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Article published In: Teacher Education for Task-Based Language Teaching
Edited by Xavier Gutiérrez, Lara Bryfonski and Greg Ogilvie
[TASK 5:2] 2025
► pp. 316–344

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Open-access sites as catalysts for teacher education

Insights from the TBLT Task Bank

ORCiD logo with link | Indiana University, United States
ORCiD logo with link | Georgetown University, United States
Published online: 5 February 2026
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/task.25003.gur
Abstract
This article explores how one open-access space, the TBLT Task Bank, can serve as a springboard for communities of practice (CoP; Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge University Press. Google Scholar logo with link to Google Scholar) and professional development (PD) to inform and advance both teacher education and research in TBLT. As a central, open-access repository, the Task Bank not only hosts pedagogical resources but also fosters sustained, critical engagement among diverse stakeholders including language teachers and teacher educators. Through local and global CoPs and professional development (PD), the Task Bank creates meaningful collaborative opportunities, offering a dynamic model for integrating open science and teacher education in applied linguistics.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • Task Bank affordance #1: Emergent Local Community of Practice (CoP) through the Task Bank review process
    • Task bank review process
    • Range and type of task submissions
    • Insights from the local CoP
      • Role of emerging linguistic resources
      • Essential characteristics of what makes a task a task
      • Task-based assessment
      • Balancing local CoP member perspectives
  • Task bank affordance #2: Providing continuing professional development and sparking a global community of practice
    • Task bank virtual workshop series
    • “Let’s talk tasks” open access feature
    • Insights from the global CoP
  • Task bank affordance #3: Incorporating the task bank into professional development
    • Usability check and individual differences: To hone task adaptation skills
    • Collaborative reviews to task creation: To learn about task design
    • Incorporation in training and workshops: To develop a task sequence
    • Insights from the task bank in professional development
  • Future directions
  • Conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
References (45)
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