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Article published In: Task-Based Language Teaching:
Edited by Kris Van den Branden and Machteld Verhelst
[ITL - International Journal of Applied Linguistics 152] 2006
► pp. 85–109

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Taking Text to Task

Issues and Choices in Curriculum Construction1

 | Georgetown University
 | University of llinois at Urbana-Champaign
 | Georgetown University
Published online: 1 January 2006
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.2143/ITL.152.0.2017864
Abstract
This article argues that the construct of task can provide a principled and effective foundation for the development of extended, multi-year curricula and pedagogies for second/foreign language learning of adults. That assertion is made with an important condition: "task" must be expanded, both theoretically and empirically, toward issues that arise in conjunction with textuality and literacy rather than being grounded primarily in psycho linguistic, sentence-oriented processing considerations, as original proposals by Long and Crookes (1992) had suggested.
The article presents that overall theoretical argument and then describes how genre-based tasks have been used (1) for selection and sequencing decisions within an existing contentoriented collegiate curriculum in the German Department at Georgetown University; (2) as a way to inform pedagogical choices that target advanced levels of L2 ability, particularly the crucial area of vocabulary development; and (3) to devise genre-based tasks that assess L2 learners' language abilities and content knowledge across the curriculum and also help to further specify learning objectives and curricular choices.
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