An Assessment Of Go For It With The Task-based Language Teaching

Textbooks are important tools for the arrangement and achievement of teaching, which makes selecting and choosing textbooks quite significant for reaching the goal of education. With the implementation of the Curriculum Reform of Basic Education, the English Curriculum Standard advocates the concept of Task-based Language Teaching and multiple sets of English textbooks have come into being. As the most widely used English textbook nationwide, Go for it is supposed to accord with the concept of Task-based Language Teaching, which makes it necessary to assess the textbook under this concept.At the beginning of this paper, the basic concepts of Task-based Language Teaching, including its theoretical foundations, its principles and its models for classroom teaching, are elaborated and the principles and approaches of textbook evaluation are summarized. After that, based on what have been talked about, this paper puts forward criteria for interior textbook assessment concerning teaching objectives, teaching methods, teaching contents and contents organization. It points out that, for a textbook with task-based concept, the ultimate goal is to develop students’ language knowledge, language skills, positive attitudes toward language learning, learning strategies and cultural awareness. The textbook should promote the changing of students’ learning method and exploit students’ multi-intelligence. As for teaching methods, the textbook should emphasize student-centered multi-interaction and create authentic language environment. Besides, it should make the relationship between language knowledge and language skills well balanced. The teaching contents should have features of humanity, authenticity, openness, diversity and experience. The contents organization should pay attention to the ladder-type, the structure, the system and the operability. And then this thesis takes the Volume One of Grade Seven as an example to be analyzed on task types, topics, language structure, communicative function and arrangement of tasks to see whether it matches the features of task-based textbooks.According to analysis, this thesis draws a conclusion that Go for it reflects the concept of Task-based Language Teaching and conform to the English Curriculum Standard. It takes both communicative function and language structure into consideration and the teaching materials are abundant, wide-ranging, interesting and close to life. The language is authentic and combines with culture. The tasks are various and organized in the form of task chains. On the other hand, there are limitations in this textbook, for example, it is lacking in pronunciation learning; tasks in one unit is a little excessive, etc. This textbook still needs to be improved in latter versions. When using this textbook, teachers should make proper adjustments to reach better teaching effects.