The Task-based Approach Revisited – A Passport for Employability
The Task-based Approach Revisited – A Passport for Employability

Summary/Abstract: In order to help graduates to become autonomous users of English for specific purposes (ESP) and meet the requirements of authentic professional environments, we consider that the task-based approach is the most reliable teaching technique, because it lays emphasis on the functional use of language. This article focuses on a project coordinated by the European Center for Modern Languages (2011) which offers guidelines for testing foreign languages using the task-based approach as a pedagogical method. The paper seeks to apply these guidelines to the teaching and assessment of integrated English skills at the level of both BA exams and graduation papers. As one of the European Union’s most important language policies is to improve the relevance and comparability of testing http://ec.europa.eu/education), we argue that the task-based approach allows a better, more transparent and reliable grading along all five language skills. The present paper shows two case studies which involve Bachelor’s degree students from the Faculty of Business Administration, as well as from the students of the Applied Modern Languages Department of the University of Bucharest. By putting the learners in real-life situations, similar to those they may encounter in their future profession, they are encouraged to focus on oral and written communication rather than on linguistic accuracy. Although the main beneficiaries of the task-based approach are the students, teachers may also have a lot to gain as they are challenged to select the most appropriate authentic teaching materials and to construct reliable evaluation grids. Thus, creativity and authenticity offer a new perspective on this teaching technique.

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