Integrating task-based language teaching in the classroom: A task proposal for learners of French as an additional language in elementary school
Keywords:
pedagogical task, task-based language learning, prioritization task, additional languagesAbstract
Research in the field of task-based language teaching (TBLT) seeks to better understand how pedagogical tasks and their implementation contribute to the development of additional language (AL) competences. This Note from the Field, intended for teachers and future teachers, aims to define TBLT and to illustrate the concept of a pedagogical task. A didactic sequence designed for young learners of French as an AL will be proposed and can serve as a guide for the development of similar tasks.
References
Beaulieu, S., Fortier, V., Damiens, J., Laberge, C. et Fillion, C. (2020). Développer des connaissances lexicales et grammaticales sans support écrit et sans production grâce à une approche par tâches basée sur la compréhension. La Revue de l’AQEFLS, 33, 12-19. https://doi.org/10.7202/1081265ar
Bell, P. et Payant, C. (2021). La place de la grammaire dans l’approche de l’Enseignement des langues basé sur les tâches : discussion entre les professeures Philippa Bell et Caroline Payant. La Revue de l’AQEFLS, 34(2) 1-11. https://doi.org/10.7202/1082350ar
Bryfonski, L., et McKay, T. H. (2019). TBLT implementation and evaluation: A meta-analysis. Language Teaching Research, 23(5), 603-632.
Bygate, M. (dir.) (2018). Learning language through repetition. John Benjamins Publishing Company. https://doi.org/10.1075/tblt.11
Dault, C. et Collins, L. (2016). L’utilisation des langues connues des apprenants en classe de français langue seconde. Canadian Modern Language Review, 72(4), 504-529. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.3387
East, M. (2021). Foundational principles of task-based language teaching. Routledge.
Ellis, R. (2003). Task-Based Language Learning and Teaching. Oxford University Press.
Ellis, R. (2018). Reflections on task-based language teaching. Multilingual Matters.
Ellis, R., Skehan, P., Li, S., Shintani, N. et Lambert, C. (2019). Task-Based Language Teaching: Theory and Practice. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108643689
Erlam, R. et Ellis, R. (2018). Task-based language teaching for beginner-level learners of L2 French: An exploratory study. Revue canadienne des langues vivantes/Canadian Modern Language Review, 74(1), 1-26. https://doi.org/10.3138/cmlr.3831
Foster, P. et Ohta, A. S. (2005). Negotiation for meaning and peer assistance in second language classrooms. Applied Linguistics, 26(3), 402 430. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/ami014
Gass, S. M. et Mackey, A. (dir.). (2012). The Routledge handbook of second language acquisition. Routledge.
Kim, Y. (2015). The role of tasks as vehicles for language learning in classroom interaction. Dans N. Markee (dir.), The Handbook of Classroom Discourse and Interaction (p. 163-181). John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118531242.ch10
Kim, Y. et McDonough, K. (2011). Using pretask modelling to encourage collaborative learning opportunities. Language Teaching Research, 15(2), 183-199. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168810388711
Loewen, S. et Sato, M. (2018). Interaction and instructed second language acquisition. Language Teaching, 51(3), 285-329. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444818000125
Long, M. (2015). Second Language Acquisition and Task-Based Language Teaching. John Wiley & Sons.
Payant, C. (2019). Étude de la perception des apprenants de français langue étrangère envers l’enseignement des langues basé sur les tâches. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics/Revue canadienne de linguistique appliquée, 22(1), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.7202/1060904ar
Payant, C. et Michaud, G. (2020). La conceptualisation de la tâche en didactique des langues secondes : l’enseignement des langues basé sur la tâche et l’approche actionnelle. La Revue de l'AQEFLS, 33(1), 4-11. https://doi.org/10.7202/1081264ar
Payant, C., et Galante, A. (2022). A word from the guest editors: Plurilingualism and translanguaging: Pedagogical approaches for empowerment and validation—an introduction. TESL Canada Journal, 38(2), i-xxii. https://doi.org/10.18806/tesl.v38i2.1363
Shintani, N. (2014). Using tasks with young beginner learners: The role of the teacher. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 8(3), 279-294. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2013.861466
Shintani, N. et Ellis, R. (2010). The incidental acquisition of plural -s by Japanese children in comprehension-based lessons: A process-product study. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 32(4), 607-637.https://doi.org/10.1017%2FS027226311 0000288
Swain, M. et Lapkin, S. (1995). Problems in output and the cognitive processes they generate: A step towards second language learning. Applied Linguistics, 16(3), 371-391. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/16.3.371
Swain, M. et Watanabe, Y. (2019). Languaging: collaborative dialogue as a source of second language learning. Dans The encyclopedia of applied linguistics. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781405198431.w beal0664.pub2
Van den Branden, K. (2006). Task-based language education: from theory to practice. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667282
Willis, J., et Willis, D. (2013). Doing task-based teaching. Oxford University Press.
Woll, N., et Paquet, P. L. (2025). Developing crosslinguistic awareness through plurilingual consciousness-raising tasks. Language Teaching Research, 29(1), 63-87. https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688211056544
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 McGill Journal of Education / Revue des sciences de l'éducation de McGill

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Those wishing to reproduce all or part of any material published on this website are asked to email mje.education@mcgill.ca for permission and to acknowledge the McGill Journal of Education as the original source.
Authors must transfer copyright of their article to MJE. Authors may use all or parts of their work in any future publication with the article's origin in MJE acknowledged in the customary manner.
A copy of our standard form may be requested from mje.education@mcgill.ca