地区任教,并在此期间回国攻读硕士学位并参与教材编写工作。在参加为期一年的针对英语为第一语言的大型项目研究时,Ellis教授对新兴的二语习得领域产生了浓厚的
国外任务型语言教学研究的现状及趋势
江苏苏州大学教育学院 詹颖
【摘 要】
本文从众多任务型语言教学研究者中挑选出有代表性的学者,试图从他们的研究中梳理出任务型语言教学研究的发展历程,并在综述他们研究成果的基础上探讨该研究领域中的焦点问题及发展趋势。
【关键词】 国外任务型语言教学,研究现状,趋势
任务型语言教学的研究始于20世纪80年代;Prabhu在印度南部的Bangalore进行了一项强交际法的实验(Bangalore
Project),提出了许多任务类型,并把学习内容设计成各种交际任务,让学生通过完成任务进行学习。Prabhu的这项实验可以看作是把任务作为课堂设计的单元的第一次尝试,并引起了语言教学界的关注。众多语言学家纷纷投入此项研究的热潮中,他们都把任务作为研究的中心元素。随着研究的深人,任务型语言教学于90年代在理论上逐步成熟。
一、国外任务型语言教学的研究现状
Prabhu(1987)&nbs