| As the latest methodological realization of CLT, task-based language teaching, also referred to as task-based instruction, task-based approach or task-based learning (Nunan, 2004), henceforth referred to here as TBLT, is frequently promoted as an effective teaching approach, believed to be soundly based on both theory and research, and claimed to be superior to traditional methods. It has achieved something of the status of a new orthodoxy: teachers in a wide range of settings are being told by curriculum leaders that this is how they should teach, and publishers almost everywhere are describing their textbooks as task-based. Clearly, whatever TBLT means, it is"a good thing"(Littlewood, 2004).In China, The National English Language Standards, published in 2001,"strongly advocates task-based language teaching, the latest methodological realization of communicative pedagogy"(Hu 2005: 15). Three years later, in the spring of 2004, the State Ministry of Education issued College English Curriculum Requirements (For Trial Implementation) which stipulated that the aim of College English is to develop learners'ability to use English in an all-round way (2004: 1) and in 2007 the new edition of the College English Curriculum Requirements holds that the aim of College English is to develop students'ability to use English in a well-rounded way (2007: 25), which, in a sense, highlighted the promise of the journey to TBLT in our country.However, Richards and Rodgers (2001: 241) pointed out that"the basic assumption of TBLT– that it provides for a more effective basis for teaching than other language teaching approaches– remains in the domain of ideology rather than fact."Furthermore, Littlewood (2007: 248) calls our attention to the fact that"there is now a widespread acceptance that no single method or set of procedures will fit all teachers and learners in all contexts". Hence, there is a need to gather the information on the relationship of the characteristics of the widely-appreciated TBLT and the status quo of our ELT classroom, notably where conditions may be less than ideal, in terms of the aspects such as large class size, cramped classrooms, inadequate teaching resources, poorly trained teachers in task-based methodologies and teachers with limited language proficiency along with traditional examination-based syllabi and so on.Previous studies on TBLT have focused mainly on whether it benefits English learning or on how it can be implemented in the EFL classes. The status quo of college English classes, which may play an important role in the implementation of TBLT, has not received due consideration. Moreover, the topic on the links between the status quo and the promotion of adoption of TBLT across the country has scantly been touched upon. Given the scarcity of adequate empirical research on the status quo of college English classes within TBLT as the overarching trend aboard and home, a research project comprising both a quantitative survey and qualitative study came into my mind in an attempt to map out the picture of the possibility of TBLT being adopted in a large scale around our country. What is more, the internship of teaching in a university can surely facilitates the study. The research began with a study of the status quo of the college English reading classes in both a quantitative and qualitative way by questionnaires and interviews. Drawing on the findings of that study, the paper looked closely at the college English reading classroom in order to find out whether TBLT can be implemented thoroughly or in a modified way, as well as to elaborate the issues that may be in the way of the implementation of TBLT in our country.The purpose of this study is to explore the feasibility of TBLT in college English reading classes based on its status quo. Despite the fact that the study is confined to the English reading classrooms in a university, the concerns described in it should not be seen as exclusive to it. They can be shared by researchers and teachers in all the ELT classrooms of our country. |
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