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SUMMARY:Exploring language learning through communication: How far is task
  repetition repetition? - Dr Martin Bygate (University of Lancaster)
DTSTART:20070213T170000Z
DTEND:20070213T180000Z
UID:TALK6334@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Edith Esch
DESCRIPTION:Since the advent of communicative language teaching\, a key is
 sue for research and debate has been the extent to which learners' languag
 e development can be effectively fostered through communicative use. Commu
 nication still seems important\, but at the same time\, it is clearly not 
 enough\, and indeed in some ways it could undermine learning. This\nproble
 m has generally been looked at in terms of the impact of Communicative con
 cerns on learners' focus of attention.  However the problem can also be se
 en in terms of the significance of the systematicity of learning experienc
 es:\ndoes it matter whether the learners' learning experiences are shiftin
 g and relatively unpredictable and unstructured\, or to some degree recurr
 ent\, and if so\, why? A way of exploring this is to study a more structur
 ed type of\nexperience\, and this seminar will present the findings from a
  series of studies into The impact of identical task repetition.  The purp
 ose is to find out what happens when people repeat the same task\, what th
 is tells us about\ncommunicative repetition in a second language\, and whe
 ther the impact is relevant for promoting language development.  Working f
 rom samples of data\, I will try to argue that the language of task repeti
 tion can still be communicative\, that repetition can also help mediate le
 arners' attention\,\nand that it can provide opportunities for interesting
  kinds of exploratory change.  There might be interesting implications for
  the structuring of syllabuses\, and for research in instructed second lan
 guage development.
LOCATION:2S4\, Second Floor of the New Faculty Building\,   Faculty of Edu
 cation\, 184\, Hills Road
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