| Abstrakt: |
In an environment where enrollments are dropping in foreign language programs (e.g. Goldberg, Looney and Lusin 2015) and under-enrolled programs are regularly cut (e.g. Berman 2011), faculty are increasingly aware of the importance of retaining students. Much of the research on retention has focused on institutional factors and is often rooted in the theory of involvement (Astin 1984) and in the student engagement framework (e.g. Kuh, Cruce, Shoup, Kinzie and Gonyea 2008). The findings from research in this area typically lead to the creation of peer mentor programs (e.g. Hill and Reddy 2007) and learning communities (e.g. Barefoot, Warnock, Dickinson, Richardson and Roberts 1998), both of which do not involve pedagogy. In this talk we add to the limited number of studies that do highlight the importance of the classroom and classroom methodologies in lowering attrition. We argue that, in the foreign language classroom, task based language teaching (TBLT) complements the research that suggests greater student engagement and involvement lead to greater student retention. In TBLT, real world tasks define the curriculum, the syllabus, and determine the modes of assessment. The TBLT program is centered on progressing through and completing tasks, and language functions as a tool rather than as an object of study (Ellis 2003). We believe that this shift from a focus on language to a focus on meaning and purpose is likely to increase student engagement and involvement in the classroom and thus positively contribute to student retention at both the institutional and program levels (Braxton, Milem and Shaw Sullivan 2000). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
